Jim Ellermeyer continues his conversation with our friend Liss Victory about helping themselves and others, including Jim’s own place as a practicing Quaker and buddhist philosophies, the Pope, Hinduism, and more!

Jim Ellermeyer continues his conversation with our friend Liss Victory in New York City as we talk about hopefulness, dealing with depression and the feeling of “doom” circulating in the world, separating conspiracy with fact in her News Podcast project, The BROAD Cast News, in the case of the pandemic, her conservative roots, and how not taking care of herself hinders her ability to help others. 

Jim Ellermeyer is checking in with our friend Liss Victory in New York City to talk about her continued experience during the pandemic, the state of mind, or zeitgeist, of the city compared to Pittsburgh and Erie, PA, what it takes to make a move like this, visualizing what you want to do, and the action and effort to accomplish your goals. 

Jim Ellermeyer dials in to check in on Producer Mike as he’s been traveling across the country to reunite with his wife as part of his mother’s retirement trip during one of the most tumultuous times in the country.  What has been that experience of “connecting the in between” spaces of the country. 

Jim Ellermeyer and Producer Mike come from the pre-election past to discuss about the different between concern and worry as well as the methods that work for YOU to be successful in addiction recovery, wanting quick solutions, and the comfortable answers. 

Jim Ellermeyer continues his conversation with fellow counselor Gloria Rodriguez-Ransom as they discuss the disparities among minorities in the mental health system, the stereotypes that she sees with the latin community, stubbornness, stigmas in medication, the places in Pittsburgh that can help the bilingual population in mental health, the importance of self care and the difficulty in taking their own advice as counselors, coping with “Americanizing” of immigrant children in the family, how can you be an ally as a white person in your community. 

Jim Ellermeyer is joined by fellow counselor Gloria Rodriguez-Ransom as we discuss her upbringing as a Puerto Rican in Pittsburgh, her development growing up, the cultural shift, defining “latino” and where Puerto Ricans fall into the mix, and white privilege. 

Jim Ellermeyer continues his chat with Equine Therapy practitioner, Shanna Aughenbaugh, as we learn about her entrance into the Equine therapy world and how the Equine Assisted Psychotherapy had developed, what a session would look like for the participant, working with youth and patients with autism, finding where she belongs, taking risks in her life as a first generation college student, and more! 

Jim Ellermeyer is joined by a self proclaimed “Christian Cowgirl” and Equine Therapy practitioner, Shanna Aughenbaugh, as we discuss how she connected with horses in her life, how they respond to people, horses as herd animals, her faith,  learning to ride, losing her first horse suddenly, and her support system who encouraged her to stay in the horse world. 

Jim Ellermeyer and Producer Mike are discussing dealing some of the current events as we enter a month from a very heated election including the concept of “gaslighting ‘.  How is this concept being used on a grand scale, or more localized to break down an individual. 

Jim Ellermeyer is back and celebrating 22 years of sobriety as we reflect on the point where he finally accepted and received help with his obsession to use drugs and alcohol.  We discuss the 12 step program’s influence in his success, giving advice to others who are not accepting, willingness to change, telling his mother he was going to get help, the one individual that helped him with tough love and choosing to help others. 

Jim Ellermeyer is giving some STRAIGHT TALK as we discuss our “3 AM Friends”, why do we feel obligated, love, sympathy, interpretation, connecting with other humans. 

Jim Ellermeyer is back with Producer Mike to discuss how we can make better choices.  What does that mean?  How do we develop our intuition and beginner’s mind to assess situations in our lives with your gut feelings.  

Jim Ellermeyer is back with Producer Mike to discuss BOREDOM.  What happens when we are left to our own thoughts when we’re making bad decisions and are surrounded by individuals that are encouraging bad decisions and are emotionally needy. How do we attach to better people and places that will help elevate us.   How do we deal with boredom and share people. 

Jim Ellermeyer is joined once again by Natalie Bencivenga to continue their conversation as they begin to look at the awareness to the world around us due to the extra time from COVID-19 leading to the George Floyd, Me Too, and other Social Justice protests, considering how to be an ally as a white person, White Privilege, entitlement, the mask debate, journalism falling apart, fake news, the police, and how losing loved ones helped motivate her leaving the Post-Gazette.

Jim Ellermeyer is joined once again by Natalie Bencivenga to catch up with the changes in her life, and coping with the changes due to Covid-19 Pandemic to discuss the zeitgeist, thinking in ideologies and ideas, hero worship, the common needs people want in their lives we seem to disagree on, slowing down during the pandemic to rebuild and accept the situation, escaping busy culture, and the rapid fire of social justice issues.

Jim Ellermeyer is live once again from Highland Park in Pittsburgh, PA to review some bits of wisdom from over the years, including: Buy the Ticket, Words Are Forever, The Five Minute Rule, Naming and, Identify, Immediacy, What We're Not Going to Talk About, What Not to Do and I Choose.

Jim Ellermeyer is live once again from Highland Park in Pittsburgh, PA to review some bits of wisdom from over the years, including: Minds of Uncertainty, Pulling the Weeds, The Requirements to Be With You, Argument Party, Cast a Net, and two Buddha Stories: Cutting the Limb and a Package of Resentment.

Jim Ellermeyer is live from Highland Park in Pittsburgh, PA to review some bits of wisdom from over the years, including: Moving the Mountain, Time Travel, Time as Currency, Perspective, Your Life as a Movie, Abracadabra and Uncertainty Leads to Anxiety.

Jim Ellermeyer and Producer Mike are taking a look at this time of the Coronavirus from a mindset 30 years from now, the lack of information leading to minds of uncertainty leading to minds of anxiety, worry, and fear, finding good sources of information that will help navigate through the developing information and trying to understand other perspectives.