August 4, 2025 • 57 mins
Hi!! I would love to hear from you!
What happens when a woman raised in an isolated religious community finds the courage to walk away from everything she's ever known? In this deeply moving conversation, Hannah Stauber shares her remarkable journey from being married at 14 as the seventh wife to a 42-year-old man, to becoming a family nurse practitioner, author, and women's advocate.
Hannah's story defies imagination – leaving her polygamous marriage at 34 with only an eighth-grade education, she earned her GED and completed multiple nursing degrees within nine years, overcoming dyslexia and ADHD along the way. But the most inspiring aspect isn't just what she accomplished, but how she did it.
With extraordinary grace, Hannah reveals the micro-habits that made her transformation possible. A five-minute daily meditation. The healing power of running as both movement and therapy. The gradual building of self-trust. These seemingly small practices created the foundation for monumental change in her life. As Hannah explains, "If I can go from a child bride with an eighth-grade education to become a family nurse practitioner, you can do hard things too."
Throughout our conversation, Hannah shares insights from her book "Give Yourself Permission: Overcoming Female Oppression" that will resonate with anyone who has ever felt trapped by circumstances or limited by others' expectations. Her perspective on unconditional self-acceptance offers a revolutionary approach to healing: "We're worthy of love just because we're human," she reminds us – a simple truth with profound implications.
Now specializing in functional medicine and pursuing additional certification as a psychiatric nurse practitioner, Hannah is developing a coaching program to help women reclaim their authentic voices. Her journey demonstrates that no matter how constrained our beginnings, we all possess the capacity for profound self-reinvention when we give ourselves permission to thrive.
Connect with Hannah at hannahstauber.com and discover how your own small, consistent actions might lead to extraordinary
email Hannah at Hstauber@hannahstauber.com. Mention Empowered Ease, and she will send you the meditation.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Welcome to this week's episode of Empowered Ease
, where we shine a light oninspiring women making
meaningful impacts in the livesof others.
Today, I'm thrilled tointroduce a truly remarkable
guest, hannah Stober, whose lifejourney exemplifies resilience,
courage and transformation.
Courage and transformation.
(00:29):
Hannah Stober, formerly HannahBjorkman, is a powerful voice
and advocate for women'sempowerment.
Having navigated anextraordinary path from being a
child bride in a polygamouscommunity to becoming a family
nurse, practitioner, a speakerand an author.
With an unwavering passion forempowering others, hannah has
used her experiences to upliftand inspire women across the
(00:50):
globe.
In this episode, we'll delveinto Hannah's incredible story
of breaking free from theconstraints of her past to
pursue a future filled with newpossibilities.
Leaving a life with just aneighth grade education, she
embarked on a journey ofself-discovery and academic
(01:10):
pursuit, earning her GED andprogressing through an
impressive series of nursingdegrees within nine years.
I know because I went tonursing school with Miss Hannah.
So Hannah's career in medicinespans psychiatric hospitals,
women's health, labor anddelivery, and holistic family
(01:31):
practice medicine.
She specializes in areas suchas hormones and functional
medicine, which reflect on hercommitment to holistic healing.
Beyond her professionalachievements, she is a
passionate public speaker, amentor and the author of the
book Give Yourself PermissionOvercoming Female Oppression,
(01:53):
which this is my copy if you arewatching the video.
So join us this week as weexplore how Hannah Stober
harnesses her experiences,insights and unwavering
determination to empower womento embrace their authenticity,
joy and independence.
Whether through her medicalwork, public speaking or
(02:13):
everyday acts of empowerment,hannah's story is a testament to
the strength of the humanspirit.
Get ready to be inspired byHannah's journey and insights on
making meaningful change inboth personal and professional
arenas.
Sit back, relax and enjoy thisfabulous interview on Empowered
Ease.
Welcome, hannah, to EmpoweredEase.
(02:41):
I'm so happy that you came onmy podcast.
How are you today?
Speaker 2 (02:45):
I'm doing happy that you came on my podcast.
How are you today?
I'm doing really well, thanksfor having me.
Speaker 1 (02:50):
Yeah, it's a pleasure .
I'm really excited about it.
Yeah, me too.
Hannah and I went to like ourundergrad actual nursing program
together in Utah like I don'teven know 10 years ago now.
It's probably been 10 years nowor close.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
Well, over 10 years ago actually.
Yeah, it's been 10 years now,or close well over 10 years ago
actually.
Speaker 1 (03:05):
Yeah, it's been 10 years since we graduated, so or
11 yeah, it's been a while.
We were not like close innursing school but we like knew
each other on a friendly basis.
So this is so cool for me tohave you back and see, like
learn more about your story andall that you've done, because I
knew like whiffs of your story.
(03:27):
But so, for those of you thatdon't know, hannah has an
incredible story and she wrotean amazing book, which, if
you're seeing the video I'mholding up, but it's called Give
Yourself Permission OvercomingFemale Oppression, and so, yeah,
tell me a little bit about thebook and, yeah, so I wrote the
book because I genuinely wouldlove to connect to more women
(03:52):
and empower them and help themfeel like they can do really
hard things.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
If I can go through this from a child bride with an
eighth grade education andbecome a family nurse
practitioner, you can do it too.
That's the message of my book.
When I left my ex-husbandbecause I was a polygamist wife,
I married him as the seventhwife.
He was 42 at the age at thetime and I was 14.
(04:22):
The time and I was 14 and Ileft him in 2012.
It was very difficult.
When you left him, I was about34.
You could even call it a cult,the way that I I grew up and the
religion that I was taught.
It was very isolated, secretive, secluded.
(04:43):
People didn't know about it andeach family was very much
independent.
It was actually part of theLeBaron group back in the 70s.
Oh wow, they had a hit listwhere they just killed a whole
bunch of people.
Oh, my gosh, kind of like anoff.
(05:03):
It was that line where theyclaimed their priesthood.
But he he, tom Green was afriend of my dad's, and so I
grew up knowing who he was.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
And you were part of the same group.
Per se, yes, but everyone wasindependent, yeah yeah, because
you guys, it sounds like youwere living in a different part
of the country, right, just?
Speaker 2 (05:31):
it's like there might be like summertime
get-togethers where a bunch ofindependent polygamous families
would join up and socialize forsome activities and stuff like
that so where I'm.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
Okay, I'm in the midwest, I lived in utah for a
while, but so a lot of mylisteners are in the midwest and
this like even okay, so they're.
When you're listening to this,just not to interrupt you of
hannah.
But so what the group hannahwas a part of is not what you
would hear of this like everydaymormons.
That's like a more christianmodern day, like it's a very
it's a different religion thanwhat hannah and I grew up in.
(06:05):
Like a fundamentalist,different like a sect that broke
off of that correct and likeit's more like they use that as
an I don't want to put words inanyone's mouth, but it's
different than when you hear oflike lds or mormon, like
hannah's religion.
What is not as separate fromthat?
Even though Utah sounds likethat it's its own thing, right,
(06:30):
its own version.
That's more.
How would you say that?
Speaker 2 (06:37):
before the Mormon group became Mormonism In order
for the LDS church to, becauseoriginally they were living
polygamy and it went undergroundso that they could become a
state.
And so that's where, like,there's all these different
(06:57):
offshoots of fundamentalistgroups, because each one of them
think they're the one true andmighty, like the prophet is a
different person who hears theword of God.
Speaker 1 (07:07):
I've read a lot of books about it but they're so
different.
And then I lived there, butit's so different than growing
up in it and knowing, andthere's so much to know From the
LeBaron's, the All Red Group,the Kingston Group, just all
different kinds of independentfundamentalists who are living
that lifestyle and you can findYouTube videos of a lot of this.
(07:30):
Like, if you're curious, I waslike I'm so curious because it's
probably blowing some people inthe Midwest.
Some of my listeners areprobably like what?
But yeah, so it's like hard totalk about because it's like so
like I, you know there's so muchinvolved in it and it's so
(07:53):
sensitive and I don't know.
Don't want to offend you in anyway and I also want to like
hear your version of it and beclear and I just think what
you've made of it so beautiful,so yeah, thanks.
So, okay, the book beautifully.
You now, after going throughnurse practitioner school, which
(08:17):
, with an eighth grade education, got your GED, left this awful
situation that you basicallydescribe in the book.
This like what is so inspiring.
This which I am lackingpersonally.
So I like wrote so many notesabout how you like self-motivate
I know you have a portion inhere about it, but just um,
(08:37):
showing up for yourself andhaving that personal drive and
um, it's just a beautiful storyof how you reconnect to you and
got yourself.
Your GED went to nine years,became like a fundamental nurse
practitioner.
Now you are a functional nursepractitioner and now you help
(08:58):
other women by speaking, bysharing your story.
And, yeah, how are youspreading this word?
How are you, um, how are youhelping other women these days?
Speaker 2 (09:10):
so I plan to launch a women's coaching program and
I'll probably do it next fallbecause I have a few things that
I'm taking care of in themeantime, like my psychiatric np
program.
I'm getting a certificate inthat.
I just think it will up leveleverything for the coaching
program.
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
I love that.
That's like my.
So I started off in mentalhealth and then went to nursing
school.
Now I'm like I've been in neurothe whole time but I read a lot
of mental health books.
I've totally thought about thepsych FNP program because it's
just like where my interest lies.
I can't imagine like and yourbook is so like you know,
(09:51):
beautifully written and easy todigest in such like positive way
.
Well, I love hearing that.
Speaker 2 (09:59):
Yeah.
So it was not the easiest thingto write because I couldn't
read in the third grade, I wasdyslexic and I didn't really
understand that because theykind of just didn't hold me back
because I just worked two tothree times harder than the next
person and they just didn'twant me to lose all hope and
just stop trying.
And then with the ADHD it wasjust, it was a challenge writing
(10:22):
the book and I can't tell youhow many times I redid things,
redid things, re-edited it.
Then you put it out there tolike some beta readers who like
read it and then give youfeedback and that's pretty like
hard to take some of that, thatcritical feedback, but it makes
the book so much better.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
Yeah yeah, feedback's so hard, but so like, isn't
that like this whole thing?
I read this whole section, Ithink, like right before we got
on, I was just like I had takennotes.
I was reading and you weretalking about like being honest
with yourself, being able toaccept your fears, and looking
yourself in the mirror, and yousaid that feedback.
I'm like that is the hardestpart, isn't it always like that?
Speaker 2 (10:58):
Oh it is Holding up the mirror, and that's like the
truth of it, like we can't trulymove into our full potential
until we're really honest withwho we are and that includes our
flaws and all and being able tolive in a space where we
unconditionally accept all ofourselves and sometimes it's a
(11:22):
work in progress well, it's alife in progress, right like
it's a process that we're alwaysI love.
Speaker 1 (11:30):
Have you ever heard when people describe it kind of
as a spiral, like you're alwaysrevisiting the same issues but
there's just like a little, theyhave a little less bite or
they're a little different thistime?
Speaker 2 (11:39):
yeah, spiral that probably just continues to go up
or down, whichever way you lookat it.
Yeah, yeah, very much so.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
It's beautiful.
Speaker 2 (11:51):
I love it, yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
So through this book, you are starting a program
which you will be launchinglater.
And what does that programentail?
How will you?
Speaker 2 (12:06):
I'm going to do like a 12 week program and kind of
just break it up and at first,like, the first part of my book
is my story and I don't know ifyou noticed when you started
reading it.
You probably could pick up onthat voice of a 14 year old
child, like you can hear it inhow I speak, right, and that's
(12:26):
that's the subject that I got somuch feedback on, because it
was 20 pages and I didn't reallywant to expand that part
because it was hard.
It was a lot of work to writeyour own story.
Yeah, there was a lot ofhealing in that.
So with the coaching program Ikind of want to break the book
up into 12 different sections,that's I've got the blueprint of
(12:46):
how I wrote it to.
To create that.
There was a a program while Iwas still with my ex that I went
through.
It was kind of intensive, butit was a successful life
management class and it kind ofbreaks some of those barriers in
my thinking to open my mind andexpand myself.
(13:08):
But I just think there's somany women out there that could
benefit from this and turning itinto a 12 week program and we
could meet through zoom.
I might even do a live trialrun.
It like maybe holding out hope.
We'll see.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
I love that.
I love that I.
What I love about your book islike to me, like I'm a huge like
nurse advocate, but I feel likeyou know they always tell
nurses to teach at like aneighth grade level.
Do you know what I mean?
And so for you to say that waslike the age of your voice
writing it, I don't know,there's something about like how
(13:46):
you wrote this that I thinkwould be very digestible for so
many people out there.
You know, and I don't know howto say that in another way, but
I just feel like it's such anapproachable way to talk about
some very intense subjects,because I don't want to make
light of this or like cheapen itby talking about it in this
45-minute segment.
But you know that you've gonethrough some considerable things
(14:08):
in your life, considerabletrauma, and there's a lot of
warnings in here.
There's a lot of like, there'sa lot of advice, there's a lot
of like beautiful tips andstories and perspective and I
love your focus on the tinymicro habits and then the broad
(14:30):
perspective, like being able todraw your perspective out of
where you can get trapped inyour head, in your world, and
then focusing on the itty bittychanges in your life Cause it's
kind of two ends of the spectrumand two of the hardest things
to do, but the things that makethe most impact.
Speaker 2 (14:45):
Absolutely those little tiny micro habits that we
adjust in such a simple way.
Really they make such amagnificent difference in the
great perspective as you'removing through life If you want
to see true change.
You know the little story ofthe tortoise and the hare and
winning the race.
You know those that go all outare going to, you know, crash.
(15:06):
But the little tortoise justkept going a little bit by, a
little bit and you've got toreally sink that into your
foundation of life.
It's just keep going a littlebit, keep chipping a little bit
at a way at a time.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Yeah, yeah, I love that.
For me.
I find, like you know, thelittle things that I need to
come back to are like the littleways that I stopped taking care
of myself.
When I get like caught up Cause, um, kind of my story is
burnout, like extreme burnoutfrom like intense nursing
forever is kind of what broughtme back to the mental health
path you know, and what itreally was like was like a shift
(15:44):
in the time in my life.
I know we talked about thisbefore we got on a little.
Hannah and I were joking alittle bit about perimenopause
and she now has gotten somecontinued education in hormone
therapy, which I can't wait topick your brain about.
But how this time in your lifecan also bring up some
unresolved things from when youwere younger, so a lot of dealt
(16:05):
with childhood trauma that Idon't even think I had like
acknowledged.
You know walls I put up that Ididn't know were even there
until I tried to take them down.
You know things that are scarycame up for me and I kind of
crashed and my way back was, youknow, reconnecting with myself,
um, and I noticed that, youknow, the small things that I
(16:25):
need to focus on are and are thefirst things that I let go, or
maybe some small like self-carethings that are like my triggers
to know, like, hey, things maybe getting a little out of
control here, um, so I thinkthat's great advice on all
levels.
So, um, what are some of thethings that you do?
Cause, like um, your book hasso much like great functional
(16:46):
and I know you mentioned runningwas one of your big things back
in the day.
That helps you find clarity andthere's so much to be said about
, like you know, walking andrunning for your mental health.
But what are some of the otherlike tips or advice or things
for people to be able to?
You know we talk about theseconcepts.
You wrote them so beautifullyin here that they're so easy to
(17:07):
digest, but when it comes toactually putting them into
practice, you know there'sthere's barriers there and it's
hard, you know.
So what are some tips or somethings you advice you would tell
women who feel like that soundsgreat, but that's just so
overwhelming right now to eventhink about um.
Well, beginning with where youwant to end up, um that's a
(17:29):
great advice, like, because Ithink some people don't even
know at this point.
Speaker 2 (17:34):
It's like a hamster wheel, we're all just like yeah,
I mean, you really got to beable to think about where, where
you're going and what you wantand then bring that into the
current present tense of now andlittle things, and you just
start small, like if you want towork out, you know, maybe you
(17:55):
just start by building a smallhabit, whether it's just taking
a walk around the block everyday, and then, once you start
enjoying that, you could expandthat into more.
You know, when everybody's atdifferent levels, sometimes
people are an all or nothing.
We just got to make sure thatyou're not going to crash and
burn because you did all ornothing, but just establishing
(18:17):
those foundations that are goingto get you where you want.
So let's say, for example, youwanted to lose weight.
You really need to like connectwithin yourself.
What would your life feel likeIf that was the version of you
that was in the present tense?
So, instead of focusing on, oh,someday I'll be there, no,
(18:41):
bring it now, bring it right now.
What does it feel like and when?
I would do a five minutemeditation and really connect at
the end of the meditation to myinner joy, and you know what
that feels like for me.
See and feel yourself how youtruly want to be, and that just
little, tiny bit of connection.
(19:02):
It's like a paradigm shift inyour life.
It.
Once you really connect withthat, really feel it, it's like
things just start changing foryou and as you step into that,
you start to you know if, if Iwas the perfect version of
myself, what things would I bedoing, what habits would I have,
and just you know.
(19:24):
Write a few down and then yougot to really connect with it.
Because if it's, if it'ssomething that you truly value,
you're going to connect with it.
But if it's just like a wish,you're never going to get there.
You kind of really got to digdeep is this something that you
really align with, connect withand value?
And then you just put yourselfinto that space and continually
(19:47):
do just a little bit every dayand expand.
Speaker 1 (19:51):
I love that.
It's beautiful advice,beautiful advice.
So I love that.
I love you also mentioned inthat process and you touched on
this a bit here is like theimportance of in that like
you're talking about small babysteps but also in avoiding shame
(20:12):
and self-blame in that process.
So what, I guess, what rolewould or how self sabotaging
would shame, or how can youavoid shame?
What are some tips for that?
Because I know like with a lotof my clients I would say like
50% of them their inner criticis like a lot of what we spend a
(20:34):
time talking about, cause somepeople have like a very, very
overactive inner critic wherethey're constantly tearing, like
self-sabotaging, tearingthemselves down.
So what advice do you have foravoiding shame and self-blame?
Speaker 2 (20:47):
So that, and there is so many different variations of
that, and I think that that'sprobably the core of a lot of
our mental health issues.
But what enabled me to changeand go from the space of being a
polygamist wife that felt likenothing but a robot.
I may as well have just beendead as to continue my life in
(21:09):
that pattern, but look atyourself.
I'm going to use my glasseshere as an example, rose colored
glasses, and let's just putthose on and take a good look at
ourself, unconditionally,through a new set of eyes.
(21:30):
For example, for me to leave, Ihave children and I never
wanted them to feel the painthat I was hiding from them,
from ever even seeing and wouldI want them to repeat into the
(21:52):
same footsteps of the life I waswalking.
And I had to.
In order for me to make thatchange, I had to feel that
separation and if I put myselfin like my child's life, because
I, I and they walked the life Iwalked, I would know what they
(22:12):
feel and I would never want thatfor them.
But I had to have like thatunconditional love and
acceptance because in my, in myworld, if I left, if I got
divorced, it would be kind ofthe end of things, like God
would never love me if I didthat.
You know that, that shaming,that guilt, but I it's almost
(22:37):
like I had to look at myselfunconditionally through some
rose colored glasses with purelove, like would God still love
me if I left?
And just this overwhelmingfeeling of yes, he would, that
(22:58):
space of being able to let go ofthat shame and that guilt.
Like we're all born into thisworld and if you look at your
child that you're holding,they're worthy of love just
because they exist.
It's not based on our shame andwhat we're not measuring up to.
(23:23):
We're worthy of love justbecause we're human.
We're worthy of love justbecause we're human.
And when we take it back likethat it's a little easier to
separate the judgment and theshame or the self-hatred.
And I mean I even like wouldput like a right on my mirror I
(23:45):
am worthy, I am lovable and feelit like connect with that for
just like 20 seconds every day.
Speaker 1 (23:58):
And it can be life changing.
I love that.
I love that you're mentioningthis like affirmations and
meditation as ways to likereally connect with yourself,
cause that's the message I heardin your book and the message
I'm hearing you saying is likewe really have to look inward
and connect with who we are andlearn to trust that like inner
voice and allow ourselves tolisten to what we're trying to
say and trust that a little bit.
(24:20):
So I think that's really hardfor a lot of people.
You know we get so disconnected, so caught up in trying to do
and be and say all these things.
So it's such a beautifulmessage I love so.
In your book you have, I reallyfeel like you touch on so many,
so many things here.
You talk a lot about likewarning signs, about like female
(24:45):
oppression, just saying youcould break that down into so
many angles.
Do you know what I mean?
So many specific things.
There's so much involved inyour story and what you've gone
through and you're soknowledgeable about it Just
talking before this, just aboutlike the history of everything
that you're really like what wetalked about at the beginning
with like the LDS and the Mormonculture, and you know the
history of women and you knowthe patriarchy and all that
(25:07):
stuff and there's so much ofthis in your book touched on.
So what, what led you to focuson this, this specific avenue of
working with women to toconnect to themselves?
What, what you know cause youcould be speaking, you know,
(25:28):
through law enforcement agenciesand taking an advocacy angle
that way you know, because youcould be speaking you know,
through law enforcement agenciesand taking an advocacy angle
that way you know what led youto take the nursing route, to
take the nurture out, to turnaround and like, try to care and
comfort, like you know thissoft, you know route.
What, what, what led you downthis path?
Speaker 2 (25:45):
Yeah, the soft route.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
I do.
It just seems soft compared tosome of the other ways you could
go about it.
I read your book and I feelanger and I feel you, just even
from knowing you.
I said this before.
But like you have this graceabout you the softness.
Even listening to you, I feelmore comforted and soft, like
like more grounded, and that'sthe energy I got from you like
(26:10):
10 years ago.
So it's not something,something that you've cultivated
since then.
Maybe you have cultivated iteven more, even reading your
book.
That's the impression I getfrom you.
Personally, I'm a fiery person.
I'm like rage oh my gosh, I'mso angry.
Even the way we're talkingabout this, your program, I feel
this grace, this softness.
(26:31):
I just want to know what yoursecret is to it.
Share with us.
Speaker 2 (26:36):
I love it.
What led you to that and defineit like that?
Because, like I love astrologytoo yeah, me too.
Just stay so grounded like I'ma Taurus, oh my gosh.
So I really feel like I havehad to learn how to ground
myself so deeply and so stronglythat if a tornado hit, I would
(26:58):
still be firmly planted to theground.
Oh, I feel that from you.
Speaker 1 (27:02):
I feel that like I kind of want to get a little
closer to you because I'm alittle airy person, so I love
grounded people.
Speaker 2 (27:07):
I feel anchored, but then at the same time I have a
lot of fire in my astrology aswell, like I have like a
stellium in the in the Ariesaspect, like my moon is in Aries
in like the seventh house andstuff and I just find it
fascinating and fun.
But it's like kind of justgiven me like a power boost of
(27:29):
this drive to move forward.
Speaker 1 (27:32):
Oh so the steady like motivation is your fire.
Yes, I love that.
That's great.
That's a great fire to have.
Speaker 2 (27:41):
I mean it's there.
But then I still got to checkmyself back in and make sure I
still got my feet firmly plantedon the ground.
I love that.
Speaker 1 (27:49):
I love that.
So yeah, but what led you tonursing and caring for people?
Because it's intense.
Speaker 2 (27:57):
I don't know.
It just resonates with who I am.
Speaker 1 (28:00):
Yeah, softer, feminine, nurturing side yeah, I
get that from you Like evenyeah, even as a kid, when you
talked about yourself when youwere younger, I think you talked
a lot about that, like how youwere kind of drawn to some of
that about yourself when youwere younger.
I think you talked a lot aboutthat, like how you were kind of
drawn to some of that.
Is this so weird?
To talk to people who have readabout your childhood and talk
to you like they know it, likethat, like, oh, I read in your
book about when you were a kid.
Is that weird?
I don't know if I'd say weird,like I one of the NPs that I
(28:26):
work with one day she saidsomething to me and I looked at
her like how do you know that?
She says, oh, I'm reading yourbook.
Like oh, yeah, I forgot I putthis on public display.
I am, I work in a hospital andlike and manage a unit.
And sometimes somebody will saysomething to me and I'm like I
just forget when I'm there thatI have a podcast like that
people, that there's actuallypeople there that listen to it.
(28:47):
Sometimes I'm like oh yeah.
Then I get a little embarrassedbecause I'm like, oh yeah, I
love that.
That's awesome, it's funny whenwe're in our roles.
So in your daytime life, do youhave like a functional?
Speaker 2 (29:04):
medicine practice that you're working at still.
So I worked in functionalmedicine for a couple of years
and then I stepped intoorthopedics, mostly with like
auto accidents and stuff, butwe're adding like a cash pay
portion side to that.
That's um based on hormones,hormones.
So that's really exciting andcoming up soon.
(29:24):
Yeah, um, but privatelypracticing.
I haven't like fully launchedall of that.
Okay, I plan to soon likeexciting, like maybe next fall
is when I want to fully launchinto that.
Speaker 1 (29:43):
Oh, combine all these skills and your experience,
like hormone knowledge, psych,that's like how beautiful.
Speaker 2 (29:50):
And then neuroscience of it, like I'm currently like
working in a lot of autoaccidents, so the concussion
world is actively there and thetreatments that we're helping
people with and I love it, ohyeah.
Speaker 1 (30:04):
Dude I so I've been neuro, you know, from psych to
now ICU, but I've been neurospecialty for like the last five
years.
But I had a woman on my showshe's one of my first episodes
Crystal Hurley, and she she's aTBI, I don't know what to call
her.
She had a TBI, a traumatic TBI,and lost her speech and she got
(30:25):
it back through art therapy andnow she does teaches art
therapy, which is really cool.
But I love stuff like thatbecause the brain is like the,
the last frontier.
It's the thing we really likeof the body know the least about
.
We're learning more and more.
Um, that's so cool how it canrepair itself.
You know how we can reprogramit.
It's more like it's we're.
More our sleep times are likemore spongy times where we can
(30:50):
like have more change like.
There's just so muchinteresting things about the
brain.
Speaker 2 (30:55):
The neuroplasticity of the brain is so fascinating
it is.
I did include a little bit ofresearch on the meditation and
how we can.
The mri images like they'reshowing the growth and the
neuroplasticity like that peoplehave through meditation.
Speaker 1 (31:13):
It's so cool.
Yeah, I love it, I love it.
I know that like not at allbrain types can use that, but
for me, meditation like has beenone of the biggest things in my
life.
It's funny because actuallywhen we went through nursing
school 10 years ago, it was likewhen I was practicing the most.
I was meditating like twice aday and I was like and I was
(31:33):
like so zen down.
I think it's like actually howI got through like all the
things I did at that time andthen I kind of like became a
nurse, got farther away from it,burnt out and then reconnected.
So now I'm like big meditation,breath work, you know, like
calm your nervous system, calmyour vagus nerve, all that fun
stuff.
So, yeah, like all came fullcircle and I love that.
(31:58):
Like also this kind of camefull circle.
I'm back here and these arelike the thing I'm learning, the
things that have helped youalong the way too.
So it's just beautiful.
Speaker 2 (32:07):
That's awesome yeah.
Speaker 1 (32:09):
So if people want to find your book, I know I'm going
to put, obviously, links in theshow notes.
Oh, and I know if you wrote ameditation speaking of
meditation, I know you weregoing to gift it, so we'll put a
link to that in the show notesto see if you can download
Hannah's meditation.
Do you want to tell us a littlebit about your meditation?
Speaker 2 (32:29):
Yeah, on my meditation and it's like a
little micro habit that you canadd into things it just came in
a point in my life where I wassuper overwhelmed by life itself
.
I was working as a full timehospice nurse as well as in
nurse practitioner school and Ijust was so overwhelmed and I
(32:49):
had a blended family and mygrandmother had just passed away
and I didn't even know that shewas on hospice and it just kind
of was like a kind of abreaking point and every time I
thought about my grandmother Ijust had this feeling let go,
let go.
And that's when I started tomeditate and I just did like
(33:09):
five minutes I insight timer Ilove insight timer and my little
creative brain would just kindof take me on this journey.
But if we also tap it into, likeEMDR and like my previous
running history, like I think Iput myself into like my own
meditative trance throughrunning, yeah, left right body
(33:32):
motion and I was training for amarathon and all of those
thoughts I would just kind ofwork through as I was running
and so with the meditation, likeI just started, like tapping my
fingers as I do the meditationand I think it just kind of
helps with that neuroplasticityof it.
Yeah, but I would just have myown little visual of how I let
(33:58):
go, like falling back into likea pool of water and feeling the
water just carry away all ofthose worries.
Like, in every time you let goof one of those worries, you
just like okay, I'm going tosurrender the worry I have about
this daughter, I'm going tosurrender the stress I have over
this test, or I'm going tosurrender the complications of
(34:19):
my marriage relationship or theburdens of the step family.
I'm just going to surrender andjust let the water carry it
away and mother nature can justturn it into something beautiful
for me and I'm just going totrust the process and every time
you're able to like, recognizeoh yeah, this is stressing me,
I'm letting it go.
And just that, five minutes ofevery day, just let it go.
(34:41):
Let it go and it's almost likeyou put yourself in a higher
perspective and you're notfighting those battles, you're
letting go and allowing theuniverse to support you through
them and things start alaligning.
Like my hospice patients, themedications were arriving on
time instead of having all thesedifferent complications with
them, things just startedworking better.
Speaker 1 (35:02):
So I love that and that's like one of the hardest
things right, like learning tolet go it is so scary so it's so
scary I think I let gosometimes.
And then just recently I wentthrough this experience.
I paid for this coach and shedid like this crazy sound
healing and all this letting go.
And she said this thing like Ispent a lot of control with you
(35:23):
and I was like I started cryinghysterically.
But she was so right and she'slike what does it feel like to
like think about letting that go?
And I was like I don't evenknow what would contain it,
contain me and it was just likethe scariest thought on such a
level.
It's like I thought I had letgo until she said that so it's
so, it's so great to have like atool to help you, Cause it's.
(35:45):
I feel like life is learning tolet go over and over again
Sometimes, especially this likeself-healing journey, it's like
you think you get somewhere andthen you learn that there's
another layer to this and I haveto learn to let go a little
deeper frustrating right, it'slike it's not doesn't
necessarily get easier, but itdoes get better.
Speaker 2 (36:07):
So it definitely gets richer, it definitely gets
deeper.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
Yes, yes, I love that .
That's a great way to describeit.
I love I read kind of in yourin your book that you were
inspired by Byron Katie Anybodyelse.
That was a big inspiration toyou.
Speaker 2 (36:27):
That's cool.
Byron Katie that was.
That was really huge.
That was when my ex-husband wasin prison from like 2001 to
2007.
I listened to her audio bookand it just helped me get real
with the honesty of ourself.
I would recommend her stuff toeveryone.
Speaker 1 (36:47):
I'm about to read her book.
One of my clients gave it to meas a gift.
After we were done, she sent methe Loving what Is her newest
book.
I haven't started it yet, butit's like my next book to read.
You actually made me dig it outand put it on top of my book
list, like reading your book,Because I was like this is like
the third person to mention thathas mentioned her and someone
sent me the book.
I'm going to read it.
So I put it on top.
Speaker 2 (37:26):
So it's going?
Yeah, I would.
There's so much like that onsuch a little micro, tiny level,
every day.
That was taking place while myex was in prison of realigning
myself with my own authenticityand truth that I think came from
her work.
I don't even like randomly,like look up YouTube videos of
inner child work and maybe findlike a five minute meditation
and do it and you're like, oh mygosh, I'm bawling.
Speaker 1 (37:39):
Oh my God, I cannot.
The first time I did an innerchild meditation like I was
skeptical.
So also the first time someonetold me to feel where an emotion
was in your body, I thoughtthey were crazy.
I'm like what are you talkingabout, we don't feel emotions.
Okay, totally my light yearspast that.
But the first time I did theinner child one, I thought it
was so stupid.
But the minute I actually didit I felt this release on like a
(38:01):
weird deep, like it was a huge,just a little like that hadn't
felt before and I was like, ohmy God, there's so much to
comforting and going in andspending time with your inner
child.
It does healing on levels thatis like really hard to my dog's
escaping the room if you'rewatching the video, sorry but
(38:21):
yeah, there's a lot to it Ithink my husband.
Speaker 2 (38:24):
Oh sorry, let me mute it so among other individuals
that kind of inspired me on mypath was Louise Hayes.
I'd look up a lot of her stuff.
She even had some meditationsand she talks about, you know,
(38:45):
emotions correlating withdifferent parts of the body and
it's just.
It just feels like there's somuch authenticity and truth
within that.
I agree we really do need tolike tune in to our bodies and
how we're feeling things,because it's telling us
something.
Speaker 1 (39:05):
Agreed, I read this book.
I don't know if I have it nearme Because I can never remember.
Yes, I have not.
Okay, sorry, I read this book.
Yes, I've got.
Okay, sorry, I read this book,let me.
It's called Blink by MalcolmGladwell, and it's all about
(39:27):
intuition and how, like you area little micro computer and that
sometimes those things firefaster than your brain can
process things, and how yourintuition, like he studies those
, these little micro moments inpeople and how accurate they
actually are.
And so cool because you know wetalk.
I am like very into holisticand also like a little into what
(39:50):
people would call like thewoo-woo world.
You know, like, because becauseI found truth in it when I
practice those things, I foundbenefit in it, you know.
And then this kind of is like abridge between the two a little
bit to me, because he takes thescientific method and proves
like the accuracy of this.
So I loved that because as anurse I feel like I'm always
(40:10):
like battling both worlds, alittle bit of like I needed to
be proved, I need to be likesome scientific here, but also
there's a lot we don't know.
There's room to learn, room togrow.
Speaker 2 (40:22):
That's really cool.
I think I need to read thatbook.
Speaker 1 (40:25):
I'll send it to you, okay.
So I will put a link to yourmeditation.
I love all this meditation talktoo, because for me and it
makes all the difference, like Ithink I've said before, I'm
working the floor like as an ICUnurse.
I don't even like go into workanymore without doing a breath
work or a mindful or ameditation, just to be able to
like calm my nervous system,because you can't listen to
(40:49):
yourself if you're likespiraling, like tap in and
figure out what you need.
So I love that.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
You can't think critically if you're so under
such stress.
So learning to surrender andexist calmly in a chaotic world
is critical to function.
As you know, nurses andproviders yeah.
Speaker 1 (41:16):
So I ask everyone this that comes on my show but
what's your like go-to self-carewhen things get rough or the
world gets difficult?
What's your go-to to like?
Bring yourself back to you umnature.
Speaker 2 (41:31):
That helps me a lot and exercise and a little bit of
meditation.
Yeah, I love that, that fiveminute meditation.
There were times when I wouldjust take that five minutes.
Okay, I have a five minutebreak in between patients.
I'm just gonna step aside andrecenter myself and come back.
Speaker 1 (41:52):
Yes, there was another thing you said that I
wanted to touch on too.
Like I don't want to take itlightly, because I think there
is a lot of power in this.
You were talking about how muchbenefit is in when you are
running like, how much you aregetting out of it with, like
stimulating both sides of yourbrain and all of that, like in
the somatic world.
And I mean even walking doesthe same thing.
I think it's so cool.
(42:13):
Like you know people always Iwonder, like they say, like the
runner's high that you get.
But so my best friend and Iwe've been running partners for
years on and off.
We run like that most fivemiles, nothing crazy, no, no
marathon runners here.
But we run like a 5k pretty,pretty frequently and we always
talk, we process our lives, weprocess what's going on and we
(42:35):
have like that, we have thistheory, you know, like this is
really where it's at right,because something just cracks
open when you're running.
It's like you're able toprocess things easier.
So I had this theory with herthat we had talked about, and on
my birthday we usually run likea 5k on our birthday and I got
my husband to run it with us andhe, he.
We usually run like a 5k on ourbirthday and I got my husband
to run it with us and he he'shad like a very troubled past.
(42:56):
He didn't talk about it a lot.
You know, he's typicalmidwestern male.
Probably could put a littlemore effort into his mental
health at times.
But so we go running and he'snot a talker, he's a very big
introvert.
He has a lot of social anxiety.
He starts cracking open whilewe're running and sharing things
with her.
I've never heard him say hejust processing.
(43:16):
And I'm like, oh my God,there's so much truth to that.
So I actually do walkingsessions with some of my clients
.
Now we'll either like put inheadphones and walk together or
I'll meet them and we'll walkand process stuff, because it's
a totally different kind ofsession and experience.
I feel like when you're moving,right, I didn't want to like go
past that because I'm likeyou're so right, there's so much
(43:38):
to that, just even walkingevery day and talking to
somebody yeah, I do take lots ofbreaks um at work, like if
there's a little bit of slowtime and just go walk around the
block.
I'll do that sometimes in thestairwells, like I'll just like
walk up and down the stairwells,like you know, especially if
I'm like this is a rough day,I'm just gonna go off the
(44:00):
stairwell see if I can't likeburn some of this angst off.
So I love that one.
Okay, well, it's been such apleasure having you, hannah.
I absolutely love talking toyou and catching up.
I love being able to share yourbook.
I really honestly, there's somuch in this book we can't talk
(44:21):
about it all.
It's all not like.
You know, it goes into detailabout Hannah's childhood and
then also just so many beautifultips in here, warning signs,
you know, beautiful things aboutwomen, the culture of women.
It's such a beautifully femininebook of such a there's so much
(44:43):
grace in writing about the heavytopics you wrote about and it's
also so educational.
I just feel like this book isso beautiful so I recommend it
to anyone.
Um, and you know with that showthat just came out that
everyone was obsessed with thelike you know I'm talking about
like it's like the TikTok girls,like the like there's like a
height heightened interest inthings.
Um, lds right now with that youknow that TikTok group that
(45:07):
like people went crazy over theMormon wives or whatever.
I haven't watched it, but I'veseen it like all over tv with
like young people talking aboutthere's like this show and I've
seen like an uptick in it lately, so I think there's like this
increased interest right now too.
So like this is like a veryinteresting take on that.
Speaker 2 (45:24):
So and I mean I did design the book in a way like
because it does get into so someheavy, deep things, and I
wouldn't be surprised that if ittriggers somebody, they just
need to put the book down andcome back to it later.
Speaker 1 (45:39):
Yeah, and I think you approached it very gently.
I mean, I know people alwaysget triggered, but I do want to
give you so much credit for thegentleness of the way you
approach these topics in here.
I love that feedback.
It's true, though I'm reallyimpressed because, like you know
(45:59):
, I I enjoy reading books aboutphilosophy and so, like I'm used
to that way people write and Iwill read those books a lot and
I will try to share them withpeople I know and some people
like I, just they're justwritten in a way that's hard for
other people know and somepeople are like I, just they're
just written in a way that'shard for other people to digest.
That I think that's my like,little tism of the things that I
hyper focus on and enjoy.
(46:20):
So that's the things I candigest.
But I feel like a lot of peoplewhen I want to share a book that
has a great message.
This may be a little like youprobably would enjoy it because
you enjoy psychology and all ofthat, but like you would get it.
But other people I would shareit with it would just be too
hard for them to get intobecause of some of the language
and the way it's written and theassumptions the book makes
about your knowledge, and I feellike this book is not like that
at all.
Anyone could pick this book upand read it and really get an
(46:41):
understanding, without feelinglike they need to go look up
what things mean.
Do you know what I mean?
Like that can be veryintimidating in some books, and
I feel like this book is notintimidating.
This book touches some veryheavy, deep topics in a very
approachable way.
Speaker 2 (46:58):
And I really tried to write it that way that it was
so simple that it would be veryeasy for someone to connect and
relate to.
I really tried to like how do Itap into this feeling and bring
my reader with me, which Itotally went with you?
Speaker 1 (47:14):
I was like tap into this feeling and bring my reader
with me, which I totally wentwith you.
I was like so into so much ofthis and I'm like, oh, yes, I
love, like you know, yes, yes,yes, and then learning.
So I thought it was great, justabsolutely great, so I can't
recommend it.
Speaker 2 (47:25):
I might even because I had so much feedback that
people it's and I even had likea doctor tell me you should have
two books.
You need one book that's justyour story and then you need one
book that's the self-help part.
And I wrestled with this, likethis was the feedback of one of
(47:45):
the beta readers and I'm like,oh, I see your point, but I'm
not sharing my tea just to makemoney.
I mean, there is that aspect toit.
But if I'm going to be thatvulnerable and put out my story,
I'm only going to do it for thecapacity of elevating myself,
(48:09):
humanity, women who yeah, you-reach that like yeah, the the
tea you get all of it.
Speaker 1 (48:17):
Yeah, yeah, I mean, it's such hard things to share.
Well, our culture likes to likewhat do you call that?
Like gawk, or you know?
Like we don't treat victims ofthings very nicely in the like
entertainment world.
When we cover a lot of subjects, um, we don't give like people
the respect and the like, um, Idon't know the.
(48:41):
We don't give them the space,the safe space that people need
around intense topics like thiswhen we bring them into the
light.
You know what I mean.
Even in the beginning of this,it was like I don't want to make
you talk about any of this.
You know that's not comfortableto you and I.
You know what I mean.
Even in the beginning of this,it was like I don't want to make
you talk about any of this.
You know that's not comfortableto you and I.
You know what I mean.
Like this is your personalthing, so I love, I think it's
just so powerful to share it forthis purpose.
(49:04):
You know what I mean.
If you want your story to betold, because that's healing for
you in that way, by all means,but I can tell, talking to you
about it.
Like you're sure, when westarted talking about.
Your body language wasdifferent.
It was like this isn'tsomething you're comfortable
sharing, you know, or talkingabout.
These are deep, intense thingsthat are not like just easily.
Hey, let's, over lunch, talkabout like the most deep aspects
(49:27):
of your life that affect you.
You know, like I don't, I sharea lot of my stuff but I don't
share, you know, there's a lot.
Speaker 2 (49:34):
So I get it.
I think, like, as humans, likewe're so curious at that part,
like this particular doctor.
He's like, so, like what didlike the dishes look like, or
you know, just the basicnecessities of life, and so I'm
like, oh, I guess that's areally good point.
I guess I could like bring thatalive a little bit on what that
looks and feels like.
(49:55):
Like how did 40 people shareone bathroom?
Speaker 1 (49:59):
Oh yeah, just on, like it from a, but that's also
us just like.
Yeah, a little bit selfish,right, but I get that because
I'm like oh, how interesting.
I do wonder now that you saythat how did that happen?
Speaker 2 (50:12):
But I think I kind of painted a scene where there's
like the 40 toothbrushes all ina line in the bathroom.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I did like add a few littlethings like that, and I don't
know the more I think about itand all the feedback I'm getting
.
I may even just because I got alot of feedback for an audible.
So I'm going to start workingon that.
I just I'm not really sure likethe technology part of it, like
(50:36):
how do I bring that up?
And I know Audible has one.
Oh, you can use AI to convertit.
And I'm like, yeah, I could dothat, but if someone's going to
read it, they're going to wantmy voice.
Speaker 1 (50:47):
Yeah, I would love to hear you say it, yeah.
Speaker 2 (50:49):
They're going to connect with me through the
story.
Yeah, I have to be the onethat's reading it when it goes
out there.
Yeah, but I may break it up anddo a version of the first part
of the book, which is my story,which you know, surprisingly
became a lengthier part after Igot all that feedback from the
(51:10):
beta readers.
I just had to level that partup and then maybe another
section like part two, or we'llsee.
Speaker 1 (51:21):
Yeah, I guess it's like we seek to understand as
humans.
Right Like when I first movedto Utah, I read like I don't
even know, four or five books,different kinds of books about
like the LDS culture.
Speaker 2 (51:32):
So I was curious.
Speaker 1 (51:32):
I was like I didn't grow up in this, I don't know
anything about it and I readsome books about, like some of
the fundamentalist groups andwho knows.
Even if the author was true tothat, you know what I mean.
But I was just curious.
So I get that aspect of it toowhere you want to gock.
Speaker 2 (51:48):
So it's always like finding that fine line of, and
religion is so interesting,right, and I think that there's
a good place for so manydifferent people in this world
and I don't think that onereligion has it all.
I think that all religions havethe potential to have that
spiritual connection to a higherpower.
(52:09):
I think God's love isunconditional.
He's not going to say, oh, thisone is the only true one, like,
would God really do that?
Speaker 1 (52:19):
Yeah, no, yeah.
And it's interpreted by us, usflawed humans.
Who knows what we're messing up?
You know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (52:26):
But I think there's good intention in so many
different religions.
Yeah, bad people even in goodreligions, in so many different
religions.
Speaker 1 (52:34):
Yeah, bad people even in good religions, I mean bad
people prey on things like thatintentionally.
They prey on the good in people, so of course they'd seek out
like religion and things likethat where people are vulnerable
, because that's what predatorsdo they seek out people's
vulnerabilities.
That's why they don't prey ongrown men.
Grown men are not the victimsvery often Grown, you know what
(52:56):
I mean, Because they're probablythe hardest, they're not very
easily victimized.
So it's women, children, youknow elderly people who are
marginalized, people who aredesperate.
You know those are who monstersprey on.
Speaker 2 (53:12):
We could definitely step up helping females have
their value and their worthknown before they enter into
relationships with males yesright like go somewhat challenge
this culture where women aredon't have a voice and don't
speak up, and yeah I think it'sa really critical part to step
(53:34):
into that space of finding yourvalue and your worth in who you
are authentically before youmove into a relationship oh yeah
, because then that would justget confusing, right, because
relationships play on yourprimary relationships, right?
Speaker 1 (53:50):
you're like playing out roles of your parents and
all the things that could neverbe.
They have to sort out beforeyou can enter into it with
someone else.
Right, I mean, that still playsa role in my life nowadays.
I still am sorting out thingsin therapy that come up for me.
That happened as a kid.
That is just like, oh yeah, Ido that and I think about why I
do that.
I probably should think aboutwhy I do that a little more.
(54:11):
Maybe that's not so healthy,maybe.
Speaker 2 (54:14):
I'll think about that as I do my next run, right?
Speaker 1 (54:17):
Right, we'll process that a little.
Speaker 2 (54:20):
How do I come at peace with this Right?
So it is.
How do I just be okay with it?
Speaker 1 (54:26):
Yeah Well, hannah, it's been such a blast talking
to you and catching up andhearing about this like
beautiful, this beautiful likelight and message that you're
sharing and how you're helpingwomen.
So if people wanted to getahold of you and they're like,
oh my gosh, hannah, you knoweither you are someone that
(54:48):
could understand them orsomeone's really connecting with
you or is interested in theprogram you're going to be
starting, is there a way forthem to get a hold of you or get
in contact with you?
Speaker 2 (54:57):
Yeah, they can go to hannastoppercom and they can
join my email group and, asthings move forward, there'll be
a lot more available, as I'mbuilding it and I'm really
excited about that andconnecting with women to help
empower them.
Speaker 1 (55:13):
Yay.
So for now, buy her book.
Give Yourself Permission.
Overcoming Female Oppression.
We'll put all these links inthe show notes and then, when
you get your program up andrunning, we'll have to have you
on again.
You can tell us all about it.
So thank you so much for doingthis.
Speaker 2 (55:28):
Thank you for having me.
Your podcast is really good.
I think you're out there andhelping a lot of people making
differences.
Speaker 1 (55:35):
Oh, thank you, and we'll see you next time.
Okay, bye-bye.
Welcome to this week's episode of Empowered Ease
, where we shine a light oninspiring women making
meaningful impacts in the livesof others.
Today, I'm thrilled tointroduce a truly remarkable
guest, hannah Stober, whose lifejourney exemplifies resilience,
courage and transformation.
Courage and transformation.
(00:29):
Hannah Stober, formerly HannahBjorkman, is a powerful voice
and advocate for women'sempowerment.
Having navigated anextraordinary path from being a
child bride in a polygamouscommunity to becoming a family
nurse, practitioner, a speakerand an author.
With an unwavering passion forempowering others, hannah has
used her experiences to upliftand inspire women across the
(00:50):
globe.
In this episode, we'll delveinto Hannah's incredible story
of breaking free from theconstraints of her past to
pursue a future filled with newpossibilities.
Leaving a life with just aneighth grade education, she
embarked on a journey ofself-discovery and academic
(01:10):
pursuit, earning her GED andprogressing through an
impressive series of nursingdegrees within nine years.
I know because I went tonursing school with Miss Hannah.
So Hannah's career in medicinespans psychiatric hospitals,
women's health, labor anddelivery, and holistic family
(01:31):
practice medicine.
She specializes in areas suchas hormones and functional
medicine, which reflect on hercommitment to holistic healing.
Beyond her professionalachievements, she is a
passionate public speaker, amentor and the author of the
book Give Yourself PermissionOvercoming Female Oppression,
(01:53):
which this is my copy if you arewatching the video.
So join us this week as weexplore how Hannah Stober
harnesses her experiences,insights and unwavering
determination to empower womento embrace their authenticity,
joy and independence.
Whether through her medicalwork, public speaking or
(02:13):
everyday acts of empowerment,hannah's story is a testament to
the strength of the humanspirit.
Get ready to be inspired byHannah's journey and insights on
making meaningful change inboth personal and professional
arenas.
Sit back, relax and enjoy thisfabulous interview on Empowered
Ease.
Welcome, hannah, to EmpoweredEase.
(02:41):
I'm so happy that you came onmy podcast.
How are you today?
Speaker 2 (02:45):
I'm doing happy that you came on my podcast.
How are you today?
I'm doing really well, thanksfor having me.
Speaker 1 (02:50):
Yeah, it's a pleasure .
I'm really excited about it.
Yeah, me too.
Hannah and I went to like ourundergrad actual nursing program
together in Utah like I don'teven know 10 years ago now.
It's probably been 10 years nowor close.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
Well, over 10 years ago actually.
Yeah, it's been 10 years now,or close well over 10 years ago
actually.
Speaker 1 (03:05):
Yeah, it's been 10 years since we graduated, so or
11 yeah, it's been a while.
We were not like close innursing school but we like knew
each other on a friendly basis.
So this is so cool for me tohave you back and see, like
learn more about your story andall that you've done, because I
knew like whiffs of your story.
(03:27):
But so, for those of you thatdon't know, hannah has an
incredible story and she wrotean amazing book, which, if
you're seeing the video I'mholding up, but it's called Give
Yourself Permission OvercomingFemale Oppression, and so, yeah,
tell me a little bit about thebook and, yeah, so I wrote the
book because I genuinely wouldlove to connect to more women
(03:52):
and empower them and help themfeel like they can do really
hard things.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
If I can go through this from a child bride with an
eighth grade education andbecome a family nurse
practitioner, you can do it too.
That's the message of my book.
When I left my ex-husbandbecause I was a polygamist wife,
I married him as the seventhwife.
He was 42 at the age at thetime and I was 14.
(04:22):
The time and I was 14 and Ileft him in 2012.
It was very difficult.
When you left him, I was about34.
You could even call it a cult,the way that I I grew up and the
religion that I was taught.
It was very isolated, secretive, secluded.
(04:43):
People didn't know about it andeach family was very much
independent.
It was actually part of theLeBaron group back in the 70s.
Oh wow, they had a hit listwhere they just killed a whole
bunch of people.
Oh, my gosh, kind of like anoff.
(05:03):
It was that line where theyclaimed their priesthood.
But he he, tom Green was afriend of my dad's, and so I
grew up knowing who he was.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
And you were part of the same group.
Per se, yes, but everyone wasindependent, yeah yeah, because
you guys, it sounds like youwere living in a different part
of the country, right, just?
Speaker 2 (05:31):
it's like there might be like summertime
get-togethers where a bunch ofindependent polygamous families
would join up and socialize forsome activities and stuff like
that so where I'm.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
Okay, I'm in the midwest, I lived in utah for a
while, but so a lot of mylisteners are in the midwest and
this like even okay, so they're.
When you're listening to this,just not to interrupt you of
hannah.
But so what the group hannahwas a part of is not what you
would hear of this like everydaymormons.
That's like a more christianmodern day, like it's a very
it's a different religion thanwhat hannah and I grew up in.
(06:05):
Like a fundamentalist,different like a sect that broke
off of that correct and likeit's more like they use that as
an I don't want to put words inanyone's mouth, but it's
different than when you hear oflike lds or mormon, like
hannah's religion.
What is not as separate fromthat?
Even though Utah sounds likethat it's its own thing, right,
(06:30):
its own version.
That's more.
How would you say that?
Speaker 2 (06:37):
before the Mormon group became Mormonism In order
for the LDS church to, becauseoriginally they were living
polygamy and it went undergroundso that they could become a
state.
And so that's where, like,there's all these different
(06:57):
offshoots of fundamentalistgroups, because each one of them
think they're the one true andmighty, like the prophet is a
different person who hears theword of God.
Speaker 1 (07:07):
I've read a lot of books about it but they're so
different.
And then I lived there, butit's so different than growing
up in it and knowing, andthere's so much to know From the
LeBaron's, the All Red Group,the Kingston Group, just all
different kinds of independentfundamentalists who are living
that lifestyle and you can findYouTube videos of a lot of this.
(07:30):
Like, if you're curious, I waslike I'm so curious because it's
probably blowing some people inthe Midwest.
Some of my listeners areprobably like what?
But yeah, so it's like hard totalk about because it's like so
like I, you know there's so muchinvolved in it and it's so
(07:53):
sensitive and I don't know.
Don't want to offend you in anyway and I also want to like
hear your version of it and beclear and I just think what
you've made of it so beautiful,so yeah, thanks.
So, okay, the book beautifully.
You now, after going throughnurse practitioner school, which
(08:17):
, with an eighth grade education, got your GED, left this awful
situation that you basicallydescribe in the book.
This like what is so inspiring.
This which I am lackingpersonally.
So I like wrote so many notesabout how you like self-motivate
I know you have a portion inhere about it, but just um,
(08:37):
showing up for yourself andhaving that personal drive and
um, it's just a beautiful storyof how you reconnect to you and
got yourself.
Your GED went to nine years,became like a fundamental nurse
practitioner.
Now you are a functional nursepractitioner and now you help
(08:58):
other women by speaking, bysharing your story.
And, yeah, how are youspreading this word?
How are you, um, how are youhelping other women these days?
Speaker 2 (09:10):
so I plan to launch a women's coaching program and
I'll probably do it next fallbecause I have a few things that
I'm taking care of in themeantime, like my psychiatric np
program.
I'm getting a certificate inthat.
I just think it will up leveleverything for the coaching
program.
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (09:31):
I love that.
That's like my.
So I started off in mentalhealth and then went to nursing
school.
Now I'm like I've been in neurothe whole time but I read a lot
of mental health books.
I've totally thought about thepsych FNP program because it's
just like where my interest lies.
I can't imagine like and yourbook is so like you know,
(09:51):
beautifully written and easy todigest in such like positive way
.
Well, I love hearing that.
Speaker 2 (09:59):
Yeah.
So it was not the easiest thingto write because I couldn't
read in the third grade, I wasdyslexic and I didn't really
understand that because theykind of just didn't hold me back
because I just worked two tothree times harder than the next
person and they just didn'twant me to lose all hope and
just stop trying.
And then with the ADHD it wasjust, it was a challenge writing
(10:22):
the book and I can't tell youhow many times I redid things,
redid things, re-edited it.
Then you put it out there tolike some beta readers who like
read it and then give youfeedback and that's pretty like
hard to take some of that, thatcritical feedback, but it makes
the book so much better.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
Yeah yeah, feedback's so hard, but so like, isn't
that like this whole thing?
I read this whole section, Ithink, like right before we got
on, I was just like I had takennotes.
I was reading and you weretalking about like being honest
with yourself, being able toaccept your fears, and looking
yourself in the mirror, and yousaid that feedback.
I'm like that is the hardestpart, isn't it always like that?
Speaker 2 (10:58):
Oh it is Holding up the mirror, and that's like the
truth of it, like we can't trulymove into our full potential
until we're really honest withwho we are and that includes our
flaws and all and being able tolive in a space where we
unconditionally accept all ofourselves and sometimes it's a
(11:22):
work in progress well, it's alife in progress, right like
it's a process that we're alwaysI love.
Speaker 1 (11:30):
Have you ever heard when people describe it kind of
as a spiral, like you're alwaysrevisiting the same issues but
there's just like a little, theyhave a little less bite or
they're a little different thistime?
Speaker 2 (11:39):
yeah, spiral that probably just continues to go up
or down, whichever way you lookat it.
Yeah, yeah, very much so.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
It's beautiful.
Speaker 2 (11:51):
I love it, yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
So through this book, you are starting a program
which you will be launchinglater.
And what does that programentail?
How will you?
Speaker 2 (12:06):
I'm going to do like a 12 week program and kind of
just break it up and at first,like, the first part of my book
is my story and I don't know ifyou noticed when you started
reading it.
You probably could pick up onthat voice of a 14 year old
child, like you can hear it inhow I speak, right, and that's
(12:26):
that's the subject that I got somuch feedback on, because it
was 20 pages and I didn't reallywant to expand that part
because it was hard.
It was a lot of work to writeyour own story.
Yeah, there was a lot ofhealing in that.
So with the coaching program Ikind of want to break the book
up into 12 different sections,that's I've got the blueprint of
(12:46):
how I wrote it to.
To create that.
There was a a program while Iwas still with my ex that I went
through.
It was kind of intensive, butit was a successful life
management class and it kind ofbreaks some of those barriers in
my thinking to open my mind andexpand myself.
(13:08):
But I just think there's somany women out there that could
benefit from this and turning itinto a 12 week program and we
could meet through zoom.
I might even do a live trialrun.
It like maybe holding out hope.
We'll see.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
I love that.
I love that I.
What I love about your book islike to me, like I'm a huge like
nurse advocate, but I feel likeyou know they always tell
nurses to teach at like aneighth grade level.
Do you know what I mean?
And so for you to say that waslike the age of your voice
writing it, I don't know,there's something about like how
(13:46):
you wrote this that I thinkwould be very digestible for so
many people out there.
You know, and I don't know howto say that in another way, but
I just feel like it's such anapproachable way to talk about
some very intense subjects,because I don't want to make
light of this or like cheapen itby talking about it in this
45-minute segment.
But you know that you've gonethrough some considerable things
(14:08):
in your life, considerabletrauma, and there's a lot of
warnings in here.
There's a lot of like, there'sa lot of advice, there's a lot
of like beautiful tips andstories and perspective and I
love your focus on the tinymicro habits and then the broad
(14:30):
perspective, like being able todraw your perspective out of
where you can get trapped inyour head, in your world, and
then focusing on the itty bittychanges in your life Cause it's
kind of two ends of the spectrumand two of the hardest things
to do, but the things that makethe most impact.
Speaker 2 (14:45):
Absolutely those little tiny micro habits that we
adjust in such a simple way.
Really they make such amagnificent difference in the
great perspective as you'removing through life If you want
to see true change.
You know the little story ofthe tortoise and the hare and
winning the race.
You know those that go all outare going to, you know, crash.
(15:06):
But the little tortoise justkept going a little bit by, a
little bit and you've got toreally sink that into your
foundation of life.
It's just keep going a littlebit, keep chipping a little bit
at a way at a time.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Yeah, yeah, I love that.
For me.
I find, like you know, thelittle things that I need to
come back to are like the littleways that I stopped taking care
of myself.
When I get like caught up Cause, um, kind of my story is
burnout, like extreme burnoutfrom like intense nursing
forever is kind of what broughtme back to the mental health
path you know, and what itreally was like was like a shift
(15:44):
in the time in my life.
I know we talked about thisbefore we got on a little.
Hannah and I were joking alittle bit about perimenopause
and she now has gotten somecontinued education in hormone
therapy, which I can't wait topick your brain about.
But how this time in your lifecan also bring up some
unresolved things from when youwere younger, so a lot of dealt
(16:05):
with childhood trauma that Idon't even think I had like
acknowledged.
You know walls I put up that Ididn't know were even there
until I tried to take them down.
You know things that are scarycame up for me and I kind of
crashed and my way back was, youknow, reconnecting with myself,
um, and I noticed that, youknow, the small things that I
(16:25):
need to focus on are and are thefirst things that I let go, or
maybe some small like self-carethings that are like my triggers
to know, like, hey, things maybe getting a little out of
control here, um, so I thinkthat's great advice on all
levels.
So, um, what are some of thethings that you do?
Cause, like um, your book hasso much like great functional
(16:46):
and I know you mentioned runningwas one of your big things back
in the day.
That helps you find clarity andthere's so much to be said about
, like you know, walking andrunning for your mental health.
But what are some of the otherlike tips or advice or things
for people to be able to?
You know we talk about theseconcepts.
You wrote them so beautifullyin here that they're so easy to
(17:07):
digest, but when it comes toactually putting them into
practice, you know there'sthere's barriers there and it's
hard, you know.
So what are some tips or somethings you advice you would tell
women who feel like that soundsgreat, but that's just so
overwhelming right now to eventhink about um.
Well, beginning with where youwant to end up, um that's a
(17:29):
great advice, like, because Ithink some people don't even
know at this point.
Speaker 2 (17:34):
It's like a hamster wheel, we're all just like yeah,
I mean, you really got to beable to think about where, where
you're going and what you wantand then bring that into the
current present tense of now andlittle things, and you just
start small, like if you want towork out, you know, maybe you
(17:55):
just start by building a smallhabit, whether it's just taking
a walk around the block everyday, and then, once you start
enjoying that, you could expandthat into more.
You know, when everybody's atdifferent levels, sometimes
people are an all or nothing.
We just got to make sure thatyou're not going to crash and
burn because you did all ornothing, but just establishing
(18:17):
those foundations that are goingto get you where you want.
So let's say, for example, youwanted to lose weight.
You really need to like connectwithin yourself.
What would your life feel likeIf that was the version of you
that was in the present tense?
So, instead of focusing on, oh,someday I'll be there, no,
(18:41):
bring it now, bring it right now.
What does it feel like and when?
I would do a five minutemeditation and really connect at
the end of the meditation to myinner joy, and you know what
that feels like for me.
See and feel yourself how youtruly want to be, and that just
little, tiny bit of connection.
(19:02):
It's like a paradigm shift inyour life.
It.
Once you really connect withthat, really feel it, it's like
things just start changing foryou and as you step into that,
you start to you know if, if Iwas the perfect version of
myself, what things would I bedoing, what habits would I have,
and just you know.
(19:24):
Write a few down and then yougot to really connect with it.
Because if it's, if it'ssomething that you truly value,
you're going to connect with it.
But if it's just like a wish,you're never going to get there.
You kind of really got to digdeep is this something that you
really align with, connect withand value?
And then you just put yourselfinto that space and continually
(19:47):
do just a little bit every dayand expand.
Speaker 1 (19:51):
I love that.
It's beautiful advice,beautiful advice.
So I love that.
I love you also mentioned inthat process and you touched on
this a bit here is like theimportance of in that like
you're talking about small babysteps but also in avoiding shame
(20:12):
and self-blame in that process.
So what, I guess, what rolewould or how self sabotaging
would shame, or how can youavoid shame?
What are some tips for that?
Because I know like with a lotof my clients I would say like
50% of them their inner criticis like a lot of what we spend a
(20:34):
time talking about, cause somepeople have like a very, very
overactive inner critic wherethey're constantly tearing, like
self-sabotaging, tearingthemselves down.
So what advice do you have foravoiding shame and self-blame?
Speaker 2 (20:47):
So that, and there is so many different variations of
that, and I think that that'sprobably the core of a lot of
our mental health issues.
But what enabled me to changeand go from the space of being a
polygamist wife that felt likenothing but a robot.
I may as well have just beendead as to continue my life in
(21:09):
that pattern, but look atyourself.
I'm going to use my glasseshere as an example, rose colored
glasses, and let's just putthose on and take a good look at
ourself, unconditionally,through a new set of eyes.
(21:30):
For example, for me to leave, Ihave children and I never
wanted them to feel the painthat I was hiding from them,
from ever even seeing and wouldI want them to repeat into the
(21:52):
same footsteps of the life I waswalking.
And I had to.
In order for me to make thatchange, I had to feel that
separation and if I put myselfin like my child's life, because
I, I and they walked the life Iwalked, I would know what they
(22:12):
feel and I would never want thatfor them.
But I had to have like thatunconditional love and
acceptance because in my, in myworld, if I left, if I got
divorced, it would be kind ofthe end of things, like God
would never love me if I didthat.
You know that, that shaming,that guilt, but I it's almost
(22:37):
like I had to look at myselfunconditionally through some
rose colored glasses with purelove, like would God still love
me if I left?
And just this overwhelmingfeeling of yes, he would, that
(22:58):
space of being able to let go ofthat shame and that guilt.
Like we're all born into thisworld and if you look at your
child that you're holding,they're worthy of love just
because they exist.
It's not based on our shame andwhat we're not measuring up to.
(23:23):
We're worthy of love justbecause we're human.
We're worthy of love justbecause we're human.
And when we take it back likethat it's a little easier to
separate the judgment and theshame or the self-hatred.
And I mean I even like wouldput like a right on my mirror I
(23:45):
am worthy, I am lovable and feelit like connect with that for
just like 20 seconds every day.
Speaker 1 (23:58):
And it can be life changing.
I love that.
I love that you're mentioningthis like affirmations and
meditation as ways to likereally connect with yourself,
cause that's the message I heardin your book and the message
I'm hearing you saying is likewe really have to look inward
and connect with who we are andlearn to trust that like inner
voice and allow ourselves tolisten to what we're trying to
say and trust that a little bit.
(24:20):
So I think that's really hardfor a lot of people.
You know we get so disconnected, so caught up in trying to do
and be and say all these things.
So it's such a beautifulmessage I love so.
In your book you have, I reallyfeel like you touch on so many,
so many things here.
You talk a lot about likewarning signs, about like female
(24:45):
oppression, just saying youcould break that down into so
many angles.
Do you know what I mean?
So many specific things.
There's so much involved inyour story and what you've gone
through and you're soknowledgeable about it Just
talking before this, just aboutlike the history of everything
that you're really like what wetalked about at the beginning
with like the LDS and the Mormonculture, and you know the
history of women and you knowthe patriarchy and all that
(25:07):
stuff and there's so much ofthis in your book touched on.
So what, what led you to focuson this, this specific avenue of
working with women to toconnect to themselves?
What, what you know cause youcould be speaking, you know,
(25:28):
through law enforcement agenciesand taking an advocacy angle
that way you know, because youcould be speaking you know,
through law enforcement agenciesand taking an advocacy angle
that way you know what led youto take the nursing route, to
take the nurture out, to turnaround and like, try to care and
comfort, like you know thissoft, you know route.
What, what, what led you downthis path?
Speaker 2 (25:45):
Yeah, the soft route.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
I do.
It just seems soft compared tosome of the other ways you could
go about it.
I read your book and I feelanger and I feel you, just even
from knowing you.
I said this before.
But like you have this graceabout you the softness.
Even listening to you, I feelmore comforted and soft, like
like more grounded, and that'sthe energy I got from you like
(26:10):
10 years ago.
So it's not something,something that you've cultivated
since then.
Maybe you have cultivated iteven more, even reading your
book.
That's the impression I getfrom you.
Personally, I'm a fiery person.
I'm like rage oh my gosh, I'mso angry.
Even the way we're talkingabout this, your program, I feel
this grace, this softness.
(26:31):
I just want to know what yoursecret is to it.
Share with us.
Speaker 2 (26:36):
I love it.
What led you to that and defineit like that?
Because, like I love astrologytoo yeah, me too.
Just stay so grounded like I'ma Taurus, oh my gosh.
So I really feel like I havehad to learn how to ground
myself so deeply and so stronglythat if a tornado hit, I would
(26:58):
still be firmly planted to theground.
Oh, I feel that from you.
Speaker 1 (27:02):
I feel that like I kind of want to get a little
closer to you because I'm alittle airy person, so I love
grounded people.
Speaker 2 (27:07):
I feel anchored, but then at the same time I have a
lot of fire in my astrology aswell, like I have like a
stellium in the in the Ariesaspect, like my moon is in Aries
in like the seventh house andstuff and I just find it
fascinating and fun.
But it's like kind of justgiven me like a power boost of
(27:29):
this drive to move forward.
Speaker 1 (27:32):
Oh so the steady like motivation is your fire.
Yes, I love that.
That's great.
That's a great fire to have.
Speaker 2 (27:41):
I mean it's there.
But then I still got to checkmyself back in and make sure I
still got my feet firmly plantedon the ground.
I love that.
Speaker 1 (27:49):
I love that.
So yeah, but what led you tonursing and caring for people?
Because it's intense.
Speaker 2 (27:57):
I don't know.
It just resonates with who I am.
Speaker 1 (28:00):
Yeah, softer, feminine, nurturing side yeah, I
get that from you Like evenyeah, even as a kid, when you
talked about yourself when youwere younger, I think you talked
a lot about that, like how youwere kind of drawn to some of
that about yourself when youwere younger.
I think you talked a lot aboutthat, like how you were kind of
drawn to some of that.
Is this so weird?
To talk to people who have readabout your childhood and talk
to you like they know it, likethat, like, oh, I read in your
book about when you were a kid.
Is that weird?
I don't know if I'd say weird,like I one of the NPs that I
(28:26):
work with one day she saidsomething to me and I looked at
her like how do you know that?
She says, oh, I'm reading yourbook.
Like oh, yeah, I forgot I putthis on public display.
I am, I work in a hospital andlike and manage a unit.
And sometimes somebody will saysomething to me and I'm like I
just forget when I'm there thatI have a podcast like that
people, that there's actuallypeople there that listen to it.
(28:47):
Sometimes I'm like oh yeah.
Then I get a little embarrassedbecause I'm like, oh yeah, I
love that.
That's awesome, it's funny whenwe're in our roles.
So in your daytime life, do youhave like a functional?
Speaker 2 (29:04):
medicine practice that you're working at still.
So I worked in functionalmedicine for a couple of years
and then I stepped intoorthopedics, mostly with like
auto accidents and stuff, butwe're adding like a cash pay
portion side to that.
That's um based on hormones,hormones.
So that's really exciting andcoming up soon.
(29:24):
Yeah, um, but privatelypracticing.
I haven't like fully launchedall of that.
Okay, I plan to soon likeexciting, like maybe next fall
is when I want to fully launchinto that.
Speaker 1 (29:43):
Oh, combine all these skills and your experience,
like hormone knowledge, psych,that's like how beautiful.
Speaker 2 (29:50):
And then neuroscience of it, like I'm currently like
working in a lot of autoaccidents, so the concussion
world is actively there and thetreatments that we're helping
people with and I love it, ohyeah.
Speaker 1 (30:04):
Dude I so I've been neuro, you know, from psych to
now ICU, but I've been neurospecialty for like the last five
years.
But I had a woman on my showshe's one of my first episodes
Crystal Hurley, and she she's aTBI, I don't know what to call
her.
She had a TBI, a traumatic TBI,and lost her speech and she got
(30:25):
it back through art therapy andnow she does teaches art
therapy, which is really cool.
But I love stuff like thatbecause the brain is like the,
the last frontier.
It's the thing we really likeof the body know the least about
.
We're learning more and more.
Um, that's so cool how it canrepair itself.
You know how we can reprogramit.
It's more like it's we're.
More our sleep times are likemore spongy times where we can
(30:50):
like have more change like.
There's just so muchinteresting things about the
brain.
Speaker 2 (30:55):
The neuroplasticity of the brain is so fascinating
it is.
I did include a little bit ofresearch on the meditation and
how we can.
The mri images like they'reshowing the growth and the
neuroplasticity like that peoplehave through meditation.
Speaker 1 (31:13):
It's so cool.
Yeah, I love it, I love it.
I know that like not at allbrain types can use that, but
for me, meditation like has beenone of the biggest things in my
life.
It's funny because actuallywhen we went through nursing
school 10 years ago, it was likewhen I was practicing the most.
I was meditating like twice aday and I was like and I was
(31:33):
like so zen down.
I think it's like actually howI got through like all the
things I did at that time andthen I kind of like became a
nurse, got farther away from it,burnt out and then reconnected.
So now I'm like big meditation,breath work, you know, like
calm your nervous system, calmyour vagus nerve, all that fun
stuff.
So, yeah, like all came fullcircle and I love that.
(31:58):
Like also this kind of camefull circle.
I'm back here and these arelike the thing I'm learning, the
things that have helped youalong the way too.
So it's just beautiful.
Speaker 2 (32:07):
That's awesome yeah.
Speaker 1 (32:09):
So if people want to find your book, I know I'm going
to put, obviously, links in theshow notes.
Oh, and I know if you wrote ameditation speaking of
meditation, I know you weregoing to gift it, so we'll put a
link to that in the show notesto see if you can download
Hannah's meditation.
Do you want to tell us a littlebit about your meditation?
Speaker 2 (32:29):
Yeah, on my meditation and it's like a
little micro habit that you canadd into things it just came in
a point in my life where I wassuper overwhelmed by life itself
.
I was working as a full timehospice nurse as well as in
nurse practitioner school and Ijust was so overwhelmed and I
(32:49):
had a blended family and mygrandmother had just passed away
and I didn't even know that shewas on hospice and it just kind
of was like a kind of abreaking point and every time I
thought about my grandmother Ijust had this feeling let go,
let go.
And that's when I started tomeditate and I just did like
(33:09):
five minutes I insight timer Ilove insight timer and my little
creative brain would just kindof take me on this journey.
But if we also tap it into, likeEMDR and like my previous
running history, like I think Iput myself into like my own
meditative trance throughrunning, yeah, left right body
(33:32):
motion and I was training for amarathon and all of those
thoughts I would just kind ofwork through as I was running
and so with the meditation, likeI just started, like tapping my
fingers as I do the meditationand I think it just kind of
helps with that neuroplasticityof it.
Yeah, but I would just have myown little visual of how I let
(33:58):
go, like falling back into likea pool of water and feeling the
water just carry away all ofthose worries.
Like, in every time you let goof one of those worries, you
just like okay, I'm going tosurrender the worry I have about
this daughter, I'm going tosurrender the stress I have over
this test, or I'm going tosurrender the complications of
(34:19):
my marriage relationship or theburdens of the step family.
I'm just going to surrender andjust let the water carry it
away and mother nature can justturn it into something beautiful
for me and I'm just going totrust the process and every time
you're able to like, recognizeoh yeah, this is stressing me,
I'm letting it go.
And just that, five minutes ofevery day, just let it go.
(34:41):
Let it go and it's almost likeyou put yourself in a higher
perspective and you're notfighting those battles, you're
letting go and allowing theuniverse to support you through
them and things start alaligning.
Like my hospice patients, themedications were arriving on
time instead of having all thesedifferent complications with
them, things just startedworking better.
Speaker 1 (35:02):
So I love that and that's like one of the hardest
things right, like learning tolet go it is so scary so it's so
scary I think I let gosometimes.
And then just recently I wentthrough this experience.
I paid for this coach and shedid like this crazy sound
healing and all this letting go.
And she said this thing like Ispent a lot of control with you
(35:23):
and I was like I started cryinghysterically.
But she was so right and she'slike what does it feel like to
like think about letting that go?
And I was like I don't evenknow what would contain it,
contain me and it was just likethe scariest thought on such a
level.
It's like I thought I had letgo until she said that so it's
so, it's so great to have like atool to help you, Cause it's.
(35:45):
I feel like life is learning tolet go over and over again
Sometimes, especially this likeself-healing journey, it's like
you think you get somewhere andthen you learn that there's
another layer to this and I haveto learn to let go a little
deeper frustrating right, it'slike it's not doesn't
necessarily get easier, but itdoes get better.
Speaker 2 (36:07):
So it definitely gets richer, it definitely gets
deeper.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
Yes, yes, I love that .
That's a great way to describeit.
I love I read kind of in yourin your book that you were
inspired by Byron Katie Anybodyelse.
That was a big inspiration toyou.
Speaker 2 (36:27):
That's cool.
Byron Katie that was.
That was really huge.
That was when my ex-husband wasin prison from like 2001 to
2007.
I listened to her audio bookand it just helped me get real
with the honesty of ourself.
I would recommend her stuff toeveryone.
Speaker 1 (36:47):
I'm about to read her book.
One of my clients gave it to meas a gift.
After we were done, she sent methe Loving what Is her newest
book.
I haven't started it yet, butit's like my next book to read.
You actually made me dig it outand put it on top of my book
list, like reading your book,Because I was like this is like
the third person to mention thathas mentioned her and someone
sent me the book.
I'm going to read it.
So I put it on top.
Speaker 2 (37:26):
So it's going?
Yeah, I would.
There's so much like that onsuch a little micro, tiny level,
every day.
That was taking place while myex was in prison of realigning
myself with my own authenticityand truth that I think came from
her work.
I don't even like randomly,like look up YouTube videos of
inner child work and maybe findlike a five minute meditation
and do it and you're like, oh mygosh, I'm bawling.
Speaker 1 (37:39):
Oh my God, I cannot.
The first time I did an innerchild meditation like I was
skeptical.
So also the first time someonetold me to feel where an emotion
was in your body, I thoughtthey were crazy.
I'm like what are you talkingabout, we don't feel emotions.
Okay, totally my light yearspast that.
But the first time I did theinner child one, I thought it
was so stupid.
But the minute I actually didit I felt this release on like a
(38:01):
weird deep, like it was a huge,just a little like that hadn't
felt before and I was like, ohmy God, there's so much to
comforting and going in andspending time with your inner
child.
It does healing on levels thatis like really hard to my dog's
escaping the room if you'rewatching the video, sorry but
(38:21):
yeah, there's a lot to it Ithink my husband.
Speaker 2 (38:24):
Oh sorry, let me mute it so among other individuals
that kind of inspired me on mypath was Louise Hayes.
I'd look up a lot of her stuff.
She even had some meditationsand she talks about, you know,
(38:45):
emotions correlating withdifferent parts of the body and
it's just.
It just feels like there's somuch authenticity and truth
within that.
I agree we really do need tolike tune in to our bodies and
how we're feeling things,because it's telling us
something.
Speaker 1 (39:05):
Agreed, I read this book.
I don't know if I have it nearme Because I can never remember.
Yes, I have not.
Okay, sorry, I read this book.
Yes, I've got.
Okay, sorry, I read this book,let me.
It's called Blink by MalcolmGladwell, and it's all about
(39:27):
intuition and how, like you area little micro computer and that
sometimes those things firefaster than your brain can
process things, and how yourintuition, like he studies those
, these little micro moments inpeople and how accurate they
actually are.
And so cool because you know wetalk.
I am like very into holisticand also like a little into what
(39:50):
people would call like thewoo-woo world.
You know, like, because becauseI found truth in it when I
practice those things, I foundbenefit in it, you know.
And then this kind of is like abridge between the two a little
bit to me, because he takes thescientific method and proves
like the accuracy of this.
So I loved that because as anurse I feel like I'm always
(40:10):
like battling both worlds, alittle bit of like I needed to
be proved, I need to be likesome scientific here, but also
there's a lot we don't know.
There's room to learn, room togrow.
Speaker 2 (40:22):
That's really cool.
I think I need to read thatbook.
Speaker 1 (40:25):
I'll send it to you, okay.
So I will put a link to yourmeditation.
I love all this meditation talktoo, because for me and it
makes all the difference, like Ithink I've said before, I'm
working the floor like as an ICUnurse.
I don't even like go into workanymore without doing a breath
work or a mindful or ameditation, just to be able to
like calm my nervous system,because you can't listen to
(40:49):
yourself if you're likespiraling, like tap in and
figure out what you need.
So I love that.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
You can't think critically if you're so under
such stress.
So learning to surrender andexist calmly in a chaotic world
is critical to function.
As you know, nurses andproviders yeah.
Speaker 1 (41:16):
So I ask everyone this that comes on my show but
what's your like go-to self-carewhen things get rough or the
world gets difficult?
What's your go-to to like?
Bring yourself back to you umnature.
Speaker 2 (41:31):
That helps me a lot and exercise and a little bit of
meditation.
Yeah, I love that, that fiveminute meditation.
There were times when I wouldjust take that five minutes.
Okay, I have a five minutebreak in between patients.
I'm just gonna step aside andrecenter myself and come back.
Speaker 1 (41:52):
Yes, there was another thing you said that I
wanted to touch on too.
Like I don't want to take itlightly, because I think there
is a lot of power in this.
You were talking about how muchbenefit is in when you are
running like, how much you aregetting out of it with, like
stimulating both sides of yourbrain and all of that, like in
the somatic world.
And I mean even walking doesthe same thing.
I think it's so cool.
(42:13):
Like you know people always Iwonder, like they say, like the
runner's high that you get.
But so my best friend and Iwe've been running partners for
years on and off.
We run like that most fivemiles, nothing crazy, no, no
marathon runners here.
But we run like a 5k pretty,pretty frequently and we always
talk, we process our lives, weprocess what's going on and we
(42:35):
have like that, we have thistheory, you know, like this is
really where it's at right,because something just cracks
open when you're running.
It's like you're able toprocess things easier.
So I had this theory with herthat we had talked about, and on
my birthday we usually run likea 5k on our birthday and I got
my husband to run it with us andhe, he.
We usually run like a 5k on ourbirthday and I got my husband
to run it with us and he he'shad like a very troubled past.
(42:56):
He didn't talk about it a lot.
You know, he's typicalmidwestern male.
Probably could put a littlemore effort into his mental
health at times.
But so we go running and he'snot a talker, he's a very big
introvert.
He has a lot of social anxiety.
He starts cracking open whilewe're running and sharing things
with her.
I've never heard him say hejust processing.
(43:16):
And I'm like, oh my God,there's so much truth to that.
So I actually do walkingsessions with some of my clients
.
Now we'll either like put inheadphones and walk together or
I'll meet them and we'll walkand process stuff, because it's
a totally different kind ofsession and experience.
I feel like when you're moving,right, I didn't want to like go
past that because I'm likeyou're so right, there's so much
(43:38):
to that, just even walkingevery day and talking to
somebody yeah, I do take lots ofbreaks um at work, like if
there's a little bit of slowtime and just go walk around the
block.
I'll do that sometimes in thestairwells, like I'll just like
walk up and down the stairwells,like you know, especially if
I'm like this is a rough day,I'm just gonna go off the
(44:00):
stairwell see if I can't likeburn some of this angst off.
So I love that one.
Okay, well, it's been such apleasure having you, hannah.
I absolutely love talking toyou and catching up.
I love being able to share yourbook.
I really honestly, there's somuch in this book we can't talk
(44:21):
about it all.
It's all not like.
You know, it goes into detailabout Hannah's childhood and
then also just so many beautifultips in here, warning signs,
you know, beautiful things aboutwomen, the culture of women.
It's such a beautifully femininebook of such a there's so much
(44:43):
grace in writing about the heavytopics you wrote about and it's
also so educational.
I just feel like this book isso beautiful so I recommend it
to anyone.
Um, and you know with that showthat just came out that
everyone was obsessed with thelike you know I'm talking about
like it's like the TikTok girls,like the like there's like a
height heightened interest inthings.
Um, lds right now with that youknow that TikTok group that
(45:07):
like people went crazy over theMormon wives or whatever.
I haven't watched it, but I'veseen it like all over tv with
like young people talking aboutthere's like this show and I've
seen like an uptick in it lately, so I think there's like this
increased interest right now too.
So like this is like a veryinteresting take on that.
Speaker 2 (45:24):
So and I mean I did design the book in a way like
because it does get into so someheavy, deep things, and I
wouldn't be surprised that if ittriggers somebody, they just
need to put the book down andcome back to it later.
Speaker 1 (45:39):
Yeah, and I think you approached it very gently.
I mean, I know people alwaysget triggered, but I do want to
give you so much credit for thegentleness of the way you
approach these topics in here.
I love that feedback.
It's true, though I'm reallyimpressed because, like you know
(45:59):
, I I enjoy reading books aboutphilosophy and so, like I'm used
to that way people write and Iwill read those books a lot and
I will try to share them withpeople I know and some people
like I, just they're justwritten in a way that's hard for
other people know and somepeople are like I, just they're
just written in a way that'shard for other people to digest.
That I think that's my like,little tism of the things that I
hyper focus on and enjoy.
(46:20):
So that's the things I candigest.
But I feel like a lot of peoplewhen I want to share a book that
has a great message.
This may be a little like youprobably would enjoy it because
you enjoy psychology and all ofthat, but like you would get it.
But other people I would shareit with it would just be too
hard for them to get intobecause of some of the language
and the way it's written and theassumptions the book makes
about your knowledge, and I feellike this book is not like that
at all.
Anyone could pick this book upand read it and really get an
(46:41):
understanding, without feelinglike they need to go look up
what things mean.
Do you know what I mean?
Like that can be veryintimidating in some books, and
I feel like this book is notintimidating.
This book touches some veryheavy, deep topics in a very
approachable way.
Speaker 2 (46:58):
And I really tried to write it that way that it was
so simple that it would be veryeasy for someone to connect and
relate to.
I really tried to like how do Itap into this feeling and bring
my reader with me, which Itotally went with you?
Speaker 1 (47:14):
I was like tap into this feeling and bring my reader
with me, which I totally wentwith you.
I was like so into so much ofthis and I'm like, oh, yes, I
love, like you know, yes, yes,yes, and then learning.
So I thought it was great, justabsolutely great, so I can't
recommend it.
Speaker 2 (47:25):
I might even because I had so much feedback that
people it's and I even had likea doctor tell me you should have
two books.
You need one book that's justyour story and then you need one
book that's the self-help part.
And I wrestled with this, likethis was the feedback of one of
(47:45):
the beta readers and I'm like,oh, I see your point, but I'm
not sharing my tea just to makemoney.
I mean, there is that aspect toit.
But if I'm going to be thatvulnerable and put out my story,
I'm only going to do it for thecapacity of elevating myself,
(48:09):
humanity, women who yeah, you-reach that like yeah, the the
tea you get all of it.
Speaker 1 (48:17):
Yeah, yeah, I mean, it's such hard things to share.
Well, our culture likes to likewhat do you call that?
Like gawk, or you know?
Like we don't treat victims ofthings very nicely in the like
entertainment world.
When we cover a lot of subjects, um, we don't give like people
the respect and the like, um, Idon't know the.
(48:41):
We don't give them the space,the safe space that people need
around intense topics like thiswhen we bring them into the
light.
You know what I mean.
Even in the beginning of this,it was like I don't want to make
you talk about any of this.
You know that's not comfortableto you and I.
You know what I mean.
Even in the beginning of this,it was like I don't want to make
you talk about any of this.
You know that's not comfortableto you and I.
You know what I mean.
Like this is your personalthing, so I love, I think it's
just so powerful to share it forthis purpose.
(49:04):
You know what I mean.
If you want your story to betold, because that's healing for
you in that way, by all means,but I can tell, talking to you
about it.
Like you're sure, when westarted talking about.
Your body language wasdifferent.
It was like this isn'tsomething you're comfortable
sharing, you know, or talkingabout.
These are deep, intense thingsthat are not like just easily.
Hey, let's, over lunch, talkabout like the most deep aspects
(49:27):
of your life that affect you.
You know, like I don't, I sharea lot of my stuff but I don't
share, you know, there's a lot.
Speaker 2 (49:34):
So I get it.
I think, like, as humans, likewe're so curious at that part,
like this particular doctor.
He's like, so, like what didlike the dishes look like, or
you know, just the basicnecessities of life, and so I'm
like, oh, I guess that's areally good point.
I guess I could like bring thatalive a little bit on what that
looks and feels like.
(49:55):
Like how did 40 people shareone bathroom?
Speaker 1 (49:59):
Oh yeah, just on, like it from a, but that's also
us just like.
Yeah, a little bit selfish,right, but I get that because
I'm like oh, how interesting.
I do wonder now that you saythat how did that happen?
Speaker 2 (50:12):
But I think I kind of painted a scene where there's
like the 40 toothbrushes all ina line in the bathroom.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I did like add a few littlethings like that, and I don't
know the more I think about itand all the feedback I'm getting
.
I may even just because I got alot of feedback for an audible.
So I'm going to start workingon that.
I just I'm not really sure likethe technology part of it, like
(50:36):
how do I bring that up?
And I know Audible has one.
Oh, you can use AI to convertit.
And I'm like, yeah, I could dothat, but if someone's going to
read it, they're going to wantmy voice.
Speaker 1 (50:47):
Yeah, I would love to hear you say it, yeah.
Speaker 2 (50:49):
They're going to connect with me through the
story.
Yeah, I have to be the onethat's reading it when it goes
out there.
Yeah, but I may break it up anddo a version of the first part
of the book, which is my story,which you know, surprisingly
became a lengthier part after Igot all that feedback from the
(51:10):
beta readers.
I just had to level that partup and then maybe another
section like part two, or we'llsee.
Speaker 1 (51:21):
Yeah, I guess it's like we seek to understand as
humans.
Right Like when I first movedto Utah, I read like I don't
even know, four or five books,different kinds of books about
like the LDS culture.
Speaker 2 (51:32):
So I was curious.
Speaker 1 (51:32):
I was like I didn't grow up in this, I don't know
anything about it and I readsome books about, like some of
the fundamentalist groups andwho knows.
Even if the author was true tothat, you know what I mean.
But I was just curious.
So I get that aspect of it toowhere you want to gock.
Speaker 2 (51:48):
So it's always like finding that fine line of, and
religion is so interesting,right, and I think that there's
a good place for so manydifferent people in this world
and I don't think that onereligion has it all.
I think that all religions havethe potential to have that
spiritual connection to a higherpower.
(52:09):
I think God's love isunconditional.
He's not going to say, oh, thisone is the only true one, like,
would God really do that?
Speaker 1 (52:19):
Yeah, no, yeah.
And it's interpreted by us, usflawed humans.
Who knows what we're messing up?
You know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (52:26):
But I think there's good intention in so many
different religions.
Yeah, bad people even in goodreligions, in so many different
religions.
Speaker 1 (52:34):
Yeah, bad people even in good religions, I mean bad
people prey on things like thatintentionally.
They prey on the good in people, so of course they'd seek out
like religion and things likethat where people are vulnerable
, because that's what predatorsdo they seek out people's
vulnerabilities.
That's why they don't prey ongrown men.
Grown men are not the victimsvery often Grown, you know what
(52:56):
I mean, Because they're probablythe hardest, they're not very
easily victimized.
So it's women, children, youknow elderly people who are
marginalized, people who aredesperate.
You know those are who monstersprey on.
Speaker 2 (53:12):
We could definitely step up helping females have
their value and their worthknown before they enter into
relationships with males yesright like go somewhat challenge
this culture where women aredon't have a voice and don't
speak up, and yeah I think it'sa really critical part to step
(53:34):
into that space of finding yourvalue and your worth in who you
are authentically before youmove into a relationship oh yeah
, because then that would justget confusing, right, because
relationships play on yourprimary relationships, right?
Speaker 1 (53:50):
you're like playing out roles of your parents and
all the things that could neverbe.
They have to sort out beforeyou can enter into it with
someone else.
Right, I mean, that still playsa role in my life nowadays.
I still am sorting out thingsin therapy that come up for me.
That happened as a kid.
That is just like, oh yeah, Ido that and I think about why I
do that.
I probably should think aboutwhy I do that a little more.
(54:11):
Maybe that's not so healthy,maybe.
Speaker 2 (54:14):
I'll think about that as I do my next run, right?
Speaker 1 (54:17):
Right, we'll process that a little.
Speaker 2 (54:20):
How do I come at peace with this Right?
So it is.
How do I just be okay with it?
Speaker 1 (54:26):
Yeah Well, hannah, it's been such a blast talking
to you and catching up andhearing about this like
beautiful, this beautiful likelight and message that you're
sharing and how you're helpingwomen.
So if people wanted to getahold of you and they're like,
oh my gosh, hannah, you knoweither you are someone that
(54:48):
could understand them orsomeone's really connecting with
you or is interested in theprogram you're going to be
starting, is there a way forthem to get a hold of you or get
in contact with you?
Speaker 2 (54:57):
Yeah, they can go to hannastoppercom and they can
join my email group and, asthings move forward, there'll be
a lot more available, as I'mbuilding it and I'm really
excited about that andconnecting with women to help
empower them.
Speaker 1 (55:13):
Yay.
So for now, buy her book.
Give Yourself Permission.
Overcoming Female Oppression.
We'll put all these links inthe show notes and then, when
you get your program up andrunning, we'll have to have you
on again.
You can tell us all about it.
So thank you so much for doingthis.
Speaker 2 (55:28):
Thank you for having me.
Your podcast is really good.
I think you're out there andhelping a lot of people making
differences.
Speaker 1 (55:35):
Oh, thank you, and we'll see you next time.
Okay, bye-bye.
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