February 18, 2026 • 27 mins
Navigating Burnout and Embracing Wellbeing with Garrett Wood
Join host Tony Mantor on this episode of Why Not Me as he engages with Garrett Wood, a national board certified health and wellness coach.
The show delves into Garrett's innovative and compassionate approach to battling burnout and enhancing wellbeing.
Listen as Garrett shares his expertise on managing the pressures of professional success and personal joy, particularly for individuals with autism and ADHD.
From his unique A3 framework to real-life success stories, Garrett's insights inspire and remind us that true success is built through nurturing our wellbeing.
Tune in for an empowering discussion on achieving balance and fulfillment in today’s fast-paced world.
Meet Garrett Wood: Health and Wellness Expert
Understanding Garrett's Clients and Their Challenges
Garrett's Approach to Wellbeing and Burnout
Sensory Stories and Real-Life Examples
Garrett's Personal Journey and Challenges
Balancing Productivity and Wellbeing
Conclusion and Final Thoughts
INTRO/OUTRO: T. Wild
Mantor Music BMI
The content on Why Not Me: Embracing Autism amd Mental Health Worldwide, including discussions on mental health, autism, and related topics, is provided for informational and entertainment purposes only.
The views and opinions expressed by guests are their own and do not reflect those of the podcast, its hosts, or affiliates.
Why Not Me is not a medical or mental health professional and does not endorse or verify the accuracy, efficacy, safety of any treatments, programs, or advice discussed.
Listeners should consult qualified healthcare professionals, such as licensed therapists, psychologists, or physicians, before making decisions about mental health or autism- related care.
Reliance on this podcast's contents is at the listener's own risk.
Why Not Me is not liable for any outcomes, financial or otherwise, resulting from actions taken based on the information provided.
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intro/outro music bed written by T. Wild
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Episode Transcript
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SPEAKER_01 (00:06):
Welcome to Why Not Me, embracing autism and mental
health worldwide.
Hosted by Tony Mirator.
Broadcasting from the heart ofMusic City, USA, Nashville,
Tennessee.
Join us as our guests sharetheir raw, powerful stories.
Some will spark laughter, otherswill move you to tears.
(00:30):
These real life journeysinspire, connect, and remind you
that you're never alone.
We're igniting a global movementto empower everyone to make a
lasting difference by fosteringdeep awareness, unwavering
acceptance, and profoundunderstanding of autism and
(00:52):
mental health.
Tune in, be inspired, and joinus in transforming the world one
story at a time.
Hi, I'm Tony Mantor.
Welcome to Why Not Me?
Embracing Autism and MentalHealth Worldwide.
Joining us today is GarrettWood, a National Board Certified
(01:13):
Health and Wellness Coach,clinical hypnotherapist, and
executive functioning specialistwith over 18 years of hands-on
experience.
He has walked the walk, he'sbattled his own high stakes,
burn out, and emerged stronger,now dedicating his life to
helping people in all walks oflife.
He will talk about peoplemasking through endless
(01:33):
meetings, wrestling withimposter syndrome, or simply
craving a life where successdoesn't come at the cost of
their joy.
His approach is as innovative asit is compassionate.
He's not just a coach, he's yourpartner in unmasking the real
you, healthier and happier,making you unstoppable.
He has a great wealth ofinformation and we're happy to
(01:56):
have him here.
So before we dive into ourepisode, we'll be back with an
uninterrupted show right after aword from our sponsors.
Thanks for coming on.
SPEAKER_00 (02:06):
I'm excited to be here to talk a little bit more
about this because I don't thinkit gets talked about wide
enough.
So I'm excited.
SPEAKER_01 (02:11):
Well, it's great to have you on.
If you would give us a littleinformation about what you do.
SPEAKER_00 (02:16):
So I work with people that are professionals,
they have a job.
They're usually prettysuccessful at that.
They've been working really hardfor a long time and they're
doing well on paper.
But when it comes to theirpersonal life, their
relationships, their health,they're struggling.
And most of that comes frommissing those cues that they
need to feel better.
And so the bigger that gap ispersonally and the more
successful they areprofessionally, those typically
(02:38):
seem to be the clients that showup at my clinic.
SPEAKER_01 (02:40):
Okay.
So when your clients walkthrough your door, what type of
people do you expect to see?
Before we came on, we talkedabout autistic ADHD special
needs.
So what is your typical clientlook like?
SPEAKER_00 (02:55):
Yeah, when I first opened my clinic, most of the
people that would come in, itwas for aches and pains.
So it'd be like shoulder painthat they just couldn't get rid
of, or this tension in the bodyand they couldn't fully relax
and never felt safe to be themin a place where they could like
really get into that rest anddigest state.
No matter what was going on,whether they're at work, they
had to be on.
And then when they're at home,it didn't feel like they had
enough time to fully recover.
And after being open for abouttwo years, a lot of the
(03:17):
clientele are coming in with aformal diagnosis for ADHD.
And then some of the people thatdidn't have a diagnosis, the
symptomologies, the way theywould describe their day was
very consistent with that.
And then you get talking to alittle bit of people more, you
get to know them a little more.
And they actually shared thatthey had both a dual diagnosis
of autism and ADHD.
So the label in the DSM isalways changing and being
(03:38):
updated as we get newinformation and updates, but
they have been diagnosed for along time with some of that.
And so they've gone throughthose changes of the DSM.
So how they experience the worldhas been consistently updated
with the new research.
But the feelings and experiencesthey have have seemed to be
consistent across for those lastyears.
SPEAKER_01 (03:54):
Can you give our listeners a little more
information on what it is thatyou do?
This way they can get a littlemore information on how you help
people that come to you.
SPEAKER_00 (04:03):
Yeah.
So most of the work that I do isabout increasing well-being.
So the idea is if we're burningout, it's because we're doing
really well at work, but we'renot getting enough support in
our personal life to be able tomaintain that.
And so we end up in burnout.
So people with different nervoussystems, different ways of
showing up in the world, theworld isn't necessarily designed
to kind of overlap with whatthey do.
And so trying to figure outwhere the biggest expense of
(04:26):
their ability to show up and beproductive is versus the biggest
benefit to them.
So can we reduce the friction intheir life and increase the ease
in different categories?
And some of those are sensoryneeds that happen that way.
Some of it's executivefunctioning.
Some of it, when you've beenbuilt into a system that wasn't
designed for you, come up withsome pretty uh challenging
beliefs about yourself.
(04:47):
And the shame, blame, and guilt,and fear that show up as a
result of those also play a roleas people navigate, you know,
day-to-day interactions.
SPEAKER_01 (04:53):
How do you help people get past that?
I mean, this world, it candefinitely be overwhelming to
some people.
So when they get to thatbreaking point, when they are
completely overwhelmed, facing apossible meltdown or extreme
anxiety, what are the steps youuse to help them get that under
(05:14):
control?
SPEAKER_00 (05:15):
Yeah, so the control there is an interesting word.
I would say uh how to be moreresilient, which is a little bit
different, in that the world ischallenging and it's not
designed for us.
It's not designed for theseindividuals with us.
Okay, so their meltdowns, theintensity of the duration, the
frequency, the level of anxiety,the frequency, the duration.
That is what we're trying toplay with, is to narrow that gap
(05:35):
as much as possible so that waythey can have as much joy as
they have access to.
And it's not easy, it's a lot ofwork.
But some of the little thingsreally do make a difference.
A lot of people go out there andlike, oh, if I do all this
stuff, I'll be enough to likefeel different.
But sometimes doing more isactually what beats or
exasperates some of the symptomsthat people are having.
So sometimes we're looking at,well, what are you doing that
already works?
And how can we do more of thatin an effective way?
(05:58):
And a lot of our interventionsseem to be like really general
interventions for people withmental health, like, go for a
walk, you know, take down time.
And it's like, sure, but howmuch would I have to walk?
And would that ever really getrid of my anxiety?
Probably not.
No.
So what works for you thatactually does make you feel
better?
What made yesterday better thanthe day before?
Okay, can we spend more timedoing that?
(06:19):
And so coaching is anoutcome-based process where it's
not prescriptive, it's actuallyan experience that people go
through with that person infront of them.
And so every single person isdifferent.
What works for them doesn't workfor everybody.
SPEAKER_01 (06:30):
Now you're part of the National Board for Health
and Wellness, correct?
SPEAKER_00 (06:34):
That is, correct, yes.
SPEAKER_01 (06:35):
Okay, can you give us a little information on what
it takes to get certified bythat board?
SPEAKER_00 (06:41):
Yeah.
So to be able to do what I do,there's a certification process
for that.
There's a it's the samegoverning board that makes
people sit for the medical examcertification.
It is not the same exam, um,completely different, but
similar governing bodies.
And so they wanted a way toactually get people to be a
standard of care that'sappropriate that makes it across
that.
And they've been working prettyhard for the last few years to
(07:02):
try to create that.
And it is about health andwell-being.
So it's about maintaining healthand fitness, but also mental and
emotional well-being becausethose are, in their view,
intertwined.
There's no way to really teasethem out from each other.
And coaching is more of whatthey're focused on.
So, how do we elicit thatresponse and make it easier for
people to begin that process?
So it involves a lot ofmotivational interviewing,
appreciative inquiry.
Do you just have to study andtake a test?
(07:24):
And then you have to spend quitea few hours working with people
for them to feel comfortableenough creating that designation
and applying it to people.
SPEAKER_01 (07:30):
Okay, that makes sense.
Now, when a person comes to you,what is the criteria for you to
evaluate and then come up with aplan that ultimately will help
them moving forward?
SPEAKER_00 (07:44):
Yeah, great question.
So everybody's different,everybody's unique.
And so trying to figure outwhat's the best benefit with the
least cost for them is a lot ofwhat the work is that we do.
I talk about the A3 framework,which is assessment,
accommodation, and alignment.
And so that assessment is um, weborrow sensory intelligence
consulting, which is Doctor ofOccupational Therapy, Anne-Marie
(08:05):
Lombard.
She has a sensory intelligenceconsulting where it's taking
people through an assessment.
What are all your differentsensory profiles?
Is it low threshold, highthreshold?
Are you sensory seeking?
Are you sensory avoiding?
And which one across which one?
Because some people lovevestibular stimulation.
They love being able to likefeel themselves in space, but
then lights or sounds or noisesare too much.
And so trying to make sure weknow that and then figure out
(08:27):
how to accommodate it, no matterwhere you are, who you're with,
or what you're trying to do.
And then if we can design yourwork around you.
But that's just one aspect,right?
We talk a little bit about otherones.
SPEAKER_01 (08:36):
Can you give me a scenario where you met with a
person?
Your first initial response toyourself was, this isn't gonna
work.
You kind of think, I don't knowif they have the right whatever
it takes to get to the otherside of this problem.
Then you just chipped away andchipped away, and finally it
(08:58):
worked out way better than youhad anticipated.
SPEAKER_00 (09:01):
So my favorite one with sensory stories is there's
an individual I was workingwith, she works in an office,
and she would have intenseanxiety around her feedback that
she would get from time forfeedback, okay, performance
reviews, here we go.
And it would be really not funleading up to it, and then
really challenging after it andgoing through the whole process.
We worked through a lot of that.
Is this about performance?
Is this about, you know, mylimiting beliefs?
(09:23):
Is this about um, you know,having too much coffee, not
enough food at that time?
What's going on around this?
Like, how can we help make iteasier to be you in these
moments?
And then we talked a little bitabout okay, well, there's a
relationship between you andyour supervisor.
What does that feel like?
Does it feel constructiveoutside of those feedback
meetings?
Or does this feel like, youknow, a personal attack or
interpersonal conflict herethat's going on?
(09:44):
None of that came up.
All of that checked out.
I mean, it could always bebetter.
You could always sleep more, youcould always be better fed, you
could always be betterexercised, sure.
Right.
But they didn't seem to be theoutliers.
So we're always looking for thatoutlier.
So what was like interesting tome is like, oh, okay, my pockets
are empty on this one.
I'm like scratching my knob andlike, what are we doing?
Uh-oh.
Bag of tricks is getting prettylow here.
(10:04):
But there was just a simplesuggestion, like, hey, would
your supervisor be open tohaving your feedback meetings in
a different environment?
Because where they were meetingwas one wall, bank of windows on
an office building shining inbright sun.
And then it was like thatfishbowl conference room where
it's glass all the way around onthe other side.
And so open office, glass, themsitting across from each other,
(10:25):
kind of that antagonistic withthe sun coming in.
And when they would talk, thevoices would echo and
reverberate off of that room.
So they went for a walk.
They had feedback, they wereside by side, they'd walk around
the building and have thoseconversations.
They went from having a fairlyantagonistic relationship to now
they go out for drinks afterwork together.
They call each other on theweekends.
(10:47):
They actually have aninterpersonal relationship
that's professional, but stillvaluable for both of them.
It turns out that the sound thatwas reverberating off of there
was triggering their sensorythreshold and they were just
getting into a hypervigilantstate and couldn't relax.
That and getting feedback.
No one likes getting feedback.
You're always nervous a littlebit, right?
SPEAKER_01 (11:05):
Wow.
That's actually pretty amazing.
Now, how deep do you dive whenyou start looking at people's
issues that they're goingthrough?
Do you look at theirmedications?
Do you look at what theirpersonal life may be, what their
social life looks like?
How deep do you go to figure outwhat's actually going on in
(11:26):
their lives?
SPEAKER_00 (11:26):
Yeah, as deep as we need to and as wide as we need
to, right?
So I work with a lot of otherprofessionals, and most people
that I work with have a teamthat they're working with
already.
So whether that's a personaltrainer, psychiatrist,
therapist, the goal is for us tobe able to help them as best as
possible.
And so making sure that they'vedone all of their due diligence
and then I'm really there to tryto fill in the gaps and partner
with them to try to figure out,well, what else haven't we
(11:48):
looked at yet that might be, youknow, some low-lying fruit still
or some new territory that needsto be explored?
SPEAKER_01 (11:54):
So, where do you go when you have a problem, you
actually find a solution, yetthere seems to be a small hiccup
that still is there?
How do you dig deep enough tofind out what's going on?
Because there's just so manythings that ultimately can go
wrong in a person's day-to-daylife.
(12:16):
It could be business, it couldbe personal, it could be that
they're autistic or they haveanxiety or a serious mental
illness.
You can name any label that youwant to put to it.
Every different scenario isunique to itself and can have a
different complication.
How do you find out what it isthat fits that particular
(12:37):
narrative so that you can workwith these people and they can
move forward with their life?
SPEAKER_00 (12:42):
Yeah, that's a great question.
Um, I'm lucky enough that mostof the work I do is confined
around burnout.
So there's this idea ofworkplace well-being as the
general scope.
And so we're working in that.
So we have a finite outcomewhere we go, okay, we're trying
to make this easier to be youwhen you're at work and at home.
Okay, one obviously affects theother and vice versa.
And so because we have thatframe, it kind of shapes how we
(13:05):
kind of go through that.
And so it makes it a little biteasier to get some real work
done because we're not takingeverything that it could be
forever, because that'soverwhelming.
Uh, we're trying to shrink itdown to a place where it's
really actionable.
And here in the West, so much ofwho we are as a person is
defined and uh reciprocated bythe type of work that we do.
That's a lot of, you know, it'salmost like a like a proving
(13:27):
ground where a lot of our thingsshow up in that environment.
And if we can handle them onthat smaller scale and do
something that helps there, itdoes trickle over into those
other areas of life.
But if we try to do everythingall the time, oh, I don't know.
You know, I don't know if Icould do it.
SPEAKER_01 (13:42):
Yeah, I get that.
Are you the only one in youroffice, or do you have others
that you work with as well?
SPEAKER_00 (13:49):
So I do a lot of uh cross-referrals.
So I have people that I preferpartners that I work with that
have their own specialties.
So if someone's got some otherstuff that's way outside of the
scope that we want to make surethey're getting the support, I
have a Rolodex and, you know, Isend them some options.
In my clinic, it's just me.
And then most of the work that Ido is actually similar to how
we're talking now, where it'sover Zoom.
So I have clients that are inBangkok and another one tomorrow
(14:12):
that's in the UK.
And so it really is prettyfascinating to be able to work
with people all over.
SPEAKER_01 (14:18):
That's very interesting.
I'm actually glad you brought itup.
I work with people all aroundthe world with my podcast.
Yeah.
What do you find for thedifferences that you do in the
different parts of the world?
And then how do you address it?
SPEAKER_00 (14:33):
So um, the individuals that I work with
that are in these far-flungplaces have a history of being
from the here in the States.
So culturally, it's prettysimilar.
Um, the added difference thereis they're taking that culture
to that different area, andsometimes there's extra friction
there for them that theywouldn't have experienced here
in the States.
Sometimes that's better becauseit's easier of a culture for
(14:54):
them to lean into.
Sometimes it's more challenging.
SPEAKER_01 (14:56):
Yeah.
So how do you handle that?
Culture shock can be just asdramatic as any kind of shock.
So, how do you dig and find outwhat they can do to help them
get through whatever might behappening because of the culture
differences?
SPEAKER_00 (15:13):
Yeah, just thinking about a client that um ended up
working in Japan for an extendedperiod of time.
They're a remote first company.
And the reason why they went toJapan is because walking around
there is much more motivatingand restorative than it is in
their own city.
So, what's interesting is theculture shock there for them
wasn't a shock.
It was like, it wasn't like acold shower, it was like a warm
(15:35):
bath for them.
It was it was actually relaxingfor them.
Um, and the formalness of theindividuals and kind of that
like, I guess more quieter, likeum professional kind of demeanor
where people are walking aroundin the streets versus here
sometimes in the States it'svery interpersonal and
personable, like, hey, how's itgoing?
And you know, that was too muchfor them versus being out in
public in Japan is a verydifferent experience for them.
(15:55):
So they actually enjoyed that.
It was fun for them.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (15:59):
Yes, I know a few people that have moved and lived
over in Japan and they say thatthey love it there.
So with everything that we'vetalked about, what do you look
at as your biggest challenge?
You've built a successfulpractice, you're making a real
difference in people's lives.
What journey brought you here?
(16:19):
Can you share an extremelychallenging job that you had?
One where you realize this isn'tfor me, I need to move on.
How did that experience push youto pivot and ultimately find
your way to the work that youare doing now?
Do you have anything that comesto mind that really challenged
(16:40):
you and really pushed you to thepoint of where you finally left
it and moved on?
SPEAKER_00 (16:46):
Yeah, so my least favorite I've had a lot of jobs,
right?
I've had a lot of jobs.
Um my least favorite job wasworking at a pool where I was
the pool attendant.
It wasn't a lifeguard.
They did have a slide, but itwas at a hotel that was kind of
like a rest stop on the waybetween LA, Disneyland, and Las
Vegas.
And no one came to this pool.
And it was my job to be thereall day, every day, making sure
(17:08):
that if anybody did get on theslide, they were safe.
No one ever came on the slide.
So it was just me by myself allday.
That was the most unsufferablejob I have ever had.
If you paid me, you would not beable to pay me to do that job
now, no matter what the moneyis, because it was so
mind-numbingly bored.
I could not do it.
SPEAKER_01 (17:26):
So, do you have people that come into you now
that have those type of jobsthat you have to walk them
through it and help them throughit?
This way they can still,unfortunately, stay at the job
that they do not like, yet itputs food on the table.
SPEAKER_00 (17:42):
Absolutely.
Yeah.
If you have to quit to getbetter, that is there's so few
people that actually have theluxury of being able to afford
to be able to do that.
Most people here in the States,you know, that live in paycheck
to paycheck, maybe threepaychecks, right?
So if you have to quit to beokay, that's not a real viable
option for most people.
If you have the dual incomehousehold, maybe you can swing
(18:03):
it a little bit and you can kindof take turns on that.
But even then it's reallychallenging.
So trying to figure out how wecan add as much support as
possible to that person,insulate them against the worst
aspects of the things thatmind-umb them, that overwhelm
them, that keep them stuck.
That's really the name of thegame for most people.
SPEAKER_01 (18:20):
Yes, that is so true.
Now you say that you've workedwith several autistic people.
How do you approach that?
It's a completely differentscenario than some of these
other situations like bipolar oranxiety.
You can't just give them a pill.
You can't just say, here, takethis pill, call me in the
(18:41):
morning.
Yeah.
How do you handle thosesituations?
SPEAKER_00 (18:44):
Yeah.
So I don't prescribe medication.
It's not my job.
So, right?
SPEAKER_01 (18:48):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (18:48):
Um, and so my job is to stay really curious.
If you've met one person who hasautism, you've met one autistic
person.
How it shows up for them, whatit does for them, completely
different than the next person.
The experiences they've gonethrough and what it means for
them and the environment they'rein.
And so getting really curiousand getting really excited and
interested.
Yeah.
It's about the cupcake on thetable type of job.
(19:08):
And this is one of the but forme, it it feels like that
because I really enjoy gettingto know people and their stories
and where they're at.
And the excitement for me isabout understanding where they
are, what helps, what hurts, andwhat might actually be healing
for them to go through anexperience, and then helping
them to facilitate that in theirown life through a partnership.
It's not easy to do, but it'ssuper fun when it works.
SPEAKER_01 (19:29):
That's awesome.
Now, you enjoy what you do, andthat's helping people.
SPEAKER_00 (19:35):
Luckily, yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (19:36):
With that said, there's a flip side to that too.
Sometimes you can get soentrenched with that person
that's having problems.
Sure.
They're not taking your advice,they're continuing to have
problems.
Meanwhile, you're worried aboutthem.
How do you handle that?
SPEAKER_00 (19:54):
Yeah.
So in therapeutic settings, thatcomes up a lot, right?
So you have to make sure youhave your own support system.
You have to make sure that youhave your own therapist and your
own team that help support youthrough that process.
And you have to have people tobounce ideas off of that are
kind of trusted.
So that way you don't getoverwhelmed.
So you don't kind of get allabsorbed in it.
And you'd be able to have yourown ways of stepping away and
(20:14):
turning that part of your braininto something else.
Um, so for me right now, it'srock climbing, which has been
pretty fun to be able to go outand kind of get in my body and
do something like that.
But there's times where it's,you know, dusting the books off
of my shelf and reorganizing mybookshelves, right?
Or trying, you know, watchingone of my favorite movies ever
again.
But being able to take thoselittle things and and add them
into your day is part of it, youknow.
SPEAKER_01 (20:35):
So Yeah, that totally makes sense on relaxing
for yourself.
If you don't take care ofyourself, no one else will.
So, how wide a spectrum do yousee in people?
And I'm not talking about justautism.
I mean, you can have autism,PTSD, anxiety, ADHD,
(20:57):
schizophrenia.
There's just so many differentthings.
Do you see that wide a spectrum,or is it a little more narrow?
SPEAKER_00 (21:05):
Yeah.
So the people that I typicallywork with were working on
burnout.
So because of that, it's focusedabout work and vocational work
focus.
I always say I work with likehigh-achieving, high-masking
people.
So they may not have autism orADHD.
They might just have a highperformance anxiety.
They may not have a clinicaldiagnosis, they may not even
actually meet the criteria forthat.
(21:26):
But that doesn't mean they don'thave an experience that they're
suffering from that'soverwhelming to them that's that
they're challenged with.
SPEAKER_01 (21:33):
Okay.
Have you had a situation likethis?
I'm going to give you a scenarioof a person that I spoke with
just the other day.
I had a person come on mypodcast and he was going through
bouts of agoraphobia.
At times he said it was reallyscary and it got very, very
intense.
(21:53):
Sometimes to the point and levelof destroying things.
Because he was feeling Theintensity from the outside
pressure that affected him.
They finally did get him, well,he called himself cured, but not
really cured.
It was completely under control.
How would have you handledsomething like that?
SPEAKER_00 (22:15):
Yeah, I would definitely call one of my
colleagues that specializes inuh anxiety to the point that
that would be their specialty.
That's not uh something that Iwould necessarily be the primary
care provider in or the supportsystem with that.
That would be something that Iwould want to make sure that
they have that support and thatthey have that treated and under
(22:35):
control.
And now that they're there,okay, great, that we have this
new capacity.
Okay, what are we doing with it?
And how can we maintain that newcapacity as we take on new
challenges in our life?
That's typically where I wouldshow up in that process.
SPEAKER_01 (22:47):
Okay, so you kind of remind me, and I'm gonna give
you an analogy that's gonnasound kind of stupid.
Yeah.
When people are on cholesterolmedications like a statin, and
it's not working exactly the waythey want it to, the doctors
will give this little pillthat's a booster.
It's not a statin, but it helpsthe statin do the work to get it
where they need to be.
(23:07):
So you are kind of like thebooster that helps people.
SPEAKER_00 (23:10):
I love it.
I'm a booster.
Yeah.
Hey, if I'm helping boost peopleup, I'll take it, you know.
SPEAKER_01 (23:15):
Absolutely.
The main thing is that thepeople get help that they need
so they can live a fulfillinglife.
Now, what do you think is veryimportant that our audience
should know and hear about theimpactful work you've been
doing, your ongoing efforts, andyour future plans to support and
(23:36):
uplift those that need help?
SPEAKER_00 (23:38):
Yeah.
I think here in the States, youknow, we have a pretty strong
culture of like productivity andworth being synonymous.
And so we end up prioritizingthis output from ourselves and
the titles and the ideas and thethings that we can show for all
the effort as proof that we areworth something.
And I think we got a longhistory of that for really good
reasons here.
But I don't think that that'sactually true.
(23:59):
I think it's a myth that we'veall been led to believe.
And so a lot of the work thatI'm excited to be able to do,
and the message that I want tobe able to share with people is
that like lasting success, likehappiness, if we want to call it
that, or sustainable success,where it's like positive affect
throughout your day, isn't builtthrough the expense of your
will-being.
It's actually built through yourwell-being.
So if we're sacrificing that toget some outcome, we already got
(24:20):
the equation backwards.
We're putting ourselves inharm's way.
And so making sure that that's amessage that people have access
to.
And then the idea that, like,oh, if I'm not producing, that
doesn't mean I have to shame,blame, or guilt myself.
I can understand that like maybethat isn't tied to my identity.
I can be a person without beingthis.
And and making sure that we cango a little step further and
(24:40):
preaching that message out topeople.
SPEAKER_01 (24:42):
Yeah, absolutely.
Now, let me ask you this.
What you just said sounds reallygood on paper.
SPEAKER_00 (24:50):
Yeah, it does.
SPEAKER_01 (24:51):
It's kind of like you read a book that tells you
how to put something togetherand it says, oh, put A into B.
Looks simple, sounds simple,then you try and do it, and it's
like, man, this is not thateasy.
How do you get it across topeople when sometimes you look
at them and then you tell them,you've got your priorities
(25:12):
upside down.
They're looking at their job,they're looking at their money,
they're looking at theirfinancial future.
Meanwhile, they're sacrificingtheir potential happiness
because of their job.
So, how do you get that to apoint where it can all balance
out and people can be better?
SPEAKER_00 (25:30):
Yeah.
Usually when people show up,they're aware that something
needs to change.
They may not know exactly what,and neither do I, right?
But with through that work, itkind of shows up that way.
I know for my own personalstory, I was there, burned out,
overwhelmed, back pain, neckpain, chronic workout, long
shifts, doing really good onpaper.
Team seemed to like me.
I I liked them.
You know, whether they liked meor not, I was their boss, you
(25:50):
know, they laughed at my jokes,whatever.
But I enjoyed being there withthem.
But man, some days my dog wasn'tas cute.
Some days my relationship wasmore challenging than other
days.
And it was pretty challengingfor a long time, but I thought
everything was okay because Iwas doing what you're supposed
to do, right?
But I was going through that atthe same time that one of my
colleagues who I looked up to atthe time uh was suddenly let go
(26:10):
from the organization that we'reat after 20 years of working
there.
And it was about two weeks laterwhen I was sitting in a meeting
with his replacement, and we gotword that that gentleman decided
that he'd given so much ofhimself to the company for so
long that there wasn't enoughleft in his own life to keep
investing in it.
So that news kind of shook meup.
It goes, hey, you're on thispath, you're going in this
direction, and that's one of thepotential outcomes.
(26:31):
And you're already feeling thesigns of aches and pains.
So how much further are we goingto go here before we figure
something out?
I hope all of my clients don'thave to ever go down that rope,
right?
And anything and everything wecan do to help prevent that or
reverse it and give them as muchas they can get back in their
own life.
That's the goal.
Not easy though.
It's definitely not easy.
SPEAKER_01 (26:49):
No, that's for sure.
It's a constant battle.
Hopefully, they can win it.
Well, this has been really good.
Great conversation, greatinformation.
I really appreciate you takingthe time to join us today.
SPEAKER_00 (27:02):
Thanks for having me on.
I'm really glad to be able totalk about these things.
SPEAKER_01 (27:05):
Yes, it's been great.
Thanks again.
Thanks for taking time out ofyour busy schedule to listen to
our show today.
We hope you enjoyed it as muchas we enjoyed bringing it to
you.
If you know someone who has astory to share, tell them to
(27:28):
contact us at why notme.world.
One last thing spread the wordabout why not me.
Our conversations, our inspiringguest, the Joe.
You are not alone in this world.
Welcome to Why Not Me, embracing autism and mental
health worldwide.
Hosted by Tony Mirator.
Broadcasting from the heart ofMusic City, USA, Nashville,
Tennessee.
Join us as our guests sharetheir raw, powerful stories.
Some will spark laughter, otherswill move you to tears.
(00:30):
These real life journeysinspire, connect, and remind you
that you're never alone.
We're igniting a global movementto empower everyone to make a
lasting difference by fosteringdeep awareness, unwavering
acceptance, and profoundunderstanding of autism and
(00:52):
mental health.
Tune in, be inspired, and joinus in transforming the world one
story at a time.
Hi, I'm Tony Mantor.
Welcome to Why Not Me?
Embracing Autism and MentalHealth Worldwide.
Joining us today is GarrettWood, a National Board Certified
(01:13):
Health and Wellness Coach,clinical hypnotherapist, and
executive functioning specialistwith over 18 years of hands-on
experience.
He has walked the walk, he'sbattled his own high stakes,
burn out, and emerged stronger,now dedicating his life to
helping people in all walks oflife.
He will talk about peoplemasking through endless
(01:33):
meetings, wrestling withimposter syndrome, or simply
craving a life where successdoesn't come at the cost of
their joy.
His approach is as innovative asit is compassionate.
He's not just a coach, he's yourpartner in unmasking the real
you, healthier and happier,making you unstoppable.
He has a great wealth ofinformation and we're happy to
(01:56):
have him here.
So before we dive into ourepisode, we'll be back with an
uninterrupted show right after aword from our sponsors.
Thanks for coming on.
SPEAKER_00 (02:06):
I'm excited to be here to talk a little bit more
about this because I don't thinkit gets talked about wide
enough.
So I'm excited.
SPEAKER_01 (02:11):
Well, it's great to have you on.
If you would give us a littleinformation about what you do.
SPEAKER_00 (02:16):
So I work with people that are professionals,
they have a job.
They're usually prettysuccessful at that.
They've been working really hardfor a long time and they're
doing well on paper.
But when it comes to theirpersonal life, their
relationships, their health,they're struggling.
And most of that comes frommissing those cues that they
need to feel better.
And so the bigger that gap ispersonally and the more
successful they areprofessionally, those typically
(02:38):
seem to be the clients that showup at my clinic.
SPEAKER_01 (02:40):
Okay.
So when your clients walkthrough your door, what type of
people do you expect to see?
Before we came on, we talkedabout autistic ADHD special
needs.
So what is your typical clientlook like?
SPEAKER_00 (02:55):
Yeah, when I first opened my clinic, most of the
people that would come in, itwas for aches and pains.
So it'd be like shoulder painthat they just couldn't get rid
of, or this tension in the bodyand they couldn't fully relax
and never felt safe to be themin a place where they could like
really get into that rest anddigest state.
No matter what was going on,whether they're at work, they
had to be on.
And then when they're at home,it didn't feel like they had
enough time to fully recover.
And after being open for abouttwo years, a lot of the
(03:17):
clientele are coming in with aformal diagnosis for ADHD.
And then some of the people thatdidn't have a diagnosis, the
symptomologies, the way theywould describe their day was
very consistent with that.
And then you get talking to alittle bit of people more, you
get to know them a little more.
And they actually shared thatthey had both a dual diagnosis
of autism and ADHD.
So the label in the DSM isalways changing and being
(03:38):
updated as we get newinformation and updates, but
they have been diagnosed for along time with some of that.
And so they've gone throughthose changes of the DSM.
So how they experience the worldhas been consistently updated
with the new research.
But the feelings and experiencesthey have have seemed to be
consistent across for those lastyears.
SPEAKER_01 (03:54):
Can you give our listeners a little more
information on what it is thatyou do?
This way they can get a littlemore information on how you help
people that come to you.
SPEAKER_00 (04:03):
Yeah.
So most of the work that I do isabout increasing well-being.
So the idea is if we're burningout, it's because we're doing
really well at work, but we'renot getting enough support in
our personal life to be able tomaintain that.
And so we end up in burnout.
So people with different nervoussystems, different ways of
showing up in the world, theworld isn't necessarily designed
to kind of overlap with whatthey do.
And so trying to figure outwhere the biggest expense of
(04:26):
their ability to show up and beproductive is versus the biggest
benefit to them.
So can we reduce the friction intheir life and increase the ease
in different categories?
And some of those are sensoryneeds that happen that way.
Some of it's executivefunctioning.
Some of it, when you've beenbuilt into a system that wasn't
designed for you, come up withsome pretty uh challenging
beliefs about yourself.
(04:47):
And the shame, blame, and guilt,and fear that show up as a
result of those also play a roleas people navigate, you know,
day-to-day interactions.
SPEAKER_01 (04:53):
How do you help people get past that?
I mean, this world, it candefinitely be overwhelming to
some people.
So when they get to thatbreaking point, when they are
completely overwhelmed, facing apossible meltdown or extreme
anxiety, what are the steps youuse to help them get that under
(05:14):
control?
SPEAKER_00 (05:15):
Yeah, so the control there is an interesting word.
I would say uh how to be moreresilient, which is a little bit
different, in that the world ischallenging and it's not
designed for us.
It's not designed for theseindividuals with us.
Okay, so their meltdowns, theintensity of the duration, the
frequency, the level of anxiety,the frequency, the duration.
That is what we're trying toplay with, is to narrow that gap
(05:35):
as much as possible so that waythey can have as much joy as
they have access to.
And it's not easy, it's a lot ofwork.
But some of the little thingsreally do make a difference.
A lot of people go out there andlike, oh, if I do all this
stuff, I'll be enough to likefeel different.
But sometimes doing more isactually what beats or
exasperates some of the symptomsthat people are having.
So sometimes we're looking at,well, what are you doing that
already works?
And how can we do more of thatin an effective way?
(05:58):
And a lot of our interventionsseem to be like really general
interventions for people withmental health, like, go for a
walk, you know, take down time.
And it's like, sure, but howmuch would I have to walk?
And would that ever really getrid of my anxiety?
Probably not.
No.
So what works for you thatactually does make you feel
better?
What made yesterday better thanthe day before?
Okay, can we spend more timedoing that?
(06:19):
And so coaching is anoutcome-based process where it's
not prescriptive, it's actuallyan experience that people go
through with that person infront of them.
And so every single person isdifferent.
What works for them doesn't workfor everybody.
SPEAKER_01 (06:30):
Now you're part of the National Board for Health
and Wellness, correct?
SPEAKER_00 (06:34):
That is, correct, yes.
SPEAKER_01 (06:35):
Okay, can you give us a little information on what
it takes to get certified bythat board?
SPEAKER_00 (06:41):
Yeah.
So to be able to do what I do,there's a certification process
for that.
There's a it's the samegoverning board that makes
people sit for the medical examcertification.
It is not the same exam, um,completely different, but
similar governing bodies.
And so they wanted a way toactually get people to be a
standard of care that'sappropriate that makes it across
that.
And they've been working prettyhard for the last few years to
(07:02):
try to create that.
And it is about health andwell-being.
So it's about maintaining healthand fitness, but also mental and
emotional well-being becausethose are, in their view,
intertwined.
There's no way to really teasethem out from each other.
And coaching is more of whatthey're focused on.
So, how do we elicit thatresponse and make it easier for
people to begin that process?
So it involves a lot ofmotivational interviewing,
appreciative inquiry.
Do you just have to study andtake a test?
(07:24):
And then you have to spend quitea few hours working with people
for them to feel comfortableenough creating that designation
and applying it to people.
SPEAKER_01 (07:30):
Okay, that makes sense.
Now, when a person comes to you,what is the criteria for you to
evaluate and then come up with aplan that ultimately will help
them moving forward?
SPEAKER_00 (07:44):
Yeah, great question.
So everybody's different,everybody's unique.
And so trying to figure outwhat's the best benefit with the
least cost for them is a lot ofwhat the work is that we do.
I talk about the A3 framework,which is assessment,
accommodation, and alignment.
And so that assessment is um, weborrow sensory intelligence
consulting, which is Doctor ofOccupational Therapy, Anne-Marie
(08:05):
Lombard.
She has a sensory intelligenceconsulting where it's taking
people through an assessment.
What are all your differentsensory profiles?
Is it low threshold, highthreshold?
Are you sensory seeking?
Are you sensory avoiding?
And which one across which one?
Because some people lovevestibular stimulation.
They love being able to likefeel themselves in space, but
then lights or sounds or noisesare too much.
And so trying to make sure weknow that and then figure out
(08:27):
how to accommodate it, no matterwhere you are, who you're with,
or what you're trying to do.
And then if we can design yourwork around you.
But that's just one aspect,right?
We talk a little bit about otherones.
SPEAKER_01 (08:36):
Can you give me a scenario where you met with a
person?
Your first initial response toyourself was, this isn't gonna
work.
You kind of think, I don't knowif they have the right whatever
it takes to get to the otherside of this problem.
Then you just chipped away andchipped away, and finally it
(08:58):
worked out way better than youhad anticipated.
SPEAKER_00 (09:01):
So my favorite one with sensory stories is there's
an individual I was workingwith, she works in an office,
and she would have intenseanxiety around her feedback that
she would get from time forfeedback, okay, performance
reviews, here we go.
And it would be really not funleading up to it, and then
really challenging after it andgoing through the whole process.
We worked through a lot of that.
Is this about performance?
Is this about, you know, mylimiting beliefs?
(09:23):
Is this about um, you know,having too much coffee, not
enough food at that time?
What's going on around this?
Like, how can we help make iteasier to be you in these
moments?
And then we talked a little bitabout okay, well, there's a
relationship between you andyour supervisor.
What does that feel like?
Does it feel constructiveoutside of those feedback
meetings?
Or does this feel like, youknow, a personal attack or
interpersonal conflict herethat's going on?
(09:44):
None of that came up.
All of that checked out.
I mean, it could always bebetter.
You could always sleep more, youcould always be better fed, you
could always be betterexercised, sure.
Right.
But they didn't seem to be theoutliers.
So we're always looking for thatoutlier.
So what was like interesting tome is like, oh, okay, my pockets
are empty on this one.
I'm like scratching my knob andlike, what are we doing?
Uh-oh.
Bag of tricks is getting prettylow here.
(10:04):
But there was just a simplesuggestion, like, hey, would
your supervisor be open tohaving your feedback meetings in
a different environment?
Because where they were meetingwas one wall, bank of windows on
an office building shining inbright sun.
And then it was like thatfishbowl conference room where
it's glass all the way around onthe other side.
And so open office, glass, themsitting across from each other,
(10:25):
kind of that antagonistic withthe sun coming in.
And when they would talk, thevoices would echo and
reverberate off of that room.
So they went for a walk.
They had feedback, they wereside by side, they'd walk around
the building and have thoseconversations.
They went from having a fairlyantagonistic relationship to now
they go out for drinks afterwork together.
They call each other on theweekends.
(10:47):
They actually have aninterpersonal relationship
that's professional, but stillvaluable for both of them.
It turns out that the sound thatwas reverberating off of there
was triggering their sensorythreshold and they were just
getting into a hypervigilantstate and couldn't relax.
That and getting feedback.
No one likes getting feedback.
You're always nervous a littlebit, right?
SPEAKER_01 (11:05):
Wow.
That's actually pretty amazing.
Now, how deep do you dive whenyou start looking at people's
issues that they're goingthrough?
Do you look at theirmedications?
Do you look at what theirpersonal life may be, what their
social life looks like?
How deep do you go to figure outwhat's actually going on in
(11:26):
their lives?
SPEAKER_00 (11:26):
Yeah, as deep as we need to and as wide as we need
to, right?
So I work with a lot of otherprofessionals, and most people
that I work with have a teamthat they're working with
already.
So whether that's a personaltrainer, psychiatrist,
therapist, the goal is for us tobe able to help them as best as
possible.
And so making sure that they'vedone all of their due diligence
and then I'm really there to tryto fill in the gaps and partner
with them to try to figure out,well, what else haven't we
(11:48):
looked at yet that might be, youknow, some low-lying fruit still
or some new territory that needsto be explored?
SPEAKER_01 (11:54):
So, where do you go when you have a problem, you
actually find a solution, yetthere seems to be a small hiccup
that still is there?
How do you dig deep enough tofind out what's going on?
Because there's just so manythings that ultimately can go
wrong in a person's day-to-daylife.
(12:16):
It could be business, it couldbe personal, it could be that
they're autistic or they haveanxiety or a serious mental
illness.
You can name any label that youwant to put to it.
Every different scenario isunique to itself and can have a
different complication.
How do you find out what it isthat fits that particular
(12:37):
narrative so that you can workwith these people and they can
move forward with their life?
SPEAKER_00 (12:42):
Yeah, that's a great question.
Um, I'm lucky enough that mostof the work I do is confined
around burnout.
So there's this idea ofworkplace well-being as the
general scope.
And so we're working in that.
So we have a finite outcomewhere we go, okay, we're trying
to make this easier to be youwhen you're at work and at home.
Okay, one obviously affects theother and vice versa.
And so because we have thatframe, it kind of shapes how we
(13:05):
kind of go through that.
And so it makes it a little biteasier to get some real work
done because we're not takingeverything that it could be
forever, because that'soverwhelming.
Uh, we're trying to shrink itdown to a place where it's
really actionable.
And here in the West, so much ofwho we are as a person is
defined and uh reciprocated bythe type of work that we do.
That's a lot of, you know, it'salmost like a like a proving
(13:27):
ground where a lot of our thingsshow up in that environment.
And if we can handle them onthat smaller scale and do
something that helps there, itdoes trickle over into those
other areas of life.
But if we try to do everythingall the time, oh, I don't know.
You know, I don't know if Icould do it.
SPEAKER_01 (13:42):
Yeah, I get that.
Are you the only one in youroffice, or do you have others
that you work with as well?
SPEAKER_00 (13:49):
So I do a lot of uh cross-referrals.
So I have people that I preferpartners that I work with that
have their own specialties.
So if someone's got some otherstuff that's way outside of the
scope that we want to make surethey're getting the support, I
have a Rolodex and, you know, Isend them some options.
In my clinic, it's just me.
And then most of the work that Ido is actually similar to how
we're talking now, where it'sover Zoom.
So I have clients that are inBangkok and another one tomorrow
(14:12):
that's in the UK.
And so it really is prettyfascinating to be able to work
with people all over.
SPEAKER_01 (14:18):
That's very interesting.
I'm actually glad you brought itup.
I work with people all aroundthe world with my podcast.
Yeah.
What do you find for thedifferences that you do in the
different parts of the world?
And then how do you address it?
SPEAKER_00 (14:33):
So um, the individuals that I work with
that are in these far-flungplaces have a history of being
from the here in the States.
So culturally, it's prettysimilar.
Um, the added difference thereis they're taking that culture
to that different area, andsometimes there's extra friction
there for them that theywouldn't have experienced here
in the States.
Sometimes that's better becauseit's easier of a culture for
(14:54):
them to lean into.
Sometimes it's more challenging.
SPEAKER_01 (14:56):
Yeah.
So how do you handle that?
Culture shock can be just asdramatic as any kind of shock.
So, how do you dig and find outwhat they can do to help them
get through whatever might behappening because of the culture
differences?
SPEAKER_00 (15:13):
Yeah, just thinking about a client that um ended up
working in Japan for an extendedperiod of time.
They're a remote first company.
And the reason why they went toJapan is because walking around
there is much more motivatingand restorative than it is in
their own city.
So, what's interesting is theculture shock there for them
wasn't a shock.
It was like, it wasn't like acold shower, it was like a warm
(15:35):
bath for them.
It was it was actually relaxingfor them.
Um, and the formalness of theindividuals and kind of that
like, I guess more quieter, likeum professional kind of demeanor
where people are walking aroundin the streets versus here
sometimes in the States it'svery interpersonal and
personable, like, hey, how's itgoing?
And you know, that was too muchfor them versus being out in
public in Japan is a verydifferent experience for them.
(15:55):
So they actually enjoyed that.
It was fun for them.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (15:59):
Yes, I know a few people that have moved and lived
over in Japan and they say thatthey love it there.
So with everything that we'vetalked about, what do you look
at as your biggest challenge?
You've built a successfulpractice, you're making a real
difference in people's lives.
What journey brought you here?
(16:19):
Can you share an extremelychallenging job that you had?
One where you realize this isn'tfor me, I need to move on.
How did that experience push youto pivot and ultimately find
your way to the work that youare doing now?
Do you have anything that comesto mind that really challenged
(16:40):
you and really pushed you to thepoint of where you finally left
it and moved on?
SPEAKER_00 (16:46):
Yeah, so my least favorite I've had a lot of jobs,
right?
I've had a lot of jobs.
Um my least favorite job wasworking at a pool where I was
the pool attendant.
It wasn't a lifeguard.
They did have a slide, but itwas at a hotel that was kind of
like a rest stop on the waybetween LA, Disneyland, and Las
Vegas.
And no one came to this pool.
And it was my job to be thereall day, every day, making sure
(17:08):
that if anybody did get on theslide, they were safe.
No one ever came on the slide.
So it was just me by myself allday.
That was the most unsufferablejob I have ever had.
If you paid me, you would not beable to pay me to do that job
now, no matter what the moneyis, because it was so
mind-numbingly bored.
I could not do it.
SPEAKER_01 (17:26):
So, do you have people that come into you now
that have those type of jobsthat you have to walk them
through it and help them throughit?
This way they can still,unfortunately, stay at the job
that they do not like, yet itputs food on the table.
SPEAKER_00 (17:42):
Absolutely.
Yeah.
If you have to quit to getbetter, that is there's so few
people that actually have theluxury of being able to afford
to be able to do that.
Most people here in the States,you know, that live in paycheck
to paycheck, maybe threepaychecks, right?
So if you have to quit to beokay, that's not a real viable
option for most people.
If you have the dual incomehousehold, maybe you can swing
(18:03):
it a little bit and you can kindof take turns on that.
But even then it's reallychallenging.
So trying to figure out how wecan add as much support as
possible to that person,insulate them against the worst
aspects of the things thatmind-umb them, that overwhelm
them, that keep them stuck.
That's really the name of thegame for most people.
SPEAKER_01 (18:20):
Yes, that is so true.
Now you say that you've workedwith several autistic people.
How do you approach that?
It's a completely differentscenario than some of these
other situations like bipolar oranxiety.
You can't just give them a pill.
You can't just say, here, takethis pill, call me in the
(18:41):
morning.
Yeah.
How do you handle thosesituations?
SPEAKER_00 (18:44):
Yeah.
So I don't prescribe medication.
It's not my job.
So, right?
SPEAKER_01 (18:48):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (18:48):
Um, and so my job is to stay really curious.
If you've met one person who hasautism, you've met one autistic
person.
How it shows up for them, whatit does for them, completely
different than the next person.
The experiences they've gonethrough and what it means for
them and the environment they'rein.
And so getting really curiousand getting really excited and
interested.
Yeah.
It's about the cupcake on thetable type of job.
(19:08):
And this is one of the but forme, it it feels like that
because I really enjoy gettingto know people and their stories
and where they're at.
And the excitement for me isabout understanding where they
are, what helps, what hurts, andwhat might actually be healing
for them to go through anexperience, and then helping
them to facilitate that in theirown life through a partnership.
It's not easy to do, but it'ssuper fun when it works.
SPEAKER_01 (19:29):
That's awesome.
Now, you enjoy what you do, andthat's helping people.
SPEAKER_00 (19:35):
Luckily, yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (19:36):
With that said, there's a flip side to that too.
Sometimes you can get soentrenched with that person
that's having problems.
Sure.
They're not taking your advice,they're continuing to have
problems.
Meanwhile, you're worried aboutthem.
How do you handle that?
SPEAKER_00 (19:54):
Yeah.
So in therapeutic settings, thatcomes up a lot, right?
So you have to make sure youhave your own support system.
You have to make sure that youhave your own therapist and your
own team that help support youthrough that process.
And you have to have people tobounce ideas off of that are
kind of trusted.
So that way you don't getoverwhelmed.
So you don't kind of get allabsorbed in it.
And you'd be able to have yourown ways of stepping away and
(20:14):
turning that part of your braininto something else.
Um, so for me right now, it'srock climbing, which has been
pretty fun to be able to go outand kind of get in my body and
do something like that.
But there's times where it's,you know, dusting the books off
of my shelf and reorganizing mybookshelves, right?
Or trying, you know, watchingone of my favorite movies ever
again.
But being able to take thoselittle things and and add them
into your day is part of it, youknow.
SPEAKER_01 (20:35):
So Yeah, that totally makes sense on relaxing
for yourself.
If you don't take care ofyourself, no one else will.
So, how wide a spectrum do yousee in people?
And I'm not talking about justautism.
I mean, you can have autism,PTSD, anxiety, ADHD,
(20:57):
schizophrenia.
There's just so many differentthings.
Do you see that wide a spectrum,or is it a little more narrow?
SPEAKER_00 (21:05):
Yeah.
So the people that I typicallywork with were working on
burnout.
So because of that, it's focusedabout work and vocational work
focus.
I always say I work with likehigh-achieving, high-masking
people.
So they may not have autism orADHD.
They might just have a highperformance anxiety.
They may not have a clinicaldiagnosis, they may not even
actually meet the criteria forthat.
(21:26):
But that doesn't mean they don'thave an experience that they're
suffering from that'soverwhelming to them that's that
they're challenged with.
SPEAKER_01 (21:33):
Okay.
Have you had a situation likethis?
I'm going to give you a scenarioof a person that I spoke with
just the other day.
I had a person come on mypodcast and he was going through
bouts of agoraphobia.
At times he said it was reallyscary and it got very, very
intense.
(21:53):
Sometimes to the point and levelof destroying things.
Because he was feeling Theintensity from the outside
pressure that affected him.
They finally did get him, well,he called himself cured, but not
really cured.
It was completely under control.
How would have you handledsomething like that?
SPEAKER_00 (22:15):
Yeah, I would definitely call one of my
colleagues that specializes inuh anxiety to the point that
that would be their specialty.
That's not uh something that Iwould necessarily be the primary
care provider in or the supportsystem with that.
That would be something that Iwould want to make sure that
they have that support and thatthey have that treated and under
(22:35):
control.
And now that they're there,okay, great, that we have this
new capacity.
Okay, what are we doing with it?
And how can we maintain that newcapacity as we take on new
challenges in our life?
That's typically where I wouldshow up in that process.
SPEAKER_01 (22:47):
Okay, so you kind of remind me, and I'm gonna give
you an analogy that's gonnasound kind of stupid.
Yeah.
When people are on cholesterolmedications like a statin, and
it's not working exactly the waythey want it to, the doctors
will give this little pillthat's a booster.
It's not a statin, but it helpsthe statin do the work to get it
where they need to be.
(23:07):
So you are kind of like thebooster that helps people.
SPEAKER_00 (23:10):
I love it.
I'm a booster.
Yeah.
Hey, if I'm helping boost peopleup, I'll take it, you know.
SPEAKER_01 (23:15):
Absolutely.
The main thing is that thepeople get help that they need
so they can live a fulfillinglife.
Now, what do you think is veryimportant that our audience
should know and hear about theimpactful work you've been
doing, your ongoing efforts, andyour future plans to support and
(23:36):
uplift those that need help?
SPEAKER_00 (23:38):
Yeah.
I think here in the States, youknow, we have a pretty strong
culture of like productivity andworth being synonymous.
And so we end up prioritizingthis output from ourselves and
the titles and the ideas and thethings that we can show for all
the effort as proof that we areworth something.
And I think we got a longhistory of that for really good
reasons here.
But I don't think that that'sactually true.
(23:59):
I think it's a myth that we'veall been led to believe.
And so a lot of the work thatI'm excited to be able to do,
and the message that I want tobe able to share with people is
that like lasting success, likehappiness, if we want to call it
that, or sustainable success,where it's like positive affect
throughout your day, isn't builtthrough the expense of your
will-being.
It's actually built through yourwell-being.
So if we're sacrificing that toget some outcome, we already got
(24:20):
the equation backwards.
We're putting ourselves inharm's way.
And so making sure that that's amessage that people have access
to.
And then the idea that, like,oh, if I'm not producing, that
doesn't mean I have to shame,blame, or guilt myself.
I can understand that like maybethat isn't tied to my identity.
I can be a person without beingthis.
And and making sure that we cango a little step further and
(24:40):
preaching that message out topeople.
SPEAKER_01 (24:42):
Yeah, absolutely.
Now, let me ask you this.
What you just said sounds reallygood on paper.
SPEAKER_00 (24:50):
Yeah, it does.
SPEAKER_01 (24:51):
It's kind of like you read a book that tells you
how to put something togetherand it says, oh, put A into B.
Looks simple, sounds simple,then you try and do it, and it's
like, man, this is not thateasy.
How do you get it across topeople when sometimes you look
at them and then you tell them,you've got your priorities
(25:12):
upside down.
They're looking at their job,they're looking at their money,
they're looking at theirfinancial future.
Meanwhile, they're sacrificingtheir potential happiness
because of their job.
So, how do you get that to apoint where it can all balance
out and people can be better?
SPEAKER_00 (25:30):
Yeah.
Usually when people show up,they're aware that something
needs to change.
They may not know exactly what,and neither do I, right?
But with through that work, itkind of shows up that way.
I know for my own personalstory, I was there, burned out,
overwhelmed, back pain, neckpain, chronic workout, long
shifts, doing really good onpaper.
Team seemed to like me.
I I liked them.
You know, whether they liked meor not, I was their boss, you
(25:50):
know, they laughed at my jokes,whatever.
But I enjoyed being there withthem.
But man, some days my dog wasn'tas cute.
Some days my relationship wasmore challenging than other
days.
And it was pretty challengingfor a long time, but I thought
everything was okay because Iwas doing what you're supposed
to do, right?
But I was going through that atthe same time that one of my
colleagues who I looked up to atthe time uh was suddenly let go
(26:10):
from the organization that we'reat after 20 years of working
there.
And it was about two weeks laterwhen I was sitting in a meeting
with his replacement, and we gotword that that gentleman decided
that he'd given so much ofhimself to the company for so
long that there wasn't enoughleft in his own life to keep
investing in it.
So that news kind of shook meup.
It goes, hey, you're on thispath, you're going in this
direction, and that's one of thepotential outcomes.
(26:31):
And you're already feeling thesigns of aches and pains.
So how much further are we goingto go here before we figure
something out?
I hope all of my clients don'thave to ever go down that rope,
right?
And anything and everything wecan do to help prevent that or
reverse it and give them as muchas they can get back in their
own life.
That's the goal.
Not easy though.
It's definitely not easy.
SPEAKER_01 (26:49):
No, that's for sure.
It's a constant battle.
Hopefully, they can win it.
Well, this has been really good.
Great conversation, greatinformation.
I really appreciate you takingthe time to join us today.
SPEAKER_00 (27:02):
Thanks for having me on.
I'm really glad to be able totalk about these things.
SPEAKER_01 (27:05):
Yes, it's been great.
Thanks again.
Thanks for taking time out ofyour busy schedule to listen to
our show today.
We hope you enjoyed it as muchas we enjoyed bringing it to
you.
If you know someone who has astory to share, tell them to
(27:28):
contact us at why notme.world.
One last thing spread the wordabout why not me.
Our conversations, our inspiringguest, the Joe.
You are not alone in this world.
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