Do you ever find yourself saying, “It’s not that bad… other people have it worse”?

In this bonus episode, we explore why we’re so quick to downplay our own struggles and how that instinct can actually hold us back. Struggle isn’t a competition and pain doesn’t need to be ranked to be real. This is a reflection on why YOUR hard is still hard and why giving yourself permission to feel it might be the most powerful thing you can do.

What does it really take to survive and thrive when the system is stacked against you? This week, I’m talking with Dr. Gena V, a force of nature whose life is a testament to persistence and purpose. From being forced out of her all-Black high school in the 1970s, to becoming a teenage mother, to earning her doctorate and publishing 14 books, she has kept going, with dignity, clarity and fight. Her story will remind you that survival isn’t just about getting through, it’s about making meaning out of what tried to break you.

This week's song, Life Will Be by Cleo Sol, feels as if it was written for specifically for Dr. Gena V.

After my cancer scare, I’m now living what I call my “yellow-light” life and I’m deeply grateful for it. Yes, it’s filled with the stress of insurance complications and the mental, physical and emotional load so many of us carry as we hold our lives (and everyone else's) together. But it also is also filled with making time for myself, time that I fiercely protect. I’m here to remind you that you don’t need a health scare to understand that we are all doing the best we can and to encourage you to get comfortable in your beautiful, imperfect life.