On this thought-provoking episode of Dear Dr. Charryse, host Dr. Charryse Johnson sits down with Jordan A. Y. Smith, professor, poet, filmmaker, mental health advocate, and Executive Director of the Always Be Kind Way Foundation, for a powerful conversation about values, identity, relationships, and making choices that reflect who we truly want to be.

Jordan Smith brings a unique perspective shaped by his work in Asian Languages and Cultures at UCLA, poetry, film, psychology, mental health, and cross-cultural education. He shares how our values can move beyond abstract ideas and become practical guides for the decisions we make every day.

The conversation explores how making a decision forces us to confront what matters most. Jordan introduces a reflection exercise that encourages people to identify three qualities they want to embody, such as being patient, present, or positive, and then use those qualities as a compass for making calmer and more intentional choices.

Jordan also opens up about returning to Los Angeles with the hope of rebuilding his 25 year marriage. Although he and his wife ultimately chose to part ways amicably, he reflects on the experience without bitterness and shares how accepting life's unexpected turns can become part of living according to your values.

Rather than creating a rigid vision of the future, Jordan encourages listeners to see life as a process of co creation. Through his pottery wheel analogy, he illustrates how we continually balance our intentions with the realities of the world around us.

Coaching Session Highlights:

• The Values Check: Jordan encourages listeners to examine their options and identify which personal values each decision puts into practice, helping bring clarity to difficult choices.

• The Three Qualities Exercise: Choose three qualities you want to embody and use their deeper essence as a guide for responding to everyday situations with greater intention.

• From Fear to Possibility: Dr. Charryse explores how people can place themselves inside protective emotional boxes because of fear or the desire for safety, and encourages listeners to recognize when those self imposed limits are holding them back.

• Hope Over Envy: Instead of comparing ourselves to people who appear to be living the life we want, Dr. Charryse encourages a mindset of possibility by asking, “If they can have it, why not me?”

• Practicing Value Alignment: The conversation explores how repeatedly making choices that reflect our core values can help create new patterns and make those choices feel increasingly natural and secure.

Dr. Charryse closes the conversation by encouraging viewers to reflect on whether their daily choices truly align with the person they want to become. This episode is a reminder that purpose is not only found in major life decisions—it is built through the values we practice every day.

On this powerful episode of Dear Dr. Charryse, host Dr. Charryse Johnson sits down with Dr. Prudence Hall, a Los Angeles based gynecologist and leading authority on menopause and holistic hormonal health, for an eye opening conversation about hormones, aging, stress, and women's health.

Traditionally trained as a gynecologist and surgeon, Dr. Hall transitioned into integrative and regenerative medicine after seeing firsthand how conventional approaches to menopause were leaving many women struggling with depression, anxiety, weight gain, fatigue, and changes in sexuality. Her approach focuses on understanding the root causes behind symptoms and looking at the body as an interconnected system.

Dr. Hall shares how hormone therapy has evolved throughout her career, including the shift toward bioidentical and natural hormones. She explains why estrogen and other hormones can play an important role in healthy aging and discusses the relationship between hormonal health, cardiovascular health, diabetes, brain health, and overall well being.

The conversation also explores how chronic stress can trigger a domino effect throughout the body. Dr. Hall discusses the connection between adrenal health, thyroid function, blood sugar, and hormonal changes during perimenopause and menopause.

Coaching Session Highlights:

• Understanding the Hormone Shift: Dr. Hall explains why perimenopause and menopause can affect everything from energy and mood to weight, sexuality, and overall quality of life.

• Looking Beyond One Hormone: Healthy aging requires looking at the body as a connected system. The conversation explores how stress, adrenal function, thyroid levels, blood sugar, and hormones can influence one another.

• Advocating for Your Health: Dr. Charryse encourages women to be honest about their symptoms and become active participants in their healthcare journey by asking questions and seeking appropriate professional guidance.

• Reframing Perimenopause: Dr. Charryse reminds women that perimenopause is a biological transition, not a personal expiration date, and encourages viewers to approach this stage of life with awareness rather than fear.

Dr. Hall also discusses her book Radiant Again and Forever, which shares patient stories and explores topics including PMS, perimenopause, thyroid health, and female sexuality. This episode offers an empowering look at what it means to age with vitality and why understanding your body can be the first step toward feeling like yourself again.

On this powerful episode of Dear Dr. Charryse, host Dr. Charryse Johnson sits down with entrepreneur, top-rated podcast host, and TEDx speaker Rachel Medina to unpack the hidden costs of success and what happens when achievement comes at the expense of peace.
Rachel shares her journey from scaling a remote marketing and media business to consistent six-figure months and generating millions in revenue—only to realize that the success she built had left her deeply unhappy and disconnected from the life she actually wanted.
After experiencing the devastating loss of her son and navigating the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, Rachel made a profound decision to realign her life around peace, purpose, faith, and what truly mattered.
Together, Rachel and Dr. Charryse explore the pressure female entrepreneurs face to constantly hustle, scale, and pursue more, while questioning whether those definitions of success actually serve them.
The conversation dives into the neuroscience behind achievement, the addictive cycle of chasing the next milestone, and why sustainable success must include the health of your body, relationships, nervous system, and spirit.
Rachel also shares how she is now using her experience to support other women through her podcast, community, and programs designed to help women explore entrepreneurship without sacrificing themselves in the process.
During the episode, Dr. Charryse introduces a powerful framework for evaluating whether your version of success is actually creating the life you want.
Coaching Session Highlights:
• The Hustle Trap: Constant opportunity and comparison can keep entrepreneurs chasing growth without asking whether the lifestyle actually feels good.
• Success & Self-Abandonment: Building a successful business around someone else's definition of achievement can leave you disconnected from yourself.
• The Dopamine Cycle: Accomplishments can provide temporary motivation and excitement, but the feeling fades, encouraging people to immediately chase the next milestone.
• Redefining Success: Success doesn't have to mean doing more. Peace, sustainability, relationships, health, and purpose can also be measures of achievement.
• Faith Over the Flex: Rachel and Dr. Charryse explore how faith can reduce the pressure to prove yourself or project an image of success.
• Purpose After Loss: Rachel shares how profound loss changed her priorities and ultimately pushed her toward a more purpose-driven life.
• The "Peace Profit Audit": Dr. Charryse challenges listeners to ask:
– What does my current definition of success require from my body, relationships, and spiritual life?
– Which goal is truly mine, and which am I pursuing because I'm comparing myself to someone else?
– What would I choose differently if peace, stewardship, and sustainability were also measures of success?
This episode is a powerful reminder that you can be ambitious without abandoning yourself. True success isn't just about what you build—it’s about whether you can experience peace while living inside the life you've created.

On this eye-opening episode of Dear Dr. Charryse, host Dr. Charryse Johnson welcomes Dr. Joleen Cowan, a high-performance strategist who helps businesses and leaders recognize when performance expectations no longer align with human capacity.
Together, they challenge the idea that burnout is simply an individual's failure to manage stress. Dr. Cowan explains why burnout is often systemic, particularly in high-pressure workplaces where chronic overload becomes the norm.
The conversation explores the hidden expectations placed on high-achieving women, the physical and cognitive warning signs of chronic stress, and why psychological safety is essential for both individual well-being and organizational performance.
Dr. Cowan also shares her High Performance Shift approach, a 90-day framework designed to help people move from chronic overload toward sustainable, aligned success.
During the episode, Dr. Charryse provides practical questions to help listeners determine whether they are dealing with a personal boundary issue or a system that is fundamentally broken.
Coaching Session Highlights:
• Burnout Is Not a Personal Failure: Burnout can be the result of chronic workplace stress and organizational conditions, not simply an individual's inability to cope.
• The Invisible Contract: High-achieving women may feel pressure to always be excellent, agreeable, available, and dependable without recognizing the cost.
• Recognizing Chronic Stress: Persistent exhaustion, memory problems, weight changes, and decision fatigue can signal that the body is operating under prolonged stress.
• Psychological Safety: People perform better when they can communicate concerns, limits, and risks without fear of punishment or rejection.
• Stabilize: Dr. Cowan's first phase focuses on identifying overload and creating awareness around workload, capacity, and personal well-being.
• Repattern: The second phase shifts the focus from constant achievement toward alignment and healthier operating patterns.
• Institutionalize: The final phase helps create sustainable systems that prevent burnout from becoming the default.
• The System vs. Boundary Check: Dr. Charryse encourages listeners to ask:
– Is this workload temporary and clearly prioritized, or has chronic overload become the norm?
– Do I have the authority, information, time, and resources needed to succeed?
– Can I openly communicate a risk or capacity limit without fear of consequences?
This episode is a powerful reminder that sustainable success isn't about pushing harder. It's about creating environments, boundaries, and systems where people can perform without sacrificing themselves.

On this powerful episode of Dear Dr. Charryse, host Dr. Charryse Johnson welcomes Dr. Judith A. Swack, a biochemist, immunologist, bestselling author, mind-body healer, and pioneer in Energy Psychology, for a transformative conversation about trauma and the mind-body connection.
Dr. Swack explains why understanding trauma intellectually doesn't always stop the body from reacting as if the danger is happening all over again. Drawing from her extensive work in neuroscience, psychology, hypnosis, NLP, Energy Psychology, and spiritual practices, she explores what happens inside the brain and body when traumatic experiences become embedded in our nervous system.
As the creator of Healing from the Body Level Up (HBLU), Dr. Swack introduces an approach that goes beyond simply talking about trauma. She explains how healing can involve the body, conscious and unconscious mind, and deeper emotional and spiritual experiences.
Together, Dr. Swack and Dr. Charryse explore the difference between coping and genuine healing, how environmental triggers can reactivate old survival responses, and why you don't have to wait for your family or anyone else to heal before moving forward yourself.
During the episode, Dr. Charryse and Dr. Swack share practical techniques designed to help listeners reconnect with their bodies and create a greater sense of safety and choice.
Coaching Session Highlights:
• Why the Body Remembers: Trauma can create powerful physical responses that remain even when we consciously understand that we're safe.
• Fight-or-Flight & the Nervous System: Dr. Swack explains how the body can become conditioned to respond to specific sights, sounds, smells, or other environmental cues.
• Healing From the Body Level Up: HBLU combines mind-body approaches to address trauma beyond intellectual understanding.
• The Calming Reflex: The body has natural mechanisms for moving from an activated survival state toward greater calm and regulation.
• The Butterfly Tap: Dr. Swack demonstrates a simple self-soothing technique involving gentle alternating taps while noticing where an emotion is held in the body.
• The Boundary Tap: A technique designed to help individuals separate themselves from criticism or emotional energy they don't need to carry.
• Coping vs. Healing: Temporary distractions such as scrolling, shopping, or other behaviors may reduce discomfort without addressing its underlying source.
• You Don't Have to Heal Everyone: Dr. Swack reminds listeners that personal healing does not require family members or other people to change first.
• The "Mind-Body Gap" Check-In: Dr. Charryse encourages listeners to ask:
– What do I understand intellectually that my body still doesn't seem to believe?
– What sensation, trigger, or protective response appears before I can explain it?
– What kind of support helps me feel more present, more choiceful, and less alone?
This episode offers a compelling look at why healing isn't always about thinking differently. Sometimes, the body needs to experience safety before the mind can truly believe it.

On this important episode of Dear Dr. Charryse, host Dr. Charryse Johnson welcomes entrepreneur, leader, and World Series of Arm Wrestling owner Gregg Sharp for an honest conversation about mental health, leadership, and the hidden struggles behind outward success.
Gregg shares a deeply personal experience involving a friend and former Marine who reached out during a mental health crisis—a conversation that ultimately helped save his life. His story highlights how easily pain can remain invisible when someone appears successful, strong, or capable on the outside.
Together, Gregg and Dr. Charryse explore why high performers often suffer silently, how workplace and family culture can either create safety or reinforce stigma, and why leaders have a responsibility to care about people beyond their productivity.
Gregg also opens up about growing up in a culture where talking about emotional struggles was often seen as weakness and explains how he has intentionally created a different environment for his own children—one built around communication, affection, and emotional openness.
During the episode, Dr. Charryse provides practical tools for recognizing distress and supporting someone who may be struggling.
Coaching Session Highlights:
• Success Doesn't Protect Against Struggle: Achievement, leadership, and competence do not make someone immune to emotional distress.
• The Hidden Cost of Silence: People who appear strong may be carrying significant pain that others never see.
• Mental Health & Leadership: Healthy leaders pay attention to the person behind the performance, not just their productivity.
• The Power of Presence: Supporting someone in distress isn't about having all the answers. Sometimes simply staying present can help someone reconnect with hope.
• Co-Regulation: Being around a calm, grounded person can help slow down an overwhelmed nervous system and create space for clearer thinking.
• Creating Open Families: Gregg shares how honest conversations, affection, and emotional availability can help children know they always have somewhere to turn.
• The "Notice, Ask, Stay, Connect" Tool: Dr. Charryse offers a practical framework:
– Notice: Pay attention to meaningful changes in someone's behavior.
– Ask: Calmly and directly ask whether they are thinking about hurting themselves.
– Stay: Don't leave the person to navigate the moment alone.
– Connect: Identify together who can provide additional support.
• Knowing When to Reach Out: Asking for help is not weakness. Creating connection during difficult moments can be life-changing.
This episode is a powerful reminder that we never truly know what someone is carrying beneath the surface. Mental health starts with creating spaces where people feel safe enough to be honest, supported, and seen.

On this profound episode of Dear Dr. Charryse, host Dr. Charryse welcomes clinical psychologist, trauma expert, author, and humanitarian Dr. Kirsten Harrison for a compassionate conversation about trauma, mental health, and reclaiming identity beyond diagnosis.
As a board-certified expert in traumatic stress and founder of Soul Wise Solutions, Dr. Harrison has spent her career helping individuals navigate complex trauma while advocating for a more human-centered approach to healing. Drawing from years of experience in trauma-focused inpatient care, she shares why healing is not about being defined by what happened to you, but about reclaiming your voice, dignity, and humanity.
Together, Dr. Harrison and Dr. Charryse explore the misconceptions surrounding trauma, resilience, parenting with mental health challenges, and the importance of seeing people beyond their diagnoses. They also discuss how lasting healing requires both personal growth and healthier systems of support.
During the episode, Dr. Charryse leads a live coaching session focused on compassion, resilience, and trauma-informed living.
Coaching Session Highlights:
• Trauma Is Personal: Trauma is not defined by the event itself but by whether it overwhelms a person's ability to cope in that moment.
• Beyond the Diagnosis: A diagnosis describes symptoms but never defines a person's identity, worth, or potential.
• Healing Through Dignity: Recovery begins by asking what happened to someone rather than focusing only on what is wrong.
• The Hidden Strengths of Survivors: Experiences of trauma can cultivate empathy, creativity, and unique strengths when properly supported.
• Resilience Is Not a Performance: Constantly appearing strong should not be confused with genuine healing or emotional well-being.
• Healing Without Constant Retelling: Individuals do not always have to repeatedly relive painful experiences in order to heal.
• Systems Matter: Families, workplaces, and communities all play an important role in either supporting or compounding trauma.
• The "Dignity Before Interpretation" Tool: Dr. Charryse encourages listeners to ask:
– What happened to this person, and what context might I be missing?
– What protective purpose could this behavior be serving?
– What voice, choice, safety, or humanity can I restore in this interaction?
This episode is a powerful reminder that healing begins with compassion. When we choose dignity over judgment, we create space for ourselves and others to truly recover and thrive.

On this inspiring episode of Dear Dr. Charryse, host Dr. Charryse welcomes actress, entrepreneur, on-air personality, and author Victoria Simone Gee for an honest conversation about identity, resilience, and embracing who you are beyond achievement.
From launching her entertainment career at just 16 years old to appearing in national campaigns, music videos, and Vogue Magazine, Victoria has spent much of her life in the spotlight. But behind the success, she shares her journey through undiagnosed ADHD, childhood trauma, and the pressure of constantly proving herself in an industry built on external validation.
Together, Victoria and Dr. Charryse discuss how our identities are shaped by life experiences, why authenticity requires letting go of perfection, and how healing allows us to reconnect with the parts of ourselves we've hidden for years.
During the episode, Dr. Charryse leads a live coaching session focused on identity, self-discovery, and embracing your authentic self.
Coaching Session Highlights:
• Identity Beyond Achievement: Your worth is not determined by your career, accomplishments, or public recognition.
• Living with ADHD and Neurodivergence: Victoria shares how receiving clarity later in life helped her better understand herself and her creative strengths.
• Healing Childhood Trauma: Unresolved childhood experiences can quietly shape adult relationships, self-worth, and emotional responses.
• Authenticity Over Performance: Letting go of the need to constantly prove yourself creates greater peace and confidence.
• Creative Reinvention: Sometimes life's setbacks redirect us toward talents and passions we never expected to discover.
• Social Media and Self-Worth: Stepping away from comparison creates space to reconnect with your true identity.
• Identity Is Always Evolving: Dr. Charryse reminds listeners that growth is not about becoming someone new but uncovering who they have always been.
• The "Who Am I Beyond the Bio?" Tool: Dr. Charryse invites listeners to reflect:
– What qualities remain if your titles, accomplishments, and possessions disappeared?
– What gifts or interests were dismissed because someone made you believe you weren't capable?
– What is one way to reconnect with that part of yourself without abandoning the life you've already built?
This episode is a powerful reminder that your greatest identity is not found in what you do, but in who you are when the spotlight fades.