Today felt slow, soggy, and emotionally dense — not because of chaos, but because life itself felt heavy. Between caregiving, exhaustion, a FedEx package that refuses to leave Chicago, and Mercury still doing cartwheels in retrograde, my bandwidth hovered at “running on fumes.”

We kicked off day one of our annual vendor event (shoutout to Scentsy season), and even though I wasn’t feeling the spark I usually do, the night turned out better than expected. I talk through the emotional weight of this season, the financial pressures we’re working through, and the small pockets of optimism I’m trying to keep alive — from remote job possibilities to slow but steady progress on our Total Money Makeover.

Nothing dramatic today. Just honest. Just heavy. Just real.

• Starting the day tired and emotionally low
• A Scentsy shipment held hostage in Chicago
• Caregiving fatigue + mental load
• Vendor event kickoff
• Cold, rainy November vibes
• Total Money Makeover updates
• Remote job leads + cautious optimism
• Why I’m not built for open-office seating
• Just… life being life

• Some days aren’t chaotic — they’re just heavy.
• Caregiving doesn’t pause for work, hobbies, or wellness routines.
• Retrograde chaos makes tech issues feel personal.
• You can love people and still feel overwhelmed by them.
• Hope can be small and quiet — a job lead, a warmer day, a plan.

This diary includes themes of caregiver stress, emotional heaviness, tech frustration, financial anxiety, and burnout. No graphic content, but it’s an emotionally weighted entry.

• 🎙 Guest inquiries: bookings [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 📬 Get in touch: heythere [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 🎙 More episodes & info: [https://the-high-functioning-disaster.captivate.fm/]
• 🎙 Discover more podcasts by Holder Haus Media: [https://holder-haus-media.captivate.fm/]
• 📱 Follow on IG: @thehighfunctioningdisaster [https://instagram.com/thehighfunctioningdisaster]
• 📺 Watch on YouTube: Uploads coming soon! [https://www.youtube.com/@HolderHausMedia]
• 💜 When I’m not podcasting, I’m also a Scentsy Consultant of 10+ years. If you’re into fragrance and cozy vibes, you can find my shop here: [https://sachasmells.com]

disaster diaries, high functioning disaster, caregiving stress, emotional heaviness, burnout, financial stress, Scentsy vendor life, shipping delays, Mercury retrograde issues, project manager job search, remote work, total money makeover, daily audio diary

👉 Make sure you’re subscribed to The High-Functioning Disaster so you don’t miss this next entry.

This podcast reflects personal experiences and opinions and is for informational and peer-support purposes only. It is not medical, mental health, legal, or financial advice. Please consult qualified professionals for guidance specific to you.

Today’s Disaster Diary is brought to you by fatigue, froggy voice vibes, caregiving burnout, and a Scentsy shipment held hostage in Chicago. I missed my Miracle Morning again, tried to keep fourteen mental browser tabs open, and spent way too much energy wrestling with the reality that I cannot force my mom to care about her own health.

I talk through the emotional exhaustion of watching someone choose decline, the internal tug-of-war between control and acceptance, and why “trying to will someone into wanting better for themselves” is a special kind of heartbreak.

Also on deck: Dateline theories, real questions about why people stay in abusive relationships, a dog who dances like she’s auditioning for Broadway, Financial Peace University panic, and the chaos of surviving on one-third of our former income.

Short(-ish), raw, and very on brand for a High-Functioning Disaster.

• Missing the Miracle Morning (again)
• A Scentsy order stuck in Chicago
• Caregiving frustration and the limits of control
• Dateline: murder, manipulation, and too many questions
• Domestic violence reflections
• Editing wins + dog dance intermission
• Starting Financial Peace University while broke
• Job-hunting in a season that makes no sense

• You can support someone, but you can’t choose for them — even when you’re watching them spiral.
• Emotional labor is a productivity killer, and sometimes the day is “good enough” simply because you survived it.
• Domestic violence is layered, terrifying, and far more complex than outsiders assume.
• Financial stress reshapes everything — goals, routines, survival strategies, and identity.
• Hope lives in small pockets: a helpful book, a dog being ridiculous, or the possibility of a job lead landing at the right time.

This diary includes vulnerable discussion of caregiver fatigue, family conflict, domestic violence, and financial stress. Nothing graphic, but emotionally heavy in sections. Listen with care if you’re in a tender place.

• 🎙 Guest inquiries: bookings [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 📬 Get in touch: heythere [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 🎙 More episodes & info: [https://the-high-functioning-disaster.captivate.fm/]
• 🎙 Discover more podcasts by Holder Haus Media: [https://holder-haus-media.captivate.fm/]
• 📱 Follow on IG: @thehighfunctioningdisaster [https://instagram.com/thehighfunctioningdisaster]
• 📺 Watch on YouTube: Uploads coming soon! [https://www.youtube.com/@HolderHausMedia]
• 💜 When I’m not podcasting, I’m also a Scentsy Consultant of 10+ years. If you’re into fragrance and cozy vibes, you can find my shop here: [https://sachasmells.com]

high functioning disaster, caregiving stress, emotional fatigue, family tension, Scentsy vendor life, shipping delays, domestic violence questions, vulnerability, burnout, financial peace university, job search stress, emotional load, daily audio journal, personal growth through chaos

👉 Make sure you’re subscribed to The High-Functioning Disaster so you don’t miss this next entry.

This podcast reflects...

Hey fellow high functioners — today’s diary is coming in hot from the messy middle of family and country stuff.

I talk through the ongoing tech gremlins (looking at you, Mercury retrograde 👀), a beautiful interview with author and nonprofit founder Gail Showalter, and how her work with Single Moms Empowered got me dreaming about what real support for single dads could look like too.

From there, things get more tender: I share how alienated I’ve felt in my own family, what it’s been like to be the primary caregiver for my mom, and how a hard but honest conversation with my aunt finally confirmed what I suspected — sometimes people stay away because what you’re going through is just too heavy for them to face. It doesn’t make it less painful, but it does make it make more sense.

I also dig into mental health and therapy access, the emotional cost of holding space for other people’s stories (hi, podcasters and therapists), and the looming shift from excellent insurance to… let’s call it “bare minimum adjacent.” From there, I wade into bigger-picture stuff: immigration, ethnicity, how brown folks are treated at the post office, and a recent shooting of a cleaning worker here in Indiana that I believe never should’ve happened. It’s a raw, political-leaning reflection — not a debate, not a sermon — just me trying to make sense of a country that feels like a high-functioning disaster.

If you’ve ever felt invisible in your own family, exhausted by caregiving, or heartbroken over how people are treated in this country, this one might make you feel a little less alone. 💛

This diary reflects my personal experience and opinions. It’s not therapy, legal, or medical advice — just one woman processing out loud in real time.

• Family stuff hits the deepest. Feeling excluded by relatives — especially during a heavy caregiving season — can trigger old wounds and create new ones. Naming it out loud can ease the pressure a bit.
• Caregiving while job-seeking is a brutal combo. Balancing your mom’s needs, unpredictable schedules, and financial stress makes the job hunt feel almost impossible — and you’re navigating it anyway.
• Therapy access is a privilege, not a guarantee. The shift from excellent insurance to bare-minimum coverage is real, and finding consistent support is harder than it should be.
• Holding space takes energy. Interviewing guests and sharing your own stories aren’t “just conversations” — they drain and refuel in different ways, and recovering between sessions matters.
• Our country is struggling. Immigration fear, racism, gun violence, and political extremes show up in everyday places — from a post office line to a tragic local shooting. Ignoring it doesn’t make it go away.
• Connection still matters. Even when family support is complicated, conversations (like the one with your aunt) can bring clarity, compassion, and a little more emotional breathing room.

In this entry, I talk about family estrangement, feeling excluded, caregiving for my mom, mental health and limited access to therapy, U.S. politics, immigration and racism, guns, and a recent shooting death in Indiana. There are no graphic details, but the themes include prejudice, violence, and grief in both family and societal contexts.

• 🎙 Guest inquiries: bookings [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 📬 Get in touch: heythere [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 🎙 More episodes & info: [https://the-high-functioning-disaster.captivate.fm/]
• 🎙...

Today’s Disaster Diary comes to you from the floor of my childhood bedroom–turned–home office, because I needed to feel grounded in the one room that has always felt peaceful and safe.

I talk about feeling physically run down, emotionally raw, and deeply reflective as I sit in that space and reach for my Brené Brown books, especially Braving the Wilderness. Her words about not belonging in your own family crack something open for me, because that’s exactly what this season feels like.

I unpack the tangled mess of:

• Caring for my mom when she will not care for herself.
• Feeling like the only “available” adult, and still somehow not enough.
• My aunt going quiet instead of having a hard conversation, and how that echoes the way my dad’s sister cut me off years ago.

I read and reflect on Brené’s idea that not belonging in our family is one of the deepest hurts we can experience, and how the “third way” — owning our pain and turning it into empathy — is the one I keep choosing, even when it hurts like hell.

There’s talk of job hunting in a saturated market, trying to figure out how to work while managing constant appointments, skipping movement because I feel like garbage, and still tracking protein like the strong bariatric girlie I am.

It’s vulnerable, unpolished, and tender — a real-time snapshot of what it feels like to navigate caregiving, grief, and being the black sheep who keeps choosing compassion anyway.

See you tomorrow for the next installment of the Disaster Diaries. 💛

• Sitting on the floor of her childhood bedroom/office, Sacha reflects on feeling physically unwell, emotionally vulnerable, and deeply alone in this season.
• She shares how her aunt’s silence and exclusion mirror painful treatment from her dad’s sister, reopening old wounds around not belonging in her own family.
• Brené Brown’s Braving the Wilderness offers a framework: own the pain, transform it into empathy, and choose compassion instead of numbing or denial.
• Caregiving responsibilities, a saturated job market, and constant appointments make work feel impossible, adding another layer of stress and stuckness.
• Even on low-capacity days, Sacha leans into honesty, nearly hits her protein goal, and chooses to keep going — imperfectly, but still moving.

This episode includes discussion of family estrangement, painful comments from relatives, caregiving stress, job loss anxiety, and feeling like you do not belong in your own family.

• 🎙 Guest inquiries: bookings [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 📬 Get in touch: heythere [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 🎙 More episodes & info: [https://the-high-functioning-disaster.captivate.fm/]
• 🎙 Discover more podcasts by Holder Haus Media: [https://holder-haus-media.captivate.fm/]
• 📱 Follow on IG: @thehighfunctioningdisaster [https://instagram.com/thehighfunctioningdisaster]
• 📺 Watch on YouTube: Uploads coming soon! [https://www.youtube.com/@HolderHausMedia]
• 💜 When I’m not podcasting, I’m also a Scentsy Consultant of 10+ years. If you’re into fragrance and cozy vibes, you can find my shop here: [https://sachasmells.com]

family estrangement, not belonging, Brené Brown,...

Eating disorder dietitian Jessica Setnick returns for Part 2, and we go straight into the intersections of trauma, food, grief, and the stories we’re still unconsciously living by.

Jessica breaks down food as a mood-altering chemical, why bingeing or restricting often starts as survival, and how childhood chaos gets wired into adult patterns. Sacha shares her own post-op anger and a childhood food memory that suddenly makes perfect sense.

We explore how shame hijacks behavior, how regret opens the door to change, and why seeing parents’ reactions through the lens of fear can rewrite your whole internal narrative.

• How nervous system wiring shows up in food patterns
• Food as self-medication
• Shame vs. regret — emotional chemistry explained
• Grief after losing coping tools (hello, bariatric journey)
• Why some food memories feel “random” but aren’t
• How kids internalize adult fear

• Your eating patterns are survival strategies, not failures.
• Shame thrives in secrecy; curiosity dismantles it.
• Removing food coping brings suppressed emotions forward.
• “I’m too much” or “I’m not enough” often started with someone else’s fear.
• Compassion for the younger you is a power move.

Themes of trauma, grief, parental conflict, shame, emotional coping, body image, and weight stigma. Sensitive topics handled gently.

Where to find Jessica:

• 🌐Website: [https://www.jessicasetnick.com/]
• 📚 Workbook: [https://www.foodfairytales.com/]
• 📱Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/eatingdisordersbootcamp/]
• 📱Instagram: [https://www.instagram.com/understandingnutrition/]
• 📱X: [https://x.com/JessicaSetnick]
• 🧠LinkedIn: [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicasetnick/]

✨ Connect with The High-Functioning Disaster:

• 🎙 Guest inquiries: bookings [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 📬 Get in touch: heythere [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 🎙 More episodes & info: [https://the-high-functioning-disaster.captivate.fm/]
• 🎙 Discover more podcasts by Holder Haus Media: [https://holder-haus-media.captivate.fm/]
• 📱 Follow on IG: @thehighfunctioningdisaster [https://instagram.com/thehighfunctioningdisaster]
• 📺 Watch on YouTube: Uploads coming soon! [https://www.youtube.com/@HolderHausMedia]
• 💜 When I’m not podcasting, I’m also a Scentsy Consultant of 10+ years. If you’re into fragrance and cozy vibes, you can find my shop here: [https://sachasmells.com]

Jessica Setnick, trauma healing, emotional eating, food coping, grief, nervous system, subconscious...

Details to come

Dietitian and eating-psychology educator Jessica Setnick joins Sacha to unravel the unconscious stories shaping our eating, coping, and self-soothing behaviors — stories rooted in childhood, emotion, and survival.

Jessica introduces the idea of the “inner eater” — the younger self who learned how to navigate fear, comfort, chaos, and connection through food. Together, she and Sacha explore how emotional environments, family dynamics, and attachment wounds silently influence adult behaviors we often shame ourselves for.

If you’ve ever wondered “Why do I do this?” — this episode starts answering that question with compassion rather than judgment.

• How early emotional wiring shapes adult coping patterns
• Why food becomes a mood-altering chemical
• The link between attachment wounds and eating behavior
• How families pass down beliefs without realizing it
• The influence-map exercise and what it reveals

• Eating behaviors are often trauma responses, not choices.
• Shame and fear get tied to food through lived experience.
• The nervous system — not willpower — drives many eating patterns.
• Coping strategies develop to keep us safe.
• Curiosity dismantles shame faster than discipline ever could.

Themes include childhood emotional patterns, trauma responses, unconscious conditioning, food-related coping, shame, fear, and attachment wounds. Trauma-informed discussion handled gently. No diet talk.

Where to find Jessica:

• 🌐Website: [https://www.jessicasetnick.com/]
• 📚 Workbook: [https://www.foodfairytales.com/]
• 📱Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/eatingdisordersbootcamp/]
• 📱Instagram: [https://www.instagram.com/understandingnutrition/]
• 📱X: [https://x.com/JessicaSetnick]
• 🧠LinkedIn: [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicasetnick/]

✨ Connect with The High-Functioning Disaster:

• 🎙 Guest inquiries: bookings [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 📬 Get in touch: heythere [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 🎙 More episodes & info: [https://the-high-functioning-disaster.captivate.fm/]
• 🎙 Discover more podcasts by Holder Haus Media: [https://holder-haus-media.captivate.fm/]
• 📱 Follow on IG: @thehighfunctioningdisaster [https://instagram.com/thehighfunctioningdisaster]
• 📺 Watch on YouTube: Uploads coming soon! [https://www.youtube.com/@HolderHausMedia]
• 💜 When I’m not podcasting, I’m also a Scentsy Consultant of 10+ years. If you’re into fragrance and cozy vibes, you can find my shop here: [https://sachasmells.com]

inner...

Today’s entry was a whole journey, starting with a rushed Miracle Morning in the car on the way to get fresh cuts and color. ✂️✨ From there? Straight into errands, exhaustion, and a family misunderstanding that somehow evolved into a full-on silent treatment situation. Love that for us. 😭

My aunt is currently not speaking to me because I mentioned feeling unsupported with my mom’s care — not blaming, just… explaining. Texting is a dangerous sport. Meanwhile, my brother and I synced up twice today for updates, detective work, and emotional damage control.

Protein goals? Hit them. Mostly shakes, but it still counts.

Errands? Costco, Sam’s, pool not closed (again).

Purchases? Two winter coats — one for Mom, one for me.

Temperature? I was FREEZING all day like I suddenly became a Victorian orphan, so I used Brandon as my personal radiator.

Also: two naps. Two.

A win, honestly.

Wrapped the night with weekly planning, job-hunting anxiety, PMP study guilt, and a realistic reminder that adulthood is basically just “choosing which problem to handle first.”

See you tomorrow for the next installment of the Disaster Diaries. 💛

• Miracle Mornings can be mobile — portable spirituality, baby.
• Cold weather hits harder when the universe is already testing you.
• Expressing your needs can create conflict or clarity… today it chose violence.

Light family conflict, mentions of caregiving stress, job loss, and perimenopause symptoms.

• 🎙 Guest inquiries: bookings [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 📬 Get in touch: heythere [at] holderhausmedia [dot] com
• 🎙 More episodes & info: [https://the-high-functioning-disaster.captivate.fm/]
• 🎙 Discover more podcasts by Holder Haus Media: [https://holder-haus-media.captivate.fm/]
• 📱 Follow on IG: @thehighfunctioningdisaster [https://instagram.com/thehighfunctioningdisaster]
• 📺 Watch on YouTube: Uploads coming soon! [https://www.youtube.com/@HolderHausMedia]
• 💜 When I’m not podcasting, I’m also a Scentsy Consultant of 10+ years. If you’re into fragrance and cozy vibes, you can find my shop here: [https://sachasmells.com]

Disaster Diaries, Sacha Holder, High-Functioning Disaster, caregiving stress, family conflict, perimenopause, Miracle Morning, Costco haul, protein goals, job search anxiety, PMP prep, introvert life, daily diary podcast

👉 Make sure you’re subscribed to The High-Functioning Disaster so you don’t miss this next entry.

This podcast reflects personal experiences and opinions and is for informational and peer-support purposes only. It is not medical, mental health, legal, or financial advice. Please consult qualified professionals for guidance specific to you.