In this deeply moving and highly intentional episode of The Parenthood and Relationship Podcast, we explore what happens when parenthood collides with identity, neurodiversity, and the gentle yet powerful art of designing your life with purpose. I sit down with Dr. Leonaura Rhodes, whose unique journey as a physician, neurofeedback therapist, life coach, and parenthood strategist moves beyond the clichés to the core questions: How do we grieve the life we thought we’d have? How do we rebuild a family culture that reflects both challenge and deep love?

Dr. Rhodes brings clarity, heart, and practical wisdom. You'll learn:

• Why living on autopilot is the opposite of thriving.
• How even unexpected diagnoses can open doors to deeper intentionality.
• Ways to reshape your identity as a parent without losing yourself—or your connection as a couple.

This episode is for you if you’re in the heart of confusion or awaiting clarity—parents navigating an identity shift, couples trying to tether their bond while juggling new roles, or anyone wondering, Can I design a life that feels real and true? Through stories, laughter, and guiding strategies, Dr. Rhodes and I dig into the messy, beautiful process of conscious family design.

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MORE ABOUT DR. LEONAURA RHODES

Dr. Leonaura Rhodes is a physician from UK (Family medicine, public health and developmental pediatrics). She moved to USA 16 years ago and became a neurofeedback therapist and a life coach for parents and high achieving professionals. In 2015 she published "Beyond Soccer Mom: Strategies for a fabulous balanced life" - a book to help parents intentionally design their life so that they can thrive while they raise children. Dr. Rhodes is also a podcast host, corporate trainer and teacher for a large wellness platform.

Website: https://www.drleonaurarhodes.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leonaurarhodes/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drleonaurarhodes

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leonaurarhodes/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2IIJj_hnHZJO8BwcKPqInQ

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💌 Don’t forget: This week’s newsletter includes an exclusive tool to help you track small emotional wins get it at markellakaplani.com/newsletter.

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Full Transcript HERE. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zrYvxzn2CBbhaZauMeG9LYhr7uhiw4prmQZPShBgQHA/edit?usp=sharing

— Want to take our relationship to the next level? 👉Here are my top Resources (https://www.markellakaplani.com/resources) 👉 Link to my Newsletter (https://markellakaplani.com/newsletter) 👉 Work with Me (https://markellakaplani.com/)

📩 Get in touch with me Instagram @markella.kaplani; website: https://markellakaplani.com; e-mail: info@markellakaplani.com) 📢 Listen, share, and leave a review! https://podcasts.apple.com/gr/podcast/the-parenthood-and-relationship-podcast/id1739098480 Your support means the world!

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Markella Kaplani, M.A. Clinical-Counseling Psychologist Parenthood & Relationship Coach www.markellakaplani.com

Have you ever felt like the invisible leader in your home? Like you’re the one carrying the emotional weight, asking the big questions, and trying to shape a family culture while your partner seems to coast? You’re not alone.

In this week’s episode of The Parenthood and Relationship Podcast, we explore the reality of being the “vision bearer,” the parent who notices the gaps, feels the tension, and holds the dream of what family life could be. While it’s a powerful role, it can also lead to exhaustion, resentment, and loneliness if carried alone.

Through real-life examples and practical strategies, I guide you through three ways to lead without burning out.

This episode is about reclaiming the energy to lead intentionally while also protecting your boundaries and emotional well-being. It’s for parents who long to build a loving, resilient family culture, but need to know they don’t have to do it all.

Today we explore:

1. Why every family has a “vision bearer” and the hidden costs of carrying it alone
2. How to transform control into genuine invitations for your partner to join you
3. The power of small microculture moments that quietly shape family identity
4. How to protect yourself from burnout and resentment while leading with love

Your family culture doesn’t have to collapse under pressure. With the right tools and mindset, you can create something lasting, human, and deeply connected, without losing yourself in the process.

🎁 GET THE CALM PARENT, CALM CHILD GUIDE!

💌 Don’t forget: This week’s newsletter includes an exclusive tool to help you track small emotional wins get it at markellakaplani.com/newsletter.

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Full Transcript HERE.

— Want to take our relationship to the next level? 👉Here are my top Resources 👉 Link to my Newsletter 👉 Work with Me

📩 Get in touch with me Instagram @markella.kaplani; website: https://markellakaplani.com; e-mail: info@markellakaplani.com) 📢 Listen, share, and leave a review! Your support means the world!

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Markella Kaplani, M.A. Clinical-Counseling Psychologist Parenthood & Relationship Coach www.markellakaplani.com

GET THE WORKSHEET HERE

In today’s episode, we explore a deceptively simple, but deeply messy, question: Whose values are you parenting from? It’s a gentle, courageous invitation to uncover the scripts we’ve inherited; values absorbed from our families, communities, even the culture at large, and ask: Are these values yours… or just familiar?

Join me as we unravel what “values” really mean: not slogans, but the guiding principles that show up when you’re tired or triggered. We'll look at where those values come from, how they can misalign with the family you actually want, and how to begin choosing values that reflect your own vision, not just the one you inherited.

You'll hear:

• Why many of us parent by default, using values we never consciously chose
• A simple but powerful framework: Keep • Rewrite • Release, used to redefine what matters most
• Real-life stories of couples navigating differences in meaning and merging into a shared, intentional value system

This isn’t about blame or perfection. It’s about awareness, courage, and alignment. Because values like presence, kindness, rest, or respect deserve a lived definition that you and your partner both own.

This episode’s breakdown: 1. How inherited values shape your parenting without you realizing it 2. The three-column framework to keep, rewrite, or release values 3. What happens when you and your partner define the same words differently 4. The emotional power of choosing values that align with the family you truly want

Take this episode as your mirror: a chance to pause, get curious, and reclaim the values that light you up. You don’t need a manifesto. You need clarity and courage.

🎁 GET THE CALM PARENT, CALM CHILD GUIDE!

💌 Don’t forget: This week’s newsletter includes an exclusive tool to help you track small emotional wins get it at markellakaplani.com/newsletter.

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Full Transcript HERE.

— Want to take our relationship to the next level? 👉Here are my top Resources 👉 Link to my Newsletter 👉 Work with Me

📩 Get in touch with me Instagram @markella.kaplani; website: https://markellakaplani.com; e-mail: info@markellakaplani.com) 📢 Listen, share, and leave a review! Your support means the world!

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Markella Kaplani, M.A. Clinical-Counseling Psychologist Parenthood & Relationship Coach www.markellakaplani.com

Here’s the truth: You’re shaping your family culture every single day — not through grand gestures, but in the tiny, repeated choices that give your home its emotional tone. What you say when someone’s upset. How you transition between activities. Where your attention lands. That’s all culture.

In this episode of The Parenthood and Relationship Podcast, we break down the Three Rs of shaping an intentional family life: Rituals, Rhythms, and Roles. These are the invisible building blocks that can transform a home from reactive and scattered… to grounded, connected, and harmonious.

Rituals are the glue of connection — small, intentional moments that say this matters. Rhythms are the nervous system’s love language — predictable flows that help every member of the family exhale. Roles are the unspoken scripts we act out — often inherited, sometimes limiting, and always worth re-examining.

If your days feel chaotic, your routines inconsistent, or your relationships stuck in the same patterns, this episode will give you tools to pause, notice, and choose differently. We’ll explore how to gently reclaim rituals, anchor rhythms, and loosen roles so your family culture reflects what you actually value — not just what you’ve inherited.

Today we explore:

1. How to identify and create meaningful family rituals.

2. Why rhythm brings calm to children (and adults) without turning into rigid schedules.

3. How to spot inherited family roles — and update the script.

4. The emotional impact of conscious family culture on connection and security.

This isn’t about perfection — it’s about awareness and one small change at a time. Because the way you live today becomes the emotional home your children will remember tomorrow.

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🎁 GET THE CALM PARENT, CALM CHILD GUIDE!

💌 Don’t forget: This week’s newsletter includes an exclusive tool to help you track small emotional wins get it at markellakaplani.com/newsletter.

--

Full Transcript HERE.

— Want to take our relationship to the next level? 👉Here are my top Resources 👉 Link to my Newsletter 👉 Work with Me

📩 Get in touch with me Instagram @markella.kaplani; website: https://markellakaplani.com; e-mail: info@markellakaplani.com) 📢 Listen, share, and leave a review! Your support means the world!

---

Markella Kaplani, M.A.

Clinical-Counseling Psychologist

Parenthood & Relationship Coach

www.markellakaplani.com

Many parents don’t even realize they already live within a culture - an emotional ecosystem fueled by inherited patterns, repeating phrases, rituals (or the lack thereof), and relational rhythms. You might feel like your family is stuck on autopilot, responding to tantrums or tensions without curiosity or clarity. You might rely on bribes, punishment, or reactive conflict, with no sense of intentional design.

But here’s the good news: shifting your family culture doesn’t require a revolution. It starts with a pause… a breath between the stimulus and your response. Today, we explore how intentional parenting can grow from the soil of small rituals, creating safety, rhythm, and deeper connection.

You’ll learn:

- What family culture really is and why it lives in the “air between you.”

- How most family culture is unconsciously inherited and ways to consciously choose what to keep, rewrite, or release.

- Signs your home might be on autopilot and how that cycle silently shapes both children and parents.

- How tiny, sacred patterns (think bedtime phrases or Sunday check-ins) form the anchors of a thriving emotional ecosystem.

Stay tuned till the end for the Three‑Bucket Reflection: a tool to map what you keep, rewrite, and release.

If you’ve ever wondered how to parent with intention instead of reaction, or how to build a home that holds space for curiosity, kindness, rest, and emotional safety, this episode calls to you.

🎁 GET THE CALM PARENT, CALM CHILD GUIDE!

💌 Don’t forget: This week’s newsletter includes an exclusive tool to help you track small emotional wins get it at markellakaplani.com/newsletter.

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Full Transcript HERE.

— Want to take our relationship to the next level? 👉Here are my top Resources 👉 Link to my Newsletter 👉 Work with Me

📩 Get in touch with me Instagram @markella.kaplani; website: https://markellakaplani.com; e-mail: info@markellakaplani.com) 📢 Listen, share, and leave a review! Your support means the world!

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Markella Kaplani, M.A. Clinical-Counseling Psychologist Parenthood & Relationship Coach www.markellakaplani.com

Is overstimulation quietly unraveling your relationship?

In this vulnerable and illuminating conversation with certified Health & Wellness Coach Sara Sandland, we peel back the layers of what’s really happening when moms feel “touched out,” irritable, or emotionally distant from their partners - and why it’s not a personality flaw, but a physiological reality with deep relational consequences.

Sara and I unpack:

1. The daily signs of sensory and emotional overload that most moms dismiss
2. Why postpartum depletion can last for years
3. The ripple effect of overstimulation on physical intimacy and emotional closeness
4. Why couples often want the same thing — to feel connected again — but keep missing each other
5. And what proactive conversations and micro-changes can rekindle that lost bond.

This episode will leave you feeling seen, empowered, and supported — whether you’re the parent who feels overwhelmed or the partner who feels left behind.

💌 SIGN UP: This week’s loveletter includes 1 insight, 1 exclusive tool, as well as 1 three-minute reset to help you track small emotional wins. Get it at markellakaplani.com/newsletter.

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Who is Sara Sandland?

Sara Sandland is a Certified Health & Wellness Coach who specializes in maternal well-being and the motherhood experience. As the Founder & Owner of Notably Well, Sara helps moms improve their energy, overstimulation, overwhelm, fulfillment, relationships, and more through feasible and sustainable adjustments in their lifestyle, behaviors, and mindset so they can feel and function like themselves again and experience the very best of motherhood.

As a mom herself, she understands how postpartum shifts in the body’s functioning, coupled with the life changes that come with motherhood can affect maternal health and wellness in many ways. She also understands how difficult it can be for moms to find the time and energy to navigate the journey involved in addressing these impacts. She is passionate about supporting moms in identifying and addressing their roadblocks and empowering them to take their health and wellness journey into their own hands so they can thrive in motherhood.

Free Guide: The Overstimulated Mom's 3-Step Guide to Reclaim Resilience in Moments of Overwhelm (https://preview.mailerlite.io/preview/1035554/sites/149340687669658892/Sp0CeU)

Free Discovery Call with Sara (https://my.practicebetter.io/#/67170c18c96165ff776acfc6/bookings?s=67171180b5183f8a5001aff6&step=date)

Website: www.notablywell.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/notablywell

Facebook: www.facebook.com/notablywell

--- Full Transcript HERE. — Want to take our relationship to the next level? 👉 GET THE FREE INTIMACY in 5 MINUTE GUIDE! 👉Here are my top Resources 👉 Link to my Newsletter 👉 Join the Reconnect with Your Partner Challenge

📩 Get in touch with me (Instagram @markella.kaplani; website; e-mail: info@markellakaplani.com) 📢 Listen, share, and leave a review! Your support means the world! ---

Markella Kaplani, M.A. Clinical-Counseling Psychologist Parenthood & Relationship Coach www.markellakaplani.com

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Ever walked away from a heartfelt conversation feeling more alone than before you spoke? You thought you said it right. You were calm. You had a point. But somehow, your partner shut down, got defensive, or brought up the dishwasher from last week. If that sounds familiar, this episode is for you.

In this week’s episode, we’re diving into the often-missed difference between reactive and relational communication. It's not about perfect phrasing. It's about the place inside of you that you’re speaking from and whether that place is trying to connect… or trying to protect.

I share a powerful story from my couples practice and breaks down my Trigger to Truth model, a four-step process that helps you shift out of automatic reactions and into meaningful connection.

Whether you’re the one who gets quiet or the one who spirals into logic, this conversation will give you the tools to spot your own protective strategies and choose a more authentic, present path forward; one that leads to intimacy, not just talking.

This episode is especially relevant for parents navigating the mental load, emotional fatigue, and shifting identities post-baby. When communication falters, it’s rarely about what was said and more often about what was left unhealed.

💡 Today we explore:

• Why “being calm” isn’t enough in conflict
• The three voices of the protector: blame, withdrawal, and over-rationalizing
• What relational communication looks, sounds, and feels like
• The powerful reframe that turns tension into closeness

This is the third episode in the July communication series. If you missed episodes 64 and episode 65, go back for a full foundation.

🎁 GET THE INTIMACY in 5 MINUTE GUIDE!

💌 Don’t forget: This week’s newsletter includes an exclusive tool to help you track small emotional wins get it at markellakaplani.com/newsletter.

--

Full Transcript HERE.

— Want to take our relationship to the next level? 👉Here are my top Resources 👉 Link to my Newsletter 👉 Join the Reconnect with Your Partner Challenge

📩 Get in touch with me Instagram @markella.kaplani; website: https://markellakaplani.com; e-mail: info@markellakaplani.com) 📢 Listen, share, and leave a review! https://podcasts.apple.com/gr/podcast/the-parenthood-and-relationship-podcast/id1739098480 Your support means the world!

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Markella Kaplani, M.A. Clinical-Counseling Psychologist Parenthood & Relationship Coach www.markellakaplani.com