2 LIVES - Stories Of Transformation

2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." We won an International Women's Podcast Award! In this 100th episode and our podcast finale Valerie and Laurel turn the microphone on each other and share their own 2 Lives stories. 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack. Subscribe to Valerie's Substack. Listen to our award winning episode here and Heather Straughter's own podcast here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

Before 2020 Laura worked night and day to achieve her dream of being on Saturday Night Live. Then she got Covid and months later woke up from a coma completely paralyzed and unable to communicate. Today she lives with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome caused by scarred lungs and a whole new outlook. With new found grit and purpose Laura shares her humor on TikTok and hosts a podcast called "Iconically Ill." 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Laura Lyons and read the episode transcript at our website.

After two scary surgeries Rachel Stone lived in fear of a rare orbital tumor returning. It was only when she left the corporate world to pursue her writing dream that her tumor shrank. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Rachel Stone and read the episode transcript at our website.

Alysse Dalessandro posted a picture of herself in a bikini because after years of bullying she finally understood that being confident in her body and telling her story changed hearts and minds. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Alysse Dalessandro and read the episode transcript at our website.

Today Sara Cunningham gives free mom hugs to any member of the LGBTQ+ community who needs them after years of rejecting her son's coming out because she had adhered to rules of her church. Still she doesn't feel she's done enough to make up for that lost time with him. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Sara Cunningham and Free Mom Hugs and read the episode transcript at our website.

Amy's at the top of her game as a marketing consultant and journalist doing what she loves but it took a major setback before she could fully embrace this second chapter and reinvent her life. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Amy Shoenthal and read the episode transcript at our website.

In her twenties Amy Downs was living what she calls a complacent, shallow existence. When she discovered her husband couldn't fix her life, she coped by eating. It wasn't until tragedy struck on April 19, 1995, that she made a promise to change her life. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Halle Hewitt helped produce this episode. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Learn more about Amy Downs at our website.

Stacy Blemaster loved being up on stage because she knew what role to play. It took a bipolar diagnosis, many years of therapy and Emotions Anonymous before she fully accepted herself as she is. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. Find out more about Stacy Blemaster and read the episode transcript at our website.

Susan Lieu shares her family's trauma in a one-woman show and memoir in an effort to find understanding and healing, despite the fact that her family refused to talk about it and saw her as "too emotional." But by using her voice she found she could let go of the shame and help others at the same time. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Susan Lieu and read the episode transcript at our website.

2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

TW: We describe a violent situation in this episode. If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence go to thehotline.org or call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Darcy Alexandra course corrects and unlearns the violent messages and behaviors she was taught as a child. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Camila Kerwin of the Rough Cut Collective edited this episode, which originally dropped in February of 2022. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Darcy Alexandra and read the episode transcript at our website.

This is a conversation with wilderness guide Scout Wilkins about resilience of the natural world, trees specifically, and how she has found her own resiliency by being a part of it. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer who reported this episode. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Scout Wilkins and read the episode transcript at our website.

Rattled by the loss of a loved one and how little she knew about death, Sairey Luterman found her true calling as an end of life counselor to help others be more prepared. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Sairey Luterman and read the episode transcript at our website.

TW: Mention of suicide. Rachel Zients Schinderman helps people heal through storytelling because that is how she and her mom dealt with her dad's death by suicide, but she's learned to make way for new stories. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Rachel Zients Schinderman and read the episode transcript at our website 2lives.org.

Jeff Morris has made it his mission to prevent suicide after he attempted to kill himself six times but it wasn't until he received a bipolar 2 diagnosis and figured out how to manage instead of cure his depression that he learned how to live. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook or Instagram. Learn more about Jeff Morris and his book here, and read the transcript at our website.

2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." For most of her life Viki Stein has struggled to learn so much that she became a teacher to help other kids who felt frustrated and dumb. It wasn't until age 53 that she learned that she had dyslexia and became better trained to understand herself and help others like her. 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Subscribe to Laurel's free Substack here. Support 2 Lives at https://ko-fi.com/2livespodcast You can learn more about how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Viki Stein and read the transcript at our website.

At 31 a psychiatrist finally solved the mystery inside Joan Kopczynski and told her she could manage her mental illness. But first she had to reconcile a series of traumatic events that would plague anyone with or without schizoaffective disorder. 2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. You can learn how to support the show here. You can make a one-time donation at paypal.me/2LivesPodcast Or order merch here. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Find out more about Joan Kopczynski and read the transcript at our website.

2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." Anna Runkle calls herself the crappy childhood fairy and has helped a million people deal with their Complex PTSD. But it took 11 therapists and dozens of self help books before she found a name for what she has and a practice that worked. 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our pod art illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at 2lives.org/support. Or go to paypal.me/2LivesPodcast to give a one-time donation. Or order merch here. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. We had planned to launch season 11 today with a new episode. But at the last minute the guest we interviewed asked us to hold off. At 2 Lives we share the script with the person we interview before the story is finalized to make sure we got everything right. We do that for two reasons: one, because I'm often asking people to share their worst day and I want them to feel comfortable with the way we share it. And two, because the same courtesy was shown to me when I was featured in a newspaper and I caught an error. We all make mistakes. I've been told by other journalists that this practice is "radical," but these aren't investigative exposés of corrupt political leaders, these are people's most vulnerable personal stories and heartfelt truths. I thought this might be an opportunity to share with you another practice we have and that is in the pre interview with assistant producer Valerie Shively she makes sure people are in the right time in their life to share their story. And before every interview I say, while sharing stories can be therapeutic, I am not a therapist. What I ask and share might be triggering. I also say there are seasons when we are more open to sharing our stories. And there are seasons when we are closed. Obviously this was one of those for our guest; she just didn't realize it. At a time when it's so easy to click submit and share and over share on social media in an effort to sell our book or our brand, I think we often don't listen to that voice inside that's saying NO don't do it. This thing you're about to exploit, we haven't gotten enough distance from it yet. It feels too raw to share. At 2 Lives, our intention to shine a light on stories of transformation is governed by the principle that these stories shared are symbiotic in nature, mutually beneficial for both the teller and the listener. We don't share a person's story unless they really want to share it. We honor that, even if it is to our own detriment. And those ethics are more important than numbers. So when today's guest asked that we not share at the last minute, although we were disappointed, we understood, and saw it as a perfect opportunity to reflect on the importance of ethics in storytelling. The importance of an internal moral code that helps us live above the numbers, especially when things don't go our way. So instead of a 2 Lives episode, I'm sharing with you an episode of a podcast we love called Ladies of Lore. On this most consequential Election Day, we thought we'd give you a break from the noise by casting a wink and a nod to all the ancient female powerhouses throughout time and space.

2 Lives "The second begins the moment we realize we have only one." 2 Lives is created by Laurel Morales. Valerie Shively is the assistant producer. Christian Arnder is our illustrator and website designer. Music from Blue Dot Sessions. Become a 2 Lives patron at https://www.patreon.com/2lives Or give a donation at paypal.me/2LivesPodcast You can learn how to support the show here. Or order merch here. Subscribe to Laurel's Substack here. Drop us a note on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. Episode transcripts are posted on our website.