In our new series, First Responder Stories, host Meghann Kopecky sits down with first responders. She asks them to share their stories, but more importantly, share how they were able to overcome incredibly difficult situations. These candid interviews are meant to provide hope and inspiration. The first story takes us back to almost 30 years ago, when firefighter, Chris Fields, responded to the Oklahoma City bombing. Little did he know that a photo of him holding one-year old Baylee Almon came to represent the world-wide news story of that horrible day. On today's podcast, Chris shares how he avoided difficult things that happened in his life and because of it, lost his way. He tells how he found his path back to what mattered to him most, even when he couldn't find joy. In this moving interview, Chris shares difficult moments with the goal of inspiring others to be brave enough to reach out for help.

Best selling author, and TedX speaker Lyn Christian has helped individuals find confidence, purpose and fulfillment not only within their careers, but more importantly, within their lives. Lyn is a Master Certified Coach via the International Coach Federation, of which there are only 1,500 in the world. They recently wrote "Soul Salt, Your Personal Field Guide to Confidence, Purpose, and Fulfillment".  On today's podcast we discuss the book, Lyn's coaching journey and how you can learn from Lyn's years of experience. To learn more about Lyn, visit https://soulsalt.com/. To purchase the book, visit Amazon or your favorite retailer.

After enduring years of therapy for anorexia, it wasn't until Jessica's peer asked her a meaningful question that changed her trajectory on her road to recovery. Years later, when Dr. Schleider was getting her PhD at Harvard, she dug into the science around meaningful moments---like what she encountered on her own journey---and wondered if she could formalize the process to help so many. These meaningful moments in the research are called Single Session Interventions (SSI). She learned through research, including her own, that individuals can get better if they engage in well-crafted, evidence-based SSIs. Dr. Schleider published "Little Treatments, Big Effects" spreading the word that there is hope and that you can get better---even with just one session. In fact, you can access several of Dr. Schleider's single session interventions for no cost at Project Yes! Follow Dr. Schleider on X @JSchleiderPhD or visit her LinkedIn page https://www.linkedin.com/in/jschleider/ to learn more.

When you meet Bill Schuffenhauer, it is hard to imagine the hardships he has endured because his energy, passion and kindness give no indication he has dealt with difficult times. However, as you'll learn, Bill grew up with very unstable circumstances, living in no less than 17 foster homes, had a drug addicted mother and at times, was homeless. Determined to "change his stars", his tenacity, grit and focus led him on a path of Olympic dreams. Bill has experienced incredible peaks and has also dealt with excruciating lows...Bill shares his story to inspire others and, as he explains, there is hope even when you don't believe it exists. Learn more about Bill by visiting https://linktr.ee/billschuffenhauer. Work out with Bill in ShiftAside's 21-session plan.

Today, on Science Saturdays, you'll learn from Dr. Jeffrey Hall and the importance of friendship, relationships and how it greatly benefits your well being. You'll also learn that it takes a concerted effort to become friends, but that the investment certainly pays off. You'll hear how much time, on average, we spend NOT investing in friendships and how it might be a good idea to evaluate how you are spending your time. Dr. Hall is a Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Kansas. He is an internationally recognized expert on friendship, courtship, and mobile and social media. He has written for the Wall Street Journal, has been interviewed in multiple publications, including, but not limited to National Public Radio, New York Times, and the Washington Post. He has appeared on the Steve Harvey Show and It’s Personal with Amy Hoggart. His award-winning book Relating Through Technology was published by Cambridge University Press in 2020.

Hear from Dr. Tara Well about how you can use the mirror to your advantage as well as from Ann Gentry, who shares her personal experience with how she came to see life differently after engaging with the mirror differently. Tara Well, Ph.D. is an associate professor of psychology at Barnard College of Columbia University, where she has taught Personality Psychology, Health Psychology, and Psychology of Leadership for over 20 years. Ann Gentry is a successful restaurateur and actor. Listen to the full episode.

Dr. Tara Well's book, "Mirror Meditation: The Power of Neuroscience and Self-Reflection to Overcome Self-Criticism, Gain Confidence and See Yourself with Compassion", shows that the mirror can provide a major shift in how you view yourself, others and the world around you. In this episode, Dr. Well shares her research and how it has helped so many have more compassion, confidence and love for themselves. Ann Gentry, learned the power of the mirror and how she could begin to see the world and herself in a new, more kind way. You'll hear how she, at first, really didn't want to even look at herself, but through practice, can now easily see herself with love and kindness. View Dr. Tara Well's work and accolades, visit her twitter account or learn more about her book here. Ann can be followed on Instagram or you can check out more about her (and her cookbooks) here.

Escitalopram, an antidepressant, was given to healthy individuals to see how the drug impacted learning, motivation, and the desire to seek rewards.  Learn from Dr. Christelle Langley, a neuroscientist from the University of Cambridge in London, as she explains the results.  The study findings may surprise you, but also may shed a bit of light on why a lack of motivation or even seeking rewards might be contributed to the drug itself. To read the full study, please visit Chronic escitalopram in healthy volunteers

Learn from epidemiologist, Dr. Matt Thiese, how beneficial moving your body really is.  Dr. Thiese has studied physical fitness and mental health for over 20 years.  He shares how a growing body of research not only shows how exercise is immensely helpful with depression, but also does far more for your brain than researchers ever understood.  Gain insight into what kind of exercise, how much (it is surprisingly less than you might think) and how often.

Join us as we talk with Dr. Dory Walker about emotions, feelings and moods. It turns out, it is really important to become aware of them. When you understand your emotions and what you are feeling, you can challenge or change those emotions through the power of your thoughts.  You also learn that have a lot of control over your moods.  Learn this and more on today's Science Saturday.

Learn from expert Dr. Dory Walker about how you can approach someone you've noticed isn't doing well.  What do you say? How do you say it?  And, is it even worth it?

In an interview with psychologist Dr. Molly Brady, she shares that depression can be successfully helped by learning how to think in new ways.  Brain imaging scans have shown just how successful this works.  Listen to this powerful snippet from the full interview, "What is Depression and can it be helped?"

Learn from psychologist Dr. Molly Brady about what is depression and what does the research show in terms of effectively reducing this pervasive and sometimes debilitating condition.  You'll learn that you can greatly reduce depression by learning skills and strategies to help you quickly and with future events that life may throw your way.