Creatures of Change Episode #6: Caitlin Faas on Rewriting Stories Personally and Professionally

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By Valerie Martin

The Creatures of Change podcast ended up being way more meta for me than I’d planned…

After recording a season of 6 episodes with incredible guests, I landed on clarity about MY next big change professionally— which means hanging up my hat with this iteration of podcasting to make room for the next thing.

But these episodes will live on as a mini-season within my main podcast feed, because the conversations were incredibly inspirational and instructive examples of embracing change— perhaps none more than the guest for the final episode, Dr. Caitlin Faas.

Caitlin has basically rebuilt her life in the last 3 years. Some of those changes were chosen and planned, but other life-altering ones unfolded completely unexpectedly, bringing down the house-of-cards identity that we so often build around our roles. I am incredibly inspired by Caitlin’s resiliency, adaptability, vulnerability, and humility through her process of change, and honored to call her a friend.

🎧 To listen to the episode, stream from the podcast player below, or visit this link to find the episode in your favorite podcast player. There will not be additional new episodes of Creatures of Change, but the existing episodes will live on in Valerie’s main podcast feed (which is now Bad B*tch Therapist podcast).

About Caitlin

Caitlin Faas, Ph.D. is a certified master life coach instructor who helps experts get out of the hamster wheel for good. Common issues include: overeating, overdrinking, and overworking. She was a tenured psychology professor and department chair before leaving to be a full-time entrepreneur. Dr. Faas has worked with thousands of professionals every year who were once addicted to running in the hamster wheel of endless expectations. She is also the author of Unstuck: Three-step system to help high achievers move from stress to flow. Dr. Faas delivers easy-to-follow advice about “growing up, showing up, and cleaning up” your life and explains the data-backed scientific roots of your stress from emotional, social, economic, academic, and mindfulness perspectives,

Additional Links + Resources

✨ In Tennessee and looking for therapy? Check out The Gaia Center.

✨ Get the monthly Gaia Center newsletter with exclusive content & tips from our therapists

✨ Learn about coaching, speaking, and other stuff Val is up to

Creatures of Change Episode #3: Rosa Castano on Leaving the Family Business to Forge Her Own Path

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By Valerie Martin

Rosa Castano Creatures of Change Podcast

When I first met Rosa Castano in 2019, she was kicking ass and taking names in the tourism industry— which is BIG business here in Nashville. Fast forward 3 years and 1 pandemic later, and she’s now a mom and CEO of her own business offering wellness coaching/education services to businesses and individuals.

Rosa is one of those dynamic people whose personality and gifts far exceed anything I could say in writing. In this conversation, we explore not only her own personal career pivots, but also what she has learned from embracing changes, big and small. Rosa truly walks her talk, and was a joy to sit down with for this conversation. I hope you love it!

🎧 To listen to the episode, stream from the podcast player below, or search & subscribe to Creatures of Change on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

About Rosa

Rosa Castano spent more than five years as a seasoned expert in the Tourism & Hospitality field, leading sales campaigns across the country for two of the largest tourist industries in the Nashville, TN market. Like many others in the space, Castano was forced to pivot to a new path after the COVID-19 global pandemic put a halt to her tourism career. The shift allowed Castano to take the time to re-evaluate her career aspirations, landing her with an industry she has long been passionate about: the wellness industry. Throughout her years working successful careers in the tourism and corporate sectors, Castano knew wellness would always be a priority for her life.

Outside of work, she completed a 200HR Yoga Teacher training in 2019. With this certification, Castano began to lead yoga classes for her former employers’ wellness programs. Since the pandemic, Castano completed an additional certification adding a 200HR Meditation Teacher training. With the full time focus on wellness, Castano is trailblazing ahead with her business where she offers Workplace Well-Being both in the Corporate Setting and for Individual One-on-Ones.

Follow Rosa on IG @wellbeingwithrosa

Additional Links + Resources

Did you love this episode? Please leave a review, tell a friend, and subscribe to Creatures of Change for a new episode every 2 weeks!

✨ Creatures of Change episode archives and show notes

✨ Watch the video version of the podcast on my YouTube channel (click subscribe! 💜)

✨ Want to be a guest or know someone who should be? If you or someone you know has an interesting and inspiring story about change, or want to be considered for coaching with Val on a future episode, reach out to creaturesofchangepodcast@gmail.com, or direct potential guests to our submission form at bit.ly/creaturesofchangeguest.

✨ Sister podcast Bodyful

✨ In Tennessee and looking for therapy? Check out The Gaia Center.

✨ Get the monthly Gaia Center newsletter with exclusive content & tips from our therapists

✨ Learn about coaching, speaking, and other stuff Val is up to


Click Here for More About Creatures of Change

Bodyful Episode #17: Ben J. Munday on Breaking Through Barriers via the Body

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By Valerie Martin

The word “somatic” is very on-trend right now (…unless you’re the APA and you’ve surreptitiously withdrawn continuing education credits for all somatic-focused trainings because you’re a bunch of rigid, evidence-based-yet-evidence-denying buttheads)… oh, did I say that?

I digress. The science** is clear that somatic (AKA body-focused) approaches are effective for treating trauma, anxiety, depression, and more— and, outside of mental health issues, that working directly with the body (as opposed to just the mind) is beneficial for increasing a sense of confidence/self-efficacy and decreasing the buildup of daily stress that can lead to burnout. Among other benefits too abundant to list in this one paragraph!

The guest for this episode is Ben Munday, who went from growing up in a very masculine environment to being surrounded by powerful women in the fashion industry. When he decided he wanted to make a career shift to focus on coaching women in business, he experienced in his coach training how powerful working directly with the body could be, and knew he wanted to make somatic work core to both his own lifestyle and his approach with clients.

As you’ll hear quickly in our conversation, Ben is a smart, kind, and grounded person— and it was a pleasure talking with him about topics we’re both passionate about.

To listen to the episode, stream from the podcast player below, or search & subscribe to Bodyful on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

If you love the episode and decide to schedule a free consultation call with Ben, make sure to tell him Bodyful podcast sent you and he will give you a discount if you decide to book!

**It’s hard to point to just one research study or even literature review on this, because there are many different somatic modalities that all have to be studied independently; however, Bessel van der Kolk did an excellent job synthesizing a lot of the research (and decades of clinical work) in his continuously chart-topping book, The Body Keeps the Score.

About Ben J. Munday

Ben is a body-oriented coach supporting women in conscious impact businesses. He guides his clients to reconnect with the wisdom of the body to build confidence and trust, increase career fulfillment, tackle bold transitions and a variety of leadership and team challenges.

Heralding originally from the English countryside in a physical world of boys and men, through a career in the fashion industry Ben saw first-hand the experience of women working in corporate environments and the very real struggle within the masculine structures of hierarchy. He is passionate about raising up the empowerment of women and believes that many of the challenges we face as a global community need a new introduction of the feminine energy to rebalance our society for future prosperity for all.  

His work is rooted in body-oriented approaches blending movement, postural alignment and inner somatic exercises to bring ‘ah-ha’ moments through the body during sessions. Ben brings his personal interests of yoga, bodywork, running, travel, public speaking, conscious dance and meditation into his offerings to enrich his work.

Links + Additional Resources: