Building Resilience

Two people can live through the same experience—a breakup, a job loss, or a childhood wound—and walk away with entirely different realities because of the story they tell about it. In this episode of the Building Resilience Podcast, Leah Davidson explores how your inner narrative shapes both your mindset and your nervous system, and how stories can become survival codes that keep you stuck. She shares three powerful ways to shift your story through your lens, your language, and your nervous system state, offering simple, compassionate tools to help you rewrite your narrative from a place of safety, growth, and self-compassion.We’ll explore:How shifting your lens changes the meaning of your storyThe power of words and how to choose ones that free youWhy “story follows state” and the role of regulationSimple tools to calm your body before rewriting your storyChanging your story expands safety and possibility, not denialLINKS AND RESOURCES:📌IT'S NOT JUST YOUR THOUGHTS, IT'S YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM (WITH A CREATIVE TWIST): A workshop mini course with bonus resources📌IBS NERVOUS SYSTEM RESET  (Workbook and Worksheets) 📌NERVOUS SYSTEM STRESS TEST: Take the test to see how dysregulated you really are?MENTAL HEALTH STATIONERY - RESILIENT BRILLIANCE PRODUCTS:1) RESILIENCE JOURNAL: A guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care📌 Amazon US 📌 Amazon CA 2) MY SAFE SPACE : AFFIRMATION AND JOURNAL PROMPT SET📌Amazon US 📌Amazon CACOMMUNITIES 📌NERVOUS SYSTEM JOURNALING CLUB : Doodle, journal and heal in community📌CONNECTIONS - MONTHLY MEMBERSHIP: Coursework, Coaching, Creative Doodling and Community📌THE ADVANCED TRAINING IN NERVOUS SYSTEM RESILIENCE: A 6 month immersive experience for personal and professional training.LET'S STAY CONNECTED📌INSTAGRAM📌FACEBOOK📩 Subscribe to the Weekly NewsletterENJOYED THIS EPISODE?Please leave a 5 star rating and review on your favorite podcast platform. It helps more people discover these tools for healing and resilience.WANT TO CREATE YOUR OWN SKOOL COMMUNITY:  🔗 Check it out here

Have you ever noticed that your nervous system doesn’t just react to what happened? It reacts to the story you tell about it.In this episode of the Building Resilience Podcast, Leah unpacks how the stories we carry, those we’ve inherited, absorbed, or created, shape the way we think, feel, and move through the world.You’ll learn how these stories can become survival codes that your nervous system still follows and why awareness is the first step toward shifting them. Leah also shares three simple metaphors: camera lenses, playlists, and weather patterns, to help you see your stories with more clarity and choice.This episode is an invitation to notice your own stories and begin gently reshaping them in a way that supports safety, growth, and connection.We’ll explore:How your nervous system reacts to the stories you tellThe difference between inherited, assigned, and protective storiesWhy even “positive” labels can keep you stuckThe role of awareness in shifting long-held narrativesThree metaphors that help your body and brain understand story workHow curiosity, not criticism, creates the foundation for changeLinks and Resources:📌IT'S NOT JUST YOUR THOUGHTS, IT'S YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM (WITH A CREATIVE TWIST): A workshop mini course with bonus resources📌IBS NERVOUS SYSTEM RESET (Workbook and Worksheets) 📌NERVOUS SYSTEM STRESS TEST: Take the test to see how dysregulated you really are?MENTAL HEALTH STATIONERY - RESILIENT BRILLIANCE PRODUCTS:1) RESILIENCE JOURNAL: A guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care📌 Amazon US - https://a.co/d/7DpuyVj📌 Amazon CA - https://a.co/d/7DpuyVj2) MY SAFE SPACE : AFFIRMATION AND JOURNAL PROMPT SET📌Amazon US - https://a.co/d/2mANQs4📌Amazon CA - https://a.co/d/7JtdlUMCOMMUNITIES 📌NERVOUS SYSTEM JOURNALING CLUB : Doodle, journal and heal in community.Join here: https://www.skool.com/nervous-system-journaling-club/about📌CONNECTIONS - MONTHLY MEMBERSHIP: Coursework, Coaching, Creative Doodling and Community Join the waitlist here: https://leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com/CONNECTIONS/📌THE ADVANCED TRAINING IN NERVOUS SYSTEM RESILIENCE: A 6 month immersive experience for personal and professional training.Join the waitlist here: https://leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com/coach-training/LET'S STAY CONNECTED📌INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/leahdavidsonlifecoaching/📌FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/leahdavidsonlifecoachingSubscribe to the Weekly Newsletter: leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com/newsletterWANT TO CREATE YOUR OWN SKOOL COMMUNITY:  🔗 Check it out here - https://www.skool.com/signup?ref=06e003b61b8148ebbafd3a067f3cc2e1

We often think resilience means pushing through, staying strong, toughing it out, and keeping a brave face. But what if true resilience comes from something softer, kindness? In this grounding episode, Leah Davidson shares how kindness, especially self-kindness, can shift your nervous system from survival to safety. You’ll learn how harsh self-talk activates stress in your body, while even tiny acts of gentleness, a pause, a breath, a kind word, begin to rewire your system for healing and calm.Leah also explores how kindness shows up in parenting, relationships, and everyday moments of struggle. Whether you’re recovering from burnout, navigating chronic illness, or simply feeling overwhelmed, this episode will remind you that kindness isn’t weakness, it’s your most powerful tool for resilience, connection, and healing.We’ll explore:Resilience grows in environments of safety, not self-criticism.Your body responds to inner dialogue, harsh words trigger threat; kind words signal safety.Micro kindnesses, like resting without guilt or using gentler self-talk, can shift your physiology.True kindness honours boundaries, it’s not about people-pleasing or self-erasure.Kindness is daily medicine for your nervous system and the key to sustainable healing.Links and Resources:New: Worry Time PreSale Bundle (limited time offer) (ends October 17th, 2025)Resource:  IBS Nervous System ResetGet: My Safe Space: Affirmation and Journal Prompt Set📝 Get My Resilience JournalA guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care📌 Amazon US 📌 Amazon CA🎓 Join the Nervous System Journaling ClubDoodle, journal, and heal in communityWant to create your own Skool Community? 🔗 Check it out hereLet’s Stay Connected:Instagram & Facebook: @leahdavidsonlifecoachingSubscribe to the Weekly Newsletter: leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com/newsletterEnjoyed the episode?Please leave a 5 star rating and review on your favorite podcast platform. It helps more people discover these tools for healing and resilience.

Is it possible that the true key to success, in business, healthcare, and life, isn’t found in data, but in kindness?In this episode of the Building Resilience Podcast, Leah Davidson explores how kindness, far from being a “soft skill,” is actually a powerful nervous system practice that sustains growth, connection, and creativity.From medical school ceremonies to entrepreneurial struggles, Leah reflects on how we often measure success by numbers and performance while overlooking the biological and relational power of kindness. She shares how kindness can reframe our understanding of success, foster nervous system safety, and even become a smart business strategy, something AI will never replicate.Whether you’re a leader, entrepreneur, or healer, this episode will remind you that kindness isn’t just a moral choice, it’s a biological intervention and the foundation of sustainable success.We’ll explore:Kindness isn’t weakness, it’s a nervous system regulator that fosters safety, healing, and creativity.Metrics and performance can’t measure the depth of human connection or trust.Bringing kindness into business leads to more sustainable success and healthier relationships.AI can replicate data, but not human compassion or co-regulation.The way you make others feel may be your most powerful business advantage.Links and Resources:New: Worry Time PreSale Bundle (limited time offer)Resource: IBS Nervous System ResetGet: My Safe Space: Affirmation and Journal Prompt Set📝 Get My Resilience JournalA guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care📌 Amazon US 📌 Amazon CA🎓 Join the Nervous System Journaling ClubDoodle, journal, and heal in communityWant to create your own Skool Community?🔗 Check it out hereLet’s Stay Connected:Instagram & Facebook: @leahdavidsonlifecoachingSubscribe to the Weekly Newsletter: leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com/newsletterEnjoyed the episode?Please leave a 5 star rating and review on your favorite podcast platform. It helps more people discover these tools for healing and resilience.

In this milestone episode, Leah is joined by bestselling author and master coach Molly Claire to talk about her new book, She Rises.Together, they explore what it really means to rise through adversity, whether that’s grief, burnout, perfectionism, or life transitions, and how emotions, nervous system health, and community all play a role in building resilience.You’ll hear powerful stories from She Rises and learn simple, practical ways to embrace growth, process grief, and find strength in life’s hardest seasons.We’ll explore:Why resistance to life’s challenges can keep us stuckHow grief shows up in unexpected waysThe role of emotions in resilience and nervous system healthPractical ways to lean into growth when you feel stuckWhy community and connection are essential for rising strongLinks and Resources:Lean more about Molly ClaireLife, Mastered with Molly Claire PodcastFree resources: https://www.mollyclaire.com/freebie—-------------------------New Resource : IBS Nervous System ResetNEW: My Safe Space: Affirmation and Journal Prompt Set📝 Get My Resilience JournalA guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care📌 Amazon US 📌 Amazon CA🎓 Join the Nervous System Journaling ClubDoodle, journal, and heal in communityWant to create your own Skool Community? 🔗 Check it out hereLet’s Stay Connected:Instagram & Facebook: @leahdavidsonlifecoachingSubscribe to the Weekly Newsletter: leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com/newsletterEnjoyed the episode?Please leave a 5 star rating and review on your favorite podcast platform. It helps more people discover these tools for healing and resilience.

If you’ve ever struggled with IBS, you know it’s about more than digestion. It’s the discomfort, unpredictability, anxiety, and sometimes even shame that come along with it. And while food lists and symptom trackers may help a little, they rarely get to the root of the problem.In this episode of Building Resilience, Leah explores IBS from a nervous system perspective. She unpacks the fascinating connection between the gut and the brain, why stress makes symptoms worse, and how your body’s protective “alarm system” may be keeping you stuck in flare cycles.We’ll explore:Why IBS is a functional disorder (your gut looks fine, but it’s not working as it should)How the “second brain” in your gut constantly communicates with your actual brainThe role stress plays in digestion, inflammation, and the microbiomeThe protection loop that keeps symptoms alive long after the threat has passedPractical ways to expand your safety zone and support your nervous system in healingNew Resource : IBS Nervous System ResetNEW: My Safe Space: Affirmation and Journal Prompt Set📝 Get My Resilience JournalA guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care📌 Amazon US 📌 Amazon CA🎓 Join the Nervous System Journaling ClubDoodle, journal, and heal in communityWant to create your own Skool Community? 🔗 Check it out hereLet’s Stay Connected:Instagram & Facebook: @leahdavidsonlifecoachingSubscribe to the Weekly Newsletter: leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com/newsletterEnjoyed the episode?Please leave a 5 star rating and review on your favorite podcast platform. It helps more people discover these tools for healing and resilience.

What if the very things you do to manage your health are actually keeping you stuck?In this episode of Building Resilience, Leah uncovers the common habits that may be making you sick, like constantly talking about symptoms, compulsive Googling, avoiding activities, or delaying joy. These everyday patterns can keep your nervous system locked in protection mode, fueling chronic pain and stress. The good news? With awareness and small, practical shifts, you can begin to rewire your system toward safety, calm, and healing.We’ll explore: • Why symptom-focused talk and reassurance seeking backfire • How avoidance and hyper-monitoring shrink your world • The power of micro-habits that retrain your brain toward safety • Why joy and gratitude are essential to nervous system healingNew Resource : IBS Nervous System ResetNEW: My Safe Space: Affirmation and Journal Prompt Set📝 Get My Resilience JournalA guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care📌 Amazon US 📌 Amazon CA🎓 Join the Nervous System Journaling ClubDoodle, journal, and heal in communityWant to create your own Skool Community? 🔗 Check it out hereLet’s Stay Connected:Instagram & Facebook: @leahdavidsonlifecoachingSubscribe to the Weekly Newsletter: leahdavidsonlifecoaching.com/newsletterEnjoyed the episode?Please leave a 5 star rating and review on your favorite podcast platform. It helps more people discover these tools for healing and resilience.

Have you ever felt like food has all the power, that you can’t trust yourself around it, or that no matter how hard you try, you keep falling into the same patterns of overeating, restricting, or guilt?What if your struggles with food aren’t really about willpower at all, but about your nervous system?In this episode of Building Resilience, I’m joined by Jane Pilger, a coach who helps people move from fighting with their bodies to building food freedom and body trust. Jane shares her own 25-year journey with binge eating and how learning about the nervous system became the missing piece in her healing.We’ll explore:Food struggles are signals from your nervous system, not lack of willpowerShame and judgment keep you stuck, curiosity and compassion help you healFood often acts as a safety strategy but can also feel unsafe (the safety paradox)Black-and-white thinking about food is a sign of dysregulationThe Three Powerful Questions: What do I notice? What do I need? What’s next?Links mentioned:Connect with Jane PilgerBinge Eating Breakthrough Mini Series on food and the nervous systemFree resource: IBS Nervous System ResetNEW: My Safe Space: Affirmation and Journal Prompt Set📝 Get My Resilience JournalA guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care:🛍️ Amazon US🛍️ Amazon CA: Buy Here🎓 Join the Nervous System Journaling Club Doodle, journal, and heal in community

More and more parents are quietly noticing a growing distance with their adult children, and many Gen Z kids are just as quickly setting boundaries or even stepping away completely. If you’ve wondered why this is happening, you’re not alone.In this episode of Building Resilience, I explore the generational nervous system gap and why relationships between Gen X parents and Gen Z children can feel so strained. This isn’t about blame, it’s about understanding how cultural shifts, nervous system regulation, and different approaches to mental health have shaped how each generation sees family, boundaries, and connection.We’ll unpack research on rising family estrangement, why Gen Z is more likely to see boundaries as survival rather than betrayal, and how Gen X parents, who often poured decades of effort, time, and sacrifice into raising their kids, are making sense of this new reality. I’ll also talk about the risks on both sides: what Gen Z might lose when they disconnect too quickly, and what Gen X could face as they age without the support they expected.We’ll explore:The nervous system's role in feeling safe or unsafeGen Z's emotional vocabulary, its strengths and challengesWhy Gen X parents feel blindsided despite their best effortsThe difference between healthy boundaries (bridges) and isolating ones (walls)Links and Resources:IBS Nervous System Reset📝 Get My Resilience JournalA guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care:🛍️ Amazon US🛍️ Amazon CA: Buy Here🎓 Join the Nervous System Journaling Club Doodle, journal, and heal in communityLet’s Stay Connected:Instagram & Facebook: @leahdavidsonlifecoachingSubscribe to the Weekly Newsletter