Holistic Living: Dual Citizenship to Health Gadgets
Welcome to the Counter Culture Health podcast. I'm doctor Jen McWaters. And I'm coach Kaitlin Reed. We're here to help high achieving women overcome mental blocks, find freedom from anxiety, create an abundant life, and build the body and life that they deserve and desire. In this weekly podcast, we'll uncover the raw truth about mental health, nutrition, fitness, and beyond. Let's get to it. Hey, friends. Happy Thursday. Thanks for joining us for another episode of Counter Culture Health.
Kaitlin:Last week, I got to be interviewed, and now this week, it's Jen's turn. Are you ready? Can't wait. Yay. So I have a few questions for you just to help, our audience get to know you more and kind of, humanize this experience a little bit.
Kaitlin:So
Jen:I'll do my best to be human.
Kaitlin:Okay. First one. What's something most people don't know about you?
Jen:I was born in Brazil, so that's not something to people
Kaitlin:think I knew that.
Jen:Did you know that? You didn't know that?
Kaitlin:I don't think so. No.
Jen:Yeah. So I was, like, like, a year and a half or 2. My parents, I was born in Brazil. They brought me over. My mom had already had spent some of her life in the US.
Jen:She went back to Brazil, met my dad there, got married there, had me there. And then, technically, I guess, I immigrated and my dad immigrated. My mom went back to the US when I was, like, 2. And then I basically grew up in the u in US and Washington state mostly. And then so half my life has been in Washington state, half of my life has been California, and now I'm in Idaho.
Jen:But I, technically, am a dual citizen, still I have Brazilian citizenship and US citizenship.
Kaitlin:Oh, that to me. Mhmm. Have you been back there since?
Jen:I went back there when I was a kid and and not since then. I do have some family still there. Half my fam like, my mom's side is in the US, and then my dad's side's mostly in Brazil still. But, no, I mean, it's, a, it's far too safety some safety reasons why. And now I have a kiddo.
Jen:So, but maybe one day. Yeah.
Kaitlin:Yeah. That's me. What a great can't
Jen:tell that from looking at me because I don't look ethnically Brazilian. Yeah. And I'm I'm not really I mean, it's more that I am am more ethnically Brazilian in the sense of, like, culturally, but, racially, my family's from Europe and Italy and Ukraine and all of that. So and they never really intermarried with any native Brazilian, so it's kind of pseudo Brazilian, if that makes sense. So grew up, like, you know, have the culture from there, language, food, etcetera, but racially, not so much.
Kaitlin:Yeah. Do you incorporate any of that culture still?
Jen:I mean, my parents do. So when I spend time with them and, like, the food they make and things like that, and, yeah, I try to talk about it with my kid and with my son. And, food wise, I definitely have a preference. Like, I love going to Brazilian steak houses. Like, I've always loved that and grew up on that.
Jen:Grew up on eating lots of churrasqueria and going to steak houses. And it's still one of my favorite things to do in splurge on is go to, like, a really nice Brazilian steakhouse and have an all you can eat steak buffet.
Kaitlin:Yeah. I would love it. What a great fun fact. Do you have a good steakhouse there?
Jen:I know there are some. I haven't been to any yet. I know definitely in San Diego. I went to Fogo de Chao, which is a class. Yeah.
Jen:It's good. I'll let you know if I do.
Kaitlin:Yeah. Yeah. Okay. What is one thing that you do every day, and why is it important to you?
Jen:One thing I do every day, lots of things, but I guess one thing that can be challenging you every day that I make a point to do is pray. And that is important to me as part of my faith, and just keeps me grounded, keeps me in a place of gratitude. And it really is a place for me to encompass gratitude and surrender and just help me with my life and just the stress of balancing being a wife and a mom and a business owner. I have, like, 2 businesses essentially, and I'm involved in another organization. So life's pretty full.
Jen:And praying and connecting to god is what keeps me grounded. So I make a point even if it's brief on some days to do that every single day and remind myself of what is most important.
Kaitlin:Do you have, like, a, like, a routine with it or, like, a a style? So I think most people think, like when they think of prayers, like, okay. I gotta sit here in silence and, hold my hands and, you know, do something like that. But is there, like, do you have a, like, a personal style that you
Jen:Yeah. It, you know, it depends partly on, like, when because I do just because I have a a young kiddo. My when I do it changes sometimes, it has to be flexible. I don't always have consistent time every day, at the same time of day, what I mean. So but, what I 2 math well, 3 methods I really love that I rotate through.
Jen:1 is prayer journaling, which is writing out my prayer. I love that version depending on where I am in my season of life. 2 is using a meditation app or prayer app. So whether it's hallow or reflect, those are or and abide, that's the third one. There's some good faith based apps that is kind of like a guided prayer that you can do that also has space to do your own prayer.
Jen:And that's really nice, especially in the evening times or if I'm just exhausted and need to lay in bed. That is a way that I am able to do that. And then 3rd is just out loud, whether if I'm by myself, on a walk, or even just, like, taking a bath the other day, and I'll just, out loud, quietly pray. So those are my 3 methods usually.
Kaitlin:Love it. Yeah.
Jen:Thanks. Whatever it takes.
Kaitlin:Yes. That's the thing. Like, there's no wrong way. Right? There's no right or wrong.
Kaitlin:Yeah.
Jen:Yeah. And some people do. They they are able you know, I think it's all the way you process and just it's okay. Like, some people have a really hard time praying out loud or praying in their head, which is so understandable, and that's when I recommend, hey. Do prayer journaling.
Jen:Write it out. Just write a letter to God. That's a great avenue to try. Some people hate writing, but they will, you know, use an app or they'll pray out loud or in their head. So it's it's just finding a method that works for you, and we're all wired differently in that way, and that's beautiful.
Jen:So there's no cookie cutter way that has to be done.
Kaitlin:Yeah. Love it. What is your favorite health gadget?
Jen:Oh, I love my health gadgets. I'll tell you. I've told people, like, if I ever, you know, meet a certain business school or, you know, whatever Christmas gift to myself, I usually buy a health gadget. So, my poor
Kaitlin:pet's a problem.
Jen:It's sometimes it's a problem. Sometimes it's a problem. It's it's tempting. There's so many good ones out there, so I have to really set limits. And that's why I, like, give myself, like, you know, goals of, okay, I made this much in my business, and then I allocate a small portion to celebrate that and then essentially reinvest in my own health through a health gadget.
Jen:Well so one of my favorites is actually I'm using it right now. It's in my chair. It's strapped to my chair, and it's a TheraSage or Therapro, which is a, PEMF mats that has infrared and frequencies, and has heats, which is nice too in winter here. So I use that often. Most days, I use it for a couple hours just while I'm sitting.
Jen:And there's, like, a deep sleep, frequency on here, which does really help with, like, sleep, especially if I have a stressful day. So I love I love this little gadget, Matt. It's been awesome. Such a good investment, and I really do feel like it works. And there's good research behind, PEMF and what that can do for inflammation and blood flow and all those things.
Jen:At minimum, I love the heat and the red light. Super relaxing.
Kaitlin:Mhmm. Where'd you find it at?
Jen:So TheraStage online, that's the company that makes it. And I just I'm always about the sales. So now is a good time of Black Friday, but, yeah, there was some sort of July sale, like, July 4th sale. So I just I just kinda eye things that I want, kinda keep tabs, and then monitor them around sale time. And if the price is right and I've met some goals, I'm probably getting myself a health gadget.
Kaitlin:Love it. What other gadgets do you have?
Jen:I'm curious. My last recent gadget was a hydrogen bottle that makes hydrogen water. Good research on that too. Again, I really try to buy things that have good research behind them that I feel like can improve quality of life. So that one I love too, and definitely makes you feel more hydrated, you need to get some more oxygen into your cells.
Jen:And so, and it's actually shown too to help with removing some what's it called? You know, there's the certain particle, like, during fire season. It's like 2.5 PM. It's like a size of, like, the particle, like particulates.
Kaitlin:So it's
Jen:just particulates. And so there's I saw some studies around how drinking a certain amount of hydrogen water helped remove some of that from your lungs. We had a horrific fire season here, so I justified getting one for all of us in my family to share to try to help detox from all the fire smoke that we inhaled over the summer. Uh-huh.
Kaitlin:Yeah. Yeah. Those are
Jen:my two recent gadgets investing.
Kaitlin:Do you have your eye on something else right now?
Jen:Not right now. But Yeah. Yeah. No. Right now, I'm investing in my home.
Jen:But, but, yeah, I'm sure. Ask me again in a few months. I'm sure there's Uh-huh. Oh, actually, yes. Okay.
Jen:Yes. Grounding sheets. I'm so curious about those. Oh. You heard about that?
Kaitlin:Tell us more about those.
Jen:Those are it's a bedsheet, and there is, I believe, a wire that connects it to just the grounding part of your electric outlet plugs and not actual electricity, just the grounding portion. And so it allows just, like, grounding frequencies or whatever to help, And people say they sleep better, helps with inflammation, and is like you know, so you can ground all through the year even when you can't get outside barefoot, which is the ideal way. Yeah. In the future here, I'm not gonna be doing that. So, I am curious about grounding sheets.
Jen:So I might I might double
Kaitlin:do a show on reviews on health gadgets.
Jen:Seriously, I wish you an episode on that.
Kaitlin:That'll be next.
Jen:Like, have a lot of stuff.
Kaitlin:That'll be next. Stay tuned. Great. Okay. Why did you move from California to Idaho?
Jen:Lots of reasons. One, we really felt that there was just a pull from God that it was time to move. It's not something to be like a spiritually and spiritual reason. 2, we would do wanna be closer to friends and family. I have a very close friend up here, and my family is not far in Washington state.
Jen:So it makes seeing them easier. And we just really feel like we have tremendous more community support. I have some wonderful friends in California, and I do miss them. And having family closer, having a family friend who's like family, it's just a different level and something I I didn't have and really missed, and that's been beautiful for us and for my son. 3, wanting more freedom.
Jen:Honestly, from, like, a values perspective, it matched up better with our values, wanting more medical freedom options, school options, that kind of thing, and then affordability, just practical speaking practically speaking, wanting to be able to afford lifestyle that we wanted, school wise, you know, much cheaper here, home wise, much cheaper here, more laid back, quiet, slow pace, and wanting to get out of the city bustle and the stress of just the pace of California. And all of those things have been met, and we're very grateful and thankful, to have done it even though it was a little scary initially because it's such a big change.
Kaitlin:Yeah. Any good or bad? Or
Jen:The only bad has been the fire season, like I mentioned. That was horrific, and that was, especially as a crunchy health person, I was really horrified for that. Everyone that assured me, like, that's very rare. It's the worst it's ever been. So we'll kinda wait and see on that, but that was really tough because it really made, summer miserable and not very enjoyable and just limited.
Jen:We couldn't go outside as much as we wanted. So that was the only really rough part, and then everything else has been so much good. But that's very honest. Yeah. And I haven't had my first winter yet, so ask me again in, like, 3 weeks.
Kaitlin:Gonna say. We'll see what you have to say after wintertime.
Jen:Yes. Yes. We'll see.
Kaitlin:Okay. What's been the most challenging part about being a mom?
Jen:Challenging part. There's there's a few. I'd say one challenging part is, you know, especially having a child when you're older is just readjusting to your lifestyle change and before having so much time to yourself, and that adjustment was bigger than I thought. All of it. Right?
Jen:Just, like, not having time to yourself, especially I'm introverted, and I get overstimulated easily, especially with, a very vivacious toddler. And so that's been a challenge. Probably one of the bigger ones is just learning how to still take care of myself, manage my emotions, and find ways to destimulate in the midst of a way more stimulating environment than I ever had before. So I'd probably say that's the biggest one and ironic too as a therapist. Right?
Jen:But, yeah, I definitely was like, thank god I am a therapist, so I have some skills. But I I don't know how people do it who don't have those skills more inherently because it is really challenging to do all those things to hold on to yourself still and, take care of yourself and not get overstimulated all the time and manage your emotions when your toddler's melting down and all those things. That being said, those definitely are way outweighed by all the pros and all the wonderful things about being a mom. I would never change it for anything in the world. And, yeah, it's amazing.
Jen:And I'm so grateful for it, especially because it took us a long time to get there. Yeah. You know? But I'm also honest. Like, there's a lot of hard things, especially again being older parents.
Jen:It's Mhmm. People tell us, like, I can never do that at that age.
Kaitlin:Yeah. Well, you
Jen:know, this is what God decided was the right time, so here we are.
Kaitlin:Yeah. I think that's great. Like, normalizing that that both can exist. Like, this is really wonderful, but it's also really challenging as well in normalizing and not feeling like you're you're a bad mom or bad person or whatever for feeling that side of things too. Yeah.
Jen:For sure. And every every kid's different. So, again, I think some of the challenges having a a child who's temperamentally different than me and who is more extroverted and likes stimulation and is live and you do you know him a little bit. And and that's beautiful. Like, I love that because it's like, well, that's so cool because I was not like that.
Jen:You know, I was more of a shy, anxious, introverted, quiet kid. Yeah. But the challenge is, like, I was the easy kid because I was like that, and he's an externalizer, so he's too more challenging to parent. But yet, it's so much more fun because I really see who he is, and I know exactly how he feels and what he thinks all the time for better or for worse.
Kaitlin:That's so neat. Was your husband like that?
Jen:No. That's the funny part. We're both like, well, how did this happen? You know? No.
Jen:But we have we have some we have some ideas based off of our siblings and extended family.
Kaitlin:Mhmm. Love it. Yeah. But it's so because, like, when I was with him, he was just starting to walk and not talking yet. So it's really hard for me to imagine, like, this little toddler.
Jen:So he is like he is more I mean, people think he's 2 years older than he is because he's so verbal, which, again, is so beautiful and sometimes so challenging. Yeah.
Kaitlin:Yeah. You're like, oh gosh. What's he gonna say?
Jen:Yeah. Right. Or what he says to me, it's like, okay. I don't even understand that, but you have this crazy vocabulary now. So it's entertaining.
Jen:80% of the time, it's hilarious. 20% of the time, it's really frustrating.
Kaitlin:I love it. Alright. If you were a therapist and coach, what would you be doing instead?
Jen:I love design in real estate. Oh. So I probably would do that. I mean, I do do it a little bit now. We have a property, and we rent both of actually, essentially, essentially, 2.
Jen:2 on 1 property that we rent out that we one of them that we designed, which I loved. I just loved that process. It was hard and stressful, but I love designing. I love procuring furniture, decor, etcetera, designing the layout, helping with all that. So I probably would just do more of that.
Jen:I would figure out how to spend more time and effort in doing real estate investing and designing and, all those fun things.
Kaitlin:Oh, do you think you'll transition into that one day?
Jen:I don't know. I have no plans to right now, but I would love to do more of that on the side, and then we'll see where that goes. I like I've always liked having diversity in what I do. Yeah. So sometimes it's hard for me to say, like, I'd only do that or only do this.
Jen:I definitely like having diversity, although it also brings more chaos to my life. So Yeah. We'll see.
Kaitlin:Yeah. But With awesome time you have.
Jen:Yeah. And with all my free time, my 2 businesses plus. Yeah. But I do love it, and it kind of just uses a different part of my brain. And I I am a very creative person.
Jen:I used to do, like, a lot of art classes in in school growing up. I used to draw a lot. I thought I was actually gonna be an architecture major when I went to college Oh. And was gonna do that. And then I took psych 101 and fell in love with that and was like, that's what I wanna do.
Jen:But, ultimately, like, I'm kinda 2 sided in that way. Like, I could could have done that probably just as well in psychology, and that's been great for me. Wouldn't change that. But I still have those two parts of me. And, sometimes I miss the creative side a little bit, but that's why I like writing and podcasting, all those things.
Jen:But design the design piece I do love and try to do with my own house and help other people and maybe eventually do that a little bit more formally as well. Oh, okay. Yeah.
Kaitlin:Did you ever think about art therapy?
Jen:I didn't. I really didn't even know that was a thing.
Kaitlin:But in school? Okay.
Jen:Yeah. Yeah. No. I wasn't like that. I mean, I was into art more so, like, drawing and things, but not so much, like, on a teaching level or using it that way.
Jen:So I don't know. Now that I know all the things about psychology, I mean, maybe I would've chose something a little bit more niche, maybe even more like organizational psychology to be related to business. I love equestrian therapy. I mean, there's so many cool things, so who knows?
Kaitlin:Yeah. I got my art therapy certificate.
Jen:Oh, I didn't know that yet.
Kaitlin:Yeah. Yeah. I'm not using it, but I have it. Yeah. I don't know a way to integrate both worlds.
Kaitlin:It is. Yeah. It's good to have that creative piece of what in what we do too.
Jen:Yeah. This uses so much of our analytical side, you know, which is great, But sometimes that part needs also to be voiced and satisfied. So Yeah. It balance.
Kaitlin:To be let out too. Mhmm. Okay. Final question. Are you ready?
Jen:Yes.
Kaitlin:What's one piece of advice you want to share with your listeners?
Jen:What comes to mind is to make sure you're not neglecting any parts of yourself. When I say that, I'm thinking about how, as beings, we aren't just the physical. This is, of course, related to my philosophy and belief system. You could you could disagree with me on here. But in my belief system, we are body and we are soul, mere spirit, and the soul includes the mind and the will and the emotions, mostly what therapy coaching focuses on or, of course, body for you.
Jen:And then we have spirit. And I've I've found in my work that often people really struggle in taking care of all those parts. They may do really well in one area and then really neglect the other. And I would say most often, the neglect in my work comes the spirit, number 1, and then number 2, the body. And then, obviously, they're coming to me because they want help with the soul, which is the mind, will, emotion.
Jen:So that's the part they're like, I'm ready to work on that. I can do that work. And that's what I'm trained to do is to help them with that. But what I'm trying to do with people and the work I do is bring in those other components because I really believe that true thriving and full living happens when we are honoring and taking care of all of those parts of ourselves because we are a whole being that has these parts. So we are these 3 parts in 1, and we need to make sure we don't, neglect those parts.
Jen:I feel like that's when things go awry. People are unhealthy and unhappy is when they aren't taking care of all those pieces.
Kaitlin:Yes. I love that. Couldn't agree more.
Jen:Yes.
Kaitlin:Well, that was fun.
Jen:Yeah.
Kaitlin:For.
Jen:Hopefully. Hopefully, people thought it was
Kaitlin:snowed with us. Yeah. I love it. Well, might have to do this again. And thanks to everybody else for joining us on the fun today, and stay tuned for what we'll bring in next week.
Kaitlin:See you guys later.
Jen:Thanks for joining us on the counterculture health podcast. To support this show, please rate, review, and share with your friends and family. If you wanna be reminded of new episodes, click the subscribe button on your preferred podcast player. You can find me, Jen, at awaken.holistic.healthand@awakeningholistichealth.com.
Kaitlin:And me, Caitlin, at Caitlin Reed Wellness and Caitlin Reed Wellness.com. The content of the show is for educational and informational purposes only. As always, talk to your doctor and health team. See you next time.
