Unsinkable: A Reason to Celebrate

Lorie –

You can’t stop the weather. You can’t stop the storms, but you can prepare. And that is what this is. It’s learning how to prepare yourself for what you need to do to keep yourself safe and see the sunshine tomorrow…because the rain can’t last forever. 

Ep. 100

Celebrating 100 Episodes and Providing Hope Through Difficult Times~

This has been quite a ride. It is amazing how all the layers came together to create this show and now to reach 100 episodes. Wow! Reflecting on all the emotions I have experienced, from my own struggle with cancer to the onset of the pandemic, despite feeling overwhelmed and scared, I was driven by the idea of making an impact in people’s lives. 

This was the motivation to start the podcast.

“

As the year went on, I saw big things on the horizon and I was so excited to share. Do you know how it is when you get an idea and you just have so much energy behind it and you feel like you’re just unthinkable? That’s where I was when I started this in October of 2020. It would bring me to tears when I would just even listen to yes, the trailer. It just felt so right. That feeling has continued to grow.

”

I encourage you to embrace your story to allow you to grow and improve your quality of life. We can empower ourselves to live better lives even when pushed to the limits and ultimately it makes us stronger individuals. It is important to be honest with ourselves even when it is difficult.

I am so  thankful for you and the support I have received from you, my podcast family!

Top 5 episodes based on popularity and listener feedback:

• In the Eye of the Storm: Life after a Melanoma Diagnosis | Carrie Brophy
• Into the Depths: Discovering Your Extraordinary Life | Dana Sardano
• Sink or Swim: Turning Tragedy into Triumph | Ryan Rae Harbuck
• Skin Cancer Awareness, Pt. 3: Dressed to the Nines – Sustainably Sourced and Fashion Forward UPF 50+ Clothing | Christie Covarrubias
• Waves of Happiness: Uncovering the Secret to a Fulfilled Life | Karyn Seitz

My mission is to help you, to encourage you, and to provide you with stories of hope as we go through these storms.

Listen to this important episode to hear more.

How do you sail through life? Join me on this endeavor!

I would love to grow this amazing support community! Learn more here.

** Sailing Through Life Podcast is intended to educate, inspire and support you on your personal journey and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. All content is for general informational purposes only. If you are suffering from any psychological or medical conditions, please seek help from a qualified health professional.

TRANSCRIPT

Okay, Wow! Today is a special day. I don’t know about you, but I am always up for celebrating a milestone and this is an incredible milestone for us.

Today is episode 100! Yeah, we did it!

When I started the show, I really didn’t know if I would get to this point for many reasons. I guess because of my health, my job, the usual life things. Mainly, though, it was my health. I was extremely hopeful in the beginning. I wanted to share my story and share others’ journeys and really create a community that understands your challenges to be a friend that is there for you when you’re feeling fearful, worried or anxious about life. I remember playing the first 32nd trailer for My oncologist the last appointment I saw him at. I was feeling victorious after being diagnosed with stage three cancer and going through surgeries and treatments for a year and then going through it all over again right away.

I wasn’t sure what to make of all the emotions at that time. Oh, and don’t forget, COVID was a new thing. It was a new word in my vocabulary on top of everything else I was trying to understand. Remember those days? Hiding in quarantine, not knowing what the world was coming to? I still have videos on my phone that I recorded in early 2020 about the dreaded what if. What if I just went through all this with my cancer drama over the last two and a half years and a pandemic was going to wipe me out.

As the year went on, I saw big things on the horizon and I was so excited to share. Do you know how it is when you get an idea and you just have so much energy behind it and you feel like you’re just unthinkable? That’s where I was when I started this in October of 2020. It would bring me to tears when I would just even listen to yes, the trailer. It just felt so right. That feeling has continued to grow.

Speaking with guests, that fueled my mission, leaving me feeling more empowered. It’s because of who I’m surrounding myself with. That’s all a part of this. And I feel so blessed. Hitting 100 episodes is mind boggling to me in a way. It’s a monumental moment and a true testament to my determination and drive. There have been days where I have questioned the work involved in doing this, but there have been so many more days of feedback from listeners and hearing about what an impact this show has had on someone else, cancer survivor or not.

There have been many opportunities to go in so many directions. I feel like I just want to tackle so many topics, but it seems the most repetitive theme is what we can do for ourselves to live a better life, referring to how we think and feel about our lives. I know when I have been caught up in everything that’s going on around me, I forget how important it is to check back in with me.

Just recently, I had an experience where my gut was telling me no. But because of pressure, I did, and I had to figure out a way to undo all that. You know? Do you listen to yourself when your mind or your heart or your gut tells you something? We can influence ourselves just as much as others can. We even have more power over ourselves than we give ourselves credit for when we give ourselves worth.

So what’s coming up this year? I’m looking forward to a group of new guests growing the reach and impact of the show and the upcoming 2023 series in May for skin cancer and Melanoma awareness. Last year proved itself to be such a special series. I’ve been busy rounding up insightful guests to continue sharing knowledge and improving the show. We cover some tough subjects here. Obviously, if you’re listening, you’re looking for answers or I guess, direction to questions you have.

If you’re a cancer survivor or you know someone who has gone through cancer, I get that you want to know what to do, how to feel about it, get through it, move past it. What do you do once you’ve finished with treatment? Some of you have felt kind of left behind. Now, only because I’ve been through it do I understand it at this level that there’s a void that needs to be filled. You are deserving of answers and guidance, and I will do everything I can to the best of my ability to provide that for you.

There is value in sharing your journey and in the healing that takes place when you’re able to discuss what you’ve been through, when you have the chance to look back and see how strong you’ve been sometimes without having a choice, you did what you had to do. But you have to feel the feelings. I know when I feel like I’m compromising too much or I’m giving in to what’s popular. You continue to inspire me.

You give me direction and hope. I draw from you as much as you draw from me. I don’t do the show to become popular, but to support and encourage you to look at new angles, get new perspectives. When I think back to episode number one, I see how naive I was in so many ways. I had a need to do this show and to be professional out the gate. I wanted to honor the seriousness of the topics, to present you with quality guests and thought provoking ideas.

Over the years, I’ve grown and improved my skills. I’ve been pretty open about what I’ve experienced and how I’ve really gone through some big waves of emotions, and I’ve also gone through my share of trials and tribulations along the way. I’m real. I’m going through all this with you at times, and I guess that’s where I want to point out that this is honest, this is vulnerable, this is scary, and this is the truth.

I have faced those dark, stormy times. I know what it’s like to be caught up in the heavy wind and rain pelting. You feel like you’re pushing against everything outside of you. The cold that hits you deep inside, the fear that overcomes you as lightning strikes around you. Yes, there have been times that I have been scared out of my mind. There have been times I feel weaker than I am. And yet here you are with me in this remarkable podcast family reaching out in different ways to let me know you’re there.

So I want to encourage you to continue to do everything you can, regardless of what’s going on with you, to do your best. If that means doing nothing for a day because you need a mental break, you deserve that. Just don’t get stuck there. It’s easy to think down into those depths of sorrow and wallowing. Acknowledge the feelings, but don’t waste time. Time is precious. In order to practice what I preach, I decided it was time to get certified in mindfulness and meditation.

I wanted to have a foundation for the meditations I started incorporating last year. The response to this has been incredible. So thank you. Thank you. This show has always been about quality, not quantity. But this, this moment right here, this is pretty special. I remember days where I would buy something that had a large quantity like vitamins and I would think, gosh, will I ever finish this bottle?

Will I ever use it all? It was a sobering reminder of what we go through as humans and how we question our existence after we go through something that shocks our system, that traumatizes us. It is curious, though. I don’t believe I ever put a timeline on the show. I’ve just pushed through and continued to have that goal, to do what I do, just be me. So did I think I would record 100 episodes? I guess, in a way, no.

But then again, I guess I really didn’t think about it that way. I was just grateful for what I accomplished and the time I had. I was thankful for the opportunity to share what I know, what I experienced and what others have experienced, to empower you, to do better, to make those changes, to be awesome. Thank you for sticking with me. If you’ve been here from the beginning and I’m so blessed to have anyone who’s new here just stepping into this whole vibe of sailing through life because of you. This show is in the top 5% of all podcasts globally.

You are such an integral part of the success of this show. I base so much of the content of the show on feedback and your heartfelt stories. You know, there have been outstanding guests and touching episodes. So I wanted to talk to you about the top five episodes out of the first 100. Yes, this was a tough one to narrow down. There were many memorable and touching moments. So I based the top five on popularity and feedback from all of you.

So my top five are, and not in any particular order, waves of Happiness uncovering the Secret to a Fulfilled Life with Karyn Seitz. Karyn had such wisdom on how to achieve happiness in life. She had been through so much. Like all of us, we search and search and search. But are we searching too hard? Or is what we’re searching for right in front of us now? Excellent episode, excellent points. Karyn was incredible to speak with and I’m so thankful that we met. Thank you, Karyn. 

Next is sink or swim. Turning tragedy into triumph with Ryan Ray. Harbuck. This was back from March of 2022. Ryan had this enthusiasm to live. Even after everything she dealt with, she never let it get her down to the point where she didn’t go for what she wanted. Not saying that everything was always sunshine and rainbows, but she found a way to overcome the misfortune of the car accident, which became her platform of growth and a way for her to generate excitement through her adversity. Ryan. Yes! You are inspiring. Thank you for being you and sharing you with us and the world. 

Third, was Skin Cancer Awareness part 3. Dressed to the Nines, Sustainably Sourced and Fashion Forward UPF 50 clothing with Christy Covarrubias of Sun 50, Christie came to realize the deficit that there was when it comes to sun protection, knowing that life can be very fickle and unfair. Watching her cousin go through the life challenging diagnosis of melanoma and losing her fight motivated her to find answers. She challenged herself to create a way for others to not have to go through all that by developing clothing to protect you from the sun. Christie’s motivation was truly touching because she did have to go through that loss to find something incredible, and she’s figured out a way to save lives because of this. So thank you. Christie. 

Fourth is into the Depths: Discovering Your Extraordinary Life with Dana Sardano. Dana was a salty sailor whew. She had a lot to share about growing up in a dysfunctional family and how that dysfunction perpetuated more dysfunction until she eventually said, enough is enough. She did the hard work and everything fell into place once she started making those decisions again. We’re not talking about everything magically being perfect. We’re talking about what it is you’re focused on and what you can do for yourself to eliminate all the baloney, all the crap. When she cleared out all that and got down to brass tacks, she bloomed. She found her confidence and her creativity. And how amazing is that? If you didn’t hear this episode, you definitely want to listen to this one. She’s got a lot to tell you. 

And last is In the Eye of the Storm: Life After a Melanoma Diagnosis with Carrie Brophy. This is from September of last year. Carrie was really, really special to me. She was very sweet. She reached out to me after being a listener of the show and was so generous to share how what I was doing made a difference in her life. We shared a lot with each other about our experiences of being diagnosed with melanoma and what it meant for us and our families. The fear, anxiety, the depression, the overwhelm these are all parts of cancer. These are all parts of life. She felt trusting enough to be a guest on the show so she could help someone else. We can’t tell what the future holds. We have no idea how we’re going to react when we’re presented with these circumstances that are out of our control. All we can do is focus on what we want and not what we don’t. Thank you, Carrie, for trusting me. 

If you haven’t had an opportunity to hear these episodes, there will be links to all of them in the episode description. So, I hope you have a better understanding of how all the layers came together to create the show and to reach 100 episodes. My mission is to help you, to encourage you, and to provide you with stories of hope as we go through these storms of life.

You can’t stop the weather, you can’t stop the storms, but you can prepare. And that is what this is. It’s learning how to prepare yourself for what you need to do to keep yourself safe and see the sunshine tomorrow because the rain can’t last forever.