139 - Jeannine Yoder: Opting Out of Urgency: What Happens When You No Longer Need Pressure to Move

In this episode of Threshold Moments, Sarah Tacy sits down with her dear friend, breathwork practitioner and coach Jeannine Yoder, to trace the origins of Opting Out of Urgency—including the moment Jeannine first spoke the phrase that would become the name of Sarah's workshop. Jeannine Yoder is a New York Times–featured feminine leadership coach, breathwork teacher, and Broadway-trained performing artist. For over 15 years, she has trained coaches, healers, and facilitators while guiding transformational breathwork experiences, retreats, and private sessions rooted in nervous system regulation, somatic healing, embodiment, and ritual. She is the founder of Huntress House, a sacred studio for feminine awakening in Easton, Connecticut. Jeannine shares how urgency once functioned as the fuel source of her life. Coming from a childhood where her nervous system learned to respond to a lack of safety, she became exceptionally good at identifying problems, mobilizing quickly, achieving, and creating solutions. But over time, that pattern became a cycle of desire, intensity, achievement, depletion, exhaustion, and then finding something new to mobilize around. The surprising part? Even after her external circumstances became safer and more stable, her nervous system didn't automatically slow down. Together, Sarah and Jeannine explore what it means to opt out of the internal experience of urgency—not necessarily to move slowly, do less, or give up ambition, but to stop manufacturing pressure in order to feel alive. They talk about: Why urgency can feel like safety, motivation, and even creativity What it feels like to have nothing urgent to solve The difference between genuine energy and the feeling of "I need to handle this so I can finally relax" Why opting out of urgency can feel disorienting before it feels peaceful How black-and-white thinking keeps us locked into urgency The power of finding a "sacred third" instead of choosing between two extremes How co-regulation can help us access choices we can't see when we're activated Why our relationships can change when we stop responding from old patterns Learning to leave things unfinished without feeling unsafe The practice of "exhale first, and then respond to what actually needs me" Why creating spaciousness can allow grief, desire, and other feelings to surface How small, digestible steps can help us build capacity for a different way of living At the heart of the conversation is a simple but radical question: Can I have a beautiful, meaningful, creative life without manufacturing pressure in order to feel alive inside? And perhaps an even deeper one: Who am I when nothing urgently needs me? ⭐️ If you enjoy this episode, sign up for my free 3-day nervous system workshop — Opting Out of Urgency — happening live on Zoom September 10-17. RSVP here: https://www.sarahtacy.com/opting-out-of-urgency Connect with Sarah Opting Out of Urgency — A free 3-day nervous system workshop to help you move beyond urgency and reconnect with your energy, clarity, and rhythm. Follow Sarah on Instagram @sarahtacyt Learn more about Sarah's work Join Sarah's email list Connect with Jeannine Yoder Follow Jeannine on Instagram