Pain to Performance

You got hurt. You called your doctor. The earliest appointment is three weeks out. You sit in a waiting room for two hours, pay your copay, and after all of that, you still do not know what is wrong. Sound familiar?In this episode of Pain to Performance, host Bradley Morgan sits down with Dr. Tom Weber, a board-certified orthopedic specialist who spent 25 years inside the traditional healthcare system before deciding to blow it up. Dr. Weber trained at the Medical College of Wisconsin, completed residency at the University of Virginia, and did a sports medicine fellowship at Ohio State. He has accumulated over 100,000 patient visits. And after watching patients get buried under copays, unnecessary imaging, coding audits, and weeks-long wait times, he built MD Ortho, a platform where you open an app and a specialist is looking at your injury the same day.Dr. Weber walks through the real story of a high school football player who tore his ACL on a Friday night. In the traditional system, that family would have spent four weeks and over $2,000 just to get a diagnosis. With MD Ortho, the mom opened the app Saturday morning, her son had a $450 cash-price MRI by that afternoon, and was sitting in front of the right surgeon by Monday. That is what healthcare can look like when you skip the maze.Brad and Dr. Weber also dig into why 80 to 90 percent of orthopedic issues do not require surgery, how pattern recognition after 100,000 visits means experienced doctors often know what is wrong before the exam even starts, why insurance billing drives providers out of healthcare, how employers bear the brunt of a $5 trillion system, and what concierge medicine looks like when it is done right.If you have ever been stuck waiting weeks for an answer about your own body while the system collects your money at every stop, this episode will make you angry and then give you hope.Topics covered: orthopedic care, virtual healthcare, telemedicine, concierge medicine, MD Ortho, sports medicine, ACL tear, rotator cuff, frozen shoulder, healthcare costs, insurance billing, workers compensation, employer health benefits, cash-price MRI, healthcare reform, direct primary care, musculoskeletal health, injury recovery, physical therapy, healthcare technology, AI in medicine, orthopedic specialist, same-day diagnosis, healthcare accessTo connect with Dr. Tom Weber and MD Ortho: mdortho.ai | [email protected] | Self-pay visits: mdortho.ai/selfpayListen to Pain to Performance on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.Website: paintoperformancepodcast.comFollow, subscribe, and leave a review. If this episode changed how you think about getting care for your body, send it to someone who has been stuck in the waiting room. They deserve to know there is another way. Pain is rarely a solo experience and a good conversation is better shared.

You love them. You know you love them. And they love you. But you keep having the same fight, the same words, the same walls going up, and the same silence afterwards. And every time it happens, you wonder: is this who we are now?In this episode of Pain to Performance, host Bradley Morgan sits down with Jeff Shore, a licensed marriage and family therapist in San Francisco who may have the most interesting career path of any guest to ever sit in this chair. Before becoming a therapist, Jeff founded a national cocaine hotline that took over a million calls and was published in the Lancet and the New England Journal of Medicine. He appeared on Good Morning America, the Today Show, and Time magazine. He lobbied Congress for the ASPCA. He worked as a recording engineer in a Manhattan studio staying up all night with rap artists. He taught sixth grade in Hawaii. He managed technology for a British bank from Tokyo. And then he walked away from all of it because he realized he had been chasing excitement instead of meaning.That search for meaning brought him full circle to the one thing that always mattered: helping people change. And today, his couples work is built around a framework he calls the four desires and the seven fears. Every person in a relationship is balancing four core desires: connection, autonomy, security, and adventure. One partner votes for more connection while the other votes for more autonomy. One craves security while the other needs adventure. And most of the fights couples have are not about the dishes or the schedule. They are about which desire gets priority.But the part of this conversation that will stop you in your tracks is the seven fears. Jeff explains that when a partner actually starts to change, something unexpected happens. The other partner gets scared. They think it is not really happening, or it is not authentic, or it is only because the therapist said to do it, or they will just go back to the way they were, or what about all the years they were not like this. Those fears ride shotgun with every hope you carry into a relationship.Jeff also walks through somatic exercises he uses in sessions, including having couples sit close enough to touch, look into each other's eyes, and rate how open their heart feels on a scale of one to ten. He explains why having hard conversations in a car triggers a primitive danger response in the brain, why giving advice is actually a subtle power play, and why the most important shift he ever made as a sixth-grade teacher in Hawaii (catching kids being good instead of catching them being bad) is the exact same tool he uses with couples today.Topics covered: couples therapy, marriage counseling, relationship advice, four desires in relationships, connection vs autonomy, security vs adventure, seven fears of change, negative cycle, empathic listening, somatic therapy, attachment styles, love languages, communication in relationships, power dynamics, conflict in relationships, imposter syndrome, career change, finding meaning, mind-body connection, radical acceptance, relationship cycles, catching your partner being good, emotional intelligence, couples exercises, eye contact therapyTo connect with Jeff Shore: [email protected] to Pain to Performance on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.Website: paintoperformancepodcast.comFollow, subscribe, and leave a review. If this episode made you think of the person you love, send it to them. Better yet, listen to it together. Pain is rarely a solo experience and a good conversation is better shared.

You used to love your job. You remember what that felt like. The energy, the purpose, the feeling that what you were building actually mattered. And then somewhere along the way, it all changed. The meetings got heavier, the people got harder, and one day you realized you were surviving work, not enjoying it.In this episode of Pain to Performance, host Bradlee Morgan sits down with Jenn Whitmer, keynote speaker, TEDx presenter, and author of "Joyosity." Jenn is not someone who studied joy from a distance. She lost it. She was a music teacher and school administrator who genuinely loved her work, had her kids at the same school, and felt lucky every single day. Then a leadership change turned her workplace toxic. Her body started breaking down with unexplained pain. She stopped being present at home. She kept telling herself "it's not that bad" while everything eroded around her. It took a colleague sitting her down and naming it before Jenn could see the damage clearly enough to leave. She resigned on a Tuesday and received a consulting offer at four times her salary by Friday.That experience launched a deep dive into why joy disappears from work and what it actually takes to get it back. Jenn breaks down the joy ratio: 35% of your time spent doing work that brings you joy, 10% or less in toil, and the remaining 55% managed in what she calls the messy middle. She walks through the three markers of joy (feeling lucky, a sense of belonging, and purpose that impacts others), explains why teams in the joy ratio are 25% higher performing and 30% more productive, and shares one of the most powerful lines from the entire conversation: when you avoid conflict, you manufacture fake peace. And fake peace is exhausting to maintain.Brad and Jenn also dig into hustle culture, why tying your worth to your productivity is a trap, how emotions are energy in motion that maps into the body, the "it's not that bad" trap that keeps people stuck in toxic situations for years, and why joy is not the reward for getting through the hard part. Joy is the reason you get through it.The episode ends with a five-minute exercise anyone can do tonight: grab a piece of paper, make two columns, joy and toil, and write down what fills you up and what drains you. That is the first stop on the Joyosity Explorer Map, and it changes how you see your entire week.Topics covered: workplace culture, toxic workplace, leadership, joy at work, conflict resolution, conflict avoidance, fake peace, joy ratio, Joyosity, keynote speaker, burnout, hustle culture, employee engagement, team performance, productivity, emotional health, mind-body connection, workplace toxicity, career change, quitting your job, purpose at work, work-life balance, TEDx, leadership development, organizational culture, messy middle, toil, self-awareness, corporate culture, team buildingTo connect with Jenn Whitmer: jennwhitmer.com | Instagram and LinkedIn: @jennwhitmer | Joyosity Explorer Map: jennwhitmer.com/explorer-map | Waitlist for new leadership program: jennwhitmer.com/waitlistListen to Pain to Performance on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.Website: paintoperformancepodcast.comFollow, subscribe, and leave a review. If this episode made you feel something, send it to the person in your life who is manufacturing fake peace right now. They need to hear this. Pain is rarely a solo experience and a good conversation is better shared.

You meant well. You said the right thing. And somehow it still landed wrong. They got hurt, you got defensive, and the whole conversation went sideways. Sound familiar?In this episode of Pain to Performance, host Bradley Morgan sits down with Dr. Patricia Timmerman, a psychotherapist, author, and creator of the IAP model, a communication framework built from years of clinical work, personal experience, and pattern recognition. The IAP stands for Intention, Action, and Perception, and it exposes the gap that lives inside every conversation you have. The gap between what you meant, what you actually did, and how the other person received it.Dr. Timmerman walks through real examples from her own marriage, friendships, and clinical practice to show how this framework works in the real world. She breaks down why most arguments are not about what we think they are about, how assumptions become false facts when we stop checking them, and why the words "I can't believe you did that" often say more about the person speaking than the person being spoken to.This conversation also goes deep into the mind-body connection. Dr. Timmerman explains how she uses findings from epigenetics and neuroplasticity to physically shift her emotional state, from power posing to factual affirmations to what she calls becoming an active participant in your own intrusive thoughts instead of a passive one.Brad and Dr. Timmerman also break down several actionable communication tools you can start using tonight, including reflecting (repeating back what you heard to confirm understanding), the preamble (telling someone what you need from a conversation before it starts), instructive compliments (telling people what they are doing right so they know what to keep doing), the post-conversation (walking through each other's experience after conflict to rebuild understanding), and the rule of three interpretations (pausing your worst-case-scenario thinking and generating two alternative explanations before choosing the one that serves you best).If you keep having the same fights with the same people and you cannot figure out why, this episode will show you exactly where the breakdown is happening.Topics covered: communication skills, relationship advice, couples therapy, IAP model, psychotherapy, intention vs impact, conflict resolution, assumptions in relationships, mind-body connection, epigenetics, neuroplasticity, power posing, intrusive thoughts, active listening, reflecting, emotional intelligence, attachment styles, anxious attachment, factual affirmations, positive affirmations, relationship communication, cognitive balance, instructive compliments, self-awareness, mental health, therapy toolsTo connect with Dr. Patricia Timmerman: advocatetocreate.com | Free Rule of Three Interpretations worksheet: advocatetocreate.teachable.com | Book: "Why Are We Fighting?" available on AmazonListen to Pain to Performance on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.Website: paintoperformancepodcast.comFollow, subscribe, and leave a review. If this episode changed how you think about your conversations, send it to the person you keep fighting with. They probably need to hear it too. Pain is rarely a solo experience and a good conversation is better shared

He spent 15 years as a pastor. He walked away to be there for his family. Then he bought a business that nearly destroyed everything he was trying to protect.In this episode of Pain to Performance, host Bradley Morgan sits down with Jordan Berry, founder of Laundromat Resource, former pastor, and owner of five laundromats now operating from his home in Hawaii. But the road from ministry to the ocean was anything but smooth.Jordan left vocational ministry because the weight of carrying others was costing him the people closest to him. His wife was isolated at home with two toddlers, and the demands of pastoral life left no room for the family he was trying to hold together. So he made the quietly heartbreaking decision to walk away from something good in order to do something better. Then he bought a laundromat expecting passive income and got the exact opposite. He was losing money, showing up every single day to a business he was told had a 95 percent success rate, and he could not figure out why he was failing. He stopped marketing because he was scared to spend more. He stopped communicating with his wife because all he could talk about was the business. Pride would not let him quit. Fear would not let him move. It was one of the darkest seasons of his life.But he kept going. Not with a dramatic breakthrough, but with boring, consistent action over a very long period of time. He cleaned the store. He talked to customers. He slowly rebuilt a reputation he had inherited. And eventually, the cargo ship turned. Today, Jordan runs five laundromats, has done over 1,500 consulting calls, and helps aspiring laundromat owners skip the pain he went through by borrowing his 10,000 hours of hard-earned experience.Brad asked Jordan the biggest lie people tell themselves when they are stuck. His answer: "I can't." In his family, whenever someone says those words, the response is simple. Now you have to.If you are stuck in a business, a career, or a life that feels like it owns you instead of the other way around, this is the conversation that will hit you in the chest.Topics covered: business ownership, entrepreneurship, laundromat business, passive income myth, small business mistakes, career change, leaving ministry, pastor burnout, marriage and business, identity crisis, fear and pride, business coaching, self-care for entrepreneurs, mindset shift, financial freedom, side hustle to full-time, building a business from scratch, overcoming failure, work-life balance, Laundromat ResourceTo connect with Jordan Berry: laundromatresource.com | Laundromat Resource Podcast | YouTube: Laundromat ResourceListen to Pain to Performance on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Website: paintoperformancepodcast.comFollow, subscribe, and leave a review. If this episode made you think of someone stuck in their own version of the grind, send it their way. Pain is rarely a solo experience and a good conversation is better shared.

What happens when you wake up from surgery at 11 years old in a body you no longer recognize, and nobody tells you what to do next?In this episode of Pain to Performance, host Bradley Morgan sits down with Dr. Laura Glazebrook, a Doctor of Physical Therapy who specializes in scoliosis, spinal fusion rehabilitation, pelvic health, and pregnancy and postpartum care. Dr. Laura is not just a clinician. She is a spinal fusion survivor who has lived the very recovery she now guides others through.At age 11, Laura underwent a long spinal fusion for severe scoliosis, a surgery that left her with titanium rods and an entire section of her spine that no longer moves. She received almost no guidance on how to exist in her new body afterward, and that experience became the foundation of her entire practice. Today, she helps patients around the world relearn how to move, rebuild confidence, and stop seeing their bodies as broken.This conversation goes well beyond posture and pain relief. Brad and Laura dig into the mind-body connection, why the medical model fails people by compartmentalizing the body, how a foot surgery can cause hip pain years later, the surprising link between scoliosis and pelvic floor dysfunction, and why radical acceptance is the first real step toward recovery. Laura shares her go-to tool for patients stuck in a negative mindset: find one thing you love about your body and start there.If you have ever been told your body is fragile, that pain is just something you have to live with, or that you have simply been "cleared" with no plan for what comes next, this episode is for you.Topics covered: scoliosis, spinal fusion surgery, spinal fusion recovery, physical therapy, pelvic floor dysfunction, chronic pain, body image, radical acceptance, mind-body connection, medical trauma, connective tissue, postpartum recovery, movement coaching, body awareness, PT vs chiropractor for scoliosis, pediatric scoliosis, long spinal fusion, pain mindset, empowerment in recoveryTo connect with Dr. Laura Glazebrook, visit her website and social media channels.Listen to Pain to Performance on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.Website: paintoperformancepodcast.comFollow, subscribe, and leave a review. If this episode made you think of someone who needs to hear it, send it their way. Pain is rarely a solo experience and a good conversation is better shared.

You are doing the reps. You are following the program. And you are still in pain. What if the problem was never your muscles at all?In this episode of Pain to Performance, host Bradley Morgan sits down with Shari Zisk, a human kinetics graduate, level four MELT Method instructor, and former bodybuilder who spent over 20 years in traditional fitness before discovering that fascia changed everything she thought she knew about the human body.Together they break down what fascia actually is, why it matters more than most trainers and even medical professionals realize, and how dehydrated fascial tissue creates mystery pain, restricted mobility, poor posture, and nervous system fatigue. Shari shares how a simple 30-minute hand and foot technique helped a man raise his arms overhead for the first time in three years, and why force and deep pressure are not always the answer.Brad validates these findings from his own neuromuscular therapy practice and together they give you practical steps you can start tonight: body scans to find asymmetries and tension, gentle compression techniques, fascial lengthening versus traditional stretching, and why seeing a fascia-informed manual therapist is the gold standard.If you have been grinding through workouts, pushing through pain, and blaming yourself for not getting better, this is the episode that reframes everything.Topics covered: fascia, fascial hydration, MELT Method, myofascial release, chronic pain, mystery pain, nervous system regulation, posture correction, dehydrated tissue, foam rolling, mobility training, mind-body connection, personal training, neuromuscular therapy, injury recovery, workout recovery, fitness misconceptions, hyaluronic acid, stuck stress, body scan techniquesTo connect with Shari Zisk: www.Sharizisk.com | Instagram: @trainerShariFollow, subscribe, and leave a review.If this episode changed how you think about your body, send it to the person who is grinding, hurting, and blaming themselves. They deserve to know there is another way.

Nobody wants to talk about it. But erectile dysfunction, loss of desire, and sexual shutdown are affecting millions of people, and the silence is making it worse.In this episode of Pain to Performance, host Bradley Morgan sits down with Mark Prevet, a licensed professional counselor, certified sex therapist, trauma specialist, and disabled veteran who works directly with veteran populations and high-stress individuals. Together they unpack what really happens when sex disappears from your life, not by choice, but because trauma, anxiety, or stress made that decision for you.Mark breaks down how the nervous system gets stuck in survival mode, why younger men are being prescribed ED medication at alarming rates, the role that pornography and social media play in distorted sexual messaging, and what partners can do to support without shaming. He also shares practical tools, including polyvagal breathing techniques and the power of simply giving yourself permission to have fun again.If you or someone you love is struggling with sexual health, intimacy issues, or the fallout of trauma on your relationship, this is the conversation that changes everything.Topics covered: erectile dysfunction, sexual health, trauma and intimacy, PTSD and sex, veterans and sexual dysfunction, mind-body connection, polyvagal theory, relationship communication, sex therapy myths, performance anxiety, loss of libido, certified sex therapist, couples and intimacy, mental health and sexual wellnessTo connect with Mark Prevet:Website: www.brighthookcounselingllc.com AASECT directory for finding a certified sex therapist near you: www.aasect.orgFollow, subscribe, and leave a review.If this episode hit home, send it to the person who needs to hear it. That is how we break the silence.

This conversation includes content related to physical assault and PTSD. If that's heavy for you today, please listen with care.Sarah Alepin was 25 years old, a master's degree in hand, teaching high school photography in a classroom full of students she adored. She was exactly where she was meant to be — until a student fight in the hallway ended with her foot crushed, a nerve dying from her knee to her toes, and a future she'd carefully built quietly slipping out of her hands.This is one of the most important conversations Pain to Performance has hosted to date.In this episode, Sarah walks through the full arc — the assault, the year of misdiagnoses, the surgery that left her with "nothing but three scars," the MRSA infection, and the slow heartbreak of realizing she'd never stand in a classroom the same way again. She talks openly about what it's like to retire from your dream career in your twenties, to face down the rest of your life from a wheelchair you don't yet need, and to rebuild a body and a mind that no longer respond the way they used to.We talk about the PTSD that arrived after the physical injury — the disordered sleep, the hair-trigger anger, the crowds that suddenly felt like threats — and the cognitive behavioral therapy work that brought her back to herself. We get into what nerve injuries actually feel like, why invisible pain so often goes unbelieved, and what it means to find a doctor who finally listens. And we dig into the parallel rebuilding she did emotionally, physically, and creatively — at the same time, every day, for years.Sarah talks about the photography business she had to map around her body's limits, the networking circles that iced her out, and the moment she stopped trying to fit into rooms that weren't built for her and started building her own. That decision became District Bliss — a heart-centered networking community that has helped business owners book tens of thousands of dollars in work and now spans continents. It was born from the exact kind of pain that makes most people give up.One step took everything. One year of grit, therapy, surgery, and stubborn hope rebuilt a whole life. If you're sitting in the rubble of something that wasn't your fault, this episode is proof that the worst chapter doesn't have to be the last one.Connect with Sarah Alepin:District Bliss: districtbliss.comInstagram: @districtblisseventsPhotos from the Harty: photosfromtheharty.com Instagram: @photosfromthehartyListen to Pain to Performance on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.Website: paintoperformancepodcast.com

She cut the carbs, trained for triathlons, did CrossFit at 5:30 a.m., and tracked every calorie. And it worked — until it didn't. The weight came back, the brain fog rolled in, and no matter how hard she pushed, her body just stopped cooperating. The worst part wasn't the scale. It was the voice that said, what's wrong with me?Sue Soha is a physical therapist, women's wellness coach, and founder of Wholey Healed Community. She's also someone who spent years doing everything she was told — and still hit a wall she couldn't push through. After being diagnosed with celiac disease, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, ADHD, and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, Sue had to throw out the old playbook entirely and rebuild her approach to health from the ground up.In this episode, Sue breaks down what actually changed when she flipped the food pyramid upside down, dropped sugar, and stopped treating cardio like the answer to everything. She shares how she lost four dress sizes and 10% body fat — not by pushing harder, but by finally listening to what her body had been trying to tell her all along.We dig into why the "eat less, move more" approach fails women in perimenopause. Why most weight loss research was done on male bodies and younger women — and why that matters more than most people realize. Why lifting heavy won't make you bulky, why your body holds onto fat when you starve it, and why the kitchen matters more than the gym for women navigating midlife.Sue also gets real about perfectionism, people-pleasing, and what happens when your stress response never turns off. We talk about the mind-body connection, how fear shows up physically, and why the body truly does keep the score.If you've been eating less and moving more and wondering why nothing's changed — especially past 35 — this episode is your permission slip to stop blaming yourself and start playing by the rules that were actually written for you.Connect with Sue Soha: Wholey Healed Community:wholeyhealed.comSpecial Settings Physical Therapy: specialsettingspt.comListen to Pain to Performance on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Website: paintoperformancepodcast.com

You've been there. You had all the information, but you still couldn't pull the trigger. You kept looking for one more opinion, one more data point, one more sign that you were making the right call. And while you were running back and forth between options — the window closed.That's not a confidence problem. It's a process problem.LaKiesha Tomlin is a mechanical engineer turned technical leader and founder of the Profitable Traders Academy. She spent over a decade in aerospace and tech leading global teams — and she used to be the person who couldn't answer "tell me about a time you made a decision with limited information" in a job interview. That frustration sent her on a months-long journey through her own notebooks, career stories, and past decisions to reverse-engineer what actually works when the pressure is on and the data isn't all there.What she built is a six-step decision-making framework rooted in real experience — not theory. In this episode, LaKiesha walks through every step: embracing uncertainty, committing to decide, sorting decisions by actual stakes, executing without second-guessing, knowing when to pivot, and closing the loop with honest feedback. It's the kind of structure that sounds simple on paper — until you realize almost nobody actually follows it.We get into why most people burn level-two brainpower on level-one decisions. Why the classroom habit of needing to be 100% right before raising your hand follows us straight into the boardroom. Why more information and more time almost never lead to better outcomes — and why the real cost of waiting isn't a bad decision, it's the opportunity that disappeared while you were thinking about it.LaKiesha shares the story of a media opportunity she let pass because she didn't feel ready — and how that moment became one of the clearest lessons in her career. We also talk about what it means to be confidently wrong, why that's a better strategy than being quietly right, and how an iterative feedback loop turns every decision into proof that you can trust yourself next time.If you're stuck right now — on a career move, a business decision, or something you've been "sleeping on" for months — this one's for you. You already have the answer. Make the decision already.Connect with LaKiesha Tomlin: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chartconfidence/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lakieshatomlin/Listen to Pain to Performance on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube. Website: paintoperformancepodcast.com

You've felt it. That slow, creeping distance from the people you love most. The relationship that looks fine on the outside but feels like something is just slightly out of reach on the inside. And somewhere along the way, you decided that meant something was wrong with you.Andrew Wallace wants you to know that it doesn't.Andrew is a licensed clinical social worker specializing in play therapy, family therapy, and trauma-informed care. His work sits at the intersection of generational trauma, attachment theory, and the quiet relationship patterns most of us carry into adulthood without ever realizing it. But what makes this conversation different is not his credentials. It is the way he reframes everything. The cycles you keep repeating in your relationships are not character flaws. They are generational knowledge. Learned. Inherited. And most importantly, changeable.In this episode, Andrew breaks down why real empathy is so rare and what it actually looks like when you get it right, how your childhood attachment style, whether anxious, avoidant, or otherwise, is quietly running your adult relationships, what most parents are getting wrong about discipline and connection, and why the most powerful relationship skill you will ever develop starts with the one you have with yourself.Brad gets personal in this one too, opening up about his own anxious attachment style and what it has looked like to start untangling the nervous system patterns and family of origin wounds he carried into his own relationships without even knowing it. If you have ever felt stuck in a cycle you could not name, this episode will name it for you.This is a conversation about emotional healing, relationship dysfunction, inner child work, and what it actually means to break a generational cycle. Not with a dramatic overhaul, but with one honest inventory at a time.Andrew's closing thought is worth sitting with: the most powerful thing you can do right now is not a new strategy or a new communication skill. It is the courage to look at what is working and what is not. Because you cannot give to the people you love what you have never given to yourself first.About Andrew Wallace: Andrew Wallace is a licensed clinical social worker and play therapist at ATL Well, a group private practice in Marietta, Georgia. He specializes in trauma-informed therapy, identity work, family therapy, and is currently training to become a certified sex addiction therapist.atlwell.com/andrew-wallace

You made the list. You had the plan. You were ready. And then Friday came and almost none of it got done. And instead of asking what went wrong, you just decided something was wrong with you.That story is one of the most common things Brianna Perry hears when someone walks into her office for the first time. They come in saying they're overwhelmed, they can't focus, they feel like they're failing at everything quietly while the rest of the world thinks they have it all together. And what she finds underneath all of that, almost every single time, is not a lack of discipline. It's shame. And shame, as she explains in this episode, is not just a feeling. It is a neurological event that is actively keeping your brain from doing the thing you desperately want it to do.In this conversation, Brianna breaks down the real science behind why your productivity crashes, what ADHD and dopamine deficiency actually look like in high achievers, and why the to-do list was never the problem in the first place. She introduces her INCUP motivator framework, a practical tool for understanding why certain tasks feel impossible and how to actually get them done without the shame spiral that follows. And she ends with one of the most grounding takeaways this show has ever delivered: get clear on your why, because without it, no system, no habit stack, and no planner is ever going to stick.This one is for the person who has tried everything and still feels stuck. The person who is crushing it on the outside and quietly falling apart on the inside. The person who just needs someone to tell them the truth: you are not broken. Your brain just needs a better framework.About Brianna Perry: Brianna Perry is a licensed clinical social worker and the founder of Rooted Swan Wellness, a practice dedicated to helping high-achieving individuals break through the cycles of burnout, shame, and chronic overwhelm. She specializes in ADHD, trauma-informed care, and identity-based therapeutic work.RootedSwanWellness.com Instagram: @RootedSwanWellnessTopics covered: ADHD in high achievers, dopamine and motivation, shame and the nervous system, INCUP motivator framework, habit stacking, burnout recovery, productivity and focus, therapy for overwhelm, mental health for high performers, licensed clinical social worker, Rooted Swan Wellness, Brianna Perry, Pain to Performance podcast

What happens when your heart fails you not once, but twice, and you still choose to build?Lester E. Crowell Jr. was diagnosed with a congenital heart condition at 13. By 40, he was in full congestive heart failure. By 42, he received his first heart transplant after spending just five days on the waiting list. Nine years later, blockages in all three arteries meant he needed a second. He waited a year and a half for that call. It came at dawn on December 3rd, 2010.Today, Lester is 26 years into life with a transplanted heart. He is the managing partner of 313 Salon Spa and Boutique, a business approaching its 52nd year with 85 employees. He serves on the board of the Georgia Transplant Foundation and founded Angels of Life, an annual charity event now in its 16th year raising awareness and funds for transplant recipients across Georgia.In this conversation, Lester walks us through every stage of his journey: the terrifying 1 AM phone calls from transplant coordinators, the emotional weight of knowing someone else's loss became his survival, the rejection episodes that tested his mental health, and the moment he decided, while still recovering in his hospital bed, to turn his pain into something that helps others.This is not just a medical story. This is about what it means to truly value the time you have, how purpose becomes the ultimate performance driver, and why the choice to be an organ donor is one of the most important decisions a person can make.In this episode, you will learn:- What it is actually like to receive the call from a transplant coordinator and how the body and mind respond- The emotional reality of living with someone else's heart, including rejection, grief, and gratitude- How the recovery process differs between a first and second heart transplant-The role of the Georgia Transplant Foundation in supporting transplant recipients with financial, emotional, and mentor-based resources- How Lester created Angels of Life, a charity event running 16 consecutive years supporting organ donation awareness- Why Lester believes organ donation should be opt-out rather than opt-inAbout Our Guest:Lester E. Crowell Jr. is the managing partner of 313 Salon Spa and Boutique, a business he has led for over five decades in the Atlanta metro area. A two-time heart transplant recipient, Lester serves on the board of the Georgia Transplant Foundation and founded Angels of Life, now in its 16th year supporting transplant recipients throughout Georgia. Next Angels of Life event: October 25, 2026 at the Marriott Northwest near the Battery in Atlanta.Connect with Lester: three-13.com (Angels tab for event info)Connect with Pain to Performance:Website: paintoperformancepodcast.comEmail: [email protected] Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pain-to-performance/id1858153077

Unlock the secret to thriving in a world obsessed with AI—without losing your human edge—by focusing on energy, clarity, and sustainable growth. If you're a business owner feeling overwhelmed or stuck in the grind, this episode is your blueprint to transforming your approach with human-first AI that enhances productivity, preserves your well-being, and boosts your business scalability.Discover how AI is not just about chatbots or automation—it's about empowering your human potential. Tanya Ferguson, founder of Clear Brook AI Solutions, reveals how a human-first strategy keeps you in control, reduces burnout, and turns technology into your top team member. She shares real-world success stories, including a company that added $70K in savings and doubled growth without layoffs, simply by streamlining communication and processes. Learn how to identify bottlenecks and leverage AI to eliminate low-value tasks, freeing up hours and mental space for what truly matters—vision, creativity, and leadership.In this episode, you’ll uncover:Why most business owners are bottlenecked by their own success and how AI can fix thatPractical steps to implement AI smoothly with minimal disruptionThe foundational importance of human relationships in tech-driven environmentsHow to reframe AI as a tool for promotion, not replacementSimple, actionable techniques like brain dumps to gain clarity and reduce overwhelmWhether you're skeptical about AI or curious about its potential, Tanya's approachable, practical insights will shift your perspective. She emphasizes curiosity over chaos—showing how a little understanding and some strategic conversations with your team can unlock exponential growth without sacrificing your purpose.Don’t let fear of change hold you back—this episode will inspire you to harness AI as an ally for sustainable success. Perfect for entrepreneurs ready to protect their energy, elevate their performance, and future-proof their business. Your most human, energized, and scalable self is just one conversation away.About Our Guest:Tanya Ferguson is the visionary founder of Clear Brook AI Solutions, a company dedicated to integrating AI with a human-first approach. With a passion for helping businesses thrive, Tanya offers a complimentary FIT Check—a free 15-minute call to determine if an AI audit is suitable for your company. Connect with Tanya at Clear Brook AI Solutions or reach out via email at [email protected].

Most people mistake temporary relief for real progress—and end up right back where they started. But what if feeling better was just the beginning, not the finish line? In this eye-opening episode, Bradlee Morgan reveals the crucial difference between symptom relief and systemic change, and why chasing relief alone keeps you stuck in a cycle of recurring pain and setbacks.Imagine understanding why your body reacts the way it does — like antibiotics not just masking an infection but actually changing your body's response. Bradlee shares compelling stories from his own experience with strep, illustrating how stopping treatment early can worsen the problem, and how the body learns over time to respond faster to stress and pain. You’ll discover how temporary fixes—like distracting yourself or relying on support—only quiet symptoms temporarily, without strengthening the system. Without this insight, most are doomed to repeat the cycle, mistaking relief for resolution.We break down:The difference between symptom relief, distraction, support, and true system changeWhy normal isn’t necessarily healthy, and how returning to old habits can reinforce problemsPractical strategies to slow down and create lasting change instead of rushing to feel normalHow pain and discomfort are signals, not enemies, and how to interpret them for growthA powerful shift in mindset: from “getting rid of pain” to “building capacity for resilience”If you’re tired of recurring setbacks and ready to unlock a more capable, resilient version of yourself, this episode is for you. It’s perfect for athletes, health enthusiasts, therapists, or anyone tired of short-term fixes and seeking real transformation. Bradlee Morgan, a healthcare expert known for his insights into system-based healing, guides you through why understanding this shift can redefine the way you approach health and performance.Feeling better is just a moment—it’s the starting point for lasting change.The real question: how do you build a system that thrives long-term? Press play and learn to stop chasing relief and start directing your future toward lasting resilience.

Unlock the hidden power of your mind-body connection and discover how trauma silently resides in your body, sometimes revealing itself as scars or physical tension during your healing journey. If you're tired of superficial therapy approaches that overlook this deep link, this episode is your essential guide to understanding the subconscious signals your body is constantly sending, and how they can transform your healing process.Dr. Kyrstin Lokkesmoe, a trauma-informed psychologist, shares eye-opening stories of scars reappearing during therapy sessions and explains scientifically backed concepts about how trauma impacts more than just your mind. You'll discover how emotional trauma is often stored in the hips, shoulders, and other parts of the body—manifesting as knots, tension, or even visible scars—and how processing trauma can physically bring these marks to the surface. We break down the critical difference between intellectual understanding and subconscious awareness, revealing powerful techniques to access and heal the parts of you that are often hidden from conscious thought.In this episode, you'll learn practical tools for recognizing emotional triggers in your body—such as tense shoulders or restless hips—and how shifting your mindset from resistance to awareness accelerates your healing. Dr. Kyrstin discusses the importance of “backdoor” subconscious work through immediacy and mindfulness, showing you how to bring hidden trauma into conscious awareness through simple yet profound exercises.We explore the misconceptions surrounding trauma, the role of neuro-linguistic programming, and how to gently challenge the negative beliefs that keep you stuck in cycles of stress, anxiety, and self-doubt. Perfect for anyone feeling overwhelmed by their own mind or body or who yearns for a deeper, more integrated approach to health and wellness, this episode empowers you to listen to your body's silent language and take actionable steps toward holistic healing.If you're ready to stop fighting your body and start harmonizing your mind and body for lasting change, this conversation with Dr. Kyrstin will not only educate but also inspire you to trust your body's wisdom and begin a more conscious journey to well-being.TakeawaysMind-Body ConnectionPerfectionism and Self-Worth MetacognitionChallenging negative self-talkChapters00:00 Introduction and Background08:02 Misconceptions and Psychoeducation14:59 Functioning vs. Alignment21:59 Perfectionism and Self-Worth28:21 Metacognition and Self-Reflection

SummaryIn this conversation, Bradlee Morgan discusses the relationship between pain, belief systems, and performance. He emphasizes that pain is not merely a sign of damage but a response from the nervous system. By understanding the underlying mechanisms of pain and the importance of belief in recovery, individuals can transform their experiences from pain to performance. Brad encourages listeners to recognize their adaptive nature and to take proactive steps towards improvement.TakeawaysIf your body hurts, it doesn't mean something is wrong.Pain is an output of your nervous system.Sleep deprivation and stress increase pain sensitivity.The story you believe determines how you behave.High performers read signals differently and adapt accordingly.Pain is inevitable, but we can interact with it.You can change your internal dialogue to improve your situation.Some people are psychologically addicted to their pain.Clarity creates relief, which allows for trust and change.You are adaptive, not broken.Chapters00:00 Understanding Pain and the Nervous System05:27 High Performers and Pain Signals08:48 The Role of Beliefs in Pain Management11:43 Transforming Pain Into Performance

Pain shows up in more places than we like to admit. In our bodies, in our work, and in the way we push ourselves to perform.In this teaser episode of Pain to Performance, host Bradlee Morgan introduces the core idea behind the show. Pain is not something to ignore or push through. It is information.This episode sets the stage for the conversations ahead, bringing together insights from health professionals, performance experts, and business leaders to explore how pain affects the way we move, work, and live. It is an invitation to rethink discomfort, understand the signals your body is sending, and discover how reducing pain creates space for clarity, strength, and sustainable performance.If you have ever felt stuck, worn down, or disconnected from how your body supports your performance, this is where the conversation begins.