Still & Standing Podcast™ (formerly Redefine Your Struggle™) by, Amy McCann

Send us Fan Mail🎙️Listen Here or WATCH Episode #13  ⚠️ Content NoteThis episode includes adult themes and an open, honest conversation about emotional health and crisis. Please listen with care and discretion.📞 If you or someone you know is experiencing emotional distress, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988—available 24/7 for immediate, confidential support. You are not alone, and help is always here.In this episode, I’m joined by Andy Grant—suicide prevention advocate, speaker, and host of the Real Men Feel podcast. Andy shares his personal journey with profound courage, reflecting on survival, emotional honesty, and what it means to stay connected to life through long-haul self-honor.This conversation is shared in real-life hope and as an example of empowerment beyond survival. We also honor that every journey is unique—and in no way seek to diminish the complexities each person’s story may carry.❤️May it reach the hearts that need it most.For all things Andy Grant: https://theandygrant.com/

Send us Fan Mail🎙️Still & Standing Solo Episode #12What if the key to peace of mind wasn’t the pause—but the preparation before it? In this episode of Still & Standing™, Amy McCann offers a powerful reframe for anyone navigating emotionally demanding, high-responsibility roles—whether in caregiving, leadership, entrepreneurship, or life transitions.Drawing from The Power of Now, nervous system wisdom, and nature-based metaphors, Amy explores how stillness without preparation can feel more like collapse than calm—and how emotional and relational infrastructure can become your strongest source of stability.✨ In this episode, you'll learn:Why preparation is the missing piece in most stress management adviceHow to leverage emotional fitness as infrastructure, not just reactionThe difference between pausing and preparationHow to build inner architecture that holds you in high-stakes seasons🎯 This conversation is for: high performers, care partners juggling family life and work, and anyone who carries weight others may not see and refuses to burn out needlessly in the process.Thank you for listening! Become an early listener and be the first to know about new episodes HERE

Send us Fan Mail🎙️🎧Episode #11Featuring my first guest: Ande Lyons!  👀WATCH HERE Radiant entrepreneur and host of the Don’t Be Caged By Your Age podcast, Ande Lyons, joins Amy McCann for a deeply personal conversation about empowered aging, emotional healing, and bold reinvention in midlife and beyond.Ande opens up about harnessing emotional freedom, navigating family estrangement with grace, and finding spiritual steadiness through grief, healing, and new beginnings.Together, they explore:✅ Why aging is not decline, but a powerful gateway to reinvention ✅ How visibility and self-worth evolve in the second half of life ✅ The rituals that keep Ande grounded in joy, confidence, and clarity ✅ And the mantra that helps her walk with fear, not behind itIf you’ve ever felt “over the hill,” unsure how to navigate your next chapter, or pressured by outdated narratives about aging, this episode is a soulful invitation to reclaim your voice, vision, and emotional vitality.🎧 Tune in and subscribe for honest conversations on emotional fitness, legacy leadership, and rising into your next season with grace and grit.

Send us Fan Mail🌿 Still & Standing – Episode 10 🎙 A Return to Freedom Within: When the Freeze Response Isn’t a Mindset ProblemWhat if the reason you're stuck isn’t a lack of discipline but a misunderstood freeze response?In this powerful episode, Amy invites you into the quiet, often unseen experience of emotional paralysis — the kind that mindset tools alone can’t touch.Drawing on her personal caregiving journey, the wisdom of actor/athlete/author Christopher Reeve, and the art of theatrical connection, she reveals why we can be fully functioning on the outside… while frozen on the inside.If you’ve ever felt numb, disconnected, or secretly exhausted from holding it all together, this conversation offers a breath of relief.✨ It’s not about hacks or habits. It’s about harnessing inner harmony.🎧 Tune in to explore:Breaking down the barrier of brain freeze — why mindset adjustment isn’t always the problem or go-to solution, and a Superman perspective every human needs to hearBreaking free of hiring healers and the "hero" label as you know it, to conquer the most severe type of paralysis or existential crisisBreaking up with your unshakable resilience — for refined, unforgettable resonance within, and the kind of authentic freedom your soul might be yearning for

Send us Fan Mail🎙 When Credentials Aren’t Enough and Longevity Loses Its Appeal Bonus Episode | Still & Standing PodcastDescription: How do we avoid disappointment before it begins?In this short bonus episode, I explore two often-overlooked blind spots: assuming longevity equals success, and assuming credentials guarantee connection.Whether interviewing a long-married couple or hiring for care, it’s easy to lean on surface-level signals of trust based on years together or work experience.But what if presence matters more?I share a behind-the-scenes story from my experience hiring home health nurses and how bringing a beginner’s mind to the table helped me move beyond repeated disappointment to find not just competence, but high-quality, long-term care partners.This episode invites you to reconsider how you evaluate connection — and how curiosity may be the missing piece when credentials fall short and connection doesn’t follow.🎧Early Listener Link🧑‍🧑‍🧒 US Home Care Crisis Resource

Send us Fan Mail🎧 Resources That Helped Guide This Episode:The Silence of Shunning: A Conversation With Kipling Williams Psychology Today https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/beyond-bullying/201309/the-silence-shunning-conversation-kipling-williamWhat Is the Silent Treatment—and Is It Abuse? Medical News Today https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/silent-treatment"I Felt Dead Inside": The Psychological Cost of the Silent Treatment Medical Xpress https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-04-felt-dead-psychological-silent-treatment.htmlHealing the Pain of Estrangement American Psychological Association (APA Monitor) https://www.apa.org/monitor/2024/04/healing-pain-estrangementShunning & Sibling Estrangement YouTube / Ali-John Chaudhury, Psychotherapist https://youtu.be/yKgU9SLznBU

Send us Fan MailEnjoy this replay from 2022!  WATCH this episode 👀Meet Faisal Ensaun! I am proud to be associated with our guest, Faisal Ensaun, a fellow Certified High Performance Coach. He is an immigrant from a war-torn country and has faced immense challenges, including overcoming addiction and bouts of deep personal despair. Today, he stands as a beacon of success, fulfillment, and purpose, reaching heights that seemed unimaginable in his childhood. [intro from Faisal's website https://www.faisalensaun.com/about]In this episode, Faisal brings us the depth of his experience in ways that help us better understand how to answer the question: What are the signs you’re avoiding emotional pain? And the #1 thing we all must do, as painful as it is, is to live a life of meaning and connection.

Send us Fan Mail🎙 Season II-Episode #6: The Difference Between Strong and Still—It Changed My LifeMy journey to creating Still & Standing™ was shaped by a personal turning point that unfolded across more than two decades—redefining not just my dreams, but the spirit with which I chose to live them. It began with my then-boyfriend’s spinal cord injury, continued through our years as husband and wife, (and my role as a primary care partner) and led into the chapter that followed: co-parents and ex-spouses moving along separate paths, with a shared history shaped by life’s most tender complexities.This isn’t just about surviving difficulty. It’s about discovering a deeper kind of strength—the kind that doesn’t demand noise to be real.If you've ever had to hold it all together while everything was falling apart... If you've ever had to lead, love, or keep showing up when calm wasn’t an option… This episode is for you.🌀 This is where we begin—at the intersection of emotional resilience, soulful leadership, and authentic strength. 🔖 Save this for when you need a reminder that stillness and strength are not opposites.#StillAndStanding #PodcastLaunch #Resilience #EmotionalIntegrity #LeadershipFromWithin #LegacyInTheMaking

Send us Fan MailThis is a requested audio by one of my community members! Listen to my #1 parenting insights, crisis, and what surrender taught me while raising teenage twin daughters. In this raw and heartfelt episode, I open up about the season of parenting I never expected—the teenage years that tested everything I thought I knew. From the painful grip of ego and silent shame to the power of surrender, I share personal stories and insights for any parent (or caregiver) currently in (or approaching) the teen stage. This isn’t expert advice—it’s a lived journey that might shift how you see your own.

Send us Fan MailEpisode #5  Title~ When the Authorities Knock:  Practicing Peace and Clarity Under PressureMy husband, Sean, and I originally conducted a private session with my MasterPeace-of-Mind™ students in 2023. I bring it to you in worldwide current relevance: We live in a continued chapter with off-the-rails character smashing and social perceptions passed off as truth. One challenge we can all work on is this: The only person left standing—no matter how things land—is you.It sounds obvious. Even cliché.But what happens when you are being accused of wrong, and those seemingly much larger in status or perception of physical strength seem to have the power to take you down? How might this journey help us reconsider our own perceptions and accusations of others?

Send us Fan Mail🎉Introductory Episode: For leaders, communicators, and anyone navigating online visibility with integrity—this one’s for you.👁️How visibility and goal-setting really relate to success and fulfillment.You don’t need to run a business to realize this:Your reactions, your stories, and the energy you carry are everyone you care about's business.💡Turn on this daily focus—in love, leadership, and legacy.🎧 Inside this audio reflection: ✨ The visibility factor: Why “just show up raw” might miss the mark—and what leads to meaningful (long-term) connection instead ✨ How “my way or the highway” can evolve into a my way that becomes a fulfilling, measurable byway ✨ Goals and checklists won’t help your grief or the worries and woes only your pillow knows➡️✨For a VIP invite to my guest appearance on the Be in Demand Podcast to air May 20, 2025, AND to become an early listener or guest on my newest podcast release of Still & Standing™, CLICK HERE! 

Send us Fan MailInspiration is a primary principle in every masterpiece. What inspires this episode? This wisdom:  “You can sell anything to yourself.” ~Evy Poumpouras, former secret service agent and author of Beyond Bullet Proof When Here, we walk through our inner cave to explore how to cultivate a masterPEACE presence in life beyond emotional complexities.When it comes to our healing journey and the idea of a peace walk beyond those we feel have betrayed us, we can sell ourselves stories that keep us locked in the prison of bitterness and blame without realizing it. To live in unconditional healing and pain release, we must have the courage to ask the tough inner questions: ❓What is my story, and is it one I can afford to purchase today? ❓Is this healthy strength beyond that which did not kill me,  or is this a pity-party disguised as a peace-healing journey for others to witness? 

Send us Fan MailToday on Inner Cave Walk, I answer the question:👉 “How do I create an emotional fitness program for myself, quickly?”Here are 3 powerful mind flex shifts that will change how you relate to pressure and performance—especially if you're tired of high-functioning emotional isolation.Want to be part of the Inner Vault Inbox Experience? JOIN HERE!

Send us Fan MailWelcome to Inner Cave Walk™ , a bonus sample journey of what my email subscribers experience!JOIN HERE to give a boost (not a blow up) to your inner world and your inbox experience!This location is where the visibility on the inside transforms into the wisdom we carry beyond bitter endings and into bold beginnings. In real-world practice, not just theory.In this space, you'll emerge as your best Inner Listener, ready to navigate a world full of external judgments.Even if you say, "I couldn't care less about what people think,” ask yourself: Does it matter how those closest to me are affected by my declarations and decisions, especially when it comes to emotional complexities?If you agree that life is a never-ending, unpredictable season of uncertainty, this is a cave experience designed to boost confidence in the dark complexities life can throw at us and foster humility and harmony through success.As a successful visionary or victorious leader meeting daily high-stakes demands, going through ambiguous transitions, or if you’re secretly aching to move beyond success around achievements, awards, and applause--to feel alive, not just in stride with your spreadsheets and checklists-- here's your season and invitation to take new charge of your fulfillment! Your heart, brain, family, and teams will feel it!Your Inner Listener Guide,Amy

Send us Fan MailWhen life burns you and things grow cold in your relationships, what can we do to feel at peace, in the energy of joy, and in harmony with uncertainty? Here's a story about finding warmth at our family's cold Thanksgiving table many years ago.Go Here to contribute your flavor of wisdom to our Inner Peace Table!

Send us Fan MailBack with another season of episodes--Thanks for listening!🎃🩻For this Halloween month in America, here's some skeleton advice you may want to grip (not grasp) onto! This skeleton style of living puts us in a better form and relationship with the quality of TRUST! Ultimately, you'll experience greater peace of mind and a more harmonious forward motion.🎧Whether you're intrigued or scared by this idea, grip yourself a glass of water, and I dare you to listen! 

Send us Fan MailThis episode is shared from the MasterPeace-of-Mind™ Behind-the-scenes BONUS content!The day the authorities knocked...How do we handle ourselves when a force we didn’t see coming appears and our fear and stress kick in?Sometimes what others think of us can work to tear us down. At other times, we may need to fight to defend ourselves and maintain our authentic identity and values. Eventually, no matter how unbelievably unfair a situation seems at the time, we can work to make the situation more bearable.One of our inspirational artistic principles to help us master peace of mind through stressful situations is the principle of CONTRAST. In art, it is used to create a sense of unease and peace.Contrast applied to our program is about the uneasy forms of stress and the style of peace we can gain either through instinct or choice.Join my husband, Sean, and me for this impromptu morning coffee talk about the day the authorities showed up looking for me. How Sean handled the situation as an objective outsider, and how I managed my internal fear and stress unfolding (from freezing up with calm to needing to intentionally slow down my breathing through anxiety as I felt myself unraveling).And we’ll contrast Sean’s objective response to my situation to a day he felt his freeze response kick in when an unexpected problem arose.You’ll have to wait for the entire story of why the FBI showed up to ‘take me in’ in our upcoming sessions! Believe it or not, this is how our morning conversations go! These early-day discussions feel rich and (usually) tied to our work in the world and our excitement for what we are passionate about outside of our marriage. Please listen to this insightful, unfolding conversation, which I felt compelled to record and share with all of you.After you listen, think back to when you were in a position where someone made entirely wrong assumptions about you. How did you respond? Ask yourself: Is it necessary to change a future response to uncertainty and assumptions by others?Your Coach,Amy

Send us Fan Mail👀Click to WATCH this episode: Mental Health Awareness Month may have passed, but the topic of Mental Health will always be a #1 topic that affects us all!*Please join my excellent guest Shaun Zetlin and me for another profound round of conversation in my Redefine Your Struggle podcast. Thank you for tuning in, sharing, and becoming part of the Perseverance Movement I'm building!*Disclaimer: In this episode, I mention my struggle with lifelong depression. I have always sought the help of therapists in addition to my coaches. We are not therapists or crisis counselors. If you are in an emotional crisis, please consult a therapist or counselor. If you are having thoughts of suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 800-273-8255.To reach Amy:[email protected] ORmagnificentchange.comTo reach Shaun: email [email protected] zetlinfitness.com

Send us Fan Mail🔗VIDEO LINK to this episodeHow aware are we of others' struggles with mental health? Here are my thoughts--and something you might not know that I've struggled with!Cheers to higher awareness in Mental Health. Thanks in advance for sharing what you feel is helpful!

Send us Fan Mail👀Click to WATCH this episode! Welcome to Episode #5 PART II with my guest, Rianna Hijlkema!In PART 1, Rianna shared how she reinvented herself after losing everything in her twenties.In this PART 2 segment,  she shares her next phase in life and path toward her dream, only to discover things aren't going as planned. If you've ever clung to a dream so tightly that it interrupted your happiness and life, and you're unsure how to get through another day, this segment is for you! Thanks for tuning in--and let us know what you took away from today's show.➡️For more on Amy McCann, visit her Website➡️To be a Future Guest on RYS click this link➡️For more on Amy McCann, visit her Website➡️To be a Future Guest on RYS click this link➡️For more on Rianna https://www.instagram.com/riannahijlkema/https://www.riannahijlkema.com/Thanks for tuning in! Let us know what you think!Be Bold. Be Confident. See Where it Takes You.

Send us Fan Mail👀Click to WATCH this episode! One day you have it all, and the next, it's gone. How do you reinvent yourself through the struggle of uncertainty? Today's guest, Rianna Hijlkema shares her journey forward in this Part 1, Episode 5, Redefine Your Struggle. ➡️For more on Amy McCann, visit her Website➡️To be a Future Guest on RYS click this link➡️For more on Rianna  https://www.instagram.com/riannahijlkema/https://www.riannahijlkema.com/Thanks for tuning in! Let us know what you think!Be Bold. Be Confident. See Where it Takes You.

Send us Fan Mail👀Click here To WATCH this episode!  Tune in to meet my next remarkable guest, François de Neuville! In 2018, François miraculously survived an earthquake and a tsunami in Indonesia. That day, he promised himself to live every single day of his life to the fullest and inspire others to do the same. In this episode, François explains how he found the courage to turn trauma into a superpower and recreate himself anew. To explore more about François and the work he does in the world go tohttps://www.chasing-excellence.com/or connect with him on LinkedIn!  

Send us Fan MailEnjoy this mini-Podcast episode! Fuel up with me as we explore how to redefine a struggle through EXHAUSTION! Exhaustion from what? Stay tuned!After the show, click the links below to receive this month's goodies and ongoing healthy connection for a better life!CLICK HERE for a private link to explore the 5 Faces of Exhaustion CLICK HERE for a  chance to participate in a complimentary Amy McCann 10-week-uniquely designed 5-Zero Action Plan™ Out of Daily Struggles and into a more magnificent lifestyle you've been dreaming of to uplevel your relationships, your position at work, and your contribution to the world!PLUS! Access to other goodies along the way!The world is suffering. Much is beyond our control. And one way we can do our part to feel connected is to work to redefine our daily, weekly, monthly, and situational struggles. Obstacles can be redefined into opportunities we might never have imagined!Your Coach,Amy

Send us Fan MailDo you avoid negative emotions like the plague? How do you speak to your anxiety? Meet my next empowering guest Pavita Singh as she talks about the good, bad, and ugly parts of our emotional life. Pavita believes "having negative emotions is authentic, our raw human nature"…and that "to be a human is essentially to be a living contradiction." Tune in to hear segments of her collection of love letters to all of life's emotions from her lovely book To All the Magic in Me. Sending love to all on this Valentine's Day and every day.

Send us Fan MailHappy New Year! To see this episode, WATCH HEREPlease help me celebrate my new Podcast series, Redefine Your Struggle! Join special guest, author, and international speaker Shaun Zetlin, of Zetlin Fitness. Along with his work in physical health and behind those muscles, Shaun's expertise can help you get (and stay) emotionally fit! You'll learn his 5 Mantras of Emotional Fitness to start the year off strong--so grab a pen and paper if you can! Your likes, comments, and SUBSCRIBE very much appreciated!