Stories and Stanza

We know our love languages. We've read about attachment styles. We've even set boundaries. So why do we still struggle to stay connected when conflict hits?In this episode of Stories and Stanza, Laziena Hodge — relational intelligence speaker and creator of the Relationship Repair Language framework — joins Abhra to unpack what actually happens inside us during conflict, and why knowing your patterns isn't the same as knowing how to repair.Laziena shares her deeply personal journey — from generational trauma and family separation to rebuilding her relationship with her children through curiosity, emotional honesty, and a willingness to get it wrong. What emerged from that lived experience is a practical framework that gives people a language for their emotional needs in the moments that matter most. Together, they explore why most relationship struggles aren't about a lack of love, but a lack of skill. Why emotional presence matters more than having the right answer. Why we carry unresolved wounds into every new relationship. And why sitting at the table with curiosity — instead of blame — can change everything. This conversation is for anyone who has ever wondered why they keep repeating the same patterns, why their reactions feel bigger than the moment, or why repair feels so hard even when the love is still there.🔗 CONNECT WITH LAZIENA Website: https://laziena.com📖 WHAT WE EXPLORE00:00 Trauma and Emotional Impact02:30 Origins of Repair Language14:19 Presence Without Burnout43:22 Breaking Relationship Cycles44:52 Healing Tools and Inner Child50:41 Reading from the book: "The Breakdown Before the Breakthrough"📌 If this conversation resonated with you, please like, subscribe, and share it with someone who might need to hear it.#RelationshipRepair #EmotionalIntelligence #RelationalIntelligence #AttachmentStyles #InnerChildHealing #ConflictResolution #HealthyRelationships #MentalHealthPodcast #StoriesAndStanza #FailWithMe #LazienaHodge #EmotionalNeeds #HealingRelationships #SelfAwareness #GenerationalTrauma #RelationshipAdvice Wish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack.📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram☕ Buy me a coffee🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What happens when men are told to toughen up, push through, and never ask for help? In this episode of Stories and Stanza — recorded in solidarity with Men's Mental Health Awareness Month — I sit down with Joelle Camille, somatic therapist, body-brain rewiring practitioner, men's coach, speaker, and facilitator, for one of the most honest conversations I've had on this podcast.This isn't a one-sided interview. Joelle turns the mic on me — asking about my own journey with anger, grief, ego, and the somatic workshop that changed my life. I share the story of losing my father without reconciliation, the belief I grew up with that my anger was permanent, and the moment I realised I'd been carrying weight I didn't even know was there.Together we explore why men tie their self-worth to work, why defence mechanisms built in childhood follow us into adulthood, how the body stores what the mind won't process, and why the journey toward emotional intelligence begins with one step.If you're a man who feels like you're carrying too much, or you love someone who is — this conversation is for you.This is Part 1. Part 2 coming soon.🕐 Chapters 00:00 I Win or I Learn 08:02 Silent Struggles and Support 18:57 Somatic Healing and Nervous System 33:14 Childhood Defence Mechanisms 41:30 Ego, Perfectionism and Embodiment 56:36 Generational Patterns and Parenting🎙️ About the Guest Joelle Camille is a somatic therapist, body-brain rewiring practitioner, men's coach, speaker, and facilitator. Her mission is to support men to clear the mental clutter and become everything they want to be.Joelle Website: https://presenceisyourpower.subscribepage.io/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joelle.vadas Email: [email protected] to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack.📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram☕ Buy me a coffee🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What is mindfulness, really? And what happens when we confuse achieving with living?In this episode of Fail With Me — Stories and Stanza's series on mental health, resilience, and the messy, beautiful work of becoming — host Abhra Pal sits down with Dalida Turkovic, an ICF-certified leadership coach and certified Mindful Self-Compassion teacher with 30+ years of experience guiding executives and communities across Asia, Europe, and beyond.Dalida Turkovic's story is anything but theoretical. She fled the Yugoslav War in her early 20s, landed in China with almost nothing, spent 30 years building a career and a practice from scratch — and learned, through depression, burnout, and the quiet discipline of embodied awareness, how mindfulness becomes the skill that carries us through life's relentless changes.In this conversation, we explore:→ Why mindfulness is not about silencing your mind — and what it actually means to "let thoughts flow" → The "frog in the well" — why self-awareness is the first real act of leadership → Why mindfulness without compassion is incomplete → The three phases of practice: striving, disillusionment, and radical acceptance → What the "hyper-achiever trap" costs leaders — in their body, their relationships, and their teams → How to begin a mindfulness practice in just 10 seconds → Why redefining success as the quality of human connection might be the most radical leadership move of our timeA moment from this episode:"Sometimes we think we are in a space where we got it all — but we are actually stuck in a well. What mindfulness offers us is to begin to see different scenarios, that there is more to what we can perceive." — Dalida TurkovicConnect with Dalida Turkovic: Website & Coaching Inquiry → https://www.dalidaturkovic.com/contactWish to read about the episodes in advance or need a recap? Find us on 👉 SubStack.📌 Follow us: YouTube | Facebook | X | Instagram☕ Buy me a coffee🛠️ Tools we love: vidIQ · Descript Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.