You’ve heard it over and over, but maybe needed a reminder: Life is too short to fill our mental space with things that don’t serve us.

In this episode, I discuss 5 things we need to let go of. Things that do not serve our peace and rob us of our joy.

This episode is in honor of Ana “Ani” Estevez who tragically lost her life to gun-violence at 23. She was a beacon of joy and compassion and this episode is in honor of her legacy. To help support her family, consider donating to gofundme.com/f/ana-estevez

To stay up-to-date on big PDT announcements, sign up for our email list here: pedsdoctalk.com/newsletter/

00;00;01;02 – 00;00;22;08

Dr. Mona

Life is incredibly precious, and I think sometimes we forget how valuable life is because we rightfully get bogged down with all the stress in our life, the bills, the tasks that we have, the kids screaming, work, traffic, all of that stimuli. We forget that, hey, this is my life. This is the one life I have and I am in control of it.

 

00;00;22;14 – 00;00;43;02

Dr. Mona

As much as it’s hard to hear, and I know sometimes hearing this is the kick in the butt that we need to remember. Number one, I may have a hard life. Number two, I may be tired. Number three, I may not like a certain circumstance, but listen, this is our one life. You’re listening to this with the one life that you have.

 

00;00;43;04 – 00;01;10;01

Dr. Mona

We only have this. And I sure as heck do not want it to be wasted doing and thinking of things that don’t serve our purpose, our joy, and our peace. Welcome back to the show and our last finding Joy episode of 2022. I am Doctor Mona and thank you for joining me today. This series is one in which I share the real deal of parenting, motherhood, life, being a working mom, all of it.

 

00;01;10;02 – 00;01;30;07

Dr. Mona

I share information on grief processing, grief, working through hard time, celebrating good times, and then doing the things that do not serve us as parents, especially as women. Because I am a woman too. A lot of the content and stories are inspired by my own life, but also the deep and meaningful conversations I have with mom, friends, or moms in my office.

 

00;01;30;10 – 00;02;01;06

Dr. Mona

If you haven’t listened to a finding Joy episode already, make sure to listen to them. I assure you, you’re going to really find them useful. This is about changing the way we approach life and parenting, and I really think it’s so important in how we’re going to approach our children as well. I started this series at the end of 2021 with monthly episodes episodes 99, 100, 104, 107, 110, one, 14, 116, one 2122, 127, 131, 135, one 4143.

 

00;02;01;09 – 00;02;24;05

Dr. Mona

Those are all your finding Joy episodes. Talking about secondary infertility, going part time in my career, finding joy as mothers, letting go of people, pleasing so many topics that so many of you have really resonated with. And if you love the series and loved the show, make sure to leave a review. I cannot wait to continue these into 2023.

 

00;02;24;07 – 00;02;48;09

Dr. Mona

For the last episode of 2022, you may be listening to this in 2023 or beyond. And that’s so awesome. Thank you for being here. I wanted to talk about finding joy. Five things to let go of as we approach 2023. This episode is inspired by the common practices of New Year’s Resolutions, which I feel like you can make any time of the year.

 

00;02;48;13 – 00;03;10;27

Dr. Mona

So make sure you make those resolutions or make changes constantly in your life. But even deeper, this episode is inspired by a loss we had in our family recently, just a trigger warning. The story I’m sharing has to do with a death of a young woman in her 20s due to gun violence. If you prefer not to hear the story, which I completely understand, I’m not going to go into nitty gritty details.

 

00;03;11;04 – 00;03;32;27

Dr. Mona

Just skip ahead, maybe 30s and catch me on the other side of this story. After Thanksgiving 2022, Anna Annie Estévez lost her life after a road rage incident in our town. She was shot and later died in a hospital. The hospital I work at. Annie was our son’s teacher at his former preschool and she was also someone who watched him on weekends.

 

00;03;32;29 – 00;03;54;23

Dr. Mona

This tragedy really hit close to home. Annie worked full time as a preschool teacher, set for families on the weekends, including our family, and was also in school to become a special education teacher. On top of that, she took care of her mom, who had medical issues. She was 23 and she did so much for others with a constant smile on her face, and it was genuine.

 

00;03;55;00 – 00;04;16;05

Dr. Mona

She loved children. She loved her mom, and she just really loved life. I learned so much from her, even though I’m many years her senior. Just on how she approaches life, how she finds gratitude, and so much more. Her death has really rocked me to the point that at the time I planned on recording this episode, I couldn’t even talk about her without crying.

 

00;04;16;08 – 00;04;39;06

Dr. Mona

The grief I feel is so large, given how incredible of a person she was, how tragically she was taken from this world, and how large of an impact she had on our son’s life and all of the kids and adults she has come across. When Ryaan started that preschool, he was 14 months and he had never been around other children to this degree or a preschool because he was a pandemic child.

 

00;04;39;08 – 00;04;56;18

Dr. Mona

He had some really emotional moments, like a lot of children do when they start group childcare. And when I would pick him up, he would be sitting in Miss Annie’s lap. She would always update me on how long he cried for when I left, what made him happy or distracted and diverted his attention and she would console him.

 

00;04;56;23 – 00;05;17;22

Dr. Mona

When my husband and I couldn’t, any parent listening knows how special these people are and we are devastated by this incredible loss. In her honor and in my own desire to spread her kindness and love with this finding Joy series, which I just think is so valuable, I wanted to focus this episode on the things I want us all to let go of.

 

00;05;17;27 – 00;05;48;22

Dr. Mona

As we start this new year, and you can start now, you can start the moment you listen to this episode. You do not have to wait till 2023. You don’t have to wait until a new year. These are things that we can change today. Things that I know take away our joy. Life is incredibly precious, and I think sometimes we forget how valuable life is because we rightfully get bogged down with all the stress in our life, the bills, the tasks that we have, the kids screaming, work, traffic, all of that stimuli.

 

00;05;48;29 – 00;06;08;28

Dr. Mona

We forget that, hey, this is my life. This is the one life I have and I am in control of it. As much as it’s hard to hear. And I know sometimes hearing this is the kick in the butt that we need to remember. Number one, I may have a hard life. Number two, I may be tired. Number three, I may not like a certain circumstance, but listen.

 

00;06;09;00 – 00;06;29;29

Dr. Mona

This is our one life. You’re listening to this with the one life that you have. We only have this. And I sure as heck do not want it to be wasted doing and thinking of things that don’t serve our purpose, our joy and our peace. We have to figure out what we need to do to find peace in this life.

 

00;06;30;02 – 00;06;51;14

Dr. Mona

And peace does not mean that everything is going to be perfect. Peace means that you can handle the things that come into your life. Accept the reality of a situation and move forward through these difficult times so that you can move towards greater ones. And life isn’t only about mindset shifts. I think that sometimes we hear that you need to change how you approach a situation.

 

00;06;51;14 – 00;07;18;00

Dr. Mona

But no, let’s be honest, it’s also about circumstances. Sometimes we have to ask ourselves what needs to change in a situation that isn’t serving us. Number one, my circumstances. Number two, my mindset on how I view the reality I’m in. Or both. So let’s do this. Take notes. Unless you’re driving, just listen and absorb this information. Remember to share this episode when you’re done listening and write a review.

 

00;07;18;02 – 00;07;42;15

Dr. Mona

I could probably tell you 20 things I wish we could let go of, but I want to talk about five. And these all may apply to you, but I imagine at least one will apply to you. So listen all the way through. The first one is pleasing everyone. I talk about this in episode 140 of the podcast, but pleasing everyone leaves no room for finding what you need and finding your own peace in the world.

 

00;07;42;18 – 00;08;08;26

Dr. Mona

Do not forget to be kind. Don’t forget to be generous when you can with your time, love and energy. But don’t forget about what you need. Healthy boundaries. Time. Space. Utilizing your resources. Understanding that you cannot be everywhere and do everything for everyone. So you have to look at your time and resources and make decisions. Your goal needs to be to find that healthy balance.

 

00;08;08;28 – 00;08;30;18

Dr. Mona

And the reality is that balance can look different from person to person. But only you know when you’re not taking care of your own needs. Don’t forget that you can still be kind and giving, which I think is so important to this world. But also know when you need to say no or I can’t do it. It’s not unkind to hold boundaries.

 

00;08;30;18 – 00;08;55;20

Dr. Mona

It is not unkind to say no. It is really important to find that balance. And for more. Listen to episode 140. The next one is letting go or working on toxic relationships. These are relationships where you feel completely unsupported, constantly demeaned or attacked, or you leave interactions feeling like a lesser person. And I think all of you can think of the situation.

 

00;08;55;20 – 00;09;12;25

Dr. Mona

You have a conversation with someone and you’re talking to them and you’re like, wow, you’re listening, you’re understanding. And then you leave and you’re like, do they really just say that to me? Why do I feel so gross when I’m with that person emotionally? Like, what is it about their vibe or what is it about what they’re saying that is really turning me off?

 

00;09;13;02 – 00;09;35;13

Dr. Mona

It’s really important to have insight into these relationships and these conversations. They could be relatives, they could be coworkers, and maybe they’re a partner. If you feel this is happening, there is a lot of work that needs to be had and introspection that needs to be considered. Number one, is it you? Number two, is it them? Number three is it both?

 

00;09;35;15 – 00;10;01;25

Dr. Mona

Do you need therapy to work on these things? If the other party is not willing or you feel like the relationship is not worthy of therapy, are you going to create boundaries and space with this person or let go of the relationship altogether? It’s up to you to decide what to do with these relationships, but you really have to consider and remember that the people you surround yourself with play a big role in your joy and vibe as well.

 

00;10;01;27 – 00;10;18;22

Dr. Mona

And like I’ve said, life is too short to surround yourself with people that do not uplift you in a real way. I’m not talking about toxic positivity. I’m talking about those people that are like, hey, let’s talk. This is really hard, but I really want to talk to you about this. I want you to hear what’s going on with me.

 

00;10;18;23 – 00;10;38;00

Dr. Mona

We’re going to have a conversation, and we’re really going to figure out how to support each other. That is what I want for everyone, especially my fellow moms. It’s what I strive towards. It’s what I love being surrounded by constantly being surrounded by people who are angry. Makes it hard to live a life of love constantly being around.

 

00;10;38;03 – 00;11;03;06

Dr. Mona

Jealousy makes it hard to be compassionate and grateful. Constantly being around resentment makes it hard to feel authentic. Constantly being disrespected makes it hard to find joy and laughter. These things matter in our life. Of course, with someone you love, it’s not always going to be rainbows and butterflies. I’m talking about that constant feeling that you feel unsupported, unloved, or demeaned or attacked.

 

00;11;03;09 – 00;11;23;25

Dr. Mona

A large component of our life is adult human interactions that we have, and you really have to dive into if your circumstances are the reason you’re unhappy. And these can be people. A friend you talk to who constantly makes you feel like a shitty mom. A spouse who holds resentment and isn’t working with you towards fixing this. Are we going to go to therapy?

 

00;11;23;25 – 00;11;42;10

Dr. Mona

What are we going to do? And in the workplace, this could be someone who’s not showing you any support. Constant complaining and really dumping all of their emotional baggage on you. And you do not have the space to do this. You have to go back to number one. Do I need to change my environment? Number two do I need to change my mindset?

 

00;11;42;15 – 00;12;01;23

Dr. Mona

Because let me be clear. Many times you cannot mindset shift your way out of toxic patterns that are sucking your energy dry. There is a beautiful thought. It’s not for me, but it says when a flower doesn’t bloom, you fix the environment in which it grows, not the flower. This is a quote that can help you understand something.

 

00;12;01;26 – 00;12;19;16

Dr. Mona

Is your happiness and joy right now limited by the environment you’re in? These could be people. This could be where you work. Can you make a change? What does that change going to look like? Using the work example and if you want to go back to episode 99 where I decided to go part time, a lot of it was because of the environment I was in.

 

00;12;19;16 – 00;12;38;10

Dr. Mona

I was burnt out from a job that wasn’t serving me. It was robbing my joy. I was coming home irritable, angry, and I realized I like seeing patients. But to the volume, I was seeing it, seeing it full time every day, weekends. It was really draining me. So you have to ask yourself, is it me? Do I need to change how I approach this?

 

00;12;38;13 – 00;13;01;09

Dr. Mona

I was pretty relatively a hard worker, did it up, but it was the environment, so I had to consider making a change with people. That change can involve some tough conversations, therapy, etc. because let me tell you, it’s going to be worth it. Having these conversations with the people that are important to you, that you want to make changes with, just say it is a partner and you want to work towards saving that relationship.

 

00;13;01;11 – 00;13;26;06

Dr. Mona

Then you have to talk to that person and say, hey, I feel like we’re not communicating. I feel not supported. How are we going to make this better for both of us and having those conversations? And that might lead you to therapy, which as you all know, I’m in full support of. I just think it’s so beneficial because what I’ve learned in the last three years, through a lot that we’ve gone through, and I know you all have gone through so much to maybe in your whole life, maybe through the pandemic.

 

00;13;26;09 – 00;13;51;08

Dr. Mona

But in the last three years, through Ryan’s delivery, the birth trauma, IVF and the loss of amazing people in my life, I’ve experienced so much grief and I’ve realized that life is just way too short to feel like you can’t bloom. Life is way too short to feel suffocated and not do anything to change it. And we have to look at all of the variables to decide what needs to happen.

 

00;13;51;10 – 00;14;14;28

Dr. Mona

Who do we need to communicate our needs with to see the change and find peace? I think environment assessment is so vital. And this also goes back to looking at who you follow on social media. As many of you know, if you’ve been following me for over a year. Every December I do a cleanse. I unfollow or mute accounts where I just feel like either I’m not getting any value from that information.

 

00;14;14;28 – 00;14;32;02

Dr. Mona

They’re amazing, but I just don’t get any value or people that I’m just not feeling connected to. Whether that’s, you know, vibe wise, whether that’s how they portray things and that’s okay. And that may be me for many of you. And I understand that. I think it’s so important to surround yourself with people that actually serve you in some way.

 

00;14;32;02 – 00;14;50;23

Dr. Mona

And what I mean by that is uplift you, make you feel supported, make you feel like you also want to be a better individual. That is what I mean by surrounding yourself with the proper people. Number three is pride. I speak about having humility in episode 116, which is a episode about five values that will bring you more peace.

 

00;14;50;25 – 00;15;14;21

Dr. Mona

There is a huge difference between self-confidence and being cocky. Confidence is a feeling of trust in your abilities, qualities, and judgment, but understanding that you have room to grow. Cockiness means that you’re conceited and boldly or brashly self-confident, that you feel like you know everything. You can’t be discussing things with other people that there’s just no room for just listening and just understanding another perspective.

 

00;15;14;24 – 00;15;35;14

Dr. Mona

Having too much pride and listen. Some pride is really important for confidence. You can’t just say, oh, I don’t care, doesn’t matter. Okay, I got this thing that’s not great. Whatever. It’s okay to feel pride, but feeling like you can never make mistakes or that you are perfect blocks you from growth and opening yourself up to learning and more joy.

 

00;15;35;17 – 00;15;57;10

Dr. Mona

If you think that you’re amazing at everything. You’ve already put a blocker on self-growth. You know, I think about if you are a physician like myself and if I think I know everything, I don’t know everything. No human being knows everything. The medical community does know everything. So it’s really important to say, I know what I know now, but I’m always going to be open to learning, even like the most amazing chefs, right?

 

00;15;57;10 – 00;16;16;21

Dr. Mona

They are amazing at what they do. They know how to make meals, they know how to put ingredients together, but they’re always understanding that there is room to grow and to learn, and that is how they come up with more amazing creations. This is how we see growth. This is how we see creativity. So you have to let that pride go and be a little bit humble that you know what you know.

 

00;16;16;23 – 00;16;36;01

Dr. Mona

And I’m going to learn. I’m going to explore. I’m going to learn different techniques and expand my knowledge and aren’t the kindest people you’ve met the ones that you feel really good around? Also humble. Being around arrogant people doesn’t make anybody feel good, nor does it do anything for the individual, which is why I put this on the list.

 

00;16;36;02 – 00;16;53;26

Dr. Mona

It’s something I want more people to let go of, especially in that motherhood community. Right? The people who are like, oh, we did this and it was the best. And I know, and I’m not going to do anything else that is great for you, but do we need to put all those other disclaimers that I’m the best person that I, you know, this is my way or the highway?

 

00;16;54;03 – 00;17;13;24

Dr. Mona

You can just say, hey, this is what really worked for our family. I wonder if it’s going to work for yours. Try it out. Let me know how you think it went. That is kind of how we can approach it with more humility, understanding that we have our strengths. We have our own circumstances and sharing our knowledge, sharing our expertise in a more humble way.

 

00;17;13;27 – 00;17;34;04

Dr. Mona

Number two, and we are almost there is judgment. I haven’t done a podcast episode about judgment, but it’s something that’s really important to me. And judgment is in fact a two way street. The more you judge, the more likely you are to feel judged. Judgment just doesn’t make anyone happier. And I’m sure you all have been surrounded by judgment.

 

00;17;34;04 – 00;17;54;23

Dr. Mona

It just doesn’t feel good. And it doesn’t serve a purpose to dish it out either. Judgment is about saying, I can’t believe they did that, I would never, etc. etc. this might be true, but we can look at someone and say to ourselves, this is not my jam, but to say I will never do it or how could they do it is filled with judgment.

 

00;17;54;25 – 00;18;21;09

Dr. Mona

And research shows that being judgmental of others can negatively impact your own self-esteem more than any other outside force. When you’re constantly judging others, you can find it hard to find gratitude for your own life, and you just lack compassion and gratitude. And these are two important factors to finding joy and peace. And when you’re constantly judging others, it makes it that you will judge yourself harshly too.

 

00;18;21;10 – 00;18;56;28

Dr. Mona

This is your Mo. You are just a judgmental person, so you judge everything everyone else does. And so when you experience things, you’re just going to be really hard on yourself. You lack compassion for others and in turn, you’re going to lack self-compassion for yourself. If you find yourself in similar situations or familiar situations. And we all need self-compassion and compassion for others, life is too short to waste it on worrying about what everyone else is doing or saying, or passing judgment on what everyone else is doing or saying that has no bearing over your life.

 

00;18;57;00 – 00;19;16;15

Dr. Mona

The next time you find yourself judging someone else for a choice, a decision, whatever. I want you to ask yourself is their decision really impacting me in any way? If it’s not, why are we getting so bothered by it? Now I understand people make choices that affect us. This could be decisions that affect your family safety or your community safety.

 

00;19;16;19 – 00;19;36;08

Dr. Mona

So of course it’s okay to feel like, hey, I wouldn’t do that or that’s not something that is comfortable to me. But it’s also important to understand and advocate for those things in your community. Voting and setting boundaries. If it is someone who is making a decision that’s affecting your safety, there’s a difference between judgment and being an advocate for boundaries.

 

00;19;36;14 – 00;20;01;18

Dr. Mona

I find that letting go of that judgment really does help you find more peace and happiness. It just makes you spend less time worrying and thinking and saying, why did this person dah dah dah and getting so irate and angry and just filling your life with positivity and good energy? That is what this is all about. And like I said, life’s too short to waste it thinking about what everyone else is doing and not focusing on what you need to do.

 

00;20;01;21 – 00;20;20;28

Dr. Mona

The last one of the five things is actually one of the most important things for me. Going back to Annie. She was so, so patient and calm in her life. I mean, she worked a lot and she had a lot on her plate taking care of others, taking care of herself. She was in love. She was young. She had so much to look forward to.

 

00;20;21;01 – 00;20;43;05

Dr. Mona

She took care of herself and others and just wasn’t an angry person. I look at anger and realize how unhealthy of an emotion it is to constantly feel anger. Anger from time to time is human and healthy. But if you’re filled with anger and resentment constantly and you know if you’re listening to this and you are, something has got to change.

 

00;20;43;07 – 00;21;06;10

Dr. Mona

I’m not talking about the anger we feel sometimes. Just say flowers all over the kitchen floor. You’re tired and your kids are yelling and you yell, and it’s a sporadic thing. It’s not a constant state that you’re in. Don’t ever hate yourself over normal human feelings. I’m talking about that constant feeling of anger that perpetual anger just does not serve a purpose for you, and it also impacts those around you.

 

00;21;06;12 – 00;21;28;14

Dr. Mona

When we first moved to Florida, I was angry. I don’t know why. I was just irritable and angry and I would yell at my husband. We had a dog and I would yell at the dog, and I just realized I was just angry. I didn’t like that, and I had to really look inside myself. And it took my husband saying, hey, you’re just really angry and I just don’t know what to do.

 

00;21;28;14 – 00;21;45;17

Dr. Mona

It’s really hard to communicate with you. And I was like, you’re right. You know, I could have gotten defensive and say, well, you need to change it. And no, I realized that, yes, I was irritable and angry, and I needed to get down to the source of it. And that is what led me to a lot of this mindfulness meditation, all of this stuff.

 

00;21;45;19 – 00;22;07;21

Dr. Mona

It also in the future led me to therapy, because I really wanted to get to the root of this anger. Why am I so irritable over things that really don’t serve me and aren’t needed to be angry about constantly? So when you are feeling that perpetual anger, if parenthood makes you constantly feel angry or your life as it is right now, I want you to go back to one.

 

00;22;07;28 – 00;22;26;24

Dr. Mona

Do I need to change something in my environment? Maybe add support? Figure out the workload that you have. Delegate communication with a partner if you have one, communication with someone who can help with kids, etc. you need to figure out is this an environment change I need? Or number two do I need a change in how I’m approaching the situation here?

 

00;22;26;26 – 00;22;49;22

Dr. Mona

Am I holding on to anger that isn’t serving a purpose? Why am I angry? What do I need to do to process this anger and not let it consume me? I speak about this in an episode about forgiveness. And when someone does you wrong family member, friend or loved one and why? Forgiveness is powerful. So take a listen to episode 107 for that.

 

00;22;50;00 – 00;23;18;22

Dr. Mona

But anger at its core, that constant feeling of anger at the world, at other people will rob you of the peace in your life. And I want you to have that peace for 2023 and beyond. I want you to go into next year or truly, after listening to this episode with ways to magnify the feelings and emotions of compassion, gratitude and love, and recognize anger and sadness as healthy human emotions, but one that I do not want you to overly be consumed by on a daily basis.

 

00;23;18;25 – 00;23;37;06

Dr. Mona

It’s okay to feel these feelings, but we need it in balance. I want you to find peace. When you find that peace that okay, I’m okay to be angry from time to time. It’s okay to be sad from time to time. It’s okay to have jealousy from time to time. All very normal human emotions. But how am I going to channel these emotions for good?

 

00;23;37;09 – 00;23;57;18

Dr. Mona

How am I going to live a life of compassion and gratitude, which are the root of joy in my opinion? Where can you find that peace? And it starts with looking at these five things and I’m sure you have so many other things that you would add. So if you do, make sure to add that in a review or send it to me in a DM, I want you to find that peace.

 

00;23;57;20 – 00;24;21;11

Dr. Mona

I don’t know how long any of us have on this earth. Annie, my son’s former teacher and his sister was only 23. She had a full life ahead of her dreams, love, passions, and she died so suddenly and tragically. And listen, as a pediatrician and as someone who’s married to an ER physician, I see the tragic loss of life.

 

00;24;21;15 – 00;24;41;28

Dr. Mona

This is not new to me to know that life is lost, but when it hits you so close to home in your community, with someone that you love so dearly, it hurts and it hits really close. I can truly say that Annie lived a full life. She was loved. She loved hard. She was compassionate. She wasn’t filled with anger or resentment towards the world.

 

00;24;42;00 – 00;25;03;07

Dr. Mona

And she was humble. She lived a life with qualities I talk about in this episode, and I wish more people had if they passed away even at 90 years old, she loved her life and it radiated to all the kids and adults who are fortunate to have loved her and knew her. And I know you have been surrounded by those people, that person.

 

00;25;03;11 – 00;25;23;15

Dr. Mona

Maybe it’s someone like a podcast, maybe it’s someone on social media. But I know you’ve been surrounded by that energy, that person who radiates peace and compassion to your heart. You feel better just listening or talking with them, even if they may not be talking about things that you personally relate to. You feel that you can just relate to their message and their vibe.

 

00;25;23;15 – 00;25;40;23

Dr. Mona

And Annie was one of those people, and it’s a tragedy to lose her from this world. It’s a tragedy to lose her from our life. But I look at her and I look at what she did in her short 23 years, and I know that she left an impact on so many of these children who were so young to even know her.

 

00;25;40;23 – 00;26;00;20

Dr. Mona

Many of them were under two and a half, but I do feel she impacted their life. And of course, she impacted all the adults. She surrounded herself with the adults that saw how amazing and loved and loving she was. So for 2023, I’m asking you to just let it go. Let go of the things that aren’t making you feel joy.

 

00;26;00;22 – 00;26;23;17

Dr. Mona

Let go of the anger. Let go of the pride. Let go of the judgment. Let go of the toxicity. Let go of the people pleasing. Let it go. And you really need to deep dive into your life and figure it out. What it is that you need to let go of. Do you need to change your environment or and do you need to change the way you look at a situation?

 

00;26;23;19 – 00;26;42;20

Dr. Mona

Both of those or either of those are possible. Let go and find that balance to truly reclaim your life. This is the one life we have, and I want you to live it with purpose and intention and the finding Joy series will continue to motivate you to do that, but you have to put the work in as well.

 

00;26;42;22 – 00;27;04;20

Dr. Mona

Thank you so much for joining me on today’s episode. This is the last episode of 2022, and we are going to be back in 2023 with more finding Joy episodes, more episodes with guests, and more episodes with parents from this community. So make sure you sign up for my newsletter, stay up to date on all of the happenings and I have some really big announcements.

 

00;27;04;20 – 00;27;21;17

Dr. Mona

So there was this post circulating on social media. The first four words you see will be your mantras for 2023. It’s like a bunch of letters, and then you kind of have to look at it and then whatever, four words pop up first. You know, it’s kind of like what your mind is thinking of. Two is the words that are going to define your 2023.

 

00;27;21;17 – 00;27;41;18

Dr. Mona

And I have to tell you, the four that came up were really eerie. And I’ll tell you more in 2023 why it’s so eerie, but you have to stay tuned to the podcast and my platform to know more. My four words were creation, purpose, miracle, and breakthrough and it is so uncanny how much I do feel that is going to be my 2023.

 

00;27;41;21 – 00;28;01;19

Dr. Mona

Again, thank you so much for joining me. If you love this episode, write a review, share it on your social media, show this podcast more and more. Love. The podcast grew so much in 2022 and I know it’s going to continue to grow in 2023 with your love and your help. So thank you again and I cannot wait to talk to you all next year.

 

00;28;01;20 – 00;28;17;10

Dr. Mona

Thank you for tuning in for this week’s episode. As always, please leave a review. Share this episode with a friend. Share it on your social media. Make sure to follow me at PedsDocTalk on Instagram and subscribe to my YouTube channel, PedsDocTalk TV. We’ll talk to you soon.