What you’ll hear in this episode: • I’ll introduce you to the concept of the “rentrée” in France (basically back-to-school but for adults and kids alike!). • We’ll discuss how this time of year can be an opportunity to take stock of what we have accomplished and learned in the past year and set our intentions for the year to come. • I will provide you with some tips for how to begin to build habits in the service of your goals so that you can continue to make progress throughout the year on the things that are most important to you.  Resources mentioned in this episode: • For those of you currently focused on helping kids make a transition to a new school (possibly in a new country), be sure to go back and listen to my conversation with Kate Berger from the Expat Kids Club in episode 22, where we talk about how parents can support their kids through relocation. • In talking about how we can take care of our future selves, I mentioned a funny episode of the show Seinfeld with “Night Guy” and “Morning Guy.” While the entire episode does not seem to be available online, here is a short Seinfeld sketch on this topic. • And here is a great article from the Atlantic on the same subject, entitled, “Self-Control Is Just Empathy With Your Future Self.” Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

Mindful Expat, with Dana Nelson, Ph.D.

ME26 (Rebroadcast): Bonne Rentrée! Turning Over a New Leaf This Fall

What you’ll hear in this episode: • Today’s episode will be a brief welcome back to the podcast. I’ll share with you a bit about what I have in mind for Season 3! • I’ll invite you to connect with me and stay in touch as we move into Season 3. • I’ll request YOUR participation in the podcast by leaving me an audio message! I'd love to be able to share some of your voices and stories in a future episode! Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

ME44: Welcome to Season 3! The Road Ahead

Today’s Mindful Expat Guest is Claudia Neiman! Since moving away from the US at the age of 18 for school, Claudia has lived in Spain, Brazil, and Portugal. Although she has never actually lived in the UK, she has dual US/British citizenship, which lowers administrative hurdles to her living in the EU long-term, and she considers herself a global citizen. Rather than doing just a semester or year abroad, Claudia actually enrolled directly at the University of Grenada in Spain, where she completed her undergraduate degree in sociology. Still in Grenada, she is now working on her masters degree in teaching while also working as a researcher at the university there. Claudia and her friend Dani (who we heard from in Part 1 of this series) started a website together called Sincerely Spain, where they share their experiences and insights on topics related to living in Spain and cultural adaptation for students studying abroad. What you’ll hear in this episode: • Claudia's experience of being an international student for the entirety of her undergraduate (and now graduate) studies and some of her observations about how this experience can differ from that of a student studying abroad for a single semester or year. • Claudia's experiences of transitioning from being a student to a young professional while living abroad. • What is "cultural competence" and how can students studying abroad work to develop their own cultural competence during their time abroad. • Some suggestions for current or prospective international students to help them develop their own cultural competence. Resources mentioned in today’s episode: • The motivational quote Claudia shared with us comes from the podcast, That's So Retrograde. • Claudia also recommended the YouTube channel, Yoga With Adrienne (which I have become totally obsessed with since our conversation, by the way!). More about Claudia and how to follow up with her: To learn more about Claudia, you can visit her website, Sincerely Spain, where she and her friend Dani share their experiences of studying and living abroad in Spain. (You can learn more specifically about Claudia here.) Some articles on their website that you might find especially interesting after today's discussion include this one about cultural competence, this one and this one (two-part series) on getting a degree abroad, and this one on culture shock. Claudia and Dani also provide consulting services to students who are either currently studying abroad or planning to study abroad (especially in Spain, but elsewhere too). For more information about their consulting services, check out this page of their website. You can also find Claudia on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and you can connect with her through this page of her website. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

ME43: Studying Abroad (Part 2): Developing Cultural Competence as an International Student (With Guest: Claudia Neiman)

Today’s Mindful Expat Guest is Dani Jauregui! Dani is originally from the Chicago area. While studying at Illinois Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Illinois – majoring in Sociology and Hispanic Studies – she decided to do a semester abroad in Alicante, Spain. After returning to the US to finish her degree, Dani then decided that she wanted to move back to Spain, so in 2013 she moved to Granada, where she worked as a teaching assistant in a bilingual elementary school. After a brief stint also teaching in Costa Rica, Dani missed Granada and decided to move back. Since then, she has been working full time as an online English teacher, reaching students around the world from Granada, which she now considers to be her home. Dani and her friend Claudia – both of whom live in Granada and also both of whom have studied sociology – started a website together called Sincerely Spain, where they share their experiences and insights on topics related to living in Spain and cultural adaptation for students studying abroad. What you’ll hear in this episode: • Dani’s experience of studying abroad for a semester and how this experience inspired her to move back to Spain after finishing her studies. • Some of the common challenges that young adults face when studying or living abroad during this time in their lives (and some tips on how to navigate these challenges). • Some of the amazing benefits of studying or living abroad during this formative time in our lives and how this experience can increase our own self-awareness and lead to personal development. • Some tips to keep in mind when planning or navigating a study abroad experience. Resources mentioned in today’s episode: • Dani mentioned an article on her website about how we have different personalities in different languages. This article can be found here: “Confessions: I am a Different Person in Different Languages.” (See more below for links to a few more articles on Dani’s website that relate to our conversation today.) • Dani also recommended The Lively Show Podcast, with Jess Lively. More about Dani and how to follow up with her: To learn more about Dani, you can visit her website, Sincerely Spain, where she and her friend Claudia share their experiences of studying and living abroad in Spain. (You can learn more specifically about Dani here.) Some of the articles on their website that you might find especially interesting after today’s discussion include this one about how studying abroad can be scary and challenging but why we should do it anyway, and this one on how living abroad can increase our own self-awareness. Dani and Claudia also provide consulting services to students who are either currently studying abroad or planning to study abroad (especially in Spain, but elsewhere too). For more information about their consulting services, check out this page of their website. You can also find Dani on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and you can connect with her through this page of her website. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

ME42: Studying Abroad (Part 1): Learning Through the Challenges & Making the Most of Our Experiences (With Guest: Dani Jauregui)

Today’s Mindful Expat Guest is Amanda Zetah! Amanda is originally from the United States, from the state of Colorado. While she was in college, inspired by the dream of becoming a travel writer, she started traveling independently and soon caught the travel bug. As soon as she graduated, she jumped at the opportunity to start traveling full-time. Over the past 6 years of traveling independently, Amanda has been to over 60 different countries. She has spent time living in Sierra Leone, Iraq, Myanmar, and she now lives in Azerbaijan, where she works as an English teacher. In addition travel, Amanda is also passionate about staying healthy – both physically and emotionally. From her own first-hand experience, she knows that travelers face some extra challenges in this realm, so she has started a website and blog for fellow health-conscious travelers called Health Nut Nomad, where she shares ideas and insights on ways to stay healthy and grounded while on the move. What you’ll hear in this episode: • About Amanda’s experiences of facing the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone as well as a car bombing in Iraq — and how she has learned to both face her fears as well as continue to live in the present moment as she continues her journey of traveling the world. • Amanda’s journey of discovering a mindfulness practice that works for her and allows her to feel more present in her day-to-day life. • Breaking down some misconceptions about mindfulness and discussing how the simple practice of coming back to the present moment can actually get us out of our heads and back into our lives.  Resources mentioned in today’s episode: • Amanda mentioned the book, The Alchemist, by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho. This international best-seller (translated into at least 70 different languages) shares the simple story of a young man on a journey and has been widely interpreted to represent the journey we must all undertake to find our path in life or our destiny. • The quote Amanda shares with us (which can be found here) is actually not from an anonymous source, but rather from Lebanese-Canadian poet and speaker Najwa Zebian. • After we finished our interview (not included in today’s episode), Amanda also shared another helpful resource with me — a book written by her aunt, Terri Leichty, called Body Love Food Peace: Ten Practices to End the War, on mindful eating and developing a more compassionate relationship with our own bodies. Amanda also recently wrote about this topic on her blog, and this article can be found here. More about Amanda and how to follow up with her: To learn more about Amanda, you can visit her website, Health Nut Nomad, where she brings together ideas from fellow travelers on how to stay fit and healthy while traveling and living abroad. Some of her articles that you might be interested in checking out include https://healthnutnomad.com/yoga-travelers-meditation-practices/this one on meditation practices for travelers, or this one on coping with anxiety. You can also find Amanda on Twitter, and you can connect with her through this page of her website. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

ME41: Living with Health & Safety Threats: The Present Moment as a Place of Sanctuary (With Guest: Amanda Zetah)

Today’s Mindful Expat Guest is Claire Handscombe! Claire is a freelance writer, blogger, and fellow-podcaster (host of The Brit Lit Podcast) living in Washington, DC. Born in London to a British father and French mother, Claire then spent much of her early adolescence in Belgium before returning to the UK at the age of 12. She later returned to Belgium as a young adult, before moving to DC to do her MFA in Creative Writing at American University. From 2005-2012, Claire taught English, French, and Spanish to adults of all levels in both London and Brussels. In 2011, she published a book called Conquering Babel: A Practical Guide to Learning a Language. What you’ll hear in this episode: • Claire's experiences of moving abroad to countries where she spoke the language, but where subtle (and sometimes not-so-subtle!) language differences still impacted her cultural adaptation. • We discuss the interplay of language and culture, including some metalinguistic cultural differences that can lead to misunderstandings. • Claire's experiences of the differences in academic cultures between the UK and the US. • A discussion of why it's important to learn at least the basics of the language where you're living and some of the ways doing so can positively impact your life. Resources mentioned in today’s episode: • Claire recommended Passion Planner as a helpful resource that she uses to think about her goals for the future and break them down into manageable steps. • Claire also mentioned the website Wordery, an online bookshop offering original editions of books from around the world -- with free delivery to anywhere in the world! • Claire's personal essay, "How to Be British," (which we mentioned toward the end of our conversation and which is great!) can be found here. • To learn more about Claire's book, Conquering Babel: A Practical Guide to Learning a Language, visit this page of her website. More about Claire and how to follow up with her: To learn more about Claire and read some of her essays, be sure to check out her website, www.clairehandscombe.com. To learn more about Claire's podcast, The Brit Lit Podcast, where she discusses the latest news int eh world fo British books and publishing, you can visit the Brit Lit Blog or visit the podcast's Facebook page.  To check out Claire's upcoming book, Unscripted, check out it's Unbound page, where it is available for pre-order. You can also find Claire on Twitter, and you can connect with her through this page of her website. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

ME40: Divided By a Common Language: The Role of Language in Cultural Adaptation (With Guest: Claire Handscombe)

What you’ll hear in this episode: • How self-care is really having empathy for your future self (and what this really means). • A fun Seinfeld clip to illustrate this concept (in the inverse) • Some ideas for what this type of self-care might mean for you. Resources Mentioned in Today’s Episode: • I mentioned our wonderful New Year's episode, featuring all of the past year's Mindful Expat guests, sharing their self-care tips! Be sure to listen in for some great ideas to add to your own self-care repertoire. • Here are a couple of articles on this same topic that you might enjoy: - Thought Catalogue article: “This Is What ‘Self-Care’ REALLY Means, Because It’s Not All Salt Baths And Chocolate Cake,” by Brianna Wiest (mentioned back in episode 37). - Atlantic article: “Self-Control Is Just Empathy With Your Future Self,” by Ed Yong (obviously very relevant!) Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

ME39: Reframing Self-Care: Having Empathy for Your Future Self

Today's Mindful Expat Guest is Carolyn Parse Rizzo! Carolyn is a certified Child Life Specialist and Life Transition Coach focusing on healthcare and vitality abroad. From her home in Italy, she works as a health coach and consultant, supporting people who are dealing with various types of health conditions while living abroad. Through her company, Interval Coaching, she helps her clients navigate some of the challenges of managing health conditions in a foreign medical system, while also assisting them in shifting their perspectives toward their health, developing positive coping strategies, increasing their resiliency, and nurturing creativity and connectedness in their lives. What you'll hear in this episode: • Some of the common challenges that expats and other internationals face when managing a health condition in a foreign medical system. • How our mindset can impact our experience of health issues and our experiences navigating a foreign medical system -- and how we can shift our interpretations in a way that can ultimately feel more empowering.  • Some concrete, practical tips for expats and others navigating health challenges in a foreign medical system Resources mentioned in today's episode: • Carolyn recommends William Bridges' book, Transitions, as her helpful resource. • Carolyn also recommends, Travwell, an app designed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that helps you plan safe, healthy travel.  • Carolyn mentioned a wonderful resource to improve our cultural awareness, Cultural Detective (a free online webinar).  • Carolyn mentioned her mindful morning walks as a central part of her self-care routine. To learn more, you can read this article that she wrote for the I Am a Triangle blog.  More about Carolyn and how to follow up with her: To learn more about Carolyn’s coaching and consulting services, you can visit her website, www.intervallifecoach.com.  Carolyn mentioned that she hosts quarterly Vibrant Women's Circles. To be notified about these and other related resources and events, you can sign up to receive her newsletter. You can also find Carolyn on Facebook and Twitter, and you can connect with her through this page of her website (here you can also listen to a free sample guided relaxation that she shares there).  Stay in Touch!   Click HERE to access the show notes for this episode – including links to all of the helpful resources we mentioned. Want to make sure that you never miss an episode of Mindful Expat? Hit the “subscribe” button in your podcast app and click HERE to sign up for the newsletter! If you enjoyed today’s episode, please click HERE to rate and review the podcast on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews will help other Mindful Expats discover the podcast too!   And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!  Thanks so much for listening to this episode of Mindful Expat!

ME38: Building Resiliency & Connection Through Health Challenges Abroad (With Guest: Carolyn Parce Rizzo, M.ED., ACC)

What you’ll hear in this episode: • We'll talk a bit about New Year's resolutions and making sustainable self-care a priority in 2018! • We'll hear from all of our Mindful Expat guests from the 2017, listening to their self-care tips from their own experiences as inspiration for our own self-care in the coming year! Resources Mentioned in Today's Episode: • If you're interested in thinking more about setting New Years' resolutions, check out this previous episode of the podcast, Episode 26, which I mentioned in today's episode. • Show-notes for all previous episodes (including all guest episodes featured in this episode) can be found here.  • Thought Catalogue article I mentioned, "This Is What ‘Self-Care’ REALLY Means, Because It’s Not All Salt Baths And Chocolate Cake," by Brianna Wiest. • Atlantic article (not mentioned directly in the episode, but very relevant!), "Self-Control Is Just Empathy With Your Future Self," by Ed Yong. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

ME37: Self-Care Inspiration for the New Year (Featuring all of 2017's Mindful Expat Guests!)

Today’s Mindful Expat Guest is Lois Bushong! Lois is a licensed marriage and family therapist living in the state of Indiana in the United States. She is originally from the US, but grew up in Central America (mainly in Honduras) as part of a missionary family, and she also spent 10 years working in Honduras as an adult. Having grown up as a Third Culture Kid (or TCK) herself, Lois has specialized in working with TCKs, adult TCKs, and intercultural couples.  Lois is also the author of the book, Belonging Everywhere and Nowhere: Insights into Counseling the Globally Mobile, which is how I first came across her work. In addition to her therapy practice, she also offers services as a consultant and coach for TCKs and others navigating this intercultural space. What you’ll hear in this episode: • About Lois' experiences growing up as a TCK missionary kid in Central America and how she came to want to help other TCKs find their true sense of belonging. • How frequent moves can lead some TCKs to experience unresolved grief, which can lead to some difficulties as they get older.  • How parents and other adults can help TCKs make room for both positive and negative emotional reactions to their experiences growing up abroad and allow them to work through and process grief.  • How many TCKs find their true sense of belonging with other TCKs.  Resources mentioned in this episode: • To learn more about TCKs, check out episode 8 for my conversation with Josh Sandoz (who we mention in the podcast). • Lois mentioned a number of great resource books: • Emotional Resilience and the Expat Child: Practical Storytelling Techniques That Will Strengthen the Global Family, by Julia Simens • The new edition of Ruth Van Reken & David Pollock's book, Third Culture Kids 3rd Edition: Growing Up Among Worlds. • Writing Out of Limbo: International Childhoods, Global Nomads and Third Culture Kids, edited by by Gene Bell-Villada, Nina Sichel,‎ Faith Eidse, and‎ Elaine Neil Orr. • Pico Iyer's book, The Global Soul: Jet Lag, Shopping Malls, and the Search for Home (and his TED Talk entitled, "Where Is Home?"). • We also briefly mentioned Lois's blog post, "TCKs Make Great Therapists."  More about Lois and how to follow up with her: To learn more about Lois' work as a counselor, coach, speaker, and writer, you can visit her website www.loisbushong.com. To read some of her blog articles, you can also visit her blog, mangotreereflections.com (the contents of which will be transferred over to her main website in the next few months). Lois' book, Belonging Everywhere and Nowhere: Insights into Counseling the Globally Mobile, is a fantastic resource especially for therapists and counselors, but really for anyone working with TCKs. To learn more about the book, you can also visit this page of her website.  You can also find Lois on Twitter, and you can email by going to this page of her website. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!  

ME36: Helping TCKs Make Room for Mixed Emotions & Find Their Sense of True Belonging (With Guest: Lois Bushong)

What you’ll hear in this episode: • Why the holidays can be an especially challenging time of year for expats — whether we’re traveling home or staying in our host countries. • Some specific tips for meaningful expat holidays when we’re far from home that you can implement in your life this holiday season! Resources mentioned in this episode: • I mentioned a number of ways you can stay in touch with friends and family back home over technology. Some great tech resources include Skype, Facetime, Whatsapp. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here! Why Not Share? Know someone who could benefit from tuning into this discussion? Why not share this episode (or the whole podcast) with a friend? Support for Mindful Expat: Support for this episode of Mindful Expat comes from Audible! Mindful Expat listeners can now get a free audiobook of your choice and a free 30-day trial of audible’s monthly subscription service by following this link (or clicking the button to the right). Any subscriptions or purchases you make will support the podcast at no additional cost to you!

ME35: Meaningful Expat Holidays When You're Far From Home

What you’ll hear in this episode: • How not all issues in relationships can be completely resolved, but how this may actually be ok — we just need to learn how to manage them! • Some problematic patterns that couples can fall into (what John Gottman calls the “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse” — criticism, defensiveness, contempt, and stonewalling — because in his research these variables have been used to predict divorce with impressive accuracy) — and how to shift away from these into healthier, more productive dynamics with your partner • Some specific examples of how you can word things to address problems that may come up in relationships.  Resources mentioned in this episode (and related resources): • I mentioned the research of relationship expert John Gottman as well the organization that he cofounded with his wife, The Gottman Institute. To learn more about the research discussed in this episode, you can go here. • You can also check out John Gottman’s book, The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work, which is a fantastic resource for couples (whether they’re married or not). • If you’re interested in looking into other books that I think are excellent for couples, check out this section of my resources page. • We also discussed some options for looking for a couples therapist near you. The International Therapist Directoryis a wonderful resource for finding English-speaking therapists around the world who are familiar with some of the unique challenges of people living abroad. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here! Why Not Share? Know someone who could benefit from tuning into this discussion? Why not share this episode (or the whole podcast) with a friend?

ME34: Recognizing & Guarding Against Destructive Patterns in Relationships

Today’s Mindful Expat Guest is Claudia Landini! Claudia is an intercultural trainer and mobile careers coach. Originally from Italy, Claudia has been living abroad for the past 27 years, since 1989! She has lived in four African countries (Sudan, Angola, Congo Brazzaville and Guinea Bissau), two Latin American countries (Honduras and Peru), in Jerusalem, and she now lives in Jakarta, Indonesia. She also speaks quite an impressive number of languages – Italian, English, French, Spanish, and German – and as if that weren’t already enough, she also knows a little bit of Portuguese, Bahasa Indonesia, and Arabic. Claudia is the founder of the non-profit organization ExpatClic, which is an online platform and community supporting expat women in a number of different ways through their transitions abroad – both personally and professionally. She is also an intercultural trainer and cross-cultural transitions coach with a focus on helping expat women develop and maintain their careers as they move abroad. What you’ll hear in this episode: • Some of the challenges that expat partners may face in their careers when they move abroad and how this can impact their sense of professional (and personal) identity. • The importance of finding meaningful, satisfying activities that allow us to continue to learn and grow -- whether or not we have an official job that pays the bills.  • How our professional paths can evolve and shift when we move abroad in ways that we might not have envisioned but that can be incredibly enriching and satisfying.  • How moving abroad and navigating some of these challenges can actually teach us important things about ourselves and foster not only profession but also personal development. Resources mentioned in this episode: • Claudia mentioned "MOOCs" or Massive Open Online Courses, which are often available for free. To learn more about MOOCs, click here (this Wikipedia entry has a great list of MOOC platforms that you can explore further). Some other great resources for finding MOOCs include: www.mooc.org, www.coursera.org, and www.edx.org. • Claudia mentioned the book, Exile, by Turkish author Ciler Ilhan (the source of her inspirational quote!). • Claudia also mentioned the book, Lost in Translation by Eva Hoffman, which she recommends for anyone moving or living abroad and navigating cultural challenges. • We also discussed the platform that Claudia developed, ExpatClic, which supports expat women in a number of different areas of their lives when they move abroad. Some sub-projects associated with ExpatClic also include: Expat à Table, Expat Books, Expat Women at Work, and What Expats Can Do. These are wonderful resources, and I highly recommend you check them out!  More about Claudia and how to follow up with her: To learn more about Claudia's work, you can visit her website at www.claudialandini.it or her profile on Expatclic. You can also find Claudia on Facebook or Twitter, and you can email her directly at claudiaexpat@expatclic.com. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

ME33: Challenges & Opportunities for Expat Partners: Meaningful Work, Sense of Purpose, & Professional Identity (With Guest: Claudia Landini)

What you’ll hear in this episode: • The benefits of practicing gratitude (to our emotional, psychological, and physical health!). • What it even means to "practice" gratitude. (And how doing so can help you experience more spontaneous gratitude as well!) • A short gratitude practice that you can incorporate into your daily routine that is supported by a bunch of research. Resources mentioned in this episode: • I mentioned Robert Emmons (from the University of California, Davis) and his research on gratitude. To learn more about this fascinating research, check out this article from Greater Good magazine. • To check out Robert Emmons' book on this topic, go here. • I also referred back to a previous episode of this podcast, where we talked about some related topics: www.mindfulexpat.com/episode24. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

ME32: Thanksgiving & Gratitude (Even If You’re Not Feeling So Grateful at the Moment)

Today’s Mindful Expat Guest is Karen Wilmot! Karen was born and grew up in South Africa. Growing up with a mother who was a midwife, Karen was exposed from an early age to inspiring stories of women giving birth. She followed in her mother’s footsteps and became a midwife herself. Karen’s love of travel led her to live in many different countries – including Saudi Arabia, Mauritius, and Mexico. For the past 13 years, she has been living in Oman, where she established the first private community services there supporting expat women during pregnancy and birth. More recently, Karen was inspired to take her work online to reach women around the world in search of support and guidance as they navigate the birth process while living abroad. She started the Virtual Midwife, an interactive online platform where she provides personalized care, information, and support for expat women around the world, many of whom who have limited or no access to quality prenatal advice and care. An advocate for a holistic approach to birth, Karen incorporates mindfulness, yoga, and other methods for working with the mind and the body to promote health and wellbeing for the women she works with. What you’ll hear in this episode: • Some of the cultural differences that women and families may encounter when navigating pregnancy and birth in a foreign medical system. • The importance of being informed about the medical system in your host country and knowing the right questions to ask to make sure you get your needs met. • The importance of mindset and expectations in our experiences of pregnancy and birth (whether in a foreign country or not). • How to recognize the factors that are within your control and accept those thing that may be outside of your control as you navigate pregnancy and birth in a foreign country. • The importance of self-awareness and mindfulness (the ability to remain truly present) in pregnancy and birth.   Resources mentioned in this episode: • Karen mentioned Jack Canfield's book, Chicken Soup for the Soul. • Karen also recommended Pam Grout's book, E-Squared: Nine Do-It-Yourself Energy Experiments That Prove Your Thoughts Create Your Reality (which I will be adding to my own reading list!). • Karen recently released a Birth Breathing App to help women practice breathing techniques to prepare for birth. This app is currently a free download for either iPhone or iPad! More about Karen and how to follow up with her: To learn more about Karen's online program, including her online course, you can visit her website at www.thevirtualmidwife.com. There you can also find a blog and other helpful resources. As mentioned above, you can find Karen's Birth Breathing App on iTunes.  You can also find Karen on Facebook or Twitter, and you can email her directly through the contact page of her website. Stay in Touch! To make sure you don’t miss future episodes of Mindful Expat, you can subscribe to the podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app. To receive monthly summaries of podcast episodes and stay up to date on other announcements and resources, sign up for the Mindful Expat Podcast Newsletter! (When you sign up, you’ll also receive a free mp3 guided mindfulness exercise to practice on your own!) And, finally, if you’d like to get in touch and leave me a voice message with a question or comment that may be played in a future episode, you can do so here!

ME31: Learning to Trust Yourself Through Pregnancy & Birth Abroad

Mindful Expat is a weekly podcast show designed for those living abroad to provide you with weekly guideposts for emotional wellbeing and resilience in your international life and to help you make the most of your inner and outer journeys. Living abroad presents us with unique challenges, but also equally unique opportunities for personal growth and development. Psychologist and expat counselor, Dana Nelson, Ph.D., shares insights on emotional wellbeing for overseas adventurers and brings you interviews with experts on topics related to intercultural relationships, Third Culture Kids (TCKs), mindfulness, self-compassion, emotional resilience, self-care, and personal growth. (www.mindfulexpat.com)

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Mindful Expat, with Dana Nelson, Ph.D.

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