Regulate & Rewire: An Anxiety & Depression Podcast
Millions of people struggle with anxiety & depression every single day. Regulate & Rewire is where Amanda, a nervous system focused and trauma-informed practitioner, teaches you the lessons she learned on her healing journey and the tangible research-based tools she uses with clients everyday to help them regulate their nervous system & rewire their mind – in hopes of helping you do the same. Each episode features specific takeaways for you to apply to your healing journey today.Website: www.regulatedliving.com
What a Flat, Numb Response (To a Cancelled Flight) Taught Me About Healing
In this episode, Amanda tells the story of a cancelled flight, three kids, a dog, and three extra days away from home, and the strangely flat, checked-out response she had to it. Instead of treating that numbness as a problem, she breaks down why it was her nervous system doing exactly its job. Along the way, she offers a new way to actually measure healing (hint: it's not whether you still get anxious), a guardrail against turning nervous system work into one more thing to grade yourself on, and a look at what quietly builds the kind of capacity...
Bringing It All Together (Final Part: B2B Series)
In this final episode of our Back to the Basics series, we bring together all the key concepts we've explored over the past eight episodes. From understanding your nervous system to creating a personalized path to healing, this episode serves as both a review and a roadmap for moving forward with confidence and clarity.
3 Takeaways:
Whole-Human Approach: True healing comes from integrating both physiology and psychology – one that explores and acknowledges how your body, mind, relationships, and environment all interconnect in your mental health. Understanding the interplay between your nervous system, stress bucket, reactive and proactive re...Bloodwork & The Chemical Imbalance Theory (Part 8: B2B Series)
In this episode, we’re continuing with Part 8 of the Back to the Basics series by exploring the vital role that comprehensive lab work plays in healing anxiety and depression. I break down why we take a physiology-first—but not physiology-only—approach, the truth behind the outdated “chemical imbalance” theory, and how functional labs can uncover real root causes that are often missed in standard care.
3 Takeaways:
Physiology First, Not Only: There’s an interplay between physiology and psychology but if your body is depleted or stressed, it changes how your brain functions. You can’t mindse...Proactive Regulation: Long-Term Strategies for a Resilient Nervous System (Part 7: B2B Series)
In Part 7 of our Back to Basics series, we explore proactive regulation as the long-term approach to healing anxiety and depression through a nervous system lens. Building on our previous discussion of reactive tools, this episode examines how to address the root causes of your symptoms.
3 Takeaways:
Proactive regulation is about root causes, not symptom chasing. It’s the long game of building a sustainable, regulation-supportive life.The most effective healing path is personal. Your next step depends on what’s in your bucket and what feels doable now.Consistency beats overhaul. Small, well-supported changes (especially with...Reactive Regulation in Real Life (Part 6: B2B Series)
This morning I wanted to flush my kid down the toilet, it was just one of those mornings. It made me realize that while last week we had a great chat about reactive regulation, it was a bit heavy on the theory vs practical application. I'm extending that conversation today to share some real life examples of how I use these tools in my everyday life, how I used them this morning with my son. So, here's Part 6 of my Back to the Basics Series.
3 Takeaways:
Tools work better when they’re practiced in low-stakes moments. Am...Reactive Regulation: Your In-The-Moment Nervous System Toolkit (Part 5: B2B Series)
In part 5 of our Back to Basics series, we explore reactive regulation, a powerful approach to managing your nervous system in moments of anxiety, overwhelm, or shutdown. Learn how to use your body's natural stress responses to create a personalized toolkit for finding more calm and intentionality amidst life's challenges.
3 Takeaways:
Reactive Resourcing: Reactive regulation is like a first-aid kit for your nervous system – a set of tools that provide temporary safety cues to help you bridge the gap between stress and regulation in moments of dysregulation.Meet Your System: The principle of “meeting your nervous syst...Assessing Your Stress Bucket (Part 4: B2B Series)
In part 4 of our Back to Basics series, we explore the "stress bucket" analogy to help you understand why you might be feeling overwhelmed, anxious, or depressed. Learn how to assess your unique stress load and discover personalized pathways to healing.
3 Takeaways:
You have a unique stress capacity. When your bucket overflows, symptoms show up. That doesn’t mean you’re failing—it means your body is communicating with you.Identify your stressors. List both baseline and daily stressors. This simple awareness offers a more personalized path forward.Healing is about balanc...Why We Get Stuck (in Anxiety & Depression): Understanding Nervous System Dysregulation (Part 3: B2B Series)
In part 3 of our Back to Basics series, we explore why we get stuck in states of dysregulation and why anxiety and depression persist. Learn how modern living patterns and past experiences shape our nervous system responses, and discover a compassionate approach to understanding your symptoms.
3 Takeaways:
Your symptoms make sense. Anxiety and depression are often normal responses to overwhelm. Recognize your patterns without pathologizing them.Biology matters. The way you live—your sleep, stress, food, and relationships—can either support or sabotage your nervous system. Start small by changing one supportive habi...6 Nervous System States & Their Stories (Part 2: B2B Series)
In this second episode of the "Back to Basics" series, we explore the six nervous system states and how understanding them can transform your approach to anxiety and depression healing.
3 Takeaways:
Your state determines your story. How you feel physically shapes how you think emotionally. Track your state, not just your thoughts.You experience each state differently. Start noticing your own patterns. When do you feel buzzy and urgent? When do you go flat or withdrawn? That awareness is your first step toward change.Try the paper-on-the-door check-in. Write “What st...Get To Know Your Nervous System (Part 1: Back to the Basics Series)
In this first episode of the “Back to Basics” series, Amanda dives into the core of what drives anxiety and depression: your nervous system. When you better understand how this mind-body system works you can work with it towards healing.
3 Takeaways:
Your symptoms are protective, not personal. Your nervous system isn’t trying to ruin your life. It’s trying to keep you safe. The more fluently you speak its language, the less you’ll feel at war with yourself.Self-compassion is non-negotiable. Understanding your nervous system can help dissolve self-blame and shift you...My Favorite Anxiety Equation (+ Personal Update)
In this episode Amanda shares her favorite anxiety equation (Anxiety = an overestimation of threat + underestimation of your ability to manage the threat) through a lens of two personal examples. She also shares a little life update and upcoming plans for the next segment on the podcast.
Hit play to join her for a candid, unscripted conversation with an ending invitation to write in (on the form linked below) to share what you'd like to hear future episodes on and that if you've found the podcast helpful to leave a review to help get these tools and conversations...
My Family Song: The Nervous System Lessons I'm Teaching My Kids (and Still Learning Myself)
In today's episode, Amanda shares something she's never shared publicly before — a little bedtime song she wrote for her kids that's become a nightly staple. What started as a spontaneous attempt to teach her children the things she wished she'd known earlier has turned into a fun family song teaching the fundamentals of mental and physical health. Amanda share the song with you, invites you to make it your own, and then breaks down each line of the song and what it means not just for the littles in our lives, but for the adults who are still doing th...
Morning Sunlight & Your Mental Health
Morning sunlight might be the most underutilized free regulation tool available to us — and in this episode, Amanda breaks down exactly why getting outside within the first hour of waking is one of the highest-return things you can do for your nervous system. From circadian rhythm and cortisol to serotonin, sleep quality, and mood regulation, the science is clear — and the practice is simpler than you think.
3 Takeaways:
Your morning sets the stage for your night. Getting outside for 5–15 minutes within the first hour of waking helps set your circadian rhythm, supports healthy energy during the day, a...When Life Gets in the Way of Healing
In this episode, Amanda gets candid about what regulated living actually looks like when life gets hard — including the sleep deprivation, the skipped workouts, and the very human experience of teaching what you're currently struggling to practice. She walks through the two things that keep her grounded in chaotic seasons: flexibility and context. She also shares her five domains of healing and the Daily Five as a framework for strategic, adaptable healing that meets you where you actually are.
3 Takeaways:
Flexibility is a healing skill. When one foundation slips, pivot to what's accessible. Doing less well is...A Guided Wind-Down Practice for Sleep
Today’s episode is a guided practice designed to help your nervous system settle and prepare for quality sleep. We’ll start by moving through a short discharging sequence to process any lingering stress from the day, then move into some gentle breathwork.
This first part of the practice can be done standing beside your bed, sitting on the edge of it, or already lying down — whatever feels right for where you are tonight.
There's nothing you need to do to prepare, just be here as you are, hit play and let's begin.
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Loo...
Sleep Anxiety: What To Actually Do About It (Part 2)
In Part 2 of this sleep anxiety series, Amanda gets practical. She breaks down exactly what to do when you can't fall asleep, what to do when you wake up in the middle of the night, and offers a full toolkit of cognitive, environmental, and somatic practices that shift the conditions for sleep over time. If Part 1 was the understanding, this is the application.
Click here to preorder your own lamp. Use the code "REGULATED" to get 10% off.Â
3 Takeaways:
You can't force sleep, but you can build better conditions for it. The middle-of-the-night wa...Sleep Anxiety: Why Your Nervous System Won't Let You Sleep (Part 1)
Sleep anxiety is one of the most common experiences for people living with chronic stress, anxiety, and dysregulation. In Part 1 of this three-part series, Amanda breaks down why the nervous system is at the center of sleep disruption, the difference between not being able to fall asleep and middle-of-the-night wake-ups, and the primary drivers behind nighttime anxiety. This is the understanding episode — Part 2 brings the tools, and Part 3 is a guided wind-down practice.
3 Takeaways:
Sleep requires safety, not effort. Your nervous system won't let you go offline until it believes the coast is clear. Sl...Understanding Self-Harm from a Nervous System Perspective
Understanding self-harm through a nervous system lens changes everything — and in this episode, Amanda breaks down what's actually happening in the brain and body when this behavior shows up, why it works as a short-term regulation strategy even when it comes at a high cost, and what genuinely helps address the root of the pattern rather than just the behavior itself.
3 Takeaways:
Self-harm is a nervous system regulation attempt. Understanding this is not permission to continue it — it's the foundation for approaching it without shame.The nervous system underneath self-harm is physiologically dysregulated, not just psychologically. Heal...Why Walking Is Actually a Nervous System Practice
Walking for mental health goes deeper than most people realize — and in this episode, Amanda breaks down exactly why increasing your daily step count is one of the highest-return nervous system practices you're probably underutilizing. From bilateral movement and cortisol metabolism to blood sugar stability and sleep, the science behind a simple daily walk is more connected to your emotional wellbeing than you might think.
3 Takeaways:
Walking regulates your nervous system through several physiological pathways at once. Bilateral movement, cortisol metabolism, blood sugar stabilization, and sleep quality are all influenced by consistent daily walking. Th...Listener Q&A — Your Questions from the Stress Management Series
In this listener response episode, Amanda answers three thoughtful follow-up questions from the five-part stress management series. She digs deepest into a question about reorienting to a baseline mindset stressor — using the trigger vs overwhelm distinction to help listeners diagnose what's actually happening before deciding what to do about it. She also honors a listener's real-life editing win in the middle of profound grief, and offers a few grounding thoughts on going it alone, the impulse to flush everything and start over, and what chronic consumption does to your inner knowing.
3 Takeaways:
When something you lo...From Knowing Different to Living Different (Part 5)
In the final episode of this stress management series, Amanda steps back from frameworks and talks about the gap between understanding what needs to change and actually changing it. She revisits the nervous system ladder as a way to help listeners locate themselves after five episodes of honest reflection, reads from her book Healing Through the Vagus Nerve on the four-phase healing process and her strategic healing philosophy, and closes with a direct look at what personalized, whole-human support actually looks like inside RESTORE.
3 Takeaways:
Know what season of healing you’re in and match yo...Editing Your Stress Bucket (Part 4)
In part four of this stress series, Amanda moves from filtering into action — introducing the 3 D's framework for actually editing your stress bucket. She opens by distinguishing between poking holes (reactive regulation) and real editing, then walks through Delete, Delegate, and Do Differently with honest personal examples from her own life. She also introduces Add as the fourth move on the supporter side of the see-saw, and closes with an important reminder that editing isn't just a thinking exercise — letting things go has a felt sense, and that response is normal.
CLICK HERE for the full show...
Filter Your Stress Bucket: How to Know What Actually Belongs (Part 3)
In part three of this stress series, Amanda introduces the important step that comes before editing your stress bucket — filtering it. She shares two practical filters to help you get clear on what actually belongs in your life: the rubber vs glass ball distinction and your personal core values. This episode is honest about the fact that this process is often countercultural and sometimes relational, and Amanda shares her own experience of what it cost — and ultimately gave — when she first started doing things differently.
Resources mentioned: Brené Brown Core Values Exercise
CLICK HERE fo...
Assess Your Stressors & Supporters (Part 2)
In part two of this stress series, Amanda walks you through a practical, honest assessment of your stress by examining both sides of the see-saw—your stressors and your supporters. She breaks stressors into baseline (chronic) and daily (variable) inputs, helping you identify where your load is actually coming from. This episode emphasizes that real change starts with awareness, and gives you a framework to understand whether your reactions are coming from accumulated stress (overflow) or deeper unresolved patterns (triggers).Â
CLICK HERE for the full show notes, resources, and 3 tangible takeaways!
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Looking for more...
Understanding Stress (Part 1)
In this episode, Amanda introduces a new four-part series on stress by reframing what stress actually is, and why stress itself isn't really the problem. She explains how stress is a natural, necessary nervous system response, but becomes harmful when it remains unresolved and accumulates over time. Using the stress bucket and see-saw metaphors, she offers a more honest and actionable way to understand and work with stress in modern life.Â
In this episode you'll learn:
What stress actually is and why it’s not the enemyThe difference between acute stress and chronic str...Does This Give More Than It Takes?
Amanda shares the nervous system framework behind a real family decision — getting a puppy with three kids under five — and why saying yes to something stressful can still be the regulated choice.
Using the seesaw model (stress bucket on one side, supporter blocks on the other), she introduces a simple filter for everyday decisions:
"Does this give more than it takes?"
She walks through two examples, the puppy she said yes to and the ceramics class she said no to, and names the two hardest directions this question cuts.
If your seas...
"You'd Never Know": A Song About What Depression Actually Looks Like
In this episode, I'm breaking down the song "You'd Never Know" by Blu Eyes—a devastatingly honest look at what depression actually feels like from the inside, and why it so often goes unseen from the outside.
We talk about what dorsal vagal shutdown really looks like, why the gap between "you look fine" and "I'm screaming inside" is so dangerous, what happens when a doctor says "everything looks good" and you turn that into self-blame, and why healing isn't a straight line—even when you're functioning again, your body can still be carrying the weight of what...
DUMPSTERFIRE Flash Sale (48 hours only!) 🔥
Our launch week didn't go as planned — the website crashed, emails went out in the wrong order, and it was, well, a dumpster fire. So instead of pretending it didn't happen, we're leaning all the way in.
For 48 hours only, join the Regulated Living Membership for $7 for your first month with the code DUMPSTERFIRE.
What you get when you join:
After your first mont...
"Dear Anxiety": What This Song Gets Right About Healing
In this episode, I'm breaking down the song "Dear Anxiety" by Blu Eyes—and why it might be the most accurate description of anxiety and nervous system regulation I've ever heard set to music.
We explore why anxiety isn't a disorder or a malfunction but a protective response, what it actually looks like to be in relationship with your anxiety instead of at war with it, and how this one song captures the entire arc of regulation work—from somatic awareness to sending signals of safety to letting emotions move through.
This is a song that...
Why You Keep Over-Explaining Yourself (And How to Stop)
Do you ever finish a conversation and realize you’ve just given a twenty-minute dissertation to justify a simple "no" or a basic need? In this episode, we’re peeling back the layers on chronic over-explaining. It turns out, this isn't just a quirky personality trait—it’s a sophisticated nervous system response. Whether you’re trying to preemptively defend yourself against being "the bad guy" or you learned early on that your needs weren't valid unless you built a legal case for them, this episode offers a roadmap to reclaiming your voice.
In this episo...
Look for the Helpers
When you witness suffering at scale, your capacity to care can feel like it’s running on empty. In this episode, we’re diving into the biological reality of compassion fatigue and the potent "antidote" found in moral elevation. We discuss why "looking for the helpers" isn’t just a sweet sentiment—it’s a vital nervous system intervention that activates the vagus nerve and restores our ability to hope. This conversation is an invitation to honor your personal capacity, embrace complexity, and find your own sustainable way to show up.
In this episode, you’ll learn:<...
Regulated Activism
When the world feels like it's falling apart, how do we stay connected to ourselves while still showing up for what matters? In this episode, we're talking about collective trauma, what it actually means to be "regulated" (hint: it doesn't mean calm), and the tangible nervous system tools that can help you stay resourced during ongoing crisis. This isn't about fixing everything—it's about staying grounded enough to keep going.
In this episode, you'll learn:
What collective and vicarious trauma actually are, and how your nervous system processes witnessing suffering even through a screenWhy "re...Regulating In A World On Fire (Repost)
New intro, repeat episode of one I published almost exactly a year ago. While the examples I offer are a year old, the suggestions offered apply just as much to some of the chaos we're all experiencing this week as well. Hit play on this episode again, see what resonates, and I'll be back next week with some new thoughts.
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In this episode of Regulate & Rewire, we explore how to navigate collective trauma and maintain mental health in a world that feels increasingly chaotic. From California wildfires to global conflicts, we discuss why our...
Why 'New Year, New You' Backfires (Nervous System Edition)
Why does “New Year, New You” feel so motivating… and then fall apart just weeks later? In this episode, we explore why New Year’s resolutions often backfire—not because you lack discipline or willpower, but because they ask your nervous system to do something it’s biologically wired to resist. Through a nervous-system and mental-health lens, we unpack why massive change feels threatening, how winter is a season of rest (not reinvention), and what a more sustainable, regulated approach to the new year actually looks like. This is an invitation to move away from pressure and performance—and toward safety...
What I'm NOT Taking Into the New Year
In Part 2 of our New Year mini-series, we’re moving beyond the "New Year, New You" hype to have a more honest conversation about what it actually looks like to let go. Following Amanda's annual NYE Circle event, she's sharing the raw, real list of patterns and beliefs that she is choosing to leave behind.
From the "addiction to urgency" to the "shoulds" we place on our grieving bodies, this episode is an invitation to gently acknowledge and begin to untangle the habits or patterns that once kept us safe but no longer serve us.
...
Completing the Year (A Somatic Closure Practice)
The calendar says the year is over, but has your nervous system caught up? In Part 1 of our New Year’s Mini Series, we’re moving away from high-pressure goal setting and "new year, new you" rhetoric. Instead, we are creating a "pocket of space" to let the previous year actually complete.
Our bodies don’t experience time through dates; they experience it through processed or unprocessed sensations. Join me for a condensed version of my annual New Year’s Eve Circle—a somatic practice designed to help you exhale, acknowledge what you’ve carried, and release what no long...
My Dumpster Fire Day & An Invite to My NYE Circle
Sign up for the NYE Circle – Sunday, December 28th at 8 PM ET - CLICK HERE
In this episode I yap about my dumpster fire day. Thought I had childcare, I didn't. My 2 year old had 47 meltdowns. My 4mo old joined me for the membership Q&A— cute but not ideal. I found out a full bag of Christmas gifts got accidentally taken out with the trash last night. My son pulled our fish tank down off the shelf. Gallons of water and tiny rocks EVERYWHERE, a gash in his leg, but luckily the fish survived and is curr...
How to Manage Seasonal Depression
In this episode (a repeat conversation from 2023), Amanda dives into a common struggle during the winter months: Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), or seasonal depression. She shares listener struggles, the science behind how light impacts our mood, and actionable, research-backed tools to help you navigate the winter blues.
In this episode you'll learn:Â
The definition of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and why the decrease in daylight hours is the biggest contributing factor.The three empirically supported treatments for SAD: Antidepressant medication, Bright Light Therapy, and CBT-SAD.The f...Regulation or Avoidance? How to Tell the Difference
We all bump into the blurry line between regulating and avoiding. In this episode, Amanda unpacks the difference between soothing your nervous system and emotionally bypassing—using a real client story to show how even “healthy” tools can become numbing when the intention and impact are off. Learn how to choose between regulation and resourcing, and try a simple check-in to turn coping back into connection.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
The clear definitions of regulation (state-shifting) vs avoidance/numbing (state-escaping)Why the same behavior (TV, scro...Your Invitation to Regulated Living
This week, I’m pulling back the curtain on the Regulated Living Membership—because doors are officially open.
If you've been stuck in survival mode, if therapy and mindset work helped you understand the why but didn’t give you a way forward—this is for you.
In today’s episode, I walk you through the what, why, and who of the membership. You’ll hear real member stories, learn what makes this space different, and get a behind-the-scenes look at Course Club—our 5-week guided orientation that starts Monday.
We talk:
