We chuckle as we get started on our first episode of 2025. We use our time together to laugh about Snoop Dogg, Martha Stewart, and funny holiday sweatshirts. We then dive into reflections on what it was like for us to start the podcast in 2024, and unpack the lessons we've encountered in our first year of podcasting.

We set intentions for our podcast in 2025 to niche ourselves as the "ANTI-ADVICE" podcast. Instead of chasing quick fixes promoted by wellness culture, Hannah + Jane emphasize the power of lived experiences, personal connections, and embracing the gray areas of life. Listeners are encouraged to critically evaluate the advice they encounter, trust their instincts, and cultivate their own truths.

We also announce our 2025 plan to showcase and donate to various causes and non-profits each month - for each 5-star rating we gain on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, we will donate $5 to the cause, and for each written review, we will donate $10 to the cause.

Our January cause is Urban Peak!

In this heartfelt conversation, Meghan Rubenstein, creator and community maker of Sakala Community, takes us on a journey through her personal and professional evolution, shedding light on the powerful impact of community and inclusivity. Meghan begins by reflecting on her own path to sobriety, a journey marked by self-discovery, resilience, and a deep commitment to healing.

Central to the discussion is the creation of Sakala, a unique community space that Meghan envisioned as a sanctuary for connection, authenticity, and support. She explains how Sakala was built on the principles of inclusivity and empowerment, and how it strives to be a place where people can feel seen, heard, and valued. Meghan speaks about the importance of leadership in shaping Sakala, offering insights into the ways in which intentional leadership can foster a thriving, compassionate community.

As Meghan walks us through the innovative business model behind Sakala, she emphasizes its commitment to accessibility and healing. The model isn’t just about financial success, but about creating a sustainable ecosystem of care that values the emotional and spiritual well-being of everyone involved. She addresses the challenges and rewards of leading a community with such diverse needs, highlighting the importance of being intentional, empathetic, and open to growth. Ultimately, this conversation paints a picture of Sakala not just as a physical space but as a living, breathing movement for change.

Resources:

Learn more about Sakala + get on Sakala's monthly newsletter - https://www.sakalacommunity.com

Follow Sakala on IG: @sakalacommunity

Human Design - https://www.myhumandesign.com

Gene Keys - https://genekeys.com

Anna Nichols - https://www.spiritualbusinessincubator.com

Learn more about the hosts + the podcast:

arewehappyyetpodcast.com

grittherapy.com

alchemytherapyandwellness.com

Join us for this honest and vulnerable conversation with Carly Schaller, therapist, adventurer, small business owner, and puppy momma.

Carly shares her journey of pursuing a marketing career in New York City, inspired by her mother’s success as a powerful corporate leader, while also grappling with the impact of being raised by her father, an empathetic journalist who struggled with alcoholism. She explores how these two contrasting influences shaped her career path, personal growth, and sense of self.

We work to bust myths and misconceptions and share some therapy real talk about panic, anxiety, intrusive thoughts, and OCD. We discuss medications, and normalize anxiety, particularly existential anxiety around big triggers like health, death, and belonging. Carly describes how travel, adventure, and nature can be not only transformative, but are imperative for our wellbeing.

We are also so lucky that Carly's company Loona Seeds is offering a 10% discount for Are We Happy Yet? listeners. Use discount code HAPPY10 on your next order.

We also talk about:

-personal experiences with medications for anxiety and OCD

-nature, and the impact of being outdoors on mental health and overall wellbeing

-travel and adventure as a tool for growth

-cultural experiences around happiness, and contentment

Connect with Carly:

https://www.grittherapy.com/our-team

https://www.loonaseeds.com

Learn more about the podcasts and hosts Hannah + Jane

arewehappyyetpodcast.com

grittherapy.com

alchemytherapyandwellness.com

Joe Sanok joins Hannah and Jane on the podcast for an honest and vulnerable conversation about his experience with divorce. He opens up about navigating the emotional and practical challenges of the process, and how he coped with the aftermath of his life not turning out the way he expected—even after doing everything "right."

We talk about how our unique perspectives not only shape our realities, but can also help us get through the most painful moments of our human experience. We connect Joe's personal experience to the bigger systemic questions around personal growth, uncomfortable change, happiness and contentment, and how to tolerate our deepest struggles.

We also talk about:

-The way that marketing + fixing pain is ingrained in our cultural narrative

-Using external tools to come back to ourselves

-Joe's expert insights into what is broken in mental health care at the systemic and individual level

-Relationships and how to manage discomfort and messiness in our friendships and romantic relationships

-Psychedelics and how they can be a helpful tool for reflection and deeper insight

Connect with Joe + Joe's Resources -

Joe's consulting agency: Practice of the Practice

Joe's podcast: Practice of the Practice Podcast

Joe's book: Thursday is the New Friday

Spiral Dynamics resources

How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan

Learn more about the podcasts and hosts Hannah + Jane:

arewehappyyetpodcast.com

grittherapy.com

alchemytherapyandwellness.com

We are so lucky to have esteemed professor, attorney, and bestselling author David Heska Wanbli Weiden joining the Are We Happy Yet? podcast to talk about his lived experience as a Lakota Nation citizen and his family heritage on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota.

Jane and David talk about the resurgence of indigenous art, music, and movies and how using fiction and art can help us explore deeper social issues. They unpack David's amazing and award-winning book, Winter Counts, and how he used storytelling in this novel to explore issues like crime and prosecution of crime, food inequity, lack of access to healthcare, and low life expectancy on the Lakota Rosebud reservation.

David shares about his multifaceted identity as a writer, professor, and former lawyer, and how these roles intersect.

It's a great conversation, and we highly encourage you to learn more about how to support the Rosebud Reservation and the Lakota people!

David Heska Wanbli Weiden's Website

Winter Counts

David's short stories and other writing

The Indians Won by Martin Cruz Smith

Support the Rosebud Reservation

Learn more about the podcast and your hosts, Hannah + Jane:

arewehappyyetpodcast.com

alchemytherapyandwellness.com

grittherapy.com

Jess and Heather join Are We Happy Yet? to talk about how they followed their curiosity to create Hey Birdie, in their effort to make an impact on the loneliness epidemic in women. They talk to us about their experience asking themselves questions like how can we get women to connect? Who are we underneath all of the things we do? What happens when we achieve the goals that we, and culture, have set for us and still feel that something’s missing?

We talk about the faux sense of connection in today’s modern world and how, despite being more connected through technology than ever, face to face connection seems like a countercultural idea. We discuss barriers to in person connection, and the need for safety, trust, and consistency to build healthy community.

We also talk about:

-the importance of play + wonder

-using projections and triggers as an opportunity for healing

-how to connect to seasons and cycles

-how to use ceremony to celebrate pivotal moments in life

Resources:

Find out more about Heather, Jess, and Hey Birdie: https://www.heybirdie.co

Mrs. Claus Twearkshop: https://www.heybirdie.co/formations

Stardust app: https://stardust.app

A note from Hey Birdie:

We’re launching Phoenix Rising Flight Club for those navigating the raw terrain of relational transition heartbreak - whether from separation, divorce, widowhood, or a season of singleness. In times of deep change, the strength of a flock becomes essential: Flying in V-formation, we lift one another, sharing strength and steadying through life’s most turbulent winds. This space is for those ready to heal in community, to be seen, heard, and supported by others who truly understand, finding renewed resilience, freedom, and purpose on the other side of loss. Together, we rise.

We have a few spots left for our last Flight Club launch of 2024. Registration closes 11/26.

No matter what side you’re on - we think this is an illuminating conversation about the divisiveness of our country, and the way in which our human nature and psychology intersects with politics and the recent US election. We talk about themes around navigating family dynamics at this time, the need for nuanced thinking, misinformation, and how to get information from our communities and real lives vs the news.

Learn more about the podcast and the hosts, Hannah + Jane:

arewehappyyetpodcast.com

alchemytherapyandwellness.com

grittherapy.com

Jane and Hannah are back for a solo episode and it's full of big questions with no answers - but at least we're together and laughing along the way.

We talk about our experiences working with clients to address the impact of world events like politics, climate change, and the rising costs of housing on mental health and wellbeing.

We riff about control and ways that we manage existential fears through controlling external factors like our bodies, bank accounts, and our besties . We talk about core wounds around feeling unworthy or unloved and where we think they originate. We discuss how our solution-oriented culture influences us on all levels - and ways that we can learn to tolerate the uncertainty and without always having an answer.

Learn more about the podcast and the hosts, Hannah + Jane:

arewehappyyetpodcast.com

alchemytherapyandwellness.com

grittherapy.com