Overcoming Depression with Andrea Lynn

Hello everybody, welcome to the Parent Whisperer podcast. I'm Richard R Ramos, and our podcast where we try to turn the hearts of parents towards their children, the hearts of children towards their parents, as the best method for preventing children from joining negative lifestyles. But today I'm really excited to invite my guest, and I want to read a little bit about her as a way of introducing her to you. This is my first guest in season 2 of this podcast, so let me read about her. Andrea Lynn is a motivational storyteller Forbes featured speaker and host of the top-rated podcast Wake Up Your Soul. She helps people navigate life transitions by reconnecting with clarity, purpose, and inner direction. After experiences that challenged her identity and expectations, Andrea—

Andrea, sorry, Andrea, you got it right. You got it right the first time.

Began exploring how awareness and resilience lead to alignment through honest conversations and practical insight. She encourages women to see change not as a disruption, but as an invitation to live more intentionally and authentically. Andrea, welcome to the podcast.

Thank you for having me. I can't believe I'm number 1 for this season.

You are number 1, and I'm really glad to have you on because we met. I think what happened was somebody connected you to me somehow.

Yeah, I think, yeah, I think it was your PR person.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And, um, you know, it was a blessing to be on your show and really appreciate what you, you do. I was looking at your, um, your, uh, It's not really a website, just mostly your podcast. Is—

yeah, I don't really— I, I haven't touched the website, to be honest, in a long time, so I wouldn't even bother going there, folks.

Yeah, well, I was looking at your podcast page, and I get— and you have so many, uh, great topics and a lot of, uh, people that you've helped, which I really want you to talk about. Um, but the re— the thing, you know, one of the main reasons is because your story— you have a powerful story, and it's Throughout my career of over 30 years of working with parents, families, high-risk youth— that's where I started with high-risk youth, but that turned into really trying to help parents. And one of the things that is very common is women— men too, but women— who are, you know, going through things, neglected, and sometimes abused, coming out of abusive relationships, single moms, things like that. And I think they're— some of them, they definitely go through depression. So I'd like you to just start, you know, give us your, your backstory, give us, you know, kind of what you've experienced and, and how it kind of led up to what you're doing now with the women that you work with around the— globally.

Yeah, well, go ahead and take a seat then. It's gonna be a while. I mean, it's a long story. Uh, but yeah, it started actually as a very young girl. Uh, I remember, and my mom always says like, I just came out of the womb crying and never stopped. And I just always was, I guess, maybe a little bit off in that way. And I remember being very, very young and going to the mall with my mom and going into this bookstore and I found this book and it was something like, I don't even remember what it was like, how to feel better or it was some sort of like self-help book. But I was, I don't recall that I was even a teenager when I bought that book, to be honest, from what I remember. So I was a very young girl and I knew that inside I felt differently than I should based on what I was seeing the world, like everyone's smiling, everyone seems happy and laughing. And granted, I'm sure I put a smile on and did all those things too, but side, it felt like such a disconnect from that smile. It was like, okay, this is what we're supposed to do right now because here we are and this is a birthday party, so smile, so fun. But internally, I had so many different emotions going on. And then, you know, fast forward to the teenage years, I started getting severely depressed in high school. And I will say, it wasn't a lack of friends, it wasn't a lack of sports involvement. It really it wasn't. And so I got severely depressed in high school, and to the point where I just, I would spend so many hours crying at night that I would stay up so late and just so deep in my sadness that I couldn't get up for school anymore. And so then I had to, I graduated high school early. I got the GED because I just, I couldn't, I couldn't do it. So I was probably about 17. Actually, I don't even know what age I was when I started on the medications. And I know you want to talk about that, and we could talk about now or later if you want, but I did take the different drugs that the doctors were offering. I will also say for parents that are listening, if they're wondering, you know, when did it begin? I mean, I was little. I'd have to ask my mom, but I remember being really little, starting in different— like, I went to a lot of different therapists over the years. And so, I mean, it just, it went on and on. And then, you know, I left high school, I actually moved out of the house and I went to college, but I was on medication. And I remember, I don't know why, I just remember this one day in college, I remember walking down the street and I remember still feeling this internal sadness. But that's it. I could like think about it in my head and I could feel it, but there was no way I was going to express it. I wasn't going to cry, like it couldn't come out. And so those medications really felt like they just numbed me. It didn't actually change anything chemically. Um, do you want me to talk about that real quick? My—

well, I think that— yes, I do. But the thing I really want to know, and like you said, for parents, because I, I know that— I think— what do I know? Um, I'm sure there are some people that it does help. I'm not, you know, I don't know. But I just want to know from you, because you were a child I think when you started that, did it, did it help you? And, you know, what was that experience like being, you knowing that you were taking medication?

Yeah. You know, taking the medication, what was that like? That was an experience where it even more so made me feel like, okay, something is wrong with me. I am not a normal person, you know, and you feel kind of like an outcast in a way once you're taking the medication and even going to therapy in general also made me feel that way. Obviously I needed to be there though, but it just, the whole experience is hard. So my take on the medication now, just from my experiences that I've had. So I mean, also there's a lot of in-between with this story and we can kind of dabble here and there, I guess, but we can go ahead and fast forward to, I got out of it, I got out of the depression and I felt good for a while. And then I got into this abusive relationship. Where I sunk back into a depression and I had no idea that the relationship— it was very emotionally abusive. He did put his hands on me one time, but it wasn't anything crazy. But anyway, so I was in that relationship and I ended up starting cognitive behavioral therapy because at the time I got so severely depressed again where it was just— it's almost like PTSD where it just took me back to those years in my teenage years where I struggled so much emotionally. And I remember thinking, I'm done. I'm done. I don't want to live— I was late 20s. I don't want to live like this anymore. Like, this is not happiness. This is not fun. This is just torture. I don't want to be here. Like, we have a choice to be here, really, at the end of the day. And so I looked in my bank account to see how much money I had, and I told myself I owed it to everyone around me to try to save myself. And so I looked at how much money I had and was like, okay, I know what I'm working with here. I'm going to find whatever I can find within this budget, and I'm just gonna get all the help that I can get until it runs out and see where we're at at the end of it. And I don't even remember how it came about that I shared with my parents what was going on, because they ended up helping me out with the therapy because the therapy, the therapy I went to was very, very expensive. The therapist was a lot. However, he was amazing. So I went and did the cognitive behavioral therapy. And that's where I realized my thought processes, even as a child, I had just been wired in this way that I was thinking in such a negative way that, that, that was making me feel down and feel depressed and sad. And so then I was okay once I was, you know, older and working and had a totally different lifestyle. Um, school was never my jam, I'll be honest. When I was younger, I, I had some different experiences I think that were hard as a kid. But so then I do the cognitive behavioral therapy and finally realize, okay, it's it's the thoughts that I'm having, and those thoughts are coming from somewhere. So that's when I realized this relationship was helping me, I guess we can say, to create these negative thoughts about myself because he wasn't feeding me positive things about myself. And so then I realized, like, wow, this is— that was the biggest eye-opener for me, is realizing that we really have so much more control than we can ever imagine over the reality that we're living in. But to touch on the question about the drugs and whether or not they're necessary, I don't want to say they're not ever, but I have a hard time believing that they are. Let's just take a simple example as a hug. We know that if somebody gives us a hug, and I think it has to be a certain length of time, but our bodies will begin to release oxytocin. That's a chemical response. And so this is where my opinion comes in that, you know, our thoughts also do the same. And when we start having all these negative thoughts, we're going to start releasing different chemicals within our body, and it's not the ones that we need to feel the happiness, right? And so I think we have to look at the world that we're living in and what our life is like and what kind of chemicals are probably being released within us because of the circumstances that are around us. So that's That's my opinion on the drugs. I think it's possible that somebody could be lacking it, but I mean, we are lacking it, but what is the reason? I really believe that we usually most, I would wanna say almost 90% of the time, 99% of the time, we're gonna have some sort of reason why the body is doing what it's doing. And I mean, and that goes into my whole other story of like, I had so many different health problems and I felt like the depression also, fed into that. You know, when you're depressed, it's releasing chemicals that can cause you to get different illnesses. And there's, you know, varying degrees to that. But it was to the point where the doctor said they thought I had ALS. And so at that point, you're not going to live. And so eventually I had to figure out my way. And so it's kind of the same with depression. I feel like you have to figure it out, figure out what is the cause, what is causing your depression, because not everybody's story is going to be the same as mine. It It could be very different where it's coming from. It could just be that you're constantly triggered from the neighborhood that you're living in, right? Like maybe you're scared, scared from where you're living. You're just fearful. And when we have so much fear within us, that also is not healthy. So it just— everybody's story is different, but I do believe there's a cause. And look at it, it could be your food, it could be the toxins in the house. I mean, there's just a lot of different things.

So, but for you, um, you as a child, you just noticed that you were— I don't know what age it was, but you just noticed there was something different about you, like you said, and you were just feeling sad. Would you say sad?

Yeah.

Sadness.

Yeah.

And so was it a psychiatrist that recommended the, the drugs to you at that age? At some age, whatever age, whatever it was.

I know, I'm trying to remember. I may not have started anything till like 15 or so. I can't remember how old I was, and I don't remember.

But you weren't 7 7 or 8 or 9 or—

No, I don't think so. I'd have to ask my parents. I don't remember. I don't think so. I don't think I took any drugs at that time. But now I can say with understanding, I have these wild intuitive psychic medium type gifts in where I can just really, I don't know, bounce around, I guess, between this world and the other side of the veil. But now I know that that also probably played into it because I am such a huge, huge empath. That I could sit with any person and you could not say a word and I'm going to tell you how you're feeling because I'm going to feel it within my own body. And I think as a child, I had no clue that I was doing that or that's what was happening. So I just took on so much of the world within my body. And that is very confusing as a child.

Right.

And that's, that's probably not a problem most people are facing with their child. I don't know. But I mean, being an empath is is a pretty common thing, I would say.

Yeah. Well, the thing about it too is it leads to, I think anyway, where you are now and how you help people and the intuition you have, uh, and the way you're able to sit, like you said, with people. And now you're using this gift, although it didn't start off as a gift, it didn't sound like, but you've developed it and you overcame. And I, you know, you you know, and if you want to talk about that part, you overcame some pretty heavy bouts of, you know, depression. But, but, and all of that though, to me, is why you're able to really help people. And people need sometimes somebody like you. And in my case, I'm thinking about moms, you know, a mom go to? And like you said, you know, therapists are not— they're not cheap, they're, they're expensive. Um, but who can a mom go to, especially if the husband is not supportive? Hopefully you guys out there listening, hopefully you have a whole supportive spouse, but yeah, a lot of people don't. So that— I think you developed, again, a kind of a tough way to go, tough route to go. But I think a lot of times when those of us that have been through hard times, we've been broken in our spirit down for whatever reason. But if we can get back up and fight through it, as you said you did, then we can turn those things around and to help other people. And I think that's what you're doing.

Yeah. I mean, I probably should have gone to school to be a therapist, but I feel like I lived what the therapist will read about. So it's like I have so many people in my life, friends, and they go to therapy and then they'll tell me their things and I'll tell them whatever my opinion is. And then they go to their therapist and they're like, yeah, my therapist said exact same thing you said. Like, yeah, yeah.

Um, so do you want to go there, talk about when you, you know, the really— you don't have to get into detail, but you, you went through a dark time. Yeah, a little bit older.

Um, I mean, both were free.

Was this before you were a parent or after when you went through this really Oh, before.

Yeah. Okay.

Okay.

And I mean, I haven't seen a glimmer of that depression since that boyfriend.

How do you think you overcame though? What was the— because ultimately that's, you know, where we want to go to so we can help people listening. But how did you— how do you articulate the way you overcame this journey that you were really in the valley?

Yeah, well, like I was saying, the CBT, the cognitive behavioral therapy, was hands down the best therapy I ever received because that was not me sitting and sharing my feelings. I know what my feelings are. I could go tell 1,000 people, it's not going to make me feel any better to share it over and over and over. But when I went to the cognitive behavioral therapist, it was— I mean, we didn't— I didn't talk a lot about my feelings or what was going on. For the most part, it was— he just quickly analyzed what I was dealing with, depression, and just dove right in for the cognitive behavioral therapy. And for people that don't understand how that works, my experience of how it went was him essentially counteracting all my different beliefs that I had within myself, you know, feeling like I am worthless. So he would say, yeah, Andrea, you're pretty worthless. And then I would have to go back to him, and it seems a little brutal, it does, but I would— and I'm sure there's a more gentle way that they do it with children, But I would have to go back to him and say, you know what, no, I'm not. And he'd be like, well, yeah, you are, because blah, blah, blah. And then I'd have to say, well, actually, you know, no, I'm not because— and I'd have to like start digging deeper to explain why I am not worthless. And so by the time you finish, you start having all these epiphanies and kind of waking up, and then your brain just starts to shift and have different thought patterns instead of those old beliefs. But Yes, Richard. I was very, very, very depressed as a teenager. I was on the gymnastics team. I remember I started cutting myself and I remember having to go to the coach and tell her because we had to wear a leotard and wear tank tops. And I had to ask to wear long sleeves and she's saying, "Why?" And she needs a reason why. And so I showed her. I've always been a very vulnerable, open person. Not necessarily ashamed of who I am or what I've been through. It was the reality. It was like, I'm sad here, here's what's going on, and this is what's happening in my life. Um, so, and I got to wear long sleeves. Um, but shortly after that, I ended up just dropping out of high school and taking the GED and going off to college sooner rather than later. So I was, I was always actually a high-performing student as well. So I was in the gifted and talented program for kids. So I felt like, okay, well, I'm not far behind in my education. I'm actually ahead of some of the others, some of my peers in my own grade. So leaving early isn't the worst thing. But, you know, for parents that think, oh, my kid is so academically strong, they must be fine, that may not be the case.

Well, what I want people to, to hear in you and your story is, first of all, if you're somebody out there, if you're a mom out there and you're really going through some stuff, here's a woman that has overcome it. And she was going to a therapist that had really helped her in her thought process. I think that's what you said. But also, if you're a mother and you have a child who you can see in them, maybe they're going through some sadness or depression, again, there's hope. And I think that's really the message is there's hope. We can get through this. There's ways to overcome it. You know, in Parents on a Mission, what we teach is knowing— and knowing yourself, part of it is to think about your thinking about yourself. And that's the beginning of the foundation to what is your relationship with you. How do you feel about yourself? And we go through like a little process, you know. That's my way of trying to help people deal with those kind of negative thoughts that you're talking about. And then I give them a little formula. How do you change your mindset? Uh, it's— and it's very simple, you know. Catch the thought. Change the thought, and then verbally replace it with an affirmation. Catch, change, replace. Uh, course of behavioral cognitive therapy, I'm sure, is much more sophisticated than that. But, you know, that's— I recognize that the mind and our thought life is so powerful. Yeah, it sounds like that's really what you went through, and then you came to a place where— I want you to now talk about how are you— how do you help the women that you— that come on to your, your show or to talk to you? What is your way, you know, of reaching out and helping, uh, the women that you are working with or that you have worked with?

Yeah, it's, it's kind of an intuitive process, but First, before I even get into that, I want to say, before I lose this thought, about like with my own children, I am very cognizant of watching the meaning that they are attaching to things. So if they get in trouble for something, I really make sure that they understand why they're in trouble and what that means, and that it doesn't mean you're a bad person. Because so often with children, if a parent yells at them or a parent says something And I was talking about this with another adult the other day and how it's like, well, as a child, this is what happened to me and it made me feel this way. And it's like, but did your father actually even say those words that you thought? No, but that's the problem with children, right? We are so underdeveloped as children in our brains that, you know, when mom or dad yells at you like, why did you do that? You actually might start— you don't know this as a parent, but their thought might be Oh man, here we go again. I'm a bad girl. I never do anything right. I'm so stupid. And that was actually a thought that came up when I was in my 20s. I remember like dropping something. I was like, I'm so stupid. And like, I was so, so hard on myself and criticizing every little moment that wasn't perfect. And so it's really important with children to just have that open dialogue with them to make sure, right? How are they processing your actions? And you know, if you yell at them and fly off the handle, like, you're human. Just go back to them when you're calm and have a conversation about it. And it's okay to say, you know, Mommy shouldn't have yelled that way. Mommy shouldn't have spoke that way. I hope you know that it was just because— and explain where you're coming from. Because I was talking with somebody the other day about, you know, a childhood memory of breaking a window and how upset the father was. And then— and I don't think the dad even said a whole lot, but they internalized so much more. The dad really didn't even say a whole lot from the story I got, but yet you internalize so much from just the, you know, what did you do? And then the look in their eyes, and that's enough for you to internalize so much more. So we have to make sure that we maybe over-explain to children, you know, here's really what you should be internalizing right now. Like, I'm upset because that window is going to cost me $500. I'm not upset because I think you're a bad child. I understand you made a mistake. Like, fully explain it.

Well, Andrea, what you're doing right now is you're affirming everything I teach in Parents on a Mission. Because those of you who are listening, you know, if you've read my books or you've heard my podcast, you know that it— that's exactly what we try to encourage you, you to do, uh, exactly what Andrea just said. And, uh, that is so important and so huge, uh, because— and I was going to ask you, so you got ahead of me, but that's great. I was going to ask you how all of this has affected you as a parent, because I, I think you have two, two kids. Yeah, kids. And just like what you were saying, you know, you're catching yourself, uh, because you're very aware that, like you said, our kid— you, you may not even realize how they are interpreting into inside themselves when you say things that are shameful or you're putting them down or, you know, how could you do that? You know, and things like that. I think that's really important lesson.

And remembering that your kids are all very, very different human beings. They're very different. I mean, both of my kids are like night and day personality-wise. And so, you know, some of us can be triggered or traumatized so much more easily than the other person next to us, right? Some of us are just far more resilient. And, you know, with everything I've been through, I think people think that I'm so resilient. And I mean, yes, but we all are. I— it's not like it's been easy. It's not like, oh, I just bounce right back. I mean, I have lived the struggle for sure. But, you know, when I help people with things that they're going through, it's we often have to dig into what, what do they think it is? And usually it has nothing to do with what they think it actually is, right? Um, and I, I think this might— I don't remember if this was in— it's been in some different media sources that were shared on me last year. But, um, you know, working with someone that had this fear of flying, so she thought, you know, she thought it was all about the flying and it was, you know, maybe just like Oh, 9/11 could happen again while I'm on the plane and that sort of thing. And I was like, okay, but the root of this, because what's the end result of that, right? And it's this onion layer technique that you got to use on a lot of things. But okay, what's the end result of that? It's that you're going to die. It has nothing— like, it's not the actual plane ride. It's the end result that you're scared of, right? You're scared of death. And why are you so, so scared of that? And then we were able to just really dig deep and it actually had nothing to do with flying. It was this this genocide that her family had experienced, this generational thing that had just— even though she didn't live through that as a child, a very young child, she had heard all the stories from her grandmother. And so, and they even say like our DNA holds on to things for many, many generations. So what our ancestors have lived through, it passes through to us even whether we know it or not. I mean, that's all— that's a whole nother thing. Um, but yeah, so I help people to realize that sometimes the things that they think are what are holding them back are actually not exactly it.

Yeah. Um, and I was sharing with you earlier, I was reading this, I am reading this book here.

Yeah.

Anatomy of an Epidemic, and it's, uh, Magic Bullets, Psychiatric Drugs, and the Astonishing— here's the thing why I'm reading this book. The astonishing rise of mental illness in America. And I was listening to a psychologist, and he was talking about— imagine that in America, we are one of the most powerful, if not the most powerful nation in the world financially. You know, again, I don't want to even get into all that, how true, how true our economic situation is. But Yeah, you know, supposedly we have all these scientists and we have all these pharmaceutical companies, and he was saying that last year, American— America, we spent $4.3 billion on healthcare, and we are the leading country in the world that are the most sick. We have the most deaths through disease, and we are the leading country in mental illness. And he was saying, how could that possibly be? And part of it was he was saying, you know, the drugs that are being developed and the research that's being done on those drugs, which is what this book's about, not showing a lot of promise. And in other words, maybe that is not the best way to be— to giving, you know, drugs to our children. I don't know about adults. And like you already said, I'm sure there are some people that it's helpful, but for the most part, he was saying the numbers are not coming out the way we want them. As a matter of fact, things sometimes— it seems like they're making things worse.

Well, I think about the question of, do you love yourself? If you ask any of these children that go in for therapy and the doctor's wanting to medicate them, and you ask the kid, do you love yourself? If they say yes, then I'd be like, okay, maybe they do. Maybe they do need the medication because that doesn't make sense to me, right? That wouldn't really make sense. But I bet you all of them are gonna look at you kind of sideways like, I don't know, sure, maybe. Like, they don't really get it and they don't feel it, and they, they don't. Um, and so I think there is this psychological component to the world we're living in. I mean, social media is wild. It is not healthy. I had somebody on the other day and he's over in the UK and he was, you know, other countries actually ban social media until like 16 or 18 years of age. And it's just, it's a total free-for-all when you let your kids step out onto social media. And it's pretty crazy. Like, we're not gonna let our kid just like run down the street by themselves, right? Like, because who knows what they're going to be exposed to, what's going to happen. Like, we're watching them, but we're just going to like let them pop onto social media and see whatever happens to stroll through their feed.

Yeah, I— you're once again, you're affirming what I've been talking about on my last 3, uh, podcasts. Exactly that. And trying to help parents understand, wake up. You know, you're— the name of your show, Wake Up Your Soul. And I'm telling mom and dad, wake up to what your kids are being— I was talking about how AI and, and, you know, the internet and the programs and the algorithms, they're not just giving out information. We are giving them information and educating them about what engages us and about what we like. And they're learning about us as much as we're learning from them. They're learning about us. And then that's goes through the whole, you know, the way they are influencing our kids' minds, etc., etc., all that, you know.

Yeah.

But, um, let me ask you this, um, what, what do you think is the— if, if a parent has kids that are going through what you've, you've explained and experienced, what is the most important thing do you feel parents can do with children in that sad or depressed state?

Yeah, I think you need to let them know that you're there for them and don't come down on them for the feelings that they're having and don't tell them, you know, to just get over it or just smile or try harder. It's such, it's such a deep, it's a deep, deep, deep internal battle. It really is. And so as a parent, the best thing you can do is to just be there for them and check in with them and ask them how they're feeling and ask them, is there anything I can do? And be super, super open to getting feedback from your child and say, hey, like, I want to know, do you feel like I am playing a part in this? Like, that would be really helpful, I think, for a child to, you know, have your parents say, what part am I playing in this? And I even ask my kids, like, how does mommy make you feel? You know, it's, it's important. Ask your kid, am I playing a part? What could I do differently? How can I help you in this journey? Like, and they may not want to speak up and say anything, so go ahead and offer solutions. Can I give you more hugs? Can I give you more kisses? Can I give you, you know, can I just give you more positive words of affirmations? Like, what do you need? Or even ask them, like, do you feel like Mommy loves you? Do you feel like Mommy tells you enough how amazing you are? I mean, they're going to be honest, and they might say no, and that's your, that's your wake-up call to start telling your kid these more positive things that they need to hear, right?

No, that's really good, very practical and good advice. And I think that a lot of times parents take for granted, oh, My kid knows I love him, you know. I don't have to always be telling him that. I don't always have to be hugging them. They know. And it's like, no, no, you should give them as many hugs and kisses and words of— yeah, positive words as you can, because we shouldn't take for granted that, you know, they're feeling always, uh, up on the up and up and great about themselves. Uh, so no, that's, that's really good.

Um, and just be cognizant too, like we were talking about before, be cognizant of the words that come out of your mouth and what kind of emotion they could attach to it, or meaning can they attach to it? Like, how can they misconstrue this message that I'm giving them? Because they probably will, because they're children, right? Like, we mean it in a certain way, but they may take it on in a totally different way. So just be overly clear.

Well, um, is there anything as we come to the end of this session? And listen, I really appreciate you coming on. I really like your story. I'm sad. It's a sad story in, in a way, but what impressed me was once you told me kind of, you know, the things that you've been through, what you're doing, uh, and it's— that's really what I want people to get is the, the positive, uh, you've overcome, you're doing well, you know, working with your kids, you're sensitive to them, but also you're helping people. And I really wanted them to, to hear from somebody that's been through, you know, like what, what you've been through, because depression is a big issue with a lot of kids and a lot of parents. So in ending, is there anything you want to share? Anything I left out? Anything I didn't ask you that you want to just leave us with?

I mean, I think I covered all of it, but, you know, the thing people always like to hear about is like my near-death experiences. And I will share quickly on that, that my— yeah, my heart started stopping when I was about 17 years old, and then it continued on, and I was 20 when I finally had to get a pacemaker, and the wire went through my heart into my lung, and I had to have it removed. And that surgery, they told me I may not make it through that. And I mean, it was a lot of different experiences where, you know, I was essentially dead. I had no electrical signal at all when my heart was stopping. But that was a huge wake-up call for me. So I often tell people to just pull themselves out of their life and just kind of look down on it like it's a movie and watch how it's playing out and just see how it feels. Do you like what you're seeing? And it's just a really good way to take on a different perspective of your life. And for me, when I went through all those things and kind of, I want to say, disassociated myself from myself, you know, I just, I pulled back and watched myself and it was like, okay, you know, like, I see the part that I am playing in all of this and how can I change it and make changes? So It's just, it's a good way to do some self-reflection.

Yeah, yeah, no, that's really good. Um, well, listen, uh, you've been through some stuff, and, uh, I'm so happy for you, your kids, and that you're doing well. And your podcast— how can, uh, people, um, find more about what you're doing and find, find you online?

Yeah, uh, Instagram, definitely very active on there, even though I don't like social media. It's just part— it's part of it. Um, so that's Andrea Lynn Intuitive on Instagram, and then the podcast is Wake Up Your Soul with Andrea Lynn, and it's on pretty much every major platform, and then it's also on YouTube as well. So go take a listen, subscribe, like it, do all the things.

Yeah, and speaking of that, all of you that are, uh, listening, thank you for listening. And I would also really ask you if you can like the video, like this session. That's how we reach more people. If you subscribe, that's always helpful. And of course, leaving a review. Those are the 3 things: liking and subscribing and reviewing. And I would ask you to do that. I want to thank my guest, Andrea Lynn. Thank you so much for your time. And if you need more resources, you can go to my website, richardrramos.com. There's free resources there. There's some videos there, books there. Online course there. Why, Mom and Dad? We just want to help you in your relationship with your children if there's been a broken or strained relationship. All of those things, as I said at the beginning, turning the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents as the best method for preventing children from joining negative lifestyles, because so much of that is happening right now. So thank you for listening, and always remember, Parents on a Mission is not for bad parents. It's for good parents who want to get better. Thanks for listening.