Manders Mindset
Hosted by Amanda Russo, The Breathing Goddess, who is a Breathwork Detox Facilitator, Transformative Mindset Coach, and Divorce Paralegal.
Amanda's journey into mindset and empowerment began by working with children in group homes and daycares. She later transitioned to family law, helping people navigate the challenging emotions of divorce. During this time, Amanda also overcame her own weight and health challenges through strength training, meditation, yoga, reiki, and plant medicine.
Amanda also shares her personal journey, detailing how she transformed obstacles into opportunities by adopting a healthier, holistic lifestyle.
Discover practical strategies and inspiring stories that will empower you to break free from limitations and cultivate a mindset geared towards growth and positivity.
Tune in for a fun, friendly, and empowering experience that will help you become the best version of yourself.
Manders Mindset
The Power of Choice with Meghan Escobar | 120
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In this episode of Manders Mindset, Amanda Russo is joined by Meghan Escobar, a Master Breathwork Detox Facilitator, who opens up about her transformative journey through trauma, addiction, and healing. From a turbulent childhood to breaking generational cycles, Meghan shares how Breathwork became the tool that shifted her mindset and ultimately her life.
Together, Amanda and Meghan explore the power of choice in personal transformation, emphasizing that true change must come from within. Meghan discusses overcoming addiction, the importance of self-accountability, and how setting boundaries has been a cornerstone of her healing journey. Her raw honesty about breaking cycles and leading with love will leave you inspired to reflect on your own path and take the steps to explore something new.
If you’re ready to shift your mindset and embrace the unknown, this episode is a must-listen.
Episode Highlights:
~ [0:23] Meet Meghan Escobar: Breathwork Detox Facilitator and mentor.
~ [1:39] Unpacking childhood trauma and Meghan’s journey to break family cycles.
~ [6:17] How Meghan overcame addiction and began her healing journey.
~ [17:59] Experiencing her first transformative Breathwork session virtually.
~ [20:53] From participant to leader: Meghan’s path to becoming a Breathwork facilitator.
~ [31:19] Exploring the power of choices versus change in recovery.
~ [48:01] Why boundaries and self-care are essential for growth.
~ [55:29] Meghan’s advice: “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
Links & Resources:
~ Connect with Meghan Escobar on Instagram: @TheEmotionalAnchor
~ Follow Meghan on Facebook: Meghan Escobar
~ Connect with Amanda Russo on Instagram: @TheBreathingGoddess
~ Explore Amanda’s resources on Linktree: Linktree - The Breathing Goddess
To Connect with Amanda:
~ linktree.com/thebreathinggoddess
~ Instagram @thebreathinggoddess
Follow & Support the Podcast:
~ Instagram: @MandersMindset
~ Join the Manders Mindset Facebook Community HERE!
~ Explore Amanda’s NEW podcast: Breathwork Magic (Available on all major platforms or you can listen on Apple!)
To Connect with Meghan:
~ Connect with Meghan Escobar on Instagram: @TheEmotionalAnchor
~ Follow Meghan on Facebook: Meghan Escobar
Closing Thoughts:
Meghan’s story is a profound reminder that what you’re not changing, you’re choosing. Whether you’re navigating addiction, healing from trauma, or just searching for more fulfillment, her journey shows that real transformation starts with one choice: the decision to begin.
If this episode resonated with you, share it with someone who needs to hear Meghan’s inspiring story. Don’t forget to follow Manders Mindset, leave a review, and tune in when the podcast returns from hiatus on March 10th.
As always, remember: You’re just one mindset shift away from changing your life.
Welcome to the Manders Mindset Podcast. Here you'll find both monologue and interviews of entrepreneurs, coaches, healers and a variety of other people where your host, Amanda Russo, will discuss her own mindset and perspective and her guest's mindset and perspective on the world around us. Manders and her guests will help explain to you how shifting your mindset will shift your life.
Speaker 2:Hey guys Manders here. If you've heard a few episodes, you have likely heard me mention Meg, who referred me to Black Dwarf Detox. Meg who mentioned Black Dwarf to me. Meg who gifted me a trip to Bali, this divine woman who was probably a sister of mine in a past life, but so so, so much love and inspiration in my life has come from this divine woman and I am so thankful for y'all to hear her speak. Welcome back to Mander's Mindset, where we explore the power of shifting your mindset to shift your life. As always, I'm your host, amanda Russo, and I am honored to be here today with one of my favorite people in the world, someone I am blessed to call one of my friends, a mentor and the woman who introduced me to Breathwork Detox Megan Escobar, master Breathwork Detox Facilitator, the emotional anchor, the one and only. I am so excited to be here with Meg today. Thank you so much for joining me.
Speaker 3:It's an honor. It's been long, long overdue, for sure.
Speaker 2:So who would you say? Meg is at the core. Who?
Speaker 3:would you?
Speaker 3:say Meg is at the core. Whoa? That's a pretty good question. She's like dive right in. You know, I have to be honest, I'm still learning. I am somebody who really is in the since I've started my healing journey is just like always be a student right. Always be evolving, always be creating. There could be a different version of myself that wakes up every single day, right, and even midday change I, just at my core. There could be a different version of myself that wakes up every single day, right, and even midday change I just at my core. I would say that my purpose and my clear vision in this lifetime is to just lead with love and integrity and service right. It's like what can I do to service and make an impact out here in the world and break cycles?
Speaker 2:Now can you take us down memory lane a little bit? Tell us about childhood family dynamic. However you want to go with that.
Speaker 3:Sure, which you know. I think that ending what I just ended with is breaking the cycles. You know that that runs deep into my core as somebody who is here to do that right, because challenge wasn't the greatest for me. You know, I feel like people. We all go through trauma, right, there's, everybody goes through a form of trauma and it's just. It's part of the human experience, you know, and that looks different for everybody. But also, you know, some worse than others, and I would say that childhood wasn't the greatest Broken home.
Speaker 3:You know a single mom, dad in and out of our lives. Lost my dad at a young age. This June will be seven years that he's been gone. You know bad lifestyle choices drinking, drugging, partying. She did her best with what she knew. I had a lot of resentment and anger towards her for a really long time. It wasn't until I was able to forgive her for my own sanity right, that we have a much better relationship today than we ever have in life. Right, I have an understanding of like I'm sure she holds on to a lot and she doesn't know how to heal, right, and so accepting people with where they're at is a big part of my healing journey too, and understanding that you know people only do with what they know, you know, and so does that make it bad or good. It's, you know it's a fine line, right. So you know, I feel like I was always loved. You know I always had a roof over my head, food on the table, right. But like as a mom today, like my version of love towards my son versus like the love that I had growing up, it's like a completely different version of love, you know. So my goal in this lifetime is to break that cycle. So that way, you know the love and care and the emotional support that I have and give to my son, he'll take that and put it. You know the protection, the love you know that type of thing is. He's going to carry on, you know, and kind of break that cycle. And then also breaking the cycle of money restriction.
Speaker 3:You know we didn't grow up poor but survived. You know there were times where we were on food stamps. There were times where my mom was really struggling with a single parent, three kids all in diapers, like my mom had. I'm the youngest of well, now five, but the household that I grew up in was just me and my two older brothers and we were all like one year apart. My mom was 20 years old with three toddlers, three infants, and so she did the best with what she knew right. Growing up, me and my brothers were really close.
Speaker 3:I got myself into a little trouble when I was like 16 years old and went away for a little bit. And that was a blessing, because when I returned back into my home my brothers had started to go down a dark path drink and drug. Not that I didn't explore those avenues, I did but I was a little bit more headstrong with not letting it control me to the point where I became an addict. You know I did a lot of exploring with just socializing. I guess you know what I mean Type of situation.
Speaker 3:Now you know my brothers do suffer from addiction alcohol addiction, drug addiction and and anger issues and all that. That's another cycle that I want to be able to break because my father, by lifestyle choices drinking, drugging brothers went down that path. I definitely explored that path and it wasn't until I found Breathwork that I was able to break that cycle and to see through a clearer lens in life that put me on my path of healing. So for the past four years into this journey, I've been focusing on going inward and healing the root. So break that cycle, you know.
Speaker 2:Is your mom still alive?
Speaker 3:Yes, she's alive, she still heavily drinks, but you know she's there, she's kicking, she could make better lifestyle choices, but hey, it is what it is. You know, when I first started the journey into breathwork, there was a big controversy of me being in a cult, which is very interesting to me as a Catholic woman who goes to church. So you know, I mean that we could go down a whole nother path with that, where breathwork being a cult, it just was mind boggling to me and I'm like I don't understand. I don't understand how that could be, but you know it's. People are so scared of the unknown and at first it was very hurtful to me because I felt like I'm more tapped into my spirituality than you probably ever will be, you know. And so the way that I've evolved as a daughter why wouldn't you be happy? But instead you're judgmental and, whereas that falls back into that mirror right Envious of, maybe, the person she'd like to be more of. And so learn to accept that she's just kind of a closed mind person and that's okay.
Speaker 2:Yeah, like you said, accepting people where they're at. You mentioned about having an impact and showing up with integrity and love. Have you always embodied that, even when as a kid?
Speaker 3:with integrity and love. Have you always embodied that, even when as a kid? No, I mean, I've always been like the rock, like I'm. I was always the rock of the family. I would say, like, make sure that everybody's okay, support everybody, put myself on the back burner. Real cancer, like a real, true cancer, always the mother type. Like growing up I said me and my brothers were always close, but it wasn't just me and my brothers. Like we had our group of friends, you know, like our entire group of friends. I was like mama Meg. So I guess, in a sense, love and integrity. But now I see that in a different way, in a different perspective, because love and integrity needs to come to you first. Right, it's like you can't, you cannot continue to pour into other people and say that you really love yourself because you, you're not putting yourself first, so that that person kind of, I guess, led with love and integrity, but not in the right form.
Speaker 2:Now, how was schooling for you?
Speaker 3:I was great. I was like a nerd actually. I got straight A's in school. I was always on the honor roll up until I got to middle school when I started to explore like smoking pot and you know, hanging out with the cool kids I got my first B and that was frustrating. But it was also a lot going on at home where I started to like not really care, like fuck it, I don't care, I just wanted to hang out and party and be with people. That, I guess, start to mask the pain Now you said that was middle school.
Speaker 3:Yep, yep, yep. And then from there I was pretty much like an AB student, high school I ended up. It's a really interesting story. So I grew up going to school in East Providence, like Pawtucket, east Providence area, and then when I was 16, when I got into that little bit of trouble, I had spent time in training school. So when I got home I was like bouncing around schools because we moved like every year, we moved constantly. It was never like in one school for a long period of time. And then in 11th grade my mom moved from city East Providence, pawtucket Providence to Rehoboth and put me in school in Rehoboth.
Speaker 3:You ever see the movie Mean Girls? Yes, girl, that's what my life was like every single day when I went to school there. It was like very small town mentality, you know where's this girl coming from, from the city, and like just felt like it was like an everyday fight to mean people, like just like, mean kids can be shitty, right, and so kids can be pretty shitty. And you know there was just constantly a group of girls that would say things to try to harass me. I mean, you know me? Yeah, you've known me since my healing journey, but prior to that I was like I grew up with boys Fighting was like a thing, so I didn't really, you know, there was fights. There was, you know, me always wanting to try to get out of school and so when I went there, they this was like right around 9-11 too. This is something I haven't really shared with publicly at all. So, yeah, hear it out.
Speaker 3:So we used to get out of school all the time because people were writing bomb threats. Like every week there would be a bomb threat and we'd go evacuate the school like a fire drill. They would come and they would search and then we'd go home. I was like, shit, that's all we need to do. So, yep, I wrote a couple bomb threats. They did a handwrite. I did two out of like who even knows how many were done, but they did a handwrite and analysis and caught me and could have really exposed me. Could have really, really exposed me. Thankfully, my stepfather's very well known in that area. So it didn't go to the papers, it didn't go public, saved me a little dignity there and I could never talk about it.
Speaker 3:I was so ashamed of that story because I was like that's embarrassing as fuck, but at the same time it's like why did I do it? Why did I do it? Because I was so unhappy, like I did not want to be. I was willing to do whatever I could do just to get out of school. One time my mother dropped me off and I walked all the way home. I was like I'm not. I told her I'm not walking into the school. She's like I'm dropping you off. I walked all the way home in a snowstorm and I lived probably about six miles away. That's so much I hated that school. Okay, so I had an opportunity at that point to go to a private school or quit, and I quit. I was like I don't really care, I'll just go get my GED. So I got my GED and went to college, got my bachelor's degree and yeah, okay, and where?
Speaker 2:where'd you get your bachelor's degree?
Speaker 3:In Long Island, new York. So I went there. I started there. I didn't start college until I was 21. I went to a small private college in Suffolk County. It was in the town of Patchogue in New York, in Suffolk County. And then there was another site in Queens, but I went to the one in Long Island. It was beautiful, small, nothing, not like a big university or anything. It was a really small little college. Yeah, got my bachelor's in business management and ended up meeting my son's father there. My son was actually born in New York and then we moved back home when he was about six months. Things didn't work out with me and baby daddy.
Speaker 2:And so about how old were you when you graduated with your bachelor's?
Speaker 3:I was 25 and I was pregnant. I was about six months pregnant when I walked the stage with my little baby boy, and yeah, so I was 25 when I had him.
Speaker 2:That's impressive that you were able to graduate and get your degree even when you were pregnant.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I worked two jobs. I worked a full-time job while in college full-time and a part-time job. I was a hustler.
Speaker 2:So you have your son, and then where does life take you from there?
Speaker 3:So we moved back home to Rhode Island when he was about six months and I got into my first sales job. I got into life insurance and investments. I worked for New York Life when I first got home. I got licensed in life and health and then took my six I don't even remember what it was 63 or whatever it was to do like annuities Moody's. I was with New York Life for probably a good five six years before I ended up transitioning into more of an independent broker. That was really cool. So I did direct sales for probably like the first three years into that industry and then I ended up doing more of management practice, like doing all the paperwork side of things how long did you do that for.
Speaker 3:I was in that industry for probably good I don't know Daniel's 15. Now I got out I would say a solid 12 years, solid 12 yep. So you do little things, little gigs here and there like bartending and you know things like that, but that was pretty much my career.
Speaker 2:Okay, and now 12 years. So did you enjoy it?
Speaker 3:I did because it allowed me to have a lot of flexibility. You know it was like so the guys that I was like, the practices that I managed most predominantly men. They were really easy going and I was always that type of person where nine to five it didn't work out. I tried it a few times, like working for my stepdad's company, and I did payroll and billing for a trucking company for a little while in between when I thought I wanted to lead the industry. I did that for like two years and I was like I'll go back to doing what I was comfortable with. But I think mostly it was just because I was comfortable with it. It was good money, I had flexibility, but it wasn't something that I absolutely loved and was so happy about going to work every day. No, it was more so the flexibility and just being able to come and kind of go as I please as long as my job was done. So that was cool.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no, I'm sure that that sounds nice, yeah, yeah, even if you didn't love it like the flexibility definitely makes a difference to affect the rest of your life. You know, absolutely, absolutely. So you left there. And then what?
Speaker 3:So I left there. And then what? So I left there, I went on my journey to, like I think a lot of people you know kind of explored different things during COVID. Once COVID hit, I, you know, actually found Breathwork right about that time. It wasn't shortly after that that I did my first virtual breathwork session with Curtis, who you know is now a mentor of both of ours. He's also a good friend. I've known him for quite a while. I knew him before he even got into breathwork, but that's another story for another day.
Speaker 3:So I ended up trying it. You know, I had obviously we were friends on social media and I had seen him promoting this thing and I was like I maybe really want to try this. And this was also about a year and a half after my father had passed and I still haven't had it like fully grieved him, you know. So I had a lot of anger. I was in a really really dark place. To be honest with you. I was. I was getting high doing, you know, hard drugs, like drinking every day, started getting into doing cocaine and all of that shit, and I was basically going down the same path that dad did. So I was like this is just not healthy. I was a mom already at that point. So I'm like healthy. You know, I was a mom already at that point. So I'm like knowing I'm not giving my son the best version of me. And so one day I was like you know what? I'm just going to fucking try this thing. I'm going to try this new thing. I rented a hotel room, tried it and completely shifted my life. I was like wow, like the power that we have inside of us is absolutely incredible. I'm somebody who was always very naturally intuitive and common sense came very easy to me and I know that's something that a lot of people don't have. So when I had gone through that experience, it was just such an eye-opening experience to me that we are meant for so much more than what we give ourselves credit of. You know, especially in the way that I grew up, where it was just like you got a skill, you got a career, like there wasn't any magic, and that's what I like to look at it as as magic. You know, and that's truly what it is. So carried on to continue to practice. You know every time that he would hold an event Now, mind you, this is also during COVID, nobody really travels.
Speaker 3:I didn't listen to that stuff. I actually did a lot of traveling throughout that entire time. I was in Puerto Rico, new York, every other week. I went to Florida a couple times, so I was doing my thing. And then, when things started to open up, he had announced his first in-person event in Miami and he was co-hosting with Brett Lockett, and so I was like, oh, another excuse to travel, hit up my cousin. I was like, hey, want to go to Miami and do breathwork. And she's like, sure, you know, because the cost of traveling during that time was so freaking cheap, you know. So went out there, did my first breathwork session in person, and I knew at that point in time that I wanted to. I wanted to host, I wanted to facilitate, I wanted to be a teacher. I wanted to host, I wanted to facilitate, I wanted to be a teacher, I wanted to go deeper inside and learn more about myself. I'm a master breathwork facilitator and absolutely love it.
Speaker 2:So I want to backtrack really quick. You rented a hotel room for your first virtual breathwork session. Mm-hmm, what made you do that?
Speaker 3:Well, no, thanks for asking. So that was actually a point in my life where I had to make some sacrifices, where I had to go move into my grandmother's house because financially I wasn't excited. I decided to leave my job. I didn't really have a plan, but I knew I wasn't happy and so I got into CBD. So I started a business with my friend, wicked Lit I don't know if you remember that, I do, okay. So we started that and we had these big visions and that isn't really alive anymore. But that's another story also.
Speaker 3:So why did I rent a hotel room is because I didn't have the space. I was sharing a bedroom with my 11-year-old son in my grandmother's basement, so I needed privacy. I didn't know what to expect or experience, as we know. Like you know, you don't know right. Even with the preparation and everything, you still have no idea what you're in for. But I knew something inside of me. That natural intuition was like no, if you're going to do this, girl, you need to give yourself some space to download it. Thank God, because after my experience, I had the whole entire room to myself where I was like, wow, it just happened. And so that's why.
Speaker 2:I did that. Now, what made you decide to try it?
Speaker 3:I just knew something needed to change in my life. I was at a really dark place and I knew it's not what I wanted for my life, me knowing that I wasn't being the best for my life. I was at a really dark place and I knew it's not what I wanted for my life, me knowing that I wasn't being the best for my son and I didn't want this vicious cycle to continue. My brothers have already gone through a couple of OD situations my son seeing one of my brothers OD, seeing my father OD. So it was like I do not want this to continue. I do not want this in my life and if I want to make what you're not changing, you're choosing. So I made a decision to start to do something that I'd never did before, to do something uncomfortable Right, because what I was doing wasn't working. So I needed to see a different version of myself.
Speaker 3:And I know Curtis right. Like I said. You know what I mean. I knew him as a person before he had gotten into this.
Speaker 3:I first met Curtis when he wrote his first book and we just kind of stayed connected and he was just somebody I really looked up to. And when I read that book back then. It's kind of what started me originally, but I was also still so caught up in the street life I was also selling drugs at the time, so you know what I mean. I sold drugs for a long time without ever doing them and then I tried it once. It wasn't a good thing so, yeah, I needed a change. I needed a change and it sure did. You know what I mean, and that was something that I feel like still even to this day.
Speaker 3:Some people, I don't know it's like and this is probably just me, right, but like thinking what's the word that I'm? What are the words that I'm looking for? Imposter syndrome? Imposter syndrome, right, because a little bit of that version is still not dead inside of me. Like, do people see that side of me and don't, you know, believe or think I'm qualified to hold the space that I hold? You know, even though outside validation isn't necessary, it's still something that crosses the mind. It's years of conditioning girl years of conditioning girl.
Speaker 2:I get that. That makes sense. And now, how long after your first virtual did you go to Miami for? For I am so, but I never knew you did that. I never knew.
Speaker 3:Yes, yep, um, it was probably about a year into me practicing Just showing up to the virtuals. Yeah, it was about a year. Yeah, and I needed any reason to travel. I was out.
Speaker 2:Oh my gosh. So you did an in-person breathwork session. Did you notice any difference?
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, completely. I mean, don't get me wrong, virtual is, I mean, clearly as effective, but there's nothing like human connection. There's nothing like it. You can't even this right here. This is beautiful, but you know very well that if you or I were in the same room, it would be that more impactful, right, because we understand energy and although there's no time and space, really there still is something different about the human connection and actually feeling the energy of everybody else in that room. Yeah, I just felt so called to be that space holder. You know, like I think a big part of it was that my cousin came with me and she had done like one or two sessions virtually with me. At that point she wasn't as into it as I was, but she had done a couple of sessions and I think, just seeing some of the breakthroughs that she had gone through and me being able to kind of lead her down that path, I just knew that I could do this for so many other people, because it's lack of knowledge, just educating people.
Speaker 2:So was it after the in-person session that you got certified?
Speaker 3:Yep, it was after that I signed up to the very next teacher training, which was only his second one.
Speaker 2:And now, where did you do teacher training?
Speaker 3:So it's interesting. So when Curtis first launched teacher training, his very first class was with Liz and a couple of other girls that are still a part of the community, but he did level one and then he had launched level two. Level one was in Utah and then he had launched level two was in Miami, actually, oddly enough, in the art district area, I don't know what happened. He was allowing people to come in and do the in-person level two, even if you didn't complete level one, and then you would just do level one online. So I ended up going and it was level two training that I trained in first, and then I had the option to do level one on virtual or to just attend the next one. And that third one that he did is when he combined the two. He did level one and level two in one training, right. So I actually ended up going back to Utah the very next one and I did the full training. So I basically went through level two twice.
Speaker 2:Now I want to transition a tad. You know you've talked a lot about cycles you've wanted to break and you've gone through a lot of shifts in your life, and this is actually a topic you touched upon a little bit in the Breakfast Club I don't know if you'll even remember this, but I do and you talked about changing other people or changing yourself, and I'm curious your thoughts on if we can change other people or if we can assist other people in changing yeah.
Speaker 3:So I think I remember that session that I did where I talked about you know, you can't. I don't believe that you can change people Like you can give people advice, kind of like that old saying you can lead a horse to the water, right, but ultimately it truly needs to be the other person's decision. And I think a lot of us really struggle with expectation Because, you know, from somebody who I feel, like you know I'm in a leadership position pretty much with, I lead breathwork With my job. Now I do remote sales. It's coaching, it's being a leader, right, being able to lead people to make their own decisions. So can you not manipulate, but can you persuade someone to make a better decision for themselves or a worse decision, depending on what you're selling, right, but can you persuade somebody to make a decision that they probably wouldn't be able to make on their own? Because one thing I've learned in sales and in this sales position there's a lot of things I learned in this sales position that I didn't know when I was in insurance and investments they need to restructure their trainings.
Speaker 3:But you know, to be a master salesperson, to be a leader in the sales world, it's about language and it's about asking people questions. It's more so. A lot of what we do is even self-talk therapy, right? People don't really know what they want or need, right? It's like you know, I don't know the Ford guy, right? What did he say? If he asked everybody what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse, right? They didn't know they needed a vehicle until there was one. That was created, right?
Speaker 3:So one thing that I've learned in a leadership role in this position is that even us, like, sometimes, we don't really know what we want. Like you, take 10 people, random people, and ask them this one question what do you want out of life? And this is an exercise that we've gone through, right? What do you want? You'll get random answers, but the ultimate truth is, nobody really knows. I mean, some people have a vision and a plan and a, but that could also change, right? So I don't think that we ever really know what we truly want.
Speaker 3:Because of the great choice, right? Because we always get to make a different decision. We always get to make a different choice if we want to. The most important thing in life is now and being present. We always get to make a different decision. We always get to make a different choice if we want to. The most important thing in life is now being present, and that's something that a lot of people struggle with Constantly in the past, constantly in the future, right, worrying about things that haven't even happened yet or, you know, going back into things that have already happened.
Speaker 2:I get what you mean. So, even though you went through a lot of changes in your life, you think that's because you wanted to make that change 100%.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it had to be me to make the decision, otherwise who knows where I'd be right now.
Speaker 2:But you don't think K think Curtis had influence in that because you tried his breathwork.
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, I mean, he definitely had influence in it because he facilitated that, right. If he didn't find his calling and put it out there and promoted it, of course, who know, I probably would have never been introduced to to breathwork. So I'm super and put it out there and promoted it. Of course, who knows, I probably would have never been introduced to Breathwork. So I'm super grateful for him being the person that he is and being so strong-willed and diving deep into this, making his company the way that it is today, or being who he is today, because without him, I probably wouldn't even know what breathwork was. Maybe, but probably not, because the only reason why I did it was because I knew him, trusted him, liked him no, like trust, right. So, yeah, I mean I would say he had a lot to do with it, but ultimately it was my decision to make the change that I needed to make for myself.
Speaker 2:I get that. So we can't change other people. We can maybe influence them positively, or negatively, absolutely.
Speaker 3:But it's got to come from within. And you know, perfect example of like I'll use my brother. You know, brothers, there's been multiple times that they've gone to rehab, got clean, did their, you know, detoxing and would go, you know, as long as a year or more with being on the sober train and then make a decision. Something bad happens in life and you clutch back, you know, but like, you made that decision, no matter how many times that you've. So it's like you've made the decision to become sober, to try to live a better life. But then something inside of you product of your environment, probably right that you made a decision to go back, knowing what version of your life is better, because you've experienced both already. That would be the reason of the decision. Why did that? What inside of you made that decision to go back? That's something I feel like I struggle with. I don't understand that.
Speaker 2:I get what you mean.
Speaker 3:My cousin went through his fair share of drugs and then rehab and he's better, and then the relapse and yeah, yeah, it's a vicious cycle and so, like if I didn't try that new thing with somebody I knew, liked and trusted, I couldn't very well be on the same path, but I made a decision for myself to do better because I knew better. Right.
Speaker 2:I'm just curious, would you do you consider addiction a disease?
Speaker 3:I think we all have an addiction to something, to be honest, you know, and it's just is it good for you or is it bad for you? Like you, you love to go to the gym. You. Maybe that's an addiction for you, but that's not a bad thing, right? So, like addiction, as far as like drug addiction, I mean, I, I don't know, that's to be honest with you. No, I don't. I think it's. I think it's a choice, truly, truly, truly believe it's a choice and this is, I know, like a lot of people. This is an argumentative topic, but we all have the freedom of choice, right? So it's okay for me to have that choice.
Speaker 3:I'm not, I'm not judging somebody who says that it is a disease because that's their truth, who says that it is a disease because that's their truth. My truth is, I've been in a situation where I feel like I could have very well fallen into addiction, and I have, I have, I was there. I was at a point where I was getting high every fucking day for over a year. So, yeah, I know that that's an addiction, addiction, I was an addict. At that point, I made a choice to not continue that life cycle. I made a choice to stop.
Speaker 3:So if it was a disease, would I be able to recover from it on my own, without medication or help or therapy? Right, because a disease is a dis-ease in the body. How do you cure it? Yeah, usually through medication, right? Or some form of Something? Hemo Breathwork was my medication, right? You know what I mean. Like breathwork was my medication, right? You know what I mean. Like breathwork was my medication, right? Like people don't ask to get cancer or lung disease or Lyme disease. People don't ask to get that. That's something that happens. Right, and to be like I feel like drug addiction is a choice. It's a choice you made.
Speaker 3:And so one thing that we learn very, very early on as human beings is right from wrong, what we can get away with, what we can't get away with, even as babies. Man, you let a baby cry. If you don't let a baby cry, you pick it up every time it cries. Guess what they're going to cry every time? They want to be held, because they learn that that, young, if I cry, I'm going to get picked up. We get taught what's right, what's wrong, right, no, don't do that, don't jump on the table. Well, the right and wrongs we learn, and so, yeah, I think that it's a choice.
Speaker 2:I agree I've struggled with that back and forth a little bit because a lot of my family sees it as a disease. But you know even that before it becomes addiction, you make a choice to do it.
Speaker 3:And we kind of know, like we're kind of educated, that what happens once you you know what I mean Like I think everyone's gone to dare, right, they tell you about drugs and alcohol in school, right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, like even the word heroin, like I don't know all the specifics that can happen from it, but hearing the word. If somebody said to me you want it, I wouldn't do it Right, and you know I couldn't name every single side effect of heroin, but I know it's really bad for you. Yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, now you want to go smoke some? Like, hey, you want to go smoke some crack? No, I don't, that doesn't sound fun. I don't know how you say yes to that.
Speaker 3:And there's like this part of me that like, oh, I was at a spot in my life where I was doing cocaine every day for almost a year, right, and I sold it for a really long time. So I know what it's doing to people. I know it's like doesn't look good, like your skin looks like shit, you look greasy, you don't you greasy, you don't. You just don't look healthy, you don't look good. And so I do understand that when you're in that state of mind, it's easy to follow a path that you start to experiment other things because you're in that lifestyle, right. So there's a lot of people that I would party with today that are, you know, have gone into heroin, have now, you know, now are smoking crack, right, it's like because they made the choice to never step out of that lifestyle. And then it just it spirals. You want to explore new things, you want to get a different high, you know, but you'll never get that first high back, ever, ever. And I feel like that's what most people chase.
Speaker 2:Right, okay, mm-hmm. It makes sense, though, when you mentioned about that spiral after you try something, mm-hmm, I think, even as you mentioned earlier escapism, as you mentioned earlier, like escapism Granted, I would never do heroin, but even I have my history of alcohol and a lot of it was escaping.
Speaker 2:You know, and maybe that's how some of this starts with people. I still don't see it as a disease, because you make that post-initial choice, you know like I have empathy for it, but I don't see it as, yes, empathy is different than compassion, though, right, it's like you can empathize, because it's Going back to the story of my mom.
Speaker 3:People do with what they know, right, and if that's all they know, it's hard for somebody to make a different decision. But also, at the same time, it's like, okay, so what I struggle with is the revolving doors, the individuals that are constantly in and out of rehab. In and out of rehab, it's like you know the choices that you continue to make and your insanity right, it's insanity at that point. So, yeah, it's definitely masking pain, and that's what's so beautiful about breathwork is because I didn't realize how much trauma that I had inside of myself that I was hiding from. That's the truth, and that's why people continue to stay in that spiral, because they don't know how to heal themselves from the trauma or the pain that they're carrying with them. I just got chills Me too. Yeah, Super got chills Me too, mm-hmm. Yeah, super, fucking chills. They don't realize that Because you have tunnel vision, right, you see one one like there, this, this is fucking blocked, this isn't open. You just, there's no peripheral, there's this, that's their life, yeah, and it's kind of sad, and so I think I empathize with that concept of it. I was like damn. And you know there's obviously from the lifestyle that I came from.
Speaker 3:When I first got into this I said I want to take everybody with me, you know, and it's something I really struggled with because it's like I feel like you know, as my friend. How do you look at me and not see how happy and like you know, how much of a different person that I am today? Why wouldn't you want that Right? And so then I would struggle with like oh, like Either you know what you don't, you don't have enough trust in me that I'm going to invite something good in your life, or are you just Really not willing to try something different. But I let that go. You know that was in the beginning stages of you know my journey into building the practice, and then you learn very quickly that you got to find your tribe. You know you connect with like-minded people and and the energy that you put out there is what you're going to attract, and so maybe some relationships and friendships aren't as strong as they once were. But you know we evolve, we change, we grow and that's okay With love and light.
Speaker 2:It's true, you know I kind of had a similar, a similar situation with how I discovered it. You know I wasn't doing heroin, thankfully. But like you know even I jokingly talk about this and I've said it a few times Like I went to your breathless class in January. It was the anniversary of my grandma's passing and I didn't want to sit home and smoke weed. That's what I would have done if I didn't go. I had no idea what the hell it was. You had been talking to me about it for a couple of months and I was like OK, you got two choices I'm either going to smoke weed by myself in misery or I'm going to go to this breathwork class, even though I don't know what it is like.
Speaker 3:And then I get to smoke after.
Speaker 2:But you, you know what I mean and they're like is am I going to feel better from this? No, Do I know if I'm going to feel better from breathwork? At the time I didn't know, but it was like something's got to give Mm-hmm. Exactly, If nothing's working, it's not working. You know you can keep doing the same shit, but yeah, what you're not changing, you're choosing girl.
Speaker 3:That right, there is it, and it's just like life is just too short to not live in fulfillment. And I know that you can resonate with this right, and I think a lot of people have this misconception of like it doesn't mean every day is like a perfect day. You don't get, you know, you don't get anxiety, you don't get stressed out. It's just like yeah, hell, I do. I still deal with shit every day.
Speaker 3:We're human beings, right. We have emotions and we're supposed to. Our days aren't supposed to look the same, right. So there's not a pill for every emotion that we go through. It's called dealing with your shit Right. And so there's healthy ways to deal with your shit and there's unhealthy ways to deal with your shit. Breathwork is a really healthy way to deal with your shit and that's a tool that I have now, when I am having a bad day and I'm stressed out and anxiety and I don't want to be social or just want to sit in my house and I'm masking in my own shit, well, I can go do 10 minutes of breath, work and shift my perspective and be a better person.
Speaker 2:I love how you mentioned that, all the emotions. It's not bad to feel not happy. Go lucky every single day, yeah.
Speaker 3:Like I mean you should majority of your days, because life is too short to be unhappy and unfulfilled. But like life, be life in. Yeah, let life in you know. Yeah, back to like expectations. There are some things that people are going to do to disappoint you and fresher you and throw your energy off and throw your game off. Right, because you have this expectation of who you want this person to be. Or the choices that they make should be better choices, because they need to be better persons for their children. They need to be better persons for themselves, because you can be right, and that is frustrating. That is frustrating, but it's not something that I let consume me anymore, whereas, like, maybe the old version of me would, because I was that person who was always out there. What can I do for you? Can I open my door, even though I don't even want to right now? Right, so I've gotten really comfortable with saying no when I don't want to. When I want to say no, I'm like, okay, yes, when I want to say yes.
Speaker 2:Is there anything that helped you with that?
Speaker 3:That's like yeah, because it was the first time that I started to realize in my life that I should put myself first. I should be fucking selfish, I should have boundaries. I shouldn't be available for everyone every time, because I don't always have the energy. Constantly pouring and pouring and pouring it's like my cup is fucking empty. So yeah, you know, you start to learn your strengths and your weaknesses.
Speaker 2:When you look inside yourself, it's true. What would you say? Breathworks helped you with the most.
Speaker 3:I say myself, like seeing myself, you know, really just tapping into that consciousness and the awareness of like everything is really so minuscule, like everything, and like try not to take life so seriously. You know, like the moment is now Take the risks, take the risks, do the things Right. Book the flight, book the trip, even if you can't make it, give it away, you know, no, but like just be in that, right there. Amanda, like you know, I would have never done that, but like I would have figured a way out. But I was like you know, this is a hard decision that I need to make and, as a mother, is it more important for me to be here for my son because things changed, or am I just going to say no, fuck, that I'm going to go to Bali. It just wasn't the time Right, so it wasn't the time right. So it wasn't the time, and I'm okay with that because there will be another time. But like that version of like before I would have been like no, he'll be all right, he'll figure it out.
Speaker 2:No, so before Meg wouldn't have stayed to help him. No.
Speaker 3:Definitely not.
Speaker 2:So how did this shift in you?
Speaker 3:Just realizing that I need to be a better person to myself. For him he's the reason, because it wasn't just about me anymore. No, wasn't just about me anymore. No, I think my son was already like. He was already like nine, going on 10 at that point, you know, when I realized that I had gone, like I was really not not in a good spot.
Speaker 2:I get that Now. Have you heard of a man named Jay Shetty? Mm-hmm. Yeah, I'm a big fan, big fan. He's got a podcast called On Purpose and he adds his podcast with two segments, and I end mine with them as well.
Speaker 3:I love that. Yes, I have listened to quite a few of his good stuff.
Speaker 2:Maybe you will be good at these questions. Everybody hates me for these questions. Here's the first segment is the many sides to us. There's five questions and they need to be answered in one word each. What is one word someone who was meeting you for the first time would use to describe you as?
Speaker 3:I would say fun.
Speaker 2:What is one word that someone who knows you extremely well would use to describe you as Supportive? What is one word you'd use to describe yourself Reliable? What is one word that, if someone didn't like you or agree with your mindset, would you use to describe you as?
Speaker 3:Check yourself. If someone didn't like me, I would say Mira, why would they call you that? I would say the word that they need to use is Mira, because if there's something you don't like about me, it's probably something that you don't like within yourself.
Speaker 2:What is one word you're trying to embody right now?
Speaker 3:Well, it's not just one word, it's two. Sorry, but it's just be. That's my mantra for 2025. To be present, to try to be my most present person this year. Really focus on the now.
Speaker 2:Second segment is the final five, and these can be answered in a sentence what is the best advice you've heard or received? Hmm, I would say go with your gut feeling.
Speaker 3:Why is that the best? Because it never stares you wrong. I can go back to different scenarios in my life where I didn't and it wasn't the best choice.
Speaker 2:That's fair. What is the worst advice you've heard or received?
Speaker 3:I don't know, that's a really tough one. I would say. What's coming to mind is just make it work, because sometimes things aren't supposed to work and I've heard that quite a few times. Like, just make it work, like no, maybe it's not meant to.
Speaker 2:Maybe it's not meant to. I like that. What is something that you used to value that you no longer value? Other people's opinions you used to value that you no longer value Other people's opinions. If you could describe what you would want your legacy to be as if someone was reading it, what would you want it to say? I?
Speaker 3:would. It's funny, I was just talking to Jasmine about this the other day. You know, I would have to say the fact that I've been able to create an impact on people's lives, and I know that one thing that I've read. It's like people will forget something you say, but they will never forget how you made them feel, something that I will honor. I mean, even you know the gratitude messages that I've received from you over the last few years, and just you know other people that I've been able to lead to the in-breath work right to see better versions of themselves and heals parts of themselves that they thought would never be healed. That is something that I am so, so, so proud of.
Speaker 2:If you could create one law in the world that everyone had to follow, what would it be? And I want to know, oh shit.
Speaker 3:Wow, that's tough. So many things come to mind. I feel like anybody who gets government assistance should be drug tested. Why? Because it's basically government assistance is like other people's money, right, it's our taxpayers' money, majority right. Like it's not really the government giving you money. It's taxpayers' money and if you need assistance, I get it. I have had assistance and you shouldn't be using it for your leisure. You should be using it to survive and you know. If you're using it for leisure, then that means you don't really need it. Right. And typically somebody who gets assistance is a parent and if they're using it for leisure, then they're not given to their children. Really important.
Speaker 2:That's true. That makes a lot of sense. Well, thank you so much for speaking. I thank you for having me here, of course, and no pressure, but do you have any final words for the listeners? I always like to leave it back to the guest, sure.
Speaker 3:Just, you don't want, you don't want to live in regret. So do the things. Just do the things Right. You never know if something's going to work for you if you never try, because you miss 100% of the shots that you don't take.
Speaker 2:Going to work for you if you never try, because you miss 100% of the shots that you don't take.
Speaker 3:I love that. I had that on a bookmark when I was like eight years old.
Speaker 2:Love what you embody in that shit now.
Speaker 3:Don't be you. Well, thank you so much, and we're going to listen to this, connect with you. Ig you can find me at the Emotional Anchor. It's pretty much the brand right there Facebook, megan Escobar, but IG is probably the best place.
Speaker 2:And I will link that in the show notes for you guys to connect with Meg directly. And thank you so much again. I really appreciate it. What an incredible conversation with Megan Escobar. What an incredible conversation with Megan Escobar. I don't know about y'all, but I feel share not only their wins and their successes, but all the messy middle in between, the parts where the real transformation and the real growth happens. So thank you and shout out to Meg for her authenticity in this episode.
Speaker 2:One thing that really drove home for me that Meg shared is about the importance of choosing choosing to change. Meg reminded us that while others may guide us, mentor us or influence us, may guide us, mentor us or influence us, at the end of the day it is down to us to make the decision to shift our life. It's your decision to shift your life that comes from within. Whether it's breaking family cycles, healing from trauma or taking the first uncomfortable step towards something new, it all begins with a choice. I had a choice that January, back in 2023, when I was choosing am I going to sit home and sulk in my misery or am I going to experience breathwork detox with Vaganeshkavar? You probably wouldn't be listening to me right now if I soaked in my sadness. That being said, we make choices every day. We make multiples of them. It all begins with a choice.
Speaker 2:Meg's story, my story they are both living proof of how choices, no matter how hard, can lead to something beautiful. I had two choices that night of Mimi's anniversary. I could have smoked weed by myself and wallowed in self-pity, or I could have gone to this breathwork detox class, and I did the latter. I'd be okay if I did the first, but I would not have created the change and shift that I have. I would not have shifted my mindset the way I have. I also loved how Meg talked about boundaries and pouring into yourself first. How many of us have been the rock for others, putting everyone else first While neglecting ourselves? Meg's journey reminded me how essential it is to show up for yourself, because that's where the real growth and healing begins, and you can't be there or support other people Even her son, as she mentioned If she is not pouring into her own cup and y'all. Let's not overlook the power and the magic of breathwork in Meg's story To think that one virtual session could spark such profound transformation. It's a reminder that sometimes the smallest decisions can lead to the biggest breakthroughs. Megan's courage to trust the process is such an inspiring example of what can happen when we listen to our gut and take the leap into the unknown. So much in life is unknown.
Speaker 2:Take the verse. If you're feeling stuck or weighed down by old patterns, take Meg's advice Do the thing. Try the thing that scares you or feels unfamiliar or weird. Try the thing. What you're not changing, you're choosing, whether it's breathwork, therapy, journaling or something entirely different. Give yourself the chance to see life from a new perspective. What do you have to lose? You try therapy and it doesn't help, so you try something else. But if you're trying up, then you're going to stay exactly where you are.
Speaker 2:Lastly, I want to leave you with one of my favorite moments from this conversation, when Meg said what you're not changing, you're choosing. That hit so deep for me and I think it's such a powerful takeaway for all of us. If something in your life isn't working, ask yourself am I willing to keep choosing this, or is it time to make a different choice? If Meg's story resonated with you, make sure to connect with her on Instagram at the Emotional Anchor. You can also front her on Facebook, megan Escobar, if this episode moved you or sparked something inside of you, I encourage you to share this episode with someone you think needs to hear it.
Speaker 2:Don't forget to follow along, rate the podcast, leave a review. It helps me and this mindset grow and get out to more and new people, and I'm trying to help people shift their mindsets and shift the way they look at and show up in the world. Because, as always, if nothing changes, nothing changes. Thank you, guys, so much for spending time with me and tuning in to another episode of Meander's Mindset. And, as a reminder, meander's Mindset is going on hiatus from February 2nd until March 10th. March 10th we will be back with a new episode. Meander's is off to Bali, so stay tuned. Most chance we'll be back. Thanks guys, until next time. In case no one told you today, I'm proud of you, I'm booting for you and you got this, as always. If you enjoyed the show, I would really appreciate it if you would leave me a five star rating, leave a review and share it with anyone you think would benefit from this. And don't forget you are only one mindset. Shift away from shifting your life. Thanks guys, until next time.
