top of page
Welcome to the Mainspring Family Wellness Podcast
This podcast is for parents pursuing both personal growth and family wellness. We cover relevant topics that help us reflect, make educated choices, and parent effectively.
Meet your hosts
Dr. Jenna Flowers
Marriage and Family Therapist, author of the “Conscious Parent’s Guide to Coparenting”, speaker, and mother of 3.
Kristen Perlmutter
Educator, philanthropist, and mother of 3 who’s passionate about personal growth and seeing families at their optimal wellness.
Recent Podcasts
Podcast 37: Nonprofit Spotlight featuring CEO Jennifer Friend at Project Hope Alliance
Episode 37. Project Hope Alliance (PHA) is a local organization based in Costa Mesa, California serving youths in Orange County who are experiencing homelessness. Their mission is to end the cycle of homelessness, one child at a time. PHA has full-time case managers working within the public school system, deploying long-term model of care to eliminate the barriers brough on by homelessness that could impede a child’s ability to learn and succeed in school. The PHA team builds trusting relationships with students and offers individualized support in the form of transportation, technology, basic needs, and social-emotional mentorship from kindergarten to age 24.
Using Hypnosis with Children to Address Mental, Emotional, and Physical Challenges
Dr. Ran Anbar from Center Point Medicine joins us for Episode 36: Using Hypnosis with Children to Address Mental, Emotional and Physical Challenges. Dr. Anbar, MD, FAA
One on one learning engages the whole child with fusion academy
Fusion Academy's Heads of School in Mission Viejo and Huntington Beach Venessa Kayrell and Robin Podway join Mainspring to share how reaching children who have previously struggled in the school traditional system because of learning issues, mental health issues, or needing an alternative scheduling for school are thriving, and even thriving during Covid. Kayrell and Podway help assuage that it's never too late to develop critical thinking schools even if you feel like your child is behind because of the Pandemic. This podcast also touches on twice exceptional students and how to support this very specific learner.
Developing a Pro Mindset for Youth Athletes with Asante Cleveland
Retired NFL Player Asante Cleveland of 49ers, San Diego Chargers, and Philadelphia Patriots fame knows quite a lot about what it takes to become a professional athlete. Asante shares his story as a young athlete, the mentors he had that developed his skills, and most importantly how he developed the mental toughness necessary to play Division I Football and eventually in the NFL. Now Asante has developed a program for youth athletes to grow their "Pro Mindset" at Mainspring Family Wellness Center. Asante has such a passion for imparting wisdom and changing perspectives in young athletes, this is a show that will inspire and great for your children to listen to as well.
Supporting Local Foster Care Youth at CASAOC with Susan Kenny
CASA OC is an organization that provides volunteer special advocates and pairs them with foster youth in Orange County. Chief Advancement Officer for CASA OC, Susan Kenny educates the Mainspring Family Wellness community about the foster care system, becoming a special advocate, and how all of us can support this very important organization in Orange County. A thought-provoking discussion with inspiring stories that offer much-needed perspective as we move into this Thanksgiving season.
Empowering Tween Girls with Confidence, Connection, and Kindness with Dr. Carli Snyder and Rachel Hoeft, MA
Raising Tween girls well in this world can seem like an uphill battle. Dr. Jenna Flowers interviews Kristen Perlmutter, Executive Director of Mainspring Family Wellness, Dr. Carli Snyder of Girl Nation, and Sports Performance Coach and Doctoral Candidate Rachel Hoeft to discuss True Tribe, a mini-retreat Mainspring is offering this Fall to support tween girls in fostering confidence in their performance in whatever they love, awareness about the negative messages for girls in social media, and the value of being kind.
Using the Enneagram to Understand the Pandemic with Lisa Morrice Pt. 2
Enneagram expert Lisa Morrice joins Mainspring to help us understand the Enneagram and how we can better understand how we each have related to the pandemic based on our personalities. A thoughtful discussion with Lisa which is a two-parter.
Using the Enneagram to Understand the Pandemic with Lisa Morrice
Enneagram expert Lisa Morrice joins Mainspring to help us understand the Enneagram and how we can better understand how we each have related to the pandemic based on our personalities. A thoughtful discussion with Lisa which is a two-parter.
The Benefits of Chiropractic Care for Families w/ Dr. Kevin Priestley
Seasoned Chiropractor Dr. Kevin Priestley shares with Mainspring Family Wellness about the mind-body connection and how chiropractic supports optimum health for children and during pregnancy. Dr. Priestley covers some of the myths about chiropractic care and a range of topics relevant to families like antibiotics, pain management medicine, sleep, and sports injury. We also cover COVID-19 protocols when people get adjusted and how chiropractic can be a preventative method to build a healthy immune system.
Bringing the Values of Summer Camp Home
Along with so many things that have changed for families this summer, saying goodbye to away camp during Covid-19 is another loss. Camp directors Sarah Kuljis and Audrey Monke join Kristen and Jenna to share some excellent ideas on how to invite the beauty of nature and the values that camp introduces into our homes this summer.
Supplementing Our Children's Education During Post Quarantine
Quarantine has hit families with school-age children very hard. So many parents are struggling with working from home and trying to salvage their children’s education for the year. Some schools have been able to adapt quickly and provide platforms to make this easier, and there have been some school districts that have not been able to make this transition as well, which has left parents feeling anxious and overburdened with how to best support their children during this crazy time. Founder of Seashore Academy, Marlene Dandler joins us to share a possible supplemental solution during this time that may be a helpful resource during quarantine, and also share some tips from seasoned homeschooling experience how to support families that have been thrust into teaching at home because of quarantine.
Managing Grief During Quarantine w/ Nola Casserly MFT
All of us have had to manage grief, loss, and disappointment during quarantine. The pandemic has stirred health, financial and social stressors across the world. Our children have also experienced loss during this time. The episode with Marriage & Family Therapist Nola Casserly unpacks how to navigate the conversations for parents and children about loss during quarantine.
CBD and it Efficacy in the Treatment of Children
An interesting education about medicinal CBD and how it is currently being used to treat children and adults. We had the pleasure to interview Osteopathic Medical Physician Dr. Junella Chin and a CBD expert based in New York and learned a lot about choosing CBD as a treatment. It's a must listen!
Balancing Work and Family as a Working Mom
Mainspring is proud to present podcast 1 in our Women in Business Series featuring Newport Beach Compass Real Estate Agents Annie Clougherty and Neda DeSigio. Being a working mom and balancing family can be quite a challenge. This is a particular challenge when you also want to be very successful in your business and equally successful at home. Annie and Neda share from their own experience as working moms what the balancing act has looked like for themselves, and how they manage some of the tougher aspects of working and family like organization, communication with their partners, and guilt.
Mainspring Family Wellness Launch Event
Marriage and Family Therapist Nola Casserly speaks at a live podcast about the order of self, partnership and raising children. In a powerful discussion with Dr. Jenna and Kristen and Nola relevant themes about raising children in this current age are discussed and why community is also key to raising children well. Questions from the audience are shared and discussed. It's a must listen!
Why Yoga Works
Yoga Instructors Andrea Martin and Rachel Peterson share how Yoga can transform adults and children. Yoga for self regulation can be accessible to anyone at any time and anywhere. Kristen and Dr. Jenna delve further with Andrea and Rachel about how Yoga for Children can be a helpful coping skill and the modeling of yoga from parent to child helps to offer a common language in reducing stress and staying present.
How To Talk About Sex With Your Kids with Annette Castillo
Annette Castillo, RN shares how to speak to your children about sex education and current challenges for parents and for teens when addressing the conversation.
The Sugden's Story: Adopting and Raising a Biological Daughter with Special Needs
Dave and Marni Sugden share their journey of when they set out to adopt a child and then discovered they were pregnant. The Sugdens discovered their biological daughter had unilateral deafness and cerebral palsy. Dave and Marni share their experience of how they adjusted to their parenting challenges and continued to persevere to create a the family life they both desired.
Parenting Differently Wired Children with Author Debbie Reber
Debbie Reber, Author and Founder of Tilt Parenting a community for parents with differently wired children shares her personal journey with son Asher, and how communities can be more inclusive of differently wired children. Debbie also speaks further about the Tilt Parenting Community which was a vision she had to help parents all over the world receive support and resources from fellow parents also raising children who are differently wired.
Surviving Grief and Finding Solace as a Parent with Jeanne Pepper Bernstein
In 2018 Jeanne Pepper Bernstein's college age son Blaze Bernstein was murdered in Orange County during Winter Break. Jeanne shares her journey about moving forward from loss and finding solace in advocacy for kindness and LGBTQ.
How Summer Camp Helps Raise Thriving Children
Audrey Monke and Sarah Kuljis Camp Directors of Gold Arrow and Yosemite Sierra respectively share their insights and wisdom on what life skills children gain by going to summer camp. Both share personally how camp influenced their own upbringing and guided their choices as people and as parents.
Conscious Coparenting with Dr. Jenna Flowers and Coparent Erik Flowers
Dr. Jenna Flowers and her Coparent Erik Flowers discuss how conscious coparenting is a paradigm shift from how most people think about parenting after divorce. Both Erik and Dr. Jenna share their insights about how they work together with raising their three children in two separate homes.
Entitlemania with Author Richard Watts
Are well intentioned parents inadvertently raising entitled children? How are we as parents contributing to the problem of entitlement which is becoming an epidemic in the United States. Author Richard Watts share his wisdom as a parent himself and advisor to the extremely affluent what he has observed as the challenges of wealth, and how to raise kids to respect their own capabilities and not expect their parents to do everything for them. You don't want to miss this. In fact we had so much to discuss we needed to make this podcast in two segments!
Managing Test Anxiety for our Teen with Guest Nick Standlea
Nick offers Mainspring listeners some test anxiety management tips and shares more in depth about how Orange County families can hold a healthy perspective on testing during the college admission season.
Transitioning Picky Eater to Whole Food Eaters with Chef Carrie Paul
Chef Carrie shares her own experiences with supporting her daughter from combatting food allergies with diet change and her family philosophy of whole food eating, as well as educating her cooking students on how to eat delicious food but also keeping it healthy whole food.
Have an idea for an upcoming episode? Do you want to be a guest on our show? If so, contact us today!
bottom of page