Carly Robison from A Light in the Darkness shares tips and strategies to get through dark times in your life, in a way that will help you to use them to become BETTER instead of BITTER. She and her guests will give specific lessons on how they got through their trials, or live with them as they stick around for long periods of time. You will find strength, hope, love, and a better understanding of why God allows us to suffer. This is a Christian podcast, using faith based principles as a way to find light in your own personal darkness.
Episodes
Wednesday Oct 14, 2020
Wednesday Oct 14, 2020
Heidi was raised by wonderful parents, Dan & Patricia Potts in West Jordan, UT. She has 3 sisters, and they adopted her brother when she was about 15. Heidi went to Snow College after high school and met her husband, Jason Hamilton, who had just returned from his mission. They got married in the Salt Lake City Temple in May of 2000. Heidi graduated from the University of Utah in 2002 with a degree in communications and business. She worked for the Forest Service for 8 years before she had my first baby, and then became a stay-at-home mom. Heidi and Jason now have 6 children. She enjoys being a mother and wife. She also enjoys reading, trail running, hiking, triathlons, family history, digital scrapbooking, and traveling.
In this episode Heidi Hamilton then tells us about her sweet son Link. She talks about all of the tender mercies that came from his short life, and shares about him ultimately passing away suddenly due to Sudden Unexplained Infant Death, or SIDS. Heidi gives us some of the strategies she uses in her life as she has dealt with grief and heartache over losing her sweet baby boy, and trying to help her family heal from such a devastating loss.
You can reach out to Heidi through her email at sunkist64@hotmail.com
To read more about Link's story read Heidi's blog here: http://jhhamiltonhappenings.blogspot.com/p/links-story.html?m=1
To learn more about SIDS or support their research efforts, click here: https://www.sids.org/
The talk Heidi shared that changed her perspective: https://devotionalarchive.byuh.edu/node/332.html
To learn more or donate to the Ronald McDonald house in Utah click here: https://connect.clickandpledge.com/w/Form/abf36fa8-4e83-4397-b7f5-062090a878ec
To learn more or donate to the Ronald McDonald House in Philadelphia click here: https://www.philarmh.org/donate/
To learn more about the Family History Work the Hampton's do on Link's angelversary click here: https://www.familysearch.org/en/
Wednesday Oct 07, 2020
Wednesday Oct 07, 2020
Tiffany Jarrett grew up in Orem Utah as an active member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Her dad is a convert, and her mom has 7 kids in her family and is one of only 3 active members. Tiffany feels super lucky that they were able to stay active and give her that in her life. Although Tiffany did not attend college, she did put 2 husbands through so that should count for something!
Tiffany shares with us the story of her first marriage to a BYU football player who used steroids to help him "fit in" with the other talented players, which eventually ended up with him being addicted to meth and in and out of jail. She tells of the difficult times throughout the next 6 years, that ultimately ended in divorce.
Tiffany is currently married to an amazing man (MY BROTHER) whom she plans to keep forever. Together they have 3 miracle children that are their world, and 2 golden doodles that are part of the family too! She gets to stay at home with her kids which is a dream come true, and also does lots of designing, staging, woodworking on the side! Nick and Tiffany just built a new home in Mapleton Utah, and are loving their new area and home!
If you want to get in tough with tiffany she can be reached at tiffanyjarrett12@gmail.com
The book that was life changing for Tiffany to read: He Did Deliver Me From Bondage
The LDS Addiction Recovery program can be found HERE
Wednesday Sep 30, 2020
Wednesday Sep 30, 2020
David Chatterton was born and raised in Murray, Utah, and is the 4th of 5 children. David is married to Lindsy Chatterton and together they have 3 children, Tate, Niya, and Zoey; with losses of baby Mack, Arie and Liam. Their family lives in South Jordan, Utah and enjoy the outdoors, yard work, managing their rental properties, and spending time together. David has worked for University of Utah Health for 18 years, with more than 15 of those years in progressive management. He is a licensed Registered Nurse and has a Master’s of Science Degree in Nursing.
David shares with us in this extended episode a story full of heartache, fear, strength, hope, faith, and miracles. When he was a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints he was kidnapped at gunpoint and held for ransom for 3 days. He shares lessons and strategies he has learned throughout his experiences that have shaped him into the man he is today.
David is a humanitarian with a special interest in healthcare for the immigrant populations, and is an active board member with Healing Hands for Haiti. He and his wife also have their own non-profit "Haiti's Heart" and together have spent over 18 years dedicating heart, faith, time and family serving those in need.
http://www.healinghandsforhaiti.org
Wednesday Sep 23, 2020
Wednesday Sep 23, 2020
Nathan Ogden has taught thousands how to conquer their fears and move from paralysis to progress through eliminating excuses in their lives. He is a wheelchair athlete, co-creator of the non-profit Chair The Hope, and author of the book Unfrozen and co-authored Resilience and Leadership In Trying Times, both #1 Bestsellers. Nathan is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, trainer, and coach.
Nathan loves to live life and has experienced snow skiing, snorkeling, skydiving, completing a half triathlon, rappelling off a 150-foot cliff, and morerecently riding a hand-powered bicycle 1,200 miles with his family raising money for, and personally delivering wheelchairs needed in underdeveloped countries. Nathan lives in Boise, Idaho, and is married to a beautiful wife with four children. His courage and determination give hope and power to all who know him and hear his messages.
If you want to contact Nathan for a speaking engagement, or to speak with him personally, you can connect with him at https://nathanogden.com
If you want to learn more about, or donate to, his nonprofit organization Chair The Hope, you can find information here: https://chairthehope.org
Wednesday Sep 16, 2020
Wednesday Sep 16, 2020
Today we are doing things a little differently. I am speaking with Laura Woodruff, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, about the importance of taking our mental health seriously, and how to deal with grief and trauma in our lives. Laura got her Bachelors and Masters Degree in Social Work from Brigham Young University and has been a therapist for 22 years. She specializes in working with anxiety, depression, PTSD, and grief work and works with teens, couples, individuals and families. Laura has been trained in EMDR, and has enjoyed utilizing this tool to help people with PTSD. For the first ten years of her career Laura worked with teens and families at a crisis center for youth, as well as various residential treatment centers for youth. Then for ten years she worked at Family Services for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and for the last 2-3 years Laura has had her own practice situated in West Jordan, Utah. Laura has been married for 24 years, and has five kids. In her spare time, she enjoys gardening, photography, and spending time with her family and two dogs.
The talk Laura shared from President Russell M. Nelson: Drawing the Power Of Jesus Christ Into Our Lives
Wednesday Sep 09, 2020
Wednesday Sep 09, 2020
Brandie Paterakis graduated from the University of Utah with her Masters Degree in Social work. She has a true love for life and it is apparent in her larger than life positive attitude, and her ability to make her home an energetic environment. Brandie enjoys spending time with her husband of 22 years, and her four dramatic teenage daughters. They enjoy being fun and crazy, while always looking for projects and activities to do together as a family.
Brandie shares with us the story of her father, Fire Fighter Robin L. Pilcher. Captain Pilcher passed away due to pancreatic cancer, which he got due to breathing in toxins while being a part of Utah's Task Force 1, who were sent to New York to help with recovery efforts after September 11th. Brandie talks about how her dad taught her to use humor and laughter to get through difficult times. She shares amazing stories from his experiences, and really helps us to remember there are people who are STILL suffering from the effects of the attacks that day.
You can learn more about Captain Pilcher and other heroes here: https://heroslastcall.wordpress.com
You can contact Brandie at South Point Counseling Services, or on social media @BrandiePilcherPaterakis
You can learn more about the FealGood Foundation and how to help other first responders here: https://fealgoodfoundation.com
You can see the pictures Brandie mentioned of her father and their family in a blog post I wrote about this episode here:
Wednesday Sep 02, 2020
Wednesday Sep 02, 2020
Wednesday Aug 26, 2020
Wednesday Aug 26, 2020
Heidi Totten is an eclectic wife and mother of two relatively normal children. She spent her early career building technical teams around the world during the dot com era, and ten years ago launched her own business helping entrepreneurs and small businesses go global by embracing social media and online marketing.
Heidi has helped hundreds of entrepreneurs over the past 3 years. She runs Heidi Totten Consulting (www.heiditotten.com) and The Eclectic Entrepreneurs (www.eclecticentrepreneurs.com) as a way to help the most people possible during her one crazy life. In her spare time, she is the Executive Director of 100 Humanitarians International, (www.100humanitarians.com) a grassroots non-profit that focuses on mentoring families in economic development in Kenya, Africa. She has taken over 200 people on 18 expeditions.
Her happy place is hauling down roads in Kenya in dusty jeeps, but she is also known for her love of tacos, guacamole, and chocolate.
Wednesday Aug 19, 2020
Wednesday Aug 19, 2020
Carrie Larson Johnson was raised in South Jordan, Utah, where she was taught by the example of her parents to love and live the gospel of Jesus Christ. Her life has been a series of detours on a joyous journey full of tender mercies. Carrie’s greatest passion is talking about and teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In December of 2015, Carrie was injured in a car accident, which resulted in major physical injuries and learning to walk and talk again. In this episode we talk about the things Carrie has learned through that experience. She knows, without a doubt, she was saved to testify of God’s goodness, that miracles have not ceased, and that joy can be found in the darkest places. Carrie enjoys life! She finds humor in nearly everything and loves to laugh. Carrie is married to “the man of her dreams,” the mother of a beautiful, sassy-pants daughter, and a hilarious son-in-law, none of whom she could ever do without.
Carrie can be found on social media at Carrie Larson Johnson.
Carrie's blog/website: Joy Cometh In the Mourning
A blog post I wrote about Carrie and her JOY: Finding Joy In My Journey
Wednesday Aug 12, 2020
Wednesday Aug 12, 2020
Heather was raised in Riverton, Ut, and is the 4th of 8 kids. She graduated from high school and married her high school sweetheart, Dan Doney, in March 2000. They have 4 pretty cool kids ages 17, 15, 13, and 11. Heather loves to entertain, make new friends, and make people laugh. She's loved to dance since she was little and has learned to enjoy working out. She decided to combine the two things, and she became a certified Zumba instructor in 2011. She taught for almost 7 years when she had to quit because she was experiencing a lot of health challenges which led her in many different directions trying to figure out what was causing her health problems. Heather was diagnosed with Lyme Disease in January 2018 and it's been quite the journey for her - but she's since made social media accounts sharing the "happy habits" she's adopted into her life over the years. Since doing some treatments to combat the Lyme, Heather is doing well. She's continued to try and stay active and recently fulfilled a dream of having a viral video of her teaching Zumba in her backyard to all of her neighbors while they socially distanced during the quarantine. It's been viewed over 30 million times, featured on Good Morning America, PBS News Hours, local news stations, and even interviewed with Instagram guru Jay Shetty, and caught the attention of celebrities like Khloe Kardashian and Demi Lovato and The Kelly Clarkson Show. It's been a fun few months as she's learned the ins and outs of having a viral video. She hopes to inspire others to not give up when challenges seem unbearable, all while laughing along the way.
If you want to contact Heather you can find her on Facebook at "Happy Habits With Heather D." and on Instagram @heathers_happy_habits
You can also find her viral video here.
Wednesday Aug 05, 2020
Wednesday Aug 05, 2020
As a survivor from the earthquake in Haiti in 2010, Williamson takes advantage of every moment, experience, and opportunity he is given in life. Those 27 hours under the rubble caused him to search for God, and he joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints 6 months later. He served a mission in his own country, and then moved to the U.S. to study in 2015. While studying here he also met the love of his life. He has shared his near death experience in many schools and functions all over Utah and Haiti. His passion is to empower youth all over the world to believe in themselves. Through a lot of hard work - he now owns his own small business, and is the founder of a non-profit organization ARISE Project for Humanity. Arise empowers youth in Haïti to believe in themselves and change their own community. He continues to take trips back to his home country with his organization. They are now building the first Mentoring Center in the Southern Haiti. Williamson is also a husband and father of 3 and lives with his family in Bountiful, Utah. In all of life's challenges, Williamson searches for a way to remain positive and hopeful.
Blog post Carly wrote using Williamson's story as inspiration: https://carlyrobison.org/2018/07/15/i-will-not-shrink/
ARISE website: https://www.ariseprojectforhumanity.com
Wednesday Jul 29, 2020
Wednesday Jul 29, 2020
Becky Mackintosh is a popular speaker known for her inspirational stories, honest approach and open heart. She enjoys traveling, humanitarian work and caramel apples. She is the best-selling author of Love Boldly: Embracing your LGBTQ Loved Ones and Your Faith. She is the proud and humbled mother of seven children and an ever-growing number of grandchildren. She lives in Lehi, Utah, with her husband, Scott, in a nest that’s never quite empty.
After one of her sons came out as gay, Becky found herself becoming more open about her experiences as a Latter-day Saint mother of an LGBTQ loved one. As more people learned of her story, she began receiving emails and calls from other concerned parents of LGBTQ children as well as the LGBTQ themselves. Since then, she has armed herself with helpful tools, having completed certifications in QPR and Youth Mental Health First Aid as well as a Grief Support.
The Mackintosh family was filmed for the "Mormon and Gay" website, a video that now has over a million views. If you'd like to learn why, you can visit:
You can reach Becky on social media, or on her website http://www.beckymackintosh.com
You can find Becky's book here: Love Boldly: Embracing Your LGBTQ Love Ones and Your Faith
Wednesday Jul 22, 2020
Wednesday Jul 22, 2020
Drew Young is a native of the east coast, and now resides in Utah with his wife and daughter. He studied at Brigham Young University where he helped in teaching and developing curriculum for various student development courses. He’s been sharing his story with numerous audiences for the past five years, and has been featured in LDS Living's YouTube series and magazine.
Drew shares his story of battling separation anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts after coming home early from his LDS mission. He said "It was in these moments that I learned a valuable lesson: we all have a mission, both in and out of the Church, and there is meaning in our missions. Regardless of what we may be going through: struggling with pornography addiction, lack of testimony, same sex attraction, feeling lonely and forgotten, experiencing mental illness, etc, there is purpose behind our pain, and there is hope in our struggle. It's up to us: are we going to go through life, or grow through life?"
You can contact Drew on Facebook (Drew Young, Cedar Fort Books) and Instagram (@mrdrewbyoung)
You can order Drew's book on Amazon and at Cedar Fort Publishing.
Wednesday Jul 15, 2020
Wednesday Jul 15, 2020
“ Love where you live.” That’s the mission of Utah Realtor Jake Melton. He has moved 12 times in the last 8 years and has come to appreciate what it means to live somewhere you love. He helps his clients not only find homes they love, but makes sure they are also in love with their neighborhoods and communities.
Along with being a licensed real estate agent, Jake is a public speaker, author, and mental health advocate. In 2018, Jake published Minimalize to Maximize Your Happiness: Cut the Crap, a book about the essence of minimalism and what it means to live a simplified, decluttered life. (You can purchase it here.) He has spoken to thousands on stages around the country and was a leading voice on LinkedIn in 2019.
Jake initially pursued minimalism at a point in his life when he couldn’t find any other options to cope with his mental health struggles. Diagnosed with anxiety, depression, and PTSD, he has also dealt with Tourette Syndrome since he was a little boy. Jake has become a proud voice and representative for the Tourette Association of America and spends as much time as he can supporting Tourette Syndrome and other mental health causes.
He, his wife of 8 years, and their two beautiful children live in Salt Lake City, UT. He loves real estate, design, exploration, traveling, Diet Coke, personal development, basketball, music, bbq, and the beach.
If you’d like to get in touch with Jake, either to hire him as your Realtor or to book him to speak, you can visit his website www.meltonrealtyteam.com or reach him via social media @slchomeboy
Wednesday Jul 08, 2020
Wednesday Jul 08, 2020
CANCER PATIENT TRIGGER WARNING: Tina Kirkman is a military wife, mother, and lover of all things football! Tina's husband KC is a former Air Force reserve member who served our country right after September 11th happened, and who is currently serving in the National Guard. Over the years Tina has had some pretty big challenges throughout her life - including multiple cancer diagnoses, overcoming an addiction to prescription drugs, and most recently the loss of her Father In Law to COVID-19. Through her challenges Tina has learned to focus on the positive, and keep going no matter what. Tina was ultimately diagnosed with terminal cancer, and in April 2019 she and her husband had to make one of the most difficult decisions of their lives. She is now doing her best to live in the moment, and create lasting memories with her loved ones.
If you want to contact Tina you can email her at kcandtina@hotmail.com
Tuesday Jun 30, 2020
Tuesday Jun 30, 2020
Wednesday Jun 24, 2020
Wednesday Jun 24, 2020
On this episode Carly interviews Jodi Pettit. Jodi Pettit is a wife, mother of 5, medical laboratory scientist & an athlete. At the age of 19 she was diagnosed with severe rheumatoid arthritis. At the time a rheumatologist advised Jodi to not have children. The doctor stated that her disease was severe, her best hope was to slow down the progression, and that she would be wheel chair bound within a decade and that having children she couldn’t care for was selfish and irresponsible. This was devastating news to a young newly wed who had dreams of a family and an active lifestyle with her husband. With the support of her husband Jodi learned to live with her disease and have a family. She has cared for her children and always stayed active and achieved big goals. Jodi has ran 8 marathons, countless half’s, a Full Ironman, a handful of Half Ironman’s and XTERRA off road triathlon qualifying for and racing in their World Championship race in Maui in 2018. She has not missed a day of actively moving since December 10, 2013. Her passion and goal is to share hope, by sharing her story Jodi hopes to inspire in others a desire to fight their own battles. No matter how dark, painful, depressing the circumstances you may be facing, they do not need to be permanent. There is joy, success and happiness to be found in the journey. Jodi Pettit has found light in her personal darkness.
You can get in contact with Jodi on Facebook at Jodi Brunson Pettit.
Sunday Jun 14, 2020
Sunday Jun 14, 2020
In this first episode Carly Robison shares her own story of finding light in her personal darkness. We find out that she has essentially been living the "pandemic lifestyle" for over 10 years, after being diagnosed with severe food allergies, including being extremely sensitive to airborne peanuts/peanut butter. This allergy has made it so she is pretty much home bound, and unable to participate in a lot of life. Isolation, loneliness, and occasional hopelessness led her to find ways to keep a positive mindset while facing her own "new normal." Carly started this podcast so she can share the things she's learned, hoping to help others as they face difficult times in their own lives. A Light in the Darkness.
You can reach Carly on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at A Light In the Darkness, or at https://carlyrobison.org