Show Notes: erickrheam.com/093

Grief is unavoidable—but it does not have to have the last word.

In this episode, Erick sits down with grief, trauma, and mental health coach Marcia Earhart, founder of The Sterling Rose Sanctuary.

Marcia shares her deeply personal story—including multiple significant losses—and the practical tools she uses to help people move from being "stuck" in grief to breathing, moving, and living again.

Together, they unpack what it means to give yourself permission to grieve, why "time heals all wounds" is a myth, how boundaries protect the grieving process, and what healthy support looks like for friends and family who want to help.

• Why permission to grieve is often the first breakthrough
• How to "schedule grieving" so emotions can be released without derailing daily life
• Simple practices that support healing: gratitude journaling, nature walks, and clean nutrition
• How internal vs. external grievers process loss differently—and how families can avoid fracturing
• Why the second year after a major loss is often the hardest, and how to prepare for "the firsts"
• What to say (and not say) to someone who is grieving—and why platitudes can be harmful
• How to set boundaries that protect your grief story, even with well-meaning people
• How grief can become a teacher that shapes purpose without defining your future

Marcia Earhart is a certified life, trauma, grief, brain, and mental health coach, mediator, author, and HeartSync minister. Her guidance is both professional and personal.

Having navigated the deaths of two sons within the last eleven years—one tragically murdered—she stands as a testament to God's faithfulness in the deepest valleys of grief, and now leads others in healing.

Her powerful new book, "Gripping Grace in the Garden of Grief," is a raw and vulnerable chronicle of devastating loss. More than a memoir, it is a lifeline, exploring the fragile threads of love and pain that hold us together and revealing the God-given hope that can rebuild a shattered life.

Marcia's mission extends beyond the page. As the co-founder of The Sterling Rose Sanctuary, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, she is boots-on-the-ground in the mental health crisis. She creates a safe, haven for the grieving to release their trauma and pain so they can Breathe again, Move again, and Live again. Her ministry reaches a diverse community across the United States and six other countries, standing as a powerful reminder that in deep sorrow, no one has to walk alone.

Marcia has been married to her best friend, Scott, for thirty-five years, and together they homeschooled and enjoyed raising their four boys and daughter. Marcia, Scott, and two of their adult children, who live nearby, love spending time together—whether it's making memories at the beach, traveling, playing games, having deep conversations, cooking, supporting their daughter's businesses, or supporting and listening to their son's music Rise Above Everything on Apple and Spotify.

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2. Rise Above Chaos book
3. Work with Erick
4. Connect with Erick: erickrheam.com
5. Get the Rise Above Chaos Planner
6. The Sterling Rose Sanctuary
7. Book: Gripping Grace and the Garden of Grief

• Give Yourself Permission to Grieve

Show Notes: erickrheam.com/092

As the calendar turns toward a new year, many people hope things will change—yet find themselves repeating the same patterns.

In this solo episode, Erick challenges listeners to move beyond vague resolutions and instead approach 2026 with intentionality, clarity, and purpose.

This conversation centers on three critical considerations that can help you break negative cycles, live more fruitfully, and design a year that actually looks different—in a meaningful way.

• Why hoping for a better year isn't enough—and what intentional living really requires
• How unexamined patterns quietly repeat themselves year after year
• The importance of defining what you want 2026 to produce—not just what you want to avoid
• Why clarity always precedes change
• How to identify the distractions, habits, or commitments that are keeping you stuck
• What it means to break negative cycles instead of managing them
• How small, focused decisions compound into a dramatically different year

In this episode, Erick walks through three foundational questions designed to help you step into 2026 with clarity and purpose. These questions are not about setting more goals—they're about creating alignment between your values, priorities, and daily decisions so the year produces lasting impact.

A different year does not happen by accident—it happens by design. When you slow down long enough to evaluate what truly matters, eliminate what no longer serves you, and commit to intentional action, you position yourself to experience growth instead of repetition. 2026 can be different—but only if you decide it will be.

If nothing changes in your thinking, habits, or priorities, what will 2026 actually look like—and what needs to change now to ensure it becomes the year you're hoping for?

You don't need a perfect plan to move forward—but you do need clarity, courage, and consistency. Let this episode be the starting point for a year defined not by chaos, but by intention and purpose.

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2. Rise Above Chaos book
3. Work with Erick
4. Connect with Erick: erickrheam.com
5. Get the Rise Above Chaos Planner

• Make 2026 different

Show Notes: erickheam.com/090

In this episode of the Rise Above Chaos podcast, Erick reflects on a recent 72-hour fast and how the experience reshaped the way he thinks about health, longevity, and the body's natural ability to heal.

This was not about weight loss. It wasn't a detox. And it wasn't about proving toughness.

It was about giving the body something it rarely gets in modern life—time and space to repair itself.

Erick walks through the physiological and mental shifts that occurred over the three days, from the initial transition away from sugar dependence to deep cellular repair driven by autophagy and metabolic flexibility. Along the way, he shares both the subjective experience and the objective data that confirmed what was happening beneath the surface.

This episode reframes fasting as a strategic tool for healthspan, resilience, and long-term performance—when done intentionally and sustainably.

• Why a 72-hour fast is not about deprivation, but about activating the body's repair mechanisms
• What happens during the first 24 hours as the body burns through glycogen and shifts fuel systems
• How insulin reduction opens the door to fat metabolism and ketone production
• Why hunger comes in waves—and what that reveals about modern eating patterns
• What changes during hours 24–48 when fat adaptation and mental clarity increase
• How autophagy acts as the body's cellular cleanup system and why it matters for aging
• What makes the 48–72 hour window a unique longevity zone few people experience
• How fasting activates hormesis, a beneficial stress response
• Why ketones act as signaling molecules, not just fuel
• Measurable health improvements including lower resting heart rate, higher HRV, and better sleep
• Why longevity is built through repair, not constant growth
• How fasting improves metabolic flexibility
• What made this approach sustainable with monthly 36-hour fasts

"My 72-hour fast wasn't about deprivation—it was about giving my body time to remember how to heal."

"You don't build longevity by doing more all the time. Sometimes, you build it by doing less—and letting biology do its work."

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2. Rise Above Chaos book
3. Work with Erick
4. Connect with Erick: erickrheam.com
5. Get the Rise Above Chaos Planner

• Fast one thing from your diet

Show Notes: erickrheam.com/089

In this rich and lively episode, Erick sits down with Elysia Skye—speaker, intuitive guide, former L.A. actor, and creator of The Brilliance Method—for a conversation that weaves together Hollywood stories, healing, mindfulness, and purpose.

Elysia shares her journey from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles to Nashville, chasing the acting dream, working in casting on major films, and learning the art of being fully present through improv and performance. She opens up about being diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer at 24, how trusting her intuition helped save her life, and how that experience shifted everything about how she lives and leads.

Out of her lived experience came The Brilliance Method—a framework that blends strategy and intuition to help people step into their unique "zone of genius" and live more intentionally. Along the way, Elysia and Erick swap stories about L.A., celebrity encounters, the power of saying yes and figuring it out, and why life isn't about one big moment, but a series of brave, present ones.

• How Elysia's acting and improv training taught her the power of presence, listening, and responding in the moment.
• Why so many of us have lost the art of being bored—and how that robs us of reflection, creativity, and real memories.
• The story of Elysia's move to L.A., her early casting work on major films, and how she learned to see celebrities as humans, not hierarchies.
• How a stage 3 breast cancer diagnosis at 24 forced her to slow down, listen to her body, and trust her intuition on a whole new level.
• The surprising way officiating over 1,000 weddings led her into mindfulness, corporate workshops, and keynote speaking.
• The core pillars of The Brilliance Method—intuition, fear vs. love, and discovering your unique brilliance/zone of genius.
• Elysia's powerful "lottery question" that helps people uncover what they're truly meant to be doing with their lives.
• Why you don't have to quit your job tomorrow—how even 20 minutes a week of "on-purpose" time can start to wake your soul back up.
• How presence deepens our relationships, from family and friends to teams and audiences.

Elysia Skye is a graduate and alumni of the Second City Writing Conservatory, Improv Olympic and The Groundings Writing Lab. Having a background in improv makes her a dynamic speaker and presentation leader.

She is an ongoing Audible voice talent.

Her audiobook credits include The Disappearance of the Universe with author Gary R. Renard's books (published by Hay House), Your Immortal Reality, The Lifetimes When Jesus and Buddha Knew Each Other, and Love Has Forgotten No One; as well as Ann O'Brien's A Woman's Guide to Conscious Love, and Everyone is Psychic.

She has also voiced many commercials and branded digital series. As an actress, Elysia has had so much fun playing roles in Pirates of the Caribbean 3, Confidence with Ed Burns and Rachel Weiz, and many indie films, and commercials.

Elysia is a stage 3 breast cancer survivor, diagnosed at 24, and founded a 501 C3 to raise awareness for young women's cancers. She wrote and starred in a heartfelt, hilarious one-person stage play about breast cancer called, I Got My Tits Done in Beverly Hills which ran in Los Angeles to sold out audiences.

She is also certified through Andrea Quinn's QuinnEssentials for Women's Empowerment and Accomplishment coaching.

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2. Rise Above Chaos book
3. Work with Erick
4. Connect with Erick: erickrheam.com
5. Get the Rise Above Chaos Planner
6. ElysiaSkye.com
7. TheBrillianceMethod.com

• Take a 20 Minutes and Observe Your Surroundings

Show Notes: erickrheam.com/088

In this heartfelt episode, Erick reminds us that gratitude isn't just a seasonal sentiment—it's a survival tool. As the holidays approach, he poses a powerful question inspired by his pastor:

"What if you woke up today with only the things you were grateful for yesterday?"

That question sparks a deeper conversation about how easily we overlook the blessings right in front of us. From family relationships to work challenges to long road trips home, Erick explores how shifting from frustration to gratitude can completely transform how we experience the holidays.

• Why focusing on what's missing keeps you from seeing how far you've come
• How gratitude can reframe difficult relationships and situations
• Why "what you seek is what you'll find" during the holiday season
• How simple acts of appreciation—like sending a thank-you text—can change everything
• The surprising way gratitude reduces conflict and increases joy
• How to find peace and perspective even when the holidays don't go as planned

As Erick shares stories from his own family and faith journey, he reminds us that gratitude doesn't erase life's chaos—it helps us rise above it. So before you dive into the holiday whirlwind, pause to reflect: What are you truly grateful for today?

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5. Get the Rise Above Chaos Planner

• Send a gratitude message to someone

Show Notes: erickrheam.com/087

In this heartfelt and nostalgic episode, Erick reconnects with Jeff Harris, former teammate, friend, and fellow West Point runner.

Together, they revisit the shared experiences that shaped their lives—from growing up in small-town America to competing at the highest collegiate level—and the brotherhood that continues to this day.

Jeff's story begins in Kentucky, where a simple two-mile soccer tryout changed the course of his life. That run would spark a journey that took him from the fields of Elizabethtown to the hills of West Point, where he learned lessons about grit, leadership, and community that still guide him as a husband, father, and coach.

This conversation is full of laughter, storytelling, and wisdom as Erick and Jeff look back on the days that forged their character and discuss how the lessons of running still influence their lives—and their sons'—today.

• How a high school soccer tryout unexpectedly launched Jeff's running career
• The pivotal role of his mom and coaches in shaping his competitive mindset
• What it was really like to balance athletics and academics at West Point
• Behind-the-scenes stories of the Army cross-country teams of the early 1990s
• How competition, teamwork, and friendship build lifelong brotherhood
• The lessons Jeff now shares with his son as a coach and mentor

Jeff's reflections remind us that life is a marathon—filled with challenges, setbacks, and triumphs—and that meaning is found not in the miles themselves, but in who you run them with.

Jeff Harris is a 1996 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point and a member of the storied 1993 Army Cross Country team that finished sixth in the nation.

A consistent top-five runner, Jeff was a three-time All-Patriot League performer and Patriot League 5,000-meter champion as a freshman, with career bests including a sub-24-minute 8k and a 14:18 5k.

He proudly finished second in the infamous "Tour de Beast" during Cadet Basic Training—and equally proudly recorded an "epic failure" in the steeplechase, a personal reminder that humility is a great training plan.

More than individual results, Jeff credits the brotherhood of his teammates as the defining force in his development—men who forged each other through relentless accountability, laughter, and shared suffering in pursuit of something greater than themselves.

After graduating, Jeff served as a U.S. Army officer from 1996 to 2003, earning a Bronze Star
for his service in Iraq.

Today, he leads Business Development for Kellanova, supporting a $1.7 billion business, and is a passionate practitioner of high-stakes negotiation. Trained through the GAP Partnership and the Black Swan Group, Jeff considers negotiation not just a career skill, but a craft and calling.

A native of Elizabethtown, Kentucky, Jeff was an individual state champion and captain of the state championship cross country team. Jeff's Middle School team recently cleaned up at the Cincinnati All City Small School Championships, taking home three trophies.

He is a husband of 23 years, father of three, and deeply committed coach and mentor who believes he was guided at every step of his journey and is now called to help others find theirs. His life philosophy remains simple: "Embrace the Suck—stop complaining and get to work."

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2. Rise Above Chaos book
3. Work with Erick
4. Connect with Erick: erickrheam.com
5. Get the Rise Above Chaos Planner
6. Jeff Harris' LinkedIn

• Pick a Day to Load in a Theme