I don’t want life to be ordinary. I want it to be extraordinary. The difference is just a little extra.

How do you define living ‘a little extra’? 

I’ve been thinking of doing a podcast for a while. When I was working as a Naturopathic Doctor I tried various ways of getting my knowledge ‘out there’ to help people. I was on social media, and YouTube. None of them felt natural to me. I feel like audio is more my style. The only part I don’t like is that it’s just me talking to myself! At least while I’m recording.

I hope that you’ll listen, and write me a note or leave a message and let me know your thoughts, so it can be a two-way conversation.

This podcast is a creative endeavour for me. Partly it’s the learning and putting together of the podcast, not just for the sake of getting an episode out, but rather to create something that I hope will be impactful. Partly, the topics I cover and discuss are actual topics that I’m interested in and working through, personally and professionally.

I hope you like it.

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I don’t want life to be ordinary. I want it to be extraordinary. The difference is just a little extra.

How do you define living a little extra? 

For me, it’s about living a life that I love. 

It’s finding joy, connecting deeply with my family, feeling energetic, following my dreams, making an difference and having fun.

When I think about how best to do all those things, it comes down to lots of little choices, moments and insights related to my personal wellbeing.

• being healthy, managing stress, being fit and active, being patient and present, creating memories and bonding with my kids, eating well, getting enough sleep, staying positive.

Here’s the problem. 

• I don’t have time! I have 99 things to do and drinking more water isn’t on top of that list!

• Not to mention, how am I supposed to do all of those things when I also have responsibilities? work, kids, a partner, aging parents

• How am I supposed to do all the things i need to do, leave time for the things I want to do, while also juggling all the other roles and responsibilities that I have?

This is the journey that I’m on. This is the journey we’re all on.

Because we don’t want to let life pass us by. We don’t want to wake up 10 years from now and wish that we enjoyed our kids more, or that we took better care of ourselves, or that we communicated better with our partner, or that we spent less time worrying and more time enjoying. 

And we shouldn’t have to wait until our kids grow up and move out before we figure out who we are, what we like, what’s important to us as a individuals – not just as a parent or as a spouse.

We need to do that now. 

But it’s really tough. It’s tough to change things when inertia and momentum carry you along. It’s tough to stop long enough to figure out what you need and how to get it. It’s tough to break old patterns and create new ones. 

But I want to. 

I need to.

and It’s not enough to know what to do. It’s not even enough to know how to do it. 

To really be deliberate in life, you need to understand how things work and then you need to become self-aware so that you can find a way to make it work for you. 

That’s the key.

Knowing how things work and then figuring out how to make it work for you. 

I like to geek out, learn how things work in the body, in the brain, in our emotions. And then with that, I look at myself, my life, my personality, my goals, my challenges and I try to figure out how to make a meaningful change not because it’s on a list, but because it will actually make a difference in my life. 

This is also how I used to help my patients. The same way I help myself.

Let me give you some examples so you understand how I think

Telling me to stretch feels like a chore and it’s less effective than helping me figure out how to want to stretch, and maybe even turn it into a habit

Telling me to be more patient with my kids honestly doesn’t feel great. and isn’t as useful as offering me a strategy that I can use when I’m feeling less than patient

Telling me to meditate because I’m stressed about being busy feels impossible, but understanding how meditation works allows me to incorporate other ways of finding peace and calm that could be a bridge to real meditative effects

Wanting or dreaming of a happy family is nice but what’s more tangible is learning ways to help my brain store and recall happy moments more readily

If we haven’t met before, my name is Rishma Walji. Professionally, I have a PhD and spent time in research and teaching in academia. I also worked for about 20 years in clinical practice as a Naturopathic Doctor. Personally, I’m a mom to two incredible young humans, I’m married to my best friend and love of my life, and I have an amazing village of family and friends in my circle who enrich me in so many ways. I’m a wanna-be dancer, an incessant book worm and I will trade almost anything for a travel adventure.

This podcast isn’t going to be me telling you what do with your health. You know your own life, circumstances, body, and emotions. 

The podcast is going to be a discussion about life and health and wellness. I’m curious, I like to dive deep into topics and because I have some knowledge and experience, I can make connections and test out theories in different ways. I like to know how things work, and then figure out how to optimize that to make life better, in whatever format or amount works best for that time and place and situation in life.

And if you know me, you know that I always go deep, I can’t have a superficial conversation. I’m friendly, and supportive and understanding. I’m also honest and challenging and not afraid to call things out.

So what can you expect from the XO conversations podcast?

You know those conversations that get you excited, and fired up and inspired – and you leave with your head spinning with ideas and thoughts and realizations?

Or those conversations that feel like you’re connected to someone on a deeper level, like they just get you. you feel seen and heard and validated and understood.

What about those conversations that make you think in a new way, or stimulate you to reflect on who you are and how you live, even inspiring change to move towards who you want to be and how you want to live.

Those are the conversations that light me up. those are the conversations that inspire this podcast.

If you want to add extra to your life, if you’re interested in diving into how things work in terms of your physiology and neurology and psychology, and if you’re the type of person who will experiment on what will work for you – and hopefully share it with me so we can do this together, then I look forward to connecting with you throughout this podcast.

So let’s go back to my personal wellbeing list from the beginning:

• Be more patient and present – Episode 2 meditation for people who can’t meditate

• Drink more water – Episode 1 (how to really create a habit)

• Making memories with my family – Episode 3 (the dash)

This podcast is my creative pursuit, my journey, to add extra into my ordinary life. 

I hope you’ll join me. 

Remember to subscribe and join the conversation at livingxo.com