How do you define resilience? In American culture, resilience is often equated with “pulling yourself up by your bootstraps”. But in reality, it is all about. nervous system capacity. In this episode of A Trauma-Informed Future podcast, host Katie Kurtz is joined by Jen Schneeman for a rich, trauma-informed conversation that challenges the idea that people should simply “bounce back.” Together, they explore the difference between resilience and malleability, drawing on neuroscience, somatic wisdom, and lived experience to unpack how stress, trauma, and healing live not just in the mind, but in the body.

Learn more about Jen:

Jen Schneeman is a soul-driven scientist, holistic mental health coach and trauma-informed nervous system specialist who helps individuals and communities reclaim personal energy, prevent burnout and live in their bodies with ease. With a deep understanding of the nervous system, trauma recovery, and human energy patterns, Jen bridges science + spirit to guide people toward resilience, self-trust, and inner freedom.
Jen began her career as a science + tech advisor with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Defense Sciences Office, and later as a Deputy at the Air Force Research Lab, Human Performance Wing. There she managed a collaborative research portfolio focused on how nutrition, disease, brain injury and stressors uniquely affect human susceptibility, resilience and future determinants of health.

Her lived experience of toxic stress-related burnout in a post-9/11 environment catalyzed her personal and professional transformation. Jen committed to the applied science of therapeutic mindbody connection programs to support sustainable healing and energy restoration. She knows firsthand that no amount of bootstrapping can truly reignite a system shut down by chronic stress, concussion, addiction, trauma, or pain — but that regenerative nervous system care can.
Jen brings this knowledge to life through her Self-Care and Resilience (SCAR) program, a multi-tiered nervous system restoration framework tailored to reduce stress, improve coping, and restore vitality. Her signature offering, Everyday Resilience, empowers people to stay present in joy and grounded in struggle using the ABCs of Presence that makes recovery and regulation tangible, practical, and embodied.

She has brought trauma-informed, nervous system-based programming to three VA Medical Centers, PTSD and TBI residential programs, addiction treatment centers, treatment courts, support groups, and beyond. She has also launched mindbody connection programs within two NFL teams, three military branches, four addiction treatment centers, dozens of corporations, hundreds of veterans and thousands of medical, mental health, and caregiving professionals.

Today, Jen facilitates resilience-based programs for medical professionals, caregivers and survivors of sexual assault, addiction, PTSD and brain injury. Since COVID she expanded programming to real humans just like us.

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Content Warning: This episode is focused on discussing, educating and uplifting the voices of survivors of sexual violence. In this episode, we will be discussing sexual violence, the rape crisis movement and healing avenues for survivors. Please be mindful as you listen and share this episode. We encourage survivors to honor themselves and those who are not to be present with this reality and be open to ways we can together create a more survivor informed care standard.

This is not an episode to “consume and move on from.” In this episode, host Katie Kurtz sits down with Molly Boeder-Harris, founder of The Breathe Network, for a conversation that goes far beyond headlines and statistics. We talk about what survivors actually need, how systems of care can unintentionally cause harm, and why healing must be part of how we show up.It’s an invitation to pause, listen deeply, and reckon with how we respond to survivors of sexual violence personally, professionally, and collectively. At a time when sexual violence is once again dominating headlines, this conversation asks an essential question: What does it actually mean to believe survivors and what are we willing to do once we say we do?

Learn more about Molly:

Molly Boeder Harris is the Founder and Executive Director of The Breathe Network, a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP), and a trauma-informed yoga teacher and trainer (E-RYT). Her own experiences of surviving sexual trauma catalyzed her to enter the trauma healing field in 2003, beginning with her work as a medical and legal advocate with children and adult survivors, a violence prevention educator, and later, as a yoga instructor specializing in working with survivors of sexual trauma.

She earned a Master’s Degree in International Studies and a Master’s Certificate in Women’s & Gender Studies, which inform the way she holds individual and collective forms of trauma, oppression, and healing close together in her work and in her life. Over the last 2 decades of her career and her ongoing healing trajectory, she has found that the practices that recognize the whole person – body, mind and spirit – while also attending to the ways in which both trauma and resilience manifest physiologically, offer the greatest possibility for embodied justice and social change.

Connect with Molly:

• https://www.thebreathenetwork.org/
• https://www.mollyboederharris.com/

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In nearly every community, pharmacists are the most accessible healthcare providers: seeing patients up to 12 times a year or more. Yet burnout rates are staggering, and meaningful connection often gets lost in the grind. On this episode of A Trauma-Informed Future podcast, host Katie Kurtz talks to Dr. Ashley Builta who reveals how trauma-informed care is changing everything in pharmacy delivery. She shares how it's not another task to add to an overwhelming workload, but rather a simple mindset shift that takes just three extra minutes and transforms both patient outcomes and professional purpose. From a life-changing Sunday morning encounter to training the next generation of pharmacy students, discover how Dr. Builta is using this approach to reshape pharmacy practice across Michigan and beyond.

Learn more about Ashley:

Dr. Ashley Builta is a dedicated pharmacy professional and educator currently serving as the Director of Professional Development and Education at the Michigan Pharmacists Association (MPA). In this role, she leads initiatives that empower pharmacists to better support the mental well-being of their patients and communities. She brings a wealth of experience to her role in advancing pharmacist education and public health initiatives.

Ashley holds a Doctor of Pharmacy degree and is a certified Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Instructor, a credential that enables her to expanded her impact with healthcare professionals, training them in recognizing and responding to mental health and substance use challenges. Her work bridges the gap between pharmacy practice and mental health support, helping to reduce stigma and promote early intervention.

Ashley’s work reflects a deep commitment to holistic patient care, emphasizing the critical role pharmacists play in early intervention and mental health advocacy. Her leadership continues to shape a more compassionate and informed healthcare landscape across Michigan.

Connect with Ashley:

• Website: https://www.michiganpharmacists.org/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashley-builta

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Leadership isn’t about titles or productivity: it’s about how you show up in everyday moments, especially in uncertain and turbulent times. In this episode, host Katie Kurtz explores what it really means to lead right now, offering a grounded look at how our nervous systems are responding, both individually and collectively, and how we can move from reaction to intentional, responsive leadership. As stress, burnout, and disconnection rise, trauma-informed leadership becomes essential for creating connection, stability, and trust in our lives and communities. This episode is a rallying call to lead with greater awareness, humanity, and accountability and to choose a different kind of leadership.

Mentioned in this podcast: January 30th workshop on Trust Behaviors

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Content Warning (CW): This episode centers the discussion of gun violence and explicit mentions mass shootings. Please be mindful as you listen and provide this content warning when sharing.

I didn’t want to record this episode. And that’s exactly why we did. So let's cut straight to the truth: we need to get real about gun violence. This is an important and timely episode with Josh Novick (he/him) is about gun violence, trauma exposure, and what it actually costs to care inside broken systems. No platitudes. No easy answers. Just the truth—and the choice in front of us. Working in education throughout his career, he has been both the responder and the experiencer of the impact of gun violence. It wasn’t until a mass shooting hit his own backyard at the Highland Park Parade Shooting in 2022 that he began to his advocacy journey.This is not a theoretical conversation—it’s a grounded, urgent look at how trauma shows up in classrooms, communities, and bodies, why gun violence is a public health crisis (not a mental illness), and what trauma-informed care actually demands from us. Honest, sharp, and unapologetically human, this episode names the harm, challenges the myths, and calls listeners into action.

Learn more about Josh:

Josh Novick, LCPC, PEL-SC is a nationally recognized therapist, school counselor, speaker, and advocate who combines clinical expertise, lived experience, and unapologetic passion in the fight for safer, more connected schools and communities. He is the founder of Trust and Grow Consulting, where he partners with schools, districts, and community organizations across the country to expand trauma-informed, equity-centered practices that support resilience and recovery.

Josh’s perspective is shaped by his years as a school counselor in North Lawndale on the West Side of Chicago, where he worked alongside students and families navigating systemic inequities, community violence, and extraordinary resilience. His commitment to trauma-informed recovery deepened after the Highland Park Fourth of July parade mass shooting, which impacted his own community and led to his leadership role in creating a temporary Community Counseling Center. In just one week, the center provided immediate relief to more than 3,000 community members with the support of over 650 volunteer therapists, becoming a model for rapid, compassionate crisis response.

An Ambassador with Teachers Unify to End Gun Violence, he is a leading voice on educator wellness and community response after critical incidents, helping schools navigate the aftermath of violence with compassion and clarity.

His work has been featured at national and regional gatherings including the Building Resilient Communities for Children Conference, the Creating Trauma Sensitive Schools Conference, and the Illinois School Counselor Association Conference. His expertise has been quoted in regional and national articles, extending his impact beyond direct practice and into broader public discourse.

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Have you ever sat through a nonprofit fundraising gala and felt your stomach drop as the lights dimmed for yet another emotionally devastating video?

You're not alone. And according to trauma-informed storyteller Maria Bryan, there's a better way.

In this powerful episode of A Trauma-Informed Feature, host Katie Kurtz sits down with Maria Bryan to unpack the often-overlooked harm happening in nonprofit storytelling. From the marketing director gathering stories to the donor watching from the audience, everyone in what Maria calls the "storytelling ecosystem" deserves consideration.

As nonprofits face funding challenges, story extraction isn't just harmful—it's unsustainable. This conversation offers a path forward that honors both story and humanity.

Learn more about Maria:

Maria Bryan is a trauma-informed storytelling trainer. She is the host of the When Bearing Witness® podcast and facilitates the When Bearing Witness® Trauma-Informed Storytelling Certification Program.

Maria’s work helps nonprofit leaders tell powerful and impactful stories that resist harm. Over the past 15+ years in the nonprofit and public sector, Maria has trained thousands globally in person and virtually—focusing on trauma-informed storytelling and purpose-driven marketing.

Her learning lineage spans a Master's Degree in Public Administration, a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism, and professional certifications in Trauma & Resilience, Trauma-Informed Space Holding, Trauma-Informed Coaching, and Somatic Embodiment and Regulation.

Maria is a firm believer that storytellers make the world a healthier, safer, cleaner, and happier place.

Connect with Maria:

• Website: https://www.mariabryan.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariabryancrtv/

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Welcome back to a new season of A Trauma-Informed Future! After a restorative pause, Katie is offering transparent updates about the behind-the-scenes shifts that have unfolded since the last episode. Acknowledging the deep distrust shaping our world-from politics to community safety to information itself-Katie reminds us that trust is built slowly, at the pace of the nervous system, through aligned intentions and actions. She reflects on the collective trauma of the current moment, the exhaustion and hopelessness that doom-scrolling can amplify, and the grounded hope that trauma-informed practice continues to offer as people make daily choices toward humanity, safety, and care. Katie shares the evolution of her work, including the emergence of TRUST™ (Trauma-Informed Relational Upskilling and Systems Transformation) as the aligned home for her methodology, the beta launch of TRUST Works, and the growing community of trusted partners. Centering the power of caring as courageous rather than “soft,” Katie calls listeners into mindful action, inviting them to reflect on where their care lives, how they can use their power within their spheres of influence, and how choosing trauma-informed care in small everyday moments contributes to a broader trust swell.

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When people feel truly seen, heard, and valued, their nervous systems shift from protection to connection. As humans, our deepest drive is to feel safe—and that sense of safety is shaped by our internal physiological state, governed by the autonomic nervous system. We’re navigating a world marked by uncertainty and disconnection—at work, at home, and in our communities. Trust is in short supply, yet it’s the very thing we need most. In low trust times, trust becomes the glue—what holds us together when everything else feels unstable. In this timely and hopeful conversation, host Katie Kurtz explores the neuroscience of trust and why it matters now more than ever. You'll discover how each of us carries the power to build, repair, and sustain trust—one relationship, one choice, one nervous system at a time.

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