A Change in Story

A Change in Story is a podcast about the moments that reshape how we see ourselves and the world around us. Through individual stories, explore what happens when people challenge old narratives, let go of what no longer fits and figure out what comes next. Also included are three-minute quick tips that break down a mental health or personal development topic in 180 seconds to help offer a different perspective. Each episode invites you to consider what it looks like to rewrite your story while you’re still living it. Hosted by Katie Bascuas, a licensed professional counselor with a former life working in journalism and communications and lover of all things writing and story-related.

QuickTip: Who Inspires You Most? 04/29/2026

QuickTip: Who Inspires You Most? Here's a quick, three-minute tip where we break down a mental health or personal development topic in 180 seconds to help you shift or reframe your perspective. Today’s topic explores an easy, fun way to identify some of your values by looking at the people who inspire you. As a quick refresher, values are essentially an internal guidance system that help us to decide what to move toward or away from based on what we find important or meaningful. Because they’re more internal, and not right on the surface, values can sometimes take a little bit of work to figure out or to get clear on. So to try this exercise: Identify three people you look up to. They can be people you know, like family members, friends, people in your community, or they could be famous, maybe an athlete, a musician, actor, artist, or a well-known entrepreneur. Reflect on each person, thinking about what characteristics or qualities they each embody that you appreciate or respect. (Maybe it’s their work ethic, or their sense of humor, or maybe their sense of community, or their creativity and how they express themselves, etc.) Jot down those qualities under each person’s name to create three different lists. Once you’ve gotten a number of characteristics down for each person, cross compare among the three lists and see if you notice any similarities or even the same qualities between two or even all three people. You can circle those or make a new list. Next, identify at least 3-5 overall values that you might have based on what you’ve written down. You can also use a list of values available online to help give you some ideas. Finally, test it out. Notice how you spend your free time for the next several days, and see if it’s reflective of those values you identified. Or, you can intentionally use those values to make decisions about how to spend your free time, and that can help you to further clarify what’s really important to you. *** Want to reach out, be a guest or have a question? Contact . *Disclaimer: The information contained in this episode is for the sole purpose of being informative and is not considered complete. It should not replace consultation with a qualified professional. /episode/index/show/baa4d621-8559-4c85-b07e-0b40e912a808/id/41050595

QuickTip: What’s the Difference Between Values and Goals (And Why Does It Matter)? 04/27/2026

QuickTip: What To Do With the 'What Ifs' 04/22/2026

QuickTip: What To Do With the 'What Ifs' Here's a quick, three-minute tip where we break down a mental health or personal development topic in 180 seconds to help you shift or reframe your perspective. Today’s topic explores what-if thinking and one way to help manage the "what ifs," especially when we’re worried about the future. "What-if" thinking can creep in when things feel unknown or unpredictable, and our minds might start to overreact or go into protection mode by trying to figure out what’s going to happen and even try and anticipate worst-case scenarios. Anticipating the future, or at least trying to, can also sometimes give us a sense of control in times when we may feel like we don’t have that much control. But if we’re overly concerned with all of the potential negative outcomes, we can experience an increase in things like stress, anxiety, self-doubt and even indecision. One way to disengage from these types of thoughts is to try and come up with a possible solution to whatever you’re worried about by using the phrase "If … then." So if you’re having the thought what if I fail the exam, can you come up with a plan of action that you could take? Coming up with a plan doesn’t mean you’re going to fail or even have to act on the plan, but focusing more on a solution is going to: help you feel more at ease because it provides a sense of agency; make a decision, which should help you to feel less stuck; and help you to ground because your focus is now more on what you can do about the situation or on tangible action steps you can take rather than on all the potential or hypothetical worst-case scenarios that may or may not even happen. *** Want to reach out, be a guest or have a question? Contact . *Disclaimer: The information contained in this episode is for the sole purpose of being informative and is not considered complete. It should not replace consultation with a qualified professional. /episode/index/show/baa4d621-8559-4c85-b07e-0b40e912a808/id/40961395

What If the 'Right Path' Isn’t Right for You? 04/20/2026

QuickTip: Naming the Brain 04/15/2026

QuickTip: Naming the Brain Here's a quick, three-minute tip where we break down a mental health or personal development topic in 180 seconds to help you shift or reframe your perspective. Today’s topic explores the idea of naming your brain and why this can be a helpful strategy for reducing stress and even improving self-confidence. If you’ve never heard of this strategy before, naming the brain is a technique that can be used to help distance yourself from unhelpful or negative thoughts. These are the thoughts that tell us that we’re not good enough, that we should be better at xyz, that everyone thinks we’re a phony or that something terrible is definitely going to happen, and so and so on. This is where naming the brain can come in handy. Because by naming the brain, we are creating distance between us and what is happening in the brain. The negative thoughts now become their own entity, which when separate, or a thing over there with a name, becomes easier to control or, at least tell it to be quiet. When you create space between you and the negative thoughts, it’s going to help cut off the emotional response, and if you don’t give negative thoughts your time and attention through your emotions and continued negative thinking, then they will quiet down. To give the strategy of naming your brain a try: You can give it a human name or name it after an object, a color, a place, whatever works for you. Or, if naming your brain doesn’t resonate with you, you could try instead to personify it or create a character around it. Once you have your name or character, try using it when your mind starts chiming in with negative or unhelpful thoughts. *** Want to reach out, be a guest or have a question? Contact . *Disclaimer: The information contained in this episode is for the sole purpose of being informative and is not considered complete. It should not replace consultation with a qualified professional. /episode/index/show/baa4d621-8559-4c85-b07e-0b40e912a808/id/40801125

QuickTip: How Self-Compassion Can Help to Motivate 04/13/2026

QuickTip: 3 Ways (That Are Not Meditation) to Practice Mindfulness 04/08/2026

QuickTip: 3 Ways (That Are Not Meditation) to Practice Mindfulness Here's a quick, three-minute tip where we break down a mental health or personal development topic in 180 seconds to help you shift or reframe your perspective. Today’s topic explores three different ways to practice mindfulness that don’t involve sitting down to meditate. While mindfulness often gets equated with meditation, the two are actually distinct. In a nutshell, mindfulness is the ability to focus our attention and awareness on the present moment and notice what’s happening inside (so any thoughts, feelings and bodily sensations that might be coming up) as well as whatever may be happening in our surroundings. It’s a state of being, while meditation on the other hand, is a tool or practice that can be used to achieve a state of mindfulness among other things. While there are benefits to both, intentionally cultivating a practice of being more mindful can be helpful to reduce stress, improve attention and enhance feelings of calm. Three ways to practice mindfulness are: Use your senses. Simply pause, if you’re able to, and notice what you can see, smell, taste, hear and feel in your immediate surroundings. 2. Narrate a task or something that you’re doing while you’re doing it. For example, if you’re washing dishes, explain what you’re doing as if you were instructing someone who had never washed dishes before. 3. Try a body scan. Bring your attention to the top of your head and notice any physical sensations you might be experiencing. Then begin moving your attention down your body, to your neck, your shoulders, your arms, all the way down to your feet, noticing any physical sensations as you move to each different body part. These are just three strategies to help practice mindfulness. There are tons of other techniques that you can use to become more present. You might even come up with your own unique method. *** Want to reach out, be a guest or have a question? Contact . *Disclaimer: The information contained in this episode is for the sole purpose of being informative and is not considered complete. It should not replace consultation with a qualified professional. /episode/index/show/baa4d621-8559-4c85-b07e-0b40e912a808/id/40747765

QuickTip: How Nature Can Boost Your Creativity 04/06/2026

QuickTip: Should You? Or Could You? 04/01/2026

QuickTip: What’s the Difference Between Self-Care and Coping? 03/30/2026

QuickTip: How Media Multitasking Can Affect Your Attention Span 03/27/2026

QuickTip: How Media Multitasking Can Affect Your Attention Span Here's a quick, three-minute tip where we break down a mental health or personal development topic in 180 seconds to help you shift or reframe your perspective. Today’s topic is a further exploration of multitasking but this time specifically looking at media multitasking and some of its effects on brain and mental health. Media multitasking is the term that’s used to describe the art of consuming media through multiple devices or streams at the same time. So scrolling through Instagram while watching TV or listening to a podcast while reading your email. While multitasking in general can contribute to negative side effects like increased stress and lower productivity, research has shown that media multitasking can significantly affect our attention spans and memory. For example, a 2022 study published in Front Psychiatry found that college students who engaged in media multitasking were more likely to experience symptoms of anxiety and depression because they were less able to control their attention. An earlier study by Stanford University researchers also found that regular media multitaskers can struggle to filter out irrelevant information, meaning they can get easily distracted from what they’re trying to focus on. The same study also found that regular media multitaskers were less successful at controlling their memory and switching between tasks than people who did not engage in as much media multitasking. While the realities of modern life make it easier and may even encourage media multitasking, being aware of some of the side effects, including the fact that we become more susceptible to irrelevant and potentially even negative information, can be helpful. Because even if you’re going to media multitask, which most of us are at some point, if you start to notice yourself feeling more anxious or stressed than normal or having difficulty remembering what you have to do that day, you can always try putting down one of your devices or taking a brief break all together as a way to recalibrate. Research cited: *** Want to reach out, be a guest or have a question? Contact . *Disclaimer: The information contained in this episode is for the sole purpose of being informative and is not considered complete. It should not replace consultation with a qualified professional. /episode/index/show/baa4d621-8559-4c85-b07e-0b40e912a808/id/40595505

QuickTip: The Not-So-Productive Truth Behind Multitasking 03/25/2026

QuickTip: How to Challenge the Negativity Bias 03/23/2026

QuickTip: How to Challenge the Negativity Bias Here's a three-minute, quick tip where we break down a mental health or personal development topic in 180 seconds to help you shift or reframe your perspective. Today’s topic explores what is sometimes called the negativity bias and how to challenge it. This is the idea that as humans we are hardwired to look for the negative or for potential threats in order to survive. Another aspect of the negativity bias is the idea that we tend to remember or pay more attention to negative experiences than positive ones. For example, we might remember and fixate on the one negative comment we receive on something we did compared to possibly the hundreds of positive comments we received. As you can imagine, this type of thinking, while it might be trying to protect us, can have not so great side effects, like lowering our mood, increasing feelings of worry or stress, and it can even affect our outlook or perspective on things. One step or strategy to try and overcome or challenge this tendency is to intentionally focus on the positive, or what is also going well in a situation. This isn’t a suggestion to ignore the negative of what’s going on but rather to try and look at the mixture of what is happening–both the good and bad. There’s research that suggests a 3:1 positivity ratio can help us maintain a sense of wellbeing. In other words, for every negative emotional experience we’re focused on, it can take focusing on and appreciating three positive emotional experiences to move our minds from a state of survival into a state of thriving. So if you find yourself ruminating or fixating on something negative, you can try looking for at least three positive things that are also happening in order to help balance out the negative thoughts and emotions. Research cited: *** Want to reach out, be a guest or have a question? Contact . *Disclaimer: The information contained in this episode is for the sole purpose of being informative and is not considered complete. It should not replace consultation with a qualified professional. /episode/index/show/baa4d621-8559-4c85-b07e-0b40e912a808/id/40546145

QuickTip: How to Contain or Postpone Worry 03/18/2026

QuickTip: How to Contain or Postpone Worry Here's a three-minute, quick tip where we break down a mental health or personal development topic in 180 seconds to help you shift or reframe your perspective. Today’s topic explores the idea of postponing worry in order to help reduce the effects of stress on your day-to-day life. This can be especially helpful in times when what we’re worried about doesn’t have an immediate or simple solution. Or maybe we’re worried about something that we don’t have a lot of control over, like someone else’s wellbeing. In these types of situations, it can be helpful to try and contain the worry so that it doesn’t completely disrupt our ability to live our lives. This is where using a technique like postponing worry or creating a worry container can come in handy. The idea behind both of these strategies is to gain a sense of control over the worrisome thoughts and feelings as opposed to them having more of the control. To do this: Try writing down what you’re worried about as a way to get it out of your mind and to start creating some distance from the worries. Decide on a specific time when you’ll return to those worries. This can be a 15-20 min. time period sometime during your day, typically best when you have a natural break, such as after school or after work and not right before you go to bed. During this alloted time, go back and reflect on what you’ve written down. You might try and come up with some solutions or journal or write about what’s coming up for you or even talk about it with someone you trust. Once the time is up, write down anything that’s continuing to bring up worry and then close the book on it until the next designated worry time, which might be the same 15-20 min. window the following day. If it’s helpful, you can also create a worry container, which can be literal like a shoebox or a jar where you can put the worries that you’ve written down, or it can be something you visualize in your mind. Once you’ve contained the worries, though, it’s important to try and focus on the present moment. You may need to do something to feel more grounded, like take a walk, drink some water, or listen to some music. Or maybe you find just jumping back into your routine the most helpful. *** Want to reach out, be a guest or have a question? Contact . *Disclaimer: The information contained in this episode is for the sole purpose of being informative and is not considered complete. It should not replace consultation with a qualified professional. /episode/index/show/baa4d621-8559-4c85-b07e-0b40e912a808/id/40527930