Pursuing Uncomfortable with Melissa Ebken
This weekly podcast addresses the issues that keep us awake at night. Am I a good enough mom/dad/spouse? Am I living up to my potential? Am I giving my kids what they need to be successful in life? What will my parents need from me as they age? Am I a good co-parent? How can I handle confrontations better? All of these things make life difficult and uncomfortable! Let’s lean into all the uncomfortable and yucky stuff to find a path forward to a life we really want to live. (Music by Joe Calindrino, “September’s Realm”)
Recent Episodes
Episode 82: Pursuing Parenting ADHD Children with Avigail Gimpel
On this episode of Pursuing Uncomfortable, we hear from special education teacher and author, Avigail, whose personal experience with ADHD has led her to develop a three-pronged approach to managing ADHD symptoms. She emphasizes the importance of being patient and …
Episode 81: Pursuing Life with Humor with Bee Baumann
On this episode of Pursuing Uncomfortable, we explore the idea that creativity has no age limit and can be expressed at any time in life. Our guest, Bee Baumann, a nontraditional midlife beginner, shares her journey of discovering her potential …
Episode 80: Pursuing Vitality When Life Knocks You Down with Joanne G…
In this episode of our podcast, we delve into the life of our speaker, Joanne Greene, who is currently in "act three" of their life. This is her favorite stage, where she gets to do what she wants, such as …
Episode 79: Pursuing These 16 Things For Our Kids with Luke Grimm
On this episode of Pursuing Uncomfortable, we hear from Luke Grim, a retired army veteran turned high school teacher who discusses the importance of preparing kids for independent living. From his own experience struggling with finances and household management when …
Episode 78: Pursuing an Addiction-Free Teenager with Richard Capriola
On this episode of Pursuing Uncomfortable, we dive into the world of teenage drug use and substance abuse. Our guest speaker, Richard Capriola, who has over two decades of experience in substance abuse counseling, sheds light on the dangers of …
Episode 77: Pursuing YOUR Path with Stephenie Zamora
Stephenie is a firm believer in following one's own desires and values in order to achieve true success. She understands the importance of eliminating subconscious stoppers that hinder growth and limit potential. Stephenie encourages individuals to examine their winning strategies …
Episode 76: Pursuing Nightmare Success with Brent Cassity
Brent Cassity is the author of the Book Nightmare Success: Loyalty, Betrayal, Life Behind Bars, Adapting, And Finally Breaking Free: A Memoir. He is a host of the popular podcast Nightmare Success In and Out. Brent was an inn...
Episode 75: Pursuing A Non-Violent Path with Brad Mewhort
On this episode of Pursuing Uncomfortable, Brad Mewhort speaks about his experiences with violence as a young boy and the impact it had on his life as an adult. He discusses the cycles of violence and the societal systems that …
Episode 74: Pursuing Breaking the Silence: Empowering Youth Through F…
On this episode of Pursuing Uncomfortable, Mollie Leivars speaks openly about her experience with bullying, cyberbullying, and suicidal thoughts. She shares how she overcame these challenges and transformed her pain into a passion for creating films that shed light on …
Episode 73: Pursuing Health, Faithfully with Karis Meier
Karis and her husband have four children and reside in Northern Virginia. She holds a BA in Christian Education and a MA in Counseling. She is a wife, mother, author,counselor, and speaker. Karis has struggled with chronic il...
Episode 72: Pursuing A Happy and Healthy Life with Dr. Sanjib Nandi
Sanjib’s passion is to share his journey and help others live a healthy, fulfilling life. One of the ways he is living his passion is by founding LUVO, the first app ever to offer vibrational meditation. Our belief is that …
Episode 71: Pursuing Healthy Happiness X 2 with The Therapy Twins
Joan and Jane bring their humorous approach to mental health to the Pursuing Uncomfortable Podcast.
About the Host
Melissa Ebken
Podcaster, Pastor, Author, Coach
Melissa was called into ministry, much to her surprise, after becoming a biologist and serving for ten years in the IL Army National Guard as a utility helicopter mechanic, the first woman to do so. She has served in Illiopolis and Niantic since 2001.
Melissa is at home in the difficult spaces of peoples’ lives, willing to listen and to walk with those who struggle and suffer. She is a trained coach and has consulted with churches in conflict. Her current pursuits include founding a Virtual Assistant training academy, forming a ministry co-op to better serve small churches, supporting nurses to thrive in stressful climates through building emotional intelligence, and guiding people who are ready to lean into and overcome difficult challenges and experiences in their lives.
She authored a book Teach Us To Pray: An Ancient Model For a Modern Day, and has a podcast called Pursuing Uncomfortable.