Hi there!

First of thank you for this podcast episode. I litterally pulled it up while I was having anxiety in the middle of the night and it proved to be comforting. As I have been struggling with anxiety for a few months and perhaps even years I have been trying all sorts of tools and things to appease myself. Since my teenage years I have been having eczema and to me it is very much related to anxiety amongst other things like nutrition and toxicity for sure.

So basically over the last few months I decided to turn my life around – having had a breakup, moved back to my hometown after a year living abroad for my masters and having alcohol and food as coping mechanisms mainly – it was time I took responsibility!

I did incorporate a lot of what you have discussed in the episode. Having seeked for help from a life coach and then more recently a naturopath and homeopath certifié doctor I have began a deep transformative journey. The methods that I used and still do today are meditation, yoga, clean and adapted nutrition, removing any toxic people and situation, my doctor helped me cut all stimulants ( I mean even cacao no jokes), as well as adding the B12, Omega 3 (removing the 6 as they are stimulants, fun fact) and loads of magnesium too, along with a deep detox and going back to what suits me and what have been key interests and passions ever since my childhood everything as made a HUGE difference and I am pretty certain that without those mechanisms and the help of holistic healers and podcasts like your Melissa I would not be here today. So everyday I try hard and I do better and I cannot wait to integrate play into it as well! I feel like being a Virgo I am a naturally playful one but because of a lot of traumas since childhood I have left play on the side and definitely saw the world as a prison and not a playground and I am so ready to get into play mode so really thank you for your inspiring podcast and please continue to share the work and knowledge as I feel that people benefi from it so much! I know that from my personal healing journey I have been able to create positive changes in people close to me so for sure your work is also exponential!

Thank you so much !

I feel I could say this to just about every podcast you do Melissa, but I genuinely loved it!
In some ways I wasn’t expecting to take a lot away from this episode – I’m a fairly reserved & quiet person, and thought ‘play’…….that’s not really me, I’m just not the out going type.
Then as soon as I heard Charlie speak, my ears pricked up – you are both so beautiful to listen to and I surprised myself that I could relate to such a lot!
I’ve struggled with depression/anxiety on and off for several years and recently left a 30 year Banking career in favour of a 3 day a week job with a small family landscaping supplies business close to home where I can walk to work through beautiful countryside. It is great! I feel like I have just taken away a great big vote of confidence from this episode and the move was right.
No competitiveness, unrealistic targets, bureaucracy, politics, ‘box ticking’ or appraisals – all of which felt so far removed from my truth. I agree that society almost conditions us that in order to be seen to ‘work hard’ we must be slaves to our desk for long periods. How liberating and refreshing your conversation was!
I love that we already have everything we need and the universe provides. It certainly gave me the nudge I needed to take Voluntary Redundancy and start on a new path away from everything I struggled with.
Now I’m trying to figure out the things which light me up to fill my days off so I can enjoy every moment and see what unfolds.
Charlie talked about the exercise of writing down the things we naturally did happily in childhood before everything else got in the way. Wow! That makes so much sense…light bulb moment!
I can’t remember everything so will talk to my Dad, but I know I loved to dance, read, draw and hang upside down on the climbing frame! It doesn’t matter if it as simple as playing catch – it doesn’t have to be a full on extreme…brilliant!
Not too sure about repeating hanging upside down as the thought now makes me feel dizzy, but drawing and maybe dancing (in private!) are my starting point. I haven’t done either in years.
Thanks so much to both of you for this and for being so very inspiring xx

Thank you Melissa and Charlie!
I have become an avid listener of your podcasts Melissa and absolutely love them. I’ve also just finished Mastering Your Mean Girl and am part way through Open Wide. So much resonates with me in all you say and write and this podcast was packed full of inspiring words from both of you! As one of life’s worriers I struggle with leaving space for play and let relaxation and fun slip down the priority ladder all too often! Very hard for my playful partner! Since starting a magical morning routine including meditation for the first time ever I’ve noticed a huge difference in my outlook day to day and finding that space is becoming much easier!
Thank you x

I recently started listening to your podcast and I can’t stop! This one really hit home for me. When Charlie talked about his past, I felt like he was telling an exact story of my life right now. I ordered the Nature’s Calm supplement and have been implementing ‘play’ in my life the past week and have already seen some improvements in such a short time so can’t wait to try some of the other suggestions. I told some of my coworkers about the episode too and they listened and loved it, and plan to listen to your podcast in the future! Thank you for inspiring me and so many others every day! and now I have Charlie’s podcast to add to my subscriptions too 🙂

This podcast has come at the perfect time for me…Thankyou!! I feel I had lost the art of play…having had children quite young and then studying my Naturopathy degree whilst they were little everything was planned, routines, knuckle down and hustle kind of thing…you know the drill…I burnt out and began to suffer from anxiety and depression. Of course as a Naturopath I began to take supplements, herbal tonics, dial in my diet, ensure 8-9 hours sleep each night…and still struggled. As a type A personality the pressure I had placed on myself to achieve the HUGE lists each day meant life had become one big chore! Recently we went camping on an isolated island in Great Barrier Reef, no tech, no lists, no work…nothing to do except PLAY with my gorgeous family. It reignited my fire for life! After listening to this podcast with both you beautiful souls I am more determined than ever to continue to play each and every day….it is my most important work Thanks Melissa and Charlie! Xx

Hi Melissa and Charlie,
Thank you for a brilliant episode which I’m going to listen to again. I have always been a worrier but developed OCD and severe anxiety in my early 20s and a worsening of symptoms after multiple traumatic pregnancies and births. I took antidepressants for almost a decade until the side effects and the slide into a deep depression became too much and they numbed me from any happiness in my life…my playful side had all but vanished. Life has continued to feel extremely stressful and as such I’ve manifested not only multiple chronic illness but financial distress as well, I’ve become stuck and feel caged and of course my body and inspiration for the future has too. I’m working everyday to challenge my mindset but that along with everyday life feels hard and laborious and devoid of play, I take everything so serious. When I listened to your podcast it was the second time in the one day that the topic of play came up, and it was like a light bulb moment…I have forgotten how to play, life has become a series of never ending seriousness and yet I have a very playful and joyful side of me that rarely sees the light of day. I’m grateful for hearing this podcast and think the list writing exercise really resonated with me, I can see how easily gratitude could be found in those stressful things if only I can change my mindset. Thanks again x

Hi Melissa,

I truly love all that you do and every week I send off links to your work to those that I think need it the most. Thanks for providing so much insight in such a calm and easy to understand manner. I have also included a link to this podcast in my first newsletter to subscribers today. I have no doubt they’ll love it x

Hi after listening to this podcast I had so many thoughts, one was with the anchors that keep the anxiety at the forefront and it made me think of how I can better support my partners children. I knew that I had been too serious lately and had been talking about playing and laughing more, listening to this podcast and thinking about what I did for play when I was a child inspired me to look into dance and acting classes. I went to my partners place after work and I got our textas and paper and I started doodling after a while one after the other the children all joined me and we all had fun drawing together it was a wonderful play moment for the four of us. I’m definitely going to make play a priority every day even if it’s just a few minutes of fun. Dancing around the house, jumping on the trampoline, playing soccer, tennis and cricket. I have a list of things that I want to incorporate into my week. Thank you both x

This episode spoke to me so very much. It has inspired me to do more! List my play history, list my stresses and go back and say why I’m grateful for them, everything really sat well with me in my heart and my chest (where I feel my anxiety). I can’t wait to try these things. Thank you Melissa and Charlie, you wonderful human beings.

Charlie said that a lot of authors and creators don’t know the power of their work. So just leaving a comment to let you both know I enjoyed the episode! Thanks for sharing 🙂