Healthy Living by Willow Creek Springs
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Healthy Living by Willow Creek Springs
How A Psychologist Turns Hardship Into Strength You Can Use Today with Dr Kate Lund
Resilience shouldn’t live on a poster. It should live in your day. We sat down with Dr. Kate Lund—psychologist, TEDx speaker, and host of The Optimized Mind—to turn big ideas about mental health into tools you’ll actually use. From childhood surgeries to two decades of clinical practice, Kate has learned that real strength starts with a steady baseline, not superhuman willpower.
We unpack the relaxation response, a five-minute practice that trains your nervous system to settle. No incense. No perfection. Just a repeatable way to downshift before a tough meeting, after school pickup, or when stress spikes at 9 p.m. Kate explains why rapport is the engine of therapy, how modalities differ across psychology and psychiatry, and what really changes outcomes for parents and professionals under strain. We dig into morning routines that feel human, not heroic—coffee in quiet, a short walk, a word you return to when life tilts—and why joy is a strategy, not a reward you earn after burnout.
Kate also shares a searing story from pediatric care: a young burn patient who lost eyesight and, through months of rehab, found a new normal and the voice to sing Amazing Grace. It’s a reminder that resilience is not about denying pain; it’s about moving toward meaning. If you’re navigating screens, stress, and constant demands, you’ll find permission to simplify, practices that stick, and a clear path to model calm for your kids.
Listen for practical steps to build a resilient lifestyle, explore The Optimized Mind for more real-world stories, and keep your eye on possibility beyond the challenge. If this conversation helped you breathe a little deeper, follow the show, share it with a friend who needs it, and leave a quick review so others can find us.
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All right. Well, hello, and welcome back to the Healthy Living Podcast. I'm your host, Joe Grumbine. And today we've got a very special guest. Her name is Dr. Kate Lund. And uh Kate is a psychologist and a parent. She helps people carve out resilience in real life, not just in theory. She brings over 20 years of clinical experience. She's a TEDx speaker, and she hosts the Optimized Mind podcast, where she shares raw stories from Navy, SEALs, athletes, and parents to push back rock bottom. She's a best author, best-selling author of Bounce. Help your child build resilience and thrive in school, sports, and life. She's getting ready to release her next book, Step Away, The Keys to Resilient Parenting. And so, Kate, without any further ado, welcome.
SPEAKER_00:Thank you so much for having me, Joe. I really appreciate it. This is uh this is fun.
SPEAKER_01:Well, I um more and more I'm connecting with authors and uh hosts of other podcasts, and I find myself uh we we we've created almost a podcast exchange network. So um I just got finished doing an interview for somebody else's podcast for somebody who had done mine a week ago. So welcome to the show. And you know, the first thing I always like to do with a guest is get to know you a little bit. And, you know, you got this wealth of experience, 20 years of clinical experience. But what brought you to um, you know, the field of psychology?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, it's a great question. And um, I really believe it goes back to my own childhood when I was diagnosed with this medical condition um when I was four, uh called hydrocephalus, where the cerebral spinal fluid doesn't circulate as it should, causing pressure to build up on the brain. And so a lot of time in and out of the hospital, having that kind of taken care of and managed. Uh, and so showing back up at school, looking different, feeling different, all those kinds of things. And so I really feel like that formed the foundation for me to be really interested in how it's possible to overcome challenges. How do we thrive within our own unique context when things aren't really typical? Um, how do we appreciate individual difference, all these things? And I wasn't thinking about it in those terms when I was four, obviously, but how it's how it's evolved. And, you know, those early experiences were definitely formative and have informed my, you know, interest in people, interest in human behavior, choices that I made for focuses in school, uh, and that sort of thing, and choices that I made in my training and becoming a psychologist, and then what I did with that right after and how it's evolved since. So I think, yeah, it goes back to those early years and experiences.
SPEAKER_01:You know, what's very interesting is you know, I started this podcast over two years ago, and my goal with it was always to create a community that had health and healthy living as a common thread. What I didn't realize was that as the show became a little more popular, and guests were reaching out to me now to come onto the show, is that most of the guests have overcome a major obstacle in their life. And that's and I never saw that as a common thread. In fact, when I started it, I hadn't been diagnosed with the cancer that I ultimately was, and I've overcome that, and that became you know kind of a central theme that I I bring into all these conversations. But it just seems that the human condition um offers some people these extraordinary uh challenges that some people are destroyed by and they just curl up and go away. And other people rise up and say, Wow, look what I've learned, and I want to now take something and do with it. So I I I thank you for choosing that path.
SPEAKER_00:Right, yeah, and it's in yes, and it can go kind of either way, and so very, very um very true.
SPEAKER_01:And so psychology is a field that I don't know that everybody understands, and I always try to uh bring a topic to a place where we're all in a level playing field, and there's psychology and psychiatry and therapy and all of these different modalities of mental wellness. Um, why don't you explain to us a little bit about what actually is psychology?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I got it. So psychology is really the study of human behavior. Um, and so when you're a psychologist, you study that at a deep level. You've got um a doctoral degree, um, so a PhD. Um you can do that at the master's level uh as well and become a therapist. So it's all in the same, it's all in the same umbrella, right? It's all it's just the kind of degree to which you've the level to which you've taken the study. Um psychiatry is uh an MD. So you're a medical doctor at that point, and you're able to prescribe medication and that sort of thing. Um, but we're all sort of in the same domain. We work together all the time, and it's all a question of understanding the human condition, understanding human behavior, and helping folks to make changes and shift in other directions when that's necessary, when there's a challenge in that in that space.
SPEAKER_01:So, in in the last 20 years, um, I suspect that the mental health field has grown and learned a lot of things, not only about the understanding how the brain works and and you know the physiology of things, but also identifying uh reasons and and causes and symptoms and uh even um even describing and describing treatments of different problems that people face. You know, the whole notion of autism and the spectrum and ADHD and all of these things are kind of new. Like when I was a kid, we were called hyperactive. And um, you know, I was around before the Ritalin days, fortunately, and you know, they they wanted to put me on medication, but my parents said, ah, we'll just keep them busy. And I I thank God every day that that's the way they chose to deal with me. But nowadays, you know, they're understanding more and more things and traumas and and and the different types of traumas that people undergo, especially as a child, and and the effect that it can have throughout a person's life. What do you think that you know, some of the bigger uh awarenesses or understandings or changes in the field have happened since you've entered into it?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, you know, well, I I think that the the world has gotten much more complex, right? And there's so much hitting us from so many different angles. And I think under our understanding, you know, even since I uh got into the field has grown and evolved and shifted in in different ways. And there are new problems which have come up, which have to be addressed, like for example, um, screen time and social media, uh, the impact of that for our kids and for us on our on our brains and our ability to focus and attend to things that we have in front of us and goals that we want to achieve. So there have definitely been um lots of shifts and advances and just the understanding of the importance of managing our stress response and caring for ourselves in a way that helps us to optimize our own sense of well-being so that we can then help others to optimize their own sense of well-being, our kids or whoever people in our family. Um, so I think long answered your question. There's been an evolution, and with that evolution has come a greater understanding on many levels.
SPEAKER_01:And do you feel that the way therapists and psychologists treat their patients today is more effective than it was maybe 20 years ago?
SPEAKER_00:Um, I don't think it's it's more effective per se. I think that, you know, really the thing that's the most important in any therapeutic relationship is the rapport that's built between uh clinician and patients. And I think that, you know, perhaps there's a greater level of understanding of the importance of that rapport. Um, but I feel like that was a pretty primary focus back when I was first training about 20 years ago. Um so I can't really answer that question specifically because for me, I feel like my the way that I approach my work with clients and patients has has been pretty level across time.
SPEAKER_01:Nice. I I think of, you know, I've never sat with a therapist, but I know many therapists, and I've had a number of different modalities as guests on the show with all different sorts of um specialized treatments that they have or offerings. I think of a therapist as you go to an office or a place and you start, you know, they get you talking, and then they'll ask you, well, how do you feel about that? And they just keep asking you questions, and then you kind of the I guess the goal is for you to awaken in yourself the answers that you already have. Is that kind of am I on track or is there something totally different that you work with?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, yeah. No, no, you're you're definitely, you know, on track. Uh, there are different modalities, there are different directions that therapy can can go. And you're you're describing one such direction, you know, helping folks to really understand themselves in a new way and discover solutions that are already within themselves if they just look at them in a different way. You know, there are also more specific uh approaches where you're really trying to help folks understand how their behaviors um impact their emotions and their actions. Um, so there's that, there's modalities that take you way back to your earliest days and try to bring that into awareness and connect that with your current way of behaving and living. So there's so much that happens in therapy. You know, there can be solution focused, short-term therapy, long-term therapy, which goes on for very, very, very long periods of time. So lots of different directions that therapists work with folks from based on what the person is seeking and what they need.
SPEAKER_01:Absolutely. So you you've authored at least one book and you have another book coming out. And the the commonality between these topics is about children and um overcoming issues. And your first book, Bounce, help your child build resistance and thrive in school, sports, and life. I can't help but wonder does your practice um focus on a demographic or is it just bring in everybody?
SPEAKER_00:Um, so my practice focuses mostly um on parents who are working to, you know, either help their children become more resilient and thrive in school, sports, or life. That's the topic of the first book. But I've been doing a lot of work lately on parents themselves and helping them become resilient in a sense. And that's the topic of my book that just came out, Step Away, The Keys to Resilient Parenting. And so I work with folks really adults these days, but there might be a focus on the child. Um, and really work with people across domains. You know, they might be um entrepreneurs, they might be authors, they might be medical professionals, executives, but the common thread is they're burned out, they're stressed out, and they're looking to feel better within their own unique context.
SPEAKER_01:Nice. Now, from your first experience of how you came to this and the different topics that we've been going through, um, it seems that resilience and overcoming is kind of going to be a theme through all this. And it seems that you've got some answers through your own experience. Why don't you tell us a little bit about you know the tools that you use in sharing with helping people to learn how to be a better parent, how to overcome burnout and the stress and all the things that, you know, parenting is not fun or easy necessarily. It can be very rewarding, but it's certainly challenging. I'm I'm certainly glad my parenting days are over and I'm into my grandparenting days. It's a whole lot easier.
SPEAKER_00:I love it. Well, you know, yeah, it's it's parenting has its challenges, right? It can be be difficult. I have 18-year-old twin boys myself. And so I've I'm I'm kind of at that point where they're 18 and they're about to launch into college and that whole thing. So, which is a whole nother set of challenges and things. Um, but yeah, it's been a been a journey for sure. And so one of the things that is is primary in the new book, Step Away, The Keys to Resilient Parenting, and it's primary in bounce, um, which is focused on the kids, uh, is modulating our stress response, sort of showing up each day in this even space. Because if we're starting up here and a challenge hits, we're gonna escalate to the point of shutdown. And then we're not gonna be able to show up for ourselves or our kids, our families, our work, what have you. So teaching folks to integrate a really simple technique uh into their life called the relaxation response to help them modulate their stress response. And this technique was developed by a physician in Boston in the late 1970s. And very, very powerful technique, which everything I teach is derived from this technique in terms of managing your stress response. And so you come up with a word or a phrase that you find soothing in some way, and you breathe. And you do that for five minutes in the morning and five minutes in the evening, such that you're integrating what this level, even space feels like. And with the more practice that you do, the more consistently you practice, the more integrated that way of being is going to become. It's gonna become kind of like your baseline. And you can also take this technique along with you in your back pocket to think of the word, the phrase, breathe for a few minutes or a few seconds before entering into a stressful conversation or something stressful comes up and you need to sort of move through it. So it's very portable that way, super simple. So I have folks practice that, integrate that as a way of building that even baseline so that we can move on from there and create sort of a toolbox of strategies that folks can also integrate into their lives to create a resilient lifestyle. Because resilience is not like a one-time event, you know, each time a challenge comes up. We want to have a resilient lifestyle kind of locked in.
SPEAKER_01:Well, it's also, you know, it sounds like what you're talking about in a lot of ways is like a mini meditation. Like you, you like meditation can be a long, arduous process that can take a lifetime to learn, but you've kind of broken it down into uh uh a little pocket meditation where you can just switch a switch on and get yourself sort of to that place and uh get some of the benefits out of it without all the the time and and and I don't know, exhausting practice that it takes a lot of people.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, exactly. And that's the point is to have a practice that you can easily integrate into your life and that you're gonna actually practice. Because if we tell people to, you know, start sitting down to meditate twice a day for 20 minutes, it's kind of not that likely that it's gonna happen.
SPEAKER_01:Right, right. It's easy to make a reason why, well, we'll do it tomorrow. 100% too much time, and I know that uh, you know, I I've I struggled with that until fairly recently. You know, I had to reprioritize everything, and all of a sudden that became so important that now I just do it. But most people or a lot of people don't get hit with that kind of a challenge where you have to make a decision. And I think that that's powerful, you know. The the I think a lot of times the little tools that are gonna get used are as important or more important than the big tools that could change your life, but you're never gonna do because they're too much work.
SPEAKER_00:100%. Yes, 100%.
SPEAKER_01:And then you talk about um, you know, it's not necessarily about being resilient to the same thing over and over again. It's about learning to be resilient, it's about learning techniques that you know things are always gonna come at you. And learning that, you know, having a reasonable place to start your day instead of ha, we're gonna go get it. And then something happens and you got to go even higher than that. Or, you know, you just find sort of a baseline place. Like for me, um, I get up in the morning, usually before sunrise, and I'll sit by myself and share a cup of coffee with me and think about the day, and then I'll get up and I'll go for a walk around my property with the dogs, and that's sort of my let's start the day right here. And then things come at you, and you're already kind of in a well, I've already had some beauty, and I've already had a little good experience with my dogs. So, whatever it is, let's deal with it. And something simple like that has been helpful for me to manage, you know, what would otherwise be a pretty chaotic life. And uh is that sort of something that you get people to do is come up with sort of a a regimen or a ritual or or you know, some little tool to help them?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, absolutely. Routine is super important and it's something that you know I'll talk with with everybody about really, you know, what what does your morning routine look like? How you know do you feel it's either helping you as you start your day, or is it super chaotic and perhaps taking away from the start of your day? And so helping folks craft or create a morning routine that helps them start their day on the right foot, no pun intended. And it sounds like sounds like you really have that in place with your coffee and your walks and all that.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah. And it's just simple. They're little things I enjoy. And so if you can find like I call it vitamin J. If you can find joy in something that is good for you, then that's that's your golden ticket, you know. And um, you know, I run a nonprofit called Gardens of Hope, and we we do what we call therapeutic horticulture. And so the idea is that you know, get yourself outside and do a thing, whatever it is, and you'll find a little more by being in nature. And it's simple, we don't, you know, let nature do the work. And uh, but through all of this, like usually I I try to get people to connect with something and that brings them joy, yeah. And and if you get that, like you can always discipline yourself to do a hard thing that's good for you, right? Diet, or or you know, not sitting in front of that screen too long, or not getting upset, or whatever it is. You can kind of through willpower and drive and and and effort, you can you can do it. But if it's fun, it's easy.
SPEAKER_00:Exactly, exactly. That's such a great point. And it's so easy for us to get moving so fast through life that we forget to stop and experience those things that bring us joy, right? So that is such an important point. Yeah, the the the J, what do you call it? The J. Yeah, vitamin J. Vitamin J, yes, yes, yes. And I love that because it's true, right? It's it's it's such powerful stuff that's often overlooked. And so such a great point.
SPEAKER_01:Well, and so many times I think we're conditioned, you know. I grew up in a a Catholic uh training, and you know, you get kind of taught that suffering is good for you and joy is bad for you, you know, and it's just not right. Like, you know, it can be we find joy in bad things. Well, then yeah, you're right. It's you shouldn't maybe do those things. And if you can find something good in suffering, well, great, you know, then you can turn lemons into lemonade, but that's not a necessity. Like you can find healing and joy easily if you can just find joy in the right thing. So I'm I really think that you know, us becoming aware of of some of these little things can be so helpful. Now I know um you've you've transitioned or or added to your uh repertoire speaking, doing TEDx speeches and things like that. Tell us a little bit about the topics and the things that you speak about.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, that's that's a great question. And it is something that I'm evolving into and I'm I'm developing uh as we speak, and we'll be launching that a lot in uh 2026. But really, my my goal is to help folks through my talks, through my keynotes, to appreciate and thrive within their own unique context. Recognize that we're all bringing something to the table and helping folks to get in touch with their bringing and how they can use that to foster, maximize their potential, all that good stuff.
SPEAKER_01:Nice, nice. And the Optimize Mind podcast. Um, tell us a little bit about that. It sounds like you uh are bringing in guests that have some pretty amazing stories, and and um, you know, we we we share probably a lot of the same themes, and probably some of the same guests of people that have gone through these, you know, horrific uh life experiences and how they've overcome and you know gotten past these like insurmountable challenges.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, absolutely. So the Optimized Mind Um podcast has been a great project. It's been ongoing for three years. Um really is the big big idea is to really uh explore this idea of resilience through the human experience. And so understand, yeah, what folks have been through, how they've come through certain challenges, how they've built certain things. Um, maybe they're helping a child through a challenge, you know, a medical challenge or a serious physical disability type of situation. Um, so I interview folks across domains with the idea of really uncovering how resilience has shown up for them within the context of their human experience.
SPEAKER_01:Nice, nice. I love that. And uh I look forward to how do I find your podcast?
SPEAKER_00:Um, well, it's on Apple, uh, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, sort of anywhere that um that you can listen to podcasts.
SPEAKER_01:Nice. So I'm gonna look you up and uh and check some of that out. Um, as we're getting a little short on time, I always like to hear a story in 20 years of being a therapist without you know breaching any uh HIPAA stuff, that you've got to have some amazing stories of people that you've um helped to unlock or discover or heal. Uh why don't you share one of these uh, you know, life-changing stories with us?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, sure, sure. And yeah, keeping in mind the the whole HIPAA thing, no names or no, you know, no, no, not all the specifics. But um, yeah, yeah, I guess one story that I can share uh goes way back to my fellowship days. And I've had more similar ones to this as I've moved forward, but this one is particularly poignant. Um, I was working at a pediatric burn center, and there was a young patient there who had um experienced a serious burn injury to their face and lost their eyesight. Wow. And I mean, life changing in so many, so many ways, obviously, and devastating and catastrophic. And we went through the entire acute phase, reconstructive phase, rehabilitation phase of the healing journey. And this particular kid really was able to come back and start to develop a new sense of normal within this really, really horrific current context. And when lots of folks would have shut down completely, this particular person was able to engage in the rehabilitation, engage in the PT, and on one particular Friday afternoon was found on the um on the in the doorway of the playroom singing Amazing Grace. And was able to, you know, kind of turn it around in a sense, and that there was this real desire to use the experience to give back to others. And on that particular afternoon, through that song, that was what started to happen.
SPEAKER_01:What a powerful experience that that must have reinforced in you your purpose and and the value of what you bring to all this.
SPEAKER_00:Definitely, for sure. You know, the the power in seeing somebody experience something so horrific, but then be able to move forward and also give back is quite extraordinary.
SPEAKER_01:I love that. Well, Kate, um I always try to get our guests to sum up this conversation with sort of a final thought. Um, is there something that you'd like to share with our listeners to sort of encapsulate the conversation here?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, well, so what I what I would say to that is um, you know, always believe in the possibility on the other side of the challenge for both yourself as well as your kids, your family. Um, challenges are gonna pop up, but keep your eye on the possibility that's on the other side of it.
SPEAKER_01:Beautiful, beautiful. And um I don't know much about the the region of your practice, but um a lot of therapists are doing remote work as well as in-person work, especially after COVID. What is the area that you service?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, so I um am also doing uh virtual work, um, quite a bit of it. And I am actually licensed because I have a um SciP degree, uh SciPAC license, which for psychologists allows us to practice in 42 states. Oh no. So I'm out there and I'm available for sure.
SPEAKER_01:Beautiful. Well, how does somebody get a hold of you?
SPEAKER_00:Uh they can do that through my website, which is www.katelundspeaks.com. And I'm also uh very active on LinkedIn and Instagram.
SPEAKER_01:Wonderful. Well, Kate, it has been a pleasure. As I suspected, the conversation was gonna go very quickly, and um I I just am grateful that you came and my my invitation to return is always there for you. Um, and just want to thank you for being here.
SPEAKER_00:Wonderful. Well, thank you for having me, Joe. I've really, really enjoyed this and I appreciate it.
SPEAKER_01:Excellent. Well, this has been another episode of the Healthy Living Podcast. I'm your host, Joe Grumba, and I want to thank all of our listeners that have made this show possible, and we will see you next time.
