Hi everyone! Please G-d we will be back soon with new episodes! In the meantime, enjoy this Cheshvan replay rich with information on the month we are in and what we can do to bring Moshiach. G-d knows we need the chizuk! Enjoy!--Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. Today, we are talking all about Moshiach. It’s Cheshvan and on the surface, Cheshvan seems like a chill, catch-up kind of month. The chagim are over, we’re back to routine and Cheshvan gives us the time to do so. But is that all Cheshvan is for? Like pretty much all things in Judaism, how things appear on the surface are well, just the surface and there is a whole world of depth underneath.As I was researching more about Cheshvan I learned that it is soooo Moshiach centered. If you learn from the Sefer Yetzirah or the Book of Formation, which you can read about on ⁠inner.org⁠, you will learn that the letter of the month, sense of the month, tribe and so much more are all connected to Moshiach.To be honest, Moshiach is something I’ve struggled with over the years becoming religious and being religious. It’s something that I am taught to want, yet also something I don’t actually know that much about.So for awhile now, I’ve been determined to learn more and really understand more and I knew Faigy Blumstein was the perfect person to do so with.⁠Faigy Blumstein⁠ does not call herself a lecturer, but someone who loves to share. A passionate educator and school psychologist, she is dedicated to living a Hashem-centered life. As part of the Thank You Hashem women’s division, Faigy draws on chasidic teachings and the light of the Baal Shem Tov, to inspire others. Her heartfelt approach helps women deepen their connection to Hashem, integrating spirituality into everyday life in a meaningful and modern way.And let me tell you this conversation gets deep. We talk about how she got into Chassidus in the first place, how it can connect you in ways you never could have imagined, what Moshiach even means, how we can all work to bring Moshiach, why Cheshvan is the time reserved for Moshiach, how Israel connects to all of this and so so much more.We also learn about the connection between Cheshvan, Moshiach and Rochel Imeinu. Tonight, Monday night, the 11th of Cheshvan begins Rochel Imeinu’s yahrtzeit and our conversation brought such a new light to Rochel that I wasn’t aware of before. It is hashgacha pratis that the podcast is coming out right before so hopefully we can all use our connection to Rochel Imeinu to feel more strength and a new kind of vitality with our Yiddushkeit.Learn more:Cheshvan on ⁠Inner.org⁠⁠Thank You Hashem⁠Listen to Faigy's Cheshvan Playlist:⁠Spotify⁠⁠Apple

[This episode originally aired on July 29, 2024] Hi everyone, welcome to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, we are speaking with Dr. Hilla Aboody, an amazing teacher, mother, wife and mentor currently living in Eretz Yisrael who I invited to come on to speak about this heavy time on the Jewish calendar.Hilla has such a beautiful way of explaining things — it’s so deep and profound yet easy to comprehend at the same time.A little background on her:She is a wife and mother of five, living in Eretz Yisrael after making Aliyah 7 years ago from Brooklyn, NY. She is a teacher and Em Bayit (house mother) at Midreshet Eshel, a Sephardic seminary for post High school students from around the world. Her educational background includes studying at Michlalah and receiving her bachelor’s degree from Bar-Ilan University and a Master’s and PhD in Jewish History from New York University. She has published her study on Eliyahu the Prophet in Talmudic literature and midrashim in her book, “Through the Prism of Wisdom”. As an educator and kallah teacher, Hilla dedicates her time in guiding students to creating a relationship with Hashem and tips and tools to thrive in their marriages and in life.In our conversation, we speak about:-What the Jewish perspective is on sadness and pain-How we can connect to Hashem during this time and in this unique way, especially if it feels daunting for you right now-Why this particular time period brings about more heaviness and actually the reason why we take more precautions-The rich energy that lies in the months of Tammuz and Av — what the letters associated with each month mean, why the sense of each month is important and what we can individually and collectively take from all of that-Why crying is actually a sign of bravery-Practical things you can do now to get through this time with more faith, in a more connected way to yourself, Hashem and those around you-How to deal with difficult emotions with your kids…and SO MUCH MOREThis podcast with Hilla is basically an hour long shiur. I got chills like 17 times as I was listening to her and it’s definitely one of the most important ones I’ve done so far in terms of our spirituality.If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag. Thanks again, see you next week!

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I have Dr. Feigie Russ on the show.Dr. Feigie is a licensed psychologist specializing in anxiety and OCD. With over 20 years of clinical experience, she blends her psychological expertise with a deep love for Hashem, to help individuals navigate their inner struggles. This week, she is releasing a brand new book called Letting Go: Overcoming Anxiety Through Emunah and Bitachon.When I learned about this book I was intrigued, but when I got to look through an early copy, I was blown away. At the beginning, I was skeptical — how would this book be different than others out there on emunah, bitachon and anxiety? Dr. Feigie Russ totally turns the whole concept on its head by bringing ego into the mix. It’s a unique perspective that I hadn’t heard before, one that really clicked for me and is also super comprehensive — the book is more than 400 pages so she really tries to address every aspect around the topic. In this episode, I speak to Dr. Feigie about:-What prompted her to write this book-Her own relationship with love for Hashem and building her emunah and bitachon-How she dealt with a really painful experience and came out the other side stronger-A refreshing perspective on navigating anxiety and really overcoming it from a place of understanding-How to handle uncertainty-How ego gets in the way when it comes to personal growth AND the appropriate place for ego in living a healthy, balanced life that serves Hashem in the way you want to-How the most difficult relationships in our lives can both teach us the most about self-love and actually get us to that place-How to know when giving is coming from a real place or a people-pleasing place and further, how to overcome a people-pleasing nature -The conversation to have with yourself about knowing how you’re genuinely feeling about giving and doing more…and so much more!To get in touch with Dr. Feigie, you can email her at [email protected].

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I have Elisheva Liss, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist on the show. Elisheva works with individuals and couples to help improve their quality of life and relationships — most commonly treating depression, anxiety, relationship problems and anything dealing with intimacy. She has a collaborative approach, which means she looks at her work as a partnership with each client.In this episode, we basically have a mini (or honestly, extended) therapy session about a lot of common issues women may be dealing with in the religious community, outside of it and in the unique time we’re living in.As frum Jewish women, we live a beautiful life with holy values. We plan and often host Shabbat meals every week, opening our homes to those who need it. We bake challah, daven, say Tehillim, try to do chesed when we can, often work outside of the home, raise children, try to be a giving and loving wife, find time to learn and grow as people, find time for our own wellbeing and self-care with exercise, preparing healthy meals, maybe even our own therapy, we prepare simchas for our families, make time for friends to nourish ourselves and focus on what’s going on in their lives, and so much more — the list goes on.Even just crafting this list — which I’m sure is still missing a lot — shows me just how much we may have on our plates at any given time. So especially when you lean more to the overachieving, perfectionist side of the mental health spectrum, it can often feel like you’re not measuring up. We are taught that Hashem gives us time to partner with Hashem in this world, and the worst feeling is to feel like we’re not utilizing that potential. How do we know when it’s enough? How do we feel okay with just not being able to do it all?So I brought on Elisheva Liss to help me work through this concept. She is a beautiful, well-spoken therapist who actually has her own book called “Find Your Horizon of Healthy Thinking: Hack Your Thoughts and Improve Your Mood” which really was a perfect match for this topic. In our conversation, we speak about the pressures frum women face today, how to feel more comfortable with where we’re at in this exact moment and how to use our brains to develop a healthier way of thinking and honestly, enjoy the lives that we’re leading.Here, the books she shares in the episode:168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura VanderkamThe Rhythm of Life: Living Every Day with Passion and Purpose by Matthew KellySlowing Down to the Speed of Life — by Richard Carlson and Joseph BaileyBittersweet by Susan CainFollow Elisheva on Instagram here.Join her weekly newsletter here.

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today we have Rebbetzin Ruthi Lynn on the show. Ruthi is a Marriage and Family therapist. For more than 15 years, she has conducted seminars, lectures and online classes for parents.As a therapist, Ruthi specializes in parenting, teens and relational issues within the family. Her ultimate goal is to help parents have amazing relationships with their kids, to see themselves as leaders to their children and to build the next generation strong, moral and passionate. She is also the mother of 8 kids bli ayin hara so she has a little experience herself in the thick of it.Ruthi has worked closely with Rebbetzin Sima Spetner, the renowned chinuch expert from Eretz Yisrael, and has become a teacher of her work. She was basically like an apprentice and went around Israel with her for years, eventually even taking over some of her classes. Now, she’s continuing to bring that wisdom to others.She is running a 10-week seminar based on Rebbetzin Spetner’s teachings this summer and it starts tonight, Monday June 16, via Zoom to anyone around the world. To sign up, contact Rivky Weiss at 216-965-4107. If you happen to be listening to this once the class is started, you can still reach out and catch up on the recordings that you missed.In our conversation, Ruthi and I speak about -how she became so connected with Rebbetzin Spetner and what that relationship looked like at that time-How to get back in touch with your intuition when it comes to parenting and why it gets lost for so many of us-How to know when a kid’s behavior is important to respond to or you can let go a little bit more-How we can bring Hashem consistently back into our parenting-How Ruthi achieved such a beautiful relationship with her own kids with one of the main things she credits that to-How to get through hectic and changing summer schedules and any upcoming travel you may be taking-What a realistic life looks like when you have multiple children of various ages and genders under one roof…and so much more!This episode is informative, relatable and just so necessary when it comes to all we’re dealing with consistently as parents. I hope that Ruthi will help you take some of the pressure off and really allow you to have fun and enjoy the summer with your family. Enjoy!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, we have the amazing Rachel Rosenberg on the podcast. Rachel is a certified mindset, health, and behavior change coach who helps women break free from emotional eating, binge cycles, and the exhausting all-or-nothing mindset. Blending neuroscience, CBT tools, and over 12 years of experience, she guides her clients to build a healthy relationship with food — and with themselves. Her work isn’t about more control. It’s about freedom. It’s about peace. It’s about learning to trust your body again.This was a topic I was excited to explore more deeply — while it’s focused on creating a healthy lifestyle, there is so much more around that that we delve into when it comes to building the life you want to be living and the habits that support it. We speak about letting go of perfectionism on that journey, how to navigate what a healthy lifestyle actually looks like for you and then the emotions that may come up along the way when getting there.As women, our relationship with food can be layered and it’s one that comes up multiple times a day. Rachel works with women to get to a much freer place when it comes to choosing what to eat every day and just how to approach this aspect of our lives with a lot more calm.These days, weight loss drugs are a hot topic as well and it feels that conversations around weight loss really run the gamut — first, we’re focusing more on body acceptance and not wanting to change to focusing on everyone doing weight loss drugs and how we feel about that to maybe feeling shame about wanting to lose weight and speaking openly about that to also wanting to love ourselves the way we are! — there can be feelings across the whole spectrum at different times in our lives and sometimes all at the same time. In this conversation, we speak about a lot of that. How you can feel confident and okay with wanting to lose weight if that’s your goal AND also work on loving yourself as you are.Rachel has a new group opening up in July so reach out now! You can follow her on Instagram at @coach rachel rosenberg or connect via email at [email protected].

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today I am so excited to have Rebbetzin, Author and Speaker, Sara Yoheved Rigler, on the podcast. In this episode, we are talking all about her incredible book, Holy Woman, the woman who inspired it — Rebbetzin Chaya Sara Kramer, and some Shavuot lessons we can all take to enter the holiday in the best mindset we can.Rebbetzin Rigler has become someone I’ve really learned a lot from in my own Jewish journey. I am a member of her weekly marriage webinar run through Jewish Workshops, where she helps women around the world work on themselves and improve their marriages; and I’m also someone who has really benefitted from her books. Even though Holy Woman is technically a biography, it reads like a novel and you become riveted from early on. Plus, Rebbetzin Rigler writes it with takeaways along the way so you can think about your own struggles and choices in life and become more prepared to tackle them.In the episode, we speak about:-Chaya Sara Kramer’s life — the prophetic nature she was born with and how she nurtured that -The immense challenges she encountered along the way-How Rebbetzin Rigler met Rebbetzin Kramer and the relationship they developed following-What defines being in a good place versus a bad place in life — this was really life-changing-What we can learn from Rebbetzin Kramer about passing our own tests in life-How Rebbetzin Kramer lived every day with true simcha and what we can all learn from that-Creating more of a Oneness between us and Hashem-What it’s like to live with bitachon versus just living with emunah-What Judaism really says about guilt-The main lesson Rebbetzin Rigler applies to her life daily that she learned from Rebbetzin Kramer…and SO MUCH MORE.The reason we are doing this episode now is because it is the 20th yahtzeit of Rebbetzin Kramer and because she didn’t have any biological children — something you’ll learn more about — she was always concerned no one would light a candle for her. So the goal with this is that all those listening will learn more about her and light a candle for her on her upcoming yahrzeit — gimmel Sivan, which starts on the night of 29th of May and goes into the following day, May 30. The full name for prayer is Chaya Sara bas Mendel Yosef.More about Sara Yoheved Rigler:Sara Yoheved Rigler is the author of seven books on Jewish spirituality: Holy Woman; Lights from Jerusalem; Battle Plans: How to Fight the Yetzer Hara (with Rebbetzin Tziporah Heller); G-d Winked: Tales and Lessons from My Spiritual Adventures; Heavenprints; and Emunah with Love and Chicken Soup: The Story of Rebbetzin Henny Machlis, the Brooklyn-born Girl who became a Jerusalem Legend. Her newest book, I’ve Been Here Before: When Souls of the Holocaust Return, is the product of 8 years of research into reincarnated souls from the Holocaust. She gives a weekly Marriage Webinar for Jewish women on a spiritual approach to marriage, with hundreds of members throughout the world. She lives in Jerusalem. Her website is: sararigler.com. Her YouTube channel is "From Within the Walls of Jerusalem", where she relates stories, presents gems of Jewish wisdom, and teaches practical life tools.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today I have Gila Levitt on the show. Gila is a Torah Marriage and Intimacy Specialist with over 20 years of experience empowering Jewish women to create emotionally connected, deeply fulfilling marriages. As the creator of Heart of Marriage: Soul Satisfying Oneness, she blends timeless Torah values with the latest research in emotional intelligence, brain science, and relational well-being.Gila’s work is grounded, warm, and deeply respectful on each woman’s inner world. She offers not just guidance—but clarity, chizuk, and a path forward for the woman who wants to become her best, most authentic self in her marriage. Through mindset shifts, emotional insight, and practical tools, she helps women align with who they truly want to be—in marriage and in life.  This episode was one I wasn’t sure I wanted to do to be totally honest. It covers a really vulnerable topic and one that isn’t often spoken about publicly. That being said, it’s an important one, one that affects every marriage and every woman in some way so when Gila reached out, I really thought it through and it felt like a good opportunity to delve into things a little more.Because intimacy is such a private thing, it can be one women don’t really feel comfortable getting help on or seeking support if they need it and I’m hoping this episode will help break a little bit of that stigma.In the episode we cover a lot — from what intimacy actually looks like in a Torah marriage — the mindset around it and the body-soul relationship to practical ways to achieve more connection to it if it’s something that’s hard for you. We speak about the differences between men and women in general and in this space that could be coming up and realistic expectations to have around its impact on your marriage.For more from Gila, visit heartofmarriage.org or reach out to Gila at [email protected] more classes from Gila on Kol Halashon, click here.--If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I am so excited to welcome Atara Weisberger to the podcast.Atara is a trailblazing health and wellness coach, personal development mentor, and co-author of the transformative book How to Soul: Navigate Your Life Path with Clarity, Inner Peace, and Joy. With a unique ability to blend ancient wisdom with actionable strategies, Atara empowers individuals to break free from emotional blocks, rediscover their inner strength, and cultivate lives rooted in authenticity and joy.She of course, has her own personal journey to getting where she is today. Her own baal yeshiva story has shaped her mission to help others find meaning and connection in today's fast- paced, often overwhelming world. As the founder of The Tribe, a holistic wellness community, Atara leads a growing movement where spiritual growth meets modern self-care. She is very active herself and is a runner, yogi and loves to explore healthy cooking.In the episode, we’re talking all about her new book that she wrote with Rabbi Dov Lipman which is all about reconnecting to your soul, your real inner essence which can so easily get lost in today’s world.You know the feeling you get when you go to a really good shiur? It’s like everything just clicks and makes sense and you feel aligned with who you are really meant to be. That is this book.Anxieties, insecurities, awkward social interactions, social media, meetings, family dynamics and more can easily make us feel like we’re not enough and can throw us off balance from knowing who we really are.The goal of this book is to remind you of your inner essence, to give you tools to always be able to get back to your soul and to feel like you’re really living a connected life in the true meaning of the word — not the 2025 version.In the episode, we speak about -Atara’s journey to writing this book-Her main goal that she wants readers to take away from it-How to connect more deeply to your soul and how to get back to it when you feel like you’ve strayed-How to find balance and meaning in religious halacha and how that goes hand in hand with spirituality and a real relationship with Hashem-Why the struggle and the process of growth is the way and why growth is never linear-Practical tools to utilize in this world to get you back to a more spiritual place-How we can make peace with social media and living a life in a technological world without making it black and white-Cultivating more emunah and bitachon with the wisdom that she shares..and so much more!If you want more from Atara, visit Howtosoulbook.com — at the bottom you can get two free heart-opener meditations. To get in touch, you can email Atara at [email protected].

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I am speaking with Merissa Gross, a shadchan, or matchmaker, extraordinaire. Merissa is a ball of energy, just so much fun to be around with is a wealth of knowledge when it comes to dating. This is a full raw, real, tachlis conversation. We really get into it. Even though I’ve interviewed other dating experts on the podcasts, I think this one is the most insightful in terms of the behind-the-scenes aspect that happens for a matchmaker. She does not hold back — she shares it all with stories and details so even if you’re not currently in the dating scene, this is an interesting one to listen to.We speak about:-Her day-to-day schedule and what goes into working with a couple-How she sets parameters around who she sets up-How the payment system works with her and other shadchanim — this was really interesting to see how it’s evolved-How she decides who to pair up — if it really is a gut feeling or there is a system-Addressing mistakes matchmakers make and clearing up misconceptions about the reputation so many unfortunately get-Why you may feel frustrated with the matches that you’re getting-How to make the best impression at a meeting with a matchmaker-What to do if you feel like you’re not getting the best matches and how she has handled certain situations-Red flags to look out for in dating-The concept of settling versus not-How to know when you’re ready to get engaged and what that feels like...and sooo much more.As you can see from that list, we cover A LOT of ground and even if you’re married, this is a super engaging conversation to listen in on just from a place of personal interest and as a way to help any single friends find THEIR match.If you'd like to get in touch with Merissa, you can email her at [email protected] email is not possible: Israel work only number, which includes WhatsApp: 058.500.8820 Official work hours: 9am-3pm IST

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today, I am so happy to be back! Baruch Hashem, it was a beautiful Pesach holiday filled with a lot of great quality family time, cooking, decluttering, all the things we talk about on here and now it feels good to be back to the podcast!Coming off of Pesach, we just spend time looking inward, thinking about the excess chametz we want to get rid of in our own lives, the fluff that gets in the way of who we really are, what things maybe we want to free ourselves from and be free to do. This episode is all about self-awareness, going beneath the surface, getting more to the root of who you are and it’s a beautiful continuation of that work we can bring into this new time period on the Jewish calendar. Dvora Henner, our guest this week, is the founder of MAXIMIZE, a home organization and life coaching business dedicated to helping women make the most of their space and time. She is passionate about self-awareness and personal growth as the foundation for stronger, healthier relationships.In the episode, we speak about:-Her journey from being a full-time stay at home mother to re-entering the out of the house work and finding what she wants to do-The importance of self-awareness, how we learn more about it throughout life as different triggers come up-How this is really the key to solving a lot of our relationship issues we may have with those close to us-What’s going on inside of us when our emotions are challenged in a new way-How to use the information to have a deeper, more vulnerable conversation with a loved one-How to improve our shalom bayit-What a woman’s needs are compared with a man’s needs and how that plays into all of this-How we can practice more self-acceptance...and SO much more!This episode sounds simple on the surface but it is really so deep and thought-provoking and the perfect thing to listen to as we move through this next period.If you'd like to get in touch with Dvora, she can be reached at [email protected].

This episode originally aired April 8, 2024.Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and I am so excited about this conversation with Rebbetzin Yehudis Golshevsky. We’re in a difficult time for the Jewish people. We just marked 180 days since October 7 — six whole months since Israel and the Jewish people were attacked on Simchat Torah. It’s hard to believe. It’s so hard to know that every single day, 134 hostages still remain in captivity, our soldiers are still fighting and our people are at riskThere is increased antisemitism around us. Incredible gaslighting about what Israel is doing in self-defense and just to survive and protect its people, our people. It’s truly a painful moment and it can be confusing to know where to turn or where to find hope. This conversation with Rebbetzin Golshevsky, I hope will help you find some comfort.In our conversation, we speak about:-Rebbetzin Golshevsky's path to becoming a profound Torah teacher-How to connect to Nisan and Pesach during this unique time we're in and how we can extract so much meaning out of it-How to become joyful at this time-Why things may look so gross and ugly on the outside right now and what that means for the Jewish people-The process of redemption — what we can look to for hope-How to free yourself from something personal you're working on...and so much more! If you would like to learn more about Rebbetzin Golshevsky and SHIVITI and get on the school's mailing list for classes, visit https://shiviti.org.il/.To reach out to Rebbetzin Golshevsky directly, you can email her at [email protected]. More about Rebbetzin Golshevsky:Rebbetzin Golshevsky founded and is the director of SHIVITI, a school in Jerusalem for women. She holds primary and secondary teaching certifications from Yavne Teacher's College in Cleveland, Ohio, as well as a BA from SUNY Buffalo in Classics-Judaic Studies. Rebbetzin Golshevsky has been a well-known Torah educator in Jerusalem and abroad for twenty-five years, with students all over the world. She is also published author, editor, and translator. To nominate a woman for the podcast, please send me an email at [email protected] or send me a DM on Instagram at @chaionlifemag.Thanks for listening! 

I am so excited about today’s guest because it is Chanie Apfelbaum of Busy in Brooklyn.If you are not already familiar, Chanie is a food writer and photographer who has a really unique way of blending traditional Jewish foods with modern flavors. She started her blog, Busy in Brooklyn, in 2011 so it’s been giving us delicious recipe ideas for all occasions for nearly 15 years now. She is also the author of two cookbooks, Millennial Kosher and Totally Kosher where you can get even more recipe ideas from Chanie as well as tons of tips about cooking, how to stock your kitchen, plan a meal and more.As we all know, Pesach is a stressful time on the Jewish calendar, but the more I get into making and hosting Pesach, the more I’m determined to take the stress out of the process. This episode with Chanie will do that for you. It’s genuinely fun. I felt lighter and excited after recording it and had that same feeling after listening through again and editing it. It just got me actually excited to cook for Pesach and feeling blessed for the opportunity to do so versus overburdened with chores. In the episode, we talk a bit about:-Chanie’s background and how her spirituality has evolved over the years especially throughout various challenges she has gone through-Then, about halfway through, the ideas start FLOWING when it comes to easy foods you can make this Pesach mainly out of fruits, vegetables nuts and seeds and it is both mouth-watering and easier than you think.-She also shares tips that can help you in the kitchen and streamline your cooking experience. -We go through how to plan a meal — whether it’s seder night or a third day lunch and it’s just so awesome to see how her brain works in that way. Her ideas are simplified yet do not skimp on the flavor. In fact, they are bursting with flavor and because so many of the ingredients are just fruits and vegetables or repurposing something you have, you will be saving tons of money not having to buy all the processed pantry products and too many extras because as we all know Pesach can get really expensive really quickly.To help you out further, I made a companion document where I typed up all the ideas for easy access — view it here!Wishing all of you a beautiful Pesach.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, we have Debbie Sassen, business coach, money mentor and host of the Jewish Entrepreneur Podcast joining us. She helps established entrepreneurs scale from six to seven figures with high-ticket offers, leveraged business models, and smart CEO strategies—all in alignment with Jewish values.Debbie is the go-to expert for business owners ready to charge more, raise their prices, and sell high-ticket offers with confidence—without feeling pushy or sleazy. She believes that money is intimately woven into every part of business, and that clearing money blocks makes growth, marketing, and sales infinitely easier.Her signature coaching program, Wired for Wealth, helps entrepreneurs scale sustainably with her 10-step leverage plan, Power of 1 method, and Sacred Sales Conversation process. Through her coaching, clients master their CEO mindset, leverage their time, and implement simple systems to create consistent $20K-$50K months—without sacrificing their faith, family, or freedom.Debbie believes that no woman - or man - should undercharge, undersell, or dim their light to build financial sustainability for their family.She is also, the mother of eight children bli ayin hara, so she has a LOT to share with us. I was really excited to dig into a conversation about money because I feel like it’s a topic not often discussed. Even with close friends it can be awkward or weird to go into let alone people you know less well yet it’s such an important and vital part of our lives. It’s also one that a lot of people have a lot of feelings around. We all have attachment styles to money the same way we do with relationships and it’s something we have to manage and encounter multiple times a day.In the Jewish world, there are extra expenses — Shabbos, kosher food, Pesach of course which is rapidly on its way, two sets of dishes, tuition, generally having more kids and of course so much more.In this episode we speak about:-The relationship Debbie had growing up to money and how that has developed and changed into how it is now-Women taking time off of a career for motherhood and how that impacts her involvement in household finances-Re-entering the workforce during motherhood and how so many women often underestimate themselves and their skills-Money and marriage — how to speak about it with your husband, designate certain roles if you would like to and maintain and gauge that trust and partnership in the relationship-We talk about spirituality within all of this — how Hashem comes into the picture with work, money and giving and how that all can contribute to a more secure attachment with our finances…and SO MUCH MOREDebbie is a wealth of knowledge — pun intended — and honestly, we cover so much and also just skimmed the surface. She has a ton of additional resources available which are all included in the show notes if you’d like to learn more or get in touch with her.Website: https://debbiesassen.com/Podcast: The Jewish Entrepreneur Podcast https://debbiesassen.com/podcast/Book, The $1K Investor: Simple Smart Steps to Start Investing with $1K or Less https://debbiesassen.com/book (links to Amazon)LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbiesassen/Instagram: @debbiesassenFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/debbiesassencoaching Free resource: Your Money Mindset Workbook: https://debbiesassen.com/mindset/

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I am speaking with Rivka Lerner. Originally from Switzerland, she works as a software developer and coach as well as a kallah teacher, but her love is in teaching and discussing profound ideas with Jews from all walks of life. After teaching with her husband Rabbi Simi Lerner in London for a few years, Rivka came back to Israel long term, and is now an educator in Tel Aviv for the anglo community, as well as in Midreshet Rachel V’Chaya. Above all else, a mother to her awesome four boys.I love this episode so much. We are really going deep into Purim. While Jews have never really had it “easy” this is a particularly tough time for the Jewish people everywhere and it feels a bit strange to be focused on joy when there is so much devastation around us. We talk about that. We speak about what happiness really means, how you can redefine it for yourself and how you can truly feel it this Purim.We also speak really practically about what Purim can look like for you. Is it super overwhelming? Do you not really like it as much as you feel like you “should”? Do you feel like you’re missing out on that joy? We speak about ways you can access it and how you can transform your preparation and day even in just a few conversations that can be really life-changing.We talk about the megillah, parts of the megillah you may not have noticed before and intentions about the megillah that can change your experience while listening to it.At the end we speak about the comparison between Purim and Yom Kippur, or Yom HaKipppurim and what it really means that Yom Kippur is a day “like” Purim. There is so much depth in this episode, it is so rich with meaning and wisdom and profound takeaways and I am so excited for you to hear it and G-d willing for it to enrich your holiday this year in new ways.If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag. Thanks again, see you next week!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast — but not just any episode, the one year anniversary episode!I am so proud of how far we've come and how far I've come personally on this journey to building Chai on Life. I have learned so much from so many absolutely incredible women and it has all changed my life for the better.In this episode, I reflect on some of the behind-the-scenes things that have been going on for me throughout the past year as well as go through some of my favorite moments from the last 42 episodes. I share what has stuck with me, what I'm still doing, how I have changed from the teachings and more.A special thank you to all of you who have listened, supported and been there along the way. The chizuk means everything. Another special thank you to all the amazing guests because it's your wisdom that is helping us all become more Chai on Life!Also, enter the giveaway! To do so, all you have to do is write a review for the podcast and send me a screenshot of it and then I will choose someone randomly from that to win a $150 Amazon gift card. If you've already rated and reviewed, that counts too and can be used to enter! My email is [email protected] or you can DM me on Instagram @chaionlifemag.Here, the episodes mentioned in the podcast for easy access to go back and listen!Rivkah Fox on All Things DatingFrum Minimalism: Meet the Woman Who Decluttered Her Entire Home For GoodDebbie Greenblatt: Secrets to Building a More Connected MarriageChana Deutsch: How to Articulate Your Needs, Wants and Desires to Create More Love in Your MarriageMiriam Goldberg: A Deep Dive Into the Mystical World of MikvahLeora Blumenthal: Simplify Your To-Do List and Feel Like a QueenHilla Aboody: Strengthening Ourselves Through the Three Weeks, Nine Days and Tisha B'AvDanielle Renov of Peas Love N Carrots: Building Bitachon, Choosing Happiness and Sharing Her Life with OthersFaigy Blumstein: Is Cheshvan the Month of Moshiach? Gaining More ClarityRivka Segal: Transform Your Tehillim ExperienceAs always, if there is a guest you want to see or a topic you want covered, you can always reach out. Thanks so much for listening, see you next week!

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today I am speaking with Raquel Kirszenbaum, a well-known teacher in Israel and now author of the book, “Stop hurting, Start Healing.”The book is based on her personal journey which has been really fraught with hardship in many ways. The goal is to show that those difficulties do not define her. In her book, she details the emunah that she had to draw on to overcome those challenges and hard relationships. She hopes in her vulnerability, she can help others feel seen, heard and understood; to accept, forgive, let go and strive for greatness.She is a baal teshuva herself. She was born in Venezuela and moved to Panama when she was six. After high school, she went to Israel and that started to change her life.In our conversation, she speaks more about that backstory — she then got married and after struggling for many years had children but things unfortunately didn’t turn out in her marriage as hoped.She doesn’t go into the details of everything that happened as a way to respect her kids and still respect her ex-husband which is astounding, and which of course, I completely respect. For context in the episode, she was in a very difficult marriage yet stayed in it believing it would get better when all of a sudden, something occurred and he left the home. So overnight essentially, she was divorced and became a single mother.Of course, this is heavy stuff. This episode gets REAL, it gets really deep. She really takes us there into all of her emotions, the trauma of going through a divorce that happened so suddenly. The pain and challenge of being fully alone as a single mother with little to no family help around her. Helping her kids through their own traumas as they cope with losing their father from their lives at the same time as she lost her husband.She speaks about how others can also help in a real way that is dignified and respectful which I think is such an important topic to discuss. Everyone has challenges in life, and some are objectively harder than others. It’s an important reminder to look around, remember who needs help, even if it’s just something super small and how something so little can make a huge difference in someone else’s world.While our interview is heavy, I really came out of it feeling inspired. Raquel is such a beacon of strength. She has fought for her relationship with Hashem and continues to regularly. She does not let her challenges define her, rather she is using them to propel her to an even higher level of greatness.Follow Raquel on Instagram.Email Raquel at [email protected] her book, "Stop Hurting, Start Healing."

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today we have Rebekah Saltzman on the show. Rebekah is an organizing wizard who is going to help all of us get into the decluttering and organization mindset today.Rebekah holds a degree in fashion design from Parsons School of Design, and for many years worked as a graphic designer. Rebekah’s passion for the environment and helping people improve their lives drove her to change careers and create her brand, Balagan Be Gone.Rebekah’s straightforward approach to managing “stuff” and her no-nonsense ability to get to the heart of what is important combines with her people skills to help people take control of their lives through organization. She is the author of Organized Jewish Life and the podcast host of Journey to Organization (linked here!)In the episode, we speak about organization and decluttering from a mindset approach as well as a practical one. I love what she says when it comes to clearing out your space to make room for shefa and abundance to flow into your life. We speak about getting rid of the “just incase” mindset and what our relationship with Hashem has to do with decluttering.We also get to tachlis questions like what to do with the plethora of kids projects and toys that may come into your home, whether to involve kids in the process or not and how to do so, what to do if you’re feeling overwhelmed at getting started and how to break free of that, what to do with seasonal items in your home and soooo much more.Also, I hate to bring up Pesach – and don’t worry we have time! But it is coming and while you certainly do not have to declutter and organize your whole house for Pesach, there is something about this time of year with spring coming that makes you want to feel lighter, clean things out, and just get control of everything after a long winter where things may have built up. There is the phrase, spring cleaning, after all. So Rebekah has a special program called Painless Pesach which is a 36-day decluttering challenge that starts on February 23 (That is next Sunday) and just $36, so a dollar a day.The program is really smart because it’s broken down into really small steps so every day of the 36-day challenge, you’ll get a video prompt in your inbox with something to do that takes just 15-30 minutes per day. There is live support via WhatsApp and Facebook and a workbook included so you can track your progress. By the end of the 36-day challenge, your whole house will be decluttered and you will just arrive at the seder table feeling like a lighter, clearer version of yourself and what could be better than that? CLICK HERE TO JOIN THE PAINLESS PESACH PROGRAM!SOCIAL MEDIA LINKSFacebookFacebook GroupInstagramTikTokLinkedInYoutubePinterest

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. Today, we are talking all about Moshiach. It’s Cheshvan and on the surface, Cheshvan seems like a chill, catch-up kind of month. The chagim are over, we’re back to routine and Cheshvan gives us the time to do so. But is that all Cheshvan is for? Like pretty much all things in Judaism, how things appear on the surface are well, just the surface and there is a whole world of depth underneath.As I was researching more about Cheshvan I learned that it is soooo Moshiach centered. If you learn from the Sefer Yetzirah or the Book of Formation, which you can read about on inner.org, you will learn that the letter of the month, sense of the month, tribe and so much more are all connected to Moshiach.To be honest, Moshiach is something I’ve struggled with over the years becoming religious and being religious. It’s something that I am taught to want, yet also something I don’t actually know that much about.So for awhile now, I’ve been determined to learn more and really understand more and I knew Faigy Blumstein was the perfect person to do so with.Faigy Blumstein does not call herself a lecturer, but someone who loves to share. A passionate educator and school psychologist, she is dedicated to living a Hashem-centered life. As part of the Thank You Hashem women’s division, Faigy draws on chasidic teachings and the light of the Baal Shem Tov, to inspire others. Her heartfelt approach helps women deepen their connection to Hashem, integrating spirituality into everyday life in a meaningful and modern way.And let me tell you this conversation gets deep. We talk about how she got into Chassidus in the first place, how it can connect you in ways you never could have imagined, what Moshiach even means, how we can all work to bring Moshiach, why Cheshvan is the time reserved for Moshiach, how Israel connects to all of this and so so much more.We also learn about the connection between Cheshvan, Moshiach and Rochel Imeinu. Tonight, Monday night, the 11th of Cheshvan begins Rochel Imeinu’s yahrtzeit and our conversation brought such a new light to Rochel that I wasn’t aware of before. It is hashgacha pratis that the podcast is coming out right before so hopefully we can all use our connection to Rochel Imeinu to feel more strength and a new kind of vitality with our Yiddushkeit.Learn more:Cheshvan on Inner.orgThank You HashemListen to Faigy's Cheshvan Playlist:SpotifyApple

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, we are diving into the month of Shevat, specifically focusing on Tu B’Shevat which is coming up THIS WEEK. It is on Thursday — Wednesday night to Thursday and if you’re anything like me, Tu B’Shevat is kind of a holiday you acknowledge, but maybe gloss over on a deeper level. This year, I am putting a stop to it.Yehudit Refson (@the jerusalem farmhouse) is the director of grounds, arts and renovations at Neve Yerushalayim. She is an amazing person who has totally transformed Neve’s campus in the time since she moved over there. We actually did an interview nearly four years ago for the Chai on Life website which I am linking in the show notes where you can learn more about how and why she got into the entire gardening journey and how she transformed the earth into a space that was beautiful already, but now is bursting with plant and animal life.Now, the girls at Neve don’t just learn Torah inside the classroom, they really enhance their learning outside of it. Instead of just learning about shemitta, they’re living it with the plants around them. On Rosh Hashanah, they’re touching actual pomegranates and other simanim from their own garden. They’re doing tashlich in their own pond. They plant the arba minim for Sukkot. It’s really a full interactive experience that undoubtedly leaves you with so much more than you would get just from hearing about these things.In our conversation, we go even deeper:-She speaks about the land’s connection and parallels to women-The root word of land in Hebrew, adamah, and how the word itself shows our connection to the earth-We talk about the power of being in nature in regards to our five senses and the impact on our mental health as a result-We go deep into Shevat as I referenced and how the energy of this time is all about renewal-At the end, we discuss practical ways to live a cleaner, greener life and how to just jump into gardeningI left our conversation feeling really excited and invigorated to get started with something when it comes to gardening and actually being with the earth and I have a feeling you may feel the same way afterward. I love this episode so much and can’t wait for you to hear it.Resources:How to make a Tu B'Shevat Seder via Aish.comFollow @the jerusalem farmhouse on Instagram

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I’m speaking with Rebbetzin Sarah Feldbrand. She is a former principal of adult education programs in the U.S. and Canada and has taught Jewish philosophy and history for decades. Her teaching evolved into 40 books on Jewish philosophy and history as well as biographies, and historical fiction for adults and children. Currently the Rebbetzin is the moderator of a Mechanchos Forum and also provides Torah counseling via email at [email protected] decided to focus on her two volume series called Towards Meaningful Prayer and really get into some of the common issues women have when it comes to connecting to tefilah and how to solve them.Prayer is something that hopefully we all do everyday. Because it’s every day it has the power to connect us like nothing else but also because it happens every day it can become rote or something we do quickly to then get on with our day versus a mitzvah that only comes one time a year.We all know prayer has immense power but sometimes it’s just hard to seize that — you may feel like you’re lacking in connection. So in this conversation, we speak about why davening and prayer is such a powerful tool for women, how to change your practice if things are feeling rote or uninspired, how your mindset has everything to do with tefilah and how to set yourself up for success mentally, which prayers specifically may help you connect more deeply and so much more.If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag. Thanks again, see you next week!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today, we have Gitty Normile on the podcast to talk about all things emunah.Gitty is tackling a challenge in Judaism that I think a lot of people are subject to. Maybe you’ve been living this life for awhile now — maybe your entire life — and you’ve lost the spark of emunah or sadly, have never been taught it in a way that truly lights you up.That was her story. It wasn’t until later in life that she really grasped the concept of emunah in a way that made sense to her and guided her toward living an inspired life. Now, she channels that energy and passion into her writing in a weekly parsha email and a book that was just released this past fall, aptly called Emunah in the Parsha.In this episode, we speak about:-Gitty’s journey to connecting more to Hashem and how Hashem played a big part in her career and life journey every step of the way even if she didn’t realize at the time-Why she wanted to write a book about emunah and why specifically emunah through the lens of the parsha-Why sages say this generation is lacking emunah more than others-How material prosperity plays into a Torah life and how we may be getting sidetracked with it all-Why immediate gratification creates risks and challenges with our emunah-How to overcome fear in your relationship with Hashem if it’s present — especially with all the difficult news going on these days — and turn it into true comfort and trust...and SO much more.Also, Gitty was deeply involved in compiling the Hebrew names of the hostages for davening and has become quite close with so many hostage families as a result. For an updated list, visit chaionlifemag.com.If you'd like to get in touch with Gitty or to get on her email list, you can reach her on WhatsApp at 058-413-5852 or via email at [email protected] the Rabbi Golumbeck Bitachon hotline she mentions, call 732-719-3898. You can press 1 right away for daily chizuk and bypass the dedications - enjoy! 

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today I’m speaking with Shira Fruchter, a social worker and Internal Family Systems certified psychotherapist who holds a private practice in Jerusalem. Shira counsels couples and individual women specializing in relational trauma and interpersonal conflict. She also runs IFS mini workshops for personal development and growth.Shira also released a book at the end of last year all about IFS, speaking about the therapy through the lens of Torah and helping others in the observant world connect more deeply to the modality.In our conversation, we speak about:-What IFS is and how it works-Why Shira wanted to write a book for the Jewish community about it and how it makes the modality more accessible-What parts we are all made up of and how to use those to better understand yourself and how to heal-How this all connects to Judaism and Torah...and more!To demonstrate the work of IFS, we actually go through a real simulation where I am the patient and share a little bit about one of my parts and she walks us through how I can understand that in a different way and not feel threatened by it. Instead, she taught me how certain questions you can ask yourself can change the way you look at it and treat both yourself and certain situations with more compassion, ultimately approaching life in a healthier way.Full disclosure, I have really felt a change in myself since our conversation. It sounds crazy but I have begun to question my insecurities or overthinking tendencies since going through the modality with her a little bit more in the simulation and it’s changed the way I think about certain situations. Instead of ruminating. I’m really amazed by what just a little bit of IFS work can do and so grateful that I have this tool now in my back pocket.Shira can be contacted through email at [email protected] or WhatsApp at 347-255-3514.You can get her book on Amazon here.Thanks for listening, see you next week!

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I am speaking with Rebecca Ashkenas, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over a decade of experience as a therapist.She specializes in treating teens and adult women facing anxiety, depression, and OCD. She has expertise in reproductive mental health challenges, including perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, infertility, and pregnancy loss. She serves as a clinical supervisor as well as the Director of the Women’s Health Track at Achieve Behavioral Health in Monsey, NY. Rebecca also offers compassionate therapeutic support for adolescents and adults through her virtual private practice.In our conversation we speak about all of those things listed so if anything that she focuses on may be a trigger for you feel free to skip this episode. That being said, we get real about those topics and she gives such great advice on what to do if you find yourself going through something like infertility, pregnancy loss, or on the flip side, a difficult postpartum period or a more serious perinatal disorder.We also speak a lot about how to support a friend in those situations. As women moving through life, we know how common all of these things are and talking more about them is the best way to be aware and bring everything to light so we’re not afraid to ask for the help we need and also offer it to someone else around us.We also speak about the general pressure and load that women take on in any stage and how we can really work to manage all of that with our sanity intact, what true self-care may look like and ensure that we’re really living a life according to our values, not just our growing to-do lists.Hope you get a lot out of it!If you want to reach out to Rebecca, you can email her at [email protected].

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today I am so excited to have Ruchi Koval on to speak all about her latest book, Soul Purpose.Ruchi is a parenting coach and motivational speaker who has inspired personal transformation in thousands of people. She is the co-founder and Associate Director of the Jewish Family Experience, an innovative shul and outreach community in Cleveland, Ohio. She has been a Jewish educator for two decades, leading self-development mussar groups for adults and teens, and mentoring educators around the world. Ruchi is also a musician, author, mother of 7, and grandmother. She is a Momentum Educator, inspiring thousands of women on their journeys in Israel. She is also the author of three books: "Conversations with God," “Soul Construction,” and her newest book, “Soul Purpose,” as we mentioned which was just released a couple months ago. Find Ruchi on Instagram; on her blog at outoftheorthobox.com; and her two podcasts. Download her “Ruchi Koval” app to listen to many of her lectures online. Soul Purpose takes the teachings of Pirkei Avot and makes them way more approachable. Each day in the 365-day daily reader takes a line from Pirkei Avot and explains it in layman’s terms, helping anyone understand its meaning more coherently and effectively. Each entry ends with an intention so you can really go into your day thinking about the idea further and applying the teaching to your own life in a practical way.If you want to listen to Ruchi read each entry, you can join the WhatsApp group she mentioned here:https://chat.whatsapp.com/FSylDrVqdFRBpw0bkF2qyXIf there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag. Thanks again, see you next week!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today we have Mrs. Devorah Kigel on the podcast! I am so excited to speak with Devorah, it really feels like a long time coming. I have known Devorah for maybe close to 11 or 12 years now and she definitely made a big impact on my own religious journey as she has for countless others speaking about her experience in the dating world and on other Jewish-related topics like her journey to becoming observant and dressing modestly.Now, Devorah is a successful dating and marriage coach (she has helped well over 300 women marry their bashert) a sought-after Kallah teacher, and continues to be a popular speaker. She holds her B.A. from Hamilton College, where she majored in French and minored in women’s studies, and her M.A. in French from Middlebury College. Mrs. Kigel spent more than two years living in Paris and wrote her masters thesis on anti-Semitism in France. Devorah just released her brand new book this fall called “Marry a Mensch: Timeless Jewish Wisdom for Today’s Single Woman” and in this conversation we are going to speak about all of that and more.She has been featured in Newsweek, The Jerusalem Post, Meaningful Minute, Torah Anytime and on aish.com.In the episode, we get into her journey to becoming a dating coach, have her answer real listener dating questions like what happens when you can’t find someone on your exact religious level, how to know you’re ready or not ready to start dating, trusting your gut, why you should never settle and more.We also speak about marriage in the latter half of the episode — the one change that has made the biggest difference in her marriage, how to create better communication, how the 5 love languages can help all of us, and more there too.Plus, at the end we get into a really interesting conversation about working versus stay at home with your kids. Devorah has spoken openly about this in the past including a time early on when their kids were young and they were going through immense financial struggle and it was really insightful to get into a deeper discussion about her choice to stay home and how it’s impacted her life now. Just a disclaimer: This in no way is telling anyone what to do or how to live their life, that is a personal choice and I really believe something that is so unique to each individual situation and there is a whole spectrum in between but as a mom myself and as someone who knows many other mothers who struggle with the balance of managing so many things, it’s always an interesting topic to delve into further.For more on Devorah and to get in touch with her, visit www.devorahkigel.com or on Instagram @devorahkigel.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I am speaking with Mrs. Rivka Segal, a leader in adult Jewish education who has taught Torah to women and girls of all ages for more than thirty years. Before making Aliyah from Baltimore, MD, she taught in Bais Yaakov High School and Maalot Baltimore and was the director of the Women’s Institute of Torah. After moving to Israel in 2005, she founded the L’Ayla Women’s Initiative in Jerusalem. She is a sought-after speaker, known for her creativity and ability to excite and engage audiences of all ages. For the past fifteen years, she has made Tehillim come alive for thousands of people. She is currently in the process of completing a five-volume series entitled Living Tehillim. To date, three volumes have been published and let me tell you they are so good and will change the way you see and understand the Tehillim that you’re saying or even inspire you to start saying them.I interviewed Rivka nearly four years ago for the Chai on Life website and the article we did together continues to be the top performing article today. I think it’s because people are searching for more connection in their prayers. They want to connect, they want to daven, they want to fee, to bring Redemption into this world and they’re looking for more answers.In the episode, we speak about how Rivka got into Tehillim and how it became a new purpose and passion in life, why Dovid HaMelech was the one who wrote Tehillim and what we can all learn from his greatness, how to connect in your native language to the words of Tehillim, the special connection between Tehillim and Chanukah and really so much more.To find out more about the “Living Tehillim” initiative or to register for her online zoom series, visit her website at www.livingtehillim.com. Learn more from Rivka in our previous interview.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I am speaking with Orit Esther Riter, an Emuna Energizer (I love that), a Renowned Inspirational Speaker, Author and the Practicing Founder of the First Haskamah-Approved Torah-Centric Energy Therapy Program.After being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis 19 years ago, ​emuna was the answer to Orit Esther’s healing, growth, and building of a solid foundation with Hashem. So much so, she redirected her culinary chef career to a more meaningful path of spreading ​emuna. Orit Esther believes that every soul is beautiful and holds positive energy and light that deserves to shine​ and therefore single-handedly began an emuna ​movement worldwide​ devoted to helping others heal from trauma and pain. Her teachings are based on the work of the Holy Ba’al Shem tov and focus on practical strategies to restore emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual health​.In this episode, we go deep into Orit Esther’s story — staring way before her diagnosis, and how she persevered through all of the challenges along the way. We learn how she found Hashem in different ways at different points along the journey, and how relationship grew and matured as she did.The ups and downs are vast, yet the way she cultivated emuna and real healing in it is the most inspiring. It’s impossible to hear this story and not feel inspired to work on your emuna and really grip it with all that you have.In a time now, in Kislev, and in the world when we’re experiencing darkness, Orit Esther’s story will bring you back to the light. Her story will invigorate you and remind you why we’re doing all of this, what the grounding force is when you live a life with Hashem, and how and why to consistently get back to it.I’m so honored to have powerful woman on the podcast and so excited for you to hear her message. So now, let’s get into my conversation with Orit Esther.Gain more from Orit Esther below:oremunaenergy.comGet her books on Amazon:Turn Around 180 Degrees in 180 DaysTurn Around Your EmotionsTurn Around Your Life with the Ba’al Shem Tov

Hi guys! Welcome to COL's first solo episode. Today, I thought it could be fun to talk about the backstory behind Chai on Life, why I wanted to start it, what it all means to me and some lessons I've learned along the journey. With everything that I'm doing and all the people I've been speaking to I wanted to give context about the mission and the focus of it all.This is definitely straying from the traditional structure but it's fun to mix things up and G-d willing we will be back with an amazing new guest next week!Thanks so much for listening.If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast (or you just think would make a great guest!) email me at [email protected] or send me a DM on Instagram @chaionlifemag.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. Today we are talking all about Kislev.I am honored to be joined by Chaya Sora Jungreis-Gertzulin, who is the daughter of Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis a”h. She is a mother, grandmother, and teaches for HINENI, the organization in Manhattan that Rebbetzin Jungreis started. She has lectured for shuls, kiruv organizations and schools in the Metropolitan area and beyond. Chaya Sora also writes a weekly parsha commentary that you can get through Hineni’s email as well as columns in various Jewish newspapers including Jewish Vues, Monsey Mevaser, Jewish Voice and London Jewish Tribune. Her writings can also be found on Torah AnyTime.This conversation is so important because Kislev, as we all know, falls out during the darkest time of the year. The days are getting really short and the cold is settling in. Israel has been fighting a war for more than a year now and it’s truly unfathomable that so many hostages are still in captivity. Antisemitism is rising around the world in tragic ways and it’s normal to feel fear.Chaya Sora is going to help us work through all of that. Even though it’s dark in Kislev, we all also know it’s the month of miracles. It’s when Chanukah starts and the name, Kislev, itself comes from the meaning “security” or “trust.”We are in a time when we need miracles. We need to deepen our trust in Hashem and maybe, we all need a little bit of a boost. In the episode, we speak about the power we all have to leave a powerful legacy behind, how little things we do can really add up and change the lives of others, what was behind her mother’s magic when it came to connecting with other Jewish souls, the strength we can get from Kislev specifically when we are feeling low or burnt out, how to cultivate happiness from within and so so much more.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today, we are talking all about friendship.I’ve wanted to do a podcast on friendship for awhile now and this conversation was sooo cathartic and therapeutic. A lot of what we discussed are topics that I think are on a lot of our minds yet hard to speak about openly.Laura Marder was the perfect person to have this conversation with. She is a trained clinical social worker and the Director of the Circles Facilitators at CORE, an organization aimed at fostering meaningful relationships between Jewish women through authentic conversation and connection.As a note, reference Shasta Nelson’s Ted Talk on friendship, coined as "Frientimacy," in the episode, so if you’re looking to watch that entire video, you can click on the link in the show notes.Whether you’re trying to make new friends, working to nurture or deepen existing friendships, wanting more time for friendship in your life, or anything else in that realm, this episode is for you and I am so excited for you to hear it.If you want to get in touch with Laura, you can email her at [email protected].

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I am speaking with Nomi of Nomi Knows Nutrition.Cheshvan is a time when people want to put their goals into action. We reflected in Elul and Tishrei, came up with what we want our intentions to be going into this new year, and Cheshvan really is the quiet time afterward to set things into motion and make things happen.For many, working on or maintaining good health habits is a big goal. Maybe it’s eating more whole foods, finding time to exercise, or making going to sleep earlier a priority. Maybe it’s spending less time on your phone or social media or maybe it’s even trying to be just a little bit more positive each day.These are all things that Nomi is helping us with on today’s episode. Nomi is a double board-certified nutritionist and health and wellness coach, affiliated with Duke Integrative Medicine at Duke University. She holds a Master of Science in Nutrition and Functional Medicine. Her undergraduate and graduate research topics have included the psychology of long-term weight-loss maintenance and the role of nutrition in ADHD. She has a private coaching practice in Jerusalem and on Zoom, with clients from all over the world. Additionally, Nomi runs educational workshops on nutrition, healthy lifestyle essentials, and behavioral change. She is currently pursuing her doctorate in Clinical Nutrition and researching the relationship between the estrobolome and female hormone disorders. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Instagram @nomiknowsnutrition.P.S. Nomi is starting a new coaching group on December 1! If you are interested, you can reach out to her directly on her website or through Instagram.Learn more about Nomi's backstory on Inspiration for the Nation.

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. Today, we are talking all about Moshiach. It’s Cheshvan and on the surface, Cheshvan seems like a chill, catch-up kind of month. The chagim are over, we’re back to routine and Cheshvan gives us the time to do so. But is that all Cheshvan is for? Like pretty much all things in Judaism, how things appear on the surface are well, just the surface and there is a whole world of depth underneath.As I was researching more about Cheshvan I learned that it is soooo Moshiach centered. If you learn from the Sefer Yetzirah or the Book of Formation, which you can read about on inner.org, you will learn that the letter of the month, sense of the month, tribe and so much more are all connected to Moshiach.To be honest, Moshiach is something I’ve struggled with over the years becoming religious and being religious. It’s something that I am taught to want, yet also something I don’t actually know that much about.So for awhile now, I’ve been determined to learn more and really understand more and I knew Faigy Blumstein was the perfect person to do so with.Faigy Blumstein does not call herself a lecturer, but someone who loves to share. A passionate educator and school psychologist, she is dedicated to living a Hashem-centered life. As part of the Thank You Hashem women’s division, Faigy draws on chasidic teachings and the light of the Baal Shem Tov, to inspire others. Her heartfelt approach helps women deepen their connection to Hashem, integrating spirituality into everyday life in a meaningful and modern way.And let me tell you this conversation gets deep. We talk about how she got into Chassidus in the first place, how it can connect you in ways you never could have imagined, what Moshiach even means, how we can all work to bring Moshiach, why Cheshvan is the time reserved for Moshiach, how Israel connects to all of this and so so much more.We also learn about the connection between Cheshvan, Moshiach and Rochel Imeinu. Tonight, Monday night, the 11th of Cheshvan begins Rochel Imeinu’s yahrtzeit and our conversation brought such a new light to Rochel that I wasn’t aware of before. It is hashgacha pratis that the podcast is coming out right before so hopefully we can all use our connection to Rochel Imeinu to feel more strength and a new kind of vitality with our Yiddushkeit.Learn more:Cheshvan on Inner.orgThank You HashemListen to Faigy's Cheshvan Playlist:SpotifyApple

Hi everyone, welcome back to The Chai on Life Podcast! It feels really good to say that after the holiday hiatus we've had. The holidays were so nice, and I feel so blessed that I was able to take that pause to fully focus on Hashem, my family and other connections in my life and now feel even more energized coming back to the podcast and all of the conversations and guests I have lined up for this year.Today’s episode is on somatic healing with Rena Reiser. While we recorded this before the chagim, it feels like such an important one coming back into everything. We had time and space to turn off, to disconnect from technology and the news and reconnect to the things that matter most.More about Rena:Rena is a Polyvagal-Informed Focusing Trainer. She trains female leaders and healers to facilitate embodied change in the lives of those around them. In other words, Rena helps them understand how their clients’ autonomic nervous systems impact their behaviors and emotions and how to use the Focusing technique to explore and shift these behaviors effectively.Rena has more than a decade of ongoing training including Focusing, Polyvagal Theory, Non-Violent Communication, and Inner Child/Parts work that she uses in her own life and that of her clients. Together they forge a uniquely empowering approach that allows clients to shift their behaviors at their source in a compassionate and embodied way.In this episode, she speaks about why we are so stressed and overwhelmed today, how we can get to a place of menuchas hanefesh, what menuchas hanefesh actually means, exercises we can do to achieve more calm right now, why that may be the prerequisite to other spiritual growth and so much more. She even goes through one of her modalities with me in real time so you can get an idea of how things work. It’s Cheshvan, it’s the time to put all of our spiritual growth into action and this episode is the perfect way to set the stage to get you into the best mental headspace in order to achieve your goals.To learn more about Rena, you can visit her website at renareiser.com. Check out her own podcast called The Embodied Jewish Women and follow her on Instagram @renareiser.

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today we have a REALLY exciting guest — Danielle Renov, the recipe developer and cookbook author of the brand, Peas, Love & Carrots.Danielle has been a dream guest of mine for many reasons. One, being that I absolutely love her recipes and they are fully a part of my weekly rotations, but mainly because of her ever-inspiring simchas hachaim and unwavering bitachon.This episode is of course coming out at a powerful time. It’s not only the aseret yemei teshuva, or the ten days of repentance but it’s also October 7th. Danielle’s words will help us get through the darkness and the unknown with a renewed dedication to Hashem, and that of course, is everything.In the episode, we speak about:-How she got started with Peas Love & Carrots-How she balances motherhood with her work-What it meant to rely on Hashem when her world went dark and how she continues to until today-How she builds her bitachon muscle daily-Where her simchas hachaim comes from and how she works to cultivate it-How she handles life with small children — how she gets through the tough moments and still finds time for herself-How she balances posting about her life on social media and staying present in real life-What's next for Peas Love & Carrots...and SO much more!She also leaves us with a message about getting through this year’s Simchat Torah that deeply resonated with me and I will definitely be thinking about as we head into what will G-d willing be a beautiful yet difficult day.NOTE: We will be off through Sukkot but G-d willing back in Cheshvan with all new episodes! Wishing everyone a meaningful rest of the chagim.Special thank you to Tania Friedlander, our podcast partner! Tania is so helpful for professionals in any area — budding entrepreneurs, business owners, seasoned employees, leaders looking to take their companies to the next level, and more.Maybe you need clarity and direction, you’re trying to achieve better work/life balance, not sure what next steps to take in your career, you’re motivated but also burnt out, you’re realizing leading people isn’t simple or are fearful that you don’t have what it takes to succeed.So, if you are at all interested in working with Tania, you can book a complimentary call with her at TaniaFriedlander.com/contact.

Hi everyone, welcome to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I am speaking with Calanit Paz Cohen, a life coach living in Miami, FL.I met Calanit about eight years ago when I was on a trip to Israel called Meor Upgrade. I was on a part of my Jewish journey where I was nearly all in, but was holding off because I was nervous that I was going to let go of and lose myself. Calanit was the perfect role model for me at that stage of my journey — she was so herself and this wonderful religious Jewish woman. I had an emotional conversation with her on that trip that really changed things for me and how I saw what things could be — how I could be myself and bring that person into my religious life — so it’s a really full circle moment for her to be coming on this podcast now talking about living an authentically. And, it’s no surprise that she literally makes a living now coaching others to live a more authentic, true life. We’re already in the final days before Rosh Hashanah and while this episode is evergreen, it’s also the perfect way to get us into a good headspace as we’re approaching the start to another year.In this episode, we speak about:-How Calanit figured out what her passion in life was-What authenticity coaching is-What to do when you don’t feel like yourself — maybe it’s around certain people or doing certain things-How to connect to yourself more deeply and how in turn, that can connect you to Hashem more deeply-How and why living an authentic life is living a life according to Hashem’s will-How to approach angry, sad or confused feelings that come up in this spiritual relationship-How we can all approach Rosh Hashanah without fear and rather with a new closeness to Hashem…and so much more!Special thank you to Tania Friedlander, our first podcast partner! Tania is so helpful for professionals in any area — budding entrepreneurs, business owners, seasoned employees, leaders looking to take their companies to the next level, and more.Maybe you need clarity and direction, you’re trying to achieve better work/life balance, not sure what next steps to take in your career, you’re motivated but also burnt out, you’re realizing leading people isn’t simple or are fearful that you don’t have what it takes to succeed.So, if you are at all interested in working with Tania, you can book a complimentary call with her at TaniaFriedlander.com/contact.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, we are speaking with Yaffa Moskowitz, the Director of Education at Midreshet Rachel V’Chaya, a seminary in Jerusalem. Here’s a little more about Yaffa: She is a native member the Far Rockaway community and was active in that community and the Five Towns for many years. Yaffa, her husband Danny, and seven children made aliya in the summer of 2013 and now live in Mitzpe Yericho. Yaffa served as teacher and Director of Ateres Seminary for women on the Queens College Campus for 13 years and she was also involved in the Neshei Shor Yoshuv community where she gave chaburas for married women.I met Yaffa when I was a student exactly seven years ago at Midreshet Rachel and have continued to learn from her and with her since. She has such a wealth of knowledge and this conversation really turned into the perfect thing to listen to right in the middle of Elul preparing for the chagim.During this time at Midreshet Rachel, the students learn from the sefer, Tomer Devorah, which teaches us about Hashem’s 13 Attributes of Mercy. As we learn about Hashem and understand who He is more, so to speak, we learn how we can emulate Him more in our own lives, and we used that text as the jumping off point for our conversation. As we spoke, we explored:-What a “sin” actually is in Judaism (it may not be what you think) and how we can always get back on track-How to separate ourselves from the sin and retain our confidence and closeness to G-d through the process-How we can get to the core of what emunah really is on the most basic level and use these foundational concepts to connect to Hashem more deeply-The restraint Hashem has with us every day and how we can apply that concept to our own lives and actions-How to work on letting go of control-Why we should speak to ourselves with more compassion from a Torah perspective-When fear is appropriate in Judaism and what kind of fear that actually is talking about-How we can continue to grow and elevate ourselves year after year…and SO MUCH MORE!To learn more about Midreshet Rachel V'Chaya, click here.Special thank you to Tania Friedlander, our first podcast partner! Tania is so helpful for professionals in any area — budding entrepreneurs, business owners, seasoned employees, leaders looking to take their companies to the next level, and more.Maybe you need clarity and direction, you’re trying to achieve better work/life balance, not sure what next steps to take in your career, you’re motivated but also burnt out, you’re realizing leading people isn’t simple or are fearful that you don’t have what it takes to succeed.So, if you are at all interested in working with Tania, you can book a complimentary call with her at TaniaFriedlander.com/contact.

Hi everyone, welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today we are so blessed to have Aleeza Ben Shalom here.If you have a Netflix account or have heard her speak in the Jewish world, then you’re already familiar with how personable and wonderful she is. But if not, we are going to introduce you. She was featured as the matchmaker on the Netflix show, “Jewish Matchmaking,” which reached millions of viewers across 130 countries and has been translated into 37 languages.Outside of that, she continues to work as a matchmaker, dating coach, speaker and published author. She is the host of her own podcast, “Matchmaker, Matchmaker” and is coming out with a book of the same name in early December, although it’s available for pre-order now.She has helped more than 200 people get married and has trained over 350 matchmakers and coaches. She and her own husband just celebrated 21 years of marriage together.We talk about everything from dating advice, ways to keep your marriage fresh and vibrant, how to judge others more favorably and nurture your ahavas chinam, or baseless love for other Jews, how to handle negativity and live in the moment and so much more.Resources she mentions:Preorder her book, "Matchmaker Matchmaker."Listen to her podcast.Join her Elul Course, "40 Days of Connection."Special thank you to Tania Friedlander, our first podcast partner! Tania is so helpful for professionals in any area — budding entrepreneurs, business owners, seasoned employees, leaders looking to take their companies to the next level, and more.Maybe you need clarity and direction, you’re trying to achieve better work/life balance, not sure what next steps to take in your career, you’re motivated but also burnt out, you’re realizing leading people isn’t simple or are fearful that you don’t have what it takes to succeed.So, if you are at all interested in working with Tania, you can book a complimentary call with her at TaniaFriedlander.com/contact.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today, we are kicking off our Elul Energy series with the ever-inspiring Aliza Bulow.In the episode, we speak about:-Where she comes from and what guides her mission in life-Her genuine relationship to Torah and why she calls it a “transformational treasure trove”-Why she started an organization revolving around women and what we can all take from that-Why we are lonelier than ever now when it comes to real friendships and connections and what to do about it-How you can actually achieve the dreams and goals you have for yourself-How she nourishes her emunah, or faith and how she finds comfort in Hashem, without fear-Her advice and experience building a healthy and strong marriage despite many differences-How to keep your mind on the bigger picture…and honestly SO much more.More about Aliza:Aliza Bulow is the Founding Director of Core, an organization that connects, develops and supports Orthodox women who engage in Jewish communal work. She is also an author, educator and mentor to Jewish communal leaders and lay people around the world. Before founding Core, she directed Ner LeElef’s North American Women’s Program for 11 years where she coached rebbitzens and provided strategic development for outreach organizations in Canada, the US and Mexico.Her love of Jewish texts and philosophy was developed at Michlelet Bruria, Hebrew University and Hunter College where she graduated with honors in Hebrew and Jewish Studies. In her early career, she worked for Partners in Torah and The Jewish Experience. Even before entering college, Aliza’s passion for strengthening Jews and the Jewish community led her to campaign on behalf of Soviet Jewry and build settlements in Israel while serving in Nachal. That early passion has only grown with time. Over the past four decades, Aliza has worked with hundreds of women in over 50 cities and 5 continents, strengthening the social fabric of the Jewish People. More information is available on her website: ABiteOfTorah.com or about Core at CoreTorah.org.To learn more about Aliza, you can listen to her here:18Forty — Aliza and Ephraim Bulow: When a Spouse Loses FaithEmpowered Jewish Living: Women's Empowerment, Grief and a Never-Ending Quest for GreatnessDeep Meaningful Conversations: The Power of SisterhoodInspiration for the Nation: A Mother's Will to Build After SuicideSpecial thank you to Tania Friedlander, our first podcast partner! Tania is so helpful for professionals in any area — budding entrepreneurs, business owners, seasoned employees, leaders looking to take their companies to the next level, and more.Maybe you need clarity and direction, you’re trying to achieve better work/life balance, not sure what next steps to take in your career, you’re motivated but also burnt out, you’re realizing leading people isn’t simple or are fearful that you don’t have what it takes to succeed.So, if you are at all interested in working with Tania, you can book a complimentary call with her at TaniaFriedlander.com/contact.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today I am so excited to be speaking with Alyssa Goldwater, a self-proclaimed plus-size advocate who also refers to herself as “your Orthodox Jewish friend.” She creates content for social media that gives followers an inside look into an Orthodox Jewish lifestyle and is open about her journey with eating disorder recovery and how she has grown and continues to grow to love and accept her body as it is.This conversation is a powerful one. As I said in an episode on eating before this, if you are a woman in this world you have most likely experienced some sort of thoughts on your body and the food you’re putting into it. It’s something we can’t avoid. Even if you had parents who spoke about everything in the healthiest way, there is diet culture messaging that is pervasive elsewhere and it seeps into our brains, often at an early age.I’m so passionate about this topic because often, it’s something we still need to work on in our day-to-day lives and Alyssa really helps with that and also, if you are a parent and raising the next generation it’s something that we’re thinking about in terms of how to teach it and we can do that so much more effectively when we feel good about it ourselves.In the episode, we speak about:-How she got to this place in her social media career where she shares so openly about her struggles-Why and how she’s reclaiming the word “fat”-Why dressing for her body is so important to show online AND how it’s so much more than just clothing-The difference between accepting your body and loving your body and why you don’t have to love every single thing about it-How she deals with mean comments on her social media posts-How she practices self-care and maintains her mental health on a day to day basis-How she speaks to her kids about food so they can develop a healthy relationship with it — I loved her messaging here-How her relationship with Hashem has helped her throughout her eating and health journey…and SO MUCH MOREThis conversation was so meaningful, so profound in a lot of ways and honestly, very cathartic for me. I hope you get a lot out of it and can’t wait to hear your thoughts. More about Alyssa:Alyssa Goldwater is a wife, mom and the Digital Influencer behind the lifestyle brand, A Glass of Goldwater (@alyssagoldwater). Merging motherhood with humor, A Glass of Goldwater has become a community and support network of more than 200,000 women across the world. By having hard conversations about difficult topics such as mental health, the dangers of diet culture, and the unspoken struggles of motherhood, Alyssa not only keeps people laughing with her sarcastic take on life, but also helps women feel part of something bigger - that they aren’t alone in this crazy world.Alyssa has made it her life’s mission to “take back the word fat.” Society has turned, what is a regular descriptor word, into an insult that incites feelings of ugly, bad, unhealthy, unlovable, unworthy, etc. Diet culture and the anti-fat bias have demonized every body that doesn’t fit the perfect, “thin is best” mold. It has turned unrealistic beauty standards, and unscientific health standards, into a multi-billion dollar industry that preys on the insecurities and vulnerabilities of people who believe their bodies aren’t acceptable.For as long as someone cannot accept, and learn to respect, the body they live in, they will never be able to live a truly fulfilling life. Alyssa is breaking down the walls of diet culture by helping women live confidently in their bodies, as they learn to love themselves again.Along with other movers and shakers in the Anti-Diet Culture and Eating Disorder Recovery movements, Alyssa is helping to redefine beauty standards and pushing the boundaries of what society deems as “acceptable”.Every body is worthy, lovable, acceptable and houses a holy soul inside. Through education, plus size fashion and advocacy, Alyssa helps women internalize and access those feelings of self acceptance and love, as they work to live full and meaningful lives.If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag. Thanks again, see you next week!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today we are speaking with Miriam Pineles, a doctor of acupuncture and Chinese medicine practicing in Cedarhurst, NY.Miriam is someone who really heals from the inside out. I met Miriam almost five years ago now when I was pregnant with my first son and experiencing really horrible back pain in my third trimester. Miriam healed me in one week. I couldn’t believe it. Honestly, before going to her, I was skeptical about acupuncture and had no interest in it but afterward I was completely sold and talking about it to everyone I knew.Throughout the last few years though, I’ve learned that it wasn’t just the acupuncture or the healing techniques she used, it was Miriam herself. She is meant to be a healer. She is someone that holds space for so many individuals and when you’re with her, she makes you feel like you are the only person that matters. In addition to her clinical practice, Miriam teaches “Living With The Elements,” a course she created to help women gain deeper self-awareness and foster harmony in their relationships and homes. If you want to learn more and sign up (it starts September 9!) you can do so at livingwiththeelements.com.In this interview, we speak more about the course she created and what you will get out of it as well as:-How she got into Chinese medicine and how it’s deeply connected to Torah and Kabbalah-What is going on under the surface when you’re getting acupuncture or Chinese medicine treatments and why they work-Where a lot of unhappiness and disease stem from-How we may be passing unresolved trauma and issues onto our kids — and how you can stop that-What the five elements of Chinese medicine are and how they connect to Judaism-We go through each element and learn a little bit more about what each one means-What the framework of seeing yourself and child through the elements can do for your parenting-Practical parenting takeaways you can start today…and SO MUCH MORE!More about Miriam:Miriam Pineles, DACM, is the founder of Conscious Health and Wellness, Inc., a premier Chinese medicine clinic located in Cedarhurst, NY. With a Doctorate in Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine (DACM) and certification from the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM), Miriam is also licensed in Acupuncture by the State of New York.Her extensive training includes mentorship under some of the most revered practitioners both in the United States and internationally. Miriam has mastered unique techniques in acupuncture, pulse analysis, and herbal prescription, specializing in women’s perinatal health and addressing syndromes arising from emotional trauma.She also founded *Ayin Healing*, a non-profit organization dedicated to running holistic healing retreats that support Jewish women recovering from childhood sexual abuse.Explore more about Miriam’s work at:•⁠ ⁠[Conscious Health and Wellness](http://www.Conscioushealthandwellness.com)•⁠ ⁠[Living With The Elements](http://www.livingwiththeelements.com)•⁠ ⁠[Ayin Healing](http://www.ayinhealing.com)You can also learn more about Miriam on the Chai on Life website here.If you enjoyed this episode, leave a rating and review so more people can gain from Miriam’s wisdom. Consider sharing it with a friend, family member or coworker who you think might enjoy the episode as well. If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag. Thanks again, see you next week!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today we are speaking with Jordana Baruchov Greenfield, the Associate Director of Mentorship for Olami and a well-known Torah influencer who posts inspirational messages on Instagram and through her own podcast, Drink It In.Not only does Jordana inspire and motivate her 6 children and grandchildren she also inspires thousands through her social media and speaking engagements.I met Jordana when I was working with Olami and was immediately blown away by how confident and excited she was about life. She was just one of those people who had such a bubbly personality, such a simchas hachayim that I instantly admired.That all being said, it’s surprising to learn more about Jordana’s backstory and the trauma she went through for years in two unhealthy marriages, plus an incident in childhood. You really would never be able to guess it upfront.In our conversation, it was really interesting to see Jordana more wholly — to understand what she went through and how that contributes to how she is today and also who she is in spite of it all.Right now, we’re in a difficult time period on the Jewish calendar, as we’ve discussed, and also in the world. It’s easy to get really down and feel pretty hopeless. Jordana’s story will get you out of that.If you want to learn more from Jordana, find her on Instagram @Drinkitin jordana. You can also learn more about her at Jordanatorah.com. To join her WhatsApp group, email [email protected].

Hi everyone, welcome to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, we are speaking with Dr. Hilla Aboody, an amazing teacher, mother, wife and mentor currently living in Eretz Yisrael who I invited to come on to speak about this heavy time on the Jewish calendar.Hilla has such a beautiful way of explaining things — it’s so deep and profound yet easy to comprehend at the same time.A little background on her:She is a wife and mother of five, living in Eretz Yisrael after making Aliyah 7 years ago from Brooklyn, NY. She is a teacher and Em Bayit (house mother) at Midreshet Eshel, a Sephardic seminary for post High school students from around the world. Her educational background includes studying at Michlalah and receiving her bachelor’s degree from Bar-Ilan University and a Master’s and PhD in Jewish History from New York University. She has published her study on Eliyahu the Prophet in Talmudic literature and midrashim in her book, “Through the Prism of Wisdom”. As an educator and kallah teacher, Hilla dedicates her time in guiding students to creating a relationship with Hashem and tips and tools to thrive in their marriages and in life.In our conversation, we speak about:-What the Jewish perspective is on sadness and pain-How we can connect to Hashem during this time and in this unique way, especially if it feels daunting for you right now-Why this particular time period brings about more heaviness and actually the reason why we take more precautions-The rich energy that lies in the months of Tammuz and Av — what the letters associated with each month mean, why the sense of each month is important and what we can individually and collectively take from all of that-Why crying is actually a sign of bravery-Practical things you can do now to get through this time with more faith, in a more connected way to yourself, Hashem and those around you-How to deal with difficult emotions with your kids…and SO MUCH MOREThis podcast with Hilla is basically an hour long shiur. I got chills like 17 times as I was listening to her and it’s definitely one of the most important ones I’ve done so far in terms of our spirituality.If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag. Thanks again, see you next week!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, we are speaking with Rena Cohen, a registered dietitian and behavior change coach.Food is a big topic. For me, learning more about food and the way the items that I choose impact my body is something I’ve gotten really into in the last year. I actually worked with Rena last summer, a year after I had my second child and was just really confused about the best way to feed myself after my body had changed a lot and I was readjusting after birth. In the last year, I’ve only expanded my palette, introducing new and exciting foods that I hadn’t really had regularly before. I’ve added more movement, more sleep, more time to de-stress and I feel like I’m honestly the healthiest I’ve been maybe ever because of it — and I still eat dessert and french fries!In the episode, Rena and I talk about:-How she got into nutrition and its importance in our lives-Why our psychology is so messed up when it comes to food and how we can start to fix that-One thing you can add in today to make a huge difference in your health-Getting more in touch with mindful eating-Helping our kids create a better relationship with food and not pass down negative mentalities or patterns-How to actually start doing the positive habit you have been dreaming to add to your life like meditation, a morning walk, exercise, or anything else.…and SO MUCH MORE!Food is supposed to be our fuel. When we are fueled and feeling good, we’re able to do all the other things we need to do with such a greater state of simcha, or joy.If you want to learn more from Rena, visit her on Instagram @thesanctuaryrd, Facebook or on her website sanctuarycoaching.ca.If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag.

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today I’m so excited to be speaking with home management and organization expert, Leora Blumenthal. Leora is one of those women who has her life together. Not that the marker of a good life is how well you run your home by any means but it just feels so good when your life is running efficiently.Speaking with Leora made the whole process of managing a home feel way less daunting. She has a way of breaking things down that really simplifies everything and once you take that time to focus, everything can change.In our conversation, we speak about:-How Leora got into teaching others about home management, which by the way is her side profession — she has a completely other full time job-Why home organization is so important and how it can impact our lives in other ways-Why good home management and organization is the truest form of self care-Why having good systems in place can actually allow you to accept more help-Her grocery shopping routine-Her Shabbos and weekday meal planning hacks-Ways to tackle the neverending piles of laundry so you don’t lose your mind-How to get kids more involved with home maintenance…and SO MUCH MORE.If you would like to get in touch with Leora for private coaching or to stay up to date on her next course, you can email her at [email protected] or contact her by phone at 718-705-8662. (Please note, she is on an Israel time zone!)If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag. Thanks again, see you next week!

Hi everyone! Welcome to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, I am so excited to be speaking with Career Coach, athlete and all around amazing human, Tania Friedlander.Tania is an ICF and Gallup Certified Global Strengths Coach who specializes in leadership & high-performance coaching. She has worked with more than 350 executives and emerging leaders from Google, Facebook, Salesforce, Neiman Marcus, Morgan Stanley, and The Federal Reserve among other leading companies.A former champion athlete and attorney by training, Tania is driven by her passion for helping individuals break through their professional or personal challenges to find clarity and direction, leverage their strengths, achieve their goals, and become the best leaders and professionals they can be.Full disclosure — I am actually working with Tania as a coach and she has been so instrumental in the launch of this podcast and honestly my mindset around the whole experience.So this episode is here to now help you. In our conversation, we speak about:-How she got into coaching and why she made the switch from a law career-How she helps people understand their yearning for more and actually do the thing they’ve been dreaming about-Why you may be experiencing overwhelm and how to work through it so you feel more in control of your own life-How your limiting beliefs may be holding you back and what to do about it-What to do if you’re experiencing imposter syndrome-What so many people regret at the end of their lives and how you can make sure not to get to that place-The biggest lesson she took away from her years as competitive athlete…and SO MUCH MORE.You can learn more about Tania's work on her LinkedIn page and website. If you'd like to get in touch, you can email her directly at [email protected] there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM on Instagram @chaionlifemag. Thanks again, see you next week!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today we have a big topic to dive into: Motherhood.For this conversation, I got connected with Yael Sunshine who is a parenting coach, special educator, speaker and yoga therapist with more than 15 years of experience. She helps parents through many different challenges that come with raising kids like behavior issues, addiction, learning disabilities, relationship challenges and more.She is the creator of Soulful Mothering, a holistic parenting framework that supports mothers so they can manage overwhelm, trust their parenting and develop thriving support networks.We really got into it in this conversation and covered so many different topics related to parenting including:-Strategies to manage tantrums with a young child-How to model the behavior we want to see in our kids-How to avoid perfectionism as mothers-How to make sure your needs are being taken care of-How to help kids through a personal or family trauma they may be experiencing-How to bring more joy into parenting…and so much more!For more from Yael, check out these resources:InstagramFacebook groupFacebook business PageFacebook Digital Creator PageIf there's someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, send me a DM on Instagram at @chaionlifemag or an email at [email protected] so much for listening!

Hi everyone! Welcome to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast, I’m Alex Segal and today we are so privileged to have Rachel Tuchman, licensed mental health counselor on our podcast.Rachel has worked with many diverse populations including incarcerated women at Riker's Island Correctional Facility, kids and adults with developmental delays, kids with behavior issues, overwhelmed parents looking for skills and support, teens struggling with the pressures of adolescence and life in general, adults going through difficult life circumstances (divorce, infidelity, phase of life challenges), individuals struggling with their relationship with food and their bodies and women experiencing infertility.Rachel is a Health At Every Size aligned clinician and dedicates a lot of her time out of office to educating parents and kids on the importance of body respect and the behaviors that truly honor our health. Rachel also does speaking engagements for schools, synagogues, and various community organizations.In our conversation, we speak about:-What managing your mental health looks like right now in a post October 7 world and how we can do more of that-How we can feel closer to each other through feeling this collective pain-How we can deal with any survivor’s guilt we may be feeling living our day to day lives when some of our brothers and sisters are in such a horrific situation-How to deal with the influx of difficult news that comes at us regularly-How to deal with the uncertainty of life in America and what a better mindset might be-How to manage anxiety you may be having right now, work on getting rid of it and working on not passing it down to your kids-Practical things we CAN do to take action when we’re feeling helpless, or just to boost our mental and emotional state-How to create better boundaries in our lives to actually live the life you want to be living…and SO MUCH MOREIt definitely turned into an important conversation and an emotional one — maybe have some tissues nearby. I cried, Rachel cried, I cried again while editing it but it was one of those good cries where you’re allowing your emotions to come to the surface, so I’m excited for you to hear it.For more from Rachel, follow her on Instagram at @rachel tuchman lmhc.If there is someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, email me at [email protected] or send me a DM @chaionlifemag. Thanks for listening!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal and today, we are speaking with Dating Coach and Former Today Show Psychologist Jackie Glaser.I’ve known Jackie for 12 years. She was really influential on my Jewish journey. I was on a trip to Israel the summer after I graduated college which is when I met her — she taught us at the seminary Neve Yerushalayim and then she basically convinced me to stay in Israel and do another program for six weeks. That fall, after I was back, she was in New York and started a program that we called Souled — which was a weekly Jewish learning class which changed my life and introduced me to some of my best friends.If you know Jackie, you know she is a powerhouse. She has changed so many lives with her teaching and now is helping so many through her dating coaching. She is using her psychology skills and her own experience of working on herself to help other singles do any work that could help them become more ready to meet and marry their soulmate. She also coaches married women in her courses.In this podcast, we speak about:-Jackie’s experience being single and how she worked on her relationship with Hashem to find peace in that and ultimately, meet her husband-What it really means to surrender to Hashem and she shares real exercises you can do today in order to help you get there-How to know what type of therapy is right for you and if you’re stuck in talk therapy, where you can go from there-Why we may experience trauma and how to work through it so we can heal-Why you should run away from someone who is trying to tell you reasons why you’re single-How to deal with the pain of being single without turning it into suffering-More about her course offerings and why the work she does is so powerful-Practical tools and resources we can turn to to work on our trust in Hashem…and so much more!Other resources mentioned in the podcast:-Jackie's website-Listen to Jackie on The Inside Out Podcast to learn even more about her journey and get more wisdom from her-Build your strength in Hashem with dailybitachon.com-Watch Tzipora Grodko's content for more supportIf there is a topic or person you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast, send me a DM on Instagram at @chaionlifemag or send an email to [email protected] for listening!

Hi everyone! Welcome back to another episode of The Chai on Life Podcast. I’m Alex Segal, and today we have a really exciting episode to gear up for Shavuot with Esteemed Educator, Speaker and Kallah Teacher Nalini Ibragimov.If you know Nalini, you already know how special she is. I had the privilege of meeting her nearly 12 years ago now when she co-founded a group called Souled, which was a weekly class for young professional women who had been on Israel trips or other programs and wanted to continue their learning while working in New York City. She is a role model to maybe thousands of women at this point through her work on college campuses, as a kallah teacher, someone who prepares brides for their upcoming wedding, Souled and other Jewish organizations.Here’s some more formal info for those who aren’t familiar with Nailni and her work:Nalini Ibragimov attended Barnard College and Moreshet Institute and studied Jewish history in Touro’s master’s program. She lived in Israel for four years where she taught in various institutions. For the following five years, she and her husband worked at Brooklyn College for JLIC, a joint program of the OU and Hillel, where she taught and ran various programs for Jewish students on campus. Nalini taught in Ateres Naava seminary in Brooklyn for 15 years until moving to Long Island a few years ago. Additionally, Nalini has taught hundreds of kallot and is a speaker for My Gift of Mikvah. She is also part of the educational staff of Core. Today, Nalini is the director of the Olami Women's House, which provides a living space for young professional women who seek to live in a nurturing, Torah immersive environment. If you want to apply to live there, click here!If you're a young professional woman, you can also hear Nalini speak Wednesday nights at Safra Synagogue on the Upper East Side at 7:30 p.m.Nalini resides in Woodmere, New York with her husband and takes great pride in her six children and the families they are building.Now, let’s talk about our episode. In our conversation we speak about:-Nalini’s Jewish journey and how she got to where she is today-How she manages and balances all of the work she does with being a wife and a mother of six children-How she decides what professional responsibilities to take on-What Shavuot really means and the perspective we can have going into it-How we can manage the heaviness all around us right now and channel that pain we’re still feeling into the holiday and use it to create even more connection with Hashem-What a miracle actually looks like and how we can see more of them in our daily lives, right now-How we can use the time we have left before Shavuot to prepare for the holiday — and why the process and the preparation are key-How to connect on Shavuot when you’re home with little kids and not going to learn all night-How the holiday of Shavuot is like a wedding and a beautiful lesson that we can all infuse into our marriages and our relationship to all of klal Yisrael…and SO MUCH MOREIf you have any questions for Nalini, you can reach out to her at [email protected] there's someone you want to see on The Chai on Life Podcast or a topic you want featured, send me an email at [email protected] or a DM on Instagram at @chaionlifemag.Thanks so much, see you next week!