#85 Rest. Reset. Connect. Act: A New Way to Thrive with Caitlin Morris
In this powerful conversation, Lori Clarke sits down with Caitlin Morris, from coachingwithcaitlin.com a holistic life and leadership coach, to explore how to move from surviving to thriving.
Through Caitlin’s Rerouted Framework—Rest, Reset, Connect, Act—you’ll learn what it really means to pause, reclaim your energy, and build a life that aligns with who you truly are. Together, they unpack the ways shame, self-judgment, and over-responsibility keep us stuck in survival mode, and how compassion, curiosity, and boundaries help us return to balance.
You’ll hear about:
-Redefining rest as nourishment, not laziness
-The power of resetting your environment and boundaries
-Reconnecting with yourself and others after burnout
-Taking action from alignment instead of pressure
This episode is a gentle invitation to slow down, listen inward, and trust that you are worthy of thriving—even if you’re still learning how.
Show Notes
Overcoming Overwhelm: Realign Your Life With the ReROOTED Framework
Life can feel like a patchwork of gaps. Yesterday did not go as planned, today already feels off, and parts of your story pull at your confidence. When that happens, the familiar swirl shows up, overwhelm, feeling burned out, cycles of guilt, heavy shame, and nagging self-doubt. You might hear that inner voice ask, Who am I to want more?
This is a guide to help you realign with yourself, right where you are. It centers on a simple, cyclical framework you can adapt to any season of life. You will learn how to choose yourself without apology, how to build compassion into your days, and how to take practical steps that stick.
At the heart sits one transforming idea: Who were you before the world told you who you should be?
Meet the REROOTED framework for sustainable change.
Meet Caitlyn Morris, Coach for Whole-Life Change
Caitlyn Morris is a certified health coach, a certified functional health coach, and a certified life and leadership coach. She blends these disciplines to support real change that honors body, mind, and daily life.
She works with people across life stages. Some are parents barely surviving the day, carving out minutes to breathe. Others are empty nesters or new retirees asking, Who am I now, and what do I want next? Many sit in the space between, ready to choose themselves but unsure how to start.
Visit coachingwithcaitlyn.com to learn more or reach her at caitlyn@coachingwithcaitlyn.com
What her clients have in common:
They feel out of alignment with who they are and who they want to be.
They want to move from survival into a kinder, steadier daily life.
They are ready for a clear path, small steps, and real accountability.
Caitlyn talks openly about shame, the survival brain, and the pressure of shoulds. She offers a way forward that trades perfection for progress and isolation for connection. The method is simple to learn and flexible to apply. She calls it ReROOTED.
Why Shame Makes Choosing Yourself So Hard
When you try to change, shame often piles on. It sounds like a familiar whisper. Who do you think you are to want better? Sometimes it is your voice, other times it is the echo of a parent, a partner, a coach, or a culture that prized output over well-being.
Humans are built to stay safe. Your brain remembers what hurt, not what helped. That is great for survival, not so great for thriving. So when you reach for more joy, more peace, or more health, your nervous system may flag it as risky. Shame and guilt rush in to keep you in place.
This shows up in many ways:
Guilt when you cannot meet old expectations after big life changes.
Grief and isolation from the belief, It should not be this hard.
Family conditioning that trained you to carry everyone else’s problems.
Past traumas and boundary violations made people-pleasing feel like safety.
There is a powerful reframe here. Much of what you feel as shame is not yours. It is the energy, patterns, and beliefs of others that you learned to carry. You can put it down.
The ReROOTED Framework: A Cyclical Path for Sustainable Change
Caitlyn’s ReROOTED method mirrors the seasons. It is not linear, it is cyclical. You try something, you learn from it, and you circle back with more clarity.
Rest, a winter phase, where you clarify what you want and why it matters.
Reset, a spring phase, where you set up your environment to support one small goal.
Connect, a summer phase, where you ask for help and stop going it alone.
Act, a fall phase, where you do the thing and release what does not serve you.
Three of the four phases are preparation. Only one is action. That feels counter to hustle culture, yet it is how real change sticks. You are not chasing rules. You are building a life that fits you.
You also have permission to experiment. Try a thing. If it flops, you learned. If it works, you build. What serves one person might not fit your season. That is not failure, that is data.
Phase 1: Rest, Stillness That Creates Clarity
Rest is where you begin. Think winter. Quiet the noise so you can hear yourself. You do not force a goal. You listen for it.
Ask, What do I want and why now? If you believe you should meditate 20 minutes a day, but every attempt leaves you tense, pause. Maybe your current version of meditation is a present walk without your phone. Maybe it is two minutes of deep breathing at the sink while the water runs warm.
Why rest feels hard:
Your worth got tangled with productivity.
You learned safety by managing other people’s emotions.
You are a recovering perfectionist who hustles to earn love.
Caitlyn has lived this. She once had the impressive job, the long hours, and the burned-out life. Moving to Denver did not change her patterns at first. She chased the next step, then the next, while raising a small child. Only when she hit another wall did she do the deeper work. With support from a coach and a therapist, she learned her worth was not tied to output. She learned to soften the pace.
Rest can be tiny. The host shared a simple practice that changed everything. She set a five-minute alarm every hour. When it chimed, she paused. No phone, just breath. Sometimes in the bathroom, sometimes at the kitchen sink. Over time, her kids learned it too. They watched her claim five minutes as hers. They learned that quiet is safe, and care is shared.
Ideas to try:
Journaling a few lines to get clear on a decision.
A two to five minute breathing pause, every hour you can.
Reading a few pages before bed.
A massage that helps you feel at home in your body.
Light a candle or incense, pull a card, reflect on one question.
Key shift, validate your past and give yourself room to begin small. Rest is not laziness. It is permission to hear your life.
Phase 2: Reset, Set Your World Up to Support You
Reset is spring energy. You pick one focus and shape your spaces to support it. Think practical and small.
Physical environment:
If you plan a morning walk, set out shoes and clothes the night before.
If you want to eat more whole foods, stock what you actually like and remove the items that derail you.
Emotional environment:
Boundaries are support, not punishment. If calls with a manipulative parent drain you, move from three calls a week to one. You are not rejecting them. You are choosing your health.
Inner narratives:
Catch the voice that asks, Who do you think you are? Ask, Whose voice is this? A parent? A coach? Culture? You are not required to keep it.
Think of shame like a coat you put on years ago. You did not know you had a choice. Now you do. You can take it off.
A simple three-step reset:
Awareness. At the top of each hour, ask, Did I honor myself in the last hour? Did I say yes when my gut said no?
Small changes. Set one intention for the day, like This is my space for 10 minutes after lunch.
Truth-building. Use honesty and accountability to align your actions with your values at home and at work.
Remember, it is not your shame. You can release what was given to you and build what is true for you.
Phase 3: Connect, Ask for Help Without Guilt
Connect is summer energy. It is time to stop going it alone. Most change fails because we try to do it in a vacuum.
What connection can look like:
Ask your partner to cover bedtime so you can make a class or get a massage.
Text a friend, Will you check in tomorrow to see if I went?
Tell your spouse, I feel guilty stepping away for two hours. Can you remind me I am still a good parent?
If you are a parent, hear this clearly. Caring for yourself is not selfish. It is modeling. The host’s hourly five-minute pause taught her kids that stillness is safe and normal. When a crisis comes, they know how to breathe and reset. That is a gift.
Connect inward too. Before you seek help, name your wins. I got the kids up, fed, and out the door safely. I already did a lot. From that grounded place, the help you ask for will be clear.
Guard your mental space:
Delete the apps that pull you into comparison. If Instagram or TikTok stirs shoulds, take a break.
Remember, influencers ask for help too. Your version will look different. That is good.
Phase 4: Act, Release and Move Forward
Act is fall energy. You let go of what does not serve you and you begin.
Caitlyn shared a lovely image. Trees look like they are losing in the fall. Leaves drop, branches bare. Yet they are strongest then because they stop feeding the leaves and conserve energy for the roots and trunk. You can do the same. Stop feeding what drains you. Put your energy where it matters.
How others treat you reflects them, not you. Shed the jacket of shame. If you feel scared, that is okay. Pick one small action and do it anyway.
Then cycle back. After the workout, the call, the pause, return to Rest. Did I like that class? Did the time work? Do I want to try two sessions next week? You are learning. Adjust and continue.
A simple action loop:
Identify one clear goal from Rest and Reset.
Take one action this week, even if it is tiny.
Reflect, keep what helped, release what did not, and repeat.
What ReROOTED Looks Like in Real Life
Here are two examples that show how this cycle flows without drama.
Example: Making movement a habit
Rest. I want energy in the afternoons so I can play with my kids. Not training for a marathon. Energy and joy are my why.
Reset. Shoes and leggings by the bed. Calendar says 20 minutes after drop-off, three times a week. Remove tempting afternoon screen time that eats that slot.
Connect. Ask a neighbor to walk with you Mondays. Ask your partner to handle one pick-up a week so you can keep your time.
Act. Walk for 20 minutes. If rain hits, stretch on the floor. The point is the pause and the movement. Next week, repeat and adjust.
Example: Creating a calmer evening
Rest. Evenings feel frantic. I want a gentle landing before bed. My why is better sleep and a kinder morning.
Reset. Set a phone alarm at 8 p.m. that reads Lights low, tea on, no screens. Put chamomile on the counter. Lay out pajamas before dinner.
Connect. Tell the family, At 8, we switch to quiet. Invite your child to read with you for one song’s length.
Act. Try it for two nights. Adjust the time. If you miss a day, do not quit. Cycle back and keep going.
Key Takeaways You Can Use Today
You belong, whether you are thriving or barely hanging on.
Shame is often not yours. Take off the coat and choose what fits.
Self-care is essential, not selfish. Kids learn care by watching you care for yourself.
Start small. Two to five minutes counts. One action a week counts.
Use the ReROOTED cycle to build momentum: Rest, Reset, Connect, Act, then reflect and repeat.
If you want support that meets you where you are, connect with Caitlyn at coachingwithcaitlyn.com or email caitlyn@coachingwithcaitlyn.com. She helps parents, professionals, and anyone who wants to feel more aligned, with steps that are doable and kind.
Conclusion
When life feels full of gaps, return to yourself. Use Rest to hear what you need, Reset to shape your space, Connect to drop the isolation, and Act to release what holds you back. Then circle back and keep building. Your path will not look like anyone else’s, and that is the point.
You are worthy of a life that feels like yours. What is one small step you can take today?
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