<description>&lt;p&gt;What does it really take to be present as a dad while juggling work, pressure, and your own mental health?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Kristian Leavell, a licensed clinical social worker, therapist, and dad, brings both clinical insight and lived experience to this honest conversation about the weight many fathers carry and how to navigate it with clarity and compassion.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Kristian shares how to:&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;• Be truthful about what you feel and what you need&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;• Understand the voice behind internal pressure and self doubt&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;• Redefine what it means to provide for your family&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;• Manage guilt around work, parenting, and expectations&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;• Let go of perfectionism and the anxiety under it&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;• Reset when you feel disconnected from yourself or your family&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;• Build routines that protect your mental health&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;• Model emotional honesty for your kids while keeping boundaries&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;• Build real community even when adult friendships feel difficult&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;• Cross the swamp of discomfort to become the parent you want to be&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;If you feel stretched thin, quietly anxious, or simply trying to show up better for yourself and your family, this episode offers grounded guidance and a way forward.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Dig Deeper&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Kristian’s video about being a girl dad &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQLDoqfDnHH"&gt;Instagram&lt;/a&gt; | &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8DoLst6/"&gt;TikTok&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://youtu.be/8WEtxJ4-sh4"&gt;Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls by TLC&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisa_Lopes"&gt;Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://youtu.be/fregObNcHC8"&gt;The Man Who Sold the World by Nirvana&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.txst.edu"&gt;Texas State&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Follow Kristian&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@therapytokwithkris"&gt;TherapyTokWithKris on TikTok&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.instagram.com/therapytalkwithkris"&gt;TherapyTalkWithKris on Instagram&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://DistinctApproachCounseling.com"&gt;DistinctApproachCounseling.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="mailto:distinctapproachcounseling@gmail.com"&gt;Email Kris&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Follow Gap to Gig&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;On Instagram: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://instagram.com/gaptogig"&gt;instagram.com/gaptogig&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;On TikTok: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://tiktok.com/@gaptogig"&gt;tiktok.com/@gaptogig&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;On X: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://x.com/gaptogig"&gt;x.com/gaptogig&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;On YouTube: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://youtube.com/@gaptogig-gtg"&gt;youtube.com/@gaptogig-gtg&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;On your podcast player of choice: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://rss.com/podcasts/gaptogig/"&gt;https://rss.com/podcasts/gaptogig/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Sign up for the Gap to Gig newsletter: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://gaptogig.com"&gt;gaptogig.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Follow Michael&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;On LinkedIn: &lt;a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/themichaeljacobs/"&gt;https://www.linkedin.com/in/themichaeljacobs/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Gap to Gig

Michael Jacobs

Kristian Leavell on Finding Calm and Becoming the Dad You Want to Be

DEC 9, 202554 MIN
Gap to Gig

Kristian Leavell on Finding Calm and Becoming the Dad You Want to Be

DEC 9, 202554 MIN

Description

<p>What does it really take to be present as a dad while juggling work, pressure, and your own mental health?</p><p>Kristian Leavell, a licensed clinical social worker, therapist, and dad, brings both clinical insight and lived experience to this honest conversation about the weight many fathers carry and how to navigate it with clarity and compassion.</p><p>Kristian shares how to:</p><p>• Be truthful about what you feel and what you need</p><p>• Understand the voice behind internal pressure and self doubt</p><p>• Redefine what it means to provide for your family</p><p>• Manage guilt around work, parenting, and expectations</p><p>• Let go of perfectionism and the anxiety under it</p><p>• Reset when you feel disconnected from yourself or your family</p><p>• Build routines that protect your mental health</p><p>• Model emotional honesty for your kids while keeping boundaries</p><p>• Build real community even when adult friendships feel difficult</p><p>• Cross the swamp of discomfort to become the parent you want to be</p><p>If you feel stretched thin, quietly anxious, or simply trying to show up better for yourself and your family, this episode offers grounded guidance and a way forward.</p><p></p><p><strong>Dig Deeper</strong></p><p>Kristian’s video about being a girl dad <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQLDoqfDnHH">Instagram</a> | <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8DoLst6/">TikTok</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://youtu.be/8WEtxJ4-sh4">Don't Go Chasing Waterfalls by TLC</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lisa_Lopes">Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://youtu.be/fregObNcHC8">The Man Who Sold the World by Nirvana</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.txst.edu">Texas State</a></p><p></p><p><strong>Follow Kristian</strong></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@therapytokwithkris">TherapyTokWithKris on TikTok</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.instagram.com/therapytalkwithkris">TherapyTalkWithKris on Instagram</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://DistinctApproachCounseling.com">DistinctApproachCounseling.com</a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="mailto:[email protected]">Email Kris</a></p><p></p><p><strong>Follow Gap to Gig</strong></p><p>On Instagram: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://instagram.com/gaptogig">instagram.com/gaptogig</a></p><p>On TikTok: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://tiktok.com/@gaptogig">tiktok.com/@gaptogig</a></p><p>On X: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://x.com/gaptogig">x.com/gaptogig</a></p><p>On YouTube: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://youtube.com/@gaptogig-gtg">youtube.com/@gaptogig-gtg</a></p><p>On your podcast player of choice: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://rss.com/podcasts/gaptogig/">https://rss.com/podcasts/gaptogig/</a></p><p>Sign up for the Gap to Gig newsletter: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://gaptogig.com">gaptogig.com</a></p><p></p><p><strong>Follow Michael</strong></p><p>On LinkedIn: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/themichaeljacobs/">https://www.linkedin.com/in/themichaeljacobs/</a></p><p></p>