I’ve been sitting with a strange kind of grief lately, the kind that comes from something good. Both my kids will be in college soon, and I know how lucky I am to say that. Still, I keep hearing the same thing from everyone around me. “Molly, this is your time!” Some days that’s true. I feel free, open, like a whole new chapter is standing right there waiting for me. Other days my heart aches just thinking about the quiet house. No one asking me to make them a sandwich. No shower running in t...
Aug 6
50 min
This fall, my youngest, my last one, leaves for college. Twenty-one years of being a mom, and I’m standing at the edge of a chapter I don’t know how to close. When my son left two years ago, I was a wreck. Shame that I was “too attached,” fear of who I am when mothering isn’t my daily identity, questions about my marriage, my life, my self. So when Jodie Patterson agreed to come back on the podcast, the timing felt like more than coincidence. This is Jodie’s third time on Cracking Open: she w...
Jul 23
1 hr
I don't know about you, but even though I use AI almost every single day, there is still a part of me that gets nervous about it. I love nothing more than sitting across from a friend with a cup of coffee, driving in the car with my kids and husband to Seattle to see a World Cup Game (yep, I went), or being out in nature with nothing but my own thoughts, no machine, no screen, just me. I am deeply passionate about human connection. So passionate that I did a TED talk on The Power of Hum...
Jul 2
57 min
I recorded this episode in the middle of one of the most emotional weeks of my life. My daughter Cora was three days from graduating high school, and I found myself at backyard parties where the conversation kept drifting to the same familiar places: the weather, work, the kids. And I felt that quiet ache I believe so many of us are carrying right now. The longing for something deeper. More real. More connected. So that’s what today’s episode is about: how we find the courage to have more con...
Jun 11
19 min
I found Emma through Maria Shriver's newsletter, and her words stopped me cold: "I no longer want more. I want to be wild." I felt my whole body exhale. Because I knew exactly what she meant. The TED Talks, the books, the funnels, the coaching groups, I had all of it. And so did Emma. And somewhere underneath all of it, we both heard the same quiet voice saying: this isn't it. This conversation is for anyone who has ever felt that way. Meet Emma Tynan Emma Tynan is an Irish writer whose work ...
May 28
47 min
What does it mean to truly lead not just in a boardroom, but in your relationships, your family, and your own inner life? In this deeply moving episode, therapist and host Molly Carroll sits down with Thomas Droge, executive coach, Chief Mindfulness Officer, mindfulness speaker, and author of The Leader Within, to explore the practices that create real, lasting transformation. Thomas brings over three decades of integrated medicine, qigong, meditation, and contemplative work into a raw, hones...
May 14
53 min
You got a NO this week. Maybe more than one. Someone said no to you. Or your kid came home with that look on their face. Or you've been trying and trying, and the door just won't open. Here's what the research tells us: your brain processes social rejection in the same region as physical pain. Neuroscientist Naomi Eisenberger found that the anterior cingulate cortex — the part that lights up when you're physically hurt — lights up identically when you're rejected. You are not being dramatic. ...
Apr 30
23 min
Whenever someone asks me for a word that describes how I want to live, my answer is always the same. Freedom. Not just personal freedom, but freedom in my mind, my body, and my spirit. Maybe that comes from being raised Catholic, or maybe it’s simply my wild spirit that has never wanted to be contained. So when I read Shaka Senghor's How to Be Free: A Proven Guide to Escaping Life’s Hidden Prisons, I knew I needed to have him back on the podcast. Because this message isn’t just for people who...
Apr 16
56 min
Welcome to Molly's Magic. I’m Molly. A mom, a therapist, an author, a podcast host, and a TED speaker. The alchemy of these roles has brought me here. Molly's Magic is simple. Short, meaningful, and doable steps to help you move closer to your goals. Who is Molly's Magic for? This is for the part of you that knows you are capable of more but cannot quite name what is getting in the way. The part of you that feels stuck. That senses something bigger is waiting. That is ready, even just a litt...
Apr 2
19 min
Welcome back to Part 2 of our 100th episode. If you have not listened to Part 1 yet, pause here and go back. Truly. Tommy, Lisa, René, Leo, and Cora brought everything. And your responses told me just how deeply it landed. You shared that Tommy reminded you that everything you need is already inside of you. That Lisa’s story made you want to start something new at 60. That René’s story changed the way you see single moms and families of three. That after listening to Cora, you wanted to sign ...
Mar 19
1 hr 6 min
Load more