Archways' Threads

About Archways' Threads

Are you someone who cares about people? Do you seek information to support people you care about who have families? Do you care about people affected by addiction, substance use disorders, or work in the field of family support or peer recovery support? Spend about twenty minutes each month with the President and CEO of Archways Recovery Community Organization and Family Resource Centers who shares hope, strength and stories from the field and practice of Peer Recovery Support Services and Family Support & Strengthening.

Publisher

Michelle Lennon

Category

business · health & fitness

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

2 Apr 2024

Latest episode

1 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

22 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   1 Oct 2026

   Building Good Habits – Part 2

   In this second episode on habit formation, host Michelle Lennon and Wellness Initiatives Coordinator Cara LaPlante explore practical strategies for overcoming barriers, leveraging the four foundational principles of habit creation, and staying consistent. They discuss how small environmental tweaks, creative solutions, self-compassion, and celebrating incremental wins empower participants to sustain positive routines in recovery and daily life. Key Takeaways: 00:00 – Intro 00:34 – Reducing Barriers and Celebrating Small Wins: Cara emphasizes that peer support coaches must help participants identify and address daily barriers to small actions. Michelle notes the importance of celebrating even small successes—like positive self-talk or a pat on the back—to reinforce new behavior patterns. 02:06 – Design Your Environment: Michelle and Cara discuss the principle of making habits easy to see and remember. Cara shares her routine of placing a reflection journal right next to the coffee pot, while Michelle notes that visual cues (like sneakers by the door or a journal on a pillow) prevent habits from failing due to simple forgetfulness. 03:57 – Finding Joy and Pairing Habits: Cara highlights that habits stick best when they are appealing, such as picking physical activities you actually enjoy. Michelle shares how she pairs less enjoyable tasks (like riding an exercise bike or taking Epsom salt baths) with watching short dramas as a built-in reward. 06:57 – Friction Reduction and Starting Small: To lower resistance, Michelle prepares essentials like socks and hair ties in advance so distractions don't get in the way. Cara suggests starting small—like reading for just two minutes—to fit habits naturally into busy or difficult days. 09:14 – Immediate Rewards and Self-Affirmation: Because brains repeat behaviors that feel good immediately, verbal self-praise or tracking metrics (like step goals on a walking pad) provides essential positive feedback. Cara notes that acknowledging these milestones prevents participants from falling into negative self-talk. 12:39 – Navigating Self-Sabotage and Task Paralysis: Michelle and Cara address how participants often focus on what they failed to do rather than what they accomplished. They discuss using "body doubling" (working alongside someone) to overcome task paralysis when tackling overwhelming chores or goals. 14:57 – Tailoring Habits Across SAMHSA’s Wellness Domains: The hosts discuss applying habit principles across various dimensions of wellness. Connecting habits to a deeper purpose, core values, or tools like toothbrush timers and step trackers helps integrate healthy rituals into everyday life. 19:14 – Low-Cost, Creative Fitness and Habit Adaptation: Responding to common resource barriers, Cara shares how filling a backpack with canned goods allowed her to build a strength routine without expensive gym equipment. Michelle emphasizes starting with short, free workouts and realistic 12-week commitments to build steady momentum. Building lasting habits relies on four foundational principles: making desired behaviors obvious, attractive, easy, and satisfying. By reducing environmental friction, pairing tasks with rewarding activities, starting small, and celebrating incremental progress, individuals can bypass self-sabotage and create meaningful daily routines. Peer support coaches play a vital role in helping participants recognize these wins and craft low-cost, creative solutions tailored to their unique wellness goals. If there's a topic you'd like to see us cover, email us at podcast@archwaysnh.org (mailto:podcast@archwaysnh.org) or call us at 603-960-2128. Visit our website at https://www.archwaysnh.org (https://www.archwaysnh.org) to learn more about the Archways family of recovery and family resource centers. If your business or organization has been thinking about creating a podcast and you aren’t sure how to start, reach out to our producer at https://smithdouglass.com (https://smithdouglass.com/).

2. 

   1 Sept 2026

   Building Good Habits – Part 1

   Building Good Habits – Part 1 In this episode of Archways' Threads, host Michelle Lennon is joined again by Cara LaPlante to unpack the science and mechanics of habit formation. Shifting away from common myths about "3-week habit building" and rigid, all-or-nothing mindsets, Michelle and Cara explore how everyday 1% gains, neurological feedback loops, and intentional habit design serve as critical protective factors in long-term recovery and personal wellness. Key Takeaways: 00:00 - Introduction 00:28 – Debunking the Myth of 30-Day Habit Formation: Michelle shares her personal struggles with traditional habit advice as a neurodivergent adult, challenging the common misconception that new behaviors naturally become automatic in 21 to 30 days. 03:35 – Defining What a Habit Really Is: Cara defines a habit as a regularly repeated routine, practice, or behavior activated by a cue and reinforced by a reward. She emphasizes that habits still require conscious effort and do not instantly become effortless subconscious actions. 04:15 – Embracing 1% Daily Improvements: Referencing James Clear's Atomic Habits, Michelle highlights the power of getting 1% better every day. The hosts discuss how small, consistent actions build trust in relationships and create long-term transformation far better than massive, unmaintainable efforts. 05:53 – Overcoming the "All-or-Nothing" Mindset: Michelle shares how she shifted her focus from drastic fitness overhauls to sustainable daily actions. Cara adds that setting overly ambitious goals often leads to burnout, whereas small daily practices reliably shape long-term health. 07:55 – Demystifying the Four-Part Habit Cycle: Cara breaks down the neurological feedback loop behind all habits: Cue, Craving, Response, and Reward. She notes that understanding neurobiology and environmental drivers removes self-blame when analyzing why we engage in specific behaviors. 08:45 – Replacing "Triggers" with Empowering "Cues": The hosts explain why they replace the word "trigger" with "cue" (activator), noting that "cue" aligns better with suicide prevention standards and emphasizes that individuals have agency over their actions. Cues can include times of day, locations, preceding events, emotional states, or other people. 12:07 – Navigating Cravings and the Space to Choose: Cara and Michelle examine how cravings represent the perceived need for a reward. Michelle shares a story of a recovery participant who felt physical cravings driving past a liquor store, illustrating how changing one's route or reaching out for peer support creates crucial space between cue, craving, and response. 17:18 – Principle 1 of Habit Creation: Make It Obvious: Michelle introduces the first core principle of building good habits: Make It Obvious. She outlines practical strategies like placing running shoes by the door, laying out water bottles, or keeping a journal on a pillow so desired behaviors are impossible to overlook. Creating lasting behavioral change is not about willpower or achieving perfection overnight. By understanding the four-part habit loop—Cue, Craving, Response, and Reward—individuals in recovery and peer support coaches can design environments that make positive behaviors obvious and achievable. Embracing 1% daily improvements allows anyone to break free from all-or-nothing thinking and align their daily routines with their true identity. If there's a topic you'd like to see us cover, email us at podcast@archwaysnh.org (mailto:podcast@archwaysnh.org) or call us at 603-960-2128. Visit our website at https://www.archwaysnh.org (https://www.archwaysnh.org) to learn more about the Archways family of recovery and family resource centers. If your business or organization has been thinking about creating a podcast and you aren’t sure how to start, reach out to our producer at https://smithdouglass.com (https://smithdouglass.com/).

3. 

   1 Aug 2026

   Identity-Based Goal Setting – Part 4

   Part 1 of this discussion: YouTube - https://youtu.be/KJfInQEZy5E Transistor - https://share.transistor.fm/s/70d8538d (https://share.transistor.fm/s/70d8538d) Part 2 of this discussion: YouTube: https://youtu.be/LP8_EPvyPnk Transistor: https://share.transistor.fm/s/52173f2e (https://share.transistor.fm/s/52173f2e) Part 3 of this discussion: YouTube:  https://youtu.be/YgA2f8keX5o (https://youtu.be/YgA2f8keX5o) Transistor: https://share.transistor.fm/s/58a964f7 (https://share.transistor.fm/s/58a964f7) In this final episode of Archways' Threads' four-part series on identity-based goal setting, host Michelle Lennon and Wellness Initiative Coordinator Cara LaPlante conclude their conversation by exploring how to sustain long-term growth. They discuss utilizing SAMHSA's eight dimensions of wellness, aligning actions with core personal values, managing setbacks without shame, and leveraging peer recovery coaching for long-term accountability. Key Takeaways: 00:00 – Intro 00:40 – Assessing Wellness Across Life Domains: Michelle and Cara highlight SAMHSA's eight dimensions of wellness (social, emotional, spiritual, intellectual, physical, financial, occupational, environmental) as a practical starting framework. Michelle notes how picking just one area to focus on builds the consistent repetition needed to show the brain that change is possible. 03:30 – Re-evaluating Core Values and Conflict: Michelle and Cara discusses how personal values can become compromised or conflicted during active addiction or severe stress. They recommend using online values assessments to help participants gain clarity on what matters most, allowing them to anchor daily choices to their deepest priorities. 06:16 – Developing Discrepancy via Motivational Interviewing: Cara explains how recovery coaches point out gaps between a participant's stated values (e.g., family stability) and their actual behaviors. Using classic motivational interviewing skills, coaches guide participants through a self-discovery process without judgment or shame. 09:51 – Defining Results, Purpose, and Impact: Cara breaks down the "Results, Purpose, and Impact" tool, illustrating how participants establish strategic direction over 6-to-12-week and 6-to-12-month periods. Michelle adds that traditional SMART goals function as the individual tasks that drive these overarching, purpose-driven results. 14:18 – Navigating Setbacks and Normalizing Fluctuation: Michelle and Cara address what happens when individuals slip or go off track, emphasizing that ebb and flow is normal human behavior. Revisiting recovery plans, personal mission statements, or vision boards provides a constructive reminder of one's goals rather than a reason to give up. 16:52 – Long-Term Growth Beyond Crisis Management: Michelle and Cara emphasize that peer support isn't just for early recovery crisis resolution. As participants achieve major milestones—like pursuing higher education or buying a home—coaches help them maintain a lifelong growth mindset and break through self-imposed glass ceilings. 20:10 – Shifting Mindsets: From "I Am Becoming" to "I Am": They discuss how identity-based change solidifies as repeated daily habits, thoughts, and actions reshape self-talk. Michelle notes that reframing failure as an opportunity to learn dismantles destructive "all-or-nothing" mindsets. 23:00 – Reclaiming Inner Power: In closing, Cara reiterates that true behavior change stems from recognizing the power within oneself. By framing life as an ongoing learning process, individuals can construct a fulfilling life aligned with their authentic vision. Long-term transformation requires moving beyond short-term crisis management into a continuous process of self-discovery and alignment. This concluding episode outlines how tools like wellness assessments, values tests, and the "Results, Purpose, and Impact" framework help individuals bridge the gap between who they are and who they want to become. By framing setbacks as learning opportunities rather than failures, peer recovery coaching empowers individuals to step into their inner strength and sustain identity-driven growth for a lifetime. If there's a topic you'd like to see us cover, email us at podcast@archwaysnh.org (mailto:podcast@archwaysnh.org) or call us at 603-960-2128. Visit our website at https://www.archwaysnh.org (https://www.archwaysnh.org) to learn more about the Archways family of recovery and family resource centers. If your business or organization has been thinking about creating a podcast and you aren’t sure how to start, reach out to our producer at https://smithdouglass.com (https://smithdouglass.com/).

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

1 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 10 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

10

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

27

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Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.