The Hidden Cost of Being the Strong One: Money, Stress & Mental Health with Mandi Woodruff-Santos
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She built a successful career, started her own business, and became a mother. So why did everything start to feel overwhelming? Dr. Taz welcomes award-winning financial journalist, career coach, and Brown Ambition podcast host Mandi Woodruff-Santos to explore how financial stress, career pressure, and the expectation to hold everything together can affect women's mental and physical health.
She built a successful career, started her own business, and became a mother. So why did everything start to feel overwhelming? Dr. Taz welcomes award-winning financial journalist, career coach, and Brown Ambition podcast host Mandi Woodruff-Santos to explore how financial stress, career pressure, and the expectation to hold everything together can affect women's mental and physical health.
Mandi shares what she's learned from helping women navigate money challenges, career transitions, and the pressure to succeed. Together, they discuss why women often struggle to ask for what they need, how financial shame can undermine confidence, and the additional challenges women of color face when advocating for themselves at work.
Dr. Taz reflects on the stress she sees among women who carry financial responsibility for their families, as well as her own experience growing up around money anxiety. Their conversation explores the pressure to be the strong one, the connection between financial security and emotional well-being, and why success doesn't always protect us from burnout.
Mandi also opens up about her personal experience with postpartum depression and anxiety, the challenges of building a business while raising young children, and the circumstances that led her to seek inpatient mental health treatment. She introduces the idea of a mental health emergency fund, explaining why having trusted people and professional support in place matters before a crisis occurs.
Drawing from her upcoming book, Brown Ambition: How to Reboot Your Money and Career When Life Throws You Off Track, Mandi shares how women can move beyond shame, navigate unexpected setbacks, and pursue financial success without losing sight of their health and happiness.
IN THIS EPISODE
- How financial stress affects mental and physical well-being
- The hidden pressure of being the family breadwinner
- Money shame and the expectations placed on women of color
- Three common thought patterns that hold women back in their careers
- Asking for raises, negotiating, and advocating for yourself
- Recognizing when it's time to make a career change
- Financial transparency and independence in relationships
- Mandi's experience with postpartum depression and anxiety
- Recognizing when old coping mechanisms stop working
- Building a mental health emergency fund
- The importance of rest, community, and asking for help
- Redefining ambition and finding fulfillment beyond financial success
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ABOUT MANDI WOODRUFF-SANTOS
Mandi Woodruff-Santos is an award-winning financial journalist, career and negotiation coach, and host of the Brown Ambition podcast. She is the founder of MandiMoney Makers, a coaching community helping women of color advance their careers and build wealth. Her debut book, Brown Ambition: How to Reboot Your Money and Career When Life Throws You Off Track, is scheduled for release on June 15, 2027.
Website and career coaching:
Brown Ambition podcast:
Book information and preorders:
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This episode is for educational purposes and does not replace individualized medical, mental health, or financial advice.
Dr. Taz: https://www.instagram.com/drtazmd/
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Subscribe to the video podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@HolPlusShow/podcasts
Get your copy of ➡️ The Hormone Shift: https://amzn.to/44yYhZd
Produced by https://ClipGrowth.com (Producer: Pat Gostek)
Hol+: https://www.instagram.com/liveholplus/
Hol+ Show: https://www.instagram.com/holplushow/
Subscribe to the audio podcast: https://holplus.transistor.fm/subscribe
Subscribe to the video podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@HolPlusShow/podcasts
Get your copy of ➡️ The Hormone Shift: https://amzn.to/44yYhZd
Produced by https://ClipGrowth.com (Producer: Pat Gostek)
Creators and Guests
Host
Dr. Taz Bhatia MD
Dr. Taz Bhatia is a triple-board-certified integrative medicine physician and founder of hol+, where she brings together science, spirit and the human experience to deliver holistic, whole-person care.
Producer
Pat Gostek
Founder of ClipGrowth.com - End-to-End YouTube, Podcast & Clips Management (you just record).
