Join Us on Stories, Soul Work this Monday at 3:00 PM EST / 2:00 PM CST / 12:00 PM PST / EUROPE 8:00 PM GMT / 9:00 PM CET / ASIA 4:00 AM Singapore
On the next episode of Stories, Soul Work & Substack, I sit down with Megan Youngmee, writer of Hey Friend. Keep Breathing.
Megan’s story is anything but ordinary.
A Korean adoptee raised in Amish country, she has traveled a path that has taken her from corporate boardrooms in Los Angeles to the Sacred Valley of Peru. Along the way, she has become a writer, mother, healer, and guide for those seeking a deeper understanding of wellness, healing, and what it means to come home to themselves.
Her writing is rooted in one simple but powerful truth:
We can feel well again.
Through essays, poems, reflections, and conversations, Megan explores healing not as a destination but as a lifelong journey. She writes about trauma, resilience, motherhood, grief, joy, panic attacks, self-discovery, and the courage required to face what hurts instead of running from it.
Whether sharing stories from Peru, reflecting on her own healing journey, or encouraging readers through difficult seasons, Megan’s work consistently invites people to slow down, listen, and breathe.
Her essays such as The Mango Smoothie, The Space Between Yes and No, Reaching for Joy & Feeling Rage, and Tools for Overwhelm, Panic Attacks, Trigger Moments, Stress, and PTSD remind readers that healing is rarely linear. It often requires us to sit with discomfort, trust the process, and learn from the lessons hidden beneath the surface.
On this episode, we’ll explore Megan’s remarkable journey—from adoption and identity to travel, healing, motherhood, and finding purpose in unexpected places.
We’ll talk about the soul work behind her writing and how life’s deepest challenges often become our greatest teachers.
And we’ll discuss the role writing plays in that process.
Because for Megan, writing is more than expression.
It is a bridge.
A way to connect the pieces of a life that once felt disconnected. A way to transform pain into understanding and experience into wisdom.
Her publication is called Hey Friend. Keep Breathing, and perhaps that’s the message many of us need most right now.
Not to rush.
Not to force.
Not to have all the answers.
Just to take the next breath and trust the path unfolding before us.
Because healing doesn’t happen all at once.
But it does happen.
One breath at a time.
Stories, Soul Work & Substack
Where writers share the stories behind the stories.
🟧On the next Stories, Soul Work & Substack
If you have a question, drop it in the comments below—or share it live during the show.
Monday, June 8th at 4:00 PM EST / 3 PM CST / 1 PM PST / EUROPE 9:00 PM GMT / 10:00 PM CET / ASIA 5:00 AM Singapore
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About the Author
The Positive Pen by John Rinaldo is a weekly publication centered on soul work, reflection, and the quiet process of becoming. Through honest writing and lived experience, he explores what it means to grow, endure, and find your voice.
He also hosts the live podcast The Positive Pen: Stories, Soul Work & Substack, where writers, authors, and artists share their journeys through meaningful, real conversations. The show airs every Monday at 4 PM EST.
John is currently working on Ciao Bella: Forgotten in the Shadows, a documentary project telling the story of Italian families who, during World War II, risked everything to help Jewish families escape to safety across the Alps.
© 2026 John V. Rinaldo. All rights reserved.
This work is protected under U.S. and international copyright law. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, displayed, or transmitted in any form without prior written permission. Official publications are released only through verified accounts directly controlled by John V. Rinaldo.
What an incredibly thoughtful piece John. I'm so looking forward to our conversation and excited to see what journey we go on. Appreciate you dearly.
Thanks for sharing ☺️🙏🏼
The line that stayed with me was: “We can feel well again.” Not because it’s profound, but because so many people stop believing it. Healing rarely happens all at once. More often it arrives through dozens of small decisions that seem insignificant until one day you realize you’re carrying less weight than before.