Naptime Is Sacred

  Disclaimer: The discussion in this podcast is for educational and informational purposes ONLY. This is information should not be understood or construed as a substitute for medical or health advice from a doctor. Please consult your doctor for any medical-related questions and guidance.   I'm chatting with Zeeshan Shah, an integrative nutrition health coach and the owner of Eat Drink Pure. She empowers, supports, and guides women to get healthier and happier through long-term and sustainable changes to their food and lifestyle. After her diagnosis of Hashimoto's thyroiditis about 7 years ago her mission has been to help women change their lifestyle.    you can follow Zeeshan's journey, and memberships as well as download her free Ramadan Guide over at www.eatdrinkpure.com, and her Instagram is full of recipes and lives for you to benefit from.   Thank you for listening please leave a review and hit that subscribe button.

Shereeza is a Muslimah of Guyanese parents and was born and raised in Canada.    She is a clinical counsellor within a medical team and offers telephone counselling through her private practice, GTA Wellness Consultation.    Shereeza earned her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and her Master’s degree in counselling individuals, families, and groups.   She has supported her community as a youth leader, community mediator and specialized in working with children to manage various concerns, including anxiety and self-esteem. She authored her first informational booklet, “A Muslim and God’s Favour,” in 2015, based on khutbahs, lectures, and classes while integrating her mental wellness specialization She released her first therapeutic children’s book that incorporates Islam as a coping strategy for anxiety. “Talaal and the Whispering Worrier” can be used to teach ALL children how to manage their thoughts and emotions with healthy coping skills.   Instagram for a book: @TalaalsWhisperingWorrier or https://amzn.to/2NdsY28   Instagram for business: @GTAWellnessConsultation   Currently, Shareeza is creating awareness about Talaal and the Whispering Worrier. You can help by sharing this episode or the link to the book.   Thank you for listening. Please Subscribe and leave a review.   https://www.instagram.com/naptimeissacred/

I recently had the opportunity to read "We Are Not Here to Be Bystanders" by activist and author Linda Sarsour. In an exclusive interview, we discussed her book and the impactful experiences she shared. Linda's resilience in the face of opposition and constant adversity has always been an inspiration to me. Linda Sarsour, a Brooklyn-born Palestinian Muslim American, is a dedicated community activist and a mother of three. Notably, she served as the national co-chair of the Women's March, a pivotal role in organizing the largest single-day protest in US history. Previously, she held the position of executive director at the Arab American Association of New York and co-founded Mpower Change, the first Muslim online organizing platform. Linda is also a founding member of the Justice League NYC. I extend my gratitude to Linda for joining the show and to Elizabeth and Caitlyn from Simon and Schuster for facilitating the book and the conversation with Linda. Have you had the chance to read Linda's book or are you planning to do so? Stay tuned next week for a giveaway of two copies of her compelling book. Instagram Link to the book https://amzn.to/3ie3Kuh   Thank you for listening

It's been one year since Hodan Nalayeh tragically passed away, alongside her husband, unborn child, and many others. May Allah have mercy on them, grant them Janntul firdose, and provide their families continued comfort. Hodan Nalayeh, founder of Integration TV, an online platform with millions of YouTube viewers, was a prominent social media influencer. She created a substantial platform showcasing pioneering stories from Somali communities and Somalia. Nalayeh revolutionized society by sharing uplifting content from Africa. As a trained journalist, she believed in the transformative power of stories. Integration TV, an independent media channel, highlights positive narratives from underrepresented communities. It boasts over 53,000 subscribers and more than five million YouTube views. A sought-after speaker at conferences, Nalayeh shared her journey from hardship to success as a media entrepreneur and a Somali-Canadian raised outside Africa. She believed in the media's role in effecting change within Black communities worldwide. Nalayeh showed the beauty of Somalia to many diasporas who left at a young age or have never seen their homeland. Her videos portrayed the lives, challenges, and triumphs of the diaspora in Canada, fostering an affection for the people, the scenic beauty, and, most importantly, the resilience of Somalia and its people. Hodan reached out to collaborate, and on May 20th, 2019, during Ramadan, she and I recorded an episode. Sadly, it was to be published the day she passed away. Our last communication was a day before the attack. It has taken me a while to review, read, and finally publish this episode, offering insights into Hodan's past, her aspirations, and the enduring legacy she left behind. She was a dedicated mother and exemplified the ability to transform circumstances, drawing closer to Allah while aiding others as we strive to improve. Hodan's story is an inspiration for women with unspoken dreams, diasporas seeking ways to support their homeland, and creatives eager to share their work. May Hodan's story motivate you to lead an authentic life, creating your legacy. I pray that Allah SWT rewards her for the good she did, as well as those benefiting from her advice, guidance, and support over the years. Ameen Thumma Ameen!

The world has been racing to contain a new virus "The Novel Coronavirus that has at this time spread to 79 Countries as of today. Dr. Uzma Syed, an Infectious diseases specialist, is this week's guest. Dr. Syed is a NY based board-certified Infectious Disease specialist with an Antimicrobial Stewardship Committee position as well as Infection Prevention committee who is well-published in pneumonia-related research. The world is contending with the Novel Coronavirus, which has spread to 79 countries as of today. This week, our guest is Dr. Uzma Syed, a New York-based board-certified Infectious Disease specialist with positions on the Antimicrobial Stewardship Committee and the Infection Prevention committee. Dr. Syed has extensive experience in pneumonia-related research and educates high school, college, and medical school students, along with medical residents, in her specialty. Dr. Syed is a recognized expert in Infectious Diseases, having appeared on various media outlets such as BBC, CBS, Fox 5, Pix11, New 12, Fios, Newsday, and Syosset Advance. Passionate about education, she is the founder & CEO of Align Us, a non-profit providing mentorship & career development for high school students. Her humanitarian efforts range from refugee resettlement to organizing school supply and holiday toy drives, as well as volunteering for UNICEF and the UNGA to support children's rights and mobile health initiatives in undeserved countries. During our discussion, Dr. Syed provided valuable insights on the coronavirus, including protective measures for individuals and communities, debunking prevalent misinformation. Key topics addressed included comparisons between the flu, Covid-19, SARs, and MERs, guidelines for staying at home, preparing families for extended stays due to illness or community safety measures, and actions to take if feeling unwell after traveling or in a community with positive cases. Additionally, emphasis was placed on the importance of common sense practices and thorough handwashing. The episode delved into the necessity of masks, distinguishing between their necessity for the general public versus medical staff. Our guest's expertise has shed light on critical aspects of the coronavirus. We encourage you to share this podcast with your family and friends. Resources to stay up to date on the latest news https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/summary.html https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/ https://www.idsociety.org/public-health/Novel-Coronavirus/ https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6 https://www.who.int/emergencies/en/ https://www.who.int/news-room https://www.ready.gov/pandemic https://www.who.int/westernpacific/activities/preparing-for-pandemics You can follow Dr. Uzma Syed on her General and Align Us contacts below: Email Social Media Facebook Instagram Twitter Align Us email: info@align-us.org www.align-us.org www.facebook.com/alignusinc www.instagram.com/alignusinc www.twitter.com/us_align

 Welcome to the first episode of 2020. Since this show is all about personal and professional development, I wanted to start the year from a mental health perspective.    This episode is about boundary setting. Dr. Anjabeen Ashraf is a counselor, educator, and champion boundary setter living in Oregon with her impressive collection of raincoats and coffee mugs. Her goal is to help everyone live their most authentic lives by setting better boundaries. Part of this work is examining systems of oppression and working towards liberation for all. Check out her latest discussion of all things mental health, life, and South Asian Muslim womanhood on her IG @dranjabeenashraf or on her website anjabeen.com.    Dr. Ashraf's upcoming projects include launching an online course on boundaries in 2020 and equity training for counselors. You can sign up for her newsletter to be the first to know.   -In this episode, you'll hear about Dr. Ashraf's journey as a mental health provider. -What is boundary setting and how do we start setting internal and external boundaries. - Patricary and what does it mean for Muslim Women - Dr. Ashrafs Boundary setting course coming later this month.   Connect with Dr. Anjabeen Ashraf on IG https://www.instagram.com/dranjabeenashraf/ and Sign up for her newsletter https://anjabeen.com/   Thank you for listening, and don't forget to subscribe and leave a review.

This year has been such a journey, full of wins and fails. I'm so glad to have been able to continue to share so many stories of amazing Muslim women who taught us so much about personal and professional development. We'll be working hard this new year to bring you consistent and relevant episodes. Thank you for your continued support, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and family so we can grow our Naptime Is Sacred family. I hope and pray that Allah gives you the ability to continue living towards the lives that you want and building a legacy that helps us reach jannatul firdose, Ameen.

This is the part where things get technical but like Marie Forleo said Everything Is figureoutable.   You’ll have to think about media hosting some of the popular ones are Soundcloud, Anchor, Libsyn, WordPress, podomatic, speaker, etc Next is RSS Feed, RSS feed means Really Simple Syndication. First, you have to have a website where you will host your feed. I use WordPress then you set up an RSS feed, by using a built-in plugin like Blubrry. It is a protocol that automatically sends out your updates to Apple Podcast, Google podcast, Stitcher, and other apps anytime you add a new episode, so people who have subscribed can listen to it without having to look for it. Once you record episodes, then you go into WordPress and download and install the blubrry power press plugin for WordPress and fill in all the information. If you guys are interested in a more detailed explanation, let me know through email, and I will send you more information. Submit to iTunes you will need an Apple ID to submit your podcast to the directory in the iTunes app, once you go into podcasts scroll down the list of options and find Submit a podcast. It would give you information to fill in i.e., name of the podcast, your RSS feed, etc., once you submit everything, it will take a few days to a week to hear back through email if your submission was accepted. I hope you enjoyed this quick How to podcast series. I'm working on a new project that will inshaAllah be more help. I can't for you to join me on this new journey of the Naptime Is Sacred podcast. Thanks for listening, don't forget to subscribe and leave a review.

Before you go and spend a pretty penny on equipment, I would consider what you already have for free. Your smartphone has a recording app that you can start with, and there is also an app called anchor that uses your smartphones built-in microphone and records up to 2mins of audio, that you can directly post in the app. It has features like commenting and different people that you can follow and build an online community. If the phone isn't your thing, I would say get a mic that you plug into your computer; there are different kinds online for a variety of price brackets. Now, that you have something to record with you'll need somewhere to edit all your audio files, I suggest Audacity since it's free and works great. Thanks for listening Subscribe and tune in tomorrow for another episode.

Now that you've figured out who your ideal podcast listener is, in this case, a young practicing Muslim mom 25-34, who is interested in the environment, Community, social change, and healthy lifestyle. She spends a lot of time on Instagram and reading.  It's time to think about what your avatar wants to hear. Is it an interview-style podcast, solo shows, will you have different segments than comes the topics For example, a podcast about Ethical Living so you would create episodes on -Ethical fashion -Minimalism - Zero waste - Carbon foot There are so many topics you can come up with; you will continuously be thinking about topic ideas. It's a good idea to write these ideas down and solicit feedback from your social media. Thanks for listening tune in tomorrow for more on how to start your podcast.

So you want to start a podcast, but you don't know where to start? In the next four podmas episodes, I will teach you how to start planning your podcast. Let's jump right in before you start thinking about the fun stuff like podcast name and album art. We need to think about who the podcast is, for we call this person an avatar or your niche. So, here we need to get super specific, is it a male or female, is it parents, kids, how old are they? What shows do they watch? Is it a show for Muslims, Christians, etc. or an atheist. What do they do for fun, what do they read. A little market research on social media will go a long way into finding where your ideal listener would hangout like Instagram, youtube, facebook, etc. Once you have a clear picture of your Avatar/niche, you can start thinking of what content that person will take the time to listen. Join me tomorrow for more information about podcasting. Thanks for listening, don't forget to subscribe in Apple podcast and Google podcast.

Guest Alia Salem is the Founder and Executive Director of FACE (Facing Abuse in Community Environments), an organization dedicating to helping hold abusive religious and community leaders accountable to the communities they serve. Her professional background is in organizational development, community organizing, and communications with a particular focus on the intersections of institutionalized racism and the push towards an equitable pluralistic society. Alia and her team help communities deal with leadership abuse and create systems that help people know what is going on and what they should do about it. Like the Catholic church masjids fire an imam or other leaders and they pop back up in another community and continue in their abusive behavior, Face is working to stop this. FACE focuses on Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse, Spiritual Abuse, and Finacial Abuse. Other organizations creating awareness about spiritual Abuse mentioned in this episode are *In shaykhs clothing *Hurma project Connect with Alia and FACE all the socials @aliarsalem FACE Report Abuse https://facetogether.org/report/ Website   Instagram Facebook Twitter Thank you for listening and don’t forget to Subscribe in Google Podcast and Apple Podcast

    So the Christmas season is in full swing here in the states, and I usually have two thoughts that come into my head this time of year As Muslims do, we create a sprite of celebration for our families for Eid? One that is memorable for our kids without making it all like Christmas in terms of decor and gifts. I feel like in the age of small Muslim business, and we can go a little crazy in buying Muslim decorations, games, books, and toys because those of us who didn't grow up in a Muslim country didn't have that. Social media is about to start going crazy within a month with the Ramadan and Eid merchandise posts, and I would love to hear what you guys think about this because I, for one, I'm always torn about it. Last year I tried to reuse as much stuff as I could from previous years, and the few purchases I made were things I can continue to use in future Ramadans and Eids. That's the best compromise I could come up with.   The second thing that comes to mind is winter traditions. Growing up in Canada, I use to love the Christmas season, not because of the shirk and bidahs. But because everything was so festive, it was snowing, so we would go sledding, build snowmen, have snowball fights and the neighbors had their lights all up, the tv was full of feel-good movies and shows. Not to mention school, where I was always in the Choir and band, and Chrismas was the big performances. So while we didn't celebrate Christmas, there was still a lot of Christmas around. So I had to ask myself, do my kids have a winter tradition? And since we live in Texas, only two things came to mind. Our favorite things are Hot Chocholate and Home Alone 2. Our kids are not in any school clubs that have holiday events, and we get no snow, so that simplifies life.    I asked on Instagram today Does your family have any winter traditions and some people answered yes, and some said no, some of the traditions included  -going tubing every yea and then going for desserts and hot chocolate. -family vacations -Making Harissa (a Kashmiri meat porridge and Kashmiri chai. - Skating    I would love to know if you guys have any winter family traditions and what you think of it as a Practising Muslims.   Thanks for tuning in, Don't forget to Subscribe.    

My husband Omar and I are coming up on a significant anniversary, and we wanted to do a How well do you know me tag for podmas. Here are the questions: 1. What is my favorite food? 2. What is my biggest pet peeve? 3. What's my favorite TV show? 4. If I could travel anywhere, where would I go? 5. What are my long-term goals? 6. What is one of my best childhood memories? Thanks for tuning in, and don't forget to subscribe and leave a review

  It's that time of year when everyone is planning all their goals. Over the years, I've realized that while these set goals are important, it's even more critical to create a life that allows for goals to be completed.   You have things you want to accomplish, that trip to your favorite city. The degree you want to finish, the book you want to write, the course you want to create, but you don't know where to start.   That's where S.M.A.R.T. goals give you a defined method to plan so that you set a realistic goal and maximize a successful completion. Smart goals meaning: Specific (simple, sensible, significant).   Goals, like I want to make more money, won't work, if you make a specific goal to make $10,000 there is a better chance of doing Measurable (meaningful, motivating).  Ask yourself, what do I have to do to get the extra 10,000? do I need to sell more inventory?, work more hours, should I get an additional job Achievable (agreed, attainable). You have to be willing or capable of achieving this goal if you don't have a way to or the capacity to do it, you won't get it done Relevant (reasonable, realistic, and resourced, results-based). Decide if this is a goal that will have an impact on your life, and a benefit attached to it. i.e., if I have an extra 10,000, I can go to hajj, or pay off credit card debt. The advantage is that you complete an act of ibadah, or your free debt. Time-bound (time-based, time-limited, time/cost limited, timely, time-sensitive).  When you set a deadline, you have a better chance of achieving the goal instead of just hoping and dreaming about it.   With the new year around the corner, set goals you can achieve using the SMART system.    Thanks for tuning in today's episode.

I finally finished listening to Marie Forleo's book, Everything Is Figureoutable, and I loved it. There are multiple reasons, but I think the one that has made the most significant impact on how I see my dreams is OPTIMISM. This book shared stories where Marie and others used everything is figureoutable to get jobs, start a business, overcome a hardship. Whenever I read books or blogs posts about just working through a problem and taking a leap, I realize how important it is to believe in yourself and your work but as Muslims to also hold these beliefs 1. Tawakkul (reliance, trust in God's plan). Not only do we have to plan and work, but we also have to have a firm belief that the outcome is in Allah's control. 2. The power of Dua 3. Creating a life that allows barakah into it? Are you praying, are you fasting, do you eat and drink what permissible, do you give others their rights? Share your everything if figureoutable moment below.

In today's episode of podmas, I wanted to highlight an amazing Muslim woman named Asha Farah. I met Asha at the SNABI conference, and unfortunately, the audio during her talk didn't come out properly in the recording, but I wanted to share a little bit of her story today. Asha Farah is a corporate Real Estate Manager at Starbucks Coffee Company in Seattle, Washington. She Has over 18 of experience in corporate America. Tune in tomorrow for another episode and don't forget to subscribe. Follow us on Instagram @naptimeissacred

So I just turned 36 this week, and I've been going through those 40 things to do before your 40, but they're intense and not aligned with a Muslim lifestyle, so I came up with Seven things I want to do before I turn 37 Go on hajj Visit Somalia  Learn a new language  Create a show  Improve my Arabic reading   Read a hundred books Learn to bake better  These are my short term bucket list items for the next year, hope that I am inshaAllah able to accomplish them and much more.   Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review.  

In this interview episode, we have with us, Amal Mohamud is a Somali Canadian who works as a community producer for Omni Tv in Canada. The program is called Somalis in Alberta. She produces shows in the Somali language under a Canadian multicultural channel, and my goal is to give Somalis a better image in the media.   Amal and I had a great and detailed discussion about her work on Omni TV and the importance of positive representation in media and programming of Muslims and in this case the Somali community in Canada and specifically Alberta gets a lot of bad press, and I'm proud that Amal is creating shows that show our community and Muslims in a positive light.    you can follow Amal here https://www.instagram.com/theamaal93/   Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review. Tune in tomorrow for another episode.

Do you have any advice for the recently turned 18-year-old about anything? Life advise. Here are his answers Experience: Volunteer for as many different things as you can and take on various jobs. Learn: Take classes on different subjects, read books, watch documentaries, meet people, and try to learn from their experience. Relationships: Spend time with family and relatives as much as possible. It invents time to cultivate good friendships. I'll add Spirtuallutly to this list, we are nothing without faith, and the habits that you create early on in life will carry you through the times of hardship when you don't have the mental or physical capacity to learn new things. Don't forget to subscribe and leave a review