Awakening Worth in Childless Women

The moment I sat in quiet meditation with an energy healer, I never anticipated the floodgates of emotional pain that would open from my womb space. That pivotal encounter ignited a journey into womb healing, leading me to create womb healing retreats that help women to release emotions stored in the womb space.  On today's episode, I replay a conversation that my sister, Jen, had on her show...

This episode is a bit controversial.  I think there's this an expectation that if you are a woman, you are onboard with everything International Women's Day stands for.  But I'm not known for just getting on board with something simply because of an expectation.  Do I want women to rise? Yes.  Do I want there to be equitable pay in the workforce? Yes.  Do I want to see more women at...

I'm doing a solo episode today and pulling back the curtain on pronatalism even further.  In this episode, I will peel away the layers of this pervasive belief system, examining how it shapes the sense of purpose and self-worth in those of us without children.  By uncovering historical and contemporary pressures from society, government, and religion, we pave the way for acceptance and a rede...

As a leader in the childless space, Maria Hill brings a ton of wisdom to this episode. Her story of parental and societal expectations as a woman growing up in the 60's shed so much light on what we are going through now as childless women. Maria and I cover some unexpected topics in this conversation from how Ayurveda supports the grief journey to highly sensitive people to the patriarchy an...

Legacy.  It's a word I hear a lot in the childless community.  What kind of legacy will I leave now that I'm not having kids?  As though having kids is the only way to leave a legacy. In this episode, I'll unpack:  what legacy is and the role of ego in this need to leave a legacy behind how to know if you're ego is coming into play and the mistakes you might be making while try...

A feeling of regret and fear of future regret are two things I hear so many childless women talk about.  We regret decisions and choices we made in the past that have led to our current circumstances.  We also are afraid to make decisions in the present because we might regret them later. I'm going to unpack it all in this episode.  You'll find out:  what is regret and what purpose does...

Embarking on the path of adoption or deciding against it—either one is a journey laden with emotion and complexity. Today, I open my heart to you in a candid narrative of my own experiences with the profound choice of not adopting.  We'll cover the unpredictable adoption landscape, unpack societal expectations, and contemplate the often-overlooked emotional and logistical hurdles that can ste...

I continue to be enlightened and inspired by my good friend, Kirsten Frey.  She returns for a second time on this episode to share her expertise on recovering from grief and opens us up to the multitude of different kinds of loss.  We tend to think of the acute sense of loss after a loved one has passed as the primary type of grief, but there are 40 other kinds of valid loss that may not have anyt...

I used to start every year during my pursuit of motherhood thinking, "this is going to be my year".   And it never was.  Once I came to terms that my future was going to be childless, it started to look pretty dismal.   And  yet, I wanted to feel optimistic about the year ahead.  What I didn't realize was that I had some obstacles in my way that needed breaking down.  Consciously. ...

It's 3 days before Christmas as I record this special episode.  This is not my usual all-talk episode or guest interview.  Today, in this heartfelt episode, I'll guide you through a visualization exercise that promises to lift your spirits and shift your emotional state towards love and joy.  So find yourself a quiet spot where you won't be disturbed, put your ear pods in and get re...

It's pretty normal to feel like you don't belong when you're a childless woman.   We grow up thinking that eventually, we'll belong to the mom club.  And then it leaves us with a pretty big feeling of exclusion when we don't get to join.   Most people in the childless space, assume that this feeling of not fitting in is a part of the grief and that once the grief starts to...

When we want something, it's not actually that thing that we want.  It's the feeling that we imagine we'll have when we have the thing.   When I wrapped my head around this concept, I could use it to determine exactly what I wanted to feel and how to bring those positive emotions into the holidays. The holidays don't have to be full of dread.  They used to be for me.  I'd...

No one likes to be pitied.  And childless women who wanted kids are no different.   I certainly don't like it and I did feel as though people pitied me when I first began to accept that I would never be a mom.   But when my clients started asking how to get past pity, I realized that I didn't feel it at all anymore and had to really dig into how I shifted my perception.  Because the peop...

If you’re already worried about feeling grief and triggers while at a family gathering or social event through the holidays, this episode is for you.  I’m going to give you some solid steps for preparing yourself before, during and after so you can breeze through them like a woman of grace. You'll discover: the mistakes I (and many childless women) make when planning for the holidays how to a...

The holidays are probably one of the toughest times for childless women.  Grief can hit at unexpected moments and the triggers seem to be all over the place.  They hit our social media feeds, our shopping excursions,  and the middle of the football game on TV.  Even a quick trip to the grocery store can seem daunting.  One of the hardest things about it might be imagining how futures holidays migh...

If you are a childless woman who feels triggered by how mom-focused and kid-centric our society seems to be, you might be stuck in the pronatalist ideology.  If you're stuck here, you often feel like you are somehow worth less than mothers, you get irritated when someone asks if you have children, you feel  as though you're treated differently at work, at church or even in your social ci...

Are you feeling like you're navigating uncharted territory as a step-parent without any children of your own?  I'm not a step-parent myself, but I've learned from my clients that it can be complicated with its own set of challenges and emotions. Join me today as I interview Gail Miller, who is a life coach, maternal fetal medicine physician, TEDx speaker, founder of Path Onward Life...

If you’re grieving your dream of becoming a parent, you probably assumed at least someone amongst your family and friends would provide you with the support and empathy you need.  And yet, my own experience, and that of most of my clients, is that their closest friends and family - and sometimes even their partner - are not able to offer empathy or understanding.   This is why looking for support...

Lisa Hohenadel uses an intriguing behavioural therapy method to help childless women work through the grief and triggers.  It's called Dialectical Behaviour Therapy or DBT.  I've never come across this particular type of therapy before and I wanted to hear more about how Lisa uses it in her coaching practice.  Here's what you'll discover in this episode: what is DBT and how Lis...

If you've found yourself stuck in grief and triggers unable to get past it, today's episode is for you. ​​I'm unpacking five major blunders that keep childless women from moving forward and embracing their future.  ​​And don't worry, I made every single one of these mistakes and so do my clients.   I'm sharing them here not to judge, or cause you to judge yourself, but to...

Did you know that most financial plans and planning software are geared entirely to the traditional parenting path?  I hadn't really thought about how my saving, spending, retirement and estate planning might be totally different than that of my child-rearing friends.   Until I met Jay Zigmont.  Jay Zigmont, holds a PhD, MBA, and CFP® and is the Founder of Childfree Wealth, a life and financi...

Has someone ever said to, "you're so lucky you don't have kids"?  If you wanted kids, of course you don't feel very lucky to have that unfulfilled dream.   Sometimes I wonder if parents say things like this - or complain about their kids - to us childless women because they want us to feel as though we're not missing out on anything great.  But then, of course, they s...

There's this misconception out there that if you can get past the grief of your unexpected childless circumstances, your future will somehow just appear brighter.  But unfortunately that's not true in most cases.  You've probably come across women in their 50's and 60's who are still struggling to feel worthy, happy and confident in their lives.   Do you really want to go...

Navigating a sea of baby showers and first birthdays can feel isolating, especially as a woman who has not had children. If you've found yourself avoiding friends with young ones or feeling a twinge of envy every time a pregnancy announcement pops up on your feed, you're not alone.  In this episode, we're confronting those feelings head-on, not as something to be ashamed of, but as...

Jody Day is back for a second episode on the podcast!  Our first conversation was so eye-opening for me, I had to have her back after I had actually digested all of what she shared with me.   Jody is often referred to as the founder of the "childless movement" and is the founder of Gateway Women, a global advocacy and support network for childless women. She’s the author of what many pro...