Heart On My Sleeve

What happens when the pain we carry lives deeper than words? In this episode, Michaela sits down with spiritual healer and somatic therapist Sammy Chessa to explore the journey from deep childhood trauma to emotional regulation, purpose, and healing. Sammy shares her raw story of growing up between two countries, experiencing abuse and instability, battling an eating disorder, and numbing pain thr...

In this deeply honest conversation, we hear from senior executive James Copsey working at the highest levels of corporate affairs - a space known for its relentless pace, complexity, and high expectations. But beneath the external success was a personal struggle he could no longer keep quiet. He shares the moment he realised drinking had become a problem, the decision to stop, and how telling the...

In this Heart On My Sleeve episode, host Michaela Overman sits down with Paul Bennell, Manager of Fundraising & Relationships at children’s grief charity Feel the Magic. Paul shares what it was like losing his mum to suicide at age 10, being bullied for his loss, and growing up hiding both his grief and his queer identity. Together they explore “winter” as a season of grief, shame as a bodygua...

When pain is invisible, so is the understanding. In this raw and heartfelt conversation, Michaela Overman sits down with her best friend Emily. Emily’s pain didn’t show up on scans — until it did. One of just 20 people globally with both cyclical Cushing’s and acromegaly, she shares the years of “it’s all in your head,” the friendships stretched thin, the surgery that changed everything, and what...

Leadership is often measured by targets and strategy - but the real story is human. In this Heart On My Sleeve episode, KPMG Australia’s National Managing Partner for People & Inclusion Dorothy Hisgrove opens up about the moments that reshaped her leadership: grief, self-reflection, and the courage to prioritise both results and wellbeing. We explore the gendered expectations on women leaders,...

Mitch sits down with lifelong friend Ash Thomsen for a raw, generous account of her son Bodhi’s birth - and the identity shift that followed. Ash shares how a gruelling 36-hour labour, medical complications, and postpartum anxiety/depression culminated in PTSD, and how she found her way back through support, medication, CBT, and especially EMDR - the trauma therapy that helped turn a terrifying ev...

Interior designer Anna Carin joins host Michaela Overman for a tender, honest conversation about living with both beauty and pain at the same time. Raised on a Swedish farm and now three decades in Australia, Anna shares how a single incident of childhood sexual abuse (content note) shaped her relationship with shame, intimacy, control, and creativity —and how her lifelong “pursuit of beauty” beca...

In this deeply personal episode of Heart on My Sleeve, Luke Cook sits down with neuro-transformational coach and keynote speaker Nerissa Trindade to explore the heartbreak that doesn't come with a funeral but still requires mourning - separation and divorce from those we thought we'd be with forever. Both hosts share their parallel journeys through relationship breakdown, discussing the po...

This week on the Heart on My Sleeve podcast, Mitch Wallis sits down with NSW MP Adam Crouch for a raw and deeply moving conversation about love, loss, and resilience. After losing his wife Jill—an oncology nurse who cared for others while bravely fighting her own battle with cancer—Adam shares the realities of grief, the weight of supporting a partner through terminal illness, and the importance o...

In this episode, Michaela Overman sits down with Gavin Fingelson - former professional baseball player, father of two, and CEO of Feel the Magic. Gavin shares his journey of navigating deep personal loss from a young age, the lessons baseball taught him about failure and resilience, and how vulnerability and communication became his anchors. From growing up in South Africa to representing Australi...

When lawyer and mum Sarah Susak was told she had a rare - and deadly - cancer just a year after the birth of her “miracle baby,” her world cracked. In this uncompromising conversation, she takes us through surgery, grief, and the path of spiritual rebirth that followed. Sarah shares how Vedic meditation, ancestral wisdom, and radical acceptance helped her heal more than her body - they healed her...

In one of our most raw and powerful episodes to date, I sit down with my dear friend Zoe Marshall - TV presenter, author, manifester, podcast host, and mental health advocate - for an unfiltered conversation about her journey through Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Together, we peel back the layers of what it's really like to live with intrusive thoughts, compulsions, and the mental gymna...

Dani Lombard - PR powerhouse, unapologetic truth-teller, and lifelong “friend collector” - joins psychologist and HOMS clinical director Michaela Overman for her first-ever podcast appearance. But this isn’t about publicity. It’s about pulling the curtain back. In this raw and revealing conversation, Dani shares the story she’s never told publicly - her decades-long journey with anxiety, panic att...

What happens when the mask you've worn your whole life finally falls off? In this moving episode of The Heart On My Sleeve Podcast , host Lainie Cassidy sits down with Aisling Smith – internationally recognised neurodiversity consultant, Stevie Award winner, and Trainer of the Year – for a raw, vulnerable conversation about living, parenting, and thriving as a late-diagnosed autistic and ADHD woma...

What happens when your body breaks... but it's your soul that needs healing? In this raw and powerful conversation, Tess Brouwer shares the story behind her life-altering spinal cord injury that forced her to stop running from pain, from grief, from herself. Tess, a mental fitness trainer and co-founder of Awake Academy, opens up about the unspoken traumas she buried for decades - from childho...

At 17 weeks pregnant with triplets, Ashleigh Conwell’s life changed forever when her husband Matt passed away suddenly during the height of the pandemic. In this raw and profoundly moving conversation with host Luke Cook, Ashleigh opens up about the identity shift that followed, the brutal reality of solo parenting through grief, and the quiet resilience it takes to keep showing up. From collapsin...

If you’ve ever struggled to slow down, to feel proud, or to say “I’m enough,” this episode is a must-listen. We often see the hustle. The 3am alarms. The shredded physique. The front covers and product launches. But what we rarely see is the cost behind the curtain. In this raw and revealing episode, Heart On My Sleeve Clinical Director Michaela Overman sits down with celebrity trainer and gym own...

In episode 53, Mitch Wallis speaks to Dr Tony Mastroianni, a psychiatrist with over 30 years' experience in clinical practice. Tony specialises in the treatment of ADHD and schizophrenia, and is the founder of the Focalength Method™, a holistic approach to treatment that takes a 360 view of a person in order to help them get well, and stay well. This episode covers: Moving medicine away from d...

In episode 52, Mitch Wallis speaks to Maddy MacRae, a comedy creator who exploded onto the scene during lockdown with her hilarious and relatable skits about sex, dating and everything in-between. We go deep and explore previously untouched topics such as her mental health journey, her sexuality and the reality of life online. This episode covers: rising quickly to online success but struggling in...

In episode 51, Mitch Wallis speaks to Gaj, a highly sought-after performance coach recognized for his effective leadership training techniques and passion for helping clients reach higher potential. For over 20 years, Gaj has worked with leading organizations and individuals to enhance productivity, maximize performance, and accelerate growth. As a Registered psychologist, Gaj leans on his psychol...

Sonny Jane is a multi-neurodivergent, queer, and disabled public speaker, advocate, and author with a strong social media presence. Sonny was diagnosed as a child and grew up only hearing a deficit narrative about their neurodivergence. Since then, they have gone on to build an audience of over 100,000 people online, have written ‘The Neurodivergent Friendly Workbook of DBT Skills’, and works with...

This episode comes with a trigger warning of domestic violence. In episode 49, Mitch Wallis speaks to Jacinta Dubojski who is the creator and founder of Just Another GIRL, an initiative designed to inspire and empower students by arming them with the tools to navigate difficult situations; such as bullying, and domestic violence, both of which are experiences that she's survived. Jacinta is a...

In episode 48, Mitch Wallis speaks to Antoinette, a multi-award-winning journalist, author, broadcaster, columnist, TEDx speaker, and mental health ambassador with a bold and authentic approach to life... This episode covers: Her experience with peri and post-natal depression Her opinion on mental illness and the shame that surrounds new mothers Navigating journalism and the impact of second-hand...

In episode 47, Mitch Wallis speaks to Greg Bird, a proud Anaiwan Man, born and raised in country New South Wales. He was a professional Rugby League player for an impressive 18 years, hanging up his boots in 2019 to move up to the Gold Coast and prioritise time with his wife and kids. This episode dives deep into untold stories of struggle both on and off the pitch. this episode covers: his unspok...

In episode 46, Mitch Wallis speaks to founder of EQ Minds and recovering perfectionist, Chelsea Pottenger, who shares how her experience with mental illness fuelled her passion for helping busy minds reset and recharge so they can successfully balance high performance and great mental wellbeing. If you find yourself dancing around the edges of burnout more often than not, this ep is for you. This...