Pulling Threads, Weaving Authenticity

Why Divorce Loneliness Hits Men So Hard (And What's Actually Happening) This one is for the men. Specifically the men 40 to 60 who are coming out of a long marriage and don't have language for what their body is doing without her in it. Most of the content out there for divorced men is either selling you a playbook or pretending the loneliness will go away if you just download the apps. This is ne...

Free trauma regulation guidebook from Ashley Anne: substack.com/@gravitypointinstitute Work with Leslie: theloomlife.com What if trauma work didn’t have to feel like guesswork? In this episode of Pulling Threads, Leslie sits down with Ashley Anne, PhD — trauma specialist, neuro counselor, TEDx speaker, and founder of the Gravity Point® Institute — to unpack nearly 20 years of research into one of...

What happens when the voice that was taken from you becomes the very thing that heals you? In this powerful episode of Pulling Threads, Leslie sits down with Nashville-based singer, songwriter, and vocal coach Demaree Hill — a Broadway performer, single mom, and the woman who recorded a duet with Dolly Parton — for a conversation about what it truly means to find your voice again, literally and em...

Ready to do the real work? Join THROUGH: https://theloomlife.com/throughdivorceprogram or Book a call: theloomlife.com The divorce glow up is everywhere on TikTok right now. The before-and-after side-by-sides. The captions: "The divorce effect is real. No lab coat required." And honestly? I love them. But I want to tell you the part that doesn't make it into the 62-second clip — because that part...

Divorce financial planning starts before you hire a lawyer — and the team you build changes everything. 📖 Melissa's book — Divorce by Design: https://amzn.to/4e5znpU ───────────────────────────────────── What if divorce didn't have to feel like chaos? In this episode of Pulling Threads, host Leslie Mathews sits down with Melissa Murphy Pavone — Certified Financial Planner™ (CFP®), Certified Divor...

When a friend gossips about your divorce or breakup, it's not just betrayal — it's trauma. Here's what the research says, and how to heal. 🔗 Work with Leslie: www.theloomlife.com There is a specific kind of pain that happens when you're going through the hardest thing in your life — a breakup, a divorce, infidelity — and the person you trusted to hold your story turns it into someone else's enter...

What do you do when you need to talk — but you're not looking for advice, just to be heard? Erin Snow is a Professional Listener and founder of The Unmuted Room, a first-of-its-kind confidential listening space in Newington, New Hampshire — also available virtually. Most people have no truly neutral place to speak: friends have opinions, family is too close, therapy is clinical, coaching is goal-d...

You expected grief. You expected rage. What you didn't expect was... nothing. In this episode, Leslie unpacks the science behind that strange, flat, disconnected feeling that so many women experience after betrayal and divorce — and why it's not emptiness, weakness, or avoidance. It's called dorsal vagal shutdown. And it might be the most protective thing your body has ever done for you. Learn wha...

Burnt out, stuck & scared to make a move? LCSW + Women’s Empowerment Coach Liz Bakshi gets real about mom burnout, self-doubt, and what it actually takes for professional mothers to stop putting themselves last. ✨ WORK WITH LIZ BAKSHI 📲 Instagram: @lizbakshicoaching 👥 Free Facebook Community for Working Moms: Facebook.com/groups/LizBakshiCoaching 📅 Book a Free Consult Call: https://calendl...

What happens when you leave a covert narcissist — but the war doesn't end? In this episode of Pulling Threads, I sit down with Trish Michael, author, publisher, and creator of trauma-informed books and courses for families healing from narcissistic abuse and high conflict divorce. Trish spent 20 years married to a covert narcissist and has been navigating co-parenting, court battles, and financial...

Have you ever felt consumed by doubt about someone you love — and nothing happened to explain it? In this episode, I'm sharing something deeply personal: trust issues that surfaced out of nowhere, no trigger, no cause — just the feeling, growing louder. As a therapist and someone who has done years of her own healing work, I know how disorienting this can be. Because here's the question that chang...

Divorce trauma, family court, and emotional abuse are deeply connected — but almost no one prepares women for what actually happens inside the family court system. In this episode of Pulling Threads, therapist and divorce support specialist Leslie Mathews explains why many women leaving emotionally abusive marriages experience new trauma during divorce proceedings and what they can do to protect t...

Turning 50 reflections on healing, divorce, mindfulness, and rebuilding life after losing yourself. In this special birthday episode of Pulling Threads, I’m sharing a deeply personal reflection as I step into my 50s. Over the last decade, my life completely transformed. Divorce, therapy, EMDR, mindfulness, and profound personal healing reshaped the way I understand relationships, identity, and wha...

Nervous system regulation, co-regulation, and the window of tolerance aren’t just therapy buzzwords. They shape how we parent, partner, teach, and show up in conflict every single day. In this powerful episode of Pulling Threads, I sit down with Rosanne Carter, LMFT, Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Therapist and nervous system consultant, to explore how our nervous systems narrate our liv...

If you’ve ever loved an avoidant man and felt confused, anxious, or emotionally exhausted, this episode is for you. In today’s deep dive into avoidant attachment, we unpack attachment theory, the anxious-avoidant dynamic, and what actually happens inside the nervous system when closeness triggers withdrawal. This is not a “fix him” episode — it’s about understanding attachment styles so you can ma...

In this impromptu Valentine’s Day episode of Pulling Threads, I answer real relationship questions about attachment styles, commitment fears, love languages, anxious–avoidant dynamics, and even astrology compatibility Valentine’s Day Relationship Q&… . As a therapist, coach, and someone who has personally navigated divorce and attachment healing, I respond alongside insight from a male transfo...

Why does life look fine on the outside but feel overwhelming on the inside? In this episode of Pulling Threads, Leslie sits down with psychotherapist Maris Pasquale Doran to explore emotional reactivity, nervous system regulation, mindfulness, midlife transitions, grief, identity loss, and the quiet exhaustion so many women carry during divorce, separation, and major life change. This conversation...

Reclaiming Your Voice: Healing Silence After Trauma, Criticism, and Emotional Harm What if you’re not afraid to speak up — but afraid of what happened when you did? In this episode of Pulling Threads, therapist, former attorney, and mindfulness teacher Leslie Mathews explores why so many thoughtful, capable people struggle to use their voice — even when they know their ideas matter. This isn’t abo...

This conversation explores why love can feel overwhelming, painful, or confusing, especially for capable, intelligent women who appear put together on the outside but feel anxious or depleted in their relationships. Leslie sits down with Stephanie McPhail to unpack the subtle dynamics of toxic relationships, trauma bonding, and the unconscious patterns that keep people stuck long after they know s...

The Good Girl Syndrome Unraveled | People Pleasing, Trauma, and Reclaiming Your Authentic Self Have you ever said yes when every part of your body was screaming no? Do you apologize reflexively, avoid conflict at all costs, or feel responsible for everyone else’s comfort—while quietly burning out? In this episode of Pulling Threads, host Leslie Mathews unravels Good Girl Syndrome—the deeply ingrai...

Divorce doesn’t just change your schedule, it activates your nervous system, your old conditioning, and the parts of you that learned to survive conflict. In this conversation, Leslie and parenting coach Mackenzie Kinmond unpack what happens to you (and your kids) when co-parenting brings up grief, anger, guilt, and the urge to control what you can’t control. You’ll hear real, compassionate guidan...

If you’re a therapist or coach who wants to start a podcast but keeps putting it off, this episode is for you. I’m breaking down the six biggest fears that stop helping professionals from pressing record — and gently debunking each one. In this episode, I’m not talking about microphones, editing software, or going viral. I’m talking about the real reasons therapists and coaches hesitate to use the...

In this episode of Pulling Threads, we explore the quiet unraveling that can happen inside a high-control marriage: the identity loss, the normalization of pain, the body symptoms that show up long before the mind is ready to listen. This is a deeply honest, unscripted conversation about staying because it “wasn’t that bad,” enduring for faith, vows, and children, and the moment validation finally...

What we are experiencing right now—as a country, as communities, and as individuals—is not normal. And your body knows it. In this episode of Pulling Threads, Leslie Mathews speaks directly to the collective nervous system response many of us are feeling but struggling to name. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, distracted, angry, numb, tearful, or constantly on edge, this conversation offers language...

In this episode of Pulling Threads, Leslie sits down with Courtney Carter for an intimate conversation about what happens when you grow up in a small town and later realize you’ve been postponing your voice. They talk about the unspoken rules many of us learned early: stay agreeable, don’t take up too much space, don’t say the dream out loud, don’t make anyone uncomfortable. And then adulthood arr...