Shift Happens: From Pain to Purpose

Like the clarity fades, the momentum slows, and you’re left wondering— is this resistance because I’m growing… or because something’s off? Today’s conversation is real-time. I’m sitting down with my friend Beatrice— and our paths look really similar. We both started in creative fields, pivoted into coaching, started podcasts… and we’re both in seasons of building something with purpose. But we’re...

Today’s guest, Chellie Carlson, is an LA-based stylist and creative entrepreneur who has built her brand around one powerful belief: when a woman feels confident and magnetic in how she presents herself, everything in her life begins to shift—including her income. But Chellie’s path wasn’t conventional. She started her business at 40 years old with less than $10,000—proving that it’s never too lat...

If you answered yes to any of those questions today’s conversation is for you. On this episode of Shift Happens, I’m sitting down with Maeva — founder of Flying Cat Marketing, and a third culture kid who spent 15 years living abroad, and a woman navigating who she is as her business changes and as she prepares to be a mom.  We talk about what it means to grow up between cultures and how that shape...

Today, Haelie Queen is taking us inside her story. Growing up without her biological father, she met him at 18, only to face abuse. That trauma led her into addiction—Adderall, alcohol—and it nearly dismantled her life and marriage. But Haelie found a way out. Now sober, she and her husband have rebuilt everything and are helping others do the same. Let’s dive into the truth of addiction, rock bot...

From being bullied by the same group of girls from middle school through high school… to surviving third-degree burns as a young child… Lauren knows what it feels like to walk through pain early in life and carry the weight of those experiences. And like so many women, life didn’t stop throwing curveballs. In this conversation, we talk about how those early wounds shape confidence, what it really...

So many of us have learned to measure our worth by how much we produce, how much we achieve, how much we can hold together. From the outside, it can look like everything is working. But internally… there’s a quiet tension. A lack of peace. A feeling that something is missing. Today’s conversation is for the woman who’s doing everything “right”— and still feels unfulfilled. I’m sitting down with Ka...

On today’s episode of Shift Happens I sit down with Savannah — a pastor’s kid, the oldest daughter, and someone who learned early that being “good” often meant being exceptional. Excellence wasn’t just encouraged in her world — it was expected. And over time, that striving didn’t just shape who she was personally… it shaped how she showed up professionally. That same drive for precision, performan...

Ada moved to America from China at just seven years old. She entered the second grade without speaking English and grew up in an immigrant household where success meant stability — a secure job, a predictable path, something safe. Creativity wasn’t part of the plan. She was doing everything right but still felt felt completely disconnected from herself. So, she took a risk. Bought a camera. And bu...

What happens when your highlight reel doesn’t match your real life? And somewhere along the way… you start to lose who you are? Today’s guest is Briana Williams—a single mom of two who knows what it feels like to look like you have it all together while your real life is unraveling behind the scenes. Briana has walked through abuse, broken relationships, and seasons where she lost herself just try...

What happens when the girl who holds everything together on the outside finally realizes she’s falling apart inside? By nineteen Amber Richards had already sold her first home. By adulthood she had climbed to Vice President of Sales and Marketing in the homebuilding industry. But success has a way of hiding pain ; not healing it. At twenty-three, eight months pregnant, my friend lost her father su...

What do you do when your perfectly healthy two-year-old stops responding as they typically do? Today on Shift Happens , we’re talking about the kind of shift that no mother prepares for. How do you learn how to do life with a child with profound autism? How do you grieve what you thought life would look like — while still fighting for the child right in front of you? Today, you’re going to hear fr...

What does abuse actually look like — especially when it doesn’t feel like abuse at first? How does someone so young begin carrying shame that was never theirs to hold? And why do so many survivors spend years in silence? Today’s conversation is with Cindy Arevalo — and her story asks us to sit with some uncomfortable but necessary questions about power, trust, grooming, and the quiet psychological...

What does the word manifestation stir up in you? On today’s episode of Shift Happen the way you think might be challenged. If you are a person of faith , the word manifestation can feel… complicated. For some, it sounds empowering. For others, it sounds like we’re trying to play God. And for many of us, it just raises questions. So today, we’re having an honest conversation about what manifestatio...

How do you build wealth without worshiping it? How do you lead at a high level without losing humility? And how do you stay deeply connected in your marriage while building something that constantly demands more of you?  We don’t talk enough about the tension between faith and success. We celebrate the blessing, but we wrestle quietly with the weight of it. On this episode of Shift Happens I sit d...

On this episode of Shift Happens , we’re stepping into the tension between survival and surrender. Deirdre Edwards lost both of her parents by the age of 25. She later found herself in a loveless marriage, raising two kids, and ultimately rebuilding her life from a one-bedroom apartment — only to walk into work one morning and be told her position was eliminated.  Ninety days of severance. No savi...

Season two is starting with a story that’s not polished, pretty, or wrapped in a bow. It’s raw and real and it’s exactly what many of us need to hear. Today I’m sitting down with Sumaya Cifor. She’s a single mom to her daughter Skylar, a real estate agent in so cal, my own bestie and a woman who has carried parts of her story in silence for years… until now. This conversation is about a little gir...

If you’ve ever wondered, ‘Does my story even matter?’—this episode is going to remind you that it absolutely does. Today on Shift Happens, I’m joined again by Thais Eliasen. She is someone who deeply understands the power of sharing your story. We’re diving into what happens when you stop hiding behind your pain and start using it as purpose. Because here’s the truth—your story carries healing, no...

Have you ever felt like the very thing you turned to for comfort ended up destroying your life? Have you ever watched addiction steal friendships, family, and years of your life — or the life of someone you love? What does it really take to stop using, to face the pain sober, and to start rebuilding from nothing? Today’s guest knows that journey intimately. Katherine Sorensen once battled alcohol...

As a parent, have you ever looked at your child and wished the world would see them for who they are — especially if they have a disability or delay? Have you ever felt the ache of wanting them to feel fully included, only to realize the simplest things, like clothing, can make them feel different? Imagine a world where every child is celebrated exactly as they are — where even what they wear give...

What happens when life keeps handing you the same painful lesson until you finally decide to stop repeating it?   Today’s guest, Raena O’Neil, knows what it means to start over—with nothing but a suitcase and a son to care for.   From getting swept into Vegas’ nightlife scene… from becoming a young mom and walking away from multiple toxic relationships… to holding her mother’s hand as she passed,...

What do you do when your parent is tragically taken from you? How do you keep going after  life keeps hitting you again and again? In this gripping episode, Jeremy Swanson shares the story he’s held onto for nearly a decade—starting with the day his father was suddenly and violently taken from him. What followed was a spiral of unimaginable loss, heartbreak, and rock bottom moments that tested eve...

What do you do when the person who shaped your world is suddenly gone? In this vulnerable and soul-stirring episode, Brazilian pop artist Carol Grando opens up about the devastating loss of her mother at just 16 years old—and how that grief became the catalyst for her musical journey. She shares how music became more than just an art form—it became her lifeline. Carol talks about what it means to...

What would you do if one decision changed the course of your entire life? Have you ever felt like your past disqualified you from a better future? Or wondered if it’s really possible to start over after you’ve hit rock bottom?   At just 20 years old, Brett Booker was sentenced to 11.5 years in prison. But his story isn’t about staying stuck in a system—it’s about defying the odds, reclaiming ident...

Have you’ve ever wondered, “Am I asking for too much in my relationship?” or “Why do I keep attracting the wrong people?”—if so this episode is for you. Today, I’m joined by Emily Freeman, a sought-after dating coach who helps women break free from toxic patterns and start dating from a place of alignment and healing, not fear.   In this conversation, Emily shares how her own story led her to this...

What happens when you grow up with little but dream of building a lot?  In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Laleh—cosmetic dentist, business owner, wife, and mother—to unpack how her early experiences of financial instability and her parents’ sacrifices lit a fire to succeed. From finishing dental school before 24 to carving a name for herself in a male-dominated industry, Dr. Laleh shares the b...