The Shadow Diaries

Send us Fan Mail We pull apart the stories we inherit about sacrifice and get brutally honest about when it helps us grow and when it becomes a cover for avoidance. We name the identity and nervous system patterns underneath hustle, martyrdom, and “super mum” culture so we can choose trade-offs with more clarity and less resentment.  • sacrifice as a short season rather than a permanent lifestyle ...

Send us Fan Mail Trigger Warning: HG Pregnancy The moment “just think positive” meets real pain, the whole personal development world gets tested. Today I’m joined by Laura Grady, a manifestation and mindset coach who’s equal parts grounded and honest, and we go straight into the messy truth of what mindset work looks like when your body is in survival mode. Laura shares her story with fertility s...

Send us Fan Mail We pull apart the trap of being self-aware and why awareness can keep you looping in the same patterns when your body still chooses safety over change. We get brutally honest about identity work, nervous system protection, and what integration actually looks like when you stop outsourcing responsibility.  • self-awareness as a middle step rather than a destination  • patterns as p...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Steph and Lurinda share their personal ADHD journeys, and they don’t fit into neat, inspirational narratives. One experience of medication increased productivity but felt like it muted joy and personality. The other created rare calm, spaciousness, and the ability to actually choose instead of react. We talk openly about ADHD in women, masking, late diagnosis, mis...

Send us Fan Mail Ever felt deeply grateful for your family and completely overwhelmed by the invisible load at the same time? In this episode, we come back after a month off the podcast and tell the truth about what was really going on. We talk about default parenting, running flexible businesses, emotional labour, and the quiet resentment that builds when you’re the responsible one holding it all...

Send us Fan Mail What if growth isn’t about fixing yourself, but about finally letting yourself be seen—mess and all? We close out a turbulent year with a grounded reflection on health, impact, authenticity, and the quiet power of permission. Along the way, we unpack how “healthy” moved beyond routines to include grief capacity, relational repair, and self-compassion; how “impact” masked a drive t...

Send us Fan Mail Change gets easier when it stops being punishment and starts being honest. We sit down with business coach Tayla Bubeck to unpack why willpower fails, how shadow work reveals the hidden needs behind our habits, and the values first approach that turns intentions into evidence. From weight loss that lasts to building a business you actually want to run, we move past shame and into...

Send us Fan Mail The lights go up, the invites roll in, and suddenly the quiet aches feel louder. We sit down for an honest, compassionate look at grief during the holidays—how it shows up after death, through estrangement, in separations that split Christmas morning, and in the futures we planned but never lived. No scripts, no tidy stages, just two humans telling the truth about love, loss, and...

Send us Fan Mail This week we're getting real about why December makes us want to curl up in a ball and disappear - and spoiler alert, it's not actually about having too much to do. We dive into the uncomfortable truth: most of our holiday overwhelm is self created. Not because you're doing it wrong, but because of unconscious patterns and shadows that have you believing you need to be everyone's...

Send us Fan Mail Ever feel like you're constantly exhausted but somehow never getting ahead? This week, Cinder shares how she went from killing herself in corporate (literally first in, last out every day) to working 15 hours a week - and somehow doing better than ever. We get into the real shit about why we stay so fucking busy all the time. Spoiler: it's not because we need to be. Through shadow...

Send us Fan Mail We unpack the near breakup that almost ended our friendship and how we found our way back. From anxious and avoidant attachment styles to business comparison, unmet needs, and emotional repair, this conversation explores the messy, human side of female friendship. We talk about:  • spotting the slow cracks and micro-moments of disconnection  • anxious vs. avoidant attachment in fr...

Send us Fan Mail Lurinda sits down with her sister-in-law Steph to trace a raw path from over-giving and anxiety to boundaries, receiving, and award-winning service. Steph shares how hypnotherapy, somatic work, and shadow work reshaped her life and business—and why she believes personal and professional growth are the same path. In this episode: • Moving from Australia to Canada and learning to re...

Send us Fan Mail What if the fastest way to real change is the slow and steady path no one celebrates? In this episode, we explore why shortcuts feel so seductive, how they quietly sabotage long term growth, and what it really takes to build systems that last. From 28 day challenges and “million in a year” promises to quick fixes in relationships, we talk about the difference between information a...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of The Shadow Diaries , shadow work coaches Lurinda sits down with Caitlin —mum, counsellor, and mentor—to explore the quiet kind of relationship misalignment that looks fine from the outside but leaves the body shutting down. Caitlin shares her story of months of throat tension, sudden weight changes, and constant messages to “be grateful, he’s a good dad.” When s...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to The Shadow Diaries —a podcast by shadow work coaches Lurinda and Steph , where real women share real stories about healing, self-discovery, and emotional growth. After a year as Unhinged and Unfiltered , we’ve evolved into something deeper and more intentional. This new chapter is about demystifying shadow work and bringing compassion to the parts of ourselves we’ve bee...

Send us Fan Mail The dangerous game of constantly pushing through emotions eventually backfires - just like a pressure cooker that can't contain its contents forever. In this raw conversation, Steph and Lurinda explore why our "I'll deal with it later" mentality creates a ticking time bomb of suppressed emotions that inevitably explodes on those around us. We introduce the powerful concept of "gla...

Send us Fan Mail Reach out to us on Instagram! Steph is here and Lurinda is here .

Send us Fan Mail Ever caught yourself creating chaos when everything's going smoothly? Or felt like you need to give, give, give until there's nothing left just to be worthy? You're not alone. After a year of consistent weekly episodes, we've made the decision to shift to a fortnightly schedule. This choice wasn't made lightly—it emerged from deep reflection on our patterns of overgiving, people-p...

Send us Fan Mail That moment when you're years into your healing journey and suddenly realize you're still a hot mess? We've all been there, and it's actually a sign you're doing the work right. In this raw conversation, we dive into the uncomfortable truth about personal development—it's not a linear path to becoming "fixed" but rather a lifelong journey of acknowledging, accepting, and integrati...

Send us Fan Mail When was the last time you questioned what success really looks like? In this raw, vulnerable mid-year check-in, Lurinda reveals how her carefully mapped business plans took an unexpected detour after her daughter's serious car accident thrust her into survival mode for months. The perfectionist who started 2023 with rigid financial goals found herself humbled by life's chaos, dis...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when we shine light on the parts of ourselves we've been taught to hide? Shadow work invites us to reconnect with our whole selves, beyond the conditioning that has labeled certain traits as "good" or "bad." In this milestone 52nd episode (marking our one-year podcast anniversary!), we explore the profound world of shadow work—what it is, how it transforms lives, and...

Send us Fan Mail The turning point came when Steph's dog died because she was rushing. Then an ectopic pregnancy requiring surgery showed how disconnected she'd become from her own body. These wake-up calls forced a hard look at the hustle mentality she'd embraced for 35 years. "I don't want to live like this anymore," Steph reveals in this vulnerable mid-year reflection. Halfway through 2025, she...

Send us Fan Mail The nervous system revolution has swept through wellness spaces, with "regulation" becoming the ultimate goal. But have we swung too far in one direction? In this thought-provoking episode, we pull back the curtain on what happens when regulation becomes avoidance. Emotional regulation has its place - returning to your window of tolerance is crucial for functioning. But when regul...

Send us Fan Mail Reach out to us on Instagram! Steph is here and Lurinda is here .

Send us Fan Mail Remember all those Disney movies you loved as a kid? Turns out they've been secretly messing with your relationships ever since. From Cinderella teaching us to be martyrs who do everything for everyone, to Ariel literally trading her voice just to chase a man she'd never spoken to, these fairy tales have programmed us with some seriously questionable relationship beliefs. We dive...