Hurt to Healing

In today’s episode of Hurt to Healing, I’m joined by Dr Alex George for a very honest and very relatable conversation about his brand new book Am I Normal? and what it’s like to grow up feeling different without knowing why. We talk about his ADHD diagnosis at 31, living with OCD, grief, emotional dysregulation and the painful “what if?” loops that can quietly run your life - and what finally starts to help once you understand your brain. What made this conversation so special is how much we recognised ourselves in each other’s experiences, from rejection sensitivity and rumination to needing structure just to feel safe. It’s a grounding, compassionate episode about reducing shame, learning to work with your brain rather than against it, and realising you’re not broken - you’re just human.Find Alex:Website: https://www.dralexgeorge.co.uk/Instagram: @dralexgeorgeBuy His New Book "Am I Normal?": https://amzn.eu/d/aoEqbLDListen to Stompcast: https://www.dralexgeorge.co.uk/podcast

I thought this would be the perfect Healing 101 episode for January, so I’m joined by Suzy Reading, psychologist and author of Self-Care for Winter. We talk about why winter can feel so heavy on our mood, energy and motivation, how cold and lack of light affect both mind and body, and why easing our expectations of ourselves really matters at this time of year. Suzy shares practical, down-to-earth ways to support yourself through the darker months - from gentle movement and rest, to staying connected without overwhelm, and finding comfort in simple, accessible rituals that actually help.Thank you to Bare Biology for sponsoring this episode.Bare Biology is an independent, women-powered business creating high-quality supplements designed to support well-lived lives. They’re offering listeners 20% off with the code PANDORA20.Visit barebiology.com and use the code PANDORA20 at checkout. You won't regret it!Find Suzy:Website: https://www.suzyreading.co.uk/Instagram: @suzyreadingRead Self-Care for Winter: https://amzn.eu/d/3BT9KDD

In this first episode of the year, I’m joined by the brilliant Julia Bradbury for a really grounding, eye-opening chat about what “being healthy” actually means when you look beyond the surface. Julia talks me through how her breast cancer diagnosis in 2021 completely changed the way she thinks about her body and her life - not in a “perfect routine” kind of way, but in a very real, human I want to stay well and reduce my risk way. We get into the stuff so many of us ignore until something forces us to pay attention: sleep, stress and cortisol, sugar addiction, blood sugar and inflammation, why being slim doesn’t automatically mean you’re healthy, and how confusing the wellness world can feel when you’re constantly bombarded with advice. Julia also shares the practical things she actually does day to day - getting outside no matter what, morning light, breathwork, moving after meals, batch cooking, and keeping habits simple so you don’t spiral into obsession. We finish on something I really loved: Julia’s honesty about emotional health, and why therapy is now one of her non-negotiables - because physical health isn’t the full picture if you’re holding onto stress or old wounds.Thank you to Bare Biology for sponsoring this episode.Bare Biology is an independent, women-powered business creating high-quality supplements designed to support well-lived lives. They’re offering listeners 20% off with the code PANDORA20.Visit barebiology.com and use the code PANDORA20 at checkout. You won't regret it!Find Julia:Instagram: @juliabradburyWebsite: https://juliabradbury.com/Hack Yourself Healthy Book: https://amzn.eu/d/3yZMlBo

On today’s Healing 101, I’m chatting with Pearl Lowe, who was recently diagnosed with ADHD - something that finally helped so many pieces of her life fall into place. Pearl talks openly about the signs she’d been living with for years: the chronic scattiness, impulsive decisions, the “hundred tabs open” feeling, and the unfiltered honesty that sometimes got her into trouble long before she understood why.We dig into how ADHD can look completely different in women, how it played into her past addiction and impulsivity, and the huge shift that came with finally getting a diagnosis. Pearl shares the practical things she does daily to support her brain - from sleep and food to boundaries and gut instinct - and why she believes so many women deserve to be assessed sooner.Stay Connected with Hurt to Healing:Instagram: instagram.com/hurttohealingpodTikTok: tiktok.com/@hurttohealingpodLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/hurt-to-healingSubstack: substack.com/@hurttohealingWebsite: hurttohealing.co.uk

In today’s episode, I’m joined by psychotherapist and author Kathleen Saxton, whose new book My Parent the Peacock dives deep into one of the most confusing dynamics out there: narcissistic parents. We talk about what a narcissist actually is – beyond the buzzword – and the difference between someone with a few narcissistic traits and someone with a full clinical disorder.We explore how growing up with a narcissistic parent can shape your anxiety, confidence, relationships and sense of identity, and why so many people only realise the impact years or even decades later. Kathleen breaks down gaslighting, trauma bonds, why setting boundaries feels so hard, and how you can start reconnecting with your “true self” after years of confusion or self-doubt. If you’ve ever felt like you were walking on eggshells around a parent, or never quite knew where you stood, this episode is for you.Find Kathleen:Instagram: @clinicwithkBuy Kathleen's Book: https://amzn.eu/d/8ydnlw8Stay Connected with Hurt to Healing:Instagram: instagram.com/hurttohealingpodTikTok: tiktok.com/@hurttohealingpodLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/hurt-to-healingSubstack: substack.com/@hurttohealingWebsite: hurttohealing.co.uk

On today’s Healing 101, I’m sitting down with psychiatrist and author Alastair Santhouse, and we’re diving into a surprisingly tricky question: what do we actually mean when we talk about “normal” mental health? It’s one of those phrases we all use, but when you look a little closer, it gets messy fast.Alastair and I chat about why “normal” can feel so loaded, how it shapes the way we think about ourselves, and why it matters when deciding whether someone genuinely needs help or is simply having a very human reaction to life. We also touch on diagnoses, the rise in labels, and how to make sense of your mental health without falling into the trap of self-pathologising. It’s a short, honest conversation that hopefully leaves you feeling a bit clearer - and a bit kinder toward yourself.Stay Connected with Hurt to Healing:Instagram: instagram.com/hurttohealingpodTikTok: tiktok.com/@hurttohealingpodLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/hurt-to-healingSubstack: substack.com/@hurttohealingWebsite: hurttohealing.co.uk

In today’s episode, I’m joined by Professor Marc Brackett, founding director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and author of the newly published Dealing With Feeling, to untangle one of the big questions: what actually are emotions - and how are they different from feelings, moods, or just “being in a state”? We talk about why there’s no such thing as a “bad” emotion, how emotions act as data rather than problems to get rid of, and why so many of us - especially in places like the UK - were raised to “keep calm and carry on” instead of learning how to work with what we feel.Marc walks us through his simple RULER framework, why labelling your emotions properly can completely change how you cope, and the practical tools we can all use to regulate our moods without repressing or overindulging them. If you’ve ever wondered whether you’re “too emotional,” “not emotional enough,” or just confused about what’s going on inside, this conversation will give you language, clarity and a far kinder way of understanding yourself.Find Professor Marc Brackett:Website: https://marcbrackett.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marc.brackett/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@marcbrackettBuy his book, Dealing with Feeling: https://marcbrackett.com/dealing-with-feeling/Stay Connected with Hurt to Healing:Instagram: instagram.com/hurttohealingpodTikTok: tiktok.com/@hurttohealingpodLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/hurt-to-healingSubstack: substack.com/@hurttohealingWebsite: hurttohealing.co.uk

In today’s episode, I’m joined by Dr Chloe Saunders, a clinician and researcher specialising in functional somatic symptoms and the mind–body connection. We explore what it means when your body begins to talk and medicine doesn’t always find the answer - fatigue, pain, gut issues and other flare-ups that don’t quite show up on scans.Dr Saunders helps us understand why these symptoms are real, even when traditional tests are normal, how our stress response lives in the body long before our mind catches up, and why paying too much attention - or too little - to bodily signals can both perpetuate the problem.This is a conversation about finding that middle ground: rebuilding trust in your body, calming its alarm system, and discovering practical ways to bring physiological rest back into your life.If you’ve ever been told “everything looks fine” yet something still doesn’t feel right, this episode might help you hear what your body is trying to say and how to listen.Find Chloe:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chloe-saunders-410a9b203/Bodysymptoms: https://bodysymptoms.org/Stay Connected with Hurt to Healing:Instagram: instagram.com/hurttohealingpodTikTok: tiktok.com/@hurttohealingpodLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/hurt-to-healingSubstack: substack.com/@hurttohealingWebsite: hurttohealing.co.uk

Today I’m joined by the brilliant Annalie Howling - a performance coach, trauma specialist and author whose story is honestly fascinating. She opens up about hitting complete burnout at 29, when life looked perfect from the outside but felt totally wrong on the inside. As she puts it, she wasn’t intolerant to gluten… she was intolerant to her life.We talk about how childhood shame and perfectionism can follow us into adulthood, how that shows up in things like anxiety and people-pleasing, and what it really means to start showing up as your authentic self. It’s such an open, powerful chat and I think a lot of you will really relate to this one.Find Annalie:Website: https://annaliehowling.com/Book: https://annaliehowling.com/unapologetic/Instagram: @annaliehowlingStay Connected with Hurt to Healing:Instagram: instagram.com/hurttohealingpodTikTok: tiktok.com/@hurttohealingpodLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/hurt-to-healingSubstack: substack.com/@hurttohealingWebsite: hurttohealing.co.uk