Hurt to Healing

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.

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/8ydnlw8

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

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

In this Healing 101 bonus episode, I’m joined again by Mariko Bangerter, regression therapist and healer, to explore how accessing the subconscious mind can unlock deep and lasting change.We talk about how our earliest memories - even ones we don’t consciously recall - can shape our adult behaviours, and why true healing often requires working beyond logic and into the subconscious. Mariko also shares some incredible case studies from her practice, from releasing birth trauma to transforming relationship patterns. It’s a fascinating look into the power of regression therapy and what can happen when we reconnect with the parts of ourselves we’ve long forgotten.Find Mariko:Instagram: @mindsetting.by.marikoWebsite: https://www.mindsetting.co.uk/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 chatting to Ro Mitchell, who so many of you will know from TikTok for speaking really openly about anorexia, ADHD and recovery and doing it in a way that actually makes you feel less mad and less alone.Ro talks about developing an eating disorder at 14, getting really good at hiding it, going into CAMHS and then hospital, and what it actually took to choose recovery for herself - not for her parents, not for school, not to avoid being sectioned. We get into body checking, covering mirrors, exercise addiction, the pressure of being “the girl with the eating disorder,” and the really messy bit of recovery where you hate your changing body but you still don’t want to go back.It’s practical and I think it will be a lifeline for anyone stuck in that “one foot in, one foot out” stage.Find Ro: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@romitchell?lang=enYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@RoMitchellInstagram: @romitchellRead her book, How to Talk to Yourself: https://amzn.eu/d/7jvtSKPStay 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 this Healing 101 bonus episode I’m joined by Jonny Miller, nervous system educator and host of The Inner Frontier podcast. Jonny’s work was forged in something unbearably human: the loss of his fiancée, Sophie, to suicide in 2017. We talk about how grief completely dismantled the life he thought he was going to live, and how by actually letting the grief move through him instead of armouring up - he discovered a kind of raw aliveness and tenderness he’d never accessed before.From there we get into what he now teaches: nervous system mastery. Jonny breaks down why so many of us are living slightly frozen, slightly overwhelmed, slightly braced and how building skills in interoception, self-regulation, and emotional fluidity can change the way we grieve, love, work and relate. It’s a really grounded, hopeful conversation about turning devastation into capacity.Find Jonny:Website: https://www.jonnymiller.co/Nervous System Mastery: https://www.nsmastery.com/Podcast: https://theinnerfrontier.com/Stateshift App: https://www.stateshift.app/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