easibirthing Fertility to Parenthood

17/12/2025

Psychotherapy for IVF: Emotional Support Through Fertility Treatment

Being told that in vitro fertilization (IVF) is the only option for achieving pregnancy can be emotionally overwhelming. While IVF offers medical possibility, it often brings anxiety, grief, uncertainty, and a sense of lost control. Psychotherapy for IVF, alongside hypnotherapy, provides dedicated emotional support to help individuals and couples navigate the psychological demands of fertility treatment with greater resilience and calm.
Understanding the Emotional Impact of IVF
IVF can challenge expectations about fertility, identity, and family building. Many people experience complex emotions, including grief over the loss of natural conception, fear of treatment outcomes, frustration with their body, and feelings of isolation.
Psychotherapy for IVF offers a confidential, supportive space to process these emotions without judgment. Working with a therapist trained in fertility-related issues can help clients:
*Process grief, loss, and disappointment
*Reduce self-blame and feelings of inadequacy
*Develop emotional resilience during treatment
*Foster self-compassion and body acceptance

Reducing Stress and Anxiety During IVF With Hypnotherapy
The IVF process can place prolonged stress on the nervous system. Repeated appointments, hormonal fluctuations, and waiting periods often heighten anxiety and emotional fatigue. Hypnotherapy can be a powerful complement to psychotherapy for IVF, helping to calm the mind and body during treatment.
Hypnotherapy may support clients by:
*Reducing stress and anxiety related to IVF procedures
*Promoting relaxation and emotional regulation
*Improving sleep and overall wellbeing
*Supporting a greater sense of internal control

Psychotherapy for IVF and Emotional Decision-Making
IVF involves a series of emotionally charged decisions, including treatment timing, financial considerations, and genetic testing. These choices are often made under pressure and uncertainty.
Psychotherapy for IVF supports emotional clarity by helping clients:
*Navigate uncertainty and fear of outcomes
*Manage decision fatigue and overwhelm
*Explore differing perspectives within a partnership
*Make decisions aligned with personal values rather than anxiety

Relationship Support During IVF Treatment
IVF can place strain on relationships, as partners may cope differently or struggle to communicate under stress. Psychotherapy for IVF provides a structured, supportive environment to strengthen connection and understanding.
Therapy can help couples:
*Improve communication and emotional attunement
*Normalize different coping styles
*Address intimacy challenges related to IVF
*Maintain a sense of connection throughout treatment
*For individuals pursuing IVF independently, therapy also offers support around identity, boundaries, and emotional resilience.

Coping With Waiting Periods and IVF Outcomes
Waiting for test results, embryo transfers, and pregnancy confirmation is often one of the most emotionally difficult aspects of IVF. Hypnotherapy can help reduce anticipatory anxiety during these periods, while psychotherapy for IVF provides consistent emotional support regardless of outcome.
Therapy can assist clients in:
*Processing unsuccessful IVF cycles or pregnancy loss
*Managing fear during early pregnancy after infertility
*Exploring next steps with emotional care
*Rebuilding hope and self-trust

Reframing IVF With Compassion Through Psychotherapy
A core goal of psychotherapy for IVF is helping clients separate self-worth from fertility outcomes. IVF is a medical intervention, not a reflection of personal failure or inadequacy.
Through psychotherapy and hypnotherapy, clients can:
*Release shame and unrealistic self-expectations
*Reframe IVF as an act of strength and self-advocacy
*Build emotional resilience regardless of outcome
*Feel more empowered throughout fertility treatment

Final Thoughts on Psychotherapy for IVF
When IVF is the only option, emotional support is essential. Psychotherapy for IVF, supported by hypnotherapy, offers a compassionate, evidence-informed approach to managing stress, processing grief, strengthening relationships, and navigating fertility treatment with greater calm and clarity.
IVF may shape the path to parenthood, but with the right therapeutic support, it does not have to define your emotional experience.

https://mustardtherapy.co.uk/fertility-pregnancy-hypnobirthing-parenting/

05/12/2025

Looking after your mental health in the lead-up to Christmas

As Christmas approaches, many of us feel the pressure to be endlessly cheerful, endlessly social, and endlessly organised. But the reality is that this time of year can be emotionally complex. Stress, exhaustion, financial pressures, family dynamics, and loneliness can all have a real impact on our mental health.
If you’re finding the festive season difficult, please know you’re not alone. Your feelings are valid, and taking care of your mental health is just as important as taking care of everyone else around you.
In the lead-up to Christmas, try to create small moments of calm for yourself—whether that’s a quiet cup of tea, a walk in fresh air, time away from social media, or simply a slow breath before moving on to the next task. Set boundaries where you need to, even if that means saying no, leaving early, or simplifying your plans. Protecting your energy isn’t selfish; it’s essential.
Remember that Christmas doesn’t have to look a certain way. You’re allowed to create a version of the season that feels good for you—big, small, quiet, joyful, or anything in between.
Be gentle with yourself. Rest when you can. And remind yourself that caring for your mental health is one of the kindest gifts you can give yourself this season.

Read our full blog at

Discover practical, compassionate tips from a psychotherapist on supporting your mental health in the lead-up to Christmas.

03/12/2025

Katie Hinde: Unlocking the Secret Language of Primate Breast Milk

In 2008, postdoctoral researcher Katie Hinde stood in a California primate lab, staring at hundreds of milk samples—and discovered something extraordinary. Male rhesus macaque infants received richer, higher-fat and protein milk, while females received larger volumes with more calcium. Primate breast milk wasn’t just fuel—it was a finely tuned biological message.
Hinde’s research revealed that mothers unconsciously adjust milk composition based on a baby’s s*x, age, health, and temperament. First-time mothers produced milk with higher stress hormones that influenced infants’ growth and behavior. When babies got sick, their saliva communicated immune signals to the mother, prompting her milk to respond with specific antibodies. Milk was a dialogue, a dynamic system shaping both body and behaviour.
She documented these findings across hundreds of mothers and thousands of samples, mapping a language invisible to science until then. When Hinde turned her attention to human milk, she found it similarly complex, containing bacteria, hormones, and over 200 oligosaccharides that feed beneficial gut microbes. No two mothers produce identical milk—each infant receives a unique, responsive nutritional and biochemical profile.
Beyond the lab, Hinde became a public advocate for the science of lactation. She started the blog Mammals Suck…Milk!, co-authored Building Babies, created the annual March Mammal Madness outreach event, and has appeared in TED Talks and Netflix’s Babies. Today, at Arizona State University, she directs the Comparative Lactation Lab, exploring how milk can improve infant outcomes, inform public health, and guide formula development.
Katie Hinde’s work reframes milk as more than food—it is medicine, signal, and conversation, shaping development and behaviour in ways science is only beginning to understand.

Read about our post natal mental health service https://mustardtherapy.co.uk/fertility-pregnancy-hypnobirthing-parenting/

28/11/2025

Online Therapy: Why It Can Be Just as Effective as Face-to-Face

Online therapy has grown rapidly in recent years, and many people now wonder: Can online therapy truly be as effective as meeting with a therapist in person?
As a psychotherapist, I’ve witnessed firsthand how powerful and transformative online sessions can be. Research supports this as well—showing that online therapy is often just as effective as traditional face-to-face therapy, and in some cases even more accessible and supportive.
Below, I explain why.

What Makes Online Therapy Effective?
1. The Therapeutic Relationship Thrives Online
The foundation of therapy—trust, empathy, attunement, and emotional safety—does not depend on sharing the same physical room.
During online therapy, we still connect through facial expressions, tone of voice, and meaningful conversation. Clients consistently report that they feel just as deeply understood and supported online as they do in person.

2. Online Therapy Increases Comfort and Emotional Safety
Many clients feel more relaxed when attending online therapy sessions from their own home. A familiar environment can reduce anxiety, encourage openness, and make deep emotional work more accessible.
Online therapy is particularly beneficial for individuals dealing with:
social anxiety
mobility challenges
chronic pain or illness
trauma triggers
overwhelm in unfamiliar places
When the nervous system is calmer, therapy can go deeper.

3. Better Accessibility Means Better Consistency
Consistency is one of the strongest predictors of therapeutic progress. Online therapy removes logistic barriers such as commuting, traffic, childcare, or health-related challenges.
Because sessions are easier to attend, clients often stay more committed—and consistent therapy leads to stronger outcomes.

4. Evidence-Based Treatments Work Seamlessly Online
Most major therapeutic approaches, including CBT, ACT, DBT, psychodynamic therapy, and mindfulness-based methods, adapt extremely well to online therapy. In clinical studies, these modalities are found to be just as effective online as in person.
Digital tools can even enhance the experience, using screen sharing, written exercises, or guided practices to support learning and reflection.

5. Online Therapy Expands Access to Quality Care
For many people, online therapy provides access they would not otherwise have—especially in rural areas, underserved communities, or locations with limited mental-health resources.
Clients can choose a therapist based on true fit rather than geography, allowing for better alignment with their needs and preferences.

6. Online Therapy Supports Privacy and Boundaries
Some clients find that online therapy actually increases their sense of privacy. There’s no chance of running into someone in a waiting room, and clients can create a private therapeutic space that feels safe and comfortable.
This sense of control often enhances the therapeutic process.

7. Human Connection Happens Across Screens
Psychological and neurological research shows that emotional attunement, empathy, and co-regulation happen easily through video.
In online therapy, the screen quickly becomes secondary—the connection remains very real.

Is Online Therapy Right for You?
Online therapy isn’t about replacing in-person therapy—it’s about expanding what’s possible. Some people will always prefer face-to-face conversations, while others thrive in online sessions.
The most important thing is finding a therapeutic environment where you feel:
safe
supported
understood
encouraged to grow
If online therapy provides that space for you, it can absolutely be just as effective—and sometimes even more accessible—than traditional therapy.

21/11/2025

How to Cope with IVF Anxiety: Therapist Tips for Your Fertility Journey

IVF anxiety is real—and far more common than most people talk about. Whether you’re preparing for your first cycle or you’ve been on the fertility journey for a long time, the emotional weight can feel overwhelming. As a therapist supporting individuals and couples through fertility treatment, I see every day how powerful the mix of hope, fear, pressure, and uncertainty can be.

In this guide, you’ll find evidence-based coping tools, mindset strategies, and therapist-approved techniques to help you manage IVF anxiety with more clarity, calm, and compassion.

Why IVF Can Trigger So Much Anxiety
IVF can trigger anxiety for many reasons, including:

• Unpredictable outcomes
• A lack of control over the process
• High emotional investment
• Financial and time pressures
• Past fertility losses or difficult experiences

Understanding that these responses are normal can reduce shame and self-judgment.

1. Create an Emotional Safety Plan
Stress often peaks during monitoring appointments, egg retrieval, embryo transfer, and the two-week wait. Planning support ahead of time helps you feel more grounded.

You might include:
• Someone you can talk to
• Calming tools (music, grounding objects, apps)
• Coping strategies for tough days
• Boundaries you need (e.g., limiting Google searches)

Think of this as your emotional first-aid kit.

2. Use Grounding Techniques for High-Anxiety Moments
Grounding helps calm your nervous system during overwhelming moments.

Try:
• The 5-4-3-2-1 technique (using your senses)
• Box breathing
• Cooling techniques such as splashing cold water on your face

These are especially helpful before appointments or while waiting for results.

3. Set Boundaries With Information
Too much information can spike anxiety.

Consider:
• Limiting symptom Googling
• Choosing 1–2 reliable medical sources
• Planning who you’ll share updates with
• Muting triggering social media content

Boundaries protect your emotional wellbeing.

4. Reframe the What-If Thoughts
IVF often brings spirals like:
“What if it doesn’t work?”
“What if something goes wrong?”

Try this therapeutic approach:
• Acknowledge the fear: “This worry makes sense.”
• Ground yourself: “Right now, I don’t know the outcome.”
• Reassure yourself: “I can handle whatever comes next.”

This helps break the cycle of anxious thinking.

5. Choose Mindfulness That Matches Your Energy Levels
Mindfulness should feel supportive, not like another task.

Gentle options include:
• Short guided meditations
• Body scans
• Light stretching or yoga
• A mindful walk
• Five-minute journaling

Even a few moments can make a difference.

6. Strengthen Your Support System
IVF can feel isolating, so having support is vital.

This may include:
• A trusted friend or partner
• A fertility-informed therapist
• Support groups
• Couples counselling
• Someone who can handle sharing updates for you

You don’t have to go through this alone.

7. Prepare Emotionally for the Two-Week Wait
This stage is often the most challenging emotionally.

Set yourself up with:
• A list of comforting distractions
• Flexible, low-pressure activities
• Mood-lifting shows, books, or podcasts
• Gentle movement
• Soothing mantras like “My feelings are valid”

A little structure can make this period feel more manageable.

When to Consider Therapeutic Support
Therapy may help if you:
• Feel anxious most of the time
• Struggle to function due to worry
• Feel hopeless or emotionally numb
• Experience relationship strain
• Carry unresolved grief
• Want a safe space to process everything

Therapy provides not only coping tools but also compassionate support.

Final Thoughts
IVF anxiety is not a sign of weakness—it’s a very human response to a deeply meaningful and uncertain journey. With the right tools, support, and self-compassion, you can move through this process with greater emotional strength and steadiness.

If you’d like further support or resources tailored to your situation, I’m here to help.

If you would like to read more about our IVF support service https://mustardtherapy.co.uk/fertility-pregnancy-hypnobirthing-parenting/

13/11/2025

How Giving to Charity Can Help Boost Your Mental Health

As a therapist, I often encourage people to explore simple, meaningful practices that improve emotional well-being. One surprisingly powerful way to boost your mental health is by giving to charity — whether that means donating money, volunteering, or sharing your time and energy to support a cause you care about.

Giving isn’t just about helping others. It’s also a proven way to nurture your own sense of happiness, balance, and purpose. Below, we’ll explore seven therapeutic ways charitable giving can boost your mental health and overall emotional wellness.

1. Giving Activates Natural Mood-Boosting Chemicals

Acts of generosity trigger the brain’s reward system, releasing dopamine and endorphins — the same chemicals that make us feel joy and connection. This natural response, sometimes called the “helper’s high,” explains why even small donations or kind gestures can immediately boost your mental health.

2. Giving Strengthens Purpose and Meaning

Having a clear sense of purpose is one of the strongest predictors of good mental health. Supporting a cause you believe in can:

Give your life direction
Strengthen emotional resilience
Reduce feelings of emptiness or disconnection
Aligning your giving with your values helps boost your mental health by reinforcing what truly matters to you.

3. Generosity Helps Reduce Stress

When you’re focused on your own challenges, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. Giving redirects your attention outward, which research suggests can lower cortisol levels — the body’s primary stress hormone.

This calming effect can restore balance and help boost your mental health by reducing emotional tension and promoting relaxation.

4. Giving Builds Connection and Reduces Loneliness

Humans are wired for connection. Participating in charitable activities — whether through donations or volunteering — strengthens your sense of belonging. Knowing you’re contributing to a greater good can ease feelings of isolation and provide a sense of community.

Social connection is one of the most powerful ways to boost your mental health long term.

5. Generosity Encourages Gratitude and Perspective

When you give, you naturally become more aware of your own strengths and resources. This mindset shift toward gratitude can:

Improve mood
Enhance sleep quality
Reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety
Increase resilience
A regular gratitude practice, often sparked through giving, is a reliable way to boost your mental health and overall satisfaction with life.

6. Giving Reinforces a Positive and Compassionate Self-Image

When you give, you send yourself an internal message: “I am capable. I am kind. I can make a difference.” This strengthens self-esteem and self-compassion — two essential ingredients for long-term emotional well-being.

In this way, giving doesn’t just help others; it helps you build a kinder, more confident relationship with yourself, further boosting your mental health.

7. Small Acts of Giving Make the Biggest Difference Over Time

You don’t have to make large donations to experience the benefits. Simple, consistent acts of generosity — like contributing a small monthly amount or volunteering an hour each week — can have a cumulative, lasting impact on your well-being.

Consistency, not magnitude, is what truly helps boost your mental health through giving.

Final Reflection

Giving to charity isn’t a replacement for therapy or professional mental health care, but it can be a deeply nourishing complement. It strengthens purpose, connection, gratitude, and compassion — all key factors in building emotional resilience and boosting your mental health.

Even one small act of generosity today can start a ripple effect that benefits both you and the world around you.

07/11/2025

Our 35 questions 'Christmas Cryptic quiz' is now available as part of our Fundraising Campaign for Salisbury Hospice Charity.
It is one that you and family members can do gradually up to and including the Festive period.
There will be the following prizes donated by generous local businesses for 4 lucky winners of the most correct answers sent to me by 31st December.
Astrid Davies Consulting 90 minute Strategy Session (Executive Performance Coaching)
Alison Alexander A pass for 6 Pilates Reformer classes worth £101.43
ArtDeco ‘Regal Cinema’ in Fordingbridge Silver annual Regal cinema membership starting 14/1/25
Prue Ockenden of Ockenden Financial Planning £50 John Lewis voucher

Please do let me know if any of you lovely people would like me to email you one? Either send me a message on here, or email me at sharon@mustardtherapy.co.uk.
Suggested donation is £5 (cash, cheque or via our JustGiving page at https://www.justgiving.com/page/sharon-mustard-for-salisbury-hospice).

31/10/2025

MAKING TIME FOR SELF REFLECTION IS SELF CARE
With living in a world that offers us stimulation at every turn, we are becoming less able to simply be with ourselves. With multiple devices available to us at any one time, we are often here but not present.
Part of self care is being able to sit with your thoughts, your questions, emotions-being curious and compassionate about your internal world.
Getting to know our inner world is essential for self care
Being engaged with everything from our value system, our sense of deservability and just being with the sensations in our body strengthens our self of autonomy, helps regulate emotions when the inevitable ups and downs of life happen.
Default mode processing when your mind is free to simply have the freedom of wandering. A series of studies from 2015 discovered just how challenging people found it to sit with our own mind and body. Adult men and women were asked to sit in a room in silence with nothing but their own thoughts. However there was also a button in the room that they were told they could press if they wanted to leave before the 15 minutes were up, but that pressing it would give them a painful electric shock.
Would you press the button?
You would be forgiven by guessing that none of them would and instead sit out just 15 minutes…..but 25% of women actually pressed the button and 67% of men pressed it too!
Practice regular self care of sitting with yourself
So whether you immerse yourself in a book, just sit in silence or meditate, talk a walk in nature…..take time out to be with yourself in a way that helps you value and get to know the most important person in your life-YOU!
https://mustardtherapy.co.uk/what-we-can-help-with/

17/10/2025

Why is singing effective in relieving postnatal depression?

You may have read in the media recently about women with postnatal depression experiencing a significant reduction in symptoms and increase in mental wellbeing. The effect was after involvement in a 10 week signing group activity, whereby the control group were also women with postnatal depression involved in an existing mother-baby activity. The difference was the singing, but why?

Postnatal depression can stop you feeling heard or seen.
When we have a baby, we can feel like we have lost our voice. The people around us can seem to assume that we are doing fine, that we are finding contentment and joy in our new identity as a mum. If we have been a mum before, it is assumed that we know what to do and that this is even more instinctive and second-nature than the time before. Neither of these assumptions are true for any new mum, we all have our own challenges, but it feels socially unacceptable to voice these. It becomes acceptable through singing to have a voice that is heard. Our emotions can be expressed in a safe way without the need for personal words.

Our “I am failing as a mum” voice is at top volume when we are suffering from postnatal depression.
Our confirmation bias means our radar is focussed to only pick up what doesn’t go right. When you are among other women who are singing as a collective. You are part of the success within the group. The sense of achievement and mastery can be immense. The powerful experiencing that group singing can provide is a recognition that “I can” in a new baby world when it feels like everything we are doing is wrong (Spoiler..It isn’t, you are doing fine!)

In postnatal depression, it can be difficult to embody a sense of safety
Our exhaustion tiredness and overwhelm can cause us to shut down, to ‘freeze’ and become disconnected. If our nervous system perceives we are in an unsafe place, it can feel threatening to even feel what we feel. Singing is an embodied process that involves breathing, movement and connection with all the different parts of you. It allows you to build trust in a body that has recently given birth even if that confidence has been shaken.

We can feel we are not safe to connect to others with postnatal depression
Reaching out feels impossible if we feel we are alone in our suffering. Other mums seem to be coping well-on the street, even in mother and baby groups. In the context of a singing group where all the participants understand what it is like to have postnatal depression. Feeling understood and the sense of safety that this provides allows our social engagement system, including our facial expressions and eyes, to well and truly be switched on.

In postnatal depression, we can question if we deserve to be a mother
Our sense of imposter syndrome comes from a place where we feel out of rhythm with what we expected motherhood to be. We can feel out of rhythm with ourselves as an individual. When we reach the joy of resonance and rhythm of singing with others, it allows reciprocity with fellow human beings. This releases the social hormone of oxytocin in our body which banishes stress and helps us be in rhythm internally also.

Even if you cannot find a singing group locally, sing with your baby even a running commentary of what you are doing. It may feel boring to you when you sing the words “I am putting on the washing”, but to your baby it is magic. Their reaction is your connection together.

https://mustardtherapy.co.uk/fertility-pregnancy-hypnobirthing-parenting/

10/10/2025

Fundraising for Salisbury Hospice Charity

As part of our psychotherapy practice, Mustard Therapy & Coaching are embarking on a 2 year fundraising campaign for the wonderful Salisbury Hospice. We will be offering Coffee Shortbread, Fortune Cookies with donated prizes inside, cryptic quizzes and more leading up to my 8 day trek across the Great Wall of China in 2027. Our target is £3800 but we hope to smash this and to raise so much more. The sky is the limit!
“At Salisbury Hospice, we understand the profound impact of a progressive, life-limiting illness—not only for those diagnosed but for their families and loved ones. We offer our patients compassionate, palliative and end of life care, providing comfort, and guidance at every step.”
As therapists based in Salisbury, we have had many clients and their loved ones supported by Salisbury Hospice in various ways and so it is a charity very dear to our hearts. It is a privilege to be able to give something back.
Grief and Loss can come in many forms when your loved one is faced with a life-limiting illness. Knowing there are people there to hold your hand through the journey to provide not just medical needs but emotional needs too is priceless.
Grieving identity as an individual and as a family, as the dynamic changes
Grieving a change in health circumstances and what that means for the various roles in your life; perhaps as a parent
Grieving the vision you had of the future when so much had changed
At Salisbury Hospice, this magical place provides a nuturing environment to be supported and cared for in a holistic way. Their excellent in-patient services complete with everything you need to continue making memories with your loved ones, engaging in meaningful activities or making new friendships. Their outreach services of supporting your wider community of family and friends, with counselling and home visits. This beautiful setting dispelled the myths of what I thought a hospice was, I hope my small spotlight of our fundraising campaign will transform your awareness too.
Salisbury Hospice is a place of hope, where new memories are made. Whether it is cuddling up with your loved ones in a cuddle bed, having a beloved pet to visit, indulging in the pleasure of your favourite tipple or even getting married! Yes the amazing staff have even been known to create a honeymoon suite for the night!
If you can share anything at all for this wonderful cause, please donate to my JustGiving page at https://www.justgiving.com/.../sharon-mustard-for...
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
You can find out more about our services at Mustard Therapy & Coaching here https://mustardtherapy.co.uk/what-we-can-help-with/

03/10/2025

The importance of human connection in healing trauma

It is not often in life that we get to meet our childhood hero, never mind be part of an intimate audience hearing them open up about their personal journey towards healing trauma. I had the absolute privilege of doing just this earlier this week.

Alanis Morissette was the soundtrack of my teenage years. Inspirational for being a singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, and actress. And of course was the only woman ever to play God wearing a tutu (watch the film ‘Dogma’ if you don’t believe me!).

However in our annual Healing Trauma conference in Oxford, she wanted to be heard as a woman fascinated by psychology philosophy and neuroscience, as a loving mother, as a trauma survivor.

Alanis discussed the power of psychotherapy in healing trauma, herself having been a victim of s*xual assault, self harm and an eating disorder. She embraced the power of a journey towards self wholeness. Recognising we have many parts and identities she described wholeness as accepting all of these parts and why they show up for you. In psychotherapy we recognise that all parts are trying to protect us in some way. Whilst it is tempting to dislike a part or want to separate from it, we need instead to befriend snd give it a voice to listen to what it wants to say.

Alanis recalled being labelled in the 1980s as “the angry person”. She recognised that having her music out there meant people saw one side of her and assumed it was all parts of her-of course that was not true.

Alanis spoke of her emotional scars of growing up in the public eye and in a narcissistic household. Healing trauma has been a lifelong quest. Beyond music, she has become an advocate for trauma recovery-speaking out on the importance of self-compassion and emotional expression. She describes herself as a highly sensitive person and an empath which helps enormously with human connection.

Alanis spoke about her belief of how our pains and trauma are so often played out in relationships and how healing trauma is also found in relationships. Her human connections as a boss, as a mum, as a friend, a partner both fascinates and enriches her. She anchors to reading and disclosed that she often has six books with her at any one time!

Her values of connection with God/other/self, laughter, community and being on the leading edge of conversations about mental health and psychotherapy shone through in how passionately she talked about these areas.

What was so humbling for me about the whole experience is a reminder that we are all human beings that deserve and need to be heard for all our different facets and identities.

And for all the content creators out there, Alanis said “I don’t believe in writer’s block. If there is a blank page then it is time to get a sandwich!”

It is not often in life that we get to meet our childhood hero, never mind be part of an intimate audience hearing them open up about their personal journey towards healing trauma. I had the absolute privilege of doing just this earlier this week. Alanis Morissette was the soundtrack of my teenage y...