I was delighted to join Dr Jacqueline Peña on Coffee and an Interview to explore a subject that sits at the heart of my work as a speaker and wellbeing mentor: how we move from surviving life to truly experiencing it.
In this episode, I share my personal journey from growing up in Belfast during The Troubles, learning to hide parts of myself for safety, and spending decades wearing a mask — until the accumulated stress and disconnection eventually manifested physically through chronic illness and an ME diagnosis.
My experience taught me something profound:
Our bodies are not broken machines to be fixed.
They are wise communicators.
When we learn to listen differently, we can begin to understand the messages beneath our experiences and reconnect with the parts of ourselves that may have been hidden away for years.
Jacqueline and I discuss:
- why safety is more than the absence of danger — it is something we experience within ourselves and our environments
- how survival patterns can shape our lives long after the original threat has passed
- what it means to become “response-able” and reclaim our personal agency
- how curiosity, compassion and connection can create the conditions for transformation
I also introduce the W·I·L·D® philosophy – my approach to supporting people to reconnect with their Wonder, Intuition, self-Love and Dance with Life.
Through my talks and workshops, I invite audiences to question the stories they have inherited about wellbeing, illness and themselves – and to rediscover a more compassionate, empowered relationship with their own wisdom.
Listen to the full conversation with Dr Jacqueline Peña: Coffee and an Interview
