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What if the version of you that everyone knows… is actually a role you were assigned in childhood?

For years, you may have followed a script—being the strong one, the quiet one, the responsible one—letting that identity define how you show up in the world. But what happens when you start to question it? When you get curious about who you are beyond the role?

In this episode, LaShonda Walker guides you through the powerful journey of unbecoming—releasing the identities, expectations, and survival patterns that no longer align with who you are today.

You’ll learn how to begin rewriting your story by understanding the different parts of yourself, reconnecting with your truth, and trusting the adult version of you to lead with clarity and intention.

This episode is for you if you’re ready to:

• Let go of performance-based identity
• Stop living on autopilot and start choosing consciously
• Rebuild trust with yourself and your decisions
• Step into a more aligned, authentic version of who you are

LaShonda shares practical guidance, reflection prompts, and powerful affirmations to support your journey of self-discovery, emotional healing, and personal growth—so you can feel grounded in the version of yourself you are becoming.

In this episode:

• How childhood roles shape your identity and behavior
• Releasing the pressure to perform and please
• Learning to trust yourself and your inner voice
• Creating a personal power statement rooted in truth

Affirmation to carry with you:
I release who I had to be, and I trust who I am becoming.

WORK WITH LASHONDA

Explore your emotions and uncover what drives your behavior?

Book a free discovery call today. In 20 minutes you’ll learn and practice simple steps you can take to begin your transformation process.

Connect with LaShonda

Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

Website: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/

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Life has a way of reminding you that there are still things stuck in you. In this episode LaShonda shares an unscripted reflection on how unconscious beliefs shape our decisions, relationships, and self-worth—especially in midlife. After noticing herself repeatedly rejecting a new opportunity and feeling a physical “block,” she unpacks how hidden beliefs formed in childhood can quietly run the show.

In this emotional wellness episode, she guides listeners on how using the Adult Chair Model can help explain how younger versions of ourselves influence present-day reactions, triggers, comparison, and self-sabotage. She offers practical insight into recognizing these patterns and reclaiming control with intention and awareness.

If you’ve ever felt stuck, questioned your worth, or struggled with self-doubt, this episode will help you identify and shift the unconscious stories holding you back.

💫 In this episode:

• What unconscious beliefs are and how they impact your daily life
• How childhood experiences shape adult behavior and emotional patterns
• The Adult Chair Model explained for personal growth and healing
• How to identify and challenge limiting beliefs and negative self-talk
• Three simple steps to rewire unproductive beliefs and create emotional freedom

This episode is for women in midlife seeking emotional healing, mindset shifts, and deeper self-awareness.

WORK WITH LASHONDA

Explore your emotions and uncover what drives your behavior?

Book a free discovery call today. In 20 minutes you’ll learn and practice simple steps you can take to begin your transformation process.

Connect with LaShonda

Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

Website: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/

Join newsletter: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anewlifestorycoaching

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Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

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What happens when life doesn’t turn out the way you thought it would?

In this honest conversation, LaShonda welcomes Christina Lopes of Life Over 45 (IG: @life_over_45) to explore midlife reinvention, healing after heartbreak, and finding yourself again after loss.

If you’re navigating divorce, identity shifts, emotional pain, or starting over in your 40s or 50s, this episode will feel like a real conversation with someone who understands.

Christina shares the moment she left a 16-year marriage—and how one vulnerable post sparked healing, connection, and community for women around the world. Together, they talk about rebuilding your life with self-love, intention, and authenticity.

💫 In this episode:

• Finding yourself again after loss or heartbreak
• Letting go of shame and embracing healing
• Romanticizing life while single
• Using music and nostalgia for emotional wellness
• The power of authentic connection and storytelling

Midlife isn’t the end—it’s a new beginning. A chance to reconnect with who you are and how you want to live.

If you’ve ever felt like you had to start over… this episode will meet you right where you are.

If this episode resonated with you, follow, rate, and share A New Life Story with another woman navigating the powerful transformation of midlife. 💫

Listen to these episodes next:

• Episode 01 - The Adult Chair®: A Simple & Practical Tool for Your Emotional Healing Journey
• Episode 3 - How Understanding Your Inner Child Helps You Heal Emotional Wounds with Joan Mwangi
• Episode 14 - How to Align Your Intentions with Your True Self

WORK WITH LASHONDA

Explore your emotions and uncover what drives your behavior?

Book a free discovery call today. In 20 minutes you’ll learn and practice simple steps you can take to begin your transformation process.

Connect with LaShonda

Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

Website: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/

Join newsletter: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anewlifestorycoaching

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Love evolves, especially in midlife and the nervous system support you need at 25 is often very different from what you need at 45.

Many women in their 40s and 50s begin reassessing relationships, emotional needs, and personal identity. Midlife is not a crisis—it’s a rebirth of emotional clarity, where we begin asking deeper questions about connection, authenticity, and the relationships that truly support our well-being.

This episode explores the 7 types of love—Eros, Philia, Storge, Agape, Pragma, Ludus, and Philautia—and how each one transforms during midlife. You’ll learn how emotional safety, nervous system regulation, boundaries, and self-love shape healthier connections in romantic relationships, friendships, family dynamics, and within yourself.

If you’ve been feeling a shift in what you want from love, partnership, and connection, this episode will help you understand why—and how to move forward with clarity and compassion.

In this episode, we discuss:
01:11 How Midlife Love Shifts how women relate to love

06:13 Eros Passion Reimagined

07:50 Philia and evolving Friendships

10:58 Storge and Family Dynamics

14:14 Agape and Unconditional Grace

18:54 Ludus and Playful Joy

If this episode resonated with you, follow, rate, and share A New Life Story with another woman navigating the powerful transformation of midlife. 💫

Listen to these episodes next:
• Episode 42: Midlife Burnout & Emotional Labor: 5 Ways to Stop Carrying the Mental Load
• Episode 35: Nervous System Regulation — Where Inner Connection Begins
• Episode 29: Protecting Your Energy: 5 Tips for Navigating Emotional Triggers

WORK WITH LASHONDA
Explore your emotions and uncover what drives your behavior?

Book a free discovery call today. In 20 minutes you’ll learn and practice simple steps you can take to begin your transformation process.

Connect with LaShonda

Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

Website: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/

Join newsletter: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anewlifestorycoaching

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anewlifestorycoach

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Produced by Wowow Podcasts

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Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

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This episode explores the impact of emotional labor, the mental load, and burnout for women in midlife. Many women silently carry the responsibility of managing other people’s emotions, needs, schedules, and relationships—often without realizing how much emotional energy and mental bandwidth it requires.

LaShonda shares personal insight into how emotional labor and the invisible mental load showed up in her friendships, marriage, parenting, and career, and how constantly anticipating needs and managing emotions can lead to exhaustion, resentment, anger, and feeling unseen.

For many women, emotional labor includes monitoring moods, keeping track of family responsibilities, remembering important dates and obligations, mediating conflict, soothing hurt feelings, and trying to keep the peace in relationships. Over time, this invisible responsibility can create emotional burnout, overwhelm, and a deep sense of imbalance in relationships.

Learn five practical ways to stop carrying the mental load and begin reclaiming your emotional capacity, boundaries, and personal well-being.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• What emotional labor and the mental load look like in everyday life
• Why women in midlife often carry the emotional responsibility for everyone else
• The link between emotional labor, burnout, and resentment
• 5 ways to stop carrying the emotional load in relationships and family life
• Two powerful questions that can help you reconnect with your emotional bandwidth and energy

If you’re a woman who feels like you’re holding everything together for everyone else, this episode will help you understand the mental load many women carry—and how to begin releasing it.

01:29 What Is Emotional Labor

05:01 Resentment And Burnout

05:45 Notice Overfunctioning

09:43 Let Emotions Be Theirs

12:45 Dropping Perfectionism

16:02 Micro Boundaries

WORK WITH LASHONDA
Explore your emotions and uncover what drives your behavior?

Book a free discovery call today. In 20 minutes you’ll learn and practice simple steps you can take to begin your transformation process.

Connect with LaShonda

Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

Website: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/

Join newsletter: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anewlifestorycoaching

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anewlifestorycoach

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Produced by Wowow Podcasts

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Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

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Rest is not a luxury — it is essential for emotional wellness, nervous system regulation, and whole-body health, especially for women navigating the demands of midlife, burnout, and constant mental load.

In a world that constantly demands attention and productivity, intentional rest can help restore energy, emotional balance, and mental clarity.

When we neglect rest, our bodies and minds carry the cost through fatigue, overwhelm, stress, and nervous system dysregulation. Learning how to intentionally rest allows the body to recover, the mind to quiet, and the spirit to reconnect.

In this episode, learn about:

• Physical rest – allowing the body to recover and restore energy
• Mental rest – calming racing thoughts and reducing cognitive overload
• Spiritual rest – reconnecting with meaning, purpose, and inner grounding
• Sensory rest – reducing stimulation from screens, noise, and constant input

Learn simple, actionable ways to integrate restorative practices into daily life while navigating emotional transitions, physical changes, and increasing mental demands.

If you’ve been feeling tired, overwhelmed, or emotionally drained, this episode will help you understand how intentional rest can support healing, clarity, and emotional well-being.

01:09 Introduction to the Four Additional Types of Rest

02:54 Physical Rest: Listening to Your Body

10:20 Mental Rest: Easing the Overthinking Mind

15:56 Spiritual Rest: Connecting Beyond Productivity

20:58 Sensory Rest: Giving Your Nervous System a Break

24:52 Conclusion and Looking Ahead

LISTEN TO THESE EPISODES NEXT :

• Episode 16 - How to Connect to Your Emotions to Understand Your Needs
• Episode 18 - How Breathwork Can Rewire Your Brain for Better Health
• Episode 24 - Creating Space for Emotions

WORK WITH LASHONDA
Explore your emotions and uncover what drives your behavior?

Book a free discovery call today. In 20 minutes you’ll learn and practice simple steps you can take to begin your transformation process.

Connect with LaShonda

Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

Website: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/

Join newsletter: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anewlifestorycoaching

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This episode begins a two-part series exploring the 7 Types of Rest, a framework developed by Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith that explains why traditional rest alone doesn’t resolve burnout, emotional exhaustion, or mental fatigue.

Many women—especially in midlife—are constantly giving their time, energy, and emotional labor to family, work, and relationships. Over time, this can lead to nervous system overload, mental exhaustion, and deep depletion, even when you think you’re resting.

LaShonda shares why intentional rest became non-negotiable for her and how ignoring certain types of rest can quietly drain emotional health, creativity, and overall balance.

In Part 1, we explore three powerful forms of rest essential for emotional wellness and restoring energy:

Emotional Rest – Learn how constantly holding it together, people-pleasing, suppressing feelings, or managing others’ emotions can lead to burnout.

Social Rest – Not all relationships restore your energy. Discover the difference between draining and nourishing connections and how to choose social environments that support your well-being.

Creative Rest – Creative rest isn’t just for artists. Constantly consuming information and solving problems can drain creativity. Discover how beauty, curiosity, and inspiration can refill your creative energy.

If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, emotionally drained, or stuck in midlife, this conversation will help you understand how different types of rest can restore your energy and support emotional balance.

Stay tuned for Part 2, where we explore the remaining types of rest and how they support nervous system regulation and long-term well-being.

Enjoyed the show? Please leave a review on Apple or a rating on Spotify (click 3 dots > “Rate Show”)

LISTEN TO THESE EPISODES NEXT :

• Episode 16 - How to Connect to Your Emotions to Understand Your Needs
• Episode 24 - Creating Space for Emotions

WORK WITH LASHONDA
Explore your emotions and uncover what drives your behavior?

Book a free discovery call today. In 20 minutes you’ll learn and practice simple steps you can take to begin your transformation process.

Connect with LaShonda

Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

Website: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/

Join newsletter: https://www.anewlifestorycoaching.com/newsletter

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anewlifestorycoaching

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anewlifestorycoach

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We exist in a fast-paced world where there’s always something vying for our attention, so it’s easy to find ourselves feeling overwhelmed, anxious, or simply out of sync with our own bodies. But what if you could hit the reset button on your nervous system in just seconds? In this conversation, Certified Adult Chair® Master Coach Angela Johnson, Open Hands Coaching, explains simple, effective steps to help you instantly reconnect with your body and bring your nervous system back to a state of calm and balance. From understanding the power of a single breath to easy practices you can use throughout the day, Angela’s insights will inspire you to find pockets of peace in the chaos of modern life.

In this episode, Angela breaks it all down in an easy-to-understand way: she starts by explaining what the nervous system is and how it connects to different parts of the body. She then offers practical, real-life examples to show how you can tap into this powerful system in just seconds. Through simple steps—like mindful breathing, gentle movement, and body awareness—Angela guides you to reconnect with your body and create more calm, ease, and presence in your everyday life.

Read the full blog post here.

In this episode, we cover:

(10:08 - 14:24) Angela discusses the nervous system, explaining its structure and its three main states.

(17:00 - 18:14) Understand the significance of feeling emotions to heal and how stimulating the vagus nerve can help shift from fight or flight to a more regulated state.

(40:12 - 41:07) Learn how to feel safe in your body to process emotions.

LISTEN TO THESE EPISODES NEXT :

• Episode 35 - Nervous System Regulation: Where Inner Connection Begins
  
  
  
• Episode 29 - Feel It to Heal It: How Somatic Healing Techniques Improve Emotional Wellness with Karena Nuekirchner

WORK WITH LASHONDA

Explore your emotions and uncover what drives your behavior?

Book a free discovery call today. In 20 minutes you’ll learn and practice simple steps you can take to begin your transformation process.

Connect with Angela Johnson
Email: angela@openhandscoaching.com
Website: www.openhandscoaching.com

Free Nervous System Reset: www.openhandscoaching.com/regulated

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Connect with LaShonda

Email: lashonda@anewlifestorycoaching.com

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