🌙Episode Summary

In this episode, I sit down with Counsellor Shalina to explore the impact of growing up without a father figure—and how that experience shapes identity, relationships, and emotional patterns into adulthood.

We talk about what fatherlessness really looks like beyond physical absence, including emotional wounds, attachment patterns, and the ways we learn to seek validation and safety.

This conversation is about more than understanding the pain. It’s about becoming aware of the patterns it created, learning how to regulate your nervous system, and beginning the process of redefining who you are—outside of what you didn’t receive.

This is the work of breaking generational cycles and rebuilding self-trust.

✨Key Takeaways

• I explore how fatherlessness impacts identity, self-worth, and relationship patterns

• We discuss how emotional wounds show up through attachment styles and validation-seeking behaviors

• I highlight the role of awareness and therapy in beginning the healing process

• We talk about breaking generational cycles through intentional inner work

• I share how self-compassion and nervous system regulation support lasting change

• We introduce tools like the Wheel of Emotions to better understand and process feelings

🎙️Sound Bites

“I realized I might never be able to forgive him.”

“You are worthy of love and enough.”

“Identity is something we can actively shape.”

⏱️Chapters

00:00 – Introduction + Why This Topic Matters

02:49 – Shalina’s Story and Background

04:50 – When the Impact Became Clear

08:34 – Letting Go of the Need to Forgive

11:14 – Attachment Styles and Relationship Patterns

15:34 – Separating Identity from Father Absence

20:33 – Self-Compassion and Inner Work

27:15 – Understanding Grief and Emotional Awareness

31:19 – Healing as an Ongoing Process

34:49 – Final Reflections and Encouragement

🌿Call to Action

If this episode resonated, you don’t have to hold it alone.

✨ Follow me on Instagram for grounded reflections, healing insights, and gentle reminders

IG: https://www.instagram.com/iamalishasheri

✨ Awaken Your Highest Self – 3-Day Workshop If you’re looking for a clear, grounded introduction to the framework behind this work, this workshop offers gentle structure, guided practices, and orientation — without pressure to go deeper

Learn more or register here: https://www.alishasheri.com/workshop

👤 Guest Bio + Links

Counsellor Shalina:

Raised by a single mother who courageously escaped domestic violence overnight, Shalina experienced firsthand the profound effects of abuse, fatherlessness, and intergenerational trauma. These realities shaped her childhood and ignited both deep struggles and a search for meaning experiences that would later inspire her journey toward healing and advocacy. In Shalina’s early life this instilled empathy and determination, especially for women who may have faced the same struggles as herself. Now Shalina works as a counsellor specialising in trauma, fatherlessness, domestic violence, narcissistic/sexual abuse and abortion grief. All of which have been part of her own experiences.

Links:

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

IG: https://www.instagram.com/counsellorshalina/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/counsellorshalina/

TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@counsellorshalina

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@SED8official