Try our FREE burnout quiz.

Grab your burnout workbook HERE.

If you would like us to work with your team book a 30 min chat HERE.

When trauma hits us, it can reverberate throughout our lives, echoing and causing more damage as time continues.

That’s the experience Andrew Draney had after surviving a tragic and fatal car accident as a child. The after effects of his accident caused resulted in further challenges later in life until it all finally came to a head and he was forced to make a change.

Now Andrew lives in Armidale with his wife Alex and youngest child, Ted where they have lived since moving from Sydney in 2017. Andrew has three grown children living and studying in Sydney whom he loves to visit. Andrew enjoys gardening and cycling and recently completed a half ironman with his daughter Georgina.

In this episode he shares:

- His early life as an adopted child

- How he handled his mums Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis as a child

- The accident that killed his grandparents and left is sister disabled

- The aftermath in the hospital and why he was not treated for any psychological problems

- How he progressively bottled down his pain to not be a problem in order to help his family

- How he treated his girlfriend and now wife because of his trauma

- How his trauma influenced him when his daughter was born

- Why his work addiction grew and impacted his life and family

- The moment he ended up in rehab

- Why finding his biological parents made things worse

- Why he still wasn’t ready even after his second rehab

- The moment that things really started to turn around and how he did it

- His biggest lessons from his major treatment at the meadows in Arizona

- How he is trying to rebuild with his family

Key Quotes

“My grandfather had had a stroke and lost consciousness and crossed over the median strip of the road and hit this oncoming car.”

“I checked myself into rehab because I needed to escape from everything.”

You can get involved with the podcast online

On facebook in our community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/challengesthatchangeus

Or on Instagram: @challengesthatchangeus

If you want to contact the podcast, email us here: support@challengesthatchangeus.com

Or check out our website: www.Challengesthatchangeus.com

If you want to find out more about what Ali does, check out her business via the website: http://www.trialtitudeperformance.com.au

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Try our FREE burnout quiz.

Grab your burnout workbook HERE.

If you would like us to work with your team book a 30 min chat HERE.

By now we know that society’s fixation with ‘body image’ can have a negative impact on our mental health, but just how crippling can it be?

Pete Winmill has over 20 years in the fitness industry, working as a personal trainer in London, Bali, and Australia, and spent 13 years managing 20+ staff across WA and SA for one of Australia’s largest fitness RTOs. He’s owned five gyms, still running one in Buderim, and is now studying psychology with plans to register as a psychologist.

After battling debilitating body image issues from severe acne, Pete found healing through ayahuasca. He now volunteers with WNOW, leads the Rainbow Bay Men’s Group, and founded Men Off the Meds to help men reduce reliance on medication through lifestyle change.

In this episode he shares:

- His early years and what led him to where he is now

- How severe acne as a teenager changed how he saw the world and himself

- The habits and thoughts he developed to cope through this period and how it impacted relationships

- His challenges with intimacy and why he used alcohol as an escape

- His life post uni and what led him to working in Bali for 4 years

- The critical last 3 years and his experience with ayahuasca

- How Ayahuasca made him sick and how he worked through it

- What he did next after this and how he managed his life and work balance

- What he does now for work

Key Quotes

“They could always find someone better.”

“What I thought to myself was, that makes you look like a monster.”

More about Pete

Follow Pete on Instagram, Facebook and his Website. And the charity he supports When No One’s Watching

You can get involved with the podcast online

On facebook in our community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/challengesthatchangeus

Or on Instagram: @challengesthatchangeus

If you want to contact the podcast, email us here: support@challengesthatchangeus.com

Or check out our website: www.Challengesthatchangeus.com

If you want to find out more about what Ali does, check out her business via the website: http://www.trialtitudeperformance.com.au

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Try our FREE burnout quiz.

Grab your burnout workbook HERE.

If you would like us to work with your team book a 30 min chat HERE.

I have spoken frequently on this podcast about the power of therapy and why it can help with resilience and trauma, but I understand that a lot of people who have never done it are often blocked from trying because they just don’t know what to expect.

That is why this is a very different and special episode of Challenges That Change Us.

We have brought back our in house psychologist Vanessa De Sauty to demonstrate what an actual therapy session looks like.

In this episode I’ll be in the patients seat and working through things with Vanessa so you can get a real idea of what to expect.

In this episode we share:

- What the counselling process actually is

- The repercussions of withdrawing from relationships to ‘protect yourself’

- The challenge of reconnecting and asking for help

- That I am able to show up in the thick of adversity but not when it passes

- Filtering this through a CBT lens and finding strategies to work on

- The core beliefs that happen on childhood that could lead to patterns in behaviour

- Cognitive flexibility and strengthening underused mental muscles

Key Quotes

“ I feel like I'm pulling from an empty bucket and I don't actually have anything to offer or give to other people.”

Vanessa

To find out more about Vanessa, check out her website HERE.

You can get involved with the podcast online

On facebook in our community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/challengesthatchangeus

Or on Instagram: @challengesthatchangeus

If you want to contact the podcast, email us here: support@challengesthatchangeus.com

Or check out our website: www.Challengesthatchangeus.com

If you want to find out more about what Ali does, check out her business via the website:

http://www.trialtitudeperformance.com.au

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Try our FREE burnout quiz.

Grab your burnout workbook HERE.

If you would like us to work with your team book a 30 min chat HERE.

The environments we grow up in have an enormous impact on us, and while some destructive childhood environments are easily noticeable, the subtle control of a strict religious group can be just as damaging.

That was the case for Rachel Pietsch whose controlling upbringing reached a climax when she and her husband chose to leave the church group they were a part of.

Now, Rachel is a voice specialist with over 30 years’ experience helping people unlock the full power of their speaking voice for greater impact and confidence. With a background in education, performance, and advanced vocal training, she transforms how clients use and perceive their voice through practical, inspiring, and comprehensive coaching.

In this episode she shares:

- Her childhood and how religion was there at the start of her story

- How she rebelled against her strict religious upbringing as a teenager

- How she had to learn about her period from a friends m

- The high level of control she experienced from her church

- Why and how she and her husband finally left the church

- How her religious community reacted to her leaving

- The consequences with her family and community for her leaving the religion

- Why going through therapy afterwards was so hard for her

- What she learnt about herself in therapy

- Her diagnosis of hearing loss and the impact it had on her

Key Quotes

“From a very young age I learnt that how I felt and how I thought was not important so why bother.”

“I was told by my mother, your selfish, you've always been selfish.”

More Information about

Follow her on LinkedIn, or her website for her vocal coaching or her speaking training business.

You can get involved with the podcast online

On facebook in our community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/challengesthatchangeus

Or on Instagram: @challengesthatchangeus

If you want to contact the podcast, email us here: support@challengesthatchangeus.com

Or check out our website: www.Challengesthatchangeus.com

If you want to find out more about what Ali does, check out her business via the website: http://www.trialtitudeperformance.com.au

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Try our FREE burnout quiz. Grab your burnout workbook HERE.

If you would like us to work with your team book a 30 min chat HERE.

Trigger warning: alcohol and drug addiction

We've spoken around addiction before, but each story shows how differently a path to addiction can start, and just how tragically it can effect the person’s life.

That was the case for Jourdi Bleu whose addictions saw her first enter rehab at 18 years old. But it wasn’t until much later that she finally broke free and reinvented her life. Now, Jourdi is an empowerment coach, yoga and breath work teacher, retreat host, international speaker, and Amazon bestselling author who radiates playful, contagious energy and inspires others to rise from their own shadows. With formal training in criminology, youth work, yoga, coaching, meditation, and breath work, plus wisdom gained through wild life experiences she now lives from a place she calls “Upstairs,” creating a life beyond her wildest dreams.

In this episode she shares:

• The first time she got blackout drunk and how her love story with alcohol began
• The car accident at 15 which led to the tipping point of drug and alcohol use
• The opioid epidemic and how she got sucked into oxycontin addiction
• Her relapse and how she lost her partner to an overdose
• How yoga helped her get back on track and see another way to live
• How she realised she needed to figure her life out and leave her family to do so
• The moment she realised she had an issue with alcohol and how she turned her life around
• What it is like now in her life without alcohol and embracing her past self and not demonising it

Key Quotes

“Drinking was intrinsically connected into my identity. It was woven into who I was... I thought.”

More Information about Jourdi

Follow her on her website, or find her book here.

You can get involved with the podcast online

On facebook in our community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/challengesthatchangeus or on Instagram: @challengesthatchangeus

If you want to contact the podcast, email us here: support@challengesthatchangeus.com or check out our website: www.Challengesthatchangeus.com

If you want to find out more about what Ali does, check out her business via the website: http://www.trialtitudeperformance.com.au

Interested in DISC personality profiling or a Burnout workshop for your team, get in touch with Ali today.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Try our FREE burnout quiz.

Grab your burnout workbook HERE.

If you would like us to work with your team book a 30 min chat HERE.

This week we are exploring a challenge but in a slightly different way.

Anna Grosman is an entrepreneur whose diverse career journey has seen her work in roles from Medical Clinic Manager, to founder of two male escort agencies for women.

Her Confidant came from years of listening to women share their frustration with modern dating, emotional disconnect, and a culture that still shames female desire, founder

Anna Grosman set out to build something different. The only male companionship agency in Australia built exclusively for women, designed around emotional intelligence, consent, and genuine human connection.

But what is it like to not only start a business in the challenging field of the sex industry, but also to do so in what could be considered the ‘less known’ side of the field; providing male escorts for women.

In this episode she shares:

• Anna's early life and sexual awakening
• How she built a business in the escort industry
• Her advice on how to navigate the stigma and embrace your sexuality
• Her client experiences and booking process
• What actually is Companionship and what does it involve
• Her recruitment and selection process
• The safety measures she has in place for clients and staff
• The importance of sex education and communication
• The stigmas and misconceptions in the industry

Key Quotes

“Society and the education system have to start teaching kids from a young age about consent, respect, and understanding their own bodies.”

No one blinks an eye when a man goes to a brothel or uses an escort agency. It's been sort of their right as young boys when they turn 18. It’s societal norms and the way we've been raised in religion that have created these double standards."

More Information about Anna

Follow Anna on Instagram, or find her website here.

You can get involved with the podcast online

On facebook in our community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/challengesthatchangeus

Or on Instagram: @challengesthatchangeus

If you want to contact the podcast, email us here: support@challengesthatchangeus.com

Or check out our website: www.Challengesthatchangeus.com

If you want to find out more about what Ali does, check out her business via the website:

http://www.trialtitudeperformance.com.au

Interested in DISC personality profiling or a Burnout workshop for your team, get in touch with Ali today.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Try our FREE burnout quiz.

Grab your burnout workbook HERE.

If you would like us to work with your team book a 30 min chat HERE.

The relationship between disability and personal identity is incredibly complex and navigating that can take a lot of work and self-analysis.

For Skye Shannon, growing up with Spina Bifida had an obvious impact on her life, but it wasn’t until she underwent an amputation in her adult years that she really felt the impact on her personal identity.

In this conversation, Skye Shannon shares her profound journey living with Spina Bifida, detailing her experiences from childhood through adulthood. She discusses the challenges of growing up with a disability, the impact of social dynamics in school, and the numerous surgeries she underwent to manage her condition. Skye reflects on her identity, the emotional toll of her amputation, and the ongoing struggle with phantom pain. Her story is one of resilience, independence, and the complex relationship between disability and self-perception.

In this episode she shares:

- What it was like growing up with Spina Bifida

- What is Spina Bifida

- The impact of her disability on her personal identity

- Her journey to find someone who would help her do the surgery she needed

- Life after her amputation and the difficulties she encountered

- Her experiences with phantom pain

- Understanding the impact of amputation

- Her fears and challenges in daily life now

- Her advice for those facing similar challenges

Key Quotes

“I ended up with maggots in my toes.”

“It had gotten to the stage where my hip had completely disintegrated.”

More Information about Skye

Follow her on Linkedin.

You can get involved with the podcast online

On facebook in our community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/challengesthatchangeus

Or on Instagram: @challengesthatchangeus

If you want to contact the podcast, email us here: support@challengesthatchangeus.com

Or check out our website: www.Challengesthatchangeus.com

If you want to find out more about what Ali does, check out her business via the website:

http://www.trialtitudeperformance.com.au

Interested in DISC personality profiling or a Burnout workshop for your team, get in touch with Ali today.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Try our FREE burnout quiz.

Grab your burnout workbook HERE.

If you would like us to work with your team book a 30 min chat HERE.

We’ve heard countless times on this podcast how the western medical system can often get in the way of, or even prevent people from being diagnosed or healed.

But in today’s episode we are joined by someone who proved her doctors wrong after they told her there was no hope in regards to her condition.

Michelle Niemeyer is a speaker, coach and former attorney who teaches professionals how to bend time so they can stay sharp, productive and profitable – without burning out. After finding her way to burnout and back in her own high-performing legal career, Michelle created The Art of Bending Time, a framework that helps people connect the dots across work, life, and purpose to magnetise success and reclaim their joy. She helps businesses retain top talent, boost development, and keep their people energised and engaged, all while making the magic happen.

In this episode she shares:

• Her early career life and why it was damaging her
• How she lived with terrible symptoms that she thought were just normal
• The moment where everything changed
• What happened when she went to hospital and why it didn’t help
• What she was finally diagnosed with after multiple different doctor visits
• The extreme diet she did to try and fix it
• The shocking prognosis her doctors gave her
• How she beat the odds
• Her greatest strengths that helped see her through this
• The insights she has gained from her experience

Key Quotes

“I didn’t realise that I was living in a lifestyle that was very, very chronically stressful all of the time.”

More Information about Michelle

Text CLARITY to 33777 to join her community.

If that doesn’t work in your home country, you can also sign up for The Art of Bending Time Community here.

You can also go to her website

You can get involved with the podcast online

On facebook in our community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/challengesthatchangeus

Or on Instagram: @challengesthatchangeus

If you want to contact the podcast, email us here: support@challengesthatchangeus.com Or check out our website: www.Challengesthatchangeus.com

If you want to find out more about what Ali does, check out her business via the website: http://www.trialtitudeperformance.com.au

Interested in DISC personality profiling or a Burnout workshop for your team, get in touch with Ali today.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.