For the last time on this platform, the seats are reversed. Rishma Govani steps into the interviewer role, holding space as Salima shares the untold story that could not be spoken until now — the lived experience of losing her grandmother, losing her mother just twenty days later, and navigating the irreversible shift that followed. This episode does not retell events for shock value. It lingers in the spaces grief inhabits quietly: the hospital rooms where time compresses, the moral rupture of withholding water from someone you love, the weight of asking whether intervention has become prolonging suffering, the moment of recognizing when love means release. Salima speaks candidly about what this loss did to her nervous system, her identity, and her sense of safety. She reflects on surviving surgery updates, advocating through uncertainty, absorbing fear for others, and surrendering control when outcomes were no longer negotiable. She names the loneliness of grieving without a settled space to land, the disorientation of being the steady one while internally unraveling, and the humility of discovering that wisdom does not exempt you from devastation. This is not an episode about closure. It is about the beginning of grief. About integration instead of resolution. About learning to live in a body that now carries absence differently. It is also the final episode of Dare to Share Your Untold Story. Not because the work has ended, but because this chapter has completed what it came here to do. What began years ago as a space for daring and sharing concludes here with reverence — laid down in honour of lineage, timing, and the truth that some endings are acts of integrity. Her key message to the listeners of the show is: Time is precious, so take time to really look at how you're spending your time, what you're giving your energy to, and whether it's actually aligned with what matters most to you in the bigger picture of your life; connect with yourself, connect honestly with your emotions; allow yourself to express what's true — without malice, but without suppression either; you are allowed to change after what you've lived through; you're allowed to outgrow versions of yourself that once kept you safe; you don't owe anyone continuity if it costs you truth.

In this deeply reflective episode of Dare to Share Your Untold Story, the seats are intentionally reversed. Returning guest Rishma Govani steps into the interviewer role, creating space for Salima to explore an untold story of her own — one rooted in discernment, timing, and quiet internal reckoning. What unfolds is not a dramatic turning point, but the slow accumulation of awareness. The kind that builds quietly beneath the surface — through fatigue, resistance, emotional labour, and the subtle toll of holding space for others while navigating your own internal shifts. Salima speaks candidly about the mental and emotional impact of recognizing when something meaningful begins to ask for re-evaluation. The tension between love and misalignment. The guilt that accompanies change. The exhaustion that comes not from burnout, but from staying longer than your inner knowing allows. Together, they examine what it costs to ignore timing — and what it requires to honour it. The conversation traces the psychological weight of leadership decisions that are not visible from the outside, but deeply felt within: disrupted sleep, internal questioning, emotional strain, and the steady pull toward integrity over endurance. This episode explores endings that are not failures. Thresholds that arrive through truth rather than crisis. And the courage it takes to embody the very principles we invite others into — especially when the stakes feel personal. At its core, this conversation is about presence over permanence, discernment over performance, and the mental health impact of choosing alignment even when it unsettles what has been familiar. What unfolds here is not a goodbye. It is a reckoning with timing, and the quiet courage it requires. Her key message to the listeners of the show is: You don't need to perform your pain to be worthy of care; you don't need to explain your history for it to be valid; and you don't need to wait until things fall apart to give yourself permission to pause.

Growing up as a triplet, Sarah spent much of her childhood feeling overlooked, misunderstood, and constantly compared to her siblings. While they excelled academically, Sarah struggled silently inside a school system that wasn't designed for her brain. She carried the weight of feeling different, disconnected, and uncertain of her own potential. What others couldn't see was that she was developing a different kind of intelligence — resilience, emotional insight, and a powerful physical intuition that would later shape her entire life. Sport became her first safe place. On the court, Sarah excelled quickly, earning Athlete of the Year and multiple competitive awards. It was the first environment where she felt capable, strong, and free. But despite her athletic success, the internal battles continued. During university, Sarah experienced a traumatic assault that shattered the confidence she had worked so hard to build. She describes spiralling into a period marked by isolation, emotional overwhelm, and a deep loss of identity. At her lowest, she found herself on the floor of her shower telling her sister that she didn't want to die, but she understood why others did. That moment became a turning point — the moment she decided she could no longer abandon herself. Sarah began rebuilding from the inside out through movement, self-reflection, and a commitment to living in alignment with her truth. Years later, a formal ADHD diagnosis finally gave language to the struggles she carried throughout her childhood, helping her understand her strengths in an entirely new way. She also shares how chronic emotional suppression manifested in her body through lockjaw and persistent physical pain, a reminder of how deeply the mind and body mirror each other. Her story is a powerful reminder that returning to yourself is possible — no matter how far away you feel. Her key message to the listeners of the show is: If you hit rock bottom, you can pick yourself up and move forward and have a happy life; by fighting for what you love and have, your relationships -- live that authentic life, the more authentically you show up, the more you are in most aligned place within yourself.

Guest Bio:

Sarah is a Mindset and High-Performance Coach, Fitness Trainer, and Speaker who helps high-achieving individuals and teams build clarity, confidence, and consistent follow-through. With a background that bridges mindset psychology, behaviour change, and movement-based performance training, she supports people in turning intention into action and creating systems that fuel sustainable results in business, sport, and everyday life. Sarah is also a rising voice in the mental health and performance space, known for her grounded, evidence-informed approach and her belief that strength is built from the inside out.

Rooted in both lived experience and professional training, Sarah brings an unapologetic honesty to her work that inspires people to stop abandoning themselves and step into their full potential. She is passionate about connecting the mental and physical components of resilience, guiding others to build self-trust, emotional awareness, and aligned action. Whether coaching individuals, speaking on stages, or leading movement-based sessions, Sarah's mission is to help people turn pain into power, reclaim their voice, and create a life grounded in resilience and authentic confidence.

URL for shoutout: https://janefinchtennis.ca/

Sarah proudly supports the Jane & Finch Tennis Organization (located in the Greater Toronto Area, Ontario), championing their work in empowering youth through sport, confidence-building, and mentorship.

Where to find me:
Website: Website / Booking Link: https://stan.store/sarahpezzutto

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahpezzutto/#

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

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sweatwithsarah

In this episode, Tracey shares the powerful parallels between the physical scars she carries and the emotional ones she spent years learning to understand. At eight years old, Tracey survived life-threatening burns when a candle ignited her homemade costume. She recalls going into survival mode instantly, brushing off her pain, and learning early on to fix problems quickly and minimize her own needs. This became the pattern that shaped much of her life. Tracey later joined the Coast Guard and found herself walking directly into the wounds of trauma through search-and-rescue missions. She reflects on how she often rescued others while subconsciously longing to be rescued herself. Many missions shifted from rescue to recovery, and the adrenaline kept her disconnected from her internal world. When her military career ended, Tracey felt bored, depressed, and untethered — not realizing this was the collapse that followed years of unaddressed trauma. It wasn't until 2014–2015 that she learned what PTSD truly was, and it took even longer before she sought therapy. She describes how she once believed therapy was a place for "pity parties," only to discover it was the compass she needed. Tracey talks about how humour became her deflection, isolation became her norm, and self-help strategies could only take her so far. Her turning point came when she recognized that she had choices — real options to move toward healing, connection, and her authentic self. Her key message to the listeners of the show is: Be courageous and not lack fear, courage is moving in the midst of fear, it's absolutely worth it; if you are wondering, then you are missing something; just start with one choice in the direction of your authentic self - choose to move into connections.

In this episode, Nicole shares the story she once believed she would never speak — the decade of childhood sexual abuse she experienced while the world around her saw a bright, high-achieving, "perfect" young girl. At fourteen, a single, intuitive question from her mother led to a moment of truth that changed everything. Nicole reflects on her mother's immediate protective actions and the fear, shame, and uncertainty that followed in the aftermath. Nicole describes how she learned to push her emotions down, stay busy, and shape herself into whatever version of "okay" she believed people wanted to see. She explains how perfectionism, people-pleasing, emotional shutdown, and keeping up appearances became her survival strategies. Together, we talk about the difference between true resilience and toxic positivity, the pressure she felt to make others comfortable with her story, and the lifelong impact of fear, threats, and chronic nervous-system activation. She also speaks openly about how these early experiences spilled into adulthood, affecting trust, relationships, boundaries, and her ability to feel safe. This conversation sheds light on what it means to stop carrying the emotional responsibility that never belonged to you, to understand yourself before relying on others for understanding, and to reconnect with your voice after years spent hiding in plain sight. Nicole's journey is one of courage, honesty, and reclaiming inner safety — reminding us that healing begins when we stop performing strength and finally allow ourselves to be seen. Her key message to the listeners of the show is: sometimes you have to tip-toe out of your hiding spot and do things afraid — it's scary but it has benefits; find your courage within yourself to find your own voice and use it, even when you know it is scary, because on the other side there is something good.

Jennifer was raised to be strong and independent—and she carried that identity proudly. As a critical care nurse, she believed she knew the answers to what it meant to be healthy and well. But life had other lessons waiting. Her journey shifted in 2002, when her second son suffered a massive neonatal stroke just one hour after birth. The experience awakened her to the many gaps in the healthcare system and inspired her to begin bridging those gaps through energy work, nutrition, and exercise. Several years later, on the same day she discovered she was expecting her fourth child, Jennifer learned that her third son—then just two-and-a-half years old—had been diagnosed with high-risk leukemia. Between caring for her children, managing her family, and supporting a husband working long surgical hours, Jennifer's own health began to unravel. She experienced panic attacks, migraines, digestive issues, and chronic tension. She describes years of giving endlessly—until there was nothing left to give. In 2010, a medical episode that presented as a stroke but was later diagnosed as an atypical migraine became her wake-up call. Jennifer recognized the lifelong pattern she was living out: the giver who never learned to receive. It was the turning point that pushed her to let go of perfection, learn to ask for help, and honour her limits. She began to say yes to herself, to rest, to reset, and to redefine what strength truly means. Her story is one of radical self-awareness—of learning that being enough does not mean doing it all, and that real power often lies in the pause. Her key message to the listeners of the show is: You are so much stronger than you think you are, and then you rise; give yourself permission to pause, there is so much power in that pause; it's okay to not to be okay, you are not broken, it is information that you are out of balance, so show up for yourself now.

Julie's story unfolds at the intersection of faith, identity, and self-compassion. Raised in a culturally and religiously conservative South Asian household, she grew up surrounded by clear definitions of what was right and wrong — spoken and unspoken rules that guided how one should live and belong. But how Julie was authentically wired didn't always fit those expectations. The tension between who she was and who she was told to be became an early internal struggle, one she learned to carry as if it were her fault. When Julie was ten years old, she lost her father in a tragic car accident that also involved her entire family. That loss created a rupture in family life — one that was never fully named, only absorbed. The family's way of coping became rooted in faith and community support, drawing strength from Christian teachings. While Julie deeply valued the beauty of faith, she also found herself questioning why prayer alone didn't always bring comfort. Each time she struggled, she thought she must not be doing enough, not believing enough, not honouring God enough. As life went on, those early beliefs resurfaced through new challenges. After marriage, Julie faced infertility — an experience that brought grief, isolation, and shame. She describes the pain of believing something was wrong with her, that she had somehow failed spiritually or personally. Surrounded by well-meaning voices telling her to "rely more on faith," she began to internalize guilt and self-blame. Eventually, Julie reached out for professional help and was encouraged to begin therapy — her first experience with talk therapy. There, she began exploring the grief of unrealized motherhood and the impact it had on her mental health, faith, and sense of purpose. She speaks openly about the destabilizing period of not knowing how to reconcile her loss with her spirituality, and how learning to connect with herself relationally became a turning point. Today, Julie continues her journey of growth and self-understanding. Through vulnerability, faith, and self-compassion, she is finding balance between her roots and her authentic voice. Her msg to the listeners of the show is: whatever you are experiencing or navigating is valid, have compassion with yourself; wherever you are stuck you have good reasons for that, more compassion you practice, the more you lean into authenticity and presence; engage presence in this way and it accelerates growth.


Guest Bio:
Julie is a licensed marriage and family therapist in Connecticut and New York with advanced training in trauma-informed care, mindfulness, and evidence-based modalities such as Emotionally Focused Therapy, CBT, and DBT. She holds degrees from New York University, Rutgers University, and Seattle Pacific University, and brings over a decade of experience in both the fast-paced technology sector and clinical practice. Julie has supported individuals, couples, and families around issues including anxiety, depression, disordered eating, trauma, and premarital counseling.

Inspired in part by her own lived experiences, Julie has a deep passion for walking alongside women and couples navigating fertility challenges, racial trauma, and life transitions. She has facilitated support groups for sexual abuse recovery and divorce grief, and she remains committed to creating safe, inclusive spaces where stories of struggle can be met with care and compassion. Today, Julie makes her home in Greenwich, CT, with her family and two rescue pups.

URL for shoutout: https://resolve.org/get-help/support-groups/


RESOLVE – an organization that offers fertility support through groups and resources available to individuals at little to no cost.

Where to find me:
Website: Website juliehalltherapy.com
Instagram: julievhall01
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliehalltherapy/
Email: julie@juliehalltherapy.com

Felicity's story is one of survival, silence, and rediscovery after enduring over forty years of physical, emotional, and mental abuse. At ten years old, she witnessed her father attempt to kill her mother with a crystal ashtray — a moment that changed everything and taught her to stay quiet, to shut down, and to carry fear as though it were part of her. Throughout her life, Felicity experienced repeated patterns of abuse. She grew up believing her worth was tied to endurance and her safety to silence — patterns rooted in a long line of generational trauma carried by her grandmother, her mother, and now, herself. Seventeen years ago, Felicity met the man who would later become her abuser. Ten years ago, she began her long process of recovery. In time, she remarried and started rebuilding, but this year brought another unexpected blow: a sudden divorce filing that reopened deep wounds. Living with C-PTSD, Felicity speaks about the exhaustion of being constantly triggered, mentally drained, and even told she was "too advanced" for the support she sought. She recalls being the child who ran to her mother's aid after the assault — an early pattern of caretaking that followed her through life. Now, she is learning to turn that same compassion inward and reclaim her sense of self. Through faith, surrender, and deep reflection, Felicity continues to transform pain into purpose. After years of surviving, she is finally discovering what it means to truly live and rebuild from the rubble with resilience and grace. Her key message to the listeners is: regardless of circumstances and what season of life you are in, you have the capability and power to redefine the narrative and life that you want — you don't have to be the person you were groomed into being; you can become the person you want to be.


Guest Bio:
Felicity is an author and storyteller whose work explores resilience, transformation, and self-discovery. With authenticity and depth, she draws from personal experience and a deep understanding of the human spirit to empower others in their own healing journeys. Her voice resonates with those seeking inspiration, growth, and a renewed sense of purpose, making her not only a writer but also a guide for women navigating pivotal life transitions.

She is the creator of She Is You, a brand and community for midlife women seeking connection, healing, and transformation. Known as a sisterhood of midlife warriors, this membership space is Felicity's passion project—helping women find support, strength, and lifelong friendships. A two-time international bestselling author, speaker, mentor, and coach, Felicity has rebuilt her life with courage and resilience, and now dedicates herself to helping other women do the same. Outside of her work, she enjoys time with her family, playing the cello, gardening, and reading.

URL for shoutout:
Invisible Warriors —The organization is dedicated to supporting and empowering women veterans, shining a light on their resilience and the unseen battles they continue to face with courage and strength.


Where to find me:
Website: https://sheisyoumag.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/felicity_nicole_
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/felicity-nicole-6665b08a/
Links: pieces of me:
https://www.amazon.com/Pieces-Me-Felicity-Nicole/dp/1913206521/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=V22HG5TB0B3A&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.MZCYTi7D4jSsSO0Aer9FB-YNMIuZf8cayqxYbiJS8C66tOCLEXmeuUZlW6PeU0NfsXmciy1Tw76kiDWuL-ZBOyI_C_jj7MjE3C1xZp1d1NY.LjFf_4OsCo1mFaRgT0GWrmcjmkvjnUiIeRd_lJqMg1I&dib_tag=se&keywords=pieces+of+me+felicity+nicole&qid=1756851628&sprefix=pieces+of+me+felicity+%2Caps%2C168&sr=8-1