Send us Fan Mail

A phone rings after 7pm and the ordinary rush of parenting turns into a moment you never forget. Amber takes us back to early 2018, when she’s an assistant principal, a full-time working mum and newly pregnant, only to receive prenatal testing results that point to a Down syndrome diagnosis for her daughter. We talk through the shock, the uncertainty and the unexpected gratitude that arrives when fear starts shouting worst-case outcomes.

Then comes the next layer with a congenital heart defect discovered in utero, the reality of specialist teams and the planning that leads to open heart surgery when her baby is just five months old. Amber shares what special needs parenting looks like on the ground including therapy appointments, managing germs, family handovers, long drives and the mental load of keeping life moving while your nervous system is stuck in chronic stress and fight-flight-freeze.

Just as they’re finding their footing, Amber’s mum dies suddenly, and grief becomes the turning point that changes everything. We unpack why she steps away from work, why therapy becomes “I can’t afford not to” and how honest communication and couples support help her marriage hold. The conversation closes with the bold choice that resets their family by moving interstate for an adventure they actually choose, plus the writing and coaching work that grows into her seasonal syncing framework and book.

If this story hits home, subscribe to Everyday Warriors, share it with someone who needs hope, and leave a review so more people can find these real, raw conversations.

Connect with Amber on Instagram here

Work with Amber through her website

Purchase Ambers book Seasonal Syncing here

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the show

Thanks for listening in!

Contact me directly at https://everydaywarriorspodcast.com.au or head to
Instagram Personal or Podcast
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/trudie.dwyer

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the Podcast - Buy me a Coffee

Buy my Book here

Apply to be a guest at everydaywarriorspodcast@gmail.com

Music Credit: Cody Martin - Sunrise (first 26 episodes) then custom made for me.

Disclaimer: The views, opinions, experiences and stories shared by guests on the Everyday Warriors Podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host, Trudie Marie, or the Everyday Warriors Podcast.

Guests are responsible for the accuracy of the information they choose to share and speak from their own personal experiences and perspectives. While every effort is made to provide a respectful and supportive platform for open conversation, the host accepts no responsibility or liability for the statements, opinions, advice, claims or recollections expressed by guests during a...

Send us Fan Mail

A relationship can become a cage without you noticing the bars being built. Amanda joins me from Brisbane to share how early trauma and a loss of safety at 15 shaped the choices she made at 16, and how a controlling partner can disguise domination as “protection” until your confidence, friendships and freedom quietly disappear. Her story is raw, honest and painfully familiar to anyone who’s lived through coercive control and domestic violence.

We unpack what control looks like in day-to-day life with money, transport, parenting, isolation, blame and the public mask that convinces everyone you’re fine. Amanda explains the turning point that comes through nursing and university, when learning about domestic violence gives her language for what she’s been surviving. From there, we walk through the reality of leaving with six kids in the mix, the moment she needs police support to collect her things and the fear that comes with realising how dangerous separation can be.

The conversation goes deeper into post-separation abuse, family court trauma and parental alienation, including the ways systems and paperwork can be used as weapons. We also spend time on recovery and trauma healing including meditation as “medication”, therapy, journalling, self-trust and choosing to move forward minute by minute when you can’t see the other side yet. Amanda shares how she rebuilds her identity, restores relationships with most of her now-adult children and names her memoir "She Lives" as a declaration of survival.

If this story resonates, please subscribe, share it with someone who needs it, and leave a review so more people can find these real conversations. What part of Amanda’s journey stayed with you most?

Connect with Amanda on Instagram here

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the show

Thanks for listening in!

Contact me directly at https://everydaywarriorspodcast.com.au or head to
Instagram Personal or Podcast
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/trudie.dwyer

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the Podcast - Buy me a Coffee

Buy my Book here

Apply to be a guest at everydaywarriorspodcast@gmail.com

Music Credit: Cody Martin - Sunrise (first 26 episodes) then custom made for me.

Disclaimer: The views, opinions, experiences and stories shared by guests on the Everyday Warriors Podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host, Trudie Marie, or the Everyday Warriors Podcast.

Guests are responsible for the accuracy of the information they choose to share and speak from their own personal experiences and perspectives. While every effort is made to provide a respectful and supportive platform for open conversation, the host accepts no responsibility or liability for the statements, opinions, advice, claims or recollections expressed by guests during a...

Send us Fan Mail

He served for 20 years, chased meaning in high-risk missions, then pressed the retirement button and realised the hardest fight was about to start at home. Anthony joins us from Clovis, New Mexico, to share what military service gave him, what it took from him and what it cost when the uniform came off and the structure disappeared. The shift from special operations purpose to civilian life hits fast and he speaks plainly about loss of identity, the pull of alcohol and the moment his wife drew a line he couldn’t ignore.

We go deep on veteran mental health, PTSD and what “getting help” actually looks like when you’ve spent a career pushing through. Anthony talks about prolonged exposure therapy, panic attacks and learning to be comfortable being uncomfortable, while I reflect on why talk therapy can feel like reliving the worst moments and still be the thing that takes their power away. We also unpack the practical side of recovery: treating mental health like routine maintenance, building a real support network and why seeing leaders seek help makes it easier for others to do the same.

Some of the most memorable moments are the simplest, “four quarters over a hundred pennies” as a guide to friendship, choosing the pen over the bottle through writing and the “two wolves” reminder that daily actions decide what grows. Anthony’s mission now is fatherhood and presence and he shares the moon as his lighthouse, a symbol of light that holds steady on dark nights. If you’re navigating military transition, first responder stress, addiction recovery, or trauma healing, you’ll find honesty and usable lessons here. Subscribe, share this with someone who needs it, and leave a review to help more everyday warriors find these stories.

Connect with Anthony on Facebook here

Puchase Anthony's book Moon Child here

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the show

Thanks for listening in!

Contact me directly at https://everydaywarriorspodcast.com.au or head to
Instagram Personal or Podcast
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/trudie.dwyer

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the Podcast - Buy me a Coffee

Buy my Book here

Apply to be a guest at everydaywarriorspodcast@gmail.com

Music Credit: Cody Martin - Sunrise (first 26 episodes) then custom made for me.

Disclaimer: The views, opinions, experiences and stories shared by guests on the Everyday Warriors Podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host, Trudie Marie, or the Everyday Warriors Podcast.

Guests are responsible for the accuracy of the information they choose to share and speak from their own personal experiences and perspectives. While every effort is made to provide a respectful and supportive platform for open conversation, the host accepts no responsibility or liability for the statements, opinions, advice, claims or recollections expressed by guests during a...

Send us Fan Mail

You can be doing everything “right” and still be treated like you don’t belong. That’s why my chat with Michelle hits so hard. She’s lived the reality of a learning disability from kindergarten, through bullying and repeated grades, into adulthood where the stigma doesn’t magically disappear just because you leave school.

Michelle takes us through the practical details people rarely talk about including visual perception issues that made driving unsafe, limited hand dexterity that was misread as “bad handwriting” and the exhausting pressure of being labelled lazy or careless. We also dig into what actually helps, not just inspirational slogans but disability accommodations like extra time, note-taking support and having the confidence to introduce yourself to lecturers and clearly ask for what you need. Along the way, she shares how reading and writing became a lifeline and why finding a community outside school can be the difference between isolation and belonging.

Now, Michelle works as a teacher’s aide paraprofessional with seventh graders, using her lived experience to teach self-advocacy, respectful behaviour and how to speak up without shame. She also writes publicly through her blog Michelle’s Mission, pairs disability storytelling with photography and steps into disability policy advocacy, including a legislative visit focused on improving access to school counsellors through a counselling compact.

If you care about inclusive education, disability rights, or raising kinder kids, press play. Subscribe, share this with a mate, and leave a review so more people can find these stories.

Connect with Michelle on Facebook or Instagram

Read Michelles blog here

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the show

Thanks for listening in!

Contact me directly at https://everydaywarriorspodcast.com.au or head to
Instagram Personal or Podcast
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/trudie.dwyer

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the Podcast - Buy me a Coffee

Buy my Book here

Apply to be a guest at everydaywarriorspodcast@gmail.com

Music Credit: Cody Martin - Sunrise (first 26 episodes) then custom made for me.

Disclaimer: The views, opinions, experiences and stories shared by guests on the Everyday Warriors Podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host, Trudie Marie, or the Everyday Warriors Podcast.

Guests are responsible for the accuracy of the information they choose to share and speak from their own personal experiences and perspectives. While every effort is made to provide a respectful and supportive platform for open conversation, the host accepts no responsibility or liability for the statements, opinions, advice, claims or recollections expressed by guests during a...

Send us Fan Mail

A social worker and a police officer turn up at a child’s school and say, “You’re coming with us, you won’t be coming home tonight.” Tracy remembers her knees going weak, not from fear, but relief: “Oh my God, I’ve been saved.” That moment opens a conversation you won’t forget about childhood trauma, foster care abuse, and what it takes to rebuild a life when safety was never guaranteed.

We trace Tracy’s early years through abandonment, children’s homes and foster placements where abuse, neglect and coercion were normalised. She explains the survival skills that follow you into adulthood such as people pleasing, trauma bonding, emotional shutdown and the constant habit of reading the room. We also unpack the systemic failures that kept children in harm’s way and what it’s like to later read official reports that confirm professionals saw the signs and still didn’t act.

Then we move into the turning points where books were a lifeline, education was a way out and the high-achieving “Superwoman” phase that hid complex PTSD and burnout. Tracy shares how parenting brought old abandonment wounds to the surface, why she chose EMDR therapy and how learning about attachment theory and generational trauma helped her change the pattern for her daughters. She also speaks about taking social services to court, receiving an apology and the complicated kind of closure that brings.

If you care about trauma-informed healing, resilience, complex PTSD recovery, and real stories from the care system, press play, then subscribe, share this with someone who needs it, and leave a review so more people can find these conversations.

Connect with Tracy on Instagram here

Listen to Tracy's podcast Coffee Chats etc here

Support the show

Thanks for listening in!

Contact me directly at https://everydaywarriorspodcast.com.au or head to
Instagram Personal or Podcast
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/trudie.dwyer

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the Podcast - Buy me a Coffee

Buy my Book here

Apply to be a guest at everydaywarriorspodcast@gmail.com

Music Credit: Cody Martin - Sunrise (first 26 episodes) then custom made for me.

Disclaimer: The views, opinions, experiences and stories shared by guests on the Everyday Warriors Podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host, Trudie Marie, or the Everyday Warriors Podcast.

Guests are responsible for the accuracy of the information they choose to share and speak from their own personal experiences and perspectives. While every effort is made to provide a respectful and supportive platform for open conversation, the host accepts no responsibility or liability for the statements, opinions, advice, claims or recollections expressed by guests during a...

Send us Fan Mail

A single phone call can split your life into before and after and Chelsea still carries the exact timestamp: 11:34 p.m. She was in the final stretch of an undergraduate psychology thesis in forensic psychology, proud she’d gained the trust of a serial killer for her research, when real life hit harder than any true crime story. Her brother was arrested after a man was shot and killed, and the shock collided with grief, COVID lockdowns, and the kind of isolation that makes your nervous system feel permanently on edge.

We talk honestly about trauma and memory, why certain details haunt you, and how EMDR therapy helped her process that first crushing moment. Chelsea also walks us through what it’s like watching the media build a simple “monster” narrative while you’re reading police reports, listening to dispatch calls and seeing witness accounts that point to self-defence. We unpack the role of Kentucky’s stand your ground law, the volatility of PCP (angel dust), and how drugs, violence and fear can make a split-second decision life or death.

Then the story turns into a criminal justice system nightmare. Chelsea describes trial dynamics in a small town, inconsistent testimonies and the social price families pay when they’re linked to a homicide case. Even after the Kentucky Supreme Court rules her brother acted in self-defence and criticises the trial court, she says he remains detained without new charges. It raises uncomfortable questions about wrongful conviction, unlawful imprisonment and accountability when a court decision still doesn’t deliver freedom.

Connect with Chelsea on Instagram here

Purchase Chelsea's books here

If this conversation hits you, please subscribe, share it with someone who cares about justice reform, and leave a five-star review so more people can find Everyday Warriors. What part of Chelsea’s story are you still thinking about after listening?

Support the show

Thanks for listening in!

Contact me directly at https://everydaywarriorspodcast.com.au or head to
Instagram Personal or Podcast
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/trudie.dwyer

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the Podcast - Buy me a Coffee

Buy my Book here

Apply to be a guest at everydaywarriorspodcast@gmail.com

Music Credit: Cody Martin - Sunrise (first 26 episodes) then custom made for me.

Disclaimer: The views, opinions, experiences and stories shared by guests on the Everyday Warriors Podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host, Trudie Marie, or the Everyday Warriors Podcast.

Guests are responsible for the accuracy of the information they choose to share and speak from their own personal experiences and perspectives. While every effort is made to provide a respectful and supportive platform for open conversation, the host accepts no responsibility or liability for the statements, opinions, advice, claims or recollections expressed by guests during a...

Send us Fan Mail

Most people only meet police on their worst day, then assume they understand the job. We don’t and that gap is where judgement, stigma and burnout grow.

I’m joined by Tom for a blunt, grounded conversation about what law enforcement really demands. We talk about why people join, why “get a steady job” isn’t enough and why a service-connected medical retirement doesn’t make anyone less of a real cop. Tom shares how a career can be packed with incidents that stack up quietly, plus what it’s like to carry both pride and grief for the work.

We also get into first responder mental health, PTSD, anxiety and the trap many officers face when seeking help. Speak up and risk being labelled unfit for duty or stay silent and let it fester. We unpack why truly external counselling matters, how camaraderie has changed and how body-worn cameras can protect you one moment and be used against you the next.

Along the way we touch on trust and integrity inside policing, corruption, cop-involved domestics and the fine line between necessary force and avoidable harm. We finish with what keeps us steady, what we’re grateful for, and Tom’s memoir, The Life in Law Enforcement: The Good, the Bad, The Corrupt.

Connect with Tom here

Purchase Tom's book here

If this conversation hits home, subscribe, share it with someone who needs a clearer view of policing, and leave a review so more everyday warriors can find these stories. What part of the job do you think the public most misunderstands?

Support the show

Thanks for listening in!

Contact me directly at https://everydaywarriorspodcast.com.au or head to
Instagram Personal or Podcast
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/trudie.dwyer

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the Podcast - Buy me a Coffee

Buy my Book here

Apply to be a guest at everydaywarriorspodcast@gmail.com

Music Credit: Cody Martin - Sunrise (first 26 episodes) then custom made for me.

Disclaimer: The views, opinions, experiences and stories shared by guests on the Everyday Warriors Podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host, Trudie Marie, or the Everyday Warriors Podcast.

Guests are responsible for the accuracy of the information they choose to share and speak from their own personal experiences and perspectives. While every effort is made to provide a respectful and supportive platform for open conversation, the host accepts no responsibility or liability for the statements, opinions, advice, claims or recollections expressed by guests during a...

Send us Fan Mail

She thought the answer to her problems was another man, another night out, another bottle hidden just well enough to get through the day. Helen takes us back to 2013, when alcohol addiction and chaotic thinking collided with motherhood, marriage and crushing shame, until one blunt truth cut through the fog. Her kids loved her, but they were scared of her. That moment leads to rehab and a 12-step recovery path that transforms how she lives, parents and asks for help.

We go deep on what sobriety really looks like after the detox glow fades. From losing friends and being judged by other mums to making amends without guarantees and learning how to be “sober me” rather than only a wife or a mother. Helen also shares the reality of raising her daughter with Prader-Willi syndrome, including the medical and behavioural challenges, the constant food management and the emotional weight carers carry. If you’re searching for honest conversations about addiction recovery, relapse prevention, parenting in recover, and disability caregiving, this one is packed with lived experience.

The story takes another sharp turn when Helen’s second husband, also an addict, stops working his program and spirals into gambling and infidelity before disappearing overseas and leaving debts behind. Helen describes reaching a terrifying point where she doesn’t want to drink, but she does want to die and how sponsorship, meetings, online community and dropping her pride helps her survive and rebuild. Listener discretion advised, and if you need immediate support in Australia, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.

If Helen’s story lands with you, please subscribe, share it with someone who needs hope, and leave a review so more people can find Everyday Warriors. What’s one thing that has helped you ask for help sooner?

Connect with Helen on Facebook here

Connect with Helen on Instagram here

Support the show

Thanks for listening in!

Contact me directly at https://everydaywarriorspodcast.com.au or head to
Instagram Personal or Podcast
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/trudie.dwyer

Subscribe to Everyday Warrior Moments here

Support the Podcast - Buy me a Coffee

Buy my Book here

Apply to be a guest at everydaywarriorspodcast@gmail.com

Music Credit: Cody Martin - Sunrise (first 26 episodes) then custom made for me.

Disclaimer: The views, opinions, experiences and stories shared by guests on the Everyday Warriors Podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the host, Trudie Marie, or the Everyday Warriors Podcast.

Guests are responsible for the accuracy of the information they choose to share and speak from their own personal experiences and perspectives. While every effort is made to provide a respectful and supportive platform for open conversation, the host accepts no responsibility or liability for the statements, opinions, advice, claims or recollections expressed by guests during a...