What if everything you thought was real… wasn’t?In this episode of The Liberation Effect, Helen is joined by Emma, who’s facing the grief of being discarded by her narcissistic mother - not because she walked away, but because she finally said no.Now in her fifties and newly separated, Emma is navigating the disorienting fallout of a lifetime spent performing for love, questioning every memory, and grieving the identity she was never allowed to form. Together, she and Helen unpack what happens when your childhood starts to unravel in adulthood, and how hard it is to trust yourself when you've spent your whole life being told who to be.Grow, connect and thrive with a free 7-day trial of The Hub: https://liberationacademy.co.uk/the-hub/To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-application
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1:36:01
7. What Can I Do to Make Her Love Me?
What if understanding it won’t make it hurt less?In this episode of The Liberation Effect, Helen is joined by Megan, who’s gone no contact with her parents but is still being pulled back in through guilt, shame, and flying monkey messages. Now pregnant again, Megan finds herself circling old patterns of self-doubt and wondering if she really was the problem all along.What unfolds is a conversation about grief, survival, and the desperate need to make sense of the senseless. Together, Helen and Megan explore how the urge to understand - to explain, justify, or find a reason - can sometimes be a trauma response in itself. Because if we can figure it out, maybe we can fix it. And if we can fix it, maybe we weren’t really abandoned at all.Trigger warning: this episode involves discussions about child loss and bereavement.Grow, connect and thrive with a free 7-day trial of The Hub: https://liberationacademy.co.uk/the-hub/To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-application
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1:44:38
6. Why Am I Scared to Say No?
What happens when the fear of rejection runs so deep it controls your every decision? In this episode of The Liberation Effect, Helen sits down with Laura, who is climbing the corporate ladder while quietly battling burnout. Behind her inability to say no lies a lifetime of people-pleasing, a deeply enmeshed family system, and a childhood marked by secrecy and survival.Together, Helen and Laura trace the emotional roots of this fear - from Laura’s experience growing up with a mother who demanded complete emotional transparency while forcing her to conceal dangerous truths, to the trauma of abandonment and the impossible role of being everyone's safe place. This conversation gently unpacks how trauma echoes in professional spaces, how enmeshment distorts boundaries, and how we start learning to say no - not just as a boundary, but as a form of self-protection.Grow, connect and thrive with a free 7-day trial of The Hub: https://liberationacademy.co.uk/the-hub/To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-application
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1:15:02
5. Was He Safe or Is It Toxic Hope?
What happens when the ‘safe parent’ lets you down?In this episode, Lucy joins host Helen to explore the painful realisation that the parent she once saw as kind, gentle and safe – may never have been that at all.After going no contact with her emotionally abusive stepmother, Lucy began speaking to her dad about what she’d lived through. But what followed was denial, gaslighting and invalidation – not just from her stepmother, but from the man she thought would be in her corner.Together, Helen and Lucy explore toxic hope, the idolisation of the “good dad”, and the heartbreak of seeing someone clearly for the first time.If you’ve ever been made to feel too sensitive, too difficult, or like you’re remembering it all wrong – this one’s for you.Grow, connect and thrive with a free 7-day trial of The Hub: https://liberationacademy.co.uk/the-hub/To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-application
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1:16:07
4. Is It Meant To Be Like This?
In this episode, Helen is joined by Kate, who shares her story of going no contact with her mother and navigating the complex aftermath. What starts as a conversation about finding peace after estrangement becomes a profound exploration of trauma, covert abuse, family conditioning, and the grief that often follows disconnection.Together, Helen and Kate discuss the deep roots of people-pleasing, how it links to childhood experiences, the long-term effects of narcissistic parenting, and the role shame plays in keeping us silent. With honesty and vulnerability, Kate offers a voice to what so many survivors feel but often can’t say.Important note: There is a trigger/content warning in this episode for sexual abuse - please listen with caution and seek appropriate support if necessary.Grow, connect and thrive with The Hub: https://liberationacademy.co.uk/the-hub/To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-application
Each week Helen invites a guest to explore a problem they’re facing and works through it with them; peeling back the layers to understand what’s happening and offering ways to move forward and make changes to resolve the issue.
Whether it’s coping with narcissistic parents; going no contact; parenting ADHD or Autistic children; parenting after trauma; or their own ADHD or Autism; Helen helps the listener untangle the parts that keeps them stuck.
To access Helen’s community focused on healing, learning and support, visit https://liberationacademy.co.uk/the-hub/
UK