Awakening Worth in Childless Women

I started this podcast back in 2020, thinking it was about grief. I was focusing on miscarriage. It was called Love and Loss. And then as my own journey evolved, as I had to accept that I was never going to have children, I realized that I had so much more to talk about than just the grief. 

 And as I worked with childless women, I began to see something deeper. Beneath the grief was this equally aching emotion – and a belief:  I am not enough.”  I am not good enough.  I am treated like a second class citizen.  I am less than the mothers.  This is not grief.  

Then I started noticing something else… My friends with kids? They felt it too. My clients in midlife? Same story. Women navigating burnout, divorce, menopause… all wondering, "Is it just me?  Why do I feel like I’m constantly hustling to be perfect, to help others, to please others – I’m always last on the list".

In this episode, you’re going to find out:

• what all this "not enoughness" is really all about
• the catalysts that shine an light on our feelings of less-than
• the deep lessons I learned from being childless (that will crack YOU open too)

I'm also going to share why I'm closing this chapter and give you a sneak peak at the amazing things that are coming next! 

Join the Midlife Rising podcast launch fan club if you want to join us in burning the rules and reclaiming your fire! Join here: sherijohnson.ca/podlaunch

Until June 12th will be your LAST CHANCE to join the Women of Worth program for childless women.  This is not a support group.  It's a guided transformation.  And one that you'll never find anywhere else.  Email me the word PROGRAM at [email protected] if you want to apply for one of the last 6 spots.

Where to find Sheri:
Instagram: @sherijohnsoncoaching
Website: sherijohnson.ca

So many women try to fix the pain of childlessness by avoiding baby showers, cutting off triggering friends, or demanding others say the “right thing.” But what if the true revolution isn’t about protecting yourself from the world… but reclaiming your place in it?

In this second episode of our 3-part closing series (so go back to ep. 147 if you haven't listened to it yet), we unravel the common mistakes women make when trying to relieve the pain of being “othered.” We revisit the work you’ve already done by listening to this podcast and show you what’s truly possible when you move from hiding to rising.

You are not just healing. You are leading. And your very presence is actually a part of a revolution that's changing the world.

What You’ll Hear:

• 4 ways women try to relieve pain that actually keep them stuck
• The cost of organizing your life around avoidance
• A powerful reflection on your journey with this podcast
• What becomes possible when childless women stop trying to fit in—and start taking up space

Continue being a part of the revolution by joining our last live cohort of the Women of Worth.  Email me "PROGRAM" at [email protected] and I'll send you the info!

Where to find Sheri:
Instagram: @sherijohnsoncoaching
Website: sherijohnson.ca

I make a BIG announcement at the beginning of this episode so tune in to find out more about the future of the Awakening Worth Pod.  And then, the rest of the episode is for the childless woman who wonders why she still feels stuck in grief after letting go of motherhood. It's not just grief you’ve been carrying. It’s the deep, unspoken belief that your worth was tied to becoming a mother.

In this opening chapter of our final 3-part podcast series, I share the personal realization that changed everything for me: triggers are not just about grief—they’re about self-worth. And when you begin to reclaim yours, everything shifts.

We’ll explore the hidden signs of low self-worth masked as grief, and how your healing journey has always been about more than loss—it’s been about liberation.

What You’ll Hear:

• The truth about triggers and grief no one talks about
• 7 signs your self-worth is calling for attention
• Why this podcast was actually about way more than becoming a mother—it was about becoming me and inviting you to become YOU

The doors are open for the last round of the Women of Worth - a guided transformation from grief and triggers to peace and purpose.  Email me at [email protected] with the word PROGRAM if you want to apply for one of the last spots. 

Where to find Sheri:
Instagram: @sherijohnsoncoaching
Website: sherijohnson.ca

When you're childless, midlife and menopause can feel like much more than a biological transition. It's a spiritual reckoning. Especially when the world thinks that the only value women add after menopause is "grandmother" - and you don't get to be one.

In this deeply honest episode, we’re naming what few dare to say: that for childless women, midlife and menopause come with a unique, often invisible layer of grief. Not just hot flashes—but heartbreak. Not just hormone shifts—but identity shifts. 

✨ If you're silently asking yourself:

• “What’s my worth now if I’m not a mother?”
• “Will I be forgotten as I age?”
• "What's my legacy going to be?"
   …this episode is for you.

We explore:

 🔹 The silent grief of childlessness that menopause brings to the surface
 🔹 Why traditional wellness and empowerment models miss the mark for women like you
 🔹 The myth of irrelevance—and how patriarchy and pronatalism shape our fears
 🔹 How to redefine legacy, worth, and purpose on your own terms
🔹 How to Rise and Reclaim your worth and take on a soul-honouring path forward

If you want to know more about how to gracefully navigate menopause as a childless woman, send me an email at [email protected] with the word PROGRAM. 

Where to find Sheri:
Instagram: @sherijohnsoncoaching
Website: sherijohnson.ca

I know that Mother's Day is one of the toughest days of the year for us women without kids.​ When I went through my first couple of Mother's Days, I followed all the advice I heard online....

Just stay off social media.  Just pretend it's just like any other day. Do something nice for yourself. ​

These were all things that worked to help me push through the day, but really just amounted to band-aid solutions.  They didn't actually me to fully let go of the triggers leading up to it or the pain I experienced on the day itself.

It wasn't until I started doing things differently that I actually began to enjoy it. And this week, we're replaying my unique steps for ​not just getting through the day with grace but showing up fully for it.

These are the steps that are going to help you actually feel better next year, and each day leading up to it.

My steps for getting through the day go against the grain.  They'll seem counterintuitive but they work.

And if you want more, we are running the last live cohort of the Women of Worth program starting this week.  If you want to apply for one of a few spots left, email me the word PROGRAM at [email protected].

Where to find Sheri:
Instagram: @sherijohnsoncoaching
Website: sherijohnson.ca

What if the very thing you thought disqualified you from living a meaningful and powerful life… was actually the very thing meant to ignite it?

In this episode, I’m speaking directly to the woman who didn’t get the life she planned. The one who didn’t become the mother she dreamed of being—and wonders if she’s now supposed to just sit on the sidelines while everyone else builds, leads, and creates.

If that’s you, I want you to know: you were made for more.

I’m dismantling the deep and painful myth that childless women are “less than”—and sharing how this chapter of your life might just be the one where you become who you were always meant to be.

🔥 Here’s what you'll shift:

• The lie of the bystander: How society conditions us to shrink when we don’t become mothers—and why that ends now.
• Real stories of reclamation: From a Grammy-nominated composer to a courageous counselor, you’ll hear how my clients turned their grief into something purposeful and bold.
• Instead of trying to push the pain away, allowing your pain to lead you to your purpose: I share how I didn’t bypass the pain—I let it shape me, guide me, and ultimately lead me to this work.

Not having children didn’t sideline your life. Believing you have nothing left to offer is what sidelines your life.

Healing isn’t just about feeling better—it’s about building something beautiful.

Are you feeling the pull?

If you’re quietly aching for more… if something inside you knows this can’t be all there is… this is your final chance to join me live inside Women of Worth.

This isn’t about fixing yourself. It’s about reclaiming your voice, your gifts, your future.

You don't have to be a bystander.

I’m holding space for 10 women who are ready to rise in the last live cohort of the Women of Worth program. And if you’re listening to this episode right now, it's not by accident.

📩 Email me at [email protected] if this resonated and you're ready to rise and reclaim your purpose. 

Where to find Sheri:
Instagram: @sherijohnsoncoaching
Website: sherijohnson.ca

What if I told you that being being a people pleaser might be the very thing holding you back from feeling free, worthy, and at peace in your own life?

This episode is for the high-achieving, childless woman who is tired of over-functioning, over-giving, and still never feeling like enough. If you find yourself wondering…

• “Am I being selfish?”
• “Do people think I have it too easy?”
• “Should I be doing more?”

…then you are going to resonate with this conversation.

Here's a big truth we unpack: People-pleasing isn’t kindness—it’s self-abandonment dressed up in likability.

In this potent and soul-shifting episode, you’ll uncover:

✅ The 7 sneaky signs you’re still trying to prove you’re “a good woman” (even without kids)
✅ Why you overcompensate to be seen as worthy
✅ How internalized patriarchy and pronatalism quietly shape your people-pleasing
✅ The real cost of performing instead of being
✅ Small but powerful steps to reclaim your time, your truth, and your peace

This is your permission slip to stop performing and start living.

If you’re often called “so nice,” but secretly feel invisible or exhausted—this one’s for you.

👉 Plus: We’re opening the FINAL round of Women of Worth™, the deep transformation experience for childless women ready to stop people-pleasing and start living for themselves. Only 10 spots. Once it’s full, it’s gone.

📩 Ready to apply? Email [email protected] with the subject line: “I’m ready for more.”

Where to find Sheri:
Instagram: @sherijohnsoncoaching
Website: sherijohnson.ca

You don’t have kids, but somehow you’re still hustling to prove you're a good woman. Why?
We live in a world that glorifies selflessness—and if you're not a mother, the pressure to perform it in other ways is real.

This episode is a wake-up call to the invisible ways you're trying to prove your worth by over-giving. 

✨ What if everything you've been taught about what makes a woman “good” is actually a trap?

I'm pulling back the curtain on a cultural myth that affects millions of women—especially those without children:
 👉 The belief that your worth lies in how much you sacrifice.

For moms, their worth is often tied to how much they sacrifice for their children.

And what happens when a woman doesn’t have children?
🔹 She sacrifices in other ways

🔹People still (either consciously or subconsciously) label her as "selfish"

🔹 And that label silently drives perfectionism, people-pleasing, and burnout

You’ll hear:

• A personal story that cracked open the invisible pressure to “earn” our place in the world
• How both mothers and non-mothers are gaslit by impossible double standards
• The hidden cost of trying to “make up” for not having kids
• And how to reclaim your worth—without guilt, without apology

🔥 You’ll Learn:

• The real reason high-achieving women without kids overcommit and overgive
• How patriarchy + pronatalism are behind the myth of the “ideal woman”
• Why even your most “empowered” choices may be driven by fear of being seen as selfish
• A reframe that will change how you say yes and no forever

If you’ve ever wrestled with guilt for honouring your own needs, if you’ve bent over backwards to seem “selfless,” - this episode is your permission slip.

Ready to reclaim your life without apology?
Tune in!

📲 Loved this episode?

Here’s how to support:

1. Follow the show so you never miss an episode
2. Rate & Review – Your words help this reach more women who need it
3. Share it with a friend who’s ready to break the “selfless” spell

Where to find Sheri:
Instagram: @sherijohnsoncoaching
Website: sherijohnson.ca

Most women think that if they just knew what to say to set a boundary, aka say "no", they will start doing it. That's actually what's keeping them from getting time back for what they really want.

The media conversations about setting boundaries are reinforcing this belief, and missing a critical piece that is stopping women from setting them. 

First, they tell you that you should set better boundaries. That's not helpful because most women already know they should, but either think it's unrealistic or have been unable to do so.

The information out there also tends to be about the practical side of setting boundaries, like what to say or do, such as blocking your calendar for personal time.

The problem is that none of this works if you have emotions or beliefs that stop you from setting the boundary in the first place, or overthinking and spinning with guilt after you do set one.

So, my sister, Jen, who is an expert on burnout and boundaries, is talking with me about the secrets to finally setting boundaries- without guilt.

We dig into:

• the other boundaries beyond saying "no": the overlooked boundaries that protect your peace. 
• The fears and emotions that stop you from setting a boundary
• Boundaries for childless women
• Why setting boundaries is so crucial to being a great leader

We leave you with 5 steps to maintaining stronger boundaries. 

If you are stressed, over-committed and tired, releasing the emotions keeping you from honouring your boundaries is one way to find peace and ease at work and in life. 

If you want to start setting healthier boundaries and sticking to them, join our virtual mini-retreat! 

Get all the information here: Guilt-Free Boundaries Virtual Retreat

Find Jen on instagram: @jenreimerleadership

Where to find Sheri:
Instagram: @sherijohnsoncoaching
Website: sherijohnson.ca

This is something most childless women don't realize, and it's the thing that is keeping them stuck.

The grief you feel as a childless woman is real, but there’s something much bigger at play.

So many childless women I talk to tell me they feel stuck. They think it's grief. But they're wrong. I'm going to tell you why and the key to becoming unstuck.

The truth is, there are silent forces that have affected the way you view yourself, and they are the culprit. They are constantly running in the background, telling you that you are not worthy if you're not a mother. 

In this episode, I'll give you 5 signs that these forces are at play in your life, and give you the key to getting on the path to freedom.

I call it the Unbecoming Blueprint, and the women who go through it feel lighter, more self-assured, and FREE. 

If you want to know more about the Unbecoming Blueprint, click HERE to join the waitlist for the Women of Worth program

Where to find Sheri:
Instagram: @sherijohnsoncoaching
Website: sherijohnson.ca