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Lydia Vadez doesn’t tell a polished story. She tells the true one, the kind that starts in survival mode and slowly learns what safety feels like. We sit down and trace her journey from a childhood marked by physical abuse, secrecy, and being blamed for things she couldn’t control, all the way to the moment she realized she knew the name Jesus without knowing Jesus personally. If you’ve ever carried pain while still trying to be “the strong one” for everyone else, you’ll feel seen here.

We also talk about adulthood wounds that repeat old patterns: craving love, ending up in domestic violence, and living on constant defense because trust feels dangerous. Then motherhood turns everything up. Lydia opens up about raising her kids largely on her own, the pressure of providing, and the heartbreak of watching both of her daughters attempt suicide during COVID after relentless bullying. It’s a direct conversation about teen mental health, suicide warning signs, school bullying, racism, and what it looks like to keep showing up when you’re exhausted.

What makes Lydia’s story different is the shift in how she responds to life. She describes learning to run to the Father instead of running to fear, finding a church community that keeps pursuing her, and practicing prayer when money is tight and problems are loud. We also dig into forgiveness as a form of freedom, not denial, and how her goal now is to leave her kids something stronger than security: God in their hearts.

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