I AM MY Passion Project

Often what betrayed partners need most after getting to safety (whether emotionally, physically, or both) and getting their nervous system calmed down, is to hear that they are not alone. . . . to be validated and shown that there is a supportive community available for them. And, that's what this episode with Susan Rankin aims to provide.

Susan Rankin is a Certified Professional Coach and holds an ACC credential with the International Coaching Federation. She specializes in betrayal trauma and is certified by The Association of Partners of Sex Addicts Trauma Specialists (APSATS). She has almost four years of experience working with betrayed partners and couples impacted by infidelity and sexual addiction. Susan is the founder of Restoring Hearts Coaching, LLC and uses her own unique experience as a betrayed partner to empower others to heal and thrive from the aftermath of betrayal. 

Susan is so much more than a coach and lovely person. She is also one of the fittest women that I know having completed 10 full marathons AND an ultra. And she uses all the strength, dedication, and determination harnessed by her fitness training to overcome life’s obstacles and provide her clients with the grounded support they need to repair their relationships after betrayal.

Susan's suggested resources:

APSATS.org, Sexhelp.com

Susan's contact info (Restoring Hearts, LLC):

Web: restoringheartscoaching.com

eMail: [email protected]

Stay connected:

• Keep up with I AM MY Passion Project’s latest episodes and related content by signing up for the newsletter at Womanhouse
• Follow @womanhouseprojects on IG for inspiration and updates

• Purchase, I Am Reclaiming Me: A Betrayed Partner's Daily Practice Journal for Women by Lorna Nakell
• Sign up for upcoming workshops and retreats

Note: I earn commissions from sponsored links.

How do you find your unique voice and use that voice to empower yourself, bringing about transformation in the things that you do and the way you show up in life?

Brenda R Bryan is the guest on this episode and she rocks the title of Kick Ass Inspirational Speaker and the Diviner of Human Potential. As a Speakers Coach, Transformational Coach and Mastermind Facilitator, she supports Women to unmask and nurture their genius, empowering them to live in the strength of their passion. She teaches through The Raise Your Voice Speakers Club, Badass Warriors Circle Mastermind, Dream Building workshops, one on one coaching, and workshops and stages across the country. 

This is a conversation that doesn’t shy away from talking about the patriarchal structure that has kept women oppressed and not living to their full potential. But, we also delve into the fact that it’s not too late to claim a safe space where you can dream big dreams and try new things. And, Brenda’s infectious vivaciousness will make you want to live your most vigorous and vibrant life despite whatever hardships you’ve had to overcome.  

Stay connected:

• Keep up with I AM MY Passion Project’s latest episodes and related content by signing up for the newsletter at Womanhouse
• Follow @womanhouseprojects on IG for inspiration and updates

Artists who have experienced traumatic childhoods are more likely to fully immerse themselves in the creative process, having a more robust fantasy life, and feeling emotions more strongly. Think Van Gogh, or Nicki Minaj—if you don't want to go back that far. And, the creative process can look like many different things. Artists also have a tendency towards giving. But how do you channel that creativity and an empathy for others when you're placed in the position that a lot of women end up struggling with: being part of the "sandwich generation?"

My guest on this episode, Jen Neitzel, shares her journey from maker to teacher and art school owner, to tiny home maker, to owner and innkeeper of The Starry Night Inn (a boutique art hotel in Seaside, OR) all while being a caretaker for her mom who suffers from mental illness. Hear how Jen uses her creativity to uplift and support others, while being supported herself, by her husband and son.

Check out The Starry Night Inn for a relaxing and artsy stay at Seaside. If you're an artist, consider applying for the artist residency.

Stay connected:

• Keep up with I AM MY Passion Project’s latest episodes and related content by signing up for the newsletter at Womanhouse
• Follow @womanhouseprojects on IG for inspiration and updates

In the spring of 2022 I discovered that my husband of 21 years had cheated on me in a variety of ways. Before that day, I thought we were good. Even after hearing how romantic love can fade over the years and be replaced by practical love, I felt my love for Noah grow and deepen every year. I was truly in love with him. When I discovered his betrayal my whole world crumbled beneath me.

This is my story of betrayal trauma and recovery. I tell it to educate, inspire, and validate other betrayed partners who might be dealing with deep feelings of loss, anger, regret, and of not being enough. All of those feelings are valid. And, it is possible to move beyond the hurt with or without your partner to live a full and wiser life.

Here are some resources that have helped me as well as Noah and my coupleship:

Podcasts

• Helping Couples Heal with Duane Osterlind and Marney Breeker
• The Healing Trauma Podcast with Monique Koven

Treatment and Counseling Programs

• Helping Couples Heal: Online individual and couples counseling plus couple’s intensive workshops
• 4th Dimension Counseling and Retreats: Retreat and counseling for women experiencing betrayal trauma)
• Integrative Life Center: Inpatient clinic for men who are sex and porn addicts
• Begin Again Institute: Inpatient clinic for men who are sex and porn addicts

• Purchase, I Am Reclaiming Me: A Betrayed Partner's Daily Practice Journal for Women by Lorna Nakell
• Sign up for upcoming workshops and retreats

Note: I earn commissions from sponsored links.

Stay connected:

• Keep up with I AM MY Passion Project’s latest episodes and related content by signing up for the newsletter at Womanhouse
• Follow @womanhouseprojects on IG for inspiration and updates

Jen and I went to college together at Cornish College of the Arts in the art department back in the '90s. We sort of went our separate ways after college, but last year she reached out to me to be an artist in her Supperfield Museum of Contemporary Art in Seattle, where she currently lives. During one of our conversations leading up to the show I think that she said something to the effect that she has so many talents, she doesn’t know why she isn’t rich. And, I said I totally related to the feeling of being an underappreciated and underpaid Renaissance woman. So, I had to bring her on the podcast to chat with me about just that thing: being a broke-ass Renaissance woman.

Jennifer McNeely has exhibited her work in her home of the Pacific Northwest and across the country for over 25 years in both solo and group exhibitions. As a process based artist, she relies on the materials to inform her work. This unique approach and her prolific pace has earned her accolades including: The Artist Trust GAP Grant, Portable Works Program, and inclusion in private collections and publications, including a documentary series on BBC.

You can find Jen on IG here: @jenmcneelyart

and here: @smcaseattle

Stay connected:

• Keep up with I AM MY Passion Project’s latest episodes and related content by signing up for the newsletter at Womanhouse
• Follow @womanhouseprojects on IG for inspiration and updates

We all hope that cancer never touches our lives, but if it does, we hope we will be on the list of resilient survivors. My guest for today’s episode, “The Someday is Now,” is Bonnie Katz Sailors. She is a 51 year-old, three-time cancer survivor who was at the height of her fitness game as the owner and operator of a personal training business in Seattle when the universe presented her with the cancer challenge which she met head on. Because she is an amazingly strong woman, she used this pivotal moment in her life to change direction and pursue her art once again—this time not as a career path as she had done coming out of art school, but for her own enjoyment and healing.

Stay connected:

• Keep up with I AM MY Passion Project’s latest episodes and related content by signing up for the newsletter at Womanhouse
• Follow @womanhouseprojects on IG for inspiration and updates

Turning fifty can be a pivotal point in a woman's life. It's a fork in the road where we can choose to stay the course continuing on the path that is known—the path we've been paving for years, or we can choose to vier off the path and jump into the deep; into the unknown—hopefully in the warm waters of the Caribbean ocean or Mediterranean sea. It's also a time when we can start to really feel ageist discrimination in the form of becoming invisible—no longer valued as a player in societal discussions. We become targets of microaggressions from healthcare workers and other folks that see gray haired women and say, "can I take your bags out to the car for you."

In this episode I share the long and winding path that led me here; to being the host of I AM: My Passion Project. And, I talk about how I follow in the footsteps of several other women who didn't fully bloom until they were over 50. So, if you're over 50 and braving new endeavours, pick up that six-pack of wine coolers 'cause the party is about to get started—but it's BYOB.

Stay connected:

• Keep up with I AM MY Passion Project’s latest episodes and related content by signing up for the newsletter at Womanhouse
• Follow @womanhouseprojects on IG for inspiration and updates

Turning 50 can be a pivotal moment in a woman’s life. Our patriarchal society has set constraints and expectations on all women—but mature women specifically—with harmful belief systems, media and advertising propaganda. These degrading messages can make us feel ashamed of how our bodies look and function, and our abilities to do the things that we want to do.

Lorna Nakell has been many things during her 52 years of life including an award winning artist, spearheader of the Portland State University Publishing Department event Transmit Culture, and, most recently, a Graphic Designer and Illustrator. I AM: My Passion Project is a way for her to give a voice to women over 50—a platform to discuss sexism, health and wellness, redefining beauty, and healing from betrayal trauma; sometimes scripted, sometimes off-the-cuff, and sometimes with passionate guests. So, schedule some self-care time each week, maybe with a big ol’ mug of tea, to learn new ways of resisting societal expectations while reimagining a world where mature women are made visible and empowered to become their own passion projects.

First Episode releases March 25, 2023

Stay connected:

• Keep up with I AM MY Passion Project’s latest episodes and related content by signing up for the newsletter at Womanhouse
• Follow @womanhouseprojects on IG for inspiration and updates