For stepmum support, workshops and coaching, visit: https://stepmumspace.com

In this episode, Katie sits down with writer Sheena Wilkinson to explore the real and often unspoken experience of marrying a widower and becoming a stepmum — after choosing not to have children herself.

Sheena shares what it was like to move into her husband’s former marital home, where every room held reminders of his late wife, and how she navigated the emotional weight of building a future inside someone else’s past. She talks openly about the shift from living independently to suddenly sharing space with two men, and the unexpected challenges that came with joining an already-formed family.

This conversation gets into the messy, human side of stepfamily life:

• navigating a house full of memories
• the emotional strain of not feeling fully accepted by extended family
• shouting matches, misunderstandings, and imperfect moments
• the discomfort of feeling like an outsider in your own home
• finding your place without erasing the woman who came before you

Sheena is candid, warm, and sharply honest — and this episode offers real validation for any stepmum navigating grief-shaped family systems, inherited spaces, or complex loyalty dynamics.

Find Sheena’s writing at www.sheenawilkinson.com
and on Instagram and Substack @sheenawilkinson

Ready for structured support?

If you’re living with anticipatory anxiety before contact, walking on eggshells at home, or constantly replaying conversations long after they’ve happened, Back in Control is my structured programme for stepmums navigating complex stepfamily dynamics.

It’s designed to help you move out of chronic vigilance and into steadiness inside your own home.

Learn more:
 www.stepmumspace.com/back-in-control

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