Burnout rarely arrives all at once. In this episode, I share my personal experience of reaching breaking point after years of pushing through, people-pleasing, and ignoring the quieter signs that my body needed rest.

I talk about the symptoms that made me realise something had to change, why the usual 'wellness' routines can sometimes feel like more pressure, and the small, gentle changes that helped me begin to recover. From creating stronger boundaries and reducing social overwhelm to finding comfort in fiction, slowing down, and rebuilding a life that feels sustainable this is an honest conversation for anyone who feels exhausted, disconnected, or stuck in survival mode.

If you’re in a season of burnout or recovery, take what supports you, leave what doesn’t, and remember: asking for help is a strength.

In this episode

• Recognising the early signs of burnout
• Why rest can feel difficult or unsafe
• Creating space to recover without guilt
• Listening to your body and reducing overstimulation
• Boundaries, people-pleasing, and protecting your energy
• Gentle ways to support recovery and move forward sustainably

Timestamps

• 00:00 — Understanding Burnout: A Personal Journey
• 01:02 — Recognising the Signs of Burnout
• 05:13 — The Importance of Rest and Recovery
• 07:38 — Finding Safe Ways to Rest
• 11:06 — Listening to Your Body: The Healing Process
• 17:09 — Creating Boundaries and Finding Purpose
• 18:08 — Gentle Movement and Recovery
• 23:05 — Taking Action: Moving Forward from Burnout

Disclaimer

This episode shares personal experience and general educational information. It is not medical, mental health, or therapeutic advice, and is not a substitute for personalised support from a qualified healthcare or mental health professional. If you’re experiencing persistent or severe burnout symptoms, please seek appropriate professional support.

Support the show

Enjoyed this?  Leave a 5* review and share a screenshot on Instagram and tag me in it and I'll be picking a winner each episode to win a 30 min personalised tapping video, just for you!

Here's how to stay connected:

🎙️ Follow Return to You on Spotify and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode

⭐ Leave a  5* review on Apple Podcasts — it takes 30 seconds and helps more people find the show

💜 If you're enjoying the show and want to show some love, you can support the show here

📲 Come and find me on Instagram @withSid_  & @returntoyoupodcast I'd love to hear what this brought up for you

👥 Join the Return to You Facebook group — your space to connect, share and be heard

📩 Want to get in touch, share your story, or enquire about being a guest? Email: [email protected]

Return to You is a podcast for anyone who has ever lost themselves and is ready to find their way back. New episodes dropping regularly.

Until next time, keep coming back to yourself.

Love Sx

Content warning: this episode discusses death and sexual assault. Listener discretion advised.

What if your hardest moments were actually the doorway to your gift?

Aimee Green, recently featured  doing what she does best on The only way is Essex,  shares the raw, unfiltered story that took her from teenage doubt, bullying, trauma, and total self protection to a life built around spirit, intuition, and helping others heal.Sid leads a deeply personal conversation with Aimee about the moments that shaped her most: a childhood accident that marked her for life, a devastating loss that made her connection to spirit undeniable, and a Pendle Hill weekend that became a true turning point in her faith. What starts as a conversation about spiritual development becomes something much bigger lesson in self-trust, identity, resilience, and learning how to listen when life is trying to guide you.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

• Why Aimee says spirit is not just about the dead, but also about energy, enlightenment, and inner knowing
• How to tell the difference between ego, intuition, and a genuine message
• Why dreams, body sensations, and synchronicities matter
• Simple daily practices for building spiritual confidence
• How rock bottom, grief, and pain can become the place where healing begins
• Why Aimee has learned to define success through peace rather than money or status

Aimee also opens up about reading energy, helping skeptical clients, setting boundaries around her gift, and redefining what it means to live an aligned life. Sid brings her own experience as a client and seeker, creating a conversation that feels intimate, honest, and transformative.This episode is for anyone who feels stuck, disconnected, or unsure whether they can trust themselves again. If you need a reminder that you are not broken, that your path can change, and that there is more to life than what you can see right now, this conversation will meet you exactly where you are.

Connect with Aimee for readings on @oracleangel1111 and let her know if you found her through this episode.

Support the show

Enjoyed this?  Leave a 5* review and share a screenshot on Instagram and tag me in it and I'll be picking a winner each episode to win a 30 min personalised tapping video, just for you!

Here's how to stay connected:

🎙️ Follow Return to You on Spotify and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode

⭐ Leave a  5* review on Apple Podcasts — it takes 30 seconds and helps more people find the show

💜 If you're enjoying the show and want to show some love, you can support the show here

📲 Come and find me on Instagram @withSid_  & @returntoyoupodcast I'd love to hear what this brought up for you

👥 Join the Return to You Facebook group — your space to connect, share and be heard

📩 Want to get in touch, share your story, or enquire about being a guest? Email: [email protected]

Return to You is a podcast for anyone who has ever lost themselves and is ready to find their way back. New episodes dropping regularly.

Until next time, keep coming back to yourself.

Love Sx

This short solo episode is about the subconscious loops that shape how you show up as an adult, especially the fear of being judged, looking stupid, or starting before you feel ready. Sid explains how these patterns can begin in childhood, why toxic positivity does not help, and how tools like EFT tapping and affirmations can help rewire the response. The takeaway is simple: you do not have to keep coasting through life. Sid encourages listeners to notice the pattern, feel what is true, and take one small step toward the thing that actually lights them up.

Timestamps

00:00 - Back again with a quick solo check-in

00:32 - The loops that keep adults stuck in self-doubt

01:30 - Why life does not have to stay “just how it is”

02:13 - Three reasons people stay stuck: no roadmap, loud inner critic, subconscious loops

03:22 - The school moment that teaches fear of judgment

04:07 - How early embarrassment becomes an adult pattern

05:51 - These loops can be broken by disrupting the pattern

06:21 - EFT tapping as a simple way to interrupt the loop

07:03 - Why Sid rejects toxic positivity

08:20 - Affirmations and tapping as practical tools for change

09:55 - The fear of starting over as a beginner

10:46 - A reminder to get clear on what actually lights you up

11:42 - Ask what you would do if no one paid you

12:11 - You get to take up space because there is only one you

Action Points:

• Notice the loop you keep repeating without judging yourself.
• Name the old belief underneath it, such as “If I speak up, I’ll be laughed at.”
• Try one tool consistently, like affirmations or EFT tapping.
• Stop forcing positivity if you are still carrying real pain.
• Identify one thing that brings you joy and take a small step toward it.
• Allow yourself to be a beginner again.

If this episode named a pattern you recognise, DM me to take my quick free quiz to discover which loop is currently running the show in your life. Your results will point you toward the next step in the journey and invite you onto the waitlist for a 30-day Loop Reset Challenge designed to help clear one of your greatest blocks in just 30days. 

Support the show

Enjoyed this?  Leave a 5* review and share a screenshot on Instagram and tag me in it and I'll be picking a winner each episode to win a 30 min personalised tapping video, just for you!

Here's how to stay connected:

🎙️ Follow Return to You on Spotify and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode

⭐ Leave a  5* review on Apple Podcasts — it takes 30 seconds and helps more people find the show

💜 If you're enjoying the show and want to show some love, you can support the show here

📲 Come and find me on Instagram @withSid_  & @returntoyoupodcast I'd love to hear what this brought up for you

👥 Join the Return to You Facebook group — your space to connect, share and be heard

📩 Want to get in touch, share your story, or enquire about being a guest? Email: [email protected]

Return to You is a podcast for anyone who has ever lost themselves and is ready to find their way back. New episodes dropping regularly.

Until next time, keep coming back to yourself.

Love Sx

Lisa Maynard Atem is a brand and marketing communications consultant and founder of Stylisa FoundHers. She spent seven years at Harrods, ultimately as Global Director of Social Media & PR, where she grew the retailer's social channels from roughly 30,000 combined followers to upwards of 3 million (Instagram alone reached 1.1 million under her leadership). Then years later, she then left her director role in April 2023 to consult independently for founders on brand and marketing, and in April 2025 launched Stylisa FoundHers, a platform spotlighting women founders, funders, and boardroom leaders. She also sits on several boards.

In this episode, Sid sits down with Lisa for a conversation about betting on yourself, hitting rock bottom, and building your own table and creating your own opportunities when the doors won't open, especially for women of colour.

Lisa shares the 2009 turning point that sent her from Manchester to a three month contract in London, the daily "Mini & Major Milestones" practice she still uses to build self worth, why she believes prioritising yourself is selfless rather than selfish, and the advice she'd give her younger self about waiting for permission that never comes.

This one is for anyone who's ever felt like they need permission to take up space,  you don't. Build the table.

Timestamps / Chapters

00:00 Welcome & meet Lisa Maynard Atem
 01:03 The year everything was "a bit rubbish"
 04:22 The defining moment - turning point in 2009
 06:27 Betting on yourself in a world that judges
 07:55 Mini & Major Milestones - a daily practice for self-worth
 10:18 Role models, representation & permission to take up space
 13:46 Build your own table - creating opportunity when doors don't open
 16:37 From 30K to 3 million - Lisa's journey at Harrods
 24:35 Redefining success - foundations first
 31:10 Filling your cup - the power of saying no
 35:20 The impact - autonomy, thinking for yourself & legacy
 39:40 Advice to your younger self - stop waiting for permission
 43:23 Lisa's journey - FoundHers & building her own platform
 49:18 Closing wisdom - always come back to yourself

Connect with Lisa: 

Website: www.stylisa.com

Instagram: @Stylisa 

LinkedIn: Lisa Maynard Atem

Work with Lisa: https://cal.com/lisa-maynard-atem-cpzoxp

Connect with the show:

Instagram: @returntoyoupodcast / @withsid_ 

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify & YouTub

Footnotes / Links Mentioned in the Episode

• Lisa's website & where to work with her: www.stylisa.com 
• Lisa's platform: Stylisa FoundHers — interviews exploring visibility, funding, influence and power through the stories of women founders and leaders. Three strands: Foundhers (founder interviews), Founder Funders (finance for women), Founders Boardroom (women in governance/policy roles).
• Book reference mentioned: Start With Yourself by Emma Grede

Support the show

Enjoyed this?  Leave a 5* review and share a screenshot on Instagram and tag me in it and I'll be picking a winner each episode to win a 30 min personalised tapping video, just for you!

Here's how to stay connected:

🎙️ Follow Return to You on Spotify and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode

⭐ Leave a  5* review on Apple Podcasts — it takes 30 seconds and helps more people find the show

💜 If you're enjoying the show and want to show some love, you can support the show here

📲 Come and find me on Instagram @withSid_  & @returntoyoupodcast I'd love to hear what this brought up for you

👥 Join the Return to You Facebook group — your space to connect, share and be heard

📩 Want to get in touch, share your story, or enquire about being a guest? Email: [email protected]

Return to You is a podcast for anyone who has ever lost themselves and is ready to find their way back. New episodes dropping regularly.

Until next time, keep coming back to yourself.

Love Sx

Episode Description:

In this powerful solo episode, host Sid explores the inner critic the voice that bullies, shrinks, and convinces us we aren't enough. Drawing from 10 years of personal healing, Sid shares the pivotal "escalator story" that changed everything, introduces the concept of naming your inner chimp (inspired by The Chimp Paradox by Dr. Steven Peters), and closes with a full guided EFT tapping round to help you release intrusive thoughts and return to self-compassion. Practical, raw, and deeply honest this episode is your permission slip to silence the noise.

Timestamped Show Notes:

• 0:00 — The Inner Critic — Sid opens with the vow of silence she made as a child, and why the inner critic lives so loudly in so many of us
• 1:24 — Wiring the Subconscious Mind — How our environment between ages 0–7 programs our internal hard drive, and why even good homes can't fully protect us
• 3:09 — Rewiring for Success — 10 years of research into subconscious rewiring, the Instagram poll on intrusive thoughts, and why the switch flipped
• 4:33 — The Escalator Story — The defining moment Sid’s inner cheerleader showed up on the Waterloo escalators, and what it revealed about the power of the mind over limiting beliefs
• 14:49 — Naming Your Inner Chimp — Introducing The Chimp Paradox, naming Boris, and why externalizing the critic voice is the first step to freedom
• 19:06 — Actionable Steps — Daily affirmation audios for 90 days, the "I like myself" practice, pen-to-paper writing, and intro to EFT tapping
• 22:07 — EFT Tapping Round: Releasing the Inner Critic — Full guided tapping session to release intrusive thoughts, reclaim your voice, and affirm "I am enough"
• 30:39 — Closing & Resources — Closing encouragement, tapping bundle info, and how to connect with Sid

Footnotes / Resources Mentioned:

• 📖 The Chimp Paradox by Dr. Steve Peters
• 🫳🏽 Free Tap into Calm meditation - Grab it here 
• 🎧 Daily affirmation(Louise Hay audio) — Click here to listen
• 🧘 $10 Loop Reset Tapping Bundle — available for download 
• 📧 Contact: [email protected]
• 💬 Take a screen shot and tag me on your socials and share your shift or DM @withSid_

Support the show

Enjoyed this?  Leave a 5* review and share a screenshot on Instagram and tag me in it and I'll be picking a winner each episode to win a 30 min personalised tapping video, just for you!

Here's how to stay connected:

🎙️ Follow Return to You on Spotify and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode

⭐ Leave a  5* review on Apple Podcasts — it takes 30 seconds and helps more people find the show

💜 If you're enjoying the show and want to show some love, you can support the show here

📲 Come and find me on Instagram @withSid_  & @returntoyoupodcast I'd love to hear what this brought up for you

👥 Join the Return to You Facebook group — your space to connect, share and be heard

📩 Want to get in touch, share your story, or enquire about being a guest? Email: [email protected]

Return to You is a podcast for anyone who has ever lost themselves and is ready to find their way back. New episodes dropping regularly.

Until next time, keep coming back to yourself.

Love Sx

Kensey on Building the Life You Actually Want. What happens when you build your career around the lifestyle you want, instead of the other way around? In this episode of Return to You I sit down with Kensey Monopoli, wellness entrepreneur, event curator, and founder of AERA, to talk about the 16 years she's spent as a travelling massage therapist, including a long stint on Sir Richard Branson's Necker Island, and how that path led her to build a patent-pending, ultra-portable massage table and therapist membership designed to transform the massage industry.

We talk about walking into rooms where you know no one, why "the cost of success is embarrassment," the practice of manifestation (including the wildest cake story you'll ever hear), and why you can never put a price on your network.

This episode is for anyone who has ever felt boxed in by a school system, a job, living with ADHD or a story that was never really theirs and who's ready to build a life, not just a career.

Topics covered:

• Building your career around the lifestyle you want, not the other way around

• Finding safety and community before you take the leap

• Business partnerships, alignment, and knowing when something no longer fits

• Manifestation, intention, and "the rock in the river"

• Networking as service — give first, lead with love

• Launching AERA Circle: Kensey's year-long membership for massage therapists

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 – Intro: building a career around your lifestyle, not the other way around

04:00 – Necker Island: the leap that changed everything

09:00 – The power of environment & community

13:00 – Money, safety & taking the leap

14:00 – Finding your people: the key players in your journey

20:00 – Brainstorming your passion: how to find what lights you up

27:00 – Business partnerships, alignment & knowing yourself

33:00 – Manifestation, intention & the rock in the river

43:00 – Networking: give first, lead with love

55:00 – AERA: Kensey's legacy brand for therapists

1:00:00 – Where to find Kensey + closing reflections on "returning to you"

ABOUT KENSEY:

Kensey Monopoli is a wellness entrepreneur, event curator, and founder of AERA, a patent-pending ultra-portable massage table and therapist membership designed to transform the massage industry. Drawing on 16 years as a travelling massage therapist everywhere from cruise ships to a long stint on Sir Richard Branson's Necker Island, Kensey built AERA to solve the problems she lived firsthand: outdated, impractical equipment and an industry that had long overlooked its practitioners' wellbeing. The AERA Circle, her year-long membership programme, opens its first cohort in September 2026, building an ecosystem of community, education, and business tools for therapists who want sustainable, fulfilling practices. Alongside AERA, she runs her consultancy, "With Kensey," partnering with luxury island destinations and visionary leaders to craft events and experiences that leave a lasting impact.

Connect with Kensey: Instagram @WithKensey | @WeAreAERA

🎙️ Subscribe on Apple Podcasts & Spotify so you never miss an episode.

TAGS/KEYWORDS:

manifestation, entrepreneurship, networking, lifestyle design, Necker Island, Richard Branson, massage therapy business, wellness entrepreneur, event curator, personal development, self-development, overcoming adversity, business partnerships, return to you, rising beyond limits, podcast

Support the show

Enjoyed this?  Leave a 5* review and share a screenshot on Instagram and tag me in it and I'll be picking a winner each episode to win a 30 min personalised tapping video, just for you!

Here's how to stay connected:

🎙️ Follow Return to You on Spotify and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode

⭐ Leave a  5* review on Apple Podcasts — it takes 30 seconds and helps more people find the show

💜 If you're enjoying the show and want to show some love, you can support the show here

📲 Come and find me on Instagram @withSid_  & @returntoyoupodcast I'd love to hear what this brought up for you

👥 Join the Return to You Facebook group — your space to connect, share and be heard

📩 Want to get in touch, share your story, or enquire about being a guest? Email: [email protected]

Return to You is a podcast for anyone who has ever lost themselves and is ready to find their way back. New episodes dropping regularly.

Until next time, keep coming back to yourself.

Love Sx

Ep.1 | Healing Limiting Beliefs & Childhood Trauma: The Words That Haunted Me 

The Words that haunted me, and the life I chose anyway.

What happens when the words spoken over you as a child become the beliefs that run your adult life?

In this first episode of Return to You, Sid opens up about leaving home at 16, and the moment a police officer told her she would never be, do, or have anything good, words that quietly became long term limiting beliefs around worthiness, love, and success.

She breaks down how "micro moments" and the language spoken over us can run as unconscious loops well into adulthood, why healing is non linear, and how she refused to accept that story. From being taken in by "earth angel" families and friends, to drawing strength from her immigrant and ancestral roots, to five years working on cruise ships and eventually building a life in London; this is a story about borrowed belief, radical self-worth, and choosing yourself anyway.

Sid also gets honest about therapy (including EMDR), burnout, SIBO, the gut-mind connection, and what it really takes to build boundaries from the inside out.

If you've ever felt defined by someone else's words about you,  this one's for you.

Reclaim your voice. Reclaim your power. Return to you.

Topics covered: childhood trauma, limiting beliefs, EMDR therapy, healing journey, self-worth, burnout recovery, gut-mind connection, immigrant identity, ancestral strength, women's empowerment, personal development

Listen on: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Buzzsprout
Follow: @withSid_ | @returntoyoupodcast 

00:00 Return to You: Rising Beyond Limits – Episode 1

03:06 Healing Is Not Linear

04:20 Choosing Myself at 16

13:13 Breaking the Limits Society Placed on Us

31:57 Finding Courage – Cruise Ships & Manifestation

36:22 The Healing Journey: Therapy, EMDR & the Gut-Mind Connection

45:31 The Birth of This Podcast – Your Story Matters

Support the show

Enjoyed this?  Leave a 5* review and share a screenshot on Instagram and tag me in it and I'll be picking a winner each episode to win a 30 min personalised tapping video, just for you!

Here's how to stay connected:

🎙️ Follow Return to You on Spotify and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode

⭐ Leave a  5* review on Apple Podcasts — it takes 30 seconds and helps more people find the show

💜 If you're enjoying the show and want to show some love, you can support the show here

📲 Come and find me on Instagram @withSid_  & @returntoyoupodcast I'd love to hear what this brought up for you

👥 Join the Return to You Facebook group — your space to connect, share and be heard

📩 Want to get in touch, share your story, or enquire about being a guest? Email: [email protected]

Return to You is a podcast for anyone who has ever lost themselves and is ready to find their way back. New episodes dropping regularly.

Until next time, keep coming back to yourself.

Love Sx

Some of us don't lose ourselves all at once. It happens slowly, until one day you look up and wonder where you went.

Return to You is the podcast for anyone, with women and women of colour at its heart who are ready to find their way back. Each episode, host Sid sits down with remarkable people who have faced adversity, loss, and life's hardest chapters and built something extraordinary on the other side. Real stories. Honest conversations. No filter.

Hosted by Sid, a woman who knows firsthand what it means to choose yourself when everything around you says don't — Return to You exists to remind you that healing is possible, rebuilding is possible, and returning to yourself is always an option.

Expect raw interviews with inspiring guests, stand-out moments you'll want to share, and the kind of conversations that stay with you long after the episode ends.

🎙️ Launching 1st July 2026. Follow now so you don't miss Episode 1.

📲 Come and find us: Instagram: @withSid_ & @returntoyoupodcast  Tiktok: @areturntoyou

Search Return to You, wherever you listen to podcasts.

I'll see you in there.

Love Sx

Support the show

Enjoyed this?  Leave a 5* review and share a screenshot on Instagram and tag me in it and I'll be picking a winner each episode to win a 30 min personalised tapping video, just for you!

Here's how to stay connected:

🎙️ Follow Return to You on Spotify and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode

⭐ Leave a  5* review on Apple Podcasts — it takes 30 seconds and helps more people find the show

💜 If you're enjoying the show and want to show some love, you can support the show here

📲 Come and find me on Instagram @withSid_  & @returntoyoupodcast I'd love to hear what this brought up for you

👥 Join the Return to You Facebook group — your space to connect, share and be heard

📩 Want to get in touch, share your story, or enquire about being a guest? Email: [email protected]

Return to You is a podcast for anyone who has ever lost themselves and is ready to find their way back. New episodes dropping regularly.

Until next time, keep coming back to yourself.

Love Sx