Thanks for Sharing

By Jackie PackSociety & Culture Health & Fitness Mental Health Education Self-Improvement Relationships

Thanks for Sharing episodes

February 25 Episode 356: Rebuilding After Secrecy: Why Sobriety Alone Doesn’t Fix the Relationship
What actually happens after sobriety begins?
Many couples believe that once porn or addictive behaviors stop, the relationship should feel better right away. But for many people, that’s when a deeper layer of healing starts — emotional awareness, reconnecting with the authentic self, and learning how to rebuild safety, security, and trust.
In this episode, I talk about what rebuilding really looks like — both individually and relationally.
Sobriety removes secrecy — but reconnection grows through emotional presence, consistency, and learning how to show up differently with each other over time.
If you’re in the stage where recovery has begun but the relationship still feels fragile, this conversation is for you.
Have a question or something you’d like me to talk about in a future episode?
You can call the show and leave a voicemail or send me an email — I love hearing from you, and your feedback helps shape these conversations.
https://thanksforsharingpodcast.my.canva.site/thanks-for-sharing-links
23 min
February 18 Episode 355: Porn, Compartmentalization, and the Secret Self
What happens to the self when parts of life begin living in secrecy?
In this episode of the Thanks for Sharing podcast, we move beyond behavior and beyond relationship impact to explore how porn can shape identity, emotional development, and connection.
We talk about:
• how compartmentalization forms in the brain and nervous system
• why dopamine can reinforce a “secret self”
• what young men need to understand about relational risk and resilience
• how partners often sense misalignment long before discovery
• the difference between shame and responsibility
• and how healing begins through development of the authentic self
This episode is part of an ongoing series:
Episode 1 — Regulation & the brain
Episode 2 — Relational impact & betrayal
Episode 3 — Development of the self (this episode)
Have a question or thought? I’ve added a place in my Linktree where you can send a message or leave a voicemail for a future episode. (you can stay anonymous)
Listen now — link in bio.
#ThanksForSharingPodcast #AuthenticSelf #AttachmentHealing #PornRecovery #BetrayalTrauma #TherapyPodcast #MentalHealthEducation #HealingJourney
47 min
February 11Episode 354: Porn, Predictability, and Relational Capacity: Porn is often framed as a private habit or a personal struggle. But its impact is rarely private.
In this episode, we explore how porn reshapes relationships, not just behavior.
We talk about how porn:
quietly reorganizes relationships around absence
impacts the partner’s nervous system and sense of safety
often feels like cheating, even when there’s no physical affair
contributes to loneliness, emotional withdrawal, and loss of self in partners
shapes expectations of intimacy and attitudes toward women
creates predictability that looks like safety—but isn’t
We also explore why time alone doesn’t build security in relationships and why repair, not perfection, actually creates safety.
This conversation isn’t about blame or shame. It’s about understanding why things feel the way they do and what helps people rebuild capacity for intimacy, presence, and connection.
Whether you’re navigating porn use, supporting a partner, or trying to make sense of distance in your relationship, this episode offers language for experiences that are often difficult to name.
28 min
February 04 Episode 353: What Porn Actually Does to the Brain: Porn isn’t just about sex, it’s about the brain.
In this episode, we explore why porn is so compelling, why willpower usually fails, and why intelligent, caring people struggle with it even when it conflicts with their values or relationships. This conversation moves beyond shame and into understanding how novelty, dopamine, attachment, and emotional regulation intersect, and why real change starts with compassion, not control.
35 min
January 28 Episode 352: The world feels divided — but the real damage is happening between us.
We recorded this episode planning to talk about current events, and the conversation didn't go exactly where we planned, and that's why it matters. Instead, we found ourselves talking about how people are actually living inside all of this, the personal experiences and stories that impact us.
Politics. Gender. Fear. Fatigue. Misunderstanding.
This wasn’t a debate.  It was a conversation about what it costs us to stay polarized — and what it might take to repair.
What part of this conversation stayed with you the most?
Where do you feel the divide showing up in your own life — relationships, family, friendships?
2 hr 50 min
January 21 Episode 351: When Answers Become a Defense: How Rationalization Keeps Us Comfortable...and Stuck: Most avoidance doesn’t sound defensive.
It sounds reasonable.
It sounds like:
• “This makes sense.”
• “This is normal.”
• “I already know why I do this.”
In this episode, I explore how rationalization and minimization quietly protect comfort, certainty, and the need to feel right — especially for smart, thoughtful people.
34 min
January 13 Episode 350: When you try to talk… and somehow you become the problem.
Defensiveness doesn’t always look like anger.
Sometimes it looks like minimizing, mocking, dismissing, or explaining things away.
In this episode, I talk about:
• why people get defensive
• how avoidance can be loud or quiet
• how to respond without escalating
• and the red flags that mean a boundary has been crossed
If you’ve ever felt shut down for asking a real question, this one’s for you.
19 min
January 07 Episode 349: Letting the Year Unfold : What if the new year isn’t asking you to decide anything?
Rachel and I talk about why so many of us feel pressure to know what comes next, and how real change tends to happen without announcements. We explore how moves, family dynamics, and internal shifts quietly reorient us long before we name them.
If you’re entering this year without goals or certainty, this conversation offers permission to slow down.
Listen now.
49 min
December 31, 2025 Episode 348: What we're carrying forward, and what we're putting down: Not every year ends with closure. Some years end with clarity, and some don’t.
As this year comes to a close, there’s pressure to reflect, resolve, and reset. But not everything we live through gets neatly wrapped up. In this episode, I talk about what it means to move forward without closure, why waiting for it can keep us stuck, and how grief, loss, and complicated family dynamics shape what we carry and what we lay down.
This isn’t an episode about resolutions. It’s about honesty. About integration. About letting a year end without forcing meaning too soon.
41 min
December 17, 2025 Episode 347: Navigating Uneven Healing in Couples
When one partner grows faster, it doesn’t mean the relationship is failing.
Uneven healing is one of the most painful dynamics couples face.
One partner finds language, boundaries, and insight.
The other is still trying to feel safe.
This episode isn’t about who’s “ahead.”
It’s about how healing actually unfolds, and how couples stay connected when growth isn’t synchronized.
Because growth isn’t a competition, and pressure isn’t intimacy.
If this feels familiar, this episode is for you.
Listen, reflect, and notice what lands.
44 min

About Thanks for Sharing

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This is the place for all things recovery, healing, and relationships. We explore a variety of topics with people in recovery and the professionals who help them through personal stories. This…