The Therapeutic Poet

I kept on promising to get around to do an update about the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, but never did...but now I have. The inside track on performing at Edinburgh Fringe. How badly the preparation went before hand, why I ended up crying in Wagamamas, how budgie smugglers were my wake up call, why my flyers were pointless and what I thought about my review. 

Click here to go to my Substack page.

Click here to buy my book

Click here to buy my a coffee and show your support

Listener support: I love making The Therapeutic Poet podcast, but it does cost time and money. If you have enjoyed it, been informed by it or found it helpful then I would greatly appreciate your financial support. You can do this by:

Taking a paid subscription on my Substack - a weekly newsletter helping people have 'Permission to feel'. You'll receive tips on how to navigate our human tricky things, recorded poems and other goodies.

Buying my book ‘Stop the world I want to get off’

Or buy me a coffee 🤗.

In this episode we begin with my poem 'Tell me your story' I wrote it about trauma; how trauma needs to be acknowledged in all its grittiness, not diminished or dressed up as ‘not that bad’ in order to be healed. 

As today’s guest Lucinda Gordon Lennox says, we all have some trauma and trauma can be healed. Part of what can hinder that healing is the denial of that trauma. Other people, or even ourselves can try to minimise, justify or rationalise what has happened to us and the impact that it has had.

What if we let our stories out? What if we look its wild wickedness in the eye and start from there? If you are interested in the idea of that then I’m sure you’ll get a lot out of the conversation today.

Encouraging a deeper conversation about our trauma is trauma therapist, writer and lecturer Lucinda Gordon Lennox. She is author of ‘Nobody is broken’ a book which helps to explain what trauma is, how it happens and why it remains hidden for so long.

You can find out more about Lucinda here , buy her book or find out more about EMDR.

We mentioned Dr. Dan Siegel in this episode.

My book is also out for sale now and I have a couple of performances lined up, more details of which at www.jackypower.com

Click here to go to my Substack page.

Click here to buy my book

Click here to buy my a coffee and show your support

Listener support: I love making The Therapeutic Poet podcast, but it does cost time and money. If you have enjoyed it, been informed by it or found it helpful then I would greatly appreciate your financial support. You can do this by:

Taking a paid subscription on my Substack - a weekly newsletter helping people have 'Permission to feel'. You'll receive tips on how to navigate our human tricky things, recorded poems and other goodies.

Buying my book ‘Stop the world I want to get off’

Or buy me a coffee 🤗.

This episode is the second part of a conversation that I had with Julia Warren. Julia is a mother, yoga teacher, writer and recovering addict. In September 2021, she lost her husband Doug when he relapsed and died of a drug overdose. In this episode, Julia shares her own writing, documenting her thoughts and feelings as she grieves her husband.

We talk about what's helpful and unhelpful when someone is grieving. What the shittiest things are about grief, and how through fully surrendering to our grief, it's possible to find joy, and hope.

Human connection is about not turning our faces away when the going gets tough. It's about sitting with our own sense of inadequacies that may surface when we are faced with a situation that we don't know how to deal with. Saying 'I don't know, but I'm here and I'm staying here' is a really simple, but profound thing that we can offer to someone, anyone when they are going through a difficult time.

I hope that through talking with Julia today, we have given you courage if you need it to not turn away from the difficulties in life and face them. Yes, maybe with fear and uncertainty but the way to get through is to continue in spite of that fear, because it's the path to human connection.

Resources for the UK:
https://www.ataloss.org/faqs/bereaved-by-an-addiction
https://www.changegrowlive.org/
https://alcoholchange.org.uk/
https://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk/
For Punjabi communities: https://www.nomorepretending.co.uk/about

gov.uk/browse/benefits/bereavement
gov.uk/government/publications/ guide-to-coroner-services-and-coroner-investigationsa-short-guide
cruse.org.uk/drugs-and-alcohol
https://www.drugfam.co.uk/
samaritans.org/sites/default/files/kcfinder/files/press/
Samaritans%20Media%20Guidelines%202013%20UK.pdf

For families of addicts:
https://nacoa.org.uk/
https://www.al-anonuk.org.uk/

Specifically for children:
childline.org.uk
hopeagain.org.uk

You can find out more abut Julia on Instagram: www.instagram.com/juliainvisions or at her website www.juliawarrenyoga.com

As I mention at the end of the podcast, I have a new book out called 'Stop the world I want to get off'. More details here

Click here to go to my Substack page.

Click here to buy my book

Click here to buy my a coffee and show your support

Listener support: I love making The Therapeutic Poet podcast, but it does cost time and money. If you have enjoyed it, been informed by it or found it helpful then I would greatly appreciate your financial support. You can do this by:

Taking a paid subscription on my Substack - a weekly newsletter helping people have 'Permission to feel'. You'll receive tips on how to navigate our human tricky things, recorded poems and other goodies.

Buying my book ‘Stop the world I want to get off’

Or buy me a coffee 🤗.

Today I am talking to Julia Warren. Julia is a mother to her two boys,  a trauma informed yoga teacher and a writer.  She is also in recovery from drug addiction and recently stepped into the role of widow as in September 2021 her husband Doug overdosed when he relapsed from his own addiction recovery. 

In this episode we talk about Julia’s recovery from drug addiction. She talks about how she went from the loneliness and isolation of addiction to recovery with the help of fellowship from other women in recovery. We talk about Doug’s relapse and what that was like for her not only as a wife but also as a recovering addict herself. 

We discuss how fear can stop us from connecting to those who can understand but how stepping through that fear can be life saving. We talk about how someone’s presence is what is needed when we are processing grief, not having the right words or right message in a card.

Julia’s story is heartbreaking, but it’s not uncommon. Through her bravery of sharing her story we hope that it helps other people to walk through their fear, open up and share,  what is really going on. You may be feeling quite a lot after this conversation. That’s natural and know that it is possible for things to get better. I wanted to have this conversation to lift the lid on some of these issues.

Addiction is full of fear, shame and isolation. If you are dealing with addiction, know that it isn’t your fault, but it is your responsibility. If someone you love is dealing with addiction, fully getting to grips with how powerless you are over that is very hard, but it will help you to gain clarity and set boundaries so that you can manage your own life, which is vitally important.

Resources for the UK:
https://www.ataloss.org/faqs/bereaved-by-an-addiction
https://www.changegrowlive.org/
https://alcoholchange.org.uk/
https://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk/
For Punjabi communities: https://www.nomorepretending.co.uk/about

gov.uk/browse/benefits/bereavement
gov.uk/government/publications/ guide-to-coroner-services-and-coroner-investigationsa-short-guide
cruse.org.uk/drugs-and-alcohol
https://www.drugfam.co.uk/
samaritans.org/sites/default/files/kcfinder/files/press/
Samaritans%20Media%20Guidelines%202013%20UK.pdf

For families of addicts:
https://nacoa.org.uk/
https://www.al-anonuk.org.uk/

Specifically for children:
childline.org.uk
hopeagain.org.uk

You can find out more abut Julia on Instagram: www.instagram.com/juliainvisions or at her website www.juliawarrenyoga.com

As I mention at the end of the podcast, I have a new book out called 'Stop the world I want to get off'. More details here

Click here to go to my Substack page.

Click here to buy my book

Click here to buy my a coffee and show your support

Listener support: I love making The Therapeutic Poet podcast, but it does cost time and money. If you have enjoyed it, been informed by it or found it helpful then I would greatly appreciate your financial support. You can do this by:

Taking a paid subscription on my Substack - a weekly newsletter helping people have 'Permission to feel'. You'll receive tips on how to navigate our human tricky things, recorded poems and other goodies.

Buying my book ‘Stop the world I want to get off’

Or buy me a coffee 🤗.

So hands up, I didn't manage to record a conversation this week. Not one to let that stop me, I thought I'd share a bit about me and my foray into the world of writing and performance. I share about when I was turned down by literary agents, how I used writing to deal with it and how I managed to turn pride, self righteousness, self pity, and judgement round to modesty, humility, self esteem and gratitude. I mention Brené Brown in this episode and talk about 'The Wilderness' which is something that she describes in her book 'Rising Strong'. 

The poems that I share in this episode are 'Bitterness' and 'A wobbly kind of day'.

'Bitterness' features in my soon to be released book (whoop) called 'Stop the World I want to get off'.

Hope you enjoy!

Click here to go to my Substack page.

Click here to buy my book

Click here to buy my a coffee and show your support

Listener support: I love making The Therapeutic Poet podcast, but it does cost time and money. If you have enjoyed it, been informed by it or found it helpful then I would greatly appreciate your financial support. You can do this by:

Taking a paid subscription on my Substack - a weekly newsletter helping people have 'Permission to feel'. You'll receive tips on how to navigate our human tricky things, recorded poems and other goodies.

Buying my book ‘Stop the world I want to get off’

Or buy me a coffee 🤗.

In this episode I speak to Lara Doherty, a motivational coach specialising in vision boards and author of the Mighty Book of Motivation Magic. To be honest I’ve been skeptical about vision boards (which you’ll be able to tell from the poem I use in this episode!) but Lara talks about the neuroscience behind them, why they are not a symptom of 'toxic positivity' and how vision boards are in fact a great tool to give us the time to become really aware of what we need and want. Listen in…

You can find out more about Lara Doherty at www.motivationclinic.co.uk or buy her book

Click here to go to my Substack page.

Click here to buy my book

Click here to buy my a coffee and show your support

Listener support: I love making The Therapeutic Poet podcast, but it does cost time and money. If you have enjoyed it, been informed by it or found it helpful then I would greatly appreciate your financial support. You can do this by:

Taking a paid subscription on my Substack - a weekly newsletter helping people have 'Permission to feel'. You'll receive tips on how to navigate our human tricky things, recorded poems and other goodies.

Buying my book ‘Stop the world I want to get off’

Or buy me a coffee 🤗.

When faced with an empty nest, Kari Gillespie decided to spread her own wings. She gave up a job that she loved and set off to walk across Spain and then she wrote a book about it called Pilgrim. Her book is more than about just walking, it’s about friendship, gratitude, and learning to take off the layers that life has put on you; the layers of grief and responsibility and uncertainty.

Pilgrim is a contemporary take on an ancient experience, an entertaining and moving memoir of Kari’s 900km walk to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.  Battling through sun and snow, mud and mountains, blisters and bedbugs, her real destination turns out to be "deep peace".

I loved the book and am excited to share this conversation with you. In this episode I started with my poem I start from where I am today. You can find out more about Kari on Instagram , on Twitter, on Facebook or on her website www.carolyngillespie.co.uk

Many times she had to trust the mantra ‘The Camino provides’ and she is here today to tell us about her experience and what she gained from it.

Click here to go to my Substack page.

Click here to buy my book

Click here to buy my a coffee and show your support

Listener support: I love making The Therapeutic Poet podcast, but it does cost time and money. If you have enjoyed it, been informed by it or found it helpful then I would greatly appreciate your financial support. You can do this by:

Taking a paid subscription on my Substack - a weekly newsletter helping people have 'Permission to feel'. You'll receive tips on how to navigate our human tricky things, recorded poems and other goodies.

Buying my book ‘Stop the world I want to get off’

Or buy me a coffee 🤗.

Is there anyone in Western society who hasn’t told themselves that they are too something? Too fat, too thin, thighs too wobbly, boobs too small? With increasingly sophisticated filters on our phones, people are reaching for quick fix solutions to attain an unrealistic ideal. 

Almost 70 % of people have said that they are concerned about their weight, yet for over 95% of people diets don’t work. Factors like genes, our resting metabolic rate and our leptin levels are just a few things that can affect our weight.

Whilst changing our weight or shape can be incredibly tricky, what we can change is our behaviour and our relationships with our body and with food. 

My guest today, Leslie Davies, author  of ‘You can’t eat love: learning to love yourself can change your relationship with food’  is here to talk about just that. When Leslie examined her relationship with food she realised that the emptiness that she was feeling inside and trying to fill with food was to do with her relationship with herself and she is with us to talk about how she used her relationship with food as a signpost for changes that she needed to make in relationship to herself, healing the wounds that she had encountered through emotional neglect in her childhood.

In this episode I started with my poem 'I love my long legs'  We spoke about what happens when you get emotionally shut down and the lasting impact that this can have on our lives. Lesley shared her favourite tips from her book and her experience of the 12 step group ACA or Adult Children of Alcoholics and Dysfunctional Families. You can find out more about Lesley at www.youcanteatlove.com or on Facebook at  https://www.facebook.com/youcanteatlove/

You can buy her book here.

Information about ACA can be found here:  https://adultchildren.org/

You can find the transcript of the show at www.jackypower.com

Click here to go to my Substack page.

Click here to buy my book

Click here to buy my a coffee and show your support

Listener support: I love making The Therapeutic Poet podcast, but it does cost time and money. If you have enjoyed it, been informed by it or found it helpful then I would greatly appreciate your financial support. You can do this by:

Taking a paid subscription on my Substack - a weekly newsletter helping people have 'Permission to feel'. You'll receive tips on how to navigate our human tricky things, recorded poems and other goodies.

Buying my book ‘Stop the world I want to get off’

Or buy me a coffee 🤗.

Joining me today on  the Therapeutic Poet podcast to talk about addiction is John Giordano.

John was the  son of a heroin dealer, and he himself ended up falling into drugs and alcohol and became homeless. In 2012 he sold his own drug treatment facility for $45 million dollars and he has helped 1000s of people in their own addiction recovery. 

 In this episode, we discuss addiction and the story behind the label of being an addict. John shares how he turned his life around from growing up amongst a family that seemed like it had come straight out of an episode of The Sopranos to now being an international speaker on science based holistic treatments in addiction, recovery, and mental health. In this episode, we discuss violence, childhood sexual abuse, drug taking, but this story is about more it's about resilience, tenacity, service, surrendering to the what is and creating from there. This is a story of the psychological, social and biological contributors to addiction and to recovery. We also talk about John's most recent book, The kid from the South Bronx, who never gave up, details of which are in the show notes and we start with my poem Labels.

 John  is an expert in the treatment of addiction, mental health, and the founder of The National Institute For Holistic Addiction Studies (NIFHAS). He is the author of “Proven Holistic Treatment For Addiction & Chronic Relapse”, “How To Beat Your Addictions And Live A Quality Life”, and his most recent book is the acclaimed: “The Kid From The South Bronx Who Never Gave Up,” and is the co-author of “Molecular Neurobiology of Addiction Recovery: The 12 Steps Program and Fellowship.” Over twenty years ago Giordano founded the prestigious G & G Holistic Addiction Treatment Center in North Miami Beach, Florida — a 62 bed in-patient/out-patient JCAHO accredited addiction treatment facility.

Click here to go to my Substack page.

Click here to buy my book

Click here to buy my a coffee and show your support

Listener support: I love making The Therapeutic Poet podcast, but it does cost time and money. If you have enjoyed it, been informed by it or found it helpful then I would greatly appreciate your financial support. You can do this by:

Taking a paid subscription on my Substack - a weekly newsletter helping people have 'Permission to feel'. You'll receive tips on how to navigate our human tricky things, recorded poems and other goodies.

Buying my book ‘Stop the world I want to get off’

Or buy me a coffee 🤗.

Joining me on The Therapeutic Poet podcast today is Vanessa Belleau, founder of High Fifteen. Vanessa is a storyteller of social truths. Vanessa’s credentials are impressive with an MSc in European Business Administration and an MA in Business Management. She is also a qualified executive coach and mentor and works with the likes of British Fashion Council, Gym shark and Walt Disney Studios. She works with companies on their business strategies, leadership, diversity and belonging. 

 In  this episode  on  belonging we discuss the evolution of diversity and inclusion as buzz words to the necessary action that is needed in order to belong. Vanessa shares her own personal experience of the importance of representation from a random man on the street to her own mum and how that can be life changing. I certainly learned a lot from Vanessa about how we need to strive for unity, but also the importance of celebration of each other. So listen in, I think she is a bubble of joy to listen to and I hope you do too!

You can find out more about Vanessa at www.highfifteen.com, 
on Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vanessabelleau/ 
or on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vanessabsmiles and https://www.instagram.com/highfifteen.

Vanessa spoke about the Cultural Iceberg. This is based upon the work of Edward T Hall and an example of it can be found with this link: https://uca.edu/training/files/2019/09/Culture-as-an-Iceberg.pdf

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Click here to go to my Substack page.

Click here to buy my book

Click here to buy my a coffee and show your support

Listener support: I love making The Therapeutic Poet podcast, but it does cost time and money. If you have enjoyed it, been informed by it or found it helpful then I would greatly appreciate your financial support. You can do this by:

Taking a paid subscription on my Substack - a weekly newsletter helping people have 'Permission to feel'. You'll receive tips on how to navigate our human tricky things, recorded poems and other goodies.

Buying my book ‘Stop the world I want to get off’

Or buy me a coffee 🤗.