Why you would want to listen to this episode… Melanie Verstraete is a woman who’s endured her fair share of hurdles in life, namely involving important relationships. Toxicity always seemed to follow her, whether it was the unfortunate string of stepdads or the unsafe living conditions with her ex-husbands. Until one day, she put her foot down and determined that she was the common denominator in all her misery. With that in mind came the start of her journey of self-discovery and self-fulfillment. By putting herself first, she has become a better person and started attracting better people, too. On today’s episode of Taylor Way Talks, we get to know Melanie’s story and how she overcame all of her challenges to rise above as a woman unashamed of who she is. Who is this for… Whether navigating through life’s trenches or being plagued by our inner voices, this episode has a little something for all of us. The world may treat us unfairly, and we cannot control its perception of us. Yet, we are able to control how we see ourselves. Melanie and Dawn's conversation exemplifies how a shift in perspective can bring about significant change in one's life. Guest Bio Melanie Verstraete, love and relationship expert and founder of The Wild Heart Life, has helped thousands of men and women break out of unhealthy relationship patterns and find true love by understanding the root mechanisms that keep them in a harmful cycle. Melanie’s own experience with toxic relationships started in an unstable environment growing up with an inattentive mother and a string of unsuitable stepdads. After going through her own second divorce, Melanie had an epiphany about harmful patterns that changed the entire trajectory of her life, and she has dedicated her life ever since to becoming a master coach with the insights and empathy to transform lives. Guest Links Email - melanie@thewildheartlife.com The Wild Heart Life - https://thewildheartlife.com Instagram - https://instagram.com/iammelanieverstraete Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/melanie.verstraete.az LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/themelanieverstraete/ About Dawn Taylor Dawn Taylor is the professional ass-kicker, hope giver, life strategist, trauma specialist, and all-around badass. Dawn's journey into helping others heal began when she took her personal recovery from the trauma she experienced in her life into her own hands. While at times unconventional, Dawn’s strategic methods have helped hundreds heal from traumas such as issues related to infidelity, overcoming addiction, working through PTSD from sexual, emotional, and physical abuse, as well as helping cult survivors thrive. Dawn’s work has empowered entrepreneurs, stay-at-home moms, and CEOs alike to be superheroes in their own lives. Having completed thousands of hours of training from many professional programs, including the Robbins Madanes Training Institute, Dawn’s blunt honesty will challenge your thinking, broaden your awareness, and help you achieve the outstanding results you are worthy of. Connect with Dawn here at The Taylor Way: Consultation Call | Website | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn Get to know Dawn on a deeper level through her book! Order Here P.S. I Made It, is a powerful story that grabs you through its lack of pretension and honesty. Every page reveals another layer of curious wonder at both Dawn’s life and the power of hope that moves within each of us. Dawn’s hope is that you use this book as a resource to deal with your struggles. Share it with someone who needs it. We all want to feel like someone understands what it’s like to suffer through something and – come out the other side. She describes her life as “horrifically beautiful and beautifully horrific. Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below! Follow the podcast If you want to receive new podcast episodes automatically, you can follow us on Apple Podcasts or in your favourite podcast app. Please leave us an Apple Podcasts review Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review. Views Expressed, Legal and Medical Disclaimer This podcast (including any/all site pages, blog posts, blog comments, forums, videos, audio recordings, etc.) is not intended to replace the services of a physician, nor does it constitute a doctor-patient relationship. Information is provided for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should not use the information on this podcast for diagnosing or treating a medical or health condition. If you have or suspect you have an urgent medical problem, promptly contact your professional healthcare provider. Any application of the recommendations in this podcast/website is at the listener/reader's discretion. The views and opinions expressed are those of guests and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or policy of Dawn Taylor, The Taylor Way and or its Associates. The before mentioned are not liable for any direct or indirect claim or loss. Transcript Dawn Taylor Good morning. Only because it's good morning here. So that's why I'm going to say that today it is me, your host of the Taylor Talks, Dawn Taylor and I, okay, buckle up. We're probably going to say some bad words today. I'm going to just put it out there right now. You may be offended. Deal with it. I'm just. I'm just like, if you haven't listened to a few episodes already, you know that that's kind of how I am. Because today we're diving into how we are the common denominator in our own misery. Yeah, that's right, I said it and we're going to go there. So let's talk to our guest today. Her name is Melanie Verstraete. You can find all of her contact information on the show notes at TheTaylorWay.ca. She's a loving relationship expert and the founder of the Wild Heart Life. She works with people on unhealthy relationship patterns with men, women, all kinds of fun stuff, and finding all the root garbage that's kept us in those harmful cycles. But more importantly for today, her own experience with toxic relationships started in an unstable environment growing up with an inattentive mom, a string of unsuitable step dads, multiple divorces, a bunch of epiphanies, and all kinds of other fun. She's laughing right now because I'm the worst at reading people's bios, but I hope you guys are as excited as I am, because yeah, we're going to talk about the hard stuff today. Let's dive in. Melanie, what do you wish people were talking about? And welcome to the show. Melanie Verstraete Oh, I'm so here for it. Dawn Taylor Um, well, it's truly like what you said. Especially in today's culture. Melanie Verstraete We are such a blame game. I'm the victim. I'm the squeaky wheel giving me all the attention and let me stay here. The problem with that is there's no power there. There's zero power there. Right. So. If you don't like your life, you are the only one who can shift it. You're the only one who could change it, and you're the actual one who chose it now to use it. Lots of people are going to be pissed off, right? So, I'll do a quick little backstory, because this was the realization that truly saved my life. I could say that it saved my life. Dawn Taylor No. Let's dive into this. I'm going to actually pause you for a second. I want to dive into this because. I have heard, I've had this argument with so many people recently that “No, no, no, it's we were trained to be this way. This is literally how we have been trained to be.” The joys of that or that we can train ourselves out of it. Yeah. So let's dive into your childhood. Sure. And what it was that went on in your life that got you to where you were like, “Oh, shit, I might be the common denominator right now in my misery.” Melanie Verstraete Yeah. So long, long, long, long story short, um, I grew up without my dad, but now he's in my life, and we're, like, best friends, so it's beautiful. But he wasn't in my life when I was a little girl, uh, a teenager and a young woman. And then I had six step dads by the time I was 21. So, you know, there was a revolving door of men in my life. And luckily, the majority of them were cool. But the one who was with me the longest, you know, let's just be real, was a dick. And she was with me from ages 12 to 18. So really formidable years for a young woman, right? Dawn Taylor Your pivotal years. Melanie Verstraete Yes. He was emotionally abusive. I could never do anything right. And I'll just tell you one quick story, you know, and give you kind of like the climate of that house. Um, I was 16 at the time, and he was in the military, and he would all, no matter what I was doing, he would always hover over me and like, judge me and how I'm not doing everything right kind of crap. And he was a big dude. I'm like five, four. He was like six-two, six-three. And I remember I was washing dishes even though we had a dishwasher. And no, I wasn't a spoiled little brat, okay? I felt like the unpaid maid. Okay. And the unpaid au pair. And so I'm washing dishes and I have like I don't remember why I had so many, so much, uh, like utensils, but there was a ton of utensils for whatever reason. And, um, hand washing them, putting him in the little bin, and he comes over and he's like. He didn't say it in this tone. He said it in quite the dick tone, but basically, like, “Those aren't clean. Redo them.” Right? And at the time I'm 16, he's been in my life since I was 12. And if you know anything about you