Tender Space

Confidence
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Daily

Tender Space is a soft place for honest conversations about life, mental health, fading friendships, emotional exhaustion, healing, freedom, and the quiet struggles we carry alone. This podcast explores the parts of being human we don’t always know how to explain — overthinking at night, feeling lost in life, outgrowing people, trying to heal while still hurting, and learning how to exist in a world that can feel both beautiful and unfair. Through deep reflections, real conversations, and vulnerable storytelling, Tender Space reminds listeners that they are not alone in what they feel.

  1. 3 days ago

    Breaking Old Patterns and Rebuilding Trust in Yourself with Jon McLernon

    Why is change so difficult, even when we know what we need to do? On this episode of Tender Space, we welcome Jon McLernon, a board-certified health and wellness coach, former nanotechnology researcher and Navy marine engineer, and creator of the NeuroQuit Method. Jon shares a deeply personal journey of surviving a near-fatal assault, navigating PTSD and anxiety, struggling with emotional eating, rebuilding after financial loss, and losing more than 100 pounds. Along the way, he discovered that lasting change required more than willpower, pressure, or self-criticism. It required understanding his behaviour, developing self-compassion, and learning to take consistent, sustainable action. Together, we explore why people repeat destructive patterns, how shame can make change harder, and why self-sabotage may sometimes be connected to attempts to cope with difficult emotions. We also discuss rebuilding self-trust, finding meaning after hardship, and creating habits that can withstand the pressures of everyday life. If you've ever felt frustrated with yourself for struggling to change, this conversation offers a reminder that you don't have to become perfect to move forward. You can begin by understanding your story, treating yourself with compassion, and taking one meaningful step at a time. About the Guest Jon McLernon is a National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach, Master Health and Nutrition Coach, certified personal trainer, stress management coach, and creator of the NeuroQuit Method. With a background in nanotechnology research and marine engineering, Jon brings a systems-oriented perspective to behaviour change. His coaching draws on neuroscience, psychology, health principles, and lived experience to help people better understand patterns involving emotional eating, addiction, anxiety, burnout, and self-sabotage. Having navigated trauma, financial loss, and his own struggles with destructive habits, Jon is passionate about helping people move beyond shame and build sustainable change through self-awareness, compassion, structure, and consistent action. Guest Link https://tidycal.com/coachjon/15-minute-meeting https://jonathanmclernon.substack.com/

  2. 4 days ago

    Healing Your Relationship with Money and Yourself with Pericles Rellas

    What if your relationship with money is shaped by more than your income, spending habits, or financial circumstances? On this episode of Tender Space, we welcome Pericles Rellas, a money mindset and manifestation expert who has spent more than 30 years helping people examine their beliefs about money, develop greater financial awareness, and work toward the lives they want to create. We explore his concept of the Financial Thermostat, the influence of childhood money messages, and the ways fear, guilt, self-worth, and deeply rooted beliefs can affect our financial choices. We also discuss manifestation, personal responsibility, and the importance of pairing a healthy mindset with practical action. This conversation goes beyond wealth. It's an opportunity to reflect on what money means to us, how our experiences shape our expectations, and whether the stories we tell ourselves are helping us move toward the future we want. If you've ever felt stuck in familiar financial patterns or wondered why changing your circumstances can feel so difficult, this episode offers questions worth exploring. Disclaimer: This conversation explores Pericles's personal approach to money mindset and manifestation. Financial outcomes are influenced by many factors, including income, circumstances, and practical decisions; mindset practices do not guarantee specific results. About the Guest Pericles Rellas is a money mindset and manifestation expert with more than three decades of experience helping people explore their relationship with money and themselves. His work centers on the concept of the Financial Thermostat—his term for the internal beliefs, expectations, and emotional patterns he believes influence how people earn, keep, and experience money. Through his approach, Pericles encourages people to examine their financial conditioning and work toward greater financial confidence, freedom, and alignment with their goals. He also offers educational resources, including a free webinar about the Financial Thermostat and its relationship to manifestation. Guest Link https://www.periclesrellas.com/

  3. 4 days ago

    Rebuilding Your Life and Learning to Listen to Your Body with Hollyanna Vellichor

    What happens when the life you've always known suddenly falls apart—and you have to discover who you are all over again? On this episode of Tender Space, we welcome Hollyanna Fisher, a wellness practitioner whose journey of leaving a high-control religious community, rebuilding her life after homelessness, and navigating chronic pain and complex trauma led her to explore the body's adaptive responses. Hollyanna shares the experiences and questions behind Bio Coding™, her evolving framework for exploring the relationship between the nervous system, movement, sensation, and human adaptation. We talk about identity, grief, resilience, chronic pain, and what it means to approach our struggles with curiosity rather than judgment. This conversation also invites us to reconsider what recovery can mean, how we rebuild after losing our sense of belonging, and how we begin to understand ourselves beyond the identities we've inherited. If you've ever felt disconnected from yourself, struggled to make sense of your experiences, or wondered whether a new beginning is possible after profound loss, this episode offers space for reflection and meaningful questions. Note: Bio Coding™ is Hollyanna's evolving approach; the discussion explores her perspective and experiences rather than presenting the framework as an established medical treatment. About the Guest Hollyanna Fisher is a UK-based wellness practitioner, educator, and speaker whose work focuses on nervous system recovery, chronic pain, trauma, resilience, and human adaptation. After leaving a high-control religious community in 2022, Hollyanna faced significant personal losses while navigating complex PTSD and fibromyalgia. Her experiences, combined with her background as a competitive athlete and her work with clients, inspired her to explore the relationship between bodily responses, movement, sensation, and lived experience. She developed Bio Coding™ and Bio Intelligent Movement, evolving frameworks through which she explores body-led recovery and adaptive patterns. Hollyanna's work encourages people to become curious about their experiences and consider new ways of understanding their bodies. Guest Link https://www.hollyannavellichor.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/holly-anna-7737652b2 https://www.instagram.com/hollyannavellichor?vrfl=ajY0MHpsc3FoNm5l

  4. 5 days ago

    Finding Peace After Childhood Trauma with Donna Donahue

    Can we find peace after a childhood filled with pain? And what does healing look like when the past continues to affect the present? On this episode of Tender Space, we welcome Donna Donahue, a psychotherapist specializing in trauma recovery and a survivor of complex childhood trauma. Drawing from her personal healing journey and more than 20 years of studying trauma and healing approaches, Donna shares insights into self-awareness, emotional regulation, inner-child work, and learning to care for ourselves in healthier ways. We discuss the long road toward self-compassion, why healing isn't always linear, and how survivors can begin building a sense of safety and peace. Donna also shares the story behind her memoir, Witness Awakening: Finding Peace and Healing in the Midst of Childhood Trauma, written under the pseudonym Marie McCarthy. This is a compassionate conversation about moving beyond survival, reclaiming your sense of self, and discovering that a more peaceful life may be possible, even after profound pain. A gentle reminder: You don't have to heal all at once, and you don't have to do it alone. About the Guest Donna Donahue is a psychotherapist specializing in trauma recovery, with a personal history of complex childhood trauma and decades of experience working toward her own healing. She has studied trauma and healing techniques for more than 20 years and draws on approaches including Internal Family Systems (IFS), inner-child work, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), mindfulness, acceptance-based techniques, art, and psycho-spiritual practices. Donna takes a self-empowerment approach to healing, helping clients develop practical tools for self-awareness, calming difficult emotions, understanding younger parts of themselves, and responding to their needs with greater care. She is also the author of Witness Awakening: Finding Peace and Healing in the Midst of Childhood Trauma, published under the pseudonym Marie McCarthy. Through her personal story and professional work, Donna hopes to help fellow survivors experience greater well-being, self-understanding, and peace. Guest Link https://www.amazon.com/Witness-Awakening-Finding-Healing-Childhood/dp/1986039099 https://www.instagram.com/donnadonahuelcsw?cplk=c2g5ZjRpYTc0dnp2

  5. 6 days ago

    Reclaiming Our Humanity in the Age of AI with Sasikanth Battula

    Artificial intelligence is changing how we work, think, communicate, and live. But as technology advances, how do we make sure we don't lose our independence along the way? On this episode of Tender Space, we welcome Sasikanth Battula, AI pioneer, founder of Hola AI, and author of AI Jobs and AI SiCK. Drawing on three decades of Silicon Valley leadership, Sasi shares his perspective on the future of work, the growing influence of algorithms, and the importance of preserving human agency in an increasingly automated world. We explore the anxiety surrounding AI and job security, the difference between competing with machines and learning to direct them, and the psychological risks of relying too heavily on technology. We also discuss how innovation can serve humanity without replacing our judgment, relationships, and instincts. This is a conversation about more than artificial intelligence. It's about choice, responsibility, and remembering that even as technology becomes more powerful, we still have a role in shaping the future we want to live in. About the Guest Sasikanth Battula is an AI pioneer, Silicon Valley technology leader, founder of Hola AI, and author of AI Jobs and the dystopian fiction series AI SiCK. With three decades of leadership experience, he has helped bring AI-powered healthcare solutions to market, contributed to technology serving large global populations, and conducted what he describes as the first-ever live interview with an artificial intelligence. Through Hola AI, Sasi focuses on helping professionals navigate AI-driven changes in the workplace, strengthen their career prospects, and develop the skills to direct technology rather than compete with it. His writing also explores the cultural, psychological, and human consequences of becoming increasingly dependent on algorithms and connected devices. His work encourages people to approach AI with awareness, practical preparation, and a commitment to preserving human agency. Guest Link https://books2read.com/ap/nmv6Az/Sasikanth-Battula https://sasibattula.carrd.co/

  6. 6 days ago

    Harnessing Courage When Life Changes with Laura Bratton

    What happens when the future you imagined suddenly changes? In this episode of Tender Space, Laura Bratton shares her extraordinary journey of becoming blind as a teenager and learning to navigate a world she had never expected to experience without sight. Diagnosed with an eye disease at just nine years old, Laura spent the following decade confronting the emotional and practical challenges of losing her vision. Her experience eventually became the foundation for her book, Harnessing Courage, and her work through Ubi Global. Laura speaks about courage, grit, gratitude, resilience, and the practical tools that can help us navigate profound change. Whether you're facing a major transition, loss, uncertainty, or simply struggling with a challenge you didn't choose, Laura's story offers a powerful reminder: sometimes courage isn't about knowing exactly where you're going. It's about believing you can take the next step. About Laura Bratton Laura Bratton is the author of Harnessing Courage and the founder of Ubi Global, an organization providing speaking and coaching designed to empower people to overcome challenges and obstacles with grit and gratitude. Diagnosed with an eye disease at the age of nine, Laura experienced a decade-long transition toward blindness during her childhood and teenage years. Her lived experience has shaped her passion for helping others navigate significant change. Through her life story, Laura equips audiences with practical resources for approaching challenges with courage, grit, and gratitude. Guest Link https://www.laurabratton.com/

  7. 6 days ago

    Understanding Your Brain to Lead with Clarity with Dr. Marcia Ruben

    Why do capable people sometimes react out of fear, become overwhelmed by pressure, or repeat patterns they know aren't helping them? On this episode of Tender Space, we welcome Dr. Marcia Ruben, executive coach, organizational consultant, and professor emerita, to explore the connection between neuroscience, self-awareness, and leadership. Drawing on more than three decades of experience, Marcia explains how our thinking patterns influence our decisions, relationships, and responses to stress. We discuss the hidden costs of perfectionism, the importance of emotional awareness, and how understanding our brains can help us move from automatic reactions to intentional choices. This conversation is about more than becoming a better leader at work. It's about understanding ourselves, breaking patterns that no longer serve us, and creating space for a healthier relationship with success, uncertainty, and the people around us. Because sometimes, the most important person we need to learn to lead is ourselves. About the Guest Dr. Marcia Ruben is an executive coach, organizational consultant, and graduate leadership professor emerita with more than three decades of experience helping leaders navigate complexity, manage pressure, and lead with clarity. She holds a doctorate, has a background in social cognitive neuroscience, and has received two teaching awards. Her book, The Neuroscience of Leadership: Rewire. Untangle. Lead., translates research-informed insights about the brain into practical tools for recognizing unhelpful patterns, managing reactions, and making more intentional decisions. Her work helps leaders understand why even highly capable people can become stuck and how greater self-awareness can support meaningful change. Guest Link https://leadershiptangles.com/ https://bit.ly/4dRAJDi

  8. 19 Oct

    Finding Your Voice and Staying True to Yourself with Victor Jones

    What does it take to build a platform around honest conversations while staying true to yourself? In this episode of Tender Space, we welcome Victor Jones, podcast host, entrepreneur, storyteller, and creator of the Liquor Talk Podcast. After years of interviewing creators, entrepreneurs, entertainers, and everyday people, Victor has built a platform for conversations about culture, relationships, creativity, business, and life. We explore the realities of podcasting, the challenges of staying consistent, and the importance of creating spaces where people can share their stories authentically. Victor also reflects on the lessons he's learned through conversations with people from different walks of life and what it means to keep showing up when the journey gets difficult. Whether you're a creator, an aspiring podcaster, or someone searching for the courage to share your own story, this conversation is a reminder that authenticity and connection can make a lasting difference. Because sometimes, one honest conversation can change the way we see ourselves and the people around us. About Victor Jones Victor Jones is a podcast host, storyteller, and entrepreneur best known for creating the Liquor Talk Podcast. Through his platform, he has interviewed hundreds of creators, entrepreneurs, entertainers, and everyday people, exploring topics such as relationships, culture, creativity, business, and personal experiences. Victor brings energy, authenticity, and curiosity to his conversations, creating opportunities for guests to share their perspectives and connect with audiences. His work reflects a passion for storytelling and a commitment to building a platform where people can speak openly about their journeys. Beyond interviewing, Victor shares insights into the realities of podcasting, creating authentic content, overcoming setbacks, and building a lasting presence as a creator. Guest Link https://www.liquortalkpodcast.com/?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAdGRleATrSB5wZG9mAmZkaWQWUMdGtDS6eaWJi505soVa9A3tpnRFKmV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDzEyNDAyNDU3NDI4NzQxNAABp1ufOZtqq_7XKHr4RrVoXxqRRm7tRazy2KTG3eGkzJneWpZIBDsvz-PHPqPH_aem_gMRcvMq2XTWE362ej7fyXQ https://www.linkedin.com/in/victor-jones-68a31a112?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app

See All (161)

Ratings & Reviews

About

Tender Space is a soft place for honest conversations about life, mental health, fading friendships, emotional exhaustion, healing, freedom, and the quiet struggles we carry alone. This podcast explores the parts of being human we don’t always know how to explain — overthinking at night, feeling lost in life, outgrowing people, trying to heal while still hurting, and learning how to exist in a world that can feel both beautiful and unfair. Through deep reflections, real conversations, and vulnerable storytelling, Tender Space reminds listeners that they are not alone in what they feel.

Information

  • Creator
    Confidence
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    161
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Confidence
  • Show Website
    Tender Space