Mastering Change | The trauma, mental health & wellbeing podcast

Masters Events

Welcome to Mastering Change, a podcast co-hosted by Emma and Araminta, where we engage in meaningful conversations centred around healing. In this series, we bring together leading experts, innovative thinkers, and emerging voices to connect knowledge with real-world impact in the areas of trauma, mental health and wellbeing.    Each episode features insightful discussions with respected figures as well as promising new contributors to the field. We explore a range of topics with a focus on making this knowledge available for anyone interested in supporting their own healing journey or that of others.    At Mastering Change, we understand the significance of conversation as a means of fostering understanding and growth. Our aim is to create a ripple effect, facilitating the transfer of knowledge and establishing a community where impactful voices are heard.     Whether you are a seasoned professional or new to the field, we invite you to engage in thoughtful discussions that can inspire meaningful change in your practice and personal life. Join us as we explore critical insights and perspectives, encouraging a shared commitment to healing trauma. 

  1. 19 AUG

    Finding meaning in grief | David Kessler | #026 Mastering Change

    We know about the five stages of grief – but did you know there’s a sixth? David Kessler speaks to us in this episode about how finding meaning can become one of the most powerful steps in healing after loss.  Kessler is one of the world’s leading grief experts and author of On Grief and Grieving and Finding Meaning: The Sixth Stage of Grief. Drawing on decades of experience and his own personal journey with loss, David shares why all trauma carries grief, and why healing requires more than just “moving on.”  We explore the deep connection between trauma and loss, the importance of feeling rather than suppressing emotions and why grief must be witnessed by another to truly heal.  From the misconceptions about the famous five stages of grief to his pioneering work on the sixth stage – finding meaning – David offers insight, compassion and practical wisdom for anyone navigating loss, whether it’s death, divorce, childhood wounds or other life changes we didn’t choose.  We also explore:  Why trauma work and grief work must go hand in hand How suppressed grief shapes relationships, boundaries, and self-worth The role of ritual and community in healing Why “presence” matters more than perfect words How meaning-making parallels post-traumatic growth Moment of Care: This episode discusses sensitive episodes related to trauma, mental health and potential distressing experiences. If you feel triggered at any point, please take a moment to check in with yourself and seek support.  Watch this episode on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/masteringchangepodcast Follow us on instagram: www.instagram.com/masterseventsltd Visit mastersevents.com/oxford-2025 for more details.

    41 min
  2. 12 AUG

    Breaking free from people-pleasing and family patterns | Jerry Wise | #025 Mastering Change

    Why do we keep falling into the same family roles – even as adults?  This week we speak with systems therapist and family recovery coach Jerry Wise about how to break free from emotional enmeshment, codependency and the unspoken rules that keep us stuck.  Drawing on decades of clinical and coaching experience, Jerry introduces the concept of self-differentiation – the process of becoming your own person while staying connected to others. He explains why physical distance doesn’t necessarily create emotional freedom, how to stop internalising guilt and shame, and why staying calm can ripple change through an entire relationship dynamic.  We also explore:  How family patterns live on in us – even when we’re miles away Why boundaries aren’t about pushing people out, but staying connected on your own terms The surprising link between self-regulation and changing relationship dynamics What it really takes to step out of old family roles and become yourself  This episode offers clarity, compassion and practical tools for therapists helping patients to create healthier, more authentic connections – without losing themselves in the process.  Moment of Care: This episode discusses sensitive episodes related to trauma, mental health and potential distressing experiences. If you feel triggered at any point, please take a moment to check in with yourself and seek support.  Watch this episode on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/masteringchangepodcast Follow us on instagram: www.instagram.com/masterseventsltd Visit mastersevents.com/oxford-2025 for more details.

    44 min
  3. 5 AUG

    TAP into healing | Poppy Delbridge | #024 Mastering Change

    Could just a few minutes of intention, presence and energy work change everything?  This week on Mastering Change, we speak with Poppy Delbridge – energy psychologist, rapid tapping practitioner and author of TAP – to explore how energy-based practices like EFT (emotional freedom technique) can shift trauma and regulate the nervous system.  Poppy explains how belief systems are stored in the body, why affirmations alone don’t work and how trauma can wire us into patterns of fear and scarcity. She shows us how tapping offers a real-time, trauma-informed way to interrupt those loops – and reconnect with joy and safety.  We also explore:  What rapid tapping is and how it differs from classic EFT The body’s role in storing emotion and limiting beliefs How to interrupt trauma loops and shift state instantly Why energy work supports healing for trauma survivors How to use tapping for self-regulation, creativity, and joy  This episode is a powerful reminder that change doesn’t always have to take years – it can happen in the space of a few breaths, a few taps and a shift in energy.  Moment of Care: This episode discusses sensitive episodes related to trauma, mental health and potential distressing experiences. If you feel triggered at any point, please take a moment to check in with yourself and seek support.  Watch this episode on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/masteringchangepodcast Follow us on instagram: www.instagram.com/masterseventsltd Visit mastersevents.com/oxford-2025 for more details.

    44 min
  4. 29 JUL

    Out of your head, into your body | Erica Hornthal | #023 Mastering Change

    Before we can speak our pain, our bodies have already carried it – which means, often, talking through trauma isn’t enough.  This week on Mastering Change, we sit down with Erica Hornthal, licensed clinical professional counselor, board-certified dance/movement therapist, and author of Body Aware and the brand-new BodyTalk. Known as “The Therapist Who Moves You,” Erica explores how trauma lives not just in memory, but in muscle tone, breath, posture – even stillness.  Drawing on years of somatic practice, Erica helps us understand why talk therapy alone often isn’t enough – and how movement can offer a direct line to regulation, relief, and reconnection.  “The body holds the story before we can speak it.”  We explore  What dance/movement therapy really is How trauma shows up in subtle physical habits The difference between expressive movement and embodied awareness Why stillness can signal stress How movement can become a language for healing Whether you're a trauma survivor, a therapist, or someone feeling disconnected from yourself – this episode is a reminder that healing isn’t just something we think through. It’s something we move through.  Moment of Care: This episode discusses sensitive episodes related to trauma, mental health and potential distressing experiences. If you feel triggered at any point, please take a moment to check in with yourself and seek support.   Watch this episode on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/masteringchangepodcast Follow us on instagram: www.instagram.com/masterseventsltd Visit mastersevents.com/oxford-2025 for more details.

    48 min
  5. 22 JUL

    What romance fiction has to do with trauma healing | Alicia Kindleysides | #022 Mastering Change

    Romance novels aren’t just escapism – they can help process trauma too. Academic, writer and trauma theorist Dr. Alicia Kindleysides invites us to think differently about healing – examining how reading and writing can offer safe spaces for processing pain.   Her PhD research explores trauma responses through the world of romance fiction. She has found that romance fiction gives people a place to safely rehearse emotional experiences – connection, desire, safety – that may have been disrupted by trauma.  Her research also identified a ninth trauma response – “fade” – in addition to the existing 8F model of trauma reactions (fight, flight, fright, freeze, flag, fawn, faint and flood). Fade, she says, is a response rooted in hiding, invisibility and withdrawal.  We explore:  Bibliotherapy and scriptotherapy as creative healing tools How trauma disconnects us from instinct and inner knowing The link between overthinking, perfectionism, and childhood hypervigilance Escapism vs healing: when dissociation becomes a resource Why fiction might reach where words alone can’t Moment of Care: This episode discusses sensitive episodes related to trauma, mental health and potential distressing experiences. If you feel triggered at any point, please take a moment to check in with yourself and seek support.  Watch this episode on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/masteringchangepodcast Follow us on instagram: www.instagram.com/masterseventsltd Visit mastersevents.com/oxford-2025 for more details.

    35 min
  6. 15 JUL

    Horses for healing: lessons from equine therapy | Rianne Sibma-de Vries | #021 Mastering Change

    What if healing didn’t start with words – but simply with presence?  This week on the Mastering Change podcast, we speak with Rianne Sibma-de Vries, a trauma-informed counsellor and equine therapist based in the Netherlands. Rianne’s work combines Internal Family Systems (IFS), systemic constellations, somatic techniques and equine-assisted therapy to help people reconnect with themselves in profound, body-based ways.  Horses, Rianne explains, are instinctive, non-judgemental and deeply attuned. They help people access parts of themselves that have long been buried. Whether working with clients with complex PTSD or high-performing leaders, she sees the same transformation: “Once the body feels the sensation of being held… they will never forget that.”    Horses don’t care about titles, trauma narratives, or words. They respond to energy and truth.   And in doing so, they offer a mirror to our inner world – helping us regulate, reconnect, and heal.  We explore:  How horses help us access the present moment and restore inner safety Why equine therapy can reach places talk therapy can’t The ancient, cross-cultural bond between humans and horses What it means to be “held” without judgment The power of self-love as a lever for societal changeMoment of Care: This episode discusses sensitive episodes related to trauma, mental health and potential distressing experiences. If you feel triggered at any point, please take a moment to check in with yourself and seek support.  Watch this episode on Youtube: https://tinyurl.com/masteringchangepodcast Follow us on instagram: www.instagram.com/masterseventsltd Visit mastersevents.com/oxford-2025 for more details.

    34 min

About

Welcome to Mastering Change, a podcast co-hosted by Emma and Araminta, where we engage in meaningful conversations centred around healing. In this series, we bring together leading experts, innovative thinkers, and emerging voices to connect knowledge with real-world impact in the areas of trauma, mental health and wellbeing.    Each episode features insightful discussions with respected figures as well as promising new contributors to the field. We explore a range of topics with a focus on making this knowledge available for anyone interested in supporting their own healing journey or that of others.    At Mastering Change, we understand the significance of conversation as a means of fostering understanding and growth. Our aim is to create a ripple effect, facilitating the transfer of knowledge and establishing a community where impactful voices are heard.     Whether you are a seasoned professional or new to the field, we invite you to engage in thoughtful discussions that can inspire meaningful change in your practice and personal life. Join us as we explore critical insights and perspectives, encouraging a shared commitment to healing trauma. 

You Might Also Like