A Thought I Kept

Claire Fitzsimmons
  • 5.0 (2)
  • SELF-IMPROVEMENT

A Thought I Kept is a podcast about the ideas that stay with us, long after we’ve forgotten the rest. In each episode, a guest shares the one thought that shaped their life — the one they couldn’t let go of, and maybe you won’t either.

  1. Making Space for All That We Feel with Dr MaryCatherine McDonald

    17H AGO

    Making Space for All That We Feel with Dr MaryCatherine McDonald

    In this episode, I talk to Dr MaryCatherine McDonald about what it means to make space for all that we feel, especially the emotions we’ve been taught to push away. We explore anxiety, grief, joy, and all the ways our nervous system tries to protect us, even when it leaves us bracing against life rather than living it. MaryCatherine shares how her understanding of emotions shifted from something to manage or control, to something to sit with and relate to. We talk about anticipated loss, the way fear can interrupt connection, and why joy isn’t something we reach after the hard parts, but something that often arrives in the middle of them. We mention The Guest House by Rumi, Leslie Jamison’s The Empathy Exams, and MaryCatherine’s books The Joy Reset and Unbroken. Dr. MaryCatherine McDonald is a trauma researcher, author, and educator who has spent nearly two decades helping people reframe the way they understand grief, resilience, and joy. With a PhD in philosophy and a knack for turning complex neurobiological concepts into practical tools (and surprisingly good metaphors), she’s made it her mission to help people find light in the darkest moments. Dr. McDonald has written four books, many academic papers, delivered countless workshops, and created an online community where members geek out about trauma and joy.   Website | Tik Tok | Instagram Support the show This is A Thought I Kept — Weekly conversations about the ideas that stay. Listen every Monday morning for a new thought to hold onto this week, especially when the world feels overwhelming. About Claire Fitzsimmons Claire is the host of A Thought I Kept, a wellbeing writer and the co-founder of If Lost Start Here, a company on a mission to get people to a better place, sometimes literally. As an ICF Associate Certified Coach and a certified Emotions Coach Practitioner, Claire helps women navigate the everyday lost moments of their lives and all their feelings, from anxiety to grief, overwhelm to joy. Claire writes on Substack at MoreGoodDays. For personal coaching, reach out to Claire here. Like what you heard? Subscribe to A Thought I Kept. Follow the podcast on Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter. Shop Season 1 poster  Made with Descript & Buzzsprout

    52 min
  2. How We Break Free from Alcohol with Ellie Nova

    MAR 16

    How We Break Free from Alcohol with Ellie Nova

    Sometimes the things we reach for to cope slowly become the things we feel trapped by. A glass of wine at the end of a long day. Something to take the edge off anxiety. Something that promises connection, relaxation, or a moment of relief from the noise of everyday life. In this week’s episode of A Thought I Kept, I talk to sober coach, sober mentor, and writer Ellie Nova about our relationship with alcohol, emotions, and the stories many of us carry about coping. Ellie shares the thought that changed everything for her: there is nothing wrong with you. For years she believed that struggling with alcohol meant she was broken. But through a different way of understanding addiction, emotions, and self-compassion, she began to see something else entirely. Not a personal failure, but a human response to pain, loneliness, and the ways many of us learn to numb what we feel. Together we explore why alcohol can become intertwined with everyday emotional life from anxiety and overwhelm to loneliness, shame, and the longing to belong. We talk about the cultural stories that tell us drinking helps us relax, connect, and cope, and what happens when those stories start to feel less true. About Ellie Nova: Ellie is a sober coach, sober mentor, writer and mother who lives in Lewes, East Sussex. In 2018, after more than a decade feeling trapped by alcohol and full of shame, she discovered a radical new approach to recovery that changed her life. Now six years free from alcohol - with no desire to drink - Ellie supports courageous women to reclaim their power and break free from alcohol for good.  Website | Substack | Instagram | Women's sobriety support circle  Show notes: This Naked Mind — by Annie Grace The Little Book of Big Change — by Amy Johnson Alcohol Explained — by William Porter The Biology of Desire — by Marc Lewis Support the show This is A Thought I Kept — Weekly conversations about the ideas that stay. Listen every Monday morning for a new thought to hold onto this week, especially when the world feels overwhelming. About Claire Fitzsimmons Claire is the host of A Thought I Kept, a wellbeing writer and the co-founder of If Lost Start Here, a company on a mission to get people to a better place, sometimes literally. As an ICF Associate Certified Coach and a certified Emotions Coach Practitioner, Claire helps women navigate the everyday lost moments of their lives and all their feelings, from anxiety to grief, overwhelm to joy. Claire writes on Substack at MoreGoodDays. For personal coaching, reach out to Claire here. Like what you heard? Subscribe to A Thought I Kept. Follow the podcast on Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter. Shop Season 1 poster  Made with Descript & Buzzsprout

    59 min
  3. How to Find Beauty in Everyday Life with Josephine Dolan-Dufourd

    MAR 9

    How to Find Beauty in Everyday Life with Josephine Dolan-Dufourd

    What if the way to feel better isn’t about doing more but learning how to notice what’s already here? In this episode, I talk with occupational therapist Josephine Dolan-Dufourd about what it means to find beauty in everyday life, especially when you're not quite where you thought you'd be. We explore burnout, the pressure to keep producing, and the curious way our attention can get pulled away from the lives we are actually living. Josephine reflects on her years working in forensic psychiatry, the moment she realised she was burned out, and the unexpected shift that came from leaving London and rebuilding a life in rural France. Along the way we talk about the neuroscience of attention, why our brains are wired to look for the negative, and how small acts of noticing — a cup of coffee, a walk outside, the quiet satisfaction of meaningful work — can slowly reshape how we experience everyday life. We even get into the limits of happiness culture. Josephine shares why she now thinks more about contentment than constant positivity, and how living with illness, uncertainty, and change can sharpen our appreciation for the ordinary moments we often overlook. If you’ve been feeling the pull to slow down, pay attention, and find a steadier way to live well, this conversation offers a good place to begin. Josephine Dolan-Dufourd is a British-trained and French-registered Occupational Therapist (ergothérapeute)—a profession defined by the use of purposeful activity, or “ the art of meaningful doing,” as a therapeutic tool to helping individuals to live a life of value, meaning and purpose. Based near Pézenas in the south of France, Josephine blends 26 years of eclectic experience to run a local clinic for children and their families, alongside a specialised practice in English providing online support for those navigating Cancer and Parkinson’s. She also serves as the In-house Therapist for heiter magazine and its community, The Heiter Society, where she hosts online workshops helping adults find joy and intentionality in their daily lives. Website  Support the show This is A Thought I Kept — Weekly conversations about the ideas that stay. Listen every Monday morning for a new thought to hold onto this week, especially when the world feels overwhelming. About Claire Fitzsimmons Claire is the host of A Thought I Kept, a wellbeing writer and the co-founder of If Lost Start Here, a company on a mission to get people to a better place, sometimes literally. As an ICF Associate Certified Coach and a certified Emotions Coach Practitioner, Claire helps women navigate the everyday lost moments of their lives and all their feelings, from anxiety to grief, overwhelm to joy. Claire writes on Substack at MoreGoodDays. For personal coaching, reach out to Claire here. Like what you heard? Subscribe to A Thought I Kept. Follow the podcast on Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter. Shop Season 1 poster  Made with Descript & Buzzsprout

    55 min
  4. Tea, Freedom and the Moment You Come Back to Yourself with Erica Moore

    MAR 2

    Tea, Freedom and the Moment You Come Back to Yourself with Erica Moore

    There are moments in life when everything looks fine on the outside, but something inside you is wondering, is this it? In this episode, I talk to Erica Moore about career change, rest, tea, and the small, pivotal moments that can shift the direction of a life. The bath before work. The cup of tea. The sudden clarity that life is short and this isn’t a dress rehearsal. Erica shares what happened when she left her career in law to build a tea company rooted in wellbeing and conscious pause. We explore what it means to wake up to your own life, to recognise burnout or quiet dissatisfaction, and to choose differently without losing yourself in the process. We talk about mental wellbeing, perserverence, self-trust, and the subtle pressure to keep growing even when growth no longer feels like freedom. If you’ve ever followed the path you thought you should take and found yourself questioning it, this conversation may feel familiar. It speaks to that moment when you realise that something needs to shift, and then you act on that. At the heart of this episode is Erica’s thought: life is short, and we might as well enjoy it. Not in a reckless way, but in the steady, everyday sense of allowing rest, pleasure, and presence to matter now. We reflect on how small daily tea rituals can support the nervous system, create space for mental wellbeing, and help you come back to yourself in the middle of busy work and family life. This is a conversation about change, but also about returning. About not waiting until everything is done before you let yourself rest. About Erica Moore Erica Moore helps people slow down just enough to live and lead well, using tea, presence, and simple daily practices to support clarity, balance, and better choices. She is the founder of eteaket tea and creator of The Tea Mind, a practical philosophy that turns everyday tea rituals into moments of clarity, presence, and care. eteaket | The Tea Mind | LinkedIn | Instagram | Podcast If you’re thinking about change, craving rest, curious about tea rituals, or simply wondering how to feel more present in your own life, this episode is a great place to start. Support the show This is A Thought I Kept — Weekly conversations about the ideas that stay. Listen every Monday morning for a new thought to hold onto this week, especially when the world feels overwhelming. About Claire Fitzsimmons Claire is the host of A Thought I Kept, a wellbeing writer and the co-founder of If Lost Start Here, a company on a mission to get people to a better place, sometimes literally. As an ICF Associate Certified Coach and a certified Emotions Coach Practitioner, Claire helps women navigate the everyday lost moments of their lives and all their feelings, from anxiety to grief, overwhelm to joy. Claire writes on Substack at MoreGoodDays. For personal coaching, reach out to Claire here. Like what you heard? Subscribe to A Thought I Kept. Follow the podcast on Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter. Shop Season 1 poster  Made with Descript & Buzzsprout

    52 min
  5. When You Realise You Get to Be Here with Gabrielle Treanor

    FEB 23

    When You Realise You Get to Be Here with Gabrielle Treanor

    This week I’m joined by writer, ADHD coach and founder of The Quiet ADHD Club, Gabrielle Treanor. Together, we explore what it means to feel fully here in your own life, especially if you’re a quiet woman in midlife who has spent years trying to be smaller, more consistent, or more “together” than you actually feel inside. We talk openly about ADHD in midlife, including the experience of late diagnosis and what it can mean to discover in your forties or fifties that your brain works differently. Gabrielle shares how recognising quiet ADHD helped her make sense of anxiety, procrastination, fluctuating motivation and years of self-doubt. We explore what self-trust looks like when your energy shifts, when consistency feels hard, and when traditional wellbeing advice simply doesn’t fit your nervous system. Gabrielle Treanor is a coach, writer, author and podcaster living in Wales, UK. She supports introverted, sensitive women who discover they have or think they have ADHD later in life, to understand, accept and love themselves, to work with their brain and build inner calm and confidence, so they can experience more peace, fulfilment and joy every day. Gabrielle was diagnosed herself with ADHD aged 48. She hosts the Quiet ADHD Club online membership and works one to one with coaching clients. Gabrielle has an MSc in Applied Positive Psychology and her first book, The 1% Wellness Experiment, was published December 2023. Gabrielle hosts the Pressing Pause podcast and she has spoken on podcasts, at bookshops, festivals, and wellbeing shows.  Website | The Quiet ADHD Club | The 1% Wellness Experiment | Podcast | Newsletter |  Instagram The Better Read Book Fest: Website and Instagram  Mentions: Natalie Lue, host of The Baggage Reclaim Sessions.  Support the show This is A Thought I Kept — Weekly conversations about the ideas that stay. Listen every Monday morning for a new thought to hold onto this week, especially when the world feels overwhelming. About Claire Fitzsimmons Claire is the host of A Thought I Kept, a wellbeing writer and the co-founder of If Lost Start Here, a company on a mission to get people to a better place, sometimes literally. As an ICF Associate Certified Coach and a certified Emotions Coach Practitioner, Claire helps women navigate the everyday lost moments of their lives and all their feelings, from anxiety to grief, overwhelm to joy. Claire writes on Substack at MoreGoodDays. For personal coaching, reach out to Claire here. Like what you heard? Subscribe to A Thought I Kept. Follow the podcast on Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter. Shop Season 1 poster  Made with Descript & Buzzsprout

    57 min
  6. How to Live in Surrender Without Losing Yourself with Ray Martin

    FEB 16

    How to Live in Surrender Without Losing Yourself with Ray Martin

    What happens when the life you carefully built no longer feels like it fits? When the version of success you were chasing leaves you anxious, or strangely unfulfilled? In this episode, I sit down with Ray Martin to explore what it really means to live in surrender without losing yourself. Ray shares the story of a year that unravelled everything he thought he knew — his marriage, his business, even his sense of who he was meant to be. What began as a six-month sabbatical turned into fourteen years of travel, self-inquiry, and learning to listen to something other than ambition. Together, we talk about the fear that can come when you let go of what’s expected of you, and the possibility that can open up when you follow what genuinely interests you instead. This conversation moves through anxiety and aliveness, identity and self-trust. We reflect on the pressure to keep playing a role that no longer feels true and the difference between chasing goals and responding to inner nudges. Ray speaks about rewriting his rules of success, learning to feel more deeply, and trusting that life might have his back, even when the path ahead isn’t clear. Ray Martin, aka The Daily Explorer, is an entrepreneur and award-winning business leader. As a coach, mentor, facilitator, speaker, writer, and mindfulness teacher, he is a torchbearer for greater human consciousness. Ray is also a marathon runner and fundraiser. He’s on a mission to empower people to live authentically and to bring more joy and happiness into the world. Website The Untethered Soul by Michael A. Singer The Five Regrets of the Dying by Bronnie Ware Manhood by Steve Biddulph Steve Jobs’ Stanford commencement speech The film Yes Man starring Jim Carrey Support the show This is A Thought I Kept — Weekly conversations about the ideas that stay. Listen every Monday morning for a new thought to hold onto this week, especially when the world feels overwhelming. About Claire Fitzsimmons Claire is the host of A Thought I Kept, a wellbeing writer and the co-founder of If Lost Start Here, a company on a mission to get people to a better place, sometimes literally. As an ICF Associate Certified Coach and a certified Emotions Coach Practitioner, Claire helps women navigate the everyday lost moments of their lives and all their feelings, from anxiety to grief, overwhelm to joy. Claire writes on Substack at MoreGoodDays. For personal coaching, reach out to Claire here. Like what you heard? Subscribe to A Thought I Kept. Follow the podcast on Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter. Shop Season 1 poster  Made with Descript & Buzzsprout

    42 min
  7. When Your Story No Longer Fits You with Hilary Salzman

    FEB 9

    When Your Story No Longer Fits You with Hilary Salzman

    Sometimes it isn’t a dramatic breaking point that tells us something needs to change. It can be quieter than that. Maybe just a sense of disconnect, or a feeling that the story we’re living no longer quite belongs to us. In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I talk to Hilary Salzman about what happens when you start to notice that misalignment — between who you are, how you’re seen, and the roles you’ve learned to inhabit. We talk about voice, self-trust, and the emotional weight of trying to stay inside stories that once made sense, but now feel confusing, limiting, or quietly exhausting. Hilary and I explore why telling our own stories can feel both risky and necessary, especially for women. We talk about emotional overwhelm, anxiety, and the pressure to turn our lives into neat, polished narratives rather than staying with what’s messier and often more honest.  The thought Hilary brings to this conversation — "If you don’t tell your story, someone else will" — stays with us as we talk about authorship, permission, and what it means to couragously reclaim your voice without needing to perform, explain, or fix yourself. Hilary Salzman is a business storyteller, writer, speaker and founder of She Roars Club who helps women in business stop playing small with their voices. She's the author of The Roar of Her Story (shortlisted for Business Book Awards 2025) and founder of She Roars Club, an accountability community for women entrepreneurs. She spent 20 years in corporate marketing at major tech brands before launching her storytelling consultancy. Hilary doesn't teach women to be louder or more polished. She shows them how to use their real experiences, even the messy bits, to build genuine connections and close the gap between the impact they've made and the stories they're telling. Instagram | Substack | LinkedIn | Website Support the show This is A Thought I Kept — Weekly conversations about the ideas that stay. Listen every Monday morning for a new thought to hold onto this week, especially when the world feels overwhelming. About Claire Fitzsimmons Claire is the host of A Thought I Kept, a wellbeing writer and the co-founder of If Lost Start Here, a company on a mission to get people to a better place, sometimes literally. As an ICF Associate Certified Coach and a certified Emotions Coach Practitioner, Claire helps women navigate the everyday lost moments of their lives and all their feelings, from anxiety to grief, overwhelm to joy. Claire writes on Substack at MoreGoodDays. For personal coaching, reach out to Claire here. Like what you heard? Subscribe to A Thought I Kept. Follow the podcast on Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter. Shop Season 1 poster  Made with Descript & Buzzsprout

    58 min
  8. When No One Is Coming to Save You with Edwina Jenner

    FEB 2

    When No One Is Coming to Save You with Edwina Jenner

    This week’s thought I kept comes from Edwina Jenner, and it’s one that fundamentally reshaped how she thinks about responsibility, self-trust, and the way we move through midlife. It’s a thought that can feel confronting at first but, when given some space, can open up a surprising sense of clarity and freedom. In this episode of A Thought I Kept, I talk with Edwina about what happens when we stop waiting and start listening to ourselves more closely. We explore moments many listeners will recognise: feeling overwhelmed by expectation, navigating identity shifts in midlife, carrying responsibility for others, and learning how to rely on your own body, instincts, and decisions. Our conversation moves between emotional and physical strength: we talk about consistency when motivation wavers, how trust is built through action, and how caring for your body can become a way of caring for your future self. Throughout, we return to the question of agency: what changes when you realise you are already more capable than you think? Edwina shares how strength training became part of this wider shift in her life — a way of grounding herself, building resilience, and creating a steadier relationship with her body during her 40s and through moments of upheaval. This episode also touches on visibility, confidence, and what it means to take up space as a woman in midlife. As always, I’ll leave you with a question: will this be a thought you carry into your week and maybe even beyond? About Edwina Jenner Edwina Jenner is an online PT specialising in strength training for women at home. She helps women in their 40s and 50s learn to lift weights with short, effective dumbbell home workouts. Women worldwide of all fitness levels follow her online programmes to improve their metabolic health, manage their weight, and build a strong and toned body they can rely on as they age, through her online strength training membership. Website and membership | Instagram In this episode Edwina also mentions James Clear's Atomic Habits Support the show This is A Thought I Kept — Weekly conversations about the ideas that stay. Listen every Monday morning for a new thought to hold onto this week, especially when the world feels overwhelming. About Claire Fitzsimmons Claire is the host of A Thought I Kept, a wellbeing writer and the co-founder of If Lost Start Here, a company on a mission to get people to a better place, sometimes literally. As an ICF Associate Certified Coach and a certified Emotions Coach Practitioner, Claire helps women navigate the everyday lost moments of their lives and all their feelings, from anxiety to grief, overwhelm to joy. Claire writes on Substack at MoreGoodDays. For personal coaching, reach out to Claire here. Like what you heard? Subscribe to A Thought I Kept. Follow the podcast on Instagram. Sign up for our newsletter. Shop Season 1 poster  Made with Descript & Buzzsprout

    44 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

A Thought I Kept is a podcast about the ideas that stay with us, long after we’ve forgotten the rest. In each episode, a guest shares the one thought that shaped their life — the one they couldn’t let go of, and maybe you won’t either.

Information

  • Creator
    Claire Fitzsimmons
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    34
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 A Thought I Kept
  • Show Website
    A Thought I Kept