The Stone in My Shoe

Debbie Thompson
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The Stone in My Shoe is a podcast for women who find themselves questioning, shifting, or sensing that something more is calling. Hosted by Debbie Thompson, an educator, counsellor, and life coach, each episode shares real stories from women who learned to trust a quiet nudge or push, listen to their intuition, and follow what felt true. These conversations offer insight, inspiration, and lived wisdom. Whether you’re feeling stuck, curious, or simply longing for something deeper, it reminds you that life can be a doorway to refining, expanding, or reimagining the life you're here to live.

  1. I Adapted Until I Slowly Stopped Being Me with Valerie Ritchie

    2d ago

    I Adapted Until I Slowly Stopped Being Me with Valerie Ritchie

    Have you ever looked around your life and quietly wondered: "When did I stop feeling like me?" In this deeply honest conversation, Debbie Thompson speaks with Valerie Ritchie — known as The Crone Goddess — about identity, silence, relationships and what happens when we spend years becoming who life asks us to be. Valerie shares the moments that slowly shaped her life: a childhood experience that taught her to become quieter, years of adapting to roles and expectations, and the unexpected feeling that surfaced when her marriage ended. Not heartbreak. Relief. Together they explore what it means to lose yourself gradually, the stories we carry for decades, and how midlife can become a return rather than an ending. This episode is for women who have spent years being: the reliable onethe responsible onethe strong onethe woman who keeps everything together and are quietly wondering: "What's mine now?" Inside this conversation you'll hear: how early experiences can quietly shape identitythe emotional cost of adapting yourself over timepeople pleasing and self-abandonment patternsrecognising yourself inside life transitionsthe difference between coping and truly livingwhat it means to return to yourself Maybe this isn't about becoming someone new. Maybe it's about remembering who was there all along. 👤 GUEST BIO Valerie Ritchie is a Midlife Empowerment Coach, speaker, and founder of The Crone Goddess. After more than 30 years in education, Valerie now supports women through midlife transitions, helping them reconnect with their identity, purpose, and inner power.  👤 GUEST LINKS Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/valerie.cronegoddess Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valerie.cronegoddess/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriej-cronegoddess Website: https://www.transformationinaction.co.uk 🌿 REWIRED & RADIANT LINKS Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rewiredandradiant Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rewiredandradiant

    37 min
  2. Performing Strength vs. Living Truthfully | Riham El Hawary on Burnout & Midlife

    May 26

    Performing Strength vs. Living Truthfully | Riham El Hawary on Burnout & Midlife

    What happens when the role you’ve spent your whole life performing suddenly disappears? In this emotionally honest conversation, Riham El Hawary shares the quiet identity collapse that came after years of responsibility, performance, achievement, and caregiving. From being conditioned from childhood to become “the strong one,” to building success through survival and eventually experiencing emotional and physical burnout, this episode explores the deeper emotional cost of living through performance instead of truth. But beneath the responsibility, the success, and the coping mechanisms was a more confronting question: Who am I when nobody needs me anymore? This conversation explores the emotional reality many women experience during major life transitions — especially when identity has been built around being needed, useful, responsible, and emotionally available for everyone else. Together, Debbie and Riham explore: emotional burnout from high functioningidentity shifts in midlifeintuition and self-abandonmentloneliness after caregivingsuccess versus fulfilmentlearning to reconnect with yourself honestlywhat happens when performance stops workingthe emotional discomfort of sitting with yourself without distraction This episode is for women navigating: emotional disconnectionpeople pleasingburnout from copinglife transitionsinternal conflict between external success and internal truthmidlife awakening and self-discovery Sometimes the hardest part of transformation isn’t changing your life. It’s finally asking yourself what you actually want underneath the role you’ve spent years performing. 👤 GUEST LINKS: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rihamelhawary.official Website: https://www.personainternational.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rhawary YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/rihamelhawary 🌿 REWIRED & RADIANT:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rewiredandradiant Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rewiredandradiant

    48 min
  3. I Ignored Every Red Flag in a Toxic Relationship | Andrea Gonzales

    May 15

    I Ignored Every Red Flag in a Toxic Relationship | Andrea Gonzales

    At 19, Andrea Gonzales ignored the feeling that something wasn’t right. What began as a relationship that felt exciting and intense slowly became controlling, emotionally abusive, and eventually violent. In this deeply honest conversation, Andrea shares theexperience that changed the course of her life — including being kidnapped by her boyfriend after trying to end the relationship. But this episode goes far beyond the story itself. It explores the quiet ways women disconnect from their instincts, override their intuition, minimise red flags, and slowlylose themselves while trying to keep love, peace, or approval. Andrea speaks openly about self-worth, emotional conditioning, toxic relationship dynamics, intuition, healing, andthe long journey back to trusting herself again. This conversation is for women who:          keep overriding what they feel         struggle to trust their intuition            people please to keep relationships safe            feel disconnected from themselves            have ignored red flags hoping things wouldchange            are navigating identity shifts and emotionalexhaustionIn this episode, we explore: ·      emotional abuse and coercive control ·      trusting your gut instinct ·      why women ignore red flags ·      toxic relationship patterns ·      self-worth and subconscious beliefs ·      family conditioning and relationship dynamics ·      healing after trauma ·      learning to trust yourself again ·      emotional survival and resilience ·      breaking generational patterns Some experiences change how you see relationships forever. Others change how you see yourself. And sometimes healing begins the moment you finally stop abandoning what you already know inside. 👤 GUEST LINKS:Instagram: Andrea Gonzales InstagramFacebook: Andrea Gonzales Facebook 🌿 REWIRED & RADIANT:Instagram: Rewired & Radiant InstagramFacebook: Rewired & Radiant Facebook

    47 min
  4. Why I started this Podcast. Midlife Crisis or Midlife Awakening?

    May 10

    Why I started this Podcast. Midlife Crisis or Midlife Awakening?

    In this episode, I’m in conversation with Rory Callaghan, where I share the story behind why I created The Stone in My Shoe. There wasn’t a big moment. Nothing fell apart. From the outside, my life worked. I was achieving, building, doing everything that looked “right.” But underneath it… there was a quiet feeling I couldn’t really explain.Something just didn’t feel like me anymore. It wasn’t strong enough to force change.But it also wasn’t something I could fully ignore. And for a while, I did what so many of us do.I stayed busy. I kept going. I carried on doing what I thought I was meant to do. But that feeling didn’t go away. That was my stone. Not a crisis.Not a breakdown.Just something sitting there… asking to be noticed. And eventually I realised — this isn’t something to push past.This is something to actually look at. This conversation with Rory explores that moment — and how it led me to create The Stone in My Shoe. Because I know how many women are living lives that look fine on the outside…while quietly knowing something doesn’t feel true anymore. How easy it is to override that feeling.To stay busy.To not ask the deeper question. This episode is about that space.The moment where something feels off… and you decide whether to ignore it or explore it. This is for you if: • your life looks good… but feels flat• you’ve been doing what’s expected of you for years• you feel a quiet sense that something isn’t fully aligned• you’re starting to question what you actually want In this episode, you’ll hear: • what my “stone” really was • how these moments show up quietly, not dramatically • why women trusting their intuition often starts with something small • the moment I realised I couldn’t keep overriding what I felt And maybe most importantly… This isn’t about changing everything. It’s about being honest…with what you already know. Rewired & Radiant Links: https://www.instagram.com/rewiredandradiant https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61579968982281 Links to Rory Callagan Instagram — @rorykchttps://www.instagram.com/rorykc

    37 min
  5. The Pressure to Do Everything as a Woman

    Apr 29

    The Pressure to Do Everything as a Woman

    There’s a version of success many women quietly try to live up to. Being present at home. Building something meaningful. Holding everything together without anything slipping. In this conversation with Disha Solanki, that expectation is gently unravelled. She shares what it really looked like to pursue ambition while raising a family — not as a polished story, but through the moments that stayed with her. Missing something that mattered. Carrying guilt for longer than she expected.Realising the pressure she was holding wasn’t sustainable. The turning point wasn’t one big decision. It was the slow recognition that the standard she was trying to meet — being everything to everyone — didn’t actually exist. And that continuing to push through it was costing her more than she realised. This conversation opens up the reality behind ambition, motherhood, and identity — and what happens when you begin to question how much you’re holding. This episode is for you if:• You feel the pressure to do everything well — and still feel like it’s not enough• You’re trying to balance ambition with being present at home• You’ve started to question the expectations you’ve been carrying In this episode, you’ll learn:• Why the idea of “doing it all” is often unrealistic• How internal pressure builds without being noticed• What happens when you push beyond your capacity for too long• Why there is no perfect time — and what that really means If something in this conversation feels familiar, it’s might be because it reflects a pressure many women carry quietly. And sometimes, simply recognising that is where things begin to shift. 👤 GUEST LINKS:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thetrailblazehersInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedishasolankiWebsite: https://www.thetrailblazehers.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dishasolanki/ 🌿 REWIRED & RADIANT:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rewiredandradiantFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61579968982281

    33 min
  6. When You Can’t Feel Anything Anymore with Sanna Atherton

    Apr 23

    When You Can’t Feel Anything Anymore with Sanna Atherton

    Have you ever had a moment where you should feel something… but you don’t? Not joy. Not gratitude. Not even frustration. Just… nothing. This episode explores what happens when you suppress emotions for so long that youlose access to all of them,  not just the difficult ones, but the ones that make life feel meaningful too. Because you don’t get to choose which emotions you turn down. The same patterns that help you avoid discomfort eventually disconnect you from joy, appreciation, and connection.   And it doesn’t happen all at once. It builds quietly, through adapting, people-pleasingand trying to hold everything together. Until one day, you realise you are  numb , you feel nothing.   This episode is for women who:• feel emotionally numb or flat• have learned to suppress difficult feelings• have spent years holding everything together• are starting to question why they can’t feel joy or gratitude In this conversation, you’ll understand:• why suppressing emotions leads to numbness• why you can’t turn down one emotion without losing others• the hidden cost of coping patterns that “work”• how emotional disconnection builds over time• why this moment can be the beginning of something deeper   Guest Links Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growrecoverdiscoverWebsite: https://www.growrecoverdiscover.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sanna-atherton-441239389/   Debbie Thompson and Rewired & Radiant Link Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rewiredandradiantFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61579968982281

    52 min
  7. I Stopped Forcing My Life… And Everything Changed with Dr Alla Demutska

    Apr 15

    I Stopped Forcing My Life… And Everything Changed with Dr Alla Demutska

    This conversation explores what happens when the way you’ve always coped with life quietly stops working. Dr Alla Demutska shares her experience of growing up in an environment shaped by instability, fear, and uncertainty -where control, achievement, and constant effort became a way to feel safe. From the outside, it led to success, resilience, and capability. But underneath, there was something else driving it. Over time, that pattern of pushing, solving, and holding everything together began to take its toll. Not in a dramatic or obvious way, but through a growing sense that something wasn’t quite right — even when life looked fine. The turning point didn’t come from a single moment. It came from reaching a place where pushing harder no longer worked. Where the instinct to override, fix, and control couldn’t carry things forward anymore. What followed wasn’t about changing everything overnight. It was about something more subtle, and often harder — learning to stop overriding what she felt. Letting go of the need to force outcomes. Allowing life to unfold in a different way. This conversation is for you if: • You’re used to holding everything together• You find it hard to slow down or stop pushing• Your life looks “fine” but doesn’t feel fully aligned• You’ve started questioning the way you make decisions• You’re beginning to notice what you’ve been overriding In this episode, you’ll hear: • How early experiences shape patterns ofcontrol and over-functioning• Why pushing and achieving can become a way to avoid deeper feelings• What it looks like when those strategies stop working• The difference between forcing life and allowing it• How to begin listening to what you’ve been overriding There’s a quiet honesty in recognising thatsomething isn’t wrong — but something isn’t fully true either. And sometimes,the shift doesn’t come from doing more, but from noticing what you’ve beendoing all along. Guest Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the.compassionate.psychologist/Guest Website: https://demo-ten-liard-29.vercel.app/index.html Rewired & Radiant Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rewiredandradiantRewired & Radiant Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61579968982281

    38 min
  8. Why We Stay When We Know Something Isn’t Right- with Lisa Walker

    Apr 8

    Why We Stay When We Know Something Isn’t Right- with Lisa Walker

    How do you know when something isn’t right… but you keep going anyway.  In this episode, Lisa Walker shares what it looked like to build a life that appeared successful on the outside, while quietly ignoring what didn’t feel right underneath. Working in marketing and holding everything together, she foundherself repeating patterns in relationships that reflected something deeper she hadn’t yet faced.   The turning point came when everything stopped. She found herself leaving her life behind and going on the run with her children, forced to confront what she had been avoiding for years. What followed wasn’t immediate clarity, but a recognition that she had been living in a way that required her to constantly prove her worth, minimise herself, and override her own intuition.   This conversation explores how early beliefs about love, worth, and safety shape the choices we make in adulthood. It’s about the quiet patterns that go unnoticed until they can no longer be ignored — and what happens when awareness begins toshift everything. If you are a woman who: ·     questions your instincts in relationships ·     feels like you have to prove your worth to be loved ·     finds yourself staying in situations that don’t feel right ·      is navigating a midlife identity shift ·      feels something is off but can’t fully name it ·      is starting to recognise patterns in your life You’ll learn: ·      how early conditioning shapes relationship patterns ·      why we ignore what we know doesn’t feel right ·     the connection between achievement and emotional avoidance ·     what a real turning point can look like ·     how awareness begins the process of change Sometimes the moment that changes everything isn’t something new — it’s finally seeing what has been there all along.   👤 Guest:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deitycircleWebsite: https://www.deitycircle.com/ 🌿 Rewired & Radiant:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rewiredandradiantFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61579968982281

    25 min
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About

The Stone in My Shoe is a podcast for women who find themselves questioning, shifting, or sensing that something more is calling. Hosted by Debbie Thompson, an educator, counsellor, and life coach, each episode shares real stories from women who learned to trust a quiet nudge or push, listen to their intuition, and follow what felt true. These conversations offer insight, inspiration, and lived wisdom. Whether you’re feeling stuck, curious, or simply longing for something deeper, it reminds you that life can be a doorway to refining, expanding, or reimagining the life you're here to live.

Information

  • Creator
    Debbie Thompson
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    16
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Debbie Thompson
  • Show Website
    The Stone in My Shoe