Making Her Choices

Tawana Hampton
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Biweekly

Making Her Choices is a podcast for women navigating growth, change, and new beginnings. Hosted by a nurse and wellness entrepreneur with 20+ years of real-life experience, each episode digs into personal wellness, self-preservation, and the courage to choose yourself at any stage of life. If you're seeking clarity or ready to step into a new season, this is your space. Join a growing community of women choosing themselves — one choice at a time, sis.

  1. 1d ago

    Being Misunderstood on Purpose: How to Stop Defending Yourself

    If you've ever set a boundary, said no, or chosen yourself — and watched someone rewrite the whole story with you as the villain — this episode is for you. Nurse and wellness entrepreneur Tawana Hampton sits in the specific discomfort of being misunderstood on purpose: what the nervous system does when it wants to defend, why the urge to correct the record is biological, and why the most powerful move in midlife is sometimes the one you don't make. The Nurse Note this week: the fawn response — your nervous system's fourth survival mode, and why so many women were wired to explain themselves before they could walk away. Series 3 of Making Her Choices is The Unbecoming. This week, we talk about the flex nobody teaches you.   Keywords covered: being misunderstood, stop defending yourself, let people be wrong about you, setting boundaries, people pleasing, fawn response, midlife boundaries, stop explaining yourself, choosing yourself.   Free tools from Series 1 & 2 (including the Body Honest Pledge Card): everwelljourney.com Sources cited in this episode are listed at the bottom of these show notes.  Sources for this episode: • Walker, Pete, MFT. Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving. 2013. Foundational clinical framework cited for the fawn response as the fourth trauma survival strategy alongside fight, flight, and freeze. Widely referenced in trauma-informed therapeutic practice.   • Wright, Annie, LMFT. "People-Pleasing as a Trauma Response: A Complete Guide for Driven Women." anniewright.com. Last reviewed June 2026. Clinical application of the fawn response in women; source for framing on the nervous system's role in people-pleasing patterns. https://anniewright.com/people-pleasing-as-a-trauma-response/

  2. Oct 16

    Family Roles and Guilt: When You Stop Being the Peacekeeper

    You were the one who kept the peace. The one they called. The one who held it all together while quietly falling apart. Nobody voted you into that role — the family system just… needed someone to hold still, and you were it. In this episode, nurse and wellness entrepreneur Tawana Hampton names the roles — the Peacekeeper, the Fixer, the Strong One, the One Who Made It — and explains why the family that loves you will still fight you when you try to put the role down. The Nurse Note this week: caregiver burnout is not a mindset problem. It’s a body problem. And the data will make you want to sit down. Series 3 of Making Her Choices is The Unbecoming — this week, we go home. Free tools from Series 1 & 2 (including the Body Honest Pledge Card): everwelljourney.com Sources cited in this episode are listed at the bottom of these show notes. Source:  • A Place for Mom / National Alliance for Caregiving. 2025 Survey on Caregiver Burnout. Findings cited: more than 75% of family caregivers experience burnout — frequently weekly or daily. Burnout co-occurs with emotional stress, disrupted sleep, lost social connection, and financial pressure. Reported via A Place for Mom's annual senior care research. Source URL: https://abc17news.com/stacker-parenting-family/2026/02/20/2026-caregiver-burnout-statistics-how-stress-shows-up-in-family-caregiving/   • National Alliance for Caregiving / AARP. "Caregiving in the U.S." Statistic cited: approximately 75% of family caregivers are women. Reference used in clinical commentary on gendered caregiving load. #MakingHerChoices #TheUnbecoming #EverWellJourney #YouFirstBook #FamilyRoles #PeacekeeperNoMore #WomensHealthAfter40 #NurseWhoKnows #MidlifeNoFilter #TheNurseNote #BoundariesWithFamily #CaretakerBurnout

    Family Roles and Guilt: When You Stop Being the Peacekeeper

  3. Oct 2

    The Unbecoming: When Your Growth Makes People Uncomfortable

    Welcome to Season 3 of Making Her Choices. In this premiere episode, Tawana tackles the aftermath of personal transformation—the side-eyes, the "you’ve changed" accusations, and the quiet shifts in energy. Drawing on the biological concept of homeostasis, she breaks down why relationships resist change, how to tell who is genuinely adjusting versus who is actively resisting, and why managing everyone else’s discomfort is no longer your job. Different is not a defect—it’s time to stop shrinking for rooms you’ve outgrown. Free tools from Series 1 & 2 (including the Body Honest Pledge Card): everwelljourney.com Source — The Nurse Note: Gallup. "In U.S., GLP-1 Usage Reaches New High." Survey of 5,065 U.S. adults conducted May 28–June 5, 2026, via the probability-based Gallup Panel. Findings cited: 11% of U.S. adults currently using a GLP-1 medication for weight loss (up from 3% in 2024); 15% have used one at some point; 91% awareness (up from 80% in 2024). https://news.gallup.com/poll/712157/glp-usage-reaches-new-high.aspx

    The Unbecoming: When Your Growth Makes People Uncomfortable

  4. Sep 4

    Exposing the $6.8 Trillion Wellness Playbook

    In this Series 2 finale, registered nurse and wellness entrepreneur Tawana Hampton breaks down the $6.8T wellness industry. Combining clinical expertise with her own personal health journey, Tawana exposes how predatory marketing profits off women's insecurities and shares essential rules for spotting fake claims. Free Resource: The Body Honest Pledge Card & Series Recap at everwelljourney.com. Disclaimer: Educational content grounded in clinical knowledge and personal experience, not medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider.

    Exposing the $6.8 Trillion Wellness Playbook

  5. Aug 21

    The Body Honest – Bariatric Surgery, Reclaiming Worth, and Natural Upkeep

    In Episode 9 of Making Her Choices (Series 2: The Body Honest), host Tawana speaks with a registered nurse about her decision to undergo gastric bypass surgery and her ongoing health journey. Disclaimer: Both host and guest are registered nurses sharing personal experiences rather than medical advice. Free Resource: The Body Honest Decision Toolkit (featuring a Decision Clarity worksheet and values check) is available at everwelljourney.com.

    The Body Honest – Bariatric Surgery, Reclaiming Worth, and Natural Upkeep

  6. Aug 7

    The Ugly Middle: What “Doing It Naturally” Actually Looks Like

    If you think “doing it naturally” is all green smoothies and peaceful morning workouts… this is not that episode. This is the real story. The food scale frustration.The label-reading betrayal.The weeks where nothing changes even when you’re doing everything right. In this episode, I’m walking you through what the natural path actually looks like, no filters, no shortcuts, and definitely no highlight reel. From standing in the kitchen arguing with raw chicken at 6:30 AM… to realizing your “healthy” snacks aren’t so healthy… to learning that discipline will carry you where motivation won’t—this is the part nobody talks about. We’re getting into: Why tracking your food is humbling (but necessary) The difference between being consistent vs. being effective The mental battle of slow progress and comparison If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing everything right and still not seeing results… you’re not alone—and you’re not doing it wrong. You’re just doing it honestly. If this episode hit home, I want you to take it one step further. Download the Natural Path Tracker, it’s a simple weekly tool to help you track your food, movement, mindset, and real progress without perfection. Go to: everwelljourney.comClick Shop by Me → Making Her Choices It’s free. Use it. Stay consistent.

    The Ugly Middle: What “Doing It Naturally” Actually Looks Like

  7. Jul 24

    Food Is Not the Enemy: The Real Reasons Your Body Feels Stuck

    For years, many of us have been taught to fight our plates, but what if food was never the problem? In this episode, I break down why inflammation, gut health, and cortisol often play a much bigger role in how your body feels than calories, restriction, or another diet ever will. You’ll hear: Why chronic inflammation can quietly keep your body in survival mode. How gut health affects digestion, mood, cravings, energy, and weight. What cortisol does when stress never truly comes down. Why basic labs can look “normal” even when you still feel off. How to stop blaming food and start listening to your body’s signals. This episode also introduces the idea that food is information, not the enemy, and that real change starts when we move from punishment to partnership with our bodies. If you’ve been stuck in diet cycles, feeling inflamed, exhausted, or frustrated, this conversation will help you rethink what your body may actually be trying to tell you. I also mention my book, You First: The Radical Art of Self Preservation - Making Her Choices – Ever Well Journey, and the free Inflammation Inventory at Inflammation Inventory - S2E7 – Ever Well Journey, both designed to help you take the next step toward better health and self-awareness.

    Food Is Not the Enemy: The Real Reasons Your Body Feels Stuck

  8. Jul 10

    When the Protocol Fails You, You Become the Protocol

    The gym didn't fix it. The GLP-1 didn't fix it. Contrave didn't fix it. So I stopped looking for someone else's answer. In this episode, I'm laying out my entire failure timeline — three approaches, three different mechanisms, one common thread: every single one of them treated the symptom. Not one of them asked "why." This is the episode where I stop being the patient following someone else's plan and start being the nurse who builds her own. I'm breaking down what functional medicine actually means (not the buzzword version — the real one), why 20 years of nursing taught me to ask better questions for everyone except myself, and what happened when I finally gave myself permission to stop outsourcing my wellness to people who had 15 minutes and a prescription pad. This one is the turn. If Episodes 4 and 5 were about what didn't work, this is where I stop following and start leading. 🎧 New here? Start with Episode 1 of Series 2: The Body Honest. And if you haven't heard Episodes 4 and 5 (the GLP-1 constipation saga and the Contrave brain fog), go back. You need those first. 📥 Download the FREE Root Cause Reflection Worksheet — map your symptoms against what might actually be driving them, track what you've tried, and run your own health audit. https://everwelljourney.com/products/root-cause-reflection-worksheet-stop-chasing-solutions-start-asking-why-s2e6 📖 This is the body chapter of You First: The Radical Art of Self-Preservation. If this episode hit somewhere real, the book goes deeper. https://purposedlypenned.com/books/you-first-the-radical-art-of-self-preservation-tawana-hampton/B0GV25LM9Z Follow the podcast so you don't miss what comes next — because the protocol is mine now. everwelljourney.com One choice at a time, sis. 🌱

    When the Protocol Fails You, You Become the Protocol
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Making Her Choices is a podcast for women navigating growth, change, and new beginnings. Hosted by a nurse and wellness entrepreneur with 20+ years of real-life experience, each episode digs into personal wellness, self-preservation, and the courage to choose yourself at any stage of life. If you're seeking clarity or ready to step into a new season, this is your space. Join a growing community of women choosing themselves — one choice at a time, sis.

Information

  • Creator
    Tawana Hampton
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    23
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Tawana Hampton
  • Show Website
    Making Her Choices

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