Dear Divorce Diary: A Fresh Approach To Healing Grief & Building A Life Of Confidence After Divorce

My Coach Dawn

This isn’t a breakup pep talk. It’s a full-body recalibration for women navigating life after divorce. Dear Divorce Diary is a podcast for women dealing with grief, loneliness, anxiety, anxious or avoidant attachment, and identity loss after divorce — especially when quick fixes, positivity, and spiritual fluff no longer work. I’m Dawn Wiggins, therapist, coach, and homeopath, and this show goes where most divorce advice won’t: into your nervous system, your unspoken grief, your buried rage, and the parts of you that shut down just to survive. Through honest conversation, somatic tools, EMDR- and IFS-informed work, and nervous-system support, each episode helps you feel instead of perform healing — and rebuild safety, confidence, and self-trust from the inside out. You’ll hear raw solo episodes, real voice notes from women in the trenches, and intimate conversations with experts who don’t just talk about healing — they embody it. If you’re tired of being told to “move on” while your body is still bracing, this podcast is your place to land. Your nervous system already knows the truth — it just needs a space that can hold it.

  1. 43M AGO · BONUS

    Ep. 318 - Divorce Unfairness: The Lie We Tell Ourselves That Keeps Us Stuck & Resentful (Premium Panel Rant)

    This is us. Moms who’ve lived it — sitting together having a real, unfiltered conversation about the one thing that keeps so many of us stuck: the feeling that it’s all so damn unfair. We talked about the hard parts of co-parenting after divorce — the uneven load, the chronic illness with no support, the special-needs kids mostly on one parent’s shoulders, the guilt, the waiting for him to step up or see what he lost, the resentment that still flares even when we think we’ve done the work. We named it all. Then we went deeper. We explored how that loud “it’s so unfair” story is often rooted in something quieter: an old belief that we’re not quite worthy, not quite enough, not safe unless someone else makes it right. We talked about the moment we realized we chose these men (the signs were there), how guilt can quietly turn us into over-functioning parents, and why acceptance doesn’t have to feel like giving up. We also got honest about what finally started to move the needle for us: looking at the resentment in the body (especially the liver), using gentle homeopathic support to help clear what talk therapy alone sometimes can’t touch, and doing the slow work of reclaiming our own worth instead of waiting for fairness from the outside. There were a few mic-drop moments. There was laughter. There were tears. And there was a lot of “oh… that’s why it’s been so hard to let go.” If you’re tired of carrying the unfairness like a quiet weight in your chest every time you co-parent, this conversation might be the one that helps you see it differently — and finally feel some space around it. Click Here For Destined Homeopathics Blend: Unburden Welcome to Panel Rant Thursday. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MyCoachDawn Instagram: (@dawnwiggins) Instagram: (@coachtiffini) On the Web: https://www.mycoachdawn.com A podcast exploring the journey of life after divorce, delving into topics like divorce grief, loneliness, anxiety, manifesting, the impact of different attachment styles and codependency, setting healthy boundaries, energy healing with homeopathy, managing the nervous system during divorce depression, understanding the stages of divorce grief, and using the Law of Attraction and EMDR therapy in the process of building your confidence, forgiveness and letting go. Support the show ✨Join the Cocoon Community - your people are waiting! ✨ Stress-Less Flower Essence

    3 min
  2. 2D AGO

    317. Divorce Co-Parenting Anxiety: Why Being the Bigger Person Is Killing Your Healing (And What to Do Instead)

    You keep it together. Calm texts. Steady schedules. Polite handoffs. But every time his car pulls up, your body betrays you: heart races, chest tightens, breath goes shallow. That’s not just “leftover divorce stuff.” That’s anxiety living in your nervous system—and it’s been quietly growing every time you swallow the unfairness to stay the “bigger person.” He’s got the new life. You’re carrying the kids’ big feelings, the invisible load, the resentment no one thanks you for. And the more you perform “fine” for everyone else, the more your own healing slips through your fingers. Why does being the bigger person feel like slow self-betrayal? Why does the anxiety keep coming back even when you’ve done “all the work”? And what if the real shift isn’t more boundaries or better scripts… but something deeper that finally lets your body and spirit exhale? In this episode, we go straight into: The hidden way “bigger person” energy keeps your nervous system bracedHow resentment and unfairness get stored somatically—and why that blocks real repairThe quiet spiritual wound his moving-on keeps pokingAnd the integrative path out that most people never talk aboutYou’ll get the truth that lands in your chest… and the curiosity to find out what “instead” actually feels like in your body. If every handoff still leaves you raw, this is the episode that stops the performance and starts the real release. Send me a DM and tell us: What’s the moment being the “bigger person” hurt the most? We read every one. You don’t have to keep carrying it alone, love. Press play. Your body’s been waiting. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MyCoachDawn Instagram: (@dawnwiggins) Instagram: (@coachtiffini) On the Web: https://www.mycoachdawn.com A podcast exploring the journey of life after divorce, delving into topics like divorce grief, loneliness, anxiety, manifesting, the impact of different attachment styles and codependency, setting healthy boundaries, energy healing with homeopathy, managing the nervous system during divorce depression, understanding the stages of divorce grief, and using the Law of Attraction and EMDR therapy in the process of building your confidence, forgiveness and letting go. Support the show ✨Join the Cocoon Community - your people are waiting! ✨ Stress-Less Flower Essence

    31 min
  3. FEB 5 · BONUS

    Ep. 316 - After Divorce: The Part of Me That Keeps Accepting Less Than I Deserve

    This Thursday, you’re invited into something sacred and real. One of our most cherished community members — the one who shows up honest, even when life feels like a rocket ship up her ass — sat down with Coach Tiffini for a live, unfiltered IFS coaching session. She came in carrying the familiar post-divorce exhaustion: extra work responsibilities dumped without warning, barely time to eat, resentment simmering… yet underneath it all, a new kind of calm she hadn’t felt in years. What rose to the surface was a younger part of her — the 22-year-old still living in the apartment from her early marriage — who learned, over and over, that being fully herself meant blame, betrayal, and rejection. A husband who punished her opinions. A workplace that gave her impossible tasks, then asked “why did you do that?” Years of choosing partners who offered scraps instead of the whole table. So she adapted the only way a tender heart knows how: she started accepting less than she deserves. She shrank. She stayed quiet. She took the crumbs so she wouldn’t risk being told — again — that she’s “too much.” In this session, we gently meet that part in her body (right in the heart space). We witness the loneliness she’s carried alone for decades. And we give her the words she’s been waiting to hear: “You are not too much. Your voice, your boldness, your wild, beautiful energy — these are sacred gifts. The people who belong with you now will celebrate every inch of who you truly are.” You’ll hear the somatic softening that happens when a protected part finally feels safe. You’ll feel the spiritual re-parenting that begins when Self steps forward with love instead of management. This episode is for every woman who’s walked through (or is still walking through) divorce and still notices herself: Saying yes to extra loads at work when her body is screaming noStaying in connections that offer half-hearted effortQuietly putting her own needs last… againIt’s the medicine of seeing how old rejection wounds don’t vanish when the marriage ends — they live on in patterns until we meet them with compassion. Gentle invitations to carry into your week Where in your life are you still quietly accepting less than your full worth — in love, work, friendships, or your own body?What would it feel like to let the version of you who’s done settling speak one small, honest truth this week?Whisper (or write) to that younger part inside: “I see how hard you tried to keep us safe. I’m here now. I’ll stand up for what we deserve.”This is the deep, integrative work we do together — somatic witnessing, spiritual truth-telling, layered healing that touches mind, body, and soul. Premium only, because some conversations are too tender, too powerful, for the open feed. And here’s the part that makes this space different: Premium members aren’t just listeners — you’re invited to be coached, andheld in the same loving container.  Come home to yourself. We’re waiting with open arms. ❤️ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MyCoachDawn Instagram: (@dawnwiggins) Instagram: (@coachtiffini) On the Web: https://www.mycoac Support the show ✨Join the Cocoon Community - your people are waiting! ✨ Stress-Less Flower Essence

    2 min
  4. FEB 3

    315. Divorce Left You Toothpick-Eyelid Tired? Why Sleep Doesn’t Recharge Your Cells Anymore

    Hi, love—welcome to Dear Divorce Diary, where midlife women move beyond talk therapy to process grief held in the body, release what's braced inside, and reclaim the confidence divorce tried to steal. I’m Dawn Wiggins, therapist, coach, integrative healer, and the woman who once lay awake thinking, “I should feel better than this… but my body never got the memo.” Toothpicks holding your eyelids open. Moving through molasses. Wired-tired even after more sleep, fewer spirals, all the supplements and rest hacks. The big scary thing is over, yet exhaustion lingers—rest lands on the surface but never reaches the cells. Why? Because negative beliefs quietly program your nervous system to stay on high alert, and your body stays braced, unable to downshift and truly receive at a cellular level. In today’s episode, we name the two hidden drivers of post-divorce exhaustion that won’t quit: The beliefs silently fueling chronic fatigue (even when life “should” feel lighter)The body patterns reinforcing the brace—and why gentle somatic-spiritual shifts are essential to let rest landReal stories of pausing to process dysregulation in real time (no performative b******t, just remedies, tears, and grace)How receiving support—without apology—builds the capacity you’ve been cravingThis isn’t about pushing harder. It’s about softening protector parts, reprogramming at the belief and neural level, and inviting layered homeopathic harmony to amplify your body’s natural recharge. If this stirred something deep in your chest, join premium for $5/month: exclusive tools, our February 23rd live workshop on receiving as the key to healing, and the full ritual that makes shifts cellular. Resources & Links: Free Nervous System Divorce Recovery Quiz → Discover your pattern in under 2 minutes.Join Cocoon (free community on Heartbeat) → Your sisters are holding space.Premium Subscription → Deeper integration + exclusives.Dawn Wiggins Therapy → High-ticket EMDR-homeopathy hybrid sessions.Drop a review if this resonated—it helps other midlife women find us when they’re drowning in the same ache. Send your wins—we love reading them aloud. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MyCoachDawn Instagram: (@dawnwiggins) Instagram: (@coachtiffini) On the Web: https://www.mycoachdawn.com A podcast exploring the journey of life after divorce, delving into topics like divorce grief, loneliness, anxiety, manifesting, the impact of different attachment styles and codependency, setting healthy boundaries, energy healing with homeopathy, managing the nervous system during divorce depression, understanding the stages of divorce grief, and using the Law of Attraction and EMDR therapy in the process of building your confidence, forgiveness and letting go. Support the show ✨Join the Cocoon Community - your people are waiting! ✨ Stress-Less Flower Essence

    42 min
  5. JAN 29 · BONUS

    Ep. 314 - What to Do When You’re "Divorce Exhausted" but Can’t Drop the Ball

    Thursday episodes are for when your body won’t do what your mind understands. If you’re exhausted after divorce but still feel like you can’t drop the ball…  If rest makes you anxious instead of relieved…  If part of you believes that if you stop managing everything, it will all fall apart… This episode gives you something to do in that moment. Not a mindset shift.  Not a pep talk.  Not “just rest more.” In this premium episode of Dear Divorce Diary, Dawn guides you through a body-based reset designed to interrupt the overfunctioning loop that so many women get stuck in during and after divorce. Because divorce exhaustion isn’t a motivation problem —  It’s a nervous system survival pattern built on the belief: “If I don’t carry everything, nothing will hold.”In this episode, you’ll: Locate where the “I have to handle this” response lives in your bodyIdentify the belief that keeps you overcontrolling even when you’re depletedWork with the part of you that learned effort = safetyPractice a guided tapping sequence to test a new experience of supportBegin loosening the reflex to chase, force, or overextend yourselfThis is especially for you if: You’re doing everything “right” but still feel bracedYou don’t trust help yet — or feel safer relying only on yourselfYou’re tired but can’t relaxYou feel hyper-vigilant, responsible, or on edge when you try to slow downCoaching, therapy, or insight hasn’t translated into relief in your bodyYou don’t have to believe anything new for this to work. You just need to notice what your body does when effort stops being the only way you feel safe. 🎧 Come back to this episode whenever divorce exhaustion shows up as overcontrol, urgency, or the fear that you can’t afford to stop. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MyCoachDawn Instagram: (@dawnwiggins) Instagram: (@coachtiffini) On the Web: https://www.mycoachdawn.com A podcast exploring the journey of life after divorce, delving into topics like divorce grief, loneliness, anxiety, manifesting, the impact of different attachment styles and codependency, setting healthy boundaries, energy healing with homeopathy, managing the nervous system during divorce depression, understanding the stages of divorce grief, and using the Law of Attraction and EMDR therapy in the process of building your confidence, forgiveness and letting go. Support the show ✨Join the Cocoon Community - your people are waiting! ✨ Stress-Less Flower Essence

    3 min
  6. JAN 27

    313. Divorce, Faith, and the Cost of Marrying an Under-Functioning Man

    After divorce, women are often told to “step into their masculine energy” — be strong, decisive, productive, self-sufficient. But what if you’re not choosing strength at all? What if your body simply doesn’t expect help to arrive? And, do you know what to do about this? In this episode of Dear Divorce Diary, we talk about why so many women feel stuck in over-functioning after divorce — and why what looks like competence is often a nervous system stuck in survival mode. You’ll learn: Why safety must come before softnessHow over-functioning becomes a substitute for trustWhy feminine energy doesn’t show up just because you tell yourself to relaxHow childhood beliefs quietly shape the partners we attractWhy receiving help can trigger guilt, shame, or emotional shutdownThe difference between true support and trying to be “held” before you feel safeWe also share insights from hundreds of women who’ve taken our Divorce Recovery Nervous System Quiz, revealing how most women actually feel when someone tries to help them — and why that reaction keeps them stuck in burnout. And stay until the end for My Body Said No, where we each share a real moment when honoring a physical “no” — instead of pushing through — changed everything. If you’re exhausted, capable, and secretly wondering why rest feels impossible…  this episode will name what your body has been trying to tell you. 💛 Want help applying this work in real time? Inside The Room Where It Happens (our premium Thursday episodes), we guide you through the nervous system and belief-level shifts that make softness possible again. 🎧 Links to the community, quiz, and premium episodes are in the show notes. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MyCoachDawn Instagram: (@dawnwiggins) Instagram: (@coachtiffini) On the Web: https://www.mycoachdawn.com A podcast exploring the journey of life after divorce, delving into topics like divorce grief, loneliness, anxiety, manifesting, the impact of different attachment styles and codependency, setting healthy boundaries, energy healing with homeopathy, managing the nervous system during divorce depression, understanding the stages of divorce grief, and using the Law of Attraction and EMDR therapy in the process of building your confidence, forgiveness and letting go. Support the show ✨Join the Cocoon Community - your people are waiting! ✨ Stress-Less Flower Essence

    42 min
  7. JAN 22 · BONUS

    EP. 312 - Behind the Mic: Divorce, Dissociation & Trauma...What Happened to Us?

    Behind the Mic is where we slow the conversation down. In this premium episode, we speak candidly about dissociation during and after divorce—not in clinical terms, and not from a distance, but from inside our own lived experience. This is a quieter, more intimate conversation about the ways women cope when life becomes overwhelming… and how easy it is to miss what’s really happening while you’re busy surviving. We talk about: The moment you realize something has been operating under the surfaceWhy certain habits, patterns, and “coping strategies” feel hard to changeThe difference between functioning and actually being presentHow the body protects us long before the mind understands what’s happeningThis episode isn’t about fixing anything or tying it up neatly. It’s about noticing. Getting curious. And letting yourself hear something you may not have had words for yet. If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing all the right things after divorce but still feel oddly disconnected… If you’ve ever wondered why certain patterns keep repeating… If you sense there’s more happening beneath the surface than you’ve been able to name… This conversation is for you. As always, Behind the Mic is raw, personal, and meant to be experienced—not skimmed. 💛 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MyCoachDawn Instagram: (@dawnwiggins) Instagram: (@coachtiffini) On the Web: https://www.mycoachdawn.com A podcast exploring the journey of life after divorce, delving into topics like divorce grief, loneliness, anxiety, manifesting, the impact of different attachment styles and codependency, setting healthy boundaries, energy healing with homeopathy, managing the nervous system during divorce depression, understanding the stages of divorce grief, and using the Law of Attraction and EMDR therapy in the process of building your confidence, forgiveness and letting go. Support the show ✨Join the Cocoon Community - your people are waiting! ✨ Stress-Less Flower Essence

    2 min
  8. JAN 20

    311. Overeating, Screen Time, and Emotional Numbing Aren’t the Problem During Divorce But This Is...

    If you’re in divorce recovery and keep reaching for food, screens, or emotional numbness, it’s easy to assume the problem is discipline. It’s not. In today’s episode, we talk about what’s actually running underneath those patterns: everyday dissociation — the high-functioning, easy-to-miss kind that hides inside coping, productivity, and “getting through the day.” Divorce doesn’t just end a relationship; it changes how present you are able to stay with your own life. This matters because dissociation doesn’t feel dramatic...it feels normal. And when it’s running, healing stays intellectual instead of embodied. You can understand your patterns, do the work, and still feel stuck because the part of you that needs to feel and integrate isn’t fully online. We unpack how dissociation shows up as overeating, doom scrolling, brain fog, emotional flatness, and burnout — and why learning to spot what happens before those behaviors is often the difference between staying in cycles and actually moving forward. We also share practical ways to recognize dissociation in real time, plus listener Small Wins, Big Shifts that show what changes when you stop managing your healing and start experiencing it. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MyCoachDawn Instagram: (@dawnwiggins) Instagram: (@coachtiffini) On the Web: https://www.mycoachdawn.com A podcast exploring the journey of life after divorce, delving into topics like divorce grief, loneliness, anxiety, manifesting, the impact of different attachment styles and codependency, setting healthy boundaries, energy healing with homeopathy, managing the nervous system during divorce depression, understanding the stages of divorce grief, and using the Law of Attraction and EMDR therapy in the process of building your confidence, forgiveness and letting go. Support the show ✨Join the Cocoon Community - your people are waiting! ✨ Stress-Less Flower Essence

    42 min
4.9
out of 5
60 Ratings

About

This isn’t a breakup pep talk. It’s a full-body recalibration for women navigating life after divorce. Dear Divorce Diary is a podcast for women dealing with grief, loneliness, anxiety, anxious or avoidant attachment, and identity loss after divorce — especially when quick fixes, positivity, and spiritual fluff no longer work. I’m Dawn Wiggins, therapist, coach, and homeopath, and this show goes where most divorce advice won’t: into your nervous system, your unspoken grief, your buried rage, and the parts of you that shut down just to survive. Through honest conversation, somatic tools, EMDR- and IFS-informed work, and nervous-system support, each episode helps you feel instead of perform healing — and rebuild safety, confidence, and self-trust from the inside out. You’ll hear raw solo episodes, real voice notes from women in the trenches, and intimate conversations with experts who don’t just talk about healing — they embody it. If you’re tired of being told to “move on” while your body is still bracing, this podcast is your place to land. Your nervous system already knows the truth — it just needs a space that can hold it.

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