The Life Shift | Conversations About Life Before and After

Matt Gilhooly
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The Life Shift shares real and honest conversations about the moments that change us. Host Matt Gilhooly sits with guests as they tell true stories of life-changing events, unexpected challenges, and quiet awakenings that shaped who they are today. Each episode offers meaningful and candid storytelling about grief, healing, resilience, identity, and growth. These are the personal stories that remind us what it feels like to be human. These are the turning points that stay with us. If you are drawn to personal growth, emotional well-being, or stories of how people rebuild after loss, this show offers a gentle place to land. Listeners come for the life changes. They stay for the connection. New episodes every Tuesday. For more information, please visit https://www.thelifeshiftpodcast.com

  1. Existing vs. Living: A Mother's Journey Back to the World

    1D AGO

    Existing vs. Living: A Mother's Journey Back to the World

    There is a version of grief that nobody warns you about. It is not the loud kind. It is the quiet kind, the one that creeps in slowly until one day you are walking your dogs on a trail you love and you realize you no longer feel connected to the ground beneath your feet. That moment, as small and ordinary as it sounds, was the one that changed everything for Dianette Wells. Dianette has lived her life reaching toward something higher. She grew up in flat Southern California, looking at snow-capped mountains from her backyard and knowing, in the way some people just know, that she was meant for something beyond what she had been handed. That instinct led her to Mount Whitney, to Kilimanjaro, to all seven summits, and eventually to ultramarathons across the world. Movement was not just her passion. It was her language, her therapy, her way of sorting through whatever life threw at her. And then her son Johnny died. He was 23. He was a wingsuit pilot and a base jumper and the kind of person who had climbed the seven summits before he was legally allowed to do most of the things he loved. His death stripped the sparkle from the world for a long time. And Dianette had to find her way back, not to who she was before, but to someone who could hold the grief and still choose to live. What You'll Hear How a girls' trip up Mount Whitney cracked open a hunger for adventure that Dianette had never known she hadThe quiet devastation of losing her son, Johnny, and how grief made the world feel physically differentWhy she believes year two of loss is harder than year one, and what finally shook her out of just existingHer honest take on grief without a roadmap, and why there is no right way to do any of itHow movement, travel, and even a plant medicine journey became her path back to herselfWhat it means to honor someone you lost without feeling obligated to perform that grief for the world Guest Bio Dianette Wells is an adventurer, author, and mother who has spent decades pursuing the kinds of experiences that most people only dream about. She has climbed the Seven Summits, run ultramarathons around the globe, and lived in Malibu before relocating to Park City, Utah, where altitude and single-track trails became both her home and her healing. After losing her son Johnny Strange at age 23, Dianette channeled her grief into continued movement, memory-making, and writing. Her book, Another Step Up the Mountain, is available at dnatwells.com and is now moving to a new publisher, Flint Hills Publishing. Johnny's story is documented in the film American Daredevil on Peacock and Born to Fly, Johnny Strange on Tubi. https://dianettewells.com/ Listen and follow: www.thelifeshiftpodcast.com/follow Subscribe to the newsletter: https://thelifeshiftpodcast.beehiiv.com/

    48 min
  2. Unsaid: The Stories That Disappear Before We Think to Ask

    MAR 3

    Unsaid: The Stories That Disappear Before We Think to Ask

    There is someone in your life whose story you have not asked about yet. Maybe you keep meaning to. Maybe you figure there is time. This episode is a quiet reminder that time is the one thing none of us actually have on hold. Cristian grew up in Paraguay, surrounded by family lunches that stretched into the afternoon, stories layered on top of stories, and a kind of closeness that most of us only read about. He carried all of that with him, through Stanford, through Google, through the blank whiteboard moment of figuring out what he was actually supposed to build. And then, a few weeks before a trip home to finally sit down with his grandmother and record her story, she had a stroke. The conversation he had been saving for later became one he would never have. What came out of that loss was not just a product. It was a reckoning. Cristian built Autograph, an AI-driven platform that interviews people about their lives, so that the stories we keep meaning to capture do not quietly disappear. This episode is about grief, yes. But it is also about what happens when you stop waiting and decide to become the author of your own life. What You'll Hear: Why the stories we never say out loud are the ones we lose foreverHow growing up in Paraguay shaped the way Cristian thinks about family, identity, and belongingThe moment his grandmother's stroke became the catalyst for everythingWhat it actually feels like to become the main character of your own storyHow grief and technology can hold hands without losing the human partWhy your story matters, even if you have never once believed that it does Guest Bio: Cristian Cibils Bernardes is the founder of Autograph, a platform that uses AI to help people record, preserve, and share their life stories with the people who matter most. He grew up in Paraguay, studied symbolic systems at Stanford, and worked at Google before stepping back to figure out what he was actually building toward. The answer, it turned out, had been waiting in his own family all along. Learn more at autograph.ai. --- Listen and follow: www.thelifeshiftpodcast.com/follow Subscribe to the newsletter: https://thelifeshiftpodcast.beehiiv.com/

    1h 3m
  3. Grief: Learning to Stay Open When Everything Hurts

    FEB 24

    Grief: Learning to Stay Open When Everything Hurts

    If you have ever loved someone so deeply that the thought of losing them rearranged everything, this conversation is for you. It is for the moments when you try to stay steady while the ground is already shifting beneath you. It is for the quiet questions that surface when life no longer follows the plan you thought you were living. Kathleen Quinn shares a story shaped by devotion, sudden illness, and the long unfolding of grief. She speaks about caring for her husband through a devastating diagnosis, about choosing presence over denial, and about the many small decisions that come with loving someone at the end of their life. This is not a story about moving on. It is a story about staying open. About learning how grief and joy can exist side by side. About discovering that the life you are living now may still hold meaning, tenderness, and purpose. This episode is a gentle reminder that there is no correct way to grieve. Only your way. And that honoring what was lost does not mean closing yourself off from what still remains. What You’ll Hear Loving someone through a terminal diagnosis without turning them into a patientThe quiet weight of anticipatory grief and how it shows up unexpectedlyChoosing presence in moments that feel unbearableLetting go of rules about how grief is supposed to lookStaying open to life after loss without rushing yourselfHow grief reshaped her relationship with worth, joy, and purpose Guest Bio Kathleen Quinn is a mindset coach and former philanthropy leader at Stanford. After more than three decades working closely with high-achieving and high-net-worth individuals, she now helps people explore the deeper questions of worthiness, wealth, and fulfillment. Drawing from her professional experience and personal journey through loss, Kathleen guides clients through meaningful transitions rooted in self-trust, clarity, and impact. Listen and follow: www.thelifeshiftpodcast.com/follow Support the show for ad-free and early-release episodes: www.patreon.com/thelifeshiftpodcast Subscribe to the newsletter: https://thelifeshiftpodcast.beehiiv.com/

    1 hr
  4. The Small Moments That Quietly Change Your Life | Bonus

    FEB 22 · BONUS

    The Small Moments That Quietly Change Your Life | Bonus

    This episode is part of The Things We Carry, a solo series shaped by the themes that stay with me after more than two hundred conversations on The Life Shift. Today I am talking about the small moments that end up changing everything. Not the dramatic events we can point to, but the quieter shifts. The split second where you choose something different. The small yes or no that later becomes a turning point. The thought you almost ignore until it finally lands. In this reflection, I talk about the tiny, almost invisible choices that shape who we become. The gentle nudges. The slow clarifying moments. The things that do not look important at the time but reveal themselves later as the start of a new chapter. Change is rarely loud. Healing is rarely obvious. Most of the time it happens underneath the surface, long before we can name it. If you are feeling stuck or wondering when your own shift will show up, I hope this episode helps you notice what is already happening inside you. Look for the little things. The small questions. The subtle pull toward something new. Those moments matter more than you think. They might be the beginning of your next life.

    4 min
  5. Grief: Making Something Beautiful From What Broke

    FEB 17

    Grief: Making Something Beautiful From What Broke

    Some moments do not ask to be fixed. They ask to be felt. To be witnessed. To be held gently until something inside us loosens just enough to breathe again. In this conversation, I sit with someone who understands that grief is not something to get over. It is something to learn how to live with. Day shares what it was like to lose his father, lose a relationship, and find himself standing in a quiet in-between space where nothing felt stable. Instead of rushing through that season, he slowed down. He listened. He followed a small impulse into the woods. And in doing so, he discovered a way to turn pain into presence. This episode is about thresholds. About endings and beginnings that overlap. About how creativity, ritual, and attention can help us stay open when life changes shape. It is an invitation to soften your grip, trust what is unfolding, and remember that even in loss, something meaningful is still possible. What You’ll Hear Why grief is not just an emotion but a skill we can learnThe power of slowing down when life feels unrecognizableHow ritual and creativity can help metabolize lossLearning to hold endings without closing your heartThe quiet role of pleasure in times of deep heavinessFinding meaning in the space between goodbye and hello Guest Bio Day Schildkret is an award-winning queer author, artist, ritualist, and teacher known for Morning Altars, a practice rooted in nature, art, and ritual. His work helps people navigate change, grief, and life transitions with intention and care. Day teaches internationally and creates spaces where people can slow down, remember what matters, and reconnect to themselves through creativity and presence. Sign up for Day’s Newsletter: https://www.morningaltars.com/ Morning Altars Teacher Training: https://www.morningaltars.com/teachertraining Purchase Hello, Goodbye: https://www.morningaltars.com/hellogoodbye Purchase Morning Altars https://www.morningaltars.com/morningaltarsbook/1 Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/morningaltars/ ---- Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/morningaltars Listen and follow: www.thelifeshiftpodcast.com/follow Support the show for ad free and early release episodes: www.patreon.com/thelifeshiftpodcast Subscribe to the newsletter: https://thelifeshiftpodcast.beehiiv.com/

    57 min
  6. What It Really Feels Like to Start Over | Bonus

    FEB 15 · BONUS

    What It Really Feels Like to Start Over | Bonus

    This episode is part of The Things We Carry, a solo series shaped by the themes that stay with me after the conversations on The Life Shift. Today, I am talking about starting over and the quiet moments when someone realizes life cannot keep going the way it has been. These beginnings rarely look dramatic. They show up as discomfort, restlessness, or a small truth that refuses to stay quiet. They arrive long before anything changes on the outside. In this reflection, I talk about how starting again is usually a slow noticing rather than a bold leap. It is the moment you finally pay attention to the shift happening beneath the surface. It is the small decision to move toward something more honest, even when your legs feel shaky. Beginning again asks for honesty, patience, and a willingness to let go of the version of you that no longer feels true. If you are standing in your own starting point, I hope this episode meets you gently. You do not need to rush, leap, or reinvent your entire life. You only need to listen to what is pulling you and honor the direction that feels right. Starting over is not a failure. It is a sign that you are paying attention. And that is enough.

    4 min
  7. Grief: Learning to Carry Joy and Loss Together

    FEB 10

    Grief: Learning to Carry Joy and Loss Together

    If you have ever looked at your life and thought, this is not what I imagined, this conversation is for you. If you have carried love and grief in the same breath, you will recognize yourself here. Sharon’s story moves through absence, devotion, and the quiet reshaping that happens when life asks more of you than you feel ready to give. From early experiences of not knowing where she belonged, to the long years of loving and caring for her son Michael, she shares what it means to live inside uncertainty without closing your heart. This is not a story about fixing what cannot be fixed. It is about learning how to stay present when the future feels fragile. This episode holds space for the kind of grief that does not follow a timeline. The kind that lives alongside laughter. The kind that changes your identity and slowly teaches you how to carry love forward. There is no rush here. Just permission to feel what you feel, and to trust that it all belongs. What You’ll Hear What it feels like when the life you expected quietly disappearsThe difference between surviving grief and living alongside itHow love deepens when certainty is no longer availableNavigating identity after loss without forcing closureHolding joy and sorrow in the same momentLearning to feel seen after years of feeling unseen Guest Bio Dr. Sharon Spano works with high-impact leaders who appear successful on the outside but feel something is quietly missing inside. With a PhD in Human and Organizational Systems, she helps CEOs, consultants, and entrepreneurs understand what is actually holding them back, not just in their work, but in their relationships and sense of self. Much of Sharon’s work centers on what she calls the emptiness of success. The feeling that can linger even after you have done all the right things. Through a blend of science, developmental psychology, and deep personal insight, she guides leaders to uncover hidden barriers, including generational patterns and unresolved grief, so they can lead with more clarity, integrity, and wholeness. Sharon is the host of The Other Side of Potential, a podcast exploring leadership, growth, and what it means to live beyond pressure-driven success. She is also the author of The Pursuit of Time & Money. At the heart of her work is a simple belief. True success is not about doing more. It is about becoming more fully yourself. Website: https://sharonspano.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharonspano/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sharon.spano.902Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drsharonspano/Blog: https://sharonspano.comPodcast: The Other Side of Potential: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-other-side-of-potential/id1397898049 Listen and follow: www.thelifeshiftpodcast.com/follow Support the show for ad-free and early release episodes: www.patreon.com/thelifeshiftpodcast Subscribe to the newsletter: https://thelifeshiftpodcast.beehiiv.com/

    1h 4m
  8. The Moment You Finally Say the Truth Out Loud | Bonus

    FEB 8 · BONUS

    The Moment You Finally Say the Truth Out Loud | Bonus

    This episode is part of The Things We Carry, a solo series shaped by the themes that stay with me after the conversations on The Life Shift. Today I am talking about the moment you finally say the thing you have been holding in. It is rarely dramatic. It is rarely loud. Most of the time it is a quiet shift in the air. A small release. A truth that has been waiting for you to stop hiding. In this reflection, I talk about the fear that comes before speaking the truth, the relief that follows, and the slow, steady undoing of shame that happens when you let yourself be seen. Many of us carry invisible weight. We carry the stories we were told to keep quiet. We carry the parts of ourselves we were sure would make people run. But the moment you let someone see the real you, everything changes. Even if it is small. Even if it is messy. Even if your voice shakes. If you feel yourself inching toward your own line in the sand, I hope this episode helps you feel less alone. You do not have to shout your truth. You do not have to reveal everything at once. You can take one small step. You can whisper the part of your story that wants to be heard. And when you do, you become a little more you.

    4 min
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About

The Life Shift shares real and honest conversations about the moments that change us. Host Matt Gilhooly sits with guests as they tell true stories of life-changing events, unexpected challenges, and quiet awakenings that shaped who they are today. Each episode offers meaningful and candid storytelling about grief, healing, resilience, identity, and growth. These are the personal stories that remind us what it feels like to be human. These are the turning points that stay with us. If you are drawn to personal growth, emotional well-being, or stories of how people rebuild after loss, this show offers a gentle place to land. Listeners come for the life changes. They stay for the connection. New episodes every Tuesday. For more information, please visit https://www.thelifeshiftpodcast.com

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