Please Note: This chat was recorded on Substack ‘Live’ on 21st July 2026

To attend the ‘Live’ shows and join the conversation in the comments, be sure to Subscribe (for free) and download the Substack App!

Emily writes ‘Too Hard To Swallow’ on Substack and is an integrative executive coach and former public sector Chief Executive, who founded her own coaching business - Wylde Wellbeing Coaching - along side building her proprietary Whole-Wellness™ framework.

“I am the only Whole-Wellness™ architect helping the high achieving woman rebuild her life with agency and momentum, in the knowledge that capability is not the same as capacity; and she deserves to know the difference.”

💬 Our Chat

* Adjusting after major surgery and how it changes us

* Accepting that change and finding the new version of ourselves

* Managing your capacity and energy and how Emily has applied science to this

* Emily’s brilliant ‘sustainable capacity equation’ explained

* The fundamental difference between capacity and capability

* Why protecting our energy & capacity is absolutely vital!

* The difficulties with explaining the nuance of invisible disability/illness

* We get to the crux of the key difference between an emotion and a feeling

* The dragon in Emily’s kitchen! Read her incredible piece HERE

* Our experiences of visceral surges of ‘rage’ (sorry dad♥️)

* How Emily managed to step away and get a handle on things in the moment

* A deep dive into the importance of allowing our emotions to move through us and how to separate our emotions from the feelings and beliefs

* Emily explains her wonderful ‘ABC model’ and how it caught her mid-spiral

* Watch the cogs turn as I join the dots and get to grips with all this live! 😉

📣Mentions

Selina Barker and her Another Way Substack & gorgeous Project You Club

Toni Jones and her brilliant Shelf Help Book Club

Book: ‘How Emotions are Made’ by Lisa Feldman Barrett

Oliver Burkman - you can find his wonderful books and newsletter HERE

Gloria Willcox - ‘The Feelings Wheel’ - You can download the PDF for FREE! 👍

📆 Back in September!

Ok, that’s it folks for a little while. I’m having a little break over the summer holidays to focus on time with the kids and tinkering around in the background moving all the previous episodes of ChatStack over to here.

🎥 Previous episodes are HERE

📌Keep an eye on the Notice Board for updates and guest announcements!

See you soon!

Please Note: This chat was recorded on Substack ‘Live’ on 16th July 2026

💬Our Chat

* Cramming in jobs in the school day & Podcasting in the car!

* Breast Surgery - weight loss and the slimming world community

* The importance of having a good old “chin wag”

* The lost art of hobbies and building human connections

* How Joanne helps small businesses get seen

* Substack Notes and social media - escaping the scrambling!

* How my holiday helped me get back to being me

* Joanne tells us how to get yourself ‘on the map’ with a Google Business Profile

* How Joanne pivoted her career after Covid sank her successful wedding stationary business, practically overnight.

* How we’ve each dealt with our dramatic energy shifts after surgery/diagnosis

* The dreaded ‘What do you do?’ question as a multi-passionate creative

* My struggle with self-worth and the shame around receiving financial support

* Why trying to be our former selves will never work!

* The true strength of being a women (and knowing when to rest)

* Breasts, rogue nipples and the freedom of no longer wearing our bras!

* The value of finding joy and laughter throughout tough times

* Accepting that the mess and endless to-do lists just mean that you’re living ♥️

📣Mentions

During our chat Joanne opened up about the cases of breast cancer in her family and how she is a carrier of the BRCA2 gene. As a preventative measure, Joanne bravely opted to undergo a double mastectomy.

This involved major reconstruction of her breasts, using tissue from her stomach. After which she was introduced to an amazing charity, who provide tattoos of realistic looking nipples for women following such procedures.

Nipple Charity - ‘NiP’

“The Nipple Innovation Project (NiP) is the UK’s first mastectomy tattoo charity.

We help breast cancer patients get their nipples (and the confidence that comes with them) back, via amazingly realistic, long-lasting tattoos.

We work with a team of experienced, specially trained medical tattoo artists across the UK and Ireland to make sure breast cancer patients who want to restore their nipples can do so without the worry of cost or repeat hospital visits”

www.nipcharity.org

See you next time!

Please Note: This chat was recorded on Substack ‘Live’ on 23rd June 2026

Anyway, you may or may not have noticed/give a shit that I did NOT in fact speak to Helen Morris last week (Tuesday 16th June), as stated in my last one of these posts. I can’t even tell you why now, but I can only assume I was contending with yet another migraine or fatigue/kid’s demands or something like that. I will endeavour to book Helen back in because I would really like to chat to her. ☺️

My Guest This Week

My ‘live’ chat this week was with the lovely Fliss Lee - Brand Coach and Strategist, and Founder of Honest Folk - “helping you bridge the gap between where you are now, and the next level of your business, whatever that looks like for you.”

“Honest Folk exists to demystify the world of “brand”, join the dots that are in your head, and help you lean into what makes you, ‘you’.”

I discovered Fliss through her online community - On Brand - “A space for creative business owners to regularly work on their business, with structure, support, and momentum behind you.”

💬What We Chatted About

* Breaking away from the “shoulds” when it comes to running our own businesses

* Why creative careers aren’t viewed and respected as “proper” jobs

* The importance of HUMAN creativity and the feelings behind our ideas/designs

* How Fliss went from corporate employment to running her own business

* The importance of community and connection with other creatives

* The value of the support and accountability within a community

* How working on your own can become very lonely and isolating

* Fliss’ experience and opinions of Substack so far (being relatively new here)

* Why sharing our “shit bits” is so important in combating comparison

* The balance between your creativity and business being side-by-side

* Why trying new things isn’t a waste of time and doesn’t mean your failing

* How your branding needs to be fluid and grow with you and your business

* Some great ‘top tips’ from Fliss and why your ‘brand vision’ is key to your marketing messaging!

See you next time!

Please Note: This chat was recorded on Substack ‘Live’ on 12th June 2026

About Sophie

For those who don’t already know, Sophie is paving the way for “the knackered parents and neurodivergent business owners with buzzing brains and those who struggle to get out of bed some days, are burned out and overwhelmed.”

She helps people who’s body, brain or life was never build for the “traditional” 9-5. Me! 🙋🏻‍♀️😉 Sophie offers a calm and nurturing space through her Substack: ‘Finding Simple & Calm’

“A cosy forest retreat with space to breathe and just be. A gentle community for neurodivergent creative small business owners & mothers who want lived stories, strategies, tools & resources, and all the support to build a slow, sustainable business that’s baggy enough to live in.”

See you next time!

“Supporting small businesses to thrive in ways that feel realisticand aligned to where they want to go.”

Please Note: This chat was recorded on Substack ‘Live’ on 4th June 2026

I really enjoyed our chat and loved that Sophie was happy to roll with my relaxed, un-planned style. We certainly didn’t run out of things to say and I loved hearing Sophie’s perspectives on AI, creativity, the importance of human connections and input. As well as her refreshing take on Networking.

I first met Sophie whilst attending one of her lovely workshops - Networking Skills for Small Businesses - which I got so much from and do highly recommend. That particular workshop is next running in September (which will be here before we know it), but there are others before then.

See you next time!

Please Note: This chat was recorded on Substack ‘Live’ on 26th May 2026

Lee writes about unlearning a lifetime of expectations, conditioning and rules. She helps people who want their work and lives to matter without losing themselves in the process.

I love the ethos and messaging around Lee’s coaching business and she has helped me personally (at the end of last year) to gain a LOT of clarity and insight. Particularly around my learned expectations, conditioned beliefs and all the ‘shoulds’ I carry with me.

See you next time!

Please Note: This chat was recorded on Substack ‘Live’ on 12th May 2026

I even broke my own rules of the ChatStack model - minimal planning, a very loose structure and just a casual chat! Forgetting that Toni is someone I’ve had many chats with before and is a friend, who just happens to be publishing a book. Old anxiety and insecurity habits crept in and I went all silly and “star struck”. 🫣

Anyway, Toni was fab and I soon relaxed into it… even though my brain forgot how to form sentences at times and many, many words seemed to have disappeared entirely! Does anyone else get like that?

About My Guest

Toni Jones is a journalist turned bibliotherapist and the founder and editor of ‘The Shelf Help Clubhouse’ – The world’s first dedicated self-help book club - designed to support you in reading, reflecting and applying self-development.

Over the past 10 years, Toni has read over 1000 self-help books, interviewed hundreds of authors and wellbeing experts. Including Gretchen Rubin, Hal Elrod | Author + Speaker, Dr David Hamilton and Ella Mills (Deliciously Ella). All of which has now led to her to writing her debut book, YOU – “The Beginner’s Guide”.

‘YOU’ is a bite-size guide that distils the most valuable lessons from a decade spent immersed in the self-development space. Toni has developed a brilliant three-step framework – the Connected Self MethodTM - which features expert tools designed to help people get to know themselves better and support their journey towards Self-Discovery, Life Design, and Life Support.

“Self-help isn’t about fixing yourself. It’s about getting to know yourself and then designing a life that fits” – Toni Jones

Thank You

Thank you so much to everyone who tuned into ChatStack ‘Live’ and apologies for not managing to invite questions in the end… we just had too much to talk about! The time went too quickly but we managed to cover a lot of juicy topics during our time together.

Thank you Toni for being a fabulous guest and for supporting me through my wobbles and helping feel more at ease. 💛

See you next time!

P.s. If you stick around right to the end there’s a delightful “old person” fuck-up to enjoy, as I try to END the video! 🫣🤣

Please Note: This chat was recorded on Substack ‘Live’ on 28th April 2026

My Guest This Week

The lovely Allegra Chapman (she/her) kindly jumped in at very short notice and joined me on this week’s ‘Live’ chat - Thank you Allegra! 🙏🥰

Allegra is an author, columnist, former publishing editor and creative therapy practitioner. Her publication and membership on Substack is Creative Fix.

“A creative sanctuary, where you can discover ways to use writing, art and crafting for healing, self-expression and connection.”

💬Our Chat

I really enjoyed my impromptu catch up with Allegra and we dived straight into lots of juicy topics such as, the importance of valuing our unpaid work, parenting and our creative pursuits. How hopping around from one project to another isn’t failure and how recognising that sometimes it’s the process we need and not the finished result.

I was interested to hear how Allegra discovered ways to develop her creative practice that supports her brain and nervous system and works WITH her needs, rather than constantly fighting against herself. How she went from “I can’t do this” to writing three books and making a living as a writer.

Her new book Divergent Creatives is out now - which Allegra describes as, “The guidance, reassurance and confidence boost I wish someone had given me 20 years ago.” Breaking down the limiting beliefs that our culture teaches us about creativity and differences. We discussed the importance of recognising and accepting how our brains work differently and the book includes practical tips on building a creative habit that actually works for you, instead of trying to follow someone else’s blueprint.

⭐️Bonus Content (not in the recording)

Working With Our Energy

We briefly talked about the importance of working with our energy and checking in with our capacity - being flexible, self-compassionate, kinder, not pushing ourselves too far and breaking the vicious cycle of burnout.

Which of-course led me to mention Selina Barker and her fabulous Journal ‘Time To Thrive’ ♥️ Which teaches us how to manage our energy - across the 5 different zones - and use the tools and techniques within the journal to reclaim your energy and build a life in which you can truly thrive!

How This Has Helped Me Personally

Over the past couple of weeks, whilst I’ve been going through a very challenging and emotional life event, I have felt so lifted and supported by the fabulous people in Selina Barker’s membership! This gave me the extra strength and motivation I needed to put into practice some of the fantastic tools I’ve learned from the Journal. It has enabled me to pause, notice and recognise which of my energy zones is depleted at any given time... even throughout the chaos and upheaval of such a big life event! 😬

I’ve been able to mindfully notice what specifically drains my energy and make more conscious and measured efforts to refuel that particular area of my wellbeing. This focused approach has helped me to stay connected to my body, prevented me from spiralling into overwhelm and enabled me to make better choices about where to expend my energy… AND to PROTECT that energy and value my overall wellbeing much more than I ever have in the past.

See you next time!

Please Note: This chat was recorded ‘Live’ on Substack on 21st April 2026

My Guest This Week

My dear friend Lisa Bolin 🌸 is a teacher, mother, mindfulness mentor and all-round fabulous human! She writes Flucking Flourishing on Substack – “a midlife revolution and the bookend to your teenage years, but with more wisdom, fewer flucks given and better beverages!”

I was very much enjoying catching up with Lisa Bolin 🌸 and hearing all about her move (in December 2025) to Australia after spending 8 years living in Finland. However, we then lost connection when Lisa’s phone decided to have a meltdown!! 😭 Unfortunately Lisa wasn’t able to re-join.

Carrying On Regardless

After a few brief moments of panic, I carried on rambling to myself for another 20 minutes! 🤪 Thank you so much to all those who stayed to listen to my (perhaps mildly insightful?) waffling! 🤣

In keeping with the true style of the show - Minimal planning, zero editing, embracing turning up as we are and learning as we go! Perhaps even capturing some golden nuggets as we go…

Go forth and wade through your shit guys! 💩🤣

Thank you to everyone who tuned into my live video! Join me for my next live video in the app.

See you next time!

Please Note: This chat was recorded ‘Live’ on Substack on 7th April 2026

See you next time!

Please Note: This chat was recorded ‘Live’ on Substack on 31st March 2026

It was great to catch up with Amber and hear about her story in more detail - Thank you Amber for sharing so openly and honestly about your experience of suffering for over 20 years with undiagnosed Migraine!

Amber has a wealth of knowledge and her experiences are fascinating to hear about. Her passion around helping to raise awareness of how debilitating migraine can be and supporting others in their journey towards healing is truly inspiring. If you’d like to find out more about Amber or her Substack, hit the link below.

Thank you to everyone who tuned into my live video! Join me for my next ChatStack ‘Live’ - Tuesday 1pm (BST) - in the app. See you then! 🥰

See you next time!

Please Note: This chat was recorded ‘Live’ on Substack on 24th March 2026

We chatted about one of Selina’s expert topics - Burn out - and the ways we can prevent it happening, by focusing on the 5 key energy zones, which Selina outlines in her fantastic Journal - Time To Thrive. Perfectly timed (as these things often tend to be) as I was feeling really quite “flat” before our chat.

It really helped to boost my energy and “fill up my cup”. Reconfirming to me how important it is to turn up and catch up with a friend, even when you feel like crap and just want to hide away from the world. ❤️‍🩹

Our chat contains many ideas and tips on simple ways we can attend to our different energy zones, depending on our current needs…. and if you want to use the “Emotional Check In Tool” I mention in the chat, you can click HERE.

If you’d like to know more about Selina and the brilliant work she does as a Career and Life Design Coach, just click the link below.

See you next time!

Please Note: This chat was recorded ‘Live’ on Substack on 17th March 2026

You can find out more about Marisa, read her articles and learn more about the work she does with individuals to overcome their challenges and thrive in a system that wasn’t created for us to succeed.

Thank you Marisa Guthrie for being a delightful guest and helping me through my first ‘Live’ interview. Also to everyone who turned up and tuned in LIVE! A special shout out to whoever it was that sent the balloons - it was real boost! 🎈

See you next time!