If You Grew Up With A Critical Or Emotionally Unavailable Mother

If You Grew Up With A Critical Or Emotionally Unavailable Mother

In a previous episode, Nisha explored the experience of the emotionally unavailable mother - the kind of absence that leaves your emotional world largely unheld. But this episode speaks to a different, often more confusing dynamic. This is for the women who didn’t just experience absence - but something more active, more intrusive and harder to name. The critical mother.  The controlling mother.  The emotionally intrusive or “devouring” mother. The kind of dynamic where love didn’t feel stable or safe - where it may have felt conditional, tied to how you behaved, performed or showed up. You may have experienced criticism that cut deeper than it should have. Comparisons that made you question yourself. Guilt that made you feel responsible for her emotions, and a level of shame that left you feeling like something about you was inherently wrong. This episode is not about blaming your mum, but it is about acknowledging the impact. Because many women spend years minimising this experience - telling themselves “it wasn’t that bad” or “she did her best”—while still carrying the emotional imprint of it in how they relate to themselves and others. You don’t have to push through—just stay present with what feels manageable, and come back to the rest when you’re ready. If you're struggling with this and would like more support:  * Work With Me: Request Your Consultation Call [https://innerspacetherapy.uk/free-initial-consultation-call/] * Women's Circle + Talking  [https://innerspacetherapy.uk/womens-circle/]

Truth, Marriage, Identity & What We’ve Been Taught to Believe

This episode wasn’t planned. After Nisha & Charni finished recording the previous episode, around expression writing and books, we kept talking - and left the camera on. What followed was a completely unfiltered, unstructured and unexpectedly powerful conversation. No agenda. Just honesty.. It's become its own episode, and rightly so! We talk about the realities many women quietly navigate - marriage, identity and the slow loss of self. We question the narratives we’ve been handed, from societal expectations to what we consume online and why it's vital we question everything we read, see and hear on socials and the news.  This is the kind of conversation that doesn’t usually get shared. The kind that happens behind closed doors, when there’s no pressure to perform or package things neatly. And towards the end, something unexpected happens - a moment of reflection that turns the lens back onto me, my work and what it really means to hold space for others. If you’ve ever questioned the roles you’ve been given, the beliefs you’ve absorbed, or the version of yourself you’ve had to become - this one will land and change your perspective.  If you've already been through that, then you'll agree with a lot of what we say... Keep in touch with Nisha * Work With Me: Request Your Consultation Call [https://innerspacetherapy.uk/free-initial-consultation-call/] Keep in touch with Charni * Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/cgillpoetry?igsh=azZqd2V1NGg1M3o0&utm_source=qr]  * Website + Purchase her collection of works here  [https://cgill.uk/publications/?fbclid=PAVERFWARN0wpleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAac7gnT9rrdlA6rD8Ii5Sx79hGnC0sGKVfGvQ9hbACQW8ENOo9BJV6rw3kuhmw_aem_mmvf2dVmXfTIhW8XFg1G3g]

How To Build The Life You Want Without Losing Family, Fear Or Guilt, ft Rupinder AWMB

Today's episode is taken from a recent conversation I had with Rupinder from Asian Women Mean Business. We explore why so many South Asian women struggle with self-trust, guilt, people-pleasing and self-doubt and why becoming yourself can sometimes feel like risking the relationships that matter most. We discuss the hidden cost of living according to other people's expectations, the fear of disappointing family, and what it really takes to build a life that feels authentic without losing your sense of belonging. If you've ever felt torn between being yourself and keeping the peace, this conversation is for you. If you're struggling with this and would like more support:  * Work With Me: Self Trust Programme  [https://innerspacetherapy.uk/self-trust-programme/] * 8 Live weekly 90min+ sessions * A bespoke workbook + journal * A clear framework + practical tools to build self-trust * Small, focussed group (8 women max) + recorded sessions + private community access Join 130+ professionals who stopped overthinking, built self-trust and now show up confidently in their life, work and relationships!  [https://innerspacetherapy.uk/self-trust-programme/]

Words, Healing & Self-Expression for South Asian Women

In this episode, Nisha is joined by author and poet, Charni Gill. Together, we explore what it really means to find your voice as a woman - especially when you’ve grown up without the space to be fully seen, heard or emotionally validated. This conversation goes beyond surface-level self-expression. We talk about the subtle ways we learn to perform instead of express, dilute our truth to feel safe, and carry the weight of being misunderstood when we finally do speak honestly. Charni shares how writing can become a powerful tool for self-expression and healing- not as something polished or performative, but as a raw, honest space to process emotions, validate your own experience, and reconnect with your inner voice. We also explore the role of storytelling, metaphors and poetry in making sense of complex emotions, as well as the importance of breaking cultural silences around topics many women were never encouraged to speak about. This is a grounded, honest conversation about identity, expression, and what it really looks like to come back to yourself - one word at a time. As promised here's the earlier episode I mentioned from Season 1 -  Fairytales, Myths + Stories that secretly shape us & our view of the world, as children.  [https://open.spotify.com/episode/0pkQtgP6f8qseIg2fXalAv?si=d2b8675531564bb6] Keep in touch with Nisha * Work With Me: Request Your Consultation Call [https://innerspacetherapy.uk/free-initial-consultation-call/] Keep in touch with Charni * Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/cgillpoetry?igsh=azZqd2V1NGg1M3o0&utm_source=qr]  * Website + Purchase her collection of works here  [https://cgill.uk/publications/?fbclid=PAVERFWARN0wpleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAac7gnT9rrdlA6rD8Ii5Sx79hGnC0sGKVfGvQ9hbACQW8ENOo9BJV6rw3kuhmw_aem_mmvf2dVmXfTIhW8XFg1G3g]

Mental Health at Work: What Real Support Looks Like

In this episode of the Inner Space podcast, Nisha is joined by Jo of Calerae to explore something that is often spoken about but rarely implemented properly in workplaces - mental health culture. We discuss what it actually means to support mental health in a corporate or organisational setting, whether that’s a small team or a large company, and why so many current approaches stop at surface-level “wellness initiatives” that don’t create real change. Mental health in the workplace is not about ticking a box once a year, or offering a wellbeing day here and there. It’s about how people are actually supported, seen, and held within the culture of the organisation every single day. We also look at why mental health at work is not just an employee issue - but a leadership and culture issue that needs to be addressed at the root. This conversation is for anyone in leadership, HR, or business ownership who knows that something needs to shift, but isn’t sure what that actually looks like in practice. Ways to Work With Us If you’re an employer or organisation looking to move beyond box-ticking approaches and genuinely implement healthier mental health practices in your workplace, you can get in touch with Nisha and Jo to explore how we can support you in building a more sustainable and conscious work culture. Work With Me: Request Your Consultation Call [https://innerspacetherapy.uk/free-initial-consultation-call/]  With With Jo [https://calerae.com/]