I Bend, I Don’t Break: Life, Love, Death and the Grief That Connects Them

I Bend, I Don’t Break: Life, Love, Death and the Grief That Connects Them

In this deeply personal episode, Shannon sits down with her close friend Racheal for a conversation about grief and the unimaginable experience of losing a child. Rachel has lost three of her children — Christian, Hannah and Benjamin — each in different circumstances, at different times in her life. Through her story, we explore what grief asks of a person, what it means to breathe when that feels impossible, and how love continues even when life has changed forever. This is not a conversation about easy healing or neat answers. It is about endurance. About the moments that bend us to our absolute limits. And about the quiet, hard-won wisdom that can come from the unimaginable. Content Warning: This episode discusses child loss, terminal illness, childhood illness, motor vehicle death, grief, trauma and emotional distress. Please listen with care.  If this episode brings up difficult feelings, please reach out to someone you trust. You do not have to carry grief alone. In Australia, you can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636. In an emergency, call 000  For more information about bereavement support please visit the show notes at www.ifthesetreescouldtalk.com.au [http://www.ifthesetreescouldtalk.com.au].

The Edge of the Forest

What happens when we step beyond what feels safe?  In this episode, Shannon and Megan explore the invisible boundaries that shape our lives and the quiet ways our worlds can shrink when comfort becomes our default setting. Drawing on experiences from the recent If These Trees Could Heal retreat, where women stepped into cold water, breathwork, vulnerability and self-discovery, alongside Shannon's weekend navigating unfamiliar places in the city alone, this conversation explores what happens when we choose curiosity over certainty. Together, they unpack the science behind fear, anxiety, neuroplasticity and nervous system regulation, while reflecting on the deeply human experience of standing at the edge of something unfamiliar and deciding whether to step forward or turn back. Because perhaps growth isn't found in giant leaps or dramatic reinventions. Perhaps it begins with a deep breath, a trembling yes, and a willingness to discover who we might become beyond the boundaries we've grown comfortable living within.

Chasing Your Passion and Everything It Asks of You with Kirsty Lee Akers

A few episodes ago, Megan and Shannon found themselves stuck on a question that felt far bigger than either of them expected… Why is it so easy to encourage other people to chase the things they love… but when it comes to ourselves, it feels layered with fear, guilt, responsibility, and the quiet belief that maybe we’re asking for too much? So Shannon decided to sit down with someone who has spent her entire life doing exactly that. In this deeply honest conversation, Kirsty Lee Akers opens up about what it really takes to build a life around passion—not just the highlight reel people see from the outside, but the sacrifices, uncertainty, resilience, and emotional weight that often sits underneath it all. From growing up immersed in country music, busking to fund her first EP, and navigating the brutal highs and lows of the music industry… to appearing on The Block, renovating their dream home with her husband Jesse, and now creating music independently and as a part of Rhindstoned alongside Jesse and guitarist Dan Ebbels, Kirsty reflects on the tension between chasing your dreams and building a grounded life around them. Together, Shannon and Kirsty explore identity, pressure, perseverance, grief, relationships, ambition, and the reality that following what you love often asks far more of you than people realise. But beneath all of it sits a quieter question… What does it actually mean to build a life that feels like your own? This episode is for anyone who has ever felt pulled toward something… and wondered what it takes to actually go after it. Find links to Kirsty and all we mentioned in the episode in the show notes at If These Trees Could Talk [https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ifthesetreescouldtalk.com.au%2F%3Futm_source%3Dchatgpt.com&data=05%7C02%7Cmegan.anderson9%40det.nsw.edu.au%7C760f718074744dc1bae808deb6359466%7C05a0e69a418a47c19c259387261bf991%7C0%7C0%7C639148539618465666%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C80000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=HQqDU6mYmxfoBrjez1zGrGh0eWKWQm8UTBEpCetFZnQ%3D&reserved=0].com.au

This Was Never His Story

You probably know the name Malcolm Naden. But do you know theirs? This episode revisits one of Australia’s most widely known manhunts—but not in the way it’s usually told. While the search through the New South Wales bush became the story many remember, this was never really about the man or the hunt. It was always about the lives that were lost. We centre the stories of Lateesha Nolan and Kristy Scholes—two women, two mothers, deeply loved, whose names have too often been overshadowed by what came after. Told in reverse, this episode moves from sentencing… to confession… to arrest… and back through the years of sightings and near misses… before returning to where it all began. Not to build suspense—but to remove it. To strip away the mythology and bring the focus back to what actually matters. This is a story about memory, media, and the way narratives shift over time. It asks who gets remembered… and who gets left behind. And ultimately, it brings this story back to where it always belonged. With them.

What They Say: Yowie Experiences, Belief, Skepticism & What They Might Be Telling Us

In Part 2 of this conversation with Sarah Bignell, we move beyond the encounters themselves and into what happens after they’re shared. Because seeing something is one thing… saying it out loud is something else entirely. Drawing on years of speaking with witnesses, Sarah shares the emotional weight these experiences can carry—how silence, skepticism, and ridicule shape the way people hold their stories, and what it takes to speak about them at all. This episode explores the human side of the unexplained: the cost of being dismissed, the impact of not being believed, and the importance of spaces where people can be heard without judgment. And beyond that, it asks something deeper—not just what people are saying… but what might be being communicated through these experiences, and whether we’re willing to truly listen. For more information and links to Sarah’s work and Yowie Central pop over to the show notes on our website. https://www.ifthesetreescouldtalk.com.au [https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ifthesetreescouldtalk.com.au%2F&data=05%7C02%7Cmegan.anderson9%40det.nsw.edu.au%7Cd600f7135ea44c1afa9408dea9a85490%7C05a0e69a418a47c19c259387261bf991%7C0%7C0%7C639134737606526937%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=ArHxZiMYuBsCqEyIA8Lo6J7lthmG8XwIuXwUqBCcpQs%3D&reserved=0]