What The Shift

You know the addiction that gets rewarded with promotions, praise, and performance reviews? Busyness.

In this episode of What the Shift, author and executive Barbara Burgess joins Gia to unpack the invisible addiction plaguing high-achieving women: doing more to feel like we matter. Together, they explore the voices of Enough and Not Enough, how to break the unconscious proving loop, and what happens when we finally stop performing...

You’ve done everything “right”—you’re successful, capable, and high-functioning. But beneath the polished exterior? You’re exhausted. Disconnected. Over it.

In this episode, Gia sits down with therapist, coach, and cycle-breaker Alyssa Scarano to unpack the truth about trauma responses that get rewarded—until they stop working. Together, they explore how coping mechanisms like over-functioning, hyper-independence, emotional suppres...

She had the six-figure job, the global title, the kids, the calendar—and a deep, unspoken sense that none of it actually fit.

In this powerful episode, Dr. Michelle El Khoury shares the story of what happens when your career and motherhood feel like parallel lives—and the moment she decided to stop splitting herself in two. A former pharmaceutical executive turned perinatal wellness expert, Michelle opens up about the burnout, post...

She wasn’t just a patient—she was a respected healthcare provider. And still… no one listened.

When Dr. Tara Harding faced infertility, endometriosis, and a series of alarming health crises, she expected answers.

Instead, she got dismissal, “it’s just bad luck,” and unexplained diagnoses that went nowhere. That moment changed everything.

In this raw conversation, Dr. Tara shares:

How medical gaslighting shows up—and why it’s so dan...

Why do so many high-achievers feel like they’re still not enough—even after checking every box? In this powerful conversation, Trevor Hanson joins Gia to unpack how anxious attachment, inner child wounds, and overfunctioning keep us stuck in cycles of burnout, self-doubt, and chasing approval. Trevor is a coach and founder of The Art of Healing. He teaches relationship and attachment skills through the Secure Self Club.

Trevor shar...

What happens when you walk away from a dream job—and the identity that came with it?

In this honest and energizing conversation, Gia sits down with Tara Clark—author, mental health advocate, and founder of Modern Mom Probs—to unpack what it really looks like to pivot, rebuild, and redefine success on your own terms.

From leaving her corporate media career at Nickelodeon to launching a parenting platform that now reaches millions, T...

What if your drive wasn’t ambition—but addiction?

In this raw and revelatory episode, Gia sits down with keynote speaker, business coach, and bestselling author Kim Rogne to unpack the hidden reason so many high-achieving women can’t slow down—even when they know they need to. From CEO of a multi-million-dollar real estate brokerage to founder of For the Love Of, Kim shares how a ski accident forced her to finally pause—and face th...

That pain, that fatigue, that anxiety? It’s not random. It’s your nervous system screaming what you’ve been too busy to feel.

In this powerful conversation, licensed therapist and nervous system coach Grace Secker unpacks the hidden root of chronic pain, fatigue, anxiety, and burnout—and how it’s often your body’s last-resort attempt to get your attention.

Grace shares her personal journey from debilitating pain to full-body healin...

What does it really take to walk away from what’s working—and bet on what’s right?

In this episode of What the Shift, I sit down with Leslee Owen, Co-Founder & CEO of Movement Maker Web Design Agency, to talk about the radical decision that changed everything. She was running a profitable coaching business, hosting a podcast, and doing all the “right” things—until she realized none of it felt aligned anymore.

Leslee shares:

When Melissa Lafsky Saleh lost her child days before delivery, everything shattered. Career. Identity. Marriage. Meaning. But what emerged from the ashes wasn’t just survival—it was sovereignty.

In this raw and revelatory episode of What the Shift, Melissa shares the deeply personal story of how unimaginable grief burned off everything that wasn’t her—and unlocked the one superpower the world taught her to silence: her intuition.

W...

What happens when everything that used to work for your health… suddenly doesn’t?

In this episode of What the Shift, Gia Lacqua sits down with women’s wellness and empowerment coach Erin Trier for a no-BS conversation about why the one-size-fits-all model of wellness is failing women—especially high-achieving moms navigating midlife shifts. Erin shares her personal wake-up call after baby #4, when her health hit a wall and everythi...

You’re exhausted, unfulfilled, and running on autopilot— but what if this isn’t burnout? What if it’s betrayal—of your identity, your truth, your needs?

In this unfiltered and fire-starting episode of What the Shift, Gia sits down with transformational coach and TEDx speaker Lora Cheadle, author of It’s Not Burnout, It’s Betrayal. After discovering her husband had been unfaithful for 15 years, Lora was forced to confront not just t...

What if everything you’ve been searching for—confidence, power, freedom—was already in you?

In this raw and radically affirming episode of What the Shift, Gia sits down with Liz Hansen, founder of Chicago Boudoir Photography and TEDx speaker, to unpack the truth about embodiment, shame, and the lies we’ve been taught about being “good women.”

From shaking in her boots before her first boudoir shoot to becoming the most sought-after...

What if gratitude isn’t just a feel-good practice—but a path to healing the parts of you that still hurt?

In this powerful episode of What the Shift, Gia sits down with Dr. Peggy DeLong, a psychologist, speaker, and bestselling author known as The Gratitude Psychologist. But Peggy’s not here to talk about keeping a cute journal. She’s here to reframe everything you’ve been told about gratitude, emotional pain, and what it really ta...

You know the feeling. That quiet itch for something more. That voice that says, “This isn’t it—but I don’t know what is.”

In this powerful episode of What the Shift, Gia sits down with Xenia Ambatzoglou, former corporate executive turned co-founder of womenowned88—a fashion-meets-advocacy brand built to empower women to own their stories, businesses, and futures.

After nearly two decades in financial services, a sudden career shift...

What happens when the version of you that "succeeds" isn't actually who you are?

In this episode, I sit down with top-ranked podcast host and personal brand strategist, Matt LeBris to unpack the identity crisis so many high achievers face—losing themselves in performance, people-pleasing, and the pursuit of external validation. From childhood black sheep to top 1% globally ranked podcast host, Matt shares the raw, unfiltered truth ...

What if the ending wasn’t the failure—but the invitation?

In this powerful episode, I sit down with Tamara Frankfort Odinec and Shari Joseph, the visionary women behind My Next Chapter—a content and community platform designed to support those navigating divorce and major life transitions.

Tamara and Shari share the personal shifts that unraveled the lives they once protected—and how choosing themselves wasn’t the breaking point, b...

From international criminal law to skincare for anxious souls, Dr. Jeanne Retief’s journey is anything but typical—and exactly what this podcast is about.

In this raw, soul-baring conversation, Jeanne opens up about the panic disorder that forced her to walk away from a career she loved, the grief that nearly broke her, and the reinvention she never planned—but ultimately needed.

We’re talking:

• Why anxiety doesn’t need to be h...

What happens when your perfectly planned life suddenly unravels?

Courtney Youngs—a corporate communicator, mother, and self-proclaimed recovering perfectionist—joins Gia to unpack how divorce, grief, career pivots, and unexpected love cracked open her old identity and helped her step into who she was really meant to be.

In this raw and powerful episode, Courtney shares how the moments she never planned became the ones that shaped ...