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Psychologist and Host, Dr. Doreen Downing, invites guests who have suffered from public speaking anxiety to tell their story of struggle and how they overcame fear. They took an inner journey, found the voice that is truly their own, and now speak with confidence.</p>
Today, I interview Meg Dennison, who grew up in a rural area where life was quiet, and opportunities to connect were limited. In her household, her father’s preference for peace and order meant that noise and self-expression were often discouraged. While the stillness of her environment shaped her early years, Meg’s lively and rebellious spirit found subtle ways to emerge.
As she grew older, her natural curiosity led her to a career as a reporter. She loved asking questions and diving deep into people’s stories, but when faced with opportunities to share her own voice—such as participating in public discussions—she was gripped by fear. Her nervousness about saying the wrong thing or being judged often caused her to retreat from these opportunities.
A turning point came when Meg decided she wouldn’t let fear or her discomfort with speaking hold her back any longer. She began taking classes to practice. These experiences helped free her voice from the nervousness that once paralyzed her. Along the way, she realized that reclaiming her voice wasn’t just about performance but about finding a deeper sense of presence and confidence through inner work.
Today, Meg uses her journey to inspire and guide others. As a coach, she helps individuals practice conscious leadership, embrace their authority, and connect with their voices in meaningful ways. Her story is a testament to how practice, presence, and inner work can transform fear into confidence and inspire others to express themselves fully.
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For over a decade, Meg Dennison has guided women through the practice of conscious leadership, helping them step into their authority and meet their ambitions. Her work includes one-on-one coaching, corporate team development, business workshops, and hosting transformative retreats at her home in Santa Cruz, California.
Meg’s lifelong passion has been supporting women and girls in their leadership journeys. She is dedicated to ensuring that women have the skills and support they need to share their brilliance and bring their visions to life.
Her own path reflects the resilience and transformation she teaches. Meg reimagined her 38-year marriage to the man she met on a college newspaper, reshaped her career in midlife, and even made a cross-country move after raising her three children.
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Find Meg here:
Website - www.megdennison.com
LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/in/megdennison
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/meg_dennison
Youtube - https://youtube.com/@megdenn
I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com.
Today I interview Leisa Reid, who grew up with a strong sense of independence fostered by her parents’ unique approach to raising her. With her parents divorced and living in different states, Leisa’s early life involved traveling alone between homes, which encouraged self-reliance from a young age. Her father, a hypnotherapist, further nurtured her independence by introducing her to ideas about inner awareness and self-reflection, fostering a curiosity that helped her feel comfortable exploring her inner world.
However, as she grew up, this independence created challenges in her personal relationships, particularly in understanding and expressing her needs. After her own divorce, Leisa had a breakthrough during a session with her therapist, who asked her to identify her emotional, physical, and spiritual needs. This task, unexpectedly difficult, led Leisa to seek answers in personal development workshops, where she started uncovering her inner beliefs and blind spots.
Now, Leisa channels her experiences to help others find their voice in public speaking. As the founder of Get Speaking Gigs Now, she guides entrepreneurs to get booked and share their messages confidently. Drawing from her own journey, she inspires others to step onto the stage with purpose and clarity.
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Leisa Reid is the Founder of Get Speaking Gigs Now and CEO of the International Speaker Network. Her mission is to transform public speaking into a powerful strategy for business growth, guiding speakers to make their message impactful and fulfilling. Known as the "Talk Doula," Leisa supports entrepreneurs in crafting their talks and finding speaking opportunities to build lasting visibility.
With experience on over 600 stages, the authorship of seven books, and her role as a podcast host, Leisa brings a wealth of expertise and practical know-how to aspiring speakers. Beyond her work, Leisa is a dedicated mom, wife, and dog-lover who enjoys live rock concerts and dance fitness classes, bringing joy and balance into her busy life.
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Find Leisa here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/leisareid/
https://facebook.com/getspeakinggigsnow/
https://www.facebook.com/leisa.reid.2/
https://www.instagram.com/getspeakinggigsnow/
https://www.instagram.com/leisareid
https://www.youtube.com/c/LeisaReid
I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com.
Today, I interview Kathryn Regganie, who grew up feeling different because of her learning disabilities, especially dyslexia. Kathryn shares how she faced challenges in school and often felt disconnected from traditional learning systems. Despite these struggles, her parents, especially her father, were a strong source of encouragement, reminding her she had the choice and determination to succeed, even if others doubted her.
As Kathryn moved into the corporate world, she continued to experience a sense of disconnection. Although she found ways to express herself and move forward, she was often in environments where her voice felt restricted, especially in male-dominated spaces. Eventually, Kathryn reached a turning point, realizing that the corporate path didn’t align with her true self. Seeking deeper connection and purpose, she discovered energy work, which helped her reconnect with her inner strength and sense of self.
Now, Kathryn embraces her unique perspective, seeing her dyslexia as a “superpower.” She guides professionally-minded women in discovering their own power through calmness, grounding, and self-leadership. Kathryn’s work centers on helping women feel confident, grounded, and able to lead with compassion, creating environments where everyone can feel seen and heard.
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Kathryn spent over 15 years in the corporate world, where she served as a bridge between tech innovators and sales teams, translating ideas and keeping both sides connected. During this time, she worked for large companies, balancing the worlds of meaning and analytics and learning the importance of clear communication in fast-paced environments.
After stepping away from corporate life, Kathryn discovered energy healing and began to understand the deeper impact of compassionate leadership. She saw how powerful it is for women to stay grounded and connected with themselves, realizing that true leadership comes from this inner alignment. This awareness inspired her to change direction, focusing on helping others find resilience and strength within.
Today, Kathryn guides professionally-minded women in slowing down, grounding themselves, and finding confidence. Through her business, she empowers women to embrace their inner strength and lead with their authentic, compassionate selves.
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Find Kathryn here:
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathrynregganie/
Website - https://www.dragonwomanquiz.com
I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com.
Today, I interview Katherine Kennedy, who grew up feeling the need to appear like everything was perfect, avoiding hard conversations and hiding behind a mask. As the youngest in her family, she was often seen as the one who brought fun and laughter, but underneath, she struggled to express her true emotions. This sense of needing to present a perfect life, while holding in difficult feelings, left her disconnected from her authentic voice.
Her turning point came when she started working with students who were the first in their families to go to college. Listening to their stories of struggle and resilience helped her recognize her own need to speak her truth. Over time, Katherine learned to have deeper conversations with her family, especially her father, which brought them closer and allowed her to release the secrets she had held for so long.
Now, Katherine guides others in finding their voices through storytelling workshops and retreats. She believes that finding your voice is a muscle that can be built over time, and she creates spaces for people to share their stories, just as she learned to do, fostering deeper connections and personal growth.
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Katherine has spent over 30 years helping thousands of people share their stories with authenticity and confidence. Her career highlights include working with Teach for America and playing a key role in expanding the youth leadership program Summer Search into a national nonprofit. As a mentor, fundraiser, and Executive Director, she has dedicated her career to empowering others to express their true selves.
Katherine is also a skilled storytelling coach, guiding individuals in various settings to articulate their personal stories—whether through public speaking, writing, or meaningful conversations. In 2023, she published her first book, Speaking to What Matters: My Story of Learning How to Share What’s Inside, which reflects her passion for the transformative power of storytelling.
Living in San Francisco with her family, Katherine continues her mission to help people connect deeply with themselves and others through the art of storytelling.
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Find Katherine here:
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/katherinekennedysf/
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/speakingtowhatmatters/
Free Download - A Guide to Speaking to What Matters https://katherinekennedysf.com/a-guide-to-speaking-to-what-matters/
I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com.
Today, I interview Dana Weaver, whose story starts with a pivotal moment during her childhood when her great-grandmother, a woman she adored, moved into a nursing home. Seeing the poor conditions in the facility sparked a realization in Dana that things needed to change. This event, coupled with her father’s encouraging words, planted a seed in her heart that would later grow into her passion for leadership and advocacy in the field of aging.
Throughout her early life, Dana faced challenges as she pursued her career in senior leadership roles, particularly as a woman in male-dominated fields. She witnessed many women in the workforce struggle to have their voices heard and break through glass ceilings. These experiences fueled her desire to support other women in finding their voices. Over time, Dana recognized the importance of effective leadership and the need for strong, compassionate leaders, especially in industries where people are caring for people.
One of Dana’s breakthrough moments came early in her career, when she was thrust into an eight-hour training session as the sole speaker. Despite her fears and lack of experience in public speaking, she pushed through and realized the importance of mastering the art of communication and leadership. This experience ignited a passion for speaking and teaching that eventually led her to become a keynote speaker and leadership coach.
Today, Dana uses her own story of overcoming fear and adversity to inspire and guide professional women to embrace their leadership potential and make a lasting impact. Dana’s story is a testament to the power of perseverance, vision, and heart-centered leadership, and her mission is to inspire women to rise above challenges and boldly claim their space in the world.
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Dana Weaver, your go-to leadership coach, partners with professional women to help them find their confidence and influence, enabling them to break through glass ceilings and make their unique mark in the world.
With over 25 years in senior leadership, Dana has made a significant impact on the field of aging. She has also inspired countless women to believe in their power and realize they can achieve far more than they originally believed possible.
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Find Dana here:
LinkedIn: @weaversolutionsllc
Facebook: @weaversoluitonsllc
Instagram: @weaversolutionsllc
YouTube: @weaversolutionsllc
Free Download: https://www.weaversolutionsllc.com/opt-in-d087ff10-25d7-434d-9b4b-24748992e4b6
I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com.
Today, I interview Randall Alifano who grew up in a loud, talkative Italian family where everyone spoke, but no one really listened. Like many of us, Randall often felt unheard and disconnected, surrounded by people but without real understanding. This early experience of being silenced planted the seed for his deep curiosity about human connection and the power of listening.
As he grew older, Randall began asking deeper questions, eager to understand the emotions behind people’s words. His breakthrough came when he started working with individuals who had experienced profound trauma. He quickly realized that what people needed most wasn’t advice or diagnosis, but someone to truly hear them. His ability to listen with full presence became the foundation of his healing work.
Randall’s approach to listening goes beyond the surface, allowing others to face their fears, feel understood, and reclaim their voice. He now teaches people how to connect with themselves and others through deep, compassionate listening, transforming their relationships and personal growth. His work has helped countless individuals move through their struggles by creating a safe space where they can be fully heard.
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Randall Alifano, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist and ordained minister with over 40 years of experience integrating psychology and spirituality into his private practice. He has dedicated his career to listening deeply to the dreams, traumas, and inner struggles of his clients, guiding them toward living in greater alignment with their inner wisdom.
His work spans a wide range of experiences, including counseling battered women, running groups for violent men, and designing a domestic violence program. He has also studied and applied various psychological and spiritual methodologies, enriching his holistic approach to healing.
In addition to his clinical work, Dr. Alifano has co-led seminars on intuitive listening and apprenticed with renowned figures in Gestalt Therapy and Encounter Groups at Esalen Institute. His teachings emphasize the power of presence, empathy, and curiosity in fostering deep connections with both others and ourselves. Through his guidance, he has witnessed the transformative impact of being truly heard, helping people enhance their relationships and personal growth.
Outside his practice, Dr. Alifano enjoys drumming, meditation, and cooking his grandmother’s famous Bolognese sauce.
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Find Randall here:
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/randall.alifano
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/randallalifano/
Book on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Listening-Raw-Coming-Home-Receptivity/dp/B0C7JFWYZC
Website: https://randallalifanophd.com/book/
I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com.
Today, I interview Maria Semple who grew up in Venezuela as the youngest of five children in a time of political upheaval. Life was filled with challenges from an early age, and Maria often felt the need to shout to be heard in a household full of older siblings. Despite the joyful, community-focused culture of Venezuela, Maria also faced the trauma of losing her brother at a young age. This marked her deeply, instilling a sense of longing for belonging and significance that would follow her.
As Maria grew up, she immigrated to Australia, carrying with her the resilience she had developed through her early struggles. Her marriage ended, leaving her as a single mother of two in a foreign country. It was during this time that she truly began to explore herself, turning to creativity and meditation to heal. Maria discovered a love for ceramics, which not only provided financial support but also became a form of self-expression that reflected her cultural roots and inner strength.
The turning point in Maria’s life came when she decided to stop working for others and pursue her dream of becoming a mentor and coach. Through her own inner work, she developed her signature program, “Reclaim Your Vision, Rewrite Your Story,” which helps women navigate their limiting beliefs, reclaim their voice, and step into their true power. Today, Maria is a beacon of resilience, helping women in their 40s and 50s find their voice and rewrite their stories, just as she did.
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Maria Semple is a Coach and Mentor and the founder of New Life Coach, a coaching practice focused on helping women in their late 40s and 50s reclaim their vision and rewrite their story. Through her work, Maria empowers women to create transformative change in their lives and communities. She is also the author of Everyday Stories From Ten Remarkable Women, a book that showcases the power of determination, creativity, and contribution in shaping lives.
Maria believes that the perfect time to take action is now, and through her six-step program, she guides participants on an inner and outer journey to rediscover their lost visions and navigate life’s complexities. With practical tools rooted in her own experiences, Maria helps women realize their potential and create a new, empowering story for their future.
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Find Maria here:
https://www.newlifecoach.com.au
https://www.facebook.com/EverydayRemarkableWomen/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4136ONNWC643HX49drNvww
I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com.
Today I interview Jolina Karen who grew up in a household where her voice often felt stifled by the silence and conflict between her parents. Raised in South Africa during apartheid, Jolina experienced the tension between her mother’s spiritual beliefs and her father’s scientific skepticism, which created a quiet but emotionally charged environment.
This early exposure to unresolved conflict taught her to suppress her own feelings and thoughts, leading to a lifelong struggle with finding her voice and speaking up in difficult situations, like in her first marriage. Despite her studies in psychology and healing, Jolina found it difficult to express her needs and desires, often choosing silence over conflict. This led to feelings of frustration, loneliness, and a loss of her true self.
But Jolina's story is one of resilience and growth. After going through a painful divorce, she began to reclaim her voice. She learned to see conflict as an opportunity for growth and connection, rather than something to fear.
Today, Jolina helps others find their voice and navigate difficult conversations. Drawing from her own experiences and background in healing, Jolina now guides others on their journey to communicate openly and live true to themselves.
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Jolina believes that love and leadership are shaped by the everyday conversations we have. She works with an international clientele of accomplished women who seek to improve relationships that aren't fulfilling—whether with a spouse, child, boss, or customer.
Jolina provides her clients with a clear roadmap to move from feeling unappreciated or ignored to confidently standing their ground, setting effective boundaries, and communicating in a way that ensures they are seen, heard, and valued for who they truly are.
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Find Jolina here:
Website: www.jolinakaren.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jolina.karen/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jolinakaren/
Free download: https://bit.ly/3MzW3Ag
I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com.
Today I interview Linda Dieffenbach, whose personal healing journey from childhood trauma led her to become a devoted personal transformation coach and holistic practitioner. Linda shares her story of growing up with an emotionally distant and abusive father, being severely bullied by peers at school, and the profound impact of having her pain invalidated when she sought help as a teenager. These experiences left Linda feeling silenced, disempowered, and disconnected from her authentic self.
Through learning Reiki and working with a compassionate mentor, Linda began to integrate her painful experiences and rediscover her inner voice. She describes how finally being seen, heard and validated in a safe space was a catalyst for tremendous personal growth and healing. Linda emphasizes the importance of doing the inner work to liberate oneself from past wounds, shame and self-doubt.
By reconnecting with her wounded inner child and learning to be self-advocating, Linda found the courage to use her voice, set boundaries, and show up differently in relationships. Her inspiring journey from trauma to empowerment highlights the transformative potential of compassionate support, holistic healing practices, and committed personal development. Linda now assists others in overcoming the effects of trauma and toxic conditioning to achieve self-actualization.
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Linda Dieffenbach is a devoted and empathetic personal transformation coach and holistic practitioner. She is deeply committed to assisting individuals in overcoming the detrimental effects of trauma and toxic conditioning while guiding them towards self-actualization.
Linda's personal healing journey from childhood trauma led her to recognize the transformative potential of Reiki, sparking her enthusiasm for holistic healing practices. Leveraging her background in Social Work, Linda offers a distinctive approach that blends trauma awareness, energy healing expertise, compassionate guidance, and intuitive assistance to empower her clients in attaining clarity, self-awareness, and self-empowerment on their healing and personal growth pathways.
She establishes a nurturing and safe space for clients to explore and embrace their personal path to achieving their highest potential. In addition to one-on-one sessions, Linda leads workshops and events that support individuals through their journey of self-discovery and growth.
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Find Linda here:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/linda.dieffenbach.5
https://www.facebook.com/WellnessInHarmony
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindadieffenbach
https://www.linkedin.com/company/wellness-in-harmony-llc/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wellnessinharmony/
The Wellness Universe: https://www.thewellnessuniverse.com/worldchangers/lindadieffenbach/
Overcoming Your Inner Barriers Workbook: https://mailchi.mp/wellnessinharmony.com/inner-barriers
I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com.
Today I interview Linda Joy Myers, who had a difficult childhood marked by abandonment and an unstable home life. Her mother left when Linda was just four, leaving her to be raised by a grandmother who, while providing a stable home, also struggled with mental health issues that led to critical behavior. Linda had to focus on survival with little permission to have her own voice.
One bright spot was music. Linda's grandmother had her take piano and cello lessons from a young age. Playing music became a way for Linda to express herself, feel something positive, and be transported to another world. It provided freedom and camaraderie with other young musicians.
As an adult, Linda initially repeated some relationship patterns modeled by her mother and grandmother. Determined to break the cycle, she sought therapy, including an impactful 3-month group experience. Her therapist helped Linda see she was more than her brokenness. He recognized her artistic essence and held a vision of her wholeness.
Linda's path led her to combine her skills as a therapist with her love of writing. She began teaching memoir writing groups and discovered the transformative power of writing one's stories. This grew into Linda authoring books on memoir writing, founding the National Association of Memoir Writers, and teaching memoir courses.
Through this work, Linda helps others find their voice, write their stories, and experience the healing of being witnessed. Her own journey informs her message that even painful stories can be alchemized into something beautiful.
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Linda Joy Myers, founder of the National Association of Memoir Writers, is the author of award winning memoirs, Don't Call Me Mother and Song of the Plains, and two books, The Power of Memoir, and Journey of Memoir. She co-authored Breaking Ground on Your Memoir and Magic of Memoir & co-teaches, Write Your Memoir in Six Months with Brooke Warner.
A memoir coach for 30 years, she helps memoir writers find their voice and get their story into the world. Linda has just ventured into novel writing land, and her first novel, The Forger of Marseille, a WWII historical fiction novel won four awards in historical fiction and is published by She Writes Press.
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Find Linda here:
https://www.facebook.com/LindaJoyMyersAuthor
https://www.instagram.com/lindajoymyersauthor/
https://www.facebook.com/linda.j.myers
I’m Dr. Doreen Downing and I help people find their voice so they can speak without fear. Get the Free 7-Step Guide to Fearless Speaking https://www.doreen7steps.com.
Amanda is a wife. A mother. A blogger. A Christian.
A charming, beautiful, bubbly, young woman who lives life to the fullest.
But Amanda is dying, with a secret she doesn’t want anyone to know.
She starts a blog detailing her cancer journey, and becomes an inspiration, touching and
captivating her local community as well as followers all over the world.
Until one day investigative producer Nancy gets an anonymous tip telling her to look at Amanda’s
blog, setting Nancy on an unimaginable road to uncover Amanda’s secret.
Award winning journalist Charlie Webster explores this unbelievable and bizarre, but
all-too-real tale, of a woman from San Jose, California whose secret ripped a family apart and
left a community in shock.
Scamanda is the true story of a woman whose own words held the key to her secret.
New episodes every Monday.
Follow Scamanda on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
Amanda’s blog posts are read by actor Kendall Horn.
