Unbreak My Heart

Stacey is 44, an Asian refugee who grew up in New Zealand and made his way to America. Our conversation is casual and insightful. As an Asian man, sharing feelings and opening up about personal experiences is out of the ordinary.  He fell in love with Sarah, they thought they would marry but ended up going their separate ways. Stacey shares about how their mindsets, world views and cultural differences kept them from taking the next step. He hard on himself and lives with the guilt of hurting her.  It's been three years, of course he thinks of her, but he know sees the most painful heartache of his life as one the greatest life experiences he's been through - setting him on a higher path of life and love. 

Chris found a match that gave him hope he'd soon be starting a family of his own. Resilient to overcome the challenges of a long distance relationship, they tried their best to make 'til death do us part' happen.  However, there were significant choices each of them had to make independently, faster then they could manage mentally and emotionally. The pressures of building a life together collided through a proposal, his lady buying a house and Chris accepting a new job in a whole new state. Even though she said yes, their other choices cemented them in a perpetual long distance situation.  It just wasn't working and now they're moving on - or at least - trying to. Listen to hear Chris's journey and the insights he gains to help him let go.

She's 43 years old and is now breaking new ground for her self-discovery.  The catalyst, meeting "the teacher", a man who is everything she could hope for but not everything she expects. We get to hear her story as she's in the tick of her recent breakup, still uncertain if she's doing the right thing. In this conversation, we explore how her faith as a Christian conflicted with her love for an atheist. We find out it's not their spiritual differences that keep them apart. FEAR, is the all too common culprit. Listen with compassion and an open mind as not all stories end conclusively. Perhaps, there is more for us to find out regarding Mel's future love life.

You've been through a breakup and you're dreading dating or dating again. What if you had someone to do the heavy lifting for you? Even hold your hand through the scary and sensitive parts of meeting new people? That's where a match maker comes in! On today's episode we chat with, Rachel Russo, a match maker in New York.  Rachel and I cover a lot of ground on the behind the scenes of matchmaking, tips on how to get over your ex and encouraging ideas to empower you to move forward in love. To learn more about working with Rachel and to sign up for a free 15 minute consultation - please visit her site rachelrusso.com. She's also written a book called How to Get Over Your Ex: A Step by Step Guide to Mend a Broken Heart-Italian American Style which you can find on amazon.  For those of you still having a hard time obsessing over your ex - please check out exaholics.com. It's a community of support for those who are stuck. 

She's had two serious breakups - she thought she was over her first love, but, to her surprise, she realized this wasn't true. Alex exposed her to new dynamics of intimacy, trust and betrayal. The disillusionment of what was once magical has led Rose down a path of uncertainty about monogamy, marriage and procreation. To what extent do those things carry value in today's modern and progressive relationship culture? More importantly, what are her motives for considering the alternatives?  Join us today as Rose bravely takes us along on the first steps of her journey to inner-healing. 

This week, you'll get to meet our Co-Producer and Audio Engineer, Danny Chau! He and I chat about how the show got started, what our experience is like talking to people about their breakups and what we're looking forward to in future shows. You'll get to hear a casual dialogue of how we process the topics that come up about life and breakups. We welcome your feedback and we hope to have you on the show!

After 6 years she realized the relationship didn't have much of a foundation. Something needed to give. Korina wanted more. It seemed that her boyfriend was all in yet he never wanted to share about himself. How can you marry someone you feel like you hardly know? How can you breakup with someone you've invested all that time with? Korina brings us through her journey of discovering her boyfriends double life, how she recovered and even moved on to a healthy new relationship. You'll learn ways to cope with your break up and how a dating app brought together a real love connection!  

You’re going to meet Timbre. She looks like Wonder Woman who’s been suffering from decades of imprisonment. A powerful yet squeamishly uncomfortable conversation ensues, as we hear about the breakup that has her trapped. Almost three years later, she’s still haunted in her dreams and her consciousness. Her raw honesty and sense of humor lighten the heaviness but don’t keep her from shrinking from the sting of the villainous phantom of regret. You may find yourself identifying with Timbre’s pain - the pain that’s found in self-loathing and shame. So how do you free yourself from the shackles of regret? How do you break away from self-punishment? These are questions we explore in this interview. Find out how we discover the key that unlocks her from this dark and suffocating prison. There’s hope ~ if she’s willing to make the next move.

A stunner and hilarious, she captivated him in an instant. After entertaining many months of flirting over the cafe counter, they finally exchanged numbers to have their first date. The magic was instant and it lasted a year. So what happened? He picked out a ring and she dropped a bomb: "I can't explain it, I just can't be with you anymore".  Blindsided, powerless, and devastated, Kris painfully watched his girlfriend - and his future - drive away. This breakup cost Kris his job and friendships.  It's been 2 1/2 years and the breakup haunts him on every first date. Listen as we explore how he's coped with his pain and how his behavioral patterns have him stuck without much hope for a happier future. Towards the end of our chat, Kris has a few aha's. And even though he says he doesn't believe in closure, closure is what invites him to make peace with his past. photo by Camilla Carvalho

I'm excited for you to hear this conversation between me and Jon because he gets real. Jon shares about two break up stories that have changed the course of his love life.   At the start of this episode, you'll hear about Jon's fresh break up with, his partner Jason, who was emotionally unavailable. Even though Jon did the breaking up, could it have been by his partner's design? We wonder whether they even stood a chance, since Jon showed up as damaged goods from his previous break up.    This is what has plagued him and made him nervous to show up, even today.       Photo by: @whykei

High school romance is exciting, confusing and can have a life long impact on how we view love and future relationships.  In this episode we hear Jason, joined by his buddy Tanner, share about how he and his first love connected and ultimately fell apart. His break up haunted him with depression, insomnia, and his motivation to just show up every day.  After some time, support from family, friends and professionals - he's turning a corner towards a brighter outlook on life and love.  My conversation with Jason is rich with common relationship problems that tend to stick to our shoes like unwanted toilet paper from a dirty bathroom. I know, it’s kind of a gross image. On the flip side, his break up story ends in the same way you shake off the bottom of your tacky shoe – by abandoning unpleasant grime and walking away with a sense of relief. When you’re young, do relationships really count as something real? If you like someone & they give you butterflies, does that mean you’re dating and it’s exclusive? Wh

They had everything going for them.   It started out in college, they were best-friends who fell in love. After college, this bright and independent woman found herself helplessly dependent on a man for survival through years of moving from place to place. We'll hear in hindsight what went wrong and the sharp way it ended.   Keep listening because Stephanie shares a second story where we find out she's single but she's really in a relationship aka "an item". The second guy delivers a powerful sting, this time the outcome is much different. No more weepy calls home to Mom from the closet.   Photo by @jordanbauer

In this episode you'll hear how Jessica reflects on abusive patterns in relationships, how they've effected her outlook on monogamy, sexual orientation and love. This conversation transitions from recognizing patterns to discovering what is truly holding her back from healing!    photo by @amytreasure audio engineering and production by Danny Chau