Self-Esteem vs Self-Worth | Which One Actually Matters? | Kintsugi Heroes
Self worth and self esteem aren’t the same thing. In this Grit Diaries episode, Deborah Weed shares how a three-year health crisis and a single metaphor rewired her understanding of her own value. Self worth and self esteem look the same from the outside, but they’re built on completely different ground. Deborah Weed spent over […]
Asking For Help Is Not Weakness | Naomi O’Byrne | Kintsugi Heroes
Disability caregiving shaped Naomi O’Byrne’s entire life for 27 years. When her health collapsed, she faced an impossible choice. This episode of Golden Threads reveals what happened when she finally let go and what it meant for both of them. ⚠️ Content advisory: this episode discusses grief, which some listeners may find distressing. If you […]
The Moment I Stopped Using | Holly Deane-Johns | Kintsugi Heroes
Holly Deane-Johns spent 17 years in prisons across Australia and Thailand after struggling with heroin addiction from age 16. In this Kintsugi Heroes episode, she shares the moment she stopped using, how she rebuilt her life in prison, and why she now works directly with men leaving the system. ⚠️ Content advisory: this episode discusses […]
From Childhood Wonder to Lifelong Conservation with Ian Redmond | Animals & Us
Wildlife conservation is built on personal encounters with wild animals. Ian Redmond spent over 50 years protecting gorillas and elephants across Africa, beginning with a single letter to Dian Fossey that opened a door he never closed. This is the story of how curiosity, friendship, and grief transformed into a lifetime of work that saved […]
He Spent Decades Hiding Who He Was. Then Tragedy Hit.
A mental health nurse raised to believe men don’t cry. When his youngest son died in 2009, David Kernahan’s grief fractured everything: his marriage, his faith, his sense of who he was. Sixteen years later, he shares how suppressed emotion, hidden authenticity, and the choice to find beauty became the path to peace. David Kernahan […]
31 Years of Support: Why Jeff Parker Says ‘You Don’t Have to Do It Alone’
SUMMARY At 25, Jeff Parker was a weightlifter in country New South Wales. A week later, he was paralysed from the waist down by a tumour in his spinal cord no doctor had seen coming. In this episode of Golden Threads, host Daniel Dougherty sits down with Jeff — now 61, blind, an NDIS advocate, […]
From Prison or Death to International Speaker | Jason Blyth’s Turning Point
Can we change the ending of our story? For many years, Jason Blyth believed that the trauma of his childhood had already determined how his life would end. On his 30th birthday, he woke up in rehabilitation facing a stark reality: if nothing changed, his future would lead to prison or death. In that moment, […]
Every Scar Has a Story | Kintsugi Heroes
Every person has a story. Some stories are filled with joy. Others are shaped by loss, adversity, resilience, courage and hope. Too often, those stories remain untold. At Kintsugi Heroes, we help people tell the stories they need to share, so that others can find the stories they need to hear. Inspired by the Japanese […]
Paternal Leave Forced Him to Question Everything
Colin Parsons spent years trying to be who everyone else wanted. Here’s how he stopped people-pleasing, quietened his inner critic, and learned to like who he actually is. Colin is a conversationalist and LinkedIn host from Luxembourg who now has deep conversations for a living. In this episode he opens up about the long road […]
Rebuilding My Life After the Unthinkable | Donna Kent
In this Kintsugi Heroes conversation, we hear a profoundly raw account of a woman’s lifelong experience with sexual abuse and sexual violence, beginning in childhood. She shares her healing journey from trauma, emphasizing that emotional processing is a journey without a timeline. This narrative offers a poignant look at coping with such significant experiences fostering […]