Beyond Words with Najwa Zebian podcast

Available Episodes

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011- Stop Mistaking Being Used for Being Loved
Send us a textIn this episode of Beyond Words, I explore one of the most painful truths: when someone loves you not for who you are, but for what you give. Together, we’ll unpack how childhood conditioning makes us vulnerable to these patterns, how to tell if you’re surrounded by takers or builders, and how to begin redirecting your energy back to yourself. This conversation will help you break free from cycles of being used, reclaim your worth, and re-learn that you are deserving of love simply because you exist.Timestamps & Show Notes0:00 – Opening ReflectionsWhy saying “you owe me nothing” is the most powerful response when someone tries to put a price on your love.The unique betrayal of realizing someone loved what you gave, not who you are.2:00 – Early ConditioningHow childhood experiences with acceptance, authority figures, and friendships shape our adult relationships.The learned belief: I must give to be worthy of belonging.6:00 – I Do, Therefore I Deserve vs. I Am, Therefore I DeserveChallenging the belief that your worth depends on effort or sacrifice.Why being human is enough to deserve love, respect, and care.10:00 – The Power of EnvironmentVisualizing your “metaphorical space”: do you feel small and restricted, or expansive and seen?How toxic environments normalize depletion.16:00 – Facing the Truth About Being UsedWhy it’s so difficult to admit when someone is only with you for what they gain.Recognizing when you’re choosing fear of abandonment over self-protection.22:00 – Sitting With Your FeelingsThe “tea with your pain” practice: welcoming feelings instead of pushing them down.Why true growth comes from allowing yourself to suffer and learn, not from rushing to move on.26:00 – Redefining Healing and Moving OnMoving on quickly isn’t a badge of honor — growth comes from reflection and integration.The difference between being accepted versus being honored.32:00 – Redirecting Your Love Back to YourselfWhy every act of giving to others proves you can give to yourself.How to reclaim energy from those who only take without offering.34:00 – Words That Found MeA moving Lebanese poem-turned-song, Bella (Without Anything Else), as a reminder that love should be for the soul, not for what you decorate yourself with.38:00 – Words From Me to YouA reading from The Nectar of Pain on giving love freely, being disappointed, and knowing that what you once gave cannot be repaid.41:00 – Closing InvitationEncouragement to share this episode with anyone who needs it.A reminder: your worth isn’t defined by what others take — but by how deeply you choose to honor yourself.
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41:21
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41:21
010- Detachment: The Key to Your Freedom
Send us a textIn this deeply transformative episode of Beyond Words, Najwa Zebian explores the true meaning of detachment—not as a rejection of love or connection, but as the path to freedom from unsafe, inconsistent, and harmful bonds. You’ll learn why detaching from the wrong people is the greatest act of self-liberation, and how to build strong, safe attachments that honor your authenticity.Through powerful imagery, heartfelt reflection, and excerpts from her own writing, Najwa guides you back to yourself—reminding you that at the end of your healing journey, your inner child is waiting to be saved and brought home.Show Notes & Timestamps0:00 – 0:20 Opening reflection: meeting the younger version of yourself who waits to be saved.0:33 – 1:19 Introduction to the episode: why detachment is the root of freedom—but not in the way we’ve been told.1:20 – 3:07 What detachment is not: myths about never needing people, having no expectations, or doing life alone.3:08 – 5:13 Recognizing unsafe people: when joy is met with competition, when pain is dismissed, when asking for help is shamed.5:14 – 7:15 Why we hold on to unsafe bonds: early lessons of survival, emotional abandonment, and inconsistency.7:16 – 9:24 Choosing “better the peace you don’t know yet” over “better the devil you know.”9:25 – 12:39 How inconsistency keeps you walking on eggshells—and how to stop hoping for different outcomes.12:40 – 15:29 The two core needs of every adult, according to Dr. Gabor Maté: attachment and authenticity.15:30 – 18:24 Conditional belonging vs. true connection: when you must abandon yourself to be “loved.”18:25 – 20:02 The truth about strength: attachment doesn’t make you weak—unsafe attachment does.20:03 – 23:47 The courage to let go: why detaching feels terrifying, and how freedom comes with reclaiming your choices.24:08 – 25:27 Words That Found Me: Ali bin Abi Talib on detachment—“Not that you should own nothing, but that nothing should own you.”25:35 – 26:43 Words That Held Me: An excerpt from The Book of Healing—a powerful apology letter to the self.26:44 – 29:21 The deepest shift: realizing your own self-abandonment was more painful than anyone else’s betrayal.29:22 – 30:11 Closing reflections: detachment as the key to liberation and coming home to yourself.✨ If this episode resonates with you, share it with someone who needs these words. Don’t forget to leave a rating or review—it helps more people find healing through Beyond Words.
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30:15
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30:15
009- When Someone Walks Away in a Hurtful Way
Send us a textWhen someone walks away from you in the most painful and blindsiding way—through betrayal, broken promises, or abandonment—it can feel like your whole world collapses. In this episode of Beyond Words, Najwa gently guides you through the shock, denial, and grief of endings you didn’t choose, and shows you how to begin reclaiming yourself piece by piece.Through powerful metaphors and deeply human reflections, Najwa reminds you that someone’s choice to leave says nothing about your worth. This episode is for anyone who has ever been left to carry the weight of broken promises and wondered how to rise again.Show Notes & Timestamps0:00 – Introduction When someone walks away in a hurtful or unexpected way—betrayal, cheating, or abandonment.1:12 – The shock of endings Facing the denial and devastation when someone leaves suddenly.2:55 – Allowing yourself to feel Why you shouldn’t push away the shock or minimize the pain.4:42 – Therapy lesson Looking the truth directly in the eyes instead of turning away from it.7:06 – Life isn’t fair Why fairness and character don’t always align in relationships.9:11 – Watering your own grass A powerful metaphor on self-investment versus pouring everything into someone else.12:10 – Who’s really the “bad guy” in walking away Reframing walking away from something harmful as an act of self-heroism, not betrayal.15:17 – Breaking the victim loop Challenging the story that everyone always abandons you.17:01 – Hope in the right places Why hope placed in a toxic relationship can still exist—and how to replant it in fertile soil.20:02 – Moving on doesn’t mean rushing Healing means moving into self-love, not into another relationship.21:00 – Don’t close the door on yourself How not to let someone else’s abandonment teach you to abandon yourself.22:28 – A visualization exercise Learning to put down the weight you’ve been carrying.23:14 – The grocery store story A reminder about receiving help and recognizing who pays attention to your struggles.25:08 – Who really sees your pain Choosing the people who notice your suffering and step in to help.29:16 – A blessing in disguise Why someone leaving can be a gift for every future version of you.30:07 – Words That Found Me Taylor Swift’s My Tears Ricochet and the imagery of “jewels” as metaphors for what people take from us.34:19 – Words That Held Me Reading Other Places from The Book of Healing.35:20 – Final reflections Your worth is untouched by someone else’s choice to leave.
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36:20
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36:20
008- The Power of Words
Send us a textWords can lift us to heights we never thought possible, or they can shatter us into pieces we never imagined. In this episode of Beyond Words, Najwa Zebian explores the immense power of language—how it shapes our identity, fuels our growth, or erodes our spirit. Through vivid analogies of mirrors and walls, safe havens and storms, band-aids and knives, Najwa reveals how the words we give and receive can either nurture or destroy us. This episode is a reminder to choose words with intention—and to surround yourself with people whose words help you rise.Timestamps & Show Notes0:00 – IntroductionWords have the power to build or destroyReflection on how other people’s words have impacted you1:00 – The Energy of Words“I love you” vs. “I hate you”How words fuel or deplete your energyPersonal reflections on how words can set the tone for your entire day2:50 – Words as ElevatorsWords can lift you to new levels or drag you into darknessSilence has power, but words can fertilize growth or poison it5:20 – The Environment of WordsThe people and words you surround yourself with matter deeplyRepetition of harmful words can numb but also destroy your sense of self7:20 – Silence as NeglectChoosing not to speak when someone opens up can wound them furtherThe absence of empathy can feel like fuel to the fire9:15 – Mirrors vs. WallsWords can be a mirror that reflects and validatesOr they can be a wall that offers nothing and deepens painExamples of neglect when joy or pain isn’t mirrored back13:40 – Safe Havens vs. StormsWords can calm a tornado of self-blame or fuel the chaosCreating safety with empathy and presenceChoosing to be a safe haven even in silence19:00 – Band-aids vs. KnivesWords as healing ointment or as sharp blades that worsen woundsThe impact of words on emotional injuries23:00 – Dimming Your LightWhen people demand you be a smaller version of yourselfThe cost of silencing your voice to be accepted27:00 – Cutting the StringsChoosing to cut off people whose words devalue youRefusing to grant access to those who only seek to bring you down30:00 – Spinning vs. ClarityWords can stop someone’s spiraling thoughts or intensify confusionAbusers thrive on keeping you in confusion33:00 – Echoes vs. SilenceWords can amplify and validate someone’s voiceOr they can silence and erase a person’s sense of value36:30 – Final ReflectionsFive reminders: words can be mirrors, safe havens, band-aids, clarity, and echoesNajwa’s call to reflect on one word that comes to mind when you think of the power of words
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38:21
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38:21
007- How to Make Someone Realize They’re Losing You
Send us a textIn this deeply reflective episode of Beyond Words, Najwa explores the longing so many of us feel when someone we love starts slipping away. What do we do when our instinct is to try harder only to lose ourselves in the process? Najwa unpacks the myths about “being the prize,” why begging for recognition only hurts us more, and how true courage sometimes looks like letting go, step by step.Through personal reflections, hard truths, and poetic wisdom, she reminds us: your value doesn’t depend on whether someone else sees it.Show Notes & Timestamps0:00 – Introduction: What it means when someone begins to slip away 1:45 – The exhausting responsibility of trying harder than 100% 3:09 – Breaking yourself to fix what you didn’t break 4:26 – Relationships that require you to disappear are not for you 5:00 – The wrong belief that “relationships are supposed to be hard” 6:15 – Don’t audition for love: they are not the prize, your quality of life is 7:23 – Mila’s sweet cameo during recording 🐾 8:00 – Vulnerability isn’t desperation—it’s courage 9:32 – “Let them lose you” — stop forcing recognition of your worth 11:13 – Why attention after you pull away is ego, not love 12:08 – The truth of being a giver and what happens when you’re told to shrink 14:38 – Love Island reflection: when openness is unfairly labeled “too much” 16:06 – Shallow vs. deep love: why only going “in the shallow end” will never fulfill you 18:01 – If you’re only offered a tiny corner of their life, it’s not enough 23:52 – Courage isn’t always a leap—it’s the daily steps away 25:17 – Stop trying to make them regret losing you. Their choice is theirs, not yours. 26:07 – A poem from The Nectar of Pain: I will not wait for you to regret losing me 27:55 – Your worth is like gold: it remains whether or not others see it 29:11 – The right person will see all of you and feel lucky they found you 31:09 – Closing: Come home to yourself—your value is not up for negotiation.Share this episode with someone who needs to hear it, and leave a rating or review if Najwa’s words resonated with you.
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33:58
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33:58