say YES to yourself! | Midlife Reinvention: Real Stories, Bold Moves

Fan Mail: Tell Wendy how you're saying yes to yourself!
Join Wendy for her dreamy Summer Solstice White Party on Saturday June 20, 2026 —an al fresco evening of delicious food, intention-setting, and celebration at the Phineas Wright House. Wear white, gather at the long table in the field, and toast to the season ahead. 
Save you seat here: phineaswrighthouse.com/the-shop/p/summer-solstice-white-party
In this episode, Wendy sits down with Rebecca Olson, a working mom coach who spent 2025 in a deep dark hole. Despite having all the coaching tools and personal development strategies she knew worked, depression had her stuck. She eventually got professional help—a therapist, her doctor, and a low-dose antidepressant—and the difference has been life-changing.
They explore:
Why your coaching tools and personal development practices might not be enough (and why that's okay)
How clarity emerges when you stop trying to figure it out alone
The magic of following the breadcrumbs when you can't see the whole picture
Rebecca talks about asking for help, receiving support in unexpected ways, and the moment the fog lifted. She's speaking openly about the stigma around antidepressants and mental health, and saying yes to herself by getting the professional help she needed. Now she's following aligned action and trusting the next logical step without needing to see the entire plan. This is a conversation about getting honest about what you need and being willing to ask for it.
Connect with Rebecca:
RebeccaOlsonCoaching.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rebolson
Instagram: instagram.com/rebeccaolsoncoach
Ambitious and Balanced Working Moms Podcast: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ambitious-and-balanced-working-moms/id1557563892
Referenced in this Episode:
Untangled: Guiding Teenage Girls Through the Seven Transitions into Adulthood: amazon.com/Untangled-Guiding-Teenage-Transitions-Adulthood/dp/0553393073?tag=syty-20
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Connect with Wendy:
Linkedin
Instagram: @wendy.harrop
Facebook: Phineas Wright House
Website: Phineas Wright House
PWH Farm Stays
PWH Curated Experience and Travel
Interested in being a guest on the show?
Send your pitch to [email protected]
Podcast Production By Shannon Warner of Resonant Collective
Want to start your own podcast? Let's chat!
If this episode resonated, follow Say YES to Yourself! and leave a  5-star review. It helps more women in midlife discover the tools, stories, and community that make saying YES not only possible, but powerful.

Fan Mail: Tell Wendy how you're saying yes to yourself!
Join Wendy for her dreamy Summer Solstice White Party on Saturday June 20, 2026 —an al fresco evening of delicious food, intention-setting, and celebration at the Phineas Wright House. Wear white, gather at the long table in the field, and toast to the season ahead. 
Save you seat here: phineaswrighthouse.com/the-shop/p/summer-solstice-white-party
In this episode, Wendy sits down with Laura Phillips, a reverse mortgage lender. Laura challenges the generational belief that home equity is only a safety net, and explores how reverse mortgages can actually help seniors say yes to themselves and fund the life they want to live.
They explore:
What reverse mortgages actually are (and why the name confuses people)
How non-recourse loans protect your heirs from debt
Why shifting your mindset about equity changes everything
Laura shares real stories of how reverse mortgages have helped seniors stay in their homes longer, fund in-home care, and maintain independence without burdening their children. She talks about breaking generational patterns around debt and home ownership, and why this financial tool deserves a second look.
This is a conversation about reframing what your home equity can do for you in your later years.
Connect with Laura:
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/laurawphillips
Website: lauraphillips.com
Phone: (303) 817-4611
________________________________________________________________________________________
Connect with Wendy:
Linkedin
Instagram: @wendy.harrop
Facebook: Phineas Wright House
Website: Phineas Wright House
PWH Farm Stays
PWH Curated Experience and Travel
Interested in being a guest on the show?
Send your pitch to [email protected]
Podcast Production By Shannon Warner of Resonant Collective
Want to start your own podcast? Let's chat!
If this episode resonated, follow Say YES to Yourself! and leave a  5-star review. It helps more women in midlife discover the tools, stories, and community that make saying YES not only possible, but powerful.

Fan Mail: Tell Wendy how you're saying yes to yourself!
If something in your life or work is asking for space, you can learn more about the Creative in Residence experience at the Phineas Wright House here: phineaswrighthouse.myflodesk.com/cyekpegz8g
In this episode, Wendy sits down with Kathleen Conner, coach and host of the Chasing Purpose Podcast. Kathleen spent years presenting a perfect image to the world while feeling deeply out of sync internally, until one moment of disgust became her catalyst for change.
They explore:
Why your vibrational baseline attracts the people and experiences around you
How to recognize when you're performing instead of being authentic
The "basket" metaphor: why women carry everyone's load and how to put it down with kindness
Kathleen talks about moving from perfectionism to alignment, making small daily choices (being 1% better), and raising interdependent children instead of independent ones. She shares how breaking your own patterns is the only way your children will do things differently.
This is a conversation about getting honest with yourself when your outside doesn't match your inside, and choosing alignment over image.
Connect with Kathleen:
Website: chasingpurpose.com
Her Podcast, Chasing Purpose: w4wn.com
Instagram: instagram.com/chasingpurpose_lifecoaching/
Facebook: facebook.com/share/14H2fWoKfc1/ 
Wendy's appearance on Chasing Purpose: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/satisfaction-its-time-to-stop-faking-it/id1870973280?i=1000751665394
________________________________________________________________________________________
Connect with Wendy:
Linkedin
Instagram: @wendy.harrop
Facebook: Phineas Wright House
Website: Phineas Wright House
PWH Farm Stays
PWH Curated Experience and Travel
Interested in being a guest on the show?
Send your pitch to [email protected]
Podcast Production By Shannon Warner of Resonant Collective
Want to start your own podcast? Let's chat!
If this episode resonated, follow Say YES to Yourself! and leave a  5-star review. It helps more women in midlife discover the tools, stories, and community that make saying YES not only possible, but powerful.

Fan Mail: Tell Wendy how you're saying yes to yourself!
Join Wendy for her dreamy Summer Solstice White Party on Saturday June 20, 2026 —an al fresco evening of delicious food, intention-setting, and celebration at the Phineas Wright House. Wear white, gather at the long table in the field, and toast to the season ahead. 
Save you seat here: phineaswrighthouse.com/the-shop/p/summer-solstice-white-party
In this episode, Wendy sits down with Darshana Avila, somatic experiencing practitioner and body-based trauma healer. Darshana is a recovering people pleaser who's spent years unwinding the cultural scripts we're all handed unknowingly: the ones about gender roles, perfectionism, and who we're supposed to be.
They explore:
Why people pleasing is rooted in cultural conditioning (and how to recognize the script you've been reading)
How trauma lives in your body and healing means changing your present relationship to the past
Why forgiveness is a beautifully selfish act that frees you from resentment
Darshana talks about softening into embodiment, surrender as a practice, and what happens when we embrace our wholeness. This is a conversation about unwinding the people-pleasing patterns we didn't know we were practicing, and what becomes possible when we soften into our bodies and choose to lay down our armor.
Connect with Darshana:
Website: darshanaavila.com
Instagram: instagram.com/darshana_avila
Deeper with Darshana Podcast: darshanaavila.com/podcast
________________________________________________________________________________________
Connect with Wendy:
Linkedin
Instagram: @wendy.harrop
Facebook: Phineas Wright House
Website: Phineas Wright House
PWH Farm Stays
PWH Curated Experience and Travel
Interested in being a guest on the show?
Send your pitch to [email protected]
Podcast Production By Shannon Warner of Resonant Collective
Want to start your own podcast? Let's chat!
If this episode resonated, follow Say YES to Yourself! and leave a  5-star review. It helps more women in midlife discover the tools, stories, and community that make saying YES not only possible, but powerful.

Fan Mail: Tell Wendy how you're saying yes to yourself!
Join Wendy for her dreamy Summer Solstice White Party on Saturday June 20, 2026 —an al fresco evening of delicious food, intention-setting, and celebration at the Phineas Wright House. Wear white, gather at the long table in the field, and toast to the season ahead. 
Save you seat here: phineaswrighthouse.com/the-shop/p/summer-solstice-white-party
In this episode, Wendy sits down with Laurie Maddalena, leadership consultant who started her business nearly two decades ago and has raised three children while building it. Laurie spent years wrestling with the question: Can I be ambitious and a great mom? 
They explore:
Why asking for support isn't weakness—it's healthy modeling for your children
How to confront the narrative that "I'm the mom so I should do it all"
Why intentionality matters more than perfection when juggling multiple roles
Laurie struggled to write her book for years until her husband said, "Just go away a few nights a month and work on it." She couldn't believe he was offering. Her internal narrative was screaming: I'm the mom, I'm the person who should be doing these things. But she did it anyway, finished the book, and is still doing the work of believing she doesn't have to do it all alone.
This is a conversation about leaning into support and remembering that being ambitious doesn't come at the expense of being a great mom.
Connect with Laurie:
Website: LaurieMaddalena.com
Get her book, The Elevated Leader: https://amzn.to/49HTvLS
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/lauriemaddalena
Instagram: instagram.com/lauriemaddalena
________________________________________________________________________________________
Connect with Wendy:
Linkedin
Instagram: @wendy.harrop
Facebook: Phineas Wright House
Website: Phineas Wright House
PWH Farm Stays
PWH Curated Experience and Travel
Interested in being a guest on the show?
Send your pitch to [email protected]
Podcast Production By Shannon Warner of Resonant Collective
Want to start your own podcast? Let's chat!
If this episode resonated, follow Say YES to Yourself! and leave a  5-star review. It helps more women in midlife discover the tools, stories, and community that make saying YES not only possible, but powerful.