308. What Trauma Actually Costs Entrepreneurs (And Why Sean/a's Story Will Restore Your Faith) | Dr. Kirsten Viola Harrison
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
Release Date: 11/25/2025
332. Work-Life Balance a Myth? Dr. Anokhi Kapasi on Career-Life Integration
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
"Balance is a myth." It's one of the most repeated messages out there — and Dr. Anokhi Kapasi thinks it's doing women serious harm. In this episode of the Game On Girlfriend® podcast, I sit down with Dr. Anokhi Kapasi, founder of Solve for Mom and host of the Science Careers for Moms podcast. With a PhD in Molecular Pathology and 15 years of experience in scientific research and consulting, Anokhi built a six-step framework she called CLIP — Career Life Integration Protocol™ — to help women make clear, confident career decisions that actually fit their whole lives. We talk about why...
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331. Spiritual Simplicity: Quiet the Noise and Hear Your Intuition with Diana Firth
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
Most of us aren't stuck. We're cluttered. That's one of the first things Diana Firth said in this conversation. Diana is an Intuitive Guide, Author, and Speaker, and one of my closest friends for over 25 years. She's also one of the clearest, most grounded people I know when it comes to helping people cut through the noise and actually hear themselves again. In this episode of the Game On Girlfriend® podcast, I sit down with Diana to talk about spiritual simplicity — what it really means, what spiritual clutter actually looks and feels like, and why the feeling of being stuck is almost...
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330. Build a Business That Supports Your Life with Erin Bradley
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
There's a moment Erin Bradley has never forgotten. It's July 2008. She's just ridden her bike five miles to meet a client — because she doesn't have gas money — and gotten there early so the sweat has time to dry. She steps up to the coffee counter. Her credit card gets declined for $2. She keeps her face completely neutral, tells him it's her debit card, and says she'll call the bank. He buys her coffee. She walks out mortified — and calls her dad. Her dad asked her one simple question: " Do you think you're going to be good at this someday?” She said yes. He said, "Then you do...
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329. Should I Stay or Should I Go? Finding Relationship Clarity with Karyn Spetz
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
Most women I know have asked some version of this question at some point in their primary relationship. And if you haven't, you almost certainly have a friend who has. In this episode, I sit down with Karyn Spetz — a licensed clinical social worker and certified relationship coach — to talk honestly about what's really happening beneath the 'should I stay or should I go?' question. Not the dramatic version. The quiet, lingering, exhausting version that a lot of women carry alone for way too long. This conversation isn't about pushing anyone to leave or convincing anyone to stay. It's about...
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328. Your Story Is Enough: Building a Mission-Driven Business From the Inside Out with Shelby Perry
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
Building a business from your story doesn't always start with a business plan. For Shelby Perry, it started with a snowboarding accident, months of surgeries, and a forced stillness that turned into the most productive season of her life. Shelby is the founder of Eyehesive — a global, women-led platform dedicated to empowering people living with one eye. After losing her right eye in a snowboarding accident, she built a community, launched a physical product line of sleek adhesive eye patches, and is now hosting a retreat in Tulum. She did all of this while navigating sobriety, surgeries,...
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327. Are Online Courses Dead? What's Really Happening in the Course Creation Space with Jasmine Jonte
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
Are online courses dead? It's the question everyone in the online business world has been asking — especially after some very big names stepped away from courses over the past couple of years. In this episode, I sit down with Jasmine Jonte — founder of CRE8TION and one of the sharpest minds in course creation — to talk about what's actually happening, what it means for the rest of us, and what it takes to build a course that delivers real results for students. Jasmine has built over 140 programs and 1,600+ lessons for clients. She started her career teaching kindergarten and first grade...
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326. Seasons of Life for Women Entrepreneurs: Learning to Work With Where You Are with Amber Richardson
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
You know that feeling when you're in the middle of something — a project, a launch, a life transition — and everything feels like pushing water uphill? Like nothing is working, nothing is moving, and you're the only one who can't seem to get it together? In this episode, I sit down with Amber Richardson — life coach, speaker, and author of Seasonal Syncing: A Woman's Guide to Harmony and Wholeness One Season at a Time — to talk about why that feeling isn't a sign that something is wrong with you. It's a sign that you might be fighting your season instead of working with it. Amber...
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325. Brand Voice for Women Entrepreneurs: Stop Performing and Start Attracting Your People with Patricia Viscount
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
There are three questions every human being is asking: Do you see me? Do you hear me? And do I matter? When the voice you're putting out into the world doesn't actually sound like you — when it's been sanded down into something professional and polished and unrecognizable — those three questions go unanswered for the very people you are trying to reach. In this episode, I sit down with Patricia Viscount — brand voice strategist, former Canadian Army Public Affairs Officer with NATO tours in Bosnia and Kosovo, and Communication Specialist in the international energy sector — to...
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324. Raising Resilient Kids: Why Letting Go Is the Most Loving Thing You Can Do with Randi Crawford
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
Parenting. Just that one word is enough to make your shoulders tighten, isn’t it? In this episode, I sit down with Randi Crawford — certified life coach, speaker, author, and mom — to talk honestly about what it actually takes to raise kids who can handle life when you’re not there to fix it for them. Randi spent years coaching young women before she realized the real work needed to happen one generation up — with the moms. What she found, over and over, was that the struggle these girls were experiencing traced directly back to one thing: parents who loved their kids so much they...
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323. How to Declutter Your Home and Make Money Selling Pre-Loved Items with Jessica James
The Game On Girlfriend Podcast
You did the hard part. You sorted through the closets, cleared out the garage, and made the piles. Now you are standing there looking at all of it, wondering what actually comes next. That is exactly the problem Jessica James built Madilyn James to solve. In this episode, I sit down with Jessica — serial entrepreneur, tech founder, and the woman behind a brand new e-commerce platform built specifically for people who want to sell secondhand items online without juggling multiple platforms, paying anything upfront, or figuring out a marketing strategy on top of everything else. Jessica walks...
info_outlineWe're harsh with each other right now. Judging people we don't know based on where they live or how they voted. But what if we got curious instead?
Dr. Kirsten Viola Harrison spent 35 years as a trauma psychologist working with severe PTSD, dissociative identity disorder, schizophrenia, and near-death experience survivors. This conversation changed how I see everyone—including myself.
High achievers are often high-functioners—people who've adapted to trauma in remarkably creative ways. The executive who never misses a deadline might be falling apart inside. The entrepreneur who appears unstoppable could be privately compensating for relationships that are struggling.
Dr. Harrison explains the hidden costs of trauma that show up in our businesses and relationships. She shares the BASC framework (behavior, affect, sensation, knowledge) and why severe trauma creates protective barriers that help us survive but can limit our ability to connect later.
We also talk about Sean/a's story—an intersex woman with schizophrenia who slept on cardboard for eight years. One rainy night, one moment of compassion changed everything. Ten years later, she's never been back on the streets. She walks 15 miles a day, has a million social media views, and teaches thousands about resilience.
This episode is for anyone who's survived something hard. For anyone loving someone who's struggling. For anyone wondering if we're going to make it as humans.
There’s hope here. And truth. And a reminder that healing isn’t linear, but it is real.
What You'll Learn
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The hidden cost of trauma most don’t recognize
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What near-death experiences reveal about the mind and soul
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Understanding Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) in real life
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Spirituality as a tool for post-traumatic growth
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The inspiring story of Sean/a—intersex, unhoused, and profoundly human
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How empathy, curiosity, and storytelling remake the world
Related Episodes You Might Like
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Ep 263: How Your Nervous System Shapes Your Money Habits with Stephanie Crochet https://sarahwalton.com/nervous-system-regulation/
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Ep 196: Are You a Lazy Overachiever? with Naketa Ren Thigpen https://sarahwalton.com/lazy-overachiever/
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Ep 207: Let Your Ambition Fly with Monique Allen https://sarahwalton.com/ambition/
Connect with Dr. Kirsten Viola Harrison
About Dr. Kirsten Viola Harrison
Dr. Kirsten Viola Harrison is a trauma psychologist, author, and founder of Soul Wise Solutions. For over 35 years, she has helped individuals navigate profound psychological and spiritual transitions — including those living with complex PTSD (C-PTSD), dissociative identity disorder, schizophrenia, and near-death experiences. Her integrative approach blends clinical expertise with compassionate soul work to support true, lasting healing.
She is the co-author of “I, Sean/a: The Story of a Homeless Intersex Woman Who Inspired a Community,” the true account of Sean/a Smith, an intersex woman with schizophrenia whose life defies stigma and inspires change. Together, they advocate for an end to outdated medical practices and a future rooted in dignity and inclusion.
Whether she’s speaking, writing, or working with clients, Dr. Harrison brings insight, depth, and humanity to conversations about trauma, identity, and transformation.
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Connect with Sarah
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Website: https://sarahwalton.com/
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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesarahwalton/
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About Sarah Walton
Sarah Walton is a business coach specializing in helping women entrepreneurs overcome internal barriers to success. With a background in trauma-informed coaching and nervous system regulation, she takes a holistic approach that addresses both mindset and tactical business skills. Featured on The Today Show and speaking at women's conferences worldwide, Sarah has helped hundreds of women build profitable, sustainable businesses aligned with their values while healing the deeper blocks that keep them playing small. She's the creator of The Money Mindset Course, The Abundance Academy, and Effortless Sales, and the host of the 5-star-rated Game On Girlfriend® Podcast, becoming the go-to source for women who want to build businesses that honor both their ambition and their nervous system's need for safety.