There are attachment and relational impacts of loving humans on the spectrum In this episode I share: -my personal journey of living with and loving humans ont he spectrum -I explore the challenges and the flip side - the gifts that come from those challenges -I explore the benefits and positives of loving someone on the spectrum -I outline the best ways that I have found to accomodate and bring out the best in your AS loved ones Please share this episode with anybody you know who is challenged ...
May 29, 2026•44 min
In this episode I speak to Dr Zoe Vilenica, trauma specialist and somatic practice therapist. This episode comes with a trigger warning as we will be exploring complex trauma and childhood sexual trauma. I will be asking Zoe to help us understand how trauma shows up in relationships and how it gets healed. We explore: The difference between PTSD, complex trauma and childhood sexual trauma How trauma shows up in relationship How trauma impacts people and how/ where it impact relationships The dif...
Apr 20, 2026•1 hr 20 min
How Defensiveness Damages Intimacy (And What To Do Instead) Intent vs Impact in Relationships: Why Good Intentions Aren’t Enough Most partners are not trying to hurt each other. But here’s the truth: Good intent does not cancel out harmful impact. Join me as we unpack what is going on and how best to explain, unpack and move forward from this sticky place. Nicole Mathieson This podcast was created by Nicole Mathieson, a Brisbane based counsellor and couple therapist, who has a couple of podcasts...
Mar 12, 2026•20 min
In this episode I speak to my colleague Dr Diane Harner, neuroscientist, counsellor and business coach. Together we explore how an understanding of neuroscience can inform us to get smarter in relationships particularly in terms of the stories we tell ourselves. We explore: -how attachment experiences in childhood shape adult relationships -how attunement and reciprocity as key factors in attachment -the characteristics of anxious, avoidant, and disorganized attachment styles, highlighting how e...
Mar 06, 2026•1 hr 14 min
Join me and my guest Heid Louise as we discuss her book The Love Blueprint. You can find out more about Heid here , and get a copy of her book here , or on audio here. Heidi is a Brisbane based Psychotherapist who works from a holistic and trauma informed framework. She is an experienced and qualified Psychotherapist, an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker (AMHSW), a Lvl 3 Gottman Couples therapist and a Lvl 2 (IFS) Internal Family Systems Therapist In our chat we focused on understanding Lov...
Feb 16, 2026•51 min
Join my guest Helen Sheehy and I as we explore neurodiversity in the realm of relationships You can find Helen at neurodivergence.live here and you buy her book Moving Forwards, Working Backwards here too. In this episode we explore: What a strengths based approach to Neurodivergence is Why Helen has changed the abbreviations from ADHD and ASD Why being diagnosed can be beneficial - I share my personal experience of this The complexity and challenges of ADH /AS combo relationships Why AS and ADH...
Dec 03, 2025•57 min
Two people can go through the same event and walk away with different stories about what happened. That’s right — same event, different story. And those different interpretations can quietly shape how we feel about each other, how safe we feel in our relationships, and even how much love we’re able to express. In this episode I talk about where we go wrong and what we can do to bridge the gap of disconnect, switch focus, stop arguing about our different versions and come back into connection. In...
Nov 19, 2025•23 min
How are you in conflict? I hear so many clients ask me how to stop being so intense in their moments of conflict and I always answer that it is a great question, but also it is the wrong question in a way. I think we need to zoom out. Listen in as I take you through my ideas for how to do this. Sign up to my live workshop on June 8th - Keeping your cool, how to naviage conflict with grace. About Nicole Nicole Mathieson is a couple therapist and relationship focussed counsellor helping people com...
May 28, 2025•20 min
The Patriarchy does not serve any of us and it most definitely has it's gnarly tendrils in our homes and our relationship dynamics. The way that women respond to the patriarchal influences in our relationships is often quite bitchy. In this episode, I talk about what I mean by the Patriarchy, what I mean by bitchy behaviour and I invite you to my new monthly catch up for 2025 - Bitch Club. To join the Bitch Club mailing list go here - nicolemathieson.com/btch-club/ To get in touch email me nicol...
Dec 06, 2024•24 min
In this episode I explore a bunch of pressures on female libido that I see over an over and yet are not commonly thought of as desire stoppers. I am hoping that this episode feels hopeful and gives you lots of options for healing and exploration where you otherwise may have been feeling stuck. This episode does come with the trigger warning of the mention of sexual trauma. Listen to the end for my top tips on what to do once you discover these barriers to your libido. To get in touch email me ni...
Jul 26, 2024•38 min
Solutions are good right? I am just trying to help. Yes, but we actually find it really frustrating when we are sharing an issue and our partner jumps straight to solutions. Why is that? What is going on here? And what do we want and need instead? Listen to this episode as we explore what is going on with not always loving solutions. About Nicole Nicole Mathieson is a couple therapist and relationship focussed counsellor helping people come back to themselves. Nicole teaches practical experienti...
Oct 03, 2023•16 min•Ep. 64
In this episode, I talk to my beautiful, soulful friend Kris Franken. So many people ask me how they can find themselves, be true to themselves and still be in relationship. It can be tricky to navigate. We fear that if we change and become more true to ourselves that we will lose our partner. We fear that authenticity and integrity means loss of connection. Well, today I called in Kris to talk to us about this because Kris, in my opinion is the epitomy of being true to herself, of being wildly,...
Jun 09, 2023•55 min•Ep. 63
Does your partner have sex tantrums? How does it make you feel? How do they feel? What is going on and how do you get out of the downward spiral of need, guilt, obligation, and then less desire? Listen in as we unpack this very common dynamic, try not to generalise too much, and as I give you a few pointers to get back to sex without the guilt, anxiety and pressure. For more exploration on sex tantrums check out Emily Nagoski's book Come As You Are. Check out my other podcast The Beauty Load, ho...
Mar 27, 2023•24 min•Ep. 62
Intimacy (and I am not talking about sex), in my opinion is one of the hardest things in the whole world, but also, something that gives us the deepest most heart fulfilling satisfaction. Gah, what a dilemma! It would be so much easier if we could just get all operational and robotic and not have to have those hard conversations, get vulnerable and honest with ourselves and then share it with another....we could just get on with it. But alas, as humans, we are drawn back in to the fray. To do it...
Sep 21, 2022•23 min
Hello ,it's me Nicole Mathieson and I would like to introduce you to my brand new podcast; The Beauty Load, How to feel good enough in your body. This podcast is inspired by my book also called the Beauty Load in which I explore this exhausting pressure, anxiety and insecurity that many if not all women feel in regards to the way they look. In this podcast, I aim to explore how the Beauty Load is felt by different people, in different countries, different cultures and sub-cultures and with diffe...
Sep 12, 2022•2 min
In this episode we talk to Slow Living coach Rachelle Glendon about the benefits of concsiously slowing down on all of our relationships. In this chat we talk about; * implementing some matriachal ways, which sound so good * tips for slowing down * how slow living challenges your own unhealthy beliefs and invites healing * how slow living moves you from resentment and passive aggressive communication to nurture. You can catch Rachelle at howtoliveslow.com and @howtoliveslow on the gram. Hosted o...
Jun 27, 2022•43 min
Why is a relationship coach / therapist writing a book about body image I hear you ask? That's because the Beauty Load, body image, how we feel about ourselves and our confidence with fitting in in the world, are all relationship issues. I don't know about you but my body was front and centre as I stepped into relationship and sexual intimacy as a young adult. Listen in as I share how my book The Beauty Load is a relationship book in so many ways. Grab your copy of the book at nicolemathieson.co...
May 16, 2022•21 min
Sometimes we feel wrong for feeling the Beauty Load, especially when our males partner's or friends just don't get it. But the stress and concern of the Beauty Load is real and in this episode I share an example that demonstrates how differently the Load is experienced, generally speaking, by women and men. Buy the book The Beauty Load www.nicolemathieson.com/thebeautyload follow me on instagram @nicole.mathieson Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
May 11, 2022•15 min
In this special Beauty Load episode of the podcast, I am reading the first chapter (the introduction) of my new book The Beauty Load, how to feel enough in a world obsessed with beauty. The message of my book is basically that you feeling not "enough" about your looks is not personal, it is not about you and your looks but instead it is inevitable if you have grown up in a culture with such toxic messaging and an obsession with beauty. To buy the book, go to nicolemathieson.com/thebeautyload/ or...
Apr 21, 2022•18 min
There is a lot going on in the world at the moment that can leave us feeling a bit or a lot traumatised. I am inspired to share this "what not to do" episode, because of what I see happening around me, and that is people who have been through a lot, not allowing themselves the space and nurture they need, because there are others struggling more than them. We compare and we think "I should not be worried!" but this just keeps us stuck. nicolemathieson.com @nicole.mathieson Hosted on Acast. See a...
Mar 14, 2022•17 min
If there is one thing the Beauty Load pressure leaves us women with, it is a sense of shame. We are shamed on so many fronts on all aspects of our body and appearance. In this episode I explore the shame, grandiosity loop and how we can get out of it to create a new culture, at least for ourselves. The Beauty Load book out April 2022 Instagram: @nicole.mathieson Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 25, 2022•12 min
There are a lot of books out there about loving our body and the issues that come with it, so why have I written another book about it? In this episode I share with you my motivations for writing this book: -from my own struggles with feeling enough -to the impact the Beauty Load has on my clients and friends -seeing women in Cuba who didn't seem to be struggling in the same way -my fear for my own children -and our need to unpack this patriarchal, consumerist craziness For more nicolemathieson....
Jan 16, 2022•15 min
How do you manage stress in your relationship? How does it feel when your partner is stressed? How do you respond? How do they respond to you? Stress can be a really disconnecting force in a relationship if it goes unmanaged. In this episode I share with you, how I dealt with my husband's stress really badly and how I repaired on that occassion. I also share with you why dealing with stress is so important and I go through the Gottman "stress reducing conversation" pointers. Hosted on Acast. See...
Oct 11, 2021•19 min
In this episode, I speak to Emily, who with her partner Sean, created Yum cards for couples. We talk about how these cards help couples reconnect and why reconnecting feels so darn yum! You can check out the cards here playyum.com For more go to nicolemathieson.com @nicole_mathieson_coach Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jul 01, 2021•47 min
You are not going to get rid of your suffering and that's okay. We do not need to be wrapped in cotton wool and protected from all the harshness to be okay, which is great, because it would probably be pretty isolating there. We are going to suffer, the trick is to not panic about it. Not to panic about the fear, the anxiety, the sadness, the pain, but to recognise all of these feelings as understandable responses to what is going on for you in the world. For more about Nicole go to: www.nicolem...
Jun 21, 2021•12 min
How does the way you look or feel in your body influence your desire? Research shows that us women, in general, need to feel ourselves sexy in order to feel desire. We need to feel sexy in our bodies, our minds, our energies and our imaginations first before we can share ourselves. Does that resonate with you? Come with me on this podcast journey while I explore this a little. Find out more about my coaching / counselling and resources at nicolemathieson.com or follow me @nicole_mathieson_coach ...
May 10, 2021•16 min
We want certainty in our relationships. We say..."I'll be happy when there is a ring on my finger or we buy that house or we have kids or whatever" Which makes sense, we are human and certainty feels secure. But the cementing in (the grasping for certainty) is also the very thing creating the stuckness that leads us to resentment and eventually a desire to possibly even leave. We deserve relationship that feel fluid and free and like we choose to be there. In this episode I explore with you how ...
Mar 12, 2021•12 min
Break ups can be devastating. They are without a doubt big events in our lives. Which is why we need Mackenzie, a break-up specialist. Mackenzie and I chat about the sometimes rough and tumultuous phase break-ups. She herself has navigated 2 very different break-ups; one toxic and one conscious and shares her wisdom with us. We chat about: -her break-up stories and how she navigated them -how to recognise a narcissist -the places people get stuck in the break-up process -the anchor points to hel...
Dec 11, 2020•52 min
So much happens to your relationship and your sex life after you have kids. Everything changes. Your roles, your sex life, how you spend your time, how you see each other and that's not to mention your expectations of each other. It is big! How do you as a couple, cope with all this change and stress? It can be super hard. Catherine Topham Sly from Insight and Connection in the UK chat about this major relationship challenge in this episode. You can find Catherine on Insta & FB @insightandco...
Oct 12, 2020•53 min
This episode comes back to the basics of how to get grounded and centred and calm ourselves down, because you know.....life. It is super important, especially in our relationships. What is in your calm-down toolkit? Connect with me via Instagram - www.instagram.com/nicole_mathieson_coach/ or drop me an email - hi@nicolemathieson.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Sep 11, 2020•28 min•Season 1Ep. 46
