Episodes

Send us Fan Mail What happens when life forces you onto a path you never planned? In this powerful episode of the WHEN Stories Podcast, Wendy Babcock sits down with author, speaker, journalist, and caregiver advocate Monica Vest Wheeler to explore the life-changing experiences that transformed her purpose. From losing a career she thought she'd have forever to navigating the realities of caregiving, grief, stroke recovery, and Alzheimer's, Monica shares the lessons that only come from living ...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning:: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories “It's What I Did Next” is a raw and powerful talk by Tennisha Denise Loggins that explores the impact of generational trauma, silence, and survival. Through deeply personal storytelling, Tennisha shares her journey from inherited pain and violence to self-awareness, healing, and transformation. Conf...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning:: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories What if love… isn’t enough? In this powerful and deeply personal WHEN Stories™ talk, parent coach and speaker Merri Guggisberg shares her journey from quietly wondering where she belonged… to helping parents create deeper, more meaningful connection with their children. As an adopted child growing up i...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning:: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories What if the version of you the world applauds… isn’t the real you? In this powerful WHEN Stories talk, Lisa Quam shares her journey from childhood trauma and perfectionism to finally finding her voice through comedy and recovery. Lisa Quam is a comedian, storyteller, and speaker who uses humor to tell t...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning:: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories What if the reason you feel unseen… is because you’ve been waiting for someone else to see you? In this powerful WHEN Stories™ talk, holistic coach and speaker Trina Grimm shares the deeply personal moment that changed everything — sitting on the floor, asking for support… and realizing no one was comin...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories At just 10 years old, Lisa Yeakley learned what it felt like to believe she wasn’t enough. A new school. A pair of blue cotton pants. A classroom full of whispers. What seemed like a small moment became the beginning of years of perfectionism, self-doubt, body image struggles, and hiding parts of herself...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories What happens when your entire identity falls apart… and you have to rebuild from the ground up? In this powerful WHEN Stories talk, Wonder Wendy shares her deeply personal journey through divorce, harassment, PTSD,, and ultimately discovering purpose later in life. At 31 years old, Wendy found hers...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning:: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories Dr. Cynthia McKnight’s story is a moving reflection on pain, faith, and transformation. Using the dragonfly as a symbol, she shares how seasons of grief, loss, waiting, and impossible circumstances became the very places where God was quietly shaping her. Cynthia McKnight is a seasoned leader in counseli...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning:: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories This is a raw, powerful talk by Jen Vertanen about trauma, worthiness, and the life-altering lesson she received from her mother in her final days: learn how to let people love you. Through deeply personal storytelling, Jen shares her journey from survival and self-protection to vulnerability, belonging,...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning: This inspiring story includes sensitive topics - cancer, emotional vulnerability - that could be triggering for some. Viewer discretion is advised. As WHEN Stories' emcee and publishing house director, Sara Deacon has been behind the scenes for this entire journey - coaching, editing, producing, cheering everyone else to the stage. And then it was her turn. What happened backstage wasn't graceful. It was a full breakdown. Because knowing how storytelling work...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. In "Get Ready to Own Your Worth," Jen Bee takes us back to where her story really begins — as the daughter of Cuban immigrants navigating a childhood marked by survival, loss, and prejudice. She learned early to shrink, to perform, and to earn her place. That pattern followed her into a successful corporate career she eventually reali...

Send us Fan Mail Content Warning: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. In "From Survival to WORTHY," Jim Plasky shares a deeply personal story of growing up in a traumatic, unpredictable home — where survival meant becoming invisible long before childhood should require it. He carried that armor into adulthood and into emergency medicine, where he thrived in chaos while quietly avoiding his own pain. But...

Send us a text TW: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories When everything changed, it happened in a pediatrician’s office. One sentence — “He needs to program the suicide prevention hotline into his phone” — flipped everything this mom thought she knew about mental health, parenting, and prevention. In this powerful WHEN Stories™ talk, Linda Eskay shares how that moment led he...

Send us a text TW: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories Everything About Tenacity Is Wrong When everything changed, Linda wasn’t in crisis—she was having a conversation with an AI chatbot. That single sentence it gave her became a mirror, revealing how quietly she’d learned to live small. Her talk, The Art of Tenacity, is a powerful reflection on reinvention, resilience, an...

Send us a text TW: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories Living My Values Out Loud: The Power of Choice and Voice: When everything changed, Susan was sitting in a dark office—questioning her purpose after years of success. Her story is about rediscovering her worth, rebuilding community, and choosing values over validation. From walking away from a promotion after 9/1...

Send us a text TW: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories When everything changed… she picked up the clippers. After decades of hiding bald spots, battling trichotillomania, and living with the scars of childhood trauma, Brittany, made a life-altering choice — to shave her head and set herself free. In this powerful WHEN Stories™ talk, she opens up about growing up in abuse, l...

Send us a text TW: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories Breaking Cycles Through Honest Conversation: When everything changed, it was a Friday in November 2012 — the day Kelly discovered her daughter Abigail had a plan to take her own life. What began as a moment of heartbreak became a decade-long journey of healing, understanding, and unshakable love. Together, Kelly and A...

Send us a text TW: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories Love Your Mess When everything changed… she chose herself. After years of being the “good girl” who did everything right — the career, the family, the expectations — Brittany hit a breaking point. A text message ended a friendship, but began a reckoning. It forced her to see that she’d spent a lifetime fighting for sp...

Send us a text TW: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories The Burning Phoenix is Reborn When everything changed, Angela was flat on her back, praying. What followed was not thunder… but planting. In this powerful talk, Angela shares how a single night of honest prayer revealed the truth she’d been avoiding: she fought harder for others than she ever did for herself. Through d...

Send us a text TW: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories Logan's Heart and Smiles ✨ WHEN: Joe Herr — Logan’s Heart & Smiles ✨ When everything changed, Joe turned heartbreak into hope. After losing his son Logan, who was born with cerebral palsy, Joe founded Logan’s Heart & Smiles — a nonprofit dedicated to helping children with disabilities live safely and comfortabl...

Send us a text TW: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories The Serenity Project Bron Watson is no stranger to unexpected left turns. A business owner, educator, and mother of five, Bron was building a life she loved when cancer arrived—not once, but twice. What began as a life-threatening diagnosis has since evolved into a deeply personal mission: to change the narrative in wh...

Send us a text TW: This inspiring story may include sensitive topics or experiences that could be triggering for some individuals. Viewer discretion is advised. #whenstories "Level Unlocked" That was the whisper that changed everything for Erika Sweeney. What started as a quiet nudge during heartbreak turned into a fierce journey of healing, self-discipline, and divine signs. In this unforgettable WHEN Story, Erika takes us behind the scenes of her transformation — from losing her beloved ...

Send us a text Refined By Fire: A Journey of Faith, Healing, and Purpose "You are not what tried to break you. You are the evidence of what healing can become.” In this powerful WHEN Story, Paquita Purnell shares how a single moment with her daughter changed everything — and led her on a faith-fueled journey of healing, entrepreneurship, and purpose. From surviving mental health struggles and domestic chaos to building two thriving businesses and leading a legacy event for Black wome...

Send us a text Rewired: From Inner Critic to Confidence “You have to be perfect to be loved.” That was the script Jasmin Nass carried since childhood — until a panic attack on a perfect day forced her to rewrite everything. In this deeply moving WHEN Story, Jasmin shares how motherhood, divorce, and a sudden emotional spiral became the catalyst for healing. From self-abandonment to self-love, she takes us inside her journey of unlearning, reclaiming, and transforming — with the help o...