The Liberation Effect
Episodes
End of Season One
21 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
We're reached the end of season one of The Liberation Effect! A huge thank you to all of our guests this season for sharing their stories so openly.We...
40. Is It Autism or Trauma? (Replay)
14 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week we're replaying one of our listeners' favourite episodes in which Patrick asks, is it autism or trauma?When we’ve grown up in chaos, it ca...
39. Leaving With No Resources
07 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In this solo episode, Helen responds to a listener who feels at breaking point in a relationship shaped by chronic stress, emotional withdrawal and fe...
38. Why Does My Body Still Feel Like a Battleground?
24 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week Helen is joined by Lucy, and together they explore the lasting impact of growing up with criticism, shaming and emotional chaos. Despite yea...
37. Is it Still Abuse if She's Autistic?
17 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Helen speaks with Kate about the kind of guilt that forms when a child learns to survive by explaining away harm. Growing up in an em...
36. Is It My Identity or a Survival Strategy?
10 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this conversation, Helen speaks with Sarah, who has carried a sense of not being good enough since childhood. Growing up in an environment where cu...
35. How Do I Heal From a Friend's Betrayal?
03 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Helen sits with Evie as she unravels the painful chain reaction that followed the betrayal of a long-term friend. What began as a rup...
34. Parenting After Trauma
26 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-applicationIn this episode, Helen speaks directly to the challe...
33. Am I Abandoning My Disabled Sibling?
19 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-applicationUntangling love from duty when independence was deni...
32. The Hardest Thing About Going No Contact with Harriet Shearsmith
12 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-applicationIn this conversation, Helen is joined by author, coa...
31. Why Does Being Seen Still Feel Unsafe?
05 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-applicationIn this continuation of her story, Catherine speaks ...
30. How Do I Learn to Exist When I Was Raised to Disappear?
29 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-applicationIn part one of a two-part story, Helen speaks with C...
29. How Do We Support ADHD at Home, at School and in Adulthood?
22 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-application In this solo Q and A episode, Helen answers questio...
28. Why Has My Mother Rewritten Our Past?
15 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-application In this week’s episode Helen meets Sarah, who sha...
27. How Do I Find My Voice?
08 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To be on the show please apply here: https://hub.liberationacademy.co.uk/podcast-applicationThis week’s episode centres on the impossible bala...
26. Can I Heal From CPTSD and Still See My Mum?
01 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Helen is joined by Erin, a Hub community moderator and trainee therapist, to answer a listener’s question about living with a narcissisti...
Body Image and Shame with The Fat Counsellors - Hub Bytes
24 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, originally released on our premium feed, Helen is joined by Jo Reader and Cat Chappell, psychotherapists and the voices behind The Fa...
24. My Kids Are Neurodiverse, How Can I Parent Without A Blueprint?
17 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Helen talks with Lucinda, who is raising two neurodivergent children while breaking free from the patterns of a difficult childhood. Together they exp...
23. What If I’m Becoming The Parent I Ran From?
10 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this powerful episode, Scarlett opens up about leaving a religious cult, the shock of being discarded by her entire family, and the grief of realis...
22. Why Is Knowing My Dad Something I Have To Hide?
09 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Apply to be on the show.In this powerful conversation, Helen speaks with Sabrina, who was abducted by her mother as a child and raised far from ...
21. Was My Mother Good or Bad?
09 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Apply to be a guest on the show.In this episode, Helen speaks with Elizabeth, who has gone no contact with her father and is now questioning the role ...
20. Should I Tell My Children About Their Abusive Grandparents?
09 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Helen is joined by Jada, who opens up about the death of her abusive mother and the painful legacy it has left behind. Jada reflects ...
Is the Fawn Response real?
29 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Fawn Response has been declared a primary trauma response, but is it really? Understanding this distinction between primary and secondary response...
Boundaries and Trauma with Juliet Grayson
13 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit helenvilliersliberation.substack.comIn this episode, Helen is joined by psychosexual the...
19. How Does Guilt Protect Me? Part 2 of 2
13 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if shame has been speaking louder than your voice?In this follow up to last week’s conversation, Sinead returns to talk with Helen about the de...
18. Why Does Silence Hurt More? Part 1 of 2
06 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if the silence after going no contact was louder than any fight you imagined?In this first part of a two-part episode episode, Sinead joins Helen...
Gaslighting - The Expert Series
05 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit helenvilliersliberation.substack.com
17. Why Were They Willing to Sacrifice Me?
30 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if the moment you chose yourself was the moment they turned against you?In this episode, Lola joins Helen to share her story of surviving an emot...
16. Does My Trauma Make Me A Bad Parent?
23 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if feeling your emotions meant risking everything that keeps you safe?In this episode, Stephen joins Helen to explore the collapse of his coping ...
15. Was I Too Sensitive?
16 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if the hardest part wasn’t what happened, but what it meant about who you were?In this episode of The Liberation Effect, Louise speaks with Hel...
14. Am I Being Unreasonable?
09 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if love meant always being available, even when it cost you your future?In this episode, Christine speaks with Helen about growing up with a moth...
13. Why Did They Choose My Abuser Over Me?
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if the person who hurt you most was the one everyone protected?In this episode of The Liberation Effect, Emily speaks with Helen about the long s...
12. Did I Do The Right Thing?
25 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if protecting yourself came at the cost of everything familiar?In this episode of The Liberation Effect, Elizabeth shares the story of a life res...
11. Why Does My Daughter Trigger Me?
18 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if the way you parent reveals the parts of you that are still hurting?In this episode, Lucy explores the uncomfortable truth that she finds her d...
10. How Do I Know Who I Am Without Her?
11 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if being the good child meant being the forgotten one?In this episode, Charlotte joins Helen to explore the long shadow of emotional neglect, peo...
9. Did My Autism Make Me Hard to Love?
04 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if everything that made you different was dismissed, not just by the world, but by the people meant to protect you?Christina joins Helen to share...
8. How Can My Own Mother Abandon Me?
28 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if everything you thought was real… wasn’t?In this episode of The Liberation Effect, Helen is joined by Emma, who’s facing the grief of bei...
7. What Can I Do to Make Her Love Me?
21 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if understanding it won’t make it hurt less?In this episode of The Liberation Effect, Helen is joined by Megan, who’s gone no contact with he...
6. Why Am I Scared to Say No?
14 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when the fear of rejection runs so deep it controls your every decision? In this episode of The Liberation Effect, Helen sits down with L...
5. Was He Safe or Is It Toxic Hope?
07 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when the ‘safe parent’ lets you down?In this episode, Lucy joins host Helen to explore the painful realisation that the parent she on...
4. Is It Meant To Be Like This?
30 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Helen is joined by Kate, who shares her story of going no contact with her mother and navigating the complex aftermath. What starts a...
3. Should I Call My Mother?
23 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Helen talks with Amanda as she wrestles with the idea of reconnecting with her mother - someone who caused her deep pain. Diagnosed w...
2. Is It Autism or Trauma?
16 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When we’ve grown up in chaos, it can be hard to untangle our trauma from who we truly are. In this episode, Patrick explores the tangled web of trus...
1. Is My Child a Narcissist?
09 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When a child’s behaviour pushes all our buttons, it can be hard to separate the present from the past. In this powerful episode, a mother explores h...
The Expert Series Trailer
07 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Expert Series is a conversation between a professional and me discussing their specialism in relationship to the course on The Hub. Listen as we e...
Introducing The Liberation Effect
05 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you're looking for stories from people just like you, and suggestions on how to find a way through similar problems, welcome to The Liberation...