WholeHearted Living
A space to root back into your wholeness and remember who you truly are. Each episode blends ancient wisdom and modern science, soulful conversation and grounded practice, to guide you home to yourself.
Here, we dismantle outdated paradigms of hustle, perfection, and “not enough”, and instead explore what it means to live, lead, and create from worthiness, belonging, and alignment with nature’s rhythms.
From embodied self-worth to nervous system healing, from identity work to soul-led leadership, The Wholehearted Living Podcast invites you to pause, breathe, and return to the ground beneath all growth: you are already whole.
New episodes every Thursday.
At the Wholehearted Living Podcast, our conversations don’t end here. To keep journeying together, visit www.whlinstitute.com to explore free resources, join our newsletter, or step into one of our programs.
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With a heartful of gratitude,
Debs
WholeHearted Living
S02 E02 | Why Hustle is a Trauma Response (and What to Choose Instead)
Do you feel like you can never slow down, like rest feels unsafe, or that stopping might make everything fall apart? You’re not alone, and it’s not a flaw.
In this episode of the Wholehearted Living Podcast, Debs Thorpe explores the hidden truth behind hustle: it’s often a survival response, not true ambition. When we mistake fear-driven doing for productivity, we burn out, shrink our creativity, and keep ourselves small.
Together, we’ll uncover:
- How hustle can be rooted in nervous system patterns and trauma, not drive or talent.
- The difference between fear-based “hustle” and aligned, visionary ambition.
- Practical ways to create regenerative rhythms that support your growth without depletion.
This episode is an invitation to slow down, reclaim your energy, and discover how sustainable expansion comes from alignment, not exhaustion.
Invitation...
If this episode spoke to you and you’d love to support the Wholehearted Living Podcast, you can become a supporter today. Your contribution helps us to keep creating conversations and practices that nurture wholeness, integrity, and expansion, not just for you, but for everyone who’s longing to lead and live differently.
Please do share this podcast far and wide to help us reach as many people as possible.
And as our gift to you, Debs has created a WholeHearted Resource Pack- a collection of grounding practices, journal prompts, and reflections that go deeper into season two's theme of Wholeness and Belonging. It’s completely free, and you can sign up to receive it online at www.whlinstitute.com.
And if you'd like to gift Debs a personal thank you, you can Buy Me A Coffee here, knowing it will fuel many more moments of inspiration.
Thank you for listening, supporting, and most of all, for walking this path of wholehearted living with us.