84: Self-Love Isn’t Selfish—It’s Essential - with Lisa Hawkins

In this heart-opening conversation, Heather Garbutt speaks with Lisa Hawkins, relationship and self-awareness coach and founder of Consciously Awake Counselling. Together, they unpack the misconceptions surrounding self-love and explore what it truly means to honour all parts of ourselves—even the ones we’d rather avoid. Lisa shares her personal and professional wisdom on how self-abandonment, often disguised as duty or selflessness, keeps us from authentic connection. She introduces her powerful “pause method,” the importance of having a safe witness to mirror compassion, and the ongoing, evolving nature of loving oneself. The episode is a tender invitation to presence, self-trust, and radical inner care.Key Takeaways Lisa redefines self-love not as indulgence, but as being fully present with every emotion—including anger, fear and shame. They explore how conditioning, especially for women, creates guilt around prioritising the self. Heather and Lisa emphasise the need for modelling and therapeutic support to build lasting self-compassion and clarity About your host:Heather has been working in mental and emotional health for over 30 years. First as an Art Psychotherapist then as a Counsellor and Couples Therapist.  She now specialises in love and relationship coaching.Heather is a qualified Calling in “The One” and “Conscious Uncoupling” coach, having been trained and mentored by Katherine Woodward Thomas. In addition, she is a long-term accredited member of The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, Health and Care Professions Council registered and a member of The British Association of Arts Therapists.About LisaLisa Hawkins is a relationship and self-awareness coach, and the founder of Consciously Awake Counseling. For over 26 years, she’s been passionate about the human experience—why we love, how we connect, and what gets in the way. She works with both men and women to awaken the part of themselves that already knows how to love deeply, freely, and consciously.Through spiritual inquiry, emotional accountability, and her signature Pause Method, Lisa helps people question old beliefs, shift their patterns, and create authentic relationships—starting with the one they have with themselves. Her work is about truth, healing, and connection at a higher level.Whether you're navigating love, healing from heartbreak, or learning to trust yourself again, Lisa brings wisdom, presence, and a deep respect for the human experience.This podcast is brought to you by Boost and Bloom.