SpeakHER Sessions

What does it really take to find your voice — and what happens when it gets taken from you?In this special solo episode, SpeakHER Sessions host Kim Atwood reflects on the six most powerful lessons she learned from Season 1. Ten episodes, eleven women, and more honesty than she expected when she started asking questions about voice and confidence.This isn't a recap. It's a reflection. Because somewhere between interviewing women about their stories, Kim found herself sitting with some hard and beautiful truths about her own.In this episode, Kim shares:Why voice almost always gets quiet before it gets found and why that silence is part of the story, not a detour from itWhat this season's guests taught her about waiting seasons and why the waiting is never as pointless as it feelsHow grief showed up in nearly every conversation this season and why the women who had been through the most loss were also the most spacious in how they loved othersWhy your body of work is shaping you long before you realize it's doing thatThe role that people — spouses, sisters, mentors, friends — play in giving us permission to use our voicesWhy advocacy is simply what happens when your personal story meets someone else's needKim also shares a heartfelt thank you to the Season 1 sponsors and community partners who believed in SpeakHER Sessions before it had anything to show for itself:Terri Brock State Farm — insurance and financial guidance for the Columbia, SC community | 6158 St. Andrews Road | 803-772-4000 | terribrock.comWestmore Land of Gifts and Apparel — a women-owned boutique in Columbia, SC that champions other women-owned brands | Murraywood Shopping Center | westmorelandofgifts.com | code PODCAST for savingsThe Peanut Man — catering, restaurant, and gourmet shop in Columbia, SC | home of a monthly Ladies Night | thepeanutman.comTalking Donkey Designs — scripture-based apparel with original artwork by Bryan Atwood | whosyourdonkey.comHow2SpeakU — an online learning community for women who are ready to communicate with confidence | how2speaku.comSeason 2 of SpeakHER Sessions launches soon.If you know a woman with a story worth telling, someone who has found her voice through a hard season and has something other women need to hear, we want to meet her. DM us on social media or Nominate a guest here.If your brand or business wants to reach an engaged audience of women navigating major life transitions, sponsorship opportunities for Season 2 are available now. Reach out at [email protected] with SpeakHER Sessions: 📱 Instagram: @speakhersessions 🌐 Website: speakHERsessions.com 📧 Contact: [email protected] with Kim: 🌐 How2SpeakU: how2speaku.com 📱 Instagram: @kimatwoodspeaksIf this episode resonated with you: ⭐ Leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It takes two minutes and helps more women find the show 📲 Share this episode with a woman in your life whHave a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

Before Kim Atwood had a podcast, a platform, or any of the clarity she talks about on this show, she had two sisters.To close out Season 1, Kim brings it all the way home by inviting Shannon Henderson and Rebecca Wolfe into the studio for the most personal episode of the season. What starts as a funny conversation about birth order and who mom's favorite is turns into something surprisingly moving about the relationships that make it safe to show up as your full, unfiltered self.There's an eight-year gap between Shannon and Kim. Four years between Kim and Rebecca. And somewhere in those gaps, a bond formed that the three of them describe as their own little bubble, one that other people notice and don't quite understand.This one will make you laugh. It might also make you call your sister.In this conversation:How each sister remembers the other growing up, and how those memories don't always matchThe expectations their parents passed down, and which ones they chose to keep or leave behindBirth order, oldest-daughter pressure, and whether those stereotypes actually fitThe annual family trip that has become the glue of their relationships as adultsWhat they want their daughters, nieces, and nephews to carry forwardWhy Rebecca doesn't want her three-year-old daughter Avery to ever shrink herself for anybodyWhether you can build a sister-level bond with people who aren't family by bloodAt the core this is an episode about belonging, and the kind of relationships that make it safer to show up fully as yourself, even when you're at your messiest, loudest, or most unsure.About SpeakHER Sessions SpeakHER Sessions is a podcast for women who are finding their voice, or finding it again. Host Kim Atwood sits down with real women to talk about the experiences that shaped them, the seasons that stretched them, and the confidence they've built along the way. New episodes every Monday. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Follow us @speakhersessions.SponsorsHow2SpeakU — Helping women build confidence and communicate with strength and clarity. https://how2speaku.comTalking Donkey Designs — Custom, faith-forward apparel. https://whosyourdonkey.comHave a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

Some voices are shaped by survival. Jan Sipes' was shaped by something quieter: 35 years of five-year-olds who still stop her in the grocery store to say hello, 10 summers at Camp Gravatt building something generational with her husband Mac, and a faith that held steady through three and a half years of brain cancer, widowhood, and raising three daughters alone.Affectionately known as Mama Jan throughout the Irmo community, Jan Westmoreland Sipes is a retired educator, early childhood education advocate, camp leader, mom, grandmother, and one of those people whose presence just makes a room feel safer.In this episode, Kim Atwood sits down with Jan for one of the most tender conversations of Season 1, about what it means to use your voice faithfully across a lifetime, to stay positive for your kids when you are quietly falling apart, and to discover that joy and love are still possible on the other side of the hardest thing you have ever been through.In this conversation:How a little girl who ran home from school every day became a beloved kindergarten teacher for 35 yearsAdvocating for 4K programs in South Carolina and piloting full-day 5K before it was standardTen summers at Camp Gravatt with Mac, and what it meant to watch former campers grow into the camp's directorMac's three-and-a-half-year battle with brain cancer and how Jan chose to stay present and positive for her daughtersWhat her daughters told Kim before this episode about what they remember from that seasonThe last conversation Mac had before he stopped speakingMinistering to other families facing brain cancer because she knew the roadRemarrying after loss, and her encouragement for widows who wonder if joy is still available to themThe core message Jan wants everyone to carry: put God first, stay close to your family, and live every day like it might be your lastAbout Jan Sipes Jan Westmoreland Sipes is a retired educator, early childhood education advocate, and beloved community figure known throughout Irmo as Mama Jan. After 35 years in the classroom and a decade leading Camp Gravatt alongside her late husband Mac, Jan has spent her life quietly shaping generations of children, families, and fellow grievers. She is a mom of three daughters and a grandmother many times over.About SpeakHER Sessions SpeakHER Sessions is a podcast for women who are finding their voice, or finding it again. Host Kim Atwood sits down with real women to talk about the experiences that shaped them, the seasons that stretched them, and the confidence they've built along the way. New episodes every Monday. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Follow us @speakhersessions.SponsorsHow2SpeakU — Helping women build confidence and communicate with strength and clarity. https://how2speaku.comTalking Donkey Designs — Custom, faith-forward apparel. https://whosyourdonkey.comHave a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

What does it look like to reclaim your voice after seasons of loss, fear, and survival, and then decide to live boldly on purpose?Breanna Pritchard grew up quiet and shy. She lost her dad to cancer at 13. She married young, and the marriage became something she couldn't name as abuse because it had become her normal. She didn't have a job, didn't have money, and didn't tell her family what was happening. It wasn't until her in-laws called her parents and told them to get their daughter out if they wanted to see her alive that anyone knew how bad it was.She left with a suitcase and her son.SisterCare became her voice when she didn't have one. They sent an advocate, accompanied her to court, and helped her rebuild from nothing. Years later, she reconnected with her high school friend Wes over scuba diving, risked trusting love again, and built something she couldn't have imagined during the worst of it. On their seventh wedding anniversary, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.She is now in complete remission. And she and Wes live by a family motto their whole household has adopted: Smash Life.In this conversation:Losing her dad at 13 and how that grief shaped her faith and resilienceWhat domestic violence actually looks like from the inside, and why she stayedHow SisterCare advocated for her when she had no voice of her ownRebuilding as a single mom with nothing and finding herself againChanging her last name back to her maiden name and why that small act felt enormousMeeting Wes, learning to trust love, and building a real estate business togetherBreast cancer at 37, a double mastectomy, chemo, and the community that carried her throughWhat "Smash Life" means and how one family built a philosophy out of survivalIf you or someone you love is experiencing domestic violence, please reach out for help. Learn more about SisterCare: https://www.sistercare.orgAbout Breanna Pritchard Breanna Pritchard is a domestic violence survivor, breast cancer overcomer, mom, and real estate entrepreneur. After rebuilding her life as a single mom with the help of SisterCare, she remarried and now lives in complete remission following a double mastectomy. She and her husband Wes live by the motto "Smash Life" — family, faith, fitness, and finances equal freedom — and Breanna uses her story to remind others that your hardest seasons don't have to define you.About SpeakHER Sessions SpeakHER Sessions is a podcast for women who are finding their voice, or finding it again. Host Kim Atwood sits down with real women to talk about the experiences that shaped them, the seasons that stretched them, and the confidence they've built along the way. New episodes every Monday. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Follow us @speakhersessions.SponsorsHow2SpeakU — Helping women build confidence and communicate with strength and clarity. https://how2speaku.comSkhnFrnd — Licensed esthetician Hope McLelland is your skin's new best friend. Waxing, facials, and more. https://www.vagaro.com/skhnfrndTalking Donkey Designs — Custom, faith-forward apparel. https://whosyourdonkey.comHave a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

When Samantha Butler's daughter Griggs had her first seizure at one and a half years old, the hospital told her it was probably nothing. Samantha pushed anyway, because her mom had epilepsy, and something in her gut said this wasn't nothing.She was right. Griggs never stopped having seizures.What followed was six years of medications, EEGs, PET scans, MRIs, week-long hospital stays where doctors deliberately withdrew her meds to trigger seizures so they could watch her brain, and eventually a gentle suggestion from Samantha's medical team in Charleston that maybe this was just going to be her daughter's life.Samantha didn't accept that either.A friend of a friend had moved to Charlotte to work in pediatric neurology. Three days after Samantha's information was passed along, she had an appointment. The Charlotte team found something MUSC had missed: a small misfiring cluster buried in a deep fold of Griggs' right frontal lobe. They removed it. Seven months later, Griggs has not had a single daytime seizure.In this episode, Kim Atwood sits down with Samantha to talk about what six years of medical advocacy for a child with epilepsy actually looks like, what it costs a mom emotionally when she goes into task mode and doesn't stop, and why she ultimately walked away from a successful boutique business she had built from nothing to be fully present for her family.In this conversation:Recognizing Griggs' first seizure and why Samantha pushed for testing when doctors dismissed itSix years of medications, EEGs, and hospital stays, and the emotional toll of task mode parentingWhat it felt like when doctors implied she should just accept this as Griggs' lifeFinding a pediatric epileptologist in Charlotte who saw what others had missedThe motor mapping test that showed her daughter's brain in real timeBrain surgery, recovery, and life seven months post-opRunning a boutique through all of it, then making the decision to sellWhat it takes to know when to walk away from something you worked hard to buildThis one is for every mom who has ever sat in a doctor's office and thought: I know something is wrong, even when nobody else believes her yet.About Samantha Butler Samantha Butler is a former early childhood educator and boutique co-owner who spent six years advocating for her daughter through a pediatric epilepsy diagnosis, multiple treatment approaches, and ultimately brain surgery. Her story is one of tenacity, medical advocacy, and knowing when to let go of one season so you can fully show up for another.About SpeakHER Sessions SpeakHER Sessions is a podcast for women who are finding their voice, or finding it again. Host Kim Atwood sits down with real women to talk about the experiences that shaped them, the seasons that stretched them, and the confidence they've built along the way. New episodes every Monday. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Follow us @speakhersessions.SponsorsHow2SpeakU — Helping women build confidence and communicate with strength and clarity. https://how2speaku.comTerri Brock State Farm — Coverage you can trust from a team that treats you like family. Auto, home, life, and more. https://terribrock.com | 803-772-4000Have a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

How do you keep showing up with hope, courage, and compassion when life has already taken so much?Lindsey Scoma was 15 years old when she lost her sister Amber suddenly. It was the kind of loss that makes a teenager want to close up, go quiet, and stop letting people in. And honestly? That impulse made sense. But Lindsey made a different choice, and she has been making it ever since.In this episode, Kim Atwood sits down with Lindsey, a women's ministry leader, mentor, wife, and mom, to talk about how grief shapes your voice, how faith carries you through complicated loss, and what it looks like to stay tender in a world that gives you every reason not to.They cover losing her sister in her teens, her father's complicated illness and passing last year, and the in-between years of wrestling with perfectionism, works-based faith, and the fear of loving people you might lose.In this conversation:Growing up in church and learning that your gifts aren't just for youThe sudden loss of her sister at 15 and how it made her want to go quietWrestling with works-based faith, fear, and perfectionism after tragedyWalking through her dad's illness and passing, and the mix of grief, guilt, and grace that followedWhat she wishes her family had done differently in griefHow God spoke to her piercingly clearly the day after her dad's funeralWhy mentoring women keeps her spiritually grounded and open-heartedIf you've ever felt like your world has gone up in flames, whether through loss of a person, a dream, or a sense of self, Lindsey's story will remind you there is still hope, purpose, and a voice on the other side.About Lindsey Scoma Lindsey Scoma is a women's ministry leader, mentor, and speaker who has spent years investing in young women and adults through discipleship and leadership development. Shaped by her own experiences with loss and faith, she brings quiet, grounded wisdom to conversations about grief, calling, and staying open-hearted in a broken world.About SpeakHER Sessions SpeakHER Sessions is a podcast for women who are finding their voice, or finding it again. Host Kim Atwood sits down with real women to talk about the experiences that shaped them, the seasons that stretched them, and the confidence they've built along the way. New episodes every Monday. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Follow us @speakhersessions.SponsorsHow2SpeakU — Helping women build confidence and communicate with strength and clarity. https://how2speaku.comTerri Brock State Farm — From first homes to growing families, coverage you can trust. Auto, home, life, and more. https://terribrock.com | 803-772-4000Have a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

What happens when the life you're living looks nothing like the life you hoped for, and you're not even sure you deserve anything better?Mallory Dolan grew up without a faith foundation, chasing approval, and numbing pain with alcohol and drugs. She became a mom in her early 20s, splitting Lunchables with her daughter while hiding an addiction she couldn't control. CPS came to her door. And then, on August 11, 2011, a drunk driving accident left her as a Jane Doe in a hospital, her car full of blood, her father walking in expecting not to recognize her.She walked out of that hospital and kept drinking for two more years.This episode is about what actually turns a life around, and why it's almost never one moment. It's the grandmother who prayed over her name in a Bible before the worst had even happened. It's her daughter looking up at her in a Target and saying "I don't like who you are when you drink that." It's a friend praying over her in her living room. It's a verse in Proverbs that felt like it was written directly to her. It's a promise she wrote in her Bible that she has kept ever since.In this conversation, Kim Atwood and Mallory talk about the long, nonlinear road from addiction and shame to sobriety, faith, marriage, and a health and wellness business built on helping others believe they are never too far gone.In this conversation:Growing up without faith and how that shaped her early choicesEarly motherhood in survival mode, and what CPS at your door actually does to youA near-fatal DUI, a blood transfusion, and the moment she felt God for the first time without knowing what to call itWhy the accident didn't stop the drinking, and what finally didHer daughter's words that triggered something she couldn't ignoreGetting baptized on the two-year anniversary of her accidentThe slow, non-dramatic way faith actually changed her lifeBuilding a health and wellness business with her husband after years of physically destroying herselfWhat she would say to any woman who feels too broken or too far goneThis is Part 1 of Mallory's story. Season 2 will feature Part 2.About Mallory Dolan Mallory Dolan is a health and wellness mentor, business owner, wife, and mom. She and her husband lead a health and wellness business, mentoring others in both lifestyle and entrepreneurship while raising a family with intention and faith. Her life today stands in stark contrast to her earlier years of addiction and self-destruction. Mallory is passionate about helping others believe they are never too broken for God to redeem their story.About SpeakHER Sessions SpeakHER Sessions is a podcast for women who are finding their voice, or finding it again. Host Kim Atwood sits down with real women to talk about the experiences that shaped them, the seasons that stretched them, and the confidence they've built along the way. New episodes every Monday.🎙 Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. 📲 Follow us on Instagram @speakhersessionsSponsors This episode is sponsored by:How2SpeakU — Helping women build confidence and communicate with strength and clarity. how2speaku.comTerri Brock State Farm — Coverage you can trust from a team that treats you like family. Auto, home, life, and more. https://terribrock.com | 803-772-4000Talking Donkey DesigHave a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

What do you do when the waiting is happening in every area of your life at once?Hope Andrews knows that season. She waited on the right relationship. She waited on her education. She waited through fertility treatments that didn't work, a friend's pregnancy that felt impossible to celebrate, and a career pivot that started with silence and crickets. And then, in a fertility clinic on a Sunday morning, she and her husband made a decision to stop striving and surrender.The next month, she found out she was pregnant.But Hope's story doesn't stop at motherhood. In this episode, Kim Atwood also talks with Hope about what she did after her daughter arrived, a full career pivot into commercial real estate, one of the most male-dominated industries there is. Hope didn't wait for permission. She wrote a year-long plan, presented it to her firm, got no response, and signed up for her real estate license classes the day before Thanksgiving anyway. Then she emailed the whole company when she passed.This is a conversation about the kind of resilience you can only build in seasons you didn't choose.In this conversation:What it felt like to watch others reach milestones she was still waiting for, and how she kept goingWhy she started therapy during her fertility journey and why she's glad she didThe moment in a fertility clinic that changed everythingHow to find support that actually meets you where you are, not where people wish you wereLeaving a leadership career at Chick-fil-A to start over in commercial real estateStanding out as a woman in a male-dominated industry without trying to fit someone else's moldJoining CREW (Commercial Real Estate Women) and finding community in unexpected placesWhat the waiting seasons taught her that she couldn't have learned any other wayIf you are in a season where nothing is moving the way you planned, and you are starting to wonder if it ever will, this conversation is for you.About Hope Andrews Hope Andrews is a commercial real estate professional based in South Carolina. Her career path has taken her from Girl Scouts leadership and a nontraditional college journey to management roles at Chick-fil-A and now a career in commercial real estate, where she serves on the board of CREW (Commercial Real Estate Women). Her story of infertility, faith, and professional reinvention is one of Season 1's most quietly powerful.About SpeakHER Sessions SpeakHER Sessions is a podcast for women who are finding their voice, or finding it again. Host Kim Atwood sits down with real women to talk about the experiences that shaped them, the seasons that stretched them, and the confidence they've built along the way. New episodes every Monday.🎙 Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. 📲 Follow us on Instagram @speakhersessionsSponsors This episode is sponsored by:How2SpeakU — Helping women build confidence and communicate with strength and clarity. how2speaku.comTerri Brock State Farm — From first apartments to family homes, coverage you can trust from a team that treats you like family, not a policy number. Auto, home, life, and more. terribrock.comHave a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

What happens when you step into a leadership role you weren't supposed to have, in a room that wasn't built for you?Billie Williams didn't take a traditional path to becoming Athletic Director at Chapin High School, one of South Carolina's largest 5A programs. She came up through cheer, earned a master's degree from The Citadel, taught civics and government, mentored student government, and somewhere along the way became exactly the kind of leader her school needed, even if her resume didn't look like what people expected.In this episode, Kim Atwood talks with Billie about what it actually takes to earn credibility in a male-dominated field, how to lead adults when you built your career leading students, and why keeping the student experience at the center of athletic culture is both a leadership philosophy and a personal commitment.This is a conversation for any woman who has ever walked into a room and wondered if she belongs there.In this conversation:How Billie went from cheer coach and civics teacher to leading a 48-sport athletic programWhat it's like to be one of very few female athletic directors at the 5A level in South CarolinaHow she earns credibility and respect in rooms that are used to seeing a different kind of leaderThe shift from leading students to leading adult coaches, and why that transition is harder than it looksWhy being willing to say "I don't know" is a leadership strategy, not a weaknessWhat student-centered athletics actually looks like in practiceBuilding school spirit and culture as a tool for student belonging and community prideIf you're navigating a leadership role you didn't get the conventional way, or trying to find your voice in a space that wasn't designed with you in mind, Billie's story is going to meet you where you are.About Billie Williams Billie Williams is the Athletic Director at Chapin High School in Chapin, SC. A former civics and government teacher, student government mentor, and longtime cheer coach, Billie brings a student-first philosophy to leading one of South Carolina's largest athletic programs. She holds a master's degree from The Citadel.About SpeakHER Sessions SpeakHER Sessions is a podcast for women who are finding their voice, or finding it again. Host Kim Atwood sits down with real women to talk about the experiences that shaped them, the seasons that stretched them, and the confidence they've built along the way. New episodes every Monday.🎙 Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. 📲 Follow us on Instagram @speakhersessionsSponsors This episode is sponsored by:How2SpeakU — Helping women build confidence and communicate with strength and clarity. how2speaku.comWestmore Land of Gifts and More — Beautiful, meaningful gifts for every occasion. westmorelandofgifts.com | Code: PODCASTThe Peanut Man — A gourmet cafe and gift shop in the St. Andrews area, hosting monthly ladies' nights, plus catering and event rentals. thepeanutman.comHave a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

What do you do when your body feels like it's failing you, the waiting won't end, and the family you're praying for feels further away than ever?Joy Henderson knows that season intimately. After years of infertility, multiple pregnancy losses, and the decision to adopt three biological siblings, Joy didn't just survive the wait. She let it reshape her faith, her voice, and the way she shows up for other women walking the same road.In this episode, host Kim Atwood sits down with Joy — mom of five, co-lead pastor of Christian Life Church in Columbia, SC, and founder of the Because of Love adoption and foster care ministry — for one of the most honest, hope-filled conversations of Season 1.In this conversation:The private pain of infertility and why the words we use with hurting women matter more than we realizeHow Joy and her husband chose to grieve together after pregnancy loss instead of drifting apartThe real cost of private adoption: financially, emotionally, and relationallyWhat it looks like to parent across multiple life stages while leading a multigenerational churchHow to find your voice and step into leadership when you've spent years in a season of waitingWhy the hardest seasons often produce the deepest empathy and the most powerful advocacyIf you've ever felt behind, unseen, or weary in a long season of waiting, whether that's infertility, loss, a career that won't move, or a life that doesn't look the way you planned, this conversation will remind you that your story is still unfolding, and your voice still matters.About Joy Henderson Joy Henderson is a mom of five, co-lead pastor of Christian Life Church (Columbia, SC), and founder of Because of Love — an adoption and foster care ministry born out of her own journey through infertility and pregnancy loss. Out of seasons of deep waiting, Joy now equips and walks alongside adoptive and foster families navigating the same road.🌐 Learn more about Because of Love: clcolumbia.com/adoptionAbout SpeakHER Sessions SpeakHER Sessions is a podcast for women who are finding their voice — or finding it again. Host Kim Atwood sits down with real women to talk about the experiences that shaped them, the seasons that stretched them, and the confidence they've built along the way. New episodes every Monday.🎙 Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. 📲 Follow us on Instagram @speakhersessionsSponsors This episode is sponsored by:How2SpeakU — Helping women build confidence and communicate with strength and clarity. how2speaku.comWestmore Land of Gifts and More — Beautiful, meaningful gifts for every occasion. westmorelandofgifts.com | Code: PODCASTHave a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

What does it take to build confidence in a young woman — not just on stage, but in her life?Lauren Metts has been answering that question for decades. As the founder and creative director of The Dance Department in Irmo, South Carolina, Lauren has shaped far more than performances. She's shaped how hundreds of young women see themselves, compete, and lead.In this episode, Kim Atwood sits down with Lauren to explore the intersection of dance, identity, and confidence-building and what happens when a leader holds the line on excellence without losing the heart of the people she leads.In this conversation:How dance teaches work ethic, discipline, and resilience in ways other pursuits often don'tWhy teaching growth over comparison is one of the most powerful things a mentor can offerHow Lauren built a studio culture where staff and students feel like family and why that doesn't happen by accidentWhat it looks like to lead a team of women with both high standards and genuine careThe pressure young dancers (and young women) face in the age of social media and how a wise teacher respondsWhether you're a dance parent, a studio owner, a teacher, or any woman who leads or mentors the next generation, this conversation will give you language for something you've felt but maybe never been able to name: the way the right environment shapes who a young woman becomes.About Lauren Metts Lauren Metts is the founder and creative director of The Dance Department in Irmo, SC. With decades of experience as a dancer, teacher, choreographer, and mentor, Lauren's work goes beyond the stage — she's in the business of building confident, resilient young women.Connect with The Dance Department 📍 Irmo, South Carolina 🌐 dancedept.comAbout SpeakHER Sessions SpeakHER Sessions is a podcast for women who are finding their voice or finding it again. Host Kim Atwood sits down with real women to talk about the experiences that shaped them, the seasons that stretched them, and the confidence they've built along the way. New episodes every Monday.🎙 Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and Spotify so you never miss a conversation. 📲 Follow us on Instagram @speakhersessionsSponsors This episode is sponsored by:How2SpeakU — Helping women build confidence and communicate with strength and clarity. Learn more at how2speaku.comWestmore Land of Gifts and More — Beautiful, meaningful gifts for every occasion. Shop at westmorelandofgifts.com and use code PODCAST for a discount.Have a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.

Welcome to SpeakHER Sessions — a podcast about voice.This show explores how our voice is shaped by experience, the moments that invite us to find and use it, and the way our stories can give strength to other voices.Hosted by Kim Atwood, SpeakHER Sessions creates space for thoughtful, honest conversations with women whose journeys have been shaped by challenge, growth, leadership, service, and courage. These are not highlight reels or perfectly packaged success stories. They are real conversations about what shaped us, what challenged us, and what we’ve learned along the way.So many women carry meaningful stories quietly. Stories of what they’ve overcome, what they’ve built, what they’re still becoming... often wondering whether those stories matter or are worth sharing. This podcast exists to bring those stories into the open.If you find encouragement in hearing how others have navigated uncertainty, found clarity, or stepped forward with courage — even before everything felt certain — SpeakHER Sessions is for you.Season one is coming soon.Follow SpeakHER Sessions wherever you listen to podcasts and get ready for conversations about voice, courage, and the stories that shape us.Have a question for this guest? Text us — it may be featured in "Ask the SpeakHER".SpeakHER Sessions is hosted by Kim Atwood. New episodes are coming soon. Follow the show to hear honest, encouraging conversations with women who use their voice to lead, serve, and create meaningful impact.