What The Shift

Nothing Is Wrong With You: The Truth About Perimenopause No One Told Women

If you’ve been asking yourself “Why do I feel this way?”—this episode is for you.
Brain fog. Anxiety. Irritability. Weight gain. Exhaustion. A quiet sense that you don’t recognize yourself anymore.
High-achieving women are being told it’s stress, burnout, motherhood, aging, or that they just need to try harder. But for many women in midlife, that explanation is flat-out wrong.
In this episode of What the Shift, I sit down with Dana Culp, founder of Thrive Midlife Medicine, to expose the massive blind spot in women’s healthcare—and the cost of ignoring it.
We talk about:
Why so many women feel “off” long before menopause—and why it’s missed
How perimenopause is misdiagnosed as anxiety, burnout, or personal failure
The real reason “pushing through” stops working in midlife
What the science actually says about hormones and long-term health
Why nothing is wrong with you—and what your body is asking for instead
This isn’t about fixing women. It’s about telling the truth.
Because when women understand what’s happening in their bodies, they stop blaming themselves—and start making powerful, informed choices about what comes next.
If this episode lands, share it with the woman who’s Googling her symptoms at 2am and wondering if she’s broken.
She’s not. She was never told the whole story.
Learn more about Dana and at take the quiz at thrivemidlifemed.com/quiz

Balance Is the Lie That Keeps High-Achieving Women Functioning in Lives That No Longer Fit

There was a time when balance made sense. When life was simpler. Fewer roles. Fewer demands. Less constant access.
But that’s not the world high-achieving women are living in now. In today’s reality, balance doesn’t create freedom—it creates containment. In this episode, I unpack why balance may have worked once, but quietly fails women whose lives, responsibilities, and expectations have outgrown the strategy meant to manage them.
You’ll hear:
Why balance becomes a trap
How women are trained to overfunction—and systems learn to rely on it
Why “equal distribution of weight” is laughable in real life
And what it takes to redesign a life around who you are now, not who you had to be
This isn’t about doing less. It’s about choosing differently.
If you’ve been managing a life that looks successful but feels heavy, this episode will put words to what you’ve been living—and point to a more honest way forward.
I’m also inviting a small group of women to apply for the PowerShift Launch Team to help carry this message into the world.
Balance had its moment. This is what comes next.
Visit www.gialacqua.com for more information.

When Life Forces the Shift: Cancer, Control, and Choosing Yourself with Cara Lockwood

What happens when life rips the illusion of control straight out of your hands?
In this episode of What the Shift, Gia sits down with Cara Lockwood — USA Today bestselling novelist turned cancer truth-teller—for a raw, honest conversation about what breast cancer really takes… and what it gives back.
Diagnosed with stage 1 HER2-positive breast cancer during a routine mammogram, Cara was thrust into a reality she never chose: fear, uncertainty, loss of control—and a complete identity reckoning. What followed wasn’t a polished “warrior” narrative, but a messy, human shift from terror to agency.
Together, Gia and Cara unpack:
Why toxic positivity fails women facing real fear
How humor can be defiance—not denial
The identity shift that happens when the “doer” becomes the one who needs care
What control actually looks like when everything feels out of control
Why choosing yourself isn’t selfish—it’s survival
Cara also shares why she wrote There’s No Good Book for This (But I Wrote One Anyway)—the irreverent, laugh-out-loud guide she wished she had—and how laughter became one of her most powerful tools for reclaiming agency.
This episode isn’t about “staying positive.”It’s about telling the truth.Choosing yourself.And learning—at the deepest level—that you can do hard things.
🎧 Listen if you’re navigating a life-altering diagnosis, a forced pivot, or a moment where everything you thought you controlled… disappeared.
Learn more about Cara: caratheauthor.com

Why High-Achieving Women Don’t Know What They Want (And How to Find Out)

High-achieving women are often praised for being capable, accomplished, and put-together—yet privately struggle with a haunting question: Why don’t I know what I want anymore?
In this powerful episode of What the Shift, Gia sits down with coach, podcaster, and creative guide Monica Rodgers to unpack the invisible conditioning that disconnects women from their desires, needs, and inner knowing.
Together, they explore:
Why high-achieving women lose touch with what they want—and why it’s not a personal failure
The “Pretty, Pleasing, Polite” trap and the double bind women are raised inside
How perfectionism and overfunctioning become survival strategies
The Dark Night of the Soul as an initiation—not a breakdown
Why women dissociate from their bodies—and how embodiment restores clarity
How your personal story becomes your greatest source of power
What it actually takes to trust yourself again
This conversation is for women who have checked all the boxes, climbed the ladder, and still feel disconnected, depleted, or quietly unfulfilled—and are ready to stop performing success and start living in alignment.
If you’ve ever thought “Is this it?”—this episode is your invitation to listen more closely.
Learn more about Monica: jointherevelation.com

Too Much? Not Enough? The Identity Crisis High Performers Don’t Talk About

If you’ve ever felt too much in one room and not enough in another, this episode is going to hit you right in the truth.
In this powerful conversation, Gia sits down with leadership coach, keynote speaker, and author Cassy Williamson to unpack the invisible identity crisis so many high-achieving women are silently navigating.nWe dig into the real reasons women overperform, overgive, overachieve—and still feel like they’re falling short.
Together, we explore:
Why high performers confuse excellence with earning their worth
The childhood messages that shape our inner critic
How burnout becomes a badge, masking a deeper identity disconnect
Why women shrink in rooms that can’t hold their full energy
How to know when you’ve outgrown the life you built
What it takes to stop performing success and start actually living it
The shift from pleasing → proving → becoming
Cassy shares her raw personal story, including the moment she was told to “tone it down” in a corporate setting—and how that became the catalyst for her book, Unapologetic, and her life’s work of helping women lead with truth instead of approval.
If you’re craving alignment, reinvention, and the courage to be fully yourself without apology…this conversation is your permission slip and your strategy.
WATCH/LISTEN IF YOU’RE ASKING:
“Why am I still not happy even though I’m successful?”
“Why do I keep shrinking to make others comfortable?”
“How do I stop doubting myself?”
“How do I trust the part of me that wants more?”
This is the episode that helps you stop performing for your worth—and start becoming who you were always meant to be.
Learn more about Cassy: cassywilliamson.com

The Truth You Need to Hear About AI, Conscious Leadership, and the Future of Work

What’s really happening at the intersection of technology and humanity—and what does it mean for your career, your leadership, and your purpose?
In this powerful episode of What the Shift, Gia sits down with Pete Sacco—visionary entrepreneur, modern-day mystic, and CEO who’s been building the infrastructure powering AI, data centers, microgrids, and high-performance computing for decades. But Pete’s not just a tech pioneer—he’s a leader who believes that the future belongs to those who merge innovation with consciousness, clarity, and presence.
Together, we explore:
What you must understand about AI—beyond the headlines, hype, and fear
Quantum computing, in plain English—and what becomes possible when it reaches scale
Why high achievers are burning out despite “success”
How conscious leadership is becoming the new competitive advantage
What the next generation needs to know about technology, purpose, and humanity
Why presence—not productivity—will define the leaders of the future
How AI can actually make us more human, not less
Pete shares his personal story of reinvention—from burnout and disconnection to transforming his health, rebuilding his life, and redefining what success truly means. His insights will challenge everything you think you know about leadership, innovation, and your role in a rapidly changing world.
If you want to understand the real future of work—and your place in it—this is the episode you cannot afford to skip.
Learn more at petesacco.com
 

From Pro Athlete to Purpose: Bob Wheatley on Reinvention & Personal Branding

When life collapses, most people cling tighter. Bob Wheatley did the opposite. He surrendered — and everything shifted. In this episode of What the Shift, Gia sits down with USA Today bestselling author, keynote speaker, and former professional athlete Bob Wheatley to unpack the truth about reinvention, identity, and purpose-led personal branding. Bob shares the raw story behind the summer everything fell apart — his baseball career, his business, his long-term relationship — and how that breakdown became the catalyst for the greatest breakthrough of his life. You’ll hear how surrender, faith, and radical clarity led him from minor league baseball to national bestselling author and respected speaker on stages across the country. Together, Gia and Bob dig into: The identity shift that happens when your biggest dream ends Why surrender is often the doorway to your deepest calling The Brand Builders Group philosophy: Find your uniqueness and exploit it in the service of others How to build a personal brand rooted in truth, impact, and reputation — not vanity metrics Why strategy matters more than growth, followers, or “looking successful” The tug people feel when they’re meant for more — and how to answer it Why the most powerful message you’ll ever share is the one you needed yourself If you’re navigating a reinvention, craving clarity, or wrestling with a shift you didn’t ask for — this episode will hit you where you live. It’s not about starting over. It’s about finally becoming who you were built to be.
Free audiobook: https://wealthyandwellknown.com/audiobook-rpp/?affiliate_code=147442#download
Schedule a call w/ Bob: https://freebrandcall.com/bw/

The Do-It-All Trap: How Women Leaders Stop Performing and Start Leading

Women leaders aren’t burning out because they “can’t handle it.” They’re burning out because the workplace still rewards overfunctioning, perfectionism, and nonstop availability — especially for high-achieving women in midlife.
In this episode of What the Shift, empowerment strategist Gia speaks with Johanna Danaher, founder of Anchor to Aspire™ Coaching and former Pfizer global talent leader, about the real reasons women leaders feel overwhelmed, exhausted, and stuck in the do-it-all trap.
Johanna shares her personal reinvention after a 25-year corporate career and breaks down the hidden patterns that derail women’s leadership growth, including:
The root causes of burnout in women leaders
How perfectionism, control, and people-pleasing fuel overfunctioning
Why imposter syndrome spikes during career transitions and midlife
The impact of menopause on energy, confidence, and leadership capacity
The difference between effective leadership and chronic overdelivery
How to set boundaries at work without guilt
Why pausing is a critical leadership strategy—not a luxury
How to build clarity, energy, and purpose during life and career transitions
This episode is designed for high-achieving women navigating career pivots, midlife identity shifts, burnout recovery, or leadership advancement. If you’re tired of doing it all, holding it all, and proving it all — this conversation will show you how to lead with more clarity, confidence, and capacity.
Listen now to learn how to stop performing success—and start leading with intention, energy, and power.
Learn more about Johanna: anchortoaspire.com

Burnout Isn't Fatigue — It's a Nervous System Crash: The Biology Behind Burnout Nobody Talks About

We’ve glamorized burnout. Bragged about it. Normalized it. But here’s the truth: burnout isn’t tired — it’s a nervous system crash.
In this eye-opening conversation, Gia sits down with Garrett Wood, clinical hypnotherapist, executive functioning specialist, and founder of Gnosis Therapy, to dismantle everything we think we know about burnout.
They unpack the biology behind burnout — how chronic stress rewires your brain, why your coping mechanisms become biochemical addictions, and how early conditioning hardwires the “never enough” cycle into your nervous system.
This isn’t about sleep hacks or bubble baths. It’s about reclaiming your body from survival mode.Because sustainable success is built through your well-being — not at its expense.
Tune in to learn:
Why burnout isn’t mental weakness — it’s a physiological shutdown
How trauma, identity, and overachievement intersect to fuel exhaustion
The hidden link between childhood attachment and adult burnout
What “high-masking” looks like — and how it silently drains your energy
How to regulate, relate, and reason your way back to sustainable performance
If you’ve ever said “I’m just tired,” but you know it’s deeper than that—this episode will change how you see yourself, your success, and your nervous system.
Learn more about Garrett: https://www.gnosistherapy.com/

When Mindset Isn’t Enough: The Hidden Physiology Behind Leadership Burnout

You’ve read the books. You’ve done the mindset work. So why are you still running on empty?
Because burnout isn’t just in your head—it’s in your body.
In this powerful conversation, Gia sits down with Kathryn Spears, a NeuroSomatic Intelligence Practitioner and Fractional CMO who helps high-achieving women move beyond survival mode and lead from true physiological capacity.
They unpack the hidden link between your nervous system and your leadership, how dysregulation shows up as overfunctioning and perfectionism, and why real change doesn’t start with your thoughts—it starts with your body.
If you’ve ever felt like your drive is outpacing your energy, this episode will help you stop leading from depletion and start leading from alignment.
In this episode:
The neuroscience behind burnout and why mindset work alone can’t fix it
How to identify when your body is stressed—even when you “feel fine”
Why your nervous system determines your clarity, presence, and capacity
Practical tools to rewire your stress response and reclaim sustainable success
Listen now—and learn what it really takes to lead at full capacity.
Learn more about Kathryn: beyondyourmindset.com