Shows
The Torn PodcastEpisode 11 - Talia's Story: My life or death choiceSometimes an inner conflict is not about preferences, careers, or relationships, but about survival itself.In this deeply moving episode, we hear the anonymised story of a woman facing a life-threatening cancer diagnosis while still grieving the sudden death of her partner. With her body, her future, and her sense of self all under threat, she finds herself torn between two radically different paths: evidence-based medical treatment, or alternative therapies closely tied to her partner’s beliefs and values.Narrated by an actor to protect confidentiality, the story is explored by Susan, Caitlin an...
2026-02-0359 minThe Torn PodcastEpisode 10 - Richard's Story: I felt powerless to stop drinkingWhat happens when a relationship to alcohol that once felt easy and enjoyable begins to feel complicated?In this episode, Richard shares his experience of becoming torn about alcohol and how he used parts work to think through and reshape his changing relationship with drinking. Following a health scare, Richard knew something needed to change, but stopping outright didn’t feel simple or right. Instead, he found himself navigating competing inner voices: parts that valued pleasure, routine and social connection, alongside parts that wanted health, clarity and self-respect.This episode explores how parts work...
2026-01-2046 minThe Torn PodcastEpisode 9 - What is Parts Work & Why's it Important? Conversation with a TherapistWhat if the parts of you that feel anxious, critical, or overwhelming aren’t problems to fix, but parts of you trying, in their own way, to protect you?In this episode, Caitlin is joined by Alex, a London-based psychotherapist working with Internal Family Systems (IFS). For professional confidentiality reasons, Alex’s voice is performed by an actor, but the insights shared are very real and deeply practical.Together, they explore how IFS helps us understand inner conflict by recognising that we are not a single, unified voice, but a system of “parts” each with its o...
2026-01-0646 minThe Torn PodcastEpisode 8 - Ian's Story: Torn about my sexualityWhat happens when who you are feels unsafe to be known?In this episode of The Torn Podcast, we share Ian’s story, which is a powerful, long-arc journey of inner conflict shaped by growing up gay in a time when homosexuality was illegal in the UK. Narrated by an actor to protect anonymity, Ian’s story traces decades of tension between inner truth and external danger: family expectations, religious pressure, fear of punishment, and the very real threat of violence.Susan and Caitlin reflect on Ian’s experiences through the lens of inner c...
2025-12-2339 minThe Torn PodcastEpisode 7 - The journey through inner conflictWhat really happens inside us when we’re torn? After analysing over 120 real stories of inner conflict, the Torn Project team noticed something unexpected: a shared pattern running through every account. In this episode, they introduce The Torn Journey, a seven-stage map that traces how inner conflict first stirs, how it intensifies, where we get stuck, and how resolution can become possible.In this episode, Susan and Caitlin walk us through each stage: from unconscious unease and conscious awareness, through information-gathering and experimentation, to the tipping point, the forks in the road, and the final resolution. Thi...
2025-12-0939 minThe Torn PodcastEpisode 6 - Mary's Story: My child's life in my handsIn this dramatisation of a real-life experience, we step inside the mind of a mother facing an unimaginable choice. Told as a first-person monologue and voiced by an actor without any external comment, this episode navigates the private landscape of fear, love, faith, anger, and the weight of responsibility. Through an exploration of the fierce bond between mother and child, we witness the inner journey of making an impossible decision.This is a deeply emotional story involving serious child illness and bereavement, so you may wish to consider where and when you listen.— Find more sto...
2025-11-2524 minThe Torn PodcastEpisode 5 - Who we are: Introducing The Torn Project TeamIn this episode, the hosts turn the questions on themselves.Susan, Caitlin and James interview one another, sharing how The Torn Project began, what brought each of them to this work, and the personal experiences that continue to shape it.Together, they explore the threads that connect psychology, coaching, technology, and creativity, and reveal what inner conflict means to them, not just as professionals, but as people.This is an episode about purpose, partnership, and the human stories behind The Torn Project, how three different paths converged on a shared...
2025-11-1150 minThe Torn PodcastEpisode 4 - Emilia's Story: Do I abandon my dream job?What happens when the job you’ve worked your whole life to reach becomes a place of quiet harm? In this episode, an actor tells Emilia's story from the joy of being elected president of her national cycling federation to the slow realisation that she was facing a culture of undermining, surveillance and workplace bullying.After each chapter, Caitlin and James explore the inner conflict at the heart of Amelia’s experience: duty versus agency, heart versus gut, staying to “do the right thing” versus leaving to protect your wellbeing. They discuss red flags of bullying, why self...
2025-10-2751 minThe Torn PodcastEpisode 3 - What do we get torn about?We all experience moments of inner conflict, from the small, everyday choices to the big, life-defining decisions. In this episode, Susan and Caitlin explore the many shapes that being ‘torn’ can take between duty and desire, past and future, self and others. Drawing on stories from The Torn Project and their own experiences, they uncover what these tensions reveal about who we are, what we value, and how we learn to live with the contradictions that make us human.Find more stories, resources and hope on all things inner conflict at our website www.t...
2025-10-1429 minThe Torn PodcastEpisode 2 - Paul's Story: Should I leave my marriage?Paul spent years pushing down his true desires, until one moment of honesty changed everything. In this episode, an actor shares Paul’s story and after each chapter of that story, Susan, Caitlin and James reflect on what his conflict reveals about choice, longing and courage. This is a story about the tension between 'wanting' and 'getting' and the possibilities and risks which open up when we finally pay attention to what we really want.— Find more stories, resources and hope on all things inner conflict at our website www.thetornproject.comFollow...
2025-09-301h 04The Torn PodcastEpisode 1 - What is the Torn Project and Why?We all know the feeling of being pulled in two directions at once. In this first episode, Susan, Caitlin and James introduce The Torn Project; why it exists; what 'inner conflict' really means; and how listening to real stories and learning from reliable resources can help us find balance. This process marks the start of an ongoing conversation about those messy human moments when our wants, needs and beliefs collide – moments which are actually an essential part of our development as human beings. If you've ever felt torn, ever supported someone who felt torn, or are curious about the topi...
2025-09-3036 min
Don't Step on the BluebellsNature as Healer: How Slowing Down Reconnects You to Yourself — Caitlin CockertonSend us a textWhen was the last time you truly connected with nature? Not just a quick glance at a tree or a rushed walk through a park, but a deep, intentional engagement with the natural world around you?In this soul-stirring conversation, wilderness guide and coach Caitlin Cockerton reveals how nature serves as both mirror and medicine for our inner landscapes. "Healing is remembering who we truly are," Caitlin explains, highlighting the dual meaning of both recalling our authentic selves and literally "re-membering" or putting back together parts that have become disconnected through...
2025-05-1557 min
Life Beyond The Numbers#114 What’s Another Year? Susan Ní Chriodain"How did you feel about this year as a whole? And if you were to title this past year as a chapter in your story, what would it be? So, I've put together some thoughts on this year."
The years seems to go by so quickly and can seem like they all roll into one. It can be easy to think well 'what's another year'. In this episode I reflect on the year and explore 2022 around four main themes - self-expression, nature, community and the inner world.
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2022-12-2440 min
Life Beyond The Numbers#112 Go Outside - Caitlin Cockerton"Keep it simple. It's free. Go outside. There are so many reasons to do it. It's so funny we love to complicate things. Our human brains are like, surely we should be paying for this meeting room and if only we could be doing some weird technical thing as part of our team bonding experience, then we'll be doing the right thing. But no, let's get back to basics". Caitlin Cockerton
Caitlin Cockerton is an avid advocate for spending time, including work time, in nature. She explains that nature is a great metaphor for us an...
2022-12-1043 min