A Bunch of Therapists Podcast

A Bunch of Therapists Podcast goes behind the doors of the therapy room, turning candid conversations with fellow therapists into powerful revelations about the human experience - from both sides of the couch.

Hosted by our CEO, Michaela McCarthy, and Dipti Solanki, each episode shares insightful and sometimes unexpected stories from people who’ve experienced counselling and psychotherapy – and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.

Whether you’re in therapy, considering it, or simply curious about how it works, this podcast offers real insight into the therapeutic journey – what it feels like, why it matters, and how it can change lives.

New episodes every Thursday. Listen and watch wherever you get your podcasts.

Subscribe, listen and watch wherever you get your podcasts

Episode 26: Turbulent Relationships & Helping Gang-Affected Youth | ShediYah HatNebMaoo

This episode contains discussion around relationship breakdown, low self-esteem, vulnerable young people, gang involvement, and creative therapy approaches.

Join us for an inspiring and deeply personal conversation with Child, Adolescent and Family Therapist ShediYah HatNebMaoo as she shares her unconventional journey from struggling in a turbulent relationship with low self-esteem to becoming a compassionate therapist who helps vulnerable young people imagine new possibilities for their lives.

This honest discussion explores how therapy can transform our confidence and self-belief, and why creative, person-centred approaches are so powerful when working with young people facing difficult circumstances.

In this compelling episode, ShediYah openly shares:

  • Her unconventional journey into therapy as a young mother
  • Struggling in a turbulent relationship with low self-esteem
  • Being encouraged to try therapy by her partner’s probation officer
  • Feeling unsafe leaving her children with someone else
  • Finding a therapist who allowed her to bring her children along
  • How therapy helped her rebuild her confidence
  • Contemplating a career change whilst raising young children
  • Spending 4 years volunteering before committing to training as a counsellor
  • Working with children and young people, many of whom are vulnerable
  • Supporting young people with experience of gangs
  • Using gentle, person-centred approaches in her work
  • Incorporating creative therapy and dreamwork into her practice
  • Helping young people to ‘imagine something else for themselves’
  • Her role as a lecturer and Clinical Supervisor

This essential conversation offers valuable insights for anyone working with vulnerable young people, navigating difficult relationships, or interested in creative therapeutic approaches.

Key Topics Discussed:

  • Seeking help whilst managing childcare responsibilities
  • The impact of turbulent relationships on self-esteem and confidence
  • Therapy as a catalyst for personal transformation
  • The power of person-centred approaches
  • Creative therapy and dreamwork with young people
  • Supporting vulnerable young people and those affected by gangs
  • Building hope and possibility with young people facing adversity
  • The journey from client to therapist
  • Volunteering and career transitions
  • Clinical supervision and training others
  • Reimagining futures for young people in difficult circumstances

Learn more about ShediYah HatNebMaoo.

Subscribe, listen and watch wherever you get your podcasts

More from A Bunch of Therapists

Your hosts

Therapy in Marylebone with Michaela McCarthy

Michaela McCarthy

Michaela McCarthy is a psychotherapist, entrepreneur, and the creator and host of A Bunch of Therapists podcast. Born into a working-class Irish immigrant family, Michaela was exposed early to the realities of mental illness and addiction within her own home. Her personal experiences, including witnessing her mother’s psychiatric hospitalisation and her father’s struggle with alcoholism, shaped a deep commitment to understanding the human psyche.

Feeling different from a young age and struggling with her own issues, Michaela embarked on a long and transformative journey towards self-discovery, healing, and belonging. Years of personal therapy led her to train as a counsellor, psychotherapist, psychosexual & relationship therapist and clinical supervisor. Her mission has always been clear: to support others in navigating their own paths, allowing space to explore, heal and grow.

Michaela is the founder and CEO of The Awareness Centre, The Awareness Centre Training School, and Michaela McCarthy & Associates. Through these platforms, and now her podcast, she brings together insight, empathy, and unfiltered conversations to de-stigmatise therapy and empower others.

Grounded in lived experience and professional expertise, Michaela describes herself as a “person of knowing” who approaches life with honesty, grit, and a passion for connection.

Dipti Solanki

Dipti Solanki

Dipti Solanki is a therapist, grief coach, and founder of Grief Matters 4 All CIC, with 19 years of experience supporting people through life’s transition and emotional crossroads. Whether that’s loss, identity shifts, emotional overwhelm, or navigating complex relationships. Her work sits at the meeting point of therapy and coaching, helping people feel seen, supported, and reconnected to their own sense of self, even in the most difficult seasons.

Dipti brings a unique depth to her work, blending the insight of therapy with the action-oriented clarity of coaching. Whether she’s holding space one-to-one, facilitating group work, training organisations on grief and wellbeing, or speaking to larger audiences, her approach is grounded, inclusive, and always real.

She’s been featured in a range of media, including a BBC documentary ‘Living with Loss’, BBC London Radio, The Independent, The Observer, and OK! Magazine, and is the creator of ‘Grief, Heartbreak and Hope – There’s So Much More to Say’ a guided journal designed to help people gently process and make space for their grief after losing a loved one.

Dipti is passionate about creating emotionally honest spaces. She works at the intersection of emotional wellbeing, compassion, and cultural sensitivity, with a deep commitment to making mental and emotional support feel accessible and human.

On this podcast, Dipti brings all of that and more: therapist, coach, speaker, and human – offering honest, heart-led conversations about therapy, life, healing, and what it means to grow through the things that shape us.