What if becoming a mother wasn’t just a life event — but a radical transformation of self?

This week on The Shadows We Cast, Jenn sits down with Jessie Harrold — doula, coach, author, and founder of Imaginalia — to explore the complex and rarely named process of matrescence. Like adolescence, matrescence is a profound identity shift that touches every layer of our being: emotional, physical, spiritual, and cultural. And yet… we’re barely talking about it.

Together, they unpack:
· What matrescence actually is — and why we all need language for it
· Why radical change often begins with grief
· How to “mythologize” your story rather than pathologize your pain
· What Jessie calls the “gooey middle” — the messy, necessary in-between of identity transformation
· Why small practices, like Jessie’s “Five Things” check-in, can become lifelines through transition

This episode touches on the thresholds we all cross: motherhood, menopause, grief, healing, and the quiet reckoning of asking, Who am I now? Whether you’re navigating change yourself or supporting someone who is, this conversation offers insight, compassion, and the reminder: you’re not broken. You’re becoming.

Host/Producer/Writer/Director: Jenn St John
Editor: Andrew Schiller