Episode #37: Healing, Awakening, and the Journey Back to Self as an HSP With Nicole Peterhans
Nicole Peterhans shares how the journey from insecurity to deep healing and self-trust can help HSPs return to our intuition, inner power, and true identity.
Welcome back to The Happy HSP Podcast. I’m your host Kimberly Marshall, and today’s conversation is all about the power of healing and what it truly means to come home to yourself as a highly sensitive person.
I’m joined by Energy Alignment & Empowerment Coach Nicole Peterhans, and together we talk about the ways sensitivity can shape our childhood, how our fears and insecurities can grow when we don’t feel fully seen or understood, and what can happen when we realize there is far more to who we are than the roles we’ve been living.
If you’ve ever struggled with people-pleasing, hiding your voice, questioning your intuition, or feeling like something in your life just isn’t aligning, this episode is for you.
I hope you enjoy it!
Kim: Nicole, thank you so much for joining me today. It’s such a pleasure to have you.
Nicole: Thank you. Thank you, Kim. I’m really happy to be here.
Kim: Yeah. So, my first question for you is about your journey in high sensitivity and how you found out and what led to your discovery there?
Nicole: This is a funny question because it was kind of interesting how I came across this. I was not aware of high sensitivity for much of my life. I actually just learned about this two years ago, and it was during a summit where I was invited through Jen Corcoran, and I think she was on this program as well a little while ago. And I just connected with her on LinkedIn and she invited me to the summit. And honestly, I wasn’t too interested.
I’m like, yeah, I’m not a sensitive, or at least not highly sensitive. I kind of had a very different interpretation of what a highly sensitive would be. And so, I was like, I don’t need that. But anyway, I figured I’m just going to listen in. And then he started to listen to the first talk and then the second, then each one of them had something that I resonated with and I’m like, oh my gosh, this is me and this is me too. And then in one of the talks, one women said when she was younger in school, she would not raise her hand in school.
And I’m like, this was me too. I did not, I wanted to hide. And then boom, everything opened up and I started to dig in and realize that I’m totally highly sensitive. I just had no idea until about two years ago. Yeah.
Kim: Wow. So that was when Jen invited you to talk, but she must have seen something about what you…
Nicole: No, no. She only invited me to listen to join the summit basically, but I was not a speaker.
Kim: Got it. Okay. That makes sense.
Nicole: Yes.
Kim: Then what kind of clicked into place for you?
Nicole: I just realized that a lot of, I mean, we all have that, I would say this deeper sensitivity to what’s going on and kind of seeing everything from a different perspective or seeing all the different perspectives that are at play, not just this linear thinking, but seeing everything, how things are playing out. And I realized that because oftentimes I will blame myself when I was younger growing up, and I felt a lot of guilt because I grew up in a very structured and regulated environment, and where just one way was seen and I often saw different things, how things could play out, and I’m like, why can’t we do it this way? Or I would do something differently. And then I was being told off about this and then I feel bad. So, I started to develop a lot of guilt and thinking that I just didn’t get it.
I thought I was stupid because I couldn’t follow directions and things like that. And that’s when I also, I wanted to hide. When I started to hide, I discovered I developed a lot of insecurities, and I just wanted to not be seen anymore. So, at first it was very hard, this whole journey, but looking back now, I realize why I did that, and that helped a lot, realizing this actually was because I have this sensitivity trait, which I feel is a very beautiful thing in the end. But when I was younger, it was definitely hard as a child, it was very difficult.
Kim: So, it took some time to kind of accept and adjust in that way.
Nicole: Well, yeah, very much. I mean, that actually brought me on my healing journey because I had all these fears, and a lot of fears I developed because through the insecurities I developed a lot of fears and especially fears around doing things wrong, not doing things the way that was expected or saying the wrong things. I had a lot of things that I would say where I got eye rolls back from one of my parents that was like, oh my God, what is she saying again? And so, these insecurities developed into a lot of fears and I just didn’t want to be hurt anymore, and I made sure I wasn’t hurt anymore, and I was starting to hide and kind of not raising my hand, as I said before, or kind of hiding in the group so that I wasn’t chosen. And this took a long time. Once I started to address that, to heal it.
Kim: That makes so much sense. It’s like, if people are constantly telling you, oh, that’s weird or wrong or off, then the more and more you want to protect yourself and by shrinking and being invisible, to hide that pain, right?
Nicole: Yes, exactly. And again, I feel like it’s maybe more for a sensitive, a nonsensitive maybe would just shrug it off…
Kim: Exactly, whatever…
Nicole: But I really took this to heart and I’m like, oh yeah, they don’t like that. They didn’t understand what I was saying, so something must be wrong with me. So I internalized this a lot from a very early age on, I mean, through the work I do a lot of inner child work with my clients, but also with myself. And I sometimes look at or have certain photos in mind from me when I was a child, and I look at them and I already saw the insecurity back then when I was five years old, seven years old. It already developed then, and I guess this has hindered me from, or because I was starting to hide, I stepped back from a lot of opportunities that came my way because I just did not move along with them.
I was afraid of the many fears that I had, and because I didn’t want to be seen, I would not voluntarily step up to do something. I always let other people go first. And even podcasts now, I’m not so new anymore, but I kind of made myself come out here because once I learned about that, I did say, okay, this is my goal now to be seen. I’m making myself to be seen. And podcasts was one way, and at first it was horrifying. I didn’t like it, and now it’s okay. Now I got used to it, and it’s easier.
Kim: Yeah, it’s amazing how simply just sharing your story and what you’ve been through can help other people. It’s just..
Nicole: Yes, exactly. Exactly. Yeah. Because we all, or a lot of us experience the same thing and we think it’s just us and then we realize, no, it’s actually a lot of people who go through…
Kim: Everyone. We all have our own journeys of self-discovery and overcoming here and healing. It’s not just you, it’s all of us.
Nicole: Exactly. Exactly. Oh yeah, we all have ours. That’s so true.
Kim: Was there a point for you where you were just tired of hiding or what kind of changed that set you off on your healing journey, would you say?
Nicole: It was more fluid for me because again, for a long time I just thought, that’s me. I just thought that’s my personality. So, I didn’t realize that it was something that could be changed. But I’m originally from Switzerland, and so when I moved to this country in the late nineties, we lived in Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, and I always say, this is kind of the candy store for all things spiritual. I mean, you can kind of, everything is there. Beautiful.
And I was very excited. I was like, oh, this is cool. This is fascinated by this fascinated. And so, I started doing some reiki and then eventually working with a healer, not really understanding the depth of where this journey would take me, I just kind of thought, oh yeah, let’s work on this fear, and once this is done or over, then I’m good.
Kim: Wait, there’s more!
Nicole: Then it was one thing after the other, but then eventually I realized how much has changed me, and this was still even before I had any idea about HSP at all, but I still realized how I was finding back to myself and regaining my confidence and not hiding anymore. So, all these things started to take place way before I ever knew about high sensitivity, but that’s how I just kind of smoothly started this journey and working on these lower vibrations and lower emotions. And that’s just hindering you in so many ways to live your full potential.
Kim: Right, right. I love that you talk about it in terms of vibration. It’s like these negative feelings, these negative thoughts, they all keep us so bogged down.
Nicole: Exactly. Yes, I think so too. I think it has a lot. I mean, our mind creates our reality and our beliefs are shaped very early on what we experience, or at least that’s my belief. But what I came to understand through my journey is the beliefs that we have, they form in our childhood, really, through our experiences.
And if you’re told you can’t do certain things or you shouldn’t do certain things or are constantly stopped from following your needs once or intuition, then you eventually start to feel, start to move into these not being good enough, not being worthy beliefs, and they really laid a foundation for your life, then life will show you this, that you’re not worthy and will make sure that you will be constantly experience situations that show you that you’re not good enough to do whatever you have in mind. So, I believe the limitations, the limiting beliefs are very, very detrimental.
Kim: They keep you right somewhere that you’re not supposed to be until you see them, you face them and you learn how to heal and release that from you.
Nicole: Exactly. Yes. Yeah.
Kim: So, I think I read that you’re an ascension coach, is that correct?
Nicole: Awakening. I help people. I help people. I mean, I do healing work. I help people on their awakening journey and exactly, because I feel like a lot of us are coming to this point where we feel like, oh, something’s amiss here. This can’t be all. And then we start to question our reality and start to want to live differently from a place of expansion and allowing another place from diminishing ourselves and holding ourselves back. So, I do help people step into this empowered version of who we all are. I mean, we all have this empowered aspect in us of who we truly are, of our essence, the essence that we are. Everything is possible if we allow it, let’s put it that way. We have to allow it, and we have to overcome these limiting beliefs.
Kim: Yes. That hold us back from experiencing that full expansion.
Nicole: Exactly, exactly. Yes. Because again, it, it’s our beliefs that hold us back. If you’re just allowing and choosing to experience, then we can experience whatever we want. And these beliefs are, I feel like this is also something that a lot of people are not aware of, but we can change our beliefs. We can also change our subconscious beliefs because a lot of our beliefs, or maybe, yeah, I guess, I don’t know how many, actually, I don’t know the percentage, but I know some beliefs we are very aware of, but we also have a lot of belief that we are not aware of that are in our subconscious. And they can be shifted. They can be neutralized.
Kim: Yeah. It’s so funny you mentioned that. I feel like I read once that there was a study done about how much of the population is actually truly self-aware, and it was only like 15%. It was a really small percentage. We may think we are, but there’s, like you said, there’s so much to uncover. There’s so much to see and explore when it comes to your inner world. I don’t think we’re always very cognizant of that, especially when we’re busy and we’re running from thing to thing and so distracted with everyday life.
Nicole: Yeah. Yeah. I think when we are in daily life, we just accept what’s happening and we accept what’s happening to us. And just again, just kind of go with it and feel like this is just my life, it’s my life. Or we blame things on our good luck or our bad luck. And it’s not really about that. There’s a lot more to this, and we can change our good luck or our bad luck per se. But a lot of people, I would say, or I always say, our subconscious puts us on autopilot. It’s really our subconscious and the beliefs there that just make us do things that we are not conscious. I mean, we are aware of what we are doing, but then we are not really aware where it’s coming from. And it’s really the autopilot within us that just keeps us going until we address it.
Kim: Yeah. We’re reacting. We’re not sitting in our truth and making conscious choices much of the time. It’s subconscious. It’s our program that’s running in the, that is just saying, okay, this happened, feel this way, or this happened, do this now.
Nicole: Exactly.
Kim: We have way more control over that than we think.
Nicole: We really do. I know. And I feel a lot of this is also coming from, it’s stored from our ego mind. And if we start listening more deeply, then we actually have another voice that’s there, the inner voice that our intuition that speaks to us that is there if we pay attention.
Kim: Yes. The ego, the logic, the thoughts versus the body, the intuition, the feeling.
Nicole: Exactly. Yes. You said that very nicely. Which is the feminine versus the masculine. The feminine is our in the world, the feminine qualities. It is the intuition, and it is the wisdom and the knowing of what we need, every single one of us, and then listening to this on the inside and then bring it outside in the outside world and taking the action where then the masculine comes into place. But a lot of us just function from our masculine, just from the doing. Yeah. I have to do. And totally ignoring the feminine, the inside that carries that wisdom until we burn out or…
Kim: We’re like, what’s going on? What’s missing? And we’re not letting ourselves be creative and flowing.
Nicole: Exactly.
Kim: So how would you describe the term awakening? What does that mean to you, and how would you explain that to someone who might be new to this subject?
Nicole: I would say, as I said before, it’s this moment when you realize there’s more. When you go beyond the reality that is, and you are like, no, there’s more to me than just the identity that I took on. There’s more, to me, in my case, I was a stay-at-home mom. There’s more to me than just the mom and the wife and the homemaker and the roles that I define myself or define myself back then. But there’s so much more creativity and longing and wanting, and this doesn’t have to be buried. This can be reactivated, but you have to allow it.
But it’s this moment of realizing, oh my gosh, there’s this whole different world. And maybe you even remember when thinking back to what you loved to do when you were younger, before you had children, who was the person that had all these dreams? And dreams are often still there, but they’re buried. And once you come back to this point of like, okay, I want to go back to or overcome these roles that I just took on or these identities because that’s not you. You are the creativity behind the desires, behind the dreams behind that, that are way bigger than the role.
And then moving into this path, following those desires and opening up and through that, obviously overcoming certain fears and certain restrictions and limitations that we put in our way.
Kim: It’s so funny, and I love the way you put that because it’s like when we’re kids, we’re free. We don’t have to work. We’re not shackled with responsibility and weighed down with fear and conditioning, and we explore and we dream and we think, and we’re just ourselves and we share our needs, and then we learn that that’s not safe. And then there seems to be coming a point in our lives where we’re like, wait, I need to get back to myself. I need to get back to that.
Nicole: Exactly. Exactly. Back to that point. Yes. And it kind of makes sense. I feel like it is such a process of growth, isn’t it, for all of us to go through these stages and to have these experiences. I feel we all come here with a set of experiences that we want to go through, and that’s what we learn or not we learn. That’s what we experienced in our life, really like the situations that we experience that we have and work through them and work through these challenges that all of us have.
But that then brings us on the next level and gives us a different perspective and really opens us up to the next level and allows us to release and move forward. But I feel these experiences do, in a sense, make us stronger. I don’t know, that kind of sounds a little tacky, but we do have to release that and to release it really and free ourselves from those.
Kim: Yeah, it’s almost like the pain just gets too much to bear. You have to make this change and yeah, it’s like an undoing and a letting go and a releasing and a lightening.
Nicole: Exactly. And the waking up in that sense, a real waking up for, and it can be very difficult. I feel like for some people it’s very difficult to make that final step to whatever it is, leaving a relationship, leaving a job, or just really standing up for yourself and putting yourself first, honoring your wants and your needs, especially the needs.
And especially also as an HSP where we are so conditioned to cater to everyone else to make ourselves our first priority and make our needs our first priority. And then once we got that, then we are free to open ourselves up again to everyone else. But we have to do this from a full cup and not from a depleted cup because that depletes us. And that is a lot. I mean, that can be very difficult if you’re not used to this to make ourselves this priority.
Kim: Yeah, it’s scary because it’s like there’s a little bit of self-preservation there, I think, where like you said, leaving relationships, leaving jobs, these are big life decisions that can be very scary. It’s a huge change. The unknown is just that dark, dense, space…
Nicole: And I feel like it doesn’t always have, I mean, it doesn’t have to be done from one step to the next. I feel the process of going inward and working on ourselves kind of leads us in this direction. So, it’s not that at one point we realized, oh my gosh, I don’t like my job anywhere. I have to leave. And then next morning we have to leave. But when we start addressing our fears and slowly releasing them, we will also address a change differently, and we will feel more confident, and we know more why we do this and that it is that we have to do this.
Kim: I love that so much. You’re just taking me back to one of my jobs I had where I was so frightened to stand up for my needs in the workplace. And the minute I started, I was actually really supported. And I was like, why didn’t I do this years ago? I could have had all of this support, and it took me time to rise into my confidence to say, this is what I’m needing, this is how I’m feeling, this is what I would like to be doing. And it takes practice. And I think overcoming that fear, that initial fear is the hardest part. But once you start stepping into that, it kind of becomes easier and easier and easier the more you know yourself.
Nicole: Exactly. Yeah. It’s kind of like the more yourself, the less you give your power away, and the more yourself, the better you know what you need. And then life will shift automatically because that’s kind of where the energy comes in. Again, you attract what you send out. And if you are confident, if you know yourself, if you know what you want, these things will even attract these things, and they will then start to show up in your life. But oftentimes we can’t really fasten this or imagine this how it would look like. And that’s the scary part. And I think that’s where the trust comes in. We just have to trust, trust that it will work out in our highest good, because it will. It always will. It always does.
Kim: It always does, right? Whether you’re in a cycle of pain and agony, eventually that’s leading you to something better, until you make that change for your highest good.
Nicole: If we do the work, if we just let it go, then nothing will change. But if we put in the work and if we are honest with ourselves and honest of what’s stopping us and work through that, things will change always.
Kim: So, I’m guessing this is a lot of what you do in your work. Can you kind of share what you do and how you help people? I think you work with women specifically?
Nicole: Yeah. I actually also like to work with men, I feel, yes. So, I basically, what really steered to my heart is the fears, because I had so many fears and so many insecurities. And so, I really love to help people overcome their fears or just their limitation and just their limiting beliefs. And you can hear it so often if something says something like, oh, I could never do that. We just say these things. But it is a belief that we have. There are so many beliefs that we carry, so, so I do help people that hold themselves back, that come these crossroads of where do I go now? What do I do now? Or even, I also love to work and help people with relationships, work their way through relationships and just attracting the partner that they truly deserve or have these loving relationships that everyone deserves really, and that starts a lot with yourself, how relationship that you have with yourself.
And that’s really the foundation too, with everything in life, not only with job, I mean, everything is about relationships, really. And it’s in the working world or our personal relationships, whether it’s a romantic relationship or with parents or with children, it’s everything. And if we can sort this out, sort our beliefs out and our crutches out, and also see ourselves again in the light of who we are and have the respect towards ourselves and acceptance towards ourselves of who we are, have the confidence, the self-esteem, all these things, the love towards ourselves, the worth, the value. There’s so many of these beliefs that we hold that limiting us, holding us back. So yeah, so I help people sort this all out. Basically, they’re limiting beliefs so that they flow in the relationships in their jobs in life, basically, so that they attract what they want to attract and not stay in miserable positions.
Kim: Yeah, it’s like alignment. It’s like coming home to yourself so deeply that the path isn’t even questionable. You just know what you need. At that point, it’s second nature.
Nicole: Exactly. It just starts flowing. Exactly, yes. Whereas before it was just such a one miserable or one fight after the other, isn’t it? Everything can be a fight or everything can just be in flow.
Kim: Yeah. Do I do this or do I do that, or do I want that, or do I want this? When you know yourself, it’s just like you said, you just let go and you trust and everything just comes to you.
Nicole: Exactly. Everything flows.
Kim: Yes.
Nicole: And your flow, then life starts to flow, basically. Yes. And again, this has a lot to do. I think it has everything to do really with yourself, how you regard yourself. So, the relationship that you have with yourself and how you believe in yourself, how you honor yourself, respect yourself, love yourself. And this is always what it comes down to. And so that’s how I help my clients sort it out by going deeper, by looking at the wounds, what wounds are there of abandonment, neglect, rejection, because we all have them. We all do from our upbringing. So, looking at these wounds, looking at the beliefs, and then kind of get this out of the way so that they can flow and are in alignment with their dreams.
Kim: And move from a denser kind of experience in life to just a lightness. A joyful. Joyful. Yeah. Beautiful.
Nicole: Yes.
Kim: So, what do you struggle with when it comes to high sensitivity, would you say? What’s a challenge for you?
Nicole: A challenge for me is still the people pleasing and the boundaries. That’s still hard. I mean, much, much better. And I definitely know myself now what I need, and I’m way better at saying no, but I still have moments where I am maybe say no or yes too fast. But then I often actually go back and say, no. I’m like, no, I probably should not have agreed to this, so let’s change that.
Kim: Got myself in a sticky situation. I’m definitely feeling a full body no here.
Nicole: Yes. Whereas in the past, I would’ve gone through that and just go with it. Like, no, I’m not going to do this. And so, I decline whatever it is.
Kim: And that again comes from your self-regard and your self-worth.
Nicole: Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Yeah, exactly. Just respecting myself and making myself a priority there, as I say, and respecting my needs. And even we have a little coffee shop here in our neighborhood, not neighborhood, but nearby, and they always have the music on and the high sensitive, I don’t really a lot of, or at least not loud music. And we are usually sitting outside in the patio. And when we are the only ones, I always turn it down. And I would’ve never done that in the past. I mean, just would’ve been from the point place of my insecurities, I would’ve never done that.
And now I just take that liberty and turn it down. Or I ask if when we are in a restaurant, I ask, can you please turn the music down? It’s too loud. Or then you leave. So that’s kind of something where I would, oh, okay. Let’s go in. And then later on, no, I can’t stay here. We have to leave. So yeah, just really making these acknowledgements to yourself of honoring you. What is in my best interest here?
Kim: Yeah. It’s so funny you mentioned that even I find that kiosks, when you’re checking yourself out, the real loud beeping, and it’s talking through, or even gas stations now, when you use the pump, they’re playing music and it’s like, it’s constant.
Nicole: Constant noise. I know. It’s constant noise. And now it also starts with the smells at sometimes when you’re in the hotels, they have these air fresheners and there’s smells everywhere, and I get headaches from that. Yeah. And that’s harder to kind of avoid. I mean, I usually just run through the lobby and have my husband check in.
Kim: Yeah. It’s a barrage on our senses. No wonder we’re looking for dark rooms.
Nicole: Exactly. Yes. Yes. Totally. Yeah. So sometimes obviously it’s a little easier to escape, and sometimes it’s not so easy. But just if I can, then I do make a shift and change something.
Kim: And what do you love about your sensitivity? What would you celebrate?
Nicole: I love the depth of experience that I have. I think it’s fascinating. And to just see all these different angles, kind of get the full picture of every experience. And I feel there’s a lot of creativity in that to see all these different angles, and I really enjoy that. And it also helps me, I mean, you develop the compassion for people because you see where they’re coming from. You don’t just label them, but you see their point of view and then the compassion that develops. And I feel it gives me a very rich experience with people and situations, because I see all the different angles.
Kim: Right, right. It’s not just surface level, it’s the depth.
Nicole: Yeah. Yes. And it is kind of the depths that I’ve always enjoyed. And that’s something that, I mean, I’ve always enjoyed, even before I knew I was highly sensitive. I’ve always enjoyed the depths with people. I was never really interested just on superficial experiences. And so, I appreciate that a lot too. And also, when I meet other people to have that very in-depth experience. So rich, I feel like it’s very soul fulfilling to communicate and exchange on such a deep level.
Kim: I know I’m so with you, and I feel like a lot of the people that I meet that can’t carry conversations that way, just, I don’t know. It’s not for me anymore. The shallow conversation, it feels awkward. It feels uncomfortable to me. Yeah. Yeah. It’s wonderful. It’s just so nice to see others that have that depth. Yeah.
Nicole: Yeah. No, and I must say I’ve become a little bit of a snob at this point. I would prefer, or I would choose to stay home than going to a place where it’s just superficial. I had rather stay home by myself and have a quiet, relaxed evening with a book, than going to a loud party or whatever. Yeah, just
Kim: Done with that. I know. And I feel like that’s why so many of us choose these professions too, because it’s like we love having these conversations, and then that just becomes part of our day.
Nicole: Exactly. It’s just who we are and what we live. Yeah. It’s our life now. Exactly.
Kim: So, what advice would you have for HSPs who may be struggling finding meaning or purpose or joy in their lives?
Nicole: Well, we’ve talked about it, or we already touched a little bit about it, but I think there’s three things that are important. The first, again, is your needs. Just make sure what are your needs and make them a priority, because it’s not selfish, but it’s really self-preservation to know what your need are, what works for you and what doesn’t. Yeah. So that’s the first.
And then the next one is the boundaries. Setting boundaries, saying no again, what works, what doesn’t work? What is too much? And so, really learn to say no. And again, honor yourself what is important to you and not was it important to others? And I’m not diminishing this, that things, everybody has their own things that are important, but to not train ourselves or lose ourselves, we have to first make sure what is important to us. And then from there, we can give.
And then the third one is the intuition. Listen to your intuition, because it’s there. It always speaks to you. And the more you train it, focus on it, the more you will hear it. And then maybe for me, it’s actually interesting because I also have not, before I was doing this in this work or knowing so much about this, I didn’t really know about my intuition either. But now, going back in my life, I realize that I did a lot of my decisions based on my intuition. I just didn’t know it back then. But now I’m actually aware of it and I listen, and now I use it even. I mean, now I use it all the time, basically.
Kim: I love that you mentioned that, because I feel like everyone says, use your intuition, use your intuition. But it’s not easy at first because we’re so disconnected from it. So, if people are listening and they’re struggling with that, that’s normal because you haven’t been paying attention to it in so long. It takes time to really learn, okay, now I know why I made that choice that was right. Now I see where I made the other choice. Listening to other people, and no one knows what’s best for you. Only you what’s best for you.
Nicole: Exactly. It really only, and it does take a little bit of trust. Again, at first that might be a little bit listening to yourself, make your own decision. I mean, I was not good at that either when I was young or before I was kind of waking up and working on myself. I mean, listening to myself, having my own opinions was like, I didn’t have it. It was really hard. And now having done all the work, I totally know what I want and can stand behind my opinions and can say them out loud, but it takes a little bit of trust, and that’s okay too. I feel like it’s all good. Just try, practice, and then eventually it’ll become normal. Your second…
Kim: Yeah, your second nature. Yeah, like a muscle. Yeah.
Nicole: Yes, exactly. It’s like a muscle. And yeah. So, I think it’s these three things that are important. And then in the end, it’s a turn inward. You address what’s not working, why is it not working? Address the fears and the limiting beliefs and why you’re holding yourself back, because that’s ultimately, I think it’s the journey back to yourself that brings you to who you truly are, and therefore also will show you what your purpose is in life. Because that your purpose has to do with who you are and what you have to offer. And once you know yourself, that will show itself clearly. Yeah.
Kim: Yeah. Just in every day in your interaction with strangers, with, yeah. It doesn’t have to be some grand career or, it’s a way that you light up the world in your own unique way.
Nicole: Yeah, exactly. Yes. What makes you happy? What brings you joy? And that’s the path that is yours.
Kim: You were telling me that you wrote a book Self-Love for Women.
Nicole: Yes. It’s called Self-Love for Women. Exactly. Yes. I wrote that book this year. It was published back in June. And it’s basically about what I’m, we talked about what I’m teaching, what I’m working with other people. So, it’s all about how you can bring self-love back into your life by really looking at yourself like the mirror. You are your best mirror. What’s not working? What do I have to change? And then we are working with the inner child in there, so there’s exercises and what’s the inner child and exercises to bring you, connect you again, if you’re in the child re-parenting exercises. There’s chapter about boundaries, about feminine energies, and so it does encompass a lot of what we talked about here, but it’s basically a journey back that helps you find your path back to yourself, to loving yourself unconditionally.
Kim: The big picture of the journey of this self-love and healing journey.
Nicole: Yes. Yeah. But it is also like a workbook that with a lot of journal entries and practices, so you can also apply it, not just read through it. So yes.
Kim: Amazing. Thank you so much for sharing that with me. Where can people follow along on your journey?
Nicole: I am on LinkedIn. That’s my main channel right now. And I actually don’t even know, I mean in my name, you’ll find it. Put my name Nicole Peterhans.
Kim: I’ll put it in show notes.
Nicole: Thank you. Yeah, and I’m also on Facebook. Again, same thing with my name. I’ll be
Kim: Sure to include the link so people can find you.
Nicole: Thank you. Appreciate it.
Kim: Thank you so much for joining me today. I really enjoyed our conversation.
Nicole: It was a pleasure. Yeah, it was lovely. Thank you for having me, Kimberly. Thank you.
Thank you so much for listening in on my conversation with Nicole.
I hope it reminds you that the journey to releasing our limiting beliefs, honoring our needs, and trusting our inner voice is a universal one that can help us lead the empowered version of our lives that has been there all along. It isn’t a journey that’s meant to be forced but allowed to unfold in all the quiet moments we venture inward with kindness and curiosity.
Until next time. Take care!
About Nicole Peterhans:
Nicole Peterhans is an Energy Alignment & Empowerment Coach with a unique ability to pick up on the subtle forces, vibrations, and energies that surround us.
With a passion for helping individuals tap into their inner potential and transform the limiting energies that shape their lives, she is bringing balance, clarity, and empowerment to her clients.
Her expertise lies in connecting people with their authentic self, set healthy boundaries, and create fulfilling relationships.
Her mission is to transform the lives of those who are sensitive, introverted, or empathic – so that they are valued, seen and appreciated for the powerful, creative and dynamic individuals that they are.
Follow along on Nicole’s journey:
Website: https://nicolepeterhans.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/peterhansnicole/
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About Kimberly:
Kimberly Marshall is an ICF-certified Energy and Intuition coach for highly sensitive people (HSPs) and host of The Happy HSP Podcast. After 20 years in the publishing industry working for companies like Time Inc., Monster.com, and W. W. Norton, she left her corporate career to pursue work that better suited her HSP needs. She now helps HSPs reconnect with their intuition, energy, and soul’s purpose so they can live gentle, heart-centered lives in alignment with who they truly are.
Through her work, Kimberly hopes to shed more light on the reality of living with high sensitivity and inspire more HSPs to embrace their empathetic, loving, and gentle natures.
Hosted/produced by Kimberly Marshall
Edited by Fonzie Try Media
Artwork by Tara Corola