Free Daily Podcast Summary
Journey Beyond Divorce Podcast: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Karen McMahon
The Journey Beyond Divorce Podcast is your trusted companion through every stage of divorce—emotional, legal, financial, and parental. With over nine years of impactful episodes, this top-ranked podcast supports men and women navigating the challenges of divorce, especially those facing high-conflict dynamics, co-parenting struggles, emotional overwhelm, or legal uncertainty. Hosted by Karen McMahon, Certified Divorce Coach® and founder of Journey Beyond Divorce, the show offers strategic guidance, expert interviews, and real-life stories designed to help listeners move from confusion and chaos to clarity and confidence. Each episode is packed with insight and inspiration to help you make informed decisions, protect your children, safeguard your finances, and heal emotionally—so you can create a life you truly love post-divorce. If you're on the fence about whether to stay or go, have just been told your marriage is ending, or are actively working through the messy middle of litigation, negotiation, or co-parenting, this podcast meets you where you are. You'll learn how to emotionally regulate through triggers, explore your divorce process options (mediation, collaboration, litigation, arbitration), and prepare to work effectively with legal and financial professionals. Topics include how to gather your financials, navigate custody issues, and negotiate complex decisions around property, retirement assets, and business valuations. For those already in the process, episodes offer real-time guidance on how to cope with personality disorders in your co-parent, how to protect your children from toxic dynamics, and how to negotiate settlements strategically. You'll hear from certified divorce financial analysts, attorneys, parenting coordinators, therapists, and coaches who share proven tools and tips. Professionals in the divorce field—including family law attorneys, therapists, and financial experts—also listen in to better support their clients and stay up-to-date on best practices. And when the divorce is final? The podcast continues to serve as a roadmap for building your next chapter. Learn how to close out the financial and legal loose ends—such as QDROs, life insurance, beneficiary changes, and estate updates—while beginning to design a life aligned with your values, goals, and inner peace. Episodes cover healing from betrayal trauma, understanding your emotional patterns, rediscovering your identity, and navigating the complexities of post-divorce dating and parenting. This podcast also answers the most searched divorce-related questions, including: How do I co-parent with a narcissist? What are the steps in the divorce process? Should I litigate or mediate? What is a QDRO and do I need one? How do I protect my kids emotionally? What is the role of a certified divorce financial analyst? How do I move on after infidelity or betrayal? Listeners benefit from expert-vetted strategies, free resources, and supportive insights grounded in both experience and compassion. The Journey Beyond Divorce Podcast is more than just content—it's a lifeline. Whether you're seeking calm in the storm, tools to advocate for yourself, or support rebuilding your life, each episode helps you grow stronger, wiser, and more empowered.
Latest Episodes
The most recent episodes — sign up to get AI-powered summaries of each one.
- 6 days ago48 min
How to Stop Anxiety from Controlling Your Divorce Decisions with Mindful Drinking Coach, Colleen Freeland Kachmann
If you've ever felt like you can't think straight, can't stop second-guessing yourself, or can't figure out why you keep making decisions you regret, this episode is for you. One of the most damaging and least talked about effects of divorce is what anxiety does to your decision making. Fear takes over, your nervous system goes into overdrive, and suddenly you're not making choices from a clear, grounded place, you're reacting. Most people don't even realize it's happening until the damage is done, and for many, anxiety and alcohol end up feeding each other during this exact chapter of life. Karen sits down with Colleen Freeland Kachmann, a mindful drinking coach, host of the globally top ranked It's Not About the Alcohol podcast, and founder of the Accelerated Recovery Process, to talk about what anxiety is actually doing to your brain during divorce, why so many people reach for alcohol to cope with that anxiety without realizing that's what's happening, and how to get clear, get grounded, and start making decisions you can trust, with or without a drink in hand. They dig into why anxiety and fear take over during divorce and what's actually happening in your nervous system when they do, how anxious drinking during divorce becomes a coping mechanism for dysregulation rather than an actual solution, how to recognize when anxiety is making your decisions for you even when it doesn't feel like anxiety, and what it feels like to make a decision from a calm, grounded place instead of a fearful or alcohol-numbed one. They also talk about the role of emotional sobriety, a concept that applies whether or not alcohol is part of your story, in rebuilding self-trust during and after divorce, and what Colleen's work helping women change their relationship with alcohol taught her about fear, the nervous system, and self-trust that applies directly to divorce recovery. Colleen Freeland Kachmann is a mindful drinking coach and host of the globally top ranked It's Not About the Alcohol podcast. She helps high-achieving professional women reduce their alcohol consumption using holistic, evidence-based strategies in neurophysiology, nervous system regulation, and growth mindset, without willpower or an all-or-nothing approach to alcohol. Colleen is an addiction and recovery-certified master life coach with an MSc in health coaching, a BS in biology and chemistry, and certification as a women's functional and integrative professional. She founded Recover with Colleen, an intensive group coaching program built around her Accelerated Recovery Process. If this conversation resonated, whether it's the divorce anxiety, the drinking, or both, and you're wondering whether coaching support could help, Karen's Rapid Relief Call is a free way to find out. You can also connect with Colleen through her podcast, It's Not About the Alcohol, and her program, Recover with Colleen. Connect with Colleen: Free Gift: COMING SOON TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hangoverwhisperer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehangoverwhisperer Website: https://itsnotaboutthealcohol.com Resources Mentioned in this Podcast: Book a Free Rapid Relief Call: http://rapidreliefcall.com Free Divorce Support Network Gift: https://divorcesupportnetwork.com/jbdpod
- 1 weeks ago35 min
10 Year Anniversary Episode: High Conflict Relationships: Self-Love Deficit, Delusions & Boundaries
To celebrate a decade of Journey Beyond Divorce, we're sharing a special collection of episodes featuring Karen McMahon as a guest on some of her favorite podcasts. Over the years, Karen has joined incredible hosts across the divorce, coaching, and personal growth space to share her story and her expertise. This collection brings those conversations together in one place, offering a look at Karen's voice and message from a different angle, through the eyes of the hosts who welcomed her. Thank you for being part of this journey, and for helping Journey Beyond Divorce grow into what it is today. Karen McMahon on the Self-Love Recovery Podcast with Ross Rosenberg In this episode, originally recorded for the Self-Love Recovery podcast, host Ross Rosenberg, M.Ed., LCPC, CADC sits down with Karen McMahon, Chief Visionary and High Conflict Divorce Coach with Journey Beyond Divorce, for an in-depth conversation on high conflict relationships. Together they explore the behaviors and reactions that define these dynamics, from a self-love deficit at their root to the delusions that can keep people stuck, and why setting boundaries is so essential to breaking the cycle. Ross brings decades of clinical expertise in codependency, trauma, and narcissistic abuse to the conversation, while Karen offers her perspective on how these patterns show up in divorce and relationship transitions. Ross is a psychotherapist, educator, and author of The Human Magnet Syndrome, and founder of the Self-Love Recovery Institute, which he created in 2013 as a hub for personal development, workshops, and professional training. Learn more about Ross Rosenberg and the Self-Love Recovery Institute at selfloverecovery.com, and listen to the Self-Love Recovery podcast on all major platforms. Podcast: https://www.selfloverecovery.com/pages/podcast YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/RossRosenberg Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheCodependencyCure Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rossrosenberg_slri Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/RossRosenberg1 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rossrosenberg
- 2 weeks ago47 min
The Masculine Dilemma: Why Divorced Men Keep Repeating the Same Mistakes with, Relationship and Men's Work Coach, Geoff Laughton
What if divorce wasn't really about her? That's the question Karen McMahon poses to open this episode of Journey Beyond Divorce, and the question at the center of her conversation with Geoff Laughton, a Relationship and Men's Work Coach with 33 years of experience, 300+ workshops, and thousands of clients. Geoff calls the pattern the "Masculine Dilemma," a set of unconscious traps that quietly erode men's marriages long before divorce ever becomes a possibility. He's also 44 years into his own marriage, so he's not just teaching this work, he's living it. Karen and Geoff dig into what actually drives men toward disconnection: confusion about what masculinity even means today, growing up without strong masculine models, and the gap between who a man was trained to be and who he actually is underneath the training. Geoff unpacks the real differences between masculine and feminine energy, not as stereotypes, but as wiring, and explains why so many marriages die from a thousand tiny paper cuts rather than one big blowup. One of the most useful moments in the episode is Geoff's breakdown of "MSU" (making shit up) and "MUS" (made-up shit), the stories partners tell themselves about what the other person is thinking, without ever actually asking. Karen and Geoff both push back hard on the idea that a partner should "just know" what you need, calling it a setup for failure in any relationship. The conversation also tackles the "Sir Lancelot syndrome," the nice-guy pattern of trying to rescue and fix a partner's every feeling, at the cost of a man's own needs and boundaries, and why that pattern so often ends in resentment rather than intimacy. In the back half of the episode, Geoff walks through what he calls a relationship postmortem: a brutally honest look at what worked, when things started to break down (often, he notes, right around the arrival of the first child), where a man went out of integrity with himself, and what he's committed to doing differently before jumping into the next relationship. Karen and Geoff agree this kind of self-honest inventory, done without self-blame or shame, is essential before dating again. Connect with Geoff: Free E-book: The Masculine Dilemma - https://theundauntedman.com/path Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/ln/theundauntedman and www.linkedin.com/li/yourrelationshiparchitect Resources Mentioned in this Episode: Book a Free Rapid Relief Call: http://rapidreliefcall.com Free Divorce Support Network Gift: https://divorcesupportnetwork.com/jbdpod
- 3 weeks ago43 min
How High-Conflict Childhoods Shape Adult Children with Dr. Sharon Martin, DSW, LCSW
High-conflict divorce doesn't end when the papers are signed. It lives on in the next generation, and often in the very patterns adults bring into their own marriages. In this episode, Karen McMahon sits down with Dr. Sharon Martin to unpack how growing up in a dysfunctional or high-conflict home quietly shapes the adults those children become, showing up years later as codependency, people-pleasing, perfectionism, and conflict avoidance. Karen and Dr. Martin trace how a child's instinct to stay safe around unpredictable or explosive parents can calcify into lifelong habits of self-abandonment, and why so many adults find themselves recreating the very dynamics they swore they'd leave behind. The conversation moves into practical territory, too, exploring what healthy boundaries actually look like, how they differ for a difficult parent versus a difficult boss or friend, and why self-compassion is the starting point for breaking the cycle rather than the reward at the end of it. Karen shares personal stories from her own divorce and parenting journey, and listeners walk away with concrete ways to spot these patterns in themselves and in their children, and real tools to begin interrupting them now. Dr. Sharon Martin is a licensed psychotherapist with over 25 years of experience helping adult children of dysfunctional families untangle the long-term effects of their upbringing, and the author of several self-help books along with a free re-parenting guide available on her website. Connect with Dr. Sharon Website: https://livewellwithsharonmartin.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sharonmartinlcsw/, Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr_sharon_martin/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SharonMartin Free Gift: 12 Tips for Overcoming Perfectionism (one of over 30 self-help tools available in my free resource library): https://www.livewellwithsharonmartin.com/free/ Resources Mentioned in this Episode: Book a Free Rapid Relief Call: http://rapidreliefcall.com Free Divorce Support Network Gift: https://divorcesupportnetwork.com/jbdpod
- Aug 19, 202630 min
How to Start the Divorce Process... What Most People Get Wrong
You've made the decision, or maybe it's been made for you. Either way, most people do what feels urgent: call a lawyer in a panic, tell their spouse too soon, move out of the house without thinking it through. Those early moves can follow you through the whole process. In this episode, Karen McMahon shares the five essentials to get right before you file, so you move forward with clarity and a plan instead of fear. First, investigate your legal rights, talk to a matrimonial attorney in your jurisdiction before you do anything else, so you understand where you stand on finances, assets, and custody. Second, share the decision strategically, using the BIFF approach (brief, informative, firm, friendly) and a real plan for timing and safety. Third, redefine home life, someone moves out of the master bedroom, and new household rules go into place so your actions match your words. Fourth, tell the kids with a simple, age-appropriate message: we love you, it's going to be okay, you'll still see both of us. Fifth, create a temporary parenting plan and trial a shared schedule, which becomes valuable data for negotiating custody later. Karen also covers whether you actually need a lawyer (almost always, yes) and how to file. Resources Mentioned in This Episode: Smart Start Pre-Divorce Checklist: https://www.jbddivorcesupport.com/pre-divorce-checklist Explore Divorce Support Network: https://divorcesupportnetwork.com/ Book a Rapid Relief Call: https://www.jbddivorcesupport.com/rapid-relief-call
- Aug 14, 202643 min
Gray Divorce: What Every Man and Woman Over 50 Needs to Know About Retirement, Social Security, and Spousal Support with Certified Divorce Financial Analyst, Andrew Hatherley
Divorce after 50 looks nothing like divorce in your 30s or 40s. Custody battles and parenting plans give way to a different kind of high-stakes negotiation, one centered almost entirely on money: retirement accounts, pensions, Social Security, and spousal support. And with gray divorce rates doubling since 1990 for people over 50, and tripling for those over 65, Karen McMahon believes this is a conversation more couples urgently need. In this episode of the Journey Beyond Divorce Podcast, Karen sits down with Andrew Hatherly, a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA), trained mediator, and founder of Transcend Retirement and Wiser Divorce Solutions. Andrew is also the host of The Gray Divorce Podcast, and after navigating his own midlife divorce, has made it his mission to help others understand exactly what's financially at stake before they sign a settlement. Karen and Andrew unpack why gray divorce carries a far higher financial risk than divorce earlier in life, since there's simply less runway to rebuild retirement savings after a late-life split. They explore why bringing a financial expert to the table, alongside an attorney and a divorce coach, is essential in any high conflict divorce, and especially critical when a marriage has spanned decades and retirement accounts, pensions, and home equity are all on the table. The conversation covers what men and women both need to understand about marital property, why "his" retirement account is actually a shared marital asset, and why spousal support calculations vary so widely from state to state. Andrew breaks down a critical but often-overlooked Social Security rule: spouses married 10 years or longer may be entitled to claim benefits based on their former spouse's earnings record, without reducing what their ex-spouse receives, and why couples approaching that 10-year mark should think carefully about timing. They also discuss the tax implications of dividing different types of retirement accounts, why a $500,000 Roth IRA and a $500,000 traditional 401(k) are not actually worth the same in a divorce settlement, and why remarriage can affect spousal support and estate planning decisions down the road. Karen and Andrew close with a candid discussion about what comes after the financial settlement is finalized, and why gray divorce, despite its financial complexity, can also become a powerful catalyst for reinvention, purpose, and a stronger, more intentional third act of life. Whether you're facing high conflict divorce, navigating gray divorce later in life, or are a man trying to understand your financial rights and responsibilities in divorce, this episode offers the financial clarity and strategic insight needed to protect your future and negotiate from a place of knowledge rather than fear. Andrew Hatherly is a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst (CDFA), mediator, and founder of Transcend Retirement and Wiser Divorce Solutions. He is the host of The Gray Divorce Podcast and author of The Gray Divorce Phenomenon, a free guide available at transcendretirement.net. Connect with Andrew: Free Gift: The Gray Divorce Phenomenon, a free guide available at transcendretirement.net. Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewhatherley/ Podcast: https://www.transcendretirement.net/podcast Resources Mentioned in this Episode: Book a Free Rapid Relief Call: http://rapidreliefcall.com Free Divorce Support Network Gift: https://divorcesupportnetwork.com/jbdpod
- Aug 11, 202643 min
Divorce Without Court: Choosing the Right Approach - Mediation, Collaborative Divorce, and Settlement Negotiation with Collaborative Divorce Attorney, Cary Jacobson
Most people assume divorce means courtrooms, legal battles, and losing control of the outcome, but Karen McMahon knows that's not always true. In this episode of the Journey Beyond Divorce Podcast, Karen sits down with Cary Jacobson, a collaborative divorce attorney, mediator, and child advocate, to break down every path to divorce outside of litigation and help listeners understand which one actually fits their situation. Karen and Cary walk through the full spectrum of options, from do-it-yourself kitchen table agreements and settlement negotiation between attorneys, to mediation, to the collaborative divorce process, where both spouses commit to a team-based approach with collaboratively trained attorneys, financial neutrals, and mental health professionals working together toward resolution. They explain how each option works, who it's best suited for, and the real risks of going the DIY route without legal guidance, especially when children, retirement assets, or property division are involved. The conversation dives deep into what makes collaborative divorce unique, including the participation agreement that requires full transparency and commits both parties to staying out of court, and why Karen believes collaborative divorce can be especially powerful in high-conflict situations, cases involving substance abuse, or divorces involving young children. Karen and Cary also unpack how mediation works, when a consulting attorney should be brought in alongside a mediator, and how power imbalances between spouses can shape which process will actually lead to a fair outcome. Karen closes the conversation with a reminder central to everything Journey Beyond Divorce stands for: every person going through divorce is the CEO of their own case, with the right and responsibility to understand their options, ask questions, and choose the process, whether that's mediation, collaborative divorce, settlement negotiation, or litigation, that will protect their family's future. Cary Jacobson is a collaborative divorce attorney, mediator, and child advocate, and the founder of Jacobson Family Law. Connect with Cary: Email:cary@jacobsonfamilylaw.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jacobsonfamilylaw, Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jacobsonfamilylaw/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caryjacobson YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1vZ9kkhd4LPpB1yEqK7U9w Website: https://jacobsonfamilylaw.com/ Resources Mentioned in this Episode: Book a Free Rapid Relief Call: http://rapidreliefcall.com Free Divorce Support Network Gift: https://divorcesupportnetwork.com/jbdpod
- Aug 6, 202641 min
Divorcing with a Special Needs Child: 5 Critical Considerations with Mary Ann Hughes
Parenting a neurodivergent or special needs child already takes constant coordination and advocacy. When divorce enters the picture, Karen McMahon believes those needs don't get simpler, they become the center of every decision. In this episode, Karen sits down with Mary Ann Hughes, founder of Special Family Transitions and a certified special needs divorce coach, mediator, and co-parenting specialist. As the mother of sons on the autism spectrum, Mary Ann brings both lived experience and deep expertise to a conversation most divorce professionals aren't equipped to have. Together they cover five critical considerations for parents of autistic or special needs children going through divorce: managing the emotional overwhelm, understanding the language around autism and neurodiversity, hiring an attorney who truly understands your child's needs, protecting government benefits through first-party and third-party special needs trusts, and navigating high-conflict negotiations without losing sight of what your child actually needs. Mary Ann also shares how she helped her own kids process her divorce, and how that experience led her to co-author My Parents' Divorce Through My Eyes: Helping Children With Autism Understand Divorce. If you're parenting a neurodivergent child through divorce, this episode offers the strategy, language, and reassurance to help you protect your child's future, and your own. Connect with Mary Ann Free Gift: Chapter on Special Needs Divorce in bestselling book, "The Other Side of Divorce" email maryann@specialfamilytransitions.com for your copy TedTalk: https://youtu.be/BW6RWN-k65s?si=d4GO7rLKzjZKB7GQ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/specialfamilytransitions YouTube: https://youtube.com/@specialfamilytransitions TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@SpecialFamilyTransitions Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-ann-hughes-special-family-transitions/ Resources Mentioned in this Episode: Book a Free Rapid Relief Call: http://rapidreliefcall.com Free Divorce Support Network Gift: https://divorcesupportnetwork.com/jbdpod Previous Special Needs episode - from the attorney's perspective: Journey Beyond Divorce Podcast: Divorce Roadmap: Children and Divorce: When Special Needs Kids Are Involved on Apple Podcasts
About Journey Beyond Divorce Podcast
The Journey Beyond Divorce Podcast is your trusted companion through every stage of divorce—emotional, legal, financial, and parental. With over nine years of impactful episodes, this top-ranked podcast supports men and women navigating the challenges of divorce, especially those facing high-conflict dynamics, co-parenting struggles, emotional overwhelm, or legal uncertainty. Hosted by Karen McMahon, Certified Divorce Coach® and founder of Journey Beyond Divorce, the show offers strategic guidance, expert interviews, and real-life stories designed to help listeners move from confusion and chaos to clarity and confidence. Each episode is packed with insight and inspiration to help you make informed decisions, protect your children, safeguard your finances, and heal emotionally—so you can create a life you truly love post-divorce. If you're on the fence about whether to stay or go, have just been told your marriage is ending, or are actively working through the messy middle of litigation, negotiation, or co-parenting, this podcast meets you where you are. You'll learn how to emotionally regulate through triggers, explore your divorce process options (mediation, collaboration, litigation, arbitration), and prepare to work effectively with legal and financial professionals. Topics include how to gather your financials, navigate custody issues, and negotiate complex decisions around property, retirement assets, and business valuations. For those already in the process, episodes offer real-time guidance on how to cope with personality disorders in your co-parent, how to protect your children from toxic dynamics, and how to negotiate settlements strategically. You'll hear from certified divorce financial analysts, attorneys, parenting coordinators, therapists, and coaches who share proven tools and tips. Professionals in the divorce field—including family law attorneys, therapists, and financial experts—also listen in to better support their clients and stay up-to-date on best practices. And when the divorce is final? The podcast continues to serve as a roadmap for building your next chapter. Learn how to close out the financial and legal loose ends—such as QDROs, life insurance, beneficiary changes, and estate updates—while beginning to design a life aligned with your values, goals, and inner peace. Episodes cover healing from betrayal trauma, understanding your emotional patterns, rediscovering your identity, and navigating the complexities of post-divorce dating and parenting. This podcast also answers the most searched divorce-related questions, including: How do I co-parent with a narcissist? What are the steps in the divorce process? Should I litigate or mediate? What is a QDRO and do I need one? How do I protect my kids emotionally? What is the role of a certified divorce financial analyst? How do I move on after infidelity or betrayal? Listeners benefit from expert-vetted strategies, free resources, and supportive insights grounded in both experience and compassion. The Journey Beyond Divorce Podcast is more than just content—it's a lifeline. Whether you're seeking calm in the storm, tools to advocate for yourself, or support rebuilding your life, each episode helps you grow stronger, wiser, and more empowered.
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