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This week, Portia and I sit down with Steve Fearnley to talk about EFT, or tapping. Now, if you're picturing someone gently thumping themselves on the forehead while chanting "I'm calm, I'm calm, I'm calm"—you're not alone. I went into this conversation with plenty of questions myself. But as Steve explains the science, the nervous system response, and why so many people find it helpful, what initially sounds a bit quirky starts to make a lot more sense.

As often happens on this podcast, we wandered into territory none of us expected. One of the more fascinating discussions was around resilience, coping styles and why women may sometimes adapt differently to a diagnosis like ALS. We talked about feminism, emotional expression, social support networks and whether women have spent generations developing skills that help them navigate uncertainty, vulnerability and change. It's not that women have it easier—far from it—but perhaps some of the strengths developed through life's challenges become valuable tools when facing something as life-altering as ALS.

Of course, it wouldn't be To The Moon and Back without a few laughs along the way. We explore stress, fear, emotional overwhelm, tapping, relationships, and the strange and wonderful ways humans try to make sense of difficult situations. There are moments that are thought-provoking, moments that are surprisingly funny, and probably at least one point where Portia wonders how on earth we've ended up discussing feminism when we started with EFT. That's fairly standard for us these days.

🎙️ Whether you're curious about tapping, interested in the science of stress, navigating a chronic illness, or simply enjoy listening to three people follow a conversation wherever it leads, we'd love you to join us. Have a listen and let us know what resonates.

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This week’s episode is a big one. We’re joined by Heather Plude for a deep dive into mould, mycotoxins, chronic illness, stress, nervous system responses and the absolutely wild rabbit holes people end up travelling when they’re trying to work out why they’re sick.

Heather shares the extraordinary story of her son becoming critically ill as a child, the discovery of toxic mould in their home, and how that experience completely changed the direction of her life. We talk about the practical side of mould testing, why some people seem more affected than others, the difference between mould and mycotoxins, and why “just spray some bleach on it” may not be the brilliant plan we once thought it was.

There’s also plenty of classic Portia moments, including discHussions about shouting on trains, grey Sydney weather, mouldy apartments, silk doonas apparently made from “the bottoms of caterpillars,” and the ongoing reality that if you live on the east coast of Australia right now… honestly… you probably have mould somewhere.

As always, this podcast is about curiosity, conversation and exploring ideas around health, healing and recovery. We’re not pretending to have all the answers — but we are asking a lot of questions. And occasionally laughing while doing it, because otherwise you’d cry into your dehumidifier.

Resources:

HERTSMI

Heather's A Good Health Advocate

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Thank you for listening to ALS - To the Moon and Back.
If this episode resonated, please share it with someone who might need it.
You can follow, subscribe, and stay connected as we continue exploring life, friendship, ALS, treatments, hope, and all the messy, meaningful bits in between.
Take care of yourselves — and each other — and we’ll see you next episode.

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This episode starts with us talking rubbish about bin chickens, bad politicians, Barbie dolls, drag queens and whether double-dipping chips should actually be illegal in Australia. Completely normal behaviour. Then, somewhere between laughing ourselves stupid and discussing “important Australian words” that apparently need to be voice banked forever, things get a bit deeper.

We talk honestly about something that’s started happening for me recently — ALS beginning to affect my voice. It’s confronting, weird, heartbreaking and strangely practical all at once. We get into voice banking, AI technology, recording memories for my granddaughters, and why apparently I now need to permanently preserve the ability to say “mate, what the f*ck?” for future generations. Because priorities.

There’s also a really raw conversation about illness, grief, friendship, the AIDS epidemic, people leaving too early, and the strange perspective you gain when life suddenly becomes very fragile. But in true us-fashion, even in the middle of the hard stuff, we somehow end up crying with laughter. Because sometimes humour is the only thing holding the whole circus together.

We also talk about the weird reality that living with ALS isn’t just doom and gloom every second of every day. There are moments of incredible beauty, perspective and connection in amongst it all. Plus a bit of hope — research is moving fast, trials are happening, and for the first time in a long time there are genuine reasons to believe things could change for people living with this disease.

It’s messy, emotional, funny, slightly inappropriate and very, very human. Pretty much us in podcast form.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to ALS - To the Moon and Back.
If this episode resonated, please share it with someone who might need it.
You can follow, subscribe, and stay connected as we continue exploring life, friendship, ALS, treatments, hope, and all the messy, meaningful bits in between.
Take care of yourselves — and each other — and we’ll see you next episode.