In this episode of the Happy HSP Podcast, Dr. Kaaryn Cater, an educator and researcher in the field of high sensitivity, discusses her journey discovering she was a highly sensitive person (HSP) and how it influenced her life and work.

The conversation explores Dr. Kaaryn’s research of HSPs in education, her own experiences as an HSP, and how she manages her sensitivity in both her personal and professional life. Dr. Kaaryn also highlights the importance of understanding and accommodating high sensitivity in educational and work environments.

In this episode, Dr. Kaaryn shares:

• How her exploration of Dr. Elaine Aron’s research affected her life and work.
• Her experience with research and literature on high sensitivity over the past decade.
• What her own research uncovered about the impact of high sensitivity on learning.
• How connecting with nature is a source of energy and grounding for HSPs.
• Sensation seeking HSPs and their desire for new and novel experiences.
• The many challenges of managing sensory and emotional overwhelm.
• Information about her upcoming book, Understanding the Highly Sensitive Learner.

Topics covered:

• Impact of high sensitivity on student learning and classroom dynamics.
• Importance of recognizing and supporting HSP learners in schools.
• Effects of sensory sensitivity in professional and learning environments.
• Need for autonomy and meaningful work settings for HSPs.
• Advocacy for scent-free workplaces due to HSP sensitivities.
• Role of self-awareness in managing high sensitivity.

Dr. Kaaryn's experiences and research highlight the necessity of understanding high sensitivity, not only for HSPs but also in broader educational and work settings.

About Dr. Kaaryn Cater:

Dr. Kaaryn Cater is a Learning Advisor at a tertiary learning institution in New Zealand. Her research interests include sensitivity, environmental impacts on learning, neurodiversity, inclusion, equity, empowering learners through intrinsic motivation, self-efficacy and metacognitive monitoring, and promoting education sector change through sensitivity education.

Follow along with Dr. Kaaryn’s journey:

Instagram: @dr.kaaryncater_sensitivity

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dr-kaaryn-cater-b373103b

Let’s Connect:

🤍 Share your biggest takeaway or follow us on Instagram @happyhsppodcast — we’d love to hear from you!

🎧 Subscribe and leave a review to help more HSPs find this space: thehappyhsppodcast.buzzsprout.com

📩 Want to be a guest on the show? Reach out to Kimberly at: kmarshall@happyhspcoaching.com

📖 Learn about Kimberly’s work: happyhspcoaching.com

About Kimberly:

After 20 years in the publishing industry working for companies like Time Inc., Monster.com, and W. W. Norton, Kimberly Marshall left her corporate work to create a more nurturing career that better suited her as an HSP. After repeatedly struggling with burnout and low confidence in the workplace, she now helps HSPs create careers that bring them lots of purpose, meaning, and joy. With the Happy HSP Podcast, Kimberly hopes to shed more light on the reality of living with high sensitivity and inspire more HSPs to embrace their empathetic, generous, and loving natures.

• Hosted/produced by Kimberly Marshall
• Edited by Fonzie Try Media
• Artwork by Tara Corola

Are you a highly sensitive person (HSP) who struggles with self-confidence among friends or in the workplace? Maybe you’re unsure of who you are or what you’re truly meant to do for a living, and you’re wondering how to gain more clarity.

Today on The Happy HSP Podcast, Iris Pilleri — an HSP coach and psychology student based in Italy — shares how reclaiming her voice and sense of self after years of working in fields that didn’t align with her true calling brought her happiness and peace. From chronic exhaustion and people-pleasing to finally giving in to her purpose, Iris’s journey is a beautiful reminder that it’s never too late to come home to yourself.

In this episode, Iris shares:

• How years of people-pleasing disconnected her from her calling.
• Her experience with intense information processing and rich inner world.
• How pivoting to a new career helped her align with her true self.
• Her experience of high sensitivity in childhood compared to adulthood.
• The importance of therapy and self-acceptance along her journey.
• Finding her calling and purpose through the Japanese concept of Ikigai.

This episode will inspire you to embrace your inner child and take more risks as an HSP with common sense as your guide. Iris’s transformation will also remind you that honoring your sensitivity is the starting point — not the obstacle — on your path to a more aligned and fulfilling life.

Topics covered:

• Breaking free from burnout and people-pleasing.
• Embracing the HSP trait and honoring your needs.
• Making aligned career choices as an HSP.
• Embracing your creativity and inner world as a gift.
• The importance of rest, slowness, and self-love.
• Redefining success from the inside out.

About Iris Pilleri:

Iris is an HSP coach, psychology student, and language teacher based in Italy. She connects with clients and colleagues from all over the world through her ability to speak English, Italian, German, and French.

She coaches at Iris Sensitive Coaching, and in her business, “Iris” stands for Imagination, Respect, Intention, and Safety — the four pillars of her work.

Follow along with Iris’s journey:

Instagram: @sensitivity_life

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iris-vanessa-pilleri-0304aa322/

Let’s Connect:

🤍 Share your biggest takeaway or follow us on Instagram @happyhsppodcast — we’d love to hear from you!

🎧 Subscribe and leave a review to help more HSPs find this space: thehappyhsppodcast.buzzsprout.com

📩 Want to be a guest on the show? Reach out to Kimberly at: kmarshall@happyhspcoaching.com

📖 Learn about Kimberly’s work: happyhspcoaching.com

About Kimberly:

After 20 years in the publishing industry working for companies like Time Inc., Monster.com, and W. W. Norton, Kimberly Marshall left her corporate work to create a more nurturing career that better suited her as an HSP. After repeatedly struggling with burnout and low confidence in the workplace, she now helps HSPs create careers that bring them lots of purpose, meaning, and joy. With the Happy HSP Podcast, Kimberly hopes to shed more light on the reality of living with high sensitivity and inspire more HSPs to embrace their empathetic, generous, and loving natures.

• Hosted/produced by Kimberly Marshall
• Edited by Fonzie Try Media
• Artwork by Tara Corola

In this honest and empowering episode of The Happy HSP Podcast, Certified Transformational Nutrition Coach and Alcohol-Free HSP, Gretchen Bergantine, shares how a profound moment during the COVID pandemic sparked a major turning point in her life. From discovering she was a highly sensitive person (HSP) to navigating sobriety, Gretchen’s story is one of deep healing, personal growth, and spiritual transformation.

In this episode, Gretchen shares:

• How she discovered she was an HSP during the COVID lockdown.
• The surprising Sunday morning moment that shifted everything for her.
• Why alcohol became her go-to coping mechanism — and what helped her stop.
• The spiritual awakening that followed her realization that she was an HSP.
• What “nutrition” really means beyond food (and why it matters for HSPs).
• Her approach to coaching sensitive people through holistic healing.

Topics covered:

• Realizing you’re an HSP and what comes next.
• Replacing numbing out with mental, emotional, and spiritual nourishment.
• How sobriety can open space for clarity, peace, and transformation.
• Creating rituals and boundaries that support your HSP nervous system.
• The stigma of sensitivity and the power of embracing your trait.
• Building a lifestyle that honors who you really are.

About Gretchen Bergantine:

Gretchen Bergantine is a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) and The Alcohol Free HSP. As a Certified Transformational Nutrition Mental Wellness Coach, (C.T.N.C.), and Highly Sensitive Person Professional Coach, she works with HSPs to stop using alcohol to self-soothe their sensitive nervous systems and quit alcohol.

Using integrative and holistic practices and the proven 3-pillar Transformational Nutrition Model™️, she educates and coaches based on science, psychology, and spirituality with an energetic twist. After all, nutrition isn’t just food. It’s anything that feeds you mentally, physically, and spiritually. With her combination of these coaching modalities, she is well-versed in high sensitivity and how it relates to one’s overall lifestyle.

Follow along with Gretchen’s journey:

Website: thealcoholfreehsp.com
Instagram: @thealcoholfreehsp

Let’s Connect:

🤍 Share your biggest takeaway or follow us on Instagram @happyhsppodcast — we’d love to hear from you!

🎧 Subscribe and leave a review to help more HSPs find this space: thehappyhsppodcast.buzzsprout.com

📩 Want to be a guest on the show? Reach out to Kimberly at: kmarshall@happyhspcoaching.com

📖 Learn about Kimberly’s work: happyhspcoaching.com

About Kimberly:

After 20 years in the publishing industry working for companies like Time Inc., Monster.com, and W. W. Norton, Kimberly Marshall left her corporate work to create a more nurturing career that better suited her as an HSP. After repeatedly struggling with burnout and low confidence in the workplace, she now helps HSPs create careers that bring them lots of purpose, meaning, and joy. With the Happy HSP Podcast, Kimberly hopes to shed more light on the reality of living with high sensitivity and inspire more HSPs to embrace their empathetic, generous, and loving natures.

• Hosted/produced by Kimberly Marshall
• Edited by Fonzie Try Media
• Artwork by Tara Corola