https://www.mixcloud.com/CValleyRadio/healing-beats-soulful-speaks-with-dj-doris-24th-march-2026-ft-chat-with-oliver-william-johnson/?play=fb If you didn’t catch this week’s Calder Valley Radio show with Oli, the playback is now available. ⬆️ Honestly — this was one of the rawest conversations I’ve hosted. We spoke very openly about addiction. What it actually looks like in real life. How quietly it can take hold. And what recovery really involves beyond the headlines people usually hear. One of the most important things we explored was this: Addiction doesn’t always look like crisis. Sometimes it looks like coping. Sometimes it looks like pressure. Sometimes it looks like someone still showing up to work every day, running a business, supporting a family, and holding everything together on the outside. That’s why conversations like this matter. Because many people who are struggling don’t recognise themselves in the word addiction. If anything in this discussion resonates more closely than expected, support is available: Local support (Calderdale): - Calderdale Recovery Steps – 01422 415550 - The Basement Recovery Project (Halifax & Todmorden) – 01422 383063 - Alpha House Calderdale – residential recovery support National support: - Talk to Frank – 0300 123 6600 - Alcoholics Anonymous UK – 0800 917 7650 - Cocaine Anonymous UK – 0800 612 0225 Reaching out early is a strength — not a last resort. Thank you again to Oli for speaking so honestly and helping open a conversation many people quietly need to hear.

As we’re coming towards the end of the March vision board challenge, I got a reminder yesterday that surprised me a bit. Vision boarding for the future is powerful. But being grateful for what you already have is just as important. Yesterday my car decided to teach me that lesson 😅 Passenger window dropped down and wouldn’t come back up. Then I “locked” my keys in the boot… except they weren’t locked in, they were wrapped inside the duct tape and bags I’d been using to stop the rain getting in while driving. Which also meant I couldn’t see my side mirror properly. So there I was driving home in the rain telling my car how grateful I am for her. Because yes — I do need a bigger vehicle for things like transporting 25 airbeds and equipment for Retreat at the Mill… But this car is still what makes everything possible right now. Here’s the coaching lesson in this: Vision boards help you focus on what’s next. Gratitude keeps you grounded in what’s already supporting you. You need both. So as we close out this month’s challenge, ask yourself: What’s already helping you move forward that you maybe haven’t thanked yet?

Something no one talks about when you start holding circles… It’s not your job to fix anyone. When people first begin holding space, they often feel responsible for how everyone is feeling in the room. Someone cries? You feel like you should help. Someone goes quiet? You feel like you should check in. Someone looks uncomfortable? You feel like you should change something. But real space holding isn’t about rescuing people. It’s about creating a space strong enough that people can sit with themselves safely. That’s where the magic actually happens ✨ Your role is to: – hold the structure – keep the energy steady – stay grounded – stay present Not solve. The moment you stop trying to “do something” for everyone in the room… your circles become deeper your confidence grows and people begin to trust the space more. Because they can feel you’re not performing. You’re holding. And trust me on this one — people can tell the difference immediately 💛

People don’t come back because your meditation was perfect. They don’t come back because your playlist was magical. They don’t even come back because of cacao. They come back because of how they felt in the room. Safe. Seen. Not rushed. Not judged. Not “managed.” Although I can be a bit of a control freak at times…. 😬 When I first started, I thought I had to create something impressive. Now I know my real job is to create something safe and steady. That means: – arriving early and setting the space properly – thinking about how people walk into the room – how they sit – how they settle – how they leave The transitions matter more than the technique. Honestly? I spend as much time preparing the energy of the room as I do planning what I’m actually going to say. And here’s the bit most new facilitators miss: Small circles build strong facilitators. Start with 5 people. Learn how the space breathes. Learn how you breathe in it. Learn what silence feels like when you’re holding it. Big circles can come later. Trust grows in small rooms first.

Every single event I hold fills up at least a week in advance. Some are gone weeks before they even happen. And that didn’t come from pushing harder. It came from doing things properly. From building trust. From creating a space people actually want to come back to. From not cutting corners on the experience. And I mean that. There have been times I’ve walked away from venues, from opportunities, from things that looked good on paper… Not just because they didn’t feel right. But because I will nor dilute what I offer just to make things easier or cheaper. And, that’s cost me at times. But it’s also the reason people come back. It’s the reason they book early. It’s the reason the spaces fill without me chasing. People feel the difference. If you’re building something in the wellbeing space and it feels like a constant push… It doesn’t have to be. There’s a way to create demand without burning yourself out. Without overgiving. Without lowering your standards. This is exactly the work I’m stepping deeper into now.