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Shamelessly Ambitious I Helping Ambitious Women Prevent Burnout + Create Nervous System First Success in Business, Motherhood, & Life
Shamelessly Ambitious is an honest, grounding, and vulnerable podcast for ambitious, emotionally intelligent women who are done proving themselves, tired of living in constant high-functioning burnout, and craving a life and business that actually feel good.
Hosted by Ash McDonald—therapist, nervous-system-first business mentor, and speaker this show blends clinical expertise with lived experience to deliver nervous system tools, embodied strategies, and radical permission so you can expand your capacity, root into emotional steadiness, and build sustainable success that supports your whole life.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, stretched too thin, caught in productivity guilt, or stuck running on stress, this podcast meets you where you are—with therapeutic insights, embodied practices, and heartfelt stories that create real shifts. Whether you’re navigating motherhood, entrepreneurship, or the messy middle of redefining success, each episode helps you slow down, regulate, and return to a felt sense of safety in your body.
With over a decade of experience at the intersection of therapy and leadership, Ash pulls back the curtain on what really works—offering grounded guidance you can apply in real life.
What you’ll hear:
- Honest conversations about burnout recovery, nervous system regulation, and redefining success
- Somatic tools, meditations, and practices that build inner safety and capacity
- Stories of motherhood, mom-life, ambition, and the courage to create a life and business that feel rich and real
If you’re asking the following questions, you’re in the right place:
- How do I stop tying my worth to productivity?
- How do I know if I’m experiencing high-functioning burnout and what do I do about it?
- How do I balance motherhood and leadership without losing myself?
- How do I calm my body when I feel overwhelmed or overstimulated?
This is the podcast for when you’re ready to reclaim peace, expand what you can hold, and create success that doesn’t cost you yourself. Tune in and take the next step toward a regulated, rooted, and deeply fulfilling life.
Shamelessly Ambitious I Helping Ambitious Women Prevent Burnout + Create Nervous System First Success in Business, Motherhood, & Life
156. [Bonus Episode] The Problem with AI Therapy (and How to Use It Safely)
Hello, my love. Today’s episode might ruffle some feathers… and honestly, I’m okay with that. Because this one matters. We’re diving into AI therapy — the rise of chatbots, self-coaching apps, and those “instant healing” tools everyone’s whispering about, and the blurry line between support and self-abandonment.
If you’ve ever found yourself venting to ChatGPT or journaling through a chatbot, this conversation is for you. I’m not here to tell you to ditch it altogether (you know I love innovation), but I am here to help you use it wisely, without accidentally outsourcing your intuition or your healing to a robot.
Let’s talk privacy, psychology, and the sneaky ways convenience can replace connection.
TOPICS & TANGENTS:
• The real risk of “AI therapy”, and why it’s not a safe replacement for human support
• What no one’s talking about: data, privacy, and how your most vulnerable moments aren’t protected
• The sneaky comfort of being validated vs. the power of being challenged
• Why AI is designed to agree with you, and how that can keep you stuck
• How to use AI intentionally: as a reflection tool, not a therapist
• Safe prompts for emotional processing (without crossing the line)
• How to build self-trust in the age of algorithms
• The difference between feeling better fast and feeling fully
SAFE WAYS TO USE AI FOR SELF-REFLECTION:
“Help me name what I’m feeling right now.”
“Ask me five questions that could help me unpack this emotion.”
“Give me three ideas to regulate my nervous system right now.”
“Reflect back what I just said as if you were my most compassionate inner voice.”
(These are bridges — not replacements — for the real work.)
POINT OF THE STORY:
AI can be a tool, but not your teacher. It can mirror you, but it cannot meet you. Healing happens in relationship… to self, to others, to truth. Let technology support you, not replace you.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
• Episode with Nadine Nethery on creating emotionally safe group spaces
• My favorite journaling and self-re
Are you loving it? Send Ash a text!
MORE ABOUT ASH
I am the definition of duality — I swear like a sailor and break rules like it’s my job, but I also hold incredible space for my clients and work my ass off to help them achieve the success they’re after. But I'm also here for the non-preneur woman, too. My background in counseling gives me a unique perspective on what it means to show up, serve, & create connection for those who feel like they've never belonged before.
LINKS:
- Become the Regulated Woman
- Get emails that feel like your best friend (if your best friend was a therapist and actually told you the truth).
- Use code BB20 to get The Burnout Breakthrough for only $7
- Follow me on IG (dropping in once a quarter for updates & gossip)
- Website: ashmcdonaldmentoring.com
Work with me 1:1
- Therapeutic Mentorship
- Business Therapy (therapy + strategic mentorship) ...