Sean Loots | Starting Over and Life Changes Something Shifted | Stories of Identity, Loss and Life Transitions

Something Shifted | Stories of Identity, Loss and Life Transitions

There's a moment where your life splits in two. Before the diagnosis. Before the loss. Before everything changed. And then after.

Something Shifted is an award-winning podcast hosted by South African broadcaster Sean Loots, telling honest, deeply human stories of identity, grief, lifequakes and life transitions.

These are real stories of people navigating major life changes they didn't choose: rebuilding identity after loss, recovering from trauma, coping with grief, and finding meaning after everything falls apart. From parenting a child with special needs to surviving sudden life change, each episode explores what it takes to start over.

In a documentary-style narrative, Something Shifted blends raw storytelling with reflective narration, uncovering the quiet mind shifts that shape who we become when a lifequake hits and interrupts the plan.

This is a podcast about identity reconstruction, emotional healing, and the slow, honest work of finding purpose after loss. Because sometimes the shift isn't something you overcome. It's something you become.

Something Shifted is for anyone living through life transitions, searching for meaning after hardship, or trying to understand who they are now.

If you're here, you're not alone.
Monthly English South Africa Personal Journals · Documentary
52 Episodes
1 – 20

"Some version of alright, eventually." | Losing a dream

Kojo Baffoe had a dream that shaped much of his life, until it didn’t. In this story, he reflects on what it means to lose something that once gave your life structure, meaning, and momentum. This episode explores loss, identity shifts, and the emotional process of letting go when the…
2 Jun 30 min

"As I walk through the darkness" | Faith and a stillbirth

Marilize De Clercq had prepared for a life she was about to meet. A nursery ready, a name chosen, a future imagined. Then everything changed. This is a deeply personal story about stillbirth, grief, and the emotional reality of losing a child before birth. It explores pregnancy loss, faith in…
19 May 21 min

"You've Always Just Been This Way." | Late autism diagnosis

Jess Hinds became a mother while quietly struggling with overwhelm she couldn’t explain. That was until an autism diagnosis reframed her entire life. This episode explores late autism diagnosis in adulthood, neurodivergence in mothers, and the grief that can come with finally understanding yourself. It’s a story about identity discovery,…
5 May 35 min

"Harder to kill." | Brain cancer, identity and survival after diagnosis

Conn’s life changed in a single moment when subtle symptoms revealed an aggressive brain tumour requiring emergency surgery. This episode explores brain cancer survival, identity fracture, and what happens when the self you know is suddenly interrupted by illness. A story about survival, uncertainty, and rebuilding identity after trauma. www.somethingshifted.co.za…
24 Feb 33 min

"If Chickens Can Do It" | A case for optimism.

What does optimism actually mean, and can it be learned? In this episode, astrophysicist-turned-author Sumit Paul-Choudhury explores the psychology and science of optimism, drawing on research, history, and lived experience. This conversation looks at hope, meaning-making, and the role optimism plays in navigating uncertainty and loss. A story about choosing…
6 Jan 20 min
 bonus  

I phoned The Chaeli Campaign for Podcasthon 2025

My plan was to visit The Chaeli Campaign HQ. But life happened. So instead, I picked up the phone and spoke to the CEO, Zelda Mycroft. Zelda shares The Chaeli Campaign's mission to drive social justice and inclusion for people with disabilities. Highlighting the crucial role of advocacy in changing…
24 Mar 2025 26 min

"Pick up your pen and write a different story." | Courage and creativity

What if your life suddenly changed course, not by choice, but by force? In this episode, host Sean Loots introduces Verity, a woman who decided to rewrite her life after a personal lifequake. Through courage, creativity, and deep self-reflection, Verity learned that we always have the power to author a…
10 Mar 2025 29 min

"Half my face had collapsed." | Identity after Bell's palsy

In this episode, we explore how Lesego’s life changed when he developed Bell’s Palsy, and what it took for him to reframe identity, hope, and resilience If you've been listening to something shifted for a while, you've probably wondered about your own life quake. For Lesego, there are two distinct…
24 Feb 2025 26 min

"Whose afraid of little old me?"

Today’s story is a little different to some of our previous episodes. We generally meet guests post-life quake, who have the benefit of hindsight, and we learn how "That Big Thing" has changed the direction of their life - but we meet them on stable ground. Not everyone is on…
10 Feb 2025 28 min

"I became a living upcycled human."

When Jasper underwent a liver transplant in 2015, he didn’t just survive; he transformed. In this deeply human story, Jasper calls himself a “living upcycled human,” and shares what it means to carry a second chance inside your body. Host Sean Loots explores the emotional, physical, and spiritual journey that…
27 Jan 2025 25 min

"You don't say no to that."

In the adventures we seek out for ourselves, or the chances that we say yes to, deep down we know that things will change. But we can never fully grasp how much they will change. An enthusiastic yes today will obviously start a domino effect, but where will the yes…
13 Jan 2025 27 min

Motherhood fuelled her Olympic Dream.

For most, becoming a parent is a seismic shift, a lifequake that transforms everything we thought we knew about ourselves. It's a journey that challenges us to re-evaluate our priorities and make some tough decisions. Like how to balance our own dreams with the responsibilities of raising our children? In…
31 Dec 2024 27 min

12 Tremors Before Christmas

Year-end brings with it feelings of nostalgia and reflection. And while lifequakes are big events that permanently alter the course of a life, we want to recognise the smaller shifts and shakes - tremors, if you will, that sent us on a detour. This episode is a compilation of 12…
16 Dec 2024 36 min
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