Blushing Phoenix
Blushing Phoenix is where vulnerability meets power — and shame becomes your turning point.
Hosted by April Poynter, this podcast and YouTube channel exists at the intersection of deep sensitivity and unshakable strength.
It was born from April’s own journey with chronic blushing and erythrophobia — a physical response that once felt like a curse, but became the gateway to healing, growth, and radical self-trust.
The blush symbolizes the quiet pain of self-betrayal — the years spent hiding, people-pleasing, and shrinking in relationships, work, and identity.
The phoenix represents what happens when you stop running from yourself and begin to rise — bolder, freer, louder, and more aligned.
Blushing Phoenix is for the women who feel everything deeply, who’ve silenced themselves to fit in, and who are ready to live louder without abandoning their softness.
Through raw stories, spiritual insights, and real conversations, April guides you to reclaim your voice, reconnect with your body, and rise from the ashes of who you were told to be — into the fire of who you really are.
Please rate and review the podcast if you enjoy it.
Blushing Phoenix
The Story Behind The Weight Loss: Noelle Dawson's Real Transformation - Part 1
**Interview starts at 5:41
Everyone saw the before-and-after pictures. What they didn’t see was the mental unraveling behind them.
In this raw and powerful first episode of our multi-part series, Noelle Dawson (@transforming_noelle) opens up about the moments that led her to post her first weight loss photo on Instagram, how she became an influencer (even though she doesn't like this term), and what happened when the comments and likes started to feel empty.
She lost over 260 pounds—but she was still carrying the weight mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
In this episode we talk about:
Why she started sharing her journey online
Her childhood as an athlete and the pressure that came with it
Her father’s addiction to alcohol and heroin
The first time she gained weight
How validation became a drug
The surgery that changed her body, but not her mind
And the moment she realized she still felt like 400 lbs on the inside
This is not just about weight loss.
This is about identity.
It’s about trauma, truth-telling, and choosing yourself.
This is Part 1 of a multi-part series.
In upcoming episodes, Noelle and I go deeper into mental health, shame, betrayal, an affair, and the rebuilding of self that no one saw coming.
Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the next episodes.
For more about Noelle: instagram.com/transforming_noelle
Watch the Youtube video here: https://youtu.be/vusWQV21FWA?si=brgNy9547VGIG7KS