Episode Details

What happens when your earliest moments of intimacy are taken from you?

In this raw and powerful conversation, author Kaila Yu shares the truth about a traumatic experience in her early twenties that splintered her sense of self. Raised in a household where emotions were rarely named, Kaila spent years seeking validation outside herself. When a modeling opportunity turned into a violent betrayal, she dissociated to survive. For a long time, she told no one. But silence has a way of catching up to you. In time, Kaila found the strength to tell the truth and honor the version of herself who got through it.

Three key takeaways from Kaila’s life shift:

1. Sometimes survival looks like silence, but healing begins when we tell the truth
2. Dissociation is a form of protection, not weakness
3. Self-worth is something we can reclaim, even after it’s been stolen

This episode holds space for the complexity of trauma, cultural expectations, and the slow, brave act of integration.

Listen at http://www.thelifeshiftpodcast.com/s4e201

Kaila Yu is a luxury travel and culture writer and on-camera correspondent based in Los Angeles. Her work has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Rolling Stone, Condé Nast Traveler, and National Geographic. In her powerful debut memoir, Fetishized: A Reckoning with Yellow Fever, Feminism, and Beauty, Kaila explores the intersections of racialized desire, consent, trauma, and identity. The book will be released on August 19, 2025, by Penguin Random House’s Crown Publishing. Through her writing and advocacy, Kaila brings voice to the often-overlooked realities of Asian American women and invites deeper conversations around healing and self-worth.

More from The Life Shift Podcast:

🎧 Listen to all episodes: www.thelifeshiftpodcast.com/follow

💌 Get weekly reflections: www.thelifeshiftpodcast.com/newsletter

✨ Support on Patreon for ad-free early access: www.patreon.com/thelifeshiftpodcast

📲 Follow on socials: @thelifeshiftpodcast

Mentioned in this episode:

Available Now: "still HERE: True Stories of the Moments That Changed Everything"

This episode is brought to you by *still HERE: True Stories of the Moments That Changed Everything* by Matt Gilhooly. Matt is the creator and host of The Life Shift Podcast. Over four years and more than 240 episodes, he has sat with strangers and asked them about the moments that changed everything. *still HERE* is what he found. Over 100 true stories. Eight sections. One listener making sense of what it all means for the rest of us. Available now in Kindle and paperback on Amazon. Find it here: https://www.amazon.com/Still-Here-Stories-Moments-Everything/dp/1639011854/ If you read it and it moves you, an honest review on Amazon helps more people find it.