She Survived Suicide and Found Her Purpose

Summary

Podcast Summary: Living Your Legacy

Episode: She Survived Suicide and Found Her Purpose
Host: Kira Brinton (guest hosting for Rudy Mawer)
Guest: Katie Jo Finai
Date: May 22, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this heartfelt episode, host Kira Brinton sits down with Katie Jo Finai—internationally recognized drum artist, bestselling author, humanitarian speaker, and founder of a global sound healing platform—to discuss the deeply personal stories and transformative wisdom that shaped her journey. Together, they explore themes of healing, authenticity, motherhood, and legacy, particularly through the lens of collaborative book projects that give voice to experiences often kept in the shadows, including survival after a suicide attempt.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Power of Unspoken Stories

• Stigma and Silence: Katie Jo opens with reflections on how "so many mothers feel alone when they're feeling like they're not good enough" ([00:00]). She underscores the importance of sharing stories about motherhood, including those on postpartum depression, psychosis, struggles with addiction, miscarriage, abortion, and more. Often, "these are the stories that if we tell them, we tell them in hushed voices" ([00:10]).
• Creating Connection: The Unspoken Motherhood book anthology was assembled by asking, “Do you have a story that you know a woman needs to hear so she knows she's not alone?” ([00:22], [06:49]).

Sacred Objects and Rituals in Healing

• Artistry and Legacy: Katie Jo, a specialist in 500+-year-old singing bowls, describes them as "timeless treasures" and "pieces of history" ([03:59]). Kira shares personal rituals, using an antique bowl post-child custody exchanges to help her child "recalibrate back into my home" ([04:14]).
• Personal Connection: Kira recalls, “These drums, they move everywhere with me… you also… you watch me drop my authors in with a sacred bowl. Katie Jo is the one that I bought the bowl from. Thank you” ([03:18]).

The Journey to Authorship

• Collaborations:
  • Moon Journal: Katie Jo's first published work as a result of meeting Kira through a business coach ([02:25], [05:07]).
  • Divine Collaboration: Participating in an anthology aimed at helping those with suicidal ideation; Katie Jo was the only contributor who had survived a suicide attempt, “I didn't attempt suicide. I committed suicide. I was committed. I just survived after 10 days in the hospital” ([05:10], [06:10]).
  • Unspoken Motherhood: Both women co-authored this book, curating and sharing raw stories not usually heard openly ([06:48]).

Creativity as Healing and Legacy

• Art and Authorship:
  • Katie Jo sketched the cover and illustrations for Unspoken Motherhood: “I sketched all the art in the book. All but one. And I just asked a lot of the authors, but a lot of my friends if they would send pictures of their kids… what motherhood is to me. And then I just made a sketch” ([08:05]).
  • The art adds a personal and emotional layer, connecting readers with lived experiences.
• Empowerment and Platform Building: Kira praises Katie Jo’s storytelling and writing skills: “You are a master with words” ([08:51]). Katie Jo reciprocates, emphasizing the impact of “giving a platform to... people who [wouldn’t] have a platform” and connects this to a broader legacy of change, suggesting, “this is the leading edge of change in the world where we say, hey, we're different than others” ([08:57]).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Motherhood and Shame:

  • Katie Jo: “These are the stories that if we tell them, we tell them in hushed voices.” ([00:10])
  • Kira: “The art, the sketch on the front of the book is me and my little girl… which is really, really tender to me.” ([08:03])

• On Survival and Speaking Out:

  • Katie Jo: “I didn’t attempt suicide. I committed suicide. I was committed. I just survived after 10 days in the hospital.” ([06:10])

• On Healing and Ritual:

  • Kira: “When my kids come back from a week with their dad, I bring my littlest one to my red light therapy mat every Sunday, and I use the bowl on him to help him recalibrate back into my home.” ([04:14])

• On Legacy and Courage:

  • Katie Jo: “Leading edge of change in the world where we say, hey, we’re different than others. And our stories are the stories that today, being the anniversary of Joan of Arc’s death, these are the stories and the wisdom and the intuitions that we were burned for. So here we are now.” ([08:57])

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Introduction to Unspoken Motherhood (00:00–00:33)
• Katie Jo’s Artistic Legacy & Sacred Objects (03:13–04:43)
• Collaboration and Book Projects (05:02–07:57)
• Personal Reflections on Motherhood and Healing (08:03–08:21)
• Themes of Legacy, Courage, and Platform Building (08:57–09:50)

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Tone and Style

Candid, vulnerable, and uplifting, this conversation balances raw honesty about trauma and healing with a deep sense of hope and community. The rapport between Kira and Katie Jo is evident, infusing the episode with mutual admiration and inspired energy.

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Takeaway

This episode vividly illustrates the healing power of storytelling, art, and community in overcoming isolation and shame. Katie Jo Finai’s willingness to discuss her survival after a suicide attempt and her contributions to books on motherhood and transformation serve as powerful reminders that sharing the unspoken parts of our lives can create connection, foster healing, and inspire lasting change.

Transcript

[Katie Jo Finai]

So many mothers feel alone when they're feeling like they're not good enough. And we have stories of postpartum depression, of psychosis, of my kids are struggling with addiction or drugs. My, you know, we have a story of abortion in there. So these are the stories that if we tell them, we tell them in hushed voices. Yeah. Or struggling with, who am I now that I am a mom? And to be fair, it's a hard book to read because it's so authentic. We gathered stories that said, do you have a story that you know a woman needs to hear so she knows she's not alone?

[Narrator]

Katie Jo Finai is an internationally recognized drum artist, three time best selling author and humanitarian speaker, and the founder of a global sound healing and shamanic education platform known for blending ancient wisdom, music and modern transformational teaching.

[Kira Brinton]

You are one of the bravest women I know. You're also one of the wisest women I know. And when she writes, y', all, every time she reads her writing, in our Mastermind, everyone's like, drop the mic. Like every time we're just like, what?

[Katie Jo Finai]

Who is this woman? This is the leading edge of change in the world where we say, hey, we're different than others. These are the stories and the wisdom and the intuitions that we were burned for.

[Podcast Intro Announcer]

It spans the globe like a super highest cold Internet Elvis Presley. Today, Apple is going to reinvent Lefon. It's not over until I win. The Living youg Legacy podcast. For those who live to leave a legacy that's extraordinary. The impossible. Oh, that is sensational. Jordan Open Chicago with the lead Usain Paul is the fastest man on the planet. You can live your dream.

[Kira Brinton]

Welcome back to my season of Legacy makers. My name is Kira Brinton and I'm so excited to introduce to you one of the most sacred, powerful women that I know, Katie Jo Fanai.

[Katie Jo Finai]

Thank you.

[Kira Brinton]

Oh my gosh, Katie Jo, thank you for being here. Yes, I'm excited. I. I don't even know when we met. Do you know how we met? How did we meet?

[Katie Jo Finai]

We met on a zoom call through a business coach.

[Kira Brinton]

No way.

[Katie Jo Finai]

Yeah. That's crazy. And I had had a goal to publish a book for 10 years plus and I even worked with New York Times best selling authors and different things. And then you popped on and you said, I'm going to start a publishing house. And I think it was maybe November. It was something late in the year because I said, that's it. I'm publishing before December. That's how. So I contacted you and we did it.

[Kira Brinton]

And then I started coming to your studio and doing book writing, like, workshops in Utah. And you just became a really solid piece. I feel like in my life, like, we danced in and out. Oh, I'm gonna get emotional. You have painted all of my sacred drums.

[Katie Jo Finai]

Yeah. I love, love those. It's an honor. I love to do that. Yeah.

[Kira Brinton]

Yeah. Like my Mary Magdalene. No, you didn't do the Mary Magdalene. You did thecla and Isis. And there's a new one coming in. I can't hear who she is or what it is, but there's a new drum that needs to be birthed. And these drums, they move everywhere with me. And I just moved. So grateful for you for bringing those to me. And then you also. Everyone who's watched any episode, you watch me drop my authors in with a sacred bowl. Katie Jo is the one that I bought the bowl from. Thank you.

[Katie Jo Finai]

Yeah.

[Kira Brinton]

Like, that's so sacred to me.

[Katie Jo Finai]

They are sacred. They're phenomenal.

[Kira Brinton]

Yeah.

[Katie Jo Finai]

They're art pieces, and they're pieces of history. I specialize in the bowls that are over 500 years old. They're older than King Henry, than medieval art, than an old sword or gauntlets. These are timeless treasures.

[Kira Brinton]

Yeah. And mine is 600 years old. And I don't think I've ever told you this, but when my kids come back from a week with their dad, I bring my littlest one to my red light therapy mat every Sunday, and I use the bowl on him to help him recalibrate back into my home. And they've healed. I. I've used this with every author. It goes with me everywhere.

[Katie Jo Finai]

I love that.

[Kira Brinton]

Yeah. So thank you.

[Katie Jo Finai]

Yeah. I. I mean, I want to say yes and you're welcome, but that I feel so honored that they're in my space. These are treasures that were created by hands and masters and artisans and that I get to have them so that they are available. So. Yeah.

[Kira Brinton]

So you've written a few books with me. Why don't we say the names of the books that you've written?

[Katie Jo Finai]

We started with the Moon Journal. That's the first one.

[Kira Brinton]

Yeah.

[Katie Jo Finai]

It's a journal. And I was like, hell or high water, I'm publishing. I don't care if it's a journal. And I love this very little writing. We're gonna get it done. It's so beautiful. And then what I loved when we wrote Divine collaboration and by we, it's an anthology. And I remember when you had posted about that and you said, we're going to write a Book, and it's about suicide and helping people who are feeling that way. And I remember either texting or calling you, and you were gathering authors, and I said, I know you have a lot of authors who have ideation. I know you have a lot of authors. And this is at the time, so maybe it changed, but at the time. And I said, and then we've lost people or. Or, you know, this. And I said, have you had anybody that has attempted suicide and survived? And at the time, you said, no. I said, well, then I should be in it, because I think it helps people understand the headspace. And I like to. It's an odd way to say it, but I say, I didn't attempt suicide. I committed suicide. I was committed. I just survived after 10 days in the hospital.

[Kira Brinton]

Wow.

[Katie Jo Finai]

Yeah. Oh, you.

[Kira Brinton]

You've inspired me in so many ways. And we wrote that motherhood book together, which. Oh, man, that one was a kicker.

[Katie Jo Finai]

That was the learning. That was so. I had this. I have this dear, close friend, and she lived in a haunted house. And she says, I don't call it the haunted house. I call it the house of learning. And she's like, that was our book of learning.

[Kira Brinton]

Yeah, it was.

[Katie Jo Finai]

It was back in the beginning. But I feel like the reason that it was our book of learning is because those stories are so important. And so we called it the. I'll say what it is, where people can find it, because it's unspoken motherhood. And I'm so passionate about it because so many mothers feel alone when they're feeling like they're not good enough. And we have stories of postpartum depression, of psychosis, of my kids are struggling with addiction or drugs. We have a story of abortion in there. We have stories of. I maybe mentioned miscarriage. We have stories of giving a baby up for an adoption. So these are the stories that if we tell them, we tell them in hushed voices or struggling with, who am I now that I am a mom? And to be fair, it's a hard book to read because it's so authentic. And we're not professional. So many of us in that book, we're not professional authors. We gathered stories that said, do you have a story. Story that, you know, a woman needs to hear so she knows she's not alone? And I'm so proud of that book. So am I. Yeah. Yeah.

[Kira Brinton]

This is so beautiful. And you. The art, the sketch on the front of the book is me and my little girl.

[Katie Jo Finai]

Yeah.

[Kira Brinton]

Which is really, really tender to me.

[Katie Jo Finai]

Yeah. It's so special. And I. I sketched all the art in the book. All but one. Yeah. And I just asked a lot of the authors, but a lot of my friends if they would send pictures of their kids. Yeah. And what motherhood is to me. And then I just made a sketch.

[Kira Brinton]

It was such. Such a sacred, sacred journey with that book. And. And now you actually are going to be on my TV show, Writer's island, writing another book. And you are one of the bravest women I know. You're also one of the wisest women I know. And when she writes, y', all, every time she reads her writing, in our Mastermind, everyone's like, drop the mic. Like, every time. We're just like, what?

[Katie Jo Finai]

Who is this woman?

[Kira Brinton]

You are a master with words.

[Katie Jo Finai]

Thank you.

[Kira Brinton]

And it's just, like, my deepest honor to know you.

[Katie Jo Finai]

Oh, I love knowing you. I love to see what you've created. I love to see where you're going. I love that you're giving a platform to not just women, but to people who would have a platform. And I think that this is the leading edge of. Of change in the world where we say, hey, we're different than others. And our stories are the stories that today being the anniversary of Joan of Arc's death, these are the stories and the wisdom and the intuitions that we were burned for. So here we are now. But it's not just the leading edge. What you're doing is you're. It feels so alone, but you're creating this red rover handholding where we all go forward. So it's a powerful thing. I'm grateful to be part of your vision, journey, and creation.

[Kira Brinton]

Thank you. Well, my friends, you're going to love her episode. I thank you for being here, and I'll see you next time on Legacy Makers.