{"id":12,"date":"2026-02-10T18:40:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-10T18:40:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nataliesouders.com\/?page_id=12"},"modified":"2026-05-01T17:30:42","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T17:30:42","slug":"about-natalie","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/nataliesouders.com\/?page_id=12","title":{"rendered":"About Natalie"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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About<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Natalie'sStory<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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I grew up in rural West Virginia. Even though my proximity was close to big cities, New York might as well have been Mars.<\/strong><\/p>

My first trip to New York actually occurred when I rode along with my dad who was a truck driver at the time.<\/p>

As a kid I had a desire to model and act, but there never seemed to be a path possible in my mind.<\/p>

How exactly does someone break out of the circumstances they were born into? (This was pre-internet folks!)<\/p>

When I was 16, I won\/earned a trip to Atlanta through a 4-H competition. It was the first time I took a flight, and I saved those boarding passes well into adulthood and marriage.<\/p>

It\u2019s sort of strange to think about the version of myself who believed the opportunity to travel would be so limited to me.<\/p>

On that trip to Atlanta…<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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I heard a speaker named Dan Thurmon. He was the first person who ever spoke in a way that allowed me to dream outside of my circumstances. He taught us how to make a bucket list- the first one I ever did. And on that list I wrote \u201cget a pedicure\u201d right beside \u201cvisit The Great Wall of China.\u201d<\/p>

My first acting opportunity came on House of Cards where I was a recurring extra. I loved everything about the experience- learning the camera angles, understanding the monumental amount of work that went into each scene, and hearing the stories of others who were trying to make it big.<\/p>

During that time, I was having babies, so acting consistently wasn\u2019t in the cards. For the duration of that decade I jumped on tons of acting opportunities and things were rolling along until Covid hit. Like every other mother with small children, I went into survival mode. Chasing dreams wasn\u2019t even a consideration.<\/p>

I was able to grab ahold of a long-time bucket list goal (thanks Dan Thurmon) and self-publish my first book, Dear Mama. Inspired by my experience with postpartum depression with my first born. I wrote it as a bonding tool for mothers with their infants, which shows the challenges that mothers face. Additionally, I made a journal where mothers can write their own\u201d Dear Mama story.\u201d I would love to see it picked up by a larger publisher and be able to expand it.<\/p>

Life continued to move along, and I found myself hosting group therapy, which I absolutely loved. Sometimes it was like a \u201cBreakfast Club\u201d experience, while other times it was it was normalization of the struggles of life. Either way, through my own thoughts and encouragements of others, I decided to start my first podcast, Mental Health & Me in 2023.<\/p>

I have to be honest\u2026 Hosting this podcast has been extremely challenging. The amount of technical and personal setbacks I have experienced have knocked me on my heals. It would be so easy to quit, and I\u2019m sure that\u2019s why most people do. Many times, I have looked at the broken pieces of this journey and said \u201cWhat the heck do I do now?\u201d But I continue to build this platform with belief and hope. My goal for Mental Health & Me is that one day I will have an episode where every person can find a validation and know they aren\u2019t alone.<\/p>

And because I just don\u2019t know how to do one thing, I decided to launch a fun podcast, Dating App Disasters.\u201d I gotta tell you- these are hysterical. Every time I am listening to a guest, I think to myself, \u201cThis cannot be real!\u201d So if you are looking for a feel good podcast where people aren\u2019t afraid to laugh at their experiences, then this episode is for you.<\/p>

I am still deeply connected to my high school college music play list, and my favorite show is Frasier (a clear sign that podcasting and being a therapist was my calling!)<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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My Acting Career Goals...<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCadaver\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\tPlaying a deceased person. I know it sounds weird, but the HMA are so incredibly talented, and I would love to be a pallet for their work.\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tHallmark Movie Lead\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\tI have a great \u201cleading lady\u201d look, grew up on a small farm, and can ride horses. I was made for this part!\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPhysical Intensity\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\tI have hiked Pike\u2019s Peak, love the national parks and all things adventure- white water rafting, zip lining, knee boarding, skiing. I\u2019ll give anything a shot! I even went skydiving once!\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFeminine Rage\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/h4>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\tI do a great angry\/aggressive character. (think Salome in Women Talking)\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

About Natalie’sStory I grew up in rural West Virginia. Even though my proximity was close to big cities, New York might as well have been Mars. My first trip to New York actually occurred when I rode along with my dad who was a truck driver at the time. As a kid I had a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-12","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nataliesouders.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nataliesouders.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nataliesouders.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nataliesouders.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nataliesouders.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12"}],"version-history":[{"count":40,"href":"https:\/\/nataliesouders.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":282,"href":"https:\/\/nataliesouders.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12\/revisions\/282"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nataliesouders.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}