Relationships in the Grey Zone: Letting go of an ex and facing an unexpected pregnancy

Dial Emma

Emma Reed Turrell

Society & Culture, Relationships, Mental Health, Health & Fitness

4.8 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 25 August 2025

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Welcome back to Dial Emma! Each week, I'll be answering your dilemmas with honesty, empathy, and a few therapeutic truth bombs to help you make sense of life's stickiest moments. If you've ever wished you had a therapist in your back pocket, Dial Emma is here to help.

In this week's episode, we hear two dilemmas that sit in the grey zone when it comes to relationships. One listener is torn between a promising new partner and the pull of an ex, while another faces an unplanned pregnancy and the fear of disappointing her parents. I explore why we hold on to the past, how to let go, and what it means to make life-changing choices on our own terms.

If you have a dilemma for Emma, please fill out this form.

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Dial Emma is hosted by Emma Reed Turrell, produced by Lauren Brook.

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Social media:

Emma Reed Turrell @emmareedturrell

Dial Emma @dialemmapodcast

Email: [email protected]

Transcript

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0:00.0	This podcast is sponsored by British Airways and Tobago.
0:05.2	The British Airways Experience is more than a flight.
0:08.4	It's about making every single journey as original as you are.
0:14.1	Hello and welcome to Dial Emma, the podcast where your dilemmas meet my therapeutic insights.
0:20.8	I'm Emma Reed-Torrell, psychotherapistist, author and well-recovering people pleaser.
0:25.4	Each week I'll be unpacking real-life questions from listeners just like you.
0:30.0	The big ones, the small ones, the ones that keep you up at night,
0:33.5	offering practical tools and gentle truths to help you find your way through. So if you've got a
0:39.1	question, you don't know how to ask out loud. You've come to the right place.
0:50.5	Welcome to Dial Emma, the place for those dilemmas you've been carrying around in your head for far too long.
0:57.5	And today we're talking about love without a clear destination.
1:02.1	The moments when your heart's not quite where you thought it would be.
1:06.3	We've got two dilemmas that live in that grey zone.
1:10.1	One's about moving on from a relationship that still
1:12.5	has its hooks in you, and the other one is about facing a life-changing decision that feels
1:18.4	impossible to share with family. So let's get into it with our first dilemma. I've started dating
1:27.4	someone new, but I can't stop sleeping with my ex.
1:32.0	Dear Emma, I've met someone new, and he's wonderful.
1:36.6	He's thoughtful, genuinely listens, and makes me laugh in a way I haven't in years.
1:43.1	We've been dating for a few months now and it feels like
1:45.9	there's real potential here. But there's a problem I can't seem to untangle. I'm still sleeping with my
1:52.9	ex. We broke up over a year ago. It was messy, but we have this undeniable chemistry, the kind that makes it too easy to fall back into bed together.
	...

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