A warm, chatty look at why wanting change does not always mean having the capacity to sustain it.
Sydney uses the Let Them Theory to sit with a practical question: what happens when someone wants to change, but cannot keep the effort going?
Sydney's twenties, unfiltered: anxiety, dating, moves and restarts.
The gist
On grow with it, Sydney catches listeners up on her life the way she might catch up a close friend, from a Miami girls' trip to a leasing office that stalls on her new lease. Between the stories come anxiety, therapy, money habits and a quote of the week that she reads aloud and reflects on.
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About grow with it
Sydney created grow with it in 2020, during the pandemic, while she was studying for a boards exam and living at home with her mom. The podcast has lapsed and restarted several times since, and she makes no secret of it. Several episodes begin with her owning up to the gap, once blaming no one but herself, and promising to stay consistent. One opens in 2026 with the note that she last recorded in 2023. Her introductions name the subjects: life, dating, mental health, self-worth and self-growth, along with working out and her job. What actually fills the episodes is stories. She moved from New York City to Washington, D.C., and in one episode she takes stock of what the new city gives her: her workout classes, a solid group of friends, a church she likes, and family about three hours away, closer than before. In another, recorded on her phone, she describes chasing a leasing office for her new lease shortly before a trip out of the country. A Miami girls' trip gets a full play-by-play, from pizza in pajamas to a bottomless brunch. Mental health is not a side topic here. Sydney speaks directly about living with anxiety and about being in therapy, including how pricey it is and her plan to go in and out of it rather than stay indefinitely. She also says she thinks everybody could use a little therapy. In the episode titled 'Lucky Girl Syndrome', she talks about valuing a slow Saturday at home, tallies the conversations that had already filled her day, and admits that going out usually means spending more than she wants to. Under the chat sits a reflective habit. She keeps a quote of the week, which she describes as something she typically does every time, reading it aloud and explaining why it struck her. One episode runs through her wins before getting to the quote. In another she reads from chapter 14 of the Let Them Theory, titled 'People Only Change When They Feel Like It', after talking about why some people find it hard to hear things they may already know. The texture is chatty and a little chaotic, with her dogs, a fading voice and a Miami room she calls a hot mess express all making appearances. Her sign-offs invite topic ideas, guest suggestions and comments on Instagram and TikTok. Titles such as 'healing era', 'am I the drama???', 'Coming in hot!' and '*unedited* chaotic we are so back, girly facetime rebrand???' give a fair sense of the range: candid, self-aware, and always coming back to the idea of growth.
Made for: Suits a listener who wants a friendly, loose catch-up about anxiety, therapy, dating, friendships and moving cities in one's twenties more than a structured self-help program.
What sets it apart: It runs on Sydney's own life updates rather than expert advice, and she is frank about falling off and coming back to the podcast. A quote of the week gives all that looseness a steady anchor.
In their own words
A podcast created to prove that you can manifest any dream you have into reality. I will be discussing self improvement, living with intention, surviving life in your twenties, mental health, dating, making friends as adults, and many more hot topics in today’s society. Follow my journey in the city for the inside scoop.
Why you'd press play
Sydney's dream-job news comes with a grapefruit spritzer; you get the tired Monday too.
Press play if you want
- to hear someone measure a career change against her own version of happiness
- to sit with Sydney as she talks frankly about anxiety, therapy, and what she can control
anxiety and therapydating and friendshipsself-worth and self-growthmoving apartments and citiesgirls' trips and travelspending and money habitsworkout classes and routinequote of the week
Talks about
Best episodes of grow with it
Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
Sydney's messy return turns a Miami weekend and lost sleep into a candid check-in on life still in motion.
Six years after launching Grow With It during COVID, Sydney returns to the phone with the show's rough edges still showing. She stutters, loses her place, pauses over what might be a knock at the door, and keeps going anyway.
A candid return to podcasting turns a Sunday-night reset into a grounded reflection on choice, uncertainty, and momentum.
Sydney returns after time away from work and podcasting with a check-in that feels quietly hopeful. She weighs what has changed since New York: being nearer to family, feeling held by friends, finding workout classes, and settling into a church she likes.
A candid check-in on anxiety, therapy, faith, and focusing on what can still change.
Grow With It returns with Sydney in a candid personal check-in, now settling into Washington, D.C. after New York City and feeling overwhelmed after coming back from Tulum.
A phone-recorded moving week becomes a candid reflection on order, overload, and the pressure to keep going.
A loose Friday-night check-in turns a delayed apartment move into a clear look at how ordinary logistics can start to feel like emotional weather.
Podcasts like grow with it
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The ImperfectsHugh van Cuylenburg, Ryan Shelton & Josh van CuylenburgHard conversations, patiently held, with room to laugh.
Therapy for Black GirlsiHeartPodcasts and Joy Harden Bradford, Ph.D.Care, culture, and the choices shaping Black women's lives.
Episodes
- 1
this & that, unpacking the “let them theory”, + lets get reaaal
Hidden gemSydney's Grow With It solo update moves from a four-day Cancun family trip to a week of work fatigue and a 10-day stretch on the calendar.
Apr 1, 2026·22m·1 clip - 2
*unedited* chaotic we are so back, girly facetime rebrand???
Hidden gemSydney reopens Grow With It in 2026 after her last recording in 2023, calling the show raw, lightly edited, and closer to therapy than performance.
Mar 18, 2026·22m·2 clips - 3
Coming in hot!
Sydney returns to Grow With It after a March recording gap, says August felt chaotic, and records on a Sunday night before starting work again on Monday in Washington, DC.
Aug 21, 2023·26m·2 clips - 4
healing era
["Sydney opens with a We The Urban line that treats healing as a lifelong journey, then links it to therapy and anxiety.", "She recaps a Tulum all-inclusive trip with childhood best friends, a Barry's Bootcamp three-pack, and a new Mighty Meal dinner routine.", "The middle of the episode centers on every-other-week BetterHelp therapy, a Passion City Church community group with Madison, and her attempt to build two podcast episodes a month.", "She closes with a 24-hour New York weekend on the Upper West Side, in Chelsea, and at Poco, plus Olive's first birthday and an early Barry's class."]
Mar 13, 2023·27m·2 clips - 5
am I the drama???
Hidden gemSydney turns a lease transfer in her DC building into the week's main story, because her current unit is too expensive and the new lease date keeps changing.
Feb 20, 2023·26m·1 clip - 6
Lucky Girl Syndrome
Hidden gemSydney, the 27-year-old host of Grow With It, explains “lucky girl syndrome” as believing that the universe is conspiring in your favor.
Feb 6, 2023·23m·1 clip - 7
She's Back!!!
Sydney Callens returns to Grow With It after a long break and describes 2022 as a difficult year before discussing life at age 27.
Jan 30, 2023·28m·2 clips - 8
Why I've been MIA: the Good, the Bad, & the ugly
Hidden gemOn Grow With It, Sydney explains why she stopped podcasting after August 2021 while balancing a full-time job, Monday-through-Thursday teletherapy from 4 to 7 p.m., and 6 a.m.
Jan 22, 2022·27m·1 clip - 9
refocusing, relaxing, & catch up time
The host returns to Grow With It after roughly a month and a half away, recording from Virginia during a two-week visit with her immunocompromised mother.
Aug 18, 2021·23m·1 clip - 10
How I Manifested my DREAM job
Hidden gemIn Grow With It, the host explains how leaving skilled nursing led to a preschool occupational-therapy job that felt right on its first day.
Jun 16, 2021·27m·1 clip - 11
You are your only competition
Jun 2, 2021·24m - 12
The Journey, Imposter Syndrome, & Slowing Down
May 19, 2021·24m - 13
Why I’ve been MIA, Moving Chaos, & Manhattan Medium Chat
Apr 28, 2021·26m - 14
Falling into place
Mar 18, 2021·27m - 15
Special Guest Feature: Madison Summers- NYC Lifestyle & More
Feb 24, 2021·33m - 16
Whirlwinds, Adult Life & Letting Go
Feb 10, 2021·29m - 17
LIFE UPDATES, Changes, & Mental Health Chat
Jan 27, 2021·27m - 18
2020 Accomplishments, Resilience, & Growth
Jan 6, 2021·30m - 19
Sans Dating Apps & Winter Feelings
Dec 9, 2020·33m - 20
Life Update-with a side of Girl Talk
The host returns after a break due to election anxiety, shares a personal update about her day and love for New York in fall, and sets the stage for discussing self-improvement and life topics.
Nov 11, 2020·28m - 21
Special Guest Feature: Kellyn Mcmullan & NYC lifestyle
Oct 21, 2020·29m - 22
Bachelor Chat, Growing Pains, & Meaningful Connections
Oct 7, 2020·24m - 23
Thoughts, Thoughts & More Thoughts
Sep 23, 2020·28m - 24
Enjoying the present, kindness & self awareness
Sep 2, 2020·30m - 25
Alone Time, Reflecting & Adulting
Aug 12, 2020·29m - 26
The “yes” girl
Jul 29, 2020·28m - 27
Special Guest: Marie the SLP!
Jul 15, 2020·53m - 28
The odds and ends + manifestation chat
Jul 8, 2020·26m - 29
NYC life, Creating a routine, & Mary Jane Patterson
Jun 24, 2020·27m - 30
MOVING TO NEW YORK CITY + Big Life Updates
Jun 17, 2020·31m - 31
My truth
Jun 3, 2020·31m - 32
No more self doubt
May 27, 2020·32m - 33
It’s the little things
May 20, 2020·26m - 34
When almost isn’t enough
May 13, 2020·24m - 35
Let’s get personal
May 6, 2020·27m - 36
Interview with an old friend-Cassidy Purvis: Makeup Business, Married Life, & Fashion Blogging
Host introduces a long-lost friend Cassidy for a casual conversation about life and personal growth.
Apr 29, 2020·34m - 37
Baking, Struggles/Wins, & Growing Your Faith
Apr 22, 2020·29m - 38
Am I still moving to NYC, Intermittent Fasting, & Fitness
Apr 11, 2020·28m - 39
Checking In, Tips on How to Stay Busy, & Positivity
The host checks in with listeners during social distancing, sharing her own struggles and tips for maintaining a schedule.
Apr 1, 2020·25m - 40
The One With Syds Mom Ft. Lynette Callands
Host Sydney and her mom discuss weekly struggles and wins, focusing on self-improvement and gratitude.
Mar 22, 2020·32m - 41
Moving to NYC-Update, Coronavirus Opinions, & TV Show Chats
The host shares a life update and discusses using a new recording method, while promoting self-improvement and manifestation.
Mar 12, 2020·28m - 42
Life Chat Ft. Caitlin Davis: Entrepreneurship, Adulting, & Empaths
Mar 2, 2020·38m - 43
Comparison Kills, Toxic Friendships, & Mindset Changes
Feb 23, 2020·30m - 44
Keepin’ it real
Feb 13, 2020·25m - 45
Truly; I hope you don’t hold back
Jan 27, 2020·20m - 46
Overthinking, Anxiety & Self Love
Jan 19, 2020·24m - 47
Tinder Date Stories, Competition Cheer & Rejection
Jan 12, 2020·26m - 48
Roommates becoming Bestfriends, Dating Stories, & Changes
Jan 5, 2020·31m - 49
2020 Goals, NYE Shenanigans, & Life Changes
Jan 3, 2020·24m