Show Notes
At 17, Shelley Anne Crawford ignored the first red flag from the charming man she would later marry. Chapter 4 of her memoir, My Three Husbands: A True Story, is where her intuition spoke up and she chose not to listen.
In this episode of My 3 Husbands Book Cast, Shelley reads Chapter 4, The Glitter Before the Crack, then sits down with her editor, Dr. Kent Gustavson, to talk about the girl on the page. She was already dating Martin, her first love, when Jason walked into the store where she worked and told her to break up with him. One stood-up weekend and a long bus ride home settled it. Days later she climbed into Jason's VW Kombi, and when he called her baby, she shot back, "I'm not your baby." Within two weeks came the ultimatum: "It's him or me." Shelley and Kent talk about how childhood trauma can damage a young woman's intuition, and why hearing that inner voice is not the same as believing it. Shelley traces her "I'm not your baby" fire to the part of her that has helped her thrive, and names the irony underneath it: "he actually did end up owning me." Tune in to hear the first decision in a chain that runs through the rest of the book. Content Warning: This episode discusses suicide, self-harm, and other sensitive topics that some listeners may find distressing. Please take care while listening. If you or someone you know is struggling: Samaritans (UK & Ireland): Call 116 123 Pieta (Ireland): Call 1800 247 247 Chapters: 📖 00:04 Shelley Anne Crawford reads Chapter 4: Jason asks her out at 17 🚌 02:39 The bus ride home where she let go of her first love 🚐 05:15 A first date in Jason's VW Kombi: "I'm not your baby" ⚖️ 06:46 "It's him or me": the ultimatum and the choice she second-guessed 🧩 08:17 The first conscious decision and the domino effect it started 🧭 10:21 How childhood trauma mars intuition and what it takes to rebuild it 🔥 12:05 The warrior part of her that refuses to be owned 🌱 15:08 Mentoring her daughters and young women to own who they are 🎻 17:36 "I'm not playing second fiddle" and the first sign of Jason's control
Connect with Shelley: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/shelleyannecrawford2026 Substack: shelleyannecrawford.substack.com Website: www.jessglobal.org Reach out to Shelley to continue the conversation about learning to hear and trust your intuition, the thread she carries through this memoir and her other books.
More from My 3 Husbands Book Cast
At 17, far from home and longing to be seen, Shelley Anne Crawford was given a gift that asked more of her than she understood.
At 17, Shelley Anne Crawford boarded a plane for a scholarship year in America, under a rule that she could not call home for three months. Chapter 6 of her memoir My 3 Husbands: A True Story follows what that silence did to the relationship she left behind.
In Chapter 5 of her memoir My 3 Husbands, Shelley Anne Crawford is 17 and swept up in a whirlwind romance when she meets the mother who treats her like a rival.
Shelley Anne Crawford grew up on a South African farm where the map ran out. In Chapter 3 of her memoir My 3 Husbands: A True Story, she goes back to the childhood that taught her to read a silence.
In this second episode of the My 3 Husbands Book Cast, Shelley reads Chapter 2, "The Crack in the Glass," and then sits down with her editor, Dr. Kent Gustavson, to talk about what she just read.