Author Meghan Cathlin On Her Debut Book And How To Live ‘Heart First’

Former events coordinator turned life coach and author, Meghan Cathlin grew up in Texas and after a difficult upbringing she discovered the joys of living “heart-first.”

Her father committed suicide before she was 10, and she grew up without a lot of supervision in what she describes as a “dark, kind of depressing home life.” She started skipping school, getting into drugs and alcohol, and ultimately dropped out of school in the eighth grade.

While skipping school, she befriended a homeless man who took on a father figure role. She spent a lot of time with him and other lost souls in fields in her neighborhood. The age difference wasn’t important to her, she said. It felt as if she had an escape from her difficult home life.

She lied about her age at 14 so that she would work at a jewelry warehouse. At this time, she began attending school again and socializing more with peers her age. She went on to receive her high school degree, and then to college at University of the Incarnate Word. There, she majored in marketing in college, and landed her dream job in public relations at only 18.

She decided she was going to prove everyone in her small, wealthy town who doubted and judged her for having an untraditional childhood. She got straight As in school and prioritized networking. This soon led to burn out.

“So I’d fallen into just the dream job of all dream jobs, and then I basically became obsessed with success,” she said. “So I went hardcore. I was exhausting myself by hurting myself so much, trying to please, trying to perform, and I basically started realizing that I was missing what really mattered, which was how I felt internally.”

She pivoted to a mix of career and life coaching – a business she would continue for roughly the next 25 years. That was until she decided that expanding the business was not what was in her heart. What she needed was to take a break, reflect, and discover her heart’s desires and realign with them.

“I became a little bit of a hermit, like a recluse,” she said. “And for like a whole year, I just really stayed to myself. And so I got really quiet and started writing. And on the other side of it, I’m a totally different person because I honored my heart and I’m happier than I’ve ever been, which is so cool.”

She began writing her debut book on heart coherence.

Meghan explains ‘heart coherence’ as the state in which systems – mental, physical and emotional – are in harmony. She credits the HeartMath Institute for coining the term.

“When our brain and our heart – and even our breath and our hormones – all are in sync, that’s when we are in a state of heart coherence,” she said. “Instead of being in a crazy, like stressed out state, you’re able to be your most powerful, true self.”

To Meghan, heart coherence allows us to go with our own knowing as opposed to making a decision clouded by other people’s judgements. She said a major benefit is no longer wasting time in draining situations.

“Too many of us are living the life [that] we think we are supposed to live,” she said. “So, living a fully expansive life and knowing fulfillment and purpose in a way that makes your heart light up, that’s the number one benefit.”

The book touches on letting your heart lead through the experiences women face in their lives such as misalignment in the workplace, the role of being a caregiver, and relationships. The book is part memoir and part perspective, as Meghan puts it. There are moments where Meghan reflects on her experiences, and there are also exercises for the reader to implement as well.

The book is for those who are tired of the hustle and looking for more. People who simply want to live joyful lives and live out their purpose, she said.

“Because we all know the stories,” Meghan said. ”We see all the 80 or 90 year old people, we all hear what happens on their death beds and they’re upset about all the things that they didn’t do.”

“I think it doesn’t have to be that way. I think we overcomplicate it. This book is the answer for people who are tired of doing all the wrong things that aren’t working and they want to be fulfilled and seek purpose.“

‘Leading With the Heart: The Courage to Trust Your Inner Wisdom and Rewrite Your Life’ will be available October 14th, 2025.