Roxie Nafousi on Motherhood, Manifestation and Building a Life of Self-Worth.
Photo courtesy of Roxie Nafousi.
Roxie Nafousi is known to many as the bestselling author who brought manifestation into the mainstream, but behind the books, the global community and the beautifully articulated language of self-worth is a far more personal story of healing, motherhood and becoming.
When you read or hear Roxie’s story, you begin to understand just how significant motherhood has been in shaping her journey. It was not simply a new chapter in her life, but a transformative force. One that changed the way she saw herself, her purpose and the future she wanted to create. In many ways, motherhood became the catalyst for a profound personal evolution, one that would ultimately ripple far beyond her own life and go on to make a difference to millions of people around the world.
In this conversation with Luminary Mothers, Roxie speaks with striking honesty about the arrival of her son Wolfe, and how motherhood gave her a reason to fight for a different life. She opens up about the darkness of pregnancy, the reality of prenatal depression, the slow and tender process of bonding, and the way becoming a mother forced her to face the parts of herself she had spent years trying to escape.
What emerges is not a polished story of overnight transformation, but something much more powerful: a woman rebuilding herself through purpose, self-trust, ambition and love. From writing Manifest and expanding her work into Confidence, children’s self-worth and her fragrance brand Alia, to now bringing her philosophy into a new chapter with the launch of The Manifest App, Roxie has continued to evolve the world she first created through her books. Alongside it all, she shares what it means to navigate motherhood and ambition, and to create a life that feels not only successful, but deeply aligned.
On a personal note, this conversation might never have happened if it weren’t for Roxie’s book. I was so profoundly moved by Manifest that it led me to follow one of my own biggest desires: to create Luminary Mothers. The rest, as they say, is history. But one thing I can say with certainty is that Roxie’s thinking, honesty and words of wisdom are for everyone — and perhaps, especially for mothers.
By Alice Codford
ON MOTHERHOOD
Alice Codford: Do you feel that motherhood changed the entire direction of your life?
Roxie Nafousi: Completely. Before I had Wolfe, I was incredibly lost. I had struggled with addiction for over a decade, I had very little self-worth and I didn’t have a sense of purpose or direction. Becoming a mother forced me to face everything I had spent years trying to escape from. It wasn’t an instant transformation, but it gave me a reason to fight for a different life. Every good thing that has happened to me has happened since he came along.
You’ve spoken so openly about motherhood arriving at a time when you were still healing. Looking back, do you see becoming a mother as a turning point?
Roxie Nafousi: Absolutely, but I didn’t become pregnant and suddenly feel healed or filled with purpose. Pregnancy was one of the darkest periods of my life because I had to give up all the things I had been using to numb myself, and all the pain underneath came rushing to the surface. But it was through the darkness that I was forced to face my trauma, wounds and start the journey into becoming the woman I am today.
“Motherhood may become one of the most important parts of who you are, but it does not have to be the end of your own becoming.”
Is motherhood what you expected it to be? What surprised you most about who you became after having your son?
Roxie Nafousi: I don’t think anything can prepare you for the intensity of it, but I have eight nephews and nieces so I wasn’t under the illusion it would be easy. I was fully expecting the sleepless nights, and the exhaustion in the early years and I actually think that helped me cope with it better because I didn’t have any false ideas of what it would be like. But then from the age of one I actually think motherhood is so, so much better than I expected it to be. I don’t think I expected it to be this much fun. I absolutely adore being a mum, the patience and softness he brings out of me, and Wolfe is honestly the best person to hang out with. We’re proper buddies. Every year I think, ‘oh my gosh I want to pause this age, it's so good’ and then it gets even better.
Was there a moment of motherhood that felt especially difficult, emotionally, physically or spiritually, and what helped you move through it? Equally, what has been a highlight?
Roxie Nafousi: Pregnancy and the first few months after Wolfe was born were incredibly difficult. I experienced prenatal depression and, after he arrived, I struggled to connect with him immediately. I had no love for myself at that point, so I didn’t know how to access the love I thought I was supposed to feel. I moved through it slowly, and by allowing the bond to grow without forcing it. Then, when that connection came, it was magical. The highlights now are often the most ordinary moments: laughing together, lying in bed chatting, travelling with him or watching him become his own brilliant little person. I’m extremely proud of his emotional awareness!
Photo courtesy of Roxie Nafousi.
What has your son taught you about love, presence and self-worth?
Roxie Nafousi: Wolfe taught me that love can be safe, uncomplicated and unconditional. He has taught me that presence matters more than perfection and he has also taught me to love myself more, because I know that he loves me for who I am, not for someone I think I need to be. He has also made me want to treat myself with more compassion, because I know that how I speak to myself becomes part of what he learns about how he could talk to himself.
Was there a moment in early motherhood where you didn’t recognise yourself, and what helped you begin to come back to yourself?
Roxie Nafousi: For much of my pregnancy, I didn’t recognise myself at all. I felt disconnected from my body, my identity and the life I had known. Coming back to myself wasn’t about returning to who I had been before; it was about consciously creating someone new. I started looking after my mind, learning about self-development and manifestation and finding small ways to be of service to other people. That began to give me a sense of purpose again.
“Every good thing that has happened to me has happened since he came along.”
What do you wish more women knew about the emotional reality of becoming a mother?
Roxie Nafousi: That it is possible to be deeply grateful for your child and still find motherhood incredibly difficult. You can love your child and miss your old life. You can feel overwhelmed, disconnected or lost without being a bad mother. We put so much pressure on women to experience instant bliss, but the reality is often far more complex. The more honestly we speak about that, the less alone women will feel.
What do you wish you could say to the version of yourself who had just become a mother?
Roxie Nafousi: I would tell her: you are not broken and you are not failing. You don’t have to feel everything immediately, and the fact that this is hard does not mean you are not meant for this. The bond will come. You are going to love him more than you can currently comprehend, and one day you will look back and realise that the birth of your son was also the birth of you.
ON HEALING, SELF-WORTH & MANIFESTATION
Your work has helped so many women understand manifestation in a much deeper way. For you, where did that journey really begin?
Roxie Nafousi: It began when I had reached a point where I knew I couldn’t continue living as I was. I had spent years trying to escape myself through addiction, relationships and external validation. I heard a podcast about manifestation and, for the first time, understood it not as magically wishing for things, but as changing your beliefs, behaviour and sense of self. Something clicked. I realised that if I wanted my life to change, I had to begin with me.
“My peace is part of my success now, not something I am willing to sacrifice for it.”
Before the books, the success and the global community, what were you personally searching for?
Roxie Nafousi: To feel happy. I wasn’t searching for a bestselling book or a global career because I couldn’t have imagined any of that. I was searching for a way to feel comfortable in my own skin. I wanted to wake up without feeling shame, anxiety or the need to escape myself. More than anything, I wanted to believe that there was a future to be excited about.
Photo courtesy of Roxie Nafousi.
You often speak about self-worth as the foundation of manifestation. When did you first realise that worthiness was the missing piece?
Roxie Nafousi: When I began looking at the patterns in my life, I realised that they all came back to the same belief: I didn’t think I was good enough. That belief shaped the relationships I chose, what I tolerated, how I spoke to myself and what I believed was possible for me. You cannot sustainably create a life beyond what you feel worthy of receiving. Self-worth was the missing piece because, without it, I would always find a way to sabotage or reject the things I said I wanted.
A lot of people misunderstand manifestation as simply visualising what you want. How do you personally define it now?
Roxie Nafousi: Manifestation is a self-development practice. It is about getting clear on what you want, removing the fear and doubt that stand in your way, changing your behaviour, overcoming the inevitable tests, embracing gratitude, turning envy into inspiration and trusting in the process. Visualisation can be a powerful tool, but it means very little if you aren’t also willing to heal, take responsibility and act.
Photo courtesy of Roxie Nafousi.
How has your understanding of manifestation evolved since writing your first book?
Roxie Nafousi: I understand its depth even more now. At first, I saw manifestation primarily as a way to create your future. Now, I also see it as a way to transform your experience of the present. It is not simply about attracting more; it is about becoming more secure, more grateful, more courageous and more fully yourself. The external manifestations are often a by-product of that internal change.
What role did motherhood play in your own healing journey?
Roxie Nafousi: Motherhood gave my healing an urgency it had never had before. I wasn’t only making choices for myself anymore; I was shaping the emotional environment my son would grow up in. I wanted to break patterns rather than pass them on. Wolfe didn’t do the healing for me, but loving him gave me the motivation to finally do that work for myself.
You’ve built a career around helping people step into their power. What does being in your power look like in motherhood?
Roxie Nafousi: It doesn’t mean being endlessly calm or getting everything right. It means taking responsibility for the energy I bring into our home, apologising when I get something wrong and modelling the behaviour I hope Wolfe develops. It also means refusing to abandon myself. I want him to see that becoming a mother did not require me to stop being an ambitious, creative and fulfilled woman.
What’s one belief about yourself that you had to release in order to become who you are today?
Roxie Nafousi: That I was fundamentally unworthy. For years I believed there was something wrong with me and that I was destined to ruin anything good. Releasing that belief didn’t happen overnight, but every time I kept a promise to myself, set a boundary or did something difficult, I gave myself new evidence of who I could be.
ON WRITING, BUILDING A MOVEMENT & HELPING WOMEN TRANSFORM
When you started writing Manifest, did you know or think that it would resonate in the way it has?
Roxie Nafousi: Not at all. I believed deeply in the method and I knew it had changed my life, but I could never have imagined how far the book would travel. I wrote it in a very straightforward, accessible way because I wanted people to actually use it. Watching it become a book that people underline, carry with them and pass on to their friends has been beyond anything I could have envisioned.
“I teach the things I once desperately needed to hear myself.”
Was there a particular message, review or story from a reader that made you think, “This is bigger than a book”?
Roxie Nafousi: It wasn’t one message so much as the accumulation of so many of them from so many pockets of the world. People began telling me that they had left unhealthy relationships, changed careers, rebuilt their confidence or started believing in themselves for the first time. That was when I realised people weren’t simply reading the book; they were using it as a catalyst to change their lives. It has become a shared language and a community.
Photo courtesy of Roxie Nafousi.
What has been the most surreal moment of your career so far?
Roxie Nafousi: Standing on stage in Thailand and looking out at thousands of people, and then doing the biggest book signing I’ve ever done was completely surreal. To be so far across the world and have the reception was so incredible and it meant so much because I had spent a month in Thailand just before I hit rock bottom so it felt like a full circle moment. I thought about the version of me who had felt so lost and without purpose, and there I was, surrounded by people brought together by work that had come from my darkest experiences. I don’t think I’ll ever fully be able to put that feeling into words.
With Manifest: Dive Deeper, you went further into inner healing, self-awareness and growth. Why did that next layer feel important?
Roxie Nafousi: Because knowing the seven steps and actually living them are two different things. Once people became clear on what they wanted, the next question was often: why am I still getting in my own way? Dive Deeper explores the inner work required to create lasting change—the beliefs, patterns and behaviours that can quietly keep us tied to an old version of ourselves.
You also wrote Manifest for Kids. How did motherhood influence the desire to bring these ideas to younger people?
Roxie Nafousi: It influenced it completely. I kept thinking about how different my life might have been if I had understood my emotions, self-worth and inner voice as a child. I wanted Wolfe, my nieces and nephews and all other children to have that language early, before limiting beliefs became deeply embedded. The aim was to make these ideas simple, playful and empowering rather than asking children to undo years of conditioning later.
“Caring for yourself is not something you do at the expense of your children; it is one of the ways you show them what self-worth looks like.”
What do you hope children learn earlier than many of us did?
Roxie Nafousi: That their worth is inherent. It doesn’t depend on how they look, what they achieve, how popular they are or whether everybody approves of them. I want children to understand that their thoughts are not always facts, that their feelings are safe to express and that being themselves is not something they ever need to apologise for.
Your book Confidence is centred on knowing your worth. What did writing that book teach you about your own confidence?
Roxie Nafousi: It reinforced that confidence is not a permanent feeling or a personality trait. It is something we build through action. I still experience self-doubt, comparison and fear, but I no longer treat those feelings as fact. Writing the book made me recognise how many times I had already chosen courage before I felt ready, and that those choices were what built my confidence.
When you look at the community you’ve built, what makes you proudest, and what part of it feels most personal to you now?
Roxie Nafousi: I am proudest of the vulnerability within it. People are doing the work, supporting one another and choosing to believe that change is possible. It feels personal because I don’t teach from a place of having always had it figured out. I teach the things I once desperately needed to hear myself.
ON AMBITION, MOTHERHOOD & BALANCE
What does juggling your work, writing, speaking, travelling and motherhood actually look like day to day?
Roxie Nafousi: I have an amazing team and support around me, and I’m extremely intentional with my time. When I’m working, I work with real focus, and when I’m with Wolfe, I try to be properly present. I don’t believe perfect balance exists every day—some weeks work requires more of me and others are centred around motherhood—but I pay attention when either side has been neglected for too long.
Has motherhood made you more ambitious, less attached to ambition, or simply more intentional with it?
Roxie Nafousi: More ambitious and more intentional. I want to show Wolfe what is possible when you believe in yourself and work hard, and I also want to provide him with security of course, but I am far less interested in success for the sake of proving something. My ambition has to have meaning now. I want to build work that makes an impact while still creating a life in which my son feels that I was truly there.
Photo courtesy of Roxie Nafousi.
Creating Alia feels like an extension of your work around identity, confidence and stepping into your power. What did building a fragrance brand teach you about trusting your ambition and expanding into something new?
Roxie Nafousi: Alia required me to see myself differently. I was comfortable being an author and speaker, but creating a physical brand meant stepping into a completely new space and trusting that I was allowed to expand beyond what people already knew me for. It reminded me that we don’t have to stay inside the identity that first made us successful. We are allowed to evolve, experiment and become beginners again. It’s been a really challenging experience to be honest, but I am proud of what we’ve created and the feedback on the fragrances has been incredible.
What boundaries have become non-negotiable for you, especially as a mother?
Roxie Nafousi: I am very discerning about what I say yes to and have no problem saying no. An opportunity can look brilliant on paper, but if it comes at too great a cost to my energy, health or family life, it isn’t right for me. My peace is part of my success now, not something I am willing to sacrifice for it.
ON BEAUTY, STYLE & SELF-CARE
Has your personal style changed since becoming a mother?
Roxie Nafousi: I really enjoy fashion and using clothes to express how I feel. I rely much more on strong, simple pieces that I know make me feel good and can take me through a full day. I want to feel polished but also comfortable.
What’s your go-to outfit formula when you want to feel confident quickly?
Roxie Nafousi: A great pair of low waist jeans with a black or cream fitted top, and a kitten heel shoe or a boot. I usually keep the base quite simple and let the accessories, bag or jacket elevate it.
What’s your go-to handbag for everyday? The perfect work and mum bag.
Roxie Nafousi: I love a shoulder tote bag as I need access to my hands always, and I need something that looks chic but can hold everything: my make-up bag, water, cameras, snacks and all the completely random things Wolfe hands me to carry.
Who or what inspires your style?
Roxie Nafousi: I’m most inspired by women who look effortless and self-assured rather than overly styled. I love clean lines, beautiful tailoring and neutral foundations, but with something that gives the look personality.
What is on your shopping list right now?
Roxie Nafousi: I’m a big of rimless sunnies at the moment, I love the ones from Ntila but I’d love to find a good vintage pair of Gucci ones too.
You’ve now entered the world of fragrance with Alia. What does scent mean to you as a form of beauty and self-expression?
Roxie Nafousi: Scent is incredibly emotional. It can shift your mood, bring back a memory or help you connect with a particular part of yourself instantly. I love the idea of choosing fragrance according to the energy you want to embody. It is such an intimate form of self-expression because it isn’t only about how other people experience you; it changes how you experience yourself.
What does your everyday beauty routine look like right now, and has it changed since becoming a mother?
Roxie Nafousi: It is definitely quicker and more streamlined. I focus on good skincare and then use make-up to make myself look fresh and feel pulled together: something to even out my skin, bronzer, brows, mascara and lip liner. I love beauty, but I don’t want my everyday routine to take an hour. It needs to work around a very full life.
What are the products you always come back to, the ones you genuinely recommend?
Roxie Nafousi: I’m obsessed with Dr. Barbara Sturm skincare, specifically the cleanser and hyaluronic acid serum, the Eborion CC cream instead of foundation, and I love the MAC Lip Pencil in Cork. The MZ Skin Hydra-Lift Golden Facial Treatment Mask is also brilliant when my skin needs a boost, especially before an event or after travelling. And, of course, I wear Alia constantly - Main Character is the one I reach for when I want to feel instantly more confident. I get everything from LOOKFANTASTIC, they have so many incredible brands and discounts and I’m always discovering my latest new favourite product from them.
What’s one thing you do that instantly makes you feel more like yourself?
Roxie Nafousi: A long shower, doing my skincare, blowdrying and straightening my hair and curling my eyelashes.
ON LOOKING AHEAD
What are you currently manifesting for yourself, your work and your family?
Roxie Nafousi: For myself, I’m manifesting more fun and passion. For my work, I want to keep expanding through the books, Alia, the Manifest app and new ways of sharing more of my real life and work with my community. For my family, I always come back to the same things: health, happiness, safety and a home in which we all feel deeply loved.
What are you most excited for the rest of 2026, and beyond?
Roxie Nafousi: I’m excited to begin filming my new YouTube series because it will give people a much more honest, behind-the-scenes look at my life, work and motherhood. I’m also incredibly excited about Manifest Love, which feels like my most personal book yet, as well as continuing to grow Alia and the Manifest app. There is a lot happening, but it all feels creatively connected.
What kind of woman do you hope your son sees when he looks at you?
Roxie Nafousi: I hope he sees a woman who was brave enough to change her life. Someone kind, loving and present, but also ambitious, resilient and proud to be herself. I also hope he sees that I made mistakes, took responsibility, kept growing and always made sure he knew how deeply he was loved.
What legacy do you hope to create, as a mother, author and teacher?
Roxie Nafousi: As an author and teacher, I hope my work helps people recognise their worth and realise that their past does not have to determine their future. As a mother, I hope my legacy is much quieter and more personal: that Wolfe grows up feeling safe, understood and free to be exactly who he is. If I can help break cycles both within my own family and far beyond it, that would mean everything to me.
And finally, what message would you like to leave with the Luminary Mothers community?
Roxie Nafousi: Motherhood may become one of the most important parts of who you are, but it does not have to be the end of your own becoming. You are still allowed to have dreams, desires, boundaries and an identity that belongs entirely to you. Caring for yourself is not something you do at the expense of your children; it is one of the ways you show them what self-worth looks like. You do not need to be a perfect mother. You only need to keep showing up with love, honesty and a willingness to grow.
Follow Roxie on Instagram here. discover her books here.