Stephanie Hirst’s had a remarkable journey.

Her radio career has gone from cueing up a record for the first time at Radio Aire, through market leading shows like Hirsty’s Morning Glory on Viking FM and Hirsty’s Daily Dose on Galaxy (and latterly Capital), to hosting the commercial radio chart.

But hidden behind the bouncy breakfast show were increasingly dark days, plagued by thoughts of suicide.

She knew she risked losing everything, but was braced to give it up in order to finally become her true self.

Now, she’s back making radio magic at BBC Radio Leeds – and the journey is far far from over.

Thank you to Stephanie for sharing her story, with some amazing memories from over the years and truly inspiring words.

Behind The Mic is exploring the media world in the 21st century. Check out all the episodes at jae.media and subscribe to get new ones as they’re released.

Music by Black Lark from Fugue