Your Journal Prompts:

Reflect on how you may feel broken on the inside. We all have some broken pieces within. Is there something that you feel guilt or shame around? Most of the time, it can stem from our childhood and translate in our lives in ways like being a people pleaser or not being able to say no.

Journal about how you feel broken and become an onlooker – speak to yourself as if you are a child or a friend.

Reflect on how you used to be creative – this could just be one outlet like drawing, painting, or papier-mâché. Whatever it is, think about it. What did you enjoy getting lost in when you were younger and then life happened, and you had no time anymore?

Journal about how this creative outlet made you feel or how you would like to feel with a creative outlet – it could even be walking in nature. Reconnect with your inner healer and allow your creative side to lead the way by asking what it needs to nurture your inner healer.

About this Episode

This week’s guest host is Grace Grossman. In this episode, Grace speaks directly from personal experience on how journaling can connect you with your inner healer. She shares with us what the inner healer is, what it needs, and what it’s like to access it through journaling. She then offers us four journal prompts to help us connect with the healer within.

About Grace

Grace is a passionate mentor, writer, and holistic healer specializing in yoga, mental health, well-being coaching, and spiritual growth. Grace is known for her infectious smile and laughter. She guides you on your healing journey toward deep, sustainable transformation through mindset shifts, intentional action, and emotional healing—one step at a time.

You can check out Grace’s newsletter on Substack:https://gracegrossmann.substack.com/

Grace is also hosting a virtual event May 24 and 25, the Nourished Inside Out Live Summit, which is an opportunity to nourish yourself from the inside out and step into your power. You can learn more about that event here: https://gracegrossmann.substack.com/p/whats-stopping-you-from-being-the

You can also check out her social media, digital offerings, and community here: https://bio.site/healingheartshub.

About Soul Journaling Sessions

Join the community on Substack! https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/

View the post for this episode here:https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/journaling-with-your-inner-healer

Want to collaborate and be a guest host? Learn more here: https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/collaborate-with-me

Your Journal Prompts:

What are your earliest memories of eros/romantic love? What beliefs and values about it were instilled in you or did you take for granted?

Have you ever given up on romantic love, or has your view of romantic love changed over the course of your life?

Do you think romantic love will continue to dominate in media and culture over other types of love (friendship, self-love, nature/universal love)? Why or why not?

If you are so inspired, write your own letter to Eros this Valentine’s Day.

This week’s guest host is Maria Luz O'Rourke, and she's sharing with us her Letter to Romantic Love. She writes of her personal journey with romantic love, bringing us through all the twists and turns and lessons—many of which I believe will resonate with you. She shows us what it looks like to grow and gradually develop a healthy relationship with love overall (despite earlier setbacks), and reminds us that it’s okay to find ourselves wanting and needing different types of love at different phases of our lives.

I hope you enjoy listening to Maria’s letter and consider writing your own this Valentine’s Day!

About MariaMaria Luz O’Rourke is an astrologer, certified hypnotherapist, and psychic medium and holds a B.S. in Biochemistry from the University of Washington and a M.A. in Organizational Leadership from Gonzaga University.

Maria switched gears in 2024, leaving a 29 year career in Pharmaceuticals to start a practice (marialuz.online) utilizing spiritual modalities to help and heal. She currently holds 1:1 sessions for astrology and spiritual guidance.

She writes the Substack newsletter, Astrology, Alchemy, & Honest Recovery: https://marialuzorourke.substack.com/. The focus is to share hope for living freely authentically, and to empower people with the wisdom of astrology and the Universe.

You can also connect with her on social media:LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/marialuzorourkeSubstack: https://substack.com/@marialuzorourke

About Soul Journaling Sessions

Join the community on Substack! https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/

View the post for this episode here: https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/journaling-and-love-a-letter-to-romantic-love

Want to collaborate and be a guest host? Learn more here: https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/collaborate-with-me

Your journal prompts this week:

What do I think makes someone "impressive"?

What do I think would make me more “impressive”? Do I really need this in order to enjoy my life now?

Where is there joy and opportunity to help others in the place or “level” I'm at right now?

Why is the life I have right now beautiful and worthy of fully living and appreciating?

Share your stories and insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/the-so-called-unimpressive-life.

Your journal prompts this week:

When I start a new project or set a new goal, how much value do I put on being able to act on it or achieve it quickly?

What are my personal expectations around the speed of my growth?

How might I benefit from slow growth?

How can I support myself in embracing slow growth?

Share your stories and insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

How have people pleasing tendencies shown up in my life as an adult?

How has people pleasing impacted my career and my ability to pursue my passions?

What does "being of service" mean to me?

How can I begin to strike the right balance between serving others and taking care of myself?

Share your stories and insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

When was a time I disappointed someone, and how did they express this disappointment to me?

How did I feel, knowing I had disappointed someone, and what did I learn from that experience?

How has someone else's disappointment or expectations of me reinforced my people pleasing tendencies?

How would I like to respond to other people's feelings of disappointment in the future?

Share your stories and insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

What is my earliest memory of people-pleasing?

What were the consequences for me as a child if I didn't please the adults around me?

When I was a child, how did I feel when I failed to please? What did I do with these feelings or what would they lead me to do?

What did I learn to do to ensure I pleased the adults around me?

Share your stories and insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

What do I know about my ancestors, and how do I remember or honor them?

Which aspects of my lineage do I feel most drawn to explore on a deeper level?

What have I—and can I—learn from my ancestors?

What would I like to bring up for healing in my ancestral line, and how might I begin to do this?

Share your stories and insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

When someone tells me to rest and do some self-care, what do I think this typically entails?

When it is a difficult or challenging time for me, how do I feel about stopping for rest or self-care? How often do I actually do it?

What would make me more likely to engage in rest and self-care?

What would it look like for me to focus on nourishing and nurturing myself instead?

Share your stories and insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Introducing a new series, "On Journaling." Every so often, I will write about the practice of journaling—how we can keep up with it, what it can do for us, and the role it plays in our lives. I hope these will be helpful to you in the ongoing development of your practice!

Your journal prompts this week:

What have been some periods of personal transformation in my life, when I very clearly felt or saw myself change or evolve into the next version of myself?

What often sparked these transformations and what helped them move along?

What role could journaling play in helping me transform or in helping me process transformation?

If I were to develop a journaling practice that supports me in creating transformation, what would that practice look like?

Share your insights and what you learned from your journaling with our community on Substack! Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

What has been my experience with rejection? How do I respond to it?

How do I wish I responded to rejection, or how can I improve my response to it?

When has rejection pushed me in a different but more aligned direction?

What can I tell myself or what can I do to ease the initial sting of rejection?

Share your stories and insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

What does consistency look like in my life? In what areas am I consistent?

How has being consistent helped me grow?

How has the pressure to "be consistent" impacted how I show up for myself, my creations, and my community?

What would it look like for me to show up from a place of devotion rather than consistency? How would my approach be different?

Share your stories and insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your Journal Prompts:

What is your relationship with yourself like?

What are some of your deepest beliefs about yourself? (Even if they don’t feel true logically, they might feel true in your heart, belly, or in a part of you.)

Where do these beliefs come from?

What are some of your Inner Critic’s favorite lines?

Do you ever offer yourself compassion? How does it feel?

This week’s guest host is Ellen, who writes ROAR Healing Relationship Trauma on Substack. She's helping us explore one of the most important relationships in our lives: the relationship we have with ourselves. She shares how to identify trauma in your relationship with Self and how to begin to heal this, working through the process with journaling.

About Ellen

Ellen is a trauma therapist who helps folks heal trauma in their relationships with self, others, and the collective. Her work explores healing at the intersections of mental health, spirituality, and creativity. Ellen is currently slightly obsessed with renovating her 100 year old row home, one room at a time, and thanks her partner and cat for their patience with the endeavor.

You can learn more about Ellen and her perspective and approach by reading her work over on Substack. Her publication is called ROAR Healing Relationship Trauma: https://roarhealingrelationshiptrauma.substack.com/.

About Soul Journaling Sessions

Join the community on Substack! https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/

View the post for this episode here: https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/journaling-for-healing-trauma-relationship-with-self

Want to collaborate and be a guest host? Learn more here:https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/lets-collaborate-guest-host-post-submissions

Your journal prompts this week:

How does lingering anger reappear or come back up for me, and how do I respond?

How does holding onto this anger serve me?

In what ways does holding onto this anger not serve me?

If I could pinpoint exactly what I am truly angry about in these situations, what would it be?

What steps can I take to begin to feel and release this anger in a way that serves my highest or most authentic self?

Share your stories and insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Introducing a new series, "On Journaling." Every so often, I will write about the practice of journaling—how we can keep up with it, what it can do for us, and the role it plays in our lives. I hope these will be helpful to you in the ongoing development of your practice!

Your journal prompts this week:

What have been some periods of personal transformation in my life, when I very clearly felt or saw myself change or evolve into the next version of myself?

What often sparked these transformations and what helped them move along?

What role could journaling play in helping me transform or in helping me process transformation?

If I were to develop a journaling practice that supports me in creating transformation, what would that practice look like?

Share your insights and what you learned from your journaling with our community on Substack! Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

How often do I cry, and how do I feel afterward (mentally, emotionally, and physically)?

In what circumstances or situations do I hold back or suppress my tears, and why?

How does it make me feel when others around me cry?

How can I better support myself and others when a good cry is needed?

Share your insights and what you learned from your journaling with our community on Substack! Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

This week’s episode is a little different. As a Pisces, I felt called to write a meditation specifically for this full moon in Pisces (6:36 PM PT today, August 30). It’s also a special Super Blue Moon, and it is the second one of this month.

Instead of an essay and journal prompts, this week it is a meditation and journal prompts. The prompts directly relate to the meditation, and are meant to be completed after the meditation.

Grab any props you might want to support you during the meditation, and have your journal and favorite writing utensil close by, so you can flow right into the journaling after the meditation. Enjoy!

Share your insights and what you learned from your journaling with our community on Substack! Want a personal message for this full moon? I will also be pulling a Tarot or Oracle card for anyone who requests one in the comments for this episode. Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

How often do I share stories from my life with people outside of my immediate, intimate circle of close friends/family?

When do I feel it is safe to share stories from my own life?

When have I enjoyed hearing the personal stories of others, and how have they benefited me?

Who would enjoy or benefit from hearing my personal stories?

Share your insights and what you learned from your journaling with our community on Substack! Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

When did I begin journaling, and what inspired me to start?

How has my practice changed since I first started? What does my practice look like now?

How does my current journaling practice compare to my ideal practice or to what others would consider a formal journaling practice?

What do I love about my journaling practice as it is now?

Share your insights and what you learned from your journaling with our community on Substack! Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:

When did I begin journaling, and what inspired me to start?

How has my practice changed since I first started? What does my practice look like now?

How does my current journaling practice compare to my ideal practice or to what others would consider a formal journaling practice?

What do I love about my journaling practice as it is now?

Share your insights and what you learned from your journaling with our community on Substack! Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:When was the last time I was fully immersed in an experience/situation to the point that I was singularly focused on it for an extended period of time, and what was that experience like for me?

What activities or circumstances often lead me to completely lose track of time? 

When I enter these times of complete immersion, are they joyful activities, one of obligation, or perhaps a combo of both?

For those things/activities that I can get immersed in and that bring me joy, how can I bring these more into my regular routine in a way that fuels and inspires me?Share your insights and what you learned from your journaling with our community on Substack! Visit souljournalingsessions.substack.com.

Your journal prompts this week:What positive and negative associations do I have with the idea of being part of a team?

What teams have I been a part of over the years, and what did I learn from those experiences?

How did I feel about teams when I was the leader, and what did I learn from those experiences?

How would I like to approach the idea of working with others, based on what I've learned from my past team experiences?

Your journal prompts this week:What makes a place or space comforting to me?

Which places or spaces did I think I'd love, but discovered ultimately weren't the right fit? What did I learn from that experience?

How do I define "home"?

How can I be more at "home" within myself?

Your Inner Child Journal Prompts:

Reflect on the people who had both positive and negative influences on your life growing up. Notice their personal qualities and values and how your inner child responded to those.

Reflect on the games and activities you enjoyed as a child and how they shaped you. If play is how your inner child communicates best, what is it?

Journal about a memory from your childhood when you made a mistake and you felt bad about yourself. In particular, pay attention to the feelings in your body and what compassionate and kind words you could offer yourself to support yourself as you move through those feelings.

Journal on all the ways you offer kindness and compassion to others.

Reflect on all the ways you could extend this kindness and compassion to yourself on a daily basis.

This week’s guest host is Lisa Parkes, and she's helping us connect with the inner child. She shares what inner child work is, how we can connect with our inner child, and her personal story of working with the inner child.

About Lisa

Lisa is a Spiritual Detective & Mentor who is passionate about journaling. When she’s not teaching journaling, she supports highly sensitive and neurodivergent students at her local college. She also make journals and write murder mystery books.

You can connect with her over on her Substack, The Intuitive Writer: https://lisaparkes.substack.com/

About Soul Journaling Sessions

Join the community on Substack!https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/

Want to collaborate and be a guest host? Learn more here:https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/lets-collaborate-guest-host-post-submissions

Your journal prompts this week:

Looking back on my biggest accomplishments, what kept me motivated, or what encouraged me to keep going when things got hard?

How do I feel about what tends to motivate me, and is there anything I would change about that?

When in my life have I felt the need to prove myself to others, and how did it feel to act from this space?

What would I like to be motivated by going forward? What is the true motivation I want to nurture?

Your journal prompts this week:

How does my mind manage overwhelm?

How does my body respond to overwhelm?

What are the "hard cuts" I need to make in my life to ease my overwhelm?

For those things beyond my control, how can I support myself in going with the flow?

Explore your experience with overwhelm with the journal prompts above and feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section of the Substack post for this episode. Head to souljournalingsessions.substack.com. If you comment about something you’re working through, I will pull an oracle or tarot card for you to provide deeper insight!

P.S. I want to share something NEW: I invite you to join my newest Substack and podcast, The Mindful Content Creator. When you subscribe, you’ll receive weekly prompts to help you create content mindfully. Join at themindfulcontentcreator.substack.com.

Your Journal Prompts This Week:

* When was the last time I experienced a "first" in my life, and how did I acknowledge it?

* What firsts might I be able to experience in the near future?

* How can I welcome and embrace more firsts in my life?

* What could it look like to meet myself again, to get reacquainted with myself?

Your journal prompts this week:

What feelings do I associate with the words "mistake" and "failure"?

What do I tend to gain from trying something, even if it doesn't work out?

How can the process of trial and error further my personal growth?

What would it look like for me to celebrate my mistakes and failures, or to acknowledge or reward myself for them?

Your journal prompts for this week:

What passions or hobbies do I have that I rarely get the time to enjoy? Or what do I not get to do as much as I'd like?

When I think about how much time I currently spend on this passion or hobby now, how does that make me feel?

In an ideal world, how much time would I spend on this passion or hobby? Are there changes I could make now in order to spend a little more time on it?

How is this passion or hobby a part of me even when I'm not actively doing it?

Your journal prompts this week:

What iterations of myself have existed in this lifetime? (For example, me before ________ happened, me before or after I learned/became ________. )

How might previous versions of myself view who I am today?

In what ways might previous versions of myself linger in my current story?

How can I honor previous versions of myself while acknowledging the strength of my current self?

Your journal prompts this week:

What do I associate with the word "purpose"? Where do these associations come from?

If someone asked me what my "life purpose" is, how would I respond?

How has my view of my purpose changed over time? How might it continue to evolve?

I worked in the corporate world long enough to know that they absolutely love their jargon and buzzwords. Even years after leaving, there's one phrase that I still find rather grating: "Fit for purpose." For example, that presentation or proposal or project plan is not “fit for purpose." It doesn't fit the need or request.

I learned of this phrase at the last corporation I worked for, when a new HR leader came on that was one of my bosses. (I had to report to two bosses in two different departments at this job, HR and Marketing, which was red flag number one.) This leader started using this phrase in meetings and soon it was all over the HR department. "Is this fit for purpose?" someone would ask after reviewing a project or task. "It's important we know all the details so that what we create is fit for purpose."

I tried to Google the phrase because I knew it likely came from a book or a popular corporate conference speaker. Honestly, I wanted to know which "expert" came up with this one and had made it the latest bad executive catchphrase. It seemed to originate from the IT world and manufacturing, but I'm not completely sure. Regardless of its origin, the point is that people in corporate love to repurpose phrases that were used in another, more appropriate context, and then overuse them to the point that they lose all real meaning.

But the real reason this phrase goes beyond a mild annoyance for me is due to it being turned on me during my last two weeks at this job. This company was about to go through a "transformation" (which is corporate speak for a restructuring and layoffs, a common occurrence at all my corporate jobs), and I was tasked with writing these letters that would go into the packets of employees after the reorganization. This included people who were kept and people who were let go. An outside consultant (because this company also loved using outside consultants) gave me the templates they thought I should work off of. I followed the guidelines but also did my best to not make the letters completely heartless. I then sent them off for review.

The next day, my HR boss sent my Marketing boss a very curt email, telling her that they needed someone on the marketing team to help them work on these messages right away because the ones they had received were not "fit for purpose."

My Marketing boss, who received this email, didn't know I had actually written the letters. So she responded and cc’d me on the email, saying something like, "I'm bringing Marcy in. I'm sure she can help you, she's still here for another few days."

I was quite embarrassed when I saw what my HR boss had thought of my work. I don't completely remember my response (I do remember having to take a few minutes to cool down after reading it and compose myself), but I think I just acknowledged I had written the subpar letters, and said if someone would like to explain to me why they weren't "fit for purpose" and what was needed instead, I would help before I left. But if they felt I had missed the mark, perhaps someone else on the team could be of assistance. And then I probably closed it with something like "All the best, Marcy."

Of course no one ever responded. Even if I hadn't recently quit, I'm not sure they would have known how to tell me what they were looking for anyway.

I share this story not just because I'm clearly a little bitter and like to point out how silly corporate life can be. I am talking about it because I think the word "purpose" has become a buzzword beyond the corporate setting, and it often trips us up. This is because something or someone’s purpose isn’t always so easily or clearly defined—at least not in a way that we can all agree on or say with certainty. After all, who decides what someone or something’s purpose is? Who has the right to own that decision?

On a personal level, we can have a lot of stories around this word. We can get stuck in this cycle of searching for purpose. "What is my purpose in life?"and "Am I fulfilling my purpose?" are common questions people ask themselves, coaches, psychics, and spiritual leaders.

I heard the best answer to this question recently, and it was from Rocky Heron. He's talked about it on his Instagram and in his mentoring sessions. He said that he recently realized "being myself is my life purpose."

Like so many things we obsess over in life, the answer is so simple and right in front of us, but with all the clutter and noise, we often can't see or hear it. We also have a tendency to seek these answers outside of ourselves, which can lead to more confusion.

I am guilty of letting the outside world influence my view of my purpose. I took that statement said about my work many years ago to mean that I somehow was not "fit for purpose." I had spent real time on that project, so it was extra embarrassing to me. If I couldn't get that right, what else was I messing up?

But in reality, it was just one moment in time when my work didn't fit a purpose someone else had defined. And the truth is that in the corporate world, I was NOT fit for purpose, and I realize now that's something to be proud of. That's not a world in which I want to be fit for purpose.

But me as a person, living my life right now? Of course I'm fit for purpose! Because every day now, I get to be ME. I don't have to fit into anyone else's box anymore.

What do you associate with the word "purpose" and do you think you're fulfilling your purpose? If you're being true to yourself, then I'd say, yes! We do not have to attach ourselves to someone else’s definition of purpose.

During my yoga teacher training, yoga therapist and author Ann Swanson said, "You are the leading expert in your own body," and unlike “fit for purpose,” that statement has stuck with me in a good way. We are ALL the leading experts in our own bodies, minds, and souls. Own it and don't let anyone else declare themselves the expert on you, your path, or your "purpose."

Feel free to share any insights from your journaling!

With much love and gratitude,

Marcy

Your journal prompts this week:

When was the last time I felt clear on what I wanted to build, cultivate, or create?

Think about the time leading up to that moment of clarity. What circumstances, situations, or people were present?

When inspiration flows in or clarity arrives, how do I tend to it? Do I have a space for my ideas to land and be safely tended to, and if not, where/how can I create that space?

Learn more about The Mindful Content Creator.

Your journal prompts for this week:

What aspect(s) of myself or my personality have been viewed as "too much" by others? Or, what behaviors or quirks have I been told I need to "dial down" in order to make others more comfortable?

What aspects of myself do I personally think are "too much" and why?

How is my too-muchness a part of my greater story? How did it help me get where I am today?

How can I begin to honor my too-muchness and see it as one of my greatest strengths?

“Shhh... you’re talking so loud!”

"You talk a lot and really fast. Slow down!"

“Everyone thinks you're a little sensitive. You’re taking things too personally.”

“I like Marcy, but she tries a little too hard.”

“Marcy’s perfectionism often yields an emotional crisis unnecessary to the high school environment.”

Have you ever been told that you're "too much" in some aspect? I definitely have, and the above statements have all been said to me or about me at some point in my life. Some of these are direct quotes and some of these are general sentiments that have been expressed to me multiple times in many situations. So it's no surprise that over time, I learned to be embarrassed of my too-muchness. I spent a lot of time trying to fix or hide away these supposedly weak or awkward aspects of myself. Stop being too loud. Too animated. Too sensitive. Too invested. Too intense. 

For a couple of years now, I’ve been working on embracing these aspects of myself as part of my story, rather than always feeling ashamed of them. Those statements I listed above don't have to just be cringe-worthy critiques of my personality flaws. I have the ability to see them from another perspective, if I choose to.

When I step back and look at the bigger picture or greater story of my life, I see that I have been able to build stronger connections with people because of my too-muchness. I've also seen it take my creations to the next level.  My specific areas of too-muchness are also reflections of my best qualities.

When I’m too loud or saying too much too fast, it’s because I’m excited and want to share. I grew up with three older siblings, and to have my voice be heard, I needed to speak up and get out what I needed to say quickly before someone interrupted me or stopped paying attention. As an adult, I turn up the volume so the right people can hear me. And sometimes, when I'm in the right environment and start to build momentum, I talk a little bit louder and faster.

When I’m too sensitive, it’s because I feel deeply. I feel the weight of how poorly we sometimes treat each other and ourselves, and that propels me to want to help all of us overcome the hurt and pain that causes us to act in certain ways. 

When I’m trying too hard, it’s because I care deeply about the connection I’m trying to build, and I want others to see and understand how important it is to me.

When I’m too perfectionistic, it’s because I love the creations I send out into the world . . . even the ones I don't particularly enjoy making. Regardless of what I am creating, I want the people who most need these creations and their messages to find them. (Yes, being a perfectionist can be to my own detriment too, but if I keep my focus on the message and who needs to hear it, I can push past the little hang ups that could prevent me from releasing the creations out into the world.)

I find that each of these aspects of myself make up a part of my story, and they ultimately help me share my story and messages with others.

So yeah, I’m sometimes “too much” to some people, but aren’t we all in some way? What makes one person uncomfortable might not even be noticeable to others, and the ones who don't notice or even love our too-muchness--those are the people we're meant to be around.

When it comes to being "too much," the real challenge or call to action is not to fix yourself, but to love yourself. To use your too-muchness for the good of yourself and those around you. 

I definitely still struggle with the initial sting of embarrassment when I realize I might be “too much” in a given moment, but it's a lot easier to recover and remind myself that it's okay to be who I am, and the right people will appreciate me, flaws and all.

What’s your too-muchness? How do you use it to empower yourself and others?

As always, feel free to share your insights with me.

Talk to you again next week, and happy journaling!

Your journal prompts for this week:

When in my life have I felt "on the edge,” dominated by overwhelm?

What, if anything, tends to trigger these moments, and how do I tend to react?

Now that I have perspective, what would I have told myself in these moments to help me move past them?

In the future, if I'm feeling on the edge or like I'm caught up in the swirl of negative thought patterns, how might I be able to help redirect myself to more stable or neutral ground?

Just a few months ago, I was the most sleep deprived I had ever been in my life. It was my first few weeks as a mother, and I had yet to get more than 3 hours of consecutive sleep at a time. And Carsey would have these days when she would refuse to sleep, going 6 hour stretches without even a short nap. If she did this during the day, it wasn't as big of a deal, but when it happened at night, when I hadn't yet slept at all or maybe had at best 1-2 hours, it truly rattled me. And on one particularly bad night, I was unraveling. Not wanting to get mad at the baby, I went into another room and did a deep, silent scream. I clenched my fists, opened my mouth wide, and screamed without any sound.

In that moment, the person I was yelling at was God. Yeah, I know that doesn't totally make sense. But here was the awkward logic in my sleep-deprived brain:

* God made it so women had to go through the emotionally and physically intense process of carrying a baby and birthing a baby.

* Then he made it so the baby is immediately 100% reliant on the woman for survival with milk she produces from her own body.

* Then this dude tortures these moms by giving them milk supply issues, burning, bleeding nipples, and depriving them of the one thing that would help them most of all: SLEEP.

As I contemplated this, I was silently screaming, "Why, God? WHY??"

Once I (barely) got myself back together, my husband put on some soothing music from a sound healing playlist on Spotify, and I fed Carsey for what felt like the hundredth time in an hour. I was trying to breathe and relax, but inside I was still so frazzled, so tired. I stared at the TV screen that was scrolling through the Spotify app with tears in my eyes. When I saw the current song's title and artist name, I had to double check I hadn't fallen asleep and was dreaming, or even hallucinating—but I wasn't. There it was, staring me right in the face.

The title of the song: "Tonight will be different."

The artist's name: "I Need God."

Listen here.

I just stared at it and thought, "Well played, God. Well played. I hear your message loud and clear."

In our difficult or darker moments, it's easy to think we are trapped, that we will never escape our current situation, that this is how it will be forevermore. For me, it was much too easy to spiral: "What if she doesn't go to sleep all day? What if I never sleep again?"

And underlying it all: "What if I can't DO this? What if I just can't handle being a parent to a newborn?"

But as the title of the song so appropriately reminded me: tonight will be different. No two nights, two days, two minutes, are exactly the same. What isn't working or going smoothly now might work great tomorrow. The current moment doesn't solidify or even necessarily predict the next one. 

In these moments of anxiety and overwhelm, I realized I needed to change my perspective, to stop assuming permanence with something as variable as the sleep habits of a newborn baby. And isn't this true of life overall? Whatever situation we are in could change tomorrow—for better or worse. And in the end, simply surrendering to the moment, letting it be what it is, rather than spinning about how to fix it or change it, feels much better to me.

This isn't to say that I get this perfect every time now, of course. Even after this realization, I still struggle and spiral at times over her sleep or some other conundrum, but my husband will remind me, or I will remind myself, or time will simply show me—this is but one moment, one night of many moments and many nights to come. It is not permanent.

You may not have a child and relate specifically to this experience, but I'm sure you've had moments in your life when a situation or circumstance has sent you into a negative thought spiral. You've had moments when you feel pushed to your edge, wondering if you can handle any more. I invite you to consider one of these moments and what you would tell yourself now that you have some perspective. And if this situation came around again, how might you handle it differently, or at least, how would you treat yourself differently in that moment?

Perhaps in these moments all you need is a gentle reminder that tomorrow will be different.

With much love and gratitude,

Marcy

Your journal prompts this week:

What is my current relationship with gratitude?

What does a gratitude practice look like to me? What are some practices I’ve tried or currently work with?

What do I think are the benefits of gratitude, and how could it enhance my personal development practices?

What would I like to change about my view/perspective on gratitude, and how might I begin to make this shift?

Share your stories or any insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com. Want to support this podcast? Become a paid subscriber for just $5/month to receive special bonus content, including a monthly personal Tarot/Oracle card message, a mini audio course, and additional journal prompts and Tarot/Oracle readings.

View posts for the Gratitude Reset here: https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/s/exploring-gratitude-an-8-day-journaling

Your Motherhood Journal Prompts:

What is my expectation of motherhood, or motherly energy, based on my childhood experience?

What does society say motherhood, or mother energy, should look like and feel?

What do I want my experience of motherhood, or mother energy, to be? And what can I do to pivot my current routines and rituals to get there? What do I need?

What is at its fullest that I am harvesting and celebrating now? What is no longer serving me, or that didn’t come to fruition, that I need to release?

This week’s episode is all about motherhood. Our guest host, Amanda Aaron, shares her story of motherhood--what she thought it was and how her view of her role as a mother has changed over time. She provides us with journal prompts to explore motherhood and mother energy in our own lives.

About Amanda

Amanda is a mother, storyteller and modern witch. She weaves slow, seasonal living and ritual into the everyday experiences of motherhood. Her influences include indigenous spirituality, earth-based pagan ceremonies and Christianity. Amanda's writing walks the reader through difficult emotions and personal evolution. Her passion is journeying with women to embody their divine feminine. Follow along with her writing and podcast through Soul Musings, a Soul Yoga Retreat Newsletter on Substack. 

Amanda lives with her 4-year old son, Forryst, and her husband in Port Moody, BC, Canada. They enjoy long road trips and hiking through the pacific northwest rainforests.

Amanda's Substack: https://soulyogaretreat.substack.com

About Soul Journaling Sessions

Join the community on Substack!https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/

Want to collaborate and be a guest host? Learn more here:https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/lets-collaborate-guest-host-post-submissions

Your Shadow Work Journal Prompts:

* What traits or behaviors in others trigger strong negative reactions in me, and why might they reflect something within myself?

* What am I most ashamed or afraid to admit about myself, and how might that part of me be influencing my decisions or actions?

* In what ways do I sabotage my own happiness or success, and what deeper fears or beliefs could be driving this?

* What unexpressed emotions (anger, sadness, jealousy) do I tend to suppress, and how can I safely acknowledge and release them?

This week’s episode is all about shadow work, and I am excited to welcome Kylie Marie as our guest host to guide us through it!

Kylie explains what shadow work is, the benefits of doing it, and how journaling can help. With this being Scorpio season and with Samhain, Halloween, and Day of the Dead upon us, this is the perfect time to explore shadow work. (Of course, it is good to do shadow work any time of year, whenever you feel called, so don’t worry if you are listening to or reading this at a later time—it definitely still applies.)

About Kylie

Kylie is a trained trauma Shadow Work guide, writer, and teacher who helps highly sensitive women heal from the inside out so they can live authentically and thrive. You can connect with Kylie on most social media platforms and also on Spotify under the name Intuitive Legacy.

Kylie’s website: https://open.substack.com/pub/intuitivelegacy

Kylie's Substack publication: https://stan.store/IntuitiveLegacy

About Soul Journaling Sessions

Join the community on Substack!https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/

Want to collaborate and be a guest host? Learn more here:https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/lets-collaborate-guest-host-post-submissions

Your journal prompts this week:

What, in theory, do I want to do or create but have been avoiding starting?

Why do I think I’ve been avoiding this, and would I be disappointed if I never tried?

What do I need in order to feel ready to this?

What is the worst thing that could happen if I did this? And, on the flip side, what is the best thing that could happen if I did this?

When I’m ready, what is one baby step I can take to make progress on this?

Share your stories or any insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com. Want to support this podcast? Become a paid subscriber for just $5/month to receive special bonus content, including a monthly personal Tarot/Oracle card message, a mini audio course, and additional journal prompts and Tarot/Oracle readings.

Your journal prompts this week:

Where in my life, past or present, did I make a compromise that prevented me from being my true self and/or prevented me from fully exploring my passions

Where and when in life do I feel I am okay with making a compromise or a sacrifice?

What boundaries can I set to prevent myself from compromising in areas where I am not truly willing to compromise

What could I start doing today that would allow me to either explore or share who I really am, without compromise?

Share your stories or any insights from your journaling with the community on Substack. Visit https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/lost-in-compromise.

In our first guest episode, part of a new series I am calling "Open Journal," soul seeker and writer Miranda Marsh is sharing an original work, guiding us through the process of soul walking. This concept wonderfully accompanies the concept of soul journaling, and I can’t wait for all of us to try it for ourselves.

In this essay, Miranda shares more about what soul walking is and then takes us on a soul walk with her. After she reads the essay, I will be back to lead you through our meditation and journal prompts, which are meant to be completed after you’ve gone on your own lovely soul walk.

To tell you a little bit more about Miranda: Miranda is a writer who explores issues around soul, inviting others to join her as she follows her own soul quest, diving deeper into the essence of who we are. She has her own Substack publication called “Seeking Soul”: https://open.substack.com/pub/mirandamarsh.

If you want to dive deeper into your soul and enhance your connection to it, I encourage you to check it out and join me in becoming a subscriber.

Thank you all for listening, and I hope that Miranda’s submission will inspire you to perhaps share your own writing and voice on the Soul Journaling Sessions podcast! I can’t wait to share more of your work and hear your beautiful voices.

Submit your work here: https://forms.gle/BX4H8fdW34GEohHs5

Your journal prompts this week:

Complete these journal prompts after you’ve completed your first Soul Walk, a process Miranda describes in this episode.

What did your soul notice on your walk? Can you describe your Soul Walk in detail, perhaps including a sketch or photograph? Remember to use all your senses.

What made you pause or slow your pace? What filled your soul with wonder

What do you sense your soul needed from your walk today? What nourishment did it take in?

If you were able to listen to your soul today, what did it have to say?

Your Journal Prompts:

Reflect on how you may feel broken on the inside. We all have some broken pieces within. Is there something that you feel guilt or shame around? Most of the time, it can stem from our childhood and translate in our lives in ways like being a people pleaser or not being able to say no.

Journal about how you feel broken and become an onlooker – speak to yourself as if you are a child or a friend.

Reflect on how you used to be creative – this could just be one outlet like drawing, painting, or papier-mâché. Whatever it is, think about it. What did you enjoy getting lost in when you were younger and then life happened, and you had no time anymore?

Journal about how this creative outlet made you feel or how you would like to feel with a creative outlet – it could even be walking in nature. Reconnect with your inner healer and allow your creative side to lead the way by asking what it needs to nurture your inner healer.

About this Episode

I am honored to welcome Kristen Crocker to the podcast to share “Journaling for Building a Life You Love.” In this essay, Kristen tells her story of personal growth and evolution, including navigating motherhood, a difficult birth experience, a divorce, getting sober, and finding love again. Through it all, she was able to build a life she loves, and her journal prompts will help us see the opportunities in our own life to do the same.

About Kristen

Kristen writes to normalize recovery from alcoholism for strong, smart women on her Substack, Recoverettes. Her work has been featured in the Towers & Dragons anthology, Escape into Life (a literary magazine), and the Sober App Substack. In addition to writing, Kristen is an ISA Certified Arborist and draws inspiration from nature. She is a mom of 8 (4 bio kids and 4 step) and when not writing, is generally filling juice cups or sweeping up goldfish crumbs, or being impatient with her dear and adoring husband.

Connect with Kristen on Substack: https://recoverettes.substack.com/And on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/recoverettes

About Soul Journaling Sessions

Join the community on Substack! https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/

View the post for this episode here: https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/journaling-to-build-a-life-you-love

Want to collaborate and be a guest host? Learn more here: https://souljournalingsessions.substack.com/p/collaborate-with-me