Religion, Worthiness, and How the Two Can Coexist

Put It Down! How to Stop Carrying Guilt That Was Never Yours

Scroll down the show notes for a special announcement! Some things that happen to us aren't our fault. But somewhere along the way, a lot of us learned to act like they are. In this episode, Chel shares a rare, behind-the-scenes moment from her life as a working actress: something that happened on set that stopped her in her tracks. Without giving too much away, it involved someone else's choices, a situation that was entirely out of her control, and her overcoming an old pattern that initially told her to quietly absorb the weight of it so that no one else would be inconvenienced. Sound familiar? The good news: it had a positive resolution, and the women around her especially showed up supportively. But the real story is what happened in Chel's mind during the moments before that, and what she learned about the deeply ingrained tendency that so many of us have to take on guilt, responsibility, and emotional labor that was never ours to begin with. This episode covers: * A candid on-set story that became an unexpected lesson in self-advocacy * Why so many women default to managing everyone else's comfort, even when they're the ones who were wronged * How to recognize when you're carrying guilt that belongs to someone else * The difference between being considerate and being overly responsible for other people's actions and emotions * How to shed that tendency so you can advocate for yourself clearly and without second-guessing * What it looks like to let someone else be accountable for their own choices, without making it your job to soften the consequences for them * A note from Chel: If you have ever found yourself saying sorry for something that wasn't your fault, shrinking so someone else wouldn't have to feel uncomfortable, or lying awake wondering if you handled something wrong when you weren't the one who did something wrong, this episode is going to hit close to home. And that's exactly why she made it. ✨ Before You Go: Something I Made for You If this episode resonated with you, I think you'll love what I've been working on: my debut ebook, The Way Back to Yourself: Soft Strength for Naturally Nice Women. It's everything I wish someone had handed me when I was first untangling people-pleasing, self-loathing, guilt that wasn't mine, and the habit of putting everyone else first. It's practical, it's soul-led, and it was written with you in mind. Right now you can grab it at the presale price of just $7, but only until June 22. After that it goes to full price at launch. If any part of today's episode had you nodding along, this is your next step. 👉 Grab your copy here: soultrip.gumroad.com/l/presale [https://soultrip.gumroad.com/l/presale] I cannot wait for you to read it. 🤍 ✨ More to Explore 📓 Grab your free guide: 10 Phrases to Help You Stop Being the “Nice Girl” (Without Losing Your Kindness) at soultripwithchel.com [https://soultripwithchel.com] 🤍 Join the community on Substack: soultripwithchel.substack.com [https://soultripwithchel.substack.com] If this episode resonated with you, sharing it with a friend or leaving a review helps more women find their way here, and that means the world. ⭐ Soul Trip with Chel is a podcast for women who are ready to stop shrinking and start remembering who they've always been. Chel has been doing this work herself for nearly a decade: learning to accept, trust, and love herself on a deep, unshakable level. Now she gets to guide women like you through that same journey, so you can show up as who you were always meant to be and give your gifts to the world. Soul Trip isn't about fixing yourself. It's about coming home to yourself. I'm so glad you're here.

Religion, Worthiness, and How the Two Can Coexist

In this episode, Chel opens up about growing up Catholic, the disconnect she felt between what she was being taught and what she was experiencing and feeling on the inside, and how some of what she absorbed in those early years quietly shaped her sense of worthiness in ways she didn't fully understand until much later. She also shares her own spiritual path, how she found her way to a framework for thinking about divinity that feels true to her, and how she's been exploring everything from indigenous wisdom to practices that often get dismissed as “woo woo” but carry a lot more depth than people give them credit for. And then, there's the plot twist: she's going back to church. 😱 This episode isn't about convincing you of anything. It's not a debate, and it's not a takedown. It's one woman's honest account of untangling religion from worthiness, and finding out the two don't have to be at odds. This episode covers: * Growing up in a strict religious environment and the disconnect between doctrine, lived experience, and inner knowing * How certain religious messaging absorbed in childhood can quietly erode a sense of worthiness over time * Chel's personal spiritual beliefs, how she developed them, and why she finds the framework she landed on quietly revolutionary * Exploring Taoism, Buddhism, indigenous wisdom, and spiritual practices that go beyond what mainstream culture tends to validate * Why she recently started going back to church, and what shifted to make that feel right * The balance she's found between feeling worthy, feeling the divine within herself, and also not having to carry everything alone * A new way of thinking about what it means to be both soul-led and spiritually grounded A note from Chel: This episode is simply my story. If you grew up religious and walked away, if you stayed, if you're somewhere in between, or if you're still figuring it out - there's something here for you. ✨ Before You Go: Something I Made for You If this episode resonated with you, I think you'll love what I've been working on: my debut ebook, The Way Back to Yourself: Soft Strength for Naturally Nice Women. It's everything I wish someone had handed me when I was first untangling people-pleasing, self-loathing, guilt that wasn't mine, and the habit of putting everyone else first. It's practical, it's soul-led, and it was written with you in mind. Right now you can grab it at the presale price of just $7, but only until June 22. After that it goes to full price at launch. If any part of today's episode had you nodding along, this is your next step. 👉 Grab your copy here: soultrip.gumroad.com/l/presale [https://soultrip.gumroad.com/l/presale] I cannot wait for you to read it. 🤍 ✨ More to Explore 📓 Grab your free guide: 10 Phrases to Help You Stop Being the “Nice Girl” (Without Losing Your Kindness) at soultripwithchel.com [https://soultripwithchel.com] 🤍 Join the community on Substack: soultripwithchel.substack.com [https://soultripwithchel.substack.com] If this episode resonated with you, sharing it with a friend or leaving a review helps more women find their way here, and that means the world. ⭐ Soul Trip with Chel is a podcast for women who are ready to stop shrinking and start remembering who they've always been. Chel has been doing this work herself for nearly a decade: learning to accept, trust, and love herself on a deep, unshakable level. Now she gets to guide women like you through that same journey, so you can show up as who you were always meant to be and give your gifts to the world. Soul Trip isn't about fixing yourself. It's about coming home to yourself. I'm so glad you're here.

Bouncing Forward: What It Really Means to be Resilient

If you've ever made it through something hard and wondered how you did it, this episode is for you. Chel gets personal about resilience: the story of moving to LA in the middle of a global pandemic, what it actually took to stay and build a life here nearly six years later, and the moments from childhood and high school she rarely talks about. Not the highlight reel. The real thing. This episode covers: * Why resilience isn't about “bouncing back.” It's about bouncing forward and coming home to a more healed version of yourself in the process. * How bullying, ostracizing, and feeling like the “other” was quietly building Chel's resilience before she even had a word for it * What resilience has cost her, what she's had to grieve, and what she gained on the other side * Why building resilience can feel isolating, and why that's completely normal * Grieving the old version of yourself as you grow, and why that grief is part of the process * A reflection question to help you see where you're already being resilient without giving yourself credit Quotable moment: “You are just in the before of your next greatest moment.” You've survived 100% of your hardest days so far. Give yourself some credit for that. ✨ Before You Go: Something I Made for You If this episode resonated with you, I think you'll love what I've been working on: my debut ebook, The Way Back to Yourself: Soft Strength for Naturally Nice Women. It's everything I wish someone had handed me when I was first untangling people-pleasing, self-loathing, guilt that wasn't mine, and the habit of putting everyone else first. It's practical, it's soul-led, and it was written with you in mind. Right now you can grab it at the presale price of just $7, but only until June 22. After that it goes to full price at launch. If any part of today's episode had you nodding along, this is your next step. 👉 Grab your copy here: soultrip.gumroad.com/l/presale [https://soultrip.gumroad.com/l/presale] I cannot wait for you to read it. 🤍 ✨ More to Explore 📓 Grab your free guide: 10 Phrases to Help You Stop Being the “Nice Girl” (Without Losing Your Kindness) at soultripwithchel.com [https://soultripwithchel.com] 🤍 Join the community on Substack: soultripwithchel.substack.com [https://soultripwithchel.substack.com] If this episode resonated with you, sharing it with a friend or leaving a review helps more women find their way here, and that means the world. ⭐ Soul Trip with Chel is a podcast for women who are ready to stop shrinking and start remembering who they've always been. Chel has been doing this work herself for nearly a decade: learning to accept, trust, and love herself on a deep, unshakable level. Now she gets to guide women like you through that same journey, so you can show up as who you were always meant to be and give your gifts to the world. Soul Trip isn't about fixing yourself. It's about coming home to yourself. I'm so glad you're here.

The Green-Eyed Messenger: What Your Jealousy Is Really Trying to Tell You

If you've ever felt that sharp pang of jealousy and then IMMEDIATELY felt even worse about yourself, this episode is for you. 📖 Before we begin: my debut ebook, The Way Back to Yourself, is on presale for $7 through June 22. Details at the end of these notes In this episode, Chel gets personal about a feeling we've all had but rarely talk about honestly. She shares some of her own stories, the kind that might make you go “okay, same,” including how she coached herself through a very recent jealousy moment. Remember, jealousy isn't a character flaw. It's not something to be ashamed of. It's information, and once you learn how to read it, it can actually change your life. This episode covers: * Where jealousy comes from and how it can start at a young age * How jealousy can shine a light on the parts of yourself that still need more love and healing * How to decode what your jealousy is actually pointing to, because most of the time, it's not about what you think it's about * Why jealousy of someone else's life is really a signal about how you want to feel, and what to do with that * How to let it inspire real, meaningful change instead of comparison and spiral Because the goal isn't to never feel jealous. The goal is to get curious about what it's pointing to. ✨ Before You Go: Something I Made for You If this episode resonated with you, I think you'll love what I've been working on: my debut ebook, The Way Back to Yourself: Soft Strength for Naturally Nice Women. It's everything I wish someone had handed me when I was first untangling people-pleasing, self-loathing, guilt that wasn't mine, and the habit of putting everyone else first. It's practical, it's soul-led, and it was written with you in mind. Right now you can grab it at the presale price of just $7, but only until June 22. After that it goes to full price at launch. If any part of today's episode had you nodding along, this is your next step. 👉 Grab your copy here: soultrip.gumroad.com/l/presale [https://soultrip.gumroad.com/l/presale] I cannot wait for you to read it. 🤍 ✨ More to Explore 📓 Grab your free guide: 10 Phrases to Help You Stop Being the “Nice Girl” (Without Losing Your Kindness) at soultripwithchel.com [https://soultripwithchel.com] 🤍 Join the community on Substack: soultripwithchel.substack.com [https://soultripwithchel.substack.com] If this episode resonated with you, sharing it with a friend or leaving a review helps more women find their way here, and that means the world. ⭐ Soul Trip with Chel is a podcast for women who are ready to stop shrinking and start remembering who they've always been. Chel has been doing this work herself for nearly a decade: learning to accept, trust, and love herself on a deep, unshakable level. Now she gets to guide women like you through that same journey, so you can show up as who you were always meant to be and give your gifts to the world. Soul Trip isn't about fixing yourself. It's about coming home to yourself. I'm so glad you're here.

We Need to Get Better at Conflict Resolution. I'll Go First.

If the idea of a difficult conversation makes your stomach drop, if you'd rather shrink, stay quiet, or walk away from a friendship entirely than risk saying the wrong thing, this episode is for you. In this episode, Chel gets personal. She shares the story of a recent friendship breakup: what happened, how she navigated it, and what she learned about herself on the other side. Not as a way of placing blame, but as an honest look at what can happen when we don't have the tools to show up for the hard conversations. This episode covers: * The friendship breakup that Chel recently experienced and what led to it * What the experience taught her about conflict, communication, and self-advocacy * Why so many of us are terrified of conflict, and where that fear actually comes from * How avoiding hard conversations is quietly costing you your peace, your relationships, and your sense of self * Practical takeaways for navigating tough conversations with honesty, grace, and your integrity intact Because speaking up for yourself isn't about being confrontational, it's about honoring yourself. ✨ Before You Go: Something I Made for You If this episode resonated with you, I think you'll love what I've been working on: my debut ebook, The Way Back to Yourself: Soft Strength for Naturally Nice Women. It's everything I wish someone had handed me when I was first untangling people-pleasing, self-loathing, guilt that wasn't mine, and the habit of putting everyone else first. It's practical, it's soul-led, and it was written with you in mind. Right now you can grab it at the presale price of just $7, but only until June 22. After that it goes to full price at launch. If any part of today's episode had you nodding along, this is your next step. 👉 Grab your copy here: soultrip.gumroad.com/l/presale [https://soultrip.gumroad.com/l/presale] I cannot wait for you to read it. 🤍 ✨ More to Explore 📓 Grab your free guide: 10 Phrases to Help You Stop Being the “Nice Girl” (Without Losing Your Kindness) at soultripwithchel.com [https://soultripwithchel.com] 🤍 Join the community on Substack: soultripwithchel.substack.com [https://soultripwithchel.substack.com] If this episode resonated with you, sharing it with a friend or leaving a review helps more women find their way here, and that means the world. ⭐ Soul Trip with Chel is a podcast for women who are ready to stop shrinking and start remembering who they've always been. Chel has been doing this work herself for nearly a decade: learning to accept, trust, and love herself on a deep, unshakable level. Now she gets to guide women like you through that same journey, so you can show up as who you were always meant to be and give your gifts to the world. Soul Trip isn't about fixing yourself. It's about coming home to yourself. I'm so glad you're here.