The Soulmates We Call Friends

Getting Ahead of The Gloom

💬 Episode Summary Hey girl friends, this week we’re getting real about seasonal sadness. That quiet shift that creeps in when the days get shorter and your energy starts to fade a little. We’re talking about what it really feels like to move through this season with grace, honesty, and a little luxury. This episode was inspired by my own week of feeling low energy and realizing that so many of us are trying to push through instead of soften into what our bodies and minds are asking for. I share real science-backed ways to support your mood, your body, and your peace as the seasons change. 🌸 In This Episode You’ll hear Ciara talk about: • How to notice early signs of seasonal sadness • The power of sunlight, Vitamin D, and small daily rituals • Why movement, rest, and routine matter for your mood • How to embrace slower seasons with softness Because you deserve to feel grounded, supported, and at peace. 💌 Connect with Ciara Follow along on Instagram: @choosingciara | @choosingher.pod 🎧 Listen, subscribe, and leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

The Soulmates We Call Friends

💬 Episode Summary  Hey girl friends, this week we’re talking about friendship. Not the surface kind or the quick text check-ins. I mean the real ones. The people who know your voice when you’re pretending to be okay. This episode was inspired by watching my husband spend time with his best friend. I heard him laugh from a place that felt so free, and it reminded me that we all need people who bring that out of us. Romantic love gets all the spotlight, but friendships sustain us in ways we rarely stop to honor. 🌸 In This Episode You’ll hear Ciara talk about: • The quiet grief of friendships that no longer fit • How to stay open to new connections after disappointment • The beauty of realizing your soulmates can also be your friends Because sometimes the people meant to heal us don’t come as lovers. They come as friends who remind us who we are. 💌 Connect with Ciara Follow along on Instagram: @choosingciara [https://instagram.com/choosingciara] | @choosingher.pod [https://instagram.com/choosingher.pod] 🎧 Listen, subscribe, and leave a review on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/chapter-one-the-story-of-choosing-her/id1841228273?i=1000727736393] or Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/7JAlzw3qFpfrcIrzR6lF9F?si=oBwXZ8VWQU-tVotu16PluQ].

The Soft Girl Trap

💬 Episode Summary This week, Ciara gets real about the “soft girl era” and how it’s slowly turned from a gentle reminder to rest… into another aesthetic to perform. From the matcha mornings to the curated calm, she unpacks how the pursuit of peace has become yet another form of pressure and how to get back to real softness. Through her own story of craving presence over performance, Ciara invites listeners to explore what true softness actually looks like, not the kind that can be captured in a reel, but the kind that lives quietly inside of us. If you’ve ever caught yourself performing peace instead of practicing it, this one’s for you. 🌸 In This Episode You’ll hear Ciara talk about: • The fine line between peaceful living and performative peace • Why “soft girl” culture sometimes feeds burnout instead of healing it • How we traded hustle culture for beige burnout (yes, she said it!) • The difference between chasing softness and becoming it • Why true softness is emotional maturity and not a mood board • How to return to a rhythm that feels safe, grounded, and sustainable 🧘🏽‍♀️ Key Takeaway Real softness isn’t a vibe, it’s a rhythm. It’s not something you buy or post. It’s the way you breathe before you respond, the way you rest before you burn out, and the way you choose peace when chaos invites you to perform. 🪞This Week’s Challenge Find one small way to practice real softness without buying, posting, or performing it. ✨ Let yourself rest before you crash. ✨ Respond with understanding instead of defense. ✨ Breathe, stretch, pray, or sit in silence. For you, not the feed. 💌 Connect with Ciara Follow along on Instagram: @choosingciara [https://instagram.com/choosingciara] | @choosingher.pod [https://instagram.com/choosingher.pod] 🎧 Listen, subscribe, and leave a review on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/chapter-one-the-story-of-choosing-her/id1841228273?i=1000727736393] or Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/7JAlzw3qFpfrcIrzR6lF9F?si=oBwXZ8VWQU-tVotu16PluQ].

Who Gave You Those Boxes Anyway?

In this week’s episode of Choosing Her, Ciara invites you to pause, breathe, and take a hard look at the boxes you’ve been checking. You know…the ones the world told you define success: the degree, the marriage, the kids, the house, the hustle. But what if those boxes were never yours to begin with? Ciara opens up about her own journey of realizing she built a life that looked right but didn’t feel right, and how she found the courage to stop living by someone else’s checklist and create her own. If you’ve ever looked at your life and thought, “I did everything right… so why do I still feel unfulfilled?” this episode will meet you right where you are. ⸻ In this episode, we explore: ✨ The invisible pressure to “do life right” and where those expectations come from ✨ Why checking every box can still leave you feeling empty ✨ How to know when you’re living by someone else’s checklist ✨ Practical steps to redefine what success, peace, and alignment mean to you ✨ Journal prompts to help you create boxes that actually belong to you ⸻ Key Reflection Questions: • Who handed you the boxes you’ve been checking? • What boxes are you still chasing just to make others proud? • What would your own boxes look like if nobody else got a say? • What does peace feel like for you? ⸻ Your challenge this week: Ask yourself: “Which boxes have I been checking that don’t belong to me and if I had the courage to create new ones, what would they be?” Write it down. Say it out loud. Because clarity plus action? That’s how you change your life. ⸻ Listen now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you tune in. 🎧 Connect on Instagram: @choosingciara [https://instagram.com/choosingciara] | @choosingher.pod [https://instagram.com/choosingher.pod]

Stop accepting crumbs and walk into worthiness

In this episode of Choosing Her, Ciara gets real about the ways we settle for less, whether it’s in relationships, in our health, or in the way we show up for ourselves. She shares a personal story about walking away from crumbs in her dating life and how that same lesson became the mirror she needed for her own body journey. If you’ve ever told yourself “this is just how it is now” or hidden behind clothes instead of facing the deeper work, sis you’ll feel seen here. What You’ll Hear in This Episode: * The turning point when Ciara stopped accepting crumbs in her dating life. * How that experience exposed the crumbs she was accepting with her health and body. * The sneaky ways we normalize pain, exhaustion, or shrinking ourselves. * Why self-worth and health are deeply connected and how to reclaim both. Resources + Links: * Follow Ciara on Instagram: @choosingciara [https://instagram.com/choosingciara] * Follow the podcast: @choosingher.pod [https://instagram.com/choosingher.pod] * Subscribe, rate, and leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to help more women find the show.