Spiritual Straight Jacket

In this episode, we explore what it feels like to lose your sense of joy and connection, not through sadness, but through a quiet emotional numbness that so many people are silently carrying. Michelle talks about the “spiritual straitjacket,” the pressure to keep pretending we’re fine while the world grows heavier, more divided, and increasingly disconnected.

She reflects on a personal moment of feeling misunderstood and attacked, and how it revealed a deeper collective truth: we’re all exhausted, unseen, and longing for real connection. The episode dives into the grief underneath our “I’m fine,” the loss of community and tradition, and the way modern life has replaced genuine closeness with overwhelm, politics, and performance.

Michelle reminds us that feeling…. even when it’s heavy…. is a sign of being alive, not a weakness. As the holidays approach and old wounds surface, she offers a simple grounding practice to reconnect with yourself. The episode closes with a call to strip off the emotional armor, name what’s real, and rediscover connection in the small, honest, unfiltered moments that remain.