For a better reader experience, go directly to the Feel Good Studio substack website thesoberglow.substack.com, open up the browser from the button on the top right of this email, or download the app. As always, thank you for joining me in a space where I truly get to share myself. xx Mia
This newsletter was built around sharing all the things that feel good, from going back to the basics of taking care of ourselves, choosing an alcohol-free lifestyle, educating ourselves, creating communities, sharing humor, and everything in between, and yes, even bikinis.
As a nurse who has the honor of seeing people at their best and at their worst, there really isn't any topic that is off-limits for me. I encourage my patients and my friends to talk to me about anything and everything. I am not shy, and given the history of the topics I like to discuss openly, it’s easy to see that I tend to be attracted to the elephant in the room. This is our life; every aspect deserves our attention, especially the hard shit. And if there is one thing I have learned as a 46-year-old woman, it's that I no longer put my head in the sand. I actually find pride and a lot of amusement in having these conversations. Even the most challenging things deserve a space to breathe and to be seen.
Of course, the willingness to have these conversations has opened the doors for people to give feedback, which is not always friendly or understanding. From strangers telling me how wrong I am because I openly quit alcohol for reasons different from their own to even close friends whispering inquires such as "What will Joe think?" when I expressed the need to share my experience of entering perimenopause.
My ability to have and host these conversations may make me a bit of a social outlier, and I’m ok with this. Still, I have a daily practice of letting go of what others may think of me, and I consciously choose to move ahead with these conversations while inviting any and all who may want to join me. So my dear sweet reader, are you ready for the next topic?
The goal is to explore how to feel good in all aspects of health. However, this next health topic tends to be overlooked by many, or it has a hush-hush reputation. But we are not shy, and we understand that to be in the best health and feel our best, we have to explore all the nooks and crannies.
Before moving on, give yourself a six-minute Pink Floyd break…..
Financial Health
Whether we have a shit ton of money or nowhere near what we think is enough, neither scenario nor anything in between will automatically categorize our financial health as good or bad. It’s how we feel about it. And in order to feel good about money, we have to have a crystal clear view of our finances.
I am by no means an expert and have zero formal education in this field. But what I do have is a fascination with the topic and a willingness to learn as much as I can in order to always be able to take care of myself whether I have a partner or not. And as many of the women in my life know, I love these open conversations about financial health. I want to share, I want to learn, I want us all to feel good and secure. No matter what our circumstances are, every woman deserves to know all she can about this aspect of her health.
The beauty of this newsletter space/platform is that I get to write about anything, and those of you who are along for the ride get to hang out and jump in and out of the conversation when you are comfortable doing so. Exploring this platform has been such a sweet reprieve from social media's weirdness and the energy surrounding it. I feel like I am talking to a friend here, and I hope you feel the same. Something tells me that you do.
Before I start offering you resources to explore, I want to share a bit of my own money story with you. We all have a money story; whether we acknowledge it or not, whether it’s a story of silver spoons or empty food cabinets, whatever it is, it lives within us.