In this deeply moving episode of the Self-Care Goddess Podcast, we explore the healing power of love, presence, and self-awareness with Chrystal Rae, spiritual author, yogi, artist, poet, and co-owner of multiple yoga studios and teacher training schools based in Dallas, Texas.

Chrystal shares her extraordinary life journey, including a near-death experience following a devastating car accident that became a profound turning point in her understanding of love, purpose, and the nature of the soul. What emerged from that moment was a clear mission: to remind the world that love is all that matters.

Through heartfelt storytelling, spiritual wisdom, and lived experience, Chrystal invites us to see healing not as something to fix, but as something to remember, our true nature rooted in unconditional love. Drawing from yoga philosophy, near-death experiences, sound healing, and conscious living, this conversation gently guides listeners back home to themselves.

✨ Here’s what you’ll learn in this soul-nourishing episode:

✅ How a near-death experience reshaped Chrystal’s understanding of love, life, and purpose

✅ Why love is not just an emotion, but a universal healing force and state of consciousness

✅ The difference between intimacy-based love and unconditional, universal love

✅ How trauma, addiction, and shadow experiences can become pathways to healing and wisdom

✅ Why leaning into discomfort is often where the deepest transformation begins

✅ How yoga, breathwork, and meditation help regulate the nervous system and build emotional resilience

✅ Why sound and light are emerging modalities in healing and future medicine

✅ The role of self-compassion in breaking cycles of perfectionism, addiction, and self-judgment

✅ A simple guiding question to return to during difficult moments: “What is my most loving thought, word, or action?”

✅ How to respond instead of react when life feels overwhelming

✅ Chrystal’s perspective on forgiveness as a way to free yourself, not condone harm

✅ The importance of choosing an “overriding principle” for your life as a compass for decisions

✅ Why healing is a daily practice rooted in presence, breath, and conscious choice

Connect with Chrystal Rae

🌐 Website:https://chrystalraesoul.com/📖 Book: Love Letters to Your Soul (available on Amazon, audiobook narrated by Chrystal)🎙️ Speaker, sound healing guide, yoga teacher, and spiritual mentor

Connect with me (Rita)

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In this inspiring episode of the Self-Care Goddess Podcast, UpliftHER Leadership Series, we welcome Jill Proud, leadership coach, peer group facilitator, and founder of Vital Visionary, for an honest and empowering conversation about vitality, vision, and sustainable leadership for high-performing women.

With over 20 years of experience supporting Olympic athletes, CEOs, founders, and executive teams, Jill shares how true leadership begins from the inside out. She reflects on her personal journey, the lived experiences that shaped her work, and why women do not need to push harder to succeed. Instead, she invites leaders to ground themselves in clarity, internal alignment, and embodied vitality.

This episode is a powerful reminder that success does not require self-sacrifice. It requires presence, self-trust, and the courage to center yourself in your own vision.

Here’s what you’ll learn in this empowering episode:

✅ Why vitality is the foundation of sustainable leadership, not hustle or burnout

✅ How women are conditioned to prioritize everyone else and how to gently shift back inward

✅ The difference between external success and internal success

✅ Why clarity is the first pillar of confident, impactful leadership

✅ How to reconnect with your personal vision beyond roles, titles, and expectations

✅ The power of peer groups and being in rooms where women truly feel understood

✅ Common patterns Jill sees in high-performing women, including feeling stuck, isolated, or exhausted

✅ How menopause, life transitions, grief, and leadership pressure intersect and what actually helps

✅ The role of boundaries, nervous system regulation, and embodied self-care in leadership

✅ Jill’s “Three Words” framework and how it becomes a daily filter for aligned decision-making

✅ Why embracing feminine leadership does not mean losing strength, but leading with wholeness

Jill’s Core Leadership Wisdom

“If you’re not vital, you can’t deliver on the vision.”

Connect with Jill Proud

• Website: https://www.vitalvisionary.com
• LinkedIn: Jill Proud
• Jill's links and resources: https://linktr.ee/jill_proud

• Founder of Vital Visionary Leadership coaching, women’s peer groups, and executive facilitation

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In this energizing episode of the Self-Care Goddess Podcast, we explore strength, nutrition, metabolism, and longevity with Dr. Derek Alessi, fitness and nutrition expert with nearly 30 years of experience helping adults over 40 lose fat, build strength, and reclaim vibrant health.

Dr. Derek shares his powerful personal journey, including losing over 80 pounds in his early twenties, and how that transformation shaped his mission to help people improve their health using sustainable, science-backed strategies rather than extreme diets or fitness fads.

This conversation is a deep dive into how nutrition, strength training, mindset, and self-care work together to support energy, hormone balance, fat loss, and long-term wellbeing as we age.

✨ Here’s what you’ll learn in this empowering episode:

✅ Why nutrition and exercise are not interchangeable and how each uniquely supports health and metabolism

✅ The importance of stabilizing blood sugar and insulin for fat loss, energy, and longevity

✅ How muscle loss with age slows metabolism and why strength training is non-negotiable after 40

✅ Why protein is “first importance” for the body and how it supports muscles, organs, hormones, and the brain

✅ Animal protein vs plant-based protein and why complete amino acids matter

✅ How continuous glucose monitors can personalize nutrition and reveal hidden blood sugar spikes

✅ Common fat-loss misconceptions in midlife, especially for women

✅ Why extreme diets like keto or carnivore are often unsustainable for most people

✅ The role of dietary fat in hormone health and brain function

✅ How and when to strength train for fat loss, metabolism, and joint health

✅ The benefits and risks of HIIT training as we age

✅ How fasting can improve insulin sensitivity and reduce stress eating for some individuals

✅ Why mindset is the foundation of sustainable health and self-care

A Powerful Reminder from Dr. Derek:

“You must believe you are worth improving. If the mindset isn’t there, the strategy won’t last.”

Connect with Dr. Derek Alessi

• Website & Resources: https://strengthgenesis.com/
• Instagram: @alessifitness
• LinkedIn: Derek Alessi
• Free eBooks, recipes, programs, and educational tools available on his site

Connect with Me (Rita)

Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/ritasavoia_/?hl=enFacebook | https://www.facebook.com/savoia1X | https://x.com/rsavoia?lang=enLinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/ritasavoia/?originalSubdomain=ca