These powerful words kicked off my recent chat with Carly and Kirsten, the inspiring women behind Soul Secrets,a podcast, retreat experience, and mentorship program dedicated to helping midlife women rediscover their spark. And let me tell you, their story is pure gold.

From College Roommates to Life-Changing Retreat Visionaries

The Soul Secrets journey started like many great friendships do: at a college party way back in 2000. Carly and Kirsten clicked as roommates, and even though life pulled them in different directions for nearly two decades, their paths reconnected in the most beautiful, transformative way.

Fast forward 18 years. Carly had followed the "Southern lady" playbook to a T: degree, marriage, kids, the perfect house and car, the 8-to-5 job. From the outside, everything looked picture-perfect. But deep down, something was missing.

"I gave away my free will to expectation," Carly shared, a sentiment so many of us can relate to. "The expectation of the culture, the expectation of the South. It brought me to the end of what I needed to do... But there wasn't, what about the creativity inside? What about my body? What about the pleasure that I take just in existing?"

The Photo Shoot That Ignited a Transformation

The turning point for Carly came when she reached out to Kirsten, a photographer, for a photo session. Looking at those images, something profound clicked. "She looked at them and thought, that's me," Kirsten recalled. "This really woke her up. And she realized that she wanted something more."

Through a divorce and the unraveling of a life built on feeling unworthy, Carly discovered something truly unexpected: she could create music. She'd never known she had this gift, but through mentorship, healing conversations, and giving herself permission to explore, she wrote an eight-song album.

This inspiring transformation sparked a question for both Carly and Kirsten: How could they help other women experience this same powerful awakening?

And So, The Retreats Were Born!

That first year, in October, Soul Secrets hosted their very first beachfront retreat in Galveston, welcoming 12-13 women. The response was overwhelming, confirming what they already suspected,women were absolutely hungry for this kind of experience.

Who Finds Their Way to Soul Secrets Retreats?

The women who attend these retreats often share common threads, threads that might sound familiar to you too:

• They talk about past joy as a distant memory, not something they feel they can have now.
• They've forgotten how truly valuable they are.
• They're exhausted by the monotony of "Groundhog Day" living.
• They gave up their creativity when they started their families.
• Life has hardened them, and they've literally forgotten who they were.

"It's women that are tired and worthy," Carly explained. "Tired of the same thing, but know that they are worthy for this experience."

What Magic Happens at a Soul Secrets Retreat?

These retreats are carefully curated experiences designed to help women reset, release, and remember who they truly are:

• Vibrational Sound Therapy: Using crystal bowls to create healing sounds, this practice stabilizes the nervous system and gently opens participants up emotionally. "It almost puts you in this beautiful slumber," Kirsten described. "It literally relaxes you everywhere so that you can not only share and speak and be comfortable, but also receive."
• Art Therapy and Inner Child Work: At a recent retreat, participants created canvases using childhood photos (ages 8-10), representing themselves or what they loved as children. One woman, who didn't consider herself artistic, created a simple piece,her childhood photo surrounded by a large painted heart. When she felt embarrassed by her "empty" canvas, the group surrounded her with love and encouragement. For someone who may not have felt loved enough as a child, this moment of receiving became profoundly healing.
• Movement and Embodiment: Through Carly's "Reclaim Her" series, participants engage in sacred rage release, sensual dance, breathwork, and journaling. "A lot of times women don't acknowledge that they exist and they forget," Carly shared. "And when they come to class, they remember everything." The goal? Helping women develop trust in their own bodies, make confident decisions, and let their "yes mean yes and no mean no."

The Surprising Truth About Who Needs This

While Soul Secrets retreats welcome women of all ages, middle-aged moms are often the primary attendees. These are women who've checked all the boxes,husband, kids, house, career,and somewhere along the way, completely lost themselves in the process.

But here's the challenge: Even when women know they need this, they hesitate.

"Oh, I would love to, but I just don't have the time," is something Carly and Kirsten hear constantly.

Their powerful response? "We just have to make time for ourselves."

As Kirsten wisely pointed out, they needed these retreats too. "We stepped up and took up for ourselves. We said, we're going to do this. This is something we want. And if it doesn't exist, we're going to create it."

The Universal Message: No More Buts

Whether it's a retreat, a boudoir shoot, a solo trip, or a designer purse,stop justifying your desires.

"It doesn't need to be validated or justified by anybody else. If you want it, it is okay to prioritize yourself and refill your cup with what you need," I emphasized in our conversation.

When women return from Soul Secrets retreats, their families benefit too. One participant was so excited to leave that she could implement everything she'd learned. Her renewed energy didn't just improve her life,it improved all her relationships.

Breaking Free From the Box

We can only stay in society's box for so long. The cultural norms, the Southern expectations, the "good woman" checklist,eventually, we have to get out and figure out what we truly need.

Sometimes it takes an outside perspective, a community of women going through the same thing, or a safe space to even discover what exists outside that box. As a registered nurse, Carly sees this clearly: "I can see where they stopped. I can see where they just said, 'Well, I'm this age' or 'My husband doesn't like that' or 'I can't do this' or 'Well, that's the way it is.' No, ma'am. That is not the way it is."

At one retreat, they even hosted a 78-year-old woman who brought her wisdom, fire, and living example of never giving up. Her presence inspired every other guest, proving that transformation and growth have no age limit.

Building a Sisterhood

What makes Soul Secrets retreats so powerful isn't just the curated experiences,it's the women helping each other. Participants arrive as strangers and leave as sisters, having witnessed each other's vulnerability and celebrated each other's breakthroughs.

"It's not even just us as the curators that help these women. It's the other guests helping each other," Kirsten explained. "We're building a sisterhood."

As Carly reminds us: "If you stop, you stop. But this is midlife. This is where we kind of try to figure out, is there more? Well, yes, but we get to create that."

Growth exists just outside our comfort zone. What's on the other side of fear is the door.

Website: https://soulsecrets.life/
Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@TheSOULSecretsPodcast

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