Episode 143: The Soft Work of Healing – Why Feeling Good Is Part of the Process

2025-06-26

This episode is your permission slip to stop grinding and start healing—gently. In this heartfelt episode of Medium Lady Talks, Erin shares a deeply personal talk on reclaiming “soft work” as a vital part of healing. Inspired by a moment with her therapist and delivered originally at the Say It Like You Claimed It event with Jam Gamble, this message is a reminder that you can’t recover from burnout by doing more hard work. Instead, you need softness. 🪷 Erin breaks down: What “soft work” is and why it matters (think: joy, rest, nature, play) Why soft work activates the ...

This episode is your permission slip to stop grinding and start healing—gently.

In this heartfelt episode of Medium Lady Talks, Erin shares a deeply personal talk on reclaiming “soft work” as a vital part of healing. Inspired by a moment with her therapist and delivered originally at the Say It Like You Claimed It event with Jam Gamble, this message is a reminder that you can’t recover from burnout by doing more hard work.

Instead, you need softness.

🪷 Erin breaks down:

What “soft work” is and why it matters (think: joy, rest, nature, play)
Why soft work activates the vagus nerve and heals the nervous system
The limiting beliefs that make rest feel unearned or frivolous
The science behind why kindness and pleasure help you recover
How to reprogram your brain to notice joy again

Whether you’re exhausted from doing everything “right” or just need a moment to feel seen, this episode will help you soften into the truth: you are not broken. You’re just overdue for joy.

📚 Mentioned in this episode:

Sacred Rest by Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith
Women Who Work Too Much by Tamu Thomas
Reclaim Yourself by Dr. Thema Bryant
What It Takes to Heal by Prentis Hemphill
Fiction from Kennedy Ryan, Tia Williams, Kiley Reid, and Toni Morrison

💬 Ask yourself: What kind of soft work have I been craving?

💬 Let Erin know what “real rest” means to you over on Instagram @medium.lady—and share this episode with the friend who’s doing everything “right” and still wondering why she’s so tired.

This episode is part of our “Summer of Real Rest” series—time to call ourselves in to a true commitment to the soft work of feeling better one step at a time.

🧡 If this episode resonates with you: