28- Reclaiming New Meaning: Holidays After Mormonism
Hi friends,
Get my Anxiety Soothing Art if you need a small ritual to bring peace.
This week on the podcast, we’re talking about rituals—the ones we inherited, the ones we outgrew, and the ones we’re allowed to create now.
If you grew up in Mormonism, your life was full of ritual. Prayer, family home evening, blessings, temple ceremonies, holidays with strict meaning attached. There was a rhythm to everything, even if that rhythm came with pressure, perfectionism, and emotional suppression.
Leaving the church often means losing that rhythm. Not just the beliefs—but the structure that held your days and seasons. And suddenly there’s this space. This quiet. This sense of floating. This question: What do I anchor myself to now? Here’s the truth I want you to hear: Ritual never belonged to the Church. Ritual belongs to you. Ritual is older than religion. It’s human. It’s creative. It’s nervous-system regulation wrapped in meaning-making. It’s what our ancestors used to mark time, soothe themselves, and feel connected to their lives.
You get to reclaim that now. You get to decide what opens your mornings. What closes your evenings. What your holidays look like. What your family gathers around. What moments you choose to call sacred—in the truest, most honest sense of the word. You don’t need permission. You don’t need a calling. You don’t need a handbook.
Your rituals can be tiny: Lighting a candle. Taking one deep breath before dinner. Writing down three things you accomplished that day. A weekly walk. A monthly art night. A December tradition that feels like home to you. Ritual is simply attention repeated. It’s presence practiced. It’s choosing what matters to you now—and letting that guide your rhythm. This is part of becoming. This is part of healing your nervous system after years of external structure. This is part of learning to trust yourself again. This is you building a life that fits.
Get my Anxiety Soothing Art if you need a small ritual to bring peace.
