Embodied Inspiration

My husband asked me at dinner one night: what is spirituality?

And I said — it's the conversation you have with yourself in the presence of a higher power.

That's the simplest way I can put it. But it's also so much bigger than that. It's every breath. Every step. Every decision made from a place of deep knowing rather than fear. It's not a label I wear. It's how I move through the world.

And if you're here — you're either already there or you're right on the edge of it.

Why religion wasn't enough — and what I found instead

I'm not here to tear down religion. For a lot of people, especially children, religion offers a beautiful framework for connection, prayer, and moral grounding. I respect that deeply.

But there came a point where I started hearing things that didn't speak to my heart. Things I was supposed to accept because they were doctrine. And I couldn't do it.

So I left. And I found something bigger. Something that didn't have walls.

Real spirituality cannot be dictated. It has to be discovered — from the inside out. The moment it becomes a set of rules handed down from outside you, it stops being a conversation and starts being a performance.

How physical, mental, and emotional health connect to spirituality

Everything — the physical work, the mental work, the emotional work — exists to protect one thing.

Your vessel. Your ability to connect.

When your body is grounded, your mind is clear, your emotions are processed, and your energy is tended to — that is when you can actually hear the spiritual lessons you're here to learn.

You can't channel what you can't receive. And you can't receive when you're depleted.

This is why healing is the work. Not as an end goal — but as the prerequisite for the life you're actually here to live. The four pillars aren't separate from spirituality. They are the spiritual work.

Why intuition is a muscle — and how to build it

Nobody tells you this about intuition: at first, you'll miss it almost every time.

In my twenties, when I first started paying attention, intuition felt like a wind that passed through my body and was gone before I could grab it. I knew I missed it. And I despaired thinking I'd never be able to hold onto it.

But here's what I know now: intuition gets louder the more you heal.

The more grounded you are physically, the more clarity you have mentally, the more processed you are emotionally — the easier it becomes to hear that quiet whisper. It's not magic. It's not a gift you either have or don't. It's practice. It's building yourself up enough to be still enough to listen.

Why spirituality is the lighthouse when everything else gets hard

We are living in a completely different world than we were even 20 years ago. With AI accelerating everything — the pace is only going to increase.

Which means we need a new way of operating. Data entry isn't enough anymore. We have to function on a new level of consciousness.

Spirituality is the lighthouse in all of that.

When the physical gets too hard. When the mental gets too heavy. When you're overwhelmed and you can't see clearly — there it is. The reminder that you are supported. That there is a safety net you can't always see but can absolutely feel.

That's what this practice gives you. Not certainty. Support.

The time I got scammed — and how my spiritual practice saved me

It was 2020. COVID. I had a baby under a year old. We'd just moved to Long Island. We were renovating our house. The world had stopped and I was searching desperately for meaning.

I got on Clubhouse. I was coming out of the spiritual closet publicly. I was coaching. I was doing all the things. And I walked — with both eyes open, with all the signs pointing yes — straight into a bear trap. A psychic scammer. I lost a significant amount of money. The trust of my husband was shaken.

In any other season of my life — that would have destroyed me. My history with mental health, with instability, with not being grounded — it could have taken everything.

But it didn't.

Because my practices held me. The physical, mental, emotional work I had been doing was the foundation that kept me standing when the ground gave way. I didn't spiral. I didn't collapse. I rebuilt.

I tell that story because I want you to know: the work you're doing isn't just for the good times. It's for the moments when something tries to knock you all the way down. That's when you find out what the foundation is actually worth.

How substances affect your spiritual connection

Every time you consume a substance, your body has to recalibrate back to baseline. And during that recalibration — you're not receiving clearly. The intuitive channel is static.

I'm not here to tell you sobriety is for everyone. That's not my message.

But the more I've cleaned up my vessel — the clearer the signal. It really is that simple. It's brighter on the other side. I promise you that.

How to start building a real spiritual practice — practical steps

Spirituality isn't a destination. It's an embodiment. You don't have to have it all figured out. You just have to stay open.

• Start building your intuitive muscle — when you feel a whisper, pause. Write it down. Don't let it pass through.

• Protect your vessel — the physical, mental, and emotional work is not separate from spirituality. It is the spiritual work.

• Find your lighthouse — a practice, a prayer, a ritual that reminds you you're held. Return to it especially when things get hard.

• If you're spiritual and your partner isn't — have faith. Pray for them. Journal to their soul. I've watched it work in my own marriage.

The answers find you when you stay open.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between spirituality and religion?

Religion is an external framework — doctrine, ritual, community, and moral structure handed down from an institution. Spirituality is an internal practice — the ongoing conversation between you and something larger than yourself. Religion can be a doorway to spirituality, but spirituality doesn't require religion. Real spiritual connection cannot be dictated from the outside. It has to be discovered from within.

How does healing your body support spiritual growth?

Your body is the vessel through which you receive spiritual insight. When you're physically depleted, mentally cluttered, and emotionally unprocessed, the signal gets buried under the noise. Physical grounding, mental clarity, and emotional processing aren't prerequisites you complete before spirituality begins — they are the spiritual work. The cleaner and more tended your vessel, the clearer the connection.

How do you develop intuition if you can't hear it yet?

Intuition is a muscle built through practice, not a gift you either have or don't. The key is slowing down enough to notice the whispers — and then honoring them instead of overriding them. Start by writing down any quiet inner knowing you notice, even if it seems small. The more you acknowledge it, the louder it gets. Healing the body and processing emotions accelerates this significantly because it removes the static that drowns the signal out.

Can spirituality help you recover from a major betrayal or loss?

Yes — and this is where having a spiritual foundation proves its real worth. When something tries to knock you down, it's the accumulated practice — the physical grounding, the emotional processing, the sense of being supported by something larger than circumstances — that keeps you from spiraling. Spirituality doesn't prevent hard things from happening. It gives you the ground to stand on when they do.

How do substances affect spiritual connection and intuition?

Every substance your body processes requires a recalibration period to return to baseline. During that window, your nervous system is working to reregulate — and the clarity required for intuitive reception is disrupted. The cleaner your vessel, the less static in the channel. This isn't a moral judgment about substances — it's a practical observation about signal quality. The more consistently you protect your baseline, the more consistently you can access deep knowing.

This post is based on the full podcast episode. Listen to the complete conversation on How to Heal — available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts.

Lindsay Trimarchi is a life coach, speaker, and host of the How to Heal Podcast. She works with high-achieving women ready to stop performing and start living. Find her on Instagram @howtoheal