The Spiritual Shitshow with Suzanne Sole

PART 1: Story Jam, Parallel Lives & the Plot Twist That Changes Everything Some people follow a creative path. Others wander down it with curiosity and a guitar and somehow end up building an entire storytelling universe. That’s more or less what happened to my guest, storyteller, Stephanie Rogers. Stephanie is the founder and creative force behind Story Jam, the Chicago-based storytelling and...

Part 3 closes out this series with the good stuff — the artist stuff. The part where we talk about being brave enough to be yourself onstage, even when your brain is pitching twelve different exit strategies. Mike opens up about how he works with fear instead of fighting it, why authenticity is the only thing that actually lands with an audience, and how he keeps showing up even when the jitters c...

It's Part 2 of this 3-part series with guest, Mike Knight, Chicago-based comedian and the host of the Real R.A.P. (Regular Ass People) Podcast, where comics sit down to talk news and entertainment, and co-host of A Professor and a Comedian Walk into a Bar, a show that brings comedy and academia together for real conversations, produced out of Northwestern. Part 2 gets into one of the most imp...

Mike Knight is a regular face throughout comedy clubs in Chicago, and has showcased at venues like, Riddles, Laugh Factory, the Omaha Funny Bone, University of Illinois, Monticello in Atlanta. He’s the creator and host of the Real R.A.P. (Regular Ass People) Podcast, where comics sit down to talk news, entertainment, and the world as it really feels on the ground, and is the co-host of A Professor...

Part Four: Purpose, Elevation, and the Future of Women Leading Together In the final installment of this four-part series, Suzanne and Lisa Jimenez , founder of SheIsMe Global , explore the deeper meaning behind why we’re here: in our lives, in our work, and in our stories, and how purpose often emerges through the very experiences that shape us. Lisa shares her belief that every woman’s path hold...

Part Three: Roles Are for Actors  In part three of this four-part series, Suzanne sits down with Lisa Jimenez , founder of She Is Me Global , to talk about how her company is creating spaces where women can grow, lead, and rise together. This episode explores what it means to step out of the limiting roles society assigns to women — and how powerful it is to add your voice to the conversation inst...

Part Two: From Survival to Purpose This is part two of Suzanne’s four-part series with Lisa Jimenez , powerhouse founder of SheIsMe Global, a worldwide movement creating spaces for women to grow, connect, and step into leadership. Lisa’s journey from domestic-violence survivor to global movement leader is woven into every layer of her work. After nearly 40 years in corporate product management and...

In part one of this powerful four-part series, Suzanne is joined by Lisa Jimenez, founder of SheIsMe Global, a worldwide movement creating spaces for women to grow, connect, and step into leadership together. Lisa brings decades of experience in corporate leadership and event production, but what fuels her work is deeply personal. In this episode, Lisa shares the story of surviving a life of domes...

Welcome to Part Three of a powerful three-part series with my guest, Teresa Thome: writer, producer, actor, and truth-teller Teresa’s resume is impressive — and layered. She’s the Emmy-winning co-creator of The Blessing Bracelet on the Hallmark Channel, a movie she co-wrote with longtime collaborator Patrick Ziegler. That movie has become a favorite in the Hallmark universe — and they’ve since bee...

Welcome to Part Two of a powerful three-part series with my guest, Teresa Thome: writer, producer, actor, and truth-teller Teresa is an award-winning writer and co-creator of The Blessing Bracelet on the Hallmark Channel, and  the creator and performer of Warm Cheese, her one-woman show about her complicated relationship with her mother, which won Best Script at the United Solo Festival in NYC in...

Welcome to Part One of a powerful three-part series with my guest, Teresa Thome: writer, producer, actor, and truth-teller Teresa is an Emmy-winning writer and producer, and co-creator of The Hallmark Channel's The Blessing Bracelet.  She’s also the creator and performer of Warm Cheese, an award-winning one-woman show about her complicated relationship with her mother, which won Best Script a...

In Part 2 of The Spiritual Shitshow podcast holiday series, Suzanne continues her candid, funny, and spiritually curious conversation with Fred Stella — ordained Hindu minister and longtime host of the interfaith radio show Common Threads . This episode covers the deeper meanings behind Hanukkah, Bodhi Day, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, and the story of Ganesha — with a dash of lunar cal...

It’s December, and the holidays are holidaying. But what are they actually trying to tell us? In Part 1 of this thoughtful and funny two-part episode, Suzanne sits down with Hindu Outreach Minister and interfaith radio host Fred Stella for a rich conversation that bridges Catholicism, Hinduism, spiritual storytelling, and the meaning behind some of the season’s most cherished myths. Fred shares hi...

In Part 2 of my talk with guest, Chicago-based new thought minister, Rev Linda Jackson, we shift from Linda’s journey to the heart of her message — and it’s a powerful one. We talk about compassionate communication, the kind that can only come from deep self-awareness, and how spiritual practice actually shows up in the real world. Then Linda closes with something truly special: a spontaneous, spi...

You may have caught Rev. Linda Jackson in a past episode of Asking for a Friend called WTF is Consciousness? — but this time, we’re flipping the script and talking about her story. In this first of a two-part in-person convo, we dive into how Linda found her way to New Thought, her deep commitment to spiritual practice, and what led her to become a minister. She also shares about her work at Citys...

It was 2018 in New York City. Suzanne would ride the R Train home with red wine in a paper coffee cup. I mean, what could go wrong? In this episode, host, Suzanne Sole, shares the last night of drinking that launched her sobriety journey — and let’s just say, it was a shitshow. A red wine cappuccino, a Queens-bound train, and a Janis Joplin musical audition that turned into a circus act. You know...

In Part 2 of Suzanne’s conversation with Chicago comedian Laura Hugg, things get personal. With over 29 years of sobriety, Laura shares the story of how she came to recovery — the moment that cracked everything open, and what it looked like from the inside. She talks about the messy middle, the long-haul healing process, and the way comedy keeps showing up through all of it. A raw, funny, and real...

C​hicago comedian Laura Hugg joins Suzanne for a two part raw, ​f​unny, no-bullshit conversation about sobriety, storytelling, and the kind of ​c​omedy that only shows up from the wreckage. Laura is a stand-up comic based in Chicago and the producer of Keep Coming Back, a long-running comedy show about all forms of recovery—and she recently co-launched a new show, We Are Not a Glum Lot, with fello...

In Part 2 of this real, raw, and heartfelt conversation, Suzanne continues her talk with friend, spiritual teacher, and minister Rev. Mark Anthony Lord, diving even deeper into the messy, miraculous process of becoming Spiritual AF . Mark shares a powerful personal story of forgiveness — one that cracked him open and changed the course of his life. They also talk about learning to trust insight an...

In this powerful and personal episode, Suzanne sits down with longtime friend and spiritual teacher Rev. Mark Anthony Lord to talk about what it really takes to become Spiritual AF — not in the performative, polished way, but in the messy, tender, soul-level, “I did not sign up for this but here we are” kind of way. Mark opens up about growing up gay in a Catholic, working-class Detroit suburb, ba...

Happy One-year Birthday Anniversary to The Spiritual Shitshow with Suzanne Sole!   It’s been one year since I published the first episode of this spiritual shitshow — and in this episode, I’m sharing my story. The story that led to its creation and the journey that led me on the healing and spiritual path. It’s a story I’ve carried for a long time — one that shaped me in ways I’m still unraveling....

In Part 2, the wildly gifted Lisa Gehrke gives me a full-on Tarot reading, and let’s just say… It was majority Major Arcana.  When Lisa reads, she speaks from the heart. This was real, and wildly affirming—and yes, I felt giddy and illuminated, laughed a lot, and definitely had a few “OKAY UNIVERSE, I HEAR YOU” moments. Lisa brings deep compassion, grounded wisdom, and a totally judgment-free vibe...

My guest for the next two episodes is none other than the magical, mystical, and delightful  Lisa Gehrke—empath, intuitive, comedic actress, voiceover artist, and my friend since junior high (yes, she has seen a majority of my awkward moments). In Part 1, we talk about what it was like for Lisa growing up as a deeply sensitive, empathic and intuitive kid in the 70s and 80s (when empaths, feelings,...

In Episode 50 of The Spiritual Shitshow with Suzanne Sole , Suzanne continues her exploration of divine feminine mythology “Enter the Goddess 2.” This episode dives into ancient goddess stories that speak to power, wisdom, and spiritual transformation—from Gaia, the Neolithic Earth Mother who creates life from the ground itself, to the Hindu parable of Yaksha and the goddess Uma, to the Egyptian m...

In Part 7 of her Power of Myth series, Suzanne dives into the mythic, beautiful, and magnificent history of the Goddess. Long before the divine wore a crown and beard, she wore the Earth.  In this episode, Suzanne explores the ancient and ever-evolving story of the Goddess — from fertile soil to sea foam, mythic symbols to spiritual archetypes, and the mystery of the feminine as a force of creatio...