Raised Signal Podcast

Melise shares a candid reflection on her marriage to an agnostic man—despite being Muslim—and the cascade of consequences that followed. Rather than a judgment call on agnosticism, this episode explores why unaligned major life decisions create friction and pain. She digs into why she made that choice (avoidance, ego, a false belief in her own exceptionalism) and what she's learned about the power...

Ain’t No Reward for Suffering In this episode, we’re getting honest about something many of us have been taught to normalize—suffering, especially the kind we bring on ourselves. From staying too long in relationships to overextending in the name of love, loyalty, or hope, this conversation challenges the idea that pain automatically leads to something meaningful. Because the truth? Not all suffer...

60-Second Brainwashing for Self-Love & Inner Peace In this short but powerful episode, I share a collection of gentle affirmations designed to help you reconnect with yourself, soften your inner dialogue, and cultivate real inner peace. This isn’t about fixing yourself—it’s about remembering who you are beneath the noise. These 30 mantras are simple, grounding, and meant to be used in your real li...

What does self-love actually look like in real life? In this episode, we explore how small, intentional decisions—like skincare routines, financial discipline, relationship boundaries, and daily habits—are powerful acts of self-love in practice. If you’ve ever struggled with the idea of “loving yourself,” this episode breaks it down into practical, relatable steps you can start applying today. Lea...

Episode Title: The Self-Trust Cycle: How to Rebuild Confidence in Yourself Episode Summary In this episode, we dive into The Self-Trust Cycle , a simple but powerful framework for rebuilding confidence in yourself and your decisions. When you consistently keep promises to yourself, your confidence grows. When you repeatedly break them, self-doubt creeps in. The good news? Self-trust isn’t somethin...

Podcast Title: The Forgiveness I Couldn’t Seem to Give… Myself In this powerful episode, we dive deep into self-forgiveness, self-sabotage, and the journey to self-trust . If you’ve ever accepted less than you deserved, settled for emotional crumbs, or negotiated against yourself before life even had the chance to respond — this conversation is for you. We explore how low self-worth shapes our rel...

How often do we tell ourselves no before life ever has the chance to respond? In this episode, I explore what it means to stop negotiating against yourself and start honoring your desires without fear, overthinking, or self-rejection. A reflection on self-trust, courage, and learning to ask for the life you truly want. Your yes begins the moment you stop abandoning yourself. This is a public episo...

You know how you don’t think something is possible for you and you talk yourself out of it before you even begin, before you even ask, before you even go? Yeah, well that’s negotiating against yourself. So many times we let self doubt and fear dictate our movements in life. I think we often times forget that the people that we are asking things of are just people just like us. And if you don’t ask...

Podcast Show Notes (SEO-Friendly): Are endless “how to” guides leaving you overwhelmed and stuck in place? In this episode, we flip the script on burnout caused by overconsumption of advice and self-help content. Instead of chasing another step-by-step formula, discover why taking action, embracing curiosity, and trusting your intuition are the real keys to growth and fulfillment. Through personal...

I know, I know: my idea of marriage will be problematic for people who are pro-marriage and also problematic for people who are against “traditional marriage.” But marriage for me is neither superfluous nor a necessity. As a Black American Muslim Woman, marriage has always been THEE focus. As a 9 yr old girl I can remember the conversations around marriage being a necessity to being a “good Muslim...

It was 2 years ago, almost to the day that would be the last time I’d see her; my friend. I didn’t know yet but our last conversation would be the turning point in our friendship. I looked at her as one of my life partners. Someone who I shared so many interests with, our kids were the same ages, our lives were similar in so many ways. She was my type of witty; one of the cleverest women I know. W...

In this episode, I examine the rise of perpetual girlhood and how our obsession with youth, desirability, and constant “inner-child healing” has blurred the line between girls and women. As a woman and mother, I reflect on aging, emotional maturity, and the loss of rites of passage that once marked our transition into womanhood. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with othe...

This episode is a love letter to the messy middle of healing—I’m sharing my truth: from a rough childhood, reckless teenage years, and an addiction to begging for love in relationships, to finally understanding what it really means to let go instead of being dragged. Healing isn’t cute. It isn’t clean. And it definitely isn’t linear. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with...

This is the result of the work that comes from learning to trust yourself. I go into how I came to understand WHY I chose the partnerships I chose and how I worked through childhood trauma to begin my journey of self sufficiency. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit melfraz.substack.com

Anyone who knows me will tell you that I don’t smoke or drink. Like…nothing. Not even hooka. Never have. In fact hooka bars remind me of a crack house. I know that will ruffle some feathers but I’m an 80’s baby and I’ve seen too much ok? But the crack era is where it began for me. Growing up in West Baltimore in the 80’s & 90’s was exactly as you’d imagine it…like the Wire. Of course there was ton...

Perpetual girlhood has taken over so who gon’ be the women? There used to be a time where saying “I’m a grown ass woman!”, was a milestone and you couldn’t wait to get there. Now though, not so much. We are living through the cultural phenomenon of girlhood being the pinnacle of female existence. To which I ask, why? How? Well I think it’s multi-layered and we’re gonna talk about it. First let me...

Most of us have a dream life in our heads that we aspire to , right? Well for me it’s always been to have a life of financial wiggle room, time to wander and to be joyful. What I’ve come to understand is, for me the root of having a life of ease is to have little to no financial stress. I have no desire to diminish my taste level or to dumb down my love of tangible material things, but to have the...