Hot Takes on Healing with Jess Leone

Every October, I gather with women for something that looks a little wild from the outside: "The Great Pumpkin Smash".

We write down the things we’re done carrying — the guilt, the grief, the rage — and then we smash those damn pumpkins into the ground. And this ritual actually comes in two parts:

Part one: expressing anger in a safe way: through sound, movemen...

This week I sit down with one of our Sacred Circle sisters Melissa, whose story of resilience and redirection reminds us that sometimes losing what we thought defined us is what sets us free.

After being forced to retire from her long-standing, respected career due to MS, Melissa found herself grieving not just her work, but her identity. For years, she’d pushed through anxiety and depression, believing her worth was tied to produc...

(Hi, I'm back from the summer hiatus! It’s been a minute since we’ve shared space here, and I’ve missed these conversations.) To connect further, subscribe to my weekly newsletter, follow me on TikTok/Pinterest, join our free "Hot Takes" Channel on Telegram or visit www.jessleone.com for more. 

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We spend so much time chasing what’s next that we forget to stop and look at what’s already in our hands. In this episode, I’m invit...

*This is a series I created within Hot Takes on Healing: "Fly On a Wall", where you get an all-access pass to the deep, inspiring, & unfiltered conversations I’ve had with some of my closest friends. These are the moments we’ve always wished other people could hear—the real, *no edits*, NO-BS chats where nothing is off-limits. We’re talking about the stuff that hits you right in the gut, the kind of truths that stick with you, ...

*This is a series I created within Hot Takes on Healing: "Fly On a Wall", where you get an all-access pass to the deep, inspiring, & unfiltered conversations I’ve had with some of my closest friends. These are the moments we’ve always wished other people could hear—the real, *no edits*, NO-BS chats where nothing is off-limits. We’re talking about the stuff that hits you right in the gut, the kind of truths that stick with you, ...

This is a series I created within Hot Takes on Healing: "Fly On a Wall", where you get an all-access pass to the deep, inspiring, & unfiltered conversations I’ve had with some of my closest friends. These are the moments we’ve always wished other people could hear—the real, *no edits*, NO-BS chats where nothing is off-limits. We’re talking about the stuff that hits you right in the gut, the kind of truths that stick with you, a...

In this weeks episode, I sat down with Natalie and Dale Glover, the soulful minds behind LumenKind, a brand dedicated to helping people reconnect with what truly matters. I am excited to share the powerful story behind their latest offering, the 'Light Through Loss Pack', and how grief became a catalyst for deeper presence, purpose, and healing.

This episode isn’t just about loss, but about what grief cracks open. It’s about the ri...

What if the truth you’re avoiding is the very thing that could set you free?

In this episode, I sit down with Michelle Aalbers, coach and catalyst for self-healing, to explore what it really means to choose healing, especially when it’s uncomfortable. Michelle brings a grounded, honest voice to the conversation, reminding us that real kindness often shows up in the form of hard truths.

Hot take: Consider the possibility that you ca...

Putting yourself first isn’t selfish, it’s survival. This conversation is your reminder that you don’t have to wait until you break to tend to yourself.

This week’s episode is a heart-opening, deeply grounded conversation with Stacy, an independent cat rescuer in Connecticut who’s currently in the process of opening her own feral cat sanctuary! She’s a force of compassion, honesty, and intentional living, and her wisdom is for anyo...

In this episode, I’m joined by Lindsey Ryan—entrepreneur, wellness advocate, and co-owner of the Blender Bar (in Cheshire, CT)—to talk about what it really looks like to walk away from a “safe” 9-5 career in Corporate America and choose the wild, messy, and meaningful path back to yourself.

After years in higher education, a major health transformation, and a powerful reset in Ireland, Lindsey had a wake-up call: her inner voice to...

In this episode, Carrie and I are breaking down the loop—the mental replay, the Groundhog Day energy, the autopilot patterns that keep us stuck—and how something as simple as ChatGPT (or whatever name you’ve given your AI… go ask it!) can actually help you get out of your own head and into a new rhythm. We talk about how to “glitch the loop” on purpose:

• Taking a different route to work

• Going to a new coffee shop

• Intention...

In this raw and powerful episode, I’m joined by Kate Sullivan, who drops this #hottake: mental health struggles can be just as devastating as addiction—instead of healing the root, we keep slapping Band-Aids on the symptoms. Together we dig into what it really means to live with that weight, including the addiction to sorrow and suffering, the link between dyslexia and addiction (learning something new every day!), and the life-cha...

This episode features Kay Robbs, a Connecticut-based lifestyle blogger whose platform is all about wellness, food, self-care, and fun date ideas. Kay’s grounded presence and honest perspective make her the perfect guest to dive into a conversation about healing anxious attachment and stepping into your high-value era.

We talk about the deep fear of abandonment that drives anxious attachment, and how often that fear shows up as anxi...

In this episode, I sit down with Robyn Miller Brecker & Karen Loenser and dive into their personal "hot takes" on healing and the journey that led them to create The Seeking Center.

Robyn, an Emmy® award-winning producer, spent over 20 years working alongside Oprah Winfrey (YEAAAAH, THAT Oprah!), shaping impactful programming with some of the world’s most brilliant thought leaders. She has a background in media innovation, havi...

Welcome to my series within Hot Takes on Healing: "Fly On a Wall", where you get an all-access pass to the deep, inspiring, & unfiltered conversations I’ve had with some of my closest friends.

These are the moments we’ve always wished other people could hear—the real, *no edits*, NO-BS chats where nothing is off-limits. We’re talking about the stuff that hits you right in the gut, the kind of truths that stick with you, and the...

Life isn’t always a straight climb up.

Sometimes it’s a goddamn rollercoaster.

But here’s the thing: No matter what season you’re in, you deserve self-compassion. You deserve to recognize how far you’ve come. And you deserve to celebrate yourself—right now, not just when you hit some imaginary finish line.

In this episode, I go LIVE in 'The Soundboard' to reflect on my own life—what’s changed, what’s stayed the same, and how I’ve l...

Sometimes ya just gotta hit record on a GOOD conversation. Excuse the low quality audio, it was worth the high quality conversation. 

My beautiful friend, Mindy and I went LIVE back in 2024 in The Soundboard and had a powerful conversation about her healing journey over the last five years. What we've learned is healing isn’t just about moving through the hard stuff—it’s about learning to exist in the good without waiting for the o...

This one’s different. Hit play—you’ll see.

I think this is my favorite episode to date y'all. I literally grabbed my dictionary a few times because—spoiler—I needed to get clear on what words like “selfish” and “perfection” actually mean. (And trust me, the definitions will surprise you.) Here's what I'm jamming out about:

• The difference between your self and your ego—because you are NOT the loudest voice in your head.
• The pow...

Welcome to my series within Hot Takes on Healing: "Fly On a Wall", where you get an all-access pass to the deep, inspiring, & unfiltered conversations I’ve had with some of my closest friends.

These are the moments we’ve always wished other people could hear—the real, *no edits*, NO-BS chats where nothing is off-limits. We’re talking about the stuff that hits you right in the gut, the kind of truths that stick with you, and the...