The Adult Chair Podcast with Michelle Chalfant

Feeling stuck can feel overwhelming, hopeless, and frustrating, but you are more powerful than you think.

I'm sharing six simple tools to help you get unstuck and begin creating real movement in your life. Whether you feel stuck in a relationship, a job, a friendship, a pattern, or the way you feel about yourself, these steps can help you shift your energy, change your thoughts, and start moving toward the life you truly want.

I talk about the importance of accepting where you are right now, not because you like it or want it to stay that way, but because acceptance creates movement. When we stop avoiding what is right in front of us, we can begin to make new choices.

I also share how to get clear on where you want to go, how to stop giving energy to what you do not want, and why your thoughts and spoken words are so powerful. We talk about gratitude, journaling, emotional release, and the choice we all have between staying in the victim seat or stepping into empowerment.

• Accepting your current reality does not mean you like it, approve of it, or want it to stay the same
• Avoiding what is happening in your life takes a lot of energy
• Getting clear on what you want helps you move toward a new reality
• Visualization and feeling into your future self can help you create change
• Your thoughts are powerful, but your spoken words are even more powerful
• Talking constantly about what is wrong can keep you anchored in the reality you want to change
• Gratitude helps shift your energy and move you from stuckness toward possibility
• Journaling is a powerful way to purge thoughts, emotions, and energy from the body
• You can choose the victim path or the empowered path
• Intentional thoughts and conscious choices help you reclaim your power

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair® Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

Have you ever wondered if you are an empath, a highly sensitive person, or both?

I'm breaking down the difference between an empath and an HSP, which stands for highly sensitive person. I explain what empathy is, what makes someone an empath, and how empaths often absorb the emotions and energy of people, groups, and places. When we do not understand this about ourselves, it can lead to overwhelm, fatigue, anxiety, depression, mood swings, and the feeling that something is wrong with us when really, we are picking up on energy that may not even belong to us.

I also share common traits of empaths, including sensitivity to light, sound, crowds, other people's emotions, nature, animals, and authenticity. Then, I explain how highly sensitive people are similar to empaths, but with one key difference: HSPs may sense and feel deeply, but they do not absorb other people's emotions in the same way an empath does.

• Empathy is the ability to feel with another person, but being an empath takes this sensitivity to another level
• Empaths are deeply attuned to the energy and emotions of people, groups, and places
• Many empaths do not realize they are absorbing emotions that are not their own
• Unaware empaths may experience overwhelm, fatigue, anxiety, depression, or mood instability
• Empaths often feel deeply connected to nature and animals
• Crowds, noise, bright lights, television, news, and chaotic environments can feel overwhelming to an empath's nervous system
• People are often naturally drawn to empaths and may share deeply personal things with them
• Empaths can often sense when someone is being inauthentic or hiding behind a mask
• Alone time, or "cave time," helps empaths recharge
• Self-care, nature, grounding, boundaries, and micro moments of peace are essential for empaths
• Highly sensitive people and empaths share many traits, but HSPs do not absorb other people's emotions in the same way
• You can be both an empath and a highly sensitive person

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair® Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this episode, I'm talking about what a healthy relationship actually looks like.

After hearing from so many people about narcissism, gaslighting, and unhealthy relationship patterns, I wanted to talk about the other side: how do we know when a relationship is healthy? Whether it is with a partner, parent, sibling, friend, child, or anyone else in your life, healthy relationships have certain qualities that help us feel safe, respected, heard, and connected.

I share eight qualities of healthy relationships, including mutual respect, healthy apologies, enjoying each other's company, respecting boundaries, thoughtfulness, honoring each other's needs, listening with presence, and having open, honest communication.

I also talk about why communication is one of the most important parts of a healthy relationship. So many of us expect others to know what we feel or need, but it is our job to share our reality. When we speak from "I," express what is happening inside of us, and ask for what we need without blame or shame, relationships can begin to change.

• Healthy relationships are built on mutual respect, even when two people do not agree
• A healthy apology means owning the hurt we caused, even if it was unintentional
• Enjoying someone's company, feeling relaxed around them, and looking forward to seeing them are signs of a healthy connection
• Respectful boundaries are essential in healthy relationships
• Thoughtfulness does not have to be complicated. It can be as simple as checking in, offering kind words, or remembering what someone needs
• People in healthy relationships want to know and honor each other's needs
• Listening with presence helps the other person feel seen, heard, and valued
• Open and honest communication is one of the most important qualities of a healthy relationship
• Using "I" statements helps us share our reality without blaming or putting the other person on defense
• Healthy relationships require regular check-ins, intentional connection, and a willingness to talk about what is really going on

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair® Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

Anxiety can feel overwhelming, but when we understand what is really underneath it, we can begin to take our power back.

In this episode, I'm talking about how to end anxiety and become empowered. In The Adult Chair®, I define anxiety as the physical manifestation of unfelt emotions. Anxiety often shows up in the body through symptoms like shortness of breath, tightness in the throat, knots in the stomach, racing thoughts, or a rattled nervous system. But underneath those physical symptoms, there are usually emotions that need our attention.

When we are anxious, the ego often tells us to do more, fix more, think more, or keep pushing. But that only keeps us on the treadmill. The way out is to slow down, turn inward, and begin noticing what is happening emotionally and physically inside of us.

I walk you through two simple steps and five tools to help calm anxiety and bring you back into your Adult Chair®. These tools include mindfulness, deep belly breathing, time in nature, meditation, and journaling. Each one helps regulate the nervous system, move emotions through the body, and reconnect you with your power.

• In The Adult Chair®, anxiety is defined as the physical manifestation of unfelt emotions
• Anxiety often shows up through physical symptoms in the body
• Thoughts can direct us into the past or future, which can create emotions that rattle the nervous system
• Becoming aware of what anxiety really is helps us step back into our power
• Feeling emotions is one of the most important steps in calming anxiety
• The ego often tells us to do more, but the real healing begins when we slow down
• Mindfulness helps bring us into the present moment and back into the Adult Chair
• Slow belly breathing helps regulate the nervous system and activate the parasympathetic nervous system
• Nature can help calm the body, mind, and energy field
• Meditation teaches us to observe thoughts without reacting to them
• Journaling helps move stuck thoughts and emotions out of the body and onto paper
• Taking action is what helps us feel empowered

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair® Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

Your true self is the authentic, pure essence of who you were before the world taught you to become someone else.

Today, I'm talking about what the true self really is and how we can begin reconnecting with it. When we are born, we come in with our true essence. But as we grow up, we begin adapting, changing, and creating a false self so we can feel loved, accepted, safe, and like we belong.

Over time, this false self can cover up the truth of who we really are. We may lose touch with what we feel, what we need, what nourishes us, and what helps us feel connected to ourselves. But the good news is that anyone can begin to rediscover and live from their true self.

In this episode, I'm sharing five simple ways to reconnect with your true self: getting in touch with your emotions, tuning into your needs, practicing self-care, using breathwork, and journaling. These practices help us slow down, listen inward, and begin claiming the parts of ourselves we may have hidden, forgotten, or pushed away.

• The true self is your authentic self, the pure essence of who you were born as
• The false self develops as we adapt to feel safe, loved, accepted, and like we belong
• Many of us disconnect from our emotions because we were never taught how to feel them
• Reconnecting with your emotions helps you access deeper parts of yourself
• Your needs are different from your wants, and learning to identify them is essential
• Asking for what you need is part of living from your true self
• Self-care is not selfish. It is self-loving
• Practicing self-care supports self-worth and helps you reconnect with who you really are
• Breathwork can help release stuck emotions and take you deeper into yourself
• Journaling helps you access your unconscious mind, higher self, and deeper inner wisdom
• Rediscovering your true self happens through awareness, validation, and small daily practices

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair® Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this episode, I'm talking about one of the questions I hear all the time: What do we do with negative emotions?

So many of us have been taught to push away, numb, judge, or "get rid of" emotions like anger, grief, sadness, fear, rage, and frustration. But the truth is, emotions are not bad. They are part of being human, and they are meant to move through us.

I talk about why we develop resistance to certain emotions, especially when we grew up receiving messages that our feelings were too much, wrong, annoying, or unsafe. When we are not taught how to process emotions, we often reach for ways to numb out, distract, avoid, or blame others for what we are feeling.

• Emotions are part of being human, and we are meant to feel a full range of them
• Many of us learned to block, judge, or numb our emotions because of messages we received growing up
• "Negative emotions" are not bad. They are simply emotions on the fear end of the emotional spectrum
• Fear can protect us, anger can help us access power, and sadness can give us important information about our inner world
• Emotions are energy, and when we allow them to move through the body, they can shift and transform
• The 90-second rule reminds us that intense emotions can move through us quickly when we do not block them or attach a story to them
• Journaling helps us witness our inner world, process emotions, and gain clarity

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair® Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this episode, I'm talking about the art of manifesting and how we can begin creating the reality we truly want.

Manifesting is not just about thinking positive thoughts or saying an affirmation once and hoping something appears. The law of attraction is always working, just like gravity, but many of us have subconscious beliefs that block the very things we are trying to create. These beliefs may sound like, "I'm not good enough," "I don't deserve that," "money is hard to make," or "people will judge me if I have too much." When those beliefs are running underneath the surface, they can cancel out the conscious desires we are trying to manifest.

I walk you through a powerful process for discovering and clearing the inner blocks that may be keeping you from receiving what you want. I also share how to get clear on your desire, notice what happens in your body when you imagine having it, shift your mindset, align your energy, and act as if your creation is already on its way.

• Manifesting is always happening because we are always creating with our thoughts, beliefs, words, and energy
• The law of attraction is always on, just like the law of gravity
• Subconscious beliefs can block the things we consciously want to create
• Many people are more comfortable talking about what they do not want than clearly naming what they do want
• Guilt, shame, overwhelm, unworthiness, or tightness in the body can reveal a subconscious block
• The body can show us where our energy is contracted around a desire
• Parts work can help us communicate with the part of us that is blocking a creation
• Alignment means tuning your energy to the same frequency as the thing you want to create
• Your mindset, words, and daily focus matter when manifesting
• It is important to protect a new creation from other people's doubts, projections, or fears
• Acting as if your creation is already coming helps you stay aligned with it
• Patience and consistency are key when creating something new

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair® Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

Today I'm talking about one of my favorite topics and one of the most important parts of becoming a healthy adult: learning how to feel your feelings.

So many of us were never taught how to tune into what is happening inside of us. We learned to think, perform, push through, numb out, fix others, or disconnect from our feelings altogether. But when we do not know how to feel, we also lose connection with our intuition, empathy, self-trust, and the inner parts of us that need our attention.

In this episode, I break down why feeling your feelings matters, how it helps us become whole, and why it is such an important part of healing codependency, connecting with the inner child, and becoming more emotionally intelligent. I also share practical ways to begin, including body scans, journaling, inner child work, and gently working with the parts of you that may feel blocked or resistant.

• Feeling your feelings helps you become a more whole and connected human
• Many of us learned to numb, suppress, or avoid our feelings because we were never taught what to do with them
• Emotional intelligence is just as important as intellectual intelligence
• Feeling your feelings helps strengthen intuition and inner guidance
• Empathy grows when we are able to feel and understand our own internal experience
• Codependency begins to heal when we redirect our energy back to ourselves instead of constantly focusing on others
• Feelings only stay stuck when we attach stories, assumptions, or meaning to them
• Journaling can help move feelings out of the body and onto the page
• Inner child work is a powerful way to reconnect with your feelings
• Resistance to feeling is often a protective part that needs compassion, not judgment

Resources from this Episode:

Inner Child Meditation

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair® Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

If you've ever wondered what your birth chart says about your life purpose, relationships, karma, or soul path, this episode is for you.

I'm joined by evolutionary astrologer Jill Brown for a fascinating conversation about astrology, soul purpose, karma, past lives, and the deeper blueprint we each carry into this lifetime.

We talk about how astrology is so much more than your sun sign. Jill explains that evolutionary astrology is not about predicting every detail of your life or giving your power away. Instead, it is a tool for self-understanding, helping us see our soul's blueprint, karmic patterns, life lessons, relationship dynamics, parenting insights, career themes, and the places where we may be invited to grow.

Jill also shares what she sees in the astrology of 2026, including why this year may feel like the beginning of a new era. We talk about nervous system regulation, discernment, technology, AI, Uranus in Gemini, and how we can stay grounded during seasons of collective change.

• A birth chart can be used as a tool for self-understanding, healing, and personal growth
• Evolutionary astrology looks at the "chart behind the chart" to explore karmic memory, soul lessons, and life purpose
• Jill's journey into astrology began through personal healing, motherhood, family patterns, and a powerful chart reading
• Karma can be understood as memory, imprint, or an invitation to make new choices
• Saturn returns can bring major life transitions, identity shifts, and deeper questions about purpose
• Understanding a child's birth chart can help parents better support their unique needs, communication style, and life path
• Your chart can offer insight into your work, relationships, balance, purpose, and what feels aligned for you
• Nervous system regulation can help us respond instead of react during uncertain times

Resources from this Episode:

Jill Brown's Website

Book an Evolutionary Astrology Reading with Jill & use code MICHELLE for $25 off your reading.

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant

In this episode, I'm joined by Nicole Kalil for a powerful and practical conversation about confidence.

Nicole has spent years studying, researching, and teaching confidence, and she breaks it down in such a grounded way. Instead of seeing confidence as something we fake, perform, or get from the outside world, Nicole defines confidence as firm and bold trust in self.

We talk about how confidence is something many of us are born with, but begin to lose as we absorb expectations, criticism, people-pleasing, perfectionism, comparison, and what Nicole calls "head trash." She shares the five confidence builders that help us rebuild trust with ourselves, including taking action, moving through fear and failure, giving ourselves grace, choosing confidence, and building internal trust one step at a time.

This conversation is such a beautiful reminder that confidence is not about looking perfect or never feeling afraid. It is about knowing who you are, owning who you are not, and choosing to trust yourself as you take the next right step.

• Confidence is not about looking confident. It is about building firm and bold trust in yourself
• Many of us are born trusting ourselves, but life, expectations, criticism, and social conditioning can disconnect us from that trust
• Confidence is built through action, especially small, consistent steps toward what matters most
• Failure, fear, mistakes, and doubt can build deeper confidence when we learn to move through them instead of avoid them
• Giving yourself grace and practicing self-compassion are essential parts of building confidence
• Confidence is a choice we can practice moment by moment until the feeling begins to catch up
• "Head trash" is the unkind and often untrue inner dialogue that chips away at our self-trust
• Perfectionism, comparison, overthinking, and seeking confidence externally can derail confidence
• Keeping commitments to yourself helps build internal trust
• Real confidence comes from knowing who you are, owning who you are not, and embracing all of it

Resources from this Episode:

Nicole Kalil's WebsiteNicole's Podcast, This Is Woman's Work

MORE MICHELLE CHALFANT

Website: https://www.michellechalfant.com

Membership: The Adult Chair Collective https://www.michellechalfant.com/collective

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/themichellechalfant

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheMichelleChalfant

The Adult Chair® Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theadultchair

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Michellechalfant