In this episode of the Eleven Intuitions Podcast, Melissa sits down with author Sara Escobar for an honest, thoughtful conversation about writing as a lifeline, navigating loss, and finding meaning after life changes you forever.

Sara shares the stories behind her poetry collections Old Flames and Wildflowers and Ashes & Stardust: What Comes After, reflecting on heartbreak, grief, love, memory, and the quiet ways we learn to carry what we’ve lost. Together, they explore how words can hold what feels impossible to say, how creativity becomes a form of healing, and what it looks like to keep moving forward without pretending everything is “fixed.”

This episode isn’t about rushing through pain or tying life up neatly. It’s about truth, tenderness, and the space we give ourselves to feel, reflect, and keep writing our way through whatever comes next.

If you’ve ever turned to words to survive, understand yourself, or make sense of change, this conversation will resonate deeply.

Find information about Sara's books and socials on her linktree here: https://linktr.ee/sarasunshine_

Content note: In this episode I talk about trauma and painful family experiences. I do not share graphic details, but the themes may feel heavy for some listeners. Please take care of yourself while listening.

I’ve been overweight since I was 6 years old, and for most of my life I believed that was just “a weight problem.” In reality, my body has been carrying a terrible secret that I haven’t been able to talk about publicly… until now. In this episode, I finally share the story behind my weight and the unspoken pain my body has been holding for me all these years.

I don’t name names and I stay in my lane, telling my story through my own experience as a daughter, a medium, and a cycle breaker in my family line. My hope is that by speaking this out loud, the weight can begin to come off—physically, emotionally, and spiritually—and that someone listening will feel less alone, seen, and maybe a little more ready to speak their own truth too.

This episode is for the people who love God, grew up in church, and were told their gifts are demonic. Medium Melissa Ainslie shares her story of church trauma, tithing pressure, and why she walked out of the building but never walked away from God. She explores what the Bible actually says about spiritual gifts, the verses people use to shout “witchcraft,” and why she believes crossing spirits over and working with God and the archangels is a gift of love, not evil. If you are deconstructing, curious, or quietly gifted and scared to talk about it, this one is for you.