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The Radiance Effect Podcast
Our mission is to help others embrace their true beauty, grow into the best version of themselves, and shine from the inside out.
The Radiance Effect Podcast
The Beauty Within
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In this episode The Beauty Within, Brittany sits down with fitness trainer Hannah Young for a conversation that goes far beyond workouts and physical transformation. While Hannah brings her expertise in fitness, the discussion quickly evolves into something deeper—exploring the powerful connection between mindset, self-esteem, and true self-love.
Together, they unpack what it really means to feel confident in your own skin, challenging the idea that beauty is only defined by outward appearance. Hannah shares insights from her experience helping clients not just build stronger bodies, but healthier relationships with themselves. Brittany and Hannah also open up about personal struggles, growth, and the importance of shifting your inner dialogue.
This episode is a reminder that lasting transformation starts from within. If you’ve ever felt stuck in a cycle of self-doubt or tied your worth to how you look, this conversation offers a refreshing perspective—and practical encouragement—to help you redefine what beauty means to you.
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Hey y'all. Welcome to the Radiance Effect Podcast, where the goal is to help you shine from the inside out. I'm your host, Brittany Janelle. Let's get into it. Okay, y'all. Let me tell you, I'm so, so, so excited for this episode as I'm gonna be speaking with Hannah Young. How are you doing, girl? Hi. How are you feeling for today?
SPEAKER_01Um, I'm feeling good. A little nervous, but I'm good.
SPEAKER_03First time podcast, right? Yes. Your first podcast. Girl, it's almost been a year for me, and I feel like I still get a little nervous, so it's all right. It's just a conversation with a girl, and we're just gonna kick it, okay? All right. Well, I do have a bio for you that we're gonna read for the audience, okay? Hannah Young is a certified fitness trainer and nutrition coach with eight years of experience specializing in body recomposition. She has inspired and helped over 100 women begin their fitness journeys, focusing on sustainable fat loss, lean muscle building, and long-term lifestyle changes. Originally from Louisiana and now a Houston-based girly, Hannah integrates faith and her fitness approach by helping women strengthen not only their bodies, but also their mindset and spiritual foundation. She is passionate about empowering women to build discipline, confidence, and a balanced lifestyle while pursuing their personal and professional goals. What a bio. Thank you. Thank you. I love it. I love it. And I'm even more excited to talk about today's thing, which is called the beauty within. So I know we didn't even really like talk about what this episode's about. So I'm gonna go ahead and explain it right now in real time. Okay. I know you and I connected, I think it was maybe last September. Yeah. And y'all don't know this, but I reached out to Hannah a couple times because I was like, God just keeps like drawing me into you. I talked to her about doing a women's event. That didn't end up working at the moment. But I was like, there's more to come. And this podcast ended up coming to existence. And what you don't know is last fall, God started speaking to me. And he gave me this whole concept for season two. And essentially, just to be a little bit transparent, the theme of this uh season is about healing and unlearning survival. So every single episode has been built on that, from mental health to relationships leading up to this one, which talks about the beauty within. So when we think about the beauty within, what is that about? It's literally what it is, right? Because when I was growing up, transparently I experienced a lot of insecurities based on my own body type, based on what I thought was beautiful. Because people would always tell me, Brittany, you're so pretty, you're this, you're that. But there are a lot of insecurities that I had internally that I had to work through. So as I was forming these episodes and these topics, I was like, what better idea than to talk about insecurities that people face and finding the beauty within? I love that. Yes, girl. I love it. Well, I'm excited to get into it with you. Well, I want to go ahead and break the ice a little bit, loosen up, get rid of some most nerves. And by doing that, I have a few icebreaker questions for you, okay? Okay. All right. So these are related to our topic, but they are a little bit on the other side. So for the first one, what's your go-to style or look when getting dressed dressed that makes you feel your most confident?
SPEAKER_01Oh, um, I'm a girl's girl. So I love a nice dress or a skirt with a cute top and some heels. Um, give me a cute handbag. I always have my twist in.
SPEAKER_04Yes.
SPEAKER_01Um, but that's that's gonna be my go-to look. That's what makes me feel the most beautiful in a dress or in a skirt with the top. Yeah, that's my go-to.
SPEAKER_03I love it. Girl, I love my little natural hairstyle too. You always gonna catch me some braids. And I'm usually like a half shorter type girly with a little thigh split and my heels on. Because you know we're some short girls, so we gotta get a little height somewhere. We're fun size. We're fun size. Five two, you know. All right, next question. What's one self-care or maintenance thing that you do that instantly makes you feel revived?
SPEAKER_01Ooh. That one's tough because it's one of two.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
SPEAKER_01Tell them both, girl. I love working out. I love, love, love working out. And um that would yeah, that would have to be number one, I guess, if I had to rank those two. And then the other is just going on a nice nature walk. Yeah. I love nature. Um, it makes me feel not only, I feel like when we feel connected to God, we feel connected to ourselves. And so I love a good going to the park, um, walking the trail, just by myself, me and nature and God.
SPEAKER_03That's so beautiful. You know, mine was a little bit more cliche. I was gonna say getting my nails done. Um, nothing wrong with that. We love a little mini petty. Listen, it's that time where I can just go get my little mimosa, just unwind, disconnect, and then also listen to podcasts or audibles. I feel like it's a little bit more challenging for me just with like being a creative and always like thinking about other content, but just being able to get that pour back into myself. Yeah, that just does it for me every time. So last question. Let's talk about body image a little bit, okay?
SPEAKER_01What's something about your body you didn't like growing up, but you now appreciate something about my body that I did not like growing up that I appreciate now. Honestly, it would be my height. Because I'm so little, and like I don't realize it until I see myself in pictures next to people. And I'm like, oh my god, just told the girls that we had a women's retreat that I just came back from, and I was taking pictures next to the the ladies. I'm like, oh my gosh, why am I so little? I'm so little. And I was like, you know what? No, that's that's cute. Like it it makes me stand out, you know? Yeah. And so I've started to fall in love with my height. Um, because it was something I was often insecure about because I was always just the the shortest one.
SPEAKER_03Yeah. Yeah. I get it. It's so funny that you say that because I remember the first time I took a picture with you. So you guys, Hannah and I were a part of the mentor program, and that's how we originally met. Um, but I was like, oh, you're still little. Not like I'm not, again, five, two, but you know, anytime I see someone smaller than me, I feel really excited. We get excited, like I'm not the only one in the room. Exactly. For me, hmm, my thing would be just being a little curvier. You know, back in the day, it wasn't always a thing to have like hip styles and a booty, right? And then I grew up, and then you have like BBL culture and all the things. Yeah. So I grew to appreciate just how my body is, and that's something that I had to work through.
SPEAKER_00So I understand that. I need that.
SPEAKER_03On to the fun part, which is the let's get into it slash the interview segment. Okay. So I have a bunch of questions that I want to ask you, and this is gonna be tied more to the specific topic, okay? Okay. All right. So you're a health and fitness coach. What inspired you to get into coaching?
SPEAKER_01So, what inspired me to get into coaching was um honestly people just asking me so often. I was in the gym and I started working out, honestly, because I was just in a I was in a really bad situation ship, I guess you could say. And I was depressed and I did not like the way that I felt. I was like, I don't like feeling this way. Um, I I love being happy and smiling, and I I just don't see myself doing that anymore. And so I started working out in my living room and this very small apartment at my gym. We had two treadmills, two ellipticals. I didn't even know what an elliptical was at the time.
SPEAKER_00Really?
SPEAKER_01Did not know. So I just hopped on the treadmill and I would walk. Or um, and as I started to be more consistent, I started running. Got a few dumbbells, and that's how I started. Um, and then I got a membership at Planet Fitness, started working out there, and fell, I just fell in love with myself. Like it made me so happy. It was honestly like my second church. Really? Because it's it's a place where I would feel at peace. I would feel so much joy and confidence. Uh I truly loved myself. I learned to love myself from working out. Um, and then people started to see me in the gym. They thought I was training to compete. I'm like, no, it's not for me. And then they started asking if I, you know, was a trainer. And I'm like, no, I'm not a trainer. And they kept asking and kept asking. It was like two years really before I actually was like, let me just start training. I wasn't even certified when I started.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
SPEAKER_01They were just like, I don't care. Cause then I told them, I'm like, I'm not a certified trainer. They said, I don't care. I want to look like you. I'm like, okay, then cool.
SPEAKER_00Okay, compliment.
SPEAKER_01That definitely made me feel really good. I'm like, okay, so I'm doing something right here. And um, that's how I started training. I just started having more people asking me to train them, even though I wasn't certified. Then eventually I got certified and I loved helping people. Um, because I'm like, if it helped me to find my confidence, I know, you know, I would love to share that with other people and help them to kind of tap into that confidence and self-love that I gained from working out and being in the gym.
SPEAKER_03Wow. And you said that was eight years ago?
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Okay.
SPEAKER_01It was eight years ago, eight or nine years ago. Huh. Yeah, it was 2017.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I think what's interesting, I gotta make a little joke first because you've turned into something positive, girl. Because when I'm going through, I want to eat. I'm like, where's the snack set? So I'm happy to hear that because when I listen to you, essentially you're saying you're able to turn something difficult into something positive, and now it's something that's purpose-filled. Next question What shift took place in you to get you to feel differently about how you see yourself and what you feel you're capable of?
SPEAKER_01That shift honestly was as I started to build my own personal relationship with God. Um because as you mentioned earlier, um I grew up with low um low self-confidence, low self-esteem, and just not feeling like I was as pretty, I was always compared to other girls often. And so I just didn't feel like I was as pretty or as worthy. And so um it it it wasn't until working out that but truly my relationship with God, He helped me to see myself the way He saw me. Because I never saw myself that way, and to know someone would love me even in moments where I didn't love myself that was that was powerful for me. I never had experienced a love like that before. Um and in building that relationship with him, I started to realize, and it wasn't until I want to say it was about two years ago, um, I went back home to my parents' house to go visit, and I was playing with my niece and them, and I stepped away just because kids are overstimulating. I needed a moment, but um, as I stepped away and just sat by myself, in that moment is when I realized who I am and whose I am. And I'm like, I can do and be anything. It's like, why did I ever put a limit on what it is that I can do or who it is that I can be? Because I mean, if I can do all things through Christ, you know, who strengthens me, then why not try? You know, I'm like, I'm capable to do any and everything that He puts on my heart.
SPEAKER_03Girl, you're gonna give me chills, talk about it, talk about it. So just to rewind a little bit, like, how did you get to that point? I know you said it was more recently that you um started having that mindset, but let's back it up and walk me through the process.
SPEAKER_01Um man, I went through, so I'm a lover girl. I'm a big lover girl, and I'm just like this hopeless romantic. And even though I have moments of where I'm like, I give up, I'm not even gonna try anymore, I still go out and I'd still try again. Because I believe that God has someone for for all of us. Yeah. And so I went through, um, I guess you could say I was just kind of on this mission almost to find a love that, you know, was reciprocal to the love that I would give out. And I I I kept trying and kept trying and kept trying. And so it just it made me feel, I don't know, smaller than than what I was already feeling from, you know, when I grew up. And man, I feel like that just sunk me deeper and deeper and deeper. And I was still hopeful. I was still hopeful. And I knew who God was, but I never had actually built that personal relationship with because I'm a PK, my dad's a pastor. Um, my parents, I was born and raised in the church, both of my parents are ministers, and so you know, people would think that we would have a relationship with God just because of the fact that we were born and raised in the church, and that's just not the case. And so, man, I I oftentimes wish that I did have that relationship with him because I was like, I would not have allowed myself to be um taken advantage of or misused in that way. Um because I know those things are what kind of caused me to shrink myself more. And that's what happened over the years. I started to shrink myself more and more, and um I was just content with whatever I would have at the time, not feeling like the the best was meant for me. Um and so over time of me just I guess constantly dealing with that same thing over and over again, um God found me one one day on January 19, 2023. And um, yeah, he he when people say he saved them, like he legit saved me. He legit saved me on that day. And I joke about it, and I told my dad I I I made God laugh in the when I was praying one day because I was like, Thank you for scaring me straight. Because what this the situation, which is a long story, but he scared me straight. And then from that moment is where I just I started to fall in love with him and not of uh you know the the God that they teach us about, like because oftentimes they want you to be afraid, and you you shouldn't fear him in that fear him in the sense of respect and honor and and love. And so um, yeah, for me, I I I gained that fear, that love, that respected love for him. And I started to see him in me. And I was like, oh my gosh, I can't believe I truly was this beautiful soul this whole time, and I didn't appreciate or love me the way that he did. And um, yeah, that's what over time it started to, you know, he he started to give me that confidence and that self-love that I needed to build up to that moment where I was sitting there and I'm like, dang, I know who I am and I know whose I am. But I can't believe I let them play with me like that.
SPEAKER_02Girl, speak on it.
SPEAKER_01So I went through all of that. Um, yeah, I went through through years of just, you know, being a hopeless romantic and just trying to search for love or someone who would love me the way that I wanted. And honestly, now it's coming to me that one day in prayer, God told me you were chasing after love this whole time and love was chasing after you. And so I would shrink myself to try to fit into their little box of what they could offer of love. And so it, you know, kind of made me not feel like I was capable of receiving this this love or even being confident um in myself. And yeah, it was it was honestly nothing but God that did that for me. Um and today I I for sure know, like I'm I'm quick to when I'm done, I'm done. Like I'm like, listen, my daddy died for me, okay? He died for me, so I don't want to hear nothing somebody say that they can or cannot do.
SPEAKER_03Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So yeah.
SPEAKER_03I think that story is so beautiful and we have a lot of similarities. So I'm also PK girls to church girls up here. Um, and I personally struggled though, not necessarily from my parents, but just sometimes being under the spotlight, right? I would sometimes compare myself to other people based on how I thought I was supposed to be showing up and how I was supposed to be living, right? Um, when I think about comparison, it didn't just fall there. It fell into like body type, it fell into um self-esteem, it fell into just like how I thought and just different things like that, right? So that's one whole topic that relates to what you're saying. And then when you mentioned about being a lover girl, I'm such a lover girl. Yes, I I love love down real bad. And um I also was in a situation a couple times in which I was at my lowest of lows because I was finding love within other people opposed to loving myself. And that's a dangerous thing because when you're sitting here and you're just stuck on, well, how they treat me, if they're doing this, if they're saying this, then that means that I'm worthy.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Right. And worthy is a whole other topic because you don't have to find worthiness from anyone else other than within yourself from God, right? Absolutely. So, girl, you speak in there. So thank you for sharing. All right. So I do want to go back to um kind of what you were mentioning about um helping other people, because this is a show that's not just tailored to women, but I know it's probably gonna be something that we'll really relate to in this moment here. So I know that you've helped over a hundred women transform physically. What inner transformations have you seen that mattered the most?
SPEAKER_01The discipline and consistency. Because two things motivation is not gonna sustain you. Motivation is not sustainable, it is not going to carry you through. It's gonna be you showing up, being consistent in the gym every single session that you're supposed to go and being disciplined in the kitchen. Because if you're not disciplined with your eating, you can never outwork a bad diet. I tell that to clients all the time. You cannot work outwork a bad diet. Um, you're working yourself like backwards, honestly, because you're just scarfing out all the calories you just burned off. So you're not progressing yourself.
SPEAKER_03Well, I feel like you're talking to me, like you're like, girl, that's the reason why you haven't been seeing the results.
SPEAKER_01Once you build becoming consistent in the gym, it becomes a habit. I'm big on habits. I actually did a um a free new habits because I had got out of my routine over the holiday. We all get out of our routine over the holiday break. We want to enjoy family and the food and the festivities. Like, I never want someone to, you know, just not enjoy themselves because they're like, I gotta stick to this diet. Like, no, enjoy yourself, enjoy your family. Um, and then get back to it. I kind of enjoyed myself a little too much. I enjoyed myself a little too much. Um, and so I was like, Yeah, I gotta get back into my routine because I had actually been traveling a lot between Louisiana and then other trips that I had taken. And so that's why I say I have really got out of my routine. So when I got back, I was like, okay, I got to do something to get myself back on track. And so I did a free new habits challenge for the ladies. And it's once you build up that habit from being consistent, you build up that habit, and then I don't know, it's like second nature. You know, how you walk into a room and turn on a light, or you wake up in the morning, one of the first things you want to do is brush your teeth. It you feel off, like something feels off once it becomes a habit.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01And so that's the two things that I would have to say are the biggest trend because people think it's gonna be physical. It's it's not gonna be like that. Is I think a bonus. But it's internally what you're doing that is going to sustain you and going to, you know, help you live longer. Yeah. Because that's the goal, longevity of life.
SPEAKER_03So I hear you mentioned discipline and a few other references. I want to take it a little one step further too, right? When we think about the inner transformation, because you see those people who will go through this whole process and they'll have the body that they want, but internally something's just off, right? So let's speak into um mindset and to give it the audience example. So for me back in the day, y'all, I was a cheerleader and I was also a cheer coach as well for quite some time. And um, I was always working. I had like the specific body type that I wanted to have in high school, right? And in my early 20s. 20s too, but internally I still had a lot of insecurities. I was always comparing myself, I was always looking at my imperfections and saying I need to change this, change this, change that. Right. So let's speak on the internal transformation when it comes to mindset.
SPEAKER_01Oh. Yeah, internal transformation when it comes to mindset. Um it would be, I feel like a lot of people have that because they see so many women online and what they look like without knowing, you know, what what life is for those women off camera. And so they kind of base where they are and compare it to where someone else is at. Um, because they're like, oh, I've been doing all this work, and I'm st I still don't look like that. For one, we all have different body types. Everyone has a different body type. Somebody is gonna be a little hippier than you, somebody gonna have a little more wagon than you, like some it's gonna be different. We all have different body types, and so you kind of can't judge yourself or compare yourself to someone else because of that. Um also the your commitment. Um mentally, I I would say you gotta be doing it for the right reasons and not I wanna look this way. It's I want to feel better for myself. And I think I know that that is what helped me to sustain because the reason that I went into it, I wanted to feel better about myself. I didn't care what I looked like on the outside. I mean, eventually I did, I was loving the results, but but um yeah, my mindset was I don't like the way I feel, so I need to do something to change it. And that was my my focus. And so you got to find that one thing that deeply matters to you that does not matter to anyone else, um, because that that is gonna carry you. That can then be your motivation whenever you know that that spark of motivation that you get once that fire is is put out, like to reignite it, that's what you need. You need that that mindset of this is why I started my journey, and this is what I'm gonna keep my focus on.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah. The why is so important. Yes, it is. And I was recently talking to someone as well, just because of the stigma today, right? You go to a doctor and they're like, oh, you're obese, right? Or just different things. Um, but I think what's just so important is also understanding that if someone is heavier does not mean that they're out of shape.
SPEAKER_01Right.
SPEAKER_03And if someone's skinny does not not mean that they are in shape. Yes. So true. So even when we take it from a deeper standpoint from that, even beyond like what the physical fitness looks like. I want to even dive deeper into like nutrition and um thinking your body and all those types of things, right? Because if we think about it, we talked about like a spiritual reference before, but your body is a temple. Yes, right. So what are you putting into your body was important?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah. If you are not nourishing your body and feeding it the right things, it does if your your brain, your mind is like your second, um, no, your stomach is like your second brain. And so whatever you put into it, just like in your mind, you you have to stay focused on that why, on what hurts you, because that's that one thing that's gonna carry you and and keep you sustain you through this journey. But what you put in that second brain is going to affect that first one. And so if you're not nourishing it properly, feeding it foods that are gonna make you feel good, that are gonna make you happy, because honestly, I'm pretty sure after, and I I know this for a fact, after eating junk food, I do not feel good. And when I say I don't feel good, I don't just mean an upset stomach. Like I have had emotional moments of where I've consumed more than what I should have of junk food. Um, and it just made me feel worse, honestly. It worsened the thoughts that I had. Um, it made me sluggish, it made me tired, it made me lazy. And I didn't like that. You need something that's going to give you more energy, that's going to reprogram your mind. Um, and I mean, God puts it in the Bible of what exactly it is that we need to eat. I don't, you know, enjoy your have Cheetos, but I don't think Have Cheetos is in there.
SPEAKER_03Banger, why are you calling me out? It was supposed to be one of those moments. Just like, but I get you though. Yeah. I get you. I think it's so important to like even as we reference like the nutrition and um the physical fitness aspect to think about all other forms of beauty, right? So I used to love fairy tales growing up. And I was again a lover girl. But I think one of the things that I personally struggle with was representation because I don't think it was until maybe like Princess Tiana, yeah, that we have some type of representation. We're will from being a kid at that same point, right? So for me, when I used to think about beautiful, it was like, okay, you gotta have like the nice silky hair. So I used to get my blowouts all the time, girl. Um, you know, things like natural styles wasn't always in at that point, right? And we think about the shape and figure again. You have like this nice slender body, right? The fair skin. So even to think about that, can you speak a little bit more on like the beauty from like a whole altogether?
SPEAKER_01Something my mom used to tell me when I was younger that I hold so strongly to today is that you are fearfully and wonderfully made. You truly are fearfully and wonderfully made. God did not make any mistakes in how He created you from your bodybuild to your hair type to your skin color to the size of your lips, like everything he created masterpieces with each and every single one of us. Um and so I I too dealt with that like growing up because, like you said, representation matters. Yeah. And so we were always shown one thing of what beauty was. And so we wanted to try to morph into whatever that was as in in any way that we possibly could. Um, and so yeah, I was I was with the getting the this the silk press, the blowouts, and um trying to just, I don't know, make myself appear or fit that box of what they said beauty was. And I'm telling you, it's that relationship with God that made me fall in love with myself. I love my hair because then you know how the Bible in the Bible it says his hair is made of. I'm like, yeah, I got I got hair like Jesus. Because I have forcey hair. And so I used to be so, it used to be one of my biggest insecurities was my hair. Um, I used to get picked on. Oh my gosh. I used to get picked on so much about my hair. I hated it. I always wanted to have I didn't go natural until like 2017, 2018.
SPEAKER_00Really?
SPEAKER_01Yes, and honestly, I was kind of forced to. I was kind of forced to, but then I fell in love with it. I fell in love with it and I started to fall in love with taking care of it. Same thing with my skin. I'm like, oh my gosh, I can't. And honestly, no shade to nobody.
SPEAKER_00Disclaimer.
SPEAKER_01So many people who want to look the way we look, like they go and spend thousands. Yeah, they put their life on the line to look like look like us. Right. And I'm like, I'm not saying we are the beauty standard at all. I'm not saying that, but it just made me fall in love with myself even more. Because I'm like, you want me to feel bad about the way I look, but you want to look the way I look. And because you don't look the way I look, you want me to hate it. And I'm not gonna do that. Because I'm fearfully and wonderfully made. Yeah, I am, and so yeah, no, I was like, mm-mm. I got I got hair like wool.
SPEAKER_03No, that's really good because I used to be made fun of like certain things too, and which later on down the road, it's like in style now. Yes, right. And it's interesting because like when I was younger, it would just cause me to look internally and think about like, oh, what's wrong with you? And I would go back to wanting to be a or being a lover girl, and then I would think, oh, this is why you're not chosen, yeah. Or this is why, yeah, you're experiencing these certain things and relationships. And what would make it worse, girl, is if you're dating somebody and then they went to somebody who had the things that you decide. It's not your head all messed up. Like, see, if I had to someone, if I had that relaxed, you're questioning yourself.
SPEAKER_01I said, girl, for one, I'm not, I'm not, I'm at the age, I think we both are at the age where ain't nobody, nobody is about to make me question my appearance. Yeah, like because I know who I am. I know who I am. I'm not, you're not about to make me question my appearance.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, and I think to go back to what you mentioned earlier, just like spiritually, when we think about being made in his image and what it speaks about in the Bible, right? Like, what does it mean to be made in his image to you?
SPEAKER_01Oh, to truly reflect his character. Um my dad told me this recently, and he talked to me about the um the silversmith and how whenever they are purifying it and they put in the fire, and it's not ready until they can see their image in it. And so I'm like, okay, that it definitely gave me the the encouragement that I needed in the moment. But yeah, it's just am I reflecting God's character? Am I reflecting his heart to other people? Um, I'm always checking myself, like, am I a tree that's bearing that fruit? I'm always questioning myself on that because I'm like, if I'm bearing that fruit of the Holy Spirit, then I know I'm reflecting him.
SPEAKER_03Right.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. That's I'm big on that.
SPEAKER_03That's good. Yeah. For me, I think about like my light. That's one of the first things I go back to. It's just like sometimes people piss me off. Like it's very rare that people see me like without a smile on my face, right? Because I usually try to check it. But I had to think about how I treat people when I think about being made in his image. What type of love am I showing to other people? I want to feel like warmth. I want to feel everything, the radiance effects, right? Like light is what I think about when I think of that term made his image.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. He definitely commanded us to be that light. Like that's that's what he I believe requires of us. Is you know, one of the things he requires of us is to be that light.
SPEAKER_03Absolutely. Absolutely. This has been so fun. I actually have an activity that I was thinking about doing. I was like, should I do it? Should I not do it? But because we talked about being made in his image, um, I have this little thing that I want us to do. Here's a mirror for you girl.
SPEAKER_01Oh, okay.
SPEAKER_03This activity is called mirror mirror. I was like, okay, you know, I thought about fairy tales and I'm like, you know, who's the fairest of them all? Um, but I'm actually gonna do it with you too. Okay. And what I want you to do is I want us to both take a few moments to just look in the mirror. And the reason why I want us to do this is because sometimes I've learned that a lot of women struggle to look at themselves in the mirror. And I didn't realize that until more recently. I was actually at a uh women's conference and um someone asked that question. They were like, who struggles with looking at themselves in the mirror? And almost half of the room raised their hand. Wow. Yes. So first want us to take a few moments to look in the mirror, and then I want you to think about the little girl that you were. So I want you to go to little Hannah. I know you got the tissue. Girl, you know, I don't know. I told you I'm a crier, so we're gonna see who happens. But I want you to think about little Hannah, seven, eight, nine years old, and who she was. And I'm gonna do the same with Brittany.
SPEAKER_01Okay.
SPEAKER_03Okay, now I want to ask you this question. What do you remember about her?
SPEAKER_01Um, I remember she used to not think she was beautiful. That she used to look at herself and wonder, why am I not as pretty? Yeah. I used to question, she used to question herself a lot on her beauty um and her work.
SPEAKER_03Wow. So I want to say in that a little bit longer. You used to question yourself on your beauty and your work. How are you able to walk through that and maneuver through that? Because I can imagine that was tough.
SPEAKER_01How did I maneuver through it? Ooh. Um, honestly, it was a lot of tears. And now I know God catches every tear. So I know all those tears I cried, He still has them. He's still holding on to them. And I know I believe now it's like you know how we spray the mist. Yeah, setting spray. Okay, I feel like he's like, now, now in my my years now, he's like spraying that on me to kind of give me that confidence. Like you did not need to question your beauty.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Because you were, and I go back to that scripture, you are fearfully and wonderfully made. Like I made you perfect, exactly how I needed you to be made. Yeah, there's no mistake that that was made. And so for me, um, yeah, it would be that. And then my um my worth, my worth on that one. Um, I used to not feel worthy. Um, I question that often. And to know now that God knows of everything from the day I was born up until moments ago, that He knows about me, He still found me worthy. In church today, that you were talking about um about Paul and how he said it's by grace, because he said, you know, basically, I shouldn't be here. But it's by grace that I am here. Because if we in in our flesh were to um see Paul and know his past and know who he was, we would not find him worthy to be an apostle. Even he himself did not find himself worthy to be an apostle, but it was by God's by God's grace. And so I believe that everything that, you know, I experienced from when I was younger is nothing but by God's grace that I'm still here and that I love myself and see the beauty I can look at myself and I love what I see looking, the reflection looking back at me in the mirror, yeah, and to know she's worthy, you know, and that she's capable of doing any and everything she has on her heart. So yeah.
SPEAKER_03Wow, girl, I felt the waterworks coming, and I hate that it's happening because my friends just know I'm a crier, so I feel like I'm gonna tear up it's happening.
SPEAKER_01I am too. I'm surprised I didn't try to hold it.
SPEAKER_03Exactly. But it's for me to ask myself the own question: what do I remember about young Britney? So I remember Brittany being someone who was always kind, but she sometimes questioned why she was always kind and she didn't always receive favorable things. Um, she sometimes questioned why people treated her a certain way when she didn't deserve it, right? Yeah, we're gonna go ahead and bring that over here. I've been just kind of what I mentioned earlier. She was the person who was always told that she was beautiful, but she didn't feel it. She was the girl who was made fun of because of her body type, right? She was a girl um who was told that she was too extra, you know? And it's interesting now because I look at myself and it's like I didn't change. I stayed true to who I am, and who I am is what makes me beautiful. I'm so goofy, I'm so extra, but it's like I'm absolutely myself. Yes.
SPEAKER_01So that's why I think about I love that. I can relate to that. I feel like that was a part of that sounded like, and I'm I'm holding minds back because good lord, like girl.
SPEAKER_03Girl, don't hold back if it happens, it happens.
SPEAKER_01Oh goodness, yeah. Um, I've been there to where you have such a loving soul and a big heart, and you care for people, and it's it's like, God, when am I ever gonna reciprocate the love and the care and the genuineness that I put out there?
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Matter of fact, I was talking to my dad about that the other day. My dad is my absolute favorite person in the entire world. And I talked to him about everything, but um, yeah, it's I relate to that so deeply. I relate to that so deeply.
SPEAKER_02Wow.
SPEAKER_01I'm not going to cry. I'm not gonna do it.
SPEAKER_03But you know what I'm gonna tell you, I'm gonna jump in real quick because as individuals in general, I feel like sometimes we hold back so much because we don't want to just like express it. But if you feel the need to let things out, don't feel like you have to hold back. This is a safe space. That's all I'm gonna say. But keep going, keep going, girl.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, um, man, I would I would give that love and care out, and I never got it back. And I always question. And I was telling my dad that the other day, I question God, when am I going to get that back? You know, it's been so many years, and I still in that, I still have that same heart. That same heart that Hannah had at eight, nine years old. Wow. Who love people, who care for people. And I'm never, I feel like I've never gotten it back. And like I'm not gonna give up on just giving it out because I'm not gonna change who I am because someone else does not appreciate it, does not value it. Yeah. And so, yeah, I relate to that so deeply. I really, really do.
SPEAKER_03Well, thank you for sharing that. I appreciate it. Um, I have one more thing that I want to do with this mirror, okay. This might call a little something. We're gonna see. I'm trying now, I'm trying to hold it back, but let me listen to my own self. Um, I want you to look in the mirror again, okay? Whatever you're working through right now, I know you're talking about relationships, and that's kind of been like a common thing when you mention about people not giving back what you're putting out there, right? Or whether that's like work or whatever it may be. I want you to look into the mirror and I want you to speak light into Hannah, who she is and who she's getting ready to become.
SPEAKER_01What it is she's going to do right now. Valley seasons end. You know, you're not gonna be in the valley. You're not gonna be in the valley for long And just because you see one It just means God is carrying you don't give up hope Don't give up hope Because in your heart you desire to please God and you can't do that without faith, without hope. You're worthy You are loved, you are valued, you are seen.
SPEAKER_02Don't give up, girl. Don't give up. Do not give up.
SPEAKER_03What I really want to do right now is I just want to give you like the biggest hug and just like push everything out the way because like I think that you really truly need it that right now. And I think you need that as a reminder to know that you're more than your circumstances and your situation right now, and you don't know how many people are out there they're gonna be listening to this and they're gonna be relating to you because they understand that times are hard and life is hard, but that does not mean that's the end, and there's more for you than this moment, okay? So I'm so proud of you, so proud of you. I'm actually gonna do it as well. Um, so Brittany, um, if I was speaking to myself, I would say to get out of your own way, to get out of your head, to know that you are capable of so much, despite what you fear, despite what you doubt, despite insecurities that you may have and own limitations that you put in yourself. God put something in you and you're capable of it. So don't allow anything. To distract you from reaching the place that you're supposed to reach and fulfilling the purpose that you're supposed to reach here on Earth. Okay. And girl, on that note, just to kind of stay in this moment again. I feel full now.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_03Because when we think about how this episode started, I told you that so much of this is about healing and not only healing myself, but helping to helping other people to heal too. Right. And I felt you finally let go of things that you have been holding on to for probably some time now. And I'm proud of you. I'm going to keep saying that. I'm so proud of you because when we think about the beauty within, it's just that you're gorgeous on the outside, but you're just as beautiful on the inside. And never, ever, ever forget that. And regardless of what you're going through, it's just a moment. And you'll be able to see the beauty in the situation after that. Okay. So one last question for you. If you're to give listeners one piece of advice when it comes to seeing the beauty in a situation, I want you to speak to that. Because I also want you to speak to yourself.
SPEAKER_01Seeing the beauty in the situation. You are rebuilding on a firm foundation. Um right now I'm in a season where I mean it's so transparent and honest. Okay. Thank you. I'm in a season where I am being stripped and stretched in ways I I did not think out, you know, would strip and stretch me. I feel like I'm losing something every single day. Um and just questioning and wondering why. And one day I was driving home after going grab some dinner. And as I'm driving home, this it was a different song playing, but in my ear, I could hear the song Firm Foundation. Girl. And I kept questioning God actually for for some time on why would you allow for all of for me to lose all of this? To lose uh I lost, I've lost so, so much that people don't even know about since August of 2025. And honestly, it was a few weeks before that I surrendered it all to God. And that's when it all, I feel like it all just started falling down, like everything around me just started falling down. And I I I was, you know, um counting it all joy, but it's hard to keep doing that for months and months. It's been like seven or eight months now. And um, yeah, but as I'm driving home, I hear that song firm foundation. And I have been questioning God, why would you allow this to happen? Why would you allow, you know, me to lose that and lose this? And what I know in my heart of hearts, he was saying to me that I want to say to you is that it was not built on a firm foundation, which is the reason why it's all crumbling or it feels like it's all crumbling down, only because he wants for us to rebuild it on him, which is our firm foundation. And honestly, that's what's been giving me hope when that in in moments where I feel hopeless, um just remembering that he's he's allowing us to rebuild. It may feel it does not feel good to lose everything, which I've lost everything, I truly have. And people don't people don't even know all of what I've lost. But he reminded me that, you know, just because you lost that all, like I said, you're rebuilding on a firm foundation. And so next time when the rain comes, when the wind blows, it's not gonna fall down, it's not gonna fall down. And I feel like that's something to hold on to, to strengthen you, to encourage you, and to help you to keep that hope. To maintain your faith in God, knowing that you know you may not be able to see all of what he's doing right now, but he's working, even when it feels like he's not working, he's working.
SPEAKER_02Amen.
SPEAKER_03Amen. I don't have anything else to say after that because I just feel so full and I just feel so much of a connection to you. And I just want to hold your hand, sister girl. Love you. Um, and for those that are listening to this, just everything that Hannah just mentioned about firm foundation and strength and resilience all together. I just want to let you know that, like whatever you're going through, know that you're capable of overcoming your situation. Okay. And to relate this back to the theme that there's so much beauty within whatever you're going through. You don't know how maneuvering through this is going to be able to burst something or help you get to something that's even better than your situation. Looking at Hannah and how she's now a fitness trainer based on her circumstances. Looking at me, now I've written a book. Now I have this podcast based on my own situation and circumstances. There's so much beauty within everything that you're going through. So thank you so, so much for tuning into this episode. I pray that you receive something from it and be on the lookout for more episodes to come every other Monday at 7 p.m. Until next time. Bye. Bye.