This one got personal.
I’ve been thinking about why I almost didn’t start The Healthy Voice. Why I hesitated for so long.
It wasn’t about the work. It was about who I might attract.
I spent three years working in social work — domestic violence hotline, the shelter, sitting with women fresh off of a crime. I saw a lot. And I learned something about myself in that work.
I don’t do pity.
There’s a difference between compassion and feeling sorry for someone. Compassion is an even exchange. Pity is power over. And I didn’t want to build something that attracted people who wanted to be pitied — or who pitied themselves.
I wanted to find the proactive ones. The ones who are honest about what they’ve been through, aware of how it’s held them back, AND still moving forward.
Turns out... that’s exactly who showed up.
In this voice note, I’m talking about:
→ The holiday patterns that keep coming up (even when we think we’ve let them go)
→ Why I was scared to start this platform
→ The difference between pity and compassion
→ Why healing is a skill — like learning an instrument
→ Why community matters (and why I did this alone for way too long)
If any of this resonates, leave a comment. Share something about your journey. That’s the whole point of this — none of us should have to do this alone.
💙 Bella
🎤 Work With Me 1:1 → Book a session: https://calendly.com/hello-bellapayne/75
💙 Join the Community Live sessions, Courage Circles, and a space to heal your voice. → https://the-healthy-voice-community.circle.so/untitled-page
📖 Singing Through the Shadows My memoir in essays and songs. Chapter 1 is FREE. → www.thehealthyvoicewrites.com
✨ Unsilenced 52 weeks of journal prompts to reclaim your voice. → Get it - $22: https://rawveganbella.substack.com/p/unsilenced-a-year-of-journaling-back
Free gets you started. Paid gets you the full memoir, weekly voice notes, exclusive videos, and a deeper connection to the work. 💙 Come all the way in.
