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Elizabeth

@thethoughtfuladvocate

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Building Community 🌿
The Thoughtful Advocate Podcast 🎙️
Ep 50 - out now ✨ Tues 10 am EST
Formerly: zerowastecutie
✉️[email protected]

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Just a girl trying to keep her home clean for her family. Not perfect, just consistent. I used to think messy was just who I was. Turns out it was just a label I never questioned. Full story on my page, and I’m live today 12 to 2pm EST talking about all of it. by @thethoughtfuladvocate

My 20s were hard. I was dealing with severe depression, and most of the time I just felt completely lost. Scrolling through Facebook only made it worse. Everyone seemed to be moving forward with their lives. Starting careers, traveling, getting married, having kids… meanwhile, I was hopping from internship to internship, constantly feeling behind and confused about where my life was going.

When my Instagram page started taking off, I thought, this is it. Finally. But that didn’t turn into the life I thought it would either. I couldn’t fully support myself from it, and after a while I started believing the things my dad used to say about me. That maybe I really was stupid. That maybe everyone else had something I didn’t.

The one thing I did have was John. He loved me deeply, but the truth is, I didn’t really love myself yet.

It wasn’t until my late 20s that things slowly started changing. I found a stable job. I got married. We bought a house. Then came the biggest change of all: starting a family.

Becoming a mother forced me to look at myself differently. I started prioritizing my wellbeing because I wanted my children to have the healthiest, happiest version of me. For the first time in my life, I started setting boundaries. I started saying no, something my people pleasing younger self could never imagine doing. I started taking care of myself in small, consistent ways.

And over time, those small actions changed how I saw myself. They reinforced something I had spent years struggling to believe:

I matter too.

So while most people hate the idea of getting older. I feel truly blessed to be 30. I finally feel like I’m becoming the person I was always meant to be.

If you’re still here, thank you. I feel so grateful to be here with you and that I’m able to share everything I’ve learned in this life.

#Turning30 #selfworth #motherhood #LateBloomer #mentalhealthawareness by @thethoughtfuladvocate

And why it never felt like enough…

I used to ask him if he loved me… every single day.

We were together for 7 years… and I was still asking 😂

And even when he said yes, it didn’t feel real.

So I’d ask for reasons. Proof.

Something I could hold onto.

Because deep down, I didn’t believe I was someone you could keep loving.

Looking back… this was one of the biggest signs I was codependent.

No amount of reassurance fixes what you don’t believe about yourself.

I talk more about this in my latest YouTube video
being codependent even in a healthy relationship.

If you’ve ever felt like this… you’re not alone. Heart ❤️

#selfworth #codependency #healingjourney #relationshipanxiety #innerchildhealing by @thethoughtfuladvocate

Having kids also made us stronger. We take on every new challenge together, knowing that we’ll make it through 💪

But I wish talking about the hard parts was more normalized. Parent TikTok shows supportive partners and first milestones. What I don’t see? Real talk about how having kids affects your relationship, especially that first year.

It makes sense why. You’re literally keeping this precious little human alive for the first time. It takes all your energy. When you’re lucky enough to have your partner take over, you only have time to eat, sleep, or shower.

I went from hanging out with John every day to seeing him less and less. It was a huge adjustment.

Do I regret having kids? Of course not. Ace was the best thing that’s happened to us. But alongside breastfeeding classes, I needed mental health and relationship support. I wish they would have had classes for that! Because postpartum depression was also a lot.

Did having kids affect your relationship too?

To hear my full experience and how having kids changed my relationship, watch my YouTube video or listen to the podcast episode! Link in bio ✨

#postpartum #postpartumjourney #postpartumlife #newparents #firsttimeparents by @thethoughtfuladvocate

2 under 2 😳 Ace is going to be a big brother! 🥹 We’ve always dreamed of having two kids and it’s already happening!🤰🏻

So many emotions come up when I think about having another child running around the house. Mostly excitement: their first interaction in the hospital (due in March 😬), the first time they play together, cuddles, and so much more! My heart is already so full I can’t imagine how much more my heart will expand with two!

Of course there are many worries. How will I handle 2? Not being able to pick up Ace for six weeks (due to c section recovery) 😭 The recovery pain is so realllll it lasted months. I share all my thoughts and predictions in my latest YouTube video 2 under 2 @thethoughtfuladvocate 💜

But overall John and I are so excited and we so feel blessed 🥹 We’re also looking forward to having some time off as a family 💕

Thank you for all of your support 🥰

#2under2 #pregnancyannouncement #bigbrothertobe #momsofinstagram #bridesmaid by @thethoughtfuladvocate

Me and my bestie! I’ve released 37 podcast episodes and YouTube videos on our journey taking care of this little guy. He fills my heart with such joy and is truly the best thing that ever happened to me. I’m so proud of myself, I was so nervous that I wouldn’t be able to run this podcast by myself but I did it! I’ve noticed how much more comfortable I am speaking in front of the camera now and I no longer feel this need to be “perfect.” Of course it helps that John is so involved in Ace’s life and takes responsibility as a father.

He’s just turned 1 recently and is doing so well! He’s walking more steadily and shares all his toys and cookies with everyone. He’s the sweetest soul! We are so blessed as a family and we found the best nanny!

I know it’s been a while since I’ve post on here. Thank you for sticking with me and joining me on this amazing journey as a Mom! I hope you are all doing well and having a good start to your new year! Sending much love!💕

#momcreator
#authenticcreator
#podcastjourney
#realoverperfect
#motherhoodunfiltered by @thethoughtfuladvocate

Feeling alone, would love to hear how you coped with all this while being back at work 😭

I know I’m very lucky in many ways to be able to work from home. I’m also 25 weeks pregnant which adds to the emotions and exhaustion. The inconsistency hurts, I just want to be there for my son but I realize I can be there 24/7.

Listen to my new podcast The Thoughtful Advocate on YouTube and podcast platforms for my full parenting journey. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done but I’ve never been more fulfilled.

#parenting #workingmomma #nannyquit by @thethoughtfuladvocate

One Piece is my FAVORITE ANIME OF ALL TIME 😭💕 @onepiece_staff. I’ve been watching it since I was a little kid, and it gave me so much hope when the future felt so bleak.

Luffy, the main character, is gathering his crew from all over the world. They’re all different, each with their own strengths, weaknesses, quirks, and dreams. It feels like watching a family of misfits who somehow fit perfectly together.

Even though pirates are supposed to be the villains, they’re the ones saving countries and towns from tyranny and slavery, often just in exchange for a good meal. 🍖 To me, that’s the heart of One Piece: freedom, justice, and hope.

If Luffy were real, I’d ask him to free Palestine, Gaza, and all people suffering under oppression. Since he’s not, I channel his dream of freedom and hope into this work: interviewing thoughtful advocates who are carrying that same spirit of courage and change into their corners of the world.

✨ Today’s guest is @queerbrownvegan bringing their own piece of hope to the fight for a better future. Ep 20 is out now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, etc. Anywhere you can find podcasts!

#fridaysforfuture #onepiece #luffycosplay #hopequotes #buildingcommunities #soulfamily #podcastofinstagram by @thethoughtfuladvocate

Can AI be used ethically? I’m sure we’ve all heard the bad about AI taking people’s jobs as well as the credit of writers and artists using up a ton of resources like water and power.

But our take on it is that eventually we’re gonna be using it and technically we already are if you go on Google even just a simple search uses AI similar when the first computers were introduced, we will also have to adapt to this new technology. This technology must also become more efficient (including the power it uses).

AI can save us time as we are constantly running out as many of us work 9 to 5 jobs. This can give us our time back, in our interview. @nihaelety spoke about companies, actually giving credit to writers and artists and being paid for it.

You can listen to the rest of this episode on Spotify Apple podcast anywhere you can find podcasts as well as YouTube can watch our full conversation there.

Thank you @nihaelety for your take on AI

#ethicalAI #AI #sustainableliving #supportsmallartists #environmentalists #technologytrends #sustainabletech #creditartists by @thethoughtfuladvocate

Western individualism has created a profound disconnect between consumers and the human cost of their choices. When we prioritize personal convenience above all else, we become complicit in systems that exploit workers and erase their humanity. Our grocery stores are filled with produce picked by migrant workers earning poverty wages, yet we see only polished apples and perfect tomatoes, not the calloused hands that harvested them.

Our closets overflow with fast fashion sewn by workers in factories where safety violations and wage theft are routine, but the “Made in Bangladesh” label reveals nothing of their 14-hour shifts or dangerous working conditions.
This isn’t just about losing “connection”
it’s about how our economic system deliberately obscures exploitation to maintain our comfort. Corporate supply chains are designed to hide suffering behind layers of middlemen and marketing. We’re not accidentally ignorant; we’re systematically insulated from the consequences of our consumption.

The contrast becomes stark when you shop at a farmers market and learn that Maria grows your heirloom tomatoes on three acres she’s worked for fifteen years, or when you buy from a local seamstress who explains the hours of craftsmanship in a handmade jacket. These relationships create accountability. You can’t ignore fair wages when you’re looking someone in the eye. You can’t dismiss environmental impact when you’re standing on the land where your food grows.

True economic justice requires dismantling the systems that profit from our disconnection and rebuilding commerce on relationships, transparency, and mutual respect.

Thank you @nihaelety for sharing your experience growing up in Hyderabad, India and how it let you see a different side to our production models, a more human side. Because these are human making our clothes and growing our food.

Full interview with @nihaelety is out on YouTube @thethoughtfuladvocate Ep 17 from Engineer to Fashion Mogul

#EthicalConsumption #ConsciousConsumer #FairTrade #WorkerJustice #SupplyChainTransparency #AntiExploitation
#shoplocal
#EconomicJustice #FairWages #WorkerRights by @thethoughtfuladvocate

Just 2 Bad Asians comin at ya 💥 I had a blast chatting with Katy about her experience as an Asian Canadian growing up in a conservative community in Calgary, AB.

How she went from a “good girl” who would spend hours at the library to someone who still reads avidly but now speak ups for her and her community 💪

We talk about what’s it’s like dealing with boys with “yellow fever” 🤮
What being a feminist means
Favourite reads 📕
How to find your voice even when imposter syndrome gets you down 🗣️
Finding your community ❤️

And so much more!

She found her voice and found Bad Asian - read her powerful words on Substack!

#BadAsian #feminists #yellowfever #womensrightsarehumanrights #aapi #chinesecanadian #modelminority #booksarelife #littlewomen #impostersyndrome #findyourvoice #speakup #baddieposts by @thethoughtfuladvocate