The Melanin Wellness Podcast: Holistic Health and Healing for Black Women’s Wellness

Healing Isn’t Ugly: The Beauty Rituals That Support My Mental Health

Welcome back to The Melanin Wellness Podcast! In today’s episode, we’re diving into how beauty rituals are good for your health—perfect for busy Black women who want to learn how what they are already doing organically could be having an effect beyond the asthetics. 
 
If you’ve ever wondered how beauty rituals are good for your health, why beauty and wellness are important, or what a beauty ritual is, this episode is packed with actionable tips you can start using today! 
 
We’ll cover: 
✅ Reframing Beauty as Care, Not Performance
✅ Beauty as Nervous System Support
✅ And the 3 steps I take during all my beauty rituals
 
This podcast is created with Black women in mind, offering real conversations about health, wellness, and thriving through every stage of life. Whether you’re looking for holistic health created for women or searching for a healing and wellness space created especially for Black women but loved by wellness seekers everywhere, you’re in the right place!  
 
✨ Don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE, RATE, and SHARE this podcast with someone who needs it.
 
Resources:
Speakpipe for voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast
Featured in Voyage Raleigh | Ranked Top 25% Globally on Apple Podcasts

Silence Isn’t Strength: Why Black Women Deserve Safe Spaces to Speak and Soften

Host: CoriGuest: Leseliey Welch, MPH, MBA — Public Health Strategist, Social Entrepreneur, Poet, Founder of Birth Detroit & Birth Center Equity, Aspen Institute Ascend Fellow
Welcome back to The Melanin Wellness Podcast, where we explore holistic wellness, healing, and empowerment for Black women. In this episode, I sit down with Leseliey Welch, a public health strategist, writer, and professional dreamer whose work centers on love, care, and community. Leseliey shares her journey into birth equity, the founding of Birth Detroit and Birth Center Equity, and why creating safe spaces for Black women is essential for healing, self-expression, and wellness.
We also discuss how creativity, poetry, and personal reflection intersect with professional advocacy, and why softening, slowing down, and prioritizing rest are revolutionary acts for Black women in today's fast-paced world.
If you’re interested in holistic health, wellness for Black women, maternal care equity, self-care, and community advocacy, this episode is for you.
 
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
Leseliey’s journey into public health and how her early experiences shaped her understanding of love, care, and community
The impact of opening Birth Detroit, Detroit’s first freestanding community birth center
How Birth Center Equity is transforming birth care access for Black, Indigenous, and communities of color across the U.S.
Defining safe spaces for Black women in both wellness and healthcare settings
How poetry, creativity, and public health intersect to inspire social change
The importance of softening, slowing down, and self-care in maintaining balance and wellness
Advice for Black women claiming their voice, space, and wellness without guilt
Connect with Leseliey Welch:
Birth Detroit: https://www.birthdetroit.org
Birth Center Equity: https://www.birthcenterequity.org
Poetry / Chapbook: Awaken LOVE (available Valentine’s Day)
Subscribe & Stay Connected:Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe to The Melanin Wellness Podcast on your favorite streaming platform. Follow along for more on holistic wellness, self-care, maternal health equity, and Black women’s empowerment.
If this episode inspired you, leave a review, share your favorite takeaways, or send a voice message via SpeakPipe. Your engagement helps us reach more Black women seeking healing, wellness, and empowerment.
Speakpipe: https://www.speakpipe.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast

Your Healing Era Over Your Aesthetic Era: Reframing Body Goals for Grown Women

This episode explores Soft life wellness and how Black women can reframe fitness, hormones, and body goals for grown women who are done chasing unrealistic standards and ready to feel strong, supported, and at home in their bodies.
 
In this episode we’ll cover:
✨five powerful mindset shifts that help you move away from
punishment-based fitness
✨understanding how your body actually works as you age
✨how hormones influence energy, weight, mood, and motivation
✨ why healing should come before aesthetics
If you’re tired of chasing a look and ready to build a body that feels safe, strong, and supported, this episode is your permission slip. Healing isn’t a detour from your goals — it’s the foundation.
 
Speakpipe for voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast
Fit Fab Cori: https://www.youtube.com/@fitfabcori
Featured in Voyage Raleigh | Ranked Top 25% Globally on Apple Podcasts
 

From Pretty to Powerful: How Modeling Taught Me to Take Up Space

"There is nowhere to hide when you’re standing on a runway. It’s just you. Every insecurity. Every doubt. Every fear."
In this episode of The Melanin Wellness Podcast, host Cori reflects on a lifelong dream that took an unexpected path. From watching trailblazers like Beverly Johnson and Tyra Banks to revisiting the complicated legacy of America’s Next Top Model through the recent Netflix documentary Reality Check, Cori explores the narrow (and often damaging) beauty standards that Black women have navigated for decades.
Cori shares her personal journey of stepping onto the runway later in life—not just to build her daughter’s confidence, but to reclaim her own. Discover how "taking up space" in front of a camera transformed her life in midlife and why your own "runway" is calling you to stop shrinking and start standing tall.
In this episode, we discuss:
The impact of early representation (and the lack thereof) in fashion.
The lessons learned from Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model.
How modeling became a tool for self-discovery and power.
Why your dreams are an invitation to expand, no matter your age or stage of life.
Take Up Space with Us: What is calling you to take up space more boldly in your life? We want to hear from you! Share your story with Cori via the SpeakPipe link below.
 
Resources & Tools: https://bio.site/themelaninwellnesspodcast
Featured in Voyage Raleigh | Ranked Top 25% Globally on Apple Podcasts

Lessons from Grandma Series: Her Lessons, My Lifestyle: The Wellness Habits I Inherited & Updated

This episode explores wellness for grown women and how Black women can use valuable healing lessons from their ancestors to play a role in long-term health.
 
You'll learn:
✅ how our approach to wellness is often learned behavior
✅ that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to wellness
✅ how updating you legacy isn't disrespect--it's honor
 
Please don't forget to subscribe to the show
Resources & Freebies:
Speakpipe for voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast
Fit Fab Cori: https://www.youtube.com/@fitfabcori
Holistic Nutrition Cheatsheet: https://subscribepage.io/holisticnutritioncheatsheet
Support the show with a one-time donation: https://buymeacoffee.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast

Love Lessons From Grandma: Aging Well: What Love Looks Like Over Time

This episode explores Holistic wellness for Black women and how Black women can use valuable healing lessons from their ancestors to play a role in long-term health.
 
You'll learn:
✅ holistic remedies passed down through generations
✅ how survival vs. thriving mode has shifted in our lifetime
✅ how breaking generational cycles is actually honoring our ancestors
 
Please don't forget to subscribe to the show
Resources & Freebies:
Want to leave us a voice message? Visit our Speakpipe. We would love to hear from you! https://www.speakpipe.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast
Fit Fab Cori: https://www.youtube.com/@fitfabcori
Holistic Nutrition Cheatsheet: http://subscribepage.io/holisticnutritioncheatsheet
 
 

Love Lessons From Grandma Series: Love Looks Like Rest: What Grandma Tried to Tell Us

This episode explores rest and recovery for women and how Black women can use valuable healing lessons from their ancestors to play a role in long-term health.
 
You'll learn:
✅ the importance of rest
✅ how rest often wasn't an option for Black women in early generations
✅ how rest is a manifestation of love
 
Please don't forget to subscribe to the show
Resources Mentioned:
Speakpipe for voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast
Support the show with a one time donation: https://buymeacoffee.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast

Love Lessons From Grandma Series: Feed the People You Love — Including Yourself

This episode explores healing generational trauma and how Black women can use valuable healing lessons from their ancestors to play a role in long-term health.
 
You'll learn:
✅ the importance of self nourishment
✅ how self care has evolved over generations
✅ how food is nourishment and nourishment is love
 
Please don't forget to subscribe to the show
Resources Mentioned:
Speakpipe for voice message: https://www.speakpipe.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast
Holistic Nutrition Cheatsheet: http://subscribepage.io/holisticnutritioncheatsheet

Redefining Women’s Strength in 2026: Resilience, Softness & Wellness

This episode explores reframing health goals and how Black women can redefine strength and what it really means to be strong, soft, and still showing up in this next season of your life.
You'll learn:
✅ How strength can look like emotional regulation.
✅ How strength is learning to listen to your hormones.
✅ How physical strength and emotional strength are deeply connected
Don't forget to like, comment and subscribe
 
Resources & Freebies Mentioned:
✨ Holistic Nutrition Cheatsheet http://subscribepage.io/holisticnutritioncheatsheet 
✨Speakpipe https://www.speakpipe.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast  
 

Reset. Heal. Rise. — Season 7 Starts Here

Welcome back to The Melanin Wellness Podcast, a top-ranked wellness podcast centering Black women, holistic health, and sustainable healing. In this season-opening episode, host Cori shares a powerful sneak peek into what’s coming next—plus honest lessons learned from the previous season that shaped the future of the show.
As we step into 2026, this episode reflects on the growth, expansion, and evolution of The Melanin Wellness Podcast throughout 2025. From launching a wellness magazine and creating intentional content for Black History Month and Men’s Health Month, to podcast award nominations and global rankings, last season was filled with milestones rooted in purpose. You’ll also hear reflections on impactful conversations covering period justice, survivorship of sexual violence, mental health, and how what we consume—through food, media, and community—directly impacts our overall wellness.
This new season is all about strength, softness, and sustainability. We’re officially unlearning hustle wellness and high-impact everything. Instead, the focus is on sustainable fitness, hormone health, nervous system regulation, and wellness practices that support long-term health without burnout. If you’re tired of extreme routines and ready for a softer, smarter approach to wellness, this season is for you.
You’ll also get a preview of a special February series, “Love Lessons from Grandma: For Your Body, Your Heart, and Your Home.” This deeply personal and sacred series explores generational wisdom, ancestral wellness practices, and lessons rooted in love, care, and connection. In March, the podcast returns to its core format with conversations around hormone balance, consistency in wellness journeys, healing from hustle culture, and guest expert insights.
Whether you’re a longtime listener or brand new to The Melanin Wellness Podcast, this episode sets the tone for a season centered on intentional living, community care, and whole-body wellness for grown women.
Be sure to subscribe, rate, and share this episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Podbean, and YouTube. Support the show via Buy Me A Coffee, and join us as we redefine what wellness looks like—together.
Resources Mentioned:
Speakpipe https://www.speakpipe.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast
Make a $5 donation: ⁠https://buymeacoffee.com/themelaninwellnesspodcast⁠⁠
🔗Links: https://bio.site/themelaninwellnesspodcast