Spilling My Guts

Welcome To The Underbelly

Hey, you.

It’s been a while since I’ve had a space like this—long enough that I’m wondering if I should be coding my own glitter graphics or making a dramatic Top 8 selection. Substack doesn’t have an autoplay feature for angsty indie songs, but if it did, I’d cue up some Death Cab because let’s be honest, we deserve the vibes. That said, I’m glad you’re here. Truly. The internet can feel like a whirlwind of noise, urgency, and an endless scroll of things to fix, buy, or become. And yet, here we are—choosing, for a moment, to land. To be here. To stay.

Welcome to The Underbelly. This space is named for the softer, more vulnerable side of things—the place beneath the surface where the real, unpolished truth lives. It’s where I write from, and where I invite you to meet me. Because so much of life happens here, in the in-between places, in the things we feel but don’t always name.

That’s my hope for this space, that is the invitation. It’s an offering of pause in a world that pushes speed. A place to slow down, to feel into what’s real, to notice the subtle things—like the way your body melts a little when you let yourself exhale, or the tiny spark of recognition when you read words that name something you didn’t know needed naming.

Here, you’ll find morsels of me—observations from my work, poetry that rises in the quiet, prompts to help you listen more deeply to yourself. There will be musings on nervous system tending, agency, and the deep work of unlearning urgency. And yes, I’ll share the practical stuff too—the rhythms and rituals that make this whole human thing a little more livable.

Some of this will be free—letters like this, small reflections, a bit of humor (because god knows we need it). The deeper dives, the more intimate writing, and the interactive pieces will be for subscribers—those who want to build something real together. If you choose to support this space, know that it means the world to me. You’re making it possible for me to keep showing up like this and I am grateful to have you as witness to the mess of it all.

So, welcome. Take what you need. Let the rest be background noise. And if you feel like sharing, I’d love to hear from you—what brought you here? What are you longing for more of? What does the subtle voice of your body have to say today?

Stay as long as you’d like.

I am so glad we are here together.

Anna K.