Wake Up with Susan

The Sacred Void: Finding Peace in the In-Between

• Susan Sutherland

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In this episode, we explore the sacred void — the space between who you were and who you're becoming. If you’ve let go of an old identity, but the new one hasn’t fully landed or if you are waiting for the next step not realizing that the stillness is the step… this is for you. 

Susan Sutherland guides you through the often-misunderstood in-between: the pause before the leap, the silence before the knowing. You’ll learn why this space feels so uncomfortable, how to support yourself through it, and why you're not actually lost — you're being rewritten.

Expect deep reflection, gentle truths, and practical wisdom to ground your nervous system and honor your evolution.

🔹 You’ll hear:

  • Why the void isn’t confusion, but transformation
  • How to navigate the discomfort of uncertainty
  • Ways to support yourself when clarity hasn’t yet arrived
  • A powerful reframe: You’re not going backward — you’re quantum leaping

This isn’t an episode about fixing — it’s about trusting. And remembering that the pause has a purpose.

🌿 Subscribe, share, and join Susan inside The Keepers' Garden for deeper conversations and sacred community soon.  More information available on her website.

🔹Be sure to connect on TikTok and Instagram 

Speaker 1:

Rise and shine everybody. It's time to wake up with Susan. Spiritual awakening can be a beautiful, messy and sometimes lonely journey, so let's do it together. I'm your host, susan Sutherland. I'm an intuitive healer and spiritual mentor. We are all called to rise up above our conditioning and limiting beliefs and shine our light on ourselves and others. So let's get to it.

Speaker 1:

Hello, my family, today I'm going to speak to those who feel like they're floating a little, not quite where they were and not yet sure where they're going. And that was me. I talked to you about it last week and told you I was in that sacred void, that kind of liminal womb of creation, but feeling really weird and kind of uncertain, and I was able to lean into it. But I know it's an uncomfortable space, and so I want to talk to you about it and help you kind of be in this place with a little more certainty that it is intentional and that it is purposeful for you to be here. When I tapped into the Koshyak field before recording, the message came through. That is very clear. The collective is not lost. We are in between stories and that space, the one we often rush to escape, the one that we try to push through or hurry through, because nothingness is really really uncomfortable for us. It is sacred ground, and so I want to give you the opportunity to understand it better, but also the permission to sink into it as a purposeful time in your not only ascension, but the creation of who you are, the remembering of who you are. So that's what we're going to talk about today the I don't know what the hell is going on, kind of a space. That's what we're in and that's what we're going to talk about it. So this is the space when your energy is shifting, your identity is dissolving, evolving, and you kind of want answers like what is going on, what am I supposed to be doing? But you also want to kind of lie on the floor and not be asked anything at all because you don't have the answers. But this isn't confusion at all, because you don't have the answers. But this isn't confusion, it's aliveness that is rearranging itself inside of you. And it's okay if you feel wobbly, it's okay if you feel unsure or uncertain, because this is the threshold space, this is the chrysalis, this is the quiet in between, when something deeper is unfolding. Your mind might not have the language for it yet, and so I'm trying to give you words to describe it, but your soul knows exactly what is happening.

Speaker 1:

The problem with this very masculine driven, achievement driven world that we live in is we are not taught how to sit in this void, how to be comfortable in stillness. Our nervous systems want resolutions, we want to move through things quickly, and in our culture of constant doing, restlessness can feel like a failure. Unmotivation or not being clear can make us feel lazy. But what if this is the time that we are not meant to produce or to push? What if this is the time to let something really beautiful integrate? And that is the purpose. The truth is that not knowing is not the flaw. It's part of the design. Your higher self is expanding beyond what the old story could contain, and that feels like disorientation, but it's evidence that the expansion is real.

Speaker 1:

So there have been two times that I have found myself in a sacred void that that felt almost like a black hole. Like I, I cannot move forward, I am forced to be still, and one of those times I've talked about many times on the podcast was after I quit my corporate job and I sat on my bench in the backyard and I sat out there for hours and Mark was like, okay, I get it, you're you, you're doing your thing, but when are you going to start doing? And I had. I had no motivation. Like I I could not go and do because it felt it. It felt like a magnet was pulling me against doing. Like whatever I'm supposed to be going and doing based on my old programming, I feel incapable of going to do it. Like I must just sit on this bench here I am, this is where I'm going to sit. And I felt like so trapped by this void. But it did feel intentional. It didn't feel like one of those where it was like, oh, I just can't get motivated. It felt like the motivation is for me to be still, and that is when you know it is. It is really a calling for you to allow yourself to integrate new parts of you.

Speaker 1:

I knew that sitting on my bench it may be causing a few arguments in my marriage, but I couldn't go do anything. I didn't know what was happening inside of me, but I knew that that was part of it. That sitting on that bench was part of cultivating whatever I needed to happen inside of me. That had to happen. It had to happen on that bench in nature, you know, listening to the birds was what I was supposed to be doing at this time and I leaned into it and I kind of trusted that once whatever mapping needed to be done inside of me, I would get an urge and I would start doing something. And it wasn't much longer after that and I started kind of like putting one foot in front of another, going forward. But it took months of just really having to lean into the fact that I don't know my direction, I don't know what I'm supposed to be doing. I know I'm supposed to just be sitting here going inward, thinking or processing or just listening, and that was really purposeful.

Speaker 1:

And this other time has been these past couple of months where I just felt called inward, inward, inward, and I even had an offer to work with somebody that I really respect, one-on-one basis, and I contemplated it and it seemed like a really good idea and the feedback I got was you have to hear your own voice. This is not about another class, another book, another course, another anything. This is about inward, inward, inward, inward. And it was that same call, like I had on the bench where this is your time to quiet everything external, anybody else's views, anybody else's opinions, anybody else's even guidance. It is meant to come right now. It is meant to come from inside, and so I understand how uncomfortable it can be to be in that stillness. Because I wanted to fix it, I wanted to have a call Like what am I supposed to be doing? Just give me the sign. Give me the sign. And you guys, I'm telling you, I get it. If you say like I need to know my purpose, just nobody, nobody will have thought that harder or wish that more, for just a clear direction. Because I'm like, hey, I am clear audience. You, you could just tell me, you could just tell me what to do.

Speaker 1:

And there has been plenty of frustration in the fact that, regardless of how much dedication and love and devotion I have to myself and my work and what I am doing, I still receive breadcrumbs. You guys, breadcrumbs. I want the loaf. Just show me. Just show me the path and I'm going to freaking walk it Like I'll run it, I'll jump it, I'll skip it, I'll dance it, I'll do whatever. But if you just show me the path, like that's what I'm here for, I've signed up 100%, fully, I'm committed to this Just give me the loaf of bread and I'll get a crumb. I'll get a crumb. And I do know now that there is this great path and there is a basket of crumbs in front of you and when you stop begging for the loaf, you'll start seeing the crumbs.

Speaker 1:

But it is part of it that sometimes you have to be still, and that is where the crumbs are, is in the stillness. It is not in trying to figure it out, it is not trying to do more. We are so conditioned to fix stillness. You guys, when my life got a little less chaotic, like my kids got older, our schedules, it just changes. As your kids get older, things change. Parenting becomes a different complication, right, you're navigating, maybe, emotional issues with your children as they go through things with their friends. It's just a different kind of parenting. But you don't have the dinner and the bedtime and the reading books. That routine is not the same, and so I was feeling really free for a little while.

Speaker 1:

So how did I fix that? I got three cats. We went from one dog, one dog to one dog and three cats, and when I look back on it, I know that my life had gotten still in a way that I found uncomfortable, and my way of fixing that was by like shaking shit up. I needed to complicate my life and add things into it because the piece was new to me and it was a little uncomfortable to have extra time that I wasn't serving other people or doing for other people, and so I decided like here, let's complicate your life. Now I have no regrets no regrets at all on that decision now, but as I can look back and reflect on it, I can see times when things get just just peaceful enough that I need to just throw the wrench in the plan and say how can I complicate this?

Speaker 1:

Because we're not used to this level of calmness or stillness or peace, and I would invite you to look and see when things are going well. Are you comfortable in that space? Are you comfortable with things being at peace, with everything going according to schedule? Or do you then add another activity for a child or volunteer for something that's going to take a lot of time? Like, how do you go and kind of create a little more activity and busyness? Because stillness is uncomfortable, because we really have to learn how to sink into ease and peace, because we are not trained to have it Now. Everybody has different starting points for what their peace threshold is. But you will see, like, as you get more peaceful and more at ease than you are used to. What is your response to that used to? What is your response to that? Can you be okay with having extra time to journal or to read a book or to go see a friend, or do you complicate it by adding something that is a required to-do list? Do you start over committing to things because things got a little peaceful?

Speaker 1:

So it's really important to have that reflection, because this will not be the last sacred void you are into and the more we can see our patterns, the more we will be able to create that stillness. And the opportunity and say, oh, this is what's being asked of me right now is not to complicate this. I am not to go and you know, figure out how to make myself busy or make myself feel purposeful when I can acknowledge that this liminal space, this space in between, is the purpose. It is the purpose for me to be here in this womb of creation, me to be here in this womb of creation. It is this opportunity for me to allow the stillness for what is wanting to emerge in and through me the chance to do that.

Speaker 1:

When you've got a snow globe and everything settles to the bottom and as soon as it stops moving, you pick it up and just shake the crap out of it, and I feel like that's how we do our lives. It's like, as soon as it stops moving, you pick it up and just shake the crap out of it, and I feel like that's how we do our lives. Is like, as soon as it gets still, we need to shake it up a little bit. But this period that we're in, it's asking for stillness. It's saying, hey, look at the beautiful scene inside of the snow globe without the snow, see it for what it is, without the chaos, without the busyness, and know that that is really beautiful. The stillness is the beauty.

Speaker 1:

When we choose to be in the stillness, we can operate with compassion for ourselves, without feeling guilty. We're labeling ourselves for being lazy or unproductive. We're labeling ourselves for being lazy or unproductive. We can know that we are extending compassion to ourselves, because this is a space that is required for us to bloom, for us to have the harvest. We are germinating the seed under the soil and you can't always see what's happening. You can't see that the roots have grown four inches deep before the first sprout appears. But that's what's happening in the space for the collective right now is we are shifting into a new timeline and we are being asked to be and to not do so, that so much of this transformation can take place within before we start seeing the external production of what is happening.

Speaker 1:

All right, so now that I've told you how intentional and how purposeful and how beautiful and sacred this time is, I want you to give yourself permission to be in it, and so some of the things that help me is going ahead and letting myself off the hook. There is no timeline for clarity. If you understand that a mouse and a human and an elephant and a polar bear have very different gestation periods for what they are going to birth, and understand that you too have your own unique gestation period for whatever is going to be created from, you Know that you are on your own personal beautiful and perfect timeline. So stop clock watching. This is not a race. You are a human being, not a human doing, and we've just we've kind of wrecked the whole narrative.

Speaker 1:

And the more you can lean into like, you can get your humanness done. Don't stay home from work. If you need a job, go to work, but then don't get home and beat yourself up that you're not taking 15 classes and reading these books because you need to find your purpose. Blah, blah, blah, blah. And reading these books because you need to find your purpose. Blah, blah, blah, blah. Lean into the fact that you being you, is what you are called to do right now and listen to what your body needs, and that means listening that in this time, right now, your body is not craving to go out and conquer. Listen to your body. Maybe it needs movement, maybe it needs stillness, maybe it needs naps, maybe it needs a quiet barefoot walk through your backyard and not a three-mile jog. Start paying attention, because we are being asked in this space to connect differently and to connect really intentionally, and a lot of what we are needing right now is to shut out the external noise. And so, if you are used to going on a walk and listening to a podcast and constantly being on the phone or talking to people, try to find gaps in your day to have stillness, to have quiet, to be comfortable with only having your inner voice speak to you.

Speaker 1:

Journaling is a great tool not to find answers but to hear yourself Understand. And it could be writing about how uncomfortable it is to not have clarity. But a lot of times, in writing out how we are feeling, we are able to get some of those answers. Just don't set out with that intention. Set out with the intention that I just want to unlock my emotions or my thoughts or my feelings. I just want to be able to express myself, and it doesn't have to be through an expression that is validated by someone else. And that's what's really beautiful about journaling is it is a you and you practice. You are doing it because it serves you and when we are in this void, having moments where we are really focused just on self is really really important.

Speaker 1:

Choose beauty. This is a beautiful time to be in this liminal space because outdoors feels so good, the sun feels good on your skin, the birds are just happy, here we are going through spring and it is magical to be outside and to have everything so green and see wildlife and it just it makes you feel like you are participating in something really big and really beautiful by doing nothing, by just acknowledging what already is there. But music can also be something that cultivates this inward connection for you. So Find the things that make you feel divinely connected. It could be through your own expression, with art or nature or music or dance, but when you carve out special time and choose that, instead of anything that would make you feel like you are accomplishing or chasing or producing or performing, choosing rather the things that make you feel connected is what you are called to do in this time Express yourself, tell somebody that you don't have it figured out and let that be enough.

Speaker 1:

A lot of times we not only want to have it figured out, but we want everybody else to think we have it figured out. I don't know that that is what I've wanted, but I do find that people think I do have it figured out, and that's why it's really important for me to tell you guys that I am on a breadcrumb journey. I'm telling you I don't have it all figured out, and what I have figured out lately is so opposite of what I thought I had figured out before. I'll get into that later, but what I'm telling you is, when I have received messages lately, it is like Susan, you came to participate in a mystery unfolding, and that's the truth of it right, as irritating as it is. That is what we came is. You don't want to be shown the masterpiece, you want to be given a paintbrush so that you can help create it, and I like to have things figured out. I like to know the answers.

Speaker 1:

And it can be frustrating, and I have had to lean into the fact that one of my struggles, one of my absolute shadow frequencies that I am here to work through, is my desire and my need to control the narrative, to hold the steering wheel so tight and see where I'm going, and that is not available to me. It is not available to me. I know I've said this before, but when you are driving in a car and you program the directions, it is completely useless for ways or maps or whatever it is that you're using to give you 30 turns, because the 30th turn doesn't matter to you. What you get is, in 500 feet, turn right, and you don't get to see the next turn until you've taken that one. And and that's what I'm always shown about this journey is you get the next step, and it's in taking it, it's in saying, okay, I'm going to drive forward 500 feet and I'm going to take a right and we'll see what what lies behind that turn. In doing so, the next one unlocks. Now if I turn left, they would just be like, ok, redirecting will give you a new path. There's no problem in that. But I kind of feel like they should have taken the whole map and showed me the picture and showed me like this is what this is your drive through, and now we'll take you step by step.

Speaker 1:

That's not how it works, and so releasing up my need to control and really settle into the fact that when I don't know direction, when I haven't been given that next turn, it means because I'm supposed to be still, it means not turning is my next step. It means stillness of this drive is what is intentional and purposeful at this time. So if it's hard for you, I just want to share with you that I get it, because it's hard for me too. It is really hard for me. The unknowing is really difficult, but I tell you, it is as much part of your direction, it is as important part of your map as the turns are. The stillness is where the magic happens. Okay, so you don't have to rush it when they are ready, for when they I mean your higher self, your guides, your blueprint, your soul calling, is ready for you to have the next step. You will know. You will have that inspired action. You know what I've always wanted to do. I think I'm going to take a watercolor class, and you might not even see that as part of your purpose, but there is somebody there that you are meant to meet. There is something there for you and when you get that that little like, oh, I'm going to try this, that is your next step. And until you do be at peace, that your next step is stillness. You don't have to rush this. Your future self isn't a destination. They're already weaving inside of you now. She's already there. You have already arrived. You're not trying to achieve, you are not trying to become. She is there.

Speaker 1:

Something else I want to share is that sometimes, when we're at the edge of our really big leap, it looks like everything's falling apart. We question everything. We feel like we are going backwards, not that we're being still, that everything is actually unraveling, but it's not. What you're doing is shedding density. You are shedding the old version, the old beliefs, the old habits, the old understandings that can't come with you where you're going, timelines are collapsing and reordering and that can look messy. Just remember that your discomfort is not a signal to quit. It's a sign that you are stretching into something so much bigger than you were before. So this was for you.

Speaker 1:

If you are in that in-between, know that you're not alone, know that it's purposeful, know that it is. The next step on your path is to be still to allow this reordering, this shedding, this restructuring, so that that next version of yourself can shine. You're not lost. This is part of the path. This is that next step. You're not failing, you are not lazy. You are becoming. The stillness is the sacred womb of creation. The stillness is the sacred womb of creation. So maybe all you need right now is a breath, a permission to take a slow breath and be a softening. It's a reminder to trust the wisdom of the in-between.

Speaker 1:

If this resonated, I'd love to hear from you. Your comments and your feedback help shape the content of this podcast, and hearing from you that there were others who were experiencing that sacred void was really purposeful and helped me know that this was really an important episode to bring through. So please share with me. I absolutely love it, and soon we will have the Keeper's Garden where you can be held in community, in this sacred space. That's where we will sit in the mystery together Until next time. Take care of yourself. You are doing a sacred work just by being here, just by holding the frequency of who you are. That's it. You are called to be and you're doing it. All right. I love you so much. See you next week.

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Susan Sutherland

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