From Role Model to Soul Model: The Spiritual Dimension of Divorce Nobody Talks About with Lisa Lisser

About this episode

This episode explores the spiritual dimension of divorce and the shift from defining oneself by roles to embracing a soul model.

There is a dimension of divorce that nobody warned you about — one that has nothing to do with lawyers or custody schedules or dividing furniture. It goes much deeper than any of that. Divorce goes to the heart of your identity. And when the role you built your life around — wife, partner, the person in that marriage — is suddenly gone, the question that surfaces isn't just "what do I do now?" It's "who am I without this?" In one of the most soulful and quietly transformative episodes of Divorce Happens, host Olivia Howell sits down with Lisa Lisser — divorce and life transition coach, former litigator, nonprofit leader, spiritual counselor, and holder of two master's degrees — to explore the spiritual dimension of divorce that most people only recognize in hindsight. Lisa has lived it herself, rebuilt herself from it, and now dedicates her practice to helping others do the same: move through divorce while holding onto their soul. At the center of this conversation is one of the most powerful reframes you will hear on this show: the shift from "role model" to "soul model." Lisa explains that when we define ourselves by our roles — wife, mother, career woman — and one of those…

People in this episode

Host: Olivia Howell

Guest: Lisa Lisser

Topics covered

• spiritual dimension of divorce
• identity
• self-discovery
• role model
• soul model
• life transition
• coaching

Keywords

• divorce
• identity crisis
• spiritual counseling
• self-improvement
• life transition
• coaching
• soul model

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Fresh Starts Registry

More episodes of Divorce Happens

• She Turned Her High-Conflict Divorce Into a Movement. Here’s What Courtney Gilmartin Learned About Surviving, Documenting & Fighting Back · June 13, 2026 · 15 min
• Hey Olivia, We Told the Kids About the Divorce — Now the Questions Won't Stop. What Do I Say? · June 11, 2026 · 8 min
• Hey Olivia, My Ex Wants to Tell the Kids the Divorce Is My Fault. How Do I Stop Him? · June 10, 2026 · 7 min
• Divorce Books: Soft Launch: A Coming-of-Adulthood Novel by Sarah Vacchiano · June 8, 2026 · 21 min
• Everything You Need to Know About College Planning and Divorce with Vicki Vollweiler · June 8, 2026 · 15 min
• 50 Challenges. 6 Continents. One Divorce: How Lisa Niver Found Herself — and Fearlessness — After 50 with Lisa Niver · June 5, 2026 · 15 min