La Vida Más Chévere de Childfree Latinas

Paulette Erato

Childfree Latinas: you’re not alone. You're a movement! This podcast is here to make that loud and clear. Hosted by speaker and community builder Paulette Erato, this Spanglish show digs into what it really means to choose a life sin hijos in a culture that treats motherhood like an obligation. But we don’t stop there! LVMC pushes past the surface-level “childfree” conversation and into the messy, cultural beliefs we were all raised with: the silence, the guilt, the constant self-sacrifice, the pressure to make ourselves small, agreeable, and convenient. Every other Tuesday, Paulette (and sometimes guests) invites childfree Latinas y Latines to say F THAT! Let’s unpack the toxic traditions and generational scripts that keep us calladitas. Because once you see how these patterns show up in our careers, relationships, families, finances, creativity, and identity, you can’t UNSEE it. So let’s do what it takes to unlearn them without burning down our entire lives. This is not a judgment zone, but it’s also not a polite one. It’s a space where we name things out loud: machismo, marianismo, internalized misogyny, cultural expectations, and all the emotional labor we were told was just part of being “a good girl.”  By mixing real talk, sharp analysis, and bilingual humor, the show helps you let go of the old burdens we were raised to carry: the duty to please everyone, the fear of disappointing la familia, and the constant need to defend your choices. If you’re ready to trust yourself more, reclaim your time, live on your own terms, and design a life that actually feels like yours, you’re in the right place. And that’s a burrito!

  1. 2d ago

    Expand Your Bubble

    Send a text to share your thoughts! Ep 99 - Closing out Healing Girl Summer with the very last lesson in Benchmarks are B******t: expand your bubble. This is also the last stop on the childfree Latina podcast's summer series, and it's about the moment you realize your comfort zone isn't keeping you safe. In fact, it's a prison of your own making. Let's bust you out of prison! You can be safe AND uncomfortable. That's how you become a more interesting person, how you evolve, and how you shake off the toxic cultural norms that taught you to stay small and stay calladita. All it requires is a little curiosity. From trying spicy foods, to going wild with pizza, to becoming the Mexican Madonna, you don't have to feel ready. You don't even have to be ready. You only have to be curious. Key takeaways: Comfort and safety are not the same thingCuriosity beats training and techniqueYou don't have to feel ready to startGet your own copy of Benchmarks Are B******t at https://pauletteerato.gumroad.com/l/pmavo/VIDA30 To get the full show notes, and an episode transcript, go to PauletteErato.com/shownotes. This is episode 99.  Support the show Like what you hear? Reach out to send your thoughts, and don't forget to grab a limited edition LVMC baseball t-shirt. Check it out at pauletteerato.com/shop. How to reach me: Got a thought, or a comment? Send a text!Email me at hola @ pauletteerato dot comJoin the Super Cheveritas at https://pauletteerato.substack.com/Support the show at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1948831/supporters/new

    Expand Your Bubble
  2. Jul 14

    Benchmarks are BS

    Send a text to share your thoughts! Healing Girl Summer stretches into July with the eponymous lesson from Benchmarks are B******t.  As a species we love to measure and rank things. Benchmarks are everywhere, and sometimes even useful. Until they show up uninvited at our family gatherings, in our LinkedIn feeds, in hustle culture, or in the quiet voice that whispers, "you should have more by now."  That's not helpful! And who benefits from these beliefs? Certainly not us, especially when they make us feel lesser than.  Let's break down why those metrics were never meant for us childfree Latinas, and what to measure instead for designing our vidas más chévere. Success isn't measured by hitting milestones on someone else's timelineKeeping up with the Joneses is a loser's game, and capitalist culture thrives on itFrida Kahlo didn't live by anyone's rules, and you don't have to eitherGet your own copy of Benchmarks Are B******t In this episode LVMC Episode 97 - Decisions are NOT Life Sentences  LVMC Episode 96 - Failure, Fear, and Generational Trauma: Healing that MessWear Sunscreen - Wikipedia explanationFrida Kahlo - Wikipedia articleTo get the full show notes, and an episode transcript, go to PauletteErato.com/shownotes. This is episode 98.  Support the show Like what you hear? Reach out to send your thoughts, and don't forget to grab a limited edition LVMC baseball t-shirt. Check it out at pauletteerato.com/shop. How to reach me: Got a thought, or a comment? Send a text!Email me at hola @ pauletteerato dot comJoin the Super Cheveritas at https://pauletteerato.substack.com/Support the show at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1948831/supporters/new

    Benchmarks are BS
  3. Jun 30

    Decisions are NOT Life Sentences

    Send a text to share your thoughts! Ep 97 -  Healing Girl Summer continues with Lesson Three from Benchmarks Are B******t: you will change your mind. But that's not a flaw, it's how growth actually works.  We break down why we treat reversible decisions like permanent ones, and how the story you've been telling about yourself doesn't have to be the only story. From Vera Wang not designing her first dress until nearly 40, to Grandma Moses picking up a paintbrush at 78, to living three completely different lives in under a decade, the evidence is everywhere. Skills travel. Identity isn't fixed. And almost every decision you will ever make sits way closer to the Brussels sprouts end of the spectrum than the face tattoo one. Key takeaways: Decisions are not life sentences, but being inflexible isThe spectrum framework: Brussels sprouts vs. face tattoosDon't let your job become your identityYour skills travel with you across every pivotYou have the power to change your story, no permission necessaryGet your own copy of Benchmarks Are B******t at https://pauletteerato.gumroad.com/l/pmavo/VIDA30 To get the full show notes, and an episode transcript, go to PauletteErato.com/shownotes. This is episode 97.  Support the show Like what you hear? Reach out to send your thoughts, and don't forget to grab a limited edition LVMC baseball t-shirt. Check it out at pauletteerato.com/shop. How to reach me: Got a thought, or a comment? Send a text!Email me at hola @ pauletteerato dot comJoin the Super Cheveritas at https://pauletteerato.substack.com/Support the show at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1948831/supporters/new

    Decisions are NOT Life Sentences
  4. Jun 16

    Failure, Fear, and Generational Trauma: Healing that Mess

    Send a text to share your thoughts! Ep 96 - We're back, and we're starting with a lesson you also probably could've used in college (or anytime): failure isn't the end. It's the whole point! This is episode 1 of 4 in the Healing Girl Summer mini-series, pulled from the manuscript Benchmarks Are B******t: Lessons I Wish I Knew at 18. We're revisiting the first big failure and what happens when a girl who was never allowed to fail finally does. All of us have already survived learning to walk. We've been failing and recovering our entire lives. This episode is just the reminder we forgot we needed. Key Takeaways Failure only destroys your identity when you've never been given room to practice itThe scientific method is also a pretty solid life strategy. Your comfort zone is just the ground you kept sitting on after you stopped trying to walkFailure at this big age is just information: that didn't work, so let's try the next thingGet your own copy of Benchmarks Are B******t at https://pauletteerato.gumroad.com/l/pmavo/VIDA30  In This Episode   #95 - Grief & Death: What I've Learned#37 – Perfectionism and Childfree Latinas: The Ivy League School DropoutThe scientific method (Wikipedia)Encanto, Disney-animated movieArticle - We Don’t Talk About Perfectionism: Using Encanto to Explore Perfectionism and Growth Fostering Relationships (Journal of Creativity in Mental Health)To get the full show notes, and an episode transcript, go to PauletteErato.com/shownotes. This is episode 96.  Support the show Like what you hear? Reach out to send your thoughts, and don't forget to grab a limited edition LVMC baseball t-shirt. Check it out at pauletteerato.com/shop. How to reach me: Got a thought, or a comment? Send a text!Email me at hola @ pauletteerato dot comJoin the Super Cheveritas at https://pauletteerato.substack.com/Support the show at https://www.buzzsprout.com/1948831/supporters/new

    Failure, Fear, and Generational Trauma: Healing that Mess

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About

Childfree Latinas: you’re not alone. You're a movement! This podcast is here to make that loud and clear. Hosted by speaker and community builder Paulette Erato, this Spanglish show digs into what it really means to choose a life sin hijos in a culture that treats motherhood like an obligation. But we don’t stop there! LVMC pushes past the surface-level “childfree” conversation and into the messy, cultural beliefs we were all raised with: the silence, the guilt, the constant self-sacrifice, the pressure to make ourselves small, agreeable, and convenient. Every other Tuesday, Paulette (and sometimes guests) invites childfree Latinas y Latines to say F THAT! Let’s unpack the toxic traditions and generational scripts that keep us calladitas. Because once you see how these patterns show up in our careers, relationships, families, finances, creativity, and identity, you can’t UNSEE it. So let’s do what it takes to unlearn them without burning down our entire lives. This is not a judgment zone, but it’s also not a polite one. It’s a space where we name things out loud: machismo, marianismo, internalized misogyny, cultural expectations, and all the emotional labor we were told was just part of being “a good girl.”  By mixing real talk, sharp analysis, and bilingual humor, the show helps you let go of the old burdens we were raised to carry: the duty to please everyone, the fear of disappointing la familia, and the constant need to defend your choices. If you’re ready to trust yourself more, reclaim your time, live on your own terms, and design a life that actually feels like yours, you’re in the right place. And that’s a burrito!