Podcast Summary:

The Southern Tea – "Best Of Southern Tea: Body Image, Carnivore Diet & Pre-planning Our Funerals"
Host: Lindsie Chrisley (with co-host)
Release Date: December 31, 2025
Podcast Platform: PodcastOne

Episode Overview

In this wide-ranging "best of" episode, Lindsie Chrisley and her close co-host candidly discuss themes around body image and societal expectations, Lindsie’s experience trying the carnivore diet, and the surprisingly practical (and emotional) topic of pre-planning funerals. The episode is deeply personal, full of Southern humor, and unfiltered insights about self-acceptance, family, and the realities of modern life as a mom and working woman.

Key Topics and Insights

1. Body Image, Size, and Clothing Struggles

(Begins ~02:30)

• Clothes Shopping Frustrations:
  Lindsie shares her challenges finding clothes as a naturally slender woman, describing how even being at the lower end of sizing can feel alienating.
  • “My body is what it is. I eat. I just got finished having a southern girl lunch… I don’t really put on weight.” – Lindsie Chrisley (04:00)
• Society’s Expectations:
  Both hosts discuss how society is generally fatphobic, but also rarely considers the struggle of those at the opposite end of the spectrum. They note no one seems content with their body even among diverse friendship circles.
  • “I don’t have a single person in my life that is happy with their body. And that’s crazy to say. And I have a wide variety of different bodied friends.” – Co-host (06:18)
• Impact of Hurtful Comments & Self-Image:
  Lindsie recounts a dressing room experience where she was told she should shop in the girls’ section, not the women’s, and how it left a lasting impact.
  • “Someone said to me, well, you’re shopping in the women’s section, but you really need to be shopping in girls… and I have struggled with it and think about that every time I go to a store.” (06:43)

Notable Quotes:

• “Size does not determine if you’re a woman or if you’re a girl. Like, size doesn’t make you a woman.” – Lindsie (09:56)
• “We’re all trying to match this crazy aesthetic that somebody made up. Like, somebody decided this is what beauty is. And that’s crazy.” – Co-host (11:57)

Personal Experiences:

• Lindsie discusses how changes after breastfeeding (loss of breast volume) led her to consider plastic surgery—not out of vanity, but for self-acceptance as a woman.

2. The True Value (and Overlooked Cost) of Stay-At-Home Parents

(Begins ~12:52)

• Economic Value Breakdown:
  Lindsie reads a breakdown of the economic value of a stay-at-home parent, highlighting costs avoided in childcare, meals, housekeeping, etc.—adding up to $85,000 or more per year.
  • “Daycare cost avoided $25,000, home cooked meals $20,000, nanny services $20,000… total savings of $85,000.” (13:52)
• Personal Validation:
  The conversation validates the work of stay-at-home moms, calling them “overlooked heroes” (14:04), and agrees the real cost is likely even higher today.
• Work-Life Balance Struggles:
  Both reference how two adults working outside the home is unsustainable with current expectations, leading to lack of family time and constant catch-up.

Notable Quotes:

• “Our society and the way that we live was not set up to have two people in a household working outside of the home. It was not.” – Co-host (15:56)
• “Think about all the things they miss all throughout the week, and then they have no family time on the weekend because they’re trying to catch up…” – Lindsie (17:01)

3. Carnivore Diet: Personal Experiences and Reasons

(Begins ~20:31)

• Why Carnivore?
  Lindsie describes how she transitioned to a primarily meat-based (carnivore) diet, feeling it’s what her body craves, and shares mixed feelings about giving up old staples.
  • “I love meat so much… Once you get there, all you crave is meat.” (21:59)
• Experimentation and Effects:
  She details her favorite meals (steak, salmon, ground beef with liver and heart), finding increased energy, but clarifies: “I’m not a doctor and I’m also not a dietitian, so no one listened to me.” (26:15)
• No Going Back:
  Lindsie says she's unlikely to stop carnivore, and describes how she's lost the craving for salads, soups, or even potatoes.

Memorable Story:

• Her introduction to “Force of Nature” ground beef (with organ meats) came unknowingly during a post-party meal at her boyfriend’s house:
  • “He cooks it, and I’m like, that is the best burger that I’ve ever had in my life… He never tells me anything until it gets time to go to bed. And he was like, ‘I know that you told me to never feed you that, but that’s the only meat that I had.’… So now I am also on that meat.” (23:49)

Notable Quotes:

• "I don’t know if I ever will not be on the carnivore diet, like, ever again in my life." – Lindsie (25:44)
• “It probably has to do with like your iron levels and like hemoglobin…” – Co-host (26:08)

4. Funeral Planning: Facing Death Pragmatically and Emotionally

(Begins ~34:53)

• Viral Clip – The Makeup Mortician:
  The hosts play audio from the “makeup mortician” Elise, who educates about burial options and her own funeral preferences, including a strong belief in open-casket viewings for grief processing.
  • “Viewing our loved ones is one of the hardest things we will ever have to do after they’ve passed away… But you do it right the first time around, it will make your grief journey later so much easier and healthier.” – Elise (Makeup Mortician, 36:05)
• Personal Comfort with Death and Funerals:
  Both hosts share their personal discomfort with funerals, distinct memories of the “funeral home smell” (peace lilies), and how sensory details are linked to grief.
  • “I am not for open casket situations, regardless of the situation. I do not like funerals at all. I know you and I have talked about this before. It’s just, like, not really the vibes that I’m going for…” – Lindsie (39:52)
• Pre-Planning as A Kindness:
  The co-host strongly advocates for pre-planning funerals, based on difficult experiences with her own parents’ funerals.
  • “I highly recommend if you have the ability to do it, pre-planning your funeral. Because that is like the worst part of everything… when you’re literally in the thick of emotions and then you have to go decide these things…” (44:14)

Notable Quotes:

• “It sounds kind of sinister to… plan someone’s funeral who’s living, but at the same time, is that not so much better… so, you know all the wishes… and then when something happens, you just follow the plan.” – Lindsie (46:52)
• “To bury someone is so expensive… I told Corey, throw me in the ocean. Let me be shark food!” – Co-host (47:30)

5. Grief and Sensory Memories

(Begins ~46:04)

• Lindsie observes how her strongest memories of loss are tied to scent, triggering emotional recall of hard events, leading to a discussion about the role of senses in trauma.
  • “I can smell what the air smelled like at that time of the year… every time that time of year comes, I think about that.” – Lindsie (46:10)

6. Faith, Resilience, and Spiritual Numbness

(Begins ~49:30)

• The episode closes with a devotional reflection for “days you feel spiritually numb,” offering comfort and a reminder of being held in grace, regardless of feelings or circumstances.

Memorable Moments & Quotes (with Timestamps)

• On shopping frustrations & body comments:
  “My body is what it is…. I don’t really put on weight.” – Lindsie (04:00)
• On societal expectations of women’s bodies:
  “I don’t have a single person in my life that is happy with their body. And that’s crazy to say.” – Co-host (06:18)
• On plastic surgery and identity:
  “It felt like that was the one thing that made me feel like a woman.” – Lindsie (11:31)
• Stay-at-home parent value:
  “Our society and the way that we live was not set up to have two people in a household working outside of the home. It was not.” – Co-host (15:56)
• On her carnivore transformation:
  “I don’t know if I ever will not be on the carnivore diet, like, ever again in my life.” – Lindsie (25:44)
• On funeral planning and saying goodbye:
  “Viewing our loved ones is one of the hardest things we will ever have to do after they’ve passed away… you do it right the first time around, it will make your grief journey later so much easier.” – Elise, Makeup Mortician (36:05)
  • “To bury someone is so expensive… I told Corey, throw me in the ocean. Let me be shark food!” – Co-host (47:30)
• On the enduring power of sensory grief:
  “I can smell what the air smelled like at that time of the year… every time that time of year comes, I think about that.” – Lindsie (46:10)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 02:30: Discussion begins on body image, shopping, and societal pressure
• 06:43: Lindsie shares a formative, hurtful dressing room comment
• 12:52: Stay-at-home mom value and cost analysis
• 20:31: Transition to carnivore diet discussion (meat, energy, meal stories)
• 34:53: Playing the "makeup mortician" viral video; funeral preferences
• 39:52: Hosts discuss their feelings on funerals, death, and open-caskets
• 44:14: Pre-planning funerals and the emotional toll
• 46:04: Sensory memories and trauma
• 49:30: Closing devotional and reflection on faith

Final Thoughts

This episode epitomizes the heart and philosophy of The Southern Tea: frank dialogue about challenging topics, delivered with empathy and a dash of Southern wit. Lindsie and her co-host never shy away from the raw, awkward, or taboo—offering listeners validation, practical wisdom, and a reminder that everyone is figuring life out as they go.