Thriving in the Wild: 10 Catholic Girl Habits That Just Work

Grace-fueled. Scrappy. Surprisingly holy.

Jul 02, 2025

It can feel hard to fit in sometimes.

The Catholic women’s internet is full of pastel, peaceful vibes. Beautiful families, quiet prayer corners, homemade sourdough, and people speaking in hushed tones like a liturgical ASMR channel.

But what about the rest of us?

The women who pray while driving, confess on the go, and thank God for frozen pizza on Fridays? The women whose spiritual life looks more like a daily battle, baby steps in the right direction, or even “walking through a windstorm with a busted umbrella” than anything serene?

Thriving Catholic women do exist, but their real lives are often messier than what you’ll see in curated corners online. These women aren’t thriving because they’ve achieved peace and perfection. They’re thriving because they’ve made peace with imperfection and learned how to live in grace anyway.

This is what I consider a realistic list of holy woman habits, the kind that work even when your toddler just shoved a rosary bead up his nose (happened to me!) and you forgot that it’s First Friday (tomorrow, by the way!).

1. They pray like it’s CPR, not poetry.

Forget lofty language and quiet time with Jesus under a tree. These women pray in whispers, shouts, sighs, and sarcasm. Sometimes it’s “Jesus, take the wheel and also this entire week.” Sometimes it’s a decade of the rosary while folding fitted sheets (just kidding, please tell me nobody does that). Prayer isn’t a performance. It’s survival.

☑️ Do This: Pick a moment today when you usually scroll (waiting in line, brushing your teeth) and offer it as a quick prayer: “Jesus, I’m here. Be here with me.”

2. They time their confessions like covert ops.

They’ve scoped out the best confessionals with short lines and minimal eye contact. Confession isn’t dramatic, it’s maintenance. Like flossing, but for your soul. Bonus if they hit the grocery store and absolution in one trip. Holy multitasking is a spiritual gift.

☑️ Do This: Check your parish’s confession schedule today and put the next one in your calendar. Yes, with an alert.

3. They curate a playlist that is 50% bangers, 50% theology.

These women might cry to Sarah Hart on a Tuesday, belt out Taylor Swift on a Wednesday, and have a low-key conversion during a Florence & the Machine bridge. They’ve got at least one worship song that wrecks them, and a playlist that’s basically Lectio Divina with better bass.

☑️ Do This: Add one faith-fueled song to your go-to playlist today. Let it hit you mid-walk or mid-errand. (Need a rec? “The Way of Love” by Marie Miller.)

4. They evangelize with memes.

Instagram stories. Group texts. Well-timed GIFs of Baby Yoda. These women don’t go knocking on strangers’ doors, but they do know how to drop a quote from a saint like a mic. They bring truth into the group chat without making it weird.

☑️ Do This: Share a saint quote or spiritual meme with a friend today. Make it funny, honest, or totally you. That’s evangelization.

5. They don’t apologize for how weird and hard life can be.

Catholic women who thrive don’t fake-smile their way through it. They laugh at the chaos. They cry in adoration. They say things like, “I have no idea what I’m doing but I trust you, Jesus.” Vulnerability isn’t weakness; it’s how they’ve learned to breathe underwater.

☑️ Do This: Tell one friend or sister something true about your life this week. Be honest without apologizing for the mess.

6. They bless the mess—literally.

They pray over messy rooms. They sanctify burnt toast. They consecrate their Google calendars. They know holiness isn’t hiding from real life, it’s letting grace invade the mess and finding God between the couch cushions (usually with a popsicle wrapper and a crayon).

☑️ Do This: Ask God to bless something weird today…a bag of groceries, your inbox, your laundry pile. Say out loud: “Lord, be in this.” He will be.

7. They ghost their guilt spiral.

Forgot to finish that novena? Had a not-so-charitable thought about your friend's parenting style? Cried in the confessional and then yelled at your kids in the parking lot? They bring it to confession if they need to, but then lose it. These women know: guilt is useful only if it leads to grace. Otherwise, it's just spiritual junk mail.

☑️ Do This: Name one guilt you’ve been carrying too long, and give it to Jesus. Say: “I’m done dragging this around. I trust your mercy more than my memory.”

8. They feast like saints and snack like sinners.

Feast days are feast days. They might bake for St. Joseph’s feast day but then hit the Taco Bell drive thru for Our Lady of Guadalupe. They’ve mastered liturgical living without a Pinterest board, and believe deeply in the sacred power of nachos on a Sunday.

☑️ Do This: Pick one upcoming feast day (or just a Sunday!) and plan a fun snack or meal. Keep it simple and joyful. Heaven loves a good table.

9. They keep showing up.

To Mass. To prayer. To their vocations. Even when it’s boring, hard, or wildly inconvenient. They know God doesn’t require success, just faithfulness. And showing up counts, even in sweats.

☑️ Do This: Choose one small thing today to show up for: prayer, a person, the present moment. Whisper, “I’m here, Lord.”

10. They love Jesus more than their image.

Thriving Catholic women don’t curate their spiritual life for likes. They’re not chasing aesthetic holiness. They’re chasing Jesus. And they know he’s not impressed by your feed. He just wants your heart.

☑️ Do This: Give yourself permission to be spiritually real today. Don’t wait to feel “ready” or look “put together.” Just love God back.

Let’s talk:

You don’t need to fit the mold to be holy.
You don’t need a clean house to pray.
You don’t need a soft voice or a saintly aura to be a thriving Catholic woman.

You just need grace, grit, and the guts to believe that God is working with whatever you’ve got. 🤍

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