When Michelle Wright got married, she says it was more of an ultimatum than an act of romance.
Wright and her high school sweetheart were on and off throughout young adulthood, and when they got back together again in their mid-20s, her boyfriend said they were either going to break up for good or tie the knot. She went through with the marriage, had a child and settled into married life.
Later, Wright asked her husband to tend to their baby in the middle of the night so she could sleep before work, and he refused. Although the couple didn't get divorced for a few years after that moment, Wright says it was the turning point.
Following her divorce in 2016, Wright became the divorce expert within her circle.
"I had so many friends come to me during Covid, talking to me about what they were thinking about getting divorced and asking me, because I'm the vet," she says.
In August 2022, Wright turned her advice into audio with the launch of her podcast, "Dating, Divorced, and Downright Weird."
Wright says she isn't a "bitter old hag that's like, 'nobody should ever get married.'" She just wanted to create a platform where women dealing with divorce could band together as they navigate single life again — a topic she says is so common but has yet to be normalized.
In her time post-divorce, Wright has dated around Chattanooga and found that she was choosing men her friends didn't approve of.
"I think subconsciously, I was just giving attention to whoever would give attention to me," she says. "I was so completely uncomfortable with just being alone."
She almost got married again after finding love with someone who'd also gone through divorce. What she'd thought was a second chance at marriage ended after her fiance at the time got drunk and lost his temper with her son.
Documenting her divorce-capades has been a way for Wright to heal and learn from her experiences.
Wright's podcast discusses everything from the stigma surrounding being single to having a better sex life, hosting guest speakers and sharing her own personal anecdotes with her audience.
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As a full-time medical sales professional, Wright says she hasn't had the time to turn her passion for podcasting into a full-time gig. However, praise from international listeners and growing subscribers has kept her going.
"We've put good things out in the universe. I'm just really excited about the things to come in 2024 and beyond," she says.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton/ Podcaster and divorce expert Michelle Wright, left, talks to Savannah Sutton at Common House.