The Real Dr Leslie

04/09/2026

04/06/2026

04/05/2026

Have you ever been ghosted… and then somehow ended up apologizing for it?

That's ghostlighting. And it's one of the most disorienting things that can happen in a relationships, especially for women who are already wired to ask "what did I do wrong?"

I broke it all down in my latest Black Coffee Woman article:
✦ What ghostlighting actually is
✦ Why high-achieving women miss the signs
✦ The psychology behind it
✦ And how to address it without shrinking yourself

If you've ever been left on read and then left holding an apology you never owed — this one is for you.

🔗 Read it here: https://open.substack.com/pub/theblackcoffeewoman/p/ghostlighting-in-relationships-why?r=3mm2ai&utm_medium=ios

04/02/2026

The apps aren’t broken, sis. The algorithm just wasn’t designed for the Black Coffee Woman™️ who already knows her worth. Keep going. Keep showing up as yourself, bold and unapologetic.

Remember…You’re not for everyone, but you are made for someone. Whoever he is, he’s not going to require you to shrink. ☕

03/30/2026

Have you ever taken a sip of coffee that was too hot and set the whole cup down… only to come back to it later and realize it was exactly what you needed?
That’s what we do in dating.

We feel the heat, the nerves, the uncertainty, the unfamiliarity, and we call it incompatibility.
We call it a red flag.
We call it “I just didn’t feel it.”

But sometimes? It’s just too soon to tell.

Relationship OCD will have you scanning for everything wrong before you’ve even given anything a chance to go right.
Give it time. Give them another date.
Let the conversation cool down just enough to actually taste it.

You aren’t for everyone — but you are for someone. Just don’t rush past them. ☕

03/29/2026

One day, a little girl in a small town was taught that speaking up came with a cost. Using her voice to express herself cost her friendship and a sense of belonging, and she learned to stay quiet. But, she decided to BE BOLD and say what she always needed to say.

That’s where this talk begins.

I spoke at The Women’s Expo Huntsville hosted by the lovely Tiffany Draper about the silent pattern that lives inside so many high-functioning women — the one where we go quiet not because we have nothing to say, but because we learned that connection required self-suppression.

The research is real. The impact is real. And the path back to your voice? Also real.

I’m looking for more women’s expos, summits, and conferences to bring this message to in 2026. If you know of an event or lead one — let’s talk.

03/25/2026

You can fall in love with someone and still not know them.

That’s the truth nobody tells you about the first year.
The butterflies are real. The connection is real. But so are the conversations you haven’t had yet — about money, family, conflict, faith, kids, and what love is supposed to look like when life gets hard.

That’s why I created The First Year — 50 conversation cards written with therapeutic insight to help you and your partner go deeper than the surface before the surface cracks.

Not a quiz. Not a game. A tool — designed to help you get curious about each other on purpose.
Because compatibility isn’t just chemistry. It’s communication. It’s knowing who someone is before you’re too far in to ask.

These cards will help you:
☕ Discover how they handle conflict — before it handles you
☕ Understand their love language and their relational wounds
☕ Assess your real compatibility with clarity, not fear
☕ Build a foundation that’s more than feelings
You deserve a love that was chosen with eyes wide open.
🔗 Get your deck at www.evaempowered.com — link in bio.

50 questions. One powerful first year. Let the real conversations begin.

03/24/2026

I used to think something was wrong with me.

I had the career. The degrees. The house I designed myself, exactly how I wanted it.

But love? Love kept slipping through my fingers.

And the hardest part wasn’t being alone — it was the quiet voice that whispered maybe I was the problem. Maybe I was too much. Too driven. Too independent. Too... everything.

It took me years of doing my own healing work to realize I was never too much.

I was a Black Coffee Woman.

Strong. Complex. An acquired taste.

And the signs I almost missed? I put them all in this carousel.

Swipe through and see how many speak to you. Then tell me in the comments — which one hit different?

And if you’ve been sitting with these feelings longer than you’d like to admit, I wrote something deeper for you over on my Substack. THE BLACK COFFEE WOMAN. I think you need to read it.

You’re not for everyone.

But you are made for someone. ☕️

—Dr. D

03/23/2026

When someone ghosts you and then resurfaces like nothing happened, that’s not confusion. That’s control. They’re testing whether you’ll shrink, whether you’ll accept the silence as normal, whether you’ll rearrange your reality to fit their disappearance.

Ghost lighting is the power move of people who need you to live in uncertainty because an uncertain person is an easier person to manage.

You were never too much for them. You were just aware.

I write about the patterns we were never taught to name.

Come sip with me. ☕
Find me on Substack → **The Black Coffee Woman**

03/20/2026

🌟 Big News! I'm In-Network with Lyra Health! 🌟

If you (or someone you know) works at one of these companies, you may be able to use your Employee Assistance Program (EAP) benefits to work with me — and this list is just the beginning, there are even more companies covered!

✅ Google | Nike | Samsung | H&R Block | Lockton | EY | Ford | Shell | United Airlines | Starbucks | Workday | Lululemon | Amazon | Medtronic | General Motors | iHeartMedia | Chobani | Caterpillar | Asurion | T-Mobile | Phillips 66 | Five Below | Netflix | LinkedIn | Zoom | American Psychiatric Association | Hallmark Cards | DaVita | Uber | Lilly | Lincoln Financial | Prudential | McDonald's | Bank of America | Chanel | eBay | Fidelity | Marriott International | American Express | Urban Outfitters

📍 To be eligible to work with me, you must be physically located in Illinois or Missouri.

🔍 Not sure if your employer qualifies? Reach out to your HR team or benefits coordinator to confirm your Lyra Health coverage!

Don't see your company listed? Check anyway — there are more companies approved than what's shown here! 😊

👉 Ready to get started? Book your appointment here: https://drlesliedavis.clientsecure.me/

Feel free to email me with any questions. I'd love to support you on your wellness journey!

03/19/2026

03/17/2026

✨ Your next chapter starts here — and so does your next unforgettable event! ✨

Summer is around the corner and I am ready to bring healing, empowerment, and transformation to YOUR stage!

I'm Dr. Leslie Davis — Relationship Expert for Women Ready to Heal, Rise, and Love Better. I'm a TEDx Speaker and Author whose work has been featured on ABC, FOX, NBC, CBS, CW & Telemundo.

I speak on topics that make people FEEL something and then DO something:
💡 Bossed Up But Broken Inside
💡 Self-Silencing in Women
💡 Single Moms & Mental Health
💡 Imposter Syndrome in High Achieving Women
💡 The Three Dot Effect
💡 The Power of Jiu Jitsu for Victims of Violence..and more!

Whether you're planning a women's conference, corporate wellness event, youth summit, or community gathering — I would love to be part of your vision.

Healing Her. Empowering All. ☕️

Reach out today — summer dates are going fast!
📞 314-529-0214
📧 leslie.d.lcpc@gmail.com
🌐 www.thereadrleslie.com

Know someone planning an event this summer? Drop their name below or share this post!