Brooke Bergman: Recent Episodes
Brooke Bergman
I'm Brooke Bergman. I'm a marriage and family therapist, relationship expert, and dangerously hopeful instigator of change. I believe in the power of love and the power of knowledge. I want this podcast to be a place where the stigma of our vulnerabilities are broken, and open conversations around relationships, mental health, spirituality, and business are had with the purpose of elevating your mind and heart to the next stage of growth.
In the beginning of my series, "Finding Faith after Certainty," I interview the brilliant Michelle- who courageously shares her intimate story of living as a queer Christian and how she came to live peacefully in her identity (hint: it was a rocky and painful process). Rather than tell you about Michelle, I'll let you read her beautiful words:
"I am a person who wants to move toward shalom – flourishing at its fullest, the realization of God’s desire for all of creation....
Here’s the good news: The kingdom of heaven has come near! However, there is also pain and suffering, injustice and oppression. The kingdom is already, but it is also not yet. As I feel this tension each day, I groan along with the whole creation, awaiting redemption. Nevertheless, I am most alive and hopeful when I am connected with and contribute to new creation. This is what I mean when I say I am a Christian.
I am also a queer Christian. But those two things – queer and Christian – did not always peacefully exist with each other."
My interview with her is about her process towards having those two integral parts of herself live together. It is a courageously vulnerable interview, and one that we both hope will inspire others to know that they are not alone.
In this episode of the the podcast, I have a conversation with Maryann Forest- Woodard, a chemical engineer and S factor instructor. We explore her own personal journey into the world of pole dancing and now teaching, as a powerful tool in reclaiming one's feminine power, play, and capacity to relate to others with more integration.
You are not available for the love you want until you are not available for what you had before. In this episode, Brooke shares her controversial advice to block or delete phone numbers from people you used to date. Even one date.
Did you know you have the power to change your relationship at any moment? You do! All you have to do is start looking for the ways your partner loves you, instead of looking for all the ways they don't. In this episode of the Broken Hearts Club, Brooke articulates an approach that will change the dynamic in your relationship.
“I wake up and I think ‘who has an idea today??”
-Enchantress Shane
Are you a conformist? Do you struggle to step into your deepest authentic Self? Are there parts of yourself that are buried? Does your ego get in the way of your own growth and success?
You’re going to LOVE my next podcast guest, @enchantressshane. She is truly enchanting and was an absolute JOY to speak with. On my next podcast episode, Shane and I talk about how to bypass our ego’s excuses for love and greatness, why joy is an imperative for a depth filled life, and how PLAY can help us push beyond the boundaries of what we already think is possible. Give it a listen and then be inspired to get out there and PLAY today! Find her at www.enchantedembodiment.com.
Brooke explores how our reactions to celebrity death reveals the nature of our projections and how we can move ahead in our grief.
In this episode of the Broken Hearts Club, Brooke explores more fully the meaning of the advent/Christmas season, which is a "waiting season for hope." She discusses the depth of the Israelites' feelings of abandonment and well as the exiled parts of ourSelves that Christ has called Home. She weaves together spiritual, psychological and cultural truths to discuss the human condition and how we can access hope. Are you in the middle of your own darkness? Your own exile? How can you re-claim the parts of yourself that are not yet Home?
In this delightful conversation with romance novelist Riley Costello, Brooke and Riley discuss how Riley strives to live the romance all day every day and how this "way of being" inspires her writing and helps her live joyfully and purposefully. We discuss how to flirt with your barista, flirt with nature, and how embracing the unexpected and uncertainties of life can lead to romantic events and people.
Cosmo has been telling you packs of lies about what men want and it didn’t work so you’re sick of it.
You’re just so hurt.
You’re wanting your brothers to stand up for you.
You’re craving your husband to put you FIRST.
You’re longing for your man to be stopped in his tracks because of your beauty.
You’re dying to work with men who are humble.
You’re longing for healthy masculine leadership.
Men who lead with love instead of ego.
My dear Sisters: these men exist. I know so because these are the men that magically started appearing in my life the moment I told the other guys to take a hike. You have the power to call forth the best in the men around you through the power of your feminine heart. They feel you more than you know. And they long to be your hero, your king, your warrior, your lover.
And they key is sharing YOUR heart. Your truth. Stop playing games. Say what you mean. Stop hiding your magic. Stop doing what you hate. Start doing what you love, including your sexy man. He doesn’t want you to contort your life around what Cosmo says he fucking wants…he wants you to be happy, fulfilled and free. And if he doesn’t? Well then he isn’t the man for you. Even gilded cages are still cages.
Just what the heck do men want, women want to know. In this conversation with Quentin Hafner, Husband, Dad, Jiu Jitsu Practitioner, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Men’s Coach about his new book, “Black Belt Husband.” We discuss what men are needing, craving, and how they can grow in a culture that does not confer healthy masculine energy on boys—leaving most men insecure, lost and relying on immature mechanisms to feel “like a man.” We also discuss what women can do to support their man’s grown.
Most women only know about their periods or even "PMS", but they have no clue what is going on the rest of the month. Due to our culture's shame and objectification of the female body, information has been lacking and women are the worse for it. Listen to my conversation with Kristen if you want to know more about the genius of your feminine creatureliness!
If your female partner is not opening up to you sexually, sometimes (often) there is an unconscious fear of female power on his (or her) part. If men want more from their partner sexually, they need to expand their capacity to tolerate and appreciate female power. She has been told, her whole life, in so many different ways, that she is 'too much' including and especially her sexuality. And indeed she is a lot. Show her you can handle her fire.
In this special episode of the Broken Hearts Club, Brooke interviews Melanie Curtin, a sex researcher and writer currently based in Los Angeles. Melanie has over 5,000 data points from the various surveys she has included in her written articles. And she stumbled upon a treasure: people were willing to share their deepest desires and truths with her because it was safe and completely anonymous--an internet confessional of sorts. According to her data, women report that only 10% of their lovers were skilled at pleasuring them. Guys, this isn't good. Luckily for you, being "good in bed" is not something you're born with--it's a skill that the courageous are willing to learn. Give this episode a listen to hear what women are wanting!
In this special episode of the Broken Hearts Club, Brooke interviews Melanie Curtin, a sex researcher and writer currently based in Los Angeles. Melanie has over 5,000 data points from the various surveys she has included in her written articles. And she stumbled upon a treasure: people were willing to share their deepest desires and truths with her because it was safe and completely anonymous--an internet confessional of sorts. According to her data, women report that only 10% of their lovers were skilled at pleasuring them. Guys, this isn't good. Luckily for you, being "good in bed" is not something you're born with--it's a skill that the courageous are willing to learn. Give this episode a listen to hear what women are wanting!
What exactly is codependency? We talk about how this problem of "people pleasing" and how it actually hurts relationships. It's somewhat of a "psycho-babble" term in that there are loads of people talking about it and how to recover from it, but technically there are no clinical terms. So we thought we'd hash the concept out for a minute and then share our conversation with you all. Enjoy!
Welcome to the Broken Hearts Club--where everyone is welcome because we're all members. I want to create a space where we can learn to honor our grief and loss as a common denominator for being human. We'll talk about all the hard stuff. Because if there's anything I've learned in my ten plus years working as a therapist, it's that if we can honor our losses and all of our shadows, we are free to love more fully because we aren't afraid of grief.