Wildr Wellness: Recent Episodes
Laura Hett
Join Laura on Wildr Wellness, The Podcast and she dives into health and what it means to be healthy, happy while also staying true to your authentic self in this crazy, distracted world!
Listen for nutrition tips and info, learning how to slow down, and inspiration for living your life in alignment with your authentic self.
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Today’s podcast is a special homage to all the mamas out there!
The newest episode of the Wildr Wellness Podcast is a conversation with Tish Mexted, a good friend and doula about the journey into motherhood.
I loved the nuance that Tish brings to the conversation and particularly around the importance of surrender. Sometimes it’s full, all out surrender to what’s occurring and sometimes, boundaries are required to maintain balance.
Tish chats to us about
➡️ How she’s changed and evolved since becoming a mother to Bodhi
➡️ How surrender has come into play during and post-birth
➡️ The power of birth to heal us and the earth
➡️ How ritual can play a role in becoming a mother
➡️ The role of a doula
➡️ Some practical tips and tricks for the sensitive time postpartum
Dates in ghee recipe and Tish's website - honeypotculture.nz
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You're going to LOVE this one! In today's episode of the Wildr Wellness Podcast, Laura interviews her good friend and fellow practitioner, Sarah Vickers.
We dive into all things gut health and we explain the benefits of a really useful stool test that myself and Sarah use, which gives incredible insights into one’s digestive function and the balance of bacteria and fungi in the microbiome.
You might recognise Sarah's name from the last time she was on the Wildr Wellness podcast sharing how we can harness the power of blood testing.
If you’re struggling with digestive issues, you’ll love this, but even if you’re not - as Sarah says - the gut is connected with every body system so it’s packed with useful info for everyone :)
Jump on Sarah’s waiting list for her practitioner programme here.
If you’re interested in hearing if the stool test is right for you - book a free 20min phone call with Laura or jump on Sarah's website to see how you can work with her.
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In today’s Wildr Wellness podcast, we have the darling Gemma-Rose who is (or certainly seems to me) to be one of the most embodied wāhine I know and that’s coz she’s done the mahi! And now she’s sharing it with the world.
Breathwork is Gemma’s modality of choice and in our conversation she walks us through what it is, why she was drawn to it and what sort of benefits you can receive.
Check her out at https://www.gemmarose.nz
In our conversation we talk about;
- How Gemma discovered breathwork and recovery from burn out
- What breathwork actually is and what it can help you find more of (spoiler: it’s peace and authenticity).
- The parasympathetic nervous system, stress resilience, and why we need to widen the tolerance window.
- How being neuro-divergent shows up in her everyday life and ways to work with it
- How technology is giving Gemma hope
- Titration and working with trauma (slow and steady!)
- Then we finished with a short breathwork exercise - short but powerful!
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Creating community and capturing beauty with Leonie Anholts
We’re jumping in with an EPIC first episode for Season 4 of the Wildr Wellness Podcast! Laura talks to Leonie Anholts - better know as @surfgirlnz on Instagram - about creating a female surfing community, photography, playfulness, energetics of business and so much more!
Leonie was a delight to talk to and I know you’ll LOVE this episode.
We talk about;
➡️ Building community and encouraging women to surf!
➡️ Learning a new skill as an adult..!
➡️ Leo’s journey with photography - on land to in the water
➡️ Running a business online - boundaries around screen time and biz/life balance
➡️ The importance of play and finding joy and beauty in everyday
➡️ Self-limiting beliefs about life and business
See Leonie's incredible photography at her Instagram @surfgirlnz or check her full offerings on her website surfgirlnz.com
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I am so excited to release today’s episode of the Wildr Wellness Podcast and with none other than the gorgeous and knowledgable, Sarah Vickers, a holistic health practitioner.
What does your BLOOD WORK tell you about your health?
Sarah spills the JUICE in this episode and I was thrilled to pick her brains on the topic of blood testing.
Blood testing is an incredible tool that we as holistic nutritionists and practitioners use to identify body systems and organs that need a support.
The main difference between how we (holistic practitioners), and how the medical model look at bloods is the ranges. The medical system is looking for disease (and that’s what they’re there for so that’s ok!) and we want to catch things early in order to PREVENT disease.
We chat about;
➡️ Sarah’s background and how she came to be so passionate about blood testing
➡️The different types of testing we do - blood, stool and hormone testing in urine
➡️ HbA1C, insulin and glucose
➡️Inflammatory markers - CRP, immune molecules, cholesterol, iron
➡️Thyroid
➡️Liver enzymes
Listen to this episode in order to understand your own bloods, or why you’d get them! I highly recommend getting your bloods done before listening to this episode and running through them yourself - or feel free to chat to myself or Sarah about having a session to go through your bloods.
Sarah's website here -> https://www.svholistic.com and find her on Instagram -> https://www.instagram.com/svholistic/
Laura has summarised all of the blood markers and ranges we talk about - check it out on her website SOON
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On today's episode of the Wildr Podcast. Laura chats with with nutrigenomics practitioner, Aubrey Nation 💕
Ever wondering how your genes impact your health?! Well this episode for you.
Aubrey does functional genetic testing to find out what your genetic strengths and weaknesses are. But the good news is that she looks at things we can impact using diet and lifestyle factors.
In this episode, we chat about;
➡️Aubrey’s move from being a nurse to nutrigenomic coaching
➡️Why she choose to use genetics to help support people’s health. Our genetics are like our blueprint for personalised health optimisation.
➡️ The limitations of the medical model
➡️ Types of genetic testing
➡️ The different areas of our health and physiology that you can look into with genetic testing
➡️ Inflammation is first place to start! What can everyone do to support the inflammatory pathways in the body
➡️ The important of vitamin D! Check your levels with a blood test
➡️ Aubrey’s favourite way to manage stress.
Find out more about working with Aubrey at her website https://www.aubreynation.com or check her out on Instagram @aubreynation
Solo episode with Laura on the MOST important factor for health and vitality - STRESS!
Want more energy? Better sleep? Balanced hormones? Or a better libido!?
Laura Hett is a holistic nutritionist who works one-one-one with clients and the thing that she's found to be the most important factor for our long term health and longevity is managing stress. This means emotional stress (deadlines, family, anxiety, financial stress etc.) but also physiological stress (unstable blood sugars, loaded liver and nutrient deficiencies).
Laura takes you through a few of the most common stressors that you can control and HOW to reduce the impact of the stress on the body.
This Wildr Podcast episode is a special conversation with the one-of-a-kind Krissy Green @spiritual_kaputi 💜
She’s a Mareikura, Indigenous healer, intuitive mentor, Indigenous Mentor & Coach, Akashic Practitioner, and Lawyer.
We dive into all sorts of topics ~ from embodiment, overcoming trauma, to trusting your gut, to the difficulty of taking a path that hasn’t been modelled to you.
We hear about Krissy’s journey to get to where she is now - and it hasn’t been easy, she’s had to work to get out of her own way to achieve the incredible things she’s done.
We chat about ->
- Krissy’s journey from being a teenage mother, to completing two degrees and becoming a lawyer and mentor!
- Getting out of her own way to complete two degrees while also being mother to 2 children
- How to reclaim our identity (particularly in Krissy’s case, indigenous and feminine identity) and be authentic
- Letting go of perfectionism and caring what people think
- Overcoming trauma - reclaiming sovereignty over land and identity
- Finding fun!
- Begin with small steps, and build upon them once they’re cemented as habits.
More info and to learn about Krissy's offerings - check her website here https://spiritualkaputi.squarespace.com
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Why are my friends all so tired?!
Join Laura Hett and Bexie Towle on this episode of the Wildr Podcast 💥
This conversation came about after Bexie and I starting chatting about this over coffee - we decided it was something we were both passionate about enough to want to dive a bit deeper - and so here we are! Recording a podcast about it. Can't wait to hear what you think. Fire through your thoughts via Instagram to either myself @wildr_wellness or Bexie @bexie_t
Would you rather stay at home on a Friday evening watching Netflix than go out to a gig or try something new? Have you made commitments to yourself that you haven’t been able to keep?
We recorded this conversation in the hope that it gives you some ideas about WHY we’re all so tired and WHAT to do about it.
This is more of a conversation, rather than a straight forward interview and we both come from a curious, open-minded perspective. This is just some thoughts, theories and ideas we have come up with after reading books, listening to other podcasts and contemplating it ourselves
Where did we wander to in this conversation?!
- So what are our theories about ‘Why our friends are all so tired?’
- Information overload? Trying to do too much? People pleasing?
- What is the definition of discipline and why do we think it’s a bad thing?!
- When is it ok to cancel/flake?!
- Our suggestions for ways to stay more in alignment and uphold commitments to friends.
- Daily habits to improve self worth.
- Set intentions - prioritise for each day
- Discipline is different to punishment!
- Plus more!
LINKS
- Briony’s Untapped Podcast about discipline
- Barefoot Investor
- Four Tendencies by Gretchen Rubin - Take the Quiz
- The Willpower Instinct
- Saltwater Budha
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In today’s Wildr Wellness podcast, Laura sits down with Samantha Tomkinson, performance and organisational psychologist, facilitator and coach.
Samantha is all about getting to understand that crazy thing we call our ~ mind ~ 🧠 She works with groups and with people one-to-one to improve their emotional intelligence and build resilience.
If you’re interested in understanding your mind, then this podcast will not only help you with that - but also Samantha provides some great, easy, practical strategies and tools for building emotional intelligence and finding peace in this crazy world (as I am constantly reminding myself - the only thing we truly have control over is our internal landscape… And our own actions).
We chat about ->
- Samantha’s journey - how did she first become interested in psychology?.
- Pyschometrics (psychological measuring tools) can be a great ‘entry route’ for people beginning to do the emotional work but the step beyond that Samantha recommends, is REALLY getting to know yourself.
- She defines thoughts, feelings and emotions and distinguishes the difference between them
- HOW to move out of the ‘thinking mind’ into ‘feeling’
- Resilience - why ‘pushing through’ isn’t actually showing true resilience - it’s tough mindedness.
- Emotional Intelligence - what is it and why is it useful? How we can improve our emotional intelligence via the thinking, feeling, energetic doorways.
- Personal Values - what are they and where to start with building them for yourself - and how can they be useful?!
- Samantha’s incredible and profound learning from her relationship with her mother
- Where to start!? Samantha provides three simple and practical tools to get started on your journey.
Links
- The Top Five Regrets of the Dying
- Samantha Tomkinson’s website
- Samantha Tomkinson’s instagram
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Wow, what a deep dive conversation on all things fertility, hormone balance and burnout in mothers with Kirstie Vesseur, a clinical nutritionist.
Kirsty has such practical advice because she’s actually LIVED through a lot. A trigger warning - Kirstie talks about her experience with abortion and eating disorders so just for those who are sensitive around those topics to be wary.
Here’s a run down of what we talk about and some of the takeaways.
- Kirstie takes us through her fertility journey - from an abortion, through an eating disorder, struggling with hormonal symptoms, to finally falling pregnant wqith her now 3 year old daughter (after a LOT of struggle and learning!). Her journey is intense and she’s so brave for sharing her story.
- She chats through her thoughts around the root cause of her eating disorder and what she now does to release stuck emotions. Reflects on the impacts of not having any psychological counselling after abortion. In short - how trauna in the body results in addiction.
- What did Kirsty do to get her hormones back on track!? You’ll have to listen to the podcast to find out…
- Laura’s addiction to butter….!
- The simple fact that women are often trying to do tooo much, have too high expectations on themselves or don’t have the support they need… which results in BURNOUT. What boundaries do they need to set and what support can you ask for?
- Loved Kirstie’s perspective on parenting - learn about co-regulation
- ‘That Clean Life’ recipe database and Sophia loving curries!
Find out more about Kirstie at her website https://www.legacynutrition.co.nz
Subscribe to the podcast to automatically get new episodes added to your library and share with a friend who you think will benefit from this info!
Lots of love, Laura
www.wildr.nz
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Uncovering your whole, authentic self with Emily Kendall
I’m pumped to bring you Episode 2 of our new season 🙌🏻 In this interview, I chat with Emily Kendall, of EmK Yoga who provides functional movement and mental health support online and in Hamilton.
Find more about Emily at her website - https://www.emkyoga.co.nz
We chat about ALL SORTS of things, and Emily provides an incredible perspective on getting through her mental health challenges as well as navigating this complicated experience we call life! As a solo mother of a beautiful three year old - Em has some great tips on sleep and time management fo those with children!
And, I’m sure you’ve heard in before how great yoga is (probably from me 🙄), but REALLY, you can’t hear it enough! In this crazy world, we truly all need a practice like yoga to breath, slow down and move the body.
We chat about ->
- Her journey starting yoga at 16 years when her mum dragged her along to a class. Her mum was looking for other ways to support her mental health which was going down hill.
- Yoga helped her feel good - and didn’t even realise she could feel so good!
- There was a moment when a specific breathing technique helped her get to sleep - she KEEN how potent yoga could be (and she had struggled with insomnia).
- How vinyasa yoga just landed in her heart and she never left!
- Emily studied psychology in order to understand her own mind
- How Emily ties psychology into her classes - for example the breath isn’t just the breath - it directly impacts the nervous system which then impacts the physiology of the body.
- Em’s daily practice of being curious - and always staying open. She follows her flow and her intuition, she isn’t rigid about having one thing she has to do everyday - especially emphasises flow and being gentle as she has a three year old!
- We discuss the fine line between flow and discipline and how Emily is actually shedding her identity around being COMPLETELY in flow and bringing a little more discipline to her daily routine.
- How Emily makes friends and connects deeply with them - being herself and being vulnerable is an important part of this process.
- Take responsibility for her own life and her own decisions.
- How it’s great to have people around you who are on your side and calling you out when it’s necessary and also the importance of ‘calling out’ friends with kindness
- What Emily has learnt as a mother - how has bringing a child into this world changed her view of life.
- Emily’s sleep tips - taking into account that she’s got a three year old and has struggled with sleep in the past!
Get 10% off a Teddy bed using Em's code - EMILY10 at checkout.
What an epic conversation with soooo many amazing nuggets of gold! Thanks Em!
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In the very first episode of Season Three (!), Laura of Wildr Wellness, is interviewing Joanne Bisset, naturopath and emotional release practitioner.
As a nutritionist myself, I focus mostly on how food and lifestyle impacts our physical health but I’m learning more and more that there’s much more to health than just the physical….. Cue Joanne! She’s a trained naturopath and emotional release practitioner based in Raglan who has taken a deep dive into how our emotions can impact our physical health.
Check out her website at https://www.joannebisset.com
We chat about
- How Jo started her adult life as a lawyer before getting a (pretty strong!) nudge from the universe to quit her job and go back to uni to study to become a naturopath.
- Shift from getting her validation externally to internally - a process that was kickstarted dramatically when she lost her mother at a young age.
- How thinking short term resulted in Jo working in a job she didn’t enjoy. She was just looking at the immediate next step rather than the big picture.
- Jo breaks down for us HOW emotions affect our physical health?
- And then WHY do we get unprocessed emotions in the first place?
- How unprocessed emotions manifest in the body and in the mind.
- My favourite tidbit - our emotions control our subconscious mind which controls 90% of our behaviours. So in other words our emotions control us, we just don’t know it as it’s within the subconscious…
- Ok so we know we have emotions to ‘feel’! - how do we do it?!
- How to regulate the nervous system and find safety in the body? True, felt in the body safety not intellectual safety.
- Our subconscious registers any change as a threat. New business, new relationship…. Jo’s done it all in the last 12 months! So how starting a business is a short cut for personal development…!!
- Jo’s new relationship - from single for 10 years to in a happy, healthy, intimate relationship with a kind man.
- Nervous system requires safety for healing.
- Yoga as a way to gently process emotions as it requires you to be in the present.
- Difference between emotional and mental health.
Resources
- The book that Jo recommends ➡️ The Source by Tara Swart
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In this episode of the Authentic Connection Podcast, I chat to Corin Storkey of Selenohealth - The Maca Experts.
This was an epic conversation with Corin, he’s had such an interesting health journey AND he’s filled with incredible wisdom! He’s passionate about sharing maca with New Zealand after it literally changed his own life.
We dive into;
- Corin’s journey which started with his chronic fatigue and depression.pHD in medicinal chemistry. He reached what we traditionally define as ’success’ but felt empty and on a chance holiday to Peru - met Sally and she gave him maca. Noticed incredible benefits to how de felt after just 4-6 weeks of taking the maca. He truly felt connected to the plant medicine and connected to mother earth. Went home and quit his job and moved to Peru!
- We talk about the energetics, the science and the sacredness of Maca. Where it comes from, (did you know it’s like a turnip!?), how it grow and how it’s prepared. There are some incredible biochemicals that are only found in maca - macamides.
- Indigenous cultures and how they followed the same philosophy to look after the earth. Thinking of plant as gifts which brings more gratitude and respect in. How incredible are plants!?
- How we can change the world by using our dollars to vote! We need to be conscious of the businesses we choose to support.
- The incredible work that Selenohealth has done for the community that grows their maca - by cutting out the middle man they can bring much more money directly to the community that grows the maca. They work directly with the farmers and the families that provide their maca.
- Corin uses Qi gong, ceremony, maca and mindfulness to stay connected, and present.
Corin highly recommended checking out the book Prometheus Rising - it’ll be next on my reading list! Find more about Selenohealth and where to find their Maca at https://selenohealth.com
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In today’s kōrero, I chatted to Taane Mete, who I know as a yoga teacher but is also a renowned choreographer and dancer.
I love how grounded I feel after Taane’s classes and as we talked about in the conversation, he weaves reo Maori language, legend and Latakia through his classes.
We talk about;
- Taane’s first experience of yoga was a bikram class at East West, he immediately felt different - he slept well, gut felt healthier, more alert, and more focused.
- Taane finds it easy to weave and cross thread Maori with Sanskrit as there are inherent similarities in indigenous cultures.
- He loves to garden as a way to connect with papatuanuku, as also finds connection through story.
- Dance is a big part of his life still and his choreography is inspired by everything around him which brings out his creative voice.
- Taane doesn’t get stressed about a formal self yoga practice! (This will be one of my takeaways!). He believes that practice can be done anywhere, anytime. Doesn’t have to be on a yoga mat.
- He’s actually going to yoga classes less often as he finds that sometimes teachers can get so wound up in what they want to project.
- Now that he does a lot of energetic work, he is careful about protecting his own energy and recommends being careful who we are an ‘open soul’ with.
- Taane’s most authentic relationships and connections have built over time, these are the important relationships that he holds close to himself.
- He fills his battery up with a combo of alone, home and pet time
“Listening is very important skill as a teacher”
Find Taane on instagram and his website is https://taanemete.com
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Racquel Minh of Kanuka Yoga is a trauma-informed yoga teacher and relationship anarchist. We recorded this conversation at Splore (inside the van!) which was heaps of fun.
We explored something that Raquel is passionate about which is ‘Using yoga philosophy to inform her relationship structure’.
- Using yoga philosophy (the ‘Yamas’ translated as moral discipline) in the process of exploring non-monogamy. Truth and non-harming being two specific Yamas that we talk about.
- We dive into Racquel’s experience with many caregivers growing up which explains the fact that we feels safe and secure with multiple partners.
- Moving into polyamory with her monogamous partner was a massive risk but it was important for Raquel to step into her truth.
- Having a safe and secure relationship enables someone to feel safe enough to explore what their truth is, no mater what that is.
- We talk about making monogamy a choice, not something you’re trapped in. The idea of conscious monogamy.
- Between two jobs and two partners, it’s hard to make time for herself (without being polygamous we can all relate to that!). She loves walking and snuggling with her dog Chica as a way to shake off the day.
- Racquel creates a safe space and holds space for people to allow them to be vulnerable.
- How communication is the most important thing in a relationship - no matter what structure it is.
If you're Auckland based check out Raquel's studio - Kanuka Yoga
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SPLORE SESSIONS
In the very first Splore Session, I chat to THE Wendy Douglas of ‘Wendy’s Wellness’ 😂
I had HEAPS of fun this year setting up my mobile podcast recording studio at Splore (also known as the van!).
The theme of this conversation is grief, but you may be surprised to know that although grief has featured heavily in Wendy’s life, this conversation is filled with joy and optimism which gives you a picture of who Wendy is as a person.
- As always, we start with Wendy’s journey into the spiritual realm of wellness. Grief is the emotion that kick-started that journey. First, a break up of an 8-year relationship in late 20s, which brings up the undigested grief from her mother dying suddenly.
- One-on-one work with a spiritual practitioner and past life regression is the modality that helps Wendy deal with the grief of her mother’s sudden death (Wendy also explains past-life regression!).
- Wendy’s optimism is infectious and she reassures Laura that things are changing and that more wellness modalities are being offering at schools.
- We chat on Splore, how did it happen? I ask Wendy about the challenges and learnings from it.
- Wendy finds joy in everything! It keeps her present and grounded.
- Bringing her WHOLE self to relationships allows her to connect authentically with others.
- Hugging and connecting with a tree is Wendy’s favourite way to connect to papatūānuku
- Relationship with self is the most important thing to relating intimately with others. The relationship with self is reflected in your relationship with your partner.
- Why forgiveness is so hard, but so important.
She recommends checking out Aubrey Marcus’ podcast and in particular this episode.
Here’s is Paul Selig’s website if you’re interested in checking him out.
Leave a review to let me know what you think!
Connect with me @wildr_wellness on instagram.
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On this episode of the Authentic Connection Podcast, Tish chatted with Fraser Beck, who is a passionate breathwork facilitator. Fraser is on a mission to teach the world how to breathe, believing that our breath is the epicenter of human function. Imagine if we all learned how to breathe properly, and the impact that could have on our global health crisis...
They dive into how Fraser discovered breathwork, why it is so incredible and has the potential to transform human health. And how all of this has led him to develop his own breathing technique called the OHM (Optimal Health Model).
We discuss how breathing could be a solution for Covid-19, the science behind the world of our fascia and why breathing is an important part of the picture (but ofc!), and how science is now (finally) pointing to spirituality. Plus many more tangents!
We hope that there is something in here that resonates with you and that you may be inspired to look into breathwork yourself. To connect with Fraser, follow him @yoga.athlectic.science and @optimalhealthmodel – He’d love to have a korero with you!
To listen to this episode head to our link in bio, iTunes or Spotify.
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I spoke to Olivia Scott, a energy healer and coach and we had a super fun conversation (from inside the van!). I've two sessions of reiki with Olivia and it's such an incredible healing modality that I wanted to learn more about it!
Check her website out for more in - www.lovebyolivia.com and she's also on Instagram @lovebyolivia
Here are the topics and wisdom that we cover in this conversation;
- How reiki was a natural progression of raw cooking, moving from working with the energetics of food to working with the energies of people. The original influence into spirituality for Olivia came from her Grandmother who lived off grid on Rakino Island.
- We talk about staying away from labelling your eating, and allowing yourself the freedom to eat what you want, to follow the intuitive guidance from your body!
- I ask Olivia how reiki actually works!
- Olivia is passionate about creating beautiful products that can help us become more purposeful with our daily practices and connect deeply to our body.
- Olivia loves alone time to process emotions and thoughts when she’s scattered.
- The key to connecting really authentically with others around you is get to know yourself first. When you are coming from a place of knowing yourself and being vulnerable allows you to create a safe space within your relationships for deep, authentic connection.
- Gratitude for the food we eat, growing your own herbs and veggies and preparing it with love as a way to connect to the earth.
- We talk about lessons from relationships - sometimes we can learn through love, and sometimes we can learn through pain. Olivia tells us about a recent relationship that helped her expand and encouraged her to contemplate who she is (we’re asking the big questions around here!).
Book recommendation - The Choice by Edith Eger
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Today’s episode of the Authentic Connection Podcast is with Grace Mortimer, holistic nutritionist and amazing human 💕
Check her out at www.gracemortimerhealth.com. Her books are open for clients so feel free to reach out to her!
We chat about nutrition, the ketogenic diet, alzheimers and Grace’s recipe for a calm and connected life.
- We dive into the really simple changes that Grace used with her clients that can really measurably improve serious health conditions - I won’t give away what the tips are here! You’ll have to listen to the podcast hehe.
- I ask Grace about the alzheimers study that she’s been involved in. Pretty exciting results! Study shows improvement in markers of alzheimers using a ketogenic diet. WE also chat about the fact that being metabolically flexible is beneficial for everyone - not matter their age and whether they have dementia.
- Grace talks about the lessons we can learn from the blue zones around the world
- Grace flips the interview onto Laura and asks her whether she’s been successful in slowing down since being in the van.
- Grace talks about her strategies to ground herself when she’s scattered, her favourite way to connect with the earth and the lessons from her darling husband, Connor.
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My conversation with Qiane was utterly delightful. She’s a down to earth human, with great practical advice that I’ll know you love and relate too. It’s immediately evident that she’s on this earth for a reason, her kaupapa has guided her, taught her and been incredibly rewarding.
Qiane is the founder and leading wahine of NUKU which is a project to amplify indigenous voices. NUKU is a movement, powered by, made by and made for, indigenous women. I highly encourage you to check out the total of 63 (at time of publishing with the goal to get to 100) indigenous wahine she has featured so far - so many incredible women with lessons for us all. Podcasts are on all good apps and stories + visual at https://nukuwomen.co.nz
We begin the conversation with Qiane telling us her journey with story telling; growing up as the only kid around and it being part of her Maori and Cook Island culture.
For those who want to know what they’re getting themselves into, here’s a breakdown
- We chat about how storytelling is what makes us human (i.e. distinct from other mammals) and listening to stories can actually produce feel-good hormones!
- Qiane tells us how NUKU came about - from long-form journalism to running her own business. The birth of NUKU actually came about in a big transition in her life - dealing with grief and infertility.
- Qiane gives us her WHY for NUKU - the long and the short of it is that indigenous women are at the bottom of the ‘privilege ladder’
- What has she learnt from NUKU - some incredible life lessons that I won’t give away here. (HINT: get to the root of your stress if you can!)
- How important our environment is for our stress levels and mental space!
- Food as a way to connect with friends and whānau. How to connect with those who are a little quieter or shy (meet them where they’re at and do something that helps them feel comfortable).
- How she and her partner of 18years balance each other out and the safety of the relationship allows her to be vulnerable and be held by him.
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Laura chatted to Faye Lawand, an internal conflict resolution expert (don’t worry - in the podcast, we go into what internal conflict is!) and stress elimination specialist.
We begin by diving into Faye’s journey from war-torn Lebanon, to a calm and happy life in beautiful Aotearoa. She talks us through stress and it’s incredibly big impact on the body and on our health longterm. We also explore;
- How stress has affected Faye’s life and her health
- Why you generally have to hit rock bottom in order to make the necessary but difficult life changes required for optimal health - we haven’t been taught to listen to out body.
- What internal conflict is?
- The subconscious is key for healing our body’s response to stress long term and why ‘thinking our way out of problems’ doesn’t work.
- Why are we so attached to ‘busyness’ as a status.
- Connecting with others authentically via this shared human experience.
- Making the most of the beautiful green spaces she has access to in Auckland (compared to the concrete jungle of her childhood!).
- Faye’s most important relationship (spoiler: it’s with herself!).
Find more about Faye’s offerings here - https://fayelawand.com/about/
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Tish had the pleasure of chatting with Brian Berneman, a Tibetin yoga facilitator, sound healer and space holder for meditation and qi gong. He is also the Co-founder of Conscious Action.
Tish was really inspired to explore sound as a healing therapy after experiencing her first sound bath with Brain Berneman. Since then, Brian has featured at Honey Pot Ceremonies, and took us through a powerful sound bath, some of you may remember!
Brian is full of so much ancient wisdom teachings and we can’t wait to share this convo with you. Here’s an overview of what you’re in for:
- Brian’s journey and how he got to where he is now. He was lucky to have such influential parents, who exposed him to lots of different spiritual practices in his youth. When he was 17 he already knew he was on his chosen path and exploring spirituality was part of his journey.
- What is sound healing, and how does it work? Sound is an energy frequency, we are energy beings – It’s all about resonance.
- The concept that everything is energy, becoming aware of our energy and how it interacts with other energy beings such as the grass beneath our feet, and how science and spirituality point to the same thing!
- Our body lives in the present, so being able to connect with our body helps us to come back into the present moment and notice how we feel in this moment.
- The expansion of time through inviting practice into our lives that helps us grow beyond linear time as we know it.
- How slowing down our inhales and exhales can support us when we feel ourselves becoming angry, fearful or anxious.
- How being able to give ourselves space to process what we are feeling, means we can let go of that energy in the body, instead of creating blockages.
- What a day in the life of Brian looks like: Personal takeaway is that before Brian opens his eyes in the morning, he automatically repeats his mantras in Spanish which translate to peace, love, light.
- A quick overview of his non-for-profit business Conscious Action.
- Portals (Stocked we touched on this!) You can choose to take a leap with a universal window of opportunity or not. The energy of the universe is going in that direction anyway - You get to choose if you use the energy to your advantage.
- There’s heaps of wisdom shared in this episode! Thanks so much to Brian for gifting his time to chat about all this us.
You can learn more about Brian at www.brainberneman.com or find him on Instagram @brianberneman
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What a beautiful conversation with a human who has really experienced everything he talks about. You’re in for a treat!
Laura speaks to Logan Pike; a yoga teacher, breath work facilitator and passionate ecstatic dancer.
In this meandering conversation, we touch on;
- Logan’s journey from drugs and partying to where he is now. He’s slowed down, he feels and can express his emotions and he doesn’t need drugs to get high! His journey features heavily in yin yoga which gave him space to be with his own thoughts.
- How having experienced something is a valid way of learning and understanding. Learning about things from books sometimes isn’t enough.
- We chat about what breath work actually is - it’s a term that’s bandied about a lot but Logan takes us through his definition and what we can get from it (hint: it’s uncomfortable but worth it!)
- Natural highs - do we need drugs to get high? Can we have the ‘highs’ without feeling low? (The answer is yes, if you’re using dance and breath work according to Logan).
- Letting things go. We can become so attached to an emotion that it becomes part of us, but it’s hard to remember to let it go. Just like we wear our clothes but they are not part of who we are.
- Get uncomfortable in order to grow emotionally and let go of things we’re holding onto!
- Ecstatic dance - finding freedom to move your body however it feels good.
- Logan’s journey to becoming an ‘emotional man’; how he did it and what he’s gained from it. We chat about crying; how it’s not a sign of weakness and is a great way to release and needs to be done regularly! Logan has worked hard to cultivate friendships in which it’s safe to share your emotions. The first step is finding someone you feel safe with and sharing a past experience and how it made you feel. Getting vulnerable is hard! But it’s worth taking that first leap
- If you don’t have anyone around you, don’t be afraid of therapy.
- Logan’s most important relationship and what he’s learnt. How Logan has got confortable with being alone.
- Sharing a challenging experience together, big or small, is the best way to connect.
- Watching the sunrise and walking barefoot.
Logan teaches around Auckland at various studios - check him out at https://www.rewild.community or on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/rewild.community/
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Well that’s a wrap! Season 1 is officially done and dusted! Thanks so much to all the amazing people we had on the podcast. Each conversation was unique and filled with so many learnings.
I figured it would be nice to wrap up season 1 with a little bonus episode with myself, Tish and Sarah from Honey Pot.
We asked Honey Pot’s community what they would love answered, and the following answers came through:
- What lessons are you in the process of learning?
- What has Covid-19 brought into your life or taught you?
- How do you deal with conflict?
- Your intention for next couple of weeks?
Some of the golden nuggets covered in this episode include:
- Trusting in the unknown
- Letting go of expectations
- Importance of spaciousness
- Responding before reacting
- How reflection can cultivate change
- Being curious
- And so much more!
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In this episode of Authentic Connection, I speak with Lotta Dann who is a recovered alcoholic and author of 3 books; the memoir ‘Mrs D is Going Without’, ‘Mrs D is Going Within’ as well as the book I read, ‘The Wine O’Clock Myth’.
She currently spends her time educating and supporting people in getting sober through the website Living Sober.
We talk about;
- How after 20 years of drinking and not seeing it as a problem, it was lying to her family that was the last straw. She realised that the problem wasn’t her, it was the alcohol, which gave her the strength to decide never to drink again. (This is now 9 years ago!).
- Sharing her own story and experiences when getting sober helped other people. Alcoholism is a hidden problem, people can easily look like they’re holding it together, but within they are a mess. Hearing people going through the same journey is powerful.
- Why is it so difficult for us humans to be authentic?
- Is the modern world set up to favour extroversion?
- Lotto used alcohol to allow herself to be an ‘a-grade emotion avoider’. She’s not just an aging party girl who relies on alcohol, she was using her habitual drinking to suppress uncomfortable emotions.
- Being sober is actually all about embracing your emotions.
- Marketing, our environment and social conditioning sets us up to believe we need alcohol to relax.
- Our environment means that it’s very isolating for those who are truly struggling with issues of addiction.
- We talk about the health impacts of alcohol. For example, there’s no doubt that breast cancer is linked with alcohol consumption. Although, it’s important to be clear that because it’s set up in our environment and social conditioning, we can take the blame off the individual, but that doesn’t mean its not within our control.
- Staying sober is Lotta's way to stay connected with herself. She loves good conversation with others and getting out for walks in nature with her dog.
- We chat about the brain neurochemistry side of addiction and drinking alcohol which is satisfying as it makes sense (and again, takes blame off the individual).
- Lotta’s lessons from long-term relationships; strong boundaries and knowing when to say no.
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In today’s juicy episode, I talk to Laura Ellen, a holistic sex educator and advocate of a pleasure based lifestyle.
- We begin talking about Laura’s burnout which leads to her pursuing a more yin, feminane based life.
- Laura takes us through a visualisation and some embodiment practices with her personal favourite being breast massage which she thinks is key to helping her lead with an open heart and purpose fueled pleasure.
- In a world of constant distraction, true presence with the people you love is a gift.
- Meditation as the best sex toy and lessons we can learn from past relationships and polygamy.
- The main issue that Laura’s clients deal with is being in their head too much - how she massively advocates for embodiment practices for getting women back in their body.
- Being in a relationship is a great way to grow (you can grow inside and outside a relationship).
- Laura’s lessons from past relationship, and maybe life’s biggest lesson impermanence
Check out Laura Ellen's website, her podcast and find her on instagram.
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In this podcast, I talk to Nikki Ralston of the Urban Ashram yoga studio in Auckland and creator of The Ralston Method.
- Nikki’s first yoga class and how it’s helped her feel more herself.
- The value of yoga, an online yoga practice and a physical yoga studio in the constant search for authentic connection.
- How yoga keeps Nikki’s ‘mind chatter’ volume turned low so that she can listen to the soft, gentle whispers of her heart.
- The incredible rewards and necessity for taking things slow and being quiet with yourself. Even just 5 minutes of getting quiet can shift you from being reactionary to being present and able to enjoy every moment.
- Being genuinely interested in people, as the key to cultivating authentic connections with people even when we don’t know them that well.
- Lockdown and the space/time that allowed us, has enabled Nikki to see clearly what wasn’t already working. Clear the clutter!
- Nikki’s lessons from her daughter.
If you’re interested in supporting the movement to separate yoga studios from gyms in the lockdown classification - leave your thoughts in this survey.
Nikki’s website - http://www.theralstonmethod.com/
Nikki’s instagram - @theralstonmethod
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In my conversation with Franko Heke the musician we talk about his journey from rock music to medicinal matra music, (vipassana being the accelerant!) and how music is his entry into the spiritual realm.
We delve into Franko’s spiritual practice of fasting, which keeps him clear and in tune with his true self. The less stuff we are filled with (i.e. thoughts, material things and food) the more clarity we can have as to what really, truly brings us bliss.
We finish with a bit of insight from Franko’s relationship with Nikki Rhodes - create white space in your calendar for your relationship and just allow what happens. And always be curious and open to your other half.
Check out Franko's music at his website https://www.frankoheke.com/music
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This is a delightful, meandering conversation with a very special human - Anna Birchall from Moon Turtle.
- Anna tells us about how she got into journaling
- We hear about Moon Turtle as it is in the present and what she wants to do over the rest of the year and going forward.
- Journalling as a way to bring about conscientiousness and awareness
- Anna’s many favourite ways to connect with others
- How the moon and the lunar cycles are a reminder of the constant cyclic, transient nature of life
- Anna’s affinity with hydrangeas
- Every person who comes into your life is there for a reason. To teach you to help you learn.
- The stories of clothes.
- Noticing the changes in yourself - is daily journalling too regular to notice changes?
- How OBSERVATION has helped Anna practice compassion towards herself
- Monthly intentions rather than goals (intentions are just goals that you can’t fail at).
- Outcome = authenticity, the way to get there is stop caring what people think/embrace discomfort.
- The difference between pain and discomfort
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**Laura and Kara-Leah take a deep dive into classical tantra which is about finding awakening (full embodied awareness) and liberation (dissolving of our conditioning) while still enjoying the material and beautiful things in life.
We also speak about Kara-Leah’s experience in lockdown - how a simple change in our environment can have such a profound effect on our body and mind, the underlying assumption of questions, and the reason people spend time resisting and rejecting what is already a reality.**
Check out Kara-Leah's website and her podcast Pillow Talk
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This week on Authentic Connection, Laura talks to Luke from @tayloredfitness about overcoming health ‘barriers’ and injury setbacks, brain health for concussion recovery and taking a holistic approach to the health of our bodies & business. Our discussion starts with Luke's interest in holistic rehabilitation began with his own diagnosis of Ehlers Danlos, a flexibility disorder, we then talk in depth about the strategies Luke used for his recent severe concussion. Even if you don't have a concussion, these are the same strategies we need to look at to keep our brain in the best health it can be for a long heathy life. Strategies including everything from fasting, magnesium to high dose fish oil. We touch on the barriers that are in people's own way when it comes to behaviour change and self worth.
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Laura speaks to her sister Sally Hett and their conversation covers topics from societal expecations, living by the ocean and feeling grounding. Sally talks about her love for journaling, dancing, and physical touch. The language we use is vitally important - could changing our use of Mother Earth to Lover Earth change our relationship with the earth? One of Sally's passions is using community resources to build collective wealth and we finish with Sally's journey to becoming loveable.
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Laura talks to Sarah Vickers, the third delightful human in the Honey Pot trio. They talk all things connection, from understanding clues that you’re disconnected (why did Sarah move every year for 7 years!?), stepping out of your comfort zone, meditation, learnings from relationships, vegetable gardens as a way to connect to nature and taking things SLOW.
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Laura Hett chats to Tish Mexted the founder of Honey Pot about her journey, the magic of yoga and the purpose of Honey Pot. Together we explore the challenge of getting entangled in the anxiety of uncertainty, and acknowledge the importance of being present, as that’s the only time we’ve got. We deep dive into the magic of yoga, and how through practice it can reveal your true authentic self. When we are our authentic selves, we attract other likeminded humans, allowing deep connections and friendships to form. And how through caring for ourselves, we inherently care for our community and the planet. We also delve into Tish’s relationship with her husband Luke, how he is a beacon for her growth, and what keeps things fiery in the bedroom.
Check out Honey Pot's website
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