Changeable Podcast

Being in silence is not about suppressing anything.  It’s also not about creating anything, such as an environment of peace or thoughtlessness or anything like that. It’s the exact opposite, actually. It’s about leaving everything alone to simply be exactly what it is.“What it is” is constantly changing. It is totally unknowable. It’s far too fluid to be known.  In silence, the self-ing process is more clearly seen. It’s like seeing how a magic trick is done; you can’t be fooled in quite the same way once it is seen. In that silence, the inherently safety in experience becomes obvious. The concept of safety is not even relevant there.  Consider steeping in this deep knowing in 5 days of silence with us in February. It would be an amazing way to start the new year. For better or worse, whatever comes and goes, things will not look the same afterward. ***I will be leading a Silent Retreat in Taos, New Mexico, February 22-27. The retreat will provide a supportive space for you to steep in your essential being. You’ll immerse in what’s always here, unchanging, beyond the pull of thoughts, feelings and identities, in the absence of everyday distractions and conditioning.The retreat is small, so space is limited. You can check out all the details at dramyjohnson.com/newmexico/ The post EP385: Special Rebroadcast: Noise is Silence Shouting appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

What if 95% of attention and energy went toward sensing, feeling, and intuition, and 5% went toward the use of thought? That ratio is typically reversed. I’ll explore this with regard to being with trauma, brainstorming and problem solving, and self inquiry.***I will be leading a Silent Retreat in Taos, New Mexico, February 22-27. The retreat will provide a supportive space for you to steep in your essential being. You’ll immerse in what’s always here, unchanging, beyond the pull of thoughts, feelings and identities, in the absence of everyday distractions and conditioning.The retreat is small, so space is limited. You can check out all the details at dramyjohnson.com/newmexico The post EP384: 95/5 appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

In this episode, we’ll explore how to end habitual psychological patterns such as reactivity, shutting down, becoming controlling or hypervigilant, or eating or drinking. The way to end a pattern – very oversimplified – is to become deeply familiar with the elements of the pattern and stay open, rather than react, when the pattern begins. ***I will be leading a Silent Retreat in Taos, New Mexico, February 22-27. The retreat will provide a supportive space for you to steep in your essential being. You’ll immerse in what’s always here, unchanging, beyond the pull of thoughts, feelings and identities, in the absence of everyday distractions and conditioning.The retreat is small, so space is limited. You can check out all the details at dramyjohnson.com/newmexico The post EP383: Staying open appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

Emma believes that she is unacceptable if her weight goes above a particular threshold.  This belief is behind 45 years of restrictive and binge eating. Emma is onto the fact that this is a belief, but that doesn’t feel like enough. If she doesn’t have the ability to simply stop believing this thought, what can she do? I’ll discuss how Emma can investigate her beliefs in a way that can help her gain some perspective on – and freedom from– them.***I will be leading a Silent Retreat in Taos, New Mexico, February 22-27.  The retreat will provide a supportive space for you to steep in your essential being. You’ll immerse in what’s always here, unchanging, beyond the pull of thoughts, feelings and identities, in the absence of everyday distractions and conditioning.The retreat is small, so space is limited. You can check out all the details at dramyjohnson.com/newmexico The post EP382: I’m not acceptable unless I’m thin. Questions from a listener with a 45 year history of disordered eating. appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

 There’s an extremely important distinction to be made when it comes to where and how attention falls. It’s the difference between attention being on something versus absorbed in it. Attention on the fact of thought is completely different from attention being absorbed in the content of thought.Attention on sensation or pain or the sense of self is completely different from attention absorbed in them.The difference is perspective and ultimately freedom.***I will be leading a Silent Retreat in Taos, New Mexico, February 22-27, 2026.The retreat will provide a supportive space for you to steep in your essential being. You’ll immerse in what’s always here, unchanging, beyond the pull of thoughts, feelings and identities, in the absence of everyday distractions and conditioning.The retreat will be small, so space is limited. You can check out all the details at dramyjohnson.com/silentretreat/ The post EP381: Attention On versus Attention In  appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

“Chaos should be regarded as extremely good news” – Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche Chaos seems unwanted and perhaps terrifying to a mind that’s always trying to hold things together.But in Greek mythology, Chaos is viewed as a primordial void or emptiness from which all else emerges. It’s the source of everything. Chaos, emptiness, void…source, aliveness, new life. It was not viewed as a lack of existence or total disorder, but the birthplace and source of everything.Maybe it really is extremely good news? *** I will be leading a Silent Retreat in Taos, New Mexico, February 22-27, 2026.The retreat will provide a supportive space for you to steep in your essential being. You’ll immerse in what’s always here, unchanging, beyond the pull of thoughts, feelings and identities, in the absence of everyday distractions and conditioning.The retreat will be small, so space is limited. You can check out all the details at dramyjohnson.com/silentretreat/ The post EP380: Chaos is extremely good news appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

There seems to be an innate intelligence that guides us when we deeply feel what is present. An intelligence emerges from simply being in what is without resistance. This intelligence is often less about firm conclusions and more about doing what feels most right right now. It’s less about security in a vision for the future and more about sensing immediate right action right now.Feeling reveals what there is to see. It contains pure possibility and potential. Thought can only negotiate based on the past, operating in what is already known. That’s the opposite of potential and possibility. ***Join me for a live, free, 2-hour class: The Silence at the Heart of Everything: Rediscovering What Never Changes on Monday, November 10thIn the class I’ll talk about the silence and stillness at the center of all things as well as several common benefits of prolonged time in silence. I’ll also tell you a bit about my upcoming Silent Retreats and answer your questions. Then we’ll have a quick break and an optional 30 minute guided-meditation-turned-silent-sitting together to give you a tiny taste of what’s possible. Register for the live class at dramyjohnson.com/silenceclassThe post EP379: The Intelligence in feeling appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

There is a lot of talk about prevention in the physical health world. It makes sense to prevent physical health problems when possible. Does this extend to emotional health?Can we prevent emotional discomfort? Does it make sense to try? Or is it safe to “wear your heart on your sleeve”, even when the world may be warning you against that?***Join me for a live, free, 2-hour class: The Silence at the Heart of Everything: Rediscovering What Never Changes on Monday, November 10thIn the class I’ll talk about the silence and stillness at the center of all things as well as several common benefits of prolonged time in silence. I’ll also tell you a bit about my upcoming Silent Retreats and answer your questions. Then we’ll have a quick break and an optional 30 minute guided-meditation-turned-silent-sitting together to give you a tiny taste of what’s possible. Register for the live class at dramyjohnson.com/silenceclassThe post EP378: Prevention appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

How – and why – communicate how you’re feeling with someone else? Dropping into the inner landscape and opening to what’s there…the thoughts, sensations, emotions, and beliefs that are present…and then expressing those to another person feels infinitely helpful.And it feels like something we often shy away from for any number of reasons. We’ll explore some of the reasons we shy away and also the enormous benefits of expressing experience  in this episode. ***Join me for a live, free, 2-hour class: The Silence at the Heart of Everything: Rediscovering What Never Changes on Monday, November 10thIn the class I’ll talk about the silence and stillness at the center of all things as well as several common benefits of prolonged time in silence. I’ll also tell you a bit about my upcoming Silent Retreats and answer your questions. Then we’ll have a quick break and an optional 30 minute guided-meditation-turned-silent-sitting together to give you a tiny taste of what’s possible. Register for the live class at dramyjohnson.com/silenceclassThe post EP377: Communicating feelings in a helpful way appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

In this episode I speak to a listener’s question about how she can be less reactive and more patient with her mom. We explore how she can watch the reactive patterns that arise with a sense of objectivity, curious about what’s showing up rather than judgmental of it and trying to change it. We also explore the nature of the resentment she feels and look at why that’s so important to explore.***I will be leading two Silent Retreats in 2026.The primary retreat (hosted and facilitated by me) will be in Taos, New Mexico, February 22-27. The second retreat (facilitated by me) will be in Hendersonville, North Carolina, February 1-6.Both retreats will provide a supportive space for you to steep in your essential being. You’ll immerse in what’s always here, unchanging, beyond the pull of thoughts, feelings and identities, in the absence of everyday distractions and conditioning.The retreats will be small, so space is limited. You can check out all the details at https://dramyjohnson.com/silent-retreats-2026/The post EP376: How can I stop being so reactive toward my mom? A question from a listener. appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

This week’s episode is a portion of a call with Kat Adamson.  Kat talks about how awareness is the essence of all things. Mostly, she talks about love. She shares her experience of the death of her partner and she discusses unconditional love and compatibility.I hope you are as impacted by this conversation as we were being part of it live. The post EP375: Awareness and Love with Kat Adamson appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

An inch deep and a mile wide typically describes a person with superficial knowledge of many things, but without deep knowledge of anything. A generalist, broad but shallow. Is experience an inch deep and a mile wide? In this episode, we use this phrase to explore the depths and dimensions of the felt sense, thought, emotion, and even the sense of self. ***I will be leading two Silent Retreats in 2026.The primary retreat (hosted and facilitated by me) will be in Taos, New Mexico, February 22-27. The second retreat (facilitated by me) will be in Hendersonville, North Carolina, February 1-6.Both retreats will provide a supportive space for you to steep in your essential being. You’ll immerse in what’s always here, unchanging, beyond the pull of thoughts, feelings and identities, in the absence of everyday distractions and conditioning.The retreats will be small, so space is limited. You can check out all the details at https://dramyjohnson.com/silent-retreats-2026/ The post EP374: An inch deep and a mile wide appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

Thought says no end of things. But what does thought do? Thought does things like conclude, restate, and provide frames and contexts.What thought does is often more subtle and easy to miss than what thought says, but it’s far more valuable to see.***I will be leading two Silent Retreats in 2026. The primary retreat (hosted and facilitated by me) will be in Taos, New Mexico, February 22-27. The second retreat (facilitated by me) will be in Hendersonville, North Carolina, February 1-6.Both retreats will provide a supportive space for you to steep in your essential being. You’ll immerse in what’s always here, unchanging, beyond the pull of thoughts, feelings and identities, in the absence of everyday distractions and conditioning.The retreats will be small, so space is limited. You can check out all the details at https://dramyjohnson.com/silent-retreats-2026/The post EP373: What thought is saying vs. what it’s doing appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

When someone says they are distracted, they are expressing an agenda or expectation for where attention should be. They are essentially saying “I’d like attention to be on this project or on my breath or on the person in front of me, but it’s somewhere else”.What would it be like to simply watch attention shift without those expectations? In that way, it’s not “distraction” which implies a problem. It’s a simple shift in attention. In this way, everything gets to be exactly what it is with no problem.***I will be leading two Silent Retreats in 2026.The primary retreat (hosted and facilitated by me) will be in Taos, New Mexico, February 22-27. The second retreat (facilitated by me) will be in Hendersonville, North Carolina, February 1-6. Both retreats will provide a supportive space for you to steep in your essential being. You’ll immerse in what’s always here, unchanging, beyond the pull of thoughts, feelings and identities, in the absence of everyday distractions and conditioning.The retreats will be small, so space is limited. You can check out all the details at dramyjohnson.com/silentretreats2026The post EP372: Distraction appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

Mary is struggling with guilt over something that happened in her relationship a few years ago.  Listen in as we explore our responsibility for feelings, societal ideas of right and wrong, honesty, and much more. The post EP371: How can I let go of guilt? A question from a listener  appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

In this episode I explore how one might coach someone with chronic pain. Is chronic pain really treated the same way as anxiety, habits and depression? Can it be helped solely through the lens of what’s shared in here?I’ll discuss the impact of the word “chronic” in all suffering and how we can have impact by looking there, but that we never need to rely on any particular lens. The post EP370: Coaching around – and finding peace in – chronic pain appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

Is the quality and nature of present moment experience solely a function of attention? Attention is always contracting and expanding. Sometimes it’s so absorbed in me-and-my-life that all we seem to experience is a stream of me-centered ups and downs.Other times, attention seems to release or expand and experience is very different. The me-and-my-life components might just be a tiny proportion of what’s noticed. We tend to equate one with suffering and the other with peace. Looking at this as a simple function of attention opens up a new way of seeing what’s happening. The post EP369: Attention appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

In this episode I share an exchange between myself and a member of our community around her experience of anxiety.  I am pointing to What Is before summary thoughts like “I keep feeling anxiety” or “I am afraid something is wrong”. Those summary thoughts are fine – they are powerless – but they are getting all the attention and are being confused with reality. There is a reality here, now, before thought. When we look in that direction, we sense it. This is an instant way “out of anxiety”. The post EP368: Feeling your way through anxiety appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

Some thoughts, like “no matter what”, “ too late now”, “this always happens”, “I knew it”, somehow feel more true than others, don’t they? Thoughts like these have a scent of finality and certainty. They seem unquestionable. They don’t appear as thought most of the time. They appear as a description of the-way-it-is. But they are the same as any thought. Fundamentally untrue because they are a representation, an after-the-fact label, a reflection. They are dead and powerless because they are thoughts. The post EP367:  “No matter what” is a powerless thought  appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.

In this episode, Lisa Natoli and I talk about identity. She shares her experience coming to identify with the simple aliveness that’s always here. We discuss the role of being in what is and exploring that in helping her see through identity with the Lisa character.  If you’d like to see more about Lisa and her healing work, check her out here: www.lisanatoli.com            The post EP366: Identity with Lisa Natoli appeared first on Dr. Amy Johnson.