Clapp with Jane with Jane Clapp

***Trigger warning for this episode - we discuss sensitive topics including sexual assault and violence. In this episode I had the pleasure of speaking with Molly Boeder Harris about her work and her journey with the Breathe Network and her own experiencing recovering from sexual assault. The Breathe Network connects survivors of sexual trauma with sliding-scale, trauma-informed, holistic healing practitioners across the United States and Canada.  We talk about:How understanding our nervous systems is not just relevant for people living with acute or overt trauma histories and is a useful resource for navigating life.How we over protect certain area of the body in the somatic and movement world and then neglect to think about other areas of the body that are unique and specific to a survivor's story.How the body is a resource for pleasure and joy and goodness in the way we offer yoga and somatic practice to trauma survivors.How long it can take a survivor to come to terms with the fact they've experienced sexual assault.The ways that the Breathe Network focuses on anti-oppressive best practices for trauma education in addressing both personal and collective trauma....and much more.More about MollyMolly Boeder Harris is the Founder and Executive Director of The Breathe Network, a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP), and a trauma-informed yoga teacher and trainer. Her own experiences surviving sexual trauma catalyzed her to enter the trauma healing field in 2003, beginning with her work as a medical and legal advocate with children and adult survivors, a campus violence prevention educator and as a yoga teacher specializing in working with survivors. She earned her Master’s Degree in International Studies and her Master’s Certificate in Women’s & Gender Studies, which inform the way she holds both individual and collective forms of trauma and oppression close together in her work. Over the last 2 decades of her career and healing trajectory, she has found that the practices which recognize the whole person – body, mind and soul – and which also honour the ways in which trauma and resilience manifest physiologically, offer the greatest possibility for embodied justice and social change.To learn more or reach out follow Molly on Instagram (@mollyboha) and (@thebreathenetwork) Visit the Breathe Network's website: www.thebreathenetwork.orgIf you're enjoying the podcast and would like to contribute, please visit the PatreonSupport the show

In this episode, I had the honour of speaking with Rebeckah Price about the powerful work she has been leading for many years to reshape and decolonize wellness. She discusses what it actually means to create real systematic change in the health and wellness community for BIPOC and other marginalized communities, given the inherit inequities that exist in the wellness industrial complex.  Rebeckah's deep commitment to liberation is truly inspiring and will move you, as it did me. Two stand out quotes that summarize the wisdom Rebeckah shared:"Any people that come from a history of resistance, the idea of liberation is fundamental to who you are.""Wellness is an industrial complex because it's inherently telling you there's something wrong with you, that you're broken, and that's coming from a colonial mentality."More about Rebeckah:Rebeckah Price is a wellness advocate and yoga instructor (RYT 200), that draws on her wealth of knowledge of working in underserved, marginalized, racialized, and immigrant communities in Canada, the United States and the Caribbean. In 2015, Rebeckah founded irise yoga + wellness- as a way to connect, promote, bring awareness to and foster the inclusion of people of colour and other historically marginalized groups in yoga and wellness spaces. Rebeckah's work is rooted in an intersectional understanding of power  and harnessing the tools and resources to facilitate community change. With over 20 years in the not-for-profit sector as a Community Development and Engagement Specialist, Rebeckah has worked on and developed strategies and policies related to diversity & inclusion, equity, conflict resolution, settlement and integration and creating safe, cohesive communities. Rebeckah uses her lived experience as a Woman of Colour and her unique expertise in community development and engagement to bridge and address the gap of diversity in the wellness industry through workshops, etc. Support Rebeckah's work via her Patreon page or be sure to follow her on Instagram. To learn more about her work, visit websites iRise Yoga and Wellness or at the Well Collective.Support the show

In this episode, I had the honour to speak with Dr. Jamie Marich about ongoing and ever changing trauma and addiction recovery. Two of the things she said resonates so deeply for me:"When I look at change, so much about it is in the healing power of consistency and I think that's fundamentally good for people who have survived complex trauma." AND"We may have parts and aspects of self but we all represent a working wholeness. What you have is already inside you. It just may take some processing to fully embrace that as truth and live it fully."Jamie is one of the bravest and most authentic trauma therapists and experts I know. She speaks openly about living in both addiction recovery and with dissociation, paving the way for our shame to fall away and transformation to emerge, bringing us back into our innate wholeness. Jamie Marich, Ph.D., LPCC-S, LICDC-CS, REAT, RYT-500, RMT travels internationally speaking on topics related to EMDR therapy, trauma, addiction, expressive arts and mindfulness while maintaining a private practice and online education operations in her home base of Warren, OH. She is the developer of the Dancing Mindfulness approach to expressive arts therapy, the co-creator of the Yoga Unchained approach to trauma-informed yoga, and the developer of Yoga for Clinicians.  Jamie is the author of numerous books, including the popular EMDR Made Simple and EMDR Therapy and Mindfulness for Trauma Focused Care) written in collaboration with Dr. Stephen Dansiger. North Atlantic Books published a revised and expanded edition of Trauma and the 12 Steps in the Summer of 2020.For more information on how to connect with her work, go to: www.jamiemarich.com Find her on Instagram or Facebook Purchase one of her booksTo contribute the podcast please visit our Patreon, where 10% of the proceeds will be donated to DOCTORS WUHOUT BORDERS and another 10% will go to a different organization fighting racism each month.Support the show

In this episode, I had a truly amazing conversation with Ori Aguila. I am beyond grateful to have had this opportunity to speak with them/him/él and take in some of their/his/él wisdom. We discuss what death means in our modern urban environment as well the importance of knowing what grace is and having the ability to offer grace to ourselves and each other and to step into personal responsibility when it is offered.Ori Aguila (they/he/él), a Multi-hyphenate Death Worker, Educator, and Advocate, is a mixed Jewish and reclaiming Indígena Muisca of Occupied Colombia trauma specialist, death worker, writer, and grief & loss educator. They are Two-Spirit, TransNative, Queer AF, and sober transracial adoptee. For over 3 decades, Ori has provided care to the dying, the grieving, those who have experienced loss. An abolitionist community caregiver, they take on antisemitism, cultural genocide, transphobia, harm reduction, and advocate for adoptee rights in their work to bring justice and liberation to the death, grief, and loss care space.You can learn more or reach out by following them/him/él on Instagram, visiting their/his/él website at athrivelife.org, Support the show

I'm honoured to have shared in this conversation with Prentis Hemphill and to have listened to the wisdom they bring to embodiment and healing justice work. I trust you will feel both inspired and moved as well. They share about what inspired the creation of the Embodiment Institute and how evolving 'somatic practice' is a key to coming into collective healing and dismantling systems of oppression.Prentis Hemphill (They/Them) is a Texas born, embodiment practitioner, therapist, writer and the founder of The Embodiment Institute and Black Embodiment Initiative. For the past 15 years, Prentis has been unearthing the connections between individual healing, community accountability and our most inspired visions for social transformation. Before founding The Embodiment Institute, Prentis was the Healing Justice Director at Black Lives Matter Global Network, co-founding partner of organizational consulting firm, Groundwork Project, and has been a teacher of somatics with generativesomatics and Black Organizing for Leadership and Dignity (BOLD) for nearly 10 years. In 2016, Prentis was awarded the Buddhist Peace Fellowship Soma Award for community work inspired by Buddhist thought. Prentis’ work has been featured in the New York Times and Huffington Post and is a contributor to The Politics of Trauma by Staci K. Haines as well as the upcoming Holding Change by adrienne maree brown. Prentis is the host and creator of the popular podcast, Finding Our Way entering its’ second season in Jan. 2021. Prentis currently lives on a small farm in Durham, NC with their partner, Kasha and their three dogs, on land first loved and stewarded by the Saponi people and near where Prentis’ ancestors were first brought to Turtle Island. InstagramWebsiteFinding Our Way Podcast on SpotifyContribute to their work here:PatreonVenmoSupport the show

I just can't express enough gratitude to Kevin T. Hobbs for sharing this conversation with me. I have been left changed, moved and inspired by what he shared and I know you will too. We talk about how his participation in a specific theatre production saved his life and his work in bringing the same healing power to people through the D.O.S.E. Foundation.  How he went from the throws of homelessness and depression to peace and hope, the focus of his new podcast, Kevin's Way Out as well as his upcoming feature film.Here are just a few snippets of wisdom from Kevin:“I love theatre because at its best it just allows us to be, be whoever who we are, be wherever we are in that journey in life, and to just be without any kind of excuses.” “Having the confidence to be confronted with the unknown is improv. Having the confidence to reach outside yourself can save your life.”“Improv is a beautiful form of non-violent communication.”“There’s space for all of us. One of the things that we fight against in society is this idea that there’s not. But there is, we just have to accept where we are, take what we have and keep going. "More about Kevin:Kevin T. Hobbs is a professional actor, Sundance trained filmmaker, writer, musician, and SEL certified teaching artist hailing from Central Illinois. Kevin has appeared on movie screens and stages across the country. He is also the host of the new podcast, Kevin’s Way Out.Kevin is also the founder of the D.O.S.E. Foundation (a nonprofit whose mission it is to ensure that the theater community becomes a more accurate mirror of the world in which we live), where he functions as the executive director and serves as the artistic director of the upcoming National August Wilson Monologue Competition for Central Illinois (2021), for which the D.O.S.E. Foundation is the regional sponsor. Currently, Kevin is hard at work on his first feature film, 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙬.To learn more or to connect with Kevin, follow him on Instagram, listen to his podcast Kevin's Way Out (on most audio streaming platforms), or through his email at kevinswayout@gmail.comIf you are enjoying to podcast and would like to contribute to it, please visit my Patreon page!Support the show

In this multi-faceted episode, I am so grateful to speak with fellow Jungian Analyst in training and movement magician, Mackenzie Amara, AKA 'THE INKED SHRINK", about the role that culture plays in our minds and in our lives. We go into our mutual love of the intersection of the soma and psyche and how she always includes elements of analytical psychology, myth, alchemy, and shadow work in her teaching and how dance and depth psychology are part and parcel for her and cannot be separated. A few things we talk about:The place that Jungian theory holds in our modern world, and how Jung's wisdom can be used to understand how it's rapidly changingWhat happens when minds socialized by western culture try to absorb eastern philosophy and mysticismWhat it means to recognize our wholeness, and our complexity as individualsThe mercurial nature of being in relationship with other humansThe place and importance of irrationality, non-sense, and non-linear in our lives and mindsGolden nuggets of wisdom from Mackenzie..."That next step is the only thing that you can do right now. So you have to start where you are or otherwise you’re nowhere.""We’ve been culturally programmed and religiously programmed to avoid that recognition [of evil] in ourselves lest we give into too deeply.""When the culture can’t hold the experiences of another culture’s religion or zeitgeist or tradition, you just sort of fall through.""You can’t move beyond the next movement. Whether that’s the next breath,  or admission or confession, or the next twirl or the next partner, or the next eye gaze. "About MackenzieBy trade Mackenzie is a writer, coach, & 5Rhythms® teacher. By vocation she is a Jungian analyst-in-training & Clinical Psychology doctoral student. By design she is a collection of fractal, holographic cells dancing around some strange attractor for the sake of who knows what to live an insignificant, mythic life reflective of the mysterious vital spark within her. She identifies as a series of memories & unverifiable subjective experiences of self-hood to which she is rather fondly attached. She has a penchant for scholarship, the occult, pedantic erudition, morbid humor, grandiosity, nihilism, & semi-responsible hedonism. Born in the shadow of New Age culture into a fractured family system & the subjective experiencer of (arguably) extreme early childhood trauma, her life’s work is to heal psychic wounds—her’s & other’s—that she & others become strong enough to contend with the unconscious quicksands & transpersonal abysses which lap at the periphery of developing consciousness. She is an emergent property of Being playing at becoming sovereign. She really, really loves butter. Connect with Mackenzie through @theinkedshrink or learn more by visiting her website!Support the podcast with our Patreon!Support the show

In this eye-opening episode I talk with a truly inspiring woman, Dee de Lara! We discuss her work with the paradigm shifting movement hub, What Time, co-creating BIPOC-centred online space and disrupting expectations of how and where to find movement.Places to connect with Dee on Instagram:Dee de LaraWhat Time - Movement Class HubA few of things our conversation touched upon:Dee's experience coming into a nourishing relationship with her body in a studio environment and how that sparked her up to questions like: "Who's not in the room right now and why". Why conflict is part of a healthy studio environment and can be the very thing that leads dismantling oppression in movement and wellness communitiesThe complicated future for the studio wellness communities in Toronto (and beyond) as a result of the pandemic as well as the paradigm shifts that are disrupting systems of oppression in the community. What's going to be birthed out of this loss and struggle?How racism shows up in our lives as Canadians, and the lies we tell ourselves about the nature of white supremacy in the Canadian cultural contextQuotes from Dee to inspire you:"To experience deep connection and intimacy, we have to do both. We need to be able speak with passion, assertiveness and confidence and also listen with openness compassion and humility. ""This idea that wellness shouldn’t or isn’t up to one figure or authority to decide who deserves it or who gets access to it.""As human beings, we want to feel like we’re a part of something, but there’s more than one way to feel that."About Dee:Dee de Lara's (she/her) life and passion is all about listening to and telling stories, her own and those of others. She aims to co-create spaces to weave a web to between humans to share their experiences and feel more connected by: teaching MOVEMENT that aims to inspire curiosity, facilitating CONVERSATIONS that spark more reflection and action with Dinner Confidential and Insights in Color, making JEWELRY that reframes context and expectations. Dee is also here to ask QUESTIONS to disrupt the status quo, to elevate and amplify the voices of BIPOC and to critically interrogate the systems that exist. And ultimately to learn widely and deeply from others. Today, one of Dee’s core values is disruption: not about interfering, but about trusting natural processes and interrupting patterns and behaviour to foster abundance and growth. At the beginning of August, with Bea Palanca, she launched @WHAT_TIME___, an Instagram hub to aggregate and connect independent, emerging and BIPOC movement teachers' offerings. WHAT_TIME is committed to disrupting the expectations of where to find movement, how it is organized and from whom you can find it. The ultimate aim is to centre BIPOC voices and experiences. Connect with her @deedelara. Support the show

In this episode I speak with the luminous Elke Schroeder about her powerful work inspired by Fighting Monkey and how it dove tails with creating a more robust and adaptable nervous system and to bring us into deeper relationship with self and our environment. Dive in into the philosophy of Fighting Monkey, a movement practice revolutionizing the way we think about our place in space and  in connection to fellow humans. Hear about the importance of moving beyond our predictable movements habits as well as the intersection between FM and the dismantling of systems of oppression in and outside of the movement world. Start asking questions about how the fitness industry keeps our bodies stuck in limiting beliefs about ourselves and our bodies' ability to navigate external pressures to find what FM refers to as 'earthquake architecture'. "Fighting Monkey is not an easy thing to do, not only for coordinations, but in general ... because you are confronting a lot of your patterns and blocks.""It's not a fight practice, It can seem like fighting, but actually it's about fighting your monkey mind.""It's a reclaiming of your physicality to harness those tools of resilience."Elke is a Mover. A dancer, performer and Fighting Monkey student and instructor. Her diverse movement background includes dance of many styles, floor-work, acrobatics, yoga and martial arts. She is an archer, a poetry maker, a forest-dweller, a chocolate-eater - full of wanderlust, tornado-winds and boundless energy.Elke leads a practice that is fluid, strong, and creative. She encourages Play, rough-housing and curiosity, tempered with an attunement to self-awareness. In to go Out, out to go In.A graduate of the School of Toronto Dance Theatre, the Octopus Garden Yoga Teachers Training and Mentorship programs, the University of Toronto Drama Program and the University of Waterloo Independent Studies program, Elke teaches at myriad organizations such as Spirit Loft, L’Artère Danse, (Québec), the University of Calgary, Ryerson University, The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, GMD Toronto, T.O. Love-in,, Jane Clapp/Movement for Trauma, Mosaic Yoga, and YYoga (Brussels). She is an active creator and performer of contemporary dance (20+ years) and travels for her work throughout Canada and abroad).Find Elke on Instagram @elkebschroeder or Facebook: Inspire by Fighting Monkey with ElkeSupport the show

In this enthralling episode, I spoke with Anita Bhardwaj and Raggi Kotak about their work and upcoming six week program, Race Resilience. I was honoured to speak with them about their decades long social justice and somatic healing expertise and the powerful work they do in the UK and beyond. Race Resilience is a professional collaboration that combines their forty years experience of activism, exploring ground-breaking tools and resources to understand and move forward on the issue of racial justice.Anita BhardwajFor twenty years Anita has worked as a senior manager, trainer consultant and coach in organisations, with a specialism in developing services on the issues of gender violence, race and mental health. This has offered her the opportunity to develop a deep understanding of the impact of issues of power and abuse, based on one’s social identity, as well as the variety of layers and aspects that are required to heal and recover from such experiences.Her training includes Psychology, Life and executive coaching, Thai Yoga Massage, Reiki Practitioner, Chi Kung Teacher, TRE (Tension Stress and Trauma Release) Provider. Anita works in organisations (individuals/teams) and in clinical practise. She has a keen interest in working with both those that are impacted by racism and other forms of abuse; and professionals to support them to recover and expand their own resilience to the stress and vicarious trauma, they experience. Her work is embedded within a framework that acknowledges personal and social histories of trauma whilst challenging the, structural inequalities, social injustices and oppression as the root context from which stress and trauma manifest for individuals and communities.Raggi KotakRaggi is a south Asian queer woman living in London. She is a human rights barrister, who has worked with asylum seekers for twenty years. She has a long history of anti-oppression work and has been involved in the setup and running of numerous ground-breaking and award winning projects. Raggi trains in Process Work - a widely respected facilitation method for conflict and change, which informs her work. She specialises in issues of power and oppression.  She provides consultancy, facilitation, training, coaching and mentoring, working with individuals, groups and organisations. Raggi is the founder and main facilitator of an active online discussion forum called Race Talk, which aims to bring different racial groups together to find ways through their racial conditioning and trauma. She is also a facilitator for the Racial Justice Collaborative, an international project challenging racism through dialogue. Raggi’s work is informed by psychology, trauma awareness and movement work, in which she has extensively trained.Visit their website learn more about their upcoming Race Resilience course starting October 21st.Support the show

We dedicate this podcast to Michael Young. Without his courageous battle with addiction and his passing, Anie and I might never have crossed paths.Join me for a conversation with my dear friend, Anie Boudreau, Addiction Recovery and Chronic Pain Coach and Yoga Therapist.In this conversation we talk about how she supports her clients by:Helping her clients see possibilities and getting back to their spirit and believing that they should be here.Harnessing the container of playfulness, wonderment and an open heart to help people who have shut down on themselves and to help them connect with wonderment again.Harnessing nervous system health during addiction recovery and that those who are looking for a point A to point B through the nervous system will find there’s no such thing.Sharing her own discoveries that when it feels like her whole life is a storm, she repeats the mantra, "it is impossible for 100% of the things in your life to be going wrong … it may be my nervous system giving me false information."Embodying the teaching: “The opposite of addiction is not sobriety, the opposite of addiction is connection”- Johann HariAnie Boudreau has been on her own healing journey for over 20 years.  She has lived with a brain injury after suffering from nearly 30 concussions as a downhill mountain bike racer and snowboarder.  It’s been a journey, to say the least, learning how to maneuver through pain every day while living a joyful life.  Anie has learned the capacity to meet discomfort with kindness and curiosity.  Meeting pain with awe and wonder instead of fear, anger and shame allows for a greater sense of connection to body, to self, and to environment. This genuine connection is the antidote to suffering.  As a Certified Yoga Therapist, an Advanced-level Addiction Recovery Coach & Trainer, and Life Mentor, Anie’s intention is to empower you with practical tools that can be used in the ups and downs of your daily life. Anie uses advanced embodied & mindfulness techniques and is a specialist in pain science, nervous system regulation, movement for trauma, psychedelic treatment for addiction recovery and contemplative psychology .  She works one-on-one with individuals, teaches classes, and facilitates groups, programs and workshops specializing in topics such as living with chronic pain, addictions and emotional distress.Anie has realized that the healing power of sharing her story and having it heard, seen and acknowledged significantly eases her symptoms. This is the practice of speaking from the heart, and it's a huge part of the work she does at School of Reverence. It's potent and powerful.Through all the pain, trauma and training, Anie is immensely grateful for the way her life has unfolded because she is able to help others in a really skillful way that brings her so much joy. Instagram: @schoolofreverenceWebsite: anieboudreau.comSupport the show

Tune into my conversation available last week with Afeef Nessouli, a journalist, activist and videographer. We discuss his experiences participating in Black Lives Matter protests in New York and his own journey living with a history of trauma and health challenges.Two of my favourite quotes:"I feel so connected to the point of getting on the streets and making change because of my acute pain towards systems. I'm not happy that I have that pain. I'm just not resisting it anymore.""You get to be the kind of person that trusts themselves so thoroughly that you are going to make a mistake and you are going to fail. You're going to get something wrong and then you're going to correct yourself along the way because that's the process."Afeef's experience as a journalist ranges from freelancing for CNN to being a news producer for The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. After two years reporting in Lebanon and documenting the lives of those displaced, he returned to New York at the start of the COVID-19 crisis. He's been playing an active role in the protests in New York by videotaping and providing a different perspective than what's shown in mainstream news sources. Afeef's mission as a journalist is to give his audience a real and human look at the experiences of those who are oppressed.Instagram: @afeefnessWebsiteSupport the show

Join me for a conversation with Vanessa Scotto that challenges all the self love memes we see every day and takes us into the longer and more winding path to reaching a place of self love.We talk about: Self compassion as a gate way to self love.Cognitive approaches to self love versus self love that happens on a cellular level. How difficult it can be to absorb and accept love from others when we have experienced abuse, trauma and mistreatment.How Vanessa used to believe that if anyone really knew her, they wouldn't love her and how she got to a place of self love in her life.Vanessa Scotto is a Teacher, Mentor and Coach in private practice who has dedicated over two decades to exploring the dynamic interplay of the Mind, Body and Spirit. She holds two masters degrees in both Traditional Chinese Medicine and Transpersonal Psychology; and is a certified practitioner of the Realization Process with Judith Blackstone. Vanessa is also the co-host of the Bliss and Grit podcast; A show devoted to intimate conversations about awakening and embodied spirituality. With a background in Eastern philosophy, Contemplative Psychology, Mysticism and somatic meditation, Vanessa takes a holistic approach to transformation, self-realization and self-love. For more information on mentorship or upcoming classes with Vanessa please go to www.vanessascotto.com or go to www.blissandgrit.com to tune into her podcast.Support the show

In this beautiful and moving conversation with Worthy, I was left with my heart full and my hunger for life affirmed.  Worthy's story about her near death experience and her brave heart moved me to tears. I know this episode will help breathe life back into your soul and soma. One of my favourite quotes from Worthy in this episode (so hard to pick just one):"Our bodies and souls are so intelligent that there can be a microscopic spontaneous shift in the fabric at any moment."Worthy Stokes is the founder of HeartMind® Meditations and author of The Daily Meditation Book of Healing. She is a polytrauma survivor who lives with life-altering sensory loss since overcoming a complicated traumatic brain injury overseas at the age of 34. Her vivid Near Death Experience, a decade of advanced meditation training that began in 2008 with her introduction to Dzogchen, and her battle to retrieve her very own mind inspired her career of teaching and coaching at the nexus of nondual wisdom, emergent neuroscience, and healing.Worthy is endorsed by world renowned medical doctors teaching at Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania, and beyond. She is known as a healer for the healers among award winning CEOs, trauma survivors, psychologists, and somatic experts who appreciate her groundbreaking, interdisciplinary perspective of healing.Worthy has spent countless hours with her neurologists reviewing maps of her own brain, she has followed clinical research since meeting the late Dr. Candace Pert in 2007, and she directly apprehends the mystical complexity of transformation.She shares her free time with her husband, who is an adult literacy expert; he helps her read and write. Worthy holds a bachelor of arts degree in Journalism, and she is currently writing her second book. Worthy is her real, given birth name.Worthy's book you can purchase here: The Daily Meditation Book of Healingwww.worthystokes.comInstagram: @iamworthystokesAuthor of The Daily Meditation Book of HealingHeartMind® Meditation Teacher on Insight TimerQUICK LINK TO JOIN MY CONSCIOUS BODY SUPPORT GROUPSupport the show

Finding our passion, wonder and inspiration while living with the effects of trauma in ourselves or someone we love and a candid discussion on the challenges of navigating the mental system to find support for complex PTSD.That's what this episode with Heather Tuba really highlights. How we can both survive some days and thrive other days.  We really dig into how much shame is created when mental health services fall short for trauma survivors and their partners and families. Heather is fierce and clear, boundaried and compassionate. I adore and respect her. Heather and I also talk about how she found me through an article titled CIGARETTES, SHAMES AND SELF COMPASSION, a very honest and vulnerable share of what it was like to move out of shame when I got the support I needed to recover from complex trauma. MORE ABOUT HEATHER: Heather Tuba is a writer, coach, and trauma-integrated practitioner with a specialization in support for partners of individuals with complex trauma. She is a graduate of the University of Winnipeg, the Attachment and Trauma Centre for Healing, and is certified as a trauma recovery coach. She is also an alumni of the Humber College School for Writers.Heather is recognized for her ability to communicate the nuanced and diverse experiences of partners within the context of another’s trauma. Her approach is multi-faceted and draws on thought and practices inside and outside the trauma field. As someone with the lived experience of being a partner to an individual with cPTSD, she is committed to the creation of practical strategies to improve the quality of partners’/supporters’ daily lives. In addition to individual coaching, she consults with sexual assault centres, trauma clinicians, and non-profits providing psychoeducation on secondary traumatic stress in partners and what partners/ supporters need to know about trauma. Her work/ideas are regularly referenced and shared on trauma related blogs and websites.WebsiteInstagram @heathertubaFacebook @heathertubaSupport the show

Join me for a packed conversation with Kimberly Johnson: Vaginapractor, Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, Sexological Bodywork and author of The Fourth Trimester.BRAIN JUICE coming your way. We talk about:Her new book that is in the worksHow the trauma recovery world leaves out (re)building healthy sexual expressionHer work in facilitating pelvic mapping sessionsParenting teenagers during COVID19Authenticity in social mediaKimberly  is a Sexological Bodyworker, Somatic Experiencing trauma resolution practitioner, Structural Integration bodyworker,  yoga teacher trainer, birth doula, and single mom. She specializes in helping women prepare for birth, recover from birth injuries and birth trauma, and heal from sexual trauma. She is the author of  The Fourth Trimester: A Postpartum Guide to Healing Your Body, Balancing Your Emotions and Restoring Your Vitality. Kimberly specializes in helping women heal from birth injuries, birth trauma, and sexual boundary violations.  She is the creator of Activate your Inner Jaguar, an online course ushering thousands of women into their full voices and sexual expression and the founder of Magamama.com.Instagram @magamamasSupport the show

Join me for a packed and mind blowing conversation with Britt Frank, a leading trauma specialist and mental health thought leader. One of my favourite episodes to date.We cover everything from:Misconceptions in trauma recovery that hold us backGrieving the end of our childhood Narcissism as an addiction, not a personality disorderThe overuse and misuse of the phrase “Nervous System Regulation” and the new term Britt coined in our conversation "Toxic Regulation"Britt Frank, MSW, LSCSW, SEP is a speaker, teacher, and trauma specialist. Britt received her BA from Duke University and her Master's from the University of Kansas, where she is now an award-winning adjunct professor. She is certified in Somatic Experiencing and is Level 1 Internal Family Systems trained. Her mission is to empower people to understand the inner workings of their minds and brains so that the change process moves from mystery to mastery. Find Britt now:Instagram @brittfrankWebsite Support the show

Tune into a rich conversation with me and Brooke Thomas where we talk about the embodiment of spirituality and what the crisis is brewing in each of us.Brooke Thomas has been doing embodiment work in private practice for 20 years and is trained as a Rolfer and a Realization Process teacher. Her work sits at the intersection of where the body meets consciousness and how playing with this can shift our way of being in the world. She is the founder of the Liberated Being community, which is dedicated to embodied practice and inquiry, and a co-creator of the Bliss+Grit podcast. Her past podcasting project was Liberated Body. You can find Brooke here:www.brookethomas.mewww.liberatedbeing.communitywww.blissandgrit.comInstagram:@brookethomas108@liberatedbeing@blissandgritpodcastSupport the show

Get ready for a powerful episode that will move you from the inside. This episode is all about looking our at pervasive awareness of death during the pandemic, something we normally try to chase away. I speak about my experience with a life threatening illness and how it fuelled my desire to live fully while my work with people living with cancer informed so much of my current work in helping to bring people back to fully living.Then I speak with my friend, Robin Pacific, artist, activist and spiritual director, about her project MISSING YOU and her relationship with spirituality through a rich inner life, something she believes we can access to support ourselves during the pandemic and beyond. In MISSING YOU, Robin Pacific photographed 70 people, each in a special place that has meaning for them, and then asked them a series of questions about their own death. I was one of the 70 people.Robin Pacific‘s work has spanned thirty years and a wide variety of media.  In addition to writing personal and critical essays, she has produced artworks in a variety of media encompassing painting, drawing, video, installation, performance, and numerous community based collaborations.In 2012 Robin completed a Diploma in Spiritual Direction at Regis College in the Toronto School of Theology, and now practices Spiritual Direction one day a week.She holds a PhD in English Literature from York University and a Masters in Theological Studies from Regis College. She is currently enrolled in the University of Kings College MFA in Creative Nonfiction.Support the show

I met Marit Stiles, Canadian politician, many years at my last studio and got to know her first as a human being wanting movement coaching, not a politician. I wanted to speak with her and you all to meet her to see she lives and breathes her commitment to social justice to her very core. Marit was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in the 2018 Ontario general election. She represents the riding of Davenport as a member of the Ontario New Democratic Party. She is the Official Opposition Education Critic.Now, whenever I listen to her speak out for social welfare during the COVID19 crisis, I feel hopeful knowing people like her and her team are advocating for people in need. Marit embodies the Mr. Rogers quote: "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”We talk about things that apply to folx all over the world:Housing insecurity in the most expensive city in Canada and lack of clear protection for renters and what your local politician can do to help you.The fear for small businesses and commercial lease obligations and how many small businesses could 'go under' and what you can do now to protect yourself.Focusing on non-partisan politics in order to get support to people ASAP.Efforts in Toronto to provide safe shelter to the homeless and why this can't be the case without a pandemic.The concern for kids in violent homes who no longer have a safe space to go every day. The complications of working from home and intentionally coming together every day as a family.And more...Marit is truly a solid human being you all need to meet personally, in her home, navigating this crisis both personally and professionally. Support the show