Practice You with Elena Brower

Elena Brower
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Practice You with Elena Brower

Content and conversations for times of transition and change. Join me in discussion with renowned luminaries and dear friends to explore life's myriad transitions, our understandings and our responses. What does it mean to be present, to shift our perceptions, to engage with the world meaningfully, with dignity and care? With respect for the ancient practices and the modern wisdom that continue to inform and elevate our exchanges, each episode is an invitation to Practice You.

  1. 23 HR AGO

    Episode 206: Octavia Raheem

    On rest as the way to reclaim your brilliance, at the altar of now.   (0:00) - Octavia's Background and Introduction (2:16) - Losing Parents and Spiritual Connection (2:58) - Rest as a Healing Practice (16:03) - Reading from the Book "Rest is Sacred" (16:19) - Personal Reflections on Rest (16:38) - The Power of Rest and Collective Care (27:01) - Daily and Collective Rest Practices (27:19) - Protecting Energy through Rest (31:57) - Practicing Self-Care and Listening to Oneself Octavia Raheem is a mother, author, yoga teacher and practitioner, and activist. She has received national attention for her work training yoga teachers and diversifying the yoga and wellness industry. Her work as a yoga professional focuses on practical tools to teach individuals how to manage stress, anxiety, and fatigue through yoga and meditation in a way that is accessible to all levels/abilities, and restorative to the nervous system. Her work has been featured in Yoga Journal, Mantra magazine, Well+Good, CNN, WXIA, and Atlanta Magazine. Excerpt from Rest is Sacred by Octavia F. Raheem: Divine One of Rest, You said come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest. You said I will fight for you; you need only to be still. You said be still and know. And here we are. Here, being this portal within these pages. Here, being this place. Here, at this altar called right now. We come in gratitude for our Ancestors who are well enough in spirit to tend to our wellness. Because of them, we found a way to rest. We made a way to rest. We are here to reclaim rest as our birthright. Let it be so.

    35 min

  2. 7 DEC

    Mirabai Starr

    On the temple of your regular life, and the daily practices of attention, surrender and wonder. (0:00) - Introduction to Mirabai Starr and Her Work (2:16) - Discussion on "Ordinary Mysticism" (5:15) - Accessibility and Intended Audience of "Ordinary Mysticism" (7:18) - Personal Stories and Everyday Mysticism (11:34) - Mirabai's Identity and Role as a Young Elder (14:29) - Current Rituals and Spiritual Practices (19:03) - Memories from Taos and Early Influences (21:29) - Embodying Contemplative Practice (25:44) - The Practice of Wonder and Surrender (32:13) - Final Reflections and Mantra Practice Mirabai Starr is an award-winning author, internationally acclaimed speaker, and a leading teacher of interspiritual dialogue. In 2020, she was honored on Watkins’ list of the 100 Most Spiritually Influential Living People. Drawing from 20 years of teaching Philosophy and World Religions at the University of New Mexico-Taos, Mirabai now travels the world sharing her wisdom on contemplative living, writing as a spiritual practice, and the transformational power of grief and loss. She has authored over a dozen books including Wild Mercy, Caravan of No Despair, and God of Love: A Guide to the Heart of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Mirabai has received critical acclaim for her revolutionary contemporary translations of the mystics John of the Cross, Teresa of Ávila, and Julian of Norwich. Mirabai offers the fruit of decades of study, teaching, and contemplative practice in a fresh, grounded, and lyrical voice to a growing circle of folks inspired by the life-giving essence of feminine wisdom. Mirabai continues to teach seminars, workshops, and retreats, both in person and through her online community Wild Heart. She lives with her extended family in the mountains of northern New Mexico. https://mirabaistarr.com

    37 min

  3. 23 NOV

    Nisha Moodley

    On the soul of our work, the re-indigenizing of our minds and the vital force of sisterhood. (2:21) - Nisha's Background and Family Life (4:09) - Hiro Boga's Influence on Nisha's Work (7:55) - The Concept of Devotion and Partnership (10:43) - Civilization and Disconnection (15:26) - The Muse and Creative Practice (23:37) - Global Sisterhood Day and the Importance of Friendship (36:43) - Cultivating Friendship and Community (42:52)- Closing Remarks and Final Thoughts Nisha Moodley is an integrative leadership coach that holds her work – and our collective work – within devotional, animist relational ways. Nisha has 15 years of experience leading mastermind groups, online courses, and nearly 60 retreats. She was first trained to work with subtle energy nearly 30 years ago, and has since received in-depth Health Coach and Executive Coach training, become a Family Constellation facilitator, and deepened her practice through breathwork training, Ancestral healing, and archetypal studies. All of these teachings and modalities (and others) are integrated for guidance that works not just on the level of mindset, but also through much deeper listening and moving. Nisha is the mother of two small children, a newbie land steward, constantly seeking to understand the deeper systemic and historical implications of the individual and collective challenges we face today, weaving those considerations into the work as well.

    47 min

  4. 9 NOV

    Dr. Kamilah Majied

    On bringing joy to justice; learning how to bear witness to our oppressive patterns and tendencies; fierce compassion as a quality of mind, heart, body and spirit. (2:41) - Engagement with Music and Nature (4:23) - Application of Enlightened Mind (9:06) - Oppression and Human Revolution (17:41) - Emergent Strategies and Joyful Just Action (28:38) - Fierce Compassion and Self-Care (37:54) - Language and Terminology (46:32) - Conclusion and Resources Dr. Kamilah Majied is a mental health therapist, clinical educator, researcher, and consultant on advancing equity and inclusion using meditative practices. Drawing from her decades of contemplative practice and leadership, Dr. Majied engages people in experiencing wonder, humor, and insight through transforming oppressive patterns and deepening relationships toward ever-improving individual, familial, organizational, and communal wellness. Author of Joyfully Just: Black Wisdom and Buddhist Insights for Liberated Living

    50 min

  5. 26 OCT

    Elise Loehnen

    On the origins of our best behavior, managing undue shame and the price women pay to be good.

    41 min

  6. 12 OCT

    Sophie Schauermann

    On radical self-responsibility and reprocessing our childhood shame to empowerment and creativity. (2:42) – Sophie’s Personal Journey and Research on Highly Sensitive Children (5:17) – Understanding Rooted Rhythm Therapy and Parent Coaching (8:19) – The Nature of “Big Feelings” and Their Impact on Children (10:08) – Practical Tips for Parents of Highly Sensitive Children (15:36) – The Role of Authenticity and Congruency in Parenting (20:55) – The Role of EMDR in Therapy and Parenting Sophie Schauermann, LCSW is a licensed therapist and parent coach based in Denver, CO. Her passion and expertise lie in supporting highly sensitive children (and their parents) in harnessing their sensitivities into their superpowers. She is the founder of Rooted Rhythm Therapy and Parent Coaching, which was born out of the belief that children must get to know the beat of their own drum in order to confidently reach their potential…and that the best kind of parent is one that is Rooted in their own Rhythm. Sophie supports her clients with Synergetic Play Therapy, EMDR (eye movement desensitization reprocessing) Therapy, and Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy. She has over 10 years of experience working closely with children and families in many settings, including the Harvard Medical School’s laboratory for youth mental health, the public school system, community based mental health programs, and now in private practice. Her greatest learning, however, lies in her personal story of healing and growth into the person that she is today. Sophie is the proud wife to another therapist and bonus mama to two amazing kiddos that she couldn’t imagine life without.

    30 min

  7. 28 SEPT

    Ryan Haddon

    On resetting after betrayal and spiritual abuse, shifting self-loathing, and service as crucial to our healing. (1:00) - Reinventing oneself after doors close in life. (4:56) - Addiction, self-loathing, and recovery. (11:31) - Addiction recovery, self-discovery, and service. (17:25) - Healing from trauma and supporting others. (21:18) - Spiritual betrayal and abuse of power in a spiritual community. (27:24) - Healing from past traumas and finding freedom in one's 50s. Ryan Haddon is the Director of Programming at Sage + Sound’s dedicated space for mental and emotional fitness, called The Study. She is an old friend, a certified Life and Spiritual coach, a clinical Hypnotherapist and certified meditation teacher with over 18 years of experience with hundreds of clients around the world. A sought-after public speaker for corporate retreats such as the international talent agency CAA, for three Tapping Solution Summits, Visionary Women and more.

    34 min

  8. 14 SEPT

    Vanessa Machado de Oliveira, PhD

    On hospicing modernity, an invitation to hold many paradoxical layers of complexity, to stretch your heart, to know vulnerability as your strength. (1:00) - Colonialism, identity, and family history. (7:10) - Modernity, its definition, and its impact on society, culture, and the environment. (16:53) - Modernity, colonialism, and their impact on humanity's mental health and well-being. (26:20) - Education, storytelling, and connection to nature. (32:50) - Indigenous perspectives on psychology, including the concept of the "bus" representing the multiplicity within the self. (39:08) - Modern society's disconnection from nature and self, with a focus on indigenous knowledge and practices for healing and growth. Dr. Vanessa Machado de Oliveira Andreotti has served as a Latinx professor at the University of British Columbia, now Dean of the Faculty of Education of the University of Victoria.  Dr. Andreotti is a former Canada Research Chair in Race, Inequalities and Global Change and a former David Lam Chair in Multicultural Education. She is the author of Hospicing Modernity: Facing humanity’s wrongs and the implications for social activism (2021) and one of the co-founders of the Gesturing Towards Decolonial Futures (GTDF) Arts/Research Collective. Most of her published articles and OpEds are available at academia.edu. She began her career as a teacher in Brazil in 1994 and has since led educational and research programs in countries including the UK, Finland, Aotearoa/New Zealand, Brazil, and Canada. Andreotti works across sectors in international and comparative education, particularly focusing on global justice and citizenship, Indigenous and community engagement, sustainability, and social and ecological responsibility. Her research examines relationships between historical, systemic, and on-going forms of violence, and the inherent unsustainability of modernity. Andreotti is one of the founding members of Gesturing Decolonial Futures Collective (decolonialfutures.net) and Teia das 5 Curas, an international network of Indigenous communities mostly in Canada and Latin America. She currently collaborates with these groups to direct research projects and learning initiatives related to global healing and wellbeing in times of unprecedented challenges.

    48 min
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Content and conversations for times of transition and change. Join me in discussion with renowned luminaries and dear friends to explore life's myriad transitions, our understandings and our responses. What does it mean to be present, to shift our perceptions, to engage with the world meaningfully, with dignity and care? With respect for the ancient practices and the modern wisdom that continue to inform and elevate our exchanges, each episode is an invitation to Practice You.

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