The Awakening Spaces Podcast - Conscious Construction for a Healthy Home

Ashley Spanovich
  • 5.0 (33)
  • Home & Garden

Awakening Spaces explores the profound connection between our physical environments and our inner consciousness. We guide homeowners, designers, and wellness seekers beyond simply discussing "toxin-free" building methods to examine who we actually become on our "toxin-free" journey. In this podcast we’re not only talking about windows, walls, and wiring. Through expert interviews, case studies, and actionable guidance, we will explore how mindful design choices affect our relationships, stress levels, and overall well-being. Drawing from my background in design, building biology, and building science I guide listeners through both the practical and philosophical aspects of creating homes that elevate our health and consciousness. Each week, you’ll receive grounded guidance and actionable tips to help you eliminate the stress and overwhelm of finding, renovating, building, or maintaining your healthy home—so that you can create a space that truly supports who you are becoming. Just by tuning in, you’re already stepping into what it means to be an Awakened Homeowner. Together, we’re building a new way forward—one conscious choice at a time.

  1. Episode 39: Your Nervous System, EMF Sensitivity & Consciousness, and the Body as Temple with Riun Ashlie

    4d ago

    Episode 39: Your Nervous System, EMF Sensitivity & Consciousness, and the Body as Temple with Riun Ashlie

    Send us a text with your questions, thoughts, and/or a love note regarding the podcast episode to help us know what to create more of! In this episode of the Awakening Spaces Podcast, Ashley sits down with Riun Ashlie, electromagnetic radiation specialist and somatic healing practitioner, for one of the most expansive and soul-nourishing conversations this podcast has ever had. Riun brings decades of personal healing work, a background interning in psychotherapy, and a deeply trauma-informed lens to the world of EMF sensitivity, and what he shares will make you think about your body, your home, and your consciousness in an entirely new way. Together they explore why some people are more sensitive to electromagnetic fields than others, how unresolved birth and early childhood trauma can quite literally displace a person from their own nervous system, and why creating a low-EMF sanctuary is about so much more than meters and mitigation. Riun also walks through the science of brainwave states, what yawning actually does to your consciousness, and why somatic work may be the most important thing a person navigating chronic sensitivity can do. The conversation winds into sacred seed practices, cerebral spinal fluid, the symbolism woven through ancient texts, dream intelligence, and what it means to truly come home to your body. Ashley also shares her own journey from chasing environmental problems to realizing the inner work was the missing piece, and the two find so much beautiful common ground in that. If you have ever felt like your environment was making you sick and wondered how much of that was your nervous system, this one is for you. THINGS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Best email to use to contact Riun:  riun.ashlie@protonmail.com Some links/resources we discussed: Santa Claus symbolismR Sage InterviewGod Man - The Word Made Flesh (book)Elena Tonetti-Vladimirova documentary filmAnnie Brook (books by)Amber Hartnell Orgasmic Birth (there are other actual live video clips of her as well)CONNECT WITH ASHLEY Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube | Website Ashley helps you renovate and build healthier homes to prevent future health issues from arising from your environment. Whether you’re searching for a new home, assessing concerns with your current one, or embarking on a renovation or new build, Awakening Spaces can guide you every step of the way. Ashley brings her background in Building Biology and Building Science and years of hands-on experience helping families build and renovate homes to prevent mold, chemical exposure, and EMFs in their living spaces. If you’re looking to build or renovate a new home, Ashley has courses to empower and one on one offerings to guide you through the whole process so you can avoid costly mistakes and enjoy the process again! Curious about how we can help with your project? Explore our offerings here. CONNECT WITH GUEST Email | Website Riun Ashlie is an Electromagnetic Radiation Specialist, though that title is just one thread in a much richer tapestry. The fifth born of eight children raised on a farm in rural Alberta, Riun has spent decades weaving together somatic healing, psychotherapy, building biology, and a lifelong study of consciousness into a practice that is as much about the nervous system as it is about the home. His path into EMF work grew organically from his own profound healing journey, one that took him through birth trauma recovery, brainwave research, Reiki mastery, and workshops across continents, all in pursuit of what it truly means to come home to the body. As a friend once shared with him at an ayahuasca retreat in Brazil, the ultimate expression of art is your life. For Riun, that has always been the work. SHOW YOUR SUPPORT If you found this episode valuable, share it with a friend and leave us a rating/review! Thank you for listening ✨

    1h 1m
  2. Episode 38: Building a Healthy Home in Florida's Toughest Climate with Scott Randall

    Jun 4

    Episode 38: Building a Healthy Home in Florida's Toughest Climate with Scott Randall

    Send us a text with your questions, thoughts, and/or a love note regarding the podcast episode to help us know what to create more of! In this episode of the Awakening Spaces Podcast, Ashley sits down with Scott Randall, founder of 7 Pines Design Build in Tampa, Florida, to talk about what it actually takes to build a healthy, high performance home in one of the most demanding climates in the country. Scott came into construction from a background in finance and risk management, and that lens makes for one of the most grounded, practical conversations this podcast has had on new construction. As of this year, 7 Pines made high performance building their standard across every project, and Scott shares exactly what that means in practice. Together they unpack why Florida Building Code, despite being the strictest in the country, leaves enormous gaps that most builders never think twice about, why blower door testing before insulation changes everything, and the debate on whether to install stucco directly onto CMU block. They also go into the HVAC cost conversation no one wants to have, and what they are doing differently on Tampa's first spec healthy home. If you are building or renovating in a hot humid climate, or just want a builder's honest take on what the industry is still getting wrong, this one is for you. THINGS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: BS and Beer Building Science communityIBHS Fortified Roof programNikki Krueger episode of The Awakening Spaces PodcastCONNECT WITH ASHLEY Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube | Website Ashley helps you renovate and build healthier homes to prevent future health issues from arising from your environment. Whether you’re searching for a new home, assessing concerns with your current one, or embarking on a renovation or new build, Awakening Spaces can guide you every step of the way. Ashley brings her background in Building Biology and Building Science and years of hands-on experience helping families build and renovate homes to prevent mold, chemical exposure, and EMFs in their living spaces. If you’re looking to build or renovate a new home, Ashley has courses to empower and one on one offerings to guide you through the whole process so you can avoid costly mistakes and enjoy the process again! Curious about how we can help with your project? Explore our offerings here. CONNECT WITH GUEST Instagram | Website Scott Randall is the founder of 7 Pines Design Build, a design build firm based in Tampa, Florida specializing in healthy, high performance homes. With a background in finance and risk management, Scott brings a systems-level lens to construction, focusing on the envelope, waterproofing, and mechanical systems that most builders treat as afterthoughts. Since January of this year, 7 Pines has made high performance building their standard, not an upgrade, and currently has Tampa's first spec healthy home under construction. SHOW YOUR SUPPORT If you found this episode valuable, share it with a friend and leave us a rating/review! Thank you for listening ✨

    1h 3m
  3. Episode 37: Owners Reps, Owners Contingency, & Expecting the unexpected, Solo Episode

    May 28

    Episode 37: Owners Reps, Owners Contingency, & Expecting the unexpected, Solo Episode

    Send us a text with your questions, thoughts, and/or a love note regarding the podcast episode to help us know what to create more of! In this solo episode, Ashley Spanovich breaks down what an Owners Rep does and why having an Owners contingency will help you move through your project with less stress.  She also dives into some personal wisdom and something she's moving through in the moment in hopes that it will help you expand and move through your project with more ease. THINGS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Full module library covering healthy materials selection, construction document review, phase-by-phase build guidance, monthly live calls, community, and downloadable resourcesEpisode 33: The Awakened Homeowner on a BudgetEpisode 34: How to Manifest a healthy homeSHOW YOUR SUPPORT If you found this episode valuable, share it with a friend and leave us a rating/review! Thank you for listening ✨

    39 min
  4. Episode 36: Selecting the Best Air Purifier & the Science of Sunlight with Alex Kessler

    May 21

    Episode 36: Selecting the Best Air Purifier & the Science of Sunlight with Alex Kessler

    Send us a text with your questions, thoughts, and/or a love note regarding the podcast episode to help us know what to create more of! In this episode of Awakening Spaces, Ashley and Alex cover what the 99.97 percent filter rating actually means and why it tells you almost nothing about your room air quality, how to build a Corsi Rosenthal box for 150 dollars that outperforms most commercial air purifiers, what CADR is and why it is the only metric worth looking at, which climates are genuinely the best and worst for mold sensitive people, why Phoenix and Tucson are not the mold recovery paradise most people think, and why the research on sun exposure and cancer is far more complicated and interesting than the sunscreen industry wants you to know. They also talk about microbiome diversity, sprinklers as an overlooked moisture source in dry climates, trusting your body over any practitioner, and what it means to be mutable when everything you have tried stops working. THINGS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: DIY heat recovery ventilator from corrugated plasticAir purifier brand comparison test (over one million views)Air purifier brand comparison testBest and worst climates for mold sensitivity with coded ASHRAE mapsASHRAE 60 degree Fahrenheit dew point threshold for mold growthClean Air Kits: cleanaiркits.com, MERV 13 Filtrete with PC fansCONNECT WITH ASHLEY Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube | Website Ashley helps you renovate and build healthier homes to prevent future health issues from arising from your environment. Whether you’re searching for a new home, assessing concerns with your current one, or embarking on a renovation or new build, Awakening Spaces can guide you every step of the way. Ashley brings her background in Building Biology and Building Science and years of hands-on experience helping families build and renovate homes to prevent mold, chemical exposure, and EMFs in their living spaces. If you’re looking to build or renovate a new home, Ashley has courses to empower and one on one offerings to guide you through the whole process so you can avoid costly mistakes and enjoy the process again! Curious about how we can help with your project? Explore our offerings here. CONNECT WITH GUEST Instagram | Youtube | Website Alex Kessler is a translational scientist turned indoor air quality researcher, educator, and environmental consultant who brings the same rigor he applied to cancer genomics research to the world of healthy homes. After developing CIRS from toxic mold exposure and having to navigate his own recovery largely without adequate guidance, he built his YouTube channel Healthy Home Guide into a resource with over two million views, sharing practical and budget-friendly protocols for improving indoor air quality that work even for renters and those without ducted HVAC systems. His work has been recognized by John Banta, CIH, who featured it in his book Mold Controlled, and by Dr. Allison Bailes III of Energy Vanguard, who shared his ERV installation guide with his professional audience. Alex serves as an environmental consultant at Flourish Clinic, a leading CIRS clinic, and consults independently as well. He lives in Colorado with his wife Rachel and their dog Rikki. Find him at healthyhomeguide.com and on YouTube at Healthy Home Guide. SHOW YOUR SUPPORT If you found this episode valuable, share it with a friend and leave us a rating/review! Thank you for listening ✨

    1h 11m
  5. Episode 35: The Alchemy of Mechanical Systems And A Framework You Can Follow with Ashley Murphree

    May 14

    Episode 35: The Alchemy of Mechanical Systems And A Framework You Can Follow with Ashley Murphree

    Send us a text with your questions, thoughts, and/or a love note regarding the podcast episode to help us know what to create more of! In this episode of Awakening Spaces, the two Ashleys walk through a full decision framework for thinking about indoor air quality, filtration, ventilation, dehumidification, ductwork sizing, and condensate management. They talk about why mechanicals are almost always an afterthought and why that is one of the most expensive mistakes you can make. They also get into Ashley's personal health journey and why healtth is always going to be person-specific no matter how clean your building materials are. This is the mechanical systems conversation the healthy home space has been waiting for. THINGS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Services: Mechanical engineering, plumbing and hot water systems consulting, whole building performance, passive house design, MEP coordinationASHRAE Heat Balance Method: research-grade energy modeling for low-load buildings (referenced as a future direction)CONNECT WITH ASHLEY Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube | Website Ashley helps you renovate and build healthier homes to prevent future health issues from arising from your environment. Whether you’re searching for a new home, assessing concerns with your current one, or embarking on a renovation or new build, Awakening Spaces can guide you every step of the way. Ashley brings her background in Building Biology and Building Science and years of hands-on experience helping families build and renovate homes to prevent mold, chemical exposure, and EMFs in their living spaces. If you’re looking to build or renovate a new home, Ashley has courses to empower and one on one offerings to guide you through the whole process so you can avoid costly mistakes and enjoy the process again! Curious about how we can help with your project? Explore our offerings here. CONNECT WITH GUEST Instagram | Website Ashley Murphree is a mechanical engineer, licensed in california and colorado, and is the founder of Alchemech Engineering - a residential HVAC and plumbing engineering consultancy focused on healthy and off-grid-ready designs through a holistic approach. She is a Certified Passive House Tradesperson and also formerly Co-Founded and operated the design/build general contracting company Good Bones Design Build in Marin County, California. She spent decades investigating and healing her chronic health symptoms through functional medicine, testing, and applying forensics to her life in real time. She once lived and worked in the warehouse district of Oakland, California where her and her partner built their passive-house-inspired shipping container home that they now live in off-grid in the mountains. ((Alchemech pronounced Al-Chem-meck OR could be said as alchemic)) SHOW YOUR SUPPORT If you found this episode valuable, share it with a friend and leave us a rating/review! Thank you for listening ✨

    55 min
  6. Episode 34 - How to Manifest a Healthy Home, Navigate Renovation Chaos, and Retrain Your Brain with Brownell Landrum

    May 7

    Episode 34 - How to Manifest a Healthy Home, Navigate Renovation Chaos, and Retrain Your Brain with Brownell Landrum

    Send us a text with your questions, thoughts, and/or a love note regarding the podcast episode to help us know what to create more of! In this episode of Awakening Spaces, Ashley brings Brownell into a conversation specifically designed for people navigating renovation chaos, mold recovery, chronic illness, and the kind of life disruption that can leave your nervous system stuck in survival mode long after the worst is over. They talk through how to make a wish that actually works, what to do when a project is falling apart around you, how to stop accidentally wishing for what you do not want, and why rebuilding trust with your own body might be the most important piece of the healing journey that no one is talking about. If you have ever felt like you were doing everything right and still nothing was going the way you planned, this episode is for you. THINGS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Book: The Art and Science of Wishing by Brownell LandrumTEDx Talk: coming out in a few months, will be available on TED and YouTube (link to be added to show notes when live)Upcoming book: The Art and Science of Wishing at WorkCONNECT WITH ASHLEY Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube | Website Ashley helps you renovate and build healthier homes to prevent future health issues from arising from your environment. Whether you’re searching for a new home, assessing concerns with your current one, or embarking on a renovation or new build, Awakening Spaces can guide you every step of the way. Ashley brings her background in Building Biology and Building Science and years of hands-on experience helping families build and renovate homes to prevent mold, chemical exposure, and EMFs in their living spaces. If you’re looking to build or renovate a new home, Ashley has courses to empower and one on one offerings to guide you through the whole process so you can avoid costly mistakes and enjoy the process again! Curious about how we can help with your project? Explore our offerings here. CONNECT WITH GUEST Instagram | Tiktok | Facebook | Website Brownell Landrum is a TEDx speaker and the author of the new book, The Art and Science of Wishing , the Cosmic Wishes children’s book, and the upcoming The Art & Science of Wishing at Work. She is also the author of over a dozen books, both fiction and nonfiction, the host of the upcoming Cosmic Wishes podca st, and the founder of The Cosmic Wish Experiment - a global grassroots effort to elevate collective conscious joy. Did you know that wishing is something everyone does, across all cultures around the world? And that every time you wish, you engage over a dozen different sciences - from neuroscience and psychology to quantum physics? Brownell's research reveals that wishing isn't just birthday candles and shooting stars - it's a universal practice woven throughout every culture and faith tradition, making it one of humanity's most powerful expressions of hope, intention, and survival. SHOW YOUR SUPPORT If you found this episode valuable, share it with a friend and leave us a rating/review! Thank you for listening ✨

    58 min
  7. Episode 33: What Actually Happens During an EMF Assessment (Solo Episode)

    Apr 30

    Episode 33: What Actually Happens During an EMF Assessment (Solo Episode)

    Send us a text with your questions, thoughts, and/or a love note regarding the podcast episode to help us know what to create more of! In this solo episode of Awakening Spaces, Ashley walks you through exactly what a professional EMF assessment looks like from the moment she pulls up to a property to the moment she hands over her findings. She covers why consumer-grade meters miss huge portions of the frequency spectrum, what parallel neutral current is and why it is one of the most common and fixable sources of elevated magnetic fields in homes, how to interpret a nine-point bed map, and why the bedroom is always the highest priority room in any assessment. Ashley also talks about electro-hypersensitivity, the precautionary principle that guides building biology practice, why there is no longer a control group for EMF health research, and what the process looks like when you are building new versus assessing an existing home. If you have ever wondered what you are actually getting when you hire someone to assess your home for EMFs, or why professional assessments cost what they do, this episode answers all of it. THINGS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Building Biology Institute professional directory for electromagnetic radiation specialistsAshley can refer trusted colleagues across the United States, contact: hello@awakeningspaces.comSafe and Sound Pro 2: https://safelivingtechnologies.com/products/safe-and-sound-pro-ii-rf-meter.html discount code: AS5 CONNECT WITH ASHLEY Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube | Website Ashley helps you renovate and build healthier homes to prevent future health issues from arising from your environment. Whether you’re searching for a new home, assessing concerns with your current one, or embarking on a renovation or new build, Awakening Spaces can guide you every step of the way. Ashley brings her background in Building Biology and Building Science and years of hands-on experience helping families build and renovate homes to prevent mold, chemical exposure, and EMFs in their living spaces. If you’re looking to build or renovate a new home, Ashley has courses to empower and one on one offerings to guide you through the whole process so you can avoid costly mistakes and enjoy the process again! Curious about how we can help with your project? Explore our offerings here. SHOW YOUR SUPPORT If you found this episode valuable, share it with a friend and leave us a rating/review! Thank you for listening ✨

    34 min
  8. Episode 32: Feng Shui, Geopathic Stress, and Sacred Land Science with Valentina Cereda

    Apr 23

    Episode 32: Feng Shui, Geopathic Stress, and Sacred Land Science with Valentina Cereda

    Send us a text with your questions, thoughts, and/or a love note regarding the podcast episode to help us know what to create more of! In this episode of Awakening Spaces, Ashley and Valentina walk through what classical Feng Shui actually is and how it differs from the watered-down Western version, how a Feng Shui site assessment works in practice, what geopathic stress is and how to know if you might have it, and the practical shifts anyone can make right now in their home. They also talk about the baby monitor that was keeping a two-year-old awake since birth, the client whose bedroom was so affected by geopathic stress that both a dowsing session and an independent bioresonance doctor reached the same conclusion without comparing notes, and why EMF is the issue Valentina finds in virtually every single home she visits. If you have ever felt like something was off in your space but could not put your finger on it, this episode was made for you. THINGS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: Feng Shui Guide by Valentina CeredaVirtual consultations: available for home and office Feng Shui assessments CONNECT WITH ASHLEY Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube | Website Ashley helps you renovate and build healthier homes to prevent future health issues from arising from your environment. Whether you’re searching for a new home, assessing concerns with your current one, or embarking on a renovation or new build, Awakening Spaces can guide you every step of the way. Ashley brings her background in Building Biology and Building Science and years of hands-on experience helping families build and renovate homes to prevent mold, chemical exposure, and EMFs in their living spaces. If you’re looking to build or renovate a new home, Ashley has courses to empower and one on one offerings to guide you through the whole process so you can avoid costly mistakes and enjoy the process again! Curious about how we can help with your project? Explore our offerings here. CONNECT WITH GUEST Instagram | Website Valentina Cereda is a Health and Well-being architect, Building Biologist, EMF specialist, Feng Shui consultant, Land Energy Dowser, Sacred Geometrist, vice-chair of the Wellness Architecture and Design Initiative at the Global Wellness Institute, Professor at Marangoni University, teaching interior design for health. As she started her career as an architect, she realized that conventional design and construction practices are degenerative as they work against nature and health. This led her to travel the world to study different sciences and ancient practices that would support her healing design studio Energy & Space to become more conscious, healthy, respectful and connected to the Earth healing energies, to help her clients create spaces where architecture and design become the first medicine. SHOW YOUR SUPPORT If you found this episode valuable, share it with a friend and leave us a rating/review! Thank you for listening ✨

    46 min
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About

Awakening Spaces explores the profound connection between our physical environments and our inner consciousness. We guide homeowners, designers, and wellness seekers beyond simply discussing "toxin-free" building methods to examine who we actually become on our "toxin-free" journey. In this podcast we’re not only talking about windows, walls, and wiring. Through expert interviews, case studies, and actionable guidance, we will explore how mindful design choices affect our relationships, stress levels, and overall well-being. Drawing from my background in design, building biology, and building science I guide listeners through both the practical and philosophical aspects of creating homes that elevate our health and consciousness. Each week, you’ll receive grounded guidance and actionable tips to help you eliminate the stress and overwhelm of finding, renovating, building, or maintaining your healthy home—so that you can create a space that truly supports who you are becoming. Just by tuning in, you’re already stepping into what it means to be an Awakened Homeowner. Together, we’re building a new way forward—one conscious choice at a time.

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