Untether Your Life Nikhil Torsekar & Shelly Sood

One of the mantras of this podcast is to "Own Your Health;" while conventional modalities such as surgery are very helpful for addressing trauma, optimizing one's health requires a rigorous exploration of alternative approaches. This week's guest, Kyle Peche, demonstrates the benefits of "ripping up templates" in charting one's health journey, when the tried-and-true comes up short.

After resolving his own 7 year health battle with chronic fatigue, brain fog, panic attacks, and other mysterious symptoms, Kyle developed a passion for healing others and alleviating their suffering as well. A certified Mineral-Nutritional Balancing Practitioner and founder of Jyoti Mineral Balancing, he now uses what he’s learned about detoxification, mineral nutrition, hair analysis, and functional medicine to help others not only recover from mysterious ailments, but also regain an ability to “thrive” in their lives.

We touch on numerous topics in this podcast, including:


How Kyle’s 7-year journey of disenchantment with traditional allopathic healthcare modalities and frustrating trial and error with holistic / alternative practices led him to find the effective missing link between gut healing, pathogen elimination, psychological healing, and inner work.
The potential impact of increased levels of glyphosate and mercury on neurodevelopmental disorders such as ADHD and autism.
The benefits of living a “detoxification-friendly lifestyle” in a world where the levels of metals and toxins are higher than ever before.
How meditation and breathwork practices such as kapalbhati (“breath of fire”) and anulom vilom (“alternate nostril breathing”) can help reverse blocking of detoxification caused by increased stress
How the work of Dr. Paul Eck, James Nestor, Joe Dispenza, Swami Rama and others influenced Kyle’s journey of healing
An overview of Kyle’s company Jyoti Mineral Balancing (JMB). Jyoti is Sanskrit for essence and light and shining, and symbolizes Kyle's conviction that "when we purify the body and balance it and rejuvenate it, that our essence better shines through."
How JMB's combination of detoxification, hair analysis, mineral nutrition, and functional medicine might help clients manage brain fog, optimize gut health, and tap into deeper meditation and states of flow.

To connect with Kyle, please visit him on Instagram and TikTok, or check out jyotimineralbalancing.com.

Connect with Nikhil to learn more about ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Untether Your Life⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and other projects:

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This week's guest, Chris McDonald, is a breath of fresh air in a world beset by false dichotomies between "traditional" and "holistic" approaches to mental health.

Chris is a holistic therapist, yogi, meditation teacher, author, and host of The Holistic Counseling Podcast. She owns a group online practice called Path to Hope Counseling. Chris is a 200 hour Registered Yoga Teacher, is certified in brainspotting and offers gentle yoga to clients in session, and offers private yoga sessions. She specializes in treatment of anxiety, depression, trauma and grief in young adults.

As the author of Self-Care for the Counselor, she has helped many therapists prioritize their own mental health and wellness. She is a Meditation Teacher on the Aura app and Insight Timer.

On this week's episode, host Nikhil Torsekar and Chris cover myriad areas, including:


The state of mental health among mental health practitioners, especially after COVID. How self-service mindfulness techniques like three part breathing can help combat burnout and compassion fatigue.
How holistic modalities like yoga, breathwork, and guided meditation can be beneficial in getting to the root of the issue vs. superficially addressing symptoms
Brainspotting, a modality developed by Dr. David Grand as an offshoot of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). How therapists can leverage the basic, yet powerful adage that "where you look affects how you feel" to help their clients effectively process trauma - sometimes moreso than with traditional talk therapy
Subtle yoga, which can help ground us, strengthen our connection with the present, find the "window of tolerance" and strike a balance between our sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system.
The importance of finding community - whether through Facebook groups, virtual / in person happy hours, hosting a podcast, or yoga circles - in navigating the sometimes overwhelming "rabbit hole" of holistic modalities
The wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh (known as the "father of mindfulness"), Kristine Weber (the founder of subtle yoga) and other figures who have influenced Chris in her holistic counseling journey

Interested in learning more about subtle yoga, brainspotting, or the other modalities discussed on this episode? Check out The Holistic Counseling Podcast or join the Facebook group. Additionally, click here to claim your 30 day Aura app guest pass from Chris McDonald; find peace and get restful sleep with Chris today!

Therapists can check out her book entitled Self-Care For the Counselor at Amazon.

Connect with Nikhil to learn more about ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Untether Your Life⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and other projects:

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As a podcaster, I love connecting with like-minded hosts such as Benoit Kim, given our shared interests in mental health, mindfulness / mediation, the cultural implications of the Asian-American “model minority” myth, and much more. My wife Shelly Sood and I appeared on his show - Discover More - in early 2023, shortly after the devastating loss of her father / my father-in-law. We found great comfort in this far-ranging discussion, touching on the following topics:


How Albert Einstein’s perspective that "everything is energy" can used to complement surgery, medication, talk therapy, and other traditional healthcare modalities to ensure optimal patient outcomes
What we can learn from Alcoholics Anonymous or those trust fall exercises at corporate retreats about the power of surrender and turning over to a higher power
How breathwork modalities such as SOMA Breath can help quiet the default mode network, maximize our health and productivity in business, and achieve what psychologist Abraham Maslow called self-transcendence
The correlation (or lack thereof) between the prestige of someone’s alma mater and their contributions to society
The positive impact of building an impenetrable “bubble” of personal space to tap into one’s intuition and connect with their higher self
How the collectivist mindset of the South Asian diaspora can contribute to the propagation of unhealthy templates throughout the generations
The incredible power of affirmations and the spoken word, which has been shown to change the shape of water molecules
How someone's environment - i.e., their relationships, their surroundings, - can play a pivotal role a patient’s recovery – almost as much as medication and surgery

To learn more about Benoit, please visit ⁠discovermorepodcast.com⁠, or search for Discover More on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also connect with him on ⁠Instagram⁠ or ⁠LinkedIn⁠.
You can also reach Shelly via her ⁠Website⁠⁠⁠, her Instagram, or her healthcare company - GIOSTAR Chicago⁠.
Finally, connect with Nikhil to learn more about ⁠Untether Your Life⁠ and other projects:

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One of the most rewarding aspects of hosting Untether Your Life is having conversations with folks who have attained great success by overcoming adversity, fighting the status quo / ripping up templates, and staying true to themselves. This week's guest, LeRon Barton, typifies these values.

LeRon L. Barton is a a 3x TEDx speaker, writer, and information technology professional originally from Kansas City, Missouri. LeRon is the author of two books, Straight Dope: A 360 degree look into American Drug Culture and All We Really Need Is Love: Stories of Dating, Relationships, Heartbreak, and Marriage.

In addition to his books, LeRon is an essayist whose topics cover racism, mass incarceration, politics, gender, and dating. These works have appeared in Black Enterprise, Salon, Harvard Business Review, Newsweek, and many other outlets.

LeRon is an international speaker who has given three TEDx speeches and has appeared at Oxford University, University of San Francisco, Square, and Defy Ventures.

In this week’s episode, LeRon and host Nikhil touch on many topics, including the following:


LeRon’s youth in Kansas City, his days in California, and his multi-faceted career as a writer, speaker, information technology professional, and much more
The silver lining in the storm clouds of COVID, in providing black workers with remote work opportunities that could benefit their mental health
Code switching, and the compulsion for minorities to surrender parts of their identity in the workforce. How LeRon encourages these employees to stay true to themselves, and still achieve advancement in corporate America.
The meaning of the Nelson Mandela quote "I never lose. I either win or I learn." How this mindset of perseverance and determination inspire LeRon - someone with a decades-long stutter, anxiety, and fear of public speaking - to become a 3-time TEDx speaker all the while prolifically writing thought-provoking articles in the most influential journals of our time

Want to learn more about LeRon or work with him? Visit him at leronbarton.com, or reach out to him on LinkedIn or Instagram.

Connect with Nikhil to learn more about ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Untether Your Life⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and other projects:

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Freeman Fung is an international speaker, best-selling author and certified life coach, who has advocated new global citizenship at TEDx, Mindvalley and world tourism forums.

He left his native Hong Kong at 19 to begin a journey to travel and experience life in over 35 countries.

Freeman's book Travel to Transform teaches readers how to use traveling as a holistic personal growth tool and the fast-track to self-mastery.

In this episode, host Nikhil Torsekar and Freeman explore the following:


The art and science behind Freeman's book Travel to Transform - which shatters the false dichotomy between travel memoirs and self-help books
Takeaways from travels to more than 35 countries, including Romania, India, Finland, Singapore, and Australia
Freeman's success in shedding the "templates" of his native ultra-competitive upbringing in Hong Kong, to find his true, authentic identity
The cultural significance of the phrase, "have you eaten rice yet?"
How traveling is the ultimate fast track to personal growth
Nikhil and Freeman's shared experiences with the personal growth platform Mindvalley
The true meaning of writer T. Harv Eker's quote that "money will only make you more of what you already are"
Healing modalities Freeman embraced to manage Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), including the wisdom tradition of Shaolin Kung Fu as taught by TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) practitioner Micke Hoong
Freeman's experience in India (Nikhil's native country), where - in addition to a rich tapestry of cultures - he witnessed the jarring disparity between the opulence of the business tycoons' skyscrapers and the abject poverty of the slums of Mumbai (where Nikhil's family is from)
What we as "global citizens" can do to raise our collective consciousness to solve the problems caused by huge disparities in wealth that are pervasive throughout the planet

Looking to learn how you too can Travel to Transform your life? Visit traveltotransform.com or reach out to Freeman on ⁠Instagram⁠. You can also pick up a copy of the book on ⁠Amazon⁠.

Connect with Nikhil to learn more about ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Untether Your Life⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and other projects:

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⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠GIOSTAR Chicago⁠

Laura Carney is the author of My Father's List: How Living My Dad's Dreams Set Me Free. It's the story of how the author found the courage to go after her own dreams after tackling an ambitious 50+ item "bucket list" compiled by her late father Mick Carney, who had been killed by a distracted driver more than a decade prior.

Host Nikhil Torsekar deeply enjoyed speaking with Laura, as he had lost his own father-in-law earlier this year after a grueling decades-long struggle with Parkinson’s disease and many other illnesses. Like this week's guest, he finds comfort in listening to the messages and guidance his father-in-law continues to send messages from beyond.

Nikhil and Laura touch on many topics in this episode, including:


The origin and contents of the "bucket list" compiled by Mick, which includes skydiving, surfing the Pacific Ocean, and talking with a US President.
The power of belief and surrender in coping with loss.
The significance of simple inanimate objects such as the horseshoe, and how can they take on an entirely new meaning when inverted or placed upright. Note: all you Mad Men fans out there, stay tuned for some Easter eggs.
How we can achieve a richer fuller life through documenting and capturing stories, thereby illustrating Jessamyn West's maxim that "people who keep journals have life twice."

In addition to writing this book, Laura is a New York City-based copy editor who has been published in Washington Post, Associated Press, and many other outlets, and has worked as a copy editor in Vanity Fair, GQ, People, and other journals. To learn more about her journey, visit bylauracarney.com, or connect with her on Instagram. You can also pick up a copy of My Father's List on Amazon.

Connect with Nikhil to learn more about ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Untether Your Life⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and other projects:

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⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠GIOSTAR Chicago⁠