From the Heart with Rachel Brathen

Latest Episodes:

What Helps You Remember that Your Body is Sacred? May 29, 2020

Show notes

In this episode, Rachel finds herself in a place of shame after realizing she has gained weight during quarantine. But here’s the thing - she felt no shame at all, in fact she felt great in her body, until she stepped on a scale. What was it inside of her that caused that shift?

This pandemic has brought with it a lot of change, and many of us are seeing changes in our physical bodies. The minute we feel shame, we have a tendency to try changing ourselves. But no matter how we try to change, whether it is through hardcore dieting or through yoga and green juice, it will all be rooted from the same place - a place where it is not okay for us to gain weight or be anything other than what society expects of us. We can also approach “changing ourselves” in a completely different way. Maybe it is not our bodies that need to change, but our mindsets instead, and the years of conditioning that society has fed us. Instead of dieting, or judging, or feeling shame - come back to that practice that reminds you that your body is sacred. Do things that serve you. Keep growing. Society has told women to shrink themselves for too long.

This episode will remind you of the tremendous gift your body is and the wisdom it contains. Your body is divine, your body is sacred, and your body is an asset to your enlightenment - not a hindrance. Tune in to shed the layers and come back to a deep rooted self-love that has been inside you all along.

You Have The Power To Change Your Life (and here is how to begin!) May 22, 2020

Show notes

In this episode, Rachel reflects on the patterns and relationships that haven’t been serving her throughout her life. There is one common thread between them all: she played a role in the decision making. The pace of her life, the people she invited into it, and the work she focused on was ultimately decided by her. What if this is true for all of us? Are we are all actively playing a part in the things that don’t serve us in life?

As society slowly starts moving again, there is a lot for us to make sense of – but ultimately, we are in control. The truth is, we don’t have to continue being the same person we were pre-corona virus. We have the chance to implement changes around infrastructure, relationships, self-care, and mental health, and we can water the areas of our lives that we want to nourish and grow.

What changes do you want to make to align with everything that you truly desire? Have you noticed anything come up that is keeping you separated from your heart’s purpose? Are there areas of your life that you feel you are neglecting, or not having the hard conversation, or looking the other way? This episode will remind you that if you want a different kind of life, now is the time. If you want to make a difference, start with caring for yourself, setting clear intentions and goals, and aligning with your deepest desires. You may notice that once you come into alignment, everything around you begins to flourish, too.

Setting Boundaries and Showing Up for Yourself May 15, 2020

Show notes

How often has your intuition warned you that the exchange (physical or energetic!) between you and another individual was unfair, unbalanced or absolutely exhausting? More importantly, how often have you ignored your intuition to benefit that other individual’s needs before your own? In today’s episode, Rachel discusses the importance of setting and keeping boundaries for the sake of your own mental health.

It can be so hard to set boundaries and stick to them. As women and mothers especially, we are taught that we are here to serve. But setting boundaries is a radical form of self-care – and when you are at your best self, everyone around you benefits, too. Doing what you need to do to take care of yourself and show up for yourself is a way to heal both yourself and co-dependent relationships.

This week’s episode will help you take a deeper look into areas of your life that may need some firmly set boundaries and show you exactly how to set them. Tune in to learn one ultimate truth of life: you don’t owe anyone anything that drains you. The world can only benefit from you choosing yourself, each and every day.

A Garden as a Metaphor for Love, Loss and Life May 08, 2020

Show notes

We are all subjected to one ultimate truth of life: nothing is permanent. Plants, people, jobs, relationships, and homes – everything that surrounds us is fragile and fleeting. In this week’s episode, Rachel has been watching her garden be assaulted by lizards, dogs, white flies, mildew and a multitude of other challenges, and she is suddenly hit with the realization that her garden represents a metaphor for all of life.

We may not have control over the eventual outcomes, but we do have a choice when we are faced with obstacles or opportunities. We can choose to show up and nourish the plants regardless of the hardships, or we can give up and miss out on the joyful process of the journey.

This episode will remind you that the magic of being is found in the journey itself, not in the final destination. We cannot let the fear of pain, grief, or loss hold us back from doing what we love. After all, it’s the fragility of life that makes it so valuable. All we can do is immerse ourselves in as much life as we can while we are here.

A Coming Back to Earth: How to Live a Life that Sustains You May 01, 2020

Show notes

We are on the cusp of a major life transition. We can choose to stray away from ourselves, or we can make decisions that put us in alignment with our soul’s true calling. But how can we know what that calling is?

In today’s episode, Rachel reflects on the times in her life when she felt actual peace and genuine happiness. She realizes that all of those times have a common thread - they were the times she was able to slow down and come back, again and again, to yoga, to baking, to gardening, to the things that brought her into the present moment. As we have been socially isolating for the past few weeks, many of us have been able to return to the things we enjoy most, and it is sparking a world-wide epiphany. What was keeping us from doing what we enjoy in the first place? Was it a drive for success? For wealth? For social standing? Were we trying to ease the feeling of not being safe in our own skin?

Whatever is holding you back from the life you are destined to live, now is the time to release it. Tune into today’s episode to make your peace of mind a priority, to put the ‘being’ back into the ‘doing’, and to connect with your intuition before you act. Maybe the true adventure is presence - and maybe the answers to our questions will come if we are quiet enough to listen for them.

The Spiritual Path is the Human Path: Messy, Real and Raw Apr 24, 2020

Show notes

Being human is messy! We are intricate, deeply emotional beings with the ability to feel so many things - and so many conflicting things - at the same time. We swing on a pendulum between productivity and numbing ourselves, between giving too much and shutting people out, between our ego and our soul taking control in the driver’s seat. But - it is all okay. This is exactly what doing the work looks like!

In today’s episode, Rachel reflects on this period of isolation, the ups and downs she’s faced, and all the emotions that have come and gone. All of it has led her to one realization: we have been given an incredible opportunity to change our lives. We now have the space and time to check in with ourselves more than we ever have before. We are at a precipice on our path to healing and our journey to enlightenment - we just have to anchor into faith and take the leap.

Today’s deeply spiritual episode shines light on exactly what it means to be human - messy, real, and raw. The path to healing, to evolving, and to enlightenment is not linear or easy, but it is the human path. Tune in to understand, embrace and accept your own triggers and patterns of behavior and come back again and again to those tools and resources that can help you make it through. It all comes together in this beautiful journey that is only your own. If you can anchor into the faith of that notion, you can begin.

Begin Your Path to Self-Healing Today with Dr. Nicole LePera Apr 17, 2020

Show notes

Are you struggling with feelings of anxiety or is your nervous system exhausted from being stuck in fight or flight? In this time of quarantine, we may have found ourselves with the opportunity to explore our inner landscape and do some deep self-healing work, and that is exactly what this week’s episode is about!

This week’s show is a perceptive and resourceful conversation between Rachel and holistic psychologist Dr. Nicole LePera, founder of the self-healing, inspirational Instagram account @the.holistic.psychologist.

Together, they unpack trauma and talk about how to identify it, how to manage the effects of traumatic events and how trauma can be more than big traumatic experiences. They also talk about our three core needs, how we embody pain and how it plays out in our daily routines, relationship patterns, decision making and generational behavior.

While psychology focuses mostly on treating the mind, holistic psychology focuses on our being as a whole and balancing the body in order to treat the mind. There are so many elements to trauma and self-healing, and this week’s episode will help you to recognize your triggers, notice behavioral patterns, and create conscious daily lifestyle choices in order to generate self-healing.

Isolation as a Spiritual Bootcamp Apr 10, 2020

Show notes

How are you doing in quarantine? Have you asked yourself that question lately, and then allowed yourself to sit with the answer? Are you having a hard time being present with your surroundings?

In this week’s episode, Rachel unpacks the collective quarantine experience of slowing down, removing distractions and doing our inner work. While being faced with that regardless of the social isolation, there is a voice inside her head that still wants to get up and go, do, create, work, bake, keep it moving, Rachel has big realizations about her childhood wounds and how they relate to her fears around this pandemic. What if for each of us, this could be an opportunity to look within? To step onto the path of healing, without anything distracting us?

This is not a time to to be productive or dive deeper into work but a time to rest, to reset, to sit and become aware of the slowing down and the opportunity return to what’s truly important.

The goal is to enjoy the simple art of being. To be able to recognize our triggers, discomfort, fear, anger, sadness, and to breathe through them. To lean in to the unknown and trust. To look up to the sky and have faith in the divine timing of our path. To know that the earth is healing, and that there will be a rebirth after this loss.

This episode will remind you that it's ok to let yourself feel, to breathe, to trust, and to look forward to whats on the other side of where we are now. A new world where we value human connection over the dollar, where we are growing our own foods, and taking the time to sit and do the inner work to heal.

How To (Not) Kill Your Spouse During Quarantine - Our 10-Year Anniversary Episode! Apr 03, 2020

Show notes

This week’s episode is a special one as Rachel has on the ultimate guest, her hilarious and down to earth husband, Dennis Schoneveld! Rachel and Dennis are recording from Aruba on their 10th wedding anniversary as they have found themselves at home, like the rest of us.

Tune in as they discuss everything a husband and wife would discuss during this time of isolation, from how they reacted to Luna getting tested for the virus to Dennis’ opinion on the amount of rice they currently have in the cupboard. Ultimately, as they work to protect their team and business during this challenging time, Rachel and Dennis share how to be of service to those in need.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Rachel and Dennis episode if they didn’t address your Instagram questions. Find out if they will have another baby, if they use any form of THC to calm down, and if Dennis thinks of himself as ‘clingy’. Tune in for a family quarantine episode not to be missed - funny, heartfelt, honest, and real.

A Social Isolation Survival Guide Mar 27, 2020

Show notes

Tune in today as Rachel shares more than ten of her best tips to bring normalcy to your day, to move stagnant energy, and to clear your mind of repetitive thoughts so you can get through this period of isolation feeling whole. From doing yoga to making your bed, these small, day-to-day practices can keep you healthy and grounded in a time filled with so much uncertainty and loss of structure.

The key to getting through this time is found in accepting the dualities of life; work and rest, moderation and excess, and reality and divine intervention. On one hand, Rachel expresses the need to acknowledge what is happening, honor the human suffering taking place, and not bypass the emotions that rise within us - only then can we be of service to the world. On the other hand, we need to pray, lean into trust, and put our faith in that intuitive power within us all that guides us on our path (as Rachel sees for herself through her garden, solar panels, online platform and even her burnout!).

On days where you feel fragile and vulnerable, this podcast will remind you that together we are strong. You are not alone. We are all walking this journey together, and we can get through it together by taking good care of ourselves.