Awakening Doctor

Join host Dr. Maria Christodoulou and producer Amy Kaye, as we reflect on the podcast journey of 2023. 

With more than 1200 downloads, 8 episodes, and listeners in over 30 countries and 137 cities around the world, we are grateful for the meaningful connections we have forged and the budding community we are building. Each episode has provided us an opportunity to weave our love of storytelling into a transformative experience of authenticity, vulnerability, and shared humanity.

As this inaugural year draws to a close, we delve into our motivation for starting the podcast, explore the evolution of its unfolding, and reveal some of the struggles and triumphs we've encountered along the way. Join us as we celebrate the milestones we've achieved and articulate our hopes for what the year ahead might hold.  

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

If you enjoyed this conversation and would like to support this work, please consider donating to our podcast fund using the link above. Your contribution helps us cover production costs and keep bringing you great content. No amount is too small, and your support means the world to us. Thank you for listening!

Host:
Dr Maria Christodoulou

Follow us on Social Media:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awakeningdoctor/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningDoctor

Website: https://www.awakeningdoctor.com/podcast

In this episode of Awakening Doctor, we meet the extraordinary Irene F. Sullivan, a trauma nurse practitioner with a multifaceted career spanning art, medicine, theology, philosophy, and cultural anthropology.

Her story takes us from the hustle of an inner-city hospital in the United States to the vast expanses of remote Alaska, and from the rural landscapes of Boulder, Colorado, to an artist’s studio in Marnay-sur-Seine, France. We learn about her evolution from the confines of patriarchal religion to a personal spirituality rooted in goddess theology, and her transition from fervent social rights activism to measured climate justice advocacy and eco-keening.

Along the way, Irene engages with indigenous communities, learns from shamanic healers, takes on the priesthood, falls in love with a Roman Catholic priest, reclaims her Irish heritage, and even meets with an Episcopal bishop in a red-light district. Her passionate protests against ecocide and climate devastation finally land her in an ICU with a broken heart. 

Today, as a Bean Chaointe or Keening Woman artist whose work is dedicated to creating spaces for eco-memory, eco-grief, and eco-care, Irene has transformed the duty of care that is at the heart of the nursing profession into a palliative medicine for the planet.

Join us for a powerful conversation with a trailblazing health professional whose journey is an embodied reminder of our collective duty to care – for each other and for the environment.

Learn more about Irene F. Sullivan here: https://www.irenefsullivan.com.   

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

If you enjoyed this conversation and would like to support this work, please consider donating to our podcast fund using the link above. Your contribution helps us cover production costs and keep bringing you great content. No amount is too small, and your support means the world to us. Thank you for listening!

Host:
Dr Maria Christodoulou

Follow us on Social Media:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awakeningdoctor/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningDoctor

Website: https://www.awakeningdoctor.com/podcast

Dr. Patrick Hanaway is a board-certified family physician and leading role player in the evolution and expansion of Integrative and Functional Medicine across the globe. He is also an initiated Mara’akame (indigenous healer) in the tradition of the Wixarika people of the Sierra Madres in Mexico, holding community fires, leading ritual ceremonies and offering traditional healing sessions. A modern-day shamanic healer who walks between the worlds and traverses the different healing paradigms with incredible skill, humility, compassion and grace. 

In this episode of Awakening Doctor, Patrick shares his personal story of overcoming stage 4 laryngeal cancer and reveals the many different ways in which this experience transformed his relationship to nature, medicine, health and healing.

Whether you’re a doctor in search of meaning, a patient grappling with a challenging diagnosis, or simply curious about integral perspectives on health and wellness, join us for an inspiring and thought-provoking conversation with an eminent leader and educator in the medical field.

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

If you enjoyed this conversation and would like to support this work, please consider donating to our podcast fund using the link above. Your contribution helps us cover production costs and keep bringing you great content. No amount is too small, and your support means the world to us. Thank you for listening!

Host:
Dr Maria Christodoulou

Follow us on Social Media:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awakeningdoctor/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningDoctor

Website: https://www.awakeningdoctor.com/podcast

Dr Lisa Africa’s journey into medicine was guided by her artistic sensibilities and her fascination with the intricate wonders of the human body. Today, she is a healer and a visual artist who seamlessly integrates her artistic ability and her medical expertise to empower and educate her patients. In this episode of Awakening Doctor we sat down to talk about her experiences as a young doctor working in South Africa’s public healthcare sector.

Lisa shares openly about what it’s like to be an ‘outlier’ in the profession and offers her unique perspective on the intersection between art, science and healing. She also speaks with unflinching candour about her personal encounters with racism, sexism, sexual harassment and abuse of power in the workplace, and the myriad of social, relational and academic pressures she has faced. The personal and emotional toll of bearing witness to the darker side of the human experience on a daily basis is evident throughout.

It’s a conversation filled with raw truths, deep insights and sobering reflections on the limitations of humanity. It’s also a challenging confrontation with the harsh realities faced by many of our young doctors during their community service years and beyond.

Come prepared for an encounter with the unembellished truths that shape not only the lives of our aspiring doctors but also the reality of the world we live in.

Please note:

If you or someone you know needs counselling or support to deal with trauma, violence, sexual assault, substance abuse or mental health concerns, please contact one of the following resources in South Africa for assistance: https://www.gov.za/faq/justice-and-crime-prevention/where-can-i-find-organisation-offers-assistance-victims-violence

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

If you enjoyed this conversation and would like to support this work, please consider donating to our podcast fund using the link above. Your contribution helps us cover production costs and keep bringing you great content. No amount is too small, and your support means the world to us. Thank you for listening!

Host:
Dr Maria Christodoulou

Follow us on Social Media:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awakeningdoctor/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningDoctor

Website: https://www.awakeningdoctor.com/podcast

The late Rod Suskin was an internationally renowned astrologer, sangoma, teacher, author, academic, and TV and media personality based in Cape Town, South Africa. In this episode of Awakening Doctor, recorded a few years before his passing, Rod shares his personal story of becoming a traditional healer and offers unique insights into the interplay between destiny, purpose, and the cosmic forces that shape our lives.

We talk about the divination tools given to him by his European ancestors, the unconventional way in which his calling and initiation as a sangoma unfolded, and his interest in the history of medicine and the cosmology of African spirituality. We also delve into the realm of astrological birth charts and learn how an understanding of astrological cycles helped him to make sense of a significant personal loss.

With a perspective that is both grounded in the wisdom of ancient traditions and contextualised for today's world, this conversation with Rod covers a range of fascinating topics: Why did King James I of England choose to set aside his concerns about the evils of tobacco in the 16th century? Who was Nicholas Culpeper? How do you differentiate between a calling and a mental illness? What is a Saturn return? How can astrology help you to navigate difficult transitions? Join us for answers to all these questions and more.  

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

If you enjoyed this conversation and would like to support this work, please consider donating to our podcast fund using the link above. Your contribution helps us cover production costs and keep bringing you great content. No amount is too small, and your support means the world to us. Thank you for listening!

Host:
Dr Maria Christodoulou

Follow us on Social Media:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awakeningdoctor/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningDoctor

Website: https://www.awakeningdoctor.com/podcast

Dr Sheron Forgus is a specialist family physician, budding novelist, dedicated wife and mother, and passionate advocate for coaching and mentoring as a means to personal and professional wellbeing.

In this episode of Awakening Doctor, Sheron talks to us about her experiences as a senior clinician at a community clinic in Cape Town and gives a candid account of the personal circumstances that eventually led her to resign from the position with severe burnout. Her story reveals a striking parallel between her own life and the core principles of her chosen specialty, Family Medicine, which aims to care for individuals within the context of their family and community.

As we delve into the many ways in which familial and societal expectations influenced her choice of career and reflect on the interplay between her overdeveloped sense of personal responsibility and a demanding professional environment, it becomes apparent just how interconnected the health of an individual and their community can be - not only for patients but also for their doctors.

Sheron’s inspiring story of recovery and the unexpected and transformative patient encounter that enabled her to reclaim an integral part of herself is testimony to the power of empathy, reciprocity, and human connection on the path to health and wholeness. Join us for a heartfelt and insightful insider’s perspective on the medical profession.

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

If you enjoyed this conversation and would like to support this work, please consider donating to our podcast fund using the link above. Your contribution helps us cover production costs and keep bringing you great content. No amount is too small, and your support means the world to us. Thank you for listening!

Host:
Dr Maria Christodoulou

Follow us on Social Media:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awakeningdoctor/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningDoctor

Website: https://www.awakeningdoctor.com/podcast

Dr. Liana Roodt is a breast, endocrine and general surgeon based in South Africa. In this episode of Awakening Doctor, Liana shares with us her personal story of pursuing a career in a traditionally male-dominated field.

We explore her motivation for specialising in breast cancer surgery, her commitment to “surgery with soul”, and the inspiration that led her to found Project Flamingo, a non-profit organisation that provides equitable, inclusive and compassionate care to cancer patients in public sector hospitals. We also delve into some of the obstacles she has had to overcome and the positive changes she observes in the academic culture of medicine today. 

Whether it’s the impact of grappling with issues of life and death, the cost of balancing personal relationships with a demanding career, or the struggle to command respect and authority whilst defying conventional stereotypes of the profession, Dr. Roodt’s honest and vulnerable account of her journey offers a rare glimpse into the heart of a surgeon that may surprise, inspire and challenge you all at the same time.

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

If you enjoyed this conversation and would like to support this work, please consider donating to our podcast fund using the link above. Your contribution helps us cover production costs and keep bringing you great content. No amount is too small, and your support means the world to us. Thank you for listening!

Host:
Dr Maria Christodoulou

Follow us on Social Media:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awakeningdoctor/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningDoctor

Website: https://www.awakeningdoctor.com/podcast

From his humble beginnings in Cape Town’s District Six to his appointment as Head of the Western Cape Government’s Department of Health in 2020, Dr Keith Cloete shares his unique perspective on leadership as “a son of the Western Cape” and reveals how core values instilled by his parents have helped him to make meaning of his purpose and destiny.

In this inaugural episode of the Awakening Doctor podcast, we discuss his experiences at medical school during apartheid, the intersectionality of privilege and oppression in his personal story, his deep commitment to social justice, as well as key milestones on his leadership journey and the challenges of leading the department through the Covid pandemic.

Join us for an inspiring and thought-provoking conversation with one of South Africa’s foremost leaders in healthcare, and discover the power of optimism and self-determination in the pursuit of a brighter tomorrow.

Send us Fan Mail

Support the show

If you enjoyed this conversation and would like to support this work, please consider donating to our podcast fund using the link above. Your contribution helps us cover production costs and keep bringing you great content. No amount is too small, and your support means the world to us. Thank you for listening!

Host:
Dr Maria Christodoulou

Follow us on Social Media:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awakeningdoctor/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwakeningDoctor

Website: https://www.awakeningdoctor.com/podcast