From Chronic Pain to Passion

Welcome back dear listeners. Today, I have no guest because I’m going to share another talk that I gave recently. Using my voice is something that I’ve discovered I love to do. And something I’m particularly passionate about is breaking down the concepts of chronic pain recovery into very simple language. There are lots of different ways to communicate these concepts, and there are many very eloquent practitioners and researchers out there who use neuroscience terminology, facts and figures from research studies, and other lofty sounding language to communicate these ideas. And that is fantastic! That kind of language really speaks to people in a particular way and it serves a specific purpose in our society. And, my contribution to this conversation about mind-body healing comes in a very different type of language from that. Because my personal mission is really about encouraging people, like you, the listener, to develop trust in your own inner wisdom and your own innate understanding of your own lived experience.

And to encourage that, I make it a point whenever I can to use everyday language. And instead of using a lot of scientific jargon — not that it doesn’t have its place — I prefer to use everyday metaphors to help you understand that, just by being alive, you already have all the tools you need to understand what’s going on in your mind and body. It’s really just about tuning in and paying attention, and leaning into what you already know about life based on other experiences that we can use as metaphors.

And now, I hope you’ll enjoy this talk in which I’ll break down the process of chronic pain recovery into three simple concepts. Fair warning, this talk does include some mild bathroom humor.

You can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email: [email protected]

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠

Welcome back, dear listener. In today’s episode, I got to chat with a dear friend and colleague, Phil de la Haye.

Phil is an Internal Family Systems (IFS) practitioner and mind-body coach based near Bristol in the UK. He has his own history of chronic pain, so he has a personal interest in this work and a great passion for supporting other people who are in recovery from chronic symptoms. 

I personally find the IFS framework to be incredibly helpful with chronic symptom recovery and Phil did an amazing job of explaining that framework in our conversation, so I know you’ll get a lot out of this episode.

Phil and I met about three years ago through some Facebook group I think — probably a group for mind-body practitioners, but I was already familiar with Phil’s story after hearing him interviewed on a podcast called The Cure for Chronic Pain with Nicole Sachs. Anyway, somehow, we connected, and we’ve been meeting on Zoom together about once a month off and on.

In theory we meet to talk about client work and offer each other support with that. But quite often we wind up sharing our own personal experiences, how stress shows up in our bodies as we continue to be human beings, and just to generally connect. And I’m sharing this because developing friendships and connections with other people who “get it” has been such an important and enjoyable part of my own recovery from chronic pain — and my development as a person.

It's a big part of the reason that I created my monthly membership group, the Mind-Body Support Circle. We meet up twice a month on Zoom to talk about chronic symptom recovery, to journal together, and most importantly to share honestly and vulnerably with each other and give and receive support! It’s such a simple, beautiful thing. I remember one group member recently saying, “we are changing the world by doing this together.” And I totally agree with that.

If you would like to join us, you can do so by signing up for my signature journaling course, Writing to Release Chronic Pain. When you sign up, you’ll be invited to two months of complementary membership in the Support Circle so that you can experience it and see if it’s for you. I’d love to get to know you there. To learn more, visit my website, annaholtzman.com/writingtorelease

And now, without further ado, please enjoy this conversation with Phil de la Haye.

You can find Phil at:

Website: www.phildelahaye.com

IG: https://www.instagram.com/phildelahayeifs/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/phildelahayeifs

FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/901827657282916

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email: [email protected]

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠

Welcome back, dear listener. Today’s episode is a little bit

I am such a strong believer in group coaching, because it has helped me overcome so many different fears, and it has helped me to step forward into my passions in life in so many different ways.

And that’s also the reason why, this year, I have launched my own group coaching program to support people — perhaps like you — to heal from chronic pain so you can pursue your own passion. My group meets twice per month on Zoom and it is just the most wonderfully supportive, loving, kind, wise group of people. We come together, we talk about different topics in chronic pain recovery. We share struggles and triumphs. And we support each other. And if this sounds like something you’d like to experience, I would love to have you join us. And you can do that now, simply by enrolling in my signature journaling course, Writing to Release Chronic Pain, which you’ll find on my website, www.annaholtzman.com/writingtorelease .

And when you enroll in the course, you’ll be invited to join us for two months of group coaching to test it out, and see if you’d like to become an ongoing monthly member. I would love to see you there, and if you have questions about the program, you can email me at [email protected]

You can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email: [email protected]

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠

Welcome back, dear listeners. In this episode, it was so fun to meet a kindred spirit who, like me, used to work in television and is now a mind-body practitioner. And also like me, this guest is a big proponent of self-compassion and self-trust.

Rebecca Tolin is a mind-body coach, educator and writer who comes to this field through a 13-year saga with chronic fatigue syndrome. After seeing 50 practitioners, Rebecca finally recovered through the mind-body model. This experience was so profound that she’s devoted her work to helping people with chronic fatigue, long COVID and other neuroplastic symptoms. Rebecca is the creator of the Be Your Own Medicine course, which blends mind-body education with somatic meditation, emotional awareness, exposure therapy and nervous system regulation. She spreads science and story through her blog and YouTube channel. And prior to this career, Rebecca worked as a broadcast journalist for ABC, NBC and PBS affiliates. 

You can find Rebecca at:

Website: https://www.rebeccatolin.com/

Free somatic meditation: https://www.rebeccatolin.com/newsletter

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email: [email protected]

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠

Welcome back, dear listeners. I’m so glad to bring you this conversation with my guest Amy Corfeli, about living with endometriosis and using mind-body tools to manage the symptoms of a physical, biological condition.

Amy, whose pronouns are she/her, is an endometriosis advocate who was diagnosed with endo at thirty-three, sixteen years after her symptoms began. She’s the host of the podcast In Sixteen Years of Endometriosis, which explores endometriosis with a multidisciplinary focus, including interviews with excision surgeons, discussions on mental health, and more.

Amy is also the author of Finding Peace with a Devastating Disease. It's a beautifully raw and honest collection of seventy-six reflections on acceptance, meaning, and self-compassion. Amy’s advocacy goals are to help empower patients to make informed decisions about their care, and to open discussions on how to improve our quality of life on both a physical and emotional level.

I think this conversation is important for so many reasons. There’s far too little understanding and knowledge about endometriosis, and I personally learned a ton about it from Amy. But beyond this specific condition, we spoke about the limitations of black-and-white, all-or-nothing thinking when it comes to distinctions and intersections between our physical and our emotional experiences, which is something that I think every listener will relate to in some way.

You can find Amy at:

Instagram: @in16yearsofendo 

En español: @endo.en.lo.profundo

Website: www.insixteenyears.com

Podcast: In Sixteen Years of Endometriosis 

Spotify podcast link: https://open.spotify.com/show/5t49D3WuwGZjON2secRNAK

Book: Finding Peace with a Devastating Disease (available on Amazon worldwide)

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email: [email protected]

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠

Welcome back, dear listeners. I’m excited to share with you a raw and unfiltered conversation I had with my friend and colleague Deb Malkin, all about the beautifully messy reality of being a human being who is evolving and growing while also helping others to heal and grow.

Deb, whose pronouns are she/they, is a feminist, master certified mind-body pain recovery coach, specializing in using the tools of neuro + bioplasticity and consciously curious hypno-coaching to help people unlearn pain and emotional stress symptoms in order to feel better and pursue their amazing lives. Deb has helped clients recover from back pain, migraines, fibromyalgia, GI pain and more.

Deb and I are also part of a cohort of mind-body coaches who get together about twice a month and let it all hang out together, which has been so instrumental for my growth. And as we’ll talk about, it’s not always easy letting yourself be vulnerable, even in the most supportive of spaces. But what I find over and over again is that it’s so worth it, because the healing and growth that comes from allowing ourselves to connect with one another through our vulnerability and honesty is really the only gateway to joy in life, as far as I can tell.

So, here’s me and Deb getting real with each other — and with you — about what it’s like to be a beautifully messy human being who helps other beautifully messy human beings. And I hope this conversation serves as a permission slip to let your own beautiful messiness shine through.

You can find Deb at:

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/curiositycure.coach/

Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-curiosity-cure-mindbody-wellness/id1595415545

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email:

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠

Welcome back, dear listeners. In this episode, I got to go really deep with my friend and guest Leanne Rose, and we went to some places that you might not be expecting on this podcast. But I think you’ll discover pretty quickly why and how Leanne’s work relates the chronic pain recovery.

Leanne is a trained mental health professional and interpersonal therapist who has transitioned into the realm of energetics and source trance channeling. Leanne brings a unique perspective on how energy impacts our well-being, which is especially relevant to chronic pain recovery. She believes, as I do, that pain is a message, an energetic signal from our deepest place of knowing that there's an underlying misalignment in our lives that needs attention and care.

Leanne is also known for her work with high-level entrepreneurs, guiding them to achieve not just financial success but also a deeper connection to themselves and the world around them. More broadly, her insights into energy and its role in our lives can offer valuable lessons for all of us on the journey from chronic pain to passion.

I felt so deeply connected to Leanne during this conversation as she shared openly and vulnerably about her own journey and I’m honored to invite you into the conversation with us.

You can find Leanne at:

Website: https://www.thegalaylacollective.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamleannerose/

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email:

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠

Welcome back, dear listeners. In this episode, my heart was bursting with joy to have this sweet reunion with a former coaching client!

Courtney LaCaria is the farmer and fiber artist behind the company, Form and Function Creative. She lives with her family on an alpaca farm that focuses on regenerative practices and provides the fleece that she spins into yarn and weaves into fiber goodies. Finding inspiration in nature and stories, Courtney's work reflects her love for art as both product and practice, creating fiber art that embodies the elements of joy, connection, and gratitude. When she is not making art, she's in the kitchen baking or outside in the garden.

I met Courtney when she joined my journaling course, Writing to Release Chronic Pain, and we subsequently did some coaching together. She had already dipped her toes into mind-body medicine world, but she was still struggling with frequent and persistent migraine headaches at the time. It’s been such a heart-warming experience to see her journey unfold into greater ease, self-trust, and a blossoming creative practice and business. When I get to do this kind of work with clients and students, yes it’s about educating people on theories and practices of mind-body healing, but at the core, it’s really about developing relationship and care and connection — both between practitioner and client, and between the various parts of ourselves. And I think that’s really going to come through as you listen to this conversation.

You can find Courtney at:

Website: https://www.formandfunctioncreative.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/formandfunctioncreative

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email: [email protected]

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠

Welcome back, dear listeners. In this episode, I’m excited to share with you a conversation I had with my colleague Shaheen Jaffary.

Shaheen helps midlife women to be free from neuroplastic

Like me, Shaheen came into this work through her own pain

You can find Shaheen at:

Website for in-person treatment: www.leedsholistichealth.co.uk

Website for virtual coaching: www.painfreewithshaheen.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leedsholistichealth/

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email: [email protected]

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠

Welcome back, dear listeners. In this episode I got to reconnect with a colleague I met in Canada in a program where we shared our stories and our work out loud on stage. Kristi McLeod totally blew me away when she did a demo of her work with an audience member. And I knew that I had to have her on this podcast — partly so that you could learn about the work she does, and selfishly, so that I could be her client for a demo, which you’ll hear in this episode.

Kristi is a multidisciplinary healer, mentor, and teacher who is here to help shift the paradigm of how wellness and mental health is viewed. Kristi is on a mission to guide practitioners, entrepreneurs, and organizations to becoming regulated AF so that they can be more at ease, effective and efficient in their business.

With a foundational focus on nervous system regulation, she guides you to a felt sense of safety while teaching you about your nervous systems responses. And to take it a step further, she helps reveal and resolve the root of what is causing dysregulation, which, as we know, is often the underlying root of so many different kinds of symptoms.

In our conversation, Kristi shared about how she came to this work through her own journey of recovery from depression and how she uses the very same processes to work with chronic pain as well.

I felt so safe and supported by Kristi during the demo she did, where I sat in as the client, and there was some raw emotion that came up for me. Just a content warning, the subject matter that I shared about as Kristi’s client has to do with a traumatic sexual experience in my teen years. We don’t go into much detail about it, we were working mainly with present-time emotion, but if that could be a triggering topic for you, please use your own discernment when choosing to listen. With that said, I so enjoyed recording this episode with Kristi. I think you’ll get a ton out of it, as I did, and I am honored to be sharing her work with you!

You can find Kristi at:

Website: https://www.somaskyewellness.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/somaskyewellness/

And you can find me at:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@anna_holtzman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Email:

Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.annaholtzman.com⁠