You know that inner voice that tells you you’re lazy, unlovable, unproductive, failing in life, worthless and ugly? 

Many of us listen to that inner voice, taking it very personally and thinking there's a lot of truth behind the yelling. 

But this episode reveals that the voice is actually just a goblin..a particularly shouty little creature who thrives in individualist cultures obsessed with growth, productivity, accomplishment and personal responsibility.

Join me to...

• meet the goblin and understand how they were born 
• understand the goblin's ideological lineage
• learn why lovely, principled, wonderful people (like you, I bet) tend to get yelled at the most by goblins
• hear Nature’s perspective on invasive goblins (and how she rebalances predators in an ecosystem)

If at any point you hear a voice saying the episode is stupid... that's the goblin. 

Mentioned or relevant:

• Episode: Why We Need The Anxious, Overwhelmed, Sensitive Overthinkers. Right Now. Exactly As You Are. Please Come
• An open letter from Nature to overthinkers, the anxious, the sensitive, and the overwhelmed is here 
• More swears than normal, sorry, mostly the word s***bag
• Nature’s a fan of Pink Floyd 
• Get support or guidance from me here
• If you’d like updates and invitations, hop on to my Friends List. 
• I write on Substack too—come hang out there if you wanna.
• The Common Earth Insights course is coming up soon, too: join me here (it's fully funded at no cost to you)

Gosh what a lot of links

Thank you for listening. You are the pine to my needle 🌲

Nice to see you, but this is a non-episode so don’t get too comfy. 

I'm calling on your input around a theme that’s come up in our recent episodes: what happens when your usual ways of grounding yourself, like your spiritual, philosophical, religious, or therapeutic frameworks and orientations, suddenly feel completely insufficient, particularly in the context of collapse, breakdown and unravelling of systems, structures and species?

I’m inviting you to:

• Share your thoughts, experiences, or questions on this theme for a possible third episode in this series
• And / or join a small, closed, interactive conversation with me on this topic if it calls to you. 

That’s wrapped up in the first few minutes but I linger for 15 more to gently open it up with some light prodding: 

• What happens when your usual meaning-making tools stop working...and why that’s not your fault (you don't need to just "see more" or "deepen your grounding") 
• Why so many modern spiritual and therapeutic frameworks struggle to hold the weight of collapse
• The Western decontextualisation of ancient wisdom traditions...and how that leaves us unprepared for reality
• Why thought-centred approaches to well-being (like non-duality, self-help, and coaching) feel out of place amongst actual, material breakdown of ecosystems, economies, and societies
• Why “suffering is just a thought” or “an illusion” baffles us when rivers are poisoned and species are vanishing

If you’ve ever felt more lost after trying to lean on spiritual teachings when confronting the magnitude of collapse, or you feel confused and bewildered and disillusioned by the beliefs that once gave you clarity and comfort, you might get something here. Don't be alone. I'm your ally in this one. 

Mentioned / next steps: 

Part one of conversation in this area : It's In Our Nature to Unravel & Collapse (& Why Seeing This Can Actually Help Anxiety)

Part two: The Profound Gifts That Only Collapse & Breaking Down Can Reveal

Submit a story, question, or comment for a possible part three episode, and/or register your interest for a small, closed circle conversation here. 

Email me here.

If you’d like updates and invitations, hop on to my Friends List. I write on Substack too—come hang out there if you wanna.

Gosh what a lot of links

Thank you for listening. You are the the brilliance of an unfurling petal 🌺

Join me for part two of our conversation on collapse, unravelling and breakdown. It’s way better than it sounds, promise. This one has gifts and treasures! But, it also has some hard stuff, so listen only if you feel up to it.  

Included in the episode...

• A reminder that collapse and breakdown aren't failures, but actually a fundamental part of nature’s cycles — whether we’re talking about ecological, social, financial collapse, or your own inner mental breakdown (been there)
• The massive blind spots in self-help, coaching, and therapy when it comes to collapse
• The incredible gifts that await when we courageously face material truths that are obscured from us in everyday life by dominant narratives and interests
• The ways our ancestors were way better prepared for this than we are (and what we can learn from them)
• The hidden capacities you already have for resilience, adaptation, and finding meaning amidst the incredulous unraveling that we see around us. 

There are so many podcasts and so little units of our human energy. This isn’t for everyone. You might need something else, or total silence.

But, at your discretion, listen if…

• You’re tired, overwhelmed, and literally sick of life feeling like a race you didn’t sign up for. You don’t even like races. You wanna lie down. 
• You need a reminder that you’re not a failure at life for not keeping up Ana ‘managing’: you’re actually responding appropriately to an spectacularly unbalanced and life denying system (so…yay?)
• You think you need discipline and willpower when really, you need rest, nourishment, community, and a world that maybe isn’t on fire?
• You’re grappling with big, difficult emotions about the state of your inner and/or outer world and you find me somewhat of a kindred spirit (I totally am, hi friend 👋🏼)

Mentioned:

Part one of this conversation: It's In Our Nature to Unravel & Collapse (& Why Seeing This Can Actually Help Anxiety)

Where I talk about context a ton: "All Of This" (gestures around wildly) "Is Not in Our Nature"

Where I talk about us mirroring earth responses: What a Weird Coincidence That Both Our Mental Health and the Earth’s Systems Are More Fragile Than Ever (It’s Like We Are Intimately Connected or Something)

The one where I talk about The Work That Reconnects: You Have a Radically Powerful (But Highly Misunderstood) Gift That Can Transform Your Experience of a World in Chaos

The episode also invites your questions and views about your experiences of the insufficiency or lack of support from your spiritual, therapeutic and philosophical paradigms, tools and communities. Contact me here for that. 

If you’d like updates and invitations, hop on to my Friends List. 

I write on Substack too—come hang out there if you wanna.

Gosh what a lot of links

Thanks for listening. You're the the glistening dew drop on a baby fern 💧

Today we’re talking about the most fundamental of cosmic laws. One that governs everything from stars, to soil, to the thoughts in your mind. 

A cosmic law that we humans have spent centuries pretending doesn’t exist. 

A cosmic law that, when honoured and accepted, can strengthen our mental wellbeing as well as the wellbeing of our planet, our communities, our democracies and our relationships. 

It's the cosmic law of...life and death. 

Join me as we explore:

• The fundamental natural cycle of rise and fall, expansion and contraction, growth and decay which applies to everything... including you
• Why no system in nature grows forever (including civilisations) and why this is a crucial thing 
• The disconnect between the comforting story of infinite progress and the reality of collapse as a natural part of life
• How this understanding transforms our relationship with anxiety, burnout, and overwhelm
• Why recognising this cycle might just change your life 

Mentioned in this episode:

• Zucchini’s everywhere!
• Lots of different words for “collapse”
• My early, bewildered, angst-filled journals on this topic here, here and here.
• Reluctant co-host Nature is verrrry cheeky today 
• Curious and want other resources? See here and here (not curated by me)

The episode also invites your questions, views and comments around your experiences of the insufficiency or lack of support from your spiritual, therapeutic and philosophical paradigms, tools and communities 

Contact me here for that. 

If you’d like updates and invitations, hop on to my Friends List. I write on Substack too—come hang out there if you wanna.

Gosh what a lot of links

Thank you for listening. You are the pollinator of dreams 🐝

If you relate to being anxious, sensitive, easily overwhelmed or always overthinking every darn thing....this is my call to you.

Today we're exploring how these profoundly pathologised traits are, actually, exactly what the world needs right now. 

Join me as we tinker with: 

• How overthinking and anxiety are misunderstood, undervalued, and categorised as “problems” to be fixed (including by me in past times, which is totally cringe)
• The connection between anxiety, sensitivity, overwhelm and overthinking with being caring, thoughtful, kind and not an asshOle (and why this is relevant)
• Why and how  society dismisses different ways of being and thinking—and how this ties into systems built on speed, extraction, and dominance.
• A total overhaul of what "overthinking" means —and why it's exactly what the world needs right now.
• The connection between our mental health and the world around us (er, mentioned every episode)

Mentioned in this episode:

• The open letter from Nature to overthinkers, the anxious, the sensitive, and the overwhelmed is here 
• The systemic commentary centred around CAKE is here 
• Nature’s a fan of Radiohead. Thought so
• If you want updates on today's topic and are interested in an upcoming playshop which will revolutionise** how you view these parts of yourself, pop your name and email down here. 
• **Revolutionise  might sound a bit much... but I mean it 

If you’d like updates and invitations, hop on to my Friends List. I write on Substack too—come hang out there if you wanna.

Gosh what a lot of links

Thank you for listening. You are the moonlight peeking over a ridgeline 🌙

Today we’re exploring the thought patterns that keep us stuck in cycles of overwhelm, guilt, and inaction, and that block change, prevent peace and clarity, and deny us the spaciousness we desperately need in our lives. 

But these thoughts aren’t yours — they are influenced by broader societal stories and cultural conditioning and we’re going upstream to catch them in the act. So to speak. 

This episode is a follow-up to What Happens When the Space We Need for Our Mental Wellbeing Is Being Sold off to the Highest Bidder? If you haven’t listened to that one yet, I highly recommend it for added context.

Join me to explore:

• The three persistent thoughts blocking space for peace and clarity in your life
• How these thoughts are shaped by invisible societal stories about worth, scarcity, value, and the role of the individual
• How and why rest, clarity, and spaciousness feel like indulgences 
• Why “I’ll have space when…” is a lie (that we always tell ourselves, including me)
• The arrival fallacy and its roots in extractive systems
• What Nature has to say about all this 

Mentioned in this episode:

The F word, at least a couple of times, but it’s essential. Kind of. You'll see

Nature is a fan of Queens of the Stone Age - cool

Other work talking about the transmission of thoughts and stories —how our individual thoughts and experiences and inner narratives are influenced by larger ideologies and societal values is here, here, here and here

Recent episodes connecting our self worth to productivity and busyness: are Is It in Our Nature To Be Restless, Unsettled and Anxious? and Why You Never, Ever Feel Good Enough (Even Though You Are Somewhat Amazing)

To comment, share a story, idea, thought or grumble for the next part of this conversation on Space, email me (let me know if you don’t want your name included anywhere)

If you want, pop yourself on to my Friends List for updates and invitations.

I write on Substack now — come interact there if you like.

Everything I do is by donation or gift. You can donate to support my work here if you want (thank you, amazing person).

Thank you so much for being with me today. You are so fly 🪰

This episode is a re-release from season one that traces a familiar experience: feeling anxious and restless even when there’s ‘nothing to worry about’. Like when one is hiking in the beautiful mountains with a month off work (me).

Originally aired when the podcast was called Inner Peace and Other Cool Shit, this episode is an important reminder of the upstream influences on our feelings and experiences. 

I’m exploring responses to this in upcoming episodes, so this is for the benefit of new listeners (hi, friends) and anyone else needing a refresher. 

If you've heard it already and you totally know where that anxious, restless, unsettled feeling comes from — you are free to go! Go outside. Watch a bird wash themselves in a puddle. It's the best. 

Original show notes for this ep. are below.

Mentioned in this one: 

A belated move to Substack; join me here. 

I mention a piece I am working on about rarely experiencing anxiety and restlessness anymore, and how that’s changed. If you want that when it’s finished get your sweet butt on my Friends’ List here. 
Please note it is NOT a pollyanna how-to for getting rid of anxiety. It's gritty. 

Questions, comments, or ideas, feel free to get in touch with me here

Original show notes:

It's the first episode back after the summer break and I can't wait to talk about horrid feelings with you. 

Join me for an exploration on the birth and evolution of anxious, restless, unsettled feelings, and how understanding this helps ease their ickiness so we can return to peace.
 

This episode will  meander through: 

• A long intro vividly describing my anxious thought storm while on holiday 
• A reminder of the relationship between thoughts and feelings and the outside world
• When it's relevant to look at the content of thought itself, and how understanding this transforms our relationship to it
• An expedition back through history to the origin of our horrid thoughts 
• This will include mentions of anxiety, productivity, overwhelm, being busy, hustle culture, rest and more
• How understanding the creation and evolution of thoughts helps us see them as less personal, giving us more opportunity for freedom and ease 
• Metaphors and comparisons include the climate and soil, soup and croutons and a couple of bad jokes 
• Anxious Alice asks how this historical and evolutionary exploration of thought content reconciles with the orthodox orientation of 'looking upstream to the source of thought'.  Isn't she a wise little squirrel?

We’re poking our sticky fingers into the feelings of worthlessness and inadequacy that so many of us carry. Why do we think we’re not enough? Where do these thoughts come from? Why are they so persistent and stick around, no matter how 'good' we get? And, why did I write I was a worthless piece of sh!t in my journal for many a year?!

Join me as we examine the tangled web of personal thought, cultural narratives, and societal systems that feed these feelings of utter worthlessness–

–and let’s see what it takes to recognise our intrinsic worth and imperfect awesomeness as beings on this astonishing planet (while there's still a few puffs of breathable oxygen available, at least) 

Mentioned

• A lovely metaphor about The Book Of Worthlessness
• The commodification of our humanity and it’s connection with our mental health here
• Poop, a lot, for good reason
• Nature likes Pearl Jam - cool.
• The post about reciprocity in nature, which began life with ‘dick’ in the title
• The Banana taped to a wall 
• Contact me by email here or join my Friends List here for monthly-ish updates and invitations
• Everything I do is by donation or gift. You can donate to support my work here if you can and want to (thank you, amazing person).

 Thanks for being with me today. You rock 🌏

If you feel like your mind, car, house, desk, local supermarket and —everywhere, actually, come to think of it— is chaotic, cluttered, full and busy… 

…you aren’t imagining it. 

This one’s for you. 

Today we’re talking about the crucial need for space in our lives —both internally and externally — and how this is rapidly being sold off, occupied and taken over. 

Join me as we explore:

• How the erasure of space—mentally, physically, and environmentally— makes us feel like crap
• What the psycho-spiritual guidance to connect with ‘inner space’ might be missing in the context of today’s world
• The parallels between natural ecosystems and human wellbeing and why space is vital for both....yes, vital, and not a 'nice to have' when the kids leave home
• Why the fetish for productivity in our society makes you feel anxious and worthless ...and means finding true space nearly impossible
• How structural forces obstruct our ability to connect with the space within and find peace (aka: it's not your fault, friend)
• An invitation to contribute to part two of this conversation — how might we realistically and practically reclaim and honour space in our lives and communities? 

Mentioned

• Last episode here 
• Birds, bees, flies, a cow's head
• The F word, once
• Episodes about productivity here, here, here and here.
•  To comment, share a story, idea, thought or grumble for the second part of this conversation on Space, email me (let me know if you don’t want your name included in the episode)
• The Playshop on this topic has a couple of spaces, but will be expanded if needed. Email me if you’re interested. 
• Everything I do is by donation or gift. You can donate to support my work here if you want (thank you, amazing person).

Thanks for being with me today. You rock 🌏

You know how we humans can fall apart or lose our sh*t when under too much pressure, stress, or neglect? 

Ever noticed that that’s what’s happening to our planet, too? 

The effects of biodiversity loss and climate breakdown are being felt in many places and we humans are breaking down, collapsing, and having meltdowns too. Coincidence? Of course not.

Today we’re looking at the striking parallels between our personal mental health and the planet’s wellbeing. 

Join me to explore: 

• The natural connections that bind us to our world …
• …and why it matters that we wake up to our intimate connection to the planet 
• How the Earth’s limits, boundaries and responses can be seen in our own mental and emotional behaviours and tipping points
• The forces that undermine both planetary and mental flourishing
• How we might even BEGIN to start to turn toward a world where life and health are prioritised over profit, power, accumulation and greed
• What does Nature have to say about all this and what melancholy song will she pick?

Mentioned: 

Be my friend and get updates from me

Question, comment, complaint, idea? You can contact me here. 

Thanks for being with me today. You rock.