Peter O’Hanrahan gives a masterclass in the Enneagram of Personality—the system that helps us understand our core beliefs, motivations, and fears so we can break the patterns that keep us stuck.

Peter starts with his decision, in the upheaval of the 70’s, to drop out of college and work as a counselor at a crisis center. That led to burnout. Moving to Berkeley, he studied holistic therapies and bodywork, and eventually opened a wellness center applying these modalities.

Enneagram pioneer Helen Palmer invited him to attend the first Enneagram class, which became a turning point for Peter. The insight into behaviors that the Enneagram gave him provided a window into the processes of trauma. Peter embarked on a lifelong study of the Enneagram system, teaching it to thousands in diverse parts of the world, and training over 800 practitioners.

Laying out the basic principles of the system, Peter walks us through the 9 personality types. From there, he turns to the adjacent types (wings), 3 centers of intelligence, and 3 instinctual sub-types. Collectively, these inform how we think and feel and relate. We cover the strengths of each type, as well as the shadow tendencies and obstacles. Peter emphasizes that while we are more than our patterns, knowing them is a starting point to understanding what drives us.

Moving onto practical application, he provides everyday examples of how using the Enneagram tools deepens the relationship to self and others, improves group dynamics, enhances collaborations and partnerships, enables conscious parenting, and advances intentional leadership.

The Enneagram helps us stop fighting our instincts and habits, and build awareness and emotional intelligence so we can manage them, responding mindfully with respect and empathy.

This conversation with Peter offers powerful strategies for leaning into “It Has To Be Me.”

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

1. The Enneagram system maps human psychology via nine personality types.
2. The Enneagram looks at core motivations, fears, desires, patterns, not just behavioral traits.
3. The nine types are grouped by their dominant centers of intelligence: body, heart, and head.
4. Influencing each type is its adjacent types (wings)—personality shifts in stress or security.
5. The subtypes (self-preservation, one-to-one, or social) inform personality expression.
6. Each type has a superpower and a shadow. Growth comes from integrating them.
7. Understanding your type can shift automatic reactions to conscious responses.
8. Psychology, culture, and family background shape the expression of your Enneagram type.

ABOUT PETER O’HANRAHAN

A leading Enneagram teacher and trainer in the United States, Peter O’Hanrahan began his Enneagram study in 1978, when Dr. Kathleen Speeth taught the first class in Berkeley.

Peter has facilitated hundreds of workshops for businesses, nonprofits, universities, and churches all over the world, and is a certified teacher with the Enneagram Professional Training Program. He serves on the faculty of the Narrative Enneagram School, and as a member of the International Enneagram Association, has presented at many conferences.

Using the Enneagram in his practice as a holistic counselor and body therapist, Peter has developed further approaches and applications. His programs and articles can be found at: TheEnneagramAtWork.com.

He lives in Northern California with his wife—and fellow Enneagram practitioner—Pat.

CONNECT WITH PETER

Website: https://theenneagramatwork.com/

Enneagram Workshops: https://theenneagramatwork.com/teaching-schedule/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/peter.ohanrahan.52

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

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-o-hanrahan-9078486/

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website: https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast: https://ithastobeme.com/

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/

Thanks for listening!

If you enjoyed this conversation and think others would benefit from listening, share this episode. And, please post your comments or questions below. I’d love to hear what you think.

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We explore the value of storytelling and amplifying other voices with photographer and filmmaker Deborah Anderson.

She takes us back to her childhood, and her father’s ability to captivate her with stories. Inspired by his work as a musician, she sang on his albums and performed at the Royal Albert Hall before she was 10. This early imprint shaped how she sees creativity: an organic weaving of stories in various mediums.

Deborah leads us through the labyrinth of her career, from breaking out with solo albums, to collaborations with DJ Shadow, to clothing design in London and Paris, and then into photography. When a craftsman who’d developed film for a legendary photographer recognized her work, something clicked, and she saw her path was in capturing images of people.

Planning a portrait exhibition at the Leica gallery in Los Angeles led her to South Dakota. She spent months with Lakota women and made the documentary Women of the White Buffalo. What had begun as a photo show became a divine detour, with Deborah traveling and interviewing women from indigenous communities worldwide for her latest project, The Lost Language Of Her.

Listening to elders who speak the language of spirit and nature we safeguard feminine wisdom and legacy. Through this shared storytelling, we connect in ways that transcend language and culture.

Deborah’s story reminds us that it’s not a straight path or a solo journey. And sometimes, It Has To Be Me is really It Has To Be Them.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS

1. Provoking thought and moving us into action, art can be a messenger of change.
2. Creativity in any medium has a common thread—the artist’s perspective.
3. The expectation that art is selfless negates the inevitability of perspective.
4. Admitting there will be perspective enables celebration of multiple perspectives.
5. Ancient and indigenous stories connect us with spirit, nature, and the divine feminine.
6. Self-doubt is intrinsically feminine, and pushes us to go beyond where we’ve been.
7. Lean into your dynamism. Trust in the magic of your offer.
8. Trust in your capability, and never stop refining your craft.

ABOUT DEBORAH ANDERSON

Filmmaker and photographer Deborah Anderson has spent the last decade amplifying the voices of women and indigenous communities, exploring identity, memory, and healing.

Her documentary about Lakota women preserving their culture, Women Of The White Buffalo, received critical acclaim, including Best Feature Documentary film at the Red Nation Film Festival, Best Director of a documentary at the LA Independent Women Film Awards, and four accolades at the Idyllwild International Film Festival. She also champions women’s stories in the feature Aroused and the short films My Revolution with Eve Ensler and Rosario Dawson and Rise with Thandie Newton for the One Billion Rising organization.

Deborah’s photographs have appeared on covers of albums by Pink and other artists, and been featured in Vogue, Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, and exhibited around the world, including at the Leica Galleries which hosted her Women Of The White Buffalo portrait series.

The central aim of her work is to bear witness and build bridges, provoking audiences to imagine a more compassionate and connected future.

CONNECT WITH DEBORAH

Website: https://deborahanderson.com/

Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deborah_Anderson

Women Of The White Buffalo: https://womenofthewhitebuffalo.com/

The ORA Pathway: https://theorapathway.com/

My Revolution: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tL36jjF6-DI

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

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborah-anderson-6825b7354/

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website: https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast: https://ithastobeme.com/

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/

Thanks for listening!

If you enjoyed this conversation and think others would benefit from listening, share this episode. And, please post your comments or questions below. I’d love to hear what you think.

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Are you in the driver’s seat of your story? Shiva Rose reflects on how she leveraged her everyday experiences to create a successful company and build a more diverse and fulfilling life.

We trace Shiva’s career from actress to wellness writer to skincare entrepreneur. A public divorce and life-threatening autoimmune conditions forced her to seek major life change. The power of food, a renewed relationship with nature and spirit, and ancient rituals became vital allies in her healing journey.

Learning to trust her body and intuition and stay open to transformation helped her recognize the unique medicine she possessed. She takes us inside how food and the alchemy of herbs awakened her senses. But, it was tea ceremonies that helped quieten her mind, and taught her patience and presence. Ritual, Shiva says, keeps us focused and grounded, especially when life takes a destabilizing turn.

We celebrate the arts as a powerful tool for nurturing connection with self and others, and explore creativity as a living force that doesn’t disappear when circumstances change—we give it new forms. Shiva urges us to stay in the dream state, not to escape reality but to meet it.

Her call: You are the writer, director, and producer of your story. Decide that it will be extraordinary.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

1. Living creatively is about leaning into curiosity, possibility, and discovery.
2. Chronic illness can be a doorway into listening, not just symptom management.
3. Healing begins when you listen, engage, and activate your own medicine.
4. Seek out the wisdom, power, and unique medicine of women.
5. Connection with nature and spirit move grief and emotion when words fall short.
6. Rejection is often just bad timing, not a judgment of readiness or worth.
7. Suffer what there is to suffer and enjoy what there is to enjoy.
8. Making each moment intentional creates extraordinary lives in everyday realms.

ABOUT SHIVA ROSE

Shiva Rose is the author of Whole Beauty and founder of the natural skincare company Shiva Rose Beauty.

Life-threatening autoimmune diseases prompted her pursuit of healing through clean living. To document her journey, she started a lifestyle website, The Local Rose. Her skincare line evolved from that. Shiva is also passionate about Kundalini practice and the Chinese way of tea, Cha Dao.

Through her two courses, The Power Of Lunar Energy and The Waterways Of The Feminine Mystique, she helps women connect with nature and spirit.

She lives with her daughter and her partner in the mountains of New Mexico and the hills of Texas.

CONNECT WITH SHIVA

Shiva Rose: https://www.shivarose.com/

Shiva Rose Beauty: https://www.thelocalrose.com/

Whole Beauty: https://www.amazon.com/Whole-Beauty-Rituals-Lifelong-Wellness/dp/1579657729/

Substack: https://thehouseofmagdalena.substack.com/

Courses: https://shivarose.podia.com/

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

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/localrose

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shiva-rose-79b62249/

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website: https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast: https://ithastobeme.com/

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/

Thanks for listening!

If you enjoyed this conversation and think others would benefit from listening, share this episode. And, please post your comments or questions below. I’d love to hear what you think.

Subscribe to the podcast.

Get automatic updates so you never miss an episode. Subscribe to this show on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app.

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Sheila Darcey’s Sketch By Sketch changed my life. So, we’re talking about the book, and how the daily sketch practice she’s developed for herself and thousands of others helps us process emotions when words fall short.

And before you back away with “I can’t even draw a stick figure” (like I did), hold on. This isn’t about drawing or creating art, it’s about connecting with your unconscious wisdom to create marks of free expression that precede and transcend language.

Sheila starts her story with the fear of flying that became her doorway to sketching, not just as an artistic pursuit, but as a somatic tool. This daily practice became an effective way to get out of her head and into her body, process trauma, and build a sense of safety that other methods hadn’t provided.

Having grown up in an environment distorted by addiction and fear, Sheila recalls how creativity helped expand her emotional vocabulary, and reconnect with parts of herself she had abandoned. We talk about childhood survival, and how many of us disconnect from our bodies simply to cope. Leaning into curiosity and creativity help dissolve the judgment that gets in the way of compassion.

We cover why sketching with a pen not a pencil helps us beat back perfectionism and performance, and leap into the unknown. Through sketching, we can transmute shame and other oppressive emotions into feelings that strengthen possibility.

Sheila invites us to reframe boredom, rest, stillness, imagination, and innovation, and consider our generational and energetic imprints. Healing is not about fixing ourselves, but about relating to ourselves differently.

Sheila’s key point: Creativity is not a luxury but a necessity.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS

Creativity expands our emotional lexicon.

Creativity helps us connect to the parts of ourselves we’ve ignored or abandoned.

Part of the creative process is leaping into the unknown and inviting co-creation.

Sketching can be a therapeutic practice to identify and process thoughts and emotions.

Sketching can be a daily embodiment practice like meditation or yoga.

Sketching is fast and loose—you don’t have to get attached.

“Letting go” is not an act of releasing, but accepting what has been there.

Sketches are modern-day hieroglyphics—marks that transcend language.

ABOUT SHEILA

Founder of SketchPoetic®, and author of Sketch By Sketch, artist Sheila Darcey teaches a transformational sketching practice that enables people to access emotional healing through intuitive expression.

Sheila created the Living Canvas Foundation™, a nonprofit supporting healing, connection, and social impact through creativity. She serves as its executive director.

Through her art, workshops, community-based art initiatives, and innovative use of technology, Sheila creates spaces where people can access their creativity as a pathway to connect with emotions and gain personal insight.

Her work bridges art, wellness, and consciousness, tapping into personal and collective storytelling, and is rooted in the belief that every life is a dynamic canvas.

CONNECT WITH SHEILA

Sketch Poetic®: https://www.sketchpoetic.com/

Living Canvas Foundation™: https://livingcanvasfoundation.org/

Sketch By Sketch Book: https://www.amazon.com/Sketch-Creative-Emotional-Transformation-SketchPoetic/dp/1250773873/

Substack: https://sheiladarcey.substack.com/

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

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@livingcanvasfoundation

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website: https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast: https://ithastobeme.com/

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/

Thanks for listening!

If you enjoyed this conversation and think others would benefit from listening, share this episode. And, please post your comments or questions below. I’d love to hear what you think.

Subscribe to the podcast.

Get automatic updates so you never miss an episode. Subscribe to this show on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app.

Leave a review on Apple podcasts.

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In unstable times like these, it’s easy to harden, retreat, or get swept up in fear and shouting. Instead of being part of destructive narratives, find clarity and perspective in stories—in books, poetry, theater, film, TV, music, and your own life.

I reflect on my childhood and the values my parents instilled—curiosity, compassion, asking questions, and imagining life through someone else’s eyes. My mom and dad encouraged storytelling as a way to explore challenging ideas without needing certainty or agreement. In adulthood, stories help me hold confusion and overwhelm, understand my experience and those of others, and connect with what matters most.

Inviting us into lives we haven’t lived and perspectives we don’t yet understand, stories invite us to practice empathy toward understanding. Connecting with characters and situations soften our certainty, and remind us of our shared humanity.

In this episode, I share recent experiences that have done that for me. From a Jacob Collier concert that turned thousands of strangers into willing collaborators, to shows like Schitt’s Creek and Heated Rivalry that remind us of our capacity to connect with people who are not like us.

Be invested in the diversity of stories, including your own. Stay curious and risk talking with people who think differently, even if it provokes their hostility. Hear them out. Dare to be wrong. Allow yourself to be surprised, not by their views, but their willingness to have a civil conversation. Storytelling can soften your edges, and those of others.

Someone has to make the first move. Decide—It Has To Be Me.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS

Stories invite empathy and understanding without force or persuasion.

Stories help us hold complexity without shutting down.

Curiosity keeps us connected. It changes our minds and perspectives.

Listening is an act of resistance to outrage.

Share your stories and take in the stories of those who think differently.

Be kind as a quiet form of courage.

You can learn from someone without agreeing with them.

We build community through shared humanity, not shared opinions.

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website: https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast: https://ithastobeme.com/

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/

Thanks for listening!

If you enjoyed this conversation and think others would benefit from listening, share this episode. And, please post your comments or questions below. I’d love to hear what you think.

Subscribe to the podcast.

Get automatic updates so you never miss an episode. Subscribe to this show on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app.

Leave a review on Apple podcasts.

Ratings and reviews from listeners help our podcast rank higher so it can reach more people. Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

It’s the Year of the Horse. Are you going to be a rocking horse, going back and forth and staying in the same place? Or a champion—sharp and focused, determined to win the race?

Easier said than done. In this episode, I share how I had decided to shut the podcast down, because I felt like an imposter, that I’d been too ambitious, and bitten off more than I could chew!

I recall tools shared by our guests to combat fear and overwhelm, and which ones worked for me. In the end, I realized we don’t always need to spend time and money correcting course. Often, it just takes the right person saying the right thing at the right time to shift your perspective.

What got me back in the game was trusting myself to do my own triage, and choosing the strategies that felt right. Two mantras I embraced help me enjoy the work, not just obsess about the result.

Just because you don’t know how it’s going to happen, doesn’t mean it’s not possible.

Spoiler: Self-doubt and self-belief are both needed to create anything of value.

If you’re waiting for the perfect time to go after your It Has To Be Me, you’ll be waiting forever.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS

It’s a puzzle, not a problem. If you want to, you can figure it out.

Don’t be overwhelmed or depleted by your “to do” list—be energized by it.

When faced with an overwhelming task, imagine the feeling of having done it.

Worrying is like a rocking horse. It has motion, but gets you nowhere.

There are a finite amount of yes’s and an infinite amount of no’s. Choose them wisely.

A compassionate no is a gift for you and the other person.

Stay in the race. Most people give up right before they cross the finish line.

Give your imperfect offering. The right people can handle it. The wrong people never will.

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website: https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast: https://ithastobeme.com/

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/

Thanks for listening!

If you enjoyed this conversation and think others would benefit from listening, share this episode. And, please post your comments or questions below. I’d love to hear what you think.

Subscribe to the podcast.

Get automatic updates so you never miss an episode. Subscribe to this show on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app.

Leave a review on Apple podcasts.

Ratings and reviews from listeners help our podcast rank higher so it can reach more people. Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

Fatty Liver Disease is an epidemic—1 in 3 people has it and many don’t know they do. Dr. Ibrahim Hanouneh, leading hepatologist and co-author of Skinny Liver and Regenerative Health, tells us what we need to know so we can avoid fatty liver or reverse it.

We track his career from early medical training in Syria and England to cutting-edge work at the Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Hanouneh shares how the liver’s extraordinary ability to regenerate brought him into the study of the liver, then breaks down the progression of liver disease in an accessible—and hopeful—way.

We discuss the critical role of the liver, the metabolic health crisis affecting 90% of people, the root causes of fatty liver in both adults and children, and how the disease is linked to heart attacks and strokes. From there, we cover risk factors we can control, those we can’t, and why women over 40 and adults with obesity, diabetes, and sleep apnea are at particularly high risk.

Dr. Hanouneh explains the non-specific symptoms of “the silent disease,” the five criteria for metabolic syndrome, and how to get tested for fatty liver. He addresses the four metabolic types, why BMI is outdated, and how “skinny fat” is the real medical risk.

Stressing the importance of prevention and early detection, Dr. Hanouneh shares the impact of diet, sleep, and stress, the best exercise to reduce fat in your liver, and proven food and lifestyle strategies. Next up: the common supplements, detox products, and over-the-counter medications that are causing liver damage, and why a daily cup of black coffee may be exactly what you need.

For those diagnosed with liver disease: We get into the latest studies, what we need to know about the two FDA-approved medications, timelines for recovery, and exciting new developments with transplants.

The key takeaway: When you catch it early and make strategic lifestyle changes, fatty liver is 100% reversible. Don’t miss this episode so you know exactly what to do.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS

Fatty liver has surpassed alcohol as the leading cause of liver disease and liver cancer.

What causes fatty liver is a high intake of carbs and sugar—not necessarily fat.

Type 2 diabetes and fatty liver are linked—having one increases risk for the other.

Sleep apnea and chronic stress both accelerate fatty liver through inflammation.

Children are developing fatty liver due to diet and sugary drinks, obesity, and diabetes.

Fatty Liver was renamed from NAFLD to MASLD to reflect its metabolic origins.

Knowing your metabolic type enables detection and tailored treatment for fatty liver.

Rezdiffra and Wegovy are FDA-approved drugs for treating fatty liver disease.

ABOUT DR. IBRAHIM HANOUNEH

Dr. Hanouneh completed his residency in internal medicine and fellowship in gastroenterology and hepatology at the Cleveland Clinic, and served on staff there before attending patients at the Mayo Clinic and joining the Board Of Directors at MNGI Digestive Health.

Co-author of the books Skinny Liver and Regenerative Health, Dr. Hanouneh has spent much of his career working with liver disease, with particular expertise in studies relating to fatty liver. He has presented at national and international conferences, and authored over 70 papers and numerous abstracts.

CONNECT WITH DR. HANOUNEH

Website: https://www.mngi.com/provider/ibrahim-hanouneh-md

Skinny Liver book: https://www.amazon.com/Skinny-Liver-Program-Prevent-Epidemic-Fatty/dp/0738234648/

Regenerative Health book: https://www.amazon.com/Regenerative-Health-Discover-Metabolic-Renew/dp/0306830159/

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website: https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast: https://ithastobeme.com/

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/

Thanks for listening!

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Want to lose weight but don’t know whether a GLP-1 medication is right for you? Ashley Koff, dietitian and author of Your Best Shot, explains the links between gut health, blood sugar, hormones, and metabolism, and how we can achieve and maintain our goal weight, with or without the Shot.

We start with Ashley’s own struggle with weight, from belly awareness as a kid and dieting in high school and college, to obsessive exercise, extreme fads, and even a goat’s-milk cleanse! Finally, a gastroenterologist provided a real solution: First, focus on digestion. The results were life-changing. Ashley became a dietitian, building on that approach. She recognized, before the GLP-1s came along, the impact of weight-health hormones—"the Switch"—on blood sugar and appetite, and the connection between these hormones and gut health. She fine-tuned her system, and treated patients with huge success.

From there she walks us through the science—the difference between the Switch and GLP-1 medications that replace these hormones, ”The Shot.” We weigh the benefits and side effects of medications, and how to titrate off them and maintain your results. Covering what you need to know to establish and maintain a healthy weight, Ashley says it's not just about losing weight, it's about optimizing your weight health.

What's “Your Best Shot”? Assess and decode your body’s signals, then create a personalized action plan to fit your specific situation and needs. We talk through that process and what a plan might look like, common pitfalls in formulating a strategy, the skinny on supplements, and why doctors are not always the best guides.

The great news: You can control your weight health more than you think.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS

1. Your body is an ecosystem, and needs optimized resources to run better.
2. To optimize weight health start with improving digestion and gut health.
3. The body produces hormones that act as “the Switch” to regulate appetite and blood sugar.
4. GLP-1s can reduce food noise, regulate blood sugar, and support weight loss.
5. GLP-1 medications are a hormone-replacement therapy—and suppress the Switch.
6. The medications also can cause dehydration, digestive problems, and other health issues.
7. Titrating off a GLP-1 medication without improving digestion can result in rebound weight gain.
8. Willpower is a fake muscle that does not play a role in effective weight management.

ABOUT ASHLEY

Author of Your Best Shot, Ashley Koff, RD is the founder of The Better Nutrition Program (BNP), the Nutrition Course Director for UC Irvine’s Susan Samueli Integrative Health Institute's Integrative and Functional Medicine Fellowship. Also a faculty member at the Integrative and Functional Nutrition Academy, she teaches the IFNA course “An Integrative and Functional Nutrition Approach to Obesity and Weight Management.”

A go-to nutrition expert on the Today Show, Good Morning America, and others, Ashley was among CNN’s Top 100 Health Makers, InStyle magazine’s Hollywood Nutritionist, and a Global Wellness Ambassador for Westin Hotels.

As a practitioner and business owner, Ashley makes her mission providing personalized nutrition solutions and helping people identify their needs to make “better, not perfect” choices toward their health goals.

CONNECT WITH ASHLEY

Website: https://thebetternutritionprogram.com/

Your Best Shot: https://www.amazon.com/Your-Best-Shot-Personalized-Health_GLP-1/dp/0063444186/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashleykoffapproved

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

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashley-koff-rd-11b6196/

GLP-1 Weight Health Hormone Assessment: https://thebetternutritionprogram.com/glp1-weight-health-hormone-assessment/?utm_source=the-blender-girl&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=ybs

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website: https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast: https://ithastobeme.com/

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/

Thanks for listening!

If you enjoyed this conversation and think others would benefit from listening, share this episode. And, please post your comments or questions below. I’d love to hear what you think.

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Ladies: Tap into the power of other women to get where you want to go. My friends and colleagues Mia Moran, Julie Hannon, and Kelly Lubeck—all members of Skinny60® and the FLOW365 community—join me to talk about what happens when women express themselves freely, and celebrate themselves and each other.

Mia, Julie, and Kelly share their healing journeys, and the profound impact nutrition has had on their personal growth and transformation. They take us inside how they use that knowledge and experience in their private practices, and together, to guide and champion other women.

Starting with support and accountability, we get into why private and group coaching can help us see ourselves with more confidence and resilience. And we discuss the importance of leaders maintaining self-care and awareness practices to create safe spaces and meet clients with clarity and integrity.

We explore the challenges women face today, what keeps most of us stuck, and what we can do to leverage our femininity to make choices that align with what we want. By moving the conversation from our heads to our hearts, making a plan and executing it—with guidance—we reduce overwhelm, and can navigate the complexities of life with balance and ease.

Don’t do it alone. When women come together with a vision, they change the world.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

1. Coach and client engage in a dynamic of co-creation and drive thoughts into action.
2. Great coaches create listening containers that help us approach ourselves in new ways.
3. To walk the talk, ethical wellness practitioners maintain self-care practices.
4. Women need each other. Seek out communities. Tap into the power of the feminine collective.
5. Acting in a community activates the parasympathetic nervous system, for more connection.
6. Titration—making key changes slowly—creates safety in doing things that are hard or scary.
7. Befriending resistance is the path to getting past it.
8. You wouldn’t have an idea if you didn't have the capacity to make it happen.

MEET OUR GUESTS

MIA MORAN

Mia Moran is a mom, productivity coach, and planning expert. She is the host of the Plan Simple podcast, author of Plan Simple Meals, and creator of the FLOW365 program. Her belief in the power of wellness and a good plan got its start during a health crisis. Making changes to her diet, she experienced the impact better nutrition had on her work, relationships, and family life. While operating her design business, she began creating and sharing content around food, wellness, spirituality, motherhood, and feminine productivity. Her content resonated with other women. Mia has struck her perfect balance between wellness, work, and family; and she helps busy women and female entrepreneurs reduce overwhelm, find balance, and make strategic plans that enable them to achieve their goals.

JULIE HANNON

As a shamanic healer, energy medicine teacher, and yoga practitioner, Julie Hannon helps clients connect with their gifts and strengths, and make heart-centered decisions. With a master’s degree in psychology from Columbia University and bachelor’s in psychology from University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Julie worked for over 20 years as a human resources director. She then trained in the healing arts of the Andes with mentors including Alberto Villoldo, Jorge Luis Delgado, and Joan Parisi Wilcox. With a certification in Luminous Healing through the Four Winds Society, Julie is also an advanced student of Dr. Joe Dispenza, and served as senior faculty at the Light Body School. She works in Energy Healing, Soul Retrieval, Divination, and HeartMath Coaching, and leads her weekly Sacred Circle online.

KELLY LUBECK

Kelly Lubeck, MPH, RYT is passionate about helping changemakers stay embodied, heal holistically, and lead with clarity, compassion and confidence—without sacrificing themselves to their mission. She creates positive change in the world through private client work, group programs, workshops, and speaking engagements. With a master’s in public health from Columbia University, Kelly has over 25 years’ experience developing and leading public health initiatives in the United States, Africa, and Central America. Combining that work with her training as a yoga teacher, soul-centered coach, and shamanic healer, she uses the science of the nervous system and a variety of holistic health practices to help women leaders heal from trauma and balance the demands of life and leadership.

CONNECT WITH MIA, JULIE, AND KELLY

Join FLOW365: https://plansimple.lpages.co/flow365-waitlist/

Connect with Mia: https://plansimple.com/

Connect with Julie: https://www.innerpeaceandwellness.com/

Connect with Kelly: https://www.kellylubeck.com/

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website: https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast: https://ithastobeme.com/

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/

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

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/

Thanks for listening!

If you enjoyed this conversation and think others would benefit from listening, share this episode. And, please post your comments or questions below. I’d love to hear what you think.

Subscribe to the podcast.

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Leave a review on Apple podcasts.

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What if the thing you’ve been searching for isn’t another diet, another rulebook, or another “fix” but a way back to yourself?   

In this intimate, heart‑centered roundtable, I sit down with three extraordinary members of our Skinny60 community, Rachel, Gina, and Deborah, to talk about what really happens when women stop chasing perfection and finally decide, it has to be me. 

These women have tried everything, from cabbage soup diets and celebrity programs to vegan meal plans and giving up altogether. But when they landed in the 60-day reset, something clicked. Not because it was “easier,” but because it was designed to work with them, not against them.  

Rachel takes us back to 2020, when she wrote in her phone the desires she hoped to call in: miraculous weight loss, energy, glow. She had tried every diet under the sun, Weight Watchers, Atkins, keto, cabbage soup days, lemon detoxes, and still felt stuck. When the SK60 newsletter landed in her inbox, something in her said, this might be it. Not because she believed it would definitely work…but because she knew she couldn’t stay where she was.  

Gina shares what it’s like to live with lupus from childhood, how food was always something she loved, but also something doctors told her might be harming her. She had tested my recipes for years, but still wasn’t ready to commit to a program until she saw a photo of herself that made her cry. That moment became her “I’m ready” turning point. 

And then there’s Deborah, long‑time vegan, trauma counselor, and someone who had been told she needed to lose weight before she could be approved for hiatal hernia surgery. Nothing she tried worked because nothing had been designed with her body, her ethics, and her digestion in mind. But when she came to the SK60 webinar on hormones and gut health, something clicked. She joined out of curiosity… and curiosity became transformation. 

If you’re listening and thinking, “That’s amazing for them, but I don’t know if it can happen for me…” 

Let this conversation be your reminder that change and healing is possible and you don’t have to believe the whole story, just the next step, because when you give yourself permission to try again extraordinary things happen. 

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS: 

• You’re not “too late.” You’re right on time for your own transformation. 
• 60 days can be the catalyst for a lifetime of change. 
•  What starts as a food reset often becomes a self-worth revolution. 
• “Good. Better. Best. Not Perfect.” is more than a mantra, it’s freedom.  
• Food is fuel, but it’s also joy, connection, and memory-making.  
• You’re not lazy, broken, or undisciplined, your approach just didn’t fit you… until now.  
• Trusting your body begins with learning how to listen to it.  
• The stories you tell yourself matter. Rewrite the ones that don’t serve you. 
• Investing in yourself doesn’t make you selfish, it makes you stronger. 
• Real change starts when you decide: it has to be me. 

MEET TESS MASTERS:   

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.       

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.    

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.    

CONNECT WITH TESS:  

Website:  https://tessmasters.com/     

Podcast:  https://ithastobeme.com/      

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/  

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/  

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/     

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

YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/user/theblendergirl    

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/tessmasters/ 

Thanks for listening!  

If you enjoyed this conversation and think others would benefit from listening, share this episode. And, please post your comments or questions below. I’d love to hear what you think.  

Subscribe to the podcast.   

Get automatic updates so you never miss an episode. Subscribe to this show on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app.   

Leave a review on Apple podcasts.  

Ratings and reviews from listeners help our podcast rank higher so it can reach more people. Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts.