Sol Women

April is Autism Acceptance month and the Sol Women are so honored to have Claire Mercier on this week's episode to talk about just that. Claire is an aspiring actress pursuing musical theater, an online teacher for English as a second language to students in China, as well as virtually teaches theater to children from all over the world. She discusses what it's been like pursuing acting in New York City during the pandemic and the struggles she has faced. 

Claire dives into what self-diagnosis means when it comes to autism and her journey with understanding this neurological difference. She sheds light on how difficult it is for, specifically women to receive an autism spectrum diagnosis. She speaks on her personal experiences with growing up and how she felt internally, which lead her to this idea that she is on the autism spectrum. She states "knowing one person with autism, means you know just ONE person with autism." Each person's experience with this looks different.

The girls speak on imposter syndrome, self acceptance, and what it's like to be defined by labels and diagnosis. We appreciate you listening with an open mind and an open heart. 

Find Claire on Instagram @finding.claireity

In this episode the Sol Women have the honor of speaking with Zoë Hansen. Zoë is a Human Design coach, a musician, an artist, and a spiritual channel for human and soul connection. She brings individuals into greater alignment using her gifts and is also a dear friend of Cally.

The women dive deep into Human Design Charts and ask questions about specific areas in their own charts. Zoë gives insight on some of the different meanings behind the 9 energy centers and how Human Design has changed her life. Human Design Charts stem from the combination of Eastern and Western Astrology, the Chinese I Ching, the Kabbalah, The Chakra system, and Quantum Physics. It’s an incredibly multifaceted and detailed reading and it provides a unique type of message compared to other charts out there.

The women speak about the human body having limitations and the importance of taking time to allow yourself to recharge after expelling so much energy, day in and day out, in order to follow a spiritual and enlightened path.

The women go in depth about connecting with Source and how to be fully aligned with your own inner purpose, how to be more aware of the little, yet beautiful moments in life, and the importance of noticing beauty in everything. They talk about the controversy of choosing a creative life path rather than a conventional path and how capitalism plays into pushing humans further away from their authentic purpose.

Zoë wraps up the conversation with a beautiful mantra, reminding us the necessity of getting back into nature, finding ways to become humbled and re-centered, and to remember how quick and sacred our time on earth is.

We can't wait for you to dive deep with us for this episode. 

Find Zoë on Instagram @zoeclimbstrees

Cally + Mar sit down with Dena Borman; a creative being, a Yoga teacher, and such a sweet soul to get to know and talk to. The women talk about the importance of stepping outside of your comfort zone, the importance of walking into Yoga with a beginners mindset, and how everyone can do Yoga if they simply want to. They also talk about the importance of extending grace towards themselves and within their own practices. 

Dena's philosophy is "I help beginners in all bodies learn yoga." She speaks on what it's like to practice Yoga with different body types, stereotypes and Westernized Yoga, and she dives into where Yoga originated and what it's meant for. 

She ensures the listener that you don't have to be flexible to do Yoga and what 'all level yoga' actually means. The women mention the importance of finding the right Yoga teacher in order to feel more connected to their own practice as well as how they make Yoga work for their own bodies. The Sol Women can't wait for you to hear all the information presented in this special episode. 

You can find Dena on Instagram @yogawithdena

Andrea and CJ Smith join the Sol Women for an incredible chat about setting healthy boundaries in a marriage and how they've grown from the beginning of their relationship to where they are today. Some noteworthy topics that the group touches on are; building trust and how it takes time and patience, holding space for your partner and taking accountability and ways in which that can be uncomfortable, mind reading and assumptions and how those can cause problems in relationships, as well as personal hardships and growth that has come from those. 

We ask if whether being on the same page as your partner every single day is possible or not, and talk through how to navigate moments where you might not be on the same page. Finding the rewards in growing through the uncomfortable conversations, being vulnerable and open in your partnership, and how empowering it feels to grow with someone, are other avenues this conversation takes. These growing points can come in handy in, not just intimate relationships, but with family and friends as well. 

Andrea and CJ discuss how we can show up for ourselves and our partners and how it's a choice to be there for someone day in and day out. We can simply do our best in any given situation and we can always find ways to improve + grow closer to those who mean the most to us. The couple speaks on some beautiful little ways in which they show each other love each day and we also get to hear each of their love languages. 

It's a challenge to grow more deeply within ourselves and also our relationships each and everyday, learning healthy communication styles can take time and practice. This conversations opens up a lot of important and necessary dialogues surrounding being a human and having human emotions while also navigating spiritual growth. 

Find more from Andrea @hiandreasmith and CJ @cjsmith_6 on Instagram.

Cally and Andi do a mini episode regarding insecurities and where they stem from. They each share vulnerable parts of their journals that they wrote in the height of an insecure moment. Insecurities are not personality traits, they are moments we learn from and they show us where we need to love ourselves a little bit deeper. 

The women express personal experiences with insecurities in their lives and personal relationships and how they've grown to become more secure and comfortable with who they are. There are a few tips for how to work through feeling insecure in healthy ways with yourself and with others. They talk about how finding the "why" or the root cause for an insecure emotion, is important work, in order to heal and grow from that emotion. 

Thank you so much for taking the time to listen. We love you. 

Albert is back to chat with the Sol Women about what it’s like to live life as a creative person and choosing your art as your career path. The group answers a listener’s question asking 'how do you know the importance of stopping and stepping away from our passions and come back with fresh eyes versus pushing through the feeling of being unmotivated.' Albert goes into depth about this journey to become healthy and balance within his personal practice, career, and life in general.

An important question that comes up in this episode is “do we work hard because we feel like we aren’t enough, or because we simply WANT to be better.” Mar touches on the difficulty for women to show confidence without coming off as being bossy or controlling and how that plays a role in the individualistic society that we live in.

Albert paints a picture of what it’s like to create in a fear based state versus a flow state. He gives valuable tips and tricks for how to detach and ground himself before, during, and after his creative sessions and processes. The question of HOW we can detach comes up and the group talks about ways in which they practice the art of detachment.

Albert and Cally refer to the book Effortless Mastery by Kenny Werner. The subconscious mind effects everything we do and create, so how can we work on getting right within our own minds? They finish up with conversing about the risk it takes to be who you are and live fully into your authenticity, in a world where that isn’t the “norm.” We enjoyed this episode so much and we hope you do too.

Stay tuned all the way to the very end for a montage of Mar bloopers, which are the best kind of bloopers in our opinion. <3

The Sol Women refer to Elizabeth Gilbert's book Big Magic on today's episode regarding inspiration and creativity. They touch on what it's like to be on a path that isn't "normal" in society and the fears of being a creative and entrepreneur. This episode an apply to any area in your life in which you feel you are taking a path that isn't like everyone else. Taking the path less traveled and choosing to grow each day in some way doesn't always come easy. The idea behind this episode is to shed light on the battles that those who want to grow, learn, and become the best versions of themselves face on a day to day basis. 

Fear is a large part of what stops people from moving forward on their destined path and the girls speak to how important it is to share your own unique gifts because you never know who you could help or inspire. It's about committing to creativity and embracing the rarity that is YOU. The Sol Women open up about some areas in which they have struggled and dive deeper into some insight on, ways in which they have moved through and grown from those areas. 

Mar refers to an Instagram in which she has found inspiration @rhiannahajduch

Thank you for listening and sharing this space with us. We are grateful for you. 

The Sol Women are joined by special guest Mike Valdez to talk about moving into a New Year and what that looks like for each of them. They discuss their intentions for next year compared to the last and speak about the importance of carrying these intentions into each day, week, month, of each and every year. 

Mike opens up about hardships he has gone through and how they have enabled him to grow and become the person he is today. He shares an incredible amount of useful tools and relatable experiences. The group talks about saying "yes" to opportunities and how much value there is in living in a state of flow. Letting go of control was something they all agreed on being something that is hard to do, but very necessary for healing and moving forward into their most authentic selves. 

Mike touches on what 2020 has been like from a Person of Color's lens. He elaborates on some of his personal experiences in Social Justice work within his community and career path. This conversation is jam packed with useful information and we can't wait to have you listen! Thank you for being YOU! Happy New Year!

The Sol Women are entering Season 4 of their podcast and they are so excited to present you with an episode regarding sustainability for the holiday season! We talk about how to support small, local businesses for gift giving this year. Specifically Black and People of Color owned as well as Woman owned businesses. They also bring up ways to get crafty and spend less money.

The girls transition into talking about how to deal with family and stressful holiday situations. They touch on the trails of holidays this year having to do with COVID and how to safely handle traveling and seeing family. They touch on having those tough political conversations with family members and how they each flow through those triggers. 

They offer tons of tips and tricks for preparing for all things holiday stress! 

Here is a list of businesses they suggest: 

Wellness: Golde, Plant Apothecary, Oui The People, Lauren Napier Beauty, Wild Lather, Mented, The Honey Pot

Fashion: Brother Vellies, William Okmo, Sincerely Tommy, Third Crown, Want Les Essentels, Omi Woods

Home: Actually Curious, The Spice Suite, Trade Street Jam, Cook By Color, Unwrp

Art: Brownie Points, Yowie, Cleo Wade, Coloring Pins, Oat Cinnamon

The Sol Women have an enlightening conversation with Karen Newell, an author and innovator in personal development with a diverse body of work that rests upon the foundation of heart-centered consciousness. She's been seen most noteworthy on platforms like Dr. Oz and Goop.

She explains what exactly Sacred Acoustics are and touches on important topics such as becoming the observer of your own emotions and self through means of meditation in order to reduce triggers. 

They speak about why they do the work on themselves and what their true purpose is regarding being able to help others along their journeys. Karen goes into the concept of Heart Math which tells us how the heart takes in information and sends it to the brain and also puts out energy that others can feel and be affected by. 

This conversation also goes into what it's like to feel a deeper level connection with a partner and how that differs from lust or just thinking love and the difference between thinking love and feeling love. 

Her personal growth writings, workshops, guided meditations and teachings enable individuals to achieve life transformations towards greater self-fulfillment and contentment, quality relationships and career choices aligned with one’s soul calling.

As an innovator in the emerging field of brainwave entrainment audio meditation, Karen Newell empowers others in their journeys of self-discovery. Using Sacred Acoustics recordings, she teaches how to enter and engage your own consciousness to connect to inner guidance, achieve inspiration, improve wellness, and develop intuition.

Karen is co-author with Eben Alexander III, M.D. of Living in a Mindful Universe(2017). At international workshops presented with Dr. Alexander, Karen demonstrates key practices of consciousness exploration: heart awareness, intention, maintaining neutrality, emotional management and cultivating internal knowing. 

Find Karen: sacredacoustics.com

Instagram and Facebook: @sacredacoustics

You can find free 20 minute OM recordings on her website as well as purchase a group of recordings for only $19, or completely free if you can't afford it at this price. 

Karen Newell and Eben Alexander also have a Webinar series at unitedinhopeandhealing.com