Anna Gudmundson, CEO of Sensate, explores the intersection of technology, nervous system regulation, and human potential.

From growing up in Northern Sweden with a deep curiosity for systems, to building a career in early-stage tech, Anna shares how she began to see her own behaviors as patterns—“bugs in her code”—that could be understood and improved.

But everything changed when years of stress led to a complete breakdown in her health. What followed was a deep journey into functional medicine, meditation, breathwork, and nervous system awareness—ultimately reshaping how she lives, works, and leads.

This conversation explores how to regulate your internal state in a chaotic world, why most people are operating far below their potential, and how combining ancient practices with modern technology may be the key to a more resilient future.

Show Partners:

• Get your MENTAL FITNESS BLUEPRINT here! 
• A special thanks to our mental fitness + sweat partner Sip Saunas
• Personal Socrates: Better Question, Better Life

Connect with Marc: https://konect.to/marcchampagne

Timestamps:

01:00 — Growing up in Northern Sweden: math, music, and systems thinking

02:30 — “I saw bugs in my code” — the mindset that changed everything

04:00 — Early influences and discovering personal growth

05:00 — Finding Qigong and learning to balance internal energy

07:00 — Why “woo-woo” practices are becoming a competitive advantage

09:30 — When the nervous system became impossible to ignore

11:00 — The 10-day silent meditation that rewired everything

12:30 — The health breakdown: stress, gut issues, and missed diagnoses

14:00 — Functional medicine and rebuilding from the inside out

16:30 — The hardest part: accepting a new way of living

17:30 — Running a startup while protecting your nervous system

18:00 — Reframing challenges: growth vs punishment

19:30 — The non-negotiables: sleep, recovery, and self-awareness

21:00 — How to actually “check in” with yourself

22:00 — Meditation practices for different mental states

24:00 — Automatic journaling and accessing the subconscious

26:00 — Breathwork as a reset for mental overwhelm

28:00 — Inside alchemy breathwork and altered states

32:00 — Integrating logic, spirituality, and identity

34:00 — What Sensate is and how it works

36:00 — Why nervous system regulation matters more than ever

38:00 — The global stress crisis and what it’s costing us

40:00 — Meditation vs tools: what works when your mind is overloaded

42:00 — Building a “mental fitness system” for your life

44:00 — Bringing these practices into company culture

46:00 — Why startups aren’t for everyone (and that’s okay)

48:00 — Leadership, stress resilience, and the future of work

50:00 — The future of health: sound, frequency, and personalization

52:00 — Final reflections: embracing complexity and being “just weird enough”

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Special props 👇

Music: Clouds - Joakim Karud

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