The Intention Sessions Podcast

In this episode, we talk to Cristina Tahoces, Holistic Nutritionist about her popular TedX Talk:  Sleep, Love, Poop.  Speaking from personal experience and professional wisdom, Cristina walks us through the signs of burn-out and how nutrition can support us in mindfully navigating stress with resilience.  She also guides us through the 3 pillars of her talk:  Sleep, Love and Poop and shares how optimizing these can foster our most intentional living.  I’m pretty sure we’ve never talked about poop before so, there’s a first time for everything!

One of my favourite distinctions that she made is the one between deficit-led nutrition vs. love-led nourishment.  This is a big one which I imagine many of us can relate to.  She explains what love-led nourishment is and how it can have a big impact in all areas of our life:  physical, mental and emotional.

Key Takeaways:

(00:50)            Cristina’s Bio             

(04:00)            Cristina’s career in corporate banking & living outside of herself

(07:53)            Cristina’s body’s warning signs of burnout (realized post-partum)

(16:00)            Burnout doesn’t mean you have to leave the corporate world

(18:17)            Burnout vs. bow-out

(18:50)            How nutrition changes can help us build resilience in the face of stress

(20:50)            Being mindful of the choices you’re making on a daily basis

(22:55)            The difference between deficit-led nutrition vs. love-led nourishment

(28:15)            Emotional eating

(29:35)            All about sleep and how we can optimize it for our most intentional living

(33:38)            The benefits of sleep and how productive it is

(35:34)            How nutrition can help if you have trouble sleeping

(40:15)            No one needs help to eat. We need self-love.

(42:47)            Me-time myths and creating a life you don’t need a vacation from

(38:33)            How healthy bowel movements can help you live with intention

(50:35)            The importance of gut health & daily detoxification

(57:10)            The importance of understanding our worthiness - believing it & practicing it

Mentioned in This Episode:

Cristina’s TedX Talk:  Sleep, Love, Poop

Burnout:  The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Dr. Emily Nagoski

More About This Guest:

Cristina Tahoces is a holistic nutritionist and owner of Thrive Nutrition Practice, a global online wellness business focused on building physical and mental health resilience to stress. A former corporate banker, Cristina turned to nutrition to help herself heal from acute allergies, post-natal depletion & burnout. Over the years, she has helped clients boost energy levels & immunity, improve sleep and anxiety and even reverse hypertension and insulin resistance – all through her in-depth knowledge about how to use food therapeutically to align mind and body. Cristina holds an MBA from the Schulich School of Business and graduated with First Class Honours from the Edison Institute of Nutrition in Toronto, where she earned a Diploma in Holistic Nutrition. In 2017, she shared her nutritional strategy on the TEDx stage as part of the TED Women’s Global Conference.

Website:         www.thrivenutritionpractice.com

Instagram :      @thrivenpchristina

Facebook :      Thrive Nutrition Practice

In this Episode of The Intention Sessions Podcast

In this episode, we talk to Tricia Lewis, Host of the Recovery Happy Hour Podcast, about intentional living in recovery.  Tricia shares her journey of recovery from addiction and how when we say we’re “fine” but, we’re really not.  Perhaps, more importantly though, we talk about what life is really like in recovery (it’s not boring like we might have assumed!).  We talk about the many tools and resources.  Tricia also shares the universal truths she hears through the telling of so many recovery stories on The Recovery Hour Podcast.

What I love about Tricia’s podcast is it always features someone’s story.  The person needs at least a year of sobriety and she explores what sober life is really like and how people not only navigate but, really thrive in recovery.  I highly recommend you give it a listen.

If you like truth, this is the podcast for you.  If you are in recovery, struggling with addiction or know someone who is, there is a lot of wisdom here for you.  As Tricia points out, you are not alone and you may actually find living without alcohol way easier and a lot more fulfilling.

Key Takeaways:

(00:50)            Tricia’s Bio

(03:20)            Dispelling stereotypes around drinking

(04:25)            What life looked like when Tricia quit drinking

(08:33)            How to understand you have a problem

(10:06)            The question is not am I an alcoholic, the question do I want to change my life?

(11:11)            Tricia’s story

(16:10)            The early days of quitting drinking

(17:46)            Getting a community of support and different recovery tools

(22:20)            When it’s time to mix up your recovery

(23:52)            There’s no right or wrong way to recover

(25:25)            What has surprised you about recovery?

(28:41)            What inspired Tricia’s podcast – The Recovery Happy Hour Podcast

(32:02)            What Tricia has learned from her podcast interviews

(32:50)            How waking up is so much different

(34:49)            How what we learn teaches us to really live life

(36:20)            Life is actually easier when we don’t drink

(37:35)            Universal truths in recovery – you’re not alone in this

(39:45)            What really happens when you say you’re going to quit drinking

(42:33)            Whether you share your story or not is your own prerogative

(44:55)            What Tricia would say to you if you’re struggling with alcohol right now

(52:00)            Where to hear Tricia’s podcast & access resources

Mentioned in This Episode:

The Recovery Happy Hour Podcast

My Episode on The Recovery Happy Hour Podcast

Recovery Resources

More About Tricia Lewis:

In November 2016, Tricia Lewis decided that balancing a life of being an entrepreneur and a high functioning alcoholic was too much to handle. She quit drinking and learned how to recover as hard as she drank without looking back. Tricia produces and hosts a weekly podcast called Recovery Happy Hour, where listeners can celebrate life beyond the bottle. Weekly guests from all over the world dissect all forms of recovery from alcohol use, and the idea that an alcohol-free life is not only worth living but more fun than you'd imagine. Recovery Happy Hour has been downloaded over a million times in over 100 different countries.

Website:         www.recoveryhappyhour.com

Instagram :      @recoveryhappyhour

FB :                  Recovery Happy Hour

In this episode, we talk to Celia, Fernandes, Founder of Celia Marie and an incredible Business Strategist who is transforming how women entrepreneurs structure, strategize and thrive in business.  Celia candidly shares her journey and big realization that her role in the corporate world was disconnecting her from herself.  She also shares how she help female small business owners create viable, soulful and purposeful businesses.    

One thing that really stood out to me (and perhaps will resonate with you too) is this idea that intentional living is all about making choices and taking action aligned with those choices.  What Celia so beautifully illustrates in her story-telling is how, so often, we don’t even know we have choices and that intentional living comes through challenging social norms that don’t feel authentic to us.

Key Takeaways:

(00:50)            Celia’s Bio

(02:47)            How Celia’s upbringing influenced her future intentional living

(07:15)            “that tiny whisper” that’s always talking to us

(08:06)            A pivotal moment in Celia’s life and what led her to teaching in Japan

(15:34)            The exhilaration of being on a new path & making brave new decisions

(17:30)            Celia’s journey in the corporate world

(19:33)            Celia’s burn-out

(21:15)            What it feels like to leave the corporate world

(24:50)            Reluctant entrepreneurship

(31:20)            Creating space to figure out the right next steps for you

(32:55)            Can anybody be an entrepreneur?

(33:29)            Entrepreneurship as a path to accelerated personal growth

(34:31)            How Celia helps entrepreneurs with business strategy and success

(41:08)            Business growth takes time

(44:51)            Celia’s words of wisdom

Mentioned in This Episode:

Lao Tzu Quote

More About Celia Fernandes:

Celia is a business mentor and guide for entrepreneurs who want to build a business that is aligned to their values, their gifts and that creates an impact. With an MBA and over 13 years business experience, Celia helps entrepreneurs bridge the gap between the passion and drive to launch a business and a lack the knowledge, skills and support to grow their business into a sustainable source of income. Celia’s work in the belief that we are all here to realize our greatest potential and unleash our skills and talents in service of a better world.

Website:         www.celiamarie.co  

Instagram :      @iamceliamarie

FB :                  Soul, Service, Success in Business Sisterhood

Description:

In this episode, we talk to the lovely and incredibly inspiring Kate Golding about intentional design.  Kate is renowned for her beautiful patterns and wallpapers.  We explore where inspiration comes from and how the design process takes place.  We also explore the importance of being present in the moment and the impact our most intentional spaces can have on our intentional living and our joy. 

Key Takeaways:

(00:50)            Kate’s Bio

(03:00)            Kate’s earliest design influences

(06:20)            When Kate realized she needed to return to her design path

(07:43)            When Kate really began the work she’s doing today

(11:20)            How nature inspires Kate’s work

(16:08)            The importance of being present

(16:24)            How a collection is inspired and comes to life

(18:40)            The creative process

(23:08)            Kate’s collaboration with Balzac’s Coffee

(26:00)            How creating beautiful intentional spaces can impact our lives in positive ways

(33:05)            What’s next

Mentioned in This Episode:

Fogo Island Inn

The Luncheon Collection

The Magical Day Collection

More About This Guest:

Kate Golding is a British born surface pattern and wallpaper designer based near Kingston, Ontario. Inspired at an early age by her granny’s 1970’s toile de jouy curtains and the textiles in the family caravan, Kate became obsessed with pattern design, interior design and the people who encompassed these design choices. Fascinated by the small details in daily life and the beauty of her natural surroundings, Kate unites the world as she sees it with her passion for interior decoration. All of her artwork is forged by hand using brushes, ink and fine line pen on thin transparencies on a light table. Kate’s designs can be found on collections of wallpaper, textiles and she also works with clients to create custom designs for special projects. Kate Golding has been featured in Interior Design, House and Home, The Globe and Mail, Applied Arts and on multiple HGTV shows. Her clients include Shopify, Penguin Random House, Balzac’s Coffee Roasters and The National Residences of Canada.

Website:         www.kategolding.ca  

Instagram :      @kategolding

Description:

In this episode, I talk to Mike Shoreman - who is an absolute inspirational force!  We met unexpectedly when I stumbled into the front row of his now viral Speaker Slam speech (link below).  In a surprising, compelling and heart-wrenching manner, he shared with journey with suddenly falling ill and his remarkable rise.  Mike is now a renowned author, speaker and mental health advocate.  What I really love about him though is his humble honesty, beautiful heart and inspiring resilience.  Prepare to be inspired by the Unbalanced Paddleboarder!

Key Takeaways:

(00:50)            Mike’s Bio & Mike’s Speaker Slam Speech

(05:48)            Mike shares his personal journey with us

(07:20)            When Mike got sick

(09:58)            A reactivation of chicken pox (Ramsay Hunt Syndrome)

(10:33)            What this diagnosis means for a paddleboarder

(11:48)             The moment when it felt like life was over & the anger that comes with that

(13:30)            How Christmas felt & Mike’s mental health journey

(15:33)            How Mike navigated his mental health

(18:05)            Mike learns he can do hard things

(18:46)            Mike’s first time back on a paddle board

(22:50)            What inspired Mike’s awesome Speaker Slam talk

(27:35)            Mike’s Speaker Slam remarkable experience in his own words

(30:00)            Paddles Up!

(35:10)            The legend of the Unbalanced Paddleboarder and its viral influence

(36:33)            Mike’s core message is for us to get up when we’ve been knocked down

(37:03)            What’s happening next

Mentioned in This Episode:

Speaker Slam Speech:  The Diagnosis that Changed My Life

Speaker Slam Grand Slam Speech:  Super Heroes Rise Together

Diaries of the Unbalanced Paddleboarder:  Crash & Rise

#PaddlesUp

More About This Guest:

In November 2018, Toronto-based Stand Up Paddle coach Mike Shoreman was diagnosed with a rare disease, the Ramsay Hunt Syndrome. All at once, he lost his balance and as a direct consequence, his independence, his SUP-coaching business and his social life. But Mike’s story in 2019 is not about falling down, it’s about standing up again. A public speech competition about the power of positivity which he won in last year has created a viral effect on social media, touched millions of hearts and triggered the #PaddlesUp movement amongst the worldwide SUP community. Mike is an ambassador for several non-profit organizations and a mental health advocate who fights to break stigmas. Mike is now officially the Unbalanced Paddleboarder.  He does inspirational speaking and recently published his book, Crash & Rise. 

This Summer (2021) – Mike will be the first person to ever paddleboard between the US and Canada.  Check out his website to learn more!

Website:         www.mikeshoreman.org

Instagram :      @theunbalancedpaddleboarder

Facebook :      Mike Shoreman

Linked In:        Mike Shoreman

In this episode, we talk to tech leader and author, Debra Christmas.  She talks to us about her amazing new book and shares a behind the scenes look at women in tech.  We explore being intentional in business, in leadership and in life.  Debra chooses to live from a place of joy – that’s what immediately connected us.  Her description of what intentional living means to her is very powerful. She is an inspiration and a force.  I hope you love this interview.

Key Takeaways:

(00:50)            Debra’s Bio

(02:00)            About Debra’s new book, Please Stay: How Women in Tech Survive and Thrive

(06:48)            The challenges for women in tech

(10:52)            What keeps women in tech

(11:30)            About Debra’s upbringing and how it influenced her

(12:50)            About women using their voices

(14:30)            Various topics in the book

(15:30)            Key takeaways from the book

(16:15)            Finding your voice and using your voice

(18:05)            “honey, could you get me a coffee” story

(20:00)            How you can find your voice

(25:26)            How Debra would like to see things change

(26:18)            Male response to the book and this conversation

(33:08)            What it means to intentional

(40:16)            How Debra lives with joy

(42:14)            About Debra’s mom’s passing and how she moved through it

(47:54)            Debra’s final words of inspiration – celebrating who we are      

Mentioned in This Episode:

Please Stay:  How Women in Tech Survive & Thrive

More About This Guest:

Debra Christmas is a seasoned leader in the high-tech field. In her 40 plus year career she has led IT organizations in driving change and transformation through engaged, diverse and high-performance teams around the world. She is a Senior Executive Partner at Gartner and recently co-authored the book, Please Stay: How Women in Tech Survive and Thrive.  She is a dynamic leader and widely recognized for her many contributions to leadership, mentorship, diversity coaching and the list goes on.  I met Debra a few years ago through a mentorship group for entrepreneurs and it may not surprise you that our common denominator is choosing to live in the world from a place of joy.

Website:         www.womenintechtribe.com

LinkedIn:         Debra Christmas

Facebook:       Debra Christmas

Caroline has been my Naturopath for years and we have also collaborated on many wellness workshops.  She is also a regular contributor to the May You Know Joy Membership where she guides us in aligning our most intentional living with the seasons.  I love this content and think it’s valuable for us all to return to so, I invited her to share it with all of us on the podcast. 

In this episode, we explore practical and soulful approaches to optimizing our health. The body has its own wisdom and we regain health and wellbeing by this listening and honouring. Our health evolves through connection to the natural world and its seasons.  We explore each season specifically discussing diet, exercise, rest, mindset and wisdom to attune to.

Key Takeaways:

(00:50)            Caroline’s Bio

(02:45)            Talking About Cycles (Seasonal, Lunar and more)

(03:50)            How We Get Disconnected from Cycles

(04:45)            Exploring Spring’s Qualities and How We Can Align

(08:25)            About Spring Cleansing

(12:45)            About Summer & the Lightness that Comes with this Season

(20:15)            About Fall and How to Navigate Mindfully      

(28:20)            Intentionally Navigating Winter

(31:33)            Honouring Smaller Cycles (i.e. the lunar cycle, the 24-hour cycle)

(33:50)            The Power of Small Daily Habits

(36:40)            Dealing with Stress

(40:02)            The Importance of Rest & Sleep

Mentioned in This Episode:

www.drcarolinemeyernd.com

More About This Guest:

Caroline Meyer is a naturopath and energy healer who has helped thousands of children and adults realize their own health potential. She leads workshops and seminars as well as writing on natural approaches to health. Caroline also teaches the next generation of naturopaths at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine.

Website:         www.drcarolinemeyernd.com

Instagram:       @drcarolinemeyernd

Facebook:       Dr Caroline Meyer ND

Joining us from Peru, Liz shares her own incredible journey of spiritual awakening.  Her experience has led her to deeply explore how we can embody intention.  She explores healing through intuitive movement (specifically dance) and shares how she creates this in the world.

She guides us in how we can engage our breath, playfulness and embodied listening.  She asks us to be willing to explore, feel our emotions and be open to the fullness of the experience.

She also explores how we can be in our bodies when there’s suffering (whether it’s stress, chronic illness or otherwise).  How can we befriend our bodies?  She offers us simple tips as to where we can start and how we can integrate movement into our every day.

Key Takeaways:

(00:50)            Liz’s bio

(03:36)            Liz’s shares her personal journey and her spiritual awakening

(16:02)            How Liz creates women’s dance circles

(25:52)            The body as a temple and how can we be mindful of it

(28:35)            Liz’s experience with concussions and chronic fatigue

(29:35)            Befriending our bodies

(31:05)            Building a relationship with our bodies

(32:07)            Navigating the pandemic through movement

(36:21)            Being present

(38:45)            A simple grounded breathing exercise

(42:14)            Building our own toolkits

(44:34)            How to learn more from Liz & to connect with her

Mentioned in This Episode:

Dance Temple

More About This Guest:

Liz started her career as a Social Worker & Counsellor. In 2011 Liz had her second spiritual awakening. This experience led her to find free-formed intuitive dance; a gateway to come back home to her body and to herself. For the last 9 years she has been working with Womxn as a Holistic & Spiritual Life Coach holding and create spaces that inspires them to cultivate embodied awareness and connection to the divine within. She is committed to supporting womxn in cultivating embodied awareness and connection to the divine within through ritual, mindfulness and expressive movement.

Website:         www.lizdiaz.ca

                        https://lizdiaz.teachable.com

Instagram:       @mywisebody

Facebook:      @sacredwomenscircles

Jackie and I have a beautiful conversation about what “Sovereign Beauty” means.  She shares what her illustrious career has taught her about beauty and invites us into the world of her Wholistic Beauty Lab.  Jackie is creatively combining decades of knowledge with energy, vibration and natural ingredients to create radiant beauty in all of us – from the inside out.

She also gives us some great tips that you can integrate immediately!

Key Takeaways:

(00:50)            Jackie’s Intro

(02:40)            What Jackie’s career with celebrities & rock stars taught her about beauty

(04:44)            Jackie’s career evolution

(05:44)            Jackie’s experience with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity

(07:48)            Wholistic beauty

(09:00)            Sovereign beauty, what it means and how it relates to life today

(11:50)            The colonization of beauty & a reminder of your innate beauty

(14:47)            How to start a more mindful beauty regime

(16:00)            Skincare unique to your energy

(17:39)            About how Jackie created an unexpected cream for Adrienne

(23:35)            Healing on a cellular level

(24:50)            Collaborating to create the May You Know Joy essential oil

(26:23)            The power of creating sacred moments & rituals & being present

(31:23)            Simple ways to shift your morning routine

(36:24)            Internal power & making it work for you

(38:23)            More morning rituals

(42:05)            Jackie’s perspective on “anti-aging”

(51:41)            Jackie speaks to women in this moment and offers inspiration & simplicity

Mentioned in This Episode:

Sovereign Beauty Program

Dr. Masaru Emoto & the Consciousness of Water

 More About This Guest:

Inspiring others to take a wholistic approach to beauty Jackie Shawn is an acclaimed international editorial and celebrity makeup artist. She is the founder of Wholistic Beauty Lab and a certified aromatherapist. With 35 years in the beauty industry her proprietary blend of bespoke skincare and energy work is what she calls Vibrational Beauty.  Jackie helps women who are overwhelmed by having to look, think and feel a certain way about their beauty. She guides them in expressing themselves by using skincare and cosmetics that reflect authentically who they are. She helps them declutter what's no longer working, simplify their routines, and become sovereign in their beauty choices, so that they radiate confidence from the inside out.

Website:         www.jackieshawn.com

Instagram:       @wholisticbeautylab

Facebook:       Wholistic Beauty with Jackie Shawn (Group)

This episode is incredible absolutely incredible.  Not only does Sarah very honestly share her experiences with mania and psychosis, she does so in a way that we can understand it.  She talks candidly about her journey, challenges our ideas and also gives us a glimpse into the universal wisdom she’s accessed.  Sarah is an entrepreneur, a mom, a creator and a remarkable story-teller.  I think you will enjoy every word of this!

Key Takeaways:

(00:50)            Sarah’s Intro

(03:30)            About storytelling and its importance

(12:23)            Post-partum psychosis, bi-polar, OCD, anxiety

(14 :24)           Sarah’s story about her journey through the above-mentioned mental health issues

(23:33)            What psychosis is like

(24:09)            The paradox of this struggle & an incredible state of consciousness

(27:49)            Sarah’s last psychotic episode and a spiritual emergency

(33:00)            More to life than the physical

(34:18)            Sarah’s dark night of the soul

(37:55)            Spiritual Emergency or Bipolar?

(39:45)            Messages from the Universe

(44:18)            Being stuck and learning from the duality of life

(48:10)            About Bliss B4 Laundry

(54:14)            About We Thrive Wellness Centre

(58:10)            Sarah’s final thoughts

Mentioned in This Episode:

Spiritual Emergency – Dr. Stanislov Grof

More About This Guest:

Sarah is wellness entrepreneur, a creative and also a busy mom.  Her drive, creativity and mark in the world are a testament to her commitment to her personal journey. Sarah was diagnosed with mental illness after the birth of her children and turned to spirituality and writing as a catalyst for her transformation. Sarah’s superpower is creating and cultivating nourishing healing environments.  Spend any time around her and you’ll just KNOW why.  She is integral in We Thrive Wellness Centre in Belleville.  She is also co-founder of Bliss B4 Laundry – a women’s retreat in Ontario that always sells out but, more importantly creates a space for women to show up from themselves and one another.  Quite simply – Sarah’s purpose is to hold space for the personal growth, transformation and healing of others.

Website:         www.wethrivewellness.ca

                        www.blissb4laundry.com

Instagram:       @wethrivewellness

                        @bliss_b4_laundry

Facebook:       We Thrive Wellness

                        Bliss B4 Laundry