THIS FULL LIFE

Did you grow up in a war zone? Were your parents from Iraq then immigrate to Israel? Have you moved your family back and forth to Israel 3 times? My guest today has experienced all this and more. Revital Shiri-Horowitz is an extraordinary woman with an extraordinary life to share. She’s written 3 books earning several awards. Today we talk about her childhood of growing up in Israel, running to bomb shelters in the middle of the night, serving in the Israeli Defence Force, moving to London, back to Israel, to the United States. motherhood, parents, childhood, israel, author, narcissism, books, life lessons    

My sister Sarah used this phrase while I was interviewing her...absolutist.   It means exactly what it says: there is no room for gray, it’s either black or white.   My sister has been a self-proclaimed absolutist for a long time and is now declaring herself cured from the judgment of it all. Today’s podcast and video interview is about sisterhood, judgement, control issues, growing up, and more. When the topic came up over Christmas about eating vegan or vegetarian or omnivore or pescitarian, I knew there would be some alternative view points.  Alternative meaning mine and her’s. Sure enough we had differing thoughts. I eat plant-based about 95% of my life. I have an occasional couple of bites of my husbands burger or fish and then I’m satisfied.  Back to my plants. My body just feels aligned when I eat this way. Sarah proclaimed this could not happen if I claimed to be a vegan. It was all or nothing.

I started in Santa Cruz, CA at a Women’s Leadership Conference.  It was the type of sisterhood connection I love to submerge myself in to. I felt deep connections with women I’d never even met. There was so much learning and intensity that after the first day I felt like I had a hangover and I hadn’t even drank.  Morning two as my girlfriend and I headed out of our hotel room I put on my sunglasses, even though it was cloudy and overcast.  I didn’t want to engage with anyone yet. I still needed to be inward not outward. Ever notice that when we really put our energy out in a big way that we also have to allow time to go within?  That’s me. I can put myself out into the world in a big way, and then I have to honor the part of me that wants to go inward and recharge and be quiet. I’m learning how to manage my energy in better ways.  When we put ourself out in a way that is connecting with and being present with hundreds of people one needs to know one's limits.  I’m learning. I often just want to give all of myself and I know I can’t do that.

“White privilege is not necessarily about being white. It has nothing to do with the color of your skin. It’s about the fact that there is a power structure in place and has been for generations that affords certain people the luxury of never having to think about what they look like in terms of how they are treated by others. But for another part of the population it is inescapable to know that how you look and are perceived by others determines how you are treated.  This is white privilege.”  Delara Marchbank Race, Identity, skin color, and culture are very complex topics.   The words Racial Bias might even sting to read them.  In today’s episode I’m joined by my friend, yoga instructor, and activist Delara Marchbank. Coming from a background of Persian decent Delera’s learned the nature of racial bias and white privilege. Growing up being of race and color other than white is very different from growing up white.

In today’s show I continue my conversation with Danny Neifert on Gender Identity.  In this second part of our two part series we dive into the basic moving parts of us as human beings.   If you missed part one of this series check it out here. We’re all born in the physical skin of either a male or female body.  Yet it’s often discombobulating if we realize the shell we’re born into isn’t the person that’s on the inside.  When we identify with the gender type we’re born into it categorically easy to navigate the world.  When we’re born into a gender that we don’t identify with life can present some major challenges. And what if we suddenly find ourself attracted to someone of the same gender when throughout our life we’ve identified with the opposite sex.  This can also be a big shake up. Listen in today and let me know your feedback.  I'd love to hear your thoughts!    

I've known Danny for over 4 years.  When I first met her at our mutual yoga studio in Santa Barbara, CA I knew she had two grown children and was coming off a breakup.  As time went on I discovered she was dating one of the female instructors and began to wonder how someone shifts from being attracted to males to being attracted to females and visa versa.  I had no judgement around it, I was coming more from the place of curiosity and wonderment.    Several years have passed and I ran into Danny again in Colorado. She's still dating the same woman. Several women leaders I follow on social media also had break-ups from long-term male partners and were now in committed relationship with women. What sparks this?  What's the internal shift that happens when we go from one gender to another? Gender Identity is a very personal and unique thing.  According to the research Danny's done we each have three layers to our identity; the first being the shell we're born in:Female or Male.  The next layer is the gender we identify with.  This may or may not equal to what's on our exterior shell.  We feel like a man or we feel like a woman.  And lastly we're attracted to the energetic composition of male or female.  For example some of us are attracted to a more manly man or a more feminine man.  Or we're attracted to a very feminine women or a more masculine woman.    We dive into lots of Q & A on being attracted to the same sex and the opposite sex.  And why we're attracted to who we're attracted to.   You can check out Danny's work in the world on her website Embodied Harmonics. 

WELCOME!  The first edition of my new podcast THIS FULL LIFE is finally ready.  I've been so excited to release this new platform.  You'll notice new intro music, cleaner sound and a great outro message. THIS FULL LIFE  is a platform dedicated to inspirational conversation, courageous individuals and my desire to learn more about the world I live in. On today’s episode my friend, activist and Yoga Instructor Delara Marchbank joins me to discuss the many levels of fear and faith.    At first glance the two words seem to be polar opposites.  And they are.  However, they're also extremely related.  You almost can't have one without the other. When we're in fear, we have visceral responses.  Our chest tightens, we might sweat, we become angry, denial sets in.  Landing in a place of fear means we are in the space of unknown. We dont' know what an outcome will be.  We are afraid because we're trying to control a situation and don't have a clue as to how it's going to end. Fear might look like trying to live day-to-day and not knowing how the bills are going to get paid. Relationships might cause fear.  A new job might cause fear. Fear also shows up in situations of fight or flight.  There's real fear when we think we might fall or hurt ourself or that someone else might hurt us. What do we do with this fear?  Have faith?  It almost seems callous to say, "just have faith." So where does faith come in? Dive into our conversation today and observe where your fear lies.  See what it's like to release this fear into faith.  

Studies have shown that although both men and women have the capacity to use their intuition, women's brains are hardwired for it.  That's right ladies! We can claim that inner voice, that gut instinct, that "feeling" we just have. But here's the thing, even though we have such a strong capacity for intuition we've almost forgotten how to let it lead us.  And I mean really let it lead us through life.   We haven't exactly been celebrated for our ability to "just know".  Our ability to be sensitive to other people and situations has been devalued.  It's been objectified and traded in for more "logical thinking." As women we've been teased for wanting to follow our intuition.  Maybe even been made fun of.  After all, being sensitive is a gift, yet we haven't necessarily been taught to embrace this aspect of ourself.  We might have been criticized for being so in touch with our emotions thus blocked it out.   In today's podcast my guest, Julie Guthrie and I really dive in to what it means to follow your intuition.   It might mean following guidance without knowing the end result.  It might mean making really difficult decisions. What happens when we don't follow our instincts?    

  UGH!  Just as soon as I typed the words in the title "Letting go of Control" I had a shiver.  Letting Go and Surrendering is an ongoing practice for me.  Just like yoga, I have to practice it frequently for my body to have the muscle memory to do it.  And for me to continue to grow.   I find myself coming from a place of fear when I think about surrender.  The "What if" place.  What if I surrender, then what?  If I surrender how do I know it's going to go the way I want it to go? Sometimes it's a moment to moment practice.  Letting go and surrendering can go as deep as we allow it to.  Surrender doesn't mean giving up or giving in.   It means having a curiosity to see what's on the other side.  It's letting go of attachment to the outcome.  Often times fear is behind surrender.  When we can't allow ourself to let go, we might be coming from a place of fear.  And this doesn't mean we're afraid for our life.  It might mean that if we let go and surrender, we're afraid something undesirable will happen.   When we invite in surrender we invite in the opportunity for love to enter in.  We can let go in small increments or we can surrender on a bigger scale.    About halfway through the podcast I take you through a short exercise on breath work and listening to your body to recognize what it is you're willing to surrender in your life.   There is so much good that can unfold when we allow ourself to surrender. 

I recorded this episode months ago and today I'm revisiting.   It's ringing true for me on many levels; especially the shift of wanting to be out in the world doing my thing!   I still have my youngest child at home.  And although he's 17, he still requires and deserves my love and attention and interaction.     The part of me that is shifting and wanting to get my message out in the world wants to ignore his wants and needs and hole up in my office( bedroom!) and work, work, work! Maybe I should go back and listen to my own podcast on balance!  Seriously though, according to Dr. Northup this is a normal part of my life. It's normal for me to want to be more productive in the world rather than be family focused. Can you relate?   The Wisdom of Menopause, by Dr. Chrisitane Northrup is the book currently on my nightstand. I've diving into the wisdom and what menopause really tells us about our lives.  I've been an admirer of her's for years and now I'm learning more about what's going on with my conflicted mind.  The hormonal shifting going on isn't the only happening around here.   I have a few recent examples in my own life to share.   Let's chat about what's going on being the scenes of our shifts and changes and how we can navigate this incredible time in our lives. Menopause is really happening for us not too us.  

 Today we're continuing our discussion on being in the present moment.  What does it mean to be in the present moment? We're starting with the ways in which we check out of the present moment.  What are our vices that allow us to not show up in the moment. Staying in the present moment means being willing to feel uncomfortable.  It means being willing to feel what comes up and being willing to dig deeper into the feelings.  If we’re feeling uncomfortable we get to ask ourselves why.   Why do I feel uncomfortable right now?  What is going on that makes me feel uncomfortable? And just sit with it.  Sit with what comes up and be curious about it. Where does this come from?  What belief/s have I formed around this?  

 This year I wanted to be specifically intentional in creating a New Year.   Years past I've kinda participated in making my year an intentional one.  I've kinda set an intention, or made a New Year Resolution, or verbalized what I wanted to happen in the year. And some years I haven't really thought about it at all. But this year I wanted to be fully present and fully participate in the creation of what the year looks like for me. I wanted to make sure I was on the same page with the Universe and that we are co-creating my life.   I also knew that there were areas of my life that were NOT WORKING in a big way. Listen to how the Beastie Boys and Justin Bieber influenced the outcome of setting my intentions.

 In Part II Julie and I pick up our conversation with the Act of Surrender.  Faith, Letting Go of Attachment, and Expressing Gratitude also make an appearance.   The more Julie and I are in conversation about these topics, the deeper we go into our own healing journeys.  I've realized the work I've personally done this year has been around having faith.  And surrenduring the outcomes.  I'm learning to release control in a big way.  Once we let go of the reigns and are willing to see the ways control seeps into our life, other ways show themselves.  It's so easy to want control into our lives. If everything's under control then I know exactly what to expect.  When in fact this is the hardest way to exist.  It's like fighting to get upstream. Tuning in and learning how to listening to our guidance is so much easier.  Allowing ourselves to hear the guidance and following the path laid out in front affords us the opportunity to let someone else be in charge.   We all need the reminder to tune in and listen.  Because it's easy to get off track.  All it takes is a gentle self reminder to realign with ourselves and our higher power.       

Do you ever look back on your year and take inventory of  all that's transpired?   Have you ever thought, "Did I do what I set out to do this year?  How did this year unfold for me?" That's exactly what we're doing today.   My guest Julie Guthrie and I look back through the past years blogs  and reflect on the personal work we've done.   Inspiration for blogging comes from our personal journey's.   Today we're reflecting on our issues and transformations over the past year.  We look back at the intentions we put out in the world and what has actually manifested; what's worked and what hasn't.  Getting brutally honest with yourself is painful, scary and exhilarating.  And when you can look back over the entire year to see exactly how your life has played out, it's really reaffirming to your life path.  Listen in to hear everything that's gone right and everything that's gone wrong in this year.  

Amy Green, M.Ed. is the previous creator and author of the widly popular gluten-free and refined sugar-free food blog, Simply Sugar and Gluten Free, now AmyGreen.me   She's worked with such companies as Hershey’s, Peanut Butter & Co, Attune Foods.  She's been a guest on Martha Stewart Living Radio, Good Morning Texas, Fox 4 News Dallas, Talk 980 Radio USA.  Amy's also been featured in Living Without, Clean Eating Magazine, Reader’s Digest Canada, D Magazine, and The Plano Profile.  Now, she's traded all that tpo be co-owner of Apex Modular Group, a certified woman-owned small business.  Desiring a lifestyle that would allow her and her husband Joe to take care of their three boys they started Apex Modular Group.  Family always comes first for Amy and Joe.  And while this has required huge sacrifice for Amy, it's created a life that allows freedom, choice and a whole lot of love. Amy is a serial entrepreneur and loves building businesses. She also has an innate desire to create, which is evidenced through her entrepreneurship and her hobbies, including  baking, crocheting and wreath making, consulting work and business creation.   

Mary Shores is the internationally known author of Conscious Communications: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Harnessing the Power of Your Words to Change Your Mind, Your Choices, and Your Life.   As an author, speaker, entrepreneur, and CEO, Mary Shores teaches individuals and businesses to fearlessly create their own realities by using scientific methods and practical personal development. Mary has appeared internationally in magazines, on television shows, and has been a guest on over 80 podcasts, including the Chicken Soup For The Soul Podcast, Lavendaire Lifestyle, Positive Head, Ever Forward Radio and more. Her practical and scientifc methods, straightforward teaching, and actionable tips ensure that anyone can improve their life.

Did you know we sold almost everything we owned and left the country?  We did!  We left to explore, adventure and find new ways of living.  We wanted to explore others cultures. We wanted to reconnect with ourselves and each other.  We desired to let go of  of the hang up we had about ourselves and who we thought we should be. We left to rebalance, recalibrate, learn to live with the flow of life. What we found was presence.  We found the ability to listen again.  We remembered how to listen to ourselves and what we really needed.   Join me as I chat about reconnecting on a daily basis and tips on how to be more present with yourself and with others around you.

  I took Nick Ortner's 7 week course, Tapping for Financial Abundance and Personal Fulfillment and finished it up this weekend.  I stretched it out over 9 weeks because my life took over.    I finished the course yesterday and the results are pretty big. Each week is a new module focusing on a different beliefs or desires.  There are questions that allow us to find old patterns we’ve probably been running  unconsciously our whole life.  Most of these patterns came from our childhood, our parents, our teachers, the society we grew up in. They become our life, how we see our life, what we believe we can do or not do, how society relates to us, how we relate to society, how we show up in our life or not show up, the words we speak, the thoughts we think.   Basically our entire life is a representation or a mirror of our beliefs.  We are the creators of our entire life.   We arrive at the place we are now in our lives because of all the above I started the course because I knew I had old beliefs around money that weren’t serving me anymore.  I knew in starting my own business I didn’t want to have beliefs that were blocking my financial abundance.  So I dove in. And so much came out of it.   Listen in to hear about the beliefs that might be holding you back to financial success and personal fulfillment.  Do you resonate with any of these?  

Join me and my guest Blogger, writer and coach Julie Guthrie as we chat about how we've been pretending we know what we're doing.   I’ve come to the realization that I used to pretended I knew how to be a mom.  It didn’t come naturally to me at all. I was 22 years old when my first child was born. I had no idea how to be a mom or even what to do.   The emotional foundation to know myself on a deeper level didn't exisist so how could I show up for my kids. For me an immediate love connection didnt' form to my first child.  It’s not that I didn’t love him. I didn't know how to love myself.  How could I know what that love felt like to give to another human.  I was young and I wasn’t done growing up or figuring myself out.   I was pretending like I knew what to do. It took me years before I felt like his mom. It took me years before I felt like I was even worthy of being his mom.  I felt so inadequite and unworthy of being his mom.   Julie's lived her entire adult life thinking she's known what she's doing, too.  It's occured to her she's also been pretending.  Pretending how to adult in her world.  Do you pretend in your life?   Do you pretend you know how to be a parent? Do you pretend you know how to take of your finances? Do you pretend you know how to be an adult? Join me and Julie    as we disecting the ways we pretend and why.     

In this episode I read a few pieces from my recent journal posts.  I've been writing a lot lately on a few issues that coincide.  And what better way to share them with you than to read them and discuss them.   I've really been feeling out of balance.  I feel out of balance in my work, in my family, in myself.  I've realized I'm back to a yucky habit of allowing what others think to influence my work habits. I don't feel the joy that I know how to feel.  Let's address this!  Let's address our own level of production.  Our own pace of how we get things done.   Let's attempt to find that place within that lets us be ok with who and how we are!  

Autumn is the time of year that resonates like metal in nature.  It is the time when the environment's energies begin to contract.  The trees let go of their leaves and the earth lets go of its bounty for the harvest.  As the days and nights become cooler our own body’s energy begins to turn within. A weakness in the lung energy is most likely to show up in the fall.   Today we'll chat with Josh Schneider Co-founder of Cloud Gate Acupuncture and Healing Arts.  Josh will be chatting with us about the season we're in now and how we can support ourselves through this transformation season.  And  about the upcoming Winter Season and how we can prepare. Josh is a Diplomate of Oriental Medicine (Dipl OM – NCCAOM) and is a licensed acupuncturist (LAc) in both California and Colorado. Josh is also a certified practitioner of the Jin Shou Tuina system by the American Organization for Bodywork Therapies of Asia (AOBTA) .  He is a current instructor in the North American Tang Shou Tao Association (NATSTA). His training includes Xingyiquan, Taijiquan, Baguazhang, Liu Hu Ba Fa, Qi gong, and Kajukenbo.   

Amber St. Peter is a wildy popular Plant Based Chef, Cookbook Author, and Blogger living in Fullerton, California with her husband and pitbull pup, Maddie. She recently completed her 200 hour Power Yoga Teacher Training and is now a Certified Yoga Teacher. When she’s not working on her blog, Good Saint, you can find her perusing local Farmer’s Markets, comic book shops, and rock climbing gyms. Her first cookbook, Homestyle Vegan, is available wherever books are sold.  In this revealing episode, we're going to talk with Amber about her struggles with Eating Disorders and she has learned to love her body in a more healthy and accepting way. She takes us through her several year journey with anorexia and bulemia and finding her way out.   We're also going to chat about CBT and THC and how these strains of Medical Marijuana have helped Amber's healing process.    Join us live.  Call in for questions and comments or just to chat with us.    

I just started reading Suzy Orman's book The Courage to Be Rich.  And I also just enrolled in Nick Ortner,s  7-week course in EFT for finances.  I've realized I have issues around money and I'm not willing to have them anymore.  Often money comes and goes for me.  Or I have plenty.  Then I have none. Or I can overspend.  I have fear around making a lot of money because I'm afraid of spending it all.  Does any of this resonate with you?  Does it sound silly to you?  I mean really, who states they're afraid to make too much money.  But really, it's a block to financial abundance.   In this episode about money I'm going to talk about the connection of money and the energy that surrounds it.  And how it either flows to us continuously or not. There's a spirituality around money.  We either love it or hate it and it's this same vibration we send out to money.   In doing some personal emotional digging this weekend I found an example leading back to grade school where I made fun of a fellow classmate just to deflect attention from me to her.  I was hoping others would see her finanical flaws and not mine. Join me as I talk through my own examples on this journey.  And we'll talk about Suzy Orman's book and the 3 emotions we can have around money.     

I recorded this episode months ago and today I'm revisiting.  It's ringing true for me on many levels; especially the shift of wanting to be out in the world doing my thing!   I still have my youngest child at home.  And although he's 17, he still requires and deserves my love and attention and interaction.     The part of me that is shifting and wanting to get my message out in the world wants to ignore his wants and needs and hole up in my office( bedroom!) and work, work, work! Maybe I should go back and listen to my own podcast on balance!  Seriously though, according to Dr. Northup this is a normal part of my life. It's normal for me to want to be more productive in the world rather than be family focused. Can you relate?   The Wisdom of Menopause, by Dr. Chrisitane Northrup is the book currently on my nightstand. I've diving into the wisdom and what menopause really tells us about our lives.  I've been an admirer of her's for years and now I'm learning more about what's going on with my conflicted mind.  The hormonal shifting going on isn't the only happening around here.   I have a few recent examples in my own life to share.   Let's chat about what's going on being the scenes of our shifts and changes and how we can navigate this incredible time in our lives. Menopause is really happening for us not too us.