Sensitive Matters • Podcast

25: Processing pain & addiction with Sat Dharam Kaur

This newest episode is with Sat Dharam Kaur, Kundalini Yoga teacher, naturopath, co-creator of the Compassionate Inquiry therapeutic approach with Dr. Gabor Maté's and a great inspiration in my own life.
Throughout this episode Sat Dharam allows us a peek into the world of Kundalini Yoga and her life with it; she shares about her Beyond Addictions program as well as the work with Dr. Gabor Maté's Compassionate inquiry program.
This brand new episode guides us through the following points:
The benefits Sat Dharam experiences with Kundalini Yoga, what the practice entails, how mantra revels itself to us and how it enables her intuition becomes clear to her allowing her to hear her soul’s purpose
*The underlying reason people struggle with addiction and how some parts of ourselves that are unexpressed result in many people creating patterns to self-sooth.
Sat Dharam’s Beyond Addictions program and how it teaches learning to have compassion and acceptance for ourselves in a safe space to build connection to our true selves, change those patterns and process our pain.
Sat Dharam’s role in how Compassionate Inquiry with Dr. Gabor Mate was created and their collaboration teaching and formulating the method, the components, skills and line of inquiry that comprise the program.
Christina and Sat Dharam model Compassionate Inquiry to showcase the approach and how it’s practiced.
Christina vulnerably shares a situation that’s brought stress within her life
They work together identifying feelings within the body and what comes up when discussing the inquiry
Sat Dharam and Christina get to bottom of when she first felt this way, and the core memory that this feeling stems from
They find a parallel within Christina’s life to understand the experience of anyone in this situation, how they would cope, grow and how this feeling or experience would shape them
Christina and Sat Dharam discuss how anyone in this situation could be supported and what that support would look like
They conclude by identifying how Christina would have felt if she were supported within the situation at the time, what she would like to say to that part of herself she still carries with her and what in return that self needs to feel safe moving forward
What Sat Dharam has coming up in both her offerings with Beyond Addictions, Compassionate Inquiry and joyfully within her personal life
We hope you enjoy this episode! Listen up and leave your feedback below!
Learn more about Sat Dharam here.
Learn more about Ananda Soul Jewelry: https://anandasoul.com/
Learn more about our host Christina Zipperlen: https://www.sensitivematters.com/about

24: How to regulate our nervous systems with the practice of pranayama

In the past years, this world has been an awkward place. Beautiful. Eye-opening. Heart-widening. At the same time, the landscapes society walked through offered edges, cliffs, cracks, crevices – in short, many occasions to trip and to fall.
Our realities are informed differently now than they have been in recent years. I found myself dealing with a lot of fear and anxiety grounded in the unknowing of all that life was throwing at us, besides personal battles, wins and losses that all happened in the shortest period of time.
The main questions I sat with was
How do I stay the most present, grounded, calm and authentic in an ever-changing, swirling world? How can I keep my breath fluid and gentle, my feet down and my heart beating strongly in its center at all times?
In order to not get too overwhelmed as an HSP in an ever-busy, ever-changing world routines and regularly practiced tools can be of sustainable support.
On another note: This post isn’t exclusive to HSPs only.
Whether you are an HSP or not – we all have experienced some form of fear and anxiety in recent years and can benefit of the tools shared below.
As an HSP myself, over the years I’ve been experimenting and practicing with techniques that have been supportive in times of anxiety and overwhelm.
Coming back to breath
Breath is one of the few tools that we have to easily alter our nervous system and the states it may find itself in when overwhelmed or agitated.
The art and practice of pranayama is a yogic practice that regulates the flow of our life force (= prana) throughout the body. Yama translates from Sanskrit as ‘gaining control’.
In this special episode, we will do 3 breathing practices:
1. Sama Vritti or Box breath
Sama Vritti is known as equal breath or box breath and is a powerful tool that can help clear your mind, slow down your heart rate, relax your body, and allow you to increase your focus.
2. Nadi Shodana or Alternate Nostril breathing
This intermediate practice involves breathing through one nostril at a time. It is a powerful way to bring harmony and balance to the energy pathways.
3. Bhramari or Bee breath
A breathing technique that helps to block out distractions and soothe the nervous system with the support of a humming sound. When we hum, we are happy. Calling in a buzzing hum creates a sense of safety for our nervous systems.
May this serve you, may this support you.
Learn more about Pranayama: https://anandasoul.com/blogs/blog/hig...
About Christina Zipperlen: https://sensitivematters.com/

23: Shining her light on Mental Health with Maxene Magalona

This month's guest is a very special and bright light in this world: Maxene Magalona, Filipino actress and Mental health advocate in the Philippines shares with me close and upfront her inspiring and very personal story as her, 'Maxene'.
She grants insights into her struggles with her own mental health, losses and wins in life, her path towards spirituality and what her soul deeply yearns for – for the world, her surroundings and herself.
This brand new episode guides us through the following points:
Her personal journey of growing up in the spotlight and how fame shaped her life in the Philippines
How Maxene used to manage stress and how in hindsight we can all recognize how our past behavior was our ability to handle trauma with the tools and resources available to us at that time
The importance of mental health and how it effects our physical health
The stigma around mental health in the Philippines and how the pandemic started to shift that
The importance of seeking professional support in Maxene’s own words
What spirituality and her connection to God and spirit means to Maxene, and how she follows her soul’s desire
The mantras that Maxene loves to sing and chant that bring her strength
How The Soul Space was created and the reason why Maxene shares her very own practices and wisdom she’s learned along the way
The intuitive way that Maxene selects her jewelry and what Ananda Soul pieces bring her into alignment giving her grace in her day-to-day life
Christina shares some spiritual practices of cleansing your jewelry and energetically recharging your Ananda Soul pieces
What offerings Maxene will share when she returns to the Philippines
You can also watch the video of our conversation here:
https://youtu.be/3i6bl74BjTs
We hope you enjoy this episode! Listen up and leave your feedback below!
Learn more about Maxene Magalona via Instagram at @maxenemagalona and her projects @bekind.ph and @thesoulspaceph
Learn more about Ananda Soul Jewelry: https://anandasoul.com/
Learn more about our host Christina Zipperlen: https://www.sensitivematters.com/about

22: Practice who you are with Elena Brower

This month’s episode comes with a special guest I have been very excited about inviting to our Sensitive Matters podcast: Elena Brower.
I’ve admired her work for many years. As a mother, world-renowned yoga and meditation teacher (since 1999!), artist, author and host of her very own podcast ‘Practice You’ I find her entire being, her work, her story and personality intriguing and inspiring in so many ways.
Listen to this brand new episode as we cover a variety of topics about her yoga journey, compassion, in particular self-compassion as the core of her work, yoga and meditation, spirituality and her podcast.
This brand new episode guides us through the following points:
• Elena’s spiritual journey and how her personal practice and beliefs have evolved through her decades of studying and teaching yoga and meditation
• What she’s working on with her new book of poetry, journal and parenting course
• How Elena has been kind to herself during times of uncertainty and the mindset that she shares for us all to turn that kindness inwards to our own hearts
• Elena’s podcast, Practice You, and what she’s learned from over 100 conversations with spiritual leaders and change makers Dr. Gabor mate, Yung Pueblo, Latham Thomas and our mutual friend Nadine McNeil
• How yoga as an industry has developed over the past 20 years and what it looks like to make a living as a yoga teacher, developing community and diversifying your income
•The breathing practice Elena does to stay grounded within her daily life
•What Ananda Soul pieces Elena wears, what Ananda evokes her and how she feels when she wears our jewelry
•A sneak peek reading from her latest journal that inspires the soul
You can see the meditation Elena mentions here
The Ananda Soul Lakshmi Necklace Elena's mentioned within the episode is Blessing All Around Mala
Curious to learn more about Elena Brower? This is the way to her website!,
About the host Christina Zipperlen here,
and about Ananda Soul here.

20: Women’s health & the magic of our menstruation cycle with Bex Tyrer

As we continue to speak about the Moon, I am excited to share this month's podcast episode with my dear friend and menstrual cycle activist Bex Tyrer.
This brand new episode speaks about the following topics:As we have just launched our Lunar collection that focuses on the power of the Moon and all its phases, it is an honor to continue the ‘Moon’versations - so to speak - from another angle: menstrual cycle awareness and alignment with the Moon and its phases.Bex has dedicated her life’s work to yoga and women’s health and focuses on inclusivity, trauma work and social and environmental justice. Bex has been a full time yoga teacher at the Yoga Barn, the largest yoga studio in Asia, since 2009.
How yoga is a traditional practice for men that carries much wisdom and also doesn’t include women’s natural cycles and bodies.
Addiction and eating disorders in yoga and how the separation from our cycles and bodies can contribute to a break and separation within ourselves
How women’s periods are our 5th vital sign and the many different ways periods serve as an indicator of a women’s health
The function of women’s periods, or moon cycles, and what we “give birth to” every month
What a normal period actually is and what miraculous things our bodies do every month
The follicular and luteal phases and how we can make the most of them
What hormones our natural cycles activate and how they work with our brains, hearts and overall health
How stress effects our cycles and overall health and the timing of our cycles
What men can do to work with the moon phases and natural rhythms of the earth
The options women have for menstrual products and how much we actually bleed every month
Menopause, Perimenopause and what those phases of women’s lives actually entail, with hormonal and period cycle changes
How we should be celebrate Menopause and honor this sacred time in a women’s life
The exciting collaboration between Bex and Ananda Soul and the free offering coming your way
What Ananda Soul pieces Bex wears daily
The books Box mentioned within the episodes are Yoni Shakti by Uma Dinsmore-Tuli (available here on her website: https://yonishakti.co/resources/yoni-shakti-book) and
Wild Power by Alexandra Pope and Shane Hugo Wurlitzer (available here on their website: https://www.redschool.net/wildpower)

19: Over the Moon with Paula Shaw

If you have been following the Sensitive Matters podcast, this episode's guest might not be a stranger to you. For this time I have invited my dear friend Paula Shaw back into the reins, as we are celebrating the launch of our new collection that I am so particularly proud and excited about, as the focus of this collection is the moon and all its phases.Paula is an intuitive psychic and astrologer who has offered over 15.000 sessions in 10 years, changing people’s lives through accompanying them on their journeys through healing, clarity and their highest potential.
Paula has been a wonderful guide for me through our universe, ever since I met her in Bali 8 years ago.
Here are some of the things Paula and I cover in this episode:
Paula’s journey of seeking meaning in accordance with her spirituality and nature.
Christina’s experience of growing up in Bavaria in accordance with the earth’s natural rhythms and farming seasons
How the phase we’re born under can tell us about who we are and how to work with that energy
How to work with the moon, what that means and bringing our awareness into the moon phases
Simplifying the moon phases with simple intention setting on the new moon and releasing on the full moon
How the quarter moons can bring about action and reflection within our lives
The lessons that the new moon has for us about starting over at any time in our lives.
How the moon’s monthly cycle is the exact length of women’s menstrual cycles and the cyclical nature of our bodies.
Learning to work with our own charts and what’s happening in the sky right now
Click here to learn more about Paula Shaw:
https://www.soulfulguiding.com/
Click here to learn more about Ananda Soul Jewelry:
https://anandasoul.com/
Click here to learn more about Christina Zipperlen:
https://www.sensitivematters.com/

18: New Moon Meditation with Christina Zipperlen

As the New Moon approaches, the time has come to turn towards rest, to honor what was and what wants to be met next. The darkness of the sky reminds us to slow down, catch our breaths, heal.
You are so welcome to this very special New Moon Meditation. You are invited to join me on an inward journey to find peace and grounding within yourself. For the next 10min allow yourself to be guided into a liminal space between the old and the new, a place in which becoming is limitless and full of potential.
Grab a cushion or blanket, take a comfortable seat or lie down and receive this nourishment.

17: How gentle birth can change the world one baby and mother at a time with Ibu Robin Lim

For this episode I invited Ubud legend and inspiration, Robin Lim. Affectionately known as “Ibu Robin” she is a midwife and the founder of Yayasan Bumi Sehat, a non-profit here in Bali that offers free prenatal care, birthing services and medical treatment to anyone in need that focuses on at-risk mothers. We speak about the philosophy of gentle birth, her life story with Bumi Sehat and its mission and the never ending support mothers in developing countries need to birth and nurture babies in favour of a better world.
In this episode we speak about
How Robin came to Bali over 25 years ago and started her journey as a midwife when she was pregnant and realizing that the maternal mortality rate at the time was very high.
How the “green revolution” and the elimination of heritage rice began to cause fatal hemorrhaging for women giving birth and how she’s adopted the gentle birth philosophy from world-leading gynecology and women’s health experts.
The creation of Bumi Sehat and its mission to enable gentle birth to support women in Bali give birth safely and gently in alignment with our bodies’ natural rhythms.
The community support that came together to help win the CNN Hero of the Year award for Bumi Sehat.
Supporting women to feel empowered and empower each other’s beauty at every age, weight and stage of our lives.
Destigmatizing our menstruation, sexuality and relationship with our bodies.
What the labor process is like for many women including first-time mothers.
How acupuncture can help support women’s fertility and both people in a couple with fertility as only 15% of people diagnosed with infertility are actually infertile.
The benefits of IVF and better living through science in partnership with traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture.
What support systems Robin has in place to keep and maintain her balance as a mother, grandmother and founder of Bumi Sehat.
How Bumi Sehat is working to reduce period poverty for Indonesian women and girls with some incredible products and donations of period panties.
Robin has also established clinics and helped at-risk mothers in remote locations across Indonesia and Asia. Thanks to her life work “Ibu Robin” has won CNN Hero of the Year in 2011.
"Every baby's first breath on Earth could be one of peace and love. Every mother should be healthy and strong. Every birth could be safe and loving. But our world is not there yet," - Ibu Robin

16: A sound healing with Lumirä to nurture your heart and soul

Lumirä, a multi-instrumentalist, a yogini, and artist is sharing a wonderfully guided meditation and sound healing experience with us and our community to rest deeply back into our beings, to find the touchstones of self-nourishment and recharge that are scattered around the inner landscapes of our being and to just become and be.
How can we create moments of deep, deep rest for ourselves that give our body, our organs, our mind, our heart, our soul the chance to heal and recover from a life of busyness, constant stimulation and the need to perform? By leaning back into our bones, our structure that makes us us.
Lumirä is an artist who explores the relationship between nature and the sacred, as well as the many dimensions of human consciousness. Her work provides a sensorial experience by integrating deeply moving sounds and instruments to awaken the spirit. Recognizing the power and connection between the breath and sound, Lumirä creates soulful offerings that bring peace and healing to one’s mind and heart.
“I am really passionate about creating immersive and meditative sound experiences that allow people to completely let go and tune inwards. I believe that sound is a powerful healing modality and that my purpose on this earth is to share my musical offerings with the world. The best way for me to connect with spirit is through sacred sound and my goal is to share these magical vibrational frequencies with as many souls as I can.”
We hope you enjoy this beautiful soundbath.

15: ’How To Truly Be’ With Kate Reardon

In this episode, I am speaking with my dear friend Kate Reardon, as she shares with us how to come back to our natural instincts, how the be the fullest version of ourselves and live our truth. Fascinated by the way she weaves the tapestry of healing and health, I listen to her sharing her personal insights as a naturopath, healer, and mother.
Here are some of the things Kate and I cover in this episode:
The mind-body connection and how emotions can physically manifest in the body
Kate's journey into motherhood including her experience with miscarriage
Giving yourself grace, and maintaining life balance as a mother
What practices does Kate use to stay aligned and attuned to her intuition (including what we’ll share for this month’s meditation episode of Sensitive Matters!)
How Christina and Kate know each other and their journey together as friends living in Bali as female entrepreneurs
The inspirations behind her book "The Essential Cleanse" and how her retreat participants created the motivation to bring this work into the world
What pieces of Ananda sold jewelry Kate wears that represent important milestones in her life
Kate's upcoming mentorship and what that looks like in living accordance with the moon and its monthly cycles
Kate Reardon is a mother of three girls, a naturopath, yoga teacher, intuitive healer, author, podcast host and co-founder of Natural Instinct Healing, a boutique retreat center based in Ubud, Bali, that offers both retreats on-site as well as in Byron Bay, Australia and online.
Kate is also the author of ‘The Essential Cleanse’, a book about her own cleansing method towards a more fulfilled, joyful and lighthearted way of living.
Kate’s work has been featured in high-profile media such as BBC Travel, Women’s Health & Fitness Magazine, and more.
We hope you enjoy this episode! Listen up and please share your feedback.
You can also watch the video of our conversation here:
Find out more about Kate Reardon and Natural Instinct Healing here:https://katereardon.com.auhttps://naturalinstincthealing.com
about our host Christina Zipperlen:
https://www.sensitivematters.com/
and about Ananda Soul jewelry:
https://anandasoul.com/