From the Heart with Rachel Brathen

Ask Rachel: Repairing Relationships, Quieting the Inner Critic, and Returning to Love Welcome to another segment of Ask Rachel. On today’s episode, Rachel takes a wide variety of heartfelt and vulnerable questions from different listeners. She talks about how to repair relationships with your loved ones (and how important of a skill this is!), her inner critic and the negative thoughts that keep p...

As we know, life with a new baby often means the mother’s wellbeing gets left behind. So much of our lives are focused solely on our little one! But in this episode, Rachel shares a big revelation she has had over the past few weeks: all that matters is that you show up. The rest will follow. Right now, Rachel has found herself in a very good place when it comes to her self-care routine. She share...

Every single time you step outside there is so much medicine at your fingertips. In today’s episode, Rachel will introduce you to the world of herbalism. You will learn about different plants and how to live a life more connected to nature. The episode begins with Rachel’s origin story; from how she became interested in herbalism and her journey to deepen her knowledge. From there, a beautiful int...

In today’s episode, Rachel shares a heartfelt update on motherhood, which includes everything from sleep, to running a household, taking care of yourself, and being a working mom. After a really intense day alone with Finn, she finds herself coming to a big revelation: she needs help. It’s never easy to ask for or receive help. But maybe this craving deeply weaves into our longing for community. R...

Welcome to Ask Rachel, where you call in with your questions and Rachel answers from the heart. Today’s episode is a fun mix of questions from many different listeners. Rachel shares tips and advice on everything from home birth, to eating organically, and sharing your time as a parent of two. Then she gets personal, answering how Dennis and her discussed having kids and their future plans for the...

If you’re a human on this planet, you know just how important self-care is. That is especially true if you’re a mother. We give absolutely everything to our children: our bodies, our minds, our hearts and our souls. How can there be room left over for us at the end of it? In this episode, Rachel asks a pivotal question: does it truly take a village to raise a child? She shares a hard moment from m...

Today’s episode of From the Heart is a beautiful life update from Rachel to you. She talks about craving community, feeling pain and weakness in her body, and how she has been going through a challenging time with Finn throughout the past week. Having a newborn is hard!  But no matter how far you’ve been led astray, you can always find your way back. Rachel discusses the steps she has taken to ret...

If you are postpartum, or have just been in a rut lately when it comes to your physical health, today’s episode will inspire you to come back to movement - but not for the reason that you think. Rachel is back to her yoga practice after taking so many months off for pregnancy. She shares what her journey back to the mat has looked like; slow, steady, and with one clear motivation in mind.  The way...

Welcome back to From the Heart, where today we have a segment of Ask Rachel. In this episode, Rachel takes questions on ways to connect to our ancestral past, where to start when it comes to herbalism, and how to release the fears and anxieties we may feel about good things ending. It is a beautiful array of questions where no two relate, but all are just as important. Tune in for a deep and insig...

The first 40 days postpartum are thought to be the most sensitive and vulnerable (although of course, postpartum lasts much longer than this!). As Rachel has just passed the 40 day mark, she is here to share a step by step guide of her journey to replenish and heal herself after birth. If you are expecting (or plan to be soon), this episode will give you actionable advice on how to take care of yo...

Today’s episode is a hard one… so bring some tissues. This week, Rachel said goodbye to her first dog Quila, who died in her arms. Quila has been with Rachel since the very beginning. She was her very first dog. She moved from Costa Rica to Aruba and to Sweden as Rachel moved. Saying goodbye this suddenly is not easy. Rachel tells the story of Quila today, sharing how she adopted (stole) her, her...

In today’s episode, Rachel is speaking to you at almost four weeks postpartum. She shares what life has been like in the newborn bubble and how her physical recovery has went since birth. On top of that, you get to hear an update on the entire family: Finn’s sleeping patterns, Rachel’s worries about Lea as a mom of two, and how Dennis is handling the transition. Overall, it’s a big time for this l...

Just in case you didn’t know… Rachel had a baby! In this episode, she speaks with you at two weeks postpartum to tell you the entire story of free birthing Little Sun. From when she first realized she was in labor, to the mantra she used throughout, who was present, and how everything unfolded - you will hear it all. Rachel intimately shares her favorite moment with Lea, Ringo’s role in the birth,...

Welcome back to another segment of Ask Rachel. You’re listening to this episode right now because Rachel is currently on leave after giving birth! Today the topic of discussion is social media and how it affects our body image. Rachel shares some very personal stories: one about a magazine cover shoot she did postpartum that made her feel so much shame, and another about a hard moment when she fel...

Welcome to Ask Rachel, where you call in with your questions and Rachel answers from the heart. You’re listening to this episode right now because Rachel is currently on leave after giving birth! Speaking of birth, in this episode, Rachel answers a beautiful question from a listener about how she envisions her dream birth. Don’t get your hopes up - it’s not the birth story just yet! Rachel shares...

You’ve probably guessed it already, but Rachel is still pregnant. Maybe today’s episode is the last update of this journey - this could be the week. Rachel is now close to 42 weeks and she shares how she’s feeling spiritually and emotionally. She goes into detail about the signs of labor (although she’s felt nothing yet!), the connection she has to baby, a little update on the farm, and a bit abou...

Welcome to another episode of From the Heart where, yes, Rachel is still pregnant. She shares how she has felt the past week being “over due” and her overall mood, daily activities and sleeping pattern (even a funny story about Ringo that involves poop!). This has been a beautiful time for her family where they are all living on the cusp of very big change. Dennis has been showing up for Rachel in...

Rachel has officially reached her guess date! She is now 40 weeks pregnant, and her family and friends have many ideas about when this baby will come. In today’s episode, Rachel gives an update on the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual journey she is on right now. She shares a really cute prediction from her goddaughter, the aches and pains she has dealt with for months, how this pregnancy...

In today’s episode, Rachel is 39 weeks and learning an important lesson at this stage in her pregnancy: surrender. There is still construction happening at her house, her mind keeps tricking her into thinking she’s unprepared, and there is no telling when this baby will come. At this point, there is only one thing left to do: trust divine timing! We are ingrained to think we need a thousand things...

Today’s episode is a quite literal look into the brain of a 38 week pregnant woman, including the tornado of emotions that comes with it. Rachel shares her experience over the past week, from feeling anger, to contentment, to fear, to happiness and an entire spectrum of emotions within an hourly span (even getting mad at her husband over tuna salad!). As Rachel prepares for labor and tones down he...

Has there ever been a time in your life when you’ve been nothing but happy? You felt only gratitude and contentment and there were no feelings of shame or guilt holding you back? In today’s episode, Rachel talks about the overwhelming sense of contentment she is feeling at this point in her life. But it’s often a feeling that comes along with a lot of shame. Society tells us to push ourselves endl...

Welcome back to another segment of Ask Rachel, where Rachel listens to all questions weighing on your heart and offers her guidance and support. In this episode, she first gives an update on her pregnancy before diving into some heart-warming yet gut-wrenching questions. How long has she ever stayed in a meditative state? How does she curate great yoga playlists? And deeper - what triggers does sh...

For the first time ever, Rachel is sharing the real, factual, unfiltered version of her birth story with her daughter. She shares her experience and opinions of the medical system, the many interventions she didn’t want, and what led to the outcome she was deeply hoping not to have.  Overall this experience brought her to her life’s purpose: her daughter. But now that she has had six years to refl...

If your life has been all over the place lately, at least there is something you can blame it on: it’s eclipse week. Rachel begins this episode by sharing a bit of astrology and what we may experience over the next few days. This is a heightened time! Expect to feel scattered, conflicted, and the intense contrasts of life. This exact energy is playing out in Rachel’s life too. She shares the rolle...

When we have children, we are presented with the unique opportunity to give them everything we needed when we were growing up. It’s an opportunity to reparent ourselves; to heal our own inner child. In today’s episode, this notion has become so apparent in Rachel’s life as she teaches her daughter about the beauty of birth and the pain of death. While preparing for Lea’s little brother, their fami...