her Self: IFS & Spiritual Entrepreneurship

We’re continuing our IFS interview series this spring– where I’m sharing a handful of interviews with IFS trainers, helping us to better understand, and in turn heal, what can often be challenging parts of ourselves. This month, we’re going to gain a really eye-opening, empowering perspective on addictive processes. It’s a counter-cultural way of looking at things that are often very taboo. To hel...

Over the years, one of the most common struggles I support women with is their Inner Critics. These can be perfectionist parts of us, task masters, parts that tell us what horrible or bad people we are, or aspects of ourselves that control our speech and behavior– preventing us from taking risks or going after our dreams. In today's episode, I invite into the light of awareness the kind of relatio...

With the arrival of spring here in Colorado, I'm celebrating a series of new beginnings– both in my life and my work. In today's episode, I explore the journey I've been on over the past several years and how I've moved from periods of immense uncertainty and dissolution to the shores of greater clarity. Since we all move through these cycles of creation and dissolution, I share this to help you b...

On this Easter Sunday, and during this span of holy days across various traditions, I wanted to share an excerpt from a dharma talk I offered last year at this time in my online Internal Family Systems & feminine spirituality community, Women's House of Wisdom. In it, I speak to the metaphysical principles behind these holidays, and what they can teach us about true, spiritual surrender, what'...

Over the next few months, I'm offering a mini-series here on the podcast to help us delve more deeply into Internal Family Systems, or IFS, which as many of you know has become a core part of my work over the past couple of years (and a core part of my own healing journey for the past decade). If you’re not sure what IFS is, stay tuned. You’ll learn more about it in today’s conversation! Our parti...

Today I'm sharing an excerpt from a dharma talk I gave at this time two years ago in my online Internal Family Systems & feminine spirituality community, Women's House of Wisdom. It offers some reflections for all of us on this equinox, for, even if you're not in a place in the world where you're stepping into an actual spring, we all know what it's like to transition out of a metaphorical win...

Today we’re welcoming my long-time friend and colleague, Heidi Rose Robbins, back to the podcast for the second time.  Heidi has been a professional astrologer for 25 years, hosts two podcasts, leads Radiant Life Retreats, pens the hugely popular "Moon Notes" on Instagram, and has written a handful of books, including her newest one, Everyday Radiance, which was just published by Chronicle. I...

I wanted to record a conversation that I've been having privately with many women in my 1-1 IFS sessions over the past couple of years-- about dating (especially if we're in our late thirties and beyond). I'm sharing what my process was like being single for several years, starting in my late thirties: learning how to date, navigating the ups and downs of online dating, and the process of becoming...

What would it look and sound like for you to be more honest on the page– and in your life? How can writing help you to bypass your Inner Critic and access more of your essence? These are some of the questions Laurie Wagner teaches us how to answer through the practice of Wild Writing. In today's conversation, she not only talks us through how Wild Writing can help us to live more real, connected l...

Today I'm sharing an excerpt from a talk I gave last month in my IFS sangha, Women's House of Wisdom. In it, I share a mindset we can all take on at the start of a new year to help us get unstuck and gain momentum toward our dreams and intentions. This has helped me write books, move to new places, and even start this podcast! May it help you move closer to what you're wanting to this year, too. F...

Welcome to 2023! Over the past few years, it’s become an annual tradition to invite an astrologer to join us here in the month of January, to both look back at the previous year’s astrology and to look ahead to the new one. Today I’m inviting the psychological astrologer and author of the new book "Map to Your Soul", Jennifer Freed, Ph. D. We speak about her unique approach to astrology, as well a...

For the last episode of the year, I'm taking you behind the scenes of my 2022 year-end review. I share a key practice I do, as well as some revelations about what has passed and how I'll move forward in 2023. Throughout the month of December on my podcast, I'm doing a holiday giveaway, in partnership with Shambhala Publications. Enter to win one of two beautiful "Wild and Sacred Feminine" card dec...

As I support more and more women with Internal Family Systems (IFS), both in 1-1 and group work, one of the most common questions I get is: how do I stay connected with this work, and with my parts, in between our sessions? In response to this, one of the books I most often recommend to help do this is written by today’s guest. Michelle Glass is a Certified Level 3 IFS Practitioner and author of t...

In this dharma talk, an excerpt from one I gave the other week in my online IFS & Feminine Spirituality community, Women's House of Wisdom, I share the three essential things every woman needs in her life. Free healing guide: www.womensyogateachertraining.com/7obstacles Follow me on Instagram: www.instagram.com/saraavantstover Subscribe to my newsletter: www.saraavantstover.com/#newsletter

This month's guest, Daniel Foor, has been a companion on my healing journey over the past several years, through his teachings. His work on ancestral healing has been especially impactful for me, making him one of the teachers I most refer my own students to when they’re in need of excavating this layer in their own healing journeys. Daniel is a teacher and practitioner of practical animism who sp...

This is an excerpt from a dharma talk I gave during an online retreat called "Creating a Beautiful Life in Hard Times"(hosted by Shambhala Mountain Center in August 2021. In it, I share a few perspectives we can all try on to help us orient to our lives– when they're feeling unpredictable, or even if the things we're experiencing are unwanted. May this be of benefit! Sara's website: www.saraavants...

I’m happy to welcome our guest Toko-pa Turner– a woman whose presence and work I deeply admire. Blending the mystical tradition of Sufism in which she was raised with a Jungian approach to dreamwork, Toko-pa founded the Dream School in 2001 from which thousands of students have since graduated. She is the author of the award-winning book, Belonging: Remembering Ourselves Home, which explores the t...

Today I have two more wonderful women from our community to introduce you to: Cynthia and Jadi. Both women were part of last year's 200-hour online Women's Yoga & Meditation Teacher Training– and they're both in very different seasons of life, with very different levels of yoga and teaching experience. Women's Yoga & Meditation Teacher Training: wwww.womensyogateachertraining.com Sara's website: w...

Today I'm once again highlighting the voices of a couple of women in our community. Meet Ann and Paige, two women who participated in last year’s online 200-hour yoga alliance women’s yoga & meditation teacher training. You’ll hear from them why they decided to say “yes” to joining the training, specific aspects that they loved about it and that are sticking with them to support them in their live...

A colleague recommended Kaira Jewel Lingo's book to me earlier this year: We Were Made for These Times: Skillfully Moving through Change, Loss and Disruption, and I have been wanting to have her on the podcast for a while to explore her work with meditation, Buddhism & social justice. Kaira Jewel is a dharma teacher who spent 15 years as a monastic in Thich Nhat Hanh's Plum Village. Today we speak...

While I'm on vacation for these last few weeks of summer, rather than sharing my usual, monthly dharma talk here on the podcast, I'm sharing a conversation I had last summer with Sue Van Raes on her podcast, "Satiate." Sue is a functional nutritionist and founder of Boulder Nutrition and she invited me in for a conversation about my journey with women's yoga and meditation– and at large. Enjoy! Wo...

Today I'm welcoming Kimberly Ann Johnson & Stephen Jenkinson to speak about the new book they co-authored, Reckoning, which came out today. Our conversation about the times we're living in, and the culture that got us here, it's rich, nuanced, and, as Stephen says at the end, bottomless. May it spark new curiosity, insight, and reflection. Buy Reckoning: www.orphanwisdom.com Stephen's website: www...

Today I’m doing something I haven’t done before here on the podcast: inviting a couple of women from our community for a conversation. Today you’ll here from Kathleen Browning and Reise Eiseman-Sanchez Tanner. Both of these women are alumna from last year’s 200-hour women’s Yoga & Meditation Teacher Training, which was the first time I offered this program both online and in the 200-hour format. E...

Some of us have experienced it. Some of us are getting closer. For others, it still seems way out in the distance. Menopause. It's time for us all to have a deeper conversation about it. To guide us into this, I’ve invited Susan Willson, a Certified Nurse Midwife with 45 years of experience guiding all phases of women's health. Her new book Making Sense of Menopause: Harnessing the Power and Poten...

Today I'm sharing an excerpt of a dharma talk I gave on the final morning of my retreat at Shambhala Mountain Center this May. In it, I share practical ways to integrate these teachings and perspectives into your daily life– in ways that are both enjoyable and sustainable. May this be of benefit! Women's Yoga & Meditation Teacher Training: www.womensyogateachertraining.com Sara's website: www. Sar...