Holistic Life Navigation

On today's podcast, Luis welcomes his friend Lindsay Christinee: environmental activist, entrepreneur, and author. After her father's passing, Lindsay began to deeply realize that, in western society, we aren't taught how to grieve. Lindsay shares about her cathartic experience of reading and writing about death and grieving. They discuss: how her passion - writing - helped her tran...

On today's episode Luis is joined by writer and speaker Eldra Jackson III. Luis had seen Eldra in The Work , and was deeply moved by the documentary. At the time of filming, Eldra was serving a life-sentence in prison; he is now the co-executive director of Inside Circle, the non-profit who hosts the men's groups shown in the documentary. As a survivor of childhood trauma, Eldra had deve...

On today's episode Luis speaks with Britt Piper, sexual violence survivor and educator. Britt shares about how she was sexually assaulted in college by a “good samaritan” who offered to help her with a flat tire. The event left her traumatized, and the emotional exhaustion of the trial, and repetitively rescheduled hearings, were re-traumatizing. She had expected to feel better after he was j...

On today’s episode, Luis is joined by Blake Lemoine, software engineer and AI researcher, to discuss artificial intelligence and our relationship with it. Topics of their conversation include: · defining AI, and how the definition changes based on perspective · what "intelligence" is, and the meaning and history of the word · reasoning, kinds of intelligence, sentience, and animism · eth...

Today’s bonus episode is a recording of the most recent Somatic Drop-In. Luis takes us through a variety of topics and practices as he invites us to drop in, play with the philosophy and techniques of somatic work, and see what we learn. These Somatic Drop-Ins are bi-monthly, public, pay-what-you-want offerings.  You can get instant access to all of the HLN webinars and video courses here: https:/...

On today's episode, Karen Hurd joins Luis to discuss epigenetics:  the study of how our behaviors and environment can cause changes that affect the way our genes work. They parse apart the difference between DNA and genetic makeup, and the way the DNA translates, due to the foods we eat and the habits we practice. Karen highlights how sugar, caffeine, and perfumes and fragrances are so ubiqui...

On today's episode, Karen Hurd joins Luis to discuss the top three reasons (from a biochemistry perspective), why we get depressed, activated, and dysregulated during the holiday season. They are: 1) chemical & natural fragrances 2) refined carbohydrates 3) sugars They parse each apart, and dive deeply into the way that the body responds to these highly concentrated substances. Karen even...

On today's episode, the HLN Team discusses victim identity through the lens of somatics, and riff off an Instagram post Luis posted earlier in the year on the topic. They discuss: · living from the expectation of threat · the internal biology of oppression · the constriction that can come from over-identifying · overcouplings and how we carry the stories in our bodies · parts work, and how it...

This is a bonus episode which features an interview with Luis and Jaguar Mary X.  They had Luis on their program called Midday Medicine Journey. It's a live, public radio out of Kingston, NY. You can find the entire episode here . For more information about Jaguar Mary X, visit: https://www.kaliartproject.com/ You can get instant access to all of the HLN webinars and video courses here: https...

(Today's episode is a replay of a previously released episode.) We welcome back friends of HLN, James-Olivia and Nisha Mody! Nisha, James-Olivia, and Luis have a beautiful, existential conversation about a word that is all too easily thrown around -- manifesting.   They first explore what it means to decolonize manifestation, i.e. to go from being in domination of to relationship with, and th...

Inspired by his lost love of online message boards, Luis put out a call for Tori Amos fans to come together and discuss how her music has impacted their lives. They agree that the magic of Tori comes from both her as a person and her music: · the music that navigates both ends of the spectrum, from anger and angst to beauty and dreamlike reverie, all within one song · the lyrics that are both emot...

Today's episode is a replay of the "Staying Embodied Through Global Crisis" event that Luis co-hosted with Camille Leak and Daniel Maté. They discuss: hows somatic practices can help us navigate unpleasant and activating sensations that arise during global crisis the difference between offering support, and the ability to control a situation attuning to the present the impacts of so...

On today's episode, Luis is joined by HLN co-teacher Camille Leak, and Rebecca Dollard and Janell Flores Bolte, graduates of the most recent Embodied Practitioner slow groups, to share their experiences in the container.  They discuss: what's been internalized by the idea of the "right" way to run a business working with capacity vs. desire within a business the wisdom of slown...

On today's episode, Luis is joined by Zach and Steven, his co-facilitators, and graduates of the most recent Embodied Masculinity slow group, to share about their experiences around masculinity, sexuality, emotions, social conditioning and more. They discuss: talking about puberty with other men, through a somatic lens the loneliness of puberty regaining the ability to be with other men in an...

On today's episode Luis talks about navigating gender dysphoria without an urgency model. He speaks directly from his experience of gender dysphoria as an intersex person. Some of the topics he discusses are: how gender dysphoria doesn’t always go away, but we can change our relationship with it how gender dysphoria is a spiritual experience tending to the rupture of how the mind sees and tre...

On today's episode, Luis speaks with Buck Angel: human rights activist, speaker, and innovator. Buck shares his story of growing up biologically female, the ensuing internalized body dysmorphia, and the external transphobia and homophobia.  He talks about the wisdom of suffering, and how he was able to use pleasure as a doorway to healing. Buck's unique life experience taught him how to...

On today's episode, Luis discusses the many forms body shame can take, and how prevalent it is. Luis shares about his own experience, as well as highlighting recurring themes of body shame that he witnessed while working in private practice. Some of the topics include: the noticing of differences between bodies vs judgement  the relationship between your conscious mind and your spirit how we...

On today's episode, Luis is joined by Kat Kruse, a somatic coach, writer, and practicer of Embodied Thinking. Their conversation began when Luis had said that “our thoughts [are] the most impersonal and unoriginal things,” during a Holistic Life Navigation meeting, and Kat immediately disagreed. Kat shares how conceptualizing the mind as an alienating, mean thinking machine is part of the pro...

Today's podcast episode is a replay from the “Trauma Rewired” podcast. Hosts Jennifer and Elisabeth discuss the following topics with Luis: Fawn response from a neurosomatic perspective Shame as a protective mechanism and how to reframe it  How to become self-aware of your fawning Differentiating between sexual fawning and arousal Finding compassion during healing You can listen to more episo...

On today’s episode, the HLN team talks privilege, and brings nuance to the complex topic. The discuss: privilege vs. privileges the assumptions behind privilege and marginalization bringing curiosity to the experience orienting to ourselves first how context impacts marginalization, and how it can be fluid how shame and guilt are unhelpful to everyone how performative allyship is a form of fawning...

On today's episode, Luis is joined by musician, producer, and sound healing practitioner Evan Glenn Adams. They discuss Evan's solo music project Heavybird (@heavybirdmusic), and his newest album, "a lit candle in an empty room." The album was written during the pandemic as a way to understand and process his personal experience, with the hope of it connecting with other's...

On today's episode, Luis and Karen discuss how perfume and other chemical fragrances effect our bodies. Since they can be inhaled or absorbed through the skin, many of us are constantly bathed in them: either in our home, our workplace, or out in the world. In this episode, we cover the ways that the body reacts. Perfumes and other synthetic fragrances: Stimulate a physiological hormonal resp...

On today's episode, Luis follows up with Camille about her experience with Khadija in the NICU and how her body was, and is, responding. Camille shows us firsthand what it looks like to use somatic embodiment practices to prevent serious overwhelm and potential traumatization. They discuss the following practices and topics: · choosing what to attune to vs. bypassing and toxic positivity  · o...

On today’s episode, Luis discusses an often-requested topic: navigating panic attacks.  Luis shares his personal experience with panic attacks, starting at the age of sixteen, that lead to multiple hospitalizations, and tests that yielded no clear results. By learning a somatic approach, Luis has been able to prevent them before they happen, through understanding that panic attacks are an electric...

This is a bonus episode which features an interview with Luis and Jaguar Mary X.  They had Luis on their program called Midday Medicine Journey. It's a live, public radio out of Kingston, NY. You can find the entire episode here . For more information about Jaguar Mary X, visit: https://www.kaliartproject.com/ You can get instant access to all of the HLN webinars and video courses here: https...