Relish with Alyssia Sheikh

Perfectionism isn’t the problem—the belief that you’re broken is. In this episode, Alyssia offers a simple but radical reframe: wholeness isn’t something you earn. It’s something you remember. A grounding reminder for anyone stuck in self-improvement mode. Show Notes: Episode 46 Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagram (@relishpodcast) YouTube Website & Newsletter TikTok Email me: alyssia@alyssias...

What happens when you reach the pinnacle of success — and still don’t feel enough? In this intimate conversation, Olympic medalist Caroline Burckle joins Alyssia Sheikh to explore identity, shame, and the exhausting hamster wheel of achievement. Together, they unpack performance-based self-worth, the fear of being misunderstood, and what it truly means to love yourself beyond what you accomplish....

I’m a guest on the Hoffman Podcast this week and would love for you to check it out. Click here to listen! Do you explain your feelings instead of actually feeling them? In this episode, Alyssia explores rationalizing as a common coping strategy—and why understanding emotions doesn’t help them move through the body. A gentle reframe for anyone who lives in their head. Show Notes: Episode 44 Instag...

→ Download the Courageous Conversations Container Workbook Hard conversations aren’t hard because we don’t have the right words—they’re hard because they activate our nervous systems. In this episode, Alyssia shares a mindful, compassionate framework for repair that helps you speak honestly, take responsibility for your reactions, and stay connected to what actually matters. Show Notes: Episode 43...

Ever wanted to do something but simply didn’t have the capacity? In this episode, Alyssia explains Spoon Theory—a powerful metaphor for understanding limited, variable energy—and how it can help reduce shame, support boundaries, and build self-compassion. Show Notes: Episode 42 Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagram (@relishpodcast) YouTube Website & Newsletter TikTok Email me: alyssia@alyssiash...

Fear can feel urgent and overwhelming—but that doesn’t always mean you’re in danger. In this episode, Alyssia explains the difference between fear and real threat, how your nervous system confuses the two, and a simple embodied way to come back to presence when fear takes over. Show Notes: Episode 41 Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagram (@relishpodcast) YouTube Website & Newsletter TikTok Emai...

This guided mindfulness meditation helps you rewire your self-talk in real time. Using the breath as an anchor, you’ll practice noticing the tone you use with yourself when your mind wanders—and gently shifting from harshness to kindness. A simple, powerful practice to soften the inner critic and build self-trust. Show Notes: Episode 40b Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagram (@relishpodcast) YouTub...

→ Try the Rewire Your Self-Talk Meditation – Dessert! The way you talk to yourself isn’t just reflecting your mood—it’s shaping your nervous system, your attention, and your capacity to stay present when life gets hard. In this episode, Alyssia explores how language reinforces shame or creates space for relief, and shares practical shifts (plus a companion Dessert meditation) to soften your inner...

That famous line — “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?” — is often read as a call to achieve more. In this episode, Alyssia rereads Mary Oliver’s Summer Day and offers a different interpretation: not a demand to do more, but an invitation to be here. Show Notes: Episode 39 Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagram (@relishpodcast) YouTube Website & Newsletter T...

→ Download the free somatic checklist for intuition vs. anxiety Have you ever thought you were following your intuition—only to realize later it was actually anxiety? In this episode, Alyssia breaks down the difference between intuition and fear, and shares a simple, embodied way to tell which voice you’re listening to so you can build real self-trust. Show Notes: Episode 38 Instagram (@alyssiashe...

→ Sign up to work with me in my new program! → Try the Shame Processing & Reflection Visualization In the final episode of the Shame Series, Alyssia explores Reclamation: what shame is often protecting, what lies beneath it, and how healing isn’t about fixing yourself — but coming home to truth, wholeness, and authenticity. Show Notes: Episode 37 Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagram (@relishpo...

→ Try the Shame Processing & Reflection Visualization Why does shame feel so personal — like it is you, not something you’re experiencing? In Part 2 of the Shame Series, Alyssia explores how shame fuses with identity, the role of ego and self-concept, and how mindfulness creates space without bypassing pain. Show Notes: Episode 36 Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagram (@relishpodcast) YouTube W...

Shame doesn’t feel like an emotion — it feels like the truth about who you are. In Part 1 of this three-part series, Alyssia explores how shame forms, why it feels so convincing in the body and brain, and how to begin recognizing it without turning it into another self-fixing project. Show Notes: Episode 35 Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagram (@relishpodcast) YouTube Website & Newsletter TikT...

→ If you enjoy Relish, we appreciate you helping us out by taking 1 minute to vote for us for the Taste Awards ! This guided contemplative practice invites you to gently reflect on mortality—not to create fear, but to clarify what matters most. Through breath, sensation, and guided reflection, this practice helps you reconnect with presence, meaning, and appreciation for life. Best practiced when...

→ Try the Death Contemplation Meditation – Dessert! → If you enjoy Relish, we appreciate you helping us out by taking 1 minute to vote for us for the  Taste Awards ! Most of us avoid thinking about death—but remembering that our time is limited may be one of the most powerful ways to feel more alive. In this episode, Alyssia explores how contemplating death can deepen presence, clarify what matter...

Ever notice how easy it is to connect by complaining, gossiping, or focusing on what’s wrong? In this episode, Alyssia explores why bonding through negativity feels so satisfying, how the nervous system uses it as a shortcut to safety, and the hidden cost it has on trust, energy, and intimacy. Learn how to shift from “common enemy intimacy” to deeper, more authentic connection. Watch the video of...

What if the biggest thing holding you back isn’t your effort or circumstances—but a quiet belief about who you are? In this reflective Quick Bite, Alyssia shares the parable of the eagle who believed it was a chicken and explores how conditioning shapes identity, limits possibility, and keeps us grounded when we were meant to soar. Watch the video of this episode: https://youtu.be/IV7MO0Eq0TE Show...

Manifestation isn’t magic—and it’s not about visualizing a future you don’t believe is possible. In this episode, Alyssia reframes manifestation as a practice of presence, identity, and nervous-system safety. Learn how subconscious beliefs shape action, why future-focused manifestation keeps people stuck in scarcity, and how grounded, embodied presence actually creates change. Show Notes: Episode...

This gentle guided meditation supports you in releasing the grip of control and softening into presence. Through breath, body awareness, and grounding imagery, you’ll explore what surrender feels like—not as giving up, but as being supported. A calming practice to return to trust, ease, and safety in the moment. Show Notes: Episode 30 Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagram (@relishpodcast) YouTube W...

→ Don’t forget to try the Releasing Control meditation – Dessert! Surrender is often misunderstood as giving up—but real surrender is an active, powerful choice. In this Quick Bite, Alyssia reframes surrender as releasing resistance, loosening control, and partnering with life’s unfolding. Learn the difference between surrender and submission, why control blocks joy, and how openness creates freed...

→ Download the free packet of Emotions & Needs Lists Most people think boundaries are something you say or enforce—but they actually begin much earlier. In this episode, Alyssia breaks down the simple domino effect behind boundaries: emotions → needs → boundaries. Learn how emotional literacy makes boundaries clearer, easier to set, and easier to hold—without guilt, burnout, or self-abandonmen...

Many people come to personal growth looking for a map—clear steps, rules, or a proven path. But what if there is no map? In this reflective Quick Bite, Alyssia explores what it means to be a truth seeker, why following someone else’s path keeps us stuck, and how learning to trust your inner compass leads to real freedom, alignment, and joy. Show Notes: Episode 28 Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagr...

This guided dessert meditation introduces the R.A.I.S.E. Method—a gentle, embodied mindfulness practice to support moments of self-judgment, shame, or inner criticism. Through awareness, curiosity, and softness, you’ll learn how to stop the “second arrow” and meet yourself with compassion instead of control. Show Notes: RAISE Dessert Practice Instagram (@alyssiasheikh) Instagram (@relishpodcast) Y...

→ Don’t forget to try the RAISE meditation – Dessert! If you’ve ever thought “What’s wrong with me?”, this episode is for you. Alyssia explores how self-judgment is not a flaw—but a protective brain response that quietly hijacks your nervous system. Learn how judgment fuels shame, why it makes change harder, and how mindfulness helps you stop firing the “second arrow.” Includes a practical framewo...

If your resolutions fall apart by February, it’s not a discipline problem—it’s neuroscience. In this episode, Alyssia breaks down why resolutions fail, how to shift from expectations to aspirations, and how to set goals your nervous system can actually sustain. Includes her HUMAN Method, research-backed insights, and a free 2026 goal-setting workbook. → Download the Free Goal Setting Workbook Show...