From the Heart with Rachel Brathen

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...

This is a very special episode of From the Heart! Today Rachel is joined by her best friend Olivia Rothschild (and baby Z). Olivia being six weeks postpartum after a birth that Rachel was present for, the two sit down for the first time to digest the experience that changed both of their lives. They talk all things home birth, parenting dynamics, the beautiful journey of pregnancy, and making choi...

Today’s episode is another segment of Ask Rachel, and this one has a little bit of everything. Rachel answers questions on everything from setting boundaries and how to navigate tumultuous relationships, to the words we speak about ourselves and how they shape our reality. If you want to hear about rituals to ground you during a stressful time, or how to set fitness goals that are actually benefic...

Without a doubt, grief and loss are some of the hardest things we will move through in this human experience. But at the same time, they are unavoidable. Is there any way to prepare our hearts for the immense pain that is to come? In today’s episode, Rachel is recording from The Netherlands where her family is moving through a world of grief right now. She tries to answer some almost unanswerable...

Spring is springing all around us! As nature moves through a season of rebirth, this is the perfect opportunity for us to shake off the dust from winter and do this work internally as well. Today’s episode is a practice for the Spring Equinox on March 20. Rachel shares the spiritual and energetic qualities of this time of year and how you can harness its power for your own rebirth. She shares sugg...

Our favourite guest, Dennis Schoneveld, is back on From the Heart today for the first time since baby number two has been on the way. A usual episode full of laughs, Rachel and Dennis discuss their lives in Sweden and on the farm, how Dennis is doing, and how his job search is going.  Of course, they get into some very important and much requested topics too, like Dennis’s transition away from veg...

The past few days for Rachel have been heavy and beautiful in the best and worst ways possible. She tells the story of saying goodbye to their dog, Laika, from how she navigated the days leading up to it and the conversation she had with her daughter around death. It was during these quiet days at home that her phone rang: her best friend was in labor (look out for a podcast episode with Olivia co...

The animal lovers out there will resonate with today’s episode… but it’s also a very sad one. Rachel and her family just received some incredibly hard news. Their dog, Laika, is in her final days.  Rachel shares how she will prepare her daughter for this heartache, and how Laika has showed up as a protector throughout Rachel’s pregnancy. It’s cruel and unfair that every hello with a four-legged so...

Let’s talk about food! In today’s episode, Rachel dives into the world of diet, nutrition, and nourishment, sharing all the details about her transition from veganism to a more animal focused diet. What is she eating now? What was the biggest challenge she faced? What benefits has she seen physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually? And just as importantly, how did her daughter and husband...

Have you ever had a big feeling, but strangely you didn’t think this feeling was entirely your own? Somehow it felt ancient and old? In today’s episode, Rachel shares a fascinating discussion on the concept of ancestral trauma and generational healing. This story today is told through Rachel’s lens: her family’s lineage of trauma, a cacao ceremony that helped her realize her purpose, and a rebirth...

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 answers two very important questions. How can we deal with negativity from family members or friends if they disagree with our pregnancy and birth plans? Why is it harder to stay anchored in our own truth when so many voices around us...

In today’s episode, Rachel is speaking to you with three days of alone time ahead of her. Dennis and Lea are away on a ski trip and Rachel has some big plans for herself too: self-care and more self-care! She shares how she’s been dealing with pain this pregnancy, and how it’s so important to take care your needs seriously and put yourself first. Only then are you able to model these behaviors for...

If you are struggling with feelings of unworthiness, or if your sense of self is intricately tied to success and accomplishment, this episode will remind you that you are lovable exactly as you are. There is nothing more you need to do. Rachel shares intimately today about some big fears and inner judgements she has been sitting with lately. She just accomplished a big dream - she moved to a farm...

In today’s episode, Rachel dives deeper into the journey of her pregnancy and shares what she is envisioning for the birth. Her decision has been met with resistance every step of the way - from doctors, from the media, and from a society that treats pregnancy as an illness. But this experience is a sacred and deeply personal one - it shouldn’t be a debate. There is room for everyone to feel auton...