Circle This

In this episode, Dre sits down with former LAPD officer Lyndon Barber for a conversation about policing, loneliness, vulnerability, nervous systems, and what happens when people trained to suppress emotion are finally given permission to speak honestly. They explore how council-based practices (think circle) are transforming law enforcement from the inside out. A 16-year veteran of the LAPD, including years in gang enforcement, Lyndon opens up about the hidden emotional toll of law enforcement, the "hero complex" inside police culture, surviving thyroid cancer in isolation, and the moment a council circle cracked something open in him. Lyndon now helps lead the POWER Program through Beyond Us & Them, bringing emotional regulation, mindfulness, and human connection into police units, prisons, and communities across the country. What started as a training he thought looked "cultish" became a practice that transformed the way he leads, listens, regulates stress, and relates to both his fellow officers and the communities he serves. Together, Dre and Lyndon explore: how circles dissolve labels and uniforms… why so many officers are silently struggling… how mindfulness can de-escalate violence in real time… and what becomes possible when people stop talking at each other and start listening human to human. Join Dre and Lyndon for an in person / CoEd Community Connection Circle at the Den Meditation Center in Los Angeles. Sunday June 14th, 9:45am. Sign up via link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/soulful-sundays-the-london-weho-los-angeles-community-connection-circle-tickets-1987745089070 Follow: @beyondusandthem Learn more: Beyond Us & Them -- Stay connected with the Circle This team: @andreabendewald @circlethispodcast @emkratter @goodmessmedia @talkwithtrace For sponsorship inquiries, email: circlethispod@gmail.com

We're back. And instead of rushing into "new year, new you" energy, Dre and Em open the season by honoring winter, integration, and the deep exhale that comes after a big creative year. With 55 episodes behind them (and a podcast ranked in the top 2% globally), they circle around what's sustaining them now: chosen family, learning to receive support, and expanding the places love is allowed to live. This episode is a love letter to the village—real village energy, not fantasy commune aesthetics. Dre and Em reflect on a recent desert celebration for their beloved mentor and friend Leigh Kilton Smith—a living example of community in action. Flash mobs, art-making, campfire circles, and collective participation become a case study in what happens when everyone gets to belong, be witnessed, and be held. They also dive into what love looks like in everyday life: the "small acts" that make someone feel deeply loved, the subtle ways people block care and celebration, and why letting others love you can be one of the most radical forms of self-love. Chosen family isn't built through networking. It's built through orientation. A state of mind. A way of being. And a choice. Wand Drops: "If you are willing to love yourself through your friends, it can heal the world." "Think like a circle: every part matters and we take care of the whole." -- Stay connected with the Circle This team: @andreabendewald @circlethispodcast @emkratter @goodmessmedia @talkwithtrace For sponsorship inquiries: circlethispod@gmail.com

Dre sits down with writer, teacher, and embodiment leader Natalie Kuhn, founder of Make the Sun and former Co-CEO of The Class. Natalie shares how her early experiences with conditional love shaped her sense of self, and how her current work in seminary and Al-Anon is revealing a different understanding of belonging and internal safety. They explore the pressures of spiritual overload, the tendency to turn healing into constant self-improvement, and the impact this has on the nervous system. Natalie breaks down how breath and sound support emotional release, why the body often holds the breath under stress, and what happens physiologically and energetically during breath work ceremonies. The conversation moves into the difference between loneliness and aloneness, the role of sound and voice for women who have been conditioned to stay quiet, and the relationship between energy, attention, and presence. Natalie also discusses the practice of listening beyond language and the effects of mirroring in group spaces, classrooms, and circles. Dre reflects on her own experience in one of Natalie's ceremonies and the lasting shifts it created, as well as the parallels she has found between Al-Anon, circling, and her own facilitation work. Follow: @thisisnatalie Learn more: https://youmakethesun.com/ Substack: https://youmakethesun.substack.com/ -- Stay connected with the Circle This team: @andreabendewald @circlethispodcast @emkratter @goodmessmedia @talkwithtrace For sponsorship inquiries: circlethispod@gmail.com

In this special episode, Dre sits down with her 16-year-old son, the one and only Strummer James Rouse, for a tender, funny, and surprisingly profound look into the emotional world, entrepreneurial drive, and connection language of Gen Z. Later, they're joined by Strummer's friend and collaborator, 19-year-old entrepreneur Jack Jiang, for an eye-opening second chapter on credibility, reputation, and the real cost of building a brand at a young age. Sitting together in Tribeca, Dre and Strummer talk about everything from change-of-scenery magic ("even the rain lights me up") to why his generation is struggling with loneliness, and how ego, emotional fear, and screen culture all play a role. For Strummer, texting has become a kind of safe frequency, a channel where vulnerability is easier, and where emotional truth feels less risky. Raised in circles and supported by a charter school that prioritized emotional intelligence over grades, Strummer shares the early trainings that shaped him: learning to listen, to sit in presence, to share from the heart. He reflects on Covid as a turning point, the blessing and complexity of screen-based connection, and how fashion, and the stories behind what we wear create belonging. Dre also takes us inside Strummer's entrepreneurial world: Selling his first shoe at nine. Landing his first job at thirteen by boldly walking in and saying, "What's it going to take for me to work here?" Understanding that people aren't just buying clothes, they're buying the story, the experience, the connection. Then Jack joins, sharp, vulnerable, and wise beyond his years. He talks about the pressure of growing up online, why reputation is everything, the art of paying attention to details, and how social credibility can make or break a business. He shares the story of opening his first appointment-only showroom at nineteen and explains the trend-based heartbeat of the fashion world. This episode is a window into Gen Z's emotional landscape, their honesty, their hustle, their heart, and a reminder that connection really is the currency that never loses value. Follow: @strummer.rouse @saturdayservicepodcast @legossssssssss -- Stay connected with the Circle This team: @andreabendewald @circlethispodcast @emkratter @goodmessmedia @talkwithtrace For sponsorship inquiries: circlethispod@gmail.com

In this episode, Dre sits down with influencer, speaker, and sober-living advocate Abby Calabrese to explore what happens when we stop numbing and start feeling. What began as a 100-day challenge for Abby became a life-changing journey back to her truest self. Together, she and Dre unpack how our culture glorifies alcohol as a social glue, how "performing vulnerability" has replaced true emotional honesty, and how radical self-truth can set us free. This episode invites listeners to look at their own attachments, whether to substances, screens, or stories and consider what might open up when we stop outsourcing our confidence and joy. Tune in for a connected conversation about reclaiming authenticity, presence, and your power from the inside out. Follow Abby: @alcoholfreeabby Learn More At: https://www.abbycalabrese.com/ -- Stay connected with the Circle This team: @andreabendewald @circlethispodcast @emkratter @goodmessmedia @talkwithtrace For sponsorship inquiries, email: circlethispod@gmail.com

In this episode, Dre welcomes actor, writer, director and all around creator, Alicia Coppola, a woman whose artistry and honesty are inseparable from her healing. They reflect on meeting and circling in countless audition rooms, and how they intuitively unsubscribed from the narrative of competition and scarcity. Alicia opens up about grief, loss, and how creating art has always been her way to understand and alchemize pain. She shares about her latest chapter: relocating her family to support her child's athletic dreams, giving away nearly everything she owned, and finding expansion in letting go. Together, Dre and Alicia explore what it means to parent with presence, how to let your children show you who they are and to truly listen. We learn about Transmission Moms, a movement born from Alicia's desire to help families and the medical community better understand and support children navigating gender identity. Her mission is simple: to make sure every child feels heard, seen, and safe enough to live their authentic truth. From The I'm Sorry Monologues to her work as a storyteller and advocate, Alicia reminds us that art is both medicine and message — a way to transform pain into purpose, and isolation into connection. Follow: @Alicia_Coppola -- Stay connected with the Circle This team: @andreabendewald @circlethispodcast @emkratter @goodmessmedia @talkwithtrace For sponsorship inquiries, email: circlethispod@gmail.com

In this powerful episode of The Healing Catalyst, Dr. Avanti Kumar Singh welcomes Dre, to explain the profound impact of women's circles on healing and connection, drawn from her two decades of facilitating these communal story-sharing experiences. Dre shares how this ancient practice is making a modern-day comeback, and why it's more essential than ever. The conversation explores the science behind communal experiences, such as the role of mirror neurons and the release of oxytocin, often called the "bonding hormone," which is released during emotionally safe, connected interactions. They describe how simply being in a circle can reduce stress and support emotional regulation, just through listening. Dre describes participating in her first women's circle as a "chemical shift," that ultimately inspired her to share the practice with others. Dre also explains how Circling differs from therapy, the guidelines and structure that make a circle feel safe and sacred, and how this kind of presence can function as a powerful form of re-parenting, offering the emotional attunement and validation many of us missed growing up. If you're curious about joining a circle, this episode is a powerful reminder that healing happens in community, and that listening itself can be medicine. The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Order Dr. Avanti's books: The Longevity Formula, The Health Catalyst Energy Fix Quiz: avantikumarsingh.com/quiz Explore more at avantikumarsingh.com -- Stay connected with the Circle This team: @andreabendewald @circlethispodcast @emkratter @goodmessmedia @talkwithtrace For sponsorship inquiries, email: circlethispod@gmail.com