Wisdom Without The Guru

Ashley Holmes, a holistic fertility coach whose work grew out of her own experience with grief, unexplained infertility, motherhood, yoga, Ayurveda, and nervous system healing, joins me this week. Ashley grew up on a farm in a small Canadian town. After the sudden death of her older brother, her family life changed dramatically, and she later left Canada for New Zealand in search of a fresh start. That time abroad deepened her love of children and eventually led her to meet her husband. Years...

Elizabeth Kipp returns for a focused conversation on her book The Way Through Chronic Pain: Tools to Reclaim Your Healing Power. In this special episode, Elizabeth explains why she chose to write the book after being told she would never heal from chronic pain—and how the writing process itself became part of her ongoing recovery. Rather than focusing on memoir, the book explores the lived inner experience of chronic pain, the neurological stress patterns that sustain it, and the practical to...

What happens when the environment that raises you is also the source of harm? In this episode I speak with Laverne Friesen, a former Canadian law enforcement officer who grew up in an ultra-conservative, closed religious community in rural Alberta. From early childhood, Laverne experienced violence, scapegoating, fear-based control, and profound betrayal — including sexual assault that was never properly addressed because the church insisted on “handling it internally.” Laverne eventually lef...

In this episode, I speak with Mylira Green, a licensed clinical social worker, therapist, Reiki master, and advocate who bridges faith-based traditions with trauma-informed healing. This is a layered interview about faith, trauma, and healing beyond rigid frameworks. Raised in a deeply religious household, Mylira shares how early childhood experiences—many of them unspoken, misunderstood, or silenced—shaped her relationship with love, safety, faith, and her own body. She reflects on growing u...

Childhood trauma and chronic illness can shape a life in ways that are rarely visible. In this episode, Antoinette Thompson shares how early sexual abuse, years of silence, and a diagnosis of ankylosing spondylitis led her into survival mode — and eventually toward a slow, honest process of healing. Antoinette reflects on growing up in a strict Catholic Maltese household in Australia, excelling in a corporate finance career before a workplace injury and chronic pain changed everything. Alongs...