The Conscious Action Podcast by Brian Berneman

Do you ever leave a conversation wishing you’d said the real thing? You meant to say it, and then didn’t. Many of us text all day and still feel strangely alone.In this episode I talk with Guy Sengstock, co-founder of circling and co-owner of the Circling Institute. Circling is a relational practice. Guy calls it a dojo for connection, the way meditation is a dojo for awareness.Guy shares a simple but confronting idea. Technology has made it possible to communicate without communing. Real connection has become optional, and we tend to take the path of least resistance.The Industrial Revolution made exercise something we had to choose on purpose. Guy believes connection now needs the same kind of conscious practice.We explore:How we become people in and through other peopleWhy intimacy can’t happen without some riskWhat it means to be “safe enough to feel unsafe”Why real listening starts with noticing you are not listeningWhy your intention to connect matters more than perfect techniqueWhere to start: the relationships you already haveWhat did you hear that resonated? Is there one relationship where you’d like to try something different this week? I’d love to hear from you.For more about Guy: Free webinar, The 7 Stages of Circling®: https://circlinginstitute.com/7-stages-of-circling/Self-study programs: https://circlinginstitute.com/self-study-programs/Live programs and events: https://circlinginstitute.com/programs/One-on-one coaching and consulting with me: [email protected] the showSupport the show_________Ready to embark on your journey to wellbeing and conscious living? ✨ Transform your life🟡 Experience transformative events💥 Explore holistic therapies for healing & mindful living🙋‍♀️ Book Brian as a speaker to inspire your audience🟠 Support your employees' physical & mental wellbeingConnect with Brian:Website | https://www.brianberneman.com/Instagram | @brianberneman LinkedIn | @brianbernemanFacebook | @brianberneman

In her mid-twenties, Shelley Gawith was a high-achieving accountant at an investment bank in Sydney. She thought she was healthy. She drank plenty of water, exercised hard and didn’t work weekends. Then her body collapsed. After a thyroid diagnosis, a severe bout of influenza and months of living in a mouldy apartment, she lost her cognitive function and was told nothing more could be done.Her recovery started with something simple: bone broth and fermented foods. From there, she began studying natural health and slowly rebuilt her body. More than a decade later, she’s a practitioner helping people around the world.In this conversation, we explore:Why mould can stay in your body long after you’ve left a damp house, flat or leaky buildingWhere heavy metals come from today, beyond amalgam fillings (think spices, soil and water)How common parasites are, how we pick them up, and the symptoms many people overlookWhy “normal” blood work isn’t the same as optimal healthHow emotional and physical health affect each otherWhy regular, simple maintenance matters more than one big overhaulShelley’s core message is that it’s never too late, and that small, consistent steps are where lasting health begins.For more about Shelley find her on Instagram and shelleygawith.com.I’d love to hear what stayed with you from this episode. Share your thoughts wherever you’re listening.Support the showSupport the show_________Ready to embark on your journey to wellbeing and conscious living? ✨ Transform your life🟡 Experience transformative events💥 Explore holistic therapies for healing & mindful living🙋‍♀️ Book Brian as a speaker to inspire your audience🟠 Support your employees' physical & mental wellbeingConnect with Brian:Website | https://www.brianberneman.com/Instagram | @brianberneman LinkedIn | @brianbernemanFacebook | @brianberneman

Have you ever changed and felt the people closest to you pull back?Growth changes our relationships. And often the people who love us are grieving the person we used to be.In this episode, I'm joined by Serena Arora, author of Unbound and founder of a wellness retreat centre on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. Serena shares her 50-year path. She grew up with yoga and Ayurveda in a mixed Indian and Chinese immigrant family in Calgary. She let those practices go to fit in. Then she burnt out as a teacher, and burnt out again teaching wellness. Slowly, she found her way back home to herself.We talk about how fear can travel through a family line. For Serena, it started with her great-grandmother's bound feet in China. We explore how choosing a different path can be a way of honouring our ancestors, not rejecting them.Serena also shares a simple Ayurvedic practice for everyday life. Ask two questions about everything you take in, from food to relationships to the news: What am I ingesting? Does it nourish me or deplete me?In this episode:Why real change never happens overnightHow "immigrant grit" became a bulldozer, and what replaced itChanging your relationship with discomfortWhy loved ones may grieve the person you used to beCaring for ageing parents, and parenting yourself firstAyurveda as moment-to-moment awarenessPrajnaparadha, the "crimes against wisdom" we commit when we know betterListening to the wisdom of the bodyThe story behind Unbound and healing the maternal lineHonouring the past without carrying itFor more about Serena find her on: https://serenaarora.comWhat resonated with you? I'd love to hear. Share your thoughts wherever you're listening.Support the showSupport the show_________Ready to embark on your journey to wellbeing and conscious living? ✨ Transform your life🟡 Experience transformative events💥 Explore holistic therapies for healing & mindful living🙋‍♀️ Book Brian as a speaker to inspire your audience🟠 Support your employees' physical & mental wellbeingConnect with Brian:Website | https://www.brianberneman.com/Instagram | @brianberneman LinkedIn | @brianbernemanFacebook | @brianberneman

What if the diagnosis you were given isn't the end of the story? ZuZu Armes reversed her own epilepsy in three months and healed her scoliosis in eighteen, and she's spent the last 24 years helping others do the same.In this conversation, ZuZu and Brian Berneman talk about what your body already knows how to do, why organic food is often cheaper than it looks, and the simple, physical shifts that move you out of stress and back into a state where healing is possible. We also get into why your thoughts and expectations shape more of your reality than you might think, and how reclaiming that power starts with small, daily choices.This one is for anyone who's been told to just live with something. There's more available to you than that.Support the showSupport the show_________Ready to embark on your journey to wellbeing and conscious living? ✨ Transform your life🟡 Experience transformative events💥 Explore holistic therapies for healing & mindful living🙋‍♀️ Book Brian as a speaker to inspire your audience🟠 Support your employees' physical & mental wellbeingConnect with Brian:Website | https://www.brianberneman.com/Instagram | @brianberneman LinkedIn | @brianbernemanFacebook | @brianberneman

What happens when a scientist begins to explore the mysteries of consciousness?In this fascinating conversation, Brian Berneman sits down with Crystal Cassidy, founder of SoulPod, whose journey bridges two worlds that are often seen as separate: science and spirituality.With a background in biochemistry, cancer research and genomic diagnostics, Crystal spent years working at the forefront of biotechnology. At the same time, a lifelong meditation practice led her into profound experiences of consciousness, including a Kundalini awakening, a near-death experience and eventually channeling the Blue Collective, an intelligence she describes as a group of multidimensional beings supporting humanity's evolution. Together, Brian and Crystal explore the nature of awakening, the difference between intellectual understanding and direct knowing, the role of community in spiritual growth, and why cultivating our inner awareness may be one of the most important skills for navigating the rapid changes taking place in the world today. They also discuss channeling, multidimensional consciousness, the power of meditation and the creation of SoulPod, a platform designed to support people on their unique journey of awakening.   Whether you are deeply immersed in spiritual exploration or simply curious about the intersection of science, consciousness and human potential, this episode offers a thought-provoking invitation to expand the way you see yourself and reality.In this episode we explore: Crystal's transition from biotech and cancer research to spiritual teaching  Kundalini awakening and the experience of oneness  The difference between belief, understanding and direct knowing  Near-death experiences and personal transformation  Channeling the Blue Collective  Multidimensional consciousness and human potential  The importance of community on the awakening journey  Why there is no single path to growth or enlightenment  SoulPod and creating structures for awakening  Navigating rapid change with greater awareness and trustFor more about Crystal find her on Instagram and https://www.soulpodapp.com/.Support the showSupport the show_________Ready to embark on your journey to wellbeing and conscious living? ✨ Transform your life🟡 Experience transformative events💥 Explore holistic therapies for healing & mindful living🙋‍♀️ Book Brian as a speaker to inspire your audience🟠 Support your employees' physical & mental wellbeingConnect with Brian:Website | https://www.brianberneman.com/Instagram | @brianberneman LinkedIn | @brianbernemanFacebook | @brianberneman

Addiction affects far more than the individual - it impacts families, relationships and entire communities. Yet many families are still told that their only option is "tough love," waiting for a loved one to hit rock bottom before change can happen.In this insightful conversation, Brian Berneman is joined by addiction therapist and educator Amber Hollingsworth, creator of the popular YouTube channel 'Put the Shovel Down'. Drawing on more than 20 years of experience, Amber shares why traditional approaches often fail and how families can become powerful catalysts for change without judgment, confrontation or force.Together, they explore the difference between "pushing" and "pulling," how to help someone find their own motivation for change and why compassion is often more effective than criticism. They also discuss generational patterns of addiction, family dynamics, identity, healing and the ripple effect that occurs when one person begins to transform.Whether you are supporting a loved one through addiction, navigating challenging family dynamics or simply interested in human behaviour and personal growth, this episode offers practical wisdom and a hopeful perspective on recovery and change.In this episode, you'll learn:• Why "tough love" often creates more resistance than recovery• The powerful "Pull, Don't Push" approach to helping loved ones change• How to reduce defensiveness and create space for honest conversations• Why reinforcing a person's strengths can be more effective than criticism• The role of family systems and generational patterns in addiction• How healing one person can positively impact an entire community• Why addiction is far more solvable than most people believeA compassionate and empowering conversation about recovery, connection and the human capacity for change.To learn more about Amber find her on Facebook, Youtube and https://www.familyrecoveryacademy.online/.Support the showSupport the show_________Ready to embark on your journey to wellbeing and conscious living? ✨ Transform your life🟡 Experience transformative events💥 Explore holistic therapies for healing & mindful living🙋‍♀️ Book Brian as a speaker to inspire your audience🟠 Support your employees' physical & mental wellbeingConnect with Brian:Website | https://www.brianberneman.com/Instagram | @brianberneman LinkedIn | @brianbernemanFacebook | @brianberneman

In this powerful episode of The Conscious Action Podcast, Brian Berneman sits down with parenting alchemist, speaker and author Jacqlin Richards for a deeply honest conversation about parenting, trauma, healing and the journey from survival to self-awareness.Drawing from her own life experiences (including adoption, childhood trauma, addiction, postnatal depression and profound personal transformation) Jacqlin shares how her greatest wounds became the foundation of her life's work supporting parents and families.Together, Brian and Jacqlin explore why so much parenting advice fails, the difference between knowledge and capacity, how unresolved childhood experiences shape our relationships and why perfection is one of the greatest obstacles to authentic parenting.They discuss the importance of nervous system regulation, repairing after mistakes, honest communication with children and how parents can break generational cycles by reconnecting with their own intuition and humanity.Whether you are a parent, planning to become one, healing your relationship with your own parents or simply interested in personal growth and conscious living, this conversation offers valuable insights into how we can transform pain into wisdom and create healthier relationships with ourselves and others.In this episode, you'll discover:• How childhood wounds continue to shape adult behaviour and relationships• The difference between parenting knowledge and parenting capacity• Why perfection is hurting parents and children alike• The power of repair, authentic apologies and honest communication• How to break generational patterns and heal family dynamics• Why nervous system regulation matters more than parenting strategies• The role of intuition in conscious parenting• How self-awareness can transform the way we relate to ourselves and others• Practical ways to build resilience, connection and trust within familiesJacqlin also shares insights from her new book, F*ck Up Your Kids with Grace and Humour, a refreshing and compassionate invitation for parents to let go of perfection, embrace their humanity and parent from a place of connection rather than fear.For more about Jacqlin find her on Instagram and Facebook.If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and share it with someone who may benefit from this conversation.#ConsciousActionPodcast #Parenting #TraumaHealing #PersonalGrowth #ConsciousParentingSupport the showSupport the show_________Ready to embark on your journey to wellbeing and conscious living? ✨ Transform your life🟡 Experience transformative events💥 Explore holistic therapies for healing & mindful living🙋‍♀️ Book Brian as a speaker to inspire your audience🟠 Support your employees' physical & mental wellbeingConnect with Brian:Website | https://www.brianberneman.com/Instagram | @brianberneman LinkedIn | @brianbernemanFacebook | @brianberneman

Brian Berneman is joined by Allura Halliwell to share the spontaneous, non-drug-induced experience that changed everything: an out-of-body merging with source that left her unable to recognize herself, her preferences or her old life. From that disorienting awakening, Allura developed the Consciousness Method, a framework for bridging deep spiritual realization with the practical reality of being human.Together, Brian and Allura explore the "interface," the space between our inner awareness and our outer life, and how unconscious patterns keep us looping in old wounds. Allura introduces the three core wounds she sees underlying almost all human suffering: feeling unloved, unworthy and unknown. Rather than avoiding the pain these wounds create, she shares why she sees pain itself as a portal back to wholeness and how meeting it directly (rather than the suffering that comes from avoiding it) builds a felt sense of internal safety that ripples out into how we experience the world.This conversation moves through awakening, integration and the shift from feeling like a victim of reality to becoming its conscious co-creator. It's a rich, honest look at what it actually takes to live an awakened life, not just have one.In this episode:Allura's spontaneous out-of-body experience and its disorienting aftermathWhat the Consciousness Method is and how it worksThe three core wounds: unloved, unworthy, unknownWhy pain (not suffering) can be a doorway to healingMoving from victimhood to conscious co-creationFor more about Allura, find her on Instagram, https://allurahalliwell.com/ and join her in person retreat in Auckland on https://auckland.sovereignstateofbeingretreats.com/Support the showSupport the show_________Ready to embark on your journey to wellbeing and conscious living? ✨ Transform your life🟡 Experience transformative events💥 Explore holistic therapies for healing & mindful living🙋‍♀️ Book Brian as a speaker to inspire your audience🟠 Support your employees' physical & mental wellbeingConnect with Brian:Website | https://www.brianberneman.com/Instagram | @brianberneman LinkedIn | @brianbernemanFacebook | @brianberneman

What if fertility isn't just about hormones or reproductive health, but a reflection of your entire life?In this insightful conversation, Brian Berneman is joined by fertility coach Sonia Ribas, founder of The Fertility Solution, to explore a truly holistic approach to fertility and conception. Drawing on over 16 years of experience and having supported women bringing more than 700 babies into the world, Sonia shares why fertility is what she calls a "luxury function", something the body prioritizes only when it feels safe, nourished and supported.Together, Brian and Sonia discuss the powerful connection between stress, the nervous system, emotional wellbeing, nutrition and fertility. They explore how chronic fight-or-flight states can impact conception, why feeling safe is essential for the body to move from survival into creation and how personalized, sustainable lifestyle changes can transform fertility outcomes.Sonia also shares her practical "Detox, Nourish, Flow" framework, simple nervous system regulation techniques, nutritional guidance and the importance of addressing limiting beliefs, emotional patterns and the deeper stories we carry. The conversation touches on secondary infertility, the pressures many parents face and how fertility can become a doorway to greater health, balance and self-understanding.Whether you're trying to conceive, supporting someone on their fertility journey, or simply interested in the connection between mind, body and wellbeing, this episode offers valuable insights and practical tools for creating the conditions for life to flourish.In this episode, you'll discover:• Why fertility is a "luxury function" and what that means for your body• The impact of chronic stress and nervous system dysregulation on conception• How the body prioritizes survival before reproduction• Sonia's holistic "Detox, Nourish, Flow" framework• Simple practices to help your body feel safe and supported• The role of nutrition, inflammation, sleep and emotional wellbeing in fertility• How limiting beliefs and emotional patterns can influence your fertility journey• Why sustainable lifestyle changes matter more than perfection• Understanding secondary infertility through a holistic lensTo learn more about Sonia Ribas find her on Instagram and thefertilitysolution.comIf this conversation resonates with you, please share it with someone who may benefit from it and leave a review to help more people discover the podcast.Support the showSupport the show_________Ready to embark on your journey to wellbeing and conscious living? ✨ Transform your life🟡 Experience transformative events💥 Explore holistic therapies for healing & mindful living🙋‍♀️ Book Brian as a speaker to inspire your audience🟠 Support your employees' physical & mental wellbeingConnect with Brian:Website | https://www.brianberneman.com/Instagram | @brianberneman LinkedIn | @brianbernemanFacebook | @brianberneman

In this episode of the Conscious Action Podcast, Brian Berneman is joined by Tinsley Galyean a researcher, author, technologist and founder of Curious Learning for a profound conversation about curiosity, learning, limiting beliefs, compassion and the transformative power of literacy.Tinsley shares his fascinating journey from studying computer science, mathematics, engineering and visual arts at Massachusetts Institute of Technology to working with global media companies, educational technology and eventually launching initiatives focused on ethics, human development and global literacy. Together, Brian and Tinsley explore how curiosity can become a gateway for personal growth, self-reflection and social transformation.The conversation dives into Tinsley’s deeply personal experiences, including how overcoming childhood fear through self-experimentation sparked a lifelong exploration of mindfulness, meditation and the ability to reshape our beliefs and inner world. They also discuss the importance of recognizing and reframing limiting beliefs (both individually and collectively) and how curiosity can help us remain open, compassionate and adaptable in a rapidly changing world.Tinsley also shares the inspiring work of Curious Learning, an international nonprofit helping children in underserved communities learn to read through localized mobile learning apps in over 60 languages. From villages in Ethiopia to communities in Nigeria and South Africa, the impact of literacy is creating ripple effects far beyond education, empowering children, transforming communities, reducing child marriage and opening new possibilities for future generations.The episode also explores:The difference between learning and traditional educationWhy curiosity enhances the brain’s ability to learnThe role of technology and devices in conscious educationHow mindfulness and self-reflection can transform our livesThe importance of kindness, compassion and understanding othersTinsley also speaks about his book Reframe, which blends travel memoir, spiritual reflection, neuroscience, literacy and practical frameworks for identifying and transforming limiting beliefs.This is a rich and inspiring conversation about human potential, conscious learning, and the possibility of creating meaningful change, both within ourselves and in the world around us.Support the showSupport the show_________Ready to embark on your journey to wellbeing and conscious living? ✨ Transform your life🟡 Experience transformative events💥 Explore holistic therapies for healing & mindful living🙋‍♀️ Book Brian as a speaker to inspire your audience🟠 Support your employees' physical & mental wellbeingConnect with Brian:Website | https://www.brianberneman.com/Instagram | @brianberneman LinkedIn | @brianbernemanFacebook | @brianberneman