You’ll want to tune in today because we’re talking all things being seen, especially if you’ve ever felt like an outcast or like society just wasn’t built with you in mind. You have so many different parts of your identity that intersect, sometimes you may have to prioritize one over the other to feel safe, but that doesn't mean that the other parts go away. And this is exactly what today’s guest is an expert in navigating — in her own life and with clients — among many other things.

I’m pleased to introduce you to fellow Nashvillian, Aimee Sadler. She has a Masters in Social Work, is currently a masters candidate at Lipscomb University specializing in conflict management. She currently works as the manager of Community and Collective Impact at the Center for Nonprofit Management. She provides nonprofit consulting in DEI, cultural competency, cultural humility, and cultural understanding. She’s also a private practice clinician focusing on therapy for women of color and members of the LGBTQIA+ community. She’s also a mom, partner, and loves all things Disney. She’s won a plethora of awards, including but not limited to being recognized as one of Nashville Business Journal’s 40 Under 40, and serves as Vice President on the board of Nashville LAUNCH PAD, an organization offering safe and LGBTQIA+ affirming shelters and housing accommodations to unhoused young adults.

In this episode, we're covering things like what it means to be seen, why it’s important for people to feel seen, why people struggle with being seen, dealing with the fear that sometimes comes with the vulnerability of being seen, listening to your intuition, and confidently navigating the intersectionality you experience, even while breaking social norms safely. Amiee also get’s personal and tells us about her own experience with intersectionality.

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Visit the complete show notes at https://humanamplified.com/episodes/117

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Now, y’all know this isn’t a political podcast. It’s a podcast about humanity. This podcast serves to unify each other and unify you with your own authenticity. We’ve always sought to humanize one another and therefore understand each other and ourselves better. And with that sometimes comes difficult and necessary conversations regarding the political arena, where policies shape our society and how we interact with it. No one is immune from it.

With that in mind, I’m extremely honored to be bringing you a conversation with local Nashville activist, blogger, commentator, columnist, community organizer, civic educator, and human rights advocate, Timothy Hughes. He oftentimes finds himself working at the intersection of public policy and social justice. He comes from a line of activists, community organizers, and educators who have sought to change the world.

As Timothy and I convened for our conversation, neo-nazis were protesting at the city council meeting in Nashville. This has become a somewhat common sight in the last several years here, where white supremacy has been allowed to flourish in our most basic levels of government —the tip of the spear — as Nashville representative Justin Jones has called it. There has been an ever increasing and louder presence as we’re leading up to presidential elections in 2024.

Speaking of, Timothy and I had decided to do this podcast episode together before the attempted assassination on former president Trump, but the conversation seems to have a special punctuation on it now — what is behind this type of political violence? It’s bigger and older than you might think.

Timothy shares insight into how our systems have evolved from a lens of exclusion and also a lens of prioritized inclusion — something which the neo-nazis of our day, just like the one’s in our grandparents’ day, want to extinguish.

So where do we want to go from here?

Stay tuned for not only a quick big-picture education and context, but also tactical advice for what you can do in your everyday life to change our political trajectory, which is really our human trajectory, even if you’re not a front lines activist.

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Visit the complete show notes at https://humanamplified.com/episodes/116

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I love Hannah Bethel, today’s guest. She’s a singer-songwriter based in Nashville, TN, but she’s also a board certified hypnotherapist with the International Association of Counselors and Therapists, an Usui Tibetan Reiki Master, and Member of the International Association of Reiki Professionals. She’s a healer and owner of Hifi Healing, and y’all, she’s returning to the show in this episode to talk about BIG spiritual practices.

If you haven’t heard her first interview on the show, check out episode 93 where we talk about her journey with Lyme disease and how that impacted her music career.

But today, we traverse the topics of consciousness, accessing the subconscious, duality of the Universe, channeling, creativity, trance, the importance of embodiment to truly know something, reincarnation, transcendence and more.

We start out by talking about when’s the right time for someone to try hypnotherapy as part of their healing journey, what it means to process experiences, and the difference between pain and suffering. While we’re at it, what is the purpose of suffering anyways? Hannah pontificates on this and how it’s linked to the nature of the Universe. We then dive into different types of spiritual guidance and how spiritual teams tend to show up for clients in sessions with Hannah; what the common thread is between healing, spirituality, and even songwriting; and the importance of evolving in this life, and how past life regression can help with that.

Hannah tells us about her process, what past life regression is, and the importance of using past life regression responsibly to show up as our best selves in our present life, in our present families and communities.

She then gives us a really cool story about a memorable client past life regression and also one that she had herself.

We wrap up with the topic of when Christians come in for past life regressions and how they deal with any cognitive dissonance or fear that may arise around this type of therapeutic yet mystical work.

Now, this is a really cool conversation, and you’re in for a treat.

After we talked, we decided that Hannah would do a past life regression for me — I’d never had one before — and we recorded the entire thing. From her intake process to the entire 2 and a half hours of me being under.

She took me through some current life regression, then we dipped into a past life, and then we finished by talking with my spirit guides.

We’ll be bringing you a video of that from my perspective on Human Amplified’s YouTube channel next week. We also have a version of it from Hannah’s perspective in the works as well. The release date on that is TBD for now. I’ll let you know more on that when we know. But, the video from my perspective that’s coming out next week won’t be on the audio version of this podcast. It will only be on the Human Amplified YouTube channel. So, if you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss it.

And without further ado, let’s talk to Hannah.

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Visit the complete show notes at https://humanamplified.com/episodes/115

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Second-guessing your intuition is normal, especially in the south where there’s culturally a lot of fear around trusting your intuition… and we’ll go so far as to say trusting psychic hits that you get. Yes, you.

In this episode, we’re talking to Laura Stendel. She’s a licensed massage therapist here in Franklin, TN offering various forms of body work and energy work in her sessions. She owns Intuitive Bodywork TN, and she's known for incorporating her own intuition into her sessions and so today, we’re diving deep into that topic.

We cover things like how body work is inextricably linked to intuition for Laura, how this manifests in massage therapy sessions for her and her clients. She even gives us specific examples, which are really helpful.

Trigger Warning: As Laura shares one particular client story that she has permission to share, the topic of kidnapping and negative entities does come up for a few minutes around 15 or 20 minutes or so in. Listener discretion is advised.

But then we get into really tangible tips for how you can start to listen to your intuition and release fear around it so you can start trusting it again. Maybe you’ve been culturally conditioned to fear it or maybe you trusted it at one point but lost that connection to self through trauma. We address it all.

Laura also talks about psychic and intuitive experiences she had right around the time of the interview and she even dives in on one little hit that she got with me. Throughout the conversation, we use my own spiritual journey and experience of strengthening my intuitive abilities as an example for you.

Side note: If you haven't subscribed to my YouTube channel, Human Amplified, and this is a really interesting topic to you, feel free to go do that now. In addition to this podcast, you can follow my spiritual journey. Check out the “Going Woo with Brandi” playlist. I just started it, so the name might change eventually. But I've linked that for you here, in this video and in the description box if you’re watching and it’s linked in the show notes if you’re listening.

Now, for the last quarter of the interview, we focus on everything you need to know about chakras and tie that back into strengthening your own abilities to work with intuition and energy.

And last but not least, we end on Laura telling you what she thinks is the most important thing to remember when you’re growing, healing, taking care of yourself, and leaning into your own powerful abilities — I won’t spoil it, but I’ll give you a hint — it has to do with letting go of something you might be holding onto so tightly.

After we stopped recording, we talked on for almost an hour and both of us wished we had just kept recording. So, have no fear, I definitely think we’ll get Laura back on the show at some point to keep diving deep into these important, empowering, and life changing practices.

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Visit the complete show notes at https://humanamplified.com/episodes/114

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Today, we’re talking to Nashvillian John M. DeMarco. There are certain themes that have been flowing through John’s life and career lately: AI, Impermanence, making meaning, and business and career sustainability. And by all areas, I mean he explores these themes as a fiction writer, non-fiction writer, speaker, and coach. By the way, John is a professional certified coach, and he’s been coaching executives for 19 years. But the discussion we have is less about being an executive, and more about being a human in our ever-changing world.

What’s important to point out here is that our personal and professional lives aren’t really separate. We’re whole humans, and what goes on in one area of our life touches all other areas of our life.

Throughout this episode, we dive deeper into most of the themes that John and his client’s are experiencing, starting with managing expectations around impermanence — that is, the fact that nothing ever stays the same, and one day, we’re all going to die — and how that impacts our satisfaction and what that even means for how we’re separate from and connected to each other. We talk about how greed, selfishness, and delusions come about but also how we can choose a healthier way of being amid constant change to experience more joy and meaning instead.

Then, we explore what legacy is, why it’s important, and how we influence it.

Then, the episode takes a turn into considering mindfulness and tapping into a greater good.

And by “takes a turn,” I mean, the conversation starts out pretty cerebral and then morphs into what felt like an unprepared, real-time experience of mindfulness, presence, and spirituality. In the last third of the interview, I didn’t edit out long pauses as I normally would because I wanted you to experience what John was experiencing as he traversed the emotions that came with learning about himself as he answered big questions about why making meaning is important and what meaning even is. The emotion, on the surface, was subtle, but if you’re really paying attention, you’ll see there was nothing surface-level about this conversation. The emotion and thoughtfulness is palpable.

So let’s dive in!

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Visit the complete show notes at https://humanamplified.com/episodes/113

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Amanda JP Brown is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker providing psychotherapy to individuals and couples. In addition to her work as a psychotherapist, Amanda is a Reiki Healer, bestselling Author and has been featured on several podcasts discussing the courage it takes to rebuild your life confidently, free from shame and self judgment.

Amanda is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker providing psychotherapy to individuals and couples. She understands how terrifying it can be to shine a light on your darkness as you journey toward healing and just how messy it can get as you begin to uncover the human you want to be.

In addition to her work as a psychotherapist and author, Amanda is a Reiki Healer and has been featured on several other podcasts discussing the courage it takes to rebuild your life confidently, free from shame and self judgment.

In her free time, Amanda loves spending time with her dog, Leroy, being creative, spending time with family/friends, listening to music and attending the ballet.

As a side note: I met Amanda through a mutual friend not too long ago, so I know her and how wonderful she is, and I know that she also loves to participate in ballet and makes a killer Brussels sprout dish, among other creative and adventurous pursuits.

So it’s no surprise to me that looking at ourselves and our romantic partnerships through a lens of curiosity rather than criticism is the defining undercurrent of this discussion, while specifically, we’re talking about marriage and divorce. We’re answering the big questions like how does early childhood impact the outcome of relationships, what generational trauma looks like in relationship, what’s at the root of compromising identity in relationships, and how do we even define marriage today — is it okay to make your own rules around it, how has society dictated the trajectory of the institution of marriage, and is it even still a valid institution in our modern society. Plus Amanda tells you what you need to know if you’re questioning your relationship.

In addition to her expertise in attachment, childhood and generational trauma, and shame and self worthiness issues, Amanda shares her own journey with marriage and divorce and what she did herself to heal.

I absolutely love this conversation and hope you do too. Let us know in the comments what resonates with you and how you define marriage.

Now, let’s dive in.

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Visit the complete show notes at https://humanamplified.com/episodes/112

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Up to this point in season 5, we’ve talked quite a bit about theory and big-picture ideas around self realization and identity. In today’s episode, the same theme carries through, but we’re getting more practical and hands on to spark your creativity to put those self-love based concepts into action in your own life in a way that’s authentic to you.

Guest Christy Pruitt-Haynes is telling us all about her action-based approach to getting to know herself now after major relationships in her life have changed and she’s entering a new phase of what it means to be her.

She’s telling us all about her adventures with ABC solo dating. We’ll get into what that is in the episode, but first…

She embarked on the adventure of solo dating after she'd lost her best friend, went through a divorce, and her daughter and niece flew the nest. She realized that so much of her life revolved around others, and now that they’d made their exits in different ways, she was left with herself. So this discussion is all about what Christy chose to do with that realization.

In addition to talking about what ABC solo dating is and how Christy does it, we dive deep into the emotions involved with doing activities by yourself, especially if you’re a people person;, the beauty of being present with yourself; the importance of preference and knowing it’s okay to do what you like and what brings you joy without feeling guilty; absolving guilt; trusting the creative process; moving through grief that comes with change; and letting go.

Christy says “after a lot of hard work, personal reflection, and self-discovery… the only person I’m going to spend the rest of my life with is me so I better get to know and fall in love with her.”

That’s her focus now. And she’s sharing part of that story with you today.

At the end of the day, we have to be able to be alone with ourselves. I know it took me a long time to love my self enough to be able to do that — it can be a fun yet difficult task.

As you listen, I encourage you to think about what might work for you to grow your relationship with yourself. Are you able to be alone with yourself and what might be fun in that process?

Let us know in the comments what you think.

Now, let’s dive in.

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Visit the complete show notes at https://humanamplified.com/episodes/111

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Share your story on Human Amplified!

Today we’re talking to Tian Yuming. She’s a yoga teacher and trauma-informed certified life coach who immigrated to Singapore from China at an early age with her family. This immigration and the generational impact of the Chinese cultural revolution set the stage for the healing journey and expertise Yuming shares with us in this episode.

The most prominent thing I noticed about Yuming when we first met is the presence she brings to her interactions. It was so comforting and interesting to experience. This was what inspired us to collaborate on today’s discussion.

We talk about how self discovery is healing, how to create more space by anchoring into the present moment, what it means to hold space, how to hold space, the difference between holding space as a professional versus in a dynamic relationship, when to prioritize holding space for yourself versus another person, when and how to draw boundaries, how to extend grace to yourself even if you aren’t present, when it’s okay to think about the past and future, and letting go and moving on. This discussion is a spiritual exploration based on a foundation of trauma and somatic training, so you’re in for a treat where science meets spirituality. Yuming focuses on connecting mind, body, and spirit, and this discussion is an extension of that focus.

There are many fantastic take aways from today’s episode, but my absolute favorite is when Yuming says “Compassionate witnessing is where the healing takes place.” Be sure to let me know in the comments (on YouTube) what your favorite take away is too.

Now, let’s dive in.

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Visit the complete show notes at https://humanamplified.com/episodes/110

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