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In this profound episode, Shelby Hanson—a speech-language pathologist, kidney transplant recipient, and nervous system coach—shares her harrowing and transformative journey through sudden kidney failure, a high-risk pregnancy while on the transplant list, and a transplanted kidney that took 49 mysterious days to “wake up.” After being asked by her nephrologist, “What’s wrong with you? Why aren’t you getting better?” Shelby realized the healing she sought wasn’t going to come from the outside—it was in her own nervous system. We explore how a lifetime of people-pleasing, perfectionism, and hyper-independence kept her body in chronic fight-or-flight, and how learning to regulate her stress response, visualize healing, and truly receive care allowed her body to finally accept the gift of a new kidney. This is a story that bridges critical Western medicine with the essential, unseen work of somatic healing. It’s about how illness can become the ultimate teacher in boundary-setting, self-trust, and reclaiming your energy—and how sometimes, the body needs safety more than it needs another treatment. 🌿 What You’ll Discover ✨ How Shelby went from 100% to less than 20% kidney function in 18 months—with no clear explanation. ✨ The shocking moment she discovered she was pregnant while on the kidney transplant list, and how her baby’s kidneys began filtering toxins from her blood. ✨ Why her new kidney failed to function for 7 weeks post-transplant, and the pivotal moment that shifted everything. ✨ How chronic people-pleasing and a “caretaker” identity wired her nervous system for stress, leaving no energy for healing. ✨ The “accidental” discovery of nervous system regulation through an anti-inflammatory diet, and how it prepared her body to conceive. ✨ Why visualizing her healed self and connecting to her future self were critical in activating her transplanted kidney. ✨ How a decades-old hip pain vanished when she realized it was her nervous system’s way of protecting her from emotional pain. ✨ The profound practice of learning to receive—from a kidney to everyday help—and why giving from a place of abundance requires it. ✨ Why Shelby feels healthier in her 40s, post-transplant, than she did in her 30s, and how she now lives in a place of deep reciprocation and trust with her body. ⏳ Timestamps 00:00 - Shelby’s Opening: “What’s wrong with you? Why aren’t you getting better?” 01:25 - Dr. Erin’s Introduction & The Sacred Illness® Question 02:17 - Welcoming Shelby Hanson: Speech Pathologist & Student of the Nervous System 03:20 - The Story Begins: Military Life, Moving Across the World, and Early Symptoms 05:00 - The Life Insurance Denial That Revealed Kidney Failure 06:00 - Diagnosis, Transplant Listing, and the “Impossible” Pregnancy 07:30 - How Her Baby’s Kidneys Filtered Her Blood 08:00 - The Transplant Call & A “99% Sensitized” Body 09:00 - Post-Transplant Crisis: A Kidney That Wouldn’t Work 10:15 - The Doctor’s Question That Changed Everything 11:00 - The Realization: “My Body Had Never Failed Me” 12:00 - People-Pleasing, Anesthesia, and the Caretaker Identity 13:00 - Discovering Nervous System Regulation & Joe Dispenza 14:25 - Visualization, Prayer, and the 49-Day Turnaround 18:00 - Shifting From Disease-Promoting to Healing States 20:00 - Unlearning Emotional States & Connecting to Your Future Self 24:00 - The Chronic Pain That Was a Nervous System Memory 27:00 - Epigenetics, “Soft Diagnoses,” and Reversing Conditions 30:00 - Learning to Receive: The Kidney as the Ultimate Gift 32:00 - Life 7 Years Post-Transplant: Purpose, Movement, and Listening 35:00 - “Your Body is Never Wrong”—Reallocating Energy, Not Losing It 38:00 - Functional Freeze and Why Exhaustion Isn’t a Lack of Energy 40:00 - Shelby’s Work: Helping Women Reclaim Their Energy 43:00 - Free Gift & How to Connect With Shelby 45:00 - The Aligned Self: Who Did Her Illness Invite Her to Become? 47:00 - Closing: “Our Bodies Can Heal.” 💫 Guest Information & Links Connect with Shelby Hanson: * Instagram: @shelbylivingvibrantly * Facebook: Shelby Creates a Beautiful Life * Website & Coaching: Get Your Energy Back Coaching * Podcast Episode: Thriving with Kidney Disease – Apple Podcasts Link 🎁 Free Gift for Listeners:“Get Your Energy Back Guide” – Shelby’s Top 3 Tips 💫 Ready to Go Deeper? → Begin your Sacred Illness® Journey: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/community Save 20% off your first month with code PODCAST → Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Apply to be an Affiliate and help share this work:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/affiliate → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack: https://drerinhayford.substack.com 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfkhttps://www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This episode is a testament that healing is never just physical. It’s a nervous system conversation, a spiritual reckoning, and a homecoming to the self. Thank you for listening and for your ongoing support of this work! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

When Vivian Quintana was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2017, she faced the terrifying whirlwind of biopsies, mastectomy, chemotherapy, and radiation—but it was in the enforced stillness of “chemo brain” that her real healing began. In this raw and radiant conversation, Vivian shares how her illness became a sacred pause, forcing her to confront a lifetime of stored trauma, hypervigilance, and C-PTSD. Through inner child work, meditation, and a profound shift in perspective, she didn’t just survive—she transformed. Vivian’s story is a powerful testament to the idea that healing isn’t about curing the body alone, but about coming home to the self. Episode Overview In this episode, I sit down with Vivian Quintana, a breast cancer thriver who journeyed from a stage 2B–3 diagnosis through a double mastectomy, chemotherapy, and radiation into a life of deep presence and peace. Vivian reveals how the medical system had no explanation for her cancer—no genetic markers, no clear cause—which led her to uncover the emotional and energetic roots of her disease: childhood trauma, immigration stress, single motherhood, and relational patterns that kept her body in a state of hypervigilance. We explore how the pandemic, arriving just as she finished treatment, gave her the pause she needed to alchemize her pain into purpose. Vivian’s journey illustrates that true healing begins when we stop asking “Why me?” and start asking “What is this here to teach me?” 🌿 What You’ll Discover ✨ How a simple bump on the breast led to a life-altering diagnosis—and why Vivian chose a double mastectomy from the start.✨ The moment her doctors said, “We don’t know what caused this”—and how that became her invitation to look deeper.✨ The link between C-PTSD (complex post-traumatic stress disorder) and chronic illness—and how trauma lives in the body.✨ How “chemo brain” became an unexpected spiritual gateway, forcing Vivian into silence, presence, and energy awareness.✨ Why the pandemic felt like a synchronistic gift—a global pause that mirrored her personal reckoning.✨ The mindset shift from “victim” to “sovereign being”—and how Vivian visualized chemotherapy as a cleanse of stored emotional toxicity.✨ Practical tools for healing beyond medicine: meditation, inner child work, acupuncture, and somatic awareness.✨ How Vivian now lives without hypervigilance or fear—and what it means to see illness as a “blessing in the mess.”✨ Her heartfelt message to those with cancer: “You are the medicine. Advocate for yourself. Your mindset is your most powerful tool.” ⏳ Timestamps 00:51 – Welcoming Vivian Quintana02:00 – The Diagnosis: From a Bump to a Cancer Journey04:00 – Choosing a Double Mastectomy & Navigating Lymph Node Results05:00 – Chemotherapy, Radiation, and the “Red Devil”06:00 – The Spiritual Awakening: Inner Child Work & Meditation08:00 – The Role of C-PTSD & Trauma in Illness10:00 – How Chemo Brain Forced a “Stop” and Opened Spiritual Awareness12:00 – The Pandemic Pause: Synchronicity and Deeper Healing15:00 – Releasing Hypervigilance & Living Without Fear18:00 – Visualization as Medicine: Working WITH Treatment22:00 – The Hospital as a Penthouse: Shifting Perspective25:00 – Message to Those with Cancer: Advocacy & Mindset28:00 – Who Has Your Illness Invited You to Become?30:00 – Closing Gratitude & Invitation 💫 Guest Information & Links Connect with Vivian Quintana:Vivian is a breast cancer thriver, speaker, and testament to the power of trauma-informed healing. She shares her story to inspire others to find meaning and medicine within their own journeys. 💫 Want to Go Deeper? → Begin your Sacred Illness® Journey: Join the community https://www.aurorasomatic.com/community Use coupon code PODCAST for 20% off your fist month! → Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Apply to be an Affiliate and help share this work:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/affiliate → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack: 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfkhttps://www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

What if the fiercest, most healing thing you could do is to stop fighting? When Teresa Smith was told her rheumatoid arthritis was incurable, degenerative, and would require aggressive medication, a deep inner voice said no. This refusal launched her not into a harder battle, but into a profound surrender—from a life of high-achieving “yang” striving into the soft, receptive, and heart-led practice she calls Qi Flow. In this episode, we explore how releasing anger, fear, and the need for perfect control didn’t just manage her symptoms but led to a full remission, revealing that true healing begins not with a protocol, but with a homecoming to the self. Episode Overview In this conversation, I sit down with Teresa Smith, a former yoga instructor from the UK who experienced a spontaneous remission from rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis after consciously rejecting a conventional pharmaceutical path. Teresa recounts her journey from being “yoga girl”—living a fast, achievement-oriented life—to being forced into stillness by debilitating pain. We trace her shift from fear-based searching and restrictive dieting into the creation of her own somatic practice. Together, we examine how healing required moving from a mindset of doing to a state of being, and how connecting to the “smile in the heart” can change the body’s chemical environment from one of stress to one of safety, enabling profound cellular repair. 🌿 What You’ll Discover ✨ The pivotal diagnosis moment and the inner voice that guided Teresa to reject a frightening prognosis. ✨ Why fear-based protocols and strict diets ultimately failed to address the root of her illness. ✨ The essential transition from masculine “yang” energy (striving, perfection) to feminine “yin” energy (softness, flow, receiving). ✨ How Teresa developed “Qi Flow,” a practice blending gentle movement with heart awareness for somatic release. ✨ The science behind emotions and healing: how chronic stress (cortisol) damages cells, while safety and love promote repair. ✨ Forgiveness as a somatic release, not just an intellectual concept. ✨ The core healing realization: shifting identity from “I am sick” to “I am love.” ✨ How illness serves as an ultimate invitation to unlearn, soften, and come home to yourself. ⏳ Timestamps 01:30 - Welcoming Teresa Smith 05:00 - The Diagnosis: Facing a “Degenerative” Prognosis 10:00 - The Inner ‘No’: Rejecting the Conventional Path 15:00 - The Pitfall of Fear-Based Protocols & Dieting 20:00 - The Shift from ‘Yang’ Striving to ‘Yin’ Receiving 25:00 - Creating ‘Qi Flow’: Movement from the Heart 30:00 - The Science of Safety: Cortisol vs. Coherence 35:00 - Forgiveness as Somatic Release 40:00 - The Identity Shift: “I Am Love” 45:00 - Illness as an Invitation to Come Home 50:00 - Teresa’s Offerings and Final Reflections 💫 Guest Information & Links Connect with Teresa Smith: - Website: http://www.soulwavestudio.com - Instagram: @qi.flow.girl - Offerings: Online Qi Flow training and resources for people to slow down and reconnect. 💫 Ready to Go Deeper? → Begin your Sacred Illness® Journey: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/community Use coupon code PODCAST at checkout for 20% off your first month! → Apply to be a podcast guest: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Apply to be an Affiliate and help share this work: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/affiliate → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack: 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfk https://www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

In a world that often pits holistic healing against conventional medicine, the bravest choice is often the one that honors the sacred message of your illness, even when it leads to surgery. This is a story of how a hysterectomy became the ultimate somatic release of a lifetime of swallowed emotions, inherited burdens, and the profound responsibility of being the “strong one.” Far from a failure, it is a testament that true healing is not about the protocol you follow, but the unwavering step you take toward your own truth, and surrendering to what unfolds from there. Episode Overview In this powerful and deeply personal episode, I welcome back Oriana Broderick—writer, artist, and former co-host of the Sacred Illness® Podcast—to share the culmination of her multi-year healing journey. Oriana unfolds her path from a childhood of emotional caretaking and trauma to a life of van-life freedom, which paradoxically unleashed a torrent of debilitating physical symptoms. We trace her search through countless supplements and holistic practices to the pivotal moment of confronting numerous uterine fibroids. This conversation bravely navigates the tension between holistic ideals and medical necessity, exploring how Oriana’s decision to have a hysterectomy became a sacred, somatic ritual to release not only her own stored grief and anger but the painful stories of the women in her lineage. We examine the radical self-trust required to make such a choice and how illness ultimately asks one question: did you take the next step toward knowing yourself? 🌿 What You’ll Discover ✨ How leaving a high-stress life for van life created the space for suppressed physical symptoms to finally surface. ✨ The turning point from seeking external solutions in a “huge box of supplements” to seeking internal truth and somatic understanding. ✨ Why the pressure to heal “naturally” can be as fear-based as the conventional medical system, and how to find your own sovereign path. ✨ The profound realization that her fibroids were “bubbles of emotion” holding the anger, grief, and sadness of a lifetime—and a lineage—of silence. ✨ How the universe tested her resolve by canceling her surgery, and why rescheduling it became the ultimate act of self-trust. ✨ Why a hysterectomy can be a holistic, healing choice when approached as a conscious release and a reclaiming of personal space. ✨ The essential reframe: “You can’t fail yourself… The whole point of this journey isn’t what you did or didn’t do… It’s about did I make that next step towards myself?” ✨ Oriana’s message to her younger self—and to anyone in the depths of hopelessness: “It might get harder before it gets easier, but it gets easier, and it is so worth the journey.” ⏳ Timestamps 02:00 - Welcoming Back Oriana Broderick 03:00 - The Foundation: Childhood Trauma and the Role of the “Pillar” 06:00 - Van Life & The Unraveling: When Freedom Triggered a Physical Collapse 10:00 - The Search for Answers: Doctors, Dismissal, and a Box of 50 Supplements 15:00 - Finding Somatic Work and Learning to Trust Support 20:00 - The Fibroid Diagnosis: Navigating Medical Options and External Opinions 25:00 - The Pivotal Realization: Carrying a Lineage of Women’s Pain 30:00 - The Surgery Cancelation as the Final Test of Self-Trust 35:00 - The Hysterectomy as a Somatic Release & Experiencing Divine Support 40:00 - Post-Op: The Journey Continues—Rebuilding Iron, Learning to Rest 45:00 - The Core Philosophy: Your Body is Never Wrong, No Choice is a Failure 50:00 - Would You Have Healed Had You Not Gotten Sick? Oriana’s Honest Answer 55:00 - Ecstatic Dancing, Writing, and Becoming “A Woman Who Speaks Her Truth” 01:00:00 - The True Purpose of Life & Illness: To Know Yourself Deeply 01:05:00 - Oriana’s Message to Anyone Feeling Hopeless 01:10:00 - Who Has Her Illness Invited Her to Become? 💫 Guest Information & Links Connect with Oriana Broderick: - Instagram (Personal & Writing): @whispersandrevelations - Instagram (Art & Jewelry): @rootandwing2025 - Book: When The Soul Howls (Coming Soon!) 💫 Want to Go Deeper? → Begin your Sacred Illness® Journey: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/community Use coupon code PODCAST for 20% off your first month! → Apply to be a podcast guest: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Apply to be an Affiliate and help share this work: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/affiliate → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack: 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfk https://www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

What if a diagnosis was not a sentence to be carried out, but an invitation to come home to the most fractured parts of yourself? When Claire Hickson was advised to have a hysterectomy for a large uterine fibroid, she heard a different call—one that led her not into an operating room, but into the deepest chambers of her own story. In this deeply moving episode, we explore how a physical symptom in the womb can be the body’s sacred attempt to house a lost inner child, and how the journey to heal is ultimately a journey to reclaim, love, and rebirth the self. Claire Hickson is a yoga teacher, poet, and guide from the UK, who shares her multi-layered journey with a 10cm uterine fibroid. We traverse her path from medical diagnosis and the conventional push for a hysterectomy to the intuitive breadcrumbs that led her to holistic treatments, a profound creative awakening through poetry, and the pivotal body psychotherapy session that revealed the fibroid as a manifestation of a newborn trauma. Together, we examine the deep connection between the throat and the womb, how illness can awaken a medicinal voice, and what it means to become a “safe sanctuary” for yourself and others. 🌿 What You’ll Discover ✨ Why Claire chose to explore the message of her fibroid instead of opting for an immediate hysterectomy. ✨ The pivotal role of community and guided meditation in creating a safe container for deep inner work and creative expression. ✨ How a poetic awakening became the key to unlocking a suppressed voice and healing the throat-womb connection. ✨ The moment in a body psychotherapy training that connected her physical symptoms to a pre-verbal trauma of abandonment. ✨ Why Claire now sees her fibroid as symbolizing being “pregnant with myself” and the profound shift to re-mothering her inner child. ✨ How the journey of healing is non-linear and requires trusting intuitive breadcrumbs, even when they don’t make logical sense. ✨ The transformative power of using your voice—through speech, poetry, and now singing—as a core part of somatic healing. ⏳ Timestamps 01:00 - Welcoming Claire Hickson 02:40 - Claire’s Story: The Uterine Fibroid Diagnosis 06:30 - The Conventional Path: Pressure for a Hysterectomy 10:00 - The Pandemic Pause: Space for Meditation and Inner Seeking 13:00 - The Creative Awakening: An Outpouring of Soulful Poetry 16:00 - Following Intuition into Yoga Teacher Training 19:00 - Choosing HIFU Treatment and Reclaiming Personal Authority 25:00 - The Pivotal Realization: Connecting Fibroids to Newborn Trauma 30:00 - The Practice of Re-mothering and Holding a Young Self 35:00 - The Throat-Womb Connection: Voice as Medicine 45:00 - Claire’s Oracle Poem: “Hey You” 50:00 - The Next Layer: Singing as Somatic Healing 55:00 - Who Has Her Illness Invited Her to Become? 💫 Guest Information & Links Connect with Claire Hickson: - Instagram: @claire_inlight - Website: https://instabook.io/landing/yogawithclaire - Book: In Light - Available on Amazon - YouTube: www.youtube.com/@claire_hickson 💫 Want to Go Deeper? → Begin your Sacred Illness® Journey: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/community Use coupon code PODCAST for 20% off → Apply to be a podcast guest: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Apply to be an Affiliate and help share this work: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/affiliate → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack: https://sacredillness.substack.com 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfk https://www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

In this milestone episode, I sit down with Matt Rowe, a master neuroplastician and author of Belief to Heal, who overcame paralysis and a primary progressive multiple sclerosis diagnosis. Together, we traverse his incredible journey from elite athlete to a man facing a prognosis of a wheelchair, and into his current life as a guide who blends science and spirituality. This conversation is a deep exploration of how our thoughts, vibrating at specific frequencies, directly influence our biology. We examine the quantum concept that we are primarily energy, the practical steps to shift from a state of fear to a state of love, and how to cultivate a "knowing" that healing is not only possible but is your natural state of being. 🌿 What You’ll Discover ✨ The pivotal moments in Matt’s journey through paralysis and multiple sclerosis that shifted his path from ego to soul.✨ The scientific and energetic basis for how states like love and shame directly repair or dysregulate the body.✨ Why becoming a conscious observer of your thoughts is the first and most critical step to changing your health.✨ A practical framework for moving from a subconscious "habit" of negative thinking into the empowered 5% of your mind that can choose love.✨ How the principle of "Be, Do, Have" reverses the conventional approach to healing and life success.✨ Why seeing every challenge, thought, and symptom as a "teacher" reframes your entire healing journey from a struggle to an initiation.✨ The powerful journaling exercise to connect with your "Future Self" and let her story guide your present-moment choices. ⏳ Timestamps 00:00 - Introduction & A Reflection on 50 Episodes of Sacred Illness®06:00 - Introducing Matt Rowe and His Story07:30 - Matt’s First Invitation: Paralysis During Ironman Training10:00 - The Second Invitation: Frequent Strokes and an MS Diagnosis12:00 - MS as the Greatest Gift: The Shift from Ego to Unconditional Self-Love20:00 - The Science of Energy: How Your Thoughts Become Your Biology30:00 - How to Start Catching Your 95% Subconscious Thoughts35:00 - The Three Levels of Being: Soul, Mind, and Body44:00 - Navigating Fear and Setbacks on the Healing Path50:00 - The Mirror of the Universe and Releasing "Need"57:00 - The Power of Presence: Healing Only Happens Now01:04:00 - From Belief to Knowing: The Garden Analogy for Healing01:07:00 - Who is Illness Inviting Matt to Become? 💫 Guest Information & Links About Matt: Matt Rowe is a Master Neuro-Plastician, author of Belief to Heal, and dedicated guide in the field of mind-body transformation. After overcoming paralysis to complete an Ironman, Matt now teaches others how to harness the brain’s power to heal and thrive. Blending science and spirituality, he empowers individuals to rewire limiting beliefs and step into their highest potential. As a meditation and Reiki practitioner, Matt helps people reconnect with inner peace and natural healing energy. His mission is to inspire hope, resilience, and the belief that healing is not only possible—it’s a daily practice and choice. Connect with Matt Rowe: Instagram: @optimalbody_optimalmind Website: www.optimalbody-optimalmind.com Matt’s Coaching offer: https://www.mattrowecoaching.com/ Book: Belief to Heal Email: [email protected] 💫 Want to Go Deeper? → Begin your Sacred Illness® Journey:https://www.aurorasomatic.com → Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Apply to be an Affiliate and help share this work:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/affiliate → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack:https://sacredillness.substack.com 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfkhttps://www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

What if healing isn’t about finding the right doctor, but learning to become an active participant in your own care? In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Tracy Shevell, a board-certified OBGYN and high-risk maternal-fetal medicine specialist who spent nearly two decades inside academic medicine before her own complex illness—and the pandemic—led her to reimagine what healing could look like. Tracy shares her story of moving from exhaustion and mystery illness to self-advocacy, trauma work, and spiritual integration. We discuss the systemic issues within medicine, how patriarchal models of care silence both patients and practitioners, and what it means for women to reclaim authority over their bodies and health. This conversation is both a critique of modern healthcare and an invitation to return to what’s deeply human in medicine: presence, curiosity, and compassion. What You’ll Learn ✨ How Dr. Shevell’s own illness taught her to bridge western and holistic models of healing✨ The emotional and spiritual dimensions of women’s health that medicine often overlooks✨ Why trauma screening (ACEs) belongs in every medical intake✨ How to advocate for yourself without apology✨ Why “it’s just anxiety” is never an acceptable answer✨ The importance of boundaries, partnership, and choosing doctors who believe in your capacity to heal✨ How menopause and midlife can become opportunities for reinvention and sovereignty ⏳ Timestamps00:00 Intro + welcome03:00 From high-risk OBGYN to patient and advocate07:00 The problem with patriarchal medicine10:00 Why trauma belongs in every health assessment14:00 Complex illness, misdiagnosis, and the “it’s just anxiety” trap17:00 Functional medicine, trauma work, and EMDR20:00 Spirituality, faith, and learning to listen to your body27:00 Re-entering medicine as a teacher of empowerment37:00 How to advocate for yourself with doctors42:00 Menopause and the reinvention of the self44:00 Dr. Shevell’s upcoming book Labor and Deliverance 📚 Connect with Dr. Tracy Shevell Website: www.tracyshevellmd.com Email: [email protected] Instagram @tracyshevellmd TikTok: @tracyshevellmd Substack tracyshevell.substack.com Book (forthcoming, 2026): Labor and Deliverance – a blend of patient stories, personal narrative, and lessons on healing beyond medicine 💫 Ready to go deeper? → Begin your Sacred Illness® Journey:https://www.aurorasomatic.com → Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Apply to be an Affiliate and help share this work:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/affiliate → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack:https://sacredillness.substack.com 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfkhttps://www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

In this powerful episode, I sit down with James Wright—author, father, speaker, and 11-year survivor of ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease)—who was originally given just 3 to 5 years to live. He refused to accept that prognosis and instead chose to see his illness as an invitation to reimagine what was possible for his life. Together we explore: → How James’ mindset shaped his journey from day one → The moment he chose not to accept his diagnosis as a life sentence → The role of faith, mindset, and daily intention in his healing journey → His commitment to modeling emotional resilience for his children → The daily practices and lifestyle shifts that supported his energy and outlook → How expectations can influence physiology → The importance of purpose, connection, and inner belief → What it means to live with illness, not in fear of it → Why he believes illness came into his life for a reason This is one of the most inspiring conversations I’ve had on the podcast to date. Whether you’re navigating chronic illness, feeling stuck in your mindset, or just looking for a deeper reason to keep going—this episode will move you. Learn more about and connect with James: Website: authorjameslwright.com Book: Anchored to Hope: Reframing Life After a Terminal Diagnosis 📚 Buy on Amazon Email: [email protected] Social media: Instagram: @James2_gitllc TikTok: @james..wright15 YouTube: @jameswright_GITLLC Facebook: facebook.com/authorjameswright Want to go deeper? → Begin your Sacred Illness® Journey:https://www.aurorasomatic.com (Join the Community and enjoy 20% off using the coupon code PODCAST) → Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack:https://sacredillness.substack.com 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfkhttps://www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

In this raw and reflective episode, Dr. Kristin Wing, a naturopathic doctor and mother of two, shares her deeply personal journey through chronic skin issues, anticipatory grief, and the ongoing tension between self-sacrifice and reciprocity. We explore what it means to live in a body that keeps score—through psoriasis, alopecia, oral allergy syndrome, and more—and how those signals mirror unprocessed trauma, inherited stress patterns, and unmet relational needs. From the shock of her father’s glioblastoma diagnosis to the daily depletion of motherhood and caregiving, Dr. Wing speaks candidly about the years she spent “pouring her body and resources out”—and what it has taken to finally begin reclaiming herself. We touch on boundaries, attachment, nervous system hypervigilance, and how chronic skin conditions can be a metaphor for distorted energetic boundaries and a lack of reflection in our relationships. This episode is a conversation about the grief of not being met, the longing for true emotional intimacy, and the courage it takes to reorient your life around your needs and desires—not just your responsibilities. Topics we explore: The mind-body roots of chronic skin conditions Living in anticipation: When your nervous system never relaxes The impact of parental illness, loss, and grief on the body The exhaustion of one-sided relationships Attachment, boundaries, and how our skin reflects them The importance of being mirrored and seen Shifting from over-giving to relational reciprocity Healing through witnessing (and being witnessed) The power of naming your desires out loud Who is your illness inviting you to become? For Dr. Wing, the answer is clear: a woman with the capacity to savor beauty, live from desire, and stop guessing what others need in order to feel safe. 🎧 Tune in and reflect: What is your body trying to tell you? 🔗 Links: Want to go deeper? → Begin your Sacred Illness™ Journey:https://www.aurorasomatic.com → Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack:https://sacredillness.substack.com 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfkwww.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

In this fascinating solo episode, I dive into the research on Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)—formerly called multiple personality disorder—and explore what it reveals about the mind-body connection. From shifts in allergies and eyesight to changes in pain thresholds and immune responses, DID shows us what happens when identity, story, and nervous system regulation rewire the body in real time. This episode is a stunning look at the nervous system’s role in chronic illness—through the lens of case studies that defy the rules of modern medicine. What You’ll Discover: ✨ How one person can have different allergic reactions, vision, or pain depending on the persona they are embodying✨ Why cells don’t change—but signals do✨ The difference between the body’s fast clock and slow clock✨ How trauma imprints short-term patterns that become long-term physiology✨ What DID reveals about nervous system tone, stress, and identity✨ Why stories are the interface between brain, belief, and biology✨ How repeated states (like hypervigilance or safety) train the body over time✨ The hopeful truth: your body is wired—which means it can be rewired Timestamps: 00:00 Intro — the mind-body connection & DID02:00 Historical case studies of blindness, paralysis, and altered senses05:00 Modern studies on allergies, medications, and eyesight07:00 The fast clock vs. slow clock in illness10:00 Nervous system tone and symptom development12:00 States becoming traits — how repeated patterns change the body13:00 Cellular turnover and long-term healing potential14:00 Final reflections: DID as a mirror for all of us Want to go deeper? → Begin your Sacred Illness™ Journey:https://www.aurorasomatic.com → Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack:https://sacredillness.substack.com _______________________________________________________ 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfkwww.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

What if illness isn’t random—or genetic—but a result of the messages your body has received over a lifetime? In this solo episode, I invite you into a radically simple framework that cuts through the noise of health advice, diagnoses, and symptom management.We explore the idea that the body is an input-output machine, with the nervous system as the primary control center. And if the inputs aren’t safe, aligned, or supportive… the outputs will eventually show up as symptoms, dysfunction, and disease. This episode is a call to simplify, not overcomplicate. It’s about tracing illness back to the earliest stories that shaped our physiology—and rewriting those stories to restore health from the inside out. 🌿 What You’ll Discover: ✨ Why the nervous system is the hub of all health✨ How “trauma” is anything that takes you away from your true self✨ Why childhood experiences become physiological programs✨ How stories like “I’m stupid” or “I don’t matter” become immune, endocrine, and gut responses✨ Why symptom flares aren’t random—they’re output✨ Why food, genetics, and lifestyle are secondary inputs✨ What it means to heal by making your life safe for your true self✨ The real reason your illness is here—and how to respond ⏳ Timestamps: 00:00 Intro – Health is not that complicated01:00 The body as input-output machine03:00 Why the nervous system is the central hub04:00 Inputs from childhood that shape our physiology06:00 Trauma as a story of unsafety08:00 How trauma makes our world smaller10:00 Downstream impacts on every body system14:00 Chronic illness as adaptation to unsafe inputs16:00 What safety really means for the body18:00 It's not about food—it’s about what your nervous system believes20:00 Rewriting the program22:00 Who is your illness inviting you to become?23:00 Final thoughts + upcoming group journey 💫 Want to go deeper? → Join the Sacred Illness™ Membershiphttps://www.aurorasomatic.com/communityUse code PODCAST to save 20% on your first month. → Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Follow Dr. Erin on Substack:https://sacredillness.substack.com 🎶 Music by: Instructions for Living a Life by Savfkwww.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

In this extraordinary episode, I sit down with UK-based creator, podcaster, and healer Lizzie Dunn, whose journey with the rare genetic condition MEN-1 defies all odds. At just 13 years old, Lizzie was diagnosed with MEN-1, a hereditary endocrine disorder her doctors said would require a lifetime of surgery and surveillance. But a quiet, stubborn voice inside her said something else: “What if it’s different for me?” Lizzie followed that voice, and the path it led her on included functional medicine, spirituality, deep emotional work, nervous system regulation, and something even more powerful: self-leadership. Her most recent labs now show symptom reversal—something her doctors have never seen. This conversation is a testament to what’s possible when we dare to imagine a new story—and become the leader of our own healing journey. 🌿 What You’ll Discover: ✨ Why MEN-1 (a rare genetic condition) doesn’t have to be a lifelong sentence ✨ The inner voice that changed Lizzie’s trajectory forever ✨ Her three-pillar healing framework: Build Your A-Team, Heal Yourself, Create Your Health ✨ What it really means to reverse symptoms in a condition you’re told is “incurable” ✨ How healing isn't about eliminating fear—it's about acting anyway ✨ Why doctors often resist what works (and what to do about it) ✨ The difference between comfort, familiarity, and actual health ✨ Who your illness is inviting you to become Whether you’re navigating rare illness or everyday burnout, Lizzie’s journey will reawaken your belief in what’s possible. ⏳ Timestamps: 00:00 Intro + welcome 02:00 What is MEN-1? Lizzie’s diagnosis at 13 08:00 Early surgeries and the breaking point 10:00 The inner voice that changed everything 13:00 Symptom reversal and unexpected results 17:00 The danger of defaulting to “what’s typical” 23:00 Changing the prognosis by changing the story 28:00 Why doctors may resist what they see working 33:00 Lizzie’s 3-part healing framework 39:00 Designing your health, not waiting for it 45:00 Boundaries, discernment, and leading yourself 53:00 Who her illness invited her to become 58:00 Final reflections + how to connect with Lizzie 🔮 Connect with Lizzie and learn about her work + offers: → YouTube: @lizziieedunn → Instagram: @lizziieedunn 🎧 Listen to her podcast: The MEN-1 Mosaic on her YouTube channel 💫 Join the Sacred Illness™ Membership: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/sacred-illness 💸 Use code PODCAST for 20% off your first month → Apply to be a podcast guest: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Follow on Substack: https://drerinhayford.substack.com → Inspired by this content? You can support my work by buying me a coffee here: www.buymeacoffee.com/drerin 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfk www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

What if your body remembers more than your mind ever could? In this powerful conversation, I’m joined by Audrey Burke — a somatic experiencing practitioner, transforming touch practitioner, and licensed massage therapist based in Durham, NC. Audrey shares her deeply personal journey through confusing diagnoses, chronic digestive symptoms, amenorrhea, and mysterious illness flares — and how they ultimately led her to the world of somatic work and touch therapy. Together we explore how trauma stories live in the body long before we can speak them, and why touch is often the missing piece in nervous system healing. 🌿 What You’ll Discover: ✨ Why talk therapy isn’t always enough (and when touch becomes crucial)✨ Audrey’s story of IBS, mold illness, and learning to listen to her body✨ How developmental trauma shapes our physical symptoms — even before birth✨ The delicate balance of self-compassion, boundaries, and discernment✨ Why you don’t need to "know the story" cognitively to heal somatically✨ The importance of ancestral trauma and epigenetic influences on illness✨ Reclaiming intuitive eating after years of food fear and hyper-control✨ The dance between internal vs. external locus of control on the healing path Whether you're just starting your healing journey or deep in the work of reclaiming your body’s wisdom, this episode is a reminder that healing is not about fixing — it’s about listening. ⏳ Timestamps: 00:00 Intro + guest welcome02:00 Audrey’s story: Italy, IBS, and searching for answers10:00 Trying everything: diets, yoga, Vipassana, and beyond17:00 Finally finding somatic experiencing and touch therapy24:00 How visceral work transformed her relationship with food27:00 The unexpected medicine in mold illness32:00 Ancestral trauma and inherited patterns39:00 Food trauma, intuitive eating, and rebuilding trust with the body43:00 Boundaries, people-pleasing, and embodying discernment50:00 Navigating a world that doesn’t feel safe54:00 Who Audrey’s illness invited her to become57:00 Closing reflections and ways to connect with Audrey 🔮 Connect with Audrey: → Website: https://www.restorativepresence.com/→ Instagram: @somaticswithaudrey 💫 Join the Sacred Illness™ Membership:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/sacred-illness💸 Use code PODCAST for 20% off your first month → Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Follow on Substack:https://drerinhayford.substack.com 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfkwww.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

What if pain isn’t just physical—but perceptual? In this off-the-cuff solo episode, I share a deeply personal story that changed everything I thought I knew about suffering, healing, and what’s possible for the body. From a nearly pain-free childbirth (yes, really) to a powerful client breakthrough around chronic pain, this episode is a living case study in the power of narrative and perception to reshape what we believe is “inevitable.” This is a conversation about story medicine—and how your body listens to the stories you’ve been told. What You’ll Discover: ✨ Why “pain is inevitable” is a cultural script, not a biological truth✨ How my second birth experience (using Hypnobabies) was 99.9% pain-free✨ What my patient’s resistance to healing taught me about collective beliefs✨ The link between trauma, identity, and nervous system feedback loops✨ How stories shape biology—and why your environment must reflect your possibility✨ Why “support groups” can reinforce illness—and how to create spaces that open new timelines Whether you're navigating Crohn’s, chronic pain, emotional survival patterns or beyond—this is a reminder that what you've been told isn't the whole story. ⏳ Timestamps: 00:00 Off-the-cuff inspiration + intro02:00 Working with trauma: story, survival, and the nervous system04:00 Pain and birth: my first traumatic delivery06:00 Discovering Hypnobabies and preparing for a new possibility08:00 A pain-free labor? Yes. And here’s what shifted13:00 Resistance, story, and how the body protects itself from pain16:00 When narrative dictates outcome18:00 Why “support groups” can backfire21:00 Childhood programming and your inherited pain beliefs23:00 Rewriting the story: hope, healing, and neuroplasticity24:00 Cured by Jeffrey Rediger: what spontaneous healings have in common26:00 Sacred Illness™ and the power of perception to transform suffering 🔮 Mentioned in this episode: → Hypnobabies Childbirth Education: https://www.hypnobabies.com → 📖 Cured by Dr. Jeffrey Rediger 💫 Join the Sacred Illness™ Membership:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/community💸 Use code PODCAST for 20% off your first month → Apply to be a podcast guest:https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Inspired by this content? You can support my work by buying me a coffee here: www.buymeacoffee.com/drerin Subscribe to my Substack to stay informed about my latest posts, musings, teachings, transmissions and more on all things Sacred Illness™. 🎶 Music by: “Instructions for Living a Life” by Savfkwww.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe

🔥 What if your desire isn’t the problem—but the path? 🔥 Welcome to Episode 41 of the Sacred Illness™ Podcast. In this solo transmission, I unpack the deep link between longing, healing, and evolution. We’re told desire is a distraction. That suffering must be eliminated. That symptoms are obstacles. But what if illness is the sacred interrupter—and desire is the fuel that leads us through it? This episode explores what it really means to evolve, why your desires will never be satisfied (and why that’s a good thing), and how to stop missing your life in the pursuit of healing.   What You’ll Discover: 🌿 Why desire keeps you stuck in the search—and how to step off the hamster wheel 🌿 How illness is designed to interrupt the misaligned life 🌿 The two-part path of real healing: awareness + integration 🌿 How to identify subconscious beliefs that keep you sick (like “I’m not enough”) 🌿 The subtle trap of “what’s next?” and how it sabotages transformation 🌿 Why cultivating presence is the antidote to insatiable longing 🌿 How to work with your desire as sacred momentum—not a destination   This episode is both a personal reflection and a wake-up call. If you’ve ever wondered why the healing journey feels like an endless search that never bears results... this one's for you.   ⏳ Timestamps: 00:00 Podcast update + new solo episodes 01:00 Illness as a sacred disruption 03:00 Personal story: desire and disappointment 05:00 The meaning of life? 07:00 Facing your shadows as the path to healing 10:00 Why Western medicine reflects our fear of suffering 12:00 Desire on the healing journey: when pursuit becomes addiction 14:00 The necessity of stillness after seeking 16:00 The healing work: living what you've learned 19:00 How desire tricks us into missing our arrival 22:00 Holding presence and desire together 24:00 Recap + invitation into deeper work   🔮 Mentioned in this episode: → Apply to be a guest on the podcast: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/podcast-guest → Join the Sacred Illness™ Membership and alchemize your wounds into purpose: https://www.aurorasomatic.com/sacred-illness 💸 Use code PODCAST for 20% off your first month → Follow my transmissions + reflections on Substack: https://sacredillness.substack.com   🎶 Music by: Instructions for Living a Life by Savfk www.youtube.com/@SavfkMusic This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sacredillness.substack.com/subscribe