Finding Harmony Podcast

AI, Consciousness & the Quantum Field: A Christmas Episode on Transformation

This Christmas, we did something completely different. Instead of planning our usual year-end reflection, we handed control to AI—specifically ChatGPT—and asked it to curate 15 topics based on who we are, what we've experienced this year, and what needs to be said. The result? Well, you’re just gonna have to give it a listen!
Join Harmony Slater and Russell Case as they explore the intersection of ancient wisdom and cutting-edge technology through discussions that span quantum consciousness, psychedelic healing, the Ashtanga yoga world's reckoning, and the art of finding beauty in life's broken moments. This isn't your typical year-in-review episode—it's a deep dive into what happens when you let "Gaia Earth Consciousness" (as Russell calls AI) guide a conversation about transformation.
What We Explore:
🌌 Consciousness as Fundamental Reality We dive into physicist Maria Rom's theory that consciousness isn't emergent—it's the foundational fabric of the universe itself. From the double-slit experiment to quantum entanglement, we explore why this changes everything about healing, relationships, and daily practice.
🍄 The Gen X Psychedelic Renaissance Russell shares his unexpected return to plant medicine in midlife as a tool for healing childhood trauma. We discuss the "fungal outbreak" of psychedelic healing spreading through society and what it means for the spiral of growth.
🧘 31 Years of Practice Revealed For the first time, Russell vulnerably shares what three decades of Ashtanga yoga practice actually felt like—and why he finally feels good after releasing the need to strive.
⚖️ Ashtanga Yoga's Year of Reckoning We address the women rising up to call out abuse in the Ashtanga community and why this moment matters for the future of teacher-student relationships.
💕 Relationship as Constant Friction The real gifts we give each other? Transparency, emotional holding, and healthy bickering that prevents resentment from festering. Plus: why we both like spicy food.
🌊 Tao Tourism & Missing Flights The philosophy of surrendering to flow, illustrated by our European food adventure, a missed flight in Amsterdam, and how mistakes become part of the beauty.
✨ Kintsugi: Painting Broken Things with Gold The Japanese art of repair as metaphor for life—weaving imperfection into the narrative instead of hiding it.
🎯 Identity as Fiction Existentialist perspective on personality as story, and the radical freedom to tell yourself different stories to become different people.
🙏 Love as the Only Reality Harmony's gift to listeners: experiencing at a cellular level that there is no separate "you"—only love, experiencing itself through infinite forms.
Episode Highlights & Timestamps:
[00:04:00] Introduction: The AI-curated episode concept
[00:06:00] The problem of consciousness in philosophy
[00:09:00] Gaia consciousness and AI as unified field
[00:12:00] What Gen Xers are remembering this year
[00:15:00] End-of-year ritual recommendations
[00:19:00] Russell's 31-year practice journey
[00:24:00] The gift of constant friction in relationships
[00:27:00] Letting go while still gripping (the anabolic steroid story)
[00:31:00] Harmony's mystical transformation
[00:35:00] Tao Tourism philosophy
[00:37:00] Finding awe in mundane objects (Chardin practice)
[00:40:00] Identity as existential fiction
[00:42:00] The Kintsugi moment: missed flights and beauty
[00:45:00] Balance, yin-yang, and buying Canadian
Resources Mentioned:
Maria Ström's article on consciousness and quantum physics (Apple News)
"Evaluate and Evolve" workbook - FREE download for year-end reflection: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolve
Finding Harmony Community - Join for December 28th complimentary event
Live Group Energy Reset featuring breathwork and spinal energetic
About Finding Harmony:
Finding Harmony is a podcast exploring the intersection between ancient wisdom and modern everyday life, using mind-body practices to heal, awaken, and manifest dreams from the inside out. Hosted by yoga teacher and consciousness guide Harmony Slater, with co-host Russell Case.
EVALUATE & EVOLVE  https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolveUpcoming events: https://harmonyslater.com/events21 Day Money Magic Manifestation Challenge: https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444Use PROMO CODE for additional $20 Savings: MANIFESTATIONMAGIC FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activationFIND Harmony: https://harmonyslater.com/JOIN the Finding Harmony Community: https://community-harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE 2 min breathwork practice: https://harmonyslater.com/morning-breathwork-optinFind your Spiritual Entrepreneur Archetype! Take the Quiz! https://harmonyslater.com/spiritual-entrepreneur-archetype-quiz BOOK Your Spinal Energetics Session: https://harmonyslater.as.me/

Sacred Rage: Using Anger as a Catalyst for Spiritual Growth

What happens when you love a practice but recognize the harm within its structures? In this raw and revelatory conversation, Harmony sits down with Zoe Ward—long-time Ashtanga practitioner, authorized teacher, and the voice behind @unrulyascetic—to explore what it means to dismantle a tradition from within.
Zoe spent years immersed in Mysore, studying with lineage teachers, and fully embodying the discipline that defines Ashtanga yoga. But somewhere along the way, she began to see the cracks: the privilege required to practice this way, the power dynamics that mutate devotion into dogma, the loss of autonomy when teachers dictate who you are and what's good for you.
This conversation doesn't shy away from the uncomfortable truths—the hierarchy, the gatekeeping, the ways we've normalized abuse while failing to normalize talking about it. But it also offers something essential: a path forward. Zoe shares how she's rebuilding her relationship with practice, helping others reclaim their agency, and creating space for people to trust themselves again.
Whether you're a devoted practitioner, a disillusioned teacher, or someone who's quietly stepped away from the mat, this episode offers permission to question, evolve, and find your own unruly path to freedom.
Topics Discussed:
• The privilege required to practice traditional Ashtanga yoga
• Power dynamics and hierarchy in yoga communities
• When devotion becomes dogma and disconnection
• Confronting harm and accountability in spiritual communities
• Reclaiming autonomy and trusting yourself in practice
• Finding the intelligence in the system without rigid adherence
• Building community that doesn't gatekeep or sort practitioners
Lightworker Alignment Call: https://harmonyslater.as.me/quick-clarity
EVALUATE & EVOLVE  https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolveUpcoming events: https://harmonyslater.com/events21 Day Money Magic Manifestation Challenge: https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444Use PROMO CODE for additional $20 Savings: MANIFESTATIONMAGIC FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activationFIND Harmony: https://harmonyslater.com/JOIN the Finding Harmony Community: https://community-harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE 2 min breathwork practice: https://harmonyslater.com/morning-breathwork-optinFind your Spiritual Entrepreneur Archetype! Take the Quiz! https://harmonyslater.com/spiritual-entrepreneur-archetype-quiz BOOK Your Spinal Energetics Session: https://harmonyslater.as.me/

When Your Body Says No: Listening To The Wisdom In Your Practice

After more than 25 years of practice and 20 years of teaching, Harmony has found herself in a very different relationship with yoga than the one she started with. In this conversation, she sits down with her friend and co-facilitator, Lindsay Johnson, to talk honestly about what happens when a highly structured, discipline heavy practice stops feeling like home to your body.
They trace the arc from Ashtanga and power vinyasa into somatic yoga, nervous system literacy, trauma sensitivity, and embodied energetics, and how those worlds are coming together in their new 100 hour Somatic Yoga and Embodied Energy Teacher Training at Yoga Passage in Calgary. 
Harmony shares how the dogma and dualism she experienced in traditional Ashtanga left her feeling traumatized and disconnected from her own body’s wisdom, even as she continued to teach. Lindsay talks about growing up with medical trauma, discovering yoga as her first physical practice, and how chasing discipline, shapes, and handstands eventually gave way to a longing for freedom, expression, and true safety in her body.
Together, they explore somatics as “coming home”: feeling instead of performing, building safety before “doing the work,” honouring the nervous system, and allowing movement, sound, and emotion to express in ways that look far less linear and far more like nature. They also speak directly to yoga teachers and long-time practitioners whose bodies are now saying no to old patterns, and how this training is designed as an initiation and a supplement to existing trainings rather than “just another certification.”
If your yoga practice has started to feel like a grind, if your nervous system is already at capacity, or if you are curious about weaving subtle energy work, trauma literacy, and somatic language into the way you teach, this episode is an invitation to reimagine what yoga can be.
In This Episode, You’ll Hear About
When a beloved practice stops working
Harmony’s honest reflection on feeling traumatized by the dogma and indoctrination around Ashtanga.
What it is like when your body keeps saying “no” every time you get on your mat.
Why so many midlife practitioners walk away from yoga entirely when the old way stops feeling safe.
Lindsay’s path through discipline into somatics
First teacher training at Yoga Passage back in 2005 and years of teaching linear, disciplined styles like power vinyasa and Ashtanga.
How a Saturday power class turned into a somatic class the moment she invited everyone to shake, and never went back.
The realization that she had been hypervigilant and disconnected from her body for most of her life, and how somatics helped her come home.
Discipline, structure and their limits
Why highly structured systems can initially feel like safety for nervous systems shaped by trauma, chaos, or disorganized families.
How discipline taught them to cue, hold space, and show up, yet eventually began to feel like a cage rather than support.
The shift from “I need to fix myself and prove my worthiness” to “I am already whole, and the practice is about remembering that.”
Somatic yoga as nervous system literacy
What it means to teach from a felt sense instead of from performance or achievement.
Using pendulation, “islands of safety,” and choice to guide students in and out of sensation.
Why learning to relax and feel ease is a prerequisite for true regulation and resilience.
Trauma sensitivity and language in class
How somatic language differs from traditional cueing, especially around choice and autonomy.
Giving students sovereignty instead of pushing them into “no pain, no gain” territory.
Letting go of rigid bilateral rules and allowing asymmetry, ease, and curiosity to lead.
Feminine energy, Kundalini and non-linear movement
Reframing vinyasa and “flow” as something guided by breath and sensation, not just choreography.
How Kundalini and Shakti express through spirals, oscillations, and organic movement rather than straight lines.
The role of self-touch, oxytocin, and nurturing practices in regulating women’s nervous systems.
Embodied energetics and the subtle body
Seeing the body as the densest part of the energetic field, not just a physical object.
Working with the chakras, nadis, fascia, and spinal energetics as an integrated map.
How teachers can sense the field, notice shifts, and differentiate between “my energy” and “the room.”
The 100 Hour Somatic Yoga & Embodied Energy Teacher Training
Who it is for: yoga teachers, healers, and coaches with a foundational training who want to go deeper.
What it includes: somatic practices, nervous system education, subtle body mapping, trauma sensitive space-holding, and embodied leadership.
How the in-person format at Yoga Passage in Calgary supports community, co-regulation, and live practice.
About Our Guest: Lindsay Johnson
Lindsay Johnson is a yoga teacher, somatic healing practitioner, and trauma-informed facilitator based in Calgary, Alberta. She has been practicing yoga for nearly 20 years and began teaching after her first training at Yoga Passage in 2005. Over the years, she has studied with teachers such as Shiva Rea and Baron Baptiste, taught power vinyasa and Ashtanga, owned her own studio, and eventually returned to Yoga Passage after major life changes in 2020. 
Lindsay now focuses on somatic yoga, movement-based therapy, and nervous system literacy, helping students and clients reconnect with their bodies after trauma, burnout, and years of living in their heads. At Yoga Passage, she is listed as a practitioner offering somatic healing in their wellness program and teaches classes, workshops, full moon events, and her signature Soma Movement sessions. 
Her work centres on sovereignty, choice, and collective healing. Through shaking practices, floor-based somatic sequences, and careful, choice-based language, Lindsay creates spaces where people can safely feel, express, and integrate their full emotional spectrum. You can find her teaching in person at Yoga Passage and sharing her work online at @lj_heals on Instagram. 
Links From This Episode
Somatic Yoga & Embodied Energy 100 Hour Teacher Training
Hosted at Yoga Passage in Calgary, Alberta
Check Yoga Passage’s Teacher Training and Workshops pages for details and registration: https://yogapassage.ca
Yoga Passage (studio)
Website: https://yogapassage.ca
Instagram: @yoga.passage
Connect with Lindsay
Instagram: @lj_heals 
Somatic healing offerings at Yoga Passage: Somatic Healing listing on the Therapists page
EVALUATE & EVOLVE  https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolveUpcoming events: https://harmonyslater.com/events21 Day Money Magic Manifestation Challenge: https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444Use PROMO CODE for additional $20 Savings: MANIFESTATIONMAGIC FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activationFIND Harmony: https://harmonyslater.com/JOIN the Finding Harmony Community: https://community-harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE 2 min breathwork practice: https://harmonyslater.com/morning-breathwork-optinFind your Spiritual Entrepreneur Archetype! Take the Quiz! https://harmonyslater.com/spiritual-entrepreneur-archetype-quiz BOOK Your Spinal Energetics Session: https://harmonyslater.as.me/

Spiritual Awakening Through the Enneagram and Expanded States of Consciousness

In this mind-bending, heart-opening conversation, Harmony and Russell welcome back author, former Benedictine monk, financial advisor, and Enneagram educator Doug Lynam. What begins as a discussion about money and spirituality quickly expands into psychedelics, ego structures, ancient Christian history, mystical experiences, and why our deepest personal wounds shape both our financial lives and our spiritual paths.
Doug unpacks how his monastic vows, his monastery’s bankruptcy, and years of guiding others through financial distress led him to explore the emotional and psychological roots of money. He explains why money acts as “stored energy,” why it absorbs our intention, and why integrating spirituality with finance is essential for living a whole, aligned life.
From there, the episode rolls into the psychedelic origins of the Enneagram, how different types experience altered states, and why Doug believes psychedelic journeys can reveal the deepest architecture of the ego. Harmony and Russell share their own recent experiences with 5-MeO-DMT, exploring consciousness, connection, lineage healing, and the dissolution of the self.
This is one of the most surprising, expansive, and spiritually charged conversations ever recorded for the Finding Harmony podcast.
In this episode:
Setting the Stage: Who Is Doug Lynam Today?
Harmony introduces Doug as a “monk, a money manager, and a mystic” wrapped into one.
Doug’s backstory: 20 years as a Benedictine monk, vow of poverty, monastery bankruptcy.How reconciling money and spirituality became his life’s work.
Money as Spiritual Energy
Doug reframes money as “stored work energy.”
Why separating spirituality and money leads to fragmentation.
Russell shares his discomfort about mixing spirituality and money, prompting a rich dialogue about cultural conditioning and internal conflict.
Psychedelics in Early Christianity
Doug shares research from The Immortality Key.
Evidence of psychedelic sacraments in early Christian rituals.
Greek, Roman, and pagan traditions that shaped early Christianity.
Understanding the Enneagram from a Psychological Lens
Doug explains the Enneagram as nine ego-structures shaped by childhood stressors.
The three emotional roots: anger, sadness, fear.
Russell identifies strongly with Type Nine.
How the Enneagram predicts emotional triggers and core wounds.
Psychedelics and the Enneagram
Doug’s theory: psychedelic experiences mirror your type’s greatest fear and greatest hope.
Anger-triad types often benefit from dissociatives like ketamine.
Shame-triad types often benefit from MDMA.
Fear-triad types often resonate with psilocybin or LSD.
The Untold Psychedelic History of the Enneagram
The Enneagram’s modern lineage through Oscar Ichazo and Claudio Naranjo.
Naranjo’s psychedelic clinic and collaborations with Alexander Shulgin.
How psychedelic history was stripped out when the Enneagram entered Christian communities.
Five-MeO-DMT, Ego Dissolution, and the Mystical Experience
Doug outlines safe, trauma-informed approaches to 5-MeO facilitation.
Why slow, intentional dosing may be safer than single “breakthrough” hits.
How the Enneagram enriches psychedelic integration.
Harmony and Russell share their own recent journeys, including lineage healing and somatic release.
Trauma, Healing, and Union with the Divine
Doug shares his own intense 5-MeO experience involving collective suffering and infinite love.
Philosophical reflections on consciousness, non-duality, pain, and interconnectedness.
A powerful closing on how expanded states reveal the architecture of the ego and the nature of reality.
Guest Bio: Doug Lynam
Doug Lynam is a former Benedictine monk turned financial advisor, author, and expert on the intersection of money, psychology, and spirituality. After spending two decades in monastic life, Doug unexpectedly became responsible for navigating his monastery through bankruptcy. This launched his mission to help others heal their relationship with money. He’s a partner at a New Mexico investment firm, an Enneagram specialist, and the author of From Monk to Money Manager and Taming Your Money Monster. Doug also integrates his deep interest in psychedelics, consciousness, and emotional transformation into his work.
Relevant Links
Taming Your Money Monster by Doug Lynam: https://www.thomasnelson.com/p/taming-your-money-monster/
Clarity Session with Harmony: https://harmonyslater.as.me/Clarity-Session
Call to Action
If this episode stretched your mind, cracked open your heart, or made you rethink your relationship with money and spirituality, share it with someone who loves exploring consciousness. And make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss future episodes where we keep expanding what’s possible.
EVALUATE & EVOLVE  https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolveUpcoming events: https://harmonyslater.com/events21 Day Money Magic Manifestation Challenge: https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444Use PROMO CODE for additional $20 Savings: MANIFESTATIONMAGIC FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activationFIND Harmony: https://harmonyslater.com/JOIN the Finding Harmony Community: https://community-harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE 2 min breathwork practice: https://harmonyslater.com/morning-breathwork-optinFind your Spiritual Entrepreneur Archetype! Take the Quiz! https://harmonyslater.com/spiritual-entrepreneur-archetype-quiz BOOK Your Spinal Energetics Session: https://harmonyslater.as.me/

Energy Before Strategy: Rewiring Your Frequency For Abundance

This special Black Friday solo episode of the Finding Harmony Podcast invites you to step out of the frenzy of sales and into a much quieter revolution: transforming your relationship with money from the inside out.
Host Harmony Slater reframes money as energy, a living current that wants to circulate, not stagnate. Drawing on her own history of growing up in a household marked by financial fear and scarcity, she shares three key insights that can help you reset your money frequency as the holidays, year-end reflections, and new intentions all converge.
You will explore how gratitude shifts your nervous system out of threat mode, why energy must come before strategy when it comes to money and business, and how true generosity springs from a sense of inner enoughness rather than obligation or pressure. Harmony closes by inviting you into her 21 Day Money Magic and Manifestation Challenge, a structured container to rewire your money beliefs, calm your nervous system, and expand your capacity to receive.
This is a beautiful listen for anyone who feels anxious about holiday spending, income, or “where you should be by now” and is ready to create a more grounded, spiritual, and truly abundant relationship with wealth.
In this episode, Harmony explores:
Money as circulating energy
Why she chooses to talk about circulating money rather than spending it over Black Friday weekend
How seeing money as energy, currency, and flow changes the way you relate to it
Insight 1: Gratitude as a nervous system reset
How childhood scarcity imprints connect money with stress, fear, and conflict
A simple gratitude practice you can use right now to move from “surviving” into a sense of thriving and sufficiencyHow gratitude shifts your brain chemistry toward safety and receptivity
Insight 2: Energy before strategy
Why budgeting, hustling, or “doing more” rarely work when the underlying energy is fear
The difference between a “strategy problem” and an energetic mismatch
A somatic check-in to ask: “Does my body feel safe to receive more?”
How breath, mantra, visualization, and nervous system calibration prepare you to take aligned action
Insight 3: Generosity as a gateway to overflow
The difference between reckless spending and aligned generosity
A real-life story of making a scary, values-aligned investment in her first coaching program
Why investing energy in what is truly aligned with who you are becoming tends to multiply
Practical micro-practices from the 21 Day Money Magic and Manifestation Challenge
Daily prompts, breathwork, visualization, and nervous system practices
Repatterning your subconscious beliefs about money, safety, and worthiness
Learning to become a channel for abundance in all forms: finances, health, love, opportunities, and community
About Your Host: Harmony Slater
Harmony Slater is a Certified Life Coach, Certified Ashtanga Yoga Teacher, and long-time practitioner who has spent more than twenty years exploring how ancient spiritual technologies can support our modern lives. Through in-depth conversations, solo teachings, and practical tools, Harmony helps you bring yoga, meditation, and subtle body practices into everyday life so that you feel more resourced, clear, and connected.
You can learn more about Harmony, her programs, and upcoming retreats at harmonyslater.com.
Resources And Links Mentioned
Somatic Selling: A Spinal Energetics Workshop to Release Sales Fear + Embody Overflowhttps://harmonyslater.kit.com/somatic-bf25For coaches, healers, and yoga teachers ready to release sales resistance, expand their capacity to receive, and confidently share their gifts with the world.
21 Day Money Magic and Manifestation Challenge
https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444
Use PROMO CODE: MONEYMAGIC60 for an additional $60 Savings
You can jump into this challenge for only $48 - available ONLY for a limited time! 
21 days of daily audio messages, journal prompts, and micro-practices\
Designed to uncover subconscious money blocks, recalibrate your nervous system, and align your energy with abundance
On Black Friday special for three days
Use promo code: MoneyMagic60 at checkout
Call To Action
If this episode helped you feel more grounded and hopeful about money during the holiday season:
Join the 21 Day Money Magic and Manifestation Challenge
Use the code MoneyMagic60 for the limited Black Friday offer
Share this episode with a friend who feels anxious about finances, holiday spending, or “not being far enough along” in life.
Subscribe and leave a review for the Finding Harmony Podcast so more people can find these conversations about spirituality, yoga, and everyday life.
Come say hello on Instagram at @harmonyslaterofficial and @findingharmonypodcast and let Harmony know your biggest takeaway from this Black Friday episode.
EVALUATE & EVOLVE  https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolveUpcoming events: https://harmonyslater.com/events21 Day Money Magic Manifestation Challenge: https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444Use PROMO CODE for additional $20 Savings: MANIFESTATIONMAGIC FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activationFIND Harmony: https://harmonyslater.com/JOIN the Finding Harmony Community: https://community-harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE 2 min breathwork practice: https://harmonyslater.com/morning-breathwork-optinFind your Spiritual Entrepreneur Archetype! Take the Quiz! https://harmonyslater.com/spiritual-entrepreneur-archetype-quiz BOOK Your Spinal Energetics Session: https://harmonyslater.as.me/

From Mat To Money: How Daily Practice Builds True Wealth

In this episode of the Finding Harmony Podcast, Harmony and Russell sit down with longtime Ashtanga practitioner and certified financial planner Kathy Reisfeld to talk about money, dharma and what it really means to be wealthy.
Kathy’s story moves from physics and finance in New York City, through the shock of 9/11, to decades of Ashtanga practice and the creation of a Mysore shala in a renovated barn in the Berkshires. Along the way she has guided clients through multiple market crashes, bear markets and bubbles, all while keeping one eye on their portfolios and the other on what truly matters to them.
Together, Harmony, Russell and Kathy explore money as energy, the emotional baggage spiritual folks carry about finances, how to invest in a way that matches your time horizon and values, and why diversification is the financial equivalent of a well balanced yoga practice. They also ask tricky questions about capitalism, ethical investing and retirement, reframing them in terms of freedom, choice and dharma rather than fear.
If you have ever thought “I am spiritual, so I should not care about money” or felt totally frozen when it comes to investing, this conversation will help you breathe, relax and start treating your financial life as part of your practice instead of something separate from it.
What We Talk About
Wealth as energy, not just money
Kathy’s path from physics to finance to Ashtanga yoga
New York, 9/11 and the first bear market she had to guide clients through
Balancing a finance career and a serious practice
The basics of investing for spiritual people who feel scared of money
Ethical investing and spiritual discomfort with capitalism
Retirement, risk and planning for contingencies rather than escape
Money, houses and diversification
Investing in education, travel and your own human capital
Money as circulation and prana
Kathy’s life now: a barn, a shala and a wealth advisory firm
Guest Bio: Kathy Reisfeld
Kathy Reisfeld is a financial advisor and dedicated Ashtanga Yoga practitioner who helps people find balance—both in their financial lives and on the mat. As co-founder of Berkshire Wealth Group, she brings over 27 years of experience guiding clients through personalized investment planning. She holds both the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® and Certified Investment Management Analyst® certifications.
Kathy discovered Ashtanga Yoga in 2001 as a complement to running while working as a financial advisor in New York City. Initially somewhat resistant to the idea of yoga, she found this moving meditation practice transformative for managing stress and anxiety. She studied with renowned teachers including Eddie Stern, Nancy Gilgoff, and Christine Hoar—whom she's known for over 22 years and who has been her main teacher for the past decade. Kathy traveled to Mysore, India in 2005 to deepen her practice. Kathy's yoga practice has been the anchor that helped her navigate the demands of motherhood and a thriving career.
In 2024, Kathy and her husband Scott began renovating their barn to house both their financial advisory office upstairs and a dedicated Ashtanga Yoga space. Whether she's helping clients reduce financial stress or maintaining her own daily practice, Kathy's approach centers on the same principle: creating strength, healing, and freedom through mindful, values-based practices.
Kathy lives in Great Barrington with Scott, their daughter Ruthie, and their menagerie of pets. When not working or practicing yoga, you'll find her hiking, biking, or sailing in the Berkshires.
Berkshire Wealth Group | berkshirewealthgroup.com
250 Maple Ave, Great Barrington, MA 01230 | 845-263-3996 | kathy@brkwealthgrp.com
Securities offered through Raymond James Financial Services, Inc., member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services are offered through Raymond James Financial Services Advisors, Inc. Berkshire Wealth Group is not a registered broker/dealer and is independent of Raymond James Financial Services.
 
Relevant Links Mentioned Ashtanga Yoga
https://www.instagram.com/ashtangagb/
https://www.facebook.com/astangagb/
https://www.ashtangayogagb.com/
Yoga and Finance: yogaandfinance.com
EVALUATE & EVOLVE  https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolveUpcoming events: https://harmonyslater.com/events21 Day Money Magic Manifestation Challenge: https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444Use PROMO CODE for additional $20 Savings: MANIFESTATIONMAGIC FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activationFIND Harmony: https://harmonyslater.com/JOIN the Finding Harmony Community: https://community-harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE 2 min breathwork practice: https://harmonyslater.com/morning-breathwork-optinFind your Spiritual Entrepreneur Archetype! Take the Quiz! https://harmonyslater.com/spiritual-entrepreneur-archetype-quiz BOOK Your Spinal Energetics Session: https://harmonyslater.as.me/

Remembering Our Teachers, Tending Our Community, Facing Loss

On Remembrance Day, Harmony and Russell sit down with longtime friend and teacher Faith Scimecca to explore how daily practice steadies us through love, loss, and the mystery of dying. Faith traces her path from NCAA figure skater to Ashtanga practitioner and shala owner, and shares how a sincere prayer to “be of use” led her to chaplaincy. She speaks candidly about being present at Sharath Jois’s final workshops, the day he passed, what it feels like to sit with the dying, and the simple energetic hygiene that allows empaths to serve without taking on everyone else’s pain. This episode honors teachers, ancestors, and the living bond of community.
Faith Scimecca is a Level 2 Authorized Ashtanga Yoga teacher and the founder of Woodley Park Yoga in Washington, D.C. She studied extensively in Mysore, India, with Shri K. Pattabhi Jois and Sharath Jois, and has led the city’s longest running Mysore style Ashtanga program since 2007. In addition to her yoga teaching, Faith is a board certified hospital chaplain, trained at a Level 1 trauma center and now specializing in palliative and end of life care.
Conversation highlights
Origins of practice: figure skating discipline, Ohio to NYC to first Mysore trip
Becoming a teacher: opening Woodley Park Yoga in 2007, authorization and lineage memories
Remembrance: being with community around the passing of Sharath Jois, how joy showed up in his final tours
Chaplaincy calling: returning to school, clinical work in trauma and palliative settings
What matters at the end: relationships, meaning, the peace Faith often feels when a spirit crosses
Energetic boundaries for empaths: prayer, simple light visualizations, and “service mode”
Practice today: how Faith balances shala life, hospital work, and personal practice
About our guest
Faith Scimecca has taught Ashtanga for over two decades and runs Woodley Park Yoga in Washington, DC. She is an interfaith hospital chaplain supporting patients and families through palliative and end-of-life care. Faith integrates devotional practice, clear energetic boundaries, and steady daily sadhana to serve her community with clarity and compassion.
Resources and mentions
Woodley Park Yoga: https://www.woodleyparkyoga.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/woodleyparkyoga/
EVALUATE & EVOLVE  https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolveUpcoming events: https://harmonyslater.com/events21 Day Money Magic Manifestation Challenge: https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444Use PROMO CODE for additional $20 Savings: MANIFESTATIONMAGIC FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activationFIND Harmony: https://harmonyslater.com/JOIN the Finding Harmony Community: https://community-harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE 2 min breathwork practice: https://harmonyslater.com/morning-breathwork-optinFind your Spiritual Entrepreneur Archetype! Take the Quiz! https://harmonyslater.com/spiritual-entrepreneur-archetype-quiz BOOK Your Spinal Energetics Session: https://harmonyslater.as.me/

Small Moves, Big Relief: A Practical Guide To Returning To Yoga

Harmony and Russell sit down with long-time friend and teacher Krista Shirley to explore what it truly means to feel at home in your body. Krista recounts a devastating shoulder surgery complication that severed her suprascapular nerve, the long journey through pain and medical dead ends, and the mind-body tools that helped her rebuild function and joy. She shares how meditation, mental rehearsal, pranayama, and small, precise movements became a bridge back to daily practice, and why her Body Mechanics classes now offer a soft landing for people who think yoga is out of reach. The conversation gets real about grief in the Ashtanga community, aging, acceptance, and trusting the work you have already done.
Episode breakdown
What it takes to feel at home in your body
A candid account of nerve injury, infection, and the “FU door” moment of choosing a new path
Mental rehearsal, meditation, and pranayama as practical rehab tools
The case for micro-movements, scapular and hip focus, and brain-body connection
Aging with practice, releasing performance pressure, and keeping the joy
Why “trust the investment” can change everything when you return to the mat
Making practice accessible, how Body Mechanics leads people back to Mysore
Community, lineage, loss, and what sustains us now
About our guest
Krista Shirley is a Level 2 Authorized Ashtanga teacher, Pilates instructor, and founder of The Yoga Shala in Orlando, Florida. After a surgery severed her suprascapular nerve, she developed a brain-body approach to rehabilitation that became her Body Mechanics method, helping students reduce pain, restore function, and reconnect with practice. Krista teaches Mysore and Body Mechanics classes, offers tutorials on her YouTube channel, and leads retreats, including a July 10–16 program in Lefkada, Greece.
X / Twitter link: https://www.x.com/kristayogini
Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/kristashirleyyoga
Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/kristashirleyyoga
YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@yogawithkrista
Listen to episode 36 with Krista Shirley on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/finding-harmony-podcast/id1508928138?i=1000579088315
or
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2TISeuK3dGPFxL8nsykLzN?si=675435af5b0847a
Health Disclaimer:
The information shared in this episode of Finding Harmony Podcast is for educational and inspirational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician, physical therapist, or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition, injury, or wellness program. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you heard on this podcast.
EVALUATE & EVOLVE  https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolveUpcoming events: https://harmonyslater.com/events21 Day Money Magic Manifestation Challenge: https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444Use PROMO CODE for additional $20 Savings: MANIFESTATIONMAGIC FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activationFIND Harmony: https://harmonyslater.com/JOIN the Finding Harmony Community: https://community-harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE 2 min breathwork practice: https://harmonyslater.com/morning-breathwork-optinFind your Spiritual Entrepreneur Archetype! Take the Quiz! https://harmonyslater.com/spiritual-entrepreneur-archetype-quiz BOOK Your Spinal Energetics Session: https://harmonyslater.as.me/

Where Science Meets Soul: Psychedelics, Healing, and Integration

Harmony and Russell talk with researcher and author Matt Zemon about psychedelics as catalysts for change, not cures. They explore what current studies suggest about anxiety, PTSD, repetitive thinking, and addiction, then ground the conversation in practical guidance: source, set, and setting, medical intake, and the role of preparation and integration. The trio also contrasts medical and ceremonial lanes, the spiritual significance of entheogens, and how community transforms the healing arc—especially for veterans and for people navigating midlife transitions.
What You’ll Learn
Catalyst vs. cure: why altered states create openness for change, and why integration is the practice that makes it stick
Repetitive thinking patterns: how psychedelics may interrupt ruts that manifest as anxiety, depression, OCD, compulsions, or workaholism
Source, set, and setting: a clear safety-first framework echoed by research institutions
Preparation: clarifying intentions, tending physical space, and naming post-ceremony supports
Integration: bringing insights into dishes, deadlines, and relationships, plus finding community that fits your path
Medicine personalities: distinctions between ketamine, MDMA and MDA, psilocybin, LSD, ayahuasca, iboga/ibogaine, wachuma and peyote
Risk basics: why independent medical consults matter, medications that conflict, and when supervised care is non-negotiable
Spiritual context: clinical findings alongside living spiritual traditions, and why collaboration between science and spirit is needed now
The information provided in this episode is for educational and informational purposes only. It does not constitute medical, psychological, or legal advice, and should not be relied upon as such. Psychedelic substances remain illegal in many jurisdictions, and their use carries physical, psychological, and legal risks. 
If you are struggling with your mental health or substance use, please seek support from a licensed professional or contact your local mental health helpline.
About Our Guest — Matt Zemon
Matt holds a Master’s in Psychology and Neuroscience from King’s College London and is completing a Doctorate of Ministry at the Pacific School of Religion. He’s the author of Psychedelics for Everyone, Beyond the Trip, and The Veteran’s Guide to Psychedelics created with the Heroic Hearts Project. Matt works at the intersection of spirituality and mental health, helping communities and providers reduce risk and support meaningful, safe experiences.
Resources Mentioned (pulled from the convo)
Guest site: mattzemon.com
Books: Psychedelics for Everyone, Beyond the Trip, The Veteran’s Guide to Psychedelics
Organizations and references mentioned:
King’s College London
Pacific School of Religion
Heroic Hearts Project
Johns Hopkins, NYU, UCSF psychedelic research programs
spiritpharmacist.com (Dr. Ben Malcolm), Dr. Emily Kopa
On safety frameworks: source, set, and setting
On community and faith-based contexts: Christian, Jewish, and Islamic psychedelic groups were referenced generally
Call to Action
Join Harmony’s 21-Day Money Magic and Manifestation Challenge starting November 3 with a bonus live activation on Sunday, November 2. Check the show notes link to register, get the Manifestation Activation right away, and meet the community.
Subscribe, rate, and review the show. Turn on automatic downloads.
Say hello on Instagram: @findingharmonypodcast and @harmonyslaterofficial.
EVALUATE & EVOLVE  https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolveUpcoming events: https://harmonyslater.com/events21 Day Money Magic Manifestation Challenge: https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444Use PROMO CODE for additional $20 Savings: MANIFESTATIONMAGIC FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activationFIND Harmony: https://harmonyslater.com/JOIN the Finding Harmony Community: https://community-harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE 2 min breathwork practice: https://harmonyslater.com/morning-breathwork-optinFind your Spiritual Entrepreneur Archetype! Take the Quiz! https://harmonyslater.com/spiritual-entrepreneur-archetype-quiz BOOK Your Spinal Energetics Session: https://harmonyslater.as.me/

From Hot Rooms to Healing: Leaving Harmful Lineages and Finding Real Practice

What happens when devotion slips into blind obedience? Harmony opens this episode with a frank reflection on power, consent, and autonomy in yoga. She then welcomes Tamara Cole, a yoga teacher and former boat captain whose journey took her from Bikram’s hot rooms to a life of freedom and integrity in the Galápagos Islands.
Together, they unpack how groupthink, hierarchy, and manipulation take root in spiritual spaces — and what it looks like to rebuild a practice grounded in awareness, consent, and community. Tamara also shares her upcoming Galápagos Yoga Retreat, where participants reconnect with nature through snorkeling, island exploration, and mindful movement.
The conversation closes with Harmony’s 21-Day Money Magic & Manifestation Challenge, an embodiment-based program that helped Tamara rewire her scarcity stories and rediscover self-worth, grace, and generosity.
Episode Breakdown
Devotion vs. Obedience in Yoga: Harmony explores where trust becomes compliance
Tamara’s Story: From Florida business owner to devoted Bikram practitioner
Inside Bikram Training: Bootcamp culture, sleep deprivation, and witnessing abuse
Moments of Resistance: Choosing to walk out when a teacher crosses the line
Groupthink and Belonging: Why students stay, even when boundaries are broken
Life in the Galápagos: Conservation, connection, and the beauty of coexisting with nature
Retreat Highlights: Three uninhabited islands, snorkeling, cacao ceremony, yoga, and rest
Money Magic Challenge: Healing inherited beliefs and redefining abundance
Community as Medicine: Why doing the work together creates lasting change
Guest Bio
Tamara Cole is a yoga teacher and 100-ton licensed boat captain who spent nearly two decades teaching in Hawai‘i before relocating to the Galápagos Islands. She began practicing yoga in 2008 and trained in the Bikram system before shifting toward more holistic, heart-centered approaches. Tamara now leads transformative yoga retreats that weave movement, mindfulness, and connection to nature.
She is also a graduate of Harmony’s Lightworker Mastermind program, where she deepened her somatic and energetic practices while developing her signature Galápagos retreat.
Find Tamara on IG: https://www.instagram.com/yoga.with.tlc/
Find Tamara on FB: https://www.facebook.com/tami.cole.31
Call to Action
If you’ve ever questioned a teacher, lineage, or practice that no longer feels aligned, this conversation will help you find language for your intuition.
👉 Listen, share, and reflect.
Then explore the 21-Day Challenge to bring that same integrity to your relationship with money, creativity, and leadership.
EVALUATE & EVOLVE  https://harmonyslater.kit.com/evaluate-evolveUpcoming events: https://harmonyslater.com/events21 Day Money Magic Manifestation Challenge: https://community-harmonyslater.com/landing/plans/1542444Use PROMO CODE for additional $20 Savings: MANIFESTATIONMAGIC FREE Manifestation Activation: https://harmonyslater.kit.com/manifestation-activationFIND Harmony: https://harmonyslater.com/JOIN the Finding Harmony Community: https://community-harmonyslater.com/Harmony on IG: https://www.instagram.com/harmonyslaterofficial/Finding Harmony Podcast on IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingharmonypodcast/FREE 2 min breathwork practice: https://harmonyslater.com/morning-breathwork-optinFind your Spiritual Entrepreneur Archetype! Take the Quiz! https://harmonyslater.com/spiritual-entrepreneur-archetype-quiz BOOK Your Spinal Energetics Session: https://harmonyslater.as.me/