Pardon My Mind with Rachel & Hiiro

Leo Flowers joins us from San Diego, California to discuss the power of being an overall genuine human. Leo is a man of many talents. He is a stand-up comedian, a podcaster and has an M.A. in counselling/psychology. Leo hails from Chicago, and has also been a substitute school teacher and is a former D1 athlete!
Leo speaks about being secure with being a generalist at times in his life when it's been needed. He's candid about his own struggles with mental health and how important it is to forgive and be kind to ourselves, by getting out of our own way and surrendering. Leo has performed his stand-up in several comedy tours in North America. No two shows are ever alike, as he’s always attacking the issues of the day and revealing personal anecdotes. Infusing stand up with storytelling, Leo captivates audiences of all demographics.
He currently lives with his Jewish girlfriends (yep, there's that in comment... lol) and opens up about how they met and how having a background in psychology helped their relationship through Covid. Leo has a suicide prevention podcast called Before You Kill Yourself, where he interviews other mental health experts, comedians and best-selling book authors as they destigmatize mental health and teach you how to thrive! He's also working as a Life Coach, coaching individuals who are thriving, prosperous and successful in their careers & finances, but suffering in their relationships.
There are so many takeaways from Leo Flowers and a blossoming you could say...
Leo's LINKS:
Website
Instagram (@leoflowers2000)
Facebook
YouTube
Pardon My Mind Links:
YouTube
Instagram (@pardonmymindpod)
Facebook (@pardonmymindpod)
Website

*You can catch our 1st chat with Jeff in our very first episode with a guest, recorded 1 year prior, on episode 2!*
We come full circle with our first ever guest and Jewcy (and hunky) Mensch, Jeff Grace! Jeff is a man of many gifts including teaching yoga from a swimmers specific lens, an advocate for mental health and bi-polar disorder, and amplifies the benefits of coaching/development to further your pure potential.
One big update since Jeff's last visit... he moved to Sweden 🇸🇪 with his wife, so he joins us from across the ocean! Jeff reflects on his progress both personally and professionally and shares with us the processes of his mental health through transition (and what advice he gives others going through some big life altering changes). We also chat about the cultural differences between Vancouver, Canada and Sweden, including ways he was able to quickly find Community in his new home.
We're always grateful to Jeff for sharing his stories of being a mental health warrior! He truly takes his life by the horns (or balls?) and is constantly working on being an advocate for himself, always getting the assistance he needs and teaching others to do the same.
Oh... and Jeff just happens to be Jew-ISH too. lol!
**Trigger warning** This episode includes some discussion on mental health. The discussion comes from real life experience, and might be sensitive to some listeners. We hope this episode opens up the dialog more when it comes to the stigmas that still exist surrounding mental health.
If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, please call the Canadian Suicide Prevention Service at 1-833-456-4566. We also have a website resource below for those who are needing help navigate their mental health challenges. With love and light, Rachel & Hiiro.
Mental Health Links:
Mental Health First Aid Canada
Support in Canada

In Crisis in Canada? Please call 1-833-456-4566. In the US, please call 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
Jeff's Links:
Website
Instagram (@swimmingspecificyoga)
Jeff Grace on the Stand Up for Mental Health Stage

Pardon My Mind Links:
YouTube
Instagram (@pardonmymindpod)
Facebook (@pardonmymindpod)
Website

What an absolute pleasure it was to have Jivana Heyman, founder of 'Accessible Yoga' join us for this episode! Accessible Yoga is an international non-profit organization dedicated to increasing access to the yoga teachings. Jivana is an author, a co-owner of the Santa Barbara Yoga Center, and an Integral Yoga Minister. He lives with his husband and two children in Santa Barbara, California.
We learn about Jivana's upbringing and what experiences in his life drew him to yoga, specifically his familiarity with death due to living in New York City during the AIDS crisis in the gay community of the 80's. Jivana's activism at that time is inspiring and it continued on to providing yoga to every BODY all the way up to today.
Over the past 25 years, Jivana has led countless yoga teacher training programs around the world, and dedicates his time to supporting yoga teachers who are working to serve communities that are under-represented in traditional yoga spaces.
Jivana's LINKS:
Website
Instagram (@jivanaheyman)
Facebook (@jivanaheyman)
Book - 'Accessible Yoga: Poses and Practices for Every Body'

Pardon My Mind Links:
YouTube
Instagram (@pardonmymindpod)
Facebook (@pardonmymindpod)
Website

We celebrate New Years Day by launching our 1st episode of 2021 with no other than the OG Queer Eye Culture Expert and Actor, Jai Rodriguez! Jai was a delight to share our time with as we dove deep and Jewcy into his background in television, film and Broadway. He was also very open about being of colour working in the "Biz" in an age where this quality was not fairly represented or recognized. Within Queer culture itself the progression has rapidly evolved over the last 20 years in mainstream inclusivity and diversity for all walks of life.
We also debunk the processes of pre and post production for Queer Eye on Bravo and Jai talks about how he started his musical theatre career with RENT in NYC and in Canada. He gets candid about his story growing up, through the decades of his life and to current Covid times. Jai's had many plot twists thrown his way. He now has his very own platform and budding community, Jai's World!
This episode is full of raw dialog, which we're so thankful to have had with Jai. For someone that gets put on a pedestal in his industry, you'll get to learn about who the real Jai is. We continue to pull the mask off of "celebrity"... one human at a time.
**Sound is kinda wonky with Jai until about 23:40... Keep listening! It gets really good!**
Jai's LINKS:
Website
Instagram (@jairodriguez)
Twitter (@jairodriguez)

Pardon My Mind Links:
YouTube
Instagram (@pardonmymindpod)
Facebook (@pardonmymindpod)
Website

Leah Lax joins us from Texas and takes an inning (or 2) from the Astros World Series game to get Jewcy about her vibrant story and upcoming opera based on her memoir, Uncovered: How I Left Hasidic Life and Finally Came Home. Leah is a published award-winning fiction, nonfiction and prose poetry author. The opera, based on Uncovered, will be premiering mid-November, 2022, hosted by the City Lyric Opera in New York, NY!
Learn about Leah's incredibly journey of living a secret life for 30 years in a restrictive society and the consequences of living a lie. Against her family's wishes, at only 15 years of age and a young lesbian, Leah joined the Hasidim, an ultra-orthodox Jewish sect. In her desire for inclusion and serenity, she hid her true self, entered an arranged marriage and had 7 children. Then she faced a crisis that changed everything...
This discussion is one of those that will shed much needed awareness on the following: Women's Rights (including consent and pro-choice), Hasidic Jewish Culture, LGBTQIA+, Family and Arts/Culture.
*This episode contains contains some sensitive subject matter, including a pro-choice real-life experience, which is incredibly pivotal to who Leah is today. Thank you Leah for being vulnerable with us and for showing the World we need to continue to have open dialogues about Women's Rights.
Leah's Links:
Website
City Lyric Opera (buy tickets to Uncovered)
Facebook
Instagram
Buy Uncovered on Amazon

Pardon My Mind Links:
YouTube
Instagram (@pardonmymindpod)
Facebook (@pardonmymindpod)
Website