The Nourished Nervous System

Kristen Timchak

An exploration of stress, the nervous system, and resilience through the lenses of Ayurveda, Somatic Practice, Herbs, Neural Plasticity and much more!

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Top 10 The Nourished Nervous System Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best The Nourished Nervous System episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to The Nourished Nervous System for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite The Nourished Nervous System episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Listen! Your Body is Talking

The Nourished Nervous System

10/12/23 • 20 min

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What does it mean to be a good listener? To be present and listen without an agenda, and I believe to listen not only to the words spoken but also to body language, emotions and other subtle cues.
The same is true when you listen to your body. Your body is constantly talking to you through subtle nerve impulses and sensations and feelings and emotions. Your body is speaking and your mind is interpreting what it is saying, so it is important to have a clear mind so that you don't misinterpret your body's cues.
In this episode:

You may have heard of interoception, but what is it?
How interoception may relate to emotions and the nervous system
Other ways you can listen to your body
The importance of getting quiet to listen, and my personal story of my mind misinterpreting my body's cues
How pushing through can affect your ability to listen
Some simple ways to begin listening

Related Episodes:
Episode 4 : Nuts and Bolts of the Stress Response Cycle and How to Complete it
Episode 11: Why What you Think Matters
Episode 13: Practice Being a Cat
Deep Rest Meditation: www.nourishednervoussystem.com/deeprest
References:
Critchley HD, Garfinkel SN. Interoception and emotion. Curr Opin Psychol. 2017 Oct;17:7-14. doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2017.04.020. Epub 2017 Apr 23. PMID: 28950976.

Schulz A, Vögele C. Interoception and stress. Front Psychol. 2015 Jul 20;6:993. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00993. PMID: 26257668; PMCID: PMC4507149.

Holzer, P. (2017). Interoception and gut feelings: Unconscious body signals' impact on brain function, behavior and belief processes. In H.-F. Angel, L. Oviedo, R. F. Paloutzian, A. L. C. Runehov, & R. J. Seitz (Eds.), Processes of believing: The acquisition, maintenance, and change in creditions (pp. 435–442). Springer International Publishing/Springer Nature. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-50924-2_31

My resources:
Weekend Nervous System Reset

Deep Rest Meditation
Nourished For Resilience Workbook
Book a free Exploratory Call
Find me at www.nourishednervoussystem.com

and @nourishednervoussytem on Instagram

This is Your Brain on Meditation

The Nourished Nervous System

09/21/23 • 16 min

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Another podcast episode about meditation? Yes! We hear about meditation all the time from so many different sources but we can always use one more because it is just so good for us. If you are looking to make changes in your life, big or small, meditation is a practice that can support those changes. Not only does it help with managing stress, it actually changes the make up of your brain.
In this Episode:

The simplicity and accessibility of meditation
How it changes the brain
A few benefits of meditation
Some thoughts on why people don't meditate
Some preconceived notions about meditation that just aren't true
How meditation has helped me

My resources:
Weekend Nervous System Reset

Deep Rest Meditation
Nourished For Resilience Workbook
Book a free Exploratory Call
Find me at www.nourishednervoussystem.com

and @nourishednervoussytem on Instagram

The Lens of Ayurveda

The Nourished Nervous System

06/29/23 • 20 min

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Have you ever incorporated a philosophy, idea or lifestyle change into your life so thoroughly that it becomes second nature or a lens that you look a the world through? In this episode we will talk about some of the basic concepts of Ayurveda in order to create a foundation and shared language in order to go deeper in future episodes. In this episode we will talk about:

What Ayurveda is
The five elements of Ayurveda
The three doshas
Pakriti and Vikriti

To do a quiz to determine your Ayurvedic Constitution check out: https://www.banyanbotanicals.com/info/dosha-quiz/

Sources:
Lad, V., M.A.Sc (1990). Textbook of Ayurveda, Fundamental Principles (Volume 1). The Ayurvedic Press.

My resources:
Weekend Nervous System Reset

Deep Rest Meditation
Nourished For Resilience Workbook
Book a free Exploratory Call
Find me at www.nourishednervoussystem.com

and @nourishednervoussytem on Instagram

Stable Like a Trapeze Artist

The Nourished Nervous System

12/28/23 • 15 min

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This episode was supposed to be about sugar, but as I started it, something else emerged. I was thinking about the New Year and about the state of our world and how each new year just seems to be getting a bit weirder these days.
This is the nature of the world and of nature. Nothing is fixed and permanent, everything is always changing around us, but some years those changes are really big while other years they are less noticeable.
It has been a few years of big changes, and it isn't comfortable, and it may be requiring us to rethink what stability looks like.
Instead of trying to control your surroundings to create a sense of stability, what if you became more resilient, more flexible and prepared for life ups and downs so that you can navigate change with the flexibility of a trapeze artist?
Download your free Nourished for Resilience Workbook here: www.nourishednervoussystem.com/resilienceworkbook

My resources:
Weekend Nervous System Reset

Deep Rest Meditation
Nourished For Resilience Workbook
Book a free Exploratory Call
Find me at www.nourishednervoussystem.com

and @nourishednervoussytem on Instagram

What Does Self Care Look Like for YOU? (proposal of an experiment)

The Nourished Nervous System

01/18/24 • 10 min

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What does self care look like for you? Really, I'd like to know. One of the things I have been loving about hosting a podcast has been connecting with my guests and learning from them.
I love the accessibility of a podcast and how it weaves a web of connection and collaboration.
I love collaborating with my guests, but I'd also like to collaborate with you. I learn so much from hearing people's stories. There is so much collective wisdom that we all share, and so I want to try and incorporate your wisdom into my podcast.
Right now my vision is to have a monthly question that you can email me a response to and then have a portion of the first episode of every month where I read the responses. This is an experiment. We'll see how it goes.
This month's question is : "What does self care currently look like for you?"
If you feel called to answer send me an email ([email protected]) with the subject line: Monthly Question
You can include your name and where you live, but if you would like to remain anonymous, just let me know.
I look forward to hearing from you!

My resources:
Weekend Nervous System Reset

Deep Rest Meditation
Nourished For Resilience Workbook
Book a free Exploratory Call
Find me at www.nourishednervoussystem.com

and @nourishednervoussytem on Instagram

Alchemizing Pain into Beauty with Maitreya Wolf

The Nourished Nervous System

02/15/24 • 62 min

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In this world that sometimes feels like it is pulling apart at the seams, how do you continue to walk the path of beauty? How do you find resilience and purpose as a gift of the pain of human existence.
This podcast episode with Maitreya Wolf is the story of an underworld journey, of initiatory consciousness and of cultivating beauty and joy as indispensable skills for survival.
Maitreya Wolf is a wise woman, soul mentor, and musician, whose allegiance is to embodying sovereignty with skill, tending the wild earth with honor, living the spiritual power of Beauty, prioritizing the life of Soul as inviolable, and supporting others to do the same with her teaching and art.
Her professional life began with 15 years as a ritual tattoo artist through which she endeavored to reinvigorate the ancient practice of rites of passage in the modern world. She has been creating and performing gorgeous original music in a ritual theater format for almost two decades, and now hosts a year-long, deep-counsel and earth-ritual mystery school called The School of Remembering alongside her evolutionary counseling practice, Soul Power Mentoring.
Throughout the course of her extraordinary life journey Maitreya has cultivated a multi-dimensional skill set related to evolving the soul, as well as potent embodied wisdom, expansive compassion, and a grounded, mytho-poetic insight into the beautiful and harrowing journey of being human in a time of profound crisis and opportunity.
It is through all of this interwoven magic that she now offers wisdom teaching, soul mentoring, public speaking, classes, workshops, ritual concerts, and other events. In everything she is and does she aspires to help people learn how to transform pain into power so that they can live lives of greater presence, purpose, magic, wisdom, and passion in this most extraordinary time of human and planetary transformation.
~To explore her work or book a free consultation visit her website:
http://www.soulpowermentoring.com
or book a call directly here:
https://calendly.com/maitreyawolf/soul-power-exploration-call

~To hear some of her music, meditations, and teachings, visit her youtube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqaltoxtDEBgib6j94dthjg
~To hear her album, Fertile Darkness, visit her bandcamp page:
https://maitreyawolf.bandcamp.com/

~Social media links are here:
https://www.facebook.com/maitreyawolfsacredarts/
@maitreyawolfmentor

My resources:
Weekend Nervous System Reset

Deep Rest Meditation
Nourished For Resilience Workbook
Book a free Exploratory Call
Find me at www.nourishednervoussystem.com

and @nourishednervoussytem on Instagram

Weaving a Net of Resource

The Nourished Nervous System

02/22/24 • 26 min

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What is your relationship with resource? How do you know when you are feeling resourced in yourself and how do you recharge when you are not?
Building a net of a resource is the idea that the tiny acts of self care that you do each day create a net that can help to catch you when the inevitable challenges of life arise.
It doesn't mean that you are shielded from life's ups and downs, or that you won't feel pain.
But it can help you to navigate through these times with a little more grace and resilience.
In this episode:

Relating to resource
How to know when you are not resourced (using your Ayurvedic constitution as an indicator)
Weaving a net of resource with self care practices, presence and listening
My story of dealing with a recent health challenge and how my net of resource supported me
Self care isn't always peaceful
Presence as a container for self care

My resources:
Weekend Nervous System Reset

Deep Rest Meditation
Nourished For Resilience Workbook
Book a free Exploratory Call
Find me at www.nourishednervoussystem.com

and @nourishednervoussytem on Instagram

Embodying the Wild Woman Years with Robin Shaw

The Nourished Nervous System

02/29/24 • 49 min

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There is this time between the archetype of the mother and the archetype of the crone sometimes referred to the wild woman years. It is also sometimes referred to as the virgin - not an as in uninitiated but more like a virgin forest - whole and unto herself.
Our society teaches us to fear aging and to resist against it, but what if we embrace the power of this time?
In this episode with Robin Shaw we talk about this and so much more. Robin is a bodyworker, yoga teacher and life coach practicing in Massachusetts, as well as online.
She took a deep dive into the realms of the body, mind and spirit back in 1997, and has continued to be passionate about these pursuits ever since.
She is a practitioner, teacher, coach and mentor to many, and finds that her synthesis of hands on work alongside movement, and talking through the questions, challenges, hopes and dreams of her clients has such powerful impact.
Always coming back to the body for inspiration, understanding and wisdom, her work supports folks to find themselves more at ease and at the same time, inspired and motivated to be their full authentic selves.
In this episode:

Robin's journey with a systemic health crisis and how she moved through it
How the role of a "giver" can cumulatively effect health, even for folks with good self care practices
The gifts and challenges of the wild woman years
How embodiment practices help Robin to move more gracefully through this time
Robin's unique synthesis of hands on massage work, somatic work and coaching

Connecting with Robin:

Robin offers twice weekly by donation yoga classes online
Online and in person life coaching, and hands on bodywork (as well as somatic coaching and bodywork sessions) in person.
Robin's website: https://www.flowingintowisdom.com
On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flowingintowisdom/
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robin.shaw.359

My resources:
Weekend Nervous System Reset

Deep Rest Meditation
Nourished For Resilience Workbook
Book a free Exploratory Call
Find me at www.nourishednervoussystem.com

and @nourishednervoussytem on Instagram

The Window of Resilience: Insights from Ayurveda and Somatic Practices

The Nourished Nervous System

06/27/24 • 31 min

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In this special anniversary episode of 'The Nourished Nervous System,' I celebrate a year of growth and change, both personally and through the podcast.
I delve into the concept of the window of resilience—how much stress we can handle before becoming overwhelmed—and connect it with Ayurvedic principles.
Ayurveda is a lens to look at life through, so this episode talks about balancing life's stressors and how different Ayurvedic constitutions (Vata, Pitta, Kapha) affect our stress responses.
The episode is rich with personal stories and practical tips like deep breathing, getting outside, and even dancing to Prince, making it both informative and relatable.
Resources for deeper exploration, including a workbook and an Ayurvedic Nervous System type quiz, are also offered.
Whether you’re dealing with daily stress, chronic illness, or just curious about resilience, this episode provides actionable insights and a sense of community.
In this Episode:

Exploring the Window of Tolerance
Understanding Stress and Resilience
Ayurvedic Perspectives on Resilience
Personal Experiences and Practical Tips
Final Thoughts and Resources

Resources:
Ayurvedic Nervous System Type Quiz
Related Episodes:
Episode 26 - Nourished for Resilience
Episode 51 - Nourish Your Mind: Ayurveda, Breath Work and Seasonal Self Care
Episode 3 - What the Vata?!
Episode 8 - Oh Pitta, You're Hot!
Episode 10 - Kapha, the Sweet One
References:
Travis FT, Wallace RK. Dosha brain-types: A neural model of individual differences. J Ayurveda Integr Med. 2015 Oct-Dec;6(4):280-5. doi: 10.4103/0975-9476.172385. PMID: 26834428; PMCID: PMC4719489.

My resources:
Weekend Nervous System Reset

Deep Rest Meditation
Nourished For Resilience Workbook
Book a free Exploratory Call
Find me at www.nourishednervoussystem.com

and @nourishednervoussytem on Instagram

Samprapti: The Six Stages of Disease According to Ayurveda

The Nourished Nervous System

02/20/25 • 26 min

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Have you ever wondered why Ayurveda is so focused on seasonal transitions, digestion and prevention? It all ties into the Ayurvedic perspective of disease and how it manifests in the body.

In this episode I delve into the Ayurvedic principles of maintaining health and preventing disease through seasonal transitions. With the world in a state of flux, grounding and resilience become paramount.

I discuss the concept of Samprapti, or the birth of disease, explaining the six stages from accumulation to differentiation.

I highlight the importance of daily practices to balance doshas—Vata, Pitta, and Kapha—especially during seasonal changes, and offer practical tips for staying in tune with your body's needs.

Tune in for an exploration of how to listen to your body's intelligence, prevent disease, and make small yet impactful steps towards a healthier life.
In this episode:

Understanding Doshas and Their Seasonal Impact
The Six Stages of Disease in Ayurveda
Causes of Disease: Crimes Against Intelligence and Sensory Misuse
Stages of Disease: Accumulation to Provocation
Stages of Disease: Spreading to Manifestation
Stages of Disease: Differentiation and Prevention
Personal Reflections and Practical Tips
Balancing Vata and Kapha in Late Winter

Related Episode: