Odyssey & Alchemy: Conversations on Spirituality, Psychology & Inner Transformation

In this episode of Odyssey & Alchemy, Martin Prihoda speaks with Boysen Hodgson about men’s work, emotional healing, shame, anger, authenticity, and the healing power of brotherhood. Boysen reflects on the early experiences that shaped his view of masculinity, the cost of living behind a mask, and how men’s groups helped him move from performance into honesty, connection, and purpose.They explore modern masculinity, men’s mental health, hidden emotional burdens, initiation, vulnerability, and why so many men need spaces where they can finally tell the truth about what they carry. The conversation also touches on The Mankind Project, healing shame, spiritual growth, relationships, and what it means to be a man in an age of disconnection.Boysen HodgsonThe Mankind Projectmen’s workmasculinityauthentic masculinitymen’s mental healthemotional healingshame healingmen’s groupsbrotherhoodvulnerability in menmodern masculinitymale initiationanger and shamepersonal growth for men

Jungian psychotherapist and executive coach Dr. Melinda Fouts, PhD on shadow work, narcissism, feminine power, dream work, and the blind spots that keep high performers stuck.With over 30 years coaching CEOs and founders across the globe, Dr. Fouts brings depth psychology into the boardroom. We cover Carl Jung, the "emotional operating system" installed in childhood, why James Bond is the wrong archetype, the real difference between therapy and coaching, how to work a dream (not interpret it), integrating the masculine and feminine within every leader, Rumi's three gates of speech, and the one question every entrepreneur should be asking themselves weekly but isn't.Dr. Melinda Fouts is a Forbes Coaches Council contributor, IAOTP Lifetime Achievement recipient, and author of Cognitive Enlightenment and The Bridge to Transformation.Find Dr. Fouts:Web: successstartswithyou.netEmail: [email protected]: Dr. Melinda Fouts, PhDTopics: Jungian psychology, executive coaching, Carl Jung, shadow work, dream work, narcissism, feminine leadership, depth psychology, entrepreneurship, consciousness, personal transformation.

What if the most powerful therapeutic breakthrough of our time has been hiding in plain sight for 40 years? Jonathan Robinson — psychotherapist, bestselling author of 14 books, and one of the world's longest-practicing MDMA-assisted therapy guides — has sat with over 600 people at their most open, most vulnerable, and most human. In this conversation, we explore how MDMA dismantles fear, floods the brain with oxytocin, and creates a learning window that accelerates healing in ways traditional therapy simply can't match. From a 92-year-old trauma survivor sleeping through the night for the first time in 87 years, to couples rediscovering intimacy after years of silence — the results speak for themselves.In this episode:Why MDMA works where two years of couples therapy failsThe neuroscience of fear removal and heart openingHow to find a qualified guide and stay safeIntegration techniques that make breakthroughs lastWhy Jonathan believes MDMA is the medicine this polarized age needs most🎙️ Jonathan Robinson | MDMAtraining.net | Book: Ecstasy for CouplesMDMA therapy, psychedelic therapy, MDMA assisted therapy, couples therapy, trauma healing, MDMA healing, psychedelic medicine, MDMA PTSD, relationship healing, trauma recovery, heart opening, emotional healing, intimacy issues, communication in relationships, men's mental health, spiritual awakening, plant medicine, entheogen therapy, psychedelic renaissance, MAPS protocol, MDMA legalization, mental health breakthrough, alternative therapy, conscious relationships, mindfulness, transformation, nervous system healing, oxytocin

75% of suicides every year are men. In Canada, it's the second leading cause of death for men under 50. And yet we barely talk about it.In this episode, Martin sits down with Dr. John Ogrodniczuk — Professor of Psychiatry at UBC, founder of Heads Up Guys, and author of over 300 scientific publications on men's mental health — for one of the most honest conversations we've had on this show.Martin also shares something personal: at 21, he lost his father to suicide. What followed was 30 years of trying to understand why — and this conversation is part of that.Together they go deep on: why men don't ask for help and what it's actually costing them, the shame buried inside suicide notes, what it's like to be left behind as a survivor, the difference between clinical depression and existential overwhelm, why teenage boys are at a turning point around age 14, and how to start breaking the silence — starting with the men in your own life.This one matters. Share it with a man you care about.🔗 Heads Up Guys: headsupguys.org 🔗 If you or someone you know is struggling, contact the Crisis Services Canada line: 1-988-456-4566men's mental health, male suicide, men and depression, why men don't ask for help, suicide prevention, men's mental health podcast, UBC psychiatry, Heads Up Guys, toxic masculinity mental health, men's suicide statistics Canada, suicide loss survivor, negative self-talk men, men's emotional health, masculine identity crisis, men's therapy podcast.

Odyssey & Alchemy Episode 16 features Kat Weed, psychotherapist and creator of the Rewired Woman framework, sharing how high-functioning people can escape survival mode, heal complex trauma, and build authentic lives. From her "hot mess" past of anxiety, addiction, dissociation, and broken relationships to helping successful women regulate their nervous systems, Kat breaks down attachment styles (anxious, avoidant, disorganized), nervous system states (mobilizer, immobilizer, hybrid), and why coping tools fall short of true rewiring.Discover practical insights on spiritual bypassing in yoga/breathwork, midlife crises, 3 AM anxiety fixes (like physical movement for fight/flight discharge), and fostering self-compassion over self-judgment. Perfect for anyone in wellness, therapy, or personal growth seeking wholeness beyond performance.Timestamps:00:00 Intro & Kat's "Hot Mess" Story03:00 Trauma Roots & Disconnection15:00 Attachment Theory Deep Dive30:00 Rewired Woman: 4 Types Explained45:00 Nervous System Regulation Tools1:00:00 Spiritual Bypassing Traps1:15:00 Healing Resistance & Self-CompassionSubscribe for more on mental health, biohacking, spirituality, and transformation. Like, comment, share! Visit katweed.co for Kat's work.#RewiredWoman #NervousSystemHealing #AttachmentTheory #TraumaRecovery #AnxiousAttachment #AvoidantAttachment #DisorganizedAttachment #SurvivalMode #HighAchieverBurnout #SpiritualBypassing #MidlifeCrisis #SelfCompassion #Psychotherapy #MentalHealthPodcast #WellnessJourney #OdysseyAndAlchemy #KatWeed #MartinPrihoda #AnxietyRelief #EmotionalRegulation #InnerChildHealing #BiohackingWomen #PersonalGrowth2026

In this powerful episode of Odyssey and Alchemy, Martin Prihoda sits down with Kiem Schutter, founder and CEO of Qi Integrated Health in Vancouver, to explore the deep connection between body, mind, trauma, and healing. Kiem shares how an early childhood experience shaped his lifelong relationship with energy work, why traditional Chinese medicine became the foundation of his practice, and how acupuncture, somatic therapy, naturopathy, and psychedelic-assisted healing are helping people reconnect with a healthier state of being.This conversation goes deep into the nature of pain, grief, emotional release, and the “pre-pain state” — the inner place we return to when we begin to heal. Kiem also explains how modern wellness can integrate Western medicine, functional medicine, and ancient healing systems to support trauma recovery, mental health, chronic pain, and transformation.If you’re interested in psychedelic therapy, acupuncture, Chinese medicine, somatic healing, trauma recovery, mental health, grief, breathwork, or alternative medicine in Canada, this episode is for you.Topics include:Somatic healing and trauma releaseTraditional Chinese medicine and acupuncturePsychedelic-assisted therapy and ketamine programsGrief, emotional processing, and nervous system regulationThe connection between body pain and emotional painBuilding Qi Integrated Health and modern integrative wellnessListen now for a grounded, insightful, and deeply human conversation about healing, consciousness, and the future of integrative medicine.odyssey and alchemy, kiem shutter, qi integrated health, Vancouver wellness, somatic healing, trauma recovery, Chinese medicine, acupuncture, psychedelic therapy, ketamine therapy, grief healing, breathwork, mental health podcast, integrative medicine, naturopathy, emotional release, nervous system regulation, pre-pain state, functional medicine, psychedelic integration, alternative health Canada

The Inner Sanctum is a place set apart — a guided meditation within the Odyssey & Alchemy library for those drawn to the deeper waters of inner work. This is one of its offerings, released freely into the world.A 12-minute guided breathwork practice to begin your morning with intention. Using the fourfold breath — box breathing at a 4-4-4-4 count — this meditation gently wakes up your nervous system, grounds you in your body, and invites you to set one quiet intention before the world asks anything of you.Suitable for complete beginners and experienced practitioners alike. All you need is a comfortable seat and a few undisturbed minutes before your day begins.The full Inner Sanctum library spans six collections — The Breath, The Body, The Journey, The Present, The Dark, and The Rest — and lives on Patreon at Odyssey & Alchemy.

What happens to your body when grief goes unprocessed? In this powerful episode of the Odyssey and Alchemy Podcast, host Martin Prihoda sits down with holistic health practitioner, author, and regenerative wellness coach Julie Brar to explore the profound connection between emotional trauma, autoimmune disease, and the body's innate ability to heal.After losing her husband suddenly to a heart attack in 2012, Julie's body began breaking down — she was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and Hashimoto's disease, gained 50 pounds, battled chronic pain, brain fog, and depression. The medical system told her this was her life now. She refused to accept that.In this deeply honest and inspiring conversation, Julie shares how she reversed both autoimmune conditions through regenerative health, got off all medications, and rebuilt her life from the ground up — and how she now guides hundreds of others to do the same.In this episode:The sudden loss that became the tipping point for chronic illnessHow unprocessed grief and adrenal burnout trigger autoimmune diseaseThe role of Vipassana meditation in navigating traumaWhy the Western medical system fails chronic illness patientsRegenerative nutrition, raw food, and extended fasting protocolsThe truth about Ozempic, glyphosate, processed foods, and the broken food systemGut health, serotonin, and the root cause approach to healing depression and anxietyJulie's new book Finding Light — connecting to your own inner consciousnessWhether you're navigating grief, battling a chronic illness, or simply searching for a more aligned way to live, this episode is a roadmap back to yourself.🌿 Find Julie at balancelifewithjulie.comKeywords: regenerative health podcast, Hashimoto's disease recovery, hypothyroidism reversal, autoimmune healing naturally, grief and chronic illness, sudden loss and trauma, adrenal burnout recovery, holistic health practitioner, root cause healing, gut health and mental health, processed food and disease, Ozempic side effects, raw food diet benefits, extended fasting protocol, dry fasting, holistic nutrition, nervous system regulation, somatic healing, thyroid healing naturally, get off thyroid medication, Finding Light book Julie Brar, balancelifewithjulie.com, regenerative wellness, trauma and autoimmune disease, emotional trauma and physical illness, holistic health Canada, chronic illness recovery podcast, natural healing podcast, mind body connection, widow healing journey, functional health coach, adrenal fatigue recovery, liver detox thyroid health, gut brain connection, serotonin gut health, dopamine gut health, glyphosate and autism, food system and chronic disease, alkaline diet, anti-inflammatory diet, intermittent fasting, water fasting, superfoods, holistic lifestyle, spiritual wellness podcast, inner transformation

What if your body already knows how to heal — and the only thing standing between you and wholeness is the courage to slow down and listen? Julia Gabrielle is a Registered Clinical Counsellor based on Salt Spring Island, BC, whose practice weaves together somatic therapy, Hakomi, mindfulness-based counselling, attachment theory, and transpersonal psychology. She specialises in life transitions, grief, anxiety, and the quiet but radical work of helping people reconnect with what she calls their blueprint for health within.In this conversation, Martin and Julia explore the body as the primary site of healing — and what becomes possible when we stop running from discomfort and start listening to what it's telling us. They go deep on: somatic therapy and why healing lives in the body, not just the mind; grief as an intelligent, natural process — and how to stop trying to fix it; anxiety and overwhelm in an age of exponential change; the Buddhist concept of Buddha nature and its connection to modern trauma therapy; attachment theory, the island and the wave, and why our relationship patterns trace back to our earliest bonds; how dance, clowning, and embodied practice unlock what talk therapy can't reach; and what it means to develop an inner moral compass that comes from within rather than from external conditioning.This is a conversation about presence, about the courage it takes to actually feel your life — and about the profound intelligence that's been inside you all along.🌿 Find Julia at: juliagabrielle.caOdyssey & Alchemy is a podcast about the journey inward and the transformation that follows — hosted by Martin Prihoda from Salt Spring Island, BC.Keywords: somatic therapy podcast, Hakomi therapy, grief and the body, attachment theory, somatic healing, mindfulness-based counselling, life transitions, trauma therapy, body-based healing, Buddhist psychology, transpersonal psychology, anxiety and overwhelm, blueprint for health, embodied healing, Salt Spring Island therapist, registered clinical counsellor BC, inner work podcast, spiritual wellbeing, self-healing, attachment styles

What does it mean to heal in a way that reconnects you — not just to yourself, but to the living world around you? Meghan Taia Jacobson is a ceremonialist, psilocybin facilitator, spiritual counsellor, and PhD student in East-West Psychology.Trained at Naropa, Esalen, and the California Institute of Integral Studies, and deeply rooted in Amazonian shamanic tradition and the Santo Daime lineage, Taia has spent decades holding space for transformation at the intersection of plant medicine, indigenous wisdom, and ecological spirituality.In this episode, Martin and Taia explore how psilocybin and ayahuasca ceremony create conditions for genuine healing and collective awakening — and why she believes that self-realization and sacred activism are the same thing. They go deep on: the role of entheogenic plant medicine in mental health and consciousness expansion; why ceremony is one of the most powerful antidotes to political polarization and ecological grief; the history of the Santo Daime tradition and its vision of direct connection with the divine; what it means to build a life rooted in place, nature, and ritual; and why healing, transformation, and consciousness expansion are — in Taia's words — human rights.If you've ever felt more at home in a forest than a city, or sensed that something deeper is available on the other side of ordinary awareness, this conversation is for you.🌿 Learn more about Taia's work: sacrednature.orgOdyssey & Alchemy is a podcast about the journey inward and the transformation that follows — hosted by Martin Prihoda from Salt Spring Island, BC.Keywords: plant medicine podcast, ayahuasca ceremony, psilocybin healing, shamanic traditions, sacred ceremony, entheogenic therapy, consciousness expansion, spiritual counselling, East-West psychology, Amazonian shamanism, Santo Daime, ecological spirituality, mental health and psychedelics, sacred activism, nature-based healing, psychedelic integration, spiritual transformation, Salt Spring Island

What if midlife isn't a crisis — but an invitation? Michael Talbot-Kelly is a narrative psychologist, counsellor and men's inner work guide who has spent decades helping men rewrite the stories that are quietly running their lives. In this conversation Martin and Michael explore the Johnny story — a man who went from psychiatric ward to PhD and what that reveals about human resilience — the difference between the story you inherited and the story you actually want to live, why so many men hit 40 and feel like strangers in their own lives, the concept of soul stitching mind and body back together, and why midlife is not the beginning of the end but the most creatively fertile chapter a man can enter. If you've ever felt like the protagonist of a life you didn't quite choose — this one is for you. Episode 11 of Odyssey & Alchemy.

In this episode Martin sits down with Marcia Burton — Senior Hakomi Trainer, Registered Clinical Counsellor and Certified Teacher of Mindful Self-Compassion — for one of the most quietly powerful conversations the show has produced.Marcia has spent 25 years doing some of the most important and least celebrated work in human healing. She trained directly with Ron Kurtz, the creator of Hakomi, until his death in 2011, and has built her entire practice on Salt Spring Island, BC — working with people in grief, crisis, trauma and terminal illness.In this conversation they explore what Hakomi actually is and how it differs from conventional psychotherapy, the concept of Loving Presence and why 90% of Hakomi training is about cultivating a state of heart rather than technique, why holding space is one of the rarest and most powerful skills a human being can develop, what 25 years of sitting with grief, loss and suffering has taught the healer herself, the difference between self-compassion and self-indulgence, how the body reveals what the mind conceals, and why slowing down doesn't delay healing — it facilitates it.Marcia also shares her own journey — including the moment she realised she had cordoned off her own heart, and what it took to find her way back.A conversation about presence, stillness and the quiet courage it takes to truly be with another human being.

Satyen Raja has spent 40 years living at the intersection of warrior and sage — as a Kung Fu master, spiritual teacher and founder of WarriorSage, a global movement that has transformed over 100,000 people across 50 countries. His name means Truth in Sanskrit. This conversation lives up to it. Martin and Satyen explore what it means to move beyond peak performance into peak existence, why testosterone and masculine energy are under attack in modern society, how men can reclaim their purpose when life feels overwhelming, and what happens when powerful people abdicate their spirit for success. The rapid fire section at the end is unlike anything the show has produced — raw, provocative and deeply honest. Satyen shares the biggest lie he told himself for years, whether enlightenment is real or the greatest con in the spiritual world, and what it truly means when seeking becomes another form of running away. For any man who has ever felt the gap between who he is and who he knows he could be.

Eoin Finn is one of Canada's most celebrated yoga teachers and movement philosophers — founder of Blissology, author of the newly released Yoga Optimized, and a man who has spent 35 years bridging the science of the body with the wisdom of the soul.In this conversation, Martin and Eoin explore what yoga actually is beyond flexibility and shapes, how our emotions live in our bodies and create physical tension, why vulnerability is the gateway to authenticity, and what it means to build a life of genuine bliss when things are hard. Eoin shares the injury that broke him open and ultimately launched his life's work, his concept of Sensation-Guided Attunement, and why yoga is ultimately a process of subtraction — not addition.A conversation for anyone who has ever felt the weight of their own thoughts in their body, and wanted a way through.

James Cameron didn't want a song at the end of Titanic. Robert Kraft helped change his mind.Robert Kraft is one of Hollywood's most storied music executives — an award-winning composer, producer, and the former President of Fox Music. Over a remarkable career spanning four decades, he helped shape some of the most beloved soundtracks in cinema history: The Little Mermaid, Titanic, Avatar, The Mambo Kings, Ice Storm, Life of Pi, and many more. He also launched Jim Henson Records, worked alongside Ang Lee and Chris Columbus, produced Seth MacFarlane's most absurd passion project, and somehow ended up with Miss Piggy in a leather jacket singing Born to Be Wild with Ozzy Osbourne.But this conversation isn't just about Hollywood. It's about what happens when a man who spent decades in one of the world's most ego-driven industries finds his way to the yoga mat — and what it taught him about presence, acceptance, and the art of not tensing up.Martin and Robert get into the inside story of recording Under the Sea for The Little Mermaid, what it was like to work with Ang Lee (who never gave up his vision without quietly getting exactly what he wanted), and why the music that touches millions is never just about the notes. They also go deep on what yoga reveals about the mind, how to sit with discomfort instead of running from it, and why accepting what is — rather than fighting it — might be the most underrated life skill there is.Funny, warm, and genuinely wise. One of the most entertaining conversations Odyssey & Alchemy has produced.🎙 Follow Odyssey & Alchemy on Spotify. New episodes every week.Topics covered: film music · Hollywood · creativity · mindfulness · yoga philosophy · presence · acceptance · ego · The Little Mermaid · Titanic · Avatar · somatic awareness · inner peace

What if the path to healing after the worst thing imaginable ran straight through the person who caused it?Aaron Lyons has spent over 20 years guiding some of the most painful conversations a human being can have — between murder victims' families and the people responsible, between communities torn apart by violence, between Israeli and Palestinian youth who grew up seeing each other as the enemy. He's a director at Just Outcomes Consulting and one of Canada's leading voices in restorative justice and peace building.In this episode, Aaron and Martin go deep on what it actually takes to heal — not just cope — in the aftermath of serious harm. Aaron shares extraordinary stories from his work: a mother who bought a bike for the man who killed her son. A grieving woman who walked out of a restorative circle no longer needing to be believed. Youth from opposite sides of one of the world's most entrenched conflicts who made films together and called each other friends.They also get into the bigger picture: why our punitive justice system is designed around punishment rather than healing, how social media algorithms are weaponising tribalism, and what restorative thinking might have to offer the Israel-Palestine conflict — and every conflict that feels impossible from the outside.This is one of the most moving conversations Odyssey & Alchemy has produced. Don't miss it.🎙 Follow Odyssey & Alchemy on Spotify so you never miss an episode.Topics covered: restorative justice · conflict transformation · trauma healing · peace building · victim-offender dialogue · human dignity · Israel-Palestine · reconciliation · ancestral trauma · Ubuntu

Most of us try to parent from our heads. Clara Roberts-Oss teaches from the body.A Vancouver-based Vinyasa Flow master trained under the legendary Shiva Rea, Clara has spent decades exploring how yoga's ancient wisdom applies to the messiest, most humbling job there is — raising children consciously.In this episode, Martin and Clara go deep on what it means to respond rather than react — in parenting, in relationships, and in a world moving faster than any of us signed up for. They explore the philosophy of tapas (discipline without rigidity), the body as a instrument of self-awareness, and how AI is quietly reshaping human consciousness in ways we haven't begun to reckon with.If you've ever snapped at someone you love and hated yourself for it — this one's for you.Topics covered: conscious parenting · Vinyasa yoga · Patanjali's Sutras · Tantra · presence · AI and consciousness · the body as teacher

Jason Jacobson built My Yoga Online from nothing, sold it to Gaia, wrote a book called Strategic Instinct, and is now building an AI company. He also tried stand-up comedy. Not everything worked. That's kind of the point.This episode is about what it takes to bet on yourself — repeatedly, and often irrationally — and what separates people who move through fear from those who get stuck in it. Jason and Martin have history, and it shows: this conversation has the ease and honesty of two old friends who've both taken the long road.They get into the grip social media has on Gen Z, the liberating truth that "no one cares as much as you think," journaling as a grief practice, and how ancient wellness principles and cutting-edge AI turn out to have more in common than you'd expect.Topics covered: entrepreneurship · strategic instinct · risk-taking · reinvention · social media · Gen Z · journaling · grief · AI · yoga · intuition

This is not a typical wellness conversation.Will Blunderfield is a Vancouver yogi, musician, and men's rewilding guide with a UBC psychology degree and certifications from Mantak Chia and Gabor Maté. He's led naked yoga workshops. He teaches sexual kung fu. He believes most men are leaking their life force — and he has some very specific ideas about how to stop.In this episode, Will and Martin go into territory most podcasts won't: semen retention, the microcosmic orbit, Kundalini energy, and the cultural forces — xenoestrogens, circumcision trauma, the feminization of masculine culture — that Will believes are quietly dismantling men's vitality. Whether you agree with everything or nothing, this conversation will make you think differently about the body, energy, and what it means to be fully alive.Not for the faint-hearted. Absolutely for the curious.Topics covered: sexual kung fu · semen retention · Kundalini yoga · primal healing · men's rewilding · Mantak Chia · Gabor Maté · life force energy · brotherhood · the Aquarian age

Joel Laforet has been coaching bodies and minds for 28 years. He founded Awaken Yoga. He's built a garage gym. He's seven years sober. And he recorded this conversation fresh off a kettlebell hike up Mount Erskine.This is not a polished interview. It's a real conversation between two men trying to figure out what it means to be strong and soft — to train hard and sit still — to be a father, a partner, and a person still very much in progress.Joel talks honestly about early fatherhood at 21, the years he wasn't the man he wanted to be, and what sobriety cleared away to let him finally hear his own inner voice. They also get into samskaras, sauna prayers, urine therapy (yes, really), and why the most powerful thing a man can do is pause before he reacts.Raw, grounded, and genuinely funny in places.Topics covered: positive masculinity · sobriety · Ashtanga yoga · strength training · meditation · fatherhood · samskaras · intuition

Something is happening to men's health — and most doctors aren't talking about it.Dr. Rigobert Kefferputz is a naturopath who has spent his career asking the questions conventional medicine tends to skip: Why is testosterone declining across generations? What does the absence of fathers do to the body? How does the nervous system hold onto trauma that supplements can't touch?In this wide-ranging first episode, Martin and Dr. Rigo cover everything from gut health and adaptogens to breathwork, Candida, SIBO, and the quiet epidemic of men who are physically alive but spiritually checked out. It's equal parts science, philosophy, and a call to take radical ownership of your own wellbeing.A great starting point if you're new to naturopathy — or if you've always suspected there was more to health than what your GP has time to tell you.Topics covered: naturopathy · men's health · testosterone · gut health · GABA · adaptogens · breathwork · nervous system · absentee fathers · holistic healing