In this episode I chat with Ian Hoge, a successful therapist, mindfulness teacher and author, about navigating our own personal journeys of transformation. We discuss the benefits of radical acceptance, and the importance of opening to difficult emotions in times of suffering with the knowledge that the suffering will pass. We talk about grief and how our practices can get us through. We talk about family meetings, the importance of parents in the lives of their children, and the way that children can often be our best teachers.

I rap with Ian Hoge about:

• How healing yourself allows further transformation
• How our practice can help us in difficult situations including times of grief
• Family meetings
• Radical acceptance as practice

What you’ll get out of tuning in:

• How you can help your family grow with shared values
• What Cate takes from the work of Gay Hendricks
• Brain neuroplasticity

Links:

• Get 1 month full access for free on Evenflow. Download the app and use the code: EvenFlow2017
• Ian’s website
• Gay Hendricks The Big Leap

Related Podcasts:

• The Wisdom Of Rhythm, Integrity + Dharma With Acharya Shunya
• The Evolutions + Regressions of Intergenerational Relationships with Tom McBride
• From Hectic To Healthy Holidays

Show Highlights:

• 07:15 – Increased stress levels in schools and introduction of mind-body programs into
• school environments
• 09:23 – Cate discusses the work of Gay Hendricks and what she finds relevant to mindfulness, especially in relation to suffering
• 11:15 – How mindfulness brings up realities that we need to face (school, work, lifestyle, etc) — and how that can be terrifying
• 13:01 – Ian talks about the importance of finding space for mindfulness in our busy lives, including for teachers and parents
• 16:45 – Parents are the key to creating mindfulness practices in families
• 18:12 – How family meetings can help create structure, routine and shared values
• 23:00 – Concept of “talking stick” or a physical object to give people space in groups to be heard and of “listening from your heart”
• 32:00 – Meditation helps you lean into the unknown; it’s a practice
• 34:10 – The brain and meditation and neuroplasticity over time
• 38:18 – Different approaches to grief
• 39:10 – DBT therapy – Dialectical Behavior Therapy
• 44:03 – Awe and bliss come from lifelong practice

Favorite Quotes:

• “The most interesting thing is how can I help others” – Ian
• “Usually when change happens it is the death of something.” – Ian
• “The practice of being still is the best thing that we could possibly do.” – Ian

BIO:

Ian is a Mindfulness Teacher at Evenflow.io meditation app, co-Director of the Mindfulness Program at The Stephen Wise Elementary school in Los Angeles, and Mindfulness coordinator at PeakBrain institute. In addition he teaches Meditation, Mindfulness, and Yoga, both privately and in groups, to adults and adolescents in the LA area.

Ian is also a Marriage and Family Therapist Intern with a Masters in clinical psychology from Antioch University in Los Angeles.

Ian co-Wrote the book, 21 Days Of Enlightenments, with co-author, Bernadette Luckett. 21 Days of Enlightenments is a journey/discovery book filled with daily acts of service. He has also written and recorded two music albums about personal and spiritual growth available on itunes.