ĀIO: a road to peace

Do you struggle in your luteal phase? Are you curious to deepen your understanding of the language of menstrual cycle awareness?
This week on Āio, I am honoured to welcome Alexandra Pope and Sjanie Hugo Wurlitzer, co-founders of Red School and co-authors of the iconic and hugely celebrated books Wild Power: Discover the Magic of the Menstrual Cycle and Awaken the Feminine Path to Power and their latest offering, Wise Power: Discover the Liberating Power of Menopause to Awaken Authority, Purpose and Belonging.
Trailblazers in the emerging field of menstruality, Alexandra and Sjanie are pioneering a new language and approach to women's health and wellbeing, creativity, leadership and spiritual life, rooted in the power of the menstrual cycle and the initiatory journey from menarche to menopause and beyond.
Bringing a collective 60 years of experience, they teach worldwide on the psycho-spiritual process of maturation that unfolds throughout our menstrual lives and are devoted to training the menstruality leaders of the future.
They say don't meet your heroes - well, I'm SO glad I did!
I have been a devoted student of their work for years. Their teachings have profoundly shaped the way I work with my own cycle, and the intimacy I've cultivated with myself through menstrual cycle awareness has truly changed my life.
Wherever you are on your menstruality journey, this conversation is an invitation to deepen your understanding, cultivate greater compassion and build a more loving, intimate relationship with your cycle.
What we cover:
The cycle check-in: cultivating a new language for our inner experience

The power and wisdom of the four inner seasons

Working with our inner autumn (luteal phase), when the veil begins to thin

Honouring the heightened sensitivity of inner autumn and attuning to its subtleties

How our intuitive and psychic gifts can illuminate during inner autumn

How childhood trauma can resurface in the second half of our cycle

Working with inner autumn to bring greater grace and compassion into our lives

The antidote: menstrual cycle awareness

CONNECT
Red School 
Instagram | @red.school 
Website | www.redschool.net

STUDY WITH RED SCHOOL HERE
Red School Programmes
ĀIO
Instagram |aio.thepodcast
TikTok |@aio.thepodcast
Website | www.aiothepodcast.com

Tarikura 
Instagram | tarikura_

What becomes possible when we learn to meet the full spectrum of the masculine and feminine within us?
In this episode I sit down with Dan and Jenny Abdelnoor for a rich kōrero on the four quadrants of masculine and feminine energy - and how understanding each of them can bring greater harmony to our inner world, our relationships and the way we move through life.
We explore the many expressions of the masculine and feminine, the parts of ourselves we've learned to favour or suppress, and what happens when these energies begin to work together rather than against one another.
A deeply alive conversation about relationships, polarity, self-awareness and becoming more fully ourselves.
What we cover:
The four quadrants of the masculine and feminine, and the archetypes that live within the

Working with the light and shadow expressions of each quadrant

The suppression of the Wild Woman and Wild Man in the Western world

Weaving ascending and descending energy—and why we need both

Polarity, opposites and the feminine impulse to create, expand and multiply

How children naturally move between these energies

How air, fire, water and earth relate to the four quadrants

CONNECT
Dan & Jenny Abdelnoor  
Website | www.relationshiprising.com
ĀIO
Instagram |@aio.thepodcast
TikTok |@aio.thepodcast
Website | www.aiothepodcast.com

What does it really mean to come home to yourself?
In this episode I sit down with author, coach and beautiful human Tracy Manu for a kōrero on identity, self-worth, healing and the stories we carry.
We talk about Tracy's journey reconnecting with te ao Māori, learning to meet our own needs, the beliefs that quietly shape our lives, self-worth in relationships and work, and what it looks like to choose a different story.
A warm, honest, easeful kōrero about knowing ourselves more deeply, meeting the parts of us we've left behind, and finding our way home.

What we cover:
Reconnecting with te ao Māori and finding our way home

Understanding the needs underneath our behaviours

The stories we tell ourselves - and choosing what we want to believe

Self-talk, affirmations and learning to treat ourselves with love

Building self-worth through the way we care for ourselves

Reclaiming the parts of ourselves we've judged or left behind

When our work becomes tangled up with our identity and worth

Heartbreak, healing and the experiences that crack us open

Ego vs intuition - and learning to lean towards connection

Attachment, relationships and meeting our own needs

Values, purpose and creating a life that feels like you

Coming home to who you've been all along

CONNECT

Tracy Manu 
Instagram | @blossom.with.tracy.manu 
Website | tracymanu.com 
ĀIO
Instagram |aio.thepodcast
TikTok |@aio.thepodcast
Website | www.aiothepodcast.com
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This might be one of the deepest wānanga we've ever had on Āio to date.⁣
⁣
Humbled and honoured to welcome teacher, mentor and friend Pā Shaquille Shortland to the podcast.⁣
⁣
Pā is an Indigenous knowledge holder from Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Terino and Te Orewai. He is a cultural leader and facilitator with more than 15 years of experience offering kaupapa Māori wānanga, reaching more than 25,000 people.⁣

This is a powerful exploration into mātauranga Māori, whakapapa and the vast world of Atua Māori.
Together we explore the whakapapa of mauri, the many forms and dimensions of mana, Hine-nui-te-pō and the origins of karanga, and the deeper meaning woven through the process of pōwhiri.
We journey into Tāne's role in the conception of humankind and the divine feminine woven through our whakapapa, the distinction between tikanga and ritenga, and the ways our creation stories continue to shape who we are as Māori.
Our kōrero also travels beyond this earthly realm — into the wider galaxy, the Atua connected to other planetary realms, parallels with Japanese understandings of Atua, and the preservation of ancient knowledge.
We close with a beautiful exploration of how we can begin to deepen our own relationship with Atua Māori.
What we cover:

The whakapapa of mauri (the lineage of mauri)
A deep exploration of mana and it's many forms and dimensions
Hine nui te pō and the origins of the karanga 
The process of pohiri and it's meaning
Tane's role in the conception of humankind and the acknowledgement of the divine feminine passed down through generations.
The difference between tikanga and ritenga (customs and practice)
The wider galaxy and atua that govern the realms of other planets 
How our creation story has shaped our culture
How Japanese culture interact with their atua (gods)
Preserving Ancient knowledge
How we can connect with atua Māori

CONNECT
Pā Shaquille Shortland
Instagram | @pa_shaq
Facebook | Shaquille Shortland 
ĀIO
Instagram | @aio.thepodcast
TikTok | @aio.thepodcast 
Website | www.aiothepodcast.com

Tarikura Kapea
Instagram | tarikura_
Pure Nature
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There comes a moment in many of our lives when everything we thought was certain begins to unravel.
In this deeply personal episode, I step out from behind the interviewer's seat and into the hot seat myself. Joined by one of my besties, somatic and narrative therapist Robbie Fear, I share the story behind my year-long pause from Āio.
We explore the heartbreak of grieving a future that never came to be, navigating the end of a loving relationship, losing friendships, rebuilding community, and what it means to begin again when every foundation beneath you has shifted.
I also speak candidly about my journey with Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), the impact it had on my mental health, and the practices, support and healing that helped me find my way back to myself.
This conversation is an invitation into the messiness of being human. It is about learning to use our voice, asking for what we need, embracing community, and trusting that even in seasons of uncertainty, something beautiful is quietly being rebuilt.
In this episode we explore:
My year away from Āio and why I stepped back

Living with PMDD and its impact on mental health

Grieving relationships and imagined futures

Conscious uncoupling and healing after heartbreak

Friendship, community and the courage to ask for support

Boundaries, authenticity and reclaiming your voice

Building a purpose-led business with integrity

Trusting the mystery and beginning again

Content note: This episode includes discussion of suicidal ideation in the context of PMDD. If you're moving through something similar, please listen gently and reach out for support if you need it.
CONNECT
Tarikura Kapea
Instagram | @tarikura_
Robbie Fear 
Instagram | @robbienofear
ĀIO
Instagram | @aio.thepodcast
TikTok | @aio.thepodcast
Website | www.aiothepodcast.com
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Earth Women 
Website | earthwomen.nz
CODE: AIO15 
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