Recover Your Soul: A Spiritual Path to a Happy and Healthy Life

I’m bringing this bonus episode over to the main Recover Your Soul podcast feed because this conversation feels so aligned with the heart of the work we do together. If you love this conversation and want to hear more like it, join me on Patreon or Apple Podcasts for a library of over 200 episodes to support your soul journey.  https://www.patreon.com/c/RecoverYourSoul
I often say the most important thing we can do for the people we love is to begin healing ourselves.
Have you ever found yourself trying to fix someone you love, worrying about their choices, or losing touch with yourself while trying to keep a relationship together? If you’ve struggled with codependency, people-pleasing, or the challenge of letting go of what you cannot control, this conversation is for you.
In this episode of Recover Your Soul: A Spiritual Path to a Happy and Healthy Life, I’m joined by my dear friend, spirit sister, and personal healer, Ann Bruinsma. Ann is a holistic Qigong energy healer who helps people explore energy, intuition, and their connection with themselves.
We talk about Ann’s journey from a family rooted in conventional medicine and a career in the analytical world into Qigong, energy healing, and trusting her intuition. We explore what it means to follow a spiritual path when the people closest to us may not understand it, and how learning to trust ourselves can help us stop looking outside ourselves for permission or affirmation.
But underneath our conversation about energy healing and intuition is a principle that sits at the heart of Recover Your Soul: our own healing is our responsibility, not someone else’s.
When we love someone who is struggling, it can be so easy to become consumed by their choices, emotions, or behavior. We may try harder, explain more, rescue, worry, or believe that if we can just find the right way to help, they will change. This is especially familiar to those of us healing from codependency and people-pleasing.
Ann and I explore what can happen when we begin turning that energy back toward ourselves. As we recognize old childhood patterns, learn to listen to our inner knowing, and reconnect with who we are, we may begin to show up differently in our relationships. We can love deeply without making someone else’s journey our responsibility.
We also talk about Qigong, life force energy, and the ways spiritual practices can invite us to become more curious about our own healing. You don’t have to share every belief about energy work to find something meaningful in this conversation. My invitation is to stay open, notice what resonates, and allow yourself to explore what supports your own path.
In This Episode, We Explore
Ann’s journey from conventional medicine and corporate life into Qigong and energy healing
What Qigong is and how it works with breath, movement, and life force energy
How to trust your intuition when you don’t receive clear images or instant answers
Following your spiritual path even when others don’t understand or affirm your choices
How childhood patterns can lead to people-pleasing, self-doubt, and losing yourself in relationships
Healing codependency by releasing the need to fix, rescue, or change others
Why focusing on your own healing can change the way you show up with the people you love
Letting go of control while remaining connected to compassion and love
Following what brings you joy, curiosity, and a sense of aliveness
A Recover Your Soul Reminder
You can love someone without taking responsibility for their choices. You can care deeply without abandoning yourself. And you can begin to change your relationships by changing the way you show up—not by controlling another person’s healing, but by becoming more aware, grounded, and connected to yourself.
This is part of the Recover Your Soul journey: recognizing the patterns that keep us stuck, releasing what is not ours to control, and finding our way home to ourselves with more compassion and awareness.
You don’t have to figure it all out today. Sometimes the next step is simply to listen to what is calling you and follow it with curiosity.
Connect with Ann Bruinsma
Ann offers individual energy healing sessions, Qigong movement classes, group healing, and guided meditations.
Website: https://www.liveyourlight.care/
You can also find Ann’s guided meditations on Insight Timer.
Thank you for being here and for being part of this journey with me. We’re learning, growing, and finding our way back to ourselves together.
Send a one way text to Rev Rachel 🦋
The Recovery Your Soul Podcast courses and content is for educational purposes only and is not affiliated with or representative of any organization, recovery group, or religion. And reflect the personal experience and opinions of Rev Rachel Harrison and her guests. RYS claims no responsibility, any person or entity for any loss, liability, damage caused or alleged to be caused, direct or indirectly by the use application or interpretation of the information presented within. 
Support the show
FREE Mini Recover Your Soul 9-Step Workbook
FREE Support Group on Zoom 6-7PM MT on the 1st Monday of the Month
Self Study collective &  Soul Circles to walk the Recover Your Soul Steps in Community
Get the Book Recover Your Soul, Rev. Rachel’s spiritual memoir 
 1:1 Spiritual Coaching with Rev Rachel TRYASESSION for 40% off 1st session
 Follow on Social Media
RYS Bonus Podcast  Patreon Member or subscribing on Apple Podcasts for corresponding episodes. Free Patreon Members get access to new episodes first few weeks.
Transcripts

What if you’re not crazy? What if some of those thoughts, feelings, and knowings you've learned to dismiss are actually invitations to listen more deeply?
For many of us, especially those of us who have lived with codependency, people pleasing, or a deep fear of judgment, trusting our own inner knowing can be really difficult. We can become so accustomed to looking outside of ourselves for approval, direction, and reassurance that we stop listening to what we already know within.
And if you've always been deeply empathetic, you may have experienced this in ways you couldn't explain. Maybe you walk into a room and immediately know something is happening. Maybe you sense what someone else is feeling before they say anything. Maybe you've had a thought, feeling, image, or knowing that came through so clearly—and then immediately dismissed it because you thought, That's crazy. I can't possibly trust that.
I know that experience because it has been part of my own journey.
As I've moved through recovery from alcoholism, codependency, people pleasing, and control, I've also been learning how to listen differently. What began as collecting spiritual tools has become something deeper for me: integrating them, letting go of the fear of judgment, and becoming more willing to trust the guidance that comes through my Higher Self, my soul, Spirit, and what I experience as spirit guides and angels.  
In this episode, I share what I've learned about intuition, spiritual guidance, the “clairs,” automatic writing, and the subtle difference I've come to notice between the fearful, critical voice in my head and a deeper knowing that feels clear, loving, and connected.
And this is where it connects so deeply with Recover Your Soul.
The work isn't about becoming someone who suddenly has all the answers. It's about becoming aware of the beliefs, patterns, and stories that may be keeping us from trusting ourselves. It's about noticing that fear of judgment, that need to be liked, that old people-pleasing pattern—and becoming curious about what is underneath it rather than letting it run our lives.  
For me, learning to listen to intuition has become another part of learning to come home to myself.
I'm not here to tell you what you should believe. I'm sharing what I've experienced, what I'm learning, and what continues to unfold for me.
Take what resonates and leave the rest.
Maybe you've been calling something “crazy” that you've simply never had language for.
Maybe the invitation isn't to believe everything you hear or feel—but to become curious enough to listen.
And maybe, underneath all the noise, there is a quieter knowing that's been there all along.
Send a one way text to Rev Rachel 🦋
The Recovery Your Soul Podcast courses and content is for educational purposes only and is not affiliated with or representative of any organization, recovery group, or religion. And reflect the personal experience and opinions of Rev Rachel Harrison and her guests. RYS claims no responsibility, any person or entity for any loss, liability, damage caused or alleged to be caused, direct or indirectly by the use application or interpretation of the information presented within. 
Support the show
FREE Mini Recover Your Soul 9-Step Workbook
FREE Support Group on Zoom 6-7PM MT on the 1st Monday of the Month
Self Study collective &  Soul Circles to walk the Recover Your Soul Steps in Community
Get the Book Recover Your Soul, Rev. Rachel’s spiritual memoir 
 1:1 Spiritual Coaching with Rev Rachel TRYASESSION for 40% off 1st session
 Follow on Social Media
RYS Bonus Podcast  Patreon Member or subscribing on Apple Podcasts for corresponding episodes. Free Patreon Members get access to new episodes first few weeks.
Transcripts

What if your feelings aren't something you need to fix or get rid of, but a navigation system you can learn to trust?
For a long time, many of us learned to push our feelings away, ignore them, judge them, or immediately try to make them go away. We react, we worry, we control, we fix, or we look outside of ourselves for someone else to tell us what we should feel or do.
But our feelings are giving us information.
In this Soul Practice, I share a simple way to pause and become present with what you're feeling instead of automatically reacting to it. Inspired by Tara Brach's RAIN practice, I explore how Recognize, Allow, Investigate, and Nurture can become a gentle practice for turning our attention within.
When something gets activated, we can begin by simply recognizing what is happening. We can allow the feeling to be there without judging it or trying to make it different. Then we can investigate with interest and care—looking at the beliefs, patterns, and stories that may be underneath the reaction. And finally, we can nurture the part of ourselves that needs compassion and care.
This is so much of what we're doing in Recover Your Soul: learning to pause, listen within, and become more present for ourselves.
If it doesn't feel good, it doesn't mean it's bad. It's information.
Your feelings are part of your inner navigation system. The practice is learning to listen.
Take a few minutes with me to pause, feel, and reconnect with your own knowing. 💛
Free Gift: Recover Your Soul 9-Step Mini Workbook
If you're ready to explore the Recover Your Soul process more deeply, download the free 9-Step Mini Workbook and begin working with the nine steps of healing and awakening at your own pace.
Send a one way text to Rev Rachel 🦋
The Recovery Your Soul Podcast courses and content is for educational purposes only and is not affiliated with or representative of any organization, recovery group, or religion. And reflect the personal experience and opinions of Rev Rachel Harrison and her guests. RYS claims no responsibility, any person or entity for any loss, liability, damage caused or alleged to be caused, direct or indirectly by the use application or interpretation of the information presented within. 
Support the show
FREE Mini Recover Your Soul 9-Step Workbook
FREE Support Group on Zoom 6-7PM MT on the 1st Monday of the Month
Self Study collective &  Soul Circles to walk the Recover Your Soul Steps in Community
Get the Book Recover Your Soul, Rev. Rachel’s spiritual memoir 
 1:1 Spiritual Coaching with Rev Rachel TRYASESSION for 40% off 1st session
 Follow on Social Media
RYS Bonus Podcast  Patreon Member or subscribing on Apple Podcasts for corresponding episodes. Free Patreon Members get access to new episodes first few weeks.
Transcripts

What happens when someone you love is still drinking, and you are learning how to be okay even when the people around you may or may not be okay?
I recently came home from a family vacation to Hawaii, and while there were so many beautiful moments, there was also a very real 24 hours that brought some old patterns right to the surface. It gave me another opportunity to practice what I have been learning through Al-Anon, my own sobriety, and the Recover Your Soul process.
For me, Al-Anon was the place where I first began to understand that I wasn't responsible for someone else's wellbeing. I was powerless over alcohol, over another person, and over their choices. But I also learned that I could turn the attention back to myself.
And that is really what this episode is about.
I share what happened on our trip, the family patterns that showed up, my old pattern wanting everything to be perfect, and what I learned about letting go of control and allowing each person to have their own experience.
The Recover Your Soul process has given me a deeper way to work with these moments. Instead of trying to fix, manage, prevent, or control someone else's journey, I can become curious about my own. What is happening inside of me? What pattern is being activated? What am I trying to control? How can I see this differently? And can I continue to see the person I love in their wholeness, even when their choices are painful to witness?
This is not about getting to a place where life is perfect or where the people we love suddenly make the choices we wish they would make.
It's about our own healing, our own awakening, and our own soul's journey.
Life continues to be lifey. We are still human. We still get activated. We still fall into old patterns.
And we get to choose again.
If you have someone in your life who is still drinking, still using, or making choices that are difficult for you to watch, I hope this conversation reminds you that you can love them, have compassion for them, and allow them to have their own journey—while continuing to choose your own wholeness.
Send a one way text to Rev Rachel 🦋
The Recovery Your Soul Podcast courses and content is for educational purposes only and is not affiliated with or representative of any organization, recovery group, or religion. And reflect the personal experience and opinions of Rev Rachel Harrison and her guests. RYS claims no responsibility, any person or entity for any loss, liability, damage caused or alleged to be caused, direct or indirectly by the use application or interpretation of the information presented within. 
Support the show
FREE Mini Recover Your Soul 9-Step Workbook
FREE Support Group on Zoom 6-7PM MT on the 1st Monday of the Month
Self Study collective &  Soul Circles to walk the Recover Your Soul Steps in Community
Get the Book Recover Your Soul, Rev. Rachel’s spiritual memoir 
 1:1 Spiritual Coaching with Rev Rachel TRYASESSION for 40% off 1st session
 Follow on Social Media
RYS Bonus Podcast  Patreon Member or subscribing on Apple Podcasts for corresponding episodes. Free Patreon Members get access to new episodes first few weeks.
Transcripts

Recover Your Soul Practices: The Power of the Breath
What if one of the simplest spiritual practices is something you are already doing all day long?
Your breath is always with you. It can bring you back to the present moment, help you slow down, and create a little more space between what is happening around you and how you are choosing to respond.
In this Soul Practice, we explore the breath as a simple and accessible way to turn within, reconnect with ourselves, settle into the present moment, and create space for a deeper awareness of our soul and our connection to something greater than ourselves.
You don't have to know how to meditate or have a perfect spiritual practice. Your breath is already here, waiting for you to notice it. Sometimes healing begins with something as simple as stopping, taking a breath, and remembering that we are here, now.
Ready to go deeper?
The Recover Your Soul Self-Study Collective is a self-paced opportunity to work through the full 9-Step Recover Your Soul™ Process of Healing and Awakening in your own time and at your own pace.
Each Step includes videos with teachings that feel like you are being coached one-on-one with me, along with guided meditations, reflection, and journaling to help you move beyond simply learning the Steps and begin doing the deeper, transformative work of healing and awakening.
And you don't have to do it alone.
Each month, we gather for two live Zoom sessions with me for continued support, additional teachings, questions, reflection, and connection around the Steps and the process.
Join to work through the Steps. Stay to integrate, deepen, and connect with community.
If you're feeling called to go deeper into your own soul journey, I would love to have you with us.
Learn more and join us at RecoverYourSoul.net. 🧡
With love,
Rev. Rachel Harrison
Send a one way text to Rev Rachel 🦋
The Recovery Your Soul Podcast courses and content is for educational purposes only and is not affiliated with or representative of any organization, recovery group, or religion. And reflect the personal experience and opinions of Rev Rachel Harrison and her guests. RYS claims no responsibility, any person or entity for any loss, liability, damage caused or alleged to be caused, direct or indirectly by the use application or interpretation of the information presented within. 
Support the show
FREE Mini Recover Your Soul 9-Step Workbook
FREE Support Group on Zoom 6-7PM MT on the 1st Monday of the Month
Self Study collective &  Soul Circles to walk the Recover Your Soul Steps in Community
Get the Book Recover Your Soul, Rev. Rachel’s spiritual memoir 
 1:1 Spiritual Coaching with Rev Rachel TRYASESSION for 40% off 1st session
 Follow on Social Media
RYS Bonus Podcast  Patreon Member or subscribing on Apple Podcasts for corresponding episodes. Free Patreon Members get access to new episodes first few weeks.
Transcripts