Episode 057 with Soul Coach and Mindfulness Expert Anna Cantwell - A Teacher Of The Human Spirit

The Junkyard Love Podcast

If you have a mind, a body, and a soul.. boy oh boy is this the episode for you. Packed with magnificent knowledge of our inner workings as human beings - this conversation with Miss Cantwell is hit after hit of internal freedom. By way of her own personal journey Anna shares valuable information on trauma, chronic pain, healing, spirituality, meditation, changing toxic habits, mental growth, curating optimism, yoga, psychology, neuroscience, cannabis, depression, psychedelics, synchronicities, self-awareness, self-actualization, mindfulness, teaching, learning, serving and tons more. A highly active mind from a young age, Anna shares her childhood stories of loving nature and wanting to break from the molds of other peoples' induced identities. Insatiously curious but caught under the pressure she self-assigned - Anna developed chronic pain, fear of making mistakes, and a desire to always "get it right". She suffered, like many, with the fear of being accepted, and later in life - she suffered sexual trauma and it's ensuing injustices. Healing from her past and its accompanying disassociation to the epic jam of Katy Perrys 'Roar', Anna now leads mindfulness courses, teaches meditation and yoga, helps women in her Soulshine Courses and Mindful Living Mentorships and shines brightly for a living. Her story she shares here is inspiring and packed full of fantastic firsthand wisdom towards new meditators, mindfulness practicers, and self-love seekers. We talk about using the breath and cannabis to reduce inflammation and regulate chronic stomach pain, using plant medicine to connect with the body and manage affliction, and changing our perspectives on "party drugs" and "the devils lettuce". How on (or off) earth does seeking the divinity help with the management of depression and anxiety? Anna clearly and cleanly explains this by simple and useful analogies of our brain's neural pathways and an explanation of our insane amount of daily thoughts as humans. (Of which are 90% the same as the day before, mind you.) She talks becoming worthy with your own permission, tending to your internal garden, separating your'self' from your environment, and shifting from survival mode. We talk about mindfulness off the cushion, choosing to choose your own beliefs, working with the body's natural cycles, and creating a reality that you are in love with. If you'd like to check out more on the sagacious Anna Cantwell, she teaches weekly live meditations online and offers multiple courses through her website and social media accounts. Her website is annacantwell.com and her Instagram is @iamannacantwell - where on the daily she shares inspiration, truth, wisdom, and love. If you enjoyed this episode of The Junkyard Love Podcast - please consider sharing with a friend, leaving a star rating or review, or hitting subscribe or follow in your chosen listening app. Keep on lovin' yo-self. Some notable quotes from this episode with AC "In the wind I feel Spirit, when I'm swinging on the swingset at recess I am matching my breath and constructing universes in the clouds, that was me as a child." "That insatiable curiosity was really hindered by this gripping of identity, trying to 'get it right', needing to always be 'the best', not 'my' best." "I have to leave this battle here." "Am I willing to see this, differently?" "The base definition of hope is seeing a more positive outcome, and multiple pathways to that outcome" "Comparing is one of the silliest things we do. Why would I ever compare myself to someone who hasn't had the lived experience, or the DNA, or the childhood, to get you to where you are on your journey right now? OWN where your journey begins." "Meditation is like showering for your brain" "Your home is your vision board, surround yourself with the symbols that mean something to you." "You are not something broken to be fixed, you are a garden to be tended to" "There were some seeds planted in all of our gardens that we never chose, we may have to do a little tilling and digging of the earth to uproot it." "I just want to help people feel comfortable in their own bodies" "It can and will get better. Choose to look for the good."