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Religion & SpiritualitySpirituality

Circle This

Good Mess Media

CIRCLE THIS, The Anti-Small Talk Podcast.

Deep, playful, and intimate conversations shedding light on how to create magic and meaning in our everyday lives. Andrea Bendewald invites her circle of friends which include innovators, authors, entrepreneurs, healers, and artists, to share their stories and practices for building and nurturing authentic relationships. These discussions, like circles, are an antidote to the loneliness epidemic, providing tangible evidence of our shared humanity, and guidance for cultivating deeper connections.

Thank you for listening, sharing, and being a part of our expanding circle.

Circle This is executive produced by Andrea Bendewald, and Emily Kratter. Edited, produced and distributed by Tracey Thomas and Good Mess media
Photography by Cathrine White

Stay connected with our Circle This Team:

@andreabendewald @circlethispodcast @emkratter @goodmessmedia @talkwithtrace

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  • 22 episodes
  • fortnightly
  • Avg 1 hr 20 min
  • English

Episodes 22

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  • #55
    Dec 9, 2025 · 1 hr 28 min

    Integrative Tools for Overwhelm: Breathwork, Embodiment, and the End of Spiritual Burnout with Natalie Kuhn

    Dre sits down with writer, teacher, and embodiment leader Natalie Kuhn, founder of Make the Sun and former Co-CEO of The Class. Natalie shares how her early experiences with conditional love shaped her sense of self, and how her current work in seminary and Al-Anon is revealing a different understanding of belonging and internal safety. They explore the pressures of spiritual overload, the tendency to turn healing into constant self-improvement, and the impact this has on the nervous system. Natalie breaks down how breath and sound support emotional release, why the body often holds the breath under stress, and what happens physiologically and energetically during breath work ceremonies. The conversation moves into the difference between loneliness and aloneness, the role of sound and voice for women who have been conditioned to stay quiet, and the relationship between energy, attention, and presence. Natalie also discusses the practice of listening beyond language and the effects of mirroring in group spaces, classrooms, and circles. Dre reflects on her own experience in one of Natalie's ceremonies and the lasting shifts it created, as well as the parallels she has found between Al-Anon, circling, and her own facilitation work. Follow: @thisisnatalie Learn more: https://youmakethesun.com/ Substack: https://youmakethesun.substack.com/ -- Stay connected with the Circle This team: @andreabendewald @circlethispodcast @emkratter @goodmessmedia @talkwithtrace For sponsorship inquiries: circlethispod@gmail.com

  • #54
    Dec 2, 2025 · 1 hr 34 min

    What Adversity Reveals: Nyakio Grieco on Projection, Self-Awareness & Spiritual Strength

    In this episode, beloved friend of the show, entrepreneur and founder, Nyakio "Kio" Grieco returns for a hard-won conversation about resilience, faith, and what adversity can reveal. After being named in a lawsuit nine months ago—and recently cleared with a full retraction—Kio shares publicly for the first time, what it was like to sit in the unknown, navigate loneliness, and how she managed to maintain her role as a leader throughout it all. Together they explore gangster gratitude, shadow work, and how gossip or cross-talk create toxic intimacy. They dive into projection, reputation, and the illusory nature of other people's perceptions. Kio shares substantial takeaways from this testing experience: how challenges reveal who your people are, how success doesn't require partnership with a man, and that spiritual leadership belongs in the boardroom. This conversation reminds us pain is universal, that witnessing is one of the most powerful forms of love, and that circling can accelerate healing in ways nothing else can. it's about becoming—even through adversity—the most self-aware, spiritually aligned, and unshakably grounded version of ourselves. Follow: @nyakio & @thirteenlune Learn More: www.thirteenlune.com -- Stay connected with the Circle This team: @andreabendewald @circlethispodcast @emkratter @goodmessmedia @talkwithtrace For sponsorship inquiries, email: circlethispod@gmail.com

Showing 21–22 of 22 episodes