Could We Accept Stillness? (Monthly Solo)

More from Pulling The Thread with Elise Loehnen

1. 

   E292 · 14 May 2026 · 47 min

   The Most Dangerous Idea Ever Created (Ibram X. Kendi, PhD)

   Ibram X. Kendi, is the author of the #1 New York Times–bestseller How to Be an Antiracist. His new book is Chain of Ideas: The Origins of Our Authoritarian Age. It is incredibly insightful and illuminating in terms of mapping out how we got to where we are, around the world. And what Kendi shares in our conversation today is also quite helpful in terms of pointing us in a new direction. For the show notes, head to my website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2. 

   7 May 2026 · 58 min

   Not Operating by the Checklist (Stacey Lindsay)

   I met Stacey Lindsay about a decade ago and worked with her for a few years—she’s a curious, compassionate journalist and writer—but I didn’t know much of her own incredible personal story until I read her new book Being 40 and had this conversation with her. We talked about the meaning of this decade of our lives, but more broadly, we talked about the scripts and checklists that women are often handed throughout our lives—and how we go about setting these down, centering ourselves, and self-authoring. We talked about being disappointed by the people we love, about forgiveness, about…

3. 

   30 Apr 2026 · 56 min

   Solving Medical Mysteries—and the Diagnosis Crisis (Alexandra Sifferlin)

   In 2018, health and science journalist Alexandra Sifferlin began her investigation into the American diagnosis crisis: Why are so many people being misdiagnosed? What is the cost of this error? Who is trying to change the system—and what does a better healthcare system (for all of us) look like? The resulting book—The Elusive Body—is a fascinating read. Today, we cover the major parts of Sifferlin’s investigation and what’s unfolded even since she finished writing. For the show notes, head to my website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

4. 

   E318 · 8 Oct 2026 · 1 hr 2 minNew

   6 Archetypes That Shape Our Relationships (Galit Atlas, PhD)

   In her private therapy practice, renowned psychoanalyst Galit Atlas, PhD, has identified six archetypes that shape our intimate relationships as adults. She says that every adult carries one of these archetypes with them, and that usually we carry more than one. She’s named them: the frightened child, the melancholic child, the ashamed child, the invisible child, the guilty child (I identify big-time with this one), and the chosen child. Today, we talk through these archetypes as Galit brings us into the therapy room and shares some incredibly resonant stories from her work with her…

5. 

   E317 · 1 Oct 2026 · 1 hr 4 min

   Navigating a New Era (Carissa Schumacher)

   “The alchemy pathway brings back synchronicity, unity, harmony to all of these different parts of self,” says psychic medium Carissa Schumacher. Her book—The Alchemy Transmissions: A Pathway to Miracles—is out this week, and it’s a series of transmissions she channeled from Yeshua (Jesus)! Today, we’re talking about what else this pathway might offer us, how to navigate the new era that we’re in, how to become more consciously mature, and how to step more deeply into your own unique essence. For the show notes (including a link to Carissa’s 92nd Street Y event on October 3, which you can…

6. 

   E316 · 28 Sep 2026 · 32 min

   Our Gifts Are Emergent (Monthly Solo)

   It’s just me today, sharing an update on my next surgery (I’m still doing well!), and reflecting on something that someone shared with me at a book event a few weeks ago. It got me thinking about how our gifts are emergent; they show up at different times in our lives, and in different ways. And sometimes, we’re being called to simply be present. I’m also starting to reflect back on the last seven-year cycle (more about why in the episode), and hope you’ll join me in thinking about who you were, too, in the fall of 2019. To see the show notes and my newsletter, to register for upcoming…

7. 

   E315 · 24 Sep 2026 · 50 min

   The Core of Consciousness (Antonio Damasio, MD, PhD)

   “Feeling is really the core of consciousness,” says Antonio Damasio, MD, PhD. “And it's giving you information about what it is like to be alive, and how your life is going, and what you need to do about it.” Damasio is the director of the Brain and Creativity Institute at the University of Southern California and the author of several books including, his latest, Natural Intelligence & the Logic of Consciousness. Today, he shares his beautiful explanation of this kind of feeling, along with his reflections on spirituality and the sublime. For the show notes, head to eliseloehnen.com. Learn…

8. 

   E314 · 17 Sep 2026 · 54 min

   What Almost All of Us Agree On (Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor)

   In their brilliant new book—End Times Fascism: And the Fight for the Living World—Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor uncover the varied threads that have given birth to an apocalyptic, survivalist alliance of power that seems intent on…ending us. And they share an arguably more appealing, enjoyable path to breaking the doom loop and—rooted in what they call here-ness—figuring out a new way to live in our profound world, now. It’s such a treat to have them both on the podcast today! For the show notes, head to eliseloehnen.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

9. 

   E313 · 10 Sep 2026 · 51 min

   Pleasure Principles (Richard Christiansen)

   Richard Christiansen is the founder of Flamingo Estate and a dear pal of mine. Today, we’re talking (in part) about the stories that led to his new book, Flamingo Estate Pleasure Principles. We get into: our love of witches, why Richard thinks we’re experiencing a crisis of beauty (and what he does about it), the concept of a victory garden, the unexpected provenance of things like the California naval orange, and his take on chasing pleasure. For the show notes, head to eliseloehnen.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

10. 

    E312 · 3 Sep 2026 · 53 min

    How to Pursue Your Goals—Without Suffering (Angela Duckworth, PhD)

    “ It’s just incredibly hard to really resist these forces that are, you know, probably from evolution, that we adapt to our circumstances,” says psychologist Angela Duckworth, PhD. “But once you have that insight, then you realize that you do have to shape your circumstances before they shape you.” In her new book Situated, Duckworth (who wrote the #1 New York Times bestseller Grit) reveals the often hidden ways that situational elements affect us, and she maps out optimistic strategies for sometimes changing our environment and sometimes improving the situations in our lives. In our…

Every episode of Pulling The Thread with Elise Loehnen →