Rebel Clinicians Podcast
The Rebel Clinicians Podcast is your home for daring conversations and innovative insights designed to transform the world of mental health and holistic healing. Hosted by seasoned therapists and healers who refuse to be confined by the traditional therapy model, each episode explores the intersection of spirituality, ancient wisdom, and modern therapy. Whether you’re a therapist, social worker, energy healer, or simply someone seeking deeper healing and personal growth, we’re here to inspire, challenge, and guide you on your path.
In each episode, we dive into powerful topics like integrating psychedelics and indigenous wisdom, breaking free from the constraints of “the couch,” financial freedom, and building an authentic practice that reflects your unique magic. We’ll share stories of clinicians who are thriving by being true to themselves, and we’ll reveal practical tools for expanding your practice beyond boundaries while nurturing your soul. From financial strategies and marketing tips to shamanic practices and spiritual journeys, this podcast brings together everything you need to become an empowered and revolutionary healer.
Join us in our mission to disrupt the field, heal deeply, and redefine what it means to be a clinician—one episode at a time. Welcome to the tribe.
Rebel Clinicians Podcast
S: 02 Epi 01: “The Language of Spirit Animals: Wisdom, Respect, and Therapy”
S: 02 Epi 01: “The Language of Spirit Animals: Wisdom, Respect, and Therapy”
Hosts: Alex Runolfson & John Cottrell
The Rebel Clinicians Podcast returns with its Season Two premiere, and Alex and John open the season with a compelling new series on spirit animals, power animals, and totem animals. This episode sets the stage by exploring how animals serve as allies, guides, and teachers in both spiritual practice and therapeutic work.
Together, they clarify the key distinctions between spirit animals, power animals, and totems, weaving in traditional stories, cultural examples, and clinical applications. From indigenous teachings of sacred reciprocity, to references in Wicked and ancient family crests, they illustrate how animals have carried wisdom across cultures and time.
Listeners will discover practical ways to integrate animal symbolism into healing practices, including:
- Embodiment and yoga postures to explore traits like vision, strength, or boundaries.
- Dreamwork and archetypes to uncover unconscious meaning.
- Narrative therapy, Internal Family Systems, and EMDR using animal imagery as powerful resources.
- Trauma-informed and culturally sensitive practices to honor these traditions with integrity.
Alex and John also share their personal experiences with animal allies—guides that have appeared in ceremony, dreams, and daily life, bringing unexpected messages of strength, healing, and transformation.
This conversation is an invitation to expand curiosity, wonder, and play, while learning how to bring animal medicine into clinical, spiritual, and personal practice.
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