Ready To Be Real by Síle Seoige

In this week's Real Take, I'm sharing a short snippet of my recent conversation with Celtic wisdom teacher and guide Mari Kennedy.Here she talks to us about the coming days, Síle's day on the 18th and later in the week, we'll be celebrating the Spring Equinox.I highly recommend you listen to the full conversation with Mari anytime now, it's a beaut!To connect with her :https://www.marikennedy.com/https://www.instagram.com/marikennedywisdom

Topics covered : The dark feminine/An Chailleach, infertility, grief, good girl conditioning, masculine and feminine forces, patriarchy, menopause, 4 (not 3) stages of womanhood - Maiden, Mother, Sovereign Queen and Crone, Friday the 13th, Síle's day, year of the Fire Horse, Spring Equinox, Sinéad O'Connor, rebellion, new age wellness, Síle na gig, feminine rising. For this special Friday the 13th episode, I’m joined by a teacher and guide in the Celtic Wisdom tradition, ​the wonderful Mari Kennedy.Mari lives in her home county of Sligo with her partner ​writer Eugene​ O'Brien, and she works with the Celtic Wheel of the Year​, an ancient framework that invites us to live in deeper alignment with nature​, cyclical wisdom​ and the cycles of life.Her work centres on women’s relationship to power, wisdom and remembering who we truly are.​The question she keeps returning to, and that runs through everything she does, is: how do we respond wisely and powerfully to the chaos and collapse of this time?In this conversation we cover a lot​...from Mari’s own personal story​ that is so powerful, to conversations around feminine and masculine energies, the impact of living under patriarchy​ and unlearning the 'good girl' conditioning, along with the different stages of womanhood.We also explore the magic of Friday the 13th, ​Síle's day and the ​Spring ​Equinox​.I adored this conversation and I hope you do too.The magic of Friday the 13th - 46 mins approxSíle's Day, Spring Equinox, the balance of the masculine and feminine - 1 hour 11 mins approx​To connect with Mari :https://www.marikennedy.com/​Instagram https://www.instagram.com/marikennedywisdom

I'm dipping into the Ready to be Real archive for this week's Real Take.In this snippet, I speak with the wonderfully reflective Michael Harding, as he shares his love of religion and spirituality...from Buddhism to Christianity...with the philosophical curiosity and earthy wisdom he’s so well known for.And if you enjoy this, I highly recommend you listen to the full conversation with Michael from December 2022.

This week I'm joined by personal trainer and online coach Iza Clarke.Originally from Poland, Iza has been living in Ireland for the past 18 years. She’s married to Odhran and they have two tween daughters, Lanah and Keira.I recently started training with ​her and I love how encouraging and knowledgeable she is​, so I wanted to sit down with her for an honest and informative conversation about strength training, nutrition, and how our approach to fitness needs to change as we move through different decades of life.​* To be clear, this isn’t an ad, I’m a very happy paying client who thought this conversation might resonate with ​listeners.​C​onnect with Iza​Izabela Clarke PT (@iza.clarke)​You can sign up to her monthly program and she’s also launching a perimenopause p​lan on the 16th of March, with a particular focus on training, nutrition and education during this often challenging stage of life.​I would highly recommend connecting with her, she is fab!

​Topics covered : toxic family systems, boundaries, living grief, healing.For this week's Real Take, Josh Connolly talks about the unspoken truth of family dysfunction and how toxic systems are often invisible to the outside world.​He is a father of six and his book​ ​'It’s Them, Not You: How to Break Free from Toxic Parents and Reclaim Your Story' is a bestseller.With a powerful online following and years of lived experience behind his work, he speaks openly about growing up with an alcoholic and abusive parent​.And in the wake of recent public conversations around family estrangement, due to Brooklyn Beckham’s revelations, I wanted to explore what dysfunction in a family system actually looks like. The roles people can fall into​, the patterns that follow on into adulthood​, and why boundaries can feel so difficult and yet are so necessary.​Josh on Instagram​His Dublin workshop on Sunday April 26th 2026​Tics here​​You can listen to the full conversation anytime now​ and if you're struggling right now, there is help available...Ireland helplines and hotlines

​Topics covered : Alcoholism, toxic family systems, boundaries, living grief, compassion, healing.This week I speak to author Josh Connolly about family dysfunction.Josh is a father of six and his book​ ​'It’s Them, Not You: How to Break Free from Toxic Parents and Reclaim Your Story' is a bestseller.With a powerful online following and years of lived experience behind his work, he speaks openly about growing up with an alcoholic and abusive parent​.And in the wake of recent public conversations around family estrangement, due to Brooklyn Beckham’s revelations, I wanted to explore what dysfunction in a family system actually looks like. The roles people can fall into​, the patterns that follow on into adulthood​, and why boundaries can feel so difficult and yet are so necessary.​Josh on Instagram​His Dublin workshop on Sunday April 26th 2026​Tics here​If you're struggling right now, there is help available...Ireland helplines and hotlines

​For today’s Real Take, we’re dipping into the archive. Back in May 2020, during the height of COVID restrictions, I recorded a remote conversation with comedian, actor and broadcaster Tommy Tiernan...he was in Galway, I was in Dublin, ​but despite the distance, the connection was magic. He spoke about his fascination with religion and philosophy​, we learn more about what makes him tick...which includes his love of strong coffee and cigars, his brilliant TV show and of his experience ​on a silent retreat. ​You can also listen t0 the full conversation anytime now.And if you liked this chat you might appreciate others here with the likes of Brother Richard and Gelong Thubten.

This episode is aimed at parents of young children through to preteens and I’m speaking with child and adolescent psychotherapist Debbie Cullinane.Debbie lives in Mayo with her husband James and their two children, Elsie (10.5) and Freddie (9.5). For context, I have two children as well, Cathal (8.5) and Clíodhna (4), so this conversation felt particularly relevant.Debbie first joined me on the podcast back in March 2024, and that episode resonated deeply, for me personally and for so many listeners. If you haven’t heard it yet, I highly recommend giving it a listen.This is Debbie’s third time on the pod, and in this episode we delve into all things kids and toys. What supports healthy development, the importance of aggressive play in childhood, which toys need clear boundaries around them…and one personal rule she stands firmly by: no unsupervised YouTube.Debbie, along with fellow psychotherapist Hayley Rice, created the F.I.R.M.™ (Firm, Intentional, Regulated, Modelling) Parenting Approach, a therapist-designed, research-driven framework that supports parents in raising emotionally healthy, resilient children.You can join their parenting hub, you’ll find more information on both of their Instagram pages.If you enjoy what I do, please follow, rate and review the podcast in all the usual places.Go raibh míle maith agat.

In today’s Real Take, Brother Richard speaks about death in a deeply comforting way​, drawn from his years of accompanying people at the end of their lives.If this resonated with you, I’d love to hear your thoughts and if you’d like to hear more from Brother Richard, the full conversation is available to listen to anytime now.