Dr. Gabor Maté joins me for a grounded and precise conversation on addiction, stress, trauma, and the patterns that shape health, behaviour, and attention.

In this discussion, Gabor explores:

✓ Why addiction is not a personal failing, but a response to pain ✓ Why the real question is not “why the addiction?” but “why the pain?” ✓ How stress regulation is shaped early in life ✓ Why many behavioural patterns originate in childhood ✓ How the brain develops through environment and relationship, not genetics alone ✓ How trauma reflects a disconnection from the self, rather than simply the event

This conversation is part of The Health Zone, hosted by Mícheál Ó Mathúna — author of The Eleven New Commandments and an integrative practitioner working in the areas of conditioning, self-trust, and internal regulation.

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In this conversation, we explore not just the theory, but how these patterns show up in lived experience and the process of returning to a more honest relationship with oneself.

Gregg Braden, author and researcher, offers a wide-ranging conversation on stress, language, behaviour and the patterns that shape how we respond to uncertainty, change and collective challenge.

Find out more below.

This interview was conducted by Mícheál Ó Mathúna, author, workshop facilitator and integrative practitioner. His work focuses on conditioning, self-trust and the restoration of internal regulation. He is the founder of The Health Zone, a platform for conversations exploring health, behaviour and human development.

You can explore more of Mícheál’s work and The Health Zone here.

Listen to every episode of The Health Zone here: https://www.thehealthzones.com/

Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dhealthzone/

Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thehealthzoneshow/

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Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkbZXDYJF_ypdjEmQk-BEIg

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Gregg explores:

✓ How the body responds to stress and uncertainty, and the importance of internal regulation ✓ Why outdated models of competition can increase pressure and disconnection ✓ What we can learn from past human behaviour in responding to collective challenges ✓ How large-scale events can impact emotional well-being, including experiences of grief ✓ The role of awareness in shaping how we respond to changing conditions ✓ How language and the words we use influence perception, behaviour and physiological response ✓ Why patterns of thinking and communication can either support or disrupt well-being ✓ How individual responses contribute to wider collective experience

Gregg Braden is an author and speaker known for his work exploring the relationship between science, human behaviour and broader questions of meaning and awareness.

His work focuses on how belief, language and perception influence human experience, particularly in times of uncertainty and change.

Dr. Kristin Neff with Mícheál Ó Mathúna on Self-Compassion, Emotional Regulation, Relationships, Burnout and the Patterns that Shape Mental Health.

Find out more below.

This interview was conducted by Mícheál Ó Mathúna, author, workshop facilitator and integrative practitioner. His work focuses on conditioning, self-trust and the restoration of internal regulation.

He is the founder of The Health Zone, a platform for conversations exploring health, behaviour and human development.

You can explore more of Mícheál’s work and The Health Zone here.

Listen to every episode of The Health Zone here: https://www.thehealthzones.com/

Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dhealthzone/

Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thehealthzones

Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/dhealthzone/

Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkbZXDYJF_ypdjEmQk-BEIg

Join the Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/thehealthzone/

Kristin outlines:

✓ What self-compassion is, and how it supports regulation rather than avoidance.

✓ The three components of self-compassion: mindfulness, common humanity and self-kindness.

✓ How self-criticism develops, and how it shapes patterns in mental health and relationships.

✓ And how boundaries, self-trust and care support sustainable change without burnout.

Dr. Kristin Neff is a researcher and bestselling author. She is known for her work on self-compassion, emotional resilience and psychological wellbeing.