エピソード

  • ep 45: why do you hide parts of yourself?

    ep 45: why do you hide parts of yourself?
    2026/09/17
    📺watch and subscribe on youtubethere's a version of you that you show people… and then there's the version underneath it: the one that stays behind the door because somewhere along the way you learned it wasn't welcome. for me that part was my sensitivity. i feel things intensely, i think about things intensely and i've always been drawn to the deeper conversations about psychology, consciousness and what's actually driving people beneath the surface. for most of my life i hid all of it. i armoured up and ran the classic masculine playbook because nobody around me was talking about any of this. in this episode i get into Carl Jung and what "the shadow" actually means beneath the jargon, Dr Elaine Aron's research on the highly sensitive person, what it costs you to keep hiding, and the golden shadow (the part almost nobody talks about). this is the first episode of a new season. we're going into the shadow. enjoy 💙what we explored this episode00:00 welcome welcome!01:24 the mask we wear and the version underneath it04:48 the life i was living twice over07:54 surrounded by people you can't be yourself with10:38 finding the people i could finally go deep with12:54 what the shadow actually is16:33 the “highly sensitive person”21:23 how to identify your shadow24:54 the real cost of hiding parts of yourself28:21 the golden shadow32:24 practical steps to begin (without forcing anything open)34:37 the invitationshow notes — research references and thought leadersCarl Jung — originator of the shadow and persona. One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious. Until you make the unconscious conscious it will direct your life and you will call it fate.Dr Elaine Aron — researcher who identified the highly sensitive person. Roughly 15 to 20 percent of the population, characterised by DOES — depth of processing, overstimulation, emotional reactivity and empathy, and sensing the subtle. Her documentary Sensitive: The Untold Story features Alanis Morissette. → www.hsperson.comRobert Bly — author of A Little Book on the Human Shadow. The long bag we drag behind us — the child puts everything unacceptable in the bag and spends the second half of life retrieving it.Gabor Maté — the trade between authenticity and attachment. A child chooses attachment every time and the adult pays for it. → www.drgabormate.comRichard Schwartz — developer of IFS, author of No Bad Parts. Every exiled part was protecting you for a good reason at the time. Approach it with curiosity rather than judgment. → www.ifs-institute.comJames Pennebaker — research on expressive disclosure. People who write honestly about what they've been concealing show measurable improvements in immune function and physical health.connect with me👉save your seat: the root cause workshopnext Thursday, 7pm AEST. a space to actually do this work alongside others carrying the same thing. last session people walked in with tension at 7 or 8 out of 10 and left at a 3, a 4, and for one man a 1. replay goes to everyone who registers, so sign up even if you can't make it live.👉take the root cause auditfree five minute assessment - answer a few honest questions about what's showing up in your life right now. i'll personally review your responses and send you back a detailed breakdown of the specific emotional pattern driving your behaviour within 48 hours. no call and no pitch. just clarity on what's actually keeping you stuck.👉free resourcespractical tools, guided practices and resources to help you create more clarity, confidence and alignment - all 100% free. no catch - just high-impact support for high performers & purpose-driven humans ready to grow. enjoy! 👉need more support?if you’re interested in coaching programs and more support.👉linkedin👉facebook👉instagram👉tiktok👉youtube👉websitelots of love,david 💙
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    36 分
  • ep 44: the price of becoming the doctor my parents wanted

    ep 44: the price of becoming the doctor my parents wanted
    2026/09/10
    Dr. Nikhil Sharma is a physician, wellness leader, and social impact entrepreneur who serves as the CEO and Founder of AlignUs and The Aligned Foundation. With over 14 years of experience practicing medicine across the New Orleans region, Dr. Sharma’s clinical background has focused largely on liver failure, including alcohol-related liver disease and fatty liver disease—conditions that revealed to him the profound connection between mental health, behavior, and long-term physical illness.Through years within the traditional healthcare system, Dr. Sharma came to recognize that many chronic conditions and life-limiting patterns are rooted in stress, emotional dysregulation, lack of community, and unresolved trauma. This insight shaped his commitment to a more integrative, preventative approach to health—one that prioritizes nervous system regulation, mental resilience, and sustainable lifestyle practices.Dr. Sharma’s work centers on helping individuals move beyond symptom management toward true well-being by addressing the deeper drivers of health. His mission is to empower people to reconnect with their bodies, minds, and purpose so they can live healthier, more aligned, and more fulfilling lives.~connect with Dr. Nik→ thealignedfoundation.org→ instagram.com/alignusworld~📺watch and subscribe on youtubeDr Nikhil Sharma became a physician because that was the only path he was ever shown. only child of Indian immigrant parents, told from his earliest memory that his life would be medicine and that everything he wanted — love, worth, belonging — sat on the other side of that achievement. he made it: Chief Medical Resident, finalist for physician of the year... and then his mother was diagnosed with stage 4 ovarian cancer and died two months later. what followed was a spiral of escapism, opioids, gambling, codependency, working 42 days in a row to avoid grieving, and eventually a complete collapse that led to rehab. in this conversation Nik shares all of it — with a raw honesty that will stay with you. enjoy 💙what we explored this episode00:00 why becoming a doctor was never really a choice02:26 people pleasing as a survival tactic05:16 the CAT scan that changed everything07:38 two weeks of bereavement and back to work (42 days in a row)10:12 what unprocessed grief actually did to his body, focus and relationships12:25 losing mum and dad’s depression (at 30 years old)14:51 the ADHD misdiagnosis17:28 why the ego will let you walk the tightrope for years20:01 the crash, surrender and choosing rehab26:37 6 weeks of solitude30:10 why we are distracted every second of every day 33:48 the computer that never got a system update39:04 the vision behind AlignUs and the Aligned Foundation43:48 what alignment and liberation means to Nikconnect with me👉take the root cause auditfree five minute assessment - answer a few honest questions about what's showing up in your life right now. i'll personally review your responses and send you back a detailed breakdown of the specific emotional pattern driving your behaviour within 48 hours. no call and no pitch. just clarity on what's actually keeping you stuck.👉free resourcespractical tools, guided practices and resources to help you create more clarity, confidence and alignment - all 100% free. no catch - just high-impact support for high performers & purpose-driven humans ready to grow. enjoy! 👉need more support?if you’re interested in coaching programs and more support.👉linkedin👉facebook👉instagram👉tiktok👉youtube👉websitelots of love,david 💙
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    50 分
  • ep 43: why do you carry everything on your own?

    ep 43: why do you carry everything on your own?
    2026/09/04
    📺watch and subscribe on youtubelast episode i talked about the gap between being better and being free… and pointed at something i didn't fully open. freedom is relational: you can do all the inner work and still be surrounded by people who only know the old version of you. this episode goes through that door properly. i get into where the conditioning to carry everything alone actually comes from, what it costs you physiologically and relationally and why your nervous system genuinely cannot regulate itself in isolation. i share my own story of being raised on put up, shut up and get on with it, my Romanian conditioning and why to this day there are conversations i still can't have with my parents. and if you've been circling this work for months or years without stepping in, this one speaks directly to that hesitation. enjoy 💙what we explored this episode00:00 welcome welcome!01:24 freedom is relational 04:54 where i learned to carry it alone08:24 surrogating other people's pain10:54 building a second family13:24 the migrant experience15:54 the masculine script18:24 why a child chooses disconnection from self20:24 why you feel like a freak for going deeper23:24 the mortality risk of isolation26:24 “i don't want to be a burden”30:24 what becomes possible when you stop carrying it alone32:54 practical steps and the invitationshow notes — research references and thought leadersTerrence Real — author of I Don't Want to Talk About It. Boys are socialised from early childhood to disconnect from their inner emotional world. Vulnerability is coded as unsafe and self-sufficiency as identity.Gabor Maté — the child who learns that expressing needs threatens connection will choose disconnection from self over disconnection from the caregiver, every time. → www.drgabormate.comStephen Porges — developer of Polyvagal Theory. Co-regulation is a biological necessity. The nervous system is designed to regulate in the presence of other regulated nervous systems. → www.stephenporges.comJulianne Holt-Lunstad — meta-analysis on social connection and mortality. Lack of social connection carries a mortality risk comparable to smoking fifteen cigarettes a day and greater than obesity or physical inactivity.Amy Edmondson — Harvard research on psychological safety. People only speak honestly when they have clear evidence that doing so won't cost them. → www.amycedmondson.comBessel van der Kolk — author of The Body Keeps the Score. Trauma resolves in relationship. Solo practices produce insight without lasting change because the missing ingredient is being witnessed. → www.besselvanderkolk.comBrené Brown — vulnerability is the most accurate measure of courage available to us. → www.brenebrown.comDavid Bayer — this isn't a do-it-yourself project. It's a group project. You do it with others. → www.davidbayer.comconnect with me👉save your seat: the root cause workshopnext wednesday, 7:30pm AEST. a space to actually do this work alongside others carrying the same thing. last session people walked in with tension at 7 or 8 out of 10 and left at a 3, a 4, and for one man a 1. replay goes to everyone who registers, so sign up even if you can't make it live.👉take the root cause auditfree five minute assessment - answer a few honest questions about what's showing up in your life right now. i'll personally review your responses and send you back a detailed breakdown of the specific emotional pattern driving your behaviour within 48 hours. no call and no pitch. just clarity on what's actually keeping you stuck.👉free resourcespractical tools, guided practices and resources to help you create more clarity, confidence and alignment - all 100% free. no catch - just high-impact support for high performers & purpose-driven humans ready to grow. enjoy! 👉need more support?if you’re interested in coaching programs and more support.👉linkedin👉facebook👉instagram👉tiktok👉youtube👉websitelots of love,david 💙
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    36 分
  • ep 42: coming home to your body

    ep 42: coming home to your body
    2026/08/27
    Martha Kastler is a Havening Techniques® practitioner, Hanna Somatics educator, and breathwork guide whose work is rooted in the belief that healing unfolds when we slow down enough to listen. Inspired by nature and the body's innate wisdom, she creates compassionate spaces where movement and stillness come together, allowing deeper awareness, resilience, and authentic transformation to emerge.Through Havening, Hanna Somatics, and breathwork, Martha helps people reconnect with themselves, release what no longer serves them, and discover a greater sense of ease, freedom, and wholeness.Learn more at MarthaKastler.com~📺watch and subscribe on youtubeMartha Kastler has been doing this work since 2009. she trained first as a yoga teacher and has spent the years since weaving together Hanna Somatics, Havening, Ayurveda, restorative breathwork and somatic education into something that meets people exactly where they are. in this episode we do things a little differently. we talk about how the body holds what the mind cannot process, why energy is not woo-woo but physiology, why healing in relationship is different to healing alone and then we actually stop talking and do it. a live havening practice and a grounding sequence, right here in the episode. bring a blanket, find somewhere you can lie down and enjoy 💙what we explored this episode00:00 why Martha has worked with so many different modalities02:24 what she discovered that talk alone couldn't reach05:09 why dismissing this as woo-woo misses something real07:30 where conventional healing approaches hit their ceiling and why10:15 the science beneath the spiritual language12:45 why healing in relationship changes what's possible compared to healing alone15:16 how the body processes trauma when given the right conditions17:49 what it actually looks like to begin listening to your body20:35 why we were never meant to do this alone23:04 what havening is and how it works25:55 a live guided havening practice32:01 coming back into the body after the practice36:25 what gets in the way of receiving healing39:24 what happens in the body when havening lands44:32 common misconceptions about healing48:36 what liberation means to Marthasome takeawaysthe body holds what the mind cannot fully process. the work is learning to create the conditions of enough safety and slowness that it can begin to speakwhat we call chakras or energy centres map onto real anatomical and neurological systems — the dismissal of this language often dismisses the reality beneath itconventional approaches hit a ceiling because they address the content of experience without addressing the physical residue of it stored in the bodythe presence of a regulated nervous system helps regulate yours in ways that solitary practice cannot replicatehavening works by depotentiating the electrochemical encoding of stored emotional material without requiring you to relive itself-judgment is one of the most common barriers to receiving healing. the body cannot open when it is being criticisedhealing is not a destination. it is a returning — to the body, to safety, to yourselfliberation is personal agency. connect with me👉take the root cause auditfree five minute assessment - answer a few honest questions about what's showing up in your life right now. i'll personally review your responses and send you back a detailed breakdown of the specific emotional pattern driving your behaviour within 48 hours. no call and no pitch. just clarity on what's actually keeping you stuck.👉free resourcespractical tools, guided practices and resources to help you create more clarity, confidence and alignment - all 100% free. no catch - just high-impact support for high performers & purpose-driven humans ready to grow. enjoy!👉need more support?if you’re interested in coaching programs and more support.👉linkedin👉facebook👉instagram👉tiktok👉youtube👉websitelots of love,david 💙
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    50 分
  • ep 41: why do you still not feel free?

    ep 41: why do you still not feel free?
    2026/08/20

    📺watch and subscribe on youtube

    you've done the work. the therapy, the breathwork, the meditation, the retreats. and you're better.. you know you're better. the anxiety has softened, the reactivity has come down and yet something still doesn't feel quite free. maybe it’s a ceiling you keep bumping into. in this episode i get into that gap (the one between being better and being free) and why it's the most confusing and least talked about place in the entire healing journey. i share my own experience of flying to bali for my eat pray love moment at a breathwork and meditation retreat during one of the hardest periods of my life, having a profound somatic release and still coming home feeling like something hadn't shifted. this one goes to the root. enjoy 💙


    what we explored this episode

    00:00 welcome welcome!

    01:24 the gap between being better and being free

    03:54 my eat pray love moment

    06:54 why healing moments alone aren't enough

    09:54 the identity ceiling

    12:54 who are you spending time with?

    15:54 the belief that ease is something only other people get to have

    18:24 what genuine freedom actually feels like and how to close the gap


    show notes — research references and thought leaders

    Bruce Lipton — author of The Biology of Belief. The environment is constantly signalling the nervous system. Internal shifts must be matched by changes in environment, relationship, and daily practice to hold. → www.brucelipton.com

    Dan Siegel — author of Mindsight. The self is a process, not a fixed thing. Identity can be updated with intention, repetition, and the right neurological conditions. → www.drdansiegel.com

    Stephen Porges — developer of Polyvagal Theory. The nervous system co-regulates. The people you spend the most time with are either regulating your nervous system upward or pulling it back toward the familiar. → www.stephenporges.com

    Maxwell Maltz — author of Psycho-Cybernetics. The internal self-image sets the ceiling on everything. Without updating the image, behaviour reverts.

    Bob Proctor — referenced for the concept of the identity as the strongest force in the personality — the thermostat that keeps recreating the same results regardless of external change.


    connect with me

    👉save your seat: the root cause workshop

    free live workshop - monday 24 august, 6pm aest, 90 minutes. we find the pattern that's been running you, work out why everything you've already tried didn't hold, and then actually move it. about a third of it is done with your eyes closed rather than in a slide deck. replay goes to everyone who registers, so sign up even if you can't make it live.

    👉free resources

    practical tools, guided practices and resources to help you create more clarity, confidence and alignment - all 100% free. no catch - just high-impact support for high performers & purpose-driven humans ready to grow. enjoy!

    👉need more support?

    if you’re interested in coaching programs and more support.

    👉linkedin

    👉facebook

    👉instagram

    👉tiktok

    👉youtube

    👉website

    lots of love,

    david 💙
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    21 分
  • ep 40: the masks we wear

    ep 40: the masks we wear
    2026/08/13

    Calum Marshall has Combined-Type ADHD, and is an ADHD Coach who's passionate about helping people stop fighting their minds and start working with them.

    Calum helps adults with ADHD build the foundations that make life easier: regulation, structure, discipline, purpose, and self-belief, so they can create sustainable change and become the person they know they're capable of being.


    connect with Calum

    W: growingwithcalum.au

    I: @growingwithcalum

    F: Growing with Calum

    ~

    📺watch and subscribe on youtube

    Calum Marshall has worn a lot of masks: the promoter, the entertainer, the guy who had it together.. and underneath all of it was a kid who grew up with a complicated, fractured relationship with his dad, spent years numbing out in the club scene, and eventually found his way to boxing and ADHD coaching as the two things that finally gave him somewhere to put all that energy. in this episode we get into what it actually costs to live multiple versions of yourself, what ADHD really is beneath the diagnosis, how boxing became a doorway to emotional release and self-respect, and what happens when you finally stop running and start feeling. raw, real, and worth every minute. enjoy 💙


    what we explored this episode

    00:00 from club promoter to coach

    04:53 the cost of living multiple lives

    09:11 what love and genuine acceptance actually feel like

    13:53 why understanding your emotions is the beginning of everything

    19:29 the lonely kid and what got buried early

    24:41 what ADHD actually is beneath the label and why most people get it wrong

    29:49 unhooking your identity from achievement

    39:17 the hardest and most necessary thing for an ADHD brain

    44:39 gratitude as a practice not a platitude

    50:36 boxing as release, discipline and proof of what you're capable of

    56:44 what liberation looks like for Cal


    some takeaways

    • wearing multiple masks for multiple audiences is exhausting in ways that don't show up until everything stops

    • ADHD is not a deficit — it is a different operating system that conventional structures were never built for

    • the loneliness of childhood gets stored in the body and shows up in adult patterns until it is finally seen and felt

    • unhooking your identity from achievement doesn't mean abandoning ambition — it means no longer needing the result to feel okay

    • slowing down is not the opposite of momentum for an ADHD brain — it is the prerequisite for genuine clarity and direction

    • boxing, movement, and physical discipline can be one of the most direct pathways to emotional regulation and self-respect for men who don't yet have the language for their feelings

    • gratitude is not a bypass — it is what becomes available when you stop running long enough to actually look at what is here

    • liberation is awareness — catching the pattern, seeing the mask, and choosing differently in that moment


    connect with me

    👉take the root cause audit

    free five minute assessment - answer a few honest questions about what's showing up in your life right now. i'll personally review your responses and send you back a detailed breakdown of the specific emotional pattern driving your behaviour within 48 hours. no call and no pitch. just clarity on what's actually keeping you stuck.

    👉free resources

    practical tools, guided practices and resources to help you create more clarity, confidence and alignment - all 100% free. no catch - just high-impact support for high performers & purpose-driven humans ready to grow. enjoy!

    👉need more support?

    if you’re interested in coaching programs and more support.

    👉linkedin

    👉facebook

    👉instagram

    👉tiktok

    👉youtube

    👉website

    lots of love,

    david 💙
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    1 時間 1 分
  • ep 39: a practice to feel your own body again (NSDR)

    ep 39: a practice to feel your own body again (NSDR)
    2026/08/06

    most of us live entirely in our heads. it works.. right up until the day it stops working. this episode is different. there is no story, no framework, no research breakdown. just a 25 minute guided NSDR practice - non-sleep deep rest, also known as yoga nidra - designed specifically to rebuild the one skill that everything else in healing sits on top of: the ability to feel your own body from the inside. scientists call it interoception. it is the foundation of emotional regulation, knowing what you need, and catching stress before it catches you. do not listen to this while driving. find somewhere you can lie down safely, put your phone on do not disturb, and give it the full twenty minutes. the pauses are the practice. enjoy 💙


    what this practice covers

    00:00 what NSDR is and why the pauses are the practice

    01:14 the practice begins (settling and arriving)

    22:00 closing and returning


    a note on this practice

    this is not a relaxation track, although you will probably feel relaxed. what it is actually doing is training interoception (the ability to sense and interpret what is happening inside your body). most of us lost this somewhere along the way. living in your head is a survival strategy.. it works until it doesn't.

    nothing is an answer. if you go to a part of your body and feel nothing at all, that is real information. do not manufacture a sensation. notice the nothing and move on.

    stay awake if you can. and if you drift off, that is fine too. your body took what it needed.

    come back to this practice whenever you need it. every time you do it, you get better at feeling your body, and everything else in your life is downstream of that.


    what is NSDR?

    non-sleep deep rest is a science-backed protocol developed from the ancient practice of yoga nidra. it uses guided body awareness and breath to bring the brain into a theta-dominant state - the same brainwave state associated with deep learning, subconscious reprogramming, and nervous system recovery - without requiring you to fall fully asleep.

    research from Stanford neuroscientist Dr Andrew Huberman and others has shown that regular NSDR practice can restore dopamine levels, improve cognitive performance, accelerate motor learning, and support nervous system regulation. it is one of the highest return-on-time practices available.

    → learn more about NSDR and the neuroscience behind it: hubermanlab.com→ learn more about yoga nidra and interoception: www.irest.org→ the science of interoception: www.bodymindcentre.com.au


    connect with me

    👉take the root cause audit

    free five minute assessment - answer a few honest questions about what's showing up in your life right now. i'll personally review your responses and send you back a detailed breakdown of the specific emotional pattern driving your behaviour within 48 hours. no call and no pitch. just clarity on what's actually keeping you stuck.

    👉free resources

    practical tools, guided practices and resources to help you create more clarity, confidence and alignment - all 100% free. no catch - just high-impact support for high performers & purpose-driven humans ready to grow. enjoy!

    👉need more support?

    if you’re interested in coaching programs and more support.

    👉linkedin

    👉facebook

    👉instagram

    👉tiktok

    👉youtube

    👉website

    lots of love,

    david 💙
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    25 分
  • ep 38: your difference is your strength

    ep 38: your difference is your strength
    2026/07/30
    Jasmine Batra is an entrepreneur and Chief Catalyst who has spent nearly two decades building businesses, backing founders and connecting innovation across Australia and India.After moving to Australia with a suitcase, ambition and no established network, Jasmine went on to co-found what is now one of the longest standing independent digital marketing agencies.She also launched The Big LEAP, a cross-border platform helping startups navigate new markets, cultures and commercial opportunities.Her work sits at the intersection of mindset, leadership and growth. She is particularly interested in what enables people to take bold action before they feel fully ready, adapt when the original plan stops working and keep moving when progress is uncertain.Jasmine draws on her own experience as a first-generation migrant, founder and advisor to explore resilience, self-belief, cultural intelligence and the habits that turn ideas into momentum.Known for combining practical strategy with honest reflection, she brings a grounded perspective on ambition, reinvention and the courage required to build something meaningful.connect with Jasmine→ jasminebatra.com ~📺watch and subscribe on youtubeJasmine Batra arrived in Australia 22 years ago with an MBA, a background in tech and fintech, and a vision of what her life could look like. what followed was rejection after rejection, a call centre job selling credit cards, three promotions in six months, a redundancy, and eventually the founding of Arrow Digital — one of Australia's leading digital growth agencies, going strong since 2007 with clients including Telstra and the Queensland Government. in this conversation we get into the silent that tax migrants pay, what it actually takes to shift from survival mode to building something meaningful, how frustration became the fuel behind the Big Leap Accelerator, the moment a client went into liquidation and $28,000 disappeared overnight, and what liberation really means when you've spent years proving yourself to a world that wasn't always ready to see you. warm, honest, and full of wisdom. enjoy 💙what we explored this episode00:00 arriving in australia and hitting rejection immediately02:27 decoding a new culture, new language and unsaid rules05:33 from entitlement to putting in the hard yards08:12 cold calling credit cards and the skills it built10:54 connecting the dots in reverse14:08 necessity as the mother of invention16:55 the rise of the web and writing your own job description18:45 the redundancy that became the propeller22:03 how migrant frustration becomes entrepreneurial fuel25:39 bridging australia and india through skills not just markets29:27 the inner challenges of looking different, sounding different and still belonging34:06 loosening the grip of the ego and shifting from entitlement to empathy38:12 gratitude journaling, meditation and quieting the reptilian brain40:00 your difference is your strength (from proving to being secure)41:22 the $28,000 liquidation letter and what leadership required in that moment46:02 finding optimism when the switch doesn't come automatically49:21 richard branson and getting out of your own head52:05 letting go of control and trusting something bigger54:27 what liberation means to Jasmineconnect with me👉take the root cause auditfree five minute assessment - answer a few honest questions about what's showing up in your life right now. i'll personally review your responses and send you back a detailed breakdown of the specific emotional pattern driving your behaviour within 48 hours. no call and no pitch. just clarity on what's actually keeping you stuck.👉need more support?if you’re interested in coaching programs and more support.👉linkedin👉facebook👉instagram👉tiktok👉youtube👉websitelots of love,david 💙
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    58 分