Partners in Sublime: Elevating personal growth through psychospiritual wisdom

por Shagun Chopra

How to handle a difficult family: Jason cuts contact with parents after years of trying to please them (ft. Debra Maldonado)

We often think the hardest part of a difficult family relationship is the other person, their control, their criticism, their refusal to see us as who we have become. So we set a boundary, or in the more painful cases, we go no contact, and we tell ourselves that once the contact stops, the pain will stop too. But the relationship rarely ends where we think it ends. It continues quietly inside us, in the patterns we picked up as children just to stay safe and loved, and in the parts of ourselves we still cannot see even after the phone calls have stopped. In this episode, we sit with 'Jason', a man who cut off his parents after years of trying to please them, only to find that the deeper work was still ahead of him. Shagun is joined by veteran coach Debra Maldonado, co-founder of Creative Mind, to explore Jung's concept of the mother complex, the imago we build of the people who raised us, and the uncomfortable shadow work of realizing that the control we resent in someone else might be a pattern we are carrying too. 00:00 Introduction 01:49 Debra's journey: Quitting the corporate world, practicing hypnotherapy, and finding a home in coaching 11:19 Coaching session with Jason: Controlling parents, sibling dynamics, disrespecting boundaries 42:08 Coaching session breakdown: Mother complex, shadow work, and the desire for control ABOUT THE HOST: Shagun Chopra is an individuation coach, speaker, and educator. Her unique approach combines Jungian depth psychology with ancient Vedic wisdom to create the ultimate personal transformation. She supports professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives in bringing their wildest dreams to life and leapfrogging their career, business, and relationships. To learn more, visit shagunchopra.com ABOUT THE GUEST: Debra Berndt Maldonado left the corporate world in 2003 to pursue her passion to empower others to live their dreams. She is a Certified Master Jungian Life Coach Instructor, TEDx Speaker and author of LIKE A SPARK FROM FIRE (CreativeMind Media 2022) and the bestselling book, LET LOVE IN (Wiley 2010). Debra has been featured by ABC News, ABC Radio Network, FOX News, NBC News, WB2, Cosmopolitan, Natural Health, Huffington Post, YourTango, Publisher’s Weekly, Complete Woman, and more. She can be found at https://creativemindlife.com JOIN THE SHOW: To ask a question or get coached on the show, visit shagunchopra.com/ask - all coaching clients are assigned a pseudonym and given the option to not share their video DISCLAIMER: Conversations on Partners in Sublime are for educational purposes only, and do not constitute medical or psychological advice or treatment. Please consult a licensed professional for any mental health concerns.

E21

28 jul 2026

1:06:13

How to overcome creative blocks: Experienced journalist Linda can't finish her own book proposal (ft. Melanie Bates)

We tell ourselves so many stories about why we can't finish the thing we most want to create. We call it procrastination, we call it perfectionism, we call it simply not having enough hours in the day, and sometimes we call it brain fog, as if our own mind had quietly turned against us for no reason at all. But creative blocks are rarely about the craft itself, especially when the person stuck is someone who has done this work for decades without trouble. More often there is something unconscious sitting between us and the page, an old voice or an old role we absorbed long before we ever sat down to write, and it only reveals itself when we stop trying to push past it and instead turn to look at it directly. In this episode, we watch that process unfold in real time with 'Linda', a professional writer of nearly thirty years who finds herself unable to finish the one book that is actually hers. Shagun is joined by her former coach Melanie Bates, known for years in the publishing world as the book shaman, to unpack everything from Jung's idea of the autonomous complex to the martyr and rebel archetypes hiding underneath a stalled book proposal. 00:00 Introduction 01:49 Melanie's journey to becoming the 'book shaman' 09:57 Coaching session with Linda: Writer's block, brain fog, and fear of being canceled 35:18 Coaching session breakdown: Debunking standard writing advice and embracing the autonomous nature of creativity ABOUT THE HOST: Shagun Chopra is an individuation coach, speaker, and educator. Her unique approach combines Jungian depth psychology with ancient Vedic wisdom to create the ultimate personal transformation. She supports professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives in bringing their wildest dreams to life and leapfrogging their career, business, and relationships. To learn more, visit shagunchopra.com ABOUT THE GUEST: As the 'Book Shaman', Melanie Bates helped authors write their books, build their businesses, and land on the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists. What she eventually understood was that the book was never the point. The writer always was, and what the writer needed wasn't craft. It was excavation. Today she works as a Master-Certified Jungian Depth Coach, Certified Equus Coach, and Certified Spiritual Teacher. She guides women in the second half of life who are done making the trade the culture offers and are ready to welcome home their heretics—those exiled, disavowed, and still-wild bits within—so they can finally create: the writing, the business, the life. She can be found at https://melaniebates.com/ and her writings at https://melaniembates.substack.com/ JOIN THE SHOW: To ask a question or get coached on the show, visit shagunchopra.com/ask - all coaching clients are assigned a pseudonym and given the option to not share their video DISCLAIMER: Conversations on Partners in Sublime are for educational purposes only, and do not constitute medical or psychological advice or treatment. Please consult a licensed professional for any mental health concerns.

E20

14 jul 2026

1:00:52

When words fail you: Known for her eloquence, Remedy goes silent with those closest to her (ft. Maria Bluff)

We spend years learning how to express ourselves, and then find, sometimes to our own horror, that all of that facility with language completely deserts us in conversations that matter most. Most of us never look closely enough at the unconscious forces underneath to understand why. This episode centers on a coaching session with Remedy who is sought out for her eloquence in her public life but goes quiet with the people closest to her in her personal life. Shagun is joined by fellow coach Maria Bluff, who shares her own story of cultural displacement, shedding a high-achieving persona, and finding her way to a life that actually fits. Together, they reflect on Remedy's curious juxtaposition, its many layers, and what the path forward might look like. 00:00 Introduction 01:48 Maria's individuation journey: lawyer persona, need for control, outgrowing discipleship and more 21:45 Coaching session with Remedy: Choking up in close relationships 37:09 Coaching session breakdown: Avoidance, fear of intimacy, balancing the thinking function ABOUT THE HOST: Shagun Chopra is an individuation coach, speaker, and educator. Her unique approach combines Jungian depth psychology with ancient Vedic wisdom to create the ultimate personal transformation. She supports professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives in bringing their wildest dreams to life and leapfrogging their career, business, and relationships. To learn more, visit shagunchopra.com ABOUT THE GUEST: Maria Bluff is a Jungian purpose embodiment coach guiding heart-centered high performers to success through the embodiment of their mission. She can be found at https://www.instagram.com/maria_m_bluff JOIN THE SHOW: To ask a question or get coached on the show, visit shagunchopra.com/ask - all coaching clients are assigned a pseudonym and given the option to not share their video DISCLAIMER: Conversations on Partners in Sublime are for educational purposes only, and do not constitute medical or psychological advice or treatment. Please consult a licensed professional for any mental health concerns.

E19

30 jun 2026

1:06:18

Why we help beyond our means? Jan's resentment grows as she supports her sister through a divorce (ft. Amy Lukas)

Most of us have been there: you step in to help someone you love, and somewhere along the way the helping starts to feel less like a choice and more like something you simply cannot stop doing. There's a fine line between genuine care and the kind of compulsive caretaking that quietly drains you, and most of us have never really looked at what lives on the other side of that line. In this episode, Shagun sits with Jan, who finds herself in the thick of exactly this pattern, supporting a family member through a major life transition and noticing something uncomfortable beginning to surface in the process. What follows is a live coaching session that goes somewhere unexpected, and afterward, Shagun is joined by fellow Jungian-trained coach Amy Lukas to reflect on what the session reveals, including some territory that feels very close to home for both of them. 00:00 Introduction 01:27 How Amy's creative career ended in burnout and illness 10:50 What Amy's inner work looks like now 16:02 What is the Savior Complex 18:41 Coaching Session with Jan: Savior Complex in Action 38:26 Debriefing Jan's session and Shagun and Amy's personal savior stories About the host: Shagun Chopra is an individuation coach, speaker, and educator. Her unique approach combines Jungian depth psychology with ancient Vedic wisdom to create the ultimate personal transformation. She supports professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives in bringing their wildest dreams to life and leapfrogging their career, business, and relationships. To learn more, visit shagunchopra.com About the guest: Amy Lukas is a Depth Coach, founder of Fallow Renewal, and former design entrepreneur. After a successful 30-year career in the creative industry, she now supports accomplished professionals, creative leaders, and entrepreneurs—many of them women in midlife—who appear successful on the outside yet feel called toward something deeper on the inside. Amy guides clients in reconnecting with authenticity, creativity, and purpose during seasons of transition. Her work explores the transformative power of self-awareness, intentional renewal, and what she calls “The Art of Becoming.” She can be found at www.fallowrenewal.com Join the show: To ask a question or get coached on the show, visit shagunchopra.com/ask - all coaching clients are assigned a pseudonym and given the option to not share their video Disclaimer: Conversations on Partners in Sublime are for educational purposes only, and do not constitute medical or psychological advice or treatment. Please consult a licensed professional for any mental health concerns.

E18

16 jun 2026

1:02:42

Is spiritual bypass necessary? Ava is unexpectedly calm after a blindsiding breakup

We've all had that friend who just went through something devastating and seems almost too okay, or been that person ourselves, turning to faith or practice or the certainty that everything happens for a reason, and finding, at least for a while, that it actually works. In this episode, Shagun explores spiritual bypass, a term coined by transpersonal psychologist John Welwood for the tendency to use spiritual ideas and practices to sidestep unresolved emotional pain, and makes the case that it may be less a failure of the spiritual path than a necessary resting point along it. To illustrate what spiritual bypass actually feels like from the inside, she shares a live coaching session with Ava, who arrives less than a week after a blindsiding breakup with parents involved and marriage on the horizon, and is, somehow, calm. The session raises a question that Shagun then takes on directly from her own experience: what is the difference between genuine peace and the kind of peace that comes from not yet having let yourself feel what's actually there, and what happens to everything we leave unfelt? 00:00 Introduction 01:52 What is Spiritual Bypass 06:04 Why spiritual bypass isn't as bad as you think 12:06 Navigating Emotions: The Impact of Breakups 12:25 Coaching session with Ava: Navigating post-breakup grief 29:09 Session debrief: Understanding Ava's grief journey and spiritual bypass potential About the host: Shagun Chopra is an individuation coach, speaker, and educator. Her unique approach combines Jungian depth psychology with ancient Vedic wisdom to create the ultimate personal transformation. She supports professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives in bringing their wildest dreams to life and leapfrogging their career, business, and relationships. To learn more, visit shagunchopra.com Join the show: To ask a question or get coached on the show, visit shagunchopra.com/ask - all coaching clients are assigned a pseudonym and given the option to not share their video Disclaimer: Conversations on Partners in Sublime are for educational purposes only, and do not constitute medical or psychological advice or treatment. Please consult a licensed professional for any mental health concerns.

E17

2 jun 2026

39:09

When niceness becomes a trap: Selena's inability to say no almost ruins a long-awaited dream

We are all taught to be nice. Through years of conditioning, being praised for sharing, being corrected for asking for too much, being rewarded for going along, we learn that niceness is the price of belonging. But what happens when being nice means overriding your own body's signal? What happens when the most spiritually evolved-sounding justification is actually just your ego managing away something it finds threatening? In this episode, I coach 'Selena' through a situation that most of us would brush off as minor - answering a call she didn't want to answer - but underneath that small incident is something worth excavating: a shadow self who already knows exactly what to say and how to say it, and has simply been waiting to be trusted. We move through the Jungian concepts of persona and shadow, explore how rationalization and reaction formation keep us loyal to a pattern even when that pattern is working against us, and use active imagination to help Selena meet the version of herself she has been keeping out of sight. We also touch on the Vedantic concept of the kavach, sacred armor, and raise the fundamental question: if the soul is genuinely indestructible, what exactly are we protecting, and from what? 00:00 Introduction 02:54 How we get conditioned to be nice 04:34 How the ego keeps us stuck in people pleasing mode 06:06 How to stop being compulsively nice with shadow work 07:29 Coaching session with Selena: Being nice and regretting it 28:59 Session breakdown: New age spirituality, ego defenses, alter ego imagination About the host: Shagun Chopra is an individuation coach, speaker, and educator. Her unique approach combines Jungian depth psychology with ancient Vedic wisdom to create the ultimate personal transformation. She supports professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives in bringing their wildest dreams to life and leapfrogging their career, business, and relationships. To learn more, visit shagunchopra.com Join the show: To ask a question or get coached on the show, visit shagunchopra.com/ask - all coaching clients are assigned a pseudonym and given the option to not share their video Disclaimer: Conversations on Partners in Sublime are for educational purposes only, and do not constitute medical or psychological advice or treatment. Please consult a licensed professional for any mental health concerns.

E16

19 may 2026

36:40

How to connect with our higher self? Dorothy's job pays the bills but doesn't make her happy

We use the word "self" constantly, in therapy, in spirituality, in everyday conversation, but we rarely stop to ask which self we are actually talking about. In this episode, Shagun breaks down three distinct understandings of the self, from the everyday ego self to the IFS Self to the Jungian Self, and makes the case that it is this third, deeper Self that we most need to learn to connect with. Drawing on Edward Edinger's concept of the ego-Self axis, she walks through how that connection strengthens and breaks across a lifetime, what ego inflation and deflation actually look like in real life, and five concrete ways to stay connected to your higher self, one of which is beautifully illustrated through the coaching session with "Dorothy." Dororthy's situation is familiar to many, she has a job that pays the bills but costs her too: her sleep, her presence, and her sense of purpose. Shagun uses active imagination to offer Dorothy's higher Self the space to speak, and what emerges is not a plan or a prescription but a single unexpected symbol that points her back to something she already knows about herself. 00:00 Introduction 01:25 What is your higher self 04:01 Do we live in a conscious universe 05:13 How the ego-Self axis works 09:02 What is ego inflation and ego deflation 14:19 How to stay connected with our higher self 22:03 What myth teaches us about the higher self 24:07 Coaching session with Dororthy: Work is not aligning with purpose 46:02 Session breakdown: Recognizing ego, higher self, and symbolism About the host: Shagun Chopra is an individuation coach, speaker, and educator. Her unique approach combines Jungian depth psychology with ancient Vedic wisdom to create the ultimate personal transformation. She supports professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives in bringing their wildest dreams to life and leapfrogging their career, business, and relationships. To learn more, visit shagunchopra.com Join the show: To ask a question or get coached on the show, visit shagunchopra.com/ask - all coaching clients are assigned a pseudonym and given the option to not share their video Disclaimer: Conversations on Partners in Sublime are for educational purposes only, and do not constitute medical or psychological advice or treatment. Please consult a licensed professional for any mental health concerns.

E15

5 may 2026

51:44

Why we abandon ourselves: Ana's grief and losses unravel the spiritual life she had built

We think self-abandonment is the falling apart: the life that becomes unrecognizable, the person we no longer see in the mirror. But the abandonment begins much earlier, in the quiet moments when we refuse the parts of ourselves that don't fit the life we have constructed. In this episode, we explore why self-abandonment moves in two directions, what Jungian shadow work and Vedantic philosophy reveal about both, and what it takes to find the integrated middle rather than swinging between extremes. The episode features 'Ana' who came to this session after two years of accumulated loss had quietly dismantled the spiritual life she had carefully built. The anger had arrived. The practices had disappeared. And she no longer recognized the person she had become. What emerged in our session together was something more uncomfortable and more liberating than a simple path back: the recognition that the self she is returning to cannot be the one she left behind. 00:00 Navigating Grief and Anger 02:47 The Impact of Spiritual Communities on Emotional Expression 05:06 Decisions and Life Transitions 07:11 Reconnecting with Passions and Career Aspirations 09:22 Finding Balance in Life Choices 11:41 The Journey of Self-Discovery and Acceptance 13:45 Visualizing a New Path Forward 16:36 Coaching Ana: Navigating Emotional Turmoil and Overwhelm 17:41 The Journey of Self-Compassion and Presence 19:22 Confronting Grief and Loss 22:33 Lessons in Vulnerability and Acceptance 25:03 The Role of Family and Legacy 27:10 Embracing the Wounded Self 27:28 Connecting with the Higher Self About the host: Shagun Chopra is an individuation coach, speaker, and educator. Her unique approach combines Jungian depth psychology with ancient Vedic wisdom to create the ultimate personal transformation. She supports professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives in bringing their wildest dreams to life and leapfrogging their career, business, and relationships. To learn more, visit shagunchopra.com Join the show: To ask a question or get coached on the show, visit shagunchopra.com/ask - all coaching clients are assigned a pseudonym and given the option to not share their video Disclaimer: Conversations on Partners in Sublime are for educational purposes only, and do not constitute medical or psychological advice or treatment. Please consult a licensed professional for any mental health concerns.

E14

21 abr 2026

57:15

Why don't we feel like ourselves? Miley is drowning in the mental load of new motherhood

What does it actually feel like to not feel like yourself? Not the dramatic breakdown version, not the crisis that announces itself clearly, but the quiet, persistent sense that the person you used to be has become strangely inaccessible. In this episode, we sit with that experience without rushing toward resolution. Through a live coaching session with Miley, a new mother navigating the overwhelming mental load of early motherhood, we explore what happens in the messy middle of a major identity transition - when the old self has loosened its grip and the new one hasn't yet arrived. We look at the concept of liminal space, why our culture's favorite tools for managing motherhood stress keep us stuck at the surface of our experience, and what it actually takes to move through a threshold rather than around it. About the host: Shagun Chopra is an individuation coach, speaker, and educator. Her unique approach combines Jungian depth psychology with ancient Vedic wisdom to create the ultimate personal transformation. She supports professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives in bringing their wildest dreams to life and leapfrogging their career, business, and relationships. To learn more, visit shagunchopra.com Join the show: To ask a question or get coached on the show (anonymously or otherwise), visit shagunchopra.com/ask

E13

7 abr 2026

59:59

Am I actually good enough? Tony in anxious about making a good impression at his new job

Most of us have asked ourselves some version of this question, whether it shows up as "did I respond fast enough?" or "am I pulling my weight at home?" or just that low hum of not quite measuring up that follows us into even our best moments. In this episode, we sit with that question seriously, tracing it from Alfred Adler's inferiority complex through Brené Brown's hustle for worthiness to the Vedantic teaching that dissolves the question entirely. Then we go into a live coaching session with Tony, a tech professional who is days away from starting his dream job and already consumed by anxiety about whether he can show up fully at work while still being present for his wife and two-year-old at home. What happens in this session is quietly remarkable. Tony doesn't solve his anxiety. He listens to it. And what his inner world offers in response is the last thing anyone, including Tony, expected. About the host: Shagun Chopra is an individuation coach, speaker, and educator. Her unique approach combines Jungian depth psychology with ancient Vedic wisdom to create the ultimate personal transformation. She supports professionals, entrepreneurs, and creatives in bringing their wildest dreams to life and leapfrogging their career, business, and relationships. To learn more, visit shagunchopra.com Join the show: To ask a question or get coached on the show (anonymously or otherwise), visit shagunchopra.com/ask

E12

24 mar 2026

1:20:25

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