Feel like hustle culture, pushing harder and 'doing more' are slowly destroying your love for life, health, and wellbeing? Former US Navy SEAL Christopher Lee Maher learned -the hard way- that chasing “peak performance” can shred the very nervous system you need for true strength. In this episode, we unpack how body-based (somatic) practices turn chronic tension into grounded power, especially for the sensitive, empathic souls who’ve spent years pushing through.

Key takeaways:

- Somatic swap-outs: Replace sugar, caffeine and overstimulation with breath-work, running, Qigong and deep sleep to calm the vagus nerve and regulate cortisol.- Break hyper-independence: Why “God helps those who help themselves” is half the sentence—and how asking for help heals stored stress faster than lone-wolf grinding.- Liver as the helper: Maher links Traditional Chinese Medicine with modern stress science, showing how unexpressed anger congests the liver and traps emotional charge.- From fascia to freedom: Rolfing, yoga and daily movement loosen “piano-string” fascia, letting energy flow and pain fade.- Intrinsic value > external validation: Military success, 1.8 % body-fat, and chronic pain taught Maher that real worth is felt, not proven.

Guest bio

Christopher Lee Maher is the creator of True Body Intelligence, author of Free for Life and a former US Navy SEAL who rebuilt his body and mind through Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taoist internal arts and structural bodywork. He now guides high-performers and highly sensitive individuals alike to release lifetime stress loads and reclaim nervous-system freedom.

Chapter guide

00:00 Why pushing harder can hollow you out

04:41 Recognition of value: chasing it vs. becoming it

11:02 Negative vs. positive stress-management tools

19:30 Speaking directly to men—and why the message still lands for every sensitive soul

22:56 Breaking lone-wolf conditioning through Rolfing & yoga

34:50 Meridians, organ emotions and the somatic lens

42:00 Becoming the message: seven years of daily practice

48:15 Ending coach-client codependency

51:31 What “We Are Already Free” means to Christopher

55:40 Nathan’s reflection & next steps for listeners

Resources & links

- Book – Free for Life by Christopher Lee Maher

- Free stress-relief gift – truebodyintelligence.com/stress-free-gift

Work with Christopher – programs & retreats at TrueBodyIntelligence.com

Follow – Instagram @christopherleemaher

We Are Already Free

We Are Already Free cuts through the noise with raw conversations and practical tools that help sensitive souls regulate, set clear boundaries, and live from embodied worth. Follow the show to get straight-talk episodes in your app every week, and let your nervous system feel the difference.

You’ve done everything they said would make you feel whole. You’ve worked harder than anyone around you. You’ve achieved, provided, held it all together. But deep down, something’s missing. You’re tired of being strong. You’re ready to feel. To soften. To stop the endless striving.

This episode of We Are Already Free is a lifeline. Lori Pappas built an award-winning software company in a man’s world, led teams of hundreds, and checked every external box of success. Then, in her fifties, she walked away from it all - career, marriage, country. She moved to rural Ethiopia. Alone. She founded a charity that’s since served over 100,000 people. In her sixties, she met the love of her life. Now, at 75, Lori is no longer trying to be impressive. She’s becoming real.

This conversation is a masterclass in unhooking your worth from your performance... and saying yes to the life that’s actually yours.

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What you’ll hear in this episode:

– How Lori’s childhood trauma shaped her hustle– The cost of success when it’s built on disconnection– Why silence and curiosity became her greatest teachers– Somatic tools to calm the mind and reconnect with your body– How love can find you... after you’ve stopped looking– Why “yes” is one of the most powerful spiritual tools we have

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Timestamps05:33 The trauma that set her path: exorcisms and institutionalisation13:13 How she succeeded by armouring up16:00 A silent hilltop in Ethiopia and the collapse of her false self27:00 Dating at 60+: how she met the love of her life33:11 Somatic healing, mantras, and non-directed attention41:48 Losing identity in success, reclaiming it in presence49:00 Trust, service, and the uncomfortable truth about helping56:49 Reflection + Dopamine Detox invitation

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Resources– The Magic of Yes by Lori Pappas- Lori's Website: https://www.loripappas.com/– Free 21-Day Dopamine Detox Challenge - alreadyfree.me/reset

Feel like you’re shrinking to fit into a world that doesn’t see you? Like your voice is too much… or not enough?

In this raw and revealing solo episode, I speak straight from the heart about what’s been unfolding behind the scenes, including a powerful pivot in who I’m here to serve. If you’ve been holding your voice back; if you’re tired of performing, pleasing, or pretending... this one’s for you.

🔍 In this episode:

- Why your fear of speaking up might be a sacred signal- The hidden cost of shrinking your truth-The deep recalibration that comes with becoming a parent-What I learned about authenticity, safety, and service-A gentle invitation to root, rise, and be fully seen

🌱 Ready to take the next step? Book a free Activation Call at alreadyfree.me/activation

Thank you for walking this path with me.

We are already free.