The Aging Games

  In a recent episode of The Aging Games Podcast , host Lynn Hardy welcomed back psychic medium Anne Bayford for a profound exploration into some of life’s biggest mysteries: reincarnation, the mechanics of the soul, and the deep connections we form with others. The Cycle of Reincarnation Anne Bayford shared how her personal journey—marked by three near-death experiences—shifted her perspective from a purely science-based worldview to a spiritual one. She explains reincarnation not as a punishment, but as a deliberate cycle where the soul returns to physical form to: Complete unfinished tasks: Often, people are drawn to specific life missions because their soul seeks to resolve lessons left behind in previous lifetimes. Experience sensory life: The soul requires a physical vessel to fully process emotions like love, fear, and joy, which are essential for its growth. The Complexity of Connections One of the most engaging segments of the conversation was the breakdown of differe...

  The Hidden History of Medicine They Never Taught You If you had a headache 2,000 years ago, what would you do? If you broke a bone, developed an infection, or struggled with chronic pain, where would you turn? Long before hospitals, pharmacies, and prescription drugs, humans relied on an entirely different approach to health and healing. Ancient civilizations developed sophisticated systems of medicine based on observation, nature, and the body's remarkable ability to heal itself. While modern medicine has brought incredible advances, many of the healing traditions that sustained humanity for thousands of years have largely disappeared from public awareness. Medicine Is Older Than Civilization The history of medicine did not begin in a laboratory. For most of human history, healing came from plants, minerals, sunlight, movement, fasting, clean water, and the knowledge passed down through generations. Ancient Egyptians documented hundreds of remedies using herbs, honey, copper, an...

  Why People Have Worn Copper on Their Bodies for Thousands of Years Long before fitness trackers, red light therapy, and biohacking became popular, people were placing something much simpler against their skin: copper. For thousands of years, copper bracelets, rings, necklaces, and amulets have been worn by cultures around the world. Ancient Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Chinese healers, and Ayurvedic practitioners all recognized copper as a special metal with unique properties. But why? Copper Was More Than Decoration Ancient civilizations did not wear copper simply because it looked beautiful. Copper was often associated with vitality, healing, protection, and energy. The Egyptians used copper for surgical instruments, water vessels, and various health applications. Greek physicians documented its use in treating wounds and infections. Roman soldiers reportedly carried copper to help with injuries and maintain health during long campaigns. Even today, many people wear copper bracel...

 A few months ago, I met a man on a beach in Spain who had just arrived in Gibraltar after completing one of the most extraordinary journeys I've ever heard of. His name is Jonas Böhlmark, also known as The Last Viking, and he had paddleboarded all the way from Norway to Gibraltar, a journey that took three and a half years. Along the way, he also took on incredible endurance challenges, including skiing expeditions and running marathon after marathon. But this podcast isn't really about adventure. It's about the human spirit. Jonas lives with bipolar disorder and speaks openly about the challenges he has faced throughout his life. Rather than hiding his struggles, he uses his adventures to raise awareness about mental health and to inspire others who may be fighting their own battles. In this conversation, we explore what drives someone to keep going when things get difficult, the healing power of nature, and why spending time outdoors can be so transformative for our phys...

  Breast Implant Illness, Explant Recovery, and What Nobody Talks About with Dr. Sande Bargeron In this episode, Dr. Sande Bargeron returns for another powerful and deeply personal conversation, and this time we’re talking about something we both know firsthand: breast implants and breast implant illness. This is not a conversation about fear or judgment. It’s an honest discussion about our own experiences, the decisions we made, the symptoms we lived through, and what happened after choosing to remove our implants. Dr. Sande and I share why we originally decided to get implants, what life looked like afterward, and the subtle and not so subtle changes that led us to start questioning whether they could be affecting our health. We talk openly about breast implant illness, a term many women have come across online but often struggle to get clear answers about. We discuss the wide range of symptoms women report and why this topic remains so controversial despite the growing number of...

  Finding Healing Through Plants, Intuition, and a Slower Life with Brenda Grate There are some conversations that feel less like interviews and more like sitting around a kitchen table with a close friend, sharing stories that matter. Today’s podcast episode was exactly that. I sat down with Brenda Grate, my right-hand woman, dear friend, and resident herbalist, for a deeply personal conversation about healing, plants, intuition, and the path that led her toward natural medicine from a very young age. As two Canadians now living in the Mediterranean, we also explored how changing environments, rhythms, and lifestyles can completely transform the way we feel physically, mentally, and emotionally. Brenda’s connection to herbal medicine didn’t come from trends or social media wellness culture. It came from experience, curiosity, and years of learning to listen more closely to nature and to people. In this episode, she shares how working with herbs became less about “fixing symptoms” ...

Sex, Intimacy, and Longevity A conversation with Susan Bratton In this episode, I sat down with Susan Bratton for a conversation that is open, honest, and surprisingly eye-opening. Susan is the CEO of Better Lover, Personal Life Media, and The20. She has spent over two decades teaching something most of us were never taught and were often discouraged from even talking about, which is pleasure-based sex education. She is also the author of 44 books and programs and reaches more than 300,000 readers through her newsletters, where she shares practical guidance on intimacy, vitality, and connection. We went straight into a topic that still makes many people uncomfortable, even though it touches every relationship and every stage of life. Susan explains how intimacy, pleasure, and even orgasm can play a role in longevity and overall health, and why this part of life does not have to decline as we get older. What I really appreciated about this conversation is how practical it became. We tal...

  When Death Isn’t the End: A Conversation with Anne Bayford There are some conversations that stay with you long after they end. This was one of them. I sat down with Anne Bayford, a counsellor, spiritual advisor, teacher, and medium whose life has been shaped by not one, but three near-death experiences. What struck me immediately was not just what she has been through, but how she carries it. There is a quiet strength in her, the kind that only comes from walking through very real darkness and finding meaning on the other side. Anne’s story is not an easy one. She speaks openly about a life marked by trauma, including abusive relationships and deeply challenging circumstances that would have broken many people. But instead of closing her down, those experiences became the catalyst for something else entirely. They opened a doorway. What Really Happens in a Near-Death Experience One of the most fascinating parts of our conversation was hearing Anne describe what actually happens ...

From Oat Lattes to Grass-Fed Steak: What Mollie Engelhart Taught Me About Food, Soil, and the Truth We've Been Sold Every now and then, I have a conversation that quietly rearranges the way I see the world. My recent sit-down with Mollie Engelhart was one of those. If her name rings a bell, it's because Mollie spent years as one of California's most celebrated vegan chefs, running multiple successful plant-based restaurants and becoming a recognizable voice in that world. And then she did something almost no one in her position does. She walked away from it. Not from food — from the story she'd been telling about it. Today, Mollie is a regenerative farmer and rancher. She raises cattle. She cooks with butter. She talks about soil the way some people talk about religion. And in her new book, Debunked by Nature , she methodically takes apart many of the food and health narratives she herself once preached. This conversation went places I didn't expect — and I think ...

  This was one of the most fascinating conversations of my entire life. In today’s episode, I sit down with Dalia Burgoin — an energy arts practitioner, author, and trainer whose work completely reshapes what we think we know about human potential. We talk about telekinesis, telepathy, Mindsight (extraocular vision), and the extraordinary abilities she teaches through her intuitive bio-energy system. But the most moving part of our conversation was about her daughter, Lidu, who is autistic, nonspeaking, and yet has demonstrated remarkable telepathic abilities that are currently being researched at Stanford and other institutes around the world. Dalia shares how children — even blind children or children with prosthetic eyes — have learned to read, navigate space, and “see” through their intuitive senses. We dive into how perception works, why our brains are not the limit, and how human consciousness is far more incredible than we were ever taught. After the interview, we talked ...

Water, Consciousness, and a Different Path to Health I recently had a fascinating conversation with Patrick Durkin, author of Flow: From Pure and Safe Water to Higher States of Consciousness and founder of The Wellness Enterprise. What struck me most wasn’t just the science. It was his journey. Patrick walked away from a highly successful, high-earning business because something deeper was calling him. That decision led him into an entirely different world, one centered around water, not just as something we consume, but as something that interacts with us in ways most people never consider. Water Is More Than Hydration We tend to think of water in very simple terms. Drink more. Stay hydrated. That’s about as far as the conversation usually goes. But what if water is doing much more than that? Patrick shared his perspective that water holds information and responds to its environment. When you consider that the human body is made up of a significant percentage of water, this idea beco...

  The Hidden Impact of Anesthesia on Brain Health, Hormones, and Long-Term Wellness In today’s episode of The Aging Games Podcast, I sit down with Dr. Sande Bargeron from Beyond Brain Health for a conversation that may completely change how you think about anesthesia. Most of us view anesthesia as a routine, necessary part of medical procedures. Something we go through and then simply move on from. But what if the story does not end there? Dr. Sande takes us inside the brain to explain what really happens after anesthesia and why the effects can linger far longer than we have been led to believe. How Anesthesia Affects the Brain We begin by exploring how anesthesia impacts the brain, cognition, and memory. While it is designed to temporarily shut down awareness and pain, it can also disrupt neurological function in ways that are not always immediately obvious. Many people report brain fog, memory lapses, or a sense of not quite feeling like themselves after surgery. According to Dr...

  The Woman Who Discovered Nuclear Fission… and Was Forgotten There are stories in history that make you stop and question everything you thought you knew. This is one of them. Lise Meitner was a brilliant physicist. Not just good at what she did, but exceptional. She was part of the team that discovered nuclear fission, one of the most important scientific breakthroughs of the 20th century. The same discovery that would later shape the world in ways we are still living with today. But when the Nobel Prize was awarded for that discovery, her name wasn’t on it. Instead, the credit went to her male colleague, Otto Hahn. Lise Meitner had worked alongside Hahn for years. She helped interpret the results, she understood what they were seeing, and she was the one who explained the physics behind it. Without her, the discovery wouldn’t have been fully understood. And yet, she was left out. Part of this was timing. She was Jewish and had fled Nazi Germany, leaving behind her lab, he...

  From Science to Soul: Rewilding the Body, the Heart, and the Feminine After 50 In this week’s episode of The Aging Games Podcast, I sit down with Holly Erin Copeland, whose journey is both fascinating and deeply inspiring. A former conservation biologist, Holly began her career rooted in data, ecology, and the scientific method. But over time, something began to shift. What started as a structured, analytical path slowly opened into something far more intuitive and expansive. Holly stepped out of the traditional scientific world and into the realm of energy medicine, biofield tuning, and deep inner healing. Her work today is centered around helping others reconnect with themselves, their bodies, and the natural intelligence that so many of us have learned to ignore. One of the most powerful themes we explore in this conversation is the idea of “inner rewilding.” Holly speaks about how modern life often disconnects us from our own rhythms, our intuition, and the subtle signals ...

 In today’s episode, I sit down with my good friend Phil Escott, and his story is one that really makes you stop and think. Back in 2012, Phil was dealing with severe autoimmune arthritis. The pain was so intense he could barely move, and like so many people, he was told there were no real solutions. Things were only getting worse, not better. What makes his journey so powerful is what he discovered along the way. The vegan diet he believed was helping him was actually contributing to his decline. Everything changed when he shifted to a carnivore approach. That, combined with reducing exposure to EMFs and artificial light, adding cold exposure, and returning to more ancestral lifestyle practices, started to turn things around in a very real way. Phil has now been carnivore since 2015 and has helped countless people understand how modern lifestyles can drive inflammation and disease, and how the body can recover when you remove those stressors. In 2019, we organized the first carniv...

  Body Image, Self Confidence, and Learning to Be at Home in Your Body Today I’m speaking with Ellen Albertson , also known as @the_midlife_whisperer , about one of the most common struggles women face at every stage of life: body image and self confidence . For many women, the relationship with their body becomes a constant battle. We grow up surrounded by messages about how we are supposed to look, how we should age, and what is considered “acceptable” or “beautiful.” Over time, these messages can turn into an inner voice that is critical, harsh, and never satisfied. In this conversation, Dr. Ellen and I explore why so many women feel disconnected from their bodies and what we can do to change that. Why So Many Women Struggle with Body Image One of the most important things we discuss is how early these beliefs begin. Many women start comparing themselves to others at a very young age. Social pressure, family dynamics, media images, and cultural expectations can create the b...

  The Matilda Effect: When Men Got Credit for Women’s Discoveries History often celebrates great discoveries. But it does not always celebrate the right people. For centuries, brilliant women made groundbreaking contributions to science, medicine, astronomy, and technology. Yet many of these discoveries were credited to their male colleagues instead. This phenomenon has a name: The Matilda Effect . The term was coined by historian Margaret W. Rossiter in 1993, inspired by the work of Matilda Joslyn Gage , a 19th century suffragist who noticed a troubling pattern. Women were doing remarkable work in science, yet their contributions were frequently ignored, minimized, or credited to men. What Is the Matilda Effect? The Matilda Effect describes the systematic tendency to deny recognition to women scientists for their achievements, often giving that credit to male colleagues instead. This was not always intentional. In many cases, women simply could not hold official academic positions...

  When a Routine Prescription Changes Everything: Talia Smith’s Story Today I sat down with Talia Smith, a young woman whose life was permanently altered after taking Cipro, a commonly prescribed antibiotic often given for urinary tract infections. At the time, Talia was caring for her quadriplegic husband. She was strong, capable, and managing an already demanding life. Then she was prescribed ciprofloxacin. What happened next was catastrophic. Within a short period of time, Talia experienced a severe adverse reaction. Her body began to shut down. She lost the ability to eat or drink. She could not walk. She could not care for herself. She went four weeks without food. Eventually, she was placed in hospice and given just three weeks to live. Imagine being told your life is ending because of a medication you trusted. But Talia survived. She came back from the brink of death in what can only be described as extraordinary resilience. However, survival did not mean recovery. Today she...

  Walking Across a Continent: What 6,000 Kilometers Taught Franck Benhamou About Life In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Franck Benhamou, a man who did something most of us would never even dare to imagine. He walked nearly 6,000 kilometers across Europe. Not by bike. Not by car. Not with a support team. Step by step. On foot. His journey began in Tallinn, Estonia, in the far north of Europe. From there, he crossed country after country, experiencing landscapes, cultures, and people in a way that only walking can allow. He eventually made his way through Portugal, traveling from the very north all the way down to the south, before finishing his incredible adventure in Tarifa, Spain, the southernmost point of Europe. What struck me most during our conversation was not just the physical feat, although that alone is extraordinary, but the deeper reasons behind it. Why would someone choose to walk across an entire continent? For Franck, this journey was not...

  Can You Expand Your Palate Over 50? My Assisted Mewing Experiment I’ve always believed that the body is more adaptable than we’re told. We accept so many limitations as “just aging.” Your jaw is set. Your bones are fixed. Your face is done developing. But what if that’s not entirely true? Lately, I’ve started a new experiment. I’m testing whether palate expansion is possible over 50 using an assisted mewing device. And I’m documenting the entire experience. Why I Even Care About Palate Expansion This isn’t about chasing perfection. It’s about function. The width of your palate affects your airway. A narrow palate often means a narrow nasal passage. That can contribute to mouth breathing, snoring, poor sleep, and even sleep apnea. It also influences tongue posture, jaw alignment, and the overall structure of the face. When the palate is wider: Nasal breathing can improve Tongue posture becomes more natural Snoring and mild sleep apnea may decrease Facial st...