Neuroscience of Coaching cover art

Neuroscience of Coaching

Neuroscience of Coaching

By: Mirasee FM
Listen for free

In each episode, host Dr. Irena O’Brien explains the science-based insights behind a particular concept and interviews a coach to discuss how these apply in the real world. Irena “un-complicates” neuroscience and teaches practical evidence-based tools and strategies that listeners can use in their coaching practices.Mirasee Economics Leadership Management & Leadership Science
Episodes
  • Menopause Is Not Decline: A Nervous-System Lens for Coaches (Luce Beaulieu)

    Menopause Is Not Decline: A Nervous-System Lens for Coaches (Luce Beaulieu)
    Jun 4 2026
    Perimenopause and menopause can affect more than hormones. Dr. Irena O’Brien speaks with coach Luce Beaulieu about capacity, nervous system regulation, identity, brain fog, shame, leadership, and why old ways of pushing through may stop working.Perimenopause and menopause are often discussed as hormonal or reproductive transitions. But what if they are also capacity transitions?In this episode of Neuroscience of Coaching, Dr. Irena O’Brien speaks with coach and transformation specialist Luce Beaulieu about menopause, nervous system regulation, identity, emotional meaning, and embodied leadership. Luce explains why menopause is not simply a list of symptoms, and why many women experience this phase as a deeper disruption of identity, energy, self-trust, and the ability to keep pushing through.Together, Irena and Luce explore how changing body signals can affect the brain’s predictions, why old strategies may stop working, and why what looks like burnout, low confidence, emotional instability, or resistance may sometimes reflect a system under greater physiological and emotional load.This conversation is especially relevant for coaches and helping professionals who work with midlife clients navigating brain fog, emotional intensity, burnout, identity shifts, leadership strain, or the quiet realization that they can no longer function in the same way they once did.“You’re going through a revolution. You’re going through a deep, deep transformation on all levels of your being.” — Luce Beaulieu“A client can be highly competent and still have less available capacity because her system is managing more.”— Dr. Irena O’BrienGuest Bio:Luce Beaulieu helps midlife women in leadership stop running their work and impact from depletion, and start leading from real internal capacity. After nearly 20 years working in sustainability, research and social impact, she recognized a critical gap: we cannot build better systems with burned-out, dysregulated leaders.Today, she integrates nervous system work, somatic coaching, embodiment and leadership development to help founders, executives and change-makers restore clarity, resilience, and grounded authority. Her work challenges the idea that more effort creates better results, and instead shows that the future of leadership depends on how much we can actually hold.Host Bio:Dr. Irena O'Brien teaches coaches and care professionals how to achieve better results for their clients through neuroscience.She is the founder of Neuroscience School, which helps practitioners understand and apply insights from cutting-edge neuroscience research. She loves seeing her students gain confidence in their ability to evaluate neuroscience findings and use them successfully in their own practices. Her Certificate Program in Neuroscience is certified by the International Coaching Federation (ICF) for Continuing Coaching Education credit.Dr. O'Brien has studied neuroscience for 25 years and holds a Ph.D. in the field from the Université du Quebec à Montréal (UQAM), where she did brain-imaging studies. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship at the Centre for Language, Mind, and Brain at McGill University.Resources mentioned in this episode:MiraseeDr. Irena O'Brien’s website: The Neuroscience SchoolLuce’s website: https://www.immergence.co/Credits:Host: Dr. Irena O’BrienProducer: Michi LantzAudio Editor: Marvin del RosarioExecutive Producer: Danny InyMusic Soundscape: Chad Michael SnavelyMaking our hosts sound great: Home Brew AudioMusic credits:Track Title: Sneaker SmeakerArtist: Avocado JunkieWriter: Sander KalmeijerPublisher: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONTrack Title: Coo CoosArtist: Dresden, The FlamingoWriter: Matthew WigtonPublisher: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONTrack Title: In This LightArtist: Sounds Like SanderWriter: Sander KalmeijerPublisher: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONSpecial effects credits:24990513_birds-chirping_by_promission used with permission of the author and under license by AudioJungle/Envato Market.To catch the great episodes coming up on Neuroscience of Coaching, please follow us on Mirasee FM's YouTube channelor your favorite podcast player. And if you enjoyed the show, please leave us a comment or a starred review. It’s the best way to help us get these ideas to more people.Episode transcript: Menopause Is Not Decline: A Nervous-System Lens for Coaches coming soon.
    Show More Show Less
    30 mins
  • The Neuroscience of Women’s Leadership: Why Self-Advocacy Can Feel Wrong

    The Neuroscience of Women’s Leadership: Why Self-Advocacy Can Feel Wrong
    May 21 2026
    Why can self-advocacy feel wrong, even when a woman’s contribution is clear? In Part 2 of the Women’s Leadership Series, Dr. Irena O’Brien and Silvia Causo explore how visibility, praise, and claiming one’s work can register as risk in the nervous system, not just reluctance or lack of confidence. Through a neuroscience- and trauma-informed lens, Irena and Silvia explore why self-advocacy can feel like exposure, why “the work will speak for itself” often stops working at senior levels, and why the body may signal risk before the mind can explain it.This conversation is especially relevant for coaches, women leaders, and helping professionals who want a deeper and more compassionate understanding of why self-minimizing, deflecting praise, or struggling to own their achievements can persist even at senior levels.“The purpose of the brain is to keep us safe and surviving. And the brain doesn’t differentiate between actual danger and emotional danger.” — Dr. Irena O’Brien“For many women, putting themselves forward is not a neutral experience. It can feel like exposure.”— Silvia CausoGuest Bio:Silvia Causo is a trauma-informed coach and energetic realignment facilitator who supports visionary leaders and changemakers to release the mental, emotional, and energetic blocks that limit their fullest expression of power and purpose.Her work moves beyond traditional coaching, bridging neuroscience, somatic healing, and energetic attunement to create profound transformation at every level of being. Through her high-touch, deeply intuitive approach, Silvia helps leaders reconnect to their inner coherence, the state where clarity, confidence, and authenticity naturally arise.Silvia is also the co-founder of Lead & Belong, a pioneering collaboration with writer and scholar Adrianne Arendse. Together, they explore the intersections of leadership, culture, and embodied healing, guiding organisations and individuals to move beyond performative inclusion toward genuine connection, collective wellbeing, and regenerative impact.At the heart of Silvia's work is a simple yet radical set of beliefs: that deep self-awareness is the path to true freedom, authentic belonging is what we all seek, and true power emerges when we self-lead from integrated wholeness rather than fragmentation.Her presence invites both safety and expansion, a rare balance that allows transformation to unfold not through force, but through resonance.Host Bio:Dr. Irena O'Brien teaches coaches and care professionals how to achieve better results for their clients through neuroscience.She is the founder of Neuroscience School, which helps practitioners understand and apply insights from cutting-edge neuroscience research. She loves seeing her students gain confidence in their ability to evaluate neuroscience findings and use them successfully in their own practices. Her Certificate Program in Neuroscience is certified by the International Coaching Federation (ICF) for Continuing Coaching Education credit.Dr. O'Brien has studied neuroscience for 25 years and holds a Ph.D. in the field from the Université du Quebec à Montréal (UQAM), where she did brain-imaging studies. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship at the Centre for Language, Mind, and Brain at McGill University.Resources mentioned in this episode:MiraseeDr. Irena O'Brien’s website: The Neuroscience SchoolSilvia’s website: www.SilviaCauso.comLinked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/silviaannacauso/Credits:Host: Dr. Irena O’BrienProducer: Michi LantzAudio Editor: Marvin del RosarioExecutive Producer: Danny InyMusic Soundscape: Chad Michael SnavelyMaking our hosts sound great: Home Brew AudioMusic credits:Track Title: Sneaker SmeakerArtist: Avocado JunkieWriter: Sander KalmeijerPublisher: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONTrack Title: Coo CoosArtist: Dresden, The FlamingoWriter: Matthew WigtonPublisher: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONTrack Title: In This LightArtist: Sounds Like SanderWriter: Sander KalmeijerPublisher: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONSpecial effects credits:24990513_birds-chirping_by_promission used with permission of the author and under license by AudioJungle/Envato Market.To catch the great episodes coming up on Neuroscience of Coaching, please follow us on Mirasee FM's YouTube channelor your favorite podcast player. And if you enjoyed the show, please leave us a comment or a starred review. It’s the best way to help us get these ideas to more people.Episode transcript: The Neuroscience of Women’s Leadership: Why Self-Advocacy Can Feel Wrong coming soon.
    Show More Show Less
    28 mins
  • Vision Is a Brain Process: 20/20 Isn’t the Whole Story

    Vision Is a Brain Process: 20/20 Isn’t the Whole Story
    May 7 2026
    What if some of what looks like distraction, fatigue, brain fog, anxiety, or low motivation is actually visual load? In this episode, Dr. Irena O’Brien and neurooptometrist Dr. Lisa Chow explore the difference between eyesight and vision, and why 20/20 vision is not the whole story, and how visual strain can quietly affect focus, regulation, and everyday functioning.In each episode of Neuroscience of Coaching, host Dr. Irena O’Brien explains the science-based insights behind a particular concept and interviews an expert to discuss how these apply in the real world. Just as she does in her professional programs, Irena “un-complicates” neuroscience and teaches practical, evidence-based tools and strategies that listeners can use in their coaching practices.“Eyesight is clarity. Vision is how well your brain is processing visual information.” — Dr. Lisa ChowGuest Bio:Dr. Lisa Chow is a neuro-optometrist and founder of The Sight Doctor platform, where she helps people understand that vision is more than just seeing clearly; it is how the brain processes visual information to help us function, focus, perform, and navigate the world.A practicing clinician based in Ontario, Canada, Dr. Chow brings over 15 years of clinical experience and more than 30,000 patient visits to her work. Through her clinical practice, she works with patients experiencing concussion-related vision problems, visual dysfunction, eye teaming and focusing challenges, and other brain-based visual issues that can impact daily life, performance, learning, and recovery.She is passionate about translating complex neuroscience and vision concepts into practical insights that people can apply to modern life, including screen fatigue, mental clarity, cognitive endurance, stress regulation, and overall visual wellness.Dr. Chow's mission is to help people see vision differently: not just as eyesight, but as a key part of how we think, feel, learn, perform, and experience the world.Host Bio:Dr. Irena O'Brien teaches coaches and care professionals how to achieve better results for their clients through neuroscience.She is the founder of Neuroscience School, which helps practitioners understand and apply insights from cutting-edge neuroscience research. She loves seeing her students gain confidence in their ability to evaluate neuroscience findings and use them successfully in their own practices. Her Certificate Program in Neuroscience is certified by the International Coaching Federation (ICF) for Continuing Coaching Education credit.Dr. O'Brien has studied neuroscience for 25 years and holds a Ph.D. in the field from the Université du Quebec à Montréal (UQAM), where she did brain-imaging studies. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship at the Centre for Language, Mind, and Brain at McGill University.Resources mentioned in this episode:MiraseeDr. Irena O'Brien’s website: The Neuroscience SchoolLisa's Instagram: www.instagram.com/drlisachowLisa's Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drlisachow/Lisa's Brain Vision community here: https://www.drlisachow.com/community Credits:Host: Dr. Irena O’BrienProducer: Michi LantzAudio Editor: Marvin del RosarioExecutive Producer: Danny InyMusic Soundscape: Chad Michael SnavelyMaking our hosts sound great: Home Brew AudioMusic credits:Track Title: Sneaker SmeakerArtist: Avocado JunkieWriter: Sander KalmeijerPublisher: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONTrack Title: Coo CoosArtist: Dresden, The FlamingoWriter: Matthew WigtonPublisher: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONTrack Title: In This LightArtist: Sounds Like SanderWriter: Sander KalmeijerPublisher: A SOUNDSTRIPE PRODUCTIONSpecial effects credits:24990513_birds-chirping_by_promission used with permission of the author and under license by AudioJungle/Envato Market.To catch the great episodes coming up on Neuroscience of Coaching, please follow us on Mirasee FM's YouTube channelor your favorite podcast player. And if you enjoyed the show, please leave us a comment or a starred review. It’s the best way to help us get these ideas to more people.Episode transcript: Vision Is a Brain Process: 20/20 Isn’t the Whole Story coming soon.
    Show More Show Less
    33 mins
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
All stars
Most relevant
loving this podcast. Professional, informative & interesting. I don't ever want the episodes to end & look forward to the next one!

Excellent

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.