Anjelah Johnson-Reyes: Trauma Brought The Gift of Help

Today we’re sharing something truly special: an intimate conversation Jonathan recorded with end-of-life counselor and death doula, Dr. Martha Jo Atkins. Many of you met her on the show before, but this episode—originally shared only with Jonathan’s Substack community on his practical spirituality page —goes even deeper. Martha Jo, who’s been with thousands of people as they have transitioned, witnessing what most of us never see or never talk about. This conversation is not just about dying—it’s about understanding life. Martha describes the subtle patterns people exhibit when they’re nearing the end: asking the time over and over, feeling restless, talking about needing to “go,” searching for shoes or keys or maps even when they can’t physically walk. These behaviors aren’t random. They’re signals of a transition already underway. And once you hear her describe them, you realize we do the exact same things during major life transitions. When we’re growing. When we’re changing. When something in us is shifting before we’re ready to say it out loud. We can’t sleep. We check the clock compulsively. We feel unsettled in our bodies. We imagine leaving relationships, jobs, or versions of ourselves without knowing why. We call it anxiety—but Martha helps reveal it as a natural part of transformation. And that’s what makes this conversation so relatable. Martha and Jonathan talk about why so many of us feel anxious even when something might not be wrong. And how our bodies might send messages before our minds understand what’s happening. Martha and Jonathan explore what it actually means to tune your intuition. Learning to notice what’s happening inside you. Clearing the emotional noise that blocks clarity. Understanding why your system reacts the way it does. And reconnecting to the inner guidance most of us have spent years overriding or numbing out. We also get into Martha’s personal journey—how her brother’s death opened her intuitive senses, the non-ordinary experiences she’s had but didn’t have language for at the time, and how she continues to feel connected to loved ones who have passed. And she shares concrete practices anyone can use to settle the nervous system, develop intuition, and navigate uncertainty with more calm and trust. If you’re going through a transition, feeling overwhelmed, or just sensing that something inside you is shifting, this conversation will give you language, perspective, and support. And if you want more episodes like this—sometimes with surprise guests—you can find them on Jonathan’s Substack where this one originally aired. We hope you enjoy it, and we hope to see you over on Substack! Subscribe on Substack for Ad-Free Episodes & Bonus Content: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bialikbreakdown.substack.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BialikBreakdown.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube.com/mayimbialik⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are we sleepwalking into the biggest technological revolution in human history? In this explosive episode of Mayim Bialik's Breakdown, Mustafa Suleyman — CEO of Microsoft AI & author of The Coming Wave — breaks down what it really means to live in a world undergoing a massive reckoning with Artificial Intelligence. Whether you love it, hate it, or don’t even realize you’re already using it, AI is quietly reshaping everything we know about medicine, government, finance, energy, and even human relationships. Mustafa pulls back the curtain on the true risks of AI, the benefits that may outweigh them, and the unsettling truth about how fast this technology is evolving...much faster than anyone predicted. He reveals the single most significant global use-case of AI today (and why it’s a direct challenge to human evolution), the surprising reason AI therapy and companionship are exploding worldwide, and what we’re unintentionally outsourcing to machines that may isolate us from real human connection. We dive into: - The waves of AI evolution and what comes next - The coming disruption to the economy and the job market - How to prepare (and parent) in a world powered by AI - Why AI’s similarity to the human brain’s neural networks is both fascinating and terrifying - The urgent need for guardrails and safeguards before bad actors use AI to manipulate individuals and entire societies - Mind-blowing breakthroughs AI could unlock in human potential - Why Mustafa believes AI will never develop its own awareness or agenda - And the controversial question: Will it take a catastrophic AI event to force governments and agencies to finally work together? This is not just a conversation about technology, it’s a conversation about humanity’s future, the choices we’re making right now, and the consequences of ignoring the wave that’s already here. If you want to understand where AI is taking us, and how to survive and thrive in the next decade, watch this episode of MBB until the very end! Try Notion, now with Notion Agent, at https://notion.com/break Mustafa Suleyman’s Book, The Coming Wave: Technology, Power, and the Twenty-first Century's Greatest Dilemma: https://mustafa-suleyman.ai/#book Subscribe on Substack for Ad-Free Episodes & Bonus Content: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bialikbreakdown.substack.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BialikBreakdown.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube.com/mayimbialik⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What if precognitive abilities could actually save lives? Sam Knight (New Yorker staff writer, author of the widely popular The Premonitions Bureau: A True Account of Death Foretold) joins Mayim Bialik's Breakdown to unpack some of the strangest, most unsettling questions in human experience: Can we really be scared to death? Do premonitions give us access to other timelines? Or are they evidence of a hidden, collective consciousness? Sam takes us inside the real story behind the deadly coal mine collapse that dozens of people eerily reported before it happened: a wave of psychic warnings so compelling it led to the creation of the British Premonitions Bureau, an experimental project designed to collect premonitions and prevent future catastrophes. We explore why people in the past seemed to understand extrasensory abilities better than we do today, and how head injuries have triggered sudden psi abilities in some truly bizarre cases. Sam also breaks down the most common types of premonitions, what separates accurate warnings from noise, why there aren't premonitions about positive things, the implications of so many different families and cultures sharing these inexplicable accounts, and why it’s actually anti-scientific to dismiss reports of precognition altogether. Do people who experience premonitions have a moral responsibility to act on them? Could these uncanny glimpses be messages from alternate timelines, or something emerging from the depths of the unconscious mind? And the biggest question of all: Do we all have the ability to receive premonitions but we just don’t know how to listen? If you’ve ever felt a strange sense of déjà vu, had a dream that came true, or wondered whether the future is already whispering to you…this is the episode of MBB you can’t miss. Sam Knight’s book, The Premonitions Bureau: https://www.samknight.net/books Subscribe on Substack for Ad-Free Episodes & Bonus Content: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bialikbreakdown.substack.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BialikBreakdown.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube.com/mayimbialik⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What if everything you know about reality, intelligence, science, aliens, and even your own body…is wrong? In this mind-expanding conversation of Mayim Bialik's Breakdown, Dr. Stephen Wolfram — the legendary computer scientist, theoretical physicist, mathematician, founder of Wolfram Research — reveals how the groundbreaking technologies he created are re-shaping our understanding of the universe itself. We dive into the limits of science, the secrets of biological evolution, and why computational irreducibility may explain why some mysteries of nature can never be predicted, only experienced. Dr. Wolfram breaks down whether his computations suggest humanity is cosmically significant…or completely insignificant in a universe built from the same atoms repeating the same rules everywhere. Discover why the objective reality you experience as a human might be totally different for other species, and why this could be the key to understanding alien intelligence, extrasensory perception, and why there might be alien minds all around us right now that we simply can’t perceive. Dr. Stephen Wolfram also breaks down: - Does the body have its own language? (And, if so, what autoimmune disease might be “saying") - What can truly be built from random mutation, and why evolution even works at all - How reductionist science is limiting medicine, and how living matter actually behaves - Why AI may function as an alien mind, and what that reveals about the shocking simplicity of human language - What makes the human mind special, how we evolved this way, and why that very fact proves we are not the most advanced species possible - Do computers use a form of telepathy to communicate with one another? He even takes us behind the scenes of his work as a consultant on the hit film ARRIVAL, explaining how alien logograms connect to his research on how language shapes human thought, what abstract concepts a bigger brain could comprehend, and what kinds of ideas we might be biologically incapable of imagining. If you’re fascinated by astrophysics, AI, consciousness, aliens, evolution, mathematics, language, or the limits of human understanding, this episode of MBB will challenge everything you think you know! Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code MAYIM at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: ⁠https://incogni.com/mayim ⁠ Learn more about Dr. Stephen Wolfram and his work: ⁠https://www.stephenwolfram.com/⁠ Subscribe on Substack for Ad-Free Episodes & Bonus Content: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bialikbreakdown.substack.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BialikBreakdown.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube.com/mayimbialik⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What if everything you know about reality, intelligence, science, aliens, and even your own body…is wrong? In this mind-expanding conversation of Mayim Bialik's Breakdown, Dr. Stephen Wolfram — the legendary computer scientist, theoretical physicist, mathematician, founder of Wolfram Research — reveals how the groundbreaking technologies he created are re-shaping our understanding of the universe itself. We dive into the limits of science, the secrets of biological evolution, and why computational irreducibility may explain why some mysteries of nature can never be predicted, only experienced. Dr. Wolfram breaks down whether his computations suggest humanity is cosmically significant…or completely insignificant in a universe built from the same atoms repeating the same rules everywhere. Discover why the objective reality you experience as a human might be totally different for other species, and why this could be the key to understanding alien intelligence, extrasensory perception, and why there might be alien minds all around us right now that we simply can’t perceive. Dr. Stephen Wolfram also breaks down: - Does the body have its own language? (And, if so, what autoimmune disease might be “saying") - What can truly be built from random mutation, and why evolution even works at all - How reductionist science is limiting medicine, and how living matter actually behaves - Why AI may function as an alien mind, and what that reveals about the shocking simplicity of human language - What makes the human mind special, how we evolved this way, and why that very fact proves we are not the most advanced species possible - Do computers use a form of telepathy to communicate with one another? He even takes us behind the scenes of his work as a consultant on the hit film ARRIVAL, explaining how alien logograms connect to his research on how language shapes human thought, what abstract concepts a bigger brain could comprehend, and what kinds of ideas we might be biologically incapable of imagining. If you’re fascinated by astrophysics, AI, consciousness, aliens, evolution, mathematics, language, or the limits of human understanding, this episode of MBB will challenge everything you think you know! Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code MAYIM at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/mayim Learn more about Dr. Stephen Wolfram and his work: https://www.stephenwolfram.com/ Subscribe on Substack for Ad-Free Episodes & Bonus Content: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bialikbreakdown.substack.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BialikBreakdown.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube.com/mayimbialik⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices