This season of Unmotive Show is about mental health — and this episode looks at it through a lens that doesn’t always get the spotlight: meditation and meditative breathing. Rotimi sits down with Miriam Trahan, a meditation teacher and yoga-certified practitioner with over a decade of study in breath work and consciousness, and the host of the podcast Miriam’s Meditations.

Miriam breaks down what meditation actually is (hint: it’s not “doing nothing”), how a shift in brainwave state opens up what she calls a “field” of meditation, and why group practice can make it easier to find that state as a beginner. From there, the conversation moves into practical territory — the pen-and-paper technique Miriam still uses to quiet a busy mind, why she builds her practice around a single piece of wordless music, and why she thinks “momentum” is a more useful idea than “discipline” when you’re trying to build a habit.

Rotimi shares his own mixed history with meditation, including a practice that didn’t stick after a difficult experience, and Miriam responds with something a lot of new practitioners need to hear: that discomfort during practice is a real signal worth listening to, not something to push through alone. It’s a grounded, honest conversation about a subject that can otherwise feel abstract.

In this episode, Miriam and Rotimi cover:

• What meditation is (and isn’t), and how a shift in brain activity marks a real meditative state
• The difference between “consciousness” as psychology defines it and the deeper, more spiritual sense Miriam works with
• A simple pen-and-paper method for clearing mental clutter before you sit down to meditate
• Using a single piece of wordless music to build a repeatable meditation habit
• Why “momentum” beats “discipline” when building a lasting practice
• The emotional processing that can surface during breath work — and why pairing it with therapy or another support system matters
• Miriam’s own path: a psychology degree, a chance encounter with a breath teacher in the mid-1990s, and 25–30 years of ongoing practice
• The idea of prana/chi as life-force energy moving through the breath and the body
• Why Miriam recommends starting Miriam’s Meditations from Season 1 if you’re new to breath practice
• Finding a local meditation or breathing group to practice alongside others

Chapters

• 00:00 — Welcome & why meditation fits this season’s mental health theme
• 01:07 — Mind, spirit, body — and what “consciousness” and “energy” really mean here
• 02:11 — What meditation is (and isn’t): brainwave shifts and the meditative “field”
• 04:49 — Consciousness beyond psychology: the deeper, spiritual self
• 08:00 — The pen-and-paper technique for clearing mental clutter
• 10:42 — Meditation, therapy, and building mental health habits
• 11:40 — Momentum over discipline: using music to build a repeatable practice
• 13:30 — What comes up when you get quiet: processing emotion through breath work
• 17:25 — When early practice brings up hard emotions
• 21:11 — Energy, attraction, and the “go with the flow” metaphor
• 24:13 — The seed-and-tree metaphor for personal growth
• 26:12 — Miriam’s story: psychology, a breath teacher in the ’90s, and decades of practice
• 31:10 — Rotimi’s own experience, and revisiting a practice that didn’t stick
• 31:52 — Inside Miriam’s Meditations: free, live, and 130+ episodes deep
• 33:25 — Knowing when to bring in a therapist or guide alongside spiritual practice
• 35:29 — Where to start if you’re new to the podcast
• 37:20 — Closing thoughts

About Miriam Trahan

Miriam Trahan has studied meditation and breath work for over 10 years (over 25 years of personal practice) and holds a yoga teaching certification. She hosts Miriam’s Meditations, a weekly podcast recorded as a live group meditation featuring breath exercises and guided work with subtle energy — over 170 episodes and counting.

• Podcast: Miriam’s Meditations on Podchaser

Note on this episode

This conversation touches on emotional and mental health experiences, including brief references to personal difficulty and trauma. Miriam and Rotimi both speak to the value of pairing any spiritual or breath practice with professional support, like a therapist, when it’s needed. If anything in this episode brings something up for you, that’s worth paying attention to — and reaching out for support is a good next step.