Surviving versus thriving
In this conversation with Avi Gordon on the Integral Yoga Podcast, Richard goes further back than usual — to chronic fatigue and burnout in his early twenties, and the slow rebuild that followed. It's a longer, more personal episode than most, tracing the difference between surviving a life and actually thriving in one, and how identity itself can quietly get in the way of inner stillness.
Twenty-five years of practice, distilled
Richard draws on his background in 5 Elements Acupuncture, Dru Yoga, the Findhorn Foundation and 5 Rhythms Dance to talk about what it actually takes to get to know yourself through embodied practice, rather than through thinking your way there. Much of the conversation touches on his book, Understanding Human Nature: A User's Guide to Life, and the discipline of writing it — forty thousand words in seven weeks — after two decades of gathering the ideas in practice.
A decade in the making
Towards the end, Richard talks candidly about Moinhos Velhos itself — a retreat centre he and his colleagues came to steward after years of visiting and facilitating here, describing the path to it as a dream a decade in the making. It's a rare glimpse behind the daily rhythm of the retreat, into why this particular valley, and why now.
Beyond the retreat
Alongside his time here, Richard runs Creative Wellness, offering tailored treatments and corporate wellness programmes across London — work that draws on the same underlying idea explored throughout the episode: that addressing the physical and emotional imprints of stress is what allows people to properly reconnect with their health, relationships and work.
Watch the full episode on YouTube, and find more of Richard's work via richardbrook.world.
