Bountifull Podcast

Inside the Mind of Documentary Maker Christopher Seward

In this episode, I’m joined by Christopher Seward, a documentary filmmaker and editor whose work includes Fahrenheit 9/11, Sicko, Ariel Phenomenon, One Child Nation, and more than 40 documentary films. Christopher’s work sits at the intersection of truth, emotion, curiosity, and perspective. As an editor, he has spent much of his career helping shape complex, difficult, and often confronting stories into films that people can actually watch, feel, and understand. This conversation explores the craft of documentary storytelling, but it also goes much deeper than film. We talk about curiosity as a way of moving through the world, the difference between facts and emotional truth, the role of humour in difficult stories, and why being seen may be one of the deepest human needs we all share. Christopher also shares his own life story, from growing up surrounded by art, nature, and service, to serving in the Navy, spending time on the Navajo reservation, studying cinematography at NYU, and building a life rooted in community, gratitude, nature, and creative purpose. In This Episode, You’ll Discover * * Why curiosity can create common ground, even when people disagree. * * How Christopher thinks about finding the universal human thread inside complex stories. * * Why facts alone are not always enough in a post-truth world. * * The role of emotional truth in documentary filmmaking. * * How humour can help people stay with difficult or painful subjects. * * Why documentaries need space, rhythm, and moments of relief. * * How Christopher’s time on the Navajo reservation shaped his spirituality and view of nature. * * What losing his father young taught him about impermanence, process, and savouring life. * * Why community requires showing up, not just belonging. * * How nature helps Christopher process the intensity of his work. * Why a bountiful life may begin with changing how we define bounty. Timestamps 00:00 – Opening reflection on truth, purpose, and being seen 01:20 – Introduction to Christopher Seward 02:39 – Growing up with art, nature, service, and imagination 06:44 – Spirituality, church, curiosity, and questioning 09:18 – What it means to live a bountiful life 12:30 – Advice to his 25-year-old self 14:34 – Self-trust, intuition, and learning to listen to your gut 17:00 – Losing his father young and learning impermanence 19:30 – Time on the Navajo reservation and indigenous wisdom 26:10 – Studying cinematography and finding documentary editing 30:13 – How to shape complex stories 32:39 – Facts, emotional truth, and storytelling in a post-truth world 35:34 – Working on intense documentaries and difficult subjects 38:24 – Nature, perspective, and staying well while telling hard stories 40:10 – Ariel Phenomenon and the power of first-person storytelling 45:08 – Authenticity over spectacle 46:02 – What Christopher looks for in a story 48:25 – Humour, pain, pacing, and making hard subjects watchable 51:04 – Tentpole scenes and the gravity of story 55:37 – Nature as our operating system 58:36 – Community, homecoming, and building belonging 01:04:42 – Quickfire round Guest Bio Christopher Seward is a documentary filmmaker and editor whose work spans more than 40 documentary films. His credits include Fahrenheit 9/11, Sicko, Ariel Phenomenon, One Child Nation, and many other projects exploring politics, human rights, social issues, identity, and the unseen stories that shape our world. His work is grounded in curiosity, emotional truth, and a deep interest in helping people see complex subjects through a more human lens. About the Bountifull Podcast Bountifull is a personal growth and wellbeing podcast exploring what it means to live a joyful and meaningful life. Through conversations with interesting people from diverse backgrounds, we explore psychology, science, creativity, resilience, connection, and practical wisdom for living a good life. https://bountifullworld.com/

How to Build a More Adaptable Nervous System with Dr Aarti Soorya

In this episode, Dr Aarti Soorya explores the nervous system not as something to “fix,” but as something to understand, listen to, and work with. Aarti trained as a physician, became chief resident, and then moved into functional medicine after feeling that conventional medicine was missing something deeper. But even functional medicine, with its labs, supplements, and protocols, didn’t fully answer the questions she was asking. Her own experience with insomnia, fatigue, and feeling out of alignment led her toward nervous system work, yoga nidra, and a more compassionate understanding of the body. Together, we explore what happens when the body gets stuck in survival mode, and why symptoms like anxiety, fatigue, digestive issues, low mood, brain fog, insomnia, people-pleasing, and shutdown can all be signs of a nervous system that no longer feels safe. Aarti explains the vagus nerve, fight, flight, freeze and fawn responses, and why stress itself isn’t always the problem. The real issue is whether we can recover. Rather than simply “managing stress,” she invites us to think about adaptability: the ability to be with our own physiology without fear, and to gently build capacity over time. This conversation is also full of practical, grounded tools. We talk about yoga nidra, breath, posture, cold exposure, movement, blood sugar stability, rest, play, creativity, connection, and why joy is not a luxury, but part of a resilient system. At its heart, this is a conversation about learning to stop fighting the body and start listening to it. Because sometimes the symptom is not the enemy. Sometimes it is the message. Episode Highlights * What the nervous system is and how it shapes how we think, feel, and respond to life * The difference between coping, stress management, and true adaptability * How chronic stress can contribute to insomnia, fatigue, gut issues, anxiety, and low mood * A simple explanation of the vagus nerve and why it matters for overall health * The four common stress responses: fight, flight, freeze, and fawn * Why symptoms may be messages from the body rather than signs that something is wrong * How yoga nidra helped Aarti recover from insomnia and burnout * Practical tools for building a more resilient nervous system * The role of joy, play, dance, and connection in healing * Why rest is essential for creativity, repair, and long-term wellbeing Chapters * 00:00 Adaptability and learning to feel safe in your body * 02:19 Aarti’s journey from medicine to nervous system work * 06:31 Insomnia, burnout, and the missing piece in healing * 09:46 Understanding the nervous system in plain English * 14:51 Cortisol, chronic stress, and why symptoms appear * 17:15 The difference between coping and true adaptability * 20:49 Signs your nervous system may be dysregulated * 28:23 Fight, flight, freeze, fawn, and “functional freeze” * 31:10 How yoga nidra helped Aarti recover from insomnia * 38:08 Healing without overhauling your whole life * 41:47 Why joy, play, creativity, and connection matter * 42:16 Sleep, safety, and listening to your body * 46:33 Cold exposure, breath, and building resilience * 53:37 Epigenetics, lifestyle, and personal agency * 59:49 Dance, movement, and coming back to joy Guest Bio Dr Aarti Soorya is an integrative medicine practitioner and physician whose work brings together conventional medicine, functional medicine, lifestyle interventions, nutrition, neuroplasticity, and Yoga Nidra. She is board certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, a Diplomate of the American Board of Obesity Medicine, and has completed functional medicine training. Through Jiya Health, Dr Soorya helps people understand the nervous system, build physiological resilience, and use practices like Yoga Nidra, nervous system mapping, and lifestyle changes to support long-term health and adaptability. The Bountifull Podcast Bountifull is a personal growth and wellbeing podcast exploring what it means to live a joyful and meaningful life. bountifullworld.com/podcast/ [https://www.bountifullworld.com/podcast/]

Play is the Compass with Denise Chapman Weston

Denise Chapman Weston is a Playologist, therapist, inventor, and deeply imaginative thinker whose work invites us to look again at one of the most misunderstood parts of being human: play. In Part 2 of this conversation, Denise takes us beyond the story of her own childhood promise and into the deeper question of what play actually is. Not just fun. Not just recreation. Not just something children do before they grow up. For Denise, play is one of the clearest ways we can understand who we are, what comes naturally to us, and how we find our way back to ourselves. She shares a simple but powerful exercise: remember how you played when you were around seven. What did you love doing before you were trying to be impressive, productive, sensible, or useful? Maybe you built things, made up stories, climbed trees, dressed up, organised objects, created worlds, or found joy in something no one else quite understood. Denise believes those memories are not random. They hold clues about your natural skills, your instincts, and the way you were already learning to belong in the world. This conversation moves through so many unexpected places: Tupperware lids, Disney Imagineers, bone flutes, punch cards, theme parks, magic wands, technology, imagination, and what Denise calls the “arm pretzel” — the person who is physically present, but not yet ready to join in. Through it all, Denise returns to a beautiful idea: play is not separate from life. It is woven through how we invent, connect, create, remember, and become more fully human. At its heart, this episode is about play as wisdom. It is an invitation to look back at what once delighted you, not with nostalgia, but with curiosity. Because the way you played may still have something to teach you. In This Episode, You’ll Discover * Why play is much more than fun, recreation, or something children do * How the way you played at seven may reveal something about who you are * Why childhood memories can hold clues about your natural skills and instincts * What a Disney leader’s love of matching Tupperware revealed about her work * How play, music, invention, and technology are more connected than we think * Why some of humanity’s greatest inventions may have begun with pleasure and play * How Denise moved from therapy rooms to museums, toys, attractions, and theme parks * Why imagination is our “original operating system” * What Denise means by the “arm pretzel” and why reluctant participants matter * How play can help us remember what makes us human Chapters 00:00 Denise on wisdom, AI, and play as a skill 01:31 What role does play have in living a bountiful life? 03:28 What childhood play can reveal about your skills 05:58 The Disney Tupperware story 10:12 Play as a compass 13:34 What is play? 16:45 Bone flutes, punch cards, code, and invention 24:11 Remembering what you loved to do 29:03 Denise’s work with theme parks and large-scale play experiences 33:10 Imagination as our original operating system 36:48 The “arm pretzel” 41:18 What to do if you are in an arm pretzel moment 43:22 Quickfire round 47:50 Denise turns the questions back on Sian Guest Bio Denise Chapman Weston [https://www.linkedin.com/in/denise-chapman-weston-msw-licsw-0b847511/] is a Playologist, therapist, inventor, author, and Adjunct Professor at Purdue University. She is the Director of Imagination at Invent Worlds and founder of Infinite Kingdoms, with more than 150 patents and 30 products to her name. Her work spans play, technology, storytelling, and human connection, including attractions for Disney, Universal Studios, SeaWorld, Six Flags, and children’s museums worldwide. About Bountifull Bountifull is a personal growth and wellbeing podcast exploring how to live a joyful and meaningful life through conversations on psychology, science, resilience, connection, and practical wisdom for living well. bountifullworld.com [https://www.bountifullworld.com/]

Never Stop Playing with Denise Chapman Weston

Denise Chapman Weston is a Playologist, therapist, inventor, and deeply imaginative thinker whose life has been shaped by a promise she made to herself as a child: never stop playing. In Part 1 of this conversation, Denise shares the origin story behind that promise. Growing up in Chicago with a Shriner clown for a father, she was surrounded by humour, imagination, and a sense that life did not have to be taken too seriously. But at around six years old, she felt something begin to shift. As children move towards adulthood, magical thinking often starts to fade. Standing on her bed and looking into the mirror, Denise made a serious promise to herself that she would never fully let go of play. That promise became a through-line in her life. Denise went on to work as a therapist, specialising in play therapy, before becoming an inventor with more than 150 patents. She describes invention as a process of both retreating inward and returning outward — noodling, wallowing, absorbing information, then testing ideas in the world to see whether they create connection. A central theme of this episode is Denise’s belief that technology should not replace human connection, but serve it. While many people see technology and AI as something to fear, Denise sees them as a kind of magic — powerful tools that need wisdom, intention, and human-centred design. Her “magic campfire” invention reflects this philosophy: a technology-enabled gathering place designed to bring people together, amplify storytelling, and create belonging. At its heart, this episode is about childhood imagination, creative courage, invention, and what it means to stay connected to the playful, curious, possibility-filled parts of ourselves. It is the story of how Denise became Denise — and why she believes play, technology, and human connection are far more intertwined than we might think. In This Episode * The promise Denise made to herself at six years old to never stop playing * How growing up with a Shriner clown for a father shaped her imagination * What it means to be a Playologist * How Denise moved from therapy and play therapy into invention * Why noodling and wallowing are part of her creative process * How she thinks about solitude, belonging, and idea development * Why Denise sees technology and AI as magic, not something to fear * The idea behind her “magic campfire” invention * Why she believes technology should serve human connection, not replace it * How play, imagination, invention, and wisdom all connect Chapters 00:00 Denise on the promise she made to never stop playing 01:52 Welcome to Denise’s extraordinary home 02:16 Growing up in Chicago with a Shriner clown for a dad 04:55 The promise Denise made to herself at six years old 08:02 What it means to live a bountiful life 09:55 Belonging, solitude, and the creative process 12:57 Wallowing, noodling, and invention 15:12 How Denise gets in and out of her own head 19:38 What she would tell her 25-year-old self 21:03 What it means to be a Playologist 23:20 Why Denise sees technology as magic 25:59 AI, wisdom, and the human side of technology 31:08 The magic campfire invention 38:15 Why technology should connect people to people 40:42 Reclaiming what it means to be human Guest Bio Denise Chapman Weston [https://www.linkedin.com/in/denise-chapman-weston-msw-licsw-0b847511/] is a Playologist, therapist, inventor, author, and Adjunct Professor at Purdue University. She is the Director of Imagination at Invent Worlds and founder of Infinite Kingdoms, with more than 150 patents and 30 products to her name. Her work spans play, technology, storytelling, and human connection, including attractions for Disney, Universal Studios, SeaWorld, Six Flags, and children’s museums worldwide. About Bountifull Bountifull is a personal growth and wellbeing podcast exploring how to live a joyful and meaningful life through conversations on psychology, science, resilience, connection, and practical wisdom for living well. https://bountifullworld.com/ [https://bountifullworld.com/]

Don't Give Up On Old People: Why I'm Not Done Yet with Andrew Middleton

For a lot of people, getting older does not feel like winding down. It feels like being pushed to the edges before you are ready. In this episode, Andrew Middleton shares what happened after a LinkedIn post about turning 66 unexpectedly resonated with thousands of people who felt exactly the same. What followed was not just a viral moment, but the beginning of a much bigger conversation about age, work, relevance, and the quiet shock of realising the world may be starting to see you differently before you see yourself that way. At the heart of this conversation is Andrew’s idea of the INDY: I’m Not Done Yet. It is both a phrase and a growing community for people who know they still have something to contribute, even as traditional career paths begin to narrow. We talk about the emotional reality of ageing in the workplace, the loss of status that can come with later career life, and the experience of being made to feel invisible, sidelined, or quietly moved on before you are ready. Andrew speaks with honesty about his own journey through this, and the deeper challenge of working out who you are when the old identity no longer fits. We also explore what happens next. For many people, this stage of life leads not to full retirement, but to something much more mixed, uncertain, and unexpectedly creative. Andrew shares how many find themselves becoming their own boss, building portfolio careers, learning new skills, trying new things, and earning money in ways they never expected. It is not always easy, but it can open up a very different kind of freedom. A big part of the episode centres on Andrew’s idea of “soft retirement” and what he calls the dangerous decade: that stretch of later working life where the old script starts to break down, but the new one has not yet been written. We talk about rethinking life in four quarters, the reality that we are living longer, and the possibility that this stage of life can still be useful, expansive, and full of possibility. Rather than seeing later life as one long holiday, Andrew makes the case for something richer: a third quarter shaped by contribution, reinvention, and the freedom to do things differently. Episode Highlights • Why “I’m not done yet” became a rallying cry • The shock of feeling sidelined before you are ready • Ageing, relevance, and the loss of identity at work • What to do when your old role no longer fits • Why later life often means becoming your own boss • Portfolio careers, side hustles, and unexpected reinvention • Learning new skills and staying open to change • The “dangerous decade” before traditional retirement • Soft retirement versus stopping cold • Why living longer changes the whole picture • Health, money, relationships, and planning for the third quarter • A more hopeful vision for what comes next Timestamps 00:01:22 The post that sparked a global conversation 00:04:01 I’m Not Done Yet and the birth of INDY 00:08:53 From corporate life to self-employment 00:14:15 Identity, ego, and feeling invisible 00:19:09 Portfolio careers and unexpected reinvention 00:27:45 Why retirement needs a rethink 00:32:26 Soft retirement and the third quarter of life 00:36:50 Health, money, relationships, and planning for what matters 00:50:07 What generations can learn from each other 00:56:22 Reinvention, freedom, and possibility Guest Bio Andrew Middleton is the founder of INDY, I’m Not Done Yet, a community for people over 50 exploring purpose, relevance, and what comes next. He has a background in corporate and charity leadership and now works as a consultant, writer, and speaker focused on later-life work and reinvention. https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewcmiddleton/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewcmiddleton/] https://www.imnotdoneyet.co.uk/ [https://www.imnotdoneyet.co.uk/] Bountifull Podcast Bountifull [https://www.bountifullworld.com/] is a personal growth and wellbeing podcast exploring joy, resilience, purpose, health, relationships, and meaningful living through thoughtful conversations with experts, creatives, and interesting people from diverse backgrounds.