Ep 120 - Meet My Yoga Teacher: Spiritual Perfectionism, Burnout & Embodied Healing with Ava Irani

This episode is a very special one for me.

Ava Irani is my yoga teacher, retreat guide, and someone who has deeply shaped the way I relate to my body, my nervous system, and my inner world. We met on silent retreat, and since then I’ve completed my yoga teacher training and therapeutic embodiment training with her.

This conversation is less of an interview and more of a shared exploration.

In this episode, we reflect on:

1. The idea of spiritual perfectionism and the quiet pressure to “heal everything” through meditation alone

2. Ava’s journey into yoga, silent retreat, and eventually teaching, and how burnout changed everything for her

3. Why awakening tools and nervous system healing are not the same thing, and why both matter

4. The trap of bypassing our humanity in the name of spirituality

5. How burnout can become a turning point rather than a failure

6. The power of dropping into the body before we lead, work, speak, or create

7. Why safety, community, and embodiment are essential for healing and sustainable leadership

8. How modern culture pulls us into constant survival mode and what it looks like to live more regeneratively

This episode is for anyone who has ever felt like they’re “doing all the right things” spiritually, yet still feeling overwhelmed, burnt out, or disconnected from their body.

It’s an invitation to soften. To come home. And to remember that healing doesn’t require perfection.

If this conversation lands for you, feel free to DM me on Instagram. I’d love to hear what resonated.

Connect with Ava

Instagram: @functionalspirituality

Website: https://functionalspirituality.com/

Connect with Me

Instagram: @emma_lou_campbell

LinkedIn: Emma Campbell

Website: www.emmacampbell.com.au