Yoga Teacher to Death Doula and Bitcoin Enthusiast

Erin, a certified Death Doula and a Bitcoin enthusiast, shares her journey of personal transformation and pursuit of purpose. Starting her journey as a horse manager and restaurant worker, she underwent a significant mindset shift after her Yoga teacher training and the passing of her beloved pet, which spurred her interest in death and questioning the purpose of her life. This led her on a path to become a Death Doula, advocating for and supporting people through the process of dying. Erin's transition into the Bitcoin space happened amidst the pandemic when she decided to quit her job due to mandated vaccine passports. She was introduced to Bitcoin as a tool to peacefully move away from the system imposed by the government. Erin shared her experiences living in Bitcoin circular economies in places like El Salvador and Guatemala. She emphasizes the importance of a new monetary system in making the world a better place and believes Bitcoin can serve as a tool towards that end.

00:00 Introduction

00:37 Welcome to Orange Hatter

00:43 Introducing the Exclusive Retreat for Women in Bitcoin

01:38 Invitation to Join the Retreat

02:07 Guest Introduction: Erin

02:33 Erin's Background and Journey

04:44 Transition from Horse Training to Yoga

07:31 Erin's Life Changes and Discovery of Bitcoin

10:08 Erin's Horse Training Experience

12:12 Transition from Restaurants to Yoga

21:59 Erin's Journey to Becoming a Death Doula

37:05 Erin's Bitcoin Journey

41:15 Experiencing Bitcoin Circular Economies

45:01 Advice for Women Interested in Bitcoin

50:51 Conclusion and Farewell

*** Check out the Orange Hatter Women's Retreat at www.orangehatter.com/yucatan ***

To learn more about Bitcoin: Join the Orange Hatter Women's Reading Club.  Please email to Tali@orangehatter.com for the private telegram group and zoom link.

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I speak about the yoga space because that's what I'm familiar with.

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So as we all sit on the floor and

we all meditate for world peace.

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And I'm not saying that we shouldn't

do that, but what we really

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need is a new monetary system.

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Because the current system that we

have, it has completely twisted and

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corrupted and co-opted incentives.

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We're working harder, we're working

longer, we're donating more money

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to whatever non profit you donate

to, and yet not only are things

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not getting better, they actually

seem to be getting a lot worse.

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Tali: Hey everybody.

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Welcome to Orange Hatter.

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Aleia: Hello listeners.

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If you're a woman in the Bitcoin space,

looking for a transformative getaway,

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then today's feature is just for you.

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We've tailored an exclusive

retreat designed for rejuvenation

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connection and empowerment

specifically for women like you.

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Picture this mornings that

begin with yoga by the ocean.

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Days filled with the inspiring

beauty of nature and conversations

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with fellow Bitcoin enthusiasts that

turned into lasting friendships.

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This retreat is not just

a break from your routine.

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It's a leap forward for

your spirit and career.

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But it's more than

relaxation and networking.

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We're actively supporting local

Bitcoin circular economies.

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Your participation means contributing to

real world change, connecting you with

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the impact of Bitcoin beyond the screen.

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This is an opportunity to step

away from the daily grind to

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recharge and to return inspired.

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Whether you're deep into your Bitcoin

journey or just starting this retreat

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will offer you valuable insights,

support, and a renewed sense of purpose.

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Ready to be part of

this unique experience.

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Visit www.orange hatter.com

forge slash Yucatan.

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Now to learn more and reserve

your spot spaces are limited.

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As we aim to create an intimate and

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Don't miss this chance to

recharge, connect, and contribute.

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Join us.

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Let's make this retreat a

milestone in your Bitcoin journey.

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Thank you for tuning in and

here's to empowering your

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path in the world of Bitcoin.

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We can't wait to welcome you.

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Tali: Hey Erin.

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Thank you so much for

joining us on Orange Hatter.

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I can't wait to dive into your stories.

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You are an adventurer.

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It's gonna be so much fun.

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Thank you for coming on the show.

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Erin: Yeah, thanks for having me.

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I'm always happy to chat about

Bitcoin, of course, and anything

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else that might come up.

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I'm an open book, so we'll see

where the conversation takes us.

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Tali: Awesome.

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All right.

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Let's get started.

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Oh, if you could give us a

little bit about your background,

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that would be amazing.

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Erin: Sure, so I grew up in

Canada just outside of Toronto.

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I grew up in a small town and

gradually over the course of my life

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moved a little bit further out west.

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I moved out to Alberta, which is like the

Texas of Canada, some people may know.

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I spent 10 years out there.

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I used to be I was heavily involved with

horses, so I actually went to agriculture

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college, and I was managing the

equestrian facility at the agricultural

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college that I went to in Ontario.

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And then, so when I left that job, I was

living in Ottawa, which is the capital

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of Canada, and Ottawa is very bilingual,

so To get almost any job, you need to be

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able to speak French, which I do not, so

I had a decision to make at that point.

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I was, I could either stay in Ottawa and

learn French, or I could move out west.

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I chose the option to move out west.

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I packed up my car, packed up my

horse, and we moved out to Edmonton.

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And I had worked in

restaurants my whole life.

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That was my very first job.

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When I was 14, I was hired at Burger

King, and I was fired two months later,

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and so I took about a year off because

I had a little bit of PTSD from being

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fired from my very first job, but I

started working for a a counter service

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bagel, and, shop when I was 16 and ever

since then I've been in restaurants

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while doing other jobs a lot of the time.

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I just didn't find that anything

helped me pay the bills.

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as well as working in restaurants did.

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So I moved out to Edmonton to work for

a horse trainer, but I was working in

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a restaurant at the same time because

it's just nearly impossible to pay rent

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and do all of the things that you need

to do on a assistant trainer salary.

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So I was working in restaurants and

then the opportunity came up to start

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managing for this restaurant company.

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So I found myself in a management

position for seven years.

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And then I did my yoga teacher

training, and that completely

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flipped my life upside down.

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I just didn't see the purpose in

the work that I was doing anymore.

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I was working 50, 60 hours a week.

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Really weird schedules.

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It was always changing from four in

the morning if I had to do inventory,

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and then sometimes not going in till

four o'clock in the evening, but

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working all the way through till 1 a.

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m.

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So after I did my yoga teacher training,

I really did a big re evaluation of

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my life and what my priorities were.

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I went on a six month trip

down to South America.

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I quit my job right after I bought

a house, by the way, I think it was

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June of 2014, and then I quit my job

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full on panic attack, but I wasn't too

worried about it, so then I jumped on

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a plane, went to South America for six

months, and came back to Alberta, started

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teaching yoga, and again, can't pay my

rent and buy my groceries and do all

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the things on a yoga teacher salary, so

I went back to working in restaurants.

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And then I bought an old Volkswagen

camper van an old Westfalia,

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baby blue with a pop top.

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This was when the whole van life trend

was getting quite big and something about

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that really resonated with me, so I rented

out my house and jumped in my camper

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van and took a job in British Columbia

for the summer just to pay some bills

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before I went to Mexico was the plan.

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And the place I was working at in

British Columbia, that was the first

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year of really bad forest fires, so we

got evacuated and, long story short, I

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ended up not going to Mexico, I ended

up on the Sunshine Coast in British

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Columbia, which is a ferry ride away

from Vancouver a really special place.

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Working in restaurants again, and

the most recent massive life change

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that happened for me happened during

the pandemic, which I'm sure a lot of

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people can relate to particularly in

Canada, things were difficult because

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the mandates that we had, all of the

rules and regulations that we had,

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Occurred mostly at a federal level, so

we didn't have a Texas or a Florida,

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we didn't have a different province or

a different state that we could go to

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if where we were living didn't resonate

with our values or what we wanted at

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the time, so I ended up quitting my job.

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In the restaurant and luckily

enough, I was in a position

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where I was able to do that.

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I had enough savings.

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I only have myself to support.

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I don't have children, so I was in

a unique position to be able to do

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that, so that's when I became a death

doula, and that's when I found Bitcoin.

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Both of those things happened

almost at the exact same time, so

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even sitting here and talking about

my life before Bitcoin and before

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becoming a death doula, it's wow.

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Was I even that person?

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I just, I feel like I've

been this person forever.

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But I think as with most things,

you can look back on your life and

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see, Oh yeah, everything I've done

has been leading up to this point.

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Oh, so I bought my second camper van.

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I sold the old Volkswagen camper

van a couple of years back.

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But when everything went down with

the trucker protests in Canada when

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people's bank accounts were getting

frozen, that was the last straw for me.

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I thought, I got to get out of here.

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I don't want to get trapped in

some kind of dystopian nightmare.

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So I bought another camper van

and I left and went down to the U.

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S.

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for a year.

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And then ended up going back

to Canada last summer to work.

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Which I did, and I just lived in my camper

van and saved all the money I was making.

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And now I've been in El Salvador, and

now I'm in Guatemala, and I've been

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here since the beginning of November.

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Tali: What a wild ride, a lot of

young people today think that they

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have to choose one thing to do,

especially if you're a college age.

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They put themselves in the peg and then

that's it But you literally just proved

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that life is a continual evolution

Going from one thing to another.

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I have so many questions for you.

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First one is where's your horse?

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What happens your horse?

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Erin: he's gone, unfortunately.

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He developed a condition in his feet

that's A lot of horses get, and it's very

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difficult for them to recover from that,

so I was actually at a point where I was

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paying more for him on a monthly basis, it

was costing me more in his board and vet

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bills than I was paying for myself living

in an apartment and supporting myself in

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all the ways I needed, so I found a really

nice This older retired couple who had

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performance horses their whole lives and

they were just looking for a really nice

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sweet horse that they could ride through

the mountains when he was feeling okay.

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Yeah, he ended up going to them

and I still dream about him

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often but I don't even know if

he's still alive to be honest.

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If he was, he would be, gosh,

he'd be almost 30 years old now

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which is pretty old for a horse.

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Tali: Yeah, so what kind of

horse training did you do?

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Erin: Growing up I rode English.

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I don't know if you're familiar with

horses at all, but it's like English is

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one style and Western is another style.

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So because I grew up on the East Coast

a lot of English riding happening there.

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So I grew up riding English, and then

when I moved out to Alberta, I discovered

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Western reining is the name of a sport.

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Essentially what reining is it takes

all of the maneuvers that you would do

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on a horse if you were actually working

cattle on a ranch, but it amps everything

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up a little bit, like everything is a

little bit faster, a little bit neater

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and you're not actually working with

a cow, so I was doing that, and then

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when I moved up to Edmonton, I was

working with a cutting horse trainer.

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Which is when you actually are working

cattle and that was a ton of fun.

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Tali: I Love horses.

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So I always am so jealous of people

who get to work a lot with horses but

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my daughter was taking riding lessons

and I would go with her sometimes and

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I would just listen to her trainer

talk about horses and it just surprised

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me so much that they're such massive,

majestic, beautiful animals, but their

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health maintenance is a really big deal.

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It's very tough.

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They're actually quite

fragile health wise.

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Erin: They are, yeah.

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And I'm not exactly sure why.

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Maybe it's because they're

living quite unnaturally, like

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in, in horses in the wild.

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They would never be living in

a padded stall with sawdust and

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all of these different things.

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So it's almost akin to what has happened

with people, you know We've gone from

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living in tribal communities small

communities And now we're all living in

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high rise condominium buildings in the

city and having all kinds of health issues

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and wondering why that is so I would yeah,

I'd be curious to know if maybe that's

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it's The way that we treat them in the

modern world that is causing them to be so

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darn expensive, because it is expensive.

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Tali: Yeah.

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So you went from horse training

to working in restaurants or

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sometimes actually simultaneously.

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And I'm very curious to, to hear from you.

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So why from those two things you

went into yoga teacher training?

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Erin: Ah, that's a good question.

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Well, Yeah, gosh, restaurants have

just been in my life, my whole life,

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and I'm very grateful for that, and

for a really long time, I was always

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looking for a way out of restaurants.

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Or the way that I looked at it

was, working in a restaurant

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was a means to an end.

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When I was in my 20s, I thought,

there's no way I'm going to be

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30 still working in restaurants.

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That is just not acceptable.

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And then I was in my 30s, and I

was thinking, okay, there's no

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way I'm going to be in my 40s.

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That is just a ridiculous idea.

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I find myself at 43 still

working in restaurants.

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And, I finally have reached a point

where I just have so much gratitude

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for restaurants, actually, because it's

provided me a really beautiful life.

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It's really enabled me

to do a lot of things.

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Like I said, I've been in

El Salvador and Guatemala.

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I'm going to Mexico next week.

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It's allowed me to travel.

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It's allowed me to pay my rent and

have a car and buy healthy food.

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And Really support myself in all of the

ways that I've needed to be supported.

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But, so after I sold my horse, Horses

are very expensive, as we were just

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saying, and I don't think I would

ever have another one unless I had

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a farm and had somewhere to keep it.

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After I left the horse world, I needed

something to do, I needed something

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physical to do, so I started running.

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And I had always hated running.

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When I was a kid, I used every excuse

in the book to get out of doing anything

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that involved running, like track and

field day at school was the worst day

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of my life, so it was horrible, but for

whatever reason, I was in a really bad

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relationship at the time, and I think

that had something to do with it, I just

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needed to Move some emotions through my

body and I don't think I was conscious

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of that at the time But something

was just pulling me towards running.

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So I started running like a maniac and

Became really imbalanced in my body

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because of that you know really tight

hamstring really sore back all of that

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kind of stuff and I just happen to be

living around the corner from a strip

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mall where a brand new yoga studio

opened and I thought, yeah, I probably

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need a little more balance in my life.

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I probably don't need to run seven

days a week, maybe I'll take a day

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off and do a little stretching.

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So I invited some of the girls from

work and we all went to a yoga class

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and this was over 10 years ago now.

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So I think yoga was really

starting to peak at that time.

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Everybody was starting to do yoga.

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And the first class I went

to, I absolutely hated it.

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I absolutely hated it.

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My runner's brain was just,

thought it was just ridiculous.

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I could not handle just laying there

and doing nothing but breathing.

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And for whatever reason,

that resistance that I felt.

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I just kept going back.

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I just kept on going back, and then I

became obsessed with yoga, just like

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I had been obsessed with running.

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I'm very much, when I find something that,

that I resonate with, I am all in 100%.

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Yeah, I went down the yoga

rabbit hole pretty quickly.

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I

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Tali: That's a familiar story.

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I've spoken to several people who started

yoga and hated it, but for whatever

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reason felt compelled to continue to

go and then becoming a yoga teacher.

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So what about yoga eventually after

you got over the, I hate yoga thing,

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drew you down the yoga rabbit hole?

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Erin: think I could answer that

question in a number of different ways.

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I think ultimately it's just the

path that I was meant to be on.

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Yoga helped me to redefine my

relationship with my physical body.

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I think most women can relate to

struggling with body issues, struggling

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with food, and that has certainly

been my story through most of my life.

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I had a really scrawny,

athletic older brother.

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And I was a really shy, chubby bookworm.

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We were just totally opposite

in that way, and so I was always

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very conscious of my body.

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My mom was always dieting.

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I grew up during the 80s and the 90s

when diet culture was just going crazy.

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I think I went on my first

diet when I was 9 years old.

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So I had always really struggled

with that and yoga really helped

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me to exist from the neck down.

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Because I've always been a very

cerebral person and I still have a lot

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of those tendencies but I just had no

relationship with my physical body.

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So yoga really helped me in that way and

through that I developed a relationship

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with Now I would call that thing God.

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I wouldn't have called

it God ten years ago.

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I would have said universe or source or

whatever word you want to put for it.

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But now because of Bitcoin,

I call it God, actually.

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Yeah, so I I found that spiritual aspect

to my life as well and just a whole wide

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array of Buddhist philosophy and a lot

of things that just really helped me to

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deal with life that I had never had before

and that actually now that I'm talking

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about it I always used alcohol to deal

with in the past and Particularly being in

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restaurants, the culture around drinking

and partying is it's more strange if you

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don't get hammered every night, if you

work in a restaurant now I'm the weird

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one because I don't drink anymore, and

everybody at my work still does, but,

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Yeah, it, it just, I was ready to evolve,

I was ready to evolve in all of the

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ways physically, mentally, emotionally,

spiritually and yoga helped me to do that,

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so how do you not get addicted to that or

how do you not go down that rabbit hole?

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Yeah

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Tali: Well,

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the listeners can't see you right now,

but you are so toned and fit and healthy.

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And you said you were 43,

but I thought you were 33.

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Honestly, you look so fabulous.

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And it's just wonderful to hear

where that transformation took place.

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I want to dig just a little bit deeper,

just out of my own personal curiosity.

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So you said the yoga helped you

deal with the neck down or at least

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realign your relationship with

what's going on below the neck.

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And then you touched a little

bit on the spirituality.

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So you said 10 years ago, you called

the higher power source, but now

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you call it the higher power of God.

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What's the difference and

what caused the change?

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Erin: I'm not sure if there is much

of a difference to be honest I think

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I don't I try not to get too caught up

in the dogma of different words for

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things, but I didn't grow up religious

in any sort of way It just wasn't and

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i've discovered this after spending

a year in the US versus growing up

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in Canada, there's just not a lot of

traditional, if you want to call it

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that, traditional religion in Canada.

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We're just more of a, I don't know if

we're atheists necessarily, but it's not

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as central to our culture as it seems

to be, at least in some areas of the U.

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S.

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Again, I don't really subscribe

to calling myself one thing or

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another, but if you would have asked

me before yoga, do you believe in

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God, I probably would have said no.

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But it's simply because I just didn't

have any connection with any of that.

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I'm not sure if there is a difference

between source, nature, universe,

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God, at least not in my opinion.

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And someone asked me this question

the other day, like, how did Bitcoin

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redefine your relationship to God?

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And I'm not even entirely sure.

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I'm still, digging through it.

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But I just think the

fact that Bitcoin exists.

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I think it's a divine gift to humanity.

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And even the creation of Bitcoin itself

has this kind of mysterious, immaculate

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conception magic just going on around it.

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Yeah, I I look at Bitcoin as proof

that God does love us and that God is

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here and in everything and all things.

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And I think I'm just more comfortable

now with using the word God.

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I think maybe it's something

that comes with age as well.

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I notice lots of things shifting at

midlife and I think you do start to

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reflect on life and death, and where

the heck did we come from, where are we

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going, and why are we even here at all?

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And, yeah, I just have a closer

relationship with God, I think,

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for a number of reasons, but

Bitcoin has definitely played

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a part in that, for sure.

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Tali: We'll dig into the Bitcoin

bit, but I want to circle back a

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little bit, just a couple of years.

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You mentioned that you ended

up becoming a death doula.

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Somehow you went from being a

yoga teacher to a death doula.

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What happened?

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Erin: Again, I think, when you get

into yoga, there's a lot of exposure to

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Hinduism and Buddhist philosophy, and a

big part of that Buddhist philosophy is

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The truth of impermanence, how nothing

lasts forever, and how we cause our

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own suffering by clinging to things,

expecting them to never change, and

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just this constant practice of letting

go in every moment of everything, so

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that was something that I had never

thought about before and then an actual

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event that happened was my cat, like

my little soulmate I have a tattoo of

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him on my arm here he died in my arms,

and he died a natural death And I had

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worked with animals most of my life.

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Also, I wanted to be a veterinarian

when I was younger, so I

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worked in a lot of vet clinics.

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I actually managed a vet clinic for a

short period of time when I thought I

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would step away from restaurants, and

that didn't last very long, but so I had

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been present at a lot of euthanasias.

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But I had never witnessed a natural

death before, and it was one of the

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most transformative spiritual moments

that I've ever had in my whole life.

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And when I zoomed out of the

situation, I was in my mid

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thirties, I think, at that point.

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I couldn't help but think of how

strange it was that I was an adult.

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I was 35, 36, but I had

never witnessed death before.

365

And that just really got me thinking

about death culture in general, in

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particular in the Western world.

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So It just planted that little seed for

me, and it it germinated, and it was

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with me for a number of years, and then

randomly on Facebook, I started seeing

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ads for an end of life doula certification

program through Douglas College in

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Vancouver, and I think I saw that ad for

a year, two years, and then Like I said,

371

when the pandemic happened, I found myself

with a bunch of time on my hands, and

372

when that ad popped up again, I thought,

yeah, okay, this is the time to do that.

373

And it's interesting, because

when I told my friends that's what

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I was doing, they all said, oh,

yeah, that totally makes sense.

375

This is what you're supposed to be doing.

376

That was an interesting response from

them, and an interesting feeling for

377

me, because I hadn't really felt That

aligned with, I don't want to say a

378

career path, just a path in general.

379

I hadn't felt that aligned with

something in a really long time.

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Tali: You said something

that's very intriguing to me.

381

You said by the age of 35 or 36, as an

adult, you had never witnessed death.

382

As in you should have witnessed

death up to that point.

383

Why did you say that?

384

Erin: We used to die at home.

385

We, humans, used to die at home.

386

When we were living in small

communities, before, I mean in Canada

387

we have socialized healthcare, so

before we had universal healthcare.

388

Before we had mega hospitals to go to.

389

Death was a life event.

390

Just like giving birth, just like

everything else that, that would

391

happen over the span of a lifetime.

392

We would die at home.

393

That's actually what coffee tables

were made for initially, was to lay

394

a dead body on in a home so that

family and friends could come and

395

view the body and pay their respects.

396

It wasn't until like the 1940s,

397

Revolution started happening,

people started moving into cities.

398

We started to leave these smaller

communities and then, like I said, in

399

Canada, universal healthcare, I think

we got universal healthcare in the 50s.

400

It's just so closely tied with fiat

money and all of the ways in which

401

our monetary system is broken.

402

We were living in cities, but our

community was much smaller, we

403

only had the nuclear family.

404

And if both parents are working,

then there's nobody at home to

405

take care of grandma and grandpa

as they age and as they die.

406

So we started outsourcing death

to hospitals, nursing facilities,

407

paid professionals, people that

could step in and take that role.

408

Because of all of those reasons,

death has come out of the home, and

409

it's now more of a medicalized event.

410

And many of us don't

get to see it anymore.

411

We just, we simply don't get to see it.

412

And I think a lot of parents want to

protect their kids from the big, scary

413

reality of death, but Death is just a

truth, it's a universal truth, and I

414

think it's the one thing that really

connects us as humans, and not just

415

humans, but we can look to nature,

everything dies, nothing is permanent, so

416

we've really just become separated from

all of that, I think our natural human

417

tendency is the more we don't understand

something, the more afraid of it we

418

are, the bigger and scarier it becomes.

419

So there's an even bigger

motivation to avoid it, right?

420

Instead of leaning into it and going,

huh, what's happening over here?

421

We look at death as a negative

thing, but it's, in my mind, it's not

422

negative or positive, it simply is.

423

It just is a truth.

424

And I just don't think we're doing

ourselves any favors by avoiding it

425

or attempting to protect people from

the reality that's what happens.

426

I think it's the one thing we should

talk about the most, actually, because

427

out of everything in life, it is

the one thing that is guaranteed to

428

happen to every single one of us.

429

So the fact that we're not talking

about it all day, every day, I

430

think that's crazy, as opposed

to talking about it all the time.

431

Tali: I heard this lecture several

years ago, given by, I think it

432

was one of the spiritual teachers.

433

And she was saying, I think

everybody should go to the hospital

434

and witness someone passing away.

435

Cause she said, it's a beautiful thing.

436

And as I was listening to her lecture,

I thought, what a strange thing to say.

437

Why would you say everybody

needs to witness this?

438

So you became a doula.

439

for death.

440

You're calling it a truth

that none of us can escape.

441

Every single one of us will

one day have to face that.

442

She's seeing it as a beautiful thing.

443

You're saying it as a truth.

444

So how do you connect the two?

445

what is a death doula?

446

What does a death doula do?

447

Erin: Good questions.

448

I call it a truth because, I'll

circle back to what is a death doula,

449

but I call it a truth because I

think the truth contains all things.

450

I think it contains beauty, and pain.

451

I think it includes joy and grief.

452

I think truth just is.

453

I don't necessarily think that

it's one thing or the other.

454

So I do think it's beautiful.

455

I do think death is beautiful.

456

And, it's also horribly sad and

sometimes not beautiful, sometimes

457

ugly, but it's, it is the truth.

458

I guess I'll just I'll leave it there

and you can come back to that if you

459

want to, but A Death Doula is You can

also use the term end of life doula.

460

They're interchangeable.

461

Most people are more comfortable with

end of life as, even the word death, a

462

lot of people are not comfortable with.

463

I prefer death because I don't want to

sugarcoat anything, but that's just me.

464

But essentially what a doula

is a person of service.

465

Most people nowadays are

familiar with birth doulas.

466

A lot of women will have a birth doula.

467

Even if they're planning on giving

birth in a hospital they still

468

have a doula as a support person.

469

I like to say that birth

doulas help people in, and

470

death doulas help people out.

471

We function in a relatively similar way.

472

We help people prepare by helping

them come up with an end of life plan.

473

To whatever extent you can plan for

things there's oftentimes things that

474

are not in your plan, but if you at

least have an idea of what your ideal

475

end of life looks like then we can

navigate whatever comes to resemble

476

as much of your plan as you wanted.

477

Essentially we advocate for people.

478

We help people become clear on their

values, on what it is that they want,

479

and then we help to make sure that

those things happen for that person.

480

So end of life planning

is a big part of it.

481

Actually companioning people as

they die is another part of it.

482

Helping loved ones after

their person has died.

483

Helping them with the grieving process.

484

And also supporting caregivers.

485

And I think that's something that I'm

really going to focus on this year.

486

Especially with all of the baby

boomers now that are entering elderhood

487

and late elderhood, a lot of people

like myself at midlife are going

488

to sooner or later find themselves

in some sort of caregiving role.

489

And a lot of us don't know how to do that.

490

The idea of caring for an elder

parent feels really overwhelming and

491

really scary because we don't have

any of that experience with death.

492

What are we supposed to do?

493

What does death actually look like?

494

What's going to happen?

495

It's a really big, and I think maybe

that's part of the reason why we

496

outsource a lot of that process.

497

I just think that does

us a major disservice.

498

I think death is a really fertile time

for connection and healing and love.

499

But in order for those things

to happen, there needs to be

500

a support system in place.

501

And I think that's really where doulas

come into the picture in a big way.

502

So we can support the caregiver who is

supporting the parent or the friend or

503

whoever the person at end of life may be.

504

I would say the biggest thing is though

is that, this is the last thing I'll

505

say about it, a doula has no agenda.

506

So We don't go in there saying this is

the way that you should do it, because

507

nobody has ever died and come back with

the curriculum on how to do this properly

508

I think that's the biggest not challenge,

but it's definitely something that doulas

509

are most mindful of, is it's not my way.

510

We're not gonna die my way,

we're gonna do it your way.

511

And then it's up to me as a doula

to be really honest with myself.

512

Am I able to support that person in

the way that they need to be supported?

513

Because it's not my end of

life experience, it's theirs.

514

Tali: I have a lot of questions.

515

I'll start with . I'm just going to

go back to that lecture that I heard

516

cause that was the only time that

I've really thought about that issue.

517

She said that the moment when

the spirit leaves the body,

518

you really understand life.

519

And I want to ask you.

520

When you went, I don't know if you've

been there in person, I'm assuming

521

you have, so when that actual moment

comes, when they have exhaled their

522

last breath, what is that because

most of us are very afraid of that.

523

What you said, we don't know it.

524

We only see it in movies.

525

What is that moment like actually?

526

Erin: I will say, I became certified

as a death doula during the pandemic.

527

Because of some personal medical choices

that I made, it was not an easy time for

528

me to enter people's homes and companion

people through the actual dying process.

529

So my experience up to this point

has been working with people

530

on creating end of life plans.

531

Also, I travel a lot, and I haven't

been in one place for very long over

532

the past two to three years, so it's

difficult to be a traveling death doula.

533

I do what I can in having conversations

and working with people through

534

planning, so I haven't actually been

present at the passing of a person.

535

Like I said before, I have been present

at the passing of my cat, and some people

536

might think that's not the same thing.

537

To me, it was.

538

I was absolutely panicked.

539

I was calling every single vet clinic

that I could get a hold of because

540

I just, I didn't know what to do.

541

I was beside myself.

542

And then something just came

over me like, wait a second.

543

I'm not the one dying.

544

He's the one that's dying and he needs me

as his person to just to not panic, right?

545

To be this compassionate rock is

the way that I think about it.

546

So I just got really calm.

547

What I was afraid of was the unknown.

548

I didn't know what was going to happen.

549

When he died, I didn't know if he was

going to be in pain, I didn't know,

550

I just didn't know, but I just took a

moment to center myself and I thought,

551

this is my little soulmate, I love

him, I can handle whatever happens.

552

When he took his last

breath, his whole body shook.

553

And I felt from the bottoms of my toes

all the way up through my body to the

554

top of my head just this cold rush,

like this cold movement of energy,

555

and I knew that was him moving through

me, and I knew that he was gone.

556

And then it was just, that was it.

557

I know a lot of doulas that have been

with people that have passed, and

558

they say the same thing it's quite

peaceful by the time the end comes.

559

What freaks most people out is

there is a period of time Where

560

breathing sounds quite difficult.

561

It's called the death rattle, actually.

562

It sounds like the dying person

is drowning when, as they're

563

breathing, because their

lungs are filling with fluid.

564

But at that point, Most people are,

they're in the in between they're not

565

fully conscious and they're not quite

gone, and a lot of people at the end

566

are given pain medication as well.

567

There's a lot of really good ways

to help mitigate pain at the end.

568

So It's, it can be, hours long that

process can last, which gives the family

569

time to gather, and then the breathing

just stops, and there's just quiet

570

Tali: it's a difficult

subject to think about.

571

It really is.

572

Even I think for the most

spiritual people, it's still that

573

transition is very difficult.

574

Okay, let's move on to Bitcoin.

575

How did you come across

Bitcoin and what was it like?

576

Erin: It's a good story.

577

I had just started dating someone.

578

We'd been dating for a couple of weeks.

579

And it was the weekend in Canada that the

government announced vaccine passports

580

that you were going to need to show your

proof of vaccination to go to restaurants,

581

movie theatres, all that kind of stuff.

582

And I was working in a restaurant at the

time, as an unvaccinated person, I wasn't

583

one of the people that I had to become

vaccinated in order to keep my job, I

584

was actually free to continue to work as

an unvaccinated person, but I just, that

585

is where I drew the line, like I could

not, as an unvaccinated person, check

586

The papers of people and turn away people

that were not vaccinated like that is

587

where that was the final straw for me.

588

So I was talking to this guy I was

dating about this and I said I think

589

I'm going to have to quit my job.

590

I can't handle everything

that's happening anymore.

591

And he just looked at me and he

said, have you ever heard of Bitcoin?

592

And I had actually heard of Bitcoin.

593

So that was September of 2021 that

he asked me that and everything was

594

happening with the vaccine mandates.

595

I had actually heard of Bitcoin

because I had been listening to

596

Joe Rogan for a very long time.

597

And he had Andreas Antonopoulos

on his show, I think that

598

was back in 2015 or 2016.

599

And I remember thinking at the time,

Oh, this sounds like a really good idea.

600

This Bitcoin thing this

makes a lot of sense.

601

But back then I had no idea.

602

How do you get it?

603

Where do you keep it?

604

I didn't even know.

605

I thought it was an investment.

606

It was a stock.

607

I just, I didn't gather enough

from that three hour conversation

608

to, to really know what it was.

609

So when he said, have

you heard about Bitcoin?

610

I said, yeah, I have actually.

611

Tell me more about this.

612

And it took maybe half an hour for me

to know yeah, this is what I want to do.

613

And because I had quit my

job in that same weekend.

614

I had a lot of time on my hands so I

just went down the bitcoin rabbit hole.

615

I don't even I think I ordered a copy

of the Bitcoin Standard right away

616

I started watching youtube videos.

617

I started listening to What

Bitcoin Did with Peter Mccormick.

618

I was obsessed.

619

And then I found Bitcoin Twitter.

620

In Canada, Twitter's not a huge thing.

621

There's just not a lot

of people on Twitter.

622

But there was a day in October

of 21, when Instagram, Facebook,

623

and WhatsApp all went down.

624

And they were down for a whole day.

625

And I was thinking, What is going on here?

626

How do I find out what's happening

with Facebook and Instagram?

627

So I thought, oh, I'll go to Twitter.

628

Twitter's like this news platform.

629

And when I got onto Twitter,

I was just like, this is where

630

all the Bitcoin people are.

631

Yeah, I think within two weeks.

632

I had a hardware wallet and was buying

and putting Bitcoin into cold storage,

633

Tali: that's really fast.

634

What did your boyfriend say in those

30 minutes that got you so excited?

635

Erin: At the time, I was just

fed up with the government.

636

I just had enough.

637

I had enough with being told what to do.

638

I had enough with not being able to

live my life when everything around

639

me was seemingly, it was business

as usual, when I would go for a

640

run or go for a hike through the

forest, it was like, I don't know,

641

everything seems pretty normal to me.

642

And then you turn on the TV and it's

Death and destruction and you're

643

not allowed to eat at a restaurant.

644

So I just had enough I had enough of

the government So that was the big

645

thing for me and he said look Bitcoin

Separates money from state you can

646

peacefully remove yourself from that

whole System and you can exist inside

647

of a different reality from the one

that we think is our only option.

648

He basically positioned it as a way to

circumvent the government, and whatever

649

I could do at the time to stick it

to the government, I was all in on.

650

So that one, that was the

big thing for me, for sure.

651

Tali: So after you went into the

Bitcoin space, you actually started

652

traveling a lot and just spending

a lot of time in locations that

653

are Bitcoin circular economies.

654

Tell us about your experience.

655

How did you choose where to go?

656

And what did you experience

while you were there?

657

Erin: Yeah, it's so crazy.

658

September 21, I found Bitcoin.

659

I think by February or March of the

next year, so five months later,

660

I started my own Bitcoin podcast.

661

And then when I decided to leave

Canada and go to the States of course

662

I wanted to connect with Bitcoiners in

the US so I went to my first Bitcoin

663

event in Colorado the Beef Initiative,

and just met a whole bunch of people.

664

Colorado's got such an

incredible Bitcoin scene.

665

So I just spent a lot of time.

666

I ended up dating a guy who is a

Bitcoiner, that was really nice,

667

and I was just in this really juicy

little Bitcoin bubble for a while.

668

And then, yeah, I went back to Canada

last summer to work, and then I decided I

669

wanted to go to El Salvador the previous

winter, but because I had met this guy

670

and was living in Colorado, I didn't go.

671

So I knew this year was the year

to go to El Salvador and El Zante,

672

specifically Bitcoin Beach, so

I just love circular economies.

673

I think it's so important

for us as Bitcoiners to bring

674

Bitcoin into everyday life.

675

It's not just this imaginary magic

internet money that we can't hold, that we

676

can't see, that has no daily utility, so

I had actually started creating a little

677

circular economy where I was living on

the Sunshine Coast in British Columbia.

678

I was talking to businesses and

doing presentations and I just think

679

circular economies are so important

for a number of different reasons.

680

I really wanted to do some traveling and

check out some other circular economies.

681

Of course, Bitcoin Beach is the big one.

682

El Salvador as the first country

to make Bitcoin legal tender.

683

And It's just, it's been so cool.

684

I spent two months there and it's

been so cool just to live on Bitcoin.

685

I haven't taken money out of a bank

machine in three months, like cash money.

686

Even now I'm here in Guatemala

in Panajachel, which is

687

also known as Bitcoin Lake.

688

I haven't gone to a bank machine.

689

There's not quite as big of a circular

economy here, but there are ways that you

690

can still transact in Bitcoin and get the

things that you need, even if what you're

691

giving on the other end is fiat currency.

692

And I'm going to Bitcoin Yucatan

next week., It's been great.

693

It's just, it's such a cool thing just to

see it be normalized, to walk around town

694

and see Bitcoin accepted here signs, just

like you would see Visa MasterCard signs

695

on the front of every single store in the

US and Canada Bitcoin signs everywhere

696

down here, so to all the people that Where

Bitcoin is still just an idea and it's not

697

something tangible, I would just encourage

people to come to these countries and see

698

that it's quite normal and it's way better

than the current system that we have.

699

Tali: I love that when we go to country

like El Salvador, you don't Have to go

700

through the exchange of the currencies.

701

They also use the US dollar So I

guess that's a unique situation, but

702

before Bitcoin before this time When

I traveled internationally you gotta

703

bring travelers check Because it was

at the safest and then you bring it

704

to a counter and then you exchange for

the locals currency, but with Bitcoin,

705

you don't have to do any of that.

706

But there are technical stuff that

you have to feel comfortable with, the

707

different wallets and the diff using the

QR code and transaction fees are now a

708

big thing versus just a few years back.

709

It wasn't a thing or as much of a thing.

710

What would you say to a woman who has

heard about Bitcoin and now is seeing

711

in the news that Bitcoin price is

going up, the ETFs have been approved,

712

but they're sitting there going,

how can I possibly get involved?

713

why should I get involved?

714

I don't have any extra money.

715

What would you say to that person?

716

Erin: Yeah, I actually just met with

a woman here yesterday for coffee.

717

Her and her husband own

a paragliding business.

718

And I went paragliding on Monday, and they

are actually on, there's an app called

719

BTC Map, and when you open it up when

you're in Panajachel, I think there's 60

720

locations that take Bitcoin, it's really

cool, and they were on there as one of

721

the locations, so I said, okay, that's

where I'm gonna go paragliding, so I

722

walked into their shop, and I met her,

and her husband are just wonderful people.

723

And I said, okay, I want

to fly with you guys.

724

Can I pay in Bitcoin?

725

And there was a little bit of hesitation.

726

Even though it's a circular economy

here, for whatever reason, they just

727

don't, not a lot of Bitcoiners come here.

728

And I'm still trying to figure

out why that is because I Love it.

729

This might be the most controversial

thing I'll say in this whole podcast, but

730

I like Guatemala more than El Salvador.

731

Anyway, it just took us a couple minutes.

732

I said, look, I'll help you.

733

I'll help you do the transaction.

734

And anyway, so she wanted to know

more about it because she said,

735

you've got really cool energy and Her

husband asked me why I was into it.

736

And I said it's changed everything

about my life mentally, emotionally,

737

physically, and spiritually.

738

And he looked at me like, what?

739

Like that wasn't the answer

that he was expecting to get.

740

So that piqued her curiosity.

741

So we met for coffee and I explained it

more to her from a social standpoint.

742

She's Guatemalan, but

she's also half German.

743

So they've lived in Guatemala and Germany.

744

And I think for most people in

North America and in Europe,

745

it's this number go up.

746

Like we're just focused on, okay,

is Bitcoin going to make me rich?

747

Am I going to be rich if I buy Bitcoin?

748

And I'm not saying that's not a

really awesome Side effects of

749

being in Bitcoin, it definitely is.

750

If you go spend 100 on paragliding

and then you open up your wallet

751

the next day and Bitcoin's gone

up a couple thousand bucks, it's

752

like you went paragliding for free.

753

Yeah, that part of it's really cool.

754

But we have the time to sit

and actually talk about, like,

755

why are third world countries?

756

Why are 75 percent of

Guatemalans unbanked?

757

Why does everybody here work

seven days a week from sunrise to

758

sunset and they still don't have

enough money to buy a dozen eggs?

759

Why is that happening?

760

I don't know if there's one thing

to say to all women, but I would say

761

that Whatever your biggest concern

is, or whatever you feel that your

762

purpose is, or whatever your cause is,

whatever it is that you're working on

763

making better in the world, whatever

you're doing to be of service, I truly

764

believe with every cell in my body.

765

I believe that Bitcoin is the tool

that is actually going to allow us

766

to build this better world that I

think we all want and that we've all

767

been envisioning for a long time now.

768

And I can say that coming

from the yoga world.

769

There's a lot of environmentalists in

yoga, a lot of people who want fair trade,

770

a lot of people who want to protect the

environment, a lot of people who want

771

world peace there's a lot of really

altruistic- meaning people in that space.

772

And I believe in all spaces, but I

speak about the yoga space because

773

that's what I'm familiar with.

774

So as we all sit on the floor and

we all meditate for world peace.

775

And I'm not saying that we shouldn't

do that, but what we really

776

need is a new monetary system.

777

Because the current system that we

have, it has completely twisted and

778

corrupted and co-opted incentives,

and are actually working just

779

to make things worse and worse.

780

And yet we are all out here as a global

collective wanting to make things better.

781

We're working harder, we're working

longer, we're donating more money

782

to whatever non profit you donate

to, and yet not only are things

783

not getting better, they actually

seem to be getting a lot worse.

784

And not just in my opinion, what I

actually believe to be true is that

785

it's the current monetary system that's

the problem and that is preventing

786

all of those things from happening.

787

So just to circle back and to tie it

all up, I would say whatever it is that

788

you want to do in the world, Bitcoin

will help you actually do that thing.

789

Tali: You presented that so well.

790

I need to memorize that speech

and be able to use it for myself.

791

Because when I try to answer that

question, I end up going all over

792

the place, but thank you so much.

793

I so enjoy our conversation.

794

I feel like I could ask you a zillion

more questions, but it'll take forever,

795

but I just want to thank you so much for

coming on and sharing your experiences.

796

I think it's so amazing.

797

yeah, I'm so glad that you're able

to come on today Thank you so much.

798

Erin: Thank you.

799

Very few things bring me more joy than

talking about death and bitcoins, so

800

any opportunity that I have to do that

and just connect with other people,

801

other women like you that are helping to

spread these conversations, I think it's

802

really important, so it was my pleasure.

803

Tali: Thank you for

listening to this episode.

804

Did you enjoy it?

805

Wasn't our guest absolutely fabulous.

806

I just love every woman's

story on this show.

807

Everybody has a unique perspective

and yet, we all come to the same

808

place, which is Bitcoin is an

important part of our lives.

809

If this story has inspired you

and you would like to know more,

810

go to www.orangehatter.com.

811

Get involved.

812

Join and our reading group, send

me an email and introduce yourself.

813

I will be so happy to hear from you.

814

The best way you can support this

show is to spread the word Tell

815

every woman, you know, to listen in.

816

You never know how they will

be impacted by these stories.

817

I appreciate you so much.

818

See you next time.

819

Bye.