Avsnitt
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In this episode of The Himalayan Diary, Borghild leaves Mustang sooner than expected and travels down to Pokhara, where warmth, food, hot water, massage, and lower altitude give her body the relief it has been asking for.
But as the body begins to soften, something else becomes clear. She does not want to leave Nepal early. She does not want to spend two weeks in Kathmandu. And even with all its hardship of the cold, the frozen water, the mice, the altitude, and the practical demands of a simple life, Mustang is where she feels most at peace.
After seeing fresh snow falling at the gompa, speaking with Rinpoche, extending her visa, organising a new permit, buying rice, vegetables, ghee, honey, and supplies, the return begins to take shape almost before she has fully admitted it to herself.
What follows is a journey back through the mountains: a jeep to Muktinath, snow and ice on the road, a chaotic arrival, a young horseman in bright yellow trousers, a little white horse carrying her supplies, and the deep joy of simply walking home.
Under the full Snow Moon, back in the one bamboo chair at the gompa, Borghild reflects on the strange, beautiful way life sometimes moves beyond planning, and how the body, the heart, and something deeper than thought often know the way before the mind does.
In this episode we exploreLeaving before you are readyBorghild leaves Mustang when transport suddenly becomes available, even though part of her still feels deeply connected to the gompa, the mountains, and the rhythm of life there. The episode begins with that familiar human experience of moving forward while something inside is still standing in the place we have just left.
The body’s need for reliefPokhara offers warmth, hot water, lower altitude, good food, massage, and care. After weeks of winter altitude, bucket washes, cold rooms, and simple living, the body begins to relax. The episode explores how much we can adapt to difficult conditions without realising how much effort they are taking.
The mind that questions everythingAfter seeing a video of Mustang covered in snow, Borghild begins to question her decision to leave. The mind turns quickly: one moment agreeing with a decision, the next wondering if it was wrong. Through yoga, rest, and a call with Rinpoche, the deeper question becomes clearer: where does she truly need to be?
Returning through actionBefore the decision is fully formed in words, the body and actions begin to show the way. Extending the visa, organising the permit, buying rice, ghee, coffee, honey, spices, and vegetables; all of it begins to reveal what the mind has not yet fully admitted. She is going back.
The little white horseThe return to the gompa becomes an unexpected adventure. With snow and ice making the road impossible for a taxi, a young horseman arrives with a small white horse to carry the heavy supplies through the snow. The walk back becomes one of the most vivid and joyful moments of the journey.
Coming home to the gompaWhen Borghild opens the door to the gompa, everything is exactly as she left it. Clean, orderly, cold, demanding, and beautiful. The water is frozen again, the mountains glow in the evening light, and under the full Snow Moon she understands why she had to come back.
ListenA companion for walking, resting, travelling, or finding your own way back to what brings you peace.A simple reflection to take with youThis episode invites you to stay with a few gentle questions:
Where in my life am I trying to decide with my mind, while my actions already know the answer?
What does my body need before I can see clearly?
Is there somewhere, or some way of being, that gives me peace of mind even if it is not the easiest option?
A quote to remember“My actions had become clearer than my thoughts.”
Mentioned in this episodeBeli Guest House, Pokhara, Nepal.
This peaceful guesthouse overlooking the lake has become a place I love returning to. Warm hospitality, a yoga room, and the feeling of coming home.
In the next episodeBorghild returns to the rhythm of winter at the gompa — to sit in the cave, return to the silence, and let the place hold her a little longer.
But, as always, life keeps moving.
There are cold mornings, simple food, the Milarepa Cave, village paths, unexpected kindness, and the way this place keeps giving her what she needs, even when she does not know she needs it.
These last days become something much more than extra time before the real leaving begins.
Follow & ShareIf this episode offered you a breath of relief, a moment of clarity, or simply the courage to keep going, please follow the show on your favourite platform and share it with someone who might need it.
Every small act of support helps this work reach further.
Stay ConnectedExplore Borghild's work and resources.
Follow Borghild on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for more refelctions, inspiration and updates.
Borghild was also recently featured in an online magazine, sharing some of her journey and connection to Nepal. You can read it here.
Note / DisclaimerThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
After returning from the nunnery, Borghild settles back into the silence of the gompa in Mustang. The mornings are cold, the routines are simple, and the body is tired from the altitude, the winter conditions, and the constant practical work of staying warm, fed, and grounded.
Even in the stillness, the mind keeps moving. There is already a flight booked from Delhi back to Norway, but everything between Mustang and that departure is still open. The mind circles many possibilities. And underneath all of it, another question appears: does she really want to leave this place?
Then the phone rings.
What begins as a simple call from the village for milk opens into something much deeper: a family in mourning, a weekly ritual for the woman’s father who has died, tea and homemade biscuits, an unexpected connection, and a conversation with her son, a young monk home from Dehradun.
Through this visit, something happens. Not only in the mind, but around her. Weather, transport, food running low, her painful back, and the changing rhythm of village life all gathers around the same truth: leaving has already begun, even before Borghild has fully agreed to it.
This episode stays with that movement. The pull to stay, the pull to go, the body preparing before the mind has decided, and the way life sometimes arranges the next step before we fully understand it.
In this episode we exploreReturning to silence after the nunneryBorghild returns to the rhythm of gompa life: cold mornings, butter lamp, coffee, chapati, simple food, and the relief of nights undisturbed by mice.
The mind moving in stillnessEven in deep silence, the mind continues to search for answers. Travel decisions, open possibilities, and the question of leaving begin to move in the background.
The body’s tirednessThe cold is no longer only outside. It has moved into the body. The back tightens, warmth takes hours to return, and the physical reality of winter in Mustang begins to shape the decision.
The call from the villageAfter a long silence, the phone rings. A familiar invitation for milk becomes the doorway into another layer of village life.
Mourning, ritual, and family lifeBorghild learns that the woman’s father has died. The gathering she had seen from a distance now makes sense as part of the mourning and weekly puja.
Connection beyond languageTea, biscuits, milk, vegetables, oranges, smiles, and simple presence become their own form of communication. Even without fully understanding each other, something is shared.
Meeting the son from DehradunThe arrival of the woman’s son, a young monk who speaks fluent English, opens a new thread of conversation, understanding, and practical help.
When leaving begins before we decideFood is running low. The weather is shifting. The body is tired. Transport begins to organise itself. Borghild notices that the decision to leave has already started moving in her body and surroundings before the mind has fully caught up.
ListenA companion for walking, resting, travelling, or pausing in the middle of a day.A simple reflection to take with youThere may be something in your life right now that you cannot fully explain yet.
A feeling, nudge or a hesitation.
A pull toward something or a resistance to staying where you are.
Before rushing to decide, pause and notice what is already there.
What has already begun moving in you?
A quote to remember“Leaving had already begun in my body and mind long before I had fully agreed to it.”
In the next episodeBorghild finds herself in Muktinath, surrounded by pilgrims, travellers, donkeys, and village life, wondering why she is leaving a place that feels like home.
Follow & ShareIf this episode offered you a breath of relief, a moment of clarity, or simply the courage to keep going, please follow the show on your favourite platform and share it with someone who might need it.
Every small act of support helps this work reach further.
Stay ConnectedExplore Borghild's work and resources.
Follow Borghild on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for more refelctions, inspiration and updates.
Borghild was also recently featured in an online magazine, sharing some of her journey and connection to Nepal. You can read it here.
Note / DisclaimerThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
Saknas det avsnitt?
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Even in the stillness of a remote gompa in Mustang, Nepal, everyday life finds its way in.
In this episode of The Himalayan Diary, Borghild reflects on what happens when the mind begins to speed up again after a period of stillness.
Messages from home, practical decisions, travel questions, and unresolved things in Norway start to enter the retreat.
And with that comes the familiar movement of the mind; planning, worrying, anticipating, trying to create certainty before anything is clear.
From the butter lamp that will not stay lit, to the mice in the night, the cold mornings, the hardened ghee, and the question of when to book a flight home, Borghild explores how ordinary moments reveal the mind more clearly than we expect.
This episode is a reflection on mindfulness in everyday life, and how it is not separate from practical things, not reserved for meditation or silence, but present in how we notice our reactions, return to the body, and meet what is actually here.
The landscape of Mustang becomes a mirror. The prayer flag moves in the wind, the mountains remain still, the body asks for warmth, and a visit to the nearby nunnery brings tea, kindness, and simple human connection.
Again and again, the practice is returning — to the breath, the body, and the life that is here.
In this episode we exploreWhen the mind starts to speed upEveryday life as the practiceThe body as a truth-tellerThe butter lamp and the tiny reactionThe prayer flag and the moving mindReturning to what is hereListenA companion for walking, resting, travelling, or pausing in the middle of a day.A simple reflection to take with youWherever you are right now, look around.
What do you see?
And what does it show you about where you are?
A quote to remember“Things can move, without me having to move with them.”
In the next episodeBorghild shares what unfolds when she goes down to the village for milk, and how that meeting opens into a deeper encounter with loss, ritual, and the life unfolding around her.
Follow & ShareIf this episode resonates, offers you a breath of relief, a moment of warmth, or a new perspective, please leave a review, follow the show on your favourite platform, and share it with someone who might need it.
Every small act of support helps this work reach further.
Stay ConnectedExplore Borghild's work and resources.
Follow Borghild on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for more inspiration and updates.
A recent, featured article about Borghild’s journey and connection to Nepal can be read here.
Note / DisclaimerThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
On a freezing morning at the gompa in Mustang, Borghild sits with her hands wrapped around a hot pot of porridge, waiting for the first sunlight to reach her skin. Muktinath remains in shadow. The fortress ridge above Jhong village is already lit, and slowly the day begins to arrive in layers.
In this episode of The Himalayan Diary, Borghild shares a sunrise mindfulness practice inspired by those first moments of warmth on a winter morning in the Himalayas. It's a gentle invitation to pause, breathe, and be open to receive what is here, just as it is.
Through breath, body, sensory awareness, gratitude, and compassion, this episode offers a simple practice to carry into everyday life. A way of returning to warmth, presence and connection with more ease, even in the middle of cold, uncertainty, or inner contraction.
In this episode we exploreA winter sunrise morning at the gompa in Mustang.
A guided mindfullness practice for warmth, presence, and receiving what is here in the sun, the breath, the body, memory, gratitude, and simple daily life.
The simple gesture of meeting ourselves with more kindness, compassion and forgivness in times of uncertainty, frustration, and fatigue.
A simple practice, called the Sunrise Pause, you can return to during the day.
ListenA companion while walking, resting, or taking a pause.A simple check-in to take with youPause.
Feel your feet on the ground.
Take one breath in.
And as you breathe out, notice any warmth that is here for you.
Quote to remember“The practce is not just in stillness. It's in being open to receive what is here, right now.”
Mentioned in this episodeThe gompa in Mustang, Nepal.
Muktinath and Jhong village.
Thorong La Pass, Nilgiri, and Dhaulagiri.
In the next episodeEven in silence, the mind does not always become quieter. In the next episode, Borghild reflects on what happened when her mind started spinning into planning, decisions, and trying to get ahead and what it taught her about staying with what life is actually giving right now.
Follow & ShareIf this episode resonates, offers you a breath of relief, a moment of warmth, or a new perspective, please leave a review, follow the show on your favourite platform, and share it with someone who might need it.
Every small act of support helps this work reach further.
Stay ConnectedExplore Borghild's work and resources.
Follow Borghild on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for more inspiration and updates.
As part of her journey in Nepal, Borghild was recently featured in an article published in the online magazine called Ratopati, sharing more of the story of her connection with Nepal and what this place has come to mean for her. You can read it here.
Note / DisclaimerThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
Outside the gompa in Mustang, a Tibetan prayer flag has become a silent teacher for Borghild. From the kitchen window and out in the sharp morning light, she finds herself returning to it again and again; watching the way it hangs still, lifts, twists, opens, and falls back with the changing wind.
In this episode of The Himalayan Diary, Borghild shares a reflective mindfulness practice inspired by the prayer flag and what it reveals about the mind.
The wind becomes a way of understanding thought: invisible, yet powerful. We may not see it coming, but we feel its effects. Attention can scatter, tighten, race ahead, or calm again. And through all that movement, there is also a part of us that observes. The part that remains connected to the present moment.
Through breath, body, imagery, and simple reflection, we explore how to watch the mind move like the flag without being swept away by every gust, and how to return to the deeper presence that is already here.
In this episode we exploreThe prayer flag as teacher
Outside the gompa, the prayer flag becomes more than part of the landscape. It becomes a focal point for awareness; revealing movement, stillness, and the shifting rhythm of the mind.
Wind, thought, and attention
As the flag lifts, twists, and settles, Borghild reflects on how attention is pulled in different directions, how the mind moves, and how awareness helps us return.
The pole and the part of us that stays
As the flag moves with the gusts, the pole remains. This becomes part of the meditation: a way of recognising that alongside the movement of thought, emotion, and sensation, there is also a deeper part of us that can notice, observe and stay connected.
A reflective mindfulness practiceThrough breath, body, imagery, and guided reflection, this episode offers a simple practice for meeting mental movement with more awareness and for returning, again and again, to what is here.
From practice to daily life
The prayer flag becomes a living image to carry into the day: a reminder that when urgency takes over or the mind starts to pull, we can pause, observe, and return to the present moment that holds us.
ListenA companion while walking, resting, or taking a pause.A simple reflection to take with youThis episode offers a few gentle questions to stay with:
What is the wind in me right now?
What helps me remember the part of me that notices?
What is one small anchor I can return to this week?
A quote to remember“There is also a part of us that observes; the part that remains connected to the present moment.”
Mentioned in This EpisodeThe prayer flag as a focal point of awareness.
Muktinath in Mustang, Nepal.
The Himalayas as landscape, teacher, and mirror.
In the next episodeWe turn to another image from life at the gompa: the sun. A sunrise reflection on warmth, how to ease into the day, receive, and return to joy on a chilly morning in the Himalayas.
Follow & ShareIf this episode resonates, gave you a breath of relief or a new perspective, please leave a review, follow the show on your favourite platform and share it with someone who might need it.
Every small act of support helps this work reach further.
Stay ConnectedExplore my work and resources.
Follow me on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for more inspiration and updates.
Note / DisclaimerThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
Today, Borghild steps out of the stillness of the cave and into the everyday rhythm of winter in the gompa. What does it really mean to tend to the flame, not just metaphorically, but physically, emotionally, and spiritually when the conditions are cold, the butter won’t melt, and the smallest acts require full attention? From lighting a stubborn butter lamp to negotiating with bold mountain mice, we explore how presence is cultivated not only in meditation or stillness but in small, persistent acts of care through the ordinary flow of the day.
In the middle of cold mornings, small routines, disturbance, and the need to create warmth, attention, patience, and care become the practice.
In this episode we exploreWinter rhythm in the gompa
What happens when life slows down and the cold begins to shape the day. Ordinary acts like boiling water, opening doors, and finding warmth become part of the practice.
Tending the butter lamp
A small ritual becomes something deeper when the butter lamp will not light. In bitter cold, persistence, tenderness and attention turn a simple flame into prayer.
Boundaries, mice, and energy leaks.
The mice are not only a practical problem. They also become a reflection on rest, boundaries, attention and what drains energy through the smallest openings.
Sometimes boundaries are not walls, but gestures repeated: a red light, a foam mat, a tin lid, a small act of care.
The deeper question: What are we giving our energy to and what helps restore it?
The relief of disconnection.
When the data pack runs out, something unexpected arrives: relief. We reflect on availability, old on-call habits in the nervous system, and the restoration that comes when noise drops away.
ListenA companion while walking, resting, or taking a pause.A simple check-in to take with youThis episode offers three grounding questions to return to in the middle of the day:
How am I doing?
How do I want it to be?
What is one small thing I can do today to make it a little better?
Quote to remember“Sometimes the sacred lives in the smallest, simplest things.”
Mentioned in This EpisodeVipassana (a 10-day silent meditation retreat) and the experience of deeper silence.
Butter lamp (a traditional offering lamp used in Tibetan Buddhist practice).
Muktinath (a village in Mustang, Nepal, known for Muktinath Temple, an important pilgrimage site).
In the next episodeWe stay with the prayer flag outside the gompa and move into a short reflective mindfullness practice on how to stay rooted without being pulled away by every gust of mind.
Follow & ShareIf this episode resonates, gave you a breath of relief or a new perspective, please leave a review, follow the show on your favourite platform and share it with someone who might need it.
Every small act of support helps this work reach further.
Stay ConnectedExplore my work and resources.
Follow me on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for more inspiration and updates.
Note / DisclaimerThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
Today is 2 January 2026.
This morning I’m sitting inside the Milarepa cave in Mustang, Nepal, lighting incense, offering a butter lamp, and watching a small flame calming the body and mind. From that silent place, this episode opens into a reflection on grace: the unexpected support that arrived yesterday when food was low, the electricity was out, and I went down to the village simply needing help.
What unfolded became a meditation on timing, kindness, and what it means to be truly met. In this episode, I reflect on gratitude as something felt in the body, on receiving what cannot be forced, and on the way gratitude can deepen into compassion. It also includes a gentle flame practice you can return to whenever you need grounding, warmth, or a way back to yourself.
In this episode we exploreSitting in the cave with a butter lamp: Letting the small flame settle the nervous system and bring attention back to the body.
Yesterday’s grace: Food running low, no electricity, and the practical vulnerability of simple mountain life.
The village, and the unexpected meeting: A walk for help becomes tea, lunch, milk and vegetables to bring home, and a reminder of how life sometimes meets us.
Receiving what you actually need: A reflection on timing, support, and how life sometimes meets us when we stop forcing and we get what we actually need.
Gratitude becoming compassion: How warmth can extend beyond our own story toward anyone who feels fragile, under-resourced, or alone.
A simple guided reflection with breath, attention, and the image of a flame.
ListenA companion while walking, resting, or taking a pause.A practice to take with youYou’re invited into a short flame practice on gratitude and compassion you can return to any time: light a candle (if you want), or simply imagine a flame and follow along.
You will be guided to:
Let yourself arrive in the body.
Feel your feet, your weight, and the support beneath you.
Rest your attention on the flame without forcing.
Breathe with what’s here: joy, sadness, loneliness, gratitude… or nothing at all.
Let the flame become a point of steadiness, warmth, and return.
A few gentle prompts for journalingWhat have I received lately that I didn’t plan for?
Where in my life am I trying to force timing, and what happens if I soften my grip?
What do I need right now, really?
A question to take with youCan you let yourself be exactly where you are… for one more breath… and then another?
Mentioned in this episodeMustang, Nepal: a remote, high-altitude mountain region in the Himalayas.
Milarepa’s cave and Rinpoche’s gompa.
In the next episodeIn the next episode, we step outside the cave and into the winter rhythm of daily life in the gompa and the moment we leave the sacred space, the practice begins.
Listening noteThis is Day 10 of the Himalayan Diary. You can listen in any order and if you want the beginning, start with Day One.
Coming laterWhen the Himalayan Diary series is complete, the practices and reflections will be gathered into a companion journaling and practice guide to go with the series.
Follow & ShareIf this episode resonates, gave you a breath of relief or a new perspective, please leave a review, follow the show on your favourite platform and share it with someone who might need it.
Every small act of support helps this work reach further.
Stay ConnectedExplore my work and resources.
Follow me on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for more inspiration and updates.
Note / DisclaimerThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
At 3,700 metres in Mustang, Nepal, I begin settling into the rhythm of daily life in a remote Himalayan gompa where altitude, silence, and simplicity invite a different kind of listening.
Up here, rhythm is not organised by the clock. It's shaped by light, cold, warmth, food, silence, rest, and the quiet intelligence of the body. But even in a place this spacious and still, rhythm gets tested by discomfort, old patterns and other people’s expectations. And yes… by very determined mice.
In this episode, I reflect on what it means to listen to the body before the mind starts negotiating. I explore boundaries, nervous system wisdom, solitude, and the discomfort that can arise when we honour what is true. Humour finds its way in too, as it often does when things are uncomfortable, uncertain, and absurd.
In this episode we exploreSettling into the rhythm of mountain life in a remote gompa in Mustang.
How the body often knows a boundary before the mind catches up.
Why discomfort after saying no does not necessarily mean something is wrong.
What solitude reveals when there is less distraction and nowhere to hide.
The unexpected and strange negotiation of living with cold, silence, uncertainty, and uninvited visitors.
Why boundaries are not rejection, but protection.
A simple grounding practice: Connect • Focus • Flow™
ListenA companion while walking, resting, or taking a pause.A reflection from this episodeRhythm is not just routine.
It's a nervous system practice.
A way to return to ourselves again and again through warmth, breath, light, honesty, and small acts of self-respect.
And sometimes the clearest boundary is also the simplest one:
this protects my energy
this lets me breathe
this brings me back to myself
A simple practice to take with youConnect:
Place a hand on your chest or belly and ask:
What does my body need first, right now?
Focus:
What is one small action that protects my energy today?
Flow:
Can I let this moment be imperfect, and stay with myself anyway?
Mentioned in this episodeMustang, Nepal: a remote, high-altitude mountain region in the Himalayas.
Milarepa’s cave and Rinpoche’s gompa.
Connect • Focus • Flow™
In the next episodeI’ll share what unfolds in the cave next where a small flame, a flicker of gratitude, and an unexpected village encounter come together to teach me something about timing, grace, and being met.
Follow & ShareIf this episode resonates, gave you a breath of relief or a new perspective, please leave a review, follow the show on your favourite platform and share it with someone who might need it.
Every small act of support helps this work reach further.
Stay ConnectedExplore my work and resources.
Follow me on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for more inspiration and updates.
Note / DisclaimerThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
Christmas Day in a remote, high-altitude gompa in Mustang, Nepal and also Borghild’s birthday. A day that begins with a literal crash (a cat falling through the roof), and unfolds into something quieter: a walk to Muktinath Temple, a return to mountain rhythm, and a reflection on what happens when we stop needing life to feel “special”… and let it be what it is.In this episode we explore
A cat falls through the roof, turning “Christmas Day expectations” into dust, debris, and laughter.
The altitude rhythm at 3,700 metres: everything reduces to the essentials: warmth, water, food, rest.
No gas, locked food trunk, missing keys and the choice to walk anyway.
The steady pace of the Himalayas: one step at a time, listening to breath and body.
A clear winter day walk through Chhyongur village, hanging bridge, prayer flags, and wide open silence.
Meeting a disoriented trekker separated from his friends after descending from Thorong La.
Arrival at Muktinath, a sacred place of liberation (moksha): gratitude, prayer, and remembering what “letting go” really means.
A powerful memory from 2011: being told “No Christians allowed” and the deeper teaching that freedom can’t depend on being “let in.”
Returning to the gompa and sitting again in the Milarepa cave, tracing the thread of devotion, silence, and the inner pilgrimage.
The closing invitation: release the pressure for the day to be perfect and notice the gifts beyond expectation.
ListenA companion while walking, resting, or taking a pause. A simple trail practice to take with you“Let it be what it is.”
When you notice yourself tightening against reality, pause and ask:
What am I expecting this moment/day to be?What happens if I stop insisting it should be different?Then return to basics:
What do I need right now?
If you don’t know, start with: water, warmth, food, rest and let clarity arrive in its own time.
Mentioned in this episodeMustang, Nepal: a remote, high-altitude mountain region in the Himalayas
Muktinath Temple is a pilgrimage site associated with liberation and letting go
The temple is known for its 108 sacred water spouts
Milarepa cave at the gompa (and the thread of returning)
In the next episodeBorghild shares how she begins settling into a rhythm and the unexpected things that still need dealing with in this stripped-back gompa life.
Follow & ShareIf this episode resonates, gave you a breath of relief or a new perspective, please leave a review, follow the show on your favourite platform and share it with someone who might need it.
Stay ConnectedHost Website: Explore my work and resources
Follow me on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for more inspiration and updates.
Note / DisclaimerThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
A set of keys in Kathmandu. A simple invitation. And suddenly, the next step arranges itself.
In this first episode of The Himalayan Diary, I share how I arrived at a remote gompa in Mustang, Nepal and the sequence of small, clear steps that carried me there: from Kathmandu, to Pokhara, to an unplanned day that brought clarity, and then a remarkably smooth journey north into the Himalayas; arriving on Christmas Eve, alone, at around 3,700 metres.
This series is recorded from my solo retreat at Rinpoche’s gompa: a shift in pace, rhythm, and attention; and an entry into a very simple way of living.
In this episode we exploreA moment in Kathmandu that changes the direction of the journey... the keys, and the choice
A foggy morning in Pokhara that clears, both outside and inside.
An unexpected trail day: asking, accepting, and letting myself be guided.
Arrival and the first reality of settling in: damaged roof, cold, and the basics.
Returning to essentials: warmth, water, food, rest, and light.
Listen
A companion while walking, resting, or taking a pause.Journal Companion
Where in my life is there a “keys" moment... a small exchange that changes direction?
What becomes simple when I stop negotiating and take one clear step?
What helps the fog lift for me? Just enough to see the next step?
Where am I being invited to accept help, guidance, or support... even in a small way?
If I ask myself, What do I need now? What’s essential? What can wait?
What’s the honest answer today?
Write a short list:
Essential (1–3 things)Can waitAlready worksThen choose one “essential” action you can do in the next 24 hours.Mentioned in this episode:
Peace Stupa and Shiva Statue in Pokhara
Khenpo Konchok Tashi Rinpoche
In the next episode:
I’ll share what happened on Christmas day… when I sat in the kitchen with a cup of coffee, watching the morning sun spill through the windows… and what it felt like to spend a whole day alone, without feeling lonely.
Follow, Share, and SupportIf this episode resonates, please follow the show, leave a review, and share it with someone who might need it.
Stay ConnectedHost Website: Explore my work and resources
For inspiration: Follow me on Instagram & TikTok
For updates and inspiration: Follow me on FacebookNoteThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
After weeks of high-altitude simplicity on the Manaslu Circuit, Borghild returns to Kathmandu and feels the city rhythm rush back in. She calls it everyday altitude: not thin air, but the invisible pressure of noise, decisions, and constant input that can keep the nervous system switched on.Through steady kora walks in Boudha and trail runs up Pulchowki and Shivapuri, this poetic, yet practical episode exploreshow the body’s subtle signals can guide the the way forward: when to rest, when to move, and how to protect the fragile spark of what’s next. It’s a story of how clarity returns through rhythm, not force, especially when the mind feels overloaded.In This Episode we explore
Everyday altitude: how city pressure impacts the nervous system.
Rhythm as recovery: why healing can come through repetition not retreat.
Boudha as an anchor: the power of familiarity and regulation.
Signal → Step → Support: a clear framework for following aligned energy.
Trail running as meditation: presence, endurance, and trust.
Emotional acclimatisation: the “aftershock” of guilt and the courage to speak up.
Listening as protection: letting the body lead even when the mind second guesses.
A gentle “no”: respecting your energy, and saying no without shame.
Journal Prompt:What is your body asking for right now?What would it look like to follow that — gently — without pressure or force?Optional follow-up:What’s the signal (ease, tension, readiness, dread, curiosity)?What’s one step you can take without overcommitting?What support would make that step feel resourced?Mentioned in This EpisodeBoudha Stupa, KathmanduPulchowki Peak (2765m)Shivapuri Peak (2730m)TrailmanduManaslu Circuit Trek (Episodes 4–6)In the Next EpisodeWe begin The Himalayan Diary. A new series unfolding from Borghild’s solo mountain retreat in Mustang, easing into solitude, altitude, and a rhythm entirely her own.
Follow, Share, and SupportIf this episode resonates, please follow the show, leave a review, and share it with someone who might need it.
Stay ConnectedHost Website: Explore my work and resources
For inspiration: Follow me on Instagram & TikTok
For updates and inspiration: Follow me on FacebookNoteThis podcast is for education and personal growth. It is not therapy or a substitute for professional mental health care. -
After the Manaslu Circuit Trek, I return to Kathmandu and life feels both familiar and strange. There’s relief… and there’s also the shift from mountain rhythm to modern pace.
In this episode, I explore what I call Everyday Altitude, not as thin air, but as constant input and pressure that can leave the nervous system “on call” without us noticing.
I share a mountains lesson about the body’s intelligence, the Genius Body, and how we can trust it in the city too. I’ll guide you through one practical tool I call: One signal. One step. One support, to help you listen, reset and come back to calm, even when life moves fast.
In this episode we exploreThe emotional contrast of re-entry: comfort and relief… and the loss of mountain rhythm.
Everyday Altitude: daily pressure, constant input, and a nervous system that stays activated for too long.
The Genius Body: how the body becomes the map at altitude: priorities, limits, natural boundaries.
Why city-altitude is tricky: no one tells us to slow down, acclimatise, or rest.
One Signal • One Step • One Support — a simple way to listen and respond.
A short guided reset: the 90-Second Downshift (Connect • Focus • Flow in everyday life).
One week later: readiness returns and the first trail run to Pulchowki as the next grounded step.
Your takeawayA clearer way to recognise your early altitude signs in daily life, before burnout or overwhelm.
A reminder that the body often tells the truth before the mind catches up
A simple rhythm to return to when life feels like “too much”:
One signal • one step • one support
A short reset you can repeat anytime: exhale longer, come back, choose one step, let it be supported
One question to carry with you: What is my body asking for right now?
The toolOne Signal • One Step • One Support:
Name one body signalChoose one small step that supports youAnd anchor it with one support (a place, a person, or a practice)so you actually follow through.
Journaling promptWhat’s one signal my body is giving me today?
And what’s one step I can take to honour it?
In the next episodeWe explore the peaks of Kathmandu, trail running, readiness, and what it means to move forward with a new edge with strength and presence.
Follow & shareIf this episode resonated, please follow the show on your favourite platform, leave a review, and share it with someone who might need it.
Stay connectedExplore my work and resources
For inspiration: Follow me on Instagram & TikTok
For updates and inspiration: Follow me on Facebook
NoteThis podcast is for education and personal growth; it is not therapy or a substitute for professional care.
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Welcome back to the trail.
In this second part of the Manaslu Circuit trek in the Himalays of Nepal, we move into higher altitude, deeper simplicity and wisdom, where the body takes the lead and the mountains make everything basic: warmth, breath, water, food, and rest.
We continue from Samagaun to Samdo, up to Dharamsala, across Larkya La Pass (5,106m), and down to Bhimtang and finally the last descent to Tilije and Dharapani, before the jeep ride to Besisahar and the long bus ride back to Kathmandu.
In the first part of the Manaslu Circuit trek , we explored Boundaries & Belonging. In this episode, we meet the teachings of altitude and attention: what trusting the body looks like when it’s freezing, when appetite disappears, when fatigue is real and joy arrives anyway.
In This EpisodeDay 7: Samagaun (3,560 metres) to Samdo (near the Tibetan border)
Leaving the resting place of Samagaun and walking into a higher, wilder simplicity of thin air, wide landscape, and that sense of being a guest in the mountains.
Day 8: Samdo (3,860 metres) to Dharamsala (4,460m)
A step closer to the pass: less “village life,” more high-camp reality. The body starts speaking louder now, and everything becomes practical: pacing, warmth, hydration, and the basics.
Day 9: Daramshala to Larkya La Pass (5,106m) to Bhimtang (3,720m)
The long summit day: 02:45 wake up, crossing the pass, the prayer flags, the wide white world and then the descent, where I get a boost of energy and move into a focused and practical flow... the body knows.
Day 10: Bhimtang to Tilije (2,300 metres) to Dharapani, then jepp to Besisahar
The rollercoaster of coming down: energy returns, the joy of trail-running, and the “end of trek” turns into a lesson in flexibility and acceptance.
Day 11: Besisahar and bus back to Kathmandu: re-entry
Celebration, traffic, horns, dust and a city life that feels unreal after thin air and silence. But, the rhythm stays in the body: one step, one breath.
A simple trail practice to take with youWhat do I need right now?
If you don’t know, start with the basics… and let clarity come in its own time.
Just because guilt shows up doesn’t mean you’ve done something wrong—it can be an old pattern trying to keep you safe.
Mentioned in This EpisodeMy trekking agency: Nepal High Trek
You’re welcome to contact me for any practical tips for the Manaslu Circuit Trek.
In the next episodeWe’ll explore what these mountain teachings look like in ordinary life, when everything is supposed to be normal… but it isn’t.
Follow & ShareIf this episode resonates, please follow the show, leave a review, or share with a friend who might need to hear it. Every step matters. Every listener counts.
Stay connectedExplore my work and resources
For inspiration: Follow me on Instagram & TikTok
For updates and inspiration: Follow me on Facebook
NoteThis podcast is for education and personal growth; it is not therapy or a substitute for professional care.
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This extended episode (just over 60 minutes) takes you deep into the mountains of Nepal on the Manaslu Circuit Trek, through steep ridges, river gorges, Tibetan villages, and toward a turquoise glacier lake.
This is part one of a two-part series. Along the way, we explore two powerful themes: boundaries and belonging. Not as abstract concepts, but as real, embodied experiences.
From the jeep ride out of Kathmandu to long days on foot, the trek reveals where our boundaries lie: physically, mentally, and emotionally. And how belonging can appear in small, unexpected ways: in a guide’s presence, a prayer flag, or a shared moment with a stranger on the trail.
This is an invitation to walk with me, one step at a time, through the edges, insights, and lessons the mountains offer.
In This Episode:Leaving KathmanduA final walk around Boudhanath stupa, a sacred pause before stepping into the larger mandala of the mountains.
Day 1: Machha Khola to JagatFinding rhythm along the Budhi Gandaki River. The body settles, the mind begins to listen and a spontaneous promise (Everest Marathon 2026?) floats into the air.
Day 2: Jagat to DengA harder day: nausea, no appetite, and a growing tension between discomfort and self-trust. The mantra “one step at a time” becomes essential.
Boundaries of the Body vs. Stories of the Mind:
When do we honour the signal to slow down? And what happens when we feel we have to choose between self-care and fitting in?
Day 3: Deng to NamrungTrekking as sangha and walking with others who are also pushing through. The comfort of shared effort, and the reminder: we’re never alone in our struggles.
Day 4: Namrung to ShyalaThe terrain turns Tibetan. Temples, mani walls, and snowy peaks mark the shift. Cold sets in, and clarity emerges: knowing what’s truly ours to carry and when to let go.
If you’re in your own version of a challenging time…grief, illness, a relationship break-up, or change you never chose, this is the practice I keep coming back to.
Step back one pace. Give yourself space to breathe. Even if it’s just going into another room, onto the balcony, or away from the screen for a moment. Feel your feet on the ground. Let your exhale lengthen. Look around and name what’s real:
I’m here. This is what’s happening. This is what I’m feeling.
Then choose a grounded step and ask:
What would help me through the next hour?
Not the next year. Just the next hour.
And then, do that one thing.
Day 5–6: Pungyen Monastery & Samagaun. Stillness, Pace & the Power of PauseA high-altitude side trail leads to Pungyen Monastery, cradled in a dramatic amphitheatre of glaciers and peaks beneath Manaslu. A place that feels more like a hermitage than a destination.
It’s not grand, it’s grounding. The trail demands presence, not performance. Each breath and step is a reminder: you're not conquering the mountain, you're being held by it.
The next day in Samagaun offers rare stillness. No push. No summit. Just space. We wander to Birendra Lake, a milky turquoise glacier pool rimmed with cairns and quiet blessings.
It’s a day of recovery and reflection, and a powerful reminder that courage also means knowing when to pause.
To say no to proving, pushing, or producing.
To take off the backpack, physically, mentally and emotionally, and remember: You belong in the resting, too.
Journaling prompts:Are you really here?
What’s going on in your body?
Can you keep moving when it’s not easy?
What pace is actually kind to my body and my nervous system?
What is life asking of me right now: A push or a pause?
Mentioned in This EpisodeMy trekking agency: Nepal High Trek
You are welcome to contact me for any practical tips for the Manaslu Circuit Trek.
In the next episodewe continue on the Manaslu Circuit… moving higher, colder and closer to the Tibetan border and Larke La Pass. And we’ll explore what altitude and cold do to the body and mind when life gets more basic and survival mode starts to kick in.
Follow & ShareIf this episode resonated, please follow the show, leave a review, or share with a friend who might need to hear it. Every step matters. Every listener counts.
Stay connectedExplore my work and resources
For inspiration: Follow me on Instagram & TikTok
For updates and inspiration: Follow me in Facebook
Note: This podcast is for education and personal growth; it is not therapy or a substitute for professional care.
May you walk with courage and confidence, and remember: freedom begins the moment you choose to step into the unknown. -
After we make a decision, or feel a chapter ending, there’s often a strange, wobbly space that opens up: the in-between. In this episode, I share why that feeling is normal, why uncertainty can feel overwhelming, and how to meet it without spiraling.
I’ll guide you through my simple self-awareness rhythm: Connect • Focus • Flow™ to help you come back to calm, clarity, and trust when doubt, fear, or guilt show up. Along the way, I weave in short stories from my life (Australia, Hawaii, Bergen—and my dad) to show how intuition often speaks in ordinary, grounded ways, and how to tell the difference between intuition and impulse.
This episode is recorded in Boudha, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Key takeawaysTrust rarely arrives as a leap; it grows by taking one real step you can stand in tomorrow.
Why the in-between can feel shaky (and why it doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong).
How to calm your nervous system when uncertainty takes over.
A clear way to tell intuition vs. impulse.
Naming what’s here (fear, doubt, guilt, the “guarantee” voice) takes the edge off and brings you back to the present.
You don’t need a perfect plan—just a next step that honours what matters.
Have a place that settles you. Go there when you’re in the in-between.
Try the 30-second Trust Check-InBody: Right now my body says…Two forces: What draws me forward? What story tries to hold me back?One step: Today I’ll honour this by… Save a screenshot and use it once in the next 24 hours.Journal prompts (save for later)Where am I in the “in-between” right now and what feels uncomfortable about it?
A moment my body knew before my mind agreed was…
If my intuition had a quiet voice, what might it be saying?
Right now, what feels complete—even if I’m hesitant to admit it?
One way I can make uncertainty safer this week is… (sleep, time outside, an honest conversation, a kind boundary, an hour off screens).
What am I calling “uncertainty” that might simply be “newness”?
If doubt/fear/guilt could speak, what would they demand—and what would I answer back?
Free resourcesThe Pause: From Overwhelm to Presence (coming soon)
In the next episode, we’ll explore Boundaries and Belonging. I’ll share what the 12 day Manaslu Circuit Trek taught me how pace is a boundary, rest is self-respect, and how real belonging starts when you don’t leave yourself behind.
Follow & ShareIf this episode resonated, please follow the show on your favourite app, leave a review, or share with a friend who might need to hear it. Every step matters. Every listener counts.
Stay connectedExplore my work and resources
For inspiration: Follow me on Instagram and TikTok
For updates and inspiration: Follow me on Facebook
Note: This podcast is for education and personal growth; it is not therapy or a substitute for professional care.
May you walk with courage and confidence, and remember: freedom begins the moment you choose to step into the unknown. -
When we realise something has to change, guilt, fear, and self-doubt often show up. In this episode I share how I work with those reactions on the Camino and in everyday life. This is a simple self-awareness rhythm, I use with clients and myself called, Connect • Focus • Flow™.
You’ll leave with practical journaling prompts and one doable next step.
Key takeawaysWhy change can stall even after the first yes.
The difference between caring for others and complying with an old role.
How fear, doubt, and guilt try to keep things familiar and what actually helps.
A quick reality check that calms the what-ifs.
A 3-step practice to move without abandoning yourself: Connect • Focus • Flow™.
Take a minute and try it nowConnect. Feel your feet on the ground or the chair. Take one slow breath in… and a longer breath out.
Focus. Name what’s here: fear / doubt / guilt / needing certainty.
Ask, Am I safe right now?
Flow. Choose one small step you can stand in today: one call, one message, one boundary, or one pause.
Journaling prompts (save for later)What do I need right now? What matters today?Where am I caring, and where am I simply keeping the peace?What evidence do I have today that I can take the next step?A sentence to carry this week: The step I can actually take is…Free resourcesThe Pause: From Overwhelm to Presence (coming soon)
In the next episode, we’ll explore what comes after the first yes—trusting the in-between when an old role loosens and uncertainty plays on our mind.
Stay connectedFollow This Is Life on your favourite platform or app, subscribe and share it with someone who needs it.
Website: https://borghildbo.com
Instagram: https://instagram.com/borghildbo
Note: This podcast is for education and personal growth; it is not therapy or a substitute for professional care.
May you walk with courage and confidence—and remember: freedom begins the moment you choose to step into the unknown. -
Feeling stuck, like something needs to change, but the path isn’t clear yet?Today, Borghild invites you into the heart of breaking free. Not as running away, but as walking toward what’s real, one step at a time. You’ll hear how small steps from the Camino to the Himalayas, became a practical rhythm for everyday life.We talk about...
The moment of choice when everything in you says move and the mind answers, but I don’t know how.
What breaking free really means beyond job changes or geography.
The first step. You don’t need the whole map, just the next step.
How small movements can become a way of living, not just a one-off decision.
Borghild introduces you to the three-step self-awareness practice Connect • Focus • Flow™ to help you come back to calm, clarity and confidence when life feels uncertain.
Key takeawaysWaiting for a perfect plan keeps us stuck; movement invites movement.
Awareness itself is movement. It softens the grip of shoulds and if's and reveals options.
Small steps work because the body relaxes, the mind quiets, and trust begins to return.
Freedom begins the moment we admit something has to shift and we act on it.
You'll also be guided through a grounded practice and reflection you can bring into your own everyday life.
Mentioned BookWalking Into It: A Pilgrimage Through Foreign Lands to Inner Worlds — available at www.borghildbo.com and on Amazon.
In the next episode, Answering the Call: Guilt, Fear & Self-Doubt, we’ll explore what often shows up after the first step; the second thoughts, guilt, self doubt, and how to keep walking when they appear.
Note: This podcast is for education and personal growth; it is not therapy or a substitute for professional care.
May you walk with courage and confidence—and remember: freedom begins the moment you choose to step into the unknown. -
Welcome to This Is Life: An introspective podcast about breaking free one step at a time. This short introduction shares why I created the show, who it’s for, and what to expect.
I blend psychology, reflection and lived adventure to help you meet life's turning points with more clarity, confidence and trust.
Next: Listen to Episode 1 — Breaking Free: The Beginning of the Journey.
Website: https://borghildbo.com
Instagram: https://instagram.com/borghildbo
Note: This podcast is for education and personal growth; it is not therapy or a substitute for professional care.
May you walk with courage and confidence—and remember: freedom begins the moment you choose to step into the unknown.
