The Heart of Esteem: Seeing Ourselves and Others Clearly

In this episode of the Autonomic Homeostasis Activation Podcast, Tom Pals and Ruth Lorensson continue their exploration of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs through the lens of wellness and trauma-informed wholeness. Focusing on esteem, they unpack what it truly means to “appraise” value—both in ourselves and in others—and how unmet needs and trauma can distort our perception of worth and significance.

Through rich conversation and powerful metaphors—like Tom’s image of humans as uncut diamonds—they reveal how esteem isn’t about hierarchy or status, but about mutual recognition of inherent worth. Together, they examine how physiological, safety, and belonging needs act as catalysts for healthy esteem, and how unmet needs can keep us stuck in cycles of comparison, defensiveness, or exclusion.

Listeners will come away with deeper insight into:

• The roots of esteem as appraisal rather than judgment
• How trauma and unmet needs shape our ability to value ourselves and others
• The difference between worth, significance, and accomplishment
• How to move from sympathetic fight-or-flight into parasympathetic homeostasis
• Practical reflection prompts for fostering self-worth and mutual significance

Join Ruth and Tom as they guide listeners toward restoring homeostasis of esteem, a crucial step in the broader journey toward self-actualization and holistic wellness.

🎧 Listen now and rediscover your worth as an uncut diamond in a world learning to see again.

Chapters

• 0:00 Tempo: 120.0