Episode #20: Sah D'Simone
Sah D’Simone is a meditation teacher, bestselling author, transformational speaker and coach. Born in Brazil, Sah came to the U.S. at the age of 16, working for over a decade in the fashion industry, becoming the co-founder and creative director of Bullett Magazine. Despite his immense success, the high stakes culture of the fashion industry led Sah down a path of addiction and depression, eventually opening the doorway to a different way of life.
In 2012, he walked away from his career in fashion and began an intensive search for health and well-being, traveling to Nepal, India, Thailand, Indonesia and Europe to study with some of the most prolific masters of our time. After immersing himself in practice for several years, Sah returned to the states, dedicating his life to helping others to live in alignment and achieve their highest potential. Sah has masterfully synthesized the ancient techniques of meditation, contemplative psychotherapy, breath work, and plant based nutrition for a modern and accessible approach to well-being. His infectious enthusiasm for healing and self-love has built a devoted fan base, with a client list that includes Google, MoMa, American Express, the United Nations, New Balance, Bloomingdales, and Havas. Sah also shares his mission with underserved communities, advocating for mental health and well-being in the LGBTIQ and POC communities.
When Sah D’Simone moved with his family from Brazil to Florida at the age of 16, it was the first time he had experienced debilitating depression. He eventually moved to LA and then to NYC, where he started a successful fashion magazine at just 23 years old. Less than three years later, Sah had a falling out with his business partner, and life as he knew it was gone. This period of his life was marked by the worst depression he had ever experienced, and it’s also when everything changed for him. Realizing he had to shift his mindset, Sah embarked on a journey of self-healing and self-love that ultimately led him to his career as a meditation teacher, author, coach, and speaker. On today’s episode, Sah and I talk about the pivotal moment when he realized that meditation had opened a door for him, why he’s passionate about making his practices accessible to marginalized communities, and how he manages his mental health on a daily basis (lately, with Whitney Houston as a key element).
“I was really at a point where I didn’t have a choice. It was either, I continued on the path of self-harm, or I chose self-love and self-healing.”
Here are some of the things Sah and I chatted about:
Starting a successful fashion magazine when he was 23 years old, and how it all fell apart
Why he feels a connection to his maternal grandmother, who also suffered from depression
His former coping mechanisms for depression: drugs, sex, alcohol, and shopping
His decision to travel to Berlin, and why it was hard to change his default mindset
The moment it became clear that he needed to explore the world of meditation further
His pivotal experience at a 30-day silent retreat in Nepal, and how it set him on his path
Why his daily practice is rooted in compassion--a concept that wasn’t always easy to grasp
The aspects of his practice that piqued his interest in contemplative psychotherapy
A key aspect of his work with clients: getting them to “unhook” from past and future stories
His mission to make spirituality sassy and attainable, and about relative truth vs. absolute
Why he sometimes felt unsafe in spaces that were homogeneously white and affluent
How his queer and immigrant identities help him relate to communities who are marginalized
The process of writing his book, 5-Minute Daily Meditations: Instant Wisdom, Clarity, and Calm
“We need new faces in this space. And we also need the brown bodies and the queer bodies and the black bodies to know that they have someone they can talk to.”