As the interest in wellness and personal development practices continues to shift towards more science-based and grounded approaches, more and more people are becoming aware of the link between brain, body and nervous system.
From somatic workouts to meditation, ice baths to breathwork, we are embracing new insights backed by data and scientific research while simultaneously seeking the simplicity of ancient rituals and ancestral knowledge that has been part of human life for thousands of years.
And who could blame us? In a world where many of us feel overwhelmed, burnt out and reactive to life’s demands, the clarity of science and innate wisdom of practices that have been passed on for centuries are helping us to focus on what is essential to improve our health, wellbeing and mental state.
Meeting us at this pivot point is Ryan Simbai Jenkins, a renowned coach who is bringing decades of deep insight into the human psyche, and a very rare lived knowledge of tribal healing practices, to his unique approach. After many years of helping private clients overcome deep-rooted inner blocks and self-sabotaging patterns through hypnosis, in 2026 Ryan, together with his mentor and partner Michael Perez, is launching a powerful new system designed to unlock the potential hidden in our primal human blueprint.
A pioneering thinker who, since the 1990s, has pushed beyond conventional psychological methods to explore how deep unconscious processes truly drive change, Michael has integrated neuroscience, hypnosis, and trance states to develop a unified approach to transformation. His studies in Aikido, Zen, anthropology, and primatology further deepened his understanding of primal human states, and, together with Ryan’s complementary skill-set and knowledge, forged the foundation of their jointly developed “Neuron Code” method.
Having worked with Ryan myself, it is exciting to see him evolve his offering into this next iteration, shaped by his vast knowledge as well as unique life experiences that allowed him to gain insight into a world that is so guarded and sacred, it is an immense blessing he decided to share some of its ancient wisdom.
As I have experienced myself, some limiting beliefs and self-sabotaging patterns can be so deeply rooted in our psyche that even with all the self awareness in the world, you cannot simply ‘logic’ them away. Ryan came highly recommended to me at a time when I felt utterly trapped in a cycle of relentless people-pleasing and the inability to set any kind of boundary. I was desperate to change, but even though I considered myself pretty conscious of my mental blocks and self-sabotaging patterns, I just couldn’t break them.
Affirmations and journaling didn’t touch the sides, and even though I was consistent with my practices there were certain triggers that instantly sent me right back into ‘fight or flight’ mode. It was frustrating, exhausting and making me resentful – mostly of my own good self, for not being able to stand up for myself.
The results of our sessions together were nothing short of mind-blowing to me. What I find myself repeating to friends time and time again is the immense relief I felt when, after months – years, even – of being in the trenches of my own mind, all of a sudden there was a glimmer of hope. The proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, the realisation that things are starting to get easier, better.
When you have almost come to accept the internal struggle to continue forever, there is no greater relief than to discover that, actually, there is another way.
Surprisingly – to me, at least – I began to see the benefits of Ryan’s coaching in other areas of my life, too. Increased confidence in promoting my work, and a more solid sense of self belief, were just two of the positive ‘side effects’ I noticed. As someone who had cringed their way through any kind of self promotion previously – no matter how proud of my work I was – to me, this was truly priceless.
Needless to say, it has been an immense pleasure to reconnect with Ryan on the cusp of this new chapter in his work – and I consider it a great privilege to share our conversation here.
When he laughs, “I’ll tell you this: This last year has been the most revolutionary and productive year in the last, probably, 20 years,” I know it’s time to listen up – because something ground-breaking and deeply transformative is coming…
Ryan, we first connected when I was seeking support through hypnotherapy – and as you know, it has been immensely helpful to me! Tell me more about this exciting next chapter…
I have been coaching people and doing hypnotherapy online, and I consider what I did very effective and useful and empowering.
But in the last couple of years I went through some personal things that were very significant. And I found myself not knowing who to turn to because most of the coaches, most of the people that I know are very good, they did not have the requisite skills to teach me something I didn’t know already.
That’s not just me hyping myself up and saying, “Wow, I’m a know-it-all.” I’m always open to learning, especially when it comes to my own growth. But I’ve been around the block. I’ve done it all. I’ve spent 20 years meditating, and doing all the energy work, and basically trying every modality that’s worth anything.
And then last year, this gentleman kind of popped up on the scene again – somebody who I’d been ‘stalking’ for about 10 years online. He’s regarded as one of the real innovators and mavericks in our field, in neurolinguistics and hypnosis training. He’s always had an online presence that was really warm, insightful, funny, and very kind.
I reached out to him and we started talking. We did some work together – me as a client – and eventually it became a mentorship. I immediately saw massive shifts in areas of my life. And I thought, “Whoa, this is very interesting.”
What happened next?
One day he – Michael Perez – basically said, “Hey, do you want to start a company together?” There’s a huge synergy between our skills and methods, so that’s what we did.
We started a training and coaching company to teach our Neuron Code method, and work with founders and high performers who want to up-level their game in a way they haven’t before. People who’ve tried everything, and want something a bit maverick and wild that works.
Sounds exciting. Does this method have hypnotherapy as its basis, or is it a system with different components?
I think it’s useful to take a step back and realise that what we call hypnotherapy comes in many guises. There are many different schools under that banner. Some are very evidence-based and work strictly within clinical systems. Others go wild with ‘magic juju’ and all sorts of stuff. It’s a huge range.
I’ve tried them all and understand them all, but I’m a systems thinker. And when I spoke to Michael as he coached me through his method, I realised it’s really a framework that blends modern neuroscience, anthropology, primatology, sociology, psychology, NLP, hypnosis, and even Western and Eastern spirituality.
It’s so elegant. I consider it kind of the Rosetta Stone of this work. Once you understand what hypnosis actually is – and what it isn’t – and how the brain works, it’s difficult to even call it therapy anymore.
So in a way, I’m no longer a hypnotherapist. I’m letting go of that title very clearly. What I do can be therapeutic, but it’s about change – change at a deep level, working with the unconscious, instinctive part of you. I’m letting go of frameworks that box me in because this is something completely different.
So yes, hypnosis is one of the main tools we use, but it’s really about understanding your brain, your biology, how change is created, and recognising that every method – EFT, chanting, shamanic waving, all of it – fits within a particular frame. It’s very comprehensive in a very particular way. We teach that method, and now we’re mainly focused on coaching.
When you say coaching, do you refer to coaching individuals to achieve personal change or teaching others to become coaches?
Earlier this year we ran a Neuron Code training for coaches in Barcelona. We’ll continue that, but our main focus going forward is coaching leaders. We do leadership coaching and bespoke leadership training for companies. We want to work with people in impact positions, so it can trickle down. That’s the main goal for 2026.
Are you still seeing private clients?
Of course. Michael and I both see private clients. The work is the same – it’s more a change of context than content. We’re just getting this off the ground.
You have a very unique and fascinating backstory. Can you tell us about the path that has led you to where you are today?
I was born and raised in Papua New Guinea. My parents moved there in the early ’80s and were adopted by a local tribe. My mother saved the chief’s life – she was a medical anthropologist – and they became inseparable.
Before I was born, the chief told my parents they were going to formally adopt me into the tribe. He wanted me to take his father’s name – Ryan – and said he would make me a chief and guardian of tribal lands. And that’s what I am.
So, I grew up immersed in traditional healing. My godfather, who raised me, was one of the highest-ranked medicine people. I sat by the fire with him every night as a child, just absorbing knowledge.
My mother also discovered a previously undiscovered Stone Age tribe, and I saw incredible trance and healing work – probably the only reason they survived for thousands of years.
What a fascinating way to start life! We shall touch more upon how these rare experiences shaped your coaching methods later, but please continue…
Later I pursued music. My father was a musician, and I studied across the world – Washington DC, Southeast Asia, Cambodia, Holland. After both my parents passed within three years, I burned out; I injured my hand and I couldn’t play anymore.
I booked a hypnotherapy session over Skype to quit smoking. Not only did I quit smoking, but within a week I could also play again. It was miraculous!
That’s when I realised how powerful this work was. I spent the next years studying with the best people I could find. I started my practice in my mid-20s, and have worked with people for 16 years.
Now this chapter brings together my tribal origins and knowledge of neuroscience, leadership, and embodiment. Everything is coming together.
And we still see you rock out on stage via social media!
It’s a huge part of my life. I’m still active in the music scene, and I have some really amazing projects. I run jam sessions here in Barcelona, and an underground jazz club in the district once a month.
So the musical aspect of my life also, in the last year, has been incredibly fruitful and productive and healing. There’s no life without music.
Having worked with you myself, what I always hugely appreciated is the time you take to truly listen to and understand your clients. You have a vast amount of knowledge, and I’m curious what subjects in the field of psychology and neuroscience you may have studied?
Well, when I first got into neuroscience around ‘change work’ was when I got deep into meditation and started looking at MRI studies around neuroplasticity and brain change – mostly out of curiosity about what I was doing to my own brain, and why it worked. And then I studied NLP – a linguistic modelling programme – which is about learning how people do what they do best from the inside out.
The original NLP models were based on three highly effective therapists from the ‘60s and ‘70s: Virginia Satir, Fritz Perls, and Milton Erickson, who’s considered the father of modern hypnotherapy. Richard Bandler and John Grinder studied them and realised it was all about neurological change – changing the brain using language and hypnosis.
Science later caught up with what they already knew. And every year, neuroscience backed up what they were saying decades earlier.
When I met Michael Perez, he was deeply versed in neuroscience but also very practical – what actually works, not theory. That’s where the triune brain model comes in: reptilian brain, mammalian brain, and primate brain.
Once you understand these three aspects of ourselves, you realise they don’t work together very well unless guided.
So are we basically swimming against the stream of our primal instincts unless we learn how to control our impulses?
The good news is we don’t have to fight ourselves. Most self-help tries to tame the ‘animal self’ through discipline and willpower. But the redemptive truth is we can work with it.
Impulses – around food, substances, fear – are not the devil on your shoulder. They’re you. They have positive intentions. We just need to work with them using other parts of the brain.
That’s what the Neuron Code methodology does – it’s elegant, non-invasive, and extremely effective. When I saw it work in my own life and with clients, I was all in.
How is this different from how you were working with clients before? What additional elements come in?
Previously, I still did some content-based coaching – explaining, talking, and guiding cognitively. Now I prefer to work in a completely content-free way.
I don’t need to know your problem. In fact, it’s often better that you don’t tell me. We work directly with the unconscious, instinctive part of you.
Your unconscious already knows the structure of the problem and the solution. So instead of analysing the story, we let that part lead.
This follows how the brain naturally changes. It gets your thinking mind out of the way and brings unconscious resources online.
Whether it’s physical healing, trauma, performance – I help people think, feel, and do better. It’s not therapy in the traditional sense. It’s direct, primal change work.
From my own experience, I noticed that when we worked together on one issue, it also removed blocks in other areas.
You can’t change one internal system without affecting the rest of your life – that’s the beauty of this work. People underestimate what’s possible in the human brain. We dismiss evidence because it doesn’t fit our belief system.
Why are people more resistant to change in certain areas than others?
I love resistance. It shows exactly where the unconscious is protecting something important. Resistance is information.
Can it work for everyone? Nothing works for everyone. But for everyone I’ve worked with using this method, it does what it says on the tin.
How can people work with you in 2026?
I do one-to-one coaching, executive function work with leaders, and bespoke leadership training. You can book sessions on my site, neuroncodetribaltraining.com, and also book sessions with Michael.
We’re building content, quizzes, an app for clients, and launching a YouTube channel. And I still play music!
For further information and to book a consultation with Ryan Simbai Jenkins and Michael Perez visit www.neuroncodetribaltraining.com.
