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Wellness + Wisdom Podcast
Akshay Nanavati | How To Love Your Fear: The (REAL) Secret To Unlocking Your Pure Potential
Jan 23, 2024
Akshay Nanavati, Adventurer and USMC Vet, shares how he uses fear to prepare for extreme conditions in nature, lessons learned from Polar expeditions, confronting darkness, fear in intimacy vs. fear in war, the power of awareness and acceptance, the gift of fear for personal growth and fulfillment, physical training and nutrition for Antarctica expedition, Joseph Campbell's hero's journey model in personal growth, and the joy of podcasting.
01:43:32
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Quick takeaways
- Embracing fear and visualizing worst-case scenarios can adequately prepare individuals for challenges.
- Playing on the edges of life and experiencing both highs and lows amplifies the human experience and allows for deep insights.
- Navigating fear and vulnerability in intimate relationships requires open communication and creating a safe space for authenticity.
- Exploring both darkness and light contributes to personal growth and a broader range of emotional and spiritual experiences.
- Facing fear and embracing it as a catalyst for growth, while trusting intuition and surrendering to the unknown, leads to profound personal transformation.
Deep dives
Using Fear as Motivation and Preparation
Fear can be a powerful tool for preparation and motivation. By embracing fear and visualizing worst-case scenarios, individuals can adequately prepare for challenges. This technique, known as negative visualization, is similar to how astronauts prepare for missions. Embracing fear and using it as a fuel can lead to personal growth and the ability to transcend limits.
Playing on the Edges of Life
The podcast episode highlights the importance of playing on the edges of life and experiencing both the highs and lows of the human condition. By pushing oneself to extreme environments and challenges, individuals can connect with their deepest selves and tap into a profound level of intensity and rawness. Playing on the edges amplifies the experience of life and allows individuals to gain insights and wisdom that can be shared with others.
Fear and Vulnerability in Intimate Relationships
The episode explores the fear and vulnerability experienced in intimate relationships compared to facing physical challenges. The speaker shares personal experiences with fear and vulnerability, expressing that being in war was less scary than being emotionally intimate with a partner. However, by openly sharing fears and creating a safe space for authentic communication, individuals can navigate the vulnerability and build deep connections that transcend personal limits.
Using Darkness and Light as Sources of Growth
The episode emphasizes the value of exploring darkness and light in personal growth. By delving into the depths of suffering and darkness, individuals can gain a greater understanding of themselves and the world. Similarly, embracing joy, playfulness, and the light in life can also bring profound experiences and perspectives. Playing on both edges of the duality can lead to a more expansive range of emotional and spiritual growth.
Embracing Fear and Finding Courage
The podcast episode discusses the importance of stepping into the arena and facing fear as a catalyst for personal growth. It highlights the idea that fear is not something to be avoided but rather embraced and even loved. The speaker shares personal experiences and insights, including the concept of learning to love fear as a guidance from a higher power. The episode also explores the role of awareness in navigating fear and the significance of accepting and labeling emotions. The importance of constructs and the power of choice in shaping one's reality are also discussed.
Living in the Unknown
The episode delves into the notion of surrendering to the unknown and embracing the mystical aspects of life. The speaker emphasizes the importance of confronting the shadow side of power and finding a balance between control and surrender. The concept of building an arsenal of references to validate mystical experiences is discussed, along with the practice of trusting inner knowingness and the guidance that comes from within. The episode also highlights the significance of being present and creating space for silence and stillness in order to connect with the voice of intuition and higher consciousness.
Physical Training and Nutrition for Polar Expedition
The podcast episode explores the physical training and nutrition required for a polar expedition, specifically focusing on an upcoming Antarctica trip. The speaker shares insights into the unique challenges of polar travel and the need for strength, endurance, and a high-calorie diet. The importance of specific macronutrient ratios and weight-efficient foods is emphasized, along with the role of research and planning in developing an optimal nutrition plan for an expedition. The episode also touches on the concept of maintaining a balance between physical training and accessing spiritual and intuitive guidance.
Exploring the Gift in Sadness
The speaker emphasizes the importance of finding happiness not through the elimination of sadness, but by embracing and finding the gift in sadness. He shares a personal example of intentionally watching war movies and crying despite having a great life, as a way to experience the full range of emotions and to appreciate the contrast between joy and pain. He believes that experiencing the depths of the abyss allows one to truly know the heights of life and find a sense of aliveness and purpose.
Facing Discomfort as a Path to Growth
The podcast discusses the importance of facing discomfort and pain as a means of personal growth. The speaker shares his own experience with post-traumatic stress after serving in the military and how he chose to remove the label of disorder and instead acknowledge the normal human response to trauma. He emphasizes the need to be with the discomfort and challenges listeners to engage in activities that push their limits, such as sitting in darkness or taking cold baths. The speaker also highlights the self-fulfilling prophecy created by society, which associates trauma with disorder instead of seeing adversity as an opportunity for growth.
8.
Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey Model and the Importance of Sharing Learned Wisdom
2min
Wellness + Wisdom | Episode 606
How can you use your fear to prepare for unpredictable situations?
Akshay Nanavati, Adventurer and USMC Vet, joins Josh Trent on the Wellness + Wisdom Podcast, episode 606, to share how he uses fear to prepare for extreme conditions in nature, what lessons he learned about life during Polar expeditions, why it's important to love your fear, and why you need to confront your darkness.
"If you really want to know the heights of awe, the heights of bliss, go play in the depths of the abyss. Go play in the pain cave, go there, because it'll amplify the intensity of the human experience. It's how you feel more awe." - Akshay Nanavati
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Donate to The Great Soul Crossing THE FIRST-EVER SOLO COAST-TO-COAST SKI CROSSING OF ANTARCTICAIn November 2024, Akshay will set foot in Antarctica to begin a 1,700-mile journey where he will drag a 400-pound sled filled with all his supplies needed to survive in one of the most unforgiving environments on the planet.
For 110 days, he will endure temperatures below -40 degrees, and hurricane-force winds as he makes his way across the coldest, driest, and windiest continent on Earth.
With your donation to support this monumental journey, you can have your name recorded permanently in history, and get access to his incredible mindset techniques, community, and more...
(There is no monetary profit for Akshay in this fundraising.)
In This Episode, Akshay Nanavati Uncovers: [01:30] The Gift of Suffering- Akshay Nanavati
- How he learned that suffering is a gift when he joined the Marines.
- What you can learn from nature.
- Why Polar travel is the most difficult outdoor activity.
- The selfless and selfish reasons that motivated him to cross Antarctica.
- What enlightenment is according to Akshay.
- FEARVANA: The Revolutionary Science of How to Turn Fear into Health, Wealth and Happiness by Akshay Nanavati
- How you can use your fear to prepare.
- Why labeling fear as rational or irrational is assigning judgment.
- What scares Akshay more than Polar expeditions.
- The power of negative visualization.
- To feel fear is to be human.
- Why emotions are neither good nor bad, they're just emotions.
- How feeling guilt was an expression of love when Akshay's friend died in a war.
- What the real cause of suffering is.
- How you can use your emotions as fuel.
- How Akshay met his girlfriend and took her on a hike for their first date.
- Dave Asprey
- Why he was more scared of an intimate connection with a woman than of death.
- Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl
- Akshay's struggles with drugs.
- The only way out is through.
- How sharing your feelings can open up a space for authenticity and vulnerability.
- BREATHE: Breath & Wellness Program - 33% off with code "PODCAST33"
- 410 Mark Divine | Positive Neurodiversity: Kokoro Spirit, The 5 Mountains For Inner Peace, & How To Fulfill Your Potential
- Courage and curiosity are essential to growth.
- How experiencing pain amplifies the experience of pleasure.
- The positive effects of darkness retreat.
- Why Akshay feels grateful for all his pain and suffering.
- The health problems Akshay has been struggling most of his life.
- Black Hawk Down
- How a movie inspired him to join the Marines.
- Braveheart
- Gratitude is a superpower.
- How he used the depths of his darkness and the gift of his light as weapons to drive him forward.
- How fear keeps us alive.
- Why it's normal to feel fear when you do something new.
- Why courage is the most important of all virtues.
- 411 Gay Hendricks | The Genius Zone: The Breakthrough Process to End Negative Thinking and Live in True Creativity
- Finding Joe
- How labeling your emotions can help you create space between you and the emotion.
- Why acceptance is key to transformation.
- How identifying the constructs that shape your reality can help you free yourself from the constructs that don't serve you.
- What encouraged Akshay to get into athletics.
- How children are programmed to not feel their feelings.
- The problem with immediate gratification.
- 565 Pavel Stuchlik | Connecting Back With Spirit: Dark Retreats, Iboga + EMF Detox (Your Guide To Self-Transformation)
- Why divorce made him break his sobriety and brought him to dark retreats.
- What darkness showed and taught Akshay.
- The Green Mile
- Why Josh prefers to say "responsibility" instead of "debt."
- How most people live a life full of quiet desperation.
- Happiness is not the elimination of sadness.
- Why falling and pain are a natural part of life.
- How Josh reparents himself through being a parent.
- Akshay Nanavati on The Dr. Drew Podcast
- How Akshay struggled with PTSD and what helped him heal.
- The principles of post-traumatic growth.
- Akshay Nanavati: Find strength in fear
- Why fitness or yoga are often more about the ego than health.
- What Akshay did to face his demons.
- Entrepreneurs avoid looking within by keeping themselves extremely busy.
- 589 Alex Charfen | The Freedom Life: How To Program Yourself For Success In Mind, Body, Spirit + Soul
- The importance of confronting the dark side of power.
- 201 Finding Mastery: Micheal Gervais
- How Josh moved to Hawaii and started healing his feminine.
- Why Akshay writes down everything mystical that has happened in his life.
- Learning to trust your inner voice.
- How physical training helps Akshay access stillness.
- Unpacking how he's preparing for the Polar trip.
- Support Akshay's journey
- Why he was drive by escapism.
- The Hero's Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work by Joseph Campbell
- Why he started studying method acting to understand how to character.
- 555 Mike Dillard | Richer Every Day: How To WIN The War on Your Money + Mind
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Power Quotes From The Show It's OK to Feel Scared"When you do something you've never done before, you will feel scared. That's why I don't like the idea of always being confident to take action. How can you be confident if you've never done the thing before? Confidence is the result of action, not the fuel of action." - Akshay Nanavati
No Emotion Is Either Good or Bad"There's no bad emotions, there's no good emotions, there's only emotions. It's the label of bad, the assignment of the judgment of the emotion that causes more problems than the emotion itself. The second you accept the "isness" of the emotion and become aware of it without deeming it bad, then you can use any emotion as fuel to drive you into something better." - Akshay Nanavati
The Power of Nature"Nature makes you realize how small you are, but at the same time, you feel all powerful out there because simply by stepping in that playground to control your reality, to be there, to survive, to thrive out there, you feel more powerful than you've ever felt. It's an experience of both control and surrender, and ego and humility" - Akshay Nanavati
Links From Today's Show- Akshay Nanavati
- FEARVANA: The Revolutionary Science of How to Turn Fear into Health, Wealth and Happiness by Akshay Nanavati
- Dave Asprey
- Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl
- BREATHE: Breath & Wellness Program - 33% off with code "PODCAST33"
- 410 Mark Divine | Positive Neurodiversity: Kokoro Spirit, The 5 Mountains For Inner Peace, & How To Fulfill Your Potential
- Black Hawk Down
- Braveheart
- 411 Gay Hendricks | The Genius Zone: The Breakthrough Process to End Negative Thinking and Live in True Creativity
- Finding Joe
- 565 Pavel Stuchlik | Connecting Back With Spirit: Dark Retreats, Iboga + EMF Detox (Your Guide To Self-Transformation)
- The Green Mile
- Akshay Nanavati on The Dr. Drew Podcast
- Akshay Nanavati: Find strength in fear
- 589 Alex Charfen | The Freedom Life: How To Program Yourself For Success In Mind, Body, Spirit + Soul
- 201 Finding Mastery: Micheal Gervais
- Support Akshay's journey
- The Hero's Journey: Joseph Campbell on His Life and Work by Joseph Campbell
- 555 Mike Dillard | Richer Every Day: How To WIN The War on Your Money + Mind
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Akshay Nanavati has overcome drug addiction, PTSD from fighting in Iraq with the Marines (where one of his jobs was to walk in front of vehicles to find bombs), depression, and alcoholism that pushed him to the brink of suicide.
Since then, by embracing his demons, he has built a global business, run many ultramarathons including a 24-hour run and 167-mile run across Liberia to help build a school, spent 10 days in darkness and isolation, skied 350 miles across the world’s 2nd largest icecap for a month and become 1 of only 26 people to ski up a remote glacier in Antarctica.
Despite 4 biological defects including a blood disorder that 2 doctors told him would kill him in boot camp, he is now a sponsored athlete and is currently training for a 110-day, 1700-mile, solo, never-before-accomplished crossing of Antarctica.
Combining his life experience with years of research in science and spirituality, he wrote the book “Fearvana," about which the Dalai Lama said, “Fearvana inspires us to look beyond our own agonizing experiences and find the positive side of our lives.” All the profits from the book are going toward charity.
Akshay is now on a mission to help our human family fall in love with suffering in order to create a life of greater meaning, purpose, joy, and fulfillment.
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