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IN THIS EPISODE OF THE HUMAN UPGRADE...
Akshay Nanavati’s story of perseverance includes overcoming drug addiction, alcoholism that pushed him to the brink of suicide, depression and PTSD from fighting in Iraq with the U.S. Marines.
“That's when I fell in love with the experience of adversity and the struggle because boot camp was terrifying,” Akshay says. “Everything about [it] was terrifying but it was so alluring that I started to look for other ways to confront myself—ultimately to go to war with myself.” He believes that the path to inner peace is the pursuit of a worthy inner war.
He went on to build a global business, run ultramarathons, conduct humanitarian work in post-conflict zones, and explore some of the most hostile environments on the planet—from mountains to caves to polar icecaps. “Nature became my playground to explore my fears and ultimately, systematically push through them one inch at a time.”
“I craved a high I believed I could only get by living on the edge of life and death,” he says in his book, “Fearvana: The Revolutionary Science of How to Turn Fear Into Health, Wealth and Happiness.”
He’s also spent years extensively researching neuroscience, psychology and spirituality. He combined his life experience with that research to write “Fearvana” and infused it with ways to transform fear, and its counterparts stress and anxiety, into something much more positive. His Holiness the Dalai Lama wrote in the book’s foreword, “Fearvana inspires us to look beyond our own agonizing experiences and find the positive side of our lives.”
Akshay now teaches people how to overcome their own fears and how to tap into their brain’s superpower—neuroplasticity.
Sounds good, but how do you really move through stress and attain growth? First, you have to learn to disidentify with fear and suffering by remembering you are not your thoughts, feelings or experiences, Akshay explains. “You are simply the one who experiences them. Through this process it becomes so much easier to create a life of fulfillment, It’s a lifelong practice and a great pathway to growth.”
You can even learn to "suffer well" in the day-to-day context of your human experience.
“I couldn't care less when fear shows up,” he says. “What matters to me is what I do with it once it does. I can let go of the construct I have around the fear and accept it for what it is and then choose what I want to do outside of it.”
Take a listen for more tips on how to become fearless.
Akshay heads to Antarctica in early November 2021. Learn more about his South Pole journey and how to follow along here.
Enjoy!
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