Life’s challenges can leave deep scars, but they can also become a roadmap for profound transformation.

In today’s bonus episode, I join coach, therapist, and warrior-philosopher Paul Chek to share my journey of surviving child abuse, addiction, and a brush with a cult—on through to finding healing and purpose through learning and living timeless spiritual principles like honesty, loyalty, and love.

We explore how chaotic childhood environments shape the nervous system, how predators recognize and target vulnerable people, and how trauma creates painful cycles that, thankfully, can be broken with intentional work.

This episode is more than a personal story—it’s an invitation to reflect on societal challenges like disempowered masculinity, the infectious nature of trauma, and how this makes us susceptible to manipulation by bad actors (like governments!).

We also discuss how building micro-communities gives us models for relating like our healthier ancestors did, and how doing our own healing work can shift the collective trajectory.

If you’re seeking tools to come out of chaos and into clarity, this conversation offers inspiration and practical insights.

State Climate Policy Could be a Bulwark Against Trump Gutting of Federal Environmental Regulations; Repairing the Constitution's Democracy Deficit