No Barriers

In 2013 Erik Weihenmayer picked up the phone with an idea and a pitch. After 6 years of training, he was ready to throw himself into some of the biggest whitewater in the country... in a kayak. Where? That stretch of the Colorado River flowing through Grand Canyon. Who did he call? Lonnie Bedwell; today’s guest. Erik’s journey learning to kayak was a bit lonely at times. Where were the other blind kayakers? Eventually he found Lonnie, blind, who had thrown himself into the sport, and with rapid speed, into that big water in Grand Canyon as well. Erik wanted Lonnie to join him on this epic river adventure. His pitch, “One blind descent is an anomaly, but two would be a statement”) Erik and Lonnie indeed tag teamed that descent through the Grand Canyon and inspired others who followed years later. Let’s get into Lonnie’ story. We’ll cover how he lost his sight in a hunting accident, kayaking the Zambezi in Africa, how his experiences in the military on submarines taught him about managing fear, adaptations he’s made working in construction whether roofing a house or running electrical, and how he re-learned to mow a lawn, with his daughter, who was 5 at the time, … and much more…

Our guest today grew up in rural Mongolia; hundreds of miles from anything resembling an advanced health care facility. So when his legs stopped working as a young boy; finding out the reason would not be easy. The family began their quest by traversing over 400 miles across Mongolia without a paved road in sight making their way to the capital city. They found new jobs and connected their son with the best health care available at the time. 3 years later they still had no answer. In fact in took 7 years until our guest, Bayar Damdinjav, received his diagnosis of an incurable auto-immune disease. The pivotal moment in Bayar’s life was when he decided to move back home to eastern Mongolia and attempt to be a normal teenager, which at that point involved going to high school. Nothing in his town was built for someone in a wheelchair. No sidewalks, no paved roads, no ramps, or elevators. Academically, there would be a lot of catching up to do, as he hadn’t attended school in 3 years. The odds were stacked against him. What he’s accomplished since then, might surprise you.

Chris Layne on Instagram. 

A couple days ago myself, our host Erik Weihenmayer, and maybe 50 others were sitting in an auditorium with our eyes closed. My knees were pressed up against the seat back in front of me. My arms were pinned between the hard wooden armrests. I was not comfortable. However… and I know this may sound a bit out there… buts… minutes later I found myself floating in space. I could no longer feel the pressure points in my knees and arms. I was on my way to a state of hypnosis. I was about to have a conscious conversation with my subconscious mind. That’s the way our guest today describes it. Dr. Vidor Friedman. Dr. Friedman was leading a group hypnosis experience, at the No Barriers Summit, intended to give us a small glimpse into the process. That day was about reprogramming our response to stress or anxiety. However, the potential here runs so much deeper as you hear today. Pain management without narcotics. Surgery without anesthesia (yes, as a matter of fact, there’s been successful implementations of hypnosis in lieu of anesthesia during surgery). And much more….

Some might imagine our guest today as the superhero on the cover a graphic novel. The headline would read… mild mannered kindergarten teacher by day and single handed slayer of ice creatures by night (or weekends more accurately). Kimber Cross was born with one hand. The nutshell version of her journey to where she finds herself today started with pushing her parents outside of their comfort zones, navigating her passions with insecurities, and flipping adversity into ultimately transformative moments in her life. Prior to climbing Everest or kayaking through the Grand Canyon, blind of course, our host, Erik Weihenmayer, was a middle school teacher for many years. He and Kimber compare classroom challenges to mountaineering challenges (subjective vs. objective hazards), they get into the latest in hand prosthetics, the realities of adaptive devices like Erik’s brain port that projects images onto his tongue and the process of figuring out how to connect Kimber’s ice tool to an arm with no hand… Also the relationship between sponsors and their athletes, and ideas around the meaning and role of adaptive athletes in todays world and beyond.

https://happyhealthycaregiver.com/ 

If you provide care for an aging parent, spouse, relative or for an ill or disabled person, according to the AARP you are one of 53 million Americans in that same boat. That’s nearly one in every 5 people. Our guest today is Bianca Padilla. She also found herself in that position, however, it was at a time this Millenial’s life, when most of her peers were starting careers and stepping out on their own. Her grandmother’s health was declining and she needed daily care to recover from a surgery. Bianca had a decision to make. We all get thrown these curveballs in life. It’s when the unexpected comes hurtling at you and fast… Bianca swung and knocked it out of the park. She turned the lessons and experience she gained by caring for her grandma and used it to start a company with the goal of simplifying the lives of caregivers. Investors thought she had a good idea and put 5 million towards the effort. Now that number is up to 30 million. Let’s face it, as we age we’re gonna need help at some point, could be a little or a lot. We’ve all got that in common and honestly it’s probably something we avoid talking about. So step out of your zone for a moment and get into this conversation between Erik Weihemanyer and Bianca Padilla..

The most recent census reported 7% of the US population are veterans. That’s about 18 million people who served in the active military, naval, or air service at some point and have since been discharged. “transitioning to civilian life” is a common topic for veterans when leaving the military. We get into that with our guest today, Matt Lewis. Matt is the chief operating officer of a spatial data company valued at almost a half a billion dollars. Matt is also a Navy Seal with deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan under his belt. . Matt changed his entire mindset as part of his transition to civilian life. We’ll hear about this journey and the importance of seeking challenges in life; including some of his own. Along the way he’s discovered that happiness comes through experiencing discomfort; that juxtaposition is key he says. Matt’s a deep thinker and the insights he shared are applicable to not only veterans, but people from all walks of life.

Hans' website. http://www.hansflorine.comOn Insta. https://www.instagram.com/hansflorine/Han's author page on Amazon.  

http://diananyad.com/https://everwalk.com/Diana's blog: https://medium.com/@diananyadDiana on Insta: https://www.instagram.com/diananyad/Diana's memoir:  Finding a Way