Be who you are. That’s real toughness.

Real toughness is living in the nuance and complexity of the environment, bodies, and minds we inhabit.

When we explore instead of avoid, we are able to integrate the experience into our story. We’re able to make meaning out of struggle, out of suffering. Meaning is the glue that holds our mind together, allowing us to both respond and recover.

When we explore instead of avoid, we are able to integrate the experience into our story. We’re able to make meaning out of struggle, out of suffering. Meaning is the glue that holds our mind together, allowing us to both respond and recover.

found that it was those who navigated their anxiety and trauma not via avoidance but through exploration who experienced the highest levels of growth.

deliberate rumination meant an internal dialogue that’s focused on problem-solving, whereas self-talk was focused on reflecting on

Because we have experienced the reality that human beings are truly prepared to starve if starvation has a purpose or meaning.”

Finding meaning, in your circumstance, in your suffering, or as a purpose to guide and ground you, was the key to handling such utter atrocity.

Freedom of your mind wasn’t just about surviving; it was about being able to choose.