Ep. 14: A Gen X Journey to Mindfulness: From Near-Death Experience to Emotional and Physical Healing with Michael O’Brien
“Everything in life . . . is neutral until you label it. And you get to choose your labels.”
How could someone who nearly died in a cycling accident, come to learn that “a bad day” is only a matter of perspective?
Most Gen X’ers have spent the last 40+ years trying to prove ourselves, our worth, and that we belong.
We check the boxes of what society and others expect from us, while simultaneously shutting down the parts of us that we’ve been told are inappropriate, shameful, or “too much.”
Until one day, life smacks you in the face with a wake-up call.
In the case of this week’s guest, Michael O’Brien, this wake-up call came in the form of a head-on collision with a motorist while he was training on his bike on the sweltering roads of New Mexico. Yet even when he knew that he was at death’s door, Michael’s brain was still wondering if he was going to be late to his meeting and whether his colleagues would be upset with him.
Fast forward through weeks of rehab in a New Mexico hospital and the moment when Michael remembered a lesson from playing sports growing up: when things are going too fast, take a timeout and breathe.
Michael began pausing, breathing, and reflecting . . . a practice which helped him heal not only his physical wounds, but also his lifelong emotional wounds of never believing that he was enough.
Through his mindfulness journey, Michael has learned that nothing has meaning until you give it one. By learning to choose the meaning we give something, we can embrace that no day is ever entirely bad. There are micro-moments of beauty, joy, and love in every day. So, if that’s the case, how can you ever have another bad day?
Michael is a qualified meditation teacher, executive coach, endurance athlete, and creator of the Pause Breathe Reflect Meditation and Gratitude app. He loves helping people accomplish hard things through mindfulness. He calls his near-death cycling accident his Last Bad Day and recently rode his bicycle across America and New York State.
This conversation is an epic journey through the topics of:
Feelings of low self-worth
Climbing the ladder of success to meet external expectations
Healing through physical pain or illness
Creating a pragmatic mindfulness meditation practice and life
Finding a more supportive mindset and perspective
Breathe in…Breathe out… It’s time to stress less and Pause Breathe Reflect with Michael O’Brien.
CONNECT WITH MICHAEL
⭐️ Website
⭐️ Instagram
⭐️ LinkedIn
⭐️ Pause, Breathe, Reflect (PBR) app
⭐️ PBR Merch (50% off with code GENX)
⭐️ The Rich Roll Podcast, Episode 824 with Michael O’Brien: The #1 Habit for Happiness
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