If you’ve ever struggled with chronic pain, chronic illness, or know someone who does, or simply want to eliminate suffering in your life, then do we have the liberating show for you!

Today I’ll be talking with Toni Bernhard the award winning author of How to Be Sick: A Buddhist-Inspired Guide for the Chronically Ill and Their Caregivers and How to Wake Up: A Buddhist-Inspired Guide to Navigating Joy and Sorrow. Her latest book is called How to Live Well with Chronic Pain and Illness: A Mindful Guide. But I’d argue these books aren’t just for those with pain or illness, their handbooks or guides to living life free of suffering, and I think we all can learn a lot from them.

Today we’ll be talking about to How to Live Well with chronic illness and pain, what this means, what this looks like, how to alleviate our own suffering, feel better (at least in our minds and even use the experience for inner growth and lots and lots of self-love and compassion.

That plus we’ll talk about a not to do list, the tyranny of positive thinking, what to do when the blues comes calling, why Tylenol is not the answer, and why you can’t have a horse when you’re living in the middle of Los Angeles.

Questions and Topics Include:

1. What was Toni’s life before chronic illness
2. What is life like with a chronic illness
3. What is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome – and what’s wrong with the name
4. Why it’s as hard on her husband as it on her
5. What was a pivotal moment in her life
6. What the anger is that comes up when you have a chronic illness
7. Why self-compassion is her go to practice
8. What is mindfulness attention and caring attention
9. How mindfulness acts as a soothing balm for the heart and the mind
10. What the Buddha called “the second arrow”
11. What are the 3 elements of pain?
12. What it means to “get real” about your condition or what’s going on in your life
13. What’s it mean to alleviate mental suffering
14. What is a “not to do” list?
15. Why you don’t want to put your pre-illness life on a pedestal
16. Why it’s so important to please yourself before pleasing others
17. Why it’s so important to learn to say no (a true act of self-compassion)
18. What’s the ‘tyranny of positive thinking’?
19. The Byron Katie “four Questions and a Turnaround”
20. Where she finds the energy to write these books
21. What does she want to share with people who have a chronic illness
22. Why it’s so important not to blame yourself
23. What special vow she takes when heading out the front door
24. Her website: tonibernhard.com and Her Turning Straw into Gold Blog: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/turning-straw-gold

Toni Bernhard Former UC Davis Law Professor & Dean Shares How to Overcome Suffering, Chronic, Pain, and Illness Through Mindfulness, Self-Compassion & Love | Buddhism | Meditation | Lupus | Chronic Fatigue | Inspiration | Motivation | Health | Self-Help | Inspire

For More Info Visit: www.InspireNationShow.com