Helpful Ways To Achieve Rebirth During Challenging Times

Most of us entered this life in a medical facility, surrounded mostly by strangers. When we came into the world, we were hopefully welcomed, fed, and soon loved. As we’ve meandered through this life, we’ve adopted religions, societal way of seeings, and habits that have been either helpful to us or not-so-helpful. Yet, even though we are entrenched in ideas and behaviors that we learned from others, it doesn’t mean that we’re done growing. In fact, at any moment we can free ourselves from the clenches of outdated thinking, limiting ideologies, and undesirable relationships. We can ALWAYS set ourselves free, and achieve rebirth: free from harm, free from bondage, free from temporary self-identities that keep us caged. To confront who we are and where we’re going, we must first be honest with ourselves. If we can be truthful with regard to our limitations and make note of the aspects of our lives that have never worked for us, we can certainly imagine and pursue their opposites. To begin your journey to a freedom-oriented wholeness and achieve rebirth, we must first let go of the past and realize that it is nothing but a canceled check. It’s an illusion that we somehow learned to cherish. Even when it’s painful, we still cherish the past. We might even obsess about it, which can lead to a life of regret and unfulfilled potential. You’re better than that - and you know it!

Forgive one person today. If you can’t forgive them, pray for them. If you can’t pray for them, imagine them in a positive light.
Explore the best practices for healing yourself. Pick one and try to master it. Meditation is a good place to start.
Expand your diet by introducing new foods to your home and family.
Become more self-sufficient in the home by learning how to ferment, jar, and freeze all the delicious foods that you’ve always loved.
Create your own medicinal, herbal tinctures, teas, and salves. Some of the most beneficial remedies are made in our own kitchens.
Pick one short book to read aloud with a loved one.
Explore ways to turn your sweet little hobby into a home business.
Reach out to a financial advisor to learn about how people grow their wealth. Even small steps can turn into big wins over time.
Join the many Facebook groups connected to your local and state governments and explore ways to become more involved in helping your community.
Bake cookies for a nearby nursing home. You might even find an older friend to visit once and a while. When we serve others, we serve God, The Universe, and Nature.
Maybe it’s time to give a few things away. If you have excess furniture and other useful items, call local donation centers or leave some of the most expensive items on the street.
Life moves so quickly and sometimes we forget some of our most delicious dreams and goals. Is it time to launch that project, start that blog, or write that book?

One of the most important skills we can develop in this life is to find pathways to positivity, even when we’re entrenched in sadness, anger, or darkness. When we allow our minds to perseverate and obsess over bad experiences, we build mental muscles that will only lead to our unhappiness. When we find ways to trigger ourselves out of these bad habits, we recondition our minds. With clear minds and hearts, we can move more efficiently and happily through our lives and achieve rebirth. If we’re committed to these types of processes, we can also become completely, 100%, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually FREE. If you need further guidance towards rebirth, I'd love to speak with you about your journey through my coaching services.

Face the Darkness Without Flinching

In my 35 years of practice, and as a 5-time Emmy winner who’s sat with countless souls in their rawest moments, I can tell you this: rebirth doesn’t come wrapped in pretty packaging. It’s often forged in brutal honesty and the willingness to sit with your darkness-not run from it. When I sit with clients, I watch them wrestle with shadow parts of themselves that society has told them to bury deep. But underneath that burying is a reservoir of freedom waiting to erupt.

Tulsi (holy basil) is considered sacred in Ayurveda, and the science backs up what the ancients knew. Modern research shows this little green powerhouse actually reduces cortisol levels and helps your nervous system chill the hell out. Think about that. Ancient practitioners called it "the incomparable one" thousands of years before we had labs to prove they were right. When you're going through your own dark night of the soul, tulsi doesn't just calm you down... it literally helps rewire your stress response. I've seen people go from constantly wound-up anxiety machines to actually being able to breathe again after a few weeks with this stuff. The crazy part? Your body starts remembering what normal feels like. Not some fake-ass zen state, but actual baseline calm. It's like hitting a reset button you forgot you had. Stay with me here ~ this isn't about becoming some blissed-out monk. It's about getting your fight-or-flight response to stop treating every Tuesday like a saber-tooth tiger attack. *(paid link)*

Vedanta teaches us about avidya-the ignorance that veils our true nature. This isn't some abstract philosophical concept. It's the daily bullshit stories we tell ourselves about who we are and what we're capable of. Rebirth means ripping off that veil, not glossing over the pain or pretending it doesn't exist. It's facing your fears, doubts, and limitations like a warrior rather than a worrier. Know what I mean? Most people want to meditate their problems away or find some spiritual bypass. That's not rebirth - that's spiritual masturbation. Real rebirth is messy. It's sitting with the discomfort until you realize something wild: you're not actually the character in the story you've been telling yourself. Only when you look into the abyss without blinking can you see that it's actually empty-an illusion with no real power over you. The fear was never about what might happen. It was about losing an identity that was never real to begin with. That's liberation. That's rebirth. You might also find insight in The Cosmic Web of Filaments as Nadis - The Energy Channel....

If you are serious about a daily sitting practice, a proper meditation cushion makes all the difference. *(paid link)* Look, I've sat on folded blankets, couch cushions, even bare floor. None of it works long-term. Your hips start screaming after ten minutes, your back goes to hell, and suddenly you're thinking more about pain than presence. A real cushion lifts your pelvis just enough to let your spine find its natural curve without forcing it. Think about that ~ you're setting up your body to actually succeed instead of fighting against basic anatomy. When your ass isn't going numb and your knees aren't on fire, you can actually drop into the work that matters.

Disempowerment Is a Habit-Break It

Here's the unvarnished truth: no one can help you. Not your guru, your partner, your therapist, or your sacred texts. Empowerment is an inside job and it's a muscle you build through practice. Here is the thing most people miss. In decades of guiding seekers and devotees alike, I've observed how easy it is to fall into victimhood narratives. Challenging times shove us into reactivity, shame, blame, or helplessness. But these are old conditioning patterns speaking, not the Real You. Think about that for a second. You've been running these same mental loops since you were a kid, probably. The voice that says "this is happening TO me" instead of "this is happening FOR me." I see this constantly... people waiting for permission to step into their power, looking for someone else to validate their journey. Fuck that noise. The moment you stop waiting for external validation is the moment real growth begins. Are you with me? Your empowerment doesn't need anyone's approval. Explore more in our spiritual awakening guide.

Rebirth means uprooting these disempowering habits with fierce tenderness. It's about owning your power in every moment-even when you feel weak or scared. As taught by Shankara, aham brahmasmi: "I am Brahman" - the limitless, the unconditioned. When you lean into this truth as a living experience, not a mantra to recite, you break cycles of blame and dependence. You step into freedom that doesn't require anything external to validate it. Look, this isn't some feel-good bullshit. This is brutal self-honesty wrapped in love for yourself. You're literally rewiring decades of conditioning that tells you you're small, broken, or need fixing. The fierce part? You have to be willing to sit with the discomfort of change. The tender part? You do it without beating yourself up when you slip back into old patterns. Because you will slip. We all do. That's not failure ~ that's being human while reaching for something beyond human limitations. Paul explores this deeply in The Electric Rose.

Rose quartz is the stone of unconditional love ~ keep one close when you are doing heart work. I'm talking about the real stuff here, not the Instagram-pretty self-love bullshit. When you're sitting with actual grief or rage or the kind of hurt that makes your chest feel like it's caving in, rose quartz holds space differently than other stones. It doesn't push. Doesn't demand you feel better. Just sits there radiating this quiet, steady energy that says "I've got you." I've carried the same piece for years now ~ smooth from all that pocket time, warm from body heat and tears and those moments when holding onto something solid felt like the only thing keeping me tethered. Know what I mean? Keep it in your pocket during therapy sessions or those 3am moments when everything feels broken. Some nights I'd grip that stone so tight it left marks on my palm. But that's what real healing looks like sometimes. Raw and desperate and clinging to whatever anchor you can find. *(paid link)*

Rebirth Is Radical Self-Honesty

Spiritual bypassing is the enemy of true rebirth. I don't mince words here: if you're using meditation, religion, or kindness to avoid facing who you really are-flaws, anger, jealousy, and all-then you're only delaying the inevitable. In my experience with Amma devotees and clients, the most raw transformations come from brutal, sometimes uncomfortable self-honesty. It's pulling back the curtain on the messy, unsexy parts of your psyche and saying, "Yes. I know. This is me. And I'm ready to change." Think about that. I've watched people spend decades in ashrams, chanting and praying, all while avoiding the simple fact that they still hate their mother or feel consumed by envy. They think spiritual practice means becoming some sanitized version of themselves. Bullshit. Real rebirth means meeting your shadow with the same compassion you'd show a wounded animal ~ scared, defensive, but ultimately just trying to survive. The work isn't pretty. But it's the only way through. You might also find insight in Intermittent Fasting: Meal Plans.

Hiding behind "love and light" without the shadow is the definition of bondage, not freedom. I see this shit everywhere ~ people plastering spiritual bypassing over their wounds like fancy bandaids. Know this: rebirth is radical because it tears apart the false self to reveal what is eternal and unshakeable underneath. It's not a gentle process. It's fucking brutal sometimes. You'll find yourself face-to-face with parts of yourself you've spent years avoiding, and that's exactly where the medicine lives. It demands courage, guts, and a willingness to be naked in your own truth. Not the polished version you show at dinner parties. The raw, messy, beautifully human truth that makes you squirm. Only then can you breathe free, unchained from outdated stories and personas that never really fit anyway. Think about that. How much energy are you burning maintaining a version of yourself that isn't even real? If this lands, consider an working with Paul directly.

Pema Chodron's When Things Fall Apart is the book I give to anyone going through a dark night. *(paid link)*