How the cult of new age spirituality sucks people with BPD in and how to spot the red flags

In this episode, you’ll join my dog Cody and me on our morning walk in the woods as we discuss “spiritual red flags.” Along my journey towards healing and deeper self-awareness, I’ve fallen for some stupid new age sh*t. I’ve wasted money on “Spiritual Gurus™” and coaches. I’ve gone down the YouTube manifestation rabbit hole. All of it. During our walk, I’ll share with you the most important lessons I’ve learned and the core teachings that have helped me find a semblance of inner peace and spiritual grounding in my life. Notably working on cultivating a “loving-kindness” practice, which I’ve recently learned from Buddhist nun Pema Chödrön’s book, “The Places That Scare You.” At the end of the episode, I answer a few listener questions about struggling to make friends, emotion regulation and the “FP” or “favorite person” relationship in BPD.Recommended resources: ■ The Deep End (Documentary on Hulu about spiritual guru Teal Swan)■ The Gateway (Investigative podcast re the work of Teal Swan)■ The Places That Scare You (Book by Pema Chödrön that inspired this episode)■ Pema Chodron herself walking you through the practice of loving-kindness■ Another talk with Pema (Loving Oneself and Others – Tonglen practice)■ Tonglen Meditation with Pema Chodron 🦋 UNLOCK PREMIUM PODCAST ACCESS AND JOIN THE BFTB COMMUNITY ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/backfromtheborderline.By becoming a patron, you’ll gain access to my private podcast, “My Stupid Walk for My Stupid Mental Health” (4 episodes released each month), and my monthly newsletter, where I share articles, YouTube videos, podcast episodes, and book recommendations. You’ll also get to interact with other listeners of the podcast.Disclaimer: information contained in this podcast episode is for educational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for treatment or consultation with a licensed mental health professional. To unlock BFTB bonus content, visit https://plus.acast.com/s/back-from-the-borderline. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Om Podcasten

I don’t want to talk to your personality; I want to talk to your soul. Imagine if your most painful and debilitating mental health symptoms and self-sabotaging behaviors aren’t evidence of 'disorder' or 'dysfunction', but adaptive strategies that once kept you safe. My goal is to help you shift from asking ‘What’s wrong with me?’ to ‘What happened to me?’The word ‘borderline’ in this podcast has nothing to do with psychiatric labels. It has everything to do with coming back from the inner psychological brink we all experience. Everyone has found themselves on the edge, in that liminal space where the old self falls apart and the new Self emerges. Here, we explore what it means to undergo true emotional alchemy: that ancient and primordial process of falling apart, confronting the underworld of our psyche, and falling back together into someone stronger, wiser, and more whole.Many highly sensitive people who identify with the seemingly never-ending list of diagnostic mental health labels contained within ‘the bible of psychiatry’ (the DSM) share the same underlying sense of being irreparably broken, disconnected from their intuition, and paralyzed by life’s existential questions. I believe the resulting—and perfectly understandable—chronic feelings of emptiness and spiritual starvation are the TRUE causes of our current collective ‘mental health crisis.’Together, we’ll dive into depth psychology, mythology, human consciousness, critical psychiatry, and the impact of trauma to help you begin the process of emotional alchemy. This exploration will help you get to the root cause of your suffering and free yourself from the toxic shame, limiting beliefs, and mental programming that have kept you locked in the chains of your past.In an era where mental health and spirituality are too often commercialized, I’m not here as a guru with a quick fix to sell you. I don’t believe anyone is ever truly ‘healed’ or ‘cured.’ There is no return to some mythical state of pre-trauma purity, but rather a continuous spiral of unbecoming, unlearning, and transformation. As a fellow seeker, I will be there in your ear, walking alongside you on your path toward wholeness as a sort of parasocial big sister. That, I can promise.By integrating the concepts we explore together, you’ll begin to see that anyone—even you—can come back from the borderline.CRAVING MORE? Visit backfromtheborderline.com to dive into my universe, connect with me, access my Patreon, and discover more about my journey and work. Don’t forget to follow Back from the Borderline so new episodes on Tuesdays and Thursdays automatically drop into your podcast feed. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.