Most people don’t know how to deal with suffering. We develop ways to avoid it in order to feel good temporarily. It can be intimidating and scary to face tragedy or suffering head on—there’s a lot happening in life, and you don’t know how to deal with it. But when the source of your pain is neglected, that leads to unnecessary suffering in other ways. Through study and practice of many different methodologies, I have found that while there are times when these work in the moment, ultimately you have to go deeper. I believe you have to move beyond surface coping strategies and get to a place where you can feel joy and passion day to day. If you’re in a tough transitional period of life, dealing with grief, facing a big situational challenge,  or on the cusp of a personal awakening and know that the path you’re on isn’t what you want, there are ways to rise above these trials and thrive in your own life.