Q & A with Robina

QUESTION

Hi Robina,

I was prompted to contact you on advice of a friend who received your name as someone who could possibly help. You advised me about ten years ago. Since then, I lost my enthusiasm for practice due to almost dying, family crises and being on medication that triggered old PTSD and anxiety issues through what appears to be a lasting effect on my brain.

I’ve been off them a year and a half but strong symptoms of anxiety, PTSD and chronic fatigue persist. I’ve done immense inner work on my programming and negative behaviours, I meditate like it’s going out of fashion, I've detoxed plenty, live clean and I’m working on self-mastery, but continue to struggle. It’s become an issue as there’s divine work I need to do and I just don’t have the vitality or headspace to do it, and when I get anxious (it’s almost impossible to stop) I can’t hear divine guidance, or I confuse it as my own thoughts.

If you have five minutes in your crazy schedule to reply I would be forever grateful. Thanks for all the work you do to spread the message.

Blessings,

B

ANSWER

Dearest B,

I’m happy to hear from you!

And I’m sorry about the struggles. But I think you’re interpreting it all wrongly.

It seems to me that all these health problems are definitely part of your spiritual journey. Don’t think of it as blocking your capacity for the divine work you need to do. On the contrary, you are purifying all the many past obstacles so that you will be able to do it!

A friend of mine, an Australian monk, who’s been seriously meditating for years — three- and four-year tantric retreats — ages ago he told me that he was having so many problems in his mind he thought he was going crazy. He told Lama Zopa Rinpoche who laughed and laughed, and said, “The dirt has to come out, the dirt has to come out, the dirt has to come out!”

It’s like going to the gym: you come home with such pain, you can’t believe it, but you know that it’s good pain; it’s a sign of progress. Same here. 

You’re working so hard on yourself, it’s wonderful. But try to interpret it differently. Embrace it, welcome it. It’s far more powerful and uplifting that way.

Also, it’s crucial to understand that all these thoughts in our head – the anxiety, the fears – are very old, very deep. So we need to learn to not be afraid of them, not define ourselves by them. We need to cultivate instead the confidence that they are not at the core of our being – this is exactly Buddha’s main point – and to identify with our goodness, our compassion, and the other marvelous qualities.

Which doesn’t mean you don’t try to heal your exhaustion. For sure! You must. So do your best to take care of your heath. Find the right doctors. But don’t push, don’t grasp. Be brave, have courage. 

It would be good to see a Tibetan doctor: they understand the imbalance of our internal energies very well. See if you can find one.

What do you think?

Much love,

Robina

QUESTION

Dear Robina,

You are completely right and a stellar teacher! Thank you so much for reminding me what I already knew and somehow forgot within my own experience. We're so sensitive to our own suffering! It makes us forget the teachings, even when they've come from above.

Thank you so much again for taking the time, I can't express how grateful I am and how much your words have helped.

A thousand blessings on you!

B