Ep. 33: Janine Shepherd – How to Thrive in the Face of Adversity

00:00 – excerpt from the episode
00:48 – intro (listen to discover a little more about your host. Martin will tell you a new lesser-known fact about Dr. Maya)

01:21
Dr. Maya Novak:
We often have a tendency to view the body as an opponent. Or we even hate it when we think it’s preventing us from doing the things we want to be doing, especially if we’re used to moving and enjoying what the body can do. So there can be a lot of frustration and anger after an injury, when all of that gets taken away – and that, too, even sometimes difficult to understand at first, is an opportunity to grow. In 2019 I contacted Janine Shepherd and asked her to join me on my first summit, called The Mindful Injury Recovery World Summit. She said yes and so I was very excited to talk to her, not only because she has so much to offer but also because I watched a movie that was based on her story, called Never Tell Me Never. She once was an athlete on her way to the Olympics and then ended up being a paraplegic and bed-bound for 6 months after an accident. Don’t be surprised if you end up bookmarking this conversation to instil courage and motivation that can help you thrive in the face of adversity.

02:33
Dr. Maya Novak:
In this interview, I’m joined by Janine Shepherd: who is an inspirational speaker and writer. Her books actually are classics in the survival genre because that’s who she is – a survivor. She learned not only to walk but also to fly planes after an accident that should have left her in a wheelchair for life. Janine’s TED talk has been viewed more than two million times. She’s been a guest on 60 Minutes and CNN, and a contributor to Dr. Deepak Chopra’s workshop. Her story has also been made into a movie titled Never Tell Me Never, which is a really good way to describe her attitude, and that is that challenges can help us grow and that sandbags allow us not only to bounce back but also to bounce forward. Janine, thank you so much for being here.

03:23
Janine Shepherd:
Thank you for having me, Maya. It’s an honor. Thank you.

03:26
Dr. Maya Novak:
Thank you. So to start with, can you share a bit about yourself and about your accident and what happened? Then we’re going to move forward.

03:40
Janine Shepherd:
Okay, well I – before my accident I was an athlete. I’ve been an athlete my whole life - since I was probably six or seven years old. I did a lot of different sports – track and field, and in Australia netball, softball, a triathlon champion, and then I really found my way when I got into cross-country skiing, which we actually have ideal conditions for. I was training for the 88 Winter Olympics in Calgary. I’d been invited to train with the Canadian team who are one of the best teams in the world. So I was on top of the world and I really wanted to show the world that this little Aussie girl could ski and be the best in the world, and that’s where I was. I was on this sort of trajectory of the Olympics. I mean that was my entire life. I was completely committed. On the other side of it, I was at university. I was in my final year of studying a sports science degree. I wanted to be an exercise physiologist. So my whole life revolved around sport. Then one day I was out training with my teammates, I was on my pushbike, and I was run over by a speeding truck. That’s the moment that changed my life forever. I suffered extensive injuries – which included a broken neck and a broken back in six places, broken ribs, and broken arms. I had head injuries, internal injuries; massive blood loss and basically I say to people that I had a death experience. Not a near-death experience, because I actually left my body. So for 10 days in intensive care I really – it was the fight of my life. Do I come back to this body or not – and that’s another story in itself. But as you can see, I did come back to my body and I had to live the rest of my life as a woman with a disability.

05:33
Dr. Maya Novak:
Yes, so you had this near-death experience, how was that for you?

05:41
Janine Shepherd:
Yeah, you know it’s really funny because people always want to know about that part of my story, and it’s a personal experience. I always say look, it was – it’s a very difficult thing to talk about. I say to people I didn’t come back to my body to share that experience. I came back to show people how to live in this body because that’s what’s important, how to live here, not how to get out of this body. I think a lot of people are always thinking about – they think about the afterlife, they’re fascinated with it, but let’s be fascinated with this life, that’s what I say and learn to live now. But I think the extraordinary thing, which I didn’t mention about my story, is getting out of – spending six months in the spinal ward and coming out in a wheelchair and being told that I’d never be able to do anything can, possibly never walk again. I’d have to rethink everything about my life. That sort of fighting spirit was rekindled when an airplane flew over and I thought well that’s it. If can’t walk, I’ll fly. That really was a seminal moment in my life and changed the direction of my life in the most profound way.

06:50
Dr. Maya Novak:
Yes, and that’s what I loved about your book, but I also really, really enjoyed your movie Never Tell Me Never. It’s really showing your fighting spirit and not accepting your fate. Like, I’m not going to accept that - that I’m not going to walk again. So you mentioned that you heard many “nevers”. Never walking, never having children, never, never, never. Where did you find that motivation and determination to go against everything that you actually heard?

07:23
Janine Shepherd:
That’s a good question, Maya. Well, I think I’m such a fighter that when someone says you’ll never do something it’s sort of really creates this fire and passion inside me that says well, I’ll show you. I think that’s been my entire life as a very young girl, as an athlete. I’ve always learned that I would have to put in that extra effort if I wanted to achieve in sport. So the lessons that I learned in sport held me in good stead. Like loving the hills, not being afraid of hard work. So it was – another part of that was, of course, knowing that having made the choice to come back to my body, and knowing that I made that choice, I was really determined to make the most of this life because I thought well, this is a gift, but I also need to find out why I came back. What was the reason for coming back? I think in a very honest way, I think the one thing, for me, that I defined myself and my life by was my body, and so the thing that was really going to wake me up mostly was to lose the thing that I really identified with mostly. That was my body, and that was the thing I lost, that ability to be an athlete. That really changed my life in such a profound way.

07:43
Dr. Maya Novak:
Thank you for sharing this. Yes, I can imagine being so into the body, I mean with all the sports and everything and then losing that, the thing helping you achieve so many things. I’m absolutely sure that so many people can connect with that. I loved my body, and now it’s almost like letting me down.

09:07
Janine Shepherd:
Yeah, and I think what we fear most is the losing – loss is a great teacher – but that’s what we all fear. We fear losing our body, our looks, growing older, being able to do the things that we do. For me it was like was actually my greatest teacher. It showed me that there were so many other things that I could do and that the more tightly I held onto my life as an athlete, the more I was going to suffer. What I realized is that acceptance was such a big part of my accident. Accepting where I was, accepting my body, accepting that I had a disability, really opened my eyes to a new way of seeing. That – it wasn’t until I let go – mind you, I was at rock bottom – but it wasn’t until I really got to that point of surrender that my life opened up to a new way of not just seeing, but a new way of being.

10:05
Dr. Maya Novak:
I love that and it’s true – until we let go and really surrender we are fighting and actually suffering more.

10:15
Janine Shepherd:
Mm.

10:15
Dr. Maya Novak:
So what would you advise to someone who is now basically asking, but how do I surrender? How do I let go because the pain, the emotional pain, and mental pain is so strong?

10:28
Janine Shepherd:
Well, for me, it was a great struggle. There was a lot of sort of deep inner work that I had to do. I mean I did go and see a professional at the time, and I think that for anyone going through an injury, great injury, or illness, it’s really worthwhile to have someone whether it’s a close friend – but a professional that you can go and talk to and talk through your feelings. Also for me, being able to write. I’ve written six books, but being able to write about my experience enabled me to really make sense of what I was going through. I think that’s really important for anyone going through injury or illness to really just pick up that paper and pad and start writing down your thoughts. That really leads to a lot of forgiveness and also – I’ll just give people a simple exercise – it’s difficult to let go of who we think we are. It’s difficult to let go of how we think we identify ourselves in the world. A simple exercise is just to write down all of the things that you love during the day. Even just a simple I love getting up in the morning and having a coffee. And asking yourself can I go without that? Can I let go of some of the small things in life? I mean that’s a practice. The more you can let go of those things, the better you get at being able to let go of the really big things because eventually, we’re going to let go of it all.

12:00
Dr. Maya Novak:
True, true. Mostly it’s just that change, right, that we are not used to. We actually cannot imagine living without something, but life – even if someone ends up in a wheelchair for the rest of their lives it’s not like the end. There are so many beautiful things that can happen as a result of this. Would you agree?

12:24
Janine Shepherd:
Absolutely. It can actually be the beginning because when life is going well it’s so easy to live on the surface. When you go through a challenging time of life, you’re forced to go deep and you’re forced to ask the questions that are really important. Like who am I, and what’s the purpose of my life? What do I value and what creates meaning for me? These are the more important questions that we need to ask.

12:55
Dr. Maya Novak:
Mm-mm. I so agree and I see so many times that people are trying to escape this as fast as possible. Like, just tell me what to do really fast so that I can go forward and never think about this ever again.

13:09
Janine Shepherd:
True and it’s amazing what you can live with if you really let go and just say yes to life. I mean I’ve lived my entire life, even though I did learn to walk again and I walk with a significant limp, but I’ve got a body that is different. I’ve got a body where I have no feeling. I have to use a catheter to go to the bathroom. I thought I’ll never be able to go out in public. But just going out there and trying and doing it I showed myself that yes, I can live like this and it sort of brings out this defiant spirit that I have written about. You realize yeah, I can do this. Often we can surprise ourselves. Life can be not just as good as was before, but even ten times better.

13:54
Dr. Maya Novak:
Yes, and it’s also about being a perfectionist. So especially if someone is a huge perfectionist and then something like this happens, this can really crush them. It’s like, now I am absolutely not perfect anymore.

14:09
Janine Shepherd:
Well, none of us are. I mean it’s the truth and it’s a reality. That’s how we learn, that’s how we grow. There was a period for me when I got home after my accident when I was very depressed and I thought – I remember actually being on the floor in my bedroom and saying out loud in the darkness, God just show me a way through this or show me a way out. I think, for me, that was really a profound letting go. It was almost like okay, I cannot do this on my own. I let go. I give in. Show me the way. That was almost the moment that the light went on and I realized, for me, you know – the title of my TED talk I’m Not My Body. That brought out the very best in me.

14:55
Dr. Maya Novak:
I so adore you and your story is just amazing. We were talking before about motivation, about determination. Do you think that this is something – so you, of course, you were an athlete, a very successful athlete. You went through years of training your body and also your mind. Do you that motivation and determination is something that is learned? Is this something that we learn really early in life? Or is this something that we just decide when we are pushed against the wall with a serious injury or any type of injury and then we decide well, I refuse to accept that.

15:40
Janine Shepherd:
That’s a really great question and I think it’s a little bit of both. For me, I think I’ve always been a really determined person. As a child, I was a very determined person. But I also think that you know, I’ve seen people that lived very ordinary lives who have had accidents and now achieving extraordinary things. It’s almost like the accident has brought out the very best in them. And, of course, I think those sort of – I think they are all skills and I think they can all be learned. I think being resilient, as you said, is not just bouncing back, it’s bouncing forward and learning to grow. I think we look at academics like Carol Dweck who has talked about the growth mindset. It’s the ability to go through adversity and decide you’re going to grow from it. I think that’s a choice, but I think that’s a choice we can all make. I think that once make that choice, then we start chipping away at the tools and the skills that need to develop those things, but they’re cognitive skills that be learned.

16:42
Dr. Maya Novak:
So how do we nourish this mindset? If someone, for example, if they don’t know if they have this type of mindset or not, what should they start doing? How can they nourish this so that they really can bounce forward?

16:56
Janine Shepherd:
Yeah, well I would say firstly, a lot of reading. I’m an avid reader. I love picking up books and looking at research from people like Carol Dweck. Or watching inspiring TED talk, read inspiring books. Look at the work of, for example, C R Snyder from the University of Kansas. He’s now passed, but he did a lot of work in resilience and hope. He talks about hope as a cognitive skill, which is something that we develop. Hope is not just some wishy-washy thing that we go well, we hope we’re going to get better. It’s actually saying to ourselves okay, now I can’t do that anymore, but I’m going to reset my goals. I’m going to find my passion. I’m going to go out there and try things. You’re not always going to find it straight away, but just get out there and have a go. So I think for anyone, particularly people with injury and illness if you can’t – when you’ve had something taken away from you, you need to go out there and reset your goals and have clear goals of what you want to do, whether that’s – for me, it was flying. I couldn’t go to the Olympics - I decided to fly. But it gave me a reason to get out of bed in the morning.

18:03
Dr. Maya Novak:
Yes, that was a real turning point for you when you saw that airplane and when you started learning to fly. Do you think that it’s important to have something like that, that then helps us to move forward, or that it doesn’t really matter?

18:22
Janine Shepherd:
Oh no, it absolutely matters. I mean we are goal driven beings. Whether it’s writing a book, learning to fly, or going and volunteering somewhere, doing a course, learning a new skill – whatever it is. We need a reason to get out of bed in the morning. A great example, I have a friend of mine in Australia, her son had an accident. He was sort of like drifting around in his life, early 20s, had an accident and was in a wheelchair. He was struggling. I went into the hospital and we shared some stories about paraplegia and what the future held. I said well, you know, I have all of those things and I flew an airplane around the country, and it doesn’t need to stop you. He’s now – he just found this incredible spirit inside him now. I just adore him. He’s incredible. He’s started sit skiing and he’s already been to one para Olympics – he’s only had the accident maybe four or five years. He’s so driven. The reason he’s like this is because he has a goal. He has a reason to get out of bed in the morning. He’s so inspiring. He’s someone who says to me, you know, my life is so much better now than it was before.

19:32
Dr. Maya Novak:
I so agree with you. When I had my fracture and dislocated ankle the things that I heard were really not the best. Definitely not like your story, but in the doctors’ opinion, my life in regards to being really active should more or less be done then. I so agree with you, because I did have that goal to go for a triathlon, a long distance triathlon race, and I actually had that in my mind. If I can do this, I can do anything.

20:06
Janine Shepherd:
Mm.

20:06
Dr. Maya Novak:
That was something that was pushing me forward. Did you have anything like that, something that if you can only do this, and then this, and this, and this?

20:16
Janine Shepherd:
Yeah, there were small steps along the way. I mean at first when I started to fly I went for one – I had to be lifted into an airplane. I didn’t know what the future held. I didn’t even know if I’d be able to get a pilot – you know – pass a medical. So at first, it was one flight. Then I thought oh, maybe I can get my private pilot’s license. So there were little sort of steps along the way. It kept me very present because I sort of couldn’t look too far into the future because I really didn’t know what the future held. So that was a great exercise in being really present. As it turned out I went on and not only got my private pilot’s license, my unrestricted. I navigated and flew around Australia. I got my commercial pilot’s license, my instructor rating, and my aerobatics ratings. I went on and became an aerobatics flying instructor as a woman with a disability, a walking paraplegic. So I just kept breaking the mold, you know. I sort of just said I’m going to not even just think outside the box, I’m actually going to get rid of the box. That’s what I love doing. I love doing what everyone says is impossible.

21:21
Dr. Maya Novak:
This is what makes you really, really special. I know that that’s also the reason why so many people find inspiration in your story. It’s something even – just holding to that story – like, if she can do it. If she was able to do it, I’m able to do it.

21:37
Janine Shepherd:
Oh absolutely, and it’s also about saying you’ve got to let go because, you know, of how you think your life is supposed to be. People think well I need to be doing this. This is the path I’m going to be going on, but sometimes life has other plans and you’ve just got to trust. I truly believe that life works out for the best when we trust and when we let go.

22:02
Dr. Maya Novak:
Mm-mm. What is your take on – many people have supportive families and friends, but there are also those who don’t have them.

22:11
Janine Shepherd:
Mm.

22:11
Dr. Maya Novak:
So what would you suggest, or what is your advice to those who are also struggling because they don’t have a sufficient support system?

22:23
Janine Shepherd:
Yes, well as you said, I was really, really blessed that I had incredible parents and friends around me. There were people in hospital that didn’t have that and my parents were incredible. They used to go and sit by their beds and just to be company for these other patients, particularly the younger ones. So it’s all about – I mean we need connection. We need to be around other people. So for anyone that doesn’t have that support, I would suggest making sure that you’re online and you’re connecting with people who have had similar injuries. There’s always something out there, some sort of social group out there they can connect with. But friends and family, and they’ll find the right people, but it’s really, really important to be able to talk and share. Particularly with people that have been through similar experiences.

23:15
Dr. Maya Novak:
Mm-mm. So what were your three biggest lessons along the way?

23:21
Janine Shepherd:
Well, I have to say that the spinal ward was a great teacher for me. I spent almost six months flat on my back in the spinal ward and it was a great teacher. It taught me that when I couldn’t change the circumstances of my life, my only fallback was to change my attitude. And, of course, one of the books I read, when I got home from hospital, was Victor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning. I’m sure you're familiar, and your listeners are familiar with the book. He was a Holocaust survivor and he started logotherapy. He always says there’s only one thing we can control, and that’s our attitude towards any set of circumstances. So I realized that lying in that hospital ward. I was up to me to change the way I experienced that time in the ward. It made it so much easier. Connected to that, of course, was the power of gratitude. I would say that I really learned that gratitude does actually rewire our brain. I made a commitment very early on in the hospital that everybody that made the effort to come and visit me, I would be grateful. I would smile. I would be happy. I would thank them for coming in. I really think that made my time in hospital so much easier. Because I mean I was lying flat on my back. I couldn’t move legs. One arm was in plaster, one arm was tied down by drips. I had a neck brace and sandbags around my head. That’s how I spent almost six months, so it was very challenging. Thirdly, and we touched on this before, I’d say the power of connection. I realized that pulling together – there were six of us in the ward that I spent the most time. There were six of us in there. We became great friends even though we couldn’t see each other. I realized that we were in this together. We needed each other. The great motivational speaker Zig Ziglar always says you can have anything you want if you help other people get what they want. I realized the truth within that. That the moment you decide to be of service to someone else, and then you’re the person that reaps a reward. We’re all so connected.

25:46
Dr. Maya Novak:
We absolutely are. We absolutely are. Talking about the spinal ward. When we read a book or when we watch a movie that in a really short period of time shows something so incredible, we really often forget that it took time. It’s not something that is going to be over in one hour, or in two weeks.

26:10
Janine Shepherd:
Mm.

26:11
Dr. Maya Novak:
It takes time and doing steps forward.

26:14
Janine Shepherd:
Yeah, I mean I really – as difficult as that time was in the spinal ward, it was also a very rich time of my life. It taught me a lot. I was in that ward with people that I had nothing in common with before and suddenly I had everything in common with. I really learned what it means to be compassionate and to have empathy. It really changed towards other people.

26:37
Dr. Maya Novak:
Towards yourself?

26:38
Janine Shepherd:
Both. Towards others and towards myself. That’s more of a challenge. We’re often very difficult on ourselves and as an athlete, I’ve been prone to that. So yes, the journey of self-compassion has been one that I’ve traveled as well.

26:56
Dr. Maya Novak:
So what is your take on fear? The reason I’m asking you this is because one of the most common fears after an injury is fear of re-injury or being afraid of doing something. What is your take on this?

27:11
Janine Shepherd:
Well that’s interesting because I love fear! I’ve found that fear is a great teacher. I think I read Pema Chodron, the Buddhist teacher, who said we fear when we get closer to the truth the more fear we feel. I’ve always found that when I feel fear it’s my – it’s almost like an invitation from life. What is it? Turn towards that, because it’s never real. It’s been a great teacher for me. I think that it’s – we hear a lot of people talk about fear being a bad thing. Fear is just natural. It’s just a natural part of life. Sometimes we create fears that really don’t exist. So as I said, from my book, I always say I still feel fear, but I’m not afraid because I’m so intimate with fear. I’ve felt it so many times in my life but I keep stepping, turning towards it, and stepping towards it because how else do we know how courageous we can be.

28:20
Dr. Maya Novak:
Wow. This is beautiful. So do you think that you also learned how to deal with fear because of your past experience being an athlete? Or do you think that this accident really taught you, or you taught yourself how to be friends with fear?

28:39
Janine Shepherd:
I definitely think from my accident. I don’t really think I had a lot to fear before my accident, but I think I felt in so many ways that the odds were stacked against me. I just so wanted to live my life. I wanted to experience life fully and fearlessly. I think that’s what we all want. We all want more life - we just want to experience. Everything is an experience – whether good or bad, it’s how we label it. I just knew that I’m back in this body. Yes, the body is broken, but I still want to experience. I want to experience the joy. I want to experience love and everything that goes along with that. And, of course, that means experiencing the loss and the tough times as well because we can’t cherry pick, we take it all.

29:29
Dr. Maya Novak:
Mm-mm. And not taking this as an excuse that we cannot achieve something because we don’t have the body that we had before.

29:38
Janine Shepherd:
That’s right. Life will be different after injury, but that doesn’t mean that it won’t be extraordinary. It still can be extraordinary.

29:48
Dr. Maya Novak:
Yes. So before, you mentioned briefly that gratitude helped you, that it’s such a powerful tool for rewiring the mind and the brain.

29:57
Janine Shepherd:
Mm.

29:58
Dr. Maya Novak:
So how important is rewiring the brain on this healing journey?

30:04
Janine Shepherd:
I think it’s extremely important because we have to open ourselves to new experiences, whether that’s having a different body, or doing different things. We’re creatures of habit, so we like to do things the same way. I say to people it’s like – for anyone out there that skis, you go down the grooming’s, the groomed runs all the time, and it’s easy. Then suddenly, I mean an injury is almost like well now you’re going to go off-piste. You’re going to go off down the runs that are full of powder and yeah, you’re going to fall a few times. You’re going to get up, and you’re going to go back up to the top and you’re going to go down that way again. Eventually, we create a path through that thick snow until it becomes easier. I think that’s what it’s like with an injury. You’re going to be doing different things. Life is going to be challenging, but the more you challenge yourself and keep going, the easier it gets.

31:00
Dr. Maya Novak:
We'll continue in just a moment. I wanted to quickly jump in for two things. First, thank you for tuning in. And second, I’m sure you have at least one friend, colleague, or family member who would very much appreciate this episode. So share it with them and help us spread the word. Now let’s continue…

31:21
Dr. Maya Novak:
Do you think that accidents happen for a reason? And not as a punishment, but that there is something behind this?

31:31
Janine Shepherd:
Well I think there’s – well, that’s tricky because I certainly don’t want people to think well I’ve had an accident because it’s my punishment or I’ve done something wrong. I think we create meaning behind that. So, for me, I believe that life – there’s a purpose, a divine purpose behind whatever happens to all of us. But I don’t really dwell too much on that because I think that we can sort of get stuck in trying to find a reason and get sort of too much in the sort of intellectual side of it. I mean I think there comes a point where you have to say, well that’s happened, and that’s the past and from now on this – I’m responsible for what happens in this part of my life. Because for a long time after my accident I was very angry, with God, with life, and particularly the man that ran me over - who never came to see me in hospital, who never said sorry. A big part of that, for me, was forgiveness, being able to sort of let go. I mean I kept thinking well, why did it happen? What’s this all about? Why did he run me over? Why hasn’t he apologized? And I got to the point where I thought it really doesn’t matter. The “why” actually doesn’t matter. What matters is what am I going to do from now on.

32:55
Dr. Maya Novak:
Mm-mm. So was there a time on your healing journey when you actually started losing hope?

33:04
Janine Shepherd:
I think there’s always times when we’re down, when we struggle. I think just knowing how to get through those times and having, for me, self-compassion practices that helped me through those times. But sure, I think – I wouldn’t say losing hope – because, to me, hope is a cognitive skill. I think we’ve talked about that briefly. But sure, absolutely struggling. Even a year and a half ago – and this is the next part of my journey. A year and a half two years ago I was really struggling with chronic pain and I went back to Australia. I saw doctors. I had tests. I had cortisone injections, pain medications. Prayer and meditation. I mean the list went on. It wasn’t just until probably earlier this year that I changed my diet, and nutrition has been a new tool for me. It’s actually incredible. It’s been a game changer and I’m out of pain. So I really want to be able to share that with people too because it’s been extraordinary.

34:19
Dr. Maya Novak:
Beautiful. What have you changed in regards to your nutrition?

34:23
Janine Shepherd:
Okay, well that’s a good question. So I don’t know if you’ve heard of eating ketogenically?

34:28
Dr. Maya Novak:
Mm-mm.

34:28
Janine Shepherd:
So I’ve been doing that for about five years, but really not understanding truly how to do it properly. So now, at the beginning of the year, I thought well I can’t keep living like this. So I went what I call hardcore keto, which for people that aren’t quite sure what that is, it’s a low carb diet, high fat, moderate protein. It’s an anti-inflammatory diet. So it’s been extraordinary. I’m so excited. I’m connected with some doctors and leaders in the field right now so that I can put something together to help other people that are going through chronic pain. But basically it’s been, as I said, it’s just been a game changer for me to be able to actually live without chronic pain. So I want to be able to share that with other people because I know that there are so many people out there that do suffer from pain.

35:23
Dr. Maya Novak:
Definitely. Talking about chronic pain, or even acute pain, how did you deal or cope with pain before? Or what would you suggest to someone – let’s say that nutrition doesn’t exist – what else could someone do in regards to that?

35:41
Janine Shepherd:
Well the thing is, nutrition does exist, which is very hopeful. So, for me, it was – what some people don’t understand – and it’s not just people with spinal cord injuries and accidents, and suffering from injuries from accidents, but things like fibromyalgia and other conditions that create chronic pain. Now, chronic pain and depression share common pathways. So if you’re suffering from chronic pain, there’s a high likelihood that you’re also going to be depressed. So then, it’s sort of like a downward spiral. You’re depressed about the pain. You can try everything that you think is out there. I was so many different meds. I was on cortisone injections. I did meditation. I did all my practices that I’ve used in my life to deal with pain and still I was living with this extraordinary pain from being up on my feet with my injuries, from bursitis, from neuropathic pain and arthritis. I thought well that’s it, I’m doing everything possible. It’s almost like this sort of lightbulb moment went off in my head where I thought, well. I started doing some reading and research. Before my accident, my background is in sports science, so I’ve always been really interested in energetic pathways of the body for an athlete. Suddenly I thought, that sort of athlete mind sort of clicked in, and I thought well, I wonder if this diet actually works for inflammation. Because all the literature I’m reading, the scientific literature points to that being true. So I thought well, I’m going to try this. It took probably six weeks until I realized. I sort of woke up one morning and thought, I slept without pain, and that’s extraordinary. How did that happen? So now, I’m so committed to this and sharing this publicly with people and I’m looking into doing some studies into this as well with some people that are leading this field. But what we don’t realize is what we put in our mouths is actually so very important. If we start to think of sugar – and I’m not just talking about sugar that you put in your tea or coffee, but sugar being carbohydrates, as being like a drug, because it’s inflammatory. Honestly, it’s been extraordinary. So there is an answer. Nutrition is the answer, to me. I’m evidence of that from someone who’s been in excruciating pain – and I have a high pain threshold - to someone who is now out of pain. It’s incredible.

38:20
Dr. Maya Novak:
I’m so happy for you, really. A couple of times you mentioned dark moments and depression because this healing journey, it’s not just rainbows and unicorns and we are all happy, it’s not. So what are some tools or techniques that you would advise to someone who is in those dark moments? How can they help themselves?

38:46
Janine Shepherd:
Well, you’re right. I don’t think I’m an anti-happiness person, but I certainly think that it has a lot to account for because it’s almost as if people get to the point where they think well, everyone else is happy. You look at social media and everyone’s happy. Well if I’m not happy, there’s something wrong with me. So don’t spend a lot of time on social media, that’s my first advice. Don’t compare yourself with other people. It’s tough to do. I mean it’s depressing when you start thinking everyone else is doing well, and I’m not - which is not the truth, of course. I think social media is smoke and mirrors. But I would say number one, meditation is a great tool and it’s been a great tool for me. Never stop learning. Never stop reading inspiring books, watching inspiring TED talks. Getting help from professionals, talk therapy is wonderful. Really asking yourself what are the things that are self-soothing for me? Whether it’s a cup of tea, a nice hot bubble bath, a book, a walk in the woods. Have a list of those things. Even write down those things. These are the 10 self-soothing things that I can do when I’m having a downtime. Pick up the phone and these are my one, two, three people that I’m going to call that I know will help me sort through these tough times. So if you can write a list of these things, you know when you’re having a dark time, go through that list and tick them off and do those things, because it actually chemically changes our body.

40:26
Dr. Maya Novak:
That’s such great advice because it’s true. When we are in that down moment, it’s hard to think of anything really positive.

40:34
Janine Shepherd:
Yeah.

40:34
Dr. Maya Novak:
But if we do the work before, have the list, it’s so much easier than to climb out of that hole there.

40:42
Janine Shepherd:
It is and some of the things that we might do – and I know this sounds sort of crazy – but you might want to have a day where you sit up in front of the television with a blanket and you binge watch your favorite show. It’s great, you know what I mean. You have to give yourself permission to do these things. We don’t have to be out there being strong all the time. There’s going to be times when we want to retreat and you want to do these things that you know are going to help you reset.

41:10
Dr. Maya Novak:
Yes, and that’s a really good point because in the last few years – it might be also a few decades – it’s all about personal growth and that you shouldn’t have any of these things. Like binge-watching Netflix, because this is just giving your time away and not doing something productive. But it’s such a good point that it’s okay to also just give yourself permission to do something like that.

41:44
Janine Shepherd:
Absolutely. You don’t have to be 110% all of the time. There’s times when you need to go, you know, I’ve been going hard. I need to just stop. Often we get sick and that’s the body’s way of saying have a break. About a month ago, I got the flu and it was wonderful – I had a wonderful week at home binge watching this wonderful show from Australia. It was great and my body said stop, you’ve been traveling nonstop, this is a time for you now. Or I’ll pick up a book and I’ll light the fire and I’ll read a book. It’s okay. It’s all okay.

42:18
Dr. Maya Novak:
Yes. So before I asked you if you had any dark moments on your journey. What would you say to someone who right now, even though they might – I mean I love this interview and they might feel like okay, I maybe can really do it – but what if they still don’t feel it and they’re really – they’re losing hope, basically. What would you advise them?

42:39
Janine Shepherd:
Well, of course, as I said hope itself is a cognitive skill. We need that. CR Snyder talks about goals, pathways, and agencies. So you need to be able to reset your goals. You need to have a reason. Ask yourself what is my “why”. What are the things – one of the great questions you ask yourself is what do I daydream about? That usually gives you an indication of, you know, these are the things that I love. These are the things that make me feel alive. Maybe it’s time to enroll in a new course or find a new direction in my life. So ask yourself, what are the things that I really love? What do I daydream about? And that gives you an indication of where perhaps you might find things that might re-inspire you. So as we’ve talked about before, self-compassion is so important. Don’t be hard on yourself. Really give yourself a break and say it’s okay. I love the work of Kristin Neff, she’s a great – she’s a professor and she really developed the work of self-compassion. So I would say go onto her site and download some of her self-compassion exercises. The literature, the data is there that shows that when practice self-compassion, self-kindness, we actually release chemicals like oxytocin which are the chemicals that are released when a mother breastfeeds her baby. They’re the feel-good chemicals. So if you’re feeling really down, you might feel a little silly, you might decide to do it in public, but give yourself a hug, sooth your hair, rocking, putting your hand on your heart. Going to someone – your loved one or a friend and hugging. I’m a great fan of hugging. These are all things that actually do change the chemistry of our bodies. There’s always an answer. There’s always something we can do.

44:39
Dr. Maya Novak:
I love this. Maybe if someone who is listening and maybe they cannot give themselves a hug because they just cannot – maybe they’re in a cast, maybe they’re – what I love is also visualization.

44:55
Janine Shepherd:
Yes.

44:55
Dr. Maya Novak:
Just visualize that you are hugging yourself and it can actually make the same changes in your body.

45:02
Janine Shepherd:
You’re right Maya. The body doesn’t know the difference between real and imagined. So do that – imagine. And also there’s a – on Kristin Neff’s website – they can go and look at a self-compassion meditation where they can just sit. She can guide you through that meditation and you can just close your eyes and go through that. It actually has a healing – she talks a lot about the healing powers of self-compassion.

45:26
Dr. Maya Novak:
Mm-mm. With your years and decades of experience and the fact you also went through a lot with doctors, do you think that things are changing and that the future of healing will be different than it was, or than it is right now?

45:47
Janine Shepherd:
Just from my personal experience, I think yes, it is changing. I think people are more aware that we have incredible powers to heal ourselves through our thoughts, as well as through the actions. But I also think that doctors, I think, for example, we’ve talked and touched a little bit on nutrition. I think as we understand more about how, for example, something simple like carbohydrates and sugar creates inflammation in our bodies, I think that that’s also going to create a real paradigm shift in the way we tackle healing in the future, and recovery.

46:23
Dr. Maya Novak:
Mm-mm. So what would you say if we wrap slowly – what is your number one advice that you would give to someone who is right now injured and is on this healing journey?

46:35
Janine Shepherd:
The number one advice – well, what I always say to people when I give talks is I talk about loving the hills. I know it’s a difficult thing to do, but the analogy for that is the hills are the things that we don’t like, that we’d rather not have in life, but they’re actually the very things that are our greatest teachers. If you ignore them, and if you turn your back on them, they’re not going to go away. They will just keep coming back, taping you on the shoulder, and saying hey, I’m here. So really turn towards those things that you fear and put your arms up and say yes. Make the decision okay, what can I learn from this. Because I think that – I always say to people WTGIT – What’s The Gift In This? If you look with sincerity, if you look with a sincere heart, you will find a gift in every experience.

47:26
Dr. Maya Novak:
But again, you have to give yourself permission to see that positive thing.

47:31
Janine Shepherd:
Absolutely. You have to. All it takes is an unwillingness to give up. You just make that decision. This is my life. I get this one life, this one chance here. I’m going to make the best of it.

47:45
Dr. Maya Novak:
Mm-mm. The last question that I have for you, it’s a bit of fun, but I’m interested in your answer. If you were stuck on a desert island and, of course, with a fresh injury and you could bring only one thing with you that would help you heal, what would that be?

48:08
Janine Shepherd:
I would probably say a notebook and a pen so I could write everything down and leave it for someone else who will find it later on. I’ve always been a fan. I’m a writer, so I write about my experience and I think that everyone that’s had an injury or an illness needs to sit down and write about it Preferably with a pen and paper because they say that the speed of writing, when we’re writing not on a computer but pen and paper, slows our minds down. But I think writing about our experience helps us to make sense of things. I think if I was stuck out there on my own, I’d want to be writing my thoughts down and making sense of them.

48:49
Dr. Maya Novak:
So when did you start writing? When was that moment when you said, right let me just pour my heart out and share this?

48:58
Janine Shepherd:
I think that happened when – I wrote my first book when I was pregnant with Annabel, my eldest daughter so I would say a good five years after my accident. Because before that I’d never thought about it. I was recovering. I was getting my life back. Then it was almost as if one day I sort of woke up and said, you know, I’m going to write about this. I didn’t know whether anyone would ever read it, and of course, it’s turned out way down the track that certainly happened. My latest book is now just being – has been optioned in Hollywood – and so it looks like that’s going to be made into a movie, which is very exciting. But certainly, I didn’t write for that reason. I mean I really wrote for me. I wrote that first book, and all subsequent books really, for me to make sense of my experience, and that’s been an enormous part of my healing.

49:52
Dr. Maya Novak:
Yes, so if someone would love to write a book, it might a good thing that you write first for yourself, nothing about how to help others, but going inside and digging things.

50:07
Janine Shepherd:
Absolutely. I mean I didn’t even know if my book would get published, my first book, but I wrote it for me. I think that it’s such an important part of healing for anyone that’s gone through injury or recovery.

50:20
Dr. Maya Novak:
Yes. Janine, I so enjoyed this.

50:24
Janine Shepherd:
Thank you, Maya.

50:24
Dr. Maya Novak:
Where can people find more about you?

50:26
Janine Shepherd:
Well, I’m all around the place. I’m on, of course, Facebook and Instagram – janine_shepherd; Twitter - @janineshepherd – LinkedIn as well, and people can go to my website janineshepherd.com. There’s some free tools there that they can download. I’ve got a tool called the question method, which is a way of reframing the experience that someone might be going through in life. So that’s a really great tool for someone who’s in recovery right now as well.

50:57
Dr. Maya Novak:
Perfect. Janine, thank you so much for being here.

51:00
Janine Shepherd:
Thank you so much for having me, Maya.

51:03
Dr. Maya Novak:
This wraps up today’s Mindful Injury Recovery Talk with Janine Shepherd. If you haven’t done it yet, subscribe to the podcast on whatever platform you’re using to tune in, and share it with your loved ones. As you know: sharing is caring. To access show notes, links, and transcript of today’s episode go to mayanovak.com/podcast. To learn more about The Mindful Injury Recovery Method visit my website mayanovak.com and find my book Heal Beyond Expectations on Amazon. Until next time – keep evolving, blooming, and healing.