I’m not sure what I thought Breaking Free by Chet Vosloo was going to be about. It was on my Kindle and I was bored and needed something to read so I opened it up. At first I thought it was going to be a contemporary romance. It seemed to be a guy hanging out in bars, sleeping around, and generally sailing aimlessly though life. Then, it seemed to be an adventure story. He started traveling to remote places and bicycling across continents and getting altitude sickness while climbing a mountain.
Then came the spiritual and psychological stories. The main character experienced significant anxiety issues and had physical consequences from that anxiety. The book then follows his quite interesting and unique journey to “Break Free” from his limiting beliefs while living in Asia, an ashram, and in an entourage following a guru.
There were several things that really captured my interest. First was the author’s description of monkey mind, that distinctly annoying thing that happens when one first attempts to meditate and control one’s thoughts. The weekend meditation workshops that I participated in were some of the most physically, emotionally, and mentally draining activities I have every chosen to attend. When I first became aware that I couldn’t purposefully harness my thoughts for more than a few seconds at a time it was quite an eye opener. Even more shocking was the “no way, no how” reaction that my brain expressed when I made the attempt.
Second, the author did a fantastic job describing the physical manifestations of emotional dis-ease. The physical problems are real, but the origin isn’t necessarily in the body. This is something I experience personally and have seen in my professional practice for decades. This is proof again that the body, mind, and spirit and completely and inextricably intertwined.
If you enjoy reading about intercontinental adventures, this book is for you. If you benefit from reading self-help books, this book is for you. If you suffer from anxiety, panic attacks, or low self-esteem, this book is for you. If you need an entertaining reminder of the importance of self-control, spiritual development, and the connectedness of the universe, this book is for you.