The challenge before you, builds courage within you.
At the age of 23, Josh Komen was one of the fastest 800m runners in New Zealand, then in a blink of an eye, he became one of the sickest. He then had to learn to run a new race, it was a race for his life.
Josh was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, not once but twice. This diagnosis took him on a 10 year battle of deep depression, having an allogenic stem cell transplant, being put into a coma, developing graft vs host disease, pneumonia, multiple complications, treatment overseas in Australia for 5 years, plus having multiple heart attacks.
Today, 12 years after he received his deadly diagnosis, he is alive, strong, healthy and happy.
Not only did he survive but he began to thrive.
Josh reclaimed back his health, through patience, persistence and perseverance.
Josh is now married and is a father to his first child.
Life has taken Josh on an arduous path. Through his own suffering Josh has learnt so much. He understands how life can be so difficult for everyone. He shares his story and tools that have helped him through such adversity to encourage others to confront life's challenges, to seize opportunities, build resilience, learn to be comfortable in the uncomfortable, and to continue courageously with life itself.
Talking Points
Courage/ Resilience/ Strength
Life is tough, and it can change so quickly.Courage/ Resilience/ Strength
The plans that we have mapped out in our mind sometimes do not go the way we see, we need to learn to adapt and create space to see another way forward. It takes courage to zoom out and look beyond ourselves. When we are no longer able to change a certain situation, we are then forced to change ourselves, and that takes courage to do so.
Communication/ Mental Health
We all have our own challenges to overcome, and to help us overcome those challenges we need to be able to communicate them to people we trust. Once I learnt to share my own pain it was as though a weight was taken off my shoulders. This helped me go forward in a more positive and clear direction. The truth is we are not using all our strength unless we ask for help.
Communication/ Mental Health
Connection/ Relationships
Through my own arduous, chaotic, challenging life experience, I have learnt that the foundation to health lies within human relationships. Connecting with oneself and others, and holding on to love is key. Love is the fabric that holds humanity together.
Connection/ Relationships
I have been attending Scientific conferences for over 20 years now and this is the very first time I have ever seen a speaker get a standing ovation. The feedback I have received from the de ... keep reading The New Zealand Institute of Medical Laboratory Science
