In episode 117, we are given a front row seat to the journey of Peter Tavernise, whose tiger-like courage and self-assuredness inspires. Peter grew up a "military brat," learning early the importance of serving others from his Air Force father and mother, who taught underprivileged students, some in extreme poverty.
After college, Peter saw the possibilities of the Internet for nonprofits. Joining the "Circuit Riders" volunteer brigade, he introduced the Internet to many nonprofit executive directors from Florida to Chicago. He found his dream job at Cisco to literally "transform the nonprofit sector through the use of the Internet." He shares the best and worst as Executive Director of the Cisco Foundation from creating engaging math games for kids and creating Covid internet solutions to reconnecting regions after natural disasters.Ā
Peter opens up about the decline of his healthā€”years of symptom after symptom cascading inā€”all the while test results not showing what exactly was wrong. After a former marine said, "You look like a prisoner of war," he began to work from home. Peter was suffering and "begging the universe for just 5 minutes a week where I didn't feel like I was going to die." After 7 years and 32 different health professionals, one doctor finally cracked the code, and so began his road to recovery.
Hear how he went from catastrophizing everythingā€”fixated on relentless painā€”to resilience, the power of somatics and invaluable life lessons.Ā
