Komal Minhas is a first generation Indian-Canadian immigrant who, in just the past two years, was invited to the White House to premier her documentary ‘Dream, Girl,’ was named one of Oprah’s Supersoul 100, and was on the cover of Power & Influence Magazine. Her passion is fostering the advancement of women and girls, especially women and girls of color. We got so lost in our conversation that we hardly got past the first question. There is just so much to share!

We Are Not Invincible

• Right at the time when all of these tremendous accomplishments were happening in her life, she was hit with a diagnosis of a rare form of melanoma and the subsequent surgeries needed to remove it.
• As a first generation immigrant and woman of color, Komal has always felt the need to push through everything, but this was not something she could push through on her own.
• Komal opens up about her vertigo and partial vision loss she woke up with one morning and talks about her healing process.

“There Were Whispers”

• Looking back, she sees warning signs that she was on her way to that breaking point. “I had developed a version of myself that only knew how to run.”
• She sees connections back to her past, including witnessing abuse and violence as she was growing up.
• She recognizes that she can’t place blame on herself for any of it. “ I did not do this to myself, but I can recover from it in the ways I can.”

The Healing Process

• We talk a lot about something that I relate to personally: the connection between the physical, spiritual, and emotional health.
• Komal found healing by practicing self-care: meditation, using a mindset coach, and seeing her doctors. “Doing the really tough things that build a strong foundation in our lives, within which, once that’s done, facials and manicures can actually make you feel good.”
• We discuss the idea of cutting out the bad in life. While that’s a good practice, you have to make sure to have the hard conversations where needed.
• She emphasizes that you have to allow your self to feel all of your feelings (especially the bad ones), because they are valid and you need to understand them in order to move through them. “What different perspectives can we give to the memories that are haunting us?”

Thanks for listening, tribe. This episode was sponsored by our very own Patreon Tribe!  You can join our Podcast Tribe at www.patreon.com/therefinedcollective and support our Podcast for as little as $5/month with first access to the podcast!

XO, Kat Harris

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