Neuroscience Behind the Mantra

Today we’re sharing something special that was previously only available over on our Substack page, our exclusive live post-episode chat Mayim and Jonathan did with our special Substack community about the recent episode we did with Michael Singer, the renowned spiritual teacher and author of The Untethered Soul.

While many enter 2026 with a "best year ever" mentality that can feel arbitrary or even off-putting, this discussion offers something more grounded: a simple and powerful mantra for when things go wrong—"I can handle this."

How do we do that? We start by deconstructing the internal narratives that keep us in a reactive state. Mayim and Jonathan dive into the "most valuable sell" for anyone seeking peace: the realization that we don’t need to "wake up" to a new reality, but rather stop putting ourselves back to sleep with our own "emotional garbage".

But "I can handle this" is more than just a phrase; it’s a way to influence our biology. Mayim explains that when we use our intellect to imagine something different, we are actually changing our physiology—altering our body’s ability to heal, connect, and thrive. By leaning into this mantra, we stop the "animal part" of our brain from merely reacting to past programming and instead use our consciousness to navigate the world with choice.

The live also explores:

- The Myth of the Permanent High: Spiritual awakening is not a constant state of euphoria. It’s about the "residue" you bring back from the mountaintop to handle the messy reality of traffic, technology fails, and human conflict.

- The Sky Metaphor for Awareness: Peace and beauty are always available—like the sky—but we are often "unavailable" to notice them because we are fighting reality rather than acknowledging it.

- Navigating the "Grit vs. Flow" Balance: A deep dive into the tension between the tenacity required to achieve goals and the spiritual wisdom required to read the "writing on the wall" when it’s time to change course.

- Micro-Deconstruction of Fear: Jonathan explains how to slow down a reactive moment to distinguish between a genuine lack of safety and a familiar "story" generated by past programming.

- Acceptance as an Active Choice: How to move beyond "ignoring" or "suppressing" difficult feelings and instead learning to take the "signs of resistance" as vital information.

This is a conversation about the intersection of neurobiology and ancient wisdom, providing a toolkit for anyone ready to stop fighting the universe and start handling whatever 2026 brings.

We hope you enjoy it, and we hope to see you over on Substack!

Follow us on Substack for Exclusive Bonus Content: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bialikbreakdown.substack.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BialikBreakdown.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube.com/mayimbialik⁠⁠⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices