Why This, Why Now?!
The rhythm that saved me is the one I’m sharing with you
I’m Ben, a breathwork facilitator, author of 2 Things To Do Today, recovering perfectionist, and Co-founder of Lift to Rise Fitness. I help people rebuild their rhythm and regulate their nervous systems so life doesn’t feel like a threat to their body anymore.
My Substack is where I unpack the healing rhythms that saved me: one breath, one kind action, one honest post at a time. This is not another to-do list. It’s a way back to yourself.
Join me for grounded stories, nervous system truths, and the inside story behind 2 Things To Do Today, the book I wrote from rock bottom to rhythm, plus raw, behind-the-scenes glimpses into becoming an author, the self-doubt, the breakthroughs, and the sacred mess of writing something that might save you first. You’ll also get practical nervous system tools: breath practices, micro-movements, and 2-minute actions to help you feel better without burning out.
What I didn’t expect was that the rhythm I now teach, one breath, one kind action, repeated, would be the exact thing that carried me through the unraveling of my marriage, the identity crisis that followed, and the slow process of starting over at 40 in my parents’ basement.
This isn’t the story of someone who figured it all out first and then wrote a book. It’s the story of someone who lived it, breath by breath.
Becoming an author wasn’t part of some master plan. It was an act of survival that became sacred, a way to tell the truth about healing, staying, and learning how to come home to yourself when everything else falls apart.
So why start a Substack? Because the book was just the beginning.
I’ve been in the health and wellness space for 15 years. I’ve coached transformations, facilitated breakdowns, guided breaths that turned into breakthroughs, but what I’ve learned is this: people don’t need more rules. They need rhythm.
They need tiny wins.
They need to know they’re not alone when life feels like too much.
They need a place to come where it’s safe to exhale.
That’s what this space is.
I’m not here to sell you on perfection. I’m here to remind you that your nervous system isn’t broken, it’s just been overwhelmed for too long. And your body? It’s not the problem. It’s the place the solution begins.
We’ll talk about real healing, not the airbrushed version.
We’ll laugh (probably at my expense).
We’ll breathe through the hard stuff, without spiritual jargon or pressure to transcend your very human mess.
This is for the moments you feel off but don’t know why.
For when your breath disappears.
For when “trying harder” doesn’t work anymore.
I started this Substack because I’m still walking this path, and I wanted a space to walk it with you.
Stick around. It might get weird (probably). It will definitely get honest.
And somewhere in all that, you might just find a rhythm that feels like home.
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Thank you for being here
Ben Gustafson