How I Beat

How I Beat is an online community containing authentic personal stories of ordinary men and women who overcame a severe and debilitating physical or psychological conditions which substantially affected the individuals life and necessitated vast and lasting changes in order to overcome the condition and breakthrough into a rich, balanced and full life characterised by gratitude and understanding.

The idea for forming these sites began in 2005 when I launched www.howibeatrsi.com I created the site as part of my recovery when I realised I desperate wanted to give back to the community some of the wisdom gained by my experience of pain. I also realised in some ways I had more authority to do this than many so-called professionals and could offer a unique perspective and understanding . It is very important to be heard when we are in pain, it is equally important to be heard by people who truly understand.

The intention and purpose of this site is feverishly narrow: in truth, to provide hope, understanding and wisdom for suffering people in pain. There is absolutely no agenda to sell any products, advocate a particular religious or spiritual belief. Any reference of such belief will be purely incidental to the individual’s unique recovery and anything marketed on the site will be a creation of the sufferer in response to his or her condition.

I believe that sales and advertising techniques and approaches frequently lead large amounts of people to firmly believe the ‘solution’ to their problem, be what it may, is to be solely found within specific types of medication and/or sophisticated tailor-made, complex interventions from one or many specialised professionals through which a solution can be obtained and implemented. More often than not, and for very good and proper reasons, people want instant solutions, honest answers, and are not willing to put up with anything less, and when that is not apparent the tendency and common reaction is to become deeply frustrated, annoyed and fed-up. When these negative emotions protract the sufferers’ mental health descends – something quickly and imperceptibly – into dreadful feelings of helplessness, despair, and depression and sometimes to a terrible state in which ones simply gives up all hope and settles for defeat as the only option.

The reality of any proper recovery is that it is always complex and more often than not takes a long time, laced with many victories and disappointments along the way, but fundamentally you need other people to help you along the way. You alone can do it, but you can’t do it alone.

How I Beat online community is guided by 4 fundamental principles: