I meditate twice a day, and I still enjoy a beer or bourbon and a good steak. I have peace and clarity of mind. I have three fantastic kids, my family has grown by five with a beautiful partner, three fantastic step kids and grandson, I am healthy, and I am happy in life.
I was born on 15th February 1972 and from the age of fifteen I had the urge to learn meditation; beginning training in my early 20’s at a Kung Fu school in Brisbane is where I did my first meditation course. Three years later I attended a seminar where I was shown another technique. I also tried a couple of meditation CD’s, I worked with these techniques off and on for a number of years with a few experiences but never found any real change.
I have worked in construction since leaving school in 1990 and at the age of 34 I started a construction company in June 2006, two months after having our second child. Within 18 months I had grown the company to have 45 staff and 15 sub-contractors. I had many contracts and was working on several major government projects. I had money in the bank, a house, and investment property’s, owned flash Mercedes, no company debt, no personal debt, it would appear that I was lov’in life and all things looked great from the outside.
I began to realise I was not enjoying myself; I was drinking every night to wind down, to Band-Aid the stress and worry and to help me sleep at night. I would wake up at about 2.00am most nights worrying about things that really were not worth worrying about. I would break out in sweats, and at times I would not interact well, being withdrawn and focused on the inner turmoil. I was not coping with the stress or life in general; I had no understanding on how to release stress from the body’s nervous system and no understanding on how the mental and physical fatigue was compounding the problem. I had developed a dull sweat which I discovered to be galangal fever and in December 2007 I was admitted to Hospital with meningitis, which took months to bounce back from because I was still carrying galangal fever. I never truly came well. On the 02 November 2008 I was once again admitted to Hospital having Scalp cellulitis, which is an infection in the body that was showing up in my head under the scalp, my head was swelling up with numerous pimples coming out. Spending a week in hospital I made the decision that I was going to bring good health back to my life and the need to learn meditation had become far more than an urge, my heath was far from good. Externally I appeared to have everything, but I was far from happy, and I was not enjoying my life. I needed a better way to manage my stress and calm the inner turmoil to become healthy again.
When I was released from hospital, I began my research into meditation. I contacted three meditation organisations, one of them being Streamline Meditation where I spoke to Malcolm. I was instantly drawn to Malcolm and was initiated into Streamline Meditation on 27 November 2008 at Stones Corner in Brisbane. Throughout the course the experiences where remarkable and I knew that this meditation was like no other I had experienced. I finished my four-week course in early January 2009 due to the Christmas break.
I continued to meditate finding my inner experience becoming stronger and more pleasant. I would talk to Malcolm to share my experiences, to clarify my experiences, or if I was having trouble dropping into the meditative state. Having Malcolm there to bounce things off was important as he would put things into perspective. My health was improving, I was not drinking except for the occasional social drink which I was enjoying more, and I was far more relaxed and was beginning to enjoy my life again.
In December 2010 I began to go through a separation with my ex-wife and after 12 and half years of marriage I left the family home in April 2011. I rented a property nearby to ensure I had time with the kids and over the next three years I witnessed and experienced the worst in human nature. With three young kids, properties and the company invested, I found myself in and out of mediation, then court. The decisions that were made throughout the separation that were out of my control, put me in a position that seen me close the company in 2013. After seven and a half years of job and wealth creation the company was no more, but my divorce was granted.
Throughout this three-year period, I found myself moving through the experiences in a totally profound way. I managed things far better, I was calm, I did not worry, I would deal with problems as they arose and it did not matter how big a problem may have seemed, I dealt with it without worry and in a calm manner. I always slept well at night and the more I meditated the stronger I became and the more clarity I had to deal with the day-to-day problems that arose. I had good days and bad days, but the good days were really good and far more frequent. The bad days weren’t that bad. I was not drinking except for the odd social drink with a mate which I enjoyed more as I was not having a drink to make myself feel better or numb the stress and worry of the day. As the external world was crumbling my internal world got stronger and the inner turmoil that once controlled me was no more, a far cry from my earlier experience when I truly did not have anything to worry about except for what was internally created. I was calm and life was becoming more enjoyable.
I do believe that if I did not introduce Streamline Meditation into my life and learning how to release the stress that had accumulated in my body and relinquish the inner turmoil, the illnesses and mental fatigue that I was experiencing through the stress of the past, would have taken its toll and I wouldn’t have coped with the external experiences that arose from the separation. Streamline Meditation has become an important and enjoyable part of my life, it has allowed me to manage stress and anxiety, bring good health back to my life and while the materiel wealth of the past may not be with me now, the mental health, the physical health and clarity of mind that I enjoy has easily assists me to create new wealth, a beautiful relationship and the life I live keeps getting stronger, more peaceful and far more enjoyable.
I have since gone on to study with Proctor-Gallagher Institute and become a fully qualified “Thinking Into Results Facilitator” and also holds a Diploma in Life Coaching and is a certified NLP practitioner.
After witnessing shifts in others using this naturally occurring ‘no technique’ methodology time and time again, I have develop Streamline into an online coaching service using my business and coaching knowledge to bring Streamline to the masses, as it was just too good not to share.
Thank you for reading a part of my journey,
Troy Drake
Mindset Coach that teaches you how to tap your mind’s ability to be happy, at peace, in control and successful, no matter your environment.