Jeremy de Laroche

14/06/2025

Some good observations from a sad situation

Dr Pierdante Piccioni woke up one day to find he'd forgotten the last 12 years of his life.

Grappling with a strange new world, one question tormented him. Had he been a good man? Or bad?

After a car crash in 2013, Pier woke up in hospital thinking it was 2001. He couldn't recognise his wife, and when his adult sons walked into his hospital room he asked them who they were.

"I thought they were two actors or liars," he says. "I couldn't understand why the world had changed. But the reality was I had changed. In a few hours, I had lost 12 years of my life."

He was amazed by the technological advances which had occurred - the internet, tablets, social media, smartphones. His world had been completely transformed. Not only that, but he found out his mother had died three years before.

"It was the worst experience a person can have, not to remember what your mama told you before dying," Pier says.

Angry and reeling from the shock, and no longer able to practise medicine, Pier struggled to find the man he had once been. He asked his hospital colleagues, was he a good man - or bad?

He was shocked by their answer. They told him he had not been a nice person in the last 12 years. He had been promoted to the chief of the hospital emergency department, and had been a harsh and angry boss.

To find out more, he read all the emails he had written during that time - almost 80,000 of them. "I had it confirmed that I was a bad man, a bad chief, a severe person," says Pier. "I was very sad when I read those mails."

He felt alone, a foreigner in a world he didn't understand. He decided the only option was to become a better person. He learned to listen more, and to speak less. He resolved to be a better husband too, and found himself falling in love with his wife again.

He says the experience has taught him many things, but the most important one is this:

"If you want to live, you don't have to continue to think of the past. Think of every day from now until the future," he says. "Make new, beautiful memories... this is my mantra."

🎧 Hear more on Outlook: https://bbc.in/3SPMU9A

31/05/2025

Being awkward is definitely a feeling, but I feel it's also a construct. And something we can dismantle and re-structure so we allow ourselves to feel more free.

03/05/2025

What a beautiful day of connection and movement. This was my first time attending the yoga and wellness festival in Penrith, and it had such a great vibe.

I did some mantra, qi gong, and attended a talk. There were heaps of activities and plenty of market stalls to check out.

I'm look forward to next year!

19/07/2024

16/09/2023

It pays to give yourself time to rest and recover. We live in a world that's currently all about the hustle; how much can you make? How much can you spend? Do you have a career? Do you have passions?

Progress is all well and good. That's what builds up life around us. It is a fast track to breaking point or burnout if there isn't some rest involved, however.

So, what can you do?

Set time aside for yourself. 15 minutes, an hour, a weekend.

Rest well, recover fully.

Swim, walk, meditate, read, holiday, eat, drink. Find what you need to recuperate and get yourself in an invigorated state.

When you return to work, you will have energy and passion once more!

06/08/2023

Time is a funny thing to experience. Each moment is a second on the clock of life; continuously ticking along whether we are holding on or letting go.

We grow, we age, and we change. All with the knowledge of what we were and the possibility of what we might be.

It can be a scary thing when you're staring down the face of the existential clock.

I know for myself, as I was looking at photos of myself 6 years younger. How life has changed so much in this time and yet so little.

My smile is the same, just a little more wrinkled, possibly slightly more rotund, and questionably more wise.

As I flicked through the photos in my album, I almost felt a pang of sadness. Missing the life I once had.

While I can never be younger, I can accept these natural changes and use the time to build a future life that I can enjoy.

This is the power I have over time. I can influence my future in the present.

05/08/2023

"The best days of our life are never behind us. They’re always in front of us. Never forget that."

10/07/2023

Life is a battle between light and dark that exists within our own perceptions. These are all moments of time we experience and subsequently associate meaning.

How we perceive a moment can affect the meaning we may derive from it. We've all had those challenging days where you drop your keys, and it feels like "of course this would happen to me right now". However, you would likely react differently if you felt like you were having a good day.

This duality exists within our sense of events and how we experience it within a given internal framework. Our perception gives power to one or the other.

With such a revelation, we can build our awareness around our own experience of light and dark.

Awareness is a powerful tool; it can allow us to look through a metaphorical looking glass at our own lives, detached from the habitual dichotomy of light and dark.

It allows us to step back and look deeper at ourselves. How exactly are we perceiving this situation? Is there something bigger going on with us that's contributing to that face of perception? It might feel dreadful at first. However, is it really all that dark?

17/06/2023

The tree of life is infinitely connected to all worlds of existence. Supporting the needs for stability and abundance.

Just like any kind of world, we require stability and structure too; a foundation. Without a firm foundation, it is a challenge to build anything that may grow tall.

Just like our own lives. Creating a positive environment that allows us to develop habits that are conducive to productive change to improve our lives.

So, grow your tree of life. Develop your foundations and support. Allow better habits to become established, and your pathway will become straightforward.

26/03/2023

When was the last time you did something for you? One thing just for yourself?

Do you always put other people, work, or various other stuff before your own needs? Do you have a real issue with saying no?

Boundaries are important when we're considering our own health and well-being. Over working or succumbing to the perceived responsibilities that you feel resigned to can be detrimental.

If you're feeling overwhelmed, try saying no to extra responsibilities. Carve out some time for yourself and your needs.

You deserve the space to breathe and find the balance you need.

09/03/2023

This is one of the most amazing reminders I've had today!