Josh Komen

Sometimes there are moments we need to bookmark, moments of significant meaning that you know that will never happen again. When I saw the world through @blake_weston27 eyes I knew he’d capture for all of us what this moment encompasses....ill let you decide. I only knew Dresden from a bag of stem cells a place I had never seen yet somehow it was part of me, it was in my blood - literally. A city which played a role in my fight, in my survival. For 27 years, I carried a single dream close to my heart, to represent New Zealand on the track, to wear the black singlet with pride. But cancer came and stole that chance away, turning what felt like destiny into a door slammed shut. Yet, dreams have a way of never really dying. They change shape, they find new paths, and sometimes, they come true in ways you never expected. In Dresden, I ran the 800m not just a race, but a full circle moment of a dream and a second chance. I may have finished last, but I was alive. I finished what i had set out to do. This moment where I reclaimed a piece of what cancer, life tried to take - my spirit. This wasn’t just about running, it was about fortitude, faith, and fulfilment This picture captures that moment the culmination of pain, struggle, and unwavering gratitude for everyone thats helped, stood beside and those who are not with us today. It reminds me that no matter how long or how difficult the journey, there is always a way forward. If life demands everything from you, remember that every step even the hardest one can bring you closer to the dream you thought was lost. Never let go. Never give up. Because sometimes a dream survives not despite of the struggle, but because of the meaning behind it. Thank you @worldtransplantgames for creating this concept of celebration 📸 @din__ernst 📸 @blake_weston27 #nevergiveup #grateful #meaning #dreams #transplantation #leukaemia #bonemarrowtransplant #dresden #newzealand #silverfern #fullcirlce #thankyouforyoursupport

Josh Komen has beaten leukaemia twice and survived more than 10 heart attacks... At 23, Josh was once one of NZ’s fastest 800m runners chasing dreams of going to the Commonwealth Games, until life threw him the ultimate curveball. Josh is such an epic human. He has been through so much and is one of the most positive and grateful humans I’ve ever met. His incredible story is live for everyone to hear now - watch or listen wherever you get podcasts!

“Celebrating life after transplantation” - @worldtransplantgames The transplant games were founded in 1978 Portsmouth England by a Dr named Dr. Maurice Slapak - A transplant surgeon. Inspired by the Olympics and Paralympics. It’s a similar format but for Transplant recipients and donors. The games promote a celebration of life, awareness of transplant donation, selflessness, resilience, hope and meaningful connections. The aim is to provide the importance and awareness of transplant donation, foster a sense of community, inspire hope and motivation by showcasing the potential for a fulfilling and active life after transplantation, while also advocating active participation in personal health and wellbeing living a healthy and active lifestyle. Its special. This year there will be 15 transplant recipient’s flying the flag for New Zealand 🇳🇿 in Dresden, Germany 🇩🇪 to compete at the world transplant games. The games are more than just competition over 60 countries come together to celebrate LIFE. Appreciation and gratitude for the extension we have all been given. To acknowledge the ones who are not here, and the ones who gave so much to others. It’s deeply meaningful. The @nztransplantgamesassociation are seeking a sponsor, to help with funding for uniforms, enabling us to wear the silver fern on the world transplant stage! 🇳🇿🇳🇿 If this is you and would like to be involved please drop me a DM, or message @nztransplantgamesassociation Any little bit of support is appreciated. As Viktor Frankl said “Every human is questioned by life, and that person can only answer to life’s questions” For some it’s the world transplant games - to celebrate life, that we are here still breathing and are deeply grateful. 🎥 @jackrubycreative #transplant #heart #lung #kidney #pancreas #bonemarrow #life #celebration #breath #grateful #participation #meaning #doner #organ #bonemarrowtransplant #gvhd #worldtransplantgames #nztransplantgamesassociation #sponsor

Here I am, sitting in a box - well I called it a “coffin” surrounded by rice packs, about to undergo Total Body Irradiation (T.B.I) before my transplant. I had no idea how much this moment would change me. My body has changed in ways I never could have anticipated. Since my transplant, I’ve looked in the mirror and barely recognised myself, the pigmentation, the shape, the skin I now live in. The pain I carry isn’t just visible on the outside. It lives in my skin, muscles, behind my eyes, inside my mouth, quietly, constantly, in ways most people never see. There were days I couldn’t accept it. If I’m honest, there are still days I struggle. But somewhere along the way, I stopped fixating on what I couldn’t control and started coming back to what I could control. - My own inner voice, the process not the outcome. It’s hard it requires patience and work, this is where breathing, prayer and meditation have helped immensely. I still have goals. I still have dreams. And that’s called living. I walk toward them, but I am not determined by them. The outcome doesn’t get to decide my value. Before the transplant, I chased results. The next thing to achieve, to prove, to perform. What I’m building now is the human being, grounded in my values, in the way I show up, in the person I choose to be each day. Quieter. Slower. More meaningful I’m learning to be comfortable in my own skin, my skinny, pigmented, transplanted skin. But I keep coming back to something simple: I am connected. To myself. To the people around me. To the ground I stand on. There’s something deeply spiritual in that, despite my limitations, maybe even because of them. Other people’s opinions no longer get to limit me. I came back to the one thing I could control, the attitude I carry and the intention to stay present. In this body. In this moment. In this life. This human being is flawed in many ways yet always trying to find meaning in every moment. I am not the same as I was. - nor should I be. It’s daily work. And the work will continue. #keepbreathing 😮‍💨 #meaning #growth #controlthecontrollables #innervoice

My life has been stressful, challenging just like so many others, however I think it’s where our efforts and intention is directed towards. Such as a goal we perceive as meaningless this can evoke a very different internal stress response than the same effort directed toward something we find meaningful. I’ve found when meaning is absent, effort, pain, challenges feels heavy, draining, overwhelming and disconnected. The body resists. The mind wanders, stress builds, not because of the effort itself, but because it lacked direction and intention. In contrast, when I’ve established a goal or task, or confronted challenges and discomfort that holds meaning, the intent shifts. The same level of effort and discomfort can feel engaging, energising, and even sustaining. I’ve felt I became more willing to endure discomfort because the struggle is connected to something that matters, such as my family, people I love and care for. Therefore the effort, challenge or discomfort was no longer something I had to push through, it became something I was pulled toward. I think I have found meaning most strongly when what I was are doing supports a sense of autonomy, competence, and belonging, and when it aligns with our core values. In these moments, effort is no longer just output. It becomes expression. It reflects who I am, what I stand for, and how I choose to show up. Meaning does not remove challenge. But it transforms our relationship to it. What once felt like and exceeding amounts pressure begins to feel like purpose. What once drained me beagn to sustain me. The external demand may remain the same, but the internal response is entirely different And this is where meaning becomes powerful. Because when effort, pain, discomfort, challenges are connected to meaning, we don’t just “endure” the experience. We engage with it. We take ownership of it. We grow through it. #keepbreathing 😮‍💨 #findmeaning 📕

Spreading awareness of the epic @nztransplantgamesassociation , New Zealand Transplant Games Team! Last year in Dresden @worldtransplantgames in Dresden, I competed and connected with some incredible individuals from all over the world. Ages ranging from 4 to over 90 competing - not just as athletes, but as people showing up to GIVE their best with what they had, given what transplant they had been through. From what I experienced and witnessed - The transplant games is about being given a second chance at life, and giving our best. Representing New Zealand is meaningful, some never get that opportunity. Wearing the silver fern is special Participants connect globally, sharing trials and triumphs. The New Zealand transplant team GIVE: Grateful for the second chance. Inspiring others. Vitality for life. Empathy for the journey so many have walked. If you or someone you know has had a transplant, check out the New Zealand Transplant Games website, join the team! It’s not about being an athlete, its about being part of a community. You belong. #keepbreathing😮‍💨 #transplant #newzealandtransplant #worldtransplantgames 📸 @westondesignsport

Great news. It’s funny what turns up when you least expect it! I thought I was nearly out of books however I’ve been informed that 400 books just resurfaced from the publisher. If you’d like a copy of the book “the wind at my back” head to the link in my bio on my website/about me - and from there you can “Purchase Book.” Or PM for a signed copy….🙌🙏 📕 @maryeganpublishing #keepbreathing😮‍💨 #thewindatmyback 💨

The world is in a fickle place again. Prices are up and it’s not just pressure at the pump that’s up, it’s within the household, it’s at work, it’s within the families. I get it. I don’t have answers, though I do know it’s difficult, often there are unseen opportunities that may beckon even when everything seems in turmoil. Hang in there, nothing last forever. Unknown opportunities will call. A verse that also gives me encouragement to focus on the future unknowns - 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 says: “For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” #keepbreathing 😮‍💨 📷 @therealphilhessler

Breathing is fundamental for life. Breathing is a pressure gradient, air moving from high pressure in the atmosphere to lower pressure in the lungs, into the alveoli, into the blood, and finally to our cells to create energy. But breathing is more than 02 to create energy. It’s a continuous stream of sensory information. Receptors in our body detect stretch, pressure, airflow, and chemical changes. It’s an INTERGRATED system biological, psychological, mechanical, and social, all systems communicating through the breath. This is why breath is powerful for stress. However let’s be clear here, stress is not the enemy. Our nervous system is constantly scanning the environment, asking am I safe, or do I need to mobilise? This creates shifts between two states: Sympathetic: Alert, mobilised, ready. Parasympathetic: Rest, repair, restore. Both are essential. The problem isn’t stress. Stress is good. The problem is getting stuck in chronic compounding stress. Too much sympathetic can lead to burnout , tension, depletion. Too much parasympathetic can lead to low motivation, flatness, even depression. What we need is not regulation alone, but flexibility. The ability to oscillate. To move between states. To be flexible to meet the moment. This is where breath becomes fundamental. I use a simple framework the Four C’s: Connect: become aware of your breath which is a direct correlation of your state. Coordinate: adjust the cadence to the situation. Calibrate: refine depth and rate (slower, more expansive). Coherence: creates alignment between body and mind. From this, we don’t just “calm down” we create awareness. We build the capacity to respond, not react. Breathing becomes a tool for flexible adaptability. A way to sense where the nervous system is, and shift when needed. Because ultimately, the body isn’t asking for perfection. It’s asking for safety to learn to grow from what life confronts us with. #keepbreathing 😮‍💨

Today, I reconnected with a good friend. He was an excellent runner much faster than me, a sub-4-minute miler, chasing the dream of representing New Zealand at the Olympics. We both loved running, but we had different aspirations. What we shared was the same trap, tying our identity to the thing we did, and more dangerously, to the outcome of it. Running was just what we did, it wasn’t who we were. However it so hard to see and understand that when we are so immersed in the “thing”. Too often, whether in sport, work, or the titles we carry, the thing begins to define us. And when the thing becomes who we are, it’s probably time to pause and ask: Is this mindset helping me, or is it quietly holding me back from seeing what’s in this moment and what’s around us? I’m certainly guilty of it. When our worth is tied to an outcome, missing the mark can bring frustration, anger, even a significant sense of failure. We react and miss responding to what’s already in front of us. Awareness becomes the turning point. Psychology helped both of us find that awareness. Being passionate about something is great and effort matters, but so does the ability to not be consumed by it. Because it’s not the outcome that defines us. It’s the attitude we bring. The values we live by. The way we show up. We are far more adaptable than we give ourselves credit for. When things don’t go to plan, it doesn’t mean we’ve failed, it means we’re being invited to adjust, adapt, to learn, to take a different path. So if things haven’t landed the way you hoped, this is a simple reminder- it’s okay. Step back. create some space. Close your eyes take some slow breaths, stay grounded within your values. Just like a waterfall isn’t defined by the single drop where it falls. It’s the continuous flow of water, moving, adapting, renewing. In the same way, our identity isn’t one moment, one result, one thing or one outcome. It’s the ongoing way we choose to show up, again and again. #keepbreathing 😮‍💨 #meaning #value #idenity

Thirteen years ago today, I underwent a transplant that changed me in every way, physically, mentally, spiritually. I didn’t understand the complications. I didn’t know what the future would hold, I didn’t even know if I would still be here. Over these years I’ve walked beside people who made it, and others who didn’t. That reality never leaves you. It heightens your awareness. It reshapes what matters. And yet, even though I do not know why I was given more time. Not knowing why complications came the way they did, not knowing why some prayers were answered differently than others. For a long time I thought meaning came from understanding. Now I see that meaning can also come from accepting. Acceptance of what I do not know. I may never understand why I still have life, but I do accept I have a choice in how I live it. And if there’s one thing this journey has taught me, it’s that I have never walked it alone. Thank you to the medical team who carried skill and steadiness into a heavy day. Thank you to the friends who encouraged me when my strength felt thin. Thank you to those who prayed. Thank you to those who sat quietly beside me. Thank you to those who believed when I couldn’t see clearly. And above all, thank you to God, my foundation when everything else felt uncertain. Every anniversary brings a wave of memories I struggle to articulate. But it also reminds me who stands beside me today. My incredible wife & our thriving daughter. Life is still challenging Still confusing. Still demanding. But thirteen years later, I know this - I don’t need to understand everything to live meaningfully. Sometimes the greatest gift isn’t certainty. It’s presence. Keep breathing 😮‍💨 #transplant #meaning #life

I’m fortunate enough to come to Rānui House once a month to share the Rānui Recovery Program. Not only that, it’s a way of connection, sharing stories to bring a sense of belonging from the isolation life threatening conditions can create. Today, as always we touched on the stress that arises, the anticipation and prediction errors when life takes us from the familiarity into a whirlwind of unknowns. It can be daunting. Yet, under this remarkable roof of Rānui House, we explored how to work with stress rather than against it. How our breathing has a direct correlation with our state. We may not control the medical terminology, but we can control the words we tell ourselves. In that breath, in that shared connection, we can find encouragement to find some renewed energy and move forward just that little bit lighter. It was great to meet you all today team! #keepbreathing 😮‍💨 #stress #connection #breath #sharedstories