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Gabrielle Bernstein was spiraling out of control back in 2005. As rock-bottom sped toward her, she turned inward, embraced her spirituality and learned to start seeing the miracles in life.
By the time I was 25, I was dealing with a drug addiction, a work addiction and I was having food issues, said Bernstein. Her thoughts and self-evaluations were based on things she didn't have yet, such as the next boyfriend or the next career goal.
Bernstein launched her first two companies in New York when she was 21. With her public relations firm and the Women's Entrepreneurial Network, she was speaking publicly and encouraging others to achieve their goals.
But she wasn't happy. Bernstein fell in with the party scene but didn't like the road that was taking her down. Eventually she understood she needed to make a change, so she examined her life and goals and began the hard work of walking a different path. She found sobriety and spirituality.
Bernstein credits a lot of her change to "A Course in Miracles," a self-study program first published in 1976. Key to the philosophy is the need to practice forgiveness. A Course in Miracles is founded on Christian beliefs, though its reception within that faith has been mixed.
For Bernstein, the course worked. She's happier now and extols the virtues of the program to anyone who will listen. She's also a two-time author, having earned a degree of recognition with "Add More Ing to Your Life: A Hip Guide to Happiness" and "Spirit Junkie: A Radical Road to Self-Love and Miracles." Her third book, "The Lovetarian Way: A Guidebook of Subtle Shifts for Miraculous Change," is due in 2013.
Bernstein, a motivational speaker, spiritual help guru and life coach also has her website, Her Future.
With all of that in mind, she will be presenting the Crazy Sexy Miracles lecture with friend and fellow author Kris Carr at the Ridgefield Playhouse on Jan. 26. Tickets are available at the playhouse's website.
Despite her earlier hardships, the 32-year-old Bernstein is content with the path her life has taken. Everything that I came from, it all happened for a reason and I wouldn't change a thing, she said.
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