Have you ever noticed how often TV commercials start a medical drug ad by telling you that you have this or that disease and what you need to take or buy in order to get rid of it, or reduce its effects on you?
I shut the volume off every commercial that starts out by telling me that I have “this” or “that” disease. I say out loud, “No, I don’t!”
Your mind is a powerful bionic machine that can manifest the seemingly impossible. The human mind can create peace, joy, calm, and healing. The human mind can also generate sickness, depression, and the poverty mentality making you susceptible to powerful suggestions because WHAT EVER YOU FOCUS ON GROWS.
You are that powerful.
Yes, I do want the doctor to offer helpful advice at any time I am in need of such medical attention. But the idea that the untrained patients watching a TV commercial ought to tell the doctor which drug to give themselves for whatever ails them is unadvisable.
This is a post about mind over matter. This is how to manifest everything in your life, including physical, mental, and emotional healing. Spiritual healing comes when you allow your mind to learn more than religious indoctrinators of every denomination proclaim.
Please know that there is more to know because much information has been hidden away for reasons of power, fame and fortune. That is what I discovered when I allowed myself to learn more than those at the top of religious and political systems. I write about this in my last 4 books, IN THEIR IMAGE AND LIKENESS, MY RED BAG OF COURAGE, NATURE SPIRIT WISDOM, and TRANSITIONING INTO THE AGE OF AQUARIUS.
I am not anti-medicine, nor anti-doctor. People do have physical maladies and are even born with them. What I am discussing here is the strength of your mind and how programmable it is. Advertisers know all about this.
You are made with silicon dioxide, quartz crystals, in your body. All human beings are made like this. Quartz crystals are so programmable that chips of quartz crystals are used in cell phone, cars, car fobs, microwaves, and computers for starters.
You are very programmable.
Focus on empathy, compassion, and healing for yourself. Do not take on the suggestions of others that do not fit your highest good for you mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually.
So, when it comes to TV, radio, online or any other kind of advertising about medical drugs, do trust your doctors, but also include yourself in the decision-making process, because you really do know what works for you and what does not.
Suicide Prevention Month 2025 occurs during the month of September. During Suicide Prevention Month 2025, government agencies, non-profit groups, and individuals from around the country unite to raise awareness about suicidality and help people learn how they can join the suicide prevention and reduction movement.
IF THIS SPEAKS TO YOU, KNOW THAT YOU ARE NOT ALONE.
USE THIS MANTRA DAILY TO RECOGNIZE YOUR TRUE SELF:
“I am made of a Spark of Eternal Universal Life Force Energy animating my Spirit and Soul.
I am a beautiful Spark of Limitless Living Light animating me.
The Light of my Spirit, Soul, Mind and Body is beautiful.
My presence gracing this Earth is due to the abundance of LOVE because I am the manifestation of LOVE and non-judgment in a hurting reality.
I am perfect as I am.
There is nothing I need to do to be a “better” person.
I will not allow the ignorance of others to define me.
I am pure gift.
The world needs me and my gifts much more than I know.
I am precious.
There is only one me.
The ego of the world and immature human beings says more about them than it does about me.
I feel myself rising above the ignorance of others.
It is not my fault that others have been indoctrinated in de-humanizing thoughts, words, and actions, which speaks to their lack of character, not mine.
I am LOVE personified.” by Linda Hourihan, HHCP ~ This is my gift to you.
***
When a person thinks or talks about suicide, it’s called suicidal ideation. Any form of suicidal ideation is a red flag that should never be ignored. Parents, caregivers, friends, and peers should take any type of suicidal ideation in a loved one seriously. The potential consequences of downplaying suicidal ideation are simply too extreme: it can lead to a suicide attempt, and in the worst case, a preventable death.
Talking to a trained professional is the most effective way to prevent a suicide attempt.
Need more information, referrals or support? Contact the NAMI HelpLine.
Join the Conversation
#SuicidePreventionMonth reminds us that talking about suicide isn’t harmful — silence is. One honest conversation can be a turning point in someone’s life. Throughout this month — and beyond — we invite you to share the messages below or create your own about Suicide Prevention Month through the power of courageous community conversations.
Don’t forget to tag us at @NAMICommunicate on Instagram and X and @NAMI on TikTok, LinkedIn, and Facebook. And be sure to use the hashtag #SuicidePreventionMonth in your posts.
In every post, please add language or reply to a comment providing information to 988. This can include but is not limited to:
Call, text, or chat 988 to speak to a trained crisis counselor offering support 24/7/365.
Platforms
Weekly/daily activations will be taking place on NAMI’s social media channels. Follow NAMI to tune in, repost, retweet, and share: Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Threads, TikTok, X, YouTube
If you or someone you know is struggling, help is here. In a crisis? Call/text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline 24/7. #988 SuicidePreventionMonth
Opening up about your mental health journey—good, bad, or messy—creates space for healing. Let’s make silence a thing of the past. Start a conversation. Be the difference. #SuicidePreventionMonth
Talking about suicide isn’t harmful — silence is. One honest, caring conversation can save a life. Start a conversation. Be the difference. Learn more at nami.org/spm #SuicidePreventionMonth
#SuicidePreventionMonth reminds us that silence can cost lives — and conversation can save them. Start a conversation. Be the difference. Learn how at nami.org/suicidepreventionmonth.
Studies show people who are having thoughts of suicide feel relief when someone asks about them in a caring way. Learn more on how you can support someone through a crisis at nami.org/suicidepreventionmonth.
From Awareness to Action
Join our movement to advocate for a better mental health care system by signing up for advocacy alerts and taking action when opportunities arise in your community.
Explore how your community can #ReimagineCrisis. Find advocacy resources and information to build a better mental health and suicide crisis response system for everyone, no matter who they are or where they live.
Join us in recognizing #988Day on September 8. 988 Day is a national initiative dedicated to raising awareness about 988 and emphasizing the importance of mental health and suicide prevention.
1 in 20 U.S. adults (5%) have serious thoughts of suicide each year.
About 1 person dies by suicide in the U.S. every 11 minutes.
79% of all people who die by suicide in the U.S. are male.*
Although more women* than men attempt suicide, men are 4X more likely to die by suicide.
In the U.S., suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death among people ages 10-14 and among people ages 15-24, and the 11th leading cause of death overall.
Community Impact:
Annual prevalence of serious thoughts of suicide, by U.S. demographic group:
Non-Hispanic Multiracial: 12%
Non-Hispanic White: 5%
Hispanic or Latino: 5%
Non-Hispanic Native American Indian/Alaska Native: 4.7%
You are made of a Spark of Eternal Universal Life Force Energy animating your Spirit and Soul.
You are a beautiful Spark of Limitless Living Light animating you.
The Light of your Spirit, Soul, Mind and Body is beautiful.
Your presence gracing this Earth is due to the abundance of LOVE because you are the manifestation of LOVE and non-judgment in a hurting reality.
You are perfect as you are.
There is nothing you need to do to be a “better” person.
Do not allow the ignorance of others to define you.
You are pure gift.
The world needs you much more than you know.
I need you because you are precious.
There is only one you.
The ego of the world and immature human beings says more about them than it does about you.
Feel yourself rising above the ignorance of others.
It is not your fault that others have been indoctrinated in de-humanizing thoughts, words, and actions, which speaks to their lack of character, not yours.
One of the most transcendent courses I took was from the Supreme Science Qigong Foundation taught by Jeff Primack, March 5-8, 2011, for a total of 32 hours, at the Connecticut Conference Center in Hartford. This covered Qigong healing using breathwork techniques in Levels 1, 2, and 3. I also took the additional 8-hour class the next day to learn how to use food as medicine. In all it was a 40-hour course that turned out to be one of the most transformative educational classes in my holistic health career.
I am so glad that I stayed for the extra day, for the optional food as medicine component, extending time away from my business, The Massage Clinic, in Stratford, CT and satellite offices in Milford, Orange, and West Haven. I came home with DVDs showing Primack going through all the moves he taught the hundreds of us all at once. The energy in that auditorium was palpable and phenomenal.
This was a poignant reminder that with Eternal Universal Life Force Energy, there is no time, nor space, between the hundreds of students of all ages attending and practicing every move and thought he taught us. For me, it was like the powerfully moving charismatic meetings I had gone to, not with the indoctrination, but similar by elevating the energy in the room to an extremely healing place. All was One. You too can heal.
When medical doctors had done all that they could for their patients, some who were on their way out of this life, were sent to Jeff Primack to see if using food as a treatment could possibly save their life. Primack said in that class that he saw people heal from their maladies, which is why medical doctors today back his research of using food as medicine.
Who would have thought that food could heal a body better than chemical medicines could?
In more cases than one, by using Qigong and Primack’s smoothie recipes, the person sent to him by the doctors, was healed by the innate life generating and healing properties found in organic and high phytochemical foods.
Over 100,000 hardcover copies of his books have been sold, according to Amazon.com which said, “Conquering Any Disease is endorsed by top surgeons and doctors who have recommend these food protocols to help reverse disease naturally. This book engages all types of people to eat God s most healing foods. At the back of the book is an extensive glossary of food phytochemicals and fatty Acids that will elevate your understanding of nutrients to the next level.
“This is the 15-Year Anniversary Scientific Edition with the most compelling studies. It is the first book of its kind to Quantify Key Pigments/Phytochemicals (and show sources of data that doctors require) in ALL the most healing foods. It’s 300 pages of life saving wisdom fully illustrated to help you learn all you ever needed to know about food. Conquering Any Disease book covers the following conditions: Allergies, Alzheimer s, Memory, Anti-Viral, HIV, Hepatitis, Anemia, Arthritis, Inflammation, Asthma, Lung Disease, Autism, Cancer, Tumor, Immune Weakness Colds, Flu Virus, MRSA, Digestive, Constipation, IBS, Ulcers, Depression, PTSD, Diabetes, Eye, Vision, Diseases, Heart Disease, Stroke, Cholesterol Crystallization, Infertility, Insomnia, Kidney Stones, Liver Disease, Cirrhosis, MRSA, Infection, Menopause, Muscle Building, MS, Jing, Hair, Osteoporosis, Parkinson s, Seizures, Sexual Power, Thyroid, Weight Loss.”
Qigong, Prana Healing, Reiki, New Paradigm Multidimensional Transformation™, Tai Chi, and meditation, among other forms of energy work, are natural remedies without negative side effects.
Let’s delve a little deeper into the self-help tools that are available to you when you get caught in the trap of stress, anxiety, depression, and panic attacks.
We can use laughter and humor to move us out of anxiety and panic in almost all situations.
It helps to understand the deeper levels of you. By getting a better handle of how and when you lose control, you can see the patterns that throw you on the runaway merry-go-round anxiety trip. First of all, breathe. Take a deep, real deep breath right now. Take as many breaths as you need and focus on the fact that you can feel better by the end of this article.
Understand that no one wakes up in the morning and says, “I think I am going to make the worst decisions I can today. No matter what happens, I am going to shoot myself in the foot, and purposely mess up all of my plans and everyone’s else’s plans. On purpose, I am going to lie, cheat, steal, and be the worst possible person I can be.”
That is not the way things usually work. See if any of the following scenarios fit you, then try their remedies. You will feel better.
I will first caution you of the almost immediate voice answering you back in your head, you know, that self-sabotaging voice that says, “Oh, this is stupid. This won’t work.” Or for those of us who have spent years studying depression, anxiety and panic attacks, our often-over-educated ego dogmatically rears up and dictates, “That is not the way I was trained. These recommendations do not follow the protocol I was taught. There cannot be any other way to treat these symptoms other than the one way I know.”
Surprise, oh yes there is.
The other self-sabotage trap is to think, “I’ve already tried this. It does not work.” It is true that if you stop thinking and doing the self-help cure, it will not work. But if you do not give up, it does work.
You may be in the trap of giving away your personal power. Anxiety and panic issues have everything to do with giving away your power.
Are you still breathing? Oh yes, breathing. Let your shoulders detach from your ear lobes. Allow yourself to smile about this. It’s OK.
The very act of smiling, even if you force yourself to smile for no reason, begins the mental process of lightening the tone of yourself. This is why Laughter Yoga works. You are in charge of you. You can feel better if you want to. The question is, do you want to feel better? Be honest with yourself. History does not need to repeat itself unless you want it to.
You are not a victim unless you choose to be. Self-talk and self-improvement work even if you are on medication, or not on medication. Know that you are not bound by your past history to keep repeating patterns of dysfunction. You do have a choice. Again, do not listen to that self-sabotaging voice that says you always were and always will be stressed, depressed, and full of anxiety and panic attacks. You can stop all that NOW. History does not have to repeat itself.
Smile and relax as you understand that you really do have a choice. It haseverythingto do with the decisions you make. Until now, you may not have realized that you have a choice in deciding which thoughts you want to keep, and which thoughts are hurting you and you want to let go of. Until now you may have felt like a victim to your thoughts.
You might need a mental chisel to scrape that negative-thinking addiction out of your thinking process. If negative thinking, commenting, and behaviors have been deeply ingrained into the fabric of your mind, as if you were caught in an undertow carrying you out to the sea of despair, it may take longer to turn yourself around. Just know that it is possible to get out of that current of negative thinking. It can also happen in the blink of an eye. You simply have to want to do it.
Your thoughts do not think you. You think your thoughts. If you do not like how the way you are thinking is making you feel, CHANGE YOUR THOUGHTS. DECIDE TO THINK OF SOMETHING ELSE. You CAN do this. You have within yourself the ability to decide not to let any person, place or thing intefere with your desires, hopes, dreams and reality.
How can you do this?
Think of the next possible step, the next lighter thought. See yourself on the road to recovery. No matter how many times you have tried this before, think of these attempts to get back in control of your life as training for this time, when you firmly set your sights on your recovery. YOU CAN DO THIS.
No one has control over you and your thoughts. Even if you are confined and in prison with real brick walls, you still have control of how you think, and how you are going to conduct yourself from now on. That is a dramatic example. I use it because each of us thinks our situation is so unique, so much more difficult than anyone else’s. This is not the case. These recommendations work 100 percent of the time. The only time they do not work is when we stop doing them. It is simply a negative habit you have reinforced which blinds you to other positive solutions.
You might feel more comfortable taking baby steps. Or perhaps you have had enough of living like this and decide to take huge leaps out of the habit of anxiety and panic. How fast you get out of the dysfunctional habit of anxiety and panic largely depends on how much we can take trying on new behaviors. It will feel strange at first to allow yourself to think in new ways. It will feel odd to laugh at yourself, to lighten up.
Even if it is not the case immediately, see yourself as whole, happy, in control of your life, in control of your thoughts. Refuse to be a puppet for others anymore. Refuse to be a puppet of the negativity in your mind. Do the things that if you were in control of your life that you would do. Bring in flowers, music, better lighting, good aromas. Even if you are telling yourself this is the opposite of how you are feeling, you CAN change how you feel by staying with it.
Keep with it, like flipping a switch, you are in charge of you. Be stubborn and dig your heels in and refuse to follow that old familiar path of negativity that leads you directly where you do not want to go. If there are people, places or things that are adversely affecting your mood, avoid them if at all humanly possible. This is a new beginning.
When your mind finds itself thinking of the worry or the problem, be gentle. Tell yourself you will worry later. For right now, DECIDE you will only think of positive, loving, healing solutions for yourself. You can do this.
I am board certified by The National Accreditation and Certification Board, as a graduate of The American Institute of Holistic Health and Wellness. As a holistic health counselor and practitioner, drugless therapies have been my life’s work which has helped over 5,000 people. If you have tried and failed before, I encourage you to try again, with a new outlook for a better, more fulfilling future.
Migraine headaches, depression, stress, anxiety, and panic attacks are side-effects, not the problem you may think you have. When you go to the doctor or mental health provider to prescribe medications for migraine headaches, depression, stress, anxiety, and panic attacks, you are only dealing with the secondary cause your malaise. Why not eradicate the primary cause of your issue?
While reading this meme you might ridicule the solutions suggested, while simultaneously thinking that your problem is far worse, or that you are not understood by the people in whom you confide.
Think of a lawn filled with dandelion weeds as the pain and anguish you are feeling. Simply mowing the lawn and cutting off the heads of the flowering weeds does not eradicate them. The roots are still present, growing deeper and resistant to the mower, which is actually spreading them. This is the exact opposite of the relief you are seeking.
Facing the actual problem in your life that is leading to recurrent migraine headaches, depression, stress, anxiety, and panic attacks takes courage. Just because something seems insurmountable does not mean that it is. It takes a concerted effort to rid the lawn of weeds, just as it does to annihilate the root causes of mental and physical malady.
SOLUTIONS:
Honor yourself by taking time out, at least 15 minutes, out of your day, not doing anything else, nor doing two things at once, like driving AND counting that as your 15-minute recouperation.
Consciously do slow rhythmic breathing. Inhale for the same count as you exhale, focusing on each breath. Do this for about 2 minutes.
As you take in your next breath, tense the area around your eyes, hold tightly, and relax your eyes as you exhale.
Breathe in and clench your teeth and jaw, hold, then relax your teeth and jaw on the exhale.
Raise your shoulders as you breathe in, hold and imagine your shoulders connected to your ears, then relax your shoulders as you exhale.
Tense in your upper and lower arms as you inhale, hold arm tension as if you are back in school holding heavy books, then relax your arms as you exhale.
Make a hard fist in each hand on your inhale, hold tightly, then relax your hands and fingers as you exhale.
Tense your abdomen as you breathe in, hold for a moment, then relax on your next outbreath.
Tense your buttocks, hips, and legs as you breathe in, hold tightly, then relax those muscles as you exhale.
Curl your toes tightly as you inhale, hold tightly, then relax them on the exhale.
Take relaxing breaths with each inhale and exhale for 3 minutes.
Simply relaxing your breath for 15 minutes lowers blood pressure.
The above is an excellent self-help tool to relax, reduce stress, tension, anxiety, and panic. But sometime life presents situations for us to deal with when we are not ready or willing to do so. We need to be fully conscious of the changes in our lives. We need to find the time to review our lives from time to time.
How much pain, loss of work, and lack of pleasure in life are you willing to put up with, rather than deal with the cause, not just the symptoms of your life?
Courage is not having no fear. Courage is facing your issues head on, as opposed to carrying the heavy mental and emotional burdens on your mind, shoulders, and stomach. Notice the parts of your body that try to capture your attention when you deny the reality of your life. Yes, even your stomach physically can get into the mental and emotional trash can of your life.
Notice also, that the body tells on itself. Your body manifests all function and dysfunction of your feelings, such as getting an upset stomach or an ulcer from being emotionally upset. The bigger the emotional upset, the bigger the physical manifestation is in your body. You may also notice heat radiating from certain areas of your body where the excess worry, stress, and/or pain reside, extending out from your body as tangible heat in your aura. This is also felt by the person standing next to you.
Weighing the benefits of over-committing yourself or excusing the real reason for the negative way you are feeling, only leads to fertilizing more of what you do not want to live with, such as a body constantly and repeatedly registering mental and emotional pain and anguish.
Think of the first time you got that migraine headache.
How old were you?
What was going on?
How often does this pattern repeat today?
Do migraine headaches still play a part in your life today?
Pay attention to the major events in your life. Were migraine headaches present at your wedding or other poignant moments?
Looking at your life as a whole, not just isolated events, can point to the solutions you know deep down inside yourself that you need to make, address, or readjust.
Putting up with recurring pain is not the solution. If the root cause of recurrent pain is physical, medical or chiropractic solutions can help. But if the root cause of the migraine headaches, depression, stress, anxiety, or panic attacks is mental or emotional, then dealing with the root cause of the issue, not the symptom is the solution.
Why wear down your mental and emotional health, affecting your personality and the reality you are choosing, when coming to grips with changing your relationship, employment, or other outer conditions can heal you completely?
Yes, you DO have a choice. This brings us to another important point.
How much do you matter?
How much do you matter to the other people around you?
How much of you do you give away to make those around you happy, at your own expense?
YOU ARE WORTHY.
YOU ARE WORTHY OF A PAIN-FREE LIFE.
YOU ARE WORTHY OF LOVE.
YOU ARE WORTHY OF LOVING YOURSELF.
YOU ARE WORTHY OF HEALING YOURSELF.
YOU ARE WORTHY OF BEING HAPPY.
YOU ARE WORTHY.
Seek a holistic health counselor is you need support in changing your life, lifestyle, honoring exactly who you are as you are right at this moment.
“I’ve told my children that when I die, to release balloons in the sky to celebrate that I graduated. For me, death is a graduation.” Psychiatrist Elisabeth Kubler-Ross
Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, the Swiss American psychiatrist who pioneered the study of many near death experiences, authored numerous best-selling books, and taught about the five stages of grief, may not have known that mass balloon releases are illegal in several states, cities, and countries. Releasing balloons and sky lanterns could be considered illegal everywhere, because after all, it is simply littering. The United States that have laws against mass balloon releases are California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Virginia. But this is beside the point.
As a graduate of the University of Zurich and the University of Colorado Boulder, she learned the deeper layers of life and the energy of the soul, by studying people in all stages of near-death as well as helping people cope after the death of their loved ones.
I have also spoken to people who have had near-death experiences, only to return to their current lives, never to be afraid of death again. But that is little consolation for the living left behind.
Even if you have read her books, or studied and written about this rather unpleasant subject, when death of a loved one arrives at your door, the often sudden and unexpected shock of it rocks your world.
The blanket of grief also covers the loss experienced in ending relationships, careers and employment endings, and change in identity. All of the stages of grief that apply to the death of a loved one also apply to unexpected major life alterations.
You have always been you ever since you were born. I thank God for you. Just because hard emotional times appear to hijack your life when unexpected change enters your reality, does not mean you are not worthy of living the best life you possibly can.
Life can seem as if you are just going through the motions, void or any meaning, and moving in a robotic way. This is part of the shock of the first stage of grief.
There is no escaping your emotions as you process grief. You may also find yourself going back and forth between stages, hopping over some, or thinking you are past a certain point, only to be thrown back a step or two by a simple smell of perfume or cologne, or the sound of a favorite song.
How is a heart to heal?
For adults who are grieving the loss of a loved one, you can also hold a candlelight ceremony, make a memory book, gather favorite recipes of the loved one, buy some of their favorite flowers to grace your home. This is done to help the heart acknowledge your loved one, and helps to transition bottomless grief into appreciation, honor, love, empathy, and understanding.
In sudden loss of jobs, know that your worth is not based on what you do. Your personal worth is based on who you are. You are worthy. Brainstorm new possibilities that breathe life into ideas. Try something new. Help out others in your situation. Volunteer. Stay active. Do not give up.
In loss of your personal identity, feeling undervalued in relationships, and in dramatic awareness of the change in your personal identity in relationship to others, find yourself blooming like the bud of a flower blossoms into a beautiful seemingly new creation, yet it is not really new. It has been you all the time. The loss of friends and those familiar around you are not what your self-esteem is built on. You are more than who and what people thought you were. You cannot be put into a box of other’s perceptions. Be yourself, regardless of color, race, gender, age, creed, or any other difference human beings can contrive in the separation and caste system agenda. You are a precious human life with no one else like you. Again, you are you, the beautiful soul you have always been
Why is understanding the life of the loved one who has transitioned important?
Before birth, families of souls decide to work together in order to learn the necessary life lessons here in this school of life. The vast experience any one person can have in one lifetime cannot possibly gain all the knowledge of trillions of other lifetimes. One lifetime simply is not enough time to learn and experience all there is to know. Lives lived focusing on greed and personal achievement at all costs, by the choices they make in their lives, may never know what it is to need or want for anything.
Perhaps one person needs to learn patience in adversity in order to learn how to be sympathetic rather than judgmental and quick to anger which unbalanced karma in that last life, or vice versa. There are as many reasons to incarnate here on earth as there are trillions of sparks of life that issued forth from Eternal Universal Life Energy’s Big Bang.
Notice, according to the laws of thermodynamics, that energy cannot be created nor ended, only changed. If energy cannot be created, then it is infinite, eternal. It helps to understand this rather arbitrary fact when healing from any form or stage of grief. While some in science point to the Big Bang as the working theory for the creation of everything, it is important to realize that energy always was.
If energy is infinite, as the laws of thermodynamics suggest, then the energy of the eternal souls of ourselves and our loved ones are also infinite. They may be physically gone from our present life, just know that they are not gone forever. This means the life of the soul of your loved one is still existing on the spiritual plane. If they have achieved perfection of all human thoughts, words, and actions, the energy of the soul, complete in all myriad experiences, will merge back into the I AM Presence of Itself.
Still, to assist you in the personal grieving process, during your candlelight ceremony, review your life as it intersects with the life of your loved one who has moved on.
What have you learned in your life thus far?
Can you see the life lessons you taught each other in this life?
Did love win?
Where are you at in the grieving process?
Knowing this information does not help the emotional pain. If only knowledge would take the pain away. But knowing how to cope with the loss, the emotional pain, can also make you feel self-empowered as opposed to feeling emotionally dead inside yourself.
While nothing you do can bring your loved one back, knowing that you can heal and the next steps to be on the lookout for can let you know what usually comes next.
In the meantime, transitioning from feeling helpless to feeling appreciation for their life lived, can be a balm to the emotional upheaval. Time never stands still. Know that there is a reason your loved one was in your life, and you were in your loved one’s life. This was no accident.
You can apply these emotional steps to every category of loss mentioned above. Deciding to not stay stuck is helpful.
Now is not forever. You may feel you dropped into a black hole. Trust the process the five stages of grief offer you. Make a plan. Allow yourself the two years it usually takes to adjust to major life upheavals.
Kubler-Ross has helped countless people by letting people not feel abandoned in their feelings. You are not alone. There is joy in your future, joy for new beginnings, joy in meeting new people, and joy in new opportunities. None of the joy coming your way in any way diminishes the experience of life you shared with the loved one who has passed, nor does this knowledge hurt your loved one on the other side. This loved one of yours is also continuing to experience the Eternal Universal Life of the soul, which cannot be snuffed out by the transitioning of the fleshly garment of life. You will get to see them again on the other side.
This also means that the present energy of your life is yet to transform into whatever you decide it to be. You are worthy. You are part of nature. You are energy changing with your awareness in appreciation for all those who have gone before you, and all who are yet to cross your path.
Grieving opens unexpected and often unwelcomed doors of empathy and understanding, and makes us realize that life is bigger, more exciting, and more dynamic than we might have first thought.
In these days of quarantine, social distancing, and online learning, men, women, and children are showing signs of social distress and declining mental health. Please know there is a lot you can do right where you are to help yourself feel better. Even those in holistic health, mental health, and western medicine modalities can find themselves feeling like the rug was pulled out from under them. All of us humans, strong as we are, are not invulnerable to sabotaging mental health trips and traps.
Has anyone ever tried to help you get out of a bad mood by telling you to think, say, or do something more positive? Usually that well-salted advice slides off your depression because that is not how you are feeling. You might not be feeling positive at the moment. You think you need to be honest with yourself, saying exactly how you feel, depressed, grieving, can’t get out of your own way, lethargic, and procrastinating with every suggestion.
Grief is its own animal, like a fighting tiger; or shall I say grief is its own giant Redwood tree. The roots to our family trees grow deep, including our friends and extended family, so deep that their passing from this life to the next, is hard to grasp. It seems no one lasts forever. While we know how fleeting life is, we are never quite ready for death when it comes close to us.
While time is the usual suggestion for healing this relentless hurt, living past the life of your loved one does not ever return to what it once was. Instead, the major life shift of the new life imposed on you can seem foreign and unwelcomed. Yet, by not forging ahead, you will remain stuck until you do.
How bad do you want to feel better?
Telling someone exactly how you are feeling is the way to remain exactly how you are feeling. It is the way energy works. It is the law of inertia. Things in motion tend to stay in motion, but things, including you, who are at rest, will tend to stay at rest.
It all begins with the thinking process. Allow yourself to think of the next lighter, brighter, more positive thought. Open the window or door for a minute to let some fresh air in. Have a cup of fragrant tea. Mint, orange, apple, and lemon scents tend to lift moods. Yes, the current situation cannot be swept under the rug as if it were not there by drinking tea or opening a window or a door. But those suggestions are a good place to start.
Watch your language. No, not like that, but pay attention to the tone of the things you say. Everyone needs to tell someone how they are feeling. That is necessary. What is harmful is to keep harping on the negative way you are feeling, like an old album that keeps repeating, repeating, repeating…
Your friends, family, and/or therapist are not unaware of your feelings when you tell your mental state once you tell them how you are feeling. The problem arises when you use your personal power to not allow any other vibration around you other than commiserating with the “ever since this happened to me,” and “you don’t understand” mantras, like the constant drum beat with which you have saturated your soul.
Am I saying you have a choice in how you are feeling?
Yes, you do have a choice. To refuse to think anything but negative thoughts is totally up to you. How you use your free will is totally up to you.
We all need to impress this reality to our children who may also be feeling down in the dumps over social isolation when that occurs. Help them to see that yes, they do in fact have a choice in their feelings. Children have free will in their thoughts. Teach them that they think their thoughts. Thoughts do not think them. They can change their thoughts anytime they decide to do that.
Children, like adults, need to express their feelings in words, drawings, paintings, sign language, songs, or other means of life-affirming communication. It is important that they own the feelings they are presently feeling. However, next comes the understanding that they do, in fact, have the personal responsibility to decide to stay with that feeling, if they need to for some greater good, or decide to transmute that feeling to the next lighter, brighter, positive possibility.
Once children learn this healing mental health tip, they can use this in many interpersonal problem-solving dilemmas. Brainstorming other positive thoughts, words, and actions helps the healing process. Holding simple ceremonies of remembrance of the loss of their pet can help them move past their grief.
Tell children they have free will and about the benefits of using their free will to help them feel better. No matter what country you live in, no matter what government you live under, no matter what continent you live on, everyone in the world, including children, have free will.
This means that children, women, and men, do not have to be strong-armed into the negativity that seems to settle on them like a dark cloud, becoming a victim of their thoughts, moods, and feelings. The dark cloud is a good analogy for depression, because one strong force of wind can blow the clouds right out of the sky, just like deciding to listen to happier music, paint a picture of rainbows and the sun, or going for a walk in the fresh air, even if it is cold. Just bundle up and stay warm.
The important point to remember here, even if you have heard this before, is that you are not a victim. You are not a victim of your life; and you are not a victim of your feelings. It is important to be honest with yourself. Since you are not perfect, it is important to acknowledge to others, and especially to yourself, the times you have made mistakes. Own your stuff.
As human beings, sometimes we try to blame others for the problems in relationships, employment, or our own lives, instead of pulling our own bootstraps up, owning our part in the situation, forgiving or asking for forgiveness, and moving on. It is possible to move on with self-esteem and reputation intact. This is part of character development, no matter what age you are.
Then there are times when things land on our head unexpectedly, like getting fired, divorced, or someone close to us dies. Life altering events can take up to two years or longer before a sense of normalcy returns to the self. Remind your heart that two years is 730 days. It is important to know that in order not to rush the grieving process, or inappropriately force emotions of peace and joy during major life transitions like moving from one state or country to another when you are feeling the opposite emotions.
Take one day at a time. Find the treasure in each day. Actively look for the wonder in every day. You will have good days and not so good days. Still, you’ve got this. Know that healing is possible and one day the sun will shine in your heart again. Own your feelings.
Doesn’t this sound like a contradiction of emotions with the advice I mention above?
No. Admitting to what you are feeling is an honest assessment. Deciding to stay in depression, lethargy, and procrastination is self-sabotage. The point is, it is a decision you make, not a feeling that overwhelms you, something with which you cling for dear life.
It is a mistake to think that your feeling is your identity, that you will always be depressed. Feelings come and go and are as changeable as the wind. You are a valid person, a single soul with many wonderful attributes, feelings, moods, likes and dislikes. You are a kaleidoscope of color and intrigue, changing with every turn of your hand. You are pure wonder itself.
Once I was at a mental health seminar for continued educational credits. The course I paid for spoke to the fact that if you do nothing, eventually your feelings and moods will change, which is true. But I found it extremely upsetting to suggest allowing the person to continue to suffer from depression without remedies that can help much sooner.
Sure, you can wait and do nothing, and brighter days will appear eventually. Or you can follow my advice and usually get there quicker. I like the path of least emotional pain and anguish. My entire holistic health career is based on programs geared to the individual that can help improve each person’s mental health, not wait for some lucky day that may never come, based on the constant self-messaging of the client.
You are in control of you, even your feelings. No one else can tell you how to feel. You are in charge of that.
Some people like the attention they get when they are depressed. Realize this can be a manipulation of fear, obligation, and guilt, commonly called FOG if it persists. If you haven’t heard from your friends and family as much as you used to, this might be the reason. Once you understand the role you have been playing in your own life, it becomes easy to correct. It just requires that you want to feel better.
This is one of the reasons I decided to write this blog in my retirement. It is the same reason I chose the motto for my holistic healing business:
Here are some traps to avoid those thoughts and emotions that hijack your mind and memories like an unattended runaway train careening down the mountainside cliff of depression. Following each trap is the mental health tip to remind yourself of in the New Year 2022.
Notice the word “remind,” as in correcting your mind that the erroneous notion of energizing negative perceived thoughts and emotions are your reality, and all else is non-reality. Reset your mind, remind yourself to be fully present in the present moment.
Avoid the mental gymnastics of mental moving-making reruns that keep you living in the past, clouding your present moment, and overshadowing your future.
Trap: Feeling depressed and recalling to the present moment all of the injustices everyone individually has ever done to you.
Tip: Learn from the past as you review your life at this moment. Discover what went right and what went wrong. Stop lamenting. You cannot change the past. But you can make more life-affirming decisions with compassionate understanding in how you handle similar situations in the future.
Trap: Wallowing in old familiar hurts, mental anguish, and regrets, refusing to think of anything other than those worn-out painful memories.
Tip: Change the record on your mental record player. Change these negative pre-recorded tapes stuck on rerun. You can change negative thoughts and obsessions by mentally putting them on the back shelf of your mind. You are not denying these things happened. They are part of your lived experience. They are fodder the life lessons as they came to you, reminders not to slip back into what did not work for you. But these past negative experiences need not dominate your current every thought, word, nor action. By mentally setting them aside, you make room for more constructive thoughts, decisions, and positive alternatives, allowing you to live in the beautiful gift of the present moment.
Trap: Stubbornly refusing to dodge the bullets of self-sabotage when you recognize it is beginning to happen. This is just as addictive as drugs, alcohol, gambling, sex, or any other addiction.
Tip: What you focus on grows. Consciously tell yourself to think of more positive thoughts, even when a part of you fights this notion. That is part of the self-sabotage trap. This is the ego running full steam ahead, much like a two-year-old temper tantrum. Don’t give in to it. Stop being a victim. You are not a victim of your thoughts. You think your thoughts. Your thoughts do not think you. Reclaim your personal power by constructive alternative thoughts, words, and actions. Come back to the present. Release the past for a better present and future.
Trap: You feel helpless, with no energy.
Tip: At the moment of feeling lethargic, inertia is at work. Things in motion tend to stay in motion. Things at rest, including you, tend to stay at rest. This is the law of thermodynamics at play. The key to a stuffy, bottled-up house is to open the windows and let the sun and breeze in. It starts with a concept. Change what you are thinking about to a good memory, a fun time, a moment that made you smile. Naturally this does not change the past experiences. Still, make a new plan to improve some aspect of yourself, or to look at others with more empathy, both for yourself and them. Take a ride in nature. Get a bouquet of flowers. Cook something delicious. Boil cinnamon and cloves in water on the stove. This aroma, like citrus aromas help to lift moods.
Trap: Mentally feeling and acknowledging you are in a negative mood, over, and over, and over in your mind, because that’s the way you are feeling.
Tip: Moods follow thoughts, always. It is never the other way around. The way to change your dark, negative moods is to think more positive thoughts. It is a mental switch you flip in your mind. This is a conscious decision you make. Make a positive, life-affirming plan. Make lots of plans. Brainstorm positive alternatives and choose one to follow.
It might seem like you have a bucket of cement encasing your body, mind, and spirit, as if you do not have a choice after a year of disappointments, crippling seclusion, and mandated changes to your life for the greater preservation of all people. Do not fall victim to this self-sabotage. Know there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Also remember that now is not forever. Things can get better, no matter what is going on in your life.
Things can also get worse, much worse, depending on how much you want to torment yourself by negative thoughts. You are in charge of you, no one else. The choice is yours.
Know that now is not all there is. The future is bright for you, in all ways. There is much to discover in this life. There are opportunities and new therapies yet to discover. Science discovers new things every day. Find the hope, the joy and the abundance of all good things. That is my New Year’s wish for you.
Mental health is just as important for total health and well-being as physical and spiritual health is. It is part of the tripod that holds healthy humans up. Ignoring mental health issues can be just as devastating as ignoring appendicitis issues. Today we are well past the stigma of mental health labels.
Remember that help is always available. Always seek a mental health counselor if you feel you need someone to talk things over and work things out.
Still, there are self-help things that can help to calm and relax the mind. Do you feel immobilized by indecision?
Take a moment to think about and write down the issue. Next, write down all the positive possibilities, without restrictions, reasons, or excuses. Brainstorming allows us to think outside the box. A new perspective can bring in fresh ideas. There are always new ideas to be had.
Scent is a strong mental helper. Essential oils can invigorate or calm down, like lavender or citrus. Lighting scented candles can also help.
It is said that music soothes the savage breast. Are you upset? Switch on calming or upbeat music immediately changes the vibrational frequency in the room. For point of information, there are two variations of this phrase, music calms the savage beast and music tames the savage beast. This idiom is actually a misquote of a line from the play The Mourning Bride from the year 1697. The British poet William Congreve wrote this originally as music hath charms to sooth a savagebreast.
Does any of this change the situation you might be struggling with? No. But in the process of doing something different, other that repeating negative stories or life situations with a friend, you are changing the vibrational frequency from low to higher. When you do this, more possibilities arrive to the mind that otherwise first thought. New suggestions can arise when not suppressed by the ego, which sometimes wants to keep the status quo.
Do the next best thing you can do. Go for a walk. Stop the confusion. Make a decision for good health. Smile at others and watch them smile back. Do something out of the ordinary. It is possible to feel better.
We live in untenable times. Many of us have lost our homes, our jobs and in the worst cases, to date over 176,000 of us in the USA have lost our lives to a world-wide pandemic. Here in the USA, we have 5,713,776 confirmed cases of COVID-19, which include over 48,000 new cases today 8/22/20 alone. The USA leads the world in the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths related to it. Worldwide, there have been nearly 23 million confirmed cases, and almost 800,000 deaths. Yes, there have been 14,715,412 recoveries worldwide.
People argue the technical reasons for these deaths, saying they are from other causes which are also present, or even telling others not to call it a world-wide pandemic, or “promote fear” by reporting on the numbers, as if by denying the deathwave that has crossed our country will stop its march, or to whatever name we change this killer virus. Denying reality does not change it.
Denial of climate change and lobal warming also does not stop its reality. The wildfire season has now hit our western shores and spreading inland, destroying forests, the lungs of our planet, while simultaneously compromising our own lungs and lives. The denial of climate change and global warming do not reflect the reality we are living in, with megastorms, hurricanes and tornados, and heat waves in recording breaking numbers. It would be supposed reasons to sink into despair, if it were not for one thing.
Despair will not lift any of us out of the situations in which we are finding ourselves these days. No one will solve any situation through despair. We know this. To dwell on our present situation as if that is all there is and ever will be, is to decide to stay stuck exactly where you are finding yourself now. Concentrating on self-deflating feelings are the bucket of cement that will ensure that nothing changes. People these days are so into not denying their feelings that they make the common mistake of recognizing and validating their feelings, with thinking they need to stay with these feelings because that is how they are feeling. As long as we buy this lie, we will not heal.
If personal safety is an issue, CALL someone. With staying home, abusive situations can escalate. No one has a right to harm you.
What are the signs we need to watch out for?
The other person always criticizing you.
The other person always telling you what to do.
Having to answer to the other person.
Having to keep to the time schedule of the other person.
Always having to ask for permission to think, say or do anything.
Having the other person always manipulating you.
We all have the God-given right to life. We all have the right to live our lives the best way we see fit. We do not need to live our lives under someone’s thumb.
We do not need to live our lives in debilitating fear, obligation and guilt of someone else injuring ourselves or themselves in some way.
There are suicide prevention hotlines. There are abuse hotlines. There are mental health providers.
National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 800-273-8255
National Domestic Abuse Hotline: 800-799-7233
Rape Abuse Incest National Network (RAINN): 800-656-4673
You and I, unless we are specially trained with degrees in these mental health fields, are not trained to deal with these real life and death matters. Yes, we care about the people in our lives. We serve no one when we shut ourselves down along with the manipulating and/or mentally sick person. That is not helping.
What will lift us out of despair?
1. Acknowledge your feelings. Feelings are not right or wrong, they just are.
2. Decide to change your feelings from those of despair, depression, helplessness or any other dysfunctional negative feelings that is binding you into fear and immobilization.
3. Realize that deciding not to stay stuck with despair, depression, helplessness or any other dysfunctional negative feeling does not invalidate the feelings, nor you.
4. Make a conscious choice as to what feeling you want to have, the next lighter feeling in freedom which you can think.
5. Focus only on the feeling you are planning to achieve. Notice I did not say “trying” to achieve. The words “trying” is an open door to failure. It is a way out for you to be able to say, “At least I tried.” Do not “try” to do anything. DO IT. Realize that you can be happy, right where you are, in a line waiting for food, speaking with others in life-affirming statements on the streets, which bring about other possibilities and opportunities not yet realized.
6. Organize your thoughts, words and actions. Be the change you wish to see in the world around you. By encouraging others in positive ways, you encourage yourself. As long as you are living, breathing and moving, you have the ability to change despair into functional conversations with positive plans to help yourself and others. Make sure you use your voice to VOTE. No one can take away your human rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
7. Know that you are not alone. While resposible people remain wearing masks and social distancing, we can reach out by cell phones and social media, zoom, Skype and many other current ways to build each other up, support noble ideas for the common good of all people; and change ignorance into intelligence. Where there is darkness, shine your light of a smile, encouraging words to yourself and your family and friends, and be the Light on the hill for all to see by.
I only chose 7 suggestions out of a thousand I could mention. Perhaps one of these triggers another thought, which then brings you to an even better thought. Go with the next highest vibration of thought to lift you out of despair.
It all begins with with a DECISION to feel better. These times are tough, but they are not the end. You are stronger than you realize. We grow in character when we face tough times.
I used to pray for patience, a lot, until I realized one day that by praying for patience, I was inviting in adversity, so I could practice my patience! That is when I DECIDED to claim and fully realize, that I had all the patience I needed. It worked! I simply needed to act on that realization in order to move forward and create abundance of all good things in my life, compared to only witnessing the adversity.
We can re-build our lives. We cannot bring back those who have lost their lives, of course, but we can take the necessary next steps forward in our healing process. Now is not forever. There is so much we can do to help ourselves, and others, in this time of uncertainty.
Choose only thoughts, words and actions based on LOVE and LIGHT. All else harms you and the whole of humanity.
Whether you have been spending too much of your own Energy on Energy sapping activities, boredom, or Energy sapping thoughts, how do you recover? The Pure Life Energy you are made of, that your Spirit is made of, comes directly from the Source of All Energy. It is Intelligent, Substance and Pure Energy. It is your I AM Presence. It is your Free Will. It is boundless. It is a great help to you and me to remember this. Energy has many forms and ways it regenerates Itself.
Signs of low Energy are stress, anxiety, panic, panic attacks, depression, frustration, fear and anger, just to name a few symptoms. You do not have to stay in this low vibration of life if you do not want to. It is not up to someone else to get you out of this Energy slump. It is not up to waiting until one glorious day, you discover that you finally have Energy as one of the courses I took erroneously pontificated.
The biggest waste of money I ever spent on obtaining Continuing Education Credits (CEUs) for my therapy business, was when I took an 8 hour certification class on psychological health, specifically dealing with depression and low Energy symptoms. I almost ran out of this well-meaning, but ignorant class when the pinnacle point on how to get out of depression was to do nothing, absolutely nothing. The reason for this, the teacher said, was that the fact is, if you do absolutely nothing, eventually, one day, when a new breeze blows in and the stars all align (she didn’t say the breeze and star part), happiness will return on its own.
From that statement on during my 8 hour stint in my chosen seat, I felt intense anger at the truth of the matter that, yes, in fact, if you do absolutely nothing, in a week, a month or a year, eventually you will have more Energy and the happiness that results. This knowledge was supposed to soothe the savage soul of depression and the like.
BUT WHY SHOULD YOU HAVE TO WAIT A WEEK, A MONTH OR A YEAR TO HAVE MORE ENERGY AND FIND HAPPINESS, WHEN ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS THE FOLLOWING THINGS:
MOODS: Begin with your thinking. Moods follow thoughts – ALWAYS. It is never the other way around. If you do not like how you are feeling, change what you are thinking about. Yourself will argue with yourself about this. Usually the next thought is, “This is not true. This cannot be. I have tried this before. This won’t work.” This is your ego rearing its head because your ego does not like change. Your ego wants to be right. Even if you are miserable, the ego is comfortable with what it knows. Rock the boat with your ego and you will have that two-year-old temper tamtrum inside yourself. The key is to not let the ego win. To say to yourself, “This is the mood I am in, because this is how I am feeling,” is to stay in this mood that you do not want. You might think it is good to validate whatever mood you are in. Remember, what you think about you bring about. The feelings about the thoughts you are having is what is creating your moods. Moods do not ultimately cause you to feel the way you do; thoughts bolstered by your feelings do. Yes, you CAN change yout thoughts. You can get more Energy, even in the toughest of situations.
THOUGHTS: Nothing raises your Energy faster that changing what you are thinking about. Take a moment to notice what you think about most of your day. What are you allowing in to your consciousness, subconscious and super conscious mind on a consistant basis? I know, I am still speaking about the varous aspects of ego. The idea is you have a choice of HOW you take in information, AND, what you think, say and do after that. Ignorance is not bliss. You and I do need to be aware of what is going on within us, under our own roofs, in our communities, in our countries and in the world at large. But HOW we deal with this information must be conscious, on-purpose thoughts. Re-Member your I AM Presence, your Spirit, which is the kingdom of God WITHIN YOU (Luke 17:21). Unless your next thoughts are positive and constructive, these thoughts will sap the Energy Field, first around you, then settle within your mind, body and soul. Your thoughts get “ill” before your body gets “ill.” Your Spirit remains the Source of your Energy, your I AM Presence, because it is your direct line to the Source of All Energy. So when you finally get sick and tired of being sick and tired, or not wanting to put up with the things and thoughts you have been putting up with, which are bringing you down, you decide to CHANGE HOW YOU ARE THINKING, SAYING AND DOING, and think, say and do something else. Then, a fresh breeze sweeps through your mind. New ideas are born.
WORDS: After your thoughts, nothing can build you up or tear you down faster that how you choose to use your spoken and unspoken words (Unspoken words, of course, are thoughts). What do you spend your waking hours talking about? Do you gossip? When you see dysfunction around you, do you speak of constructive problem solving? Do you SPEND your energy on THE EMOTION of your words? Do you speak words of wisdom? How do you convey your words? Do your words convey joy? Do your words convey fear? Do your words speak Truth? Do you use your words as a means of control? Do you use your words as a weapon? Do you use your words as a soothing balm in hurtful situations? Do your words hold judgments? Ponder how you use your words, written or spoken. The spoken words have the benefit of tone and inflection. Words spoken in person have the benefit of your eyes meeting the eyes of those you are speaking with, which also better provide the intention of the words you say. The written word comes across much more harsh. Our minds can twist the tone and intention of the writer, based on our own experiences, or lack of experiences. WORDS ARE POWER. Jesus is known as the Word, for example. Words are a form of Energy. Words are the manifestation of our fertilized thoughts. Our Words have the Power to make things happen, or stop them in their tracks. Careful and conscious use of our Words are key to building up our Energy Field around us, as well as infusing Love and Light Energy from the Source of All Good, into our lives.
ACTIONS: We spend and receive Energy by the actions we choose to take. Actions done for positive, life-affirming goals brings an equal measure of Energy to your Spirit. There is a sense of satisfaction that blesses your Spirit, as with a job well done. It is a direct result of the Law of Cause and Effect, or the Law of Karma. Some people call this seed faith planting. It is the basic premise of giving and receiving. It works for good and lack of good. It simply works. Actions taken with misqualified or dark intention saps your Energy. Re-Member, Energy comes from the SOURCE of ALL ENERGY, which is boundless. I specify “Re-Member” in this exact presentation of the Word Remember, because, again, you have Energy from the Source of ALL Energy. You are Re-Membering yourself, aligning yourself with this Source, of which you are intricately a part. When you decide to work with this Boundless Energy, you will be filled to the brim with the same Energy. As soon as your thoughts sink to the lowest common denominator, feelings of self-sabotage set in, words mimic the thought patterns, followed by in-action or loss of drive to do anything. Actions taken without previous Thoughts and Words can be rash and self-sabotaging. Have you ever spent your Energy in retribution, or on dark or negative goals? That is like shooting yourself in the foot. Lingering Thoughts hang around, going over and over things you might wish you did differently, again sapping your energy. You may accomplish the sinister goal, but it will not only sap your Energy, it puts you on the defense, requiring you to keep up the negative attitude or justification of similar thoughts and words, day after day, and year after year, which are ultimately draining.
This is nothing new. We see in our lives and in the world areas that are calling for our attention. How are we to respond? This is important. You and I will have the measure of Energy with which we are dealing or not dealing with the situations Life presents us with. LOVE is the Energy that is the most powerful, life sustaining, and Life generating. Lack of LOVE in all its hideous forms is the fastest drain of Energy.
If you want more Energy, decide to use your Thoughts, Words and Actions to build up, not tear down.
Some of us come into our own at an early age, knowing just who we are with all of our strengths and our weaknesses. Others of us come into this internal and
You are not a victim, nor a martyr, unless you choose to be. You have a choice.
external knowing later in life, while some of us carry on to the end, never really knowing all the dimensions of what makes us tick, or what our mission in this lifetime is. There are so many factors that shape a person, his or her emotional self, personality and personal likes and dislikes, religious and personal beliefs, self-esteem and personal empowerment issues.
There are some of us who live one part of our live, and mature later in some aspect of ourselves. Life has a way of teaching, molding, expanding us to reach for the new horizons we now see.
We have a right to our feelings. Feelings are not right or wrong. The key is, if you do not like how you are feeling, CHANGE HOW YOU ARE THINKING. Yes, you can. This works 100 percent of the time. Yesterday’s post might help in this realization and how to put it into practice.
This post, originally from 2012, is timely since the COVID-19 pandemic has weighed down on us circumstances no one could have foreseen. Today we have reached 1,471,718 confirmed cases in the USA, and 85,901 deaths. Worldwide there are 4,474,502 confirmed cases with 303,297 deaths. There are real victims in this pandemic. This post is not addressing these victims, just to be clear. This post is addressing the times we sometimes, through habit or choice, choose to be a victim by our own thinking. In these cases, we are living under self-imposed victimhood and martyrdom. This post can help.
Self-esteem, like every other human trait mentioned here, is a living, pulsating energy. Your self-esteem is a living entity, fed every minute of every day by your own thoughts, in addition to the thoughts and attitudes of those who raised you, the schools you went to, the friends and people of influence around you, and the attitudes regarding the value of life you have finally adopted.
What role do you play in your own life?
Do you like how you are feeling?
Your feelings are key to assessing where you are at in your personal development. Denying your feelings is a sign of weakness, not strength.
Everyone from time to time feels empowered. On occasion, we find ourselves in situations of disempowerment. This is the human condition. Two people can grow up in similar situations, yet, one person comes out strong, while the other person comes out of the same set of circumstances emotionally scarred by taking on the role of victim or martyr that he or she has chosen to assume. Why is this?
In order for self-esteem to fully blossom, we need to pull out the noxious weeds of self-imposed victimhood and martyrdom. Some of us cling to these dysfunctions as if they are badges of accomplishment to be worn into every life situation. We could succeed if it were not for this, that, or the other thing that stopped us. Recognize all seeds of negative self-messaging the second it comes to mind.
When bad things happen to us in our lives, we have two choices, not just one. The worse choice we can make is to succumb to the lower sense of self, then act out the role of being a victim, as “woe is me,” that of living out our life as a martyr. The best choice we can make is to identify with our higher self, recognizing that we are a beautiful work of creation.
Now in this time of COVID-19 attempting to call all the shots, you and I can realize that it is our choice how we deal with new beginnings. What was once a viable employment now leans on creativity and ingenuity to make something new. We may not have thought of creating a new online business, grow fruits and vegetables to feed our families, or other ideas that come to mind. Are you a good cook? Do you like to sew? Are you good with tools?
Brainstorm possibilities. Rome was not built in a day.
Do not allow yourself to ever think, agree or believe negative messages about yourself. Accept yourself, right where you are, with all of the history and happenings that have ever happened to you. If there is something about yourself you wish to change for the better, then become aware and consciously work on that.
Liberate yourself from self-imposed negativity. Yes, you can. You are not a victim unless you want to be. You are not a martyr unless you choose to take that role on. But why would you do either? Often people choose these roles of dysfunction because they have learned they can manipulate others by doing so. It is good to take stock of our true motives. Accept who you are now, and consciously grow in the reality that you are worthy.
I am an international holistic health counselor/practitioner, using this blog as a worldwide outreach since its inception in 2012, and a 2005 graduate of the American Institute of Holistic Health & Wellness, studying under Dr. Dolores Seymour, director of the school and author of WHO CARES WHY.
The American Institute of Holistic Health & Wellness is accredited by the American Association of Drugless Professionals, and the National Accreditation and Certification Board. This is a lifetime and international certification. I have studied extensively in the fields of holistic health in mind, body and spirit which naturally includes counseling on all life issues, and bodywork.
This blog addresses mental health, physical health and spiritual health. There are drugless therapies that work very well most of the time when applied, and have no chemical side effects, obviously, except when they are not followed.
I am trained in M.I.N.D.S. Holistic Alternative Psychology, with an emphasis on methods, individualized plans of action, fostering the ability of the individual to reach his or her highest potential physically, emotionally and spiritually; with advanced perspectives of positive personal growth, changing attitudes from negative to positive; enhancing intuition and self-discovery through creative endeavors, and improving health as impacted by psychological states.
I work with M.I.N.D.S. Wellness & Body/Mind Consciousness, which features positive self-analysis/awareness, self-control development programs, conditioning the healing mind, controlling mood swings, anxiety, avoiding depression and raising self-esteem to its highest level.
M.I.N.D.S. Meta-Psychology is person centered rather than technically oriented, and focuses on psychological health, consciousness, human possibilities, and challenges of body, mind and spiritual development. A person cannot heal in any program void of attention to their own spiritual development. As a matter of fact, many mental and physical ailments can be rooted when spiritual sickness is at the root of the problem.
I am a former member of the Branford Hall Career Institute Advisory Board; and former owner of The Massage Clinic, LLC which had four offices in Connecticut.
I am a retired certified Qigong instructor (2011), teaching Qigong healing and breathing applications for levels 1, 2 and 3. Qigong is a 4,000 year old Chinese medicine practice that moves “chi,” the life giving energy of the body. The health-promoting effects of Qigong are:
1) Improves the motion of blood, warms the blood and enhances whole body circulation.
2) Stimulates appetite, sexual function, assimilation of nutrients and digestion/elimination.
3) Accelerates metabolism, weight loss, decreases need for sleep.
4) Bolsters the immune system by reducing cortisol, a known inhibitor of cytokine production.
5) Develops dexterity, reflexes, and prevents osteoporosis in clinical studies.
6) Opens arteries allowing greater brain-based microcirculation to prevent Alzheimer’s disease.
7) Enhances mental acuity, focus and concentration. The Qi (chi, life force, prana) draws focus and trains the mind.
8) Helps us to calm down, relax and become more peaceful.
9) Focuses mental, physical and spiritual energies together as one.
This particular Qigong Class included a food component, tying the energy of food to the energy of Qigong, and using food as medicine. Chemical medications attempt to mimic the benefits and properties of organic plant life, including fruits and vegetables and using their stems, spores and seeds. Clinical studies have been done on so many diseases, like diabetes, which can be reversed by eating certain foods high in phytochemicals. I wish to share the information I have learned about how foods work to heal our bodies.
I am a 2001 graduate of the DoveStar Institute of Holistic Technology of New Hampshire. I am now retired from bodywork, focusing on my online outreach to the world through this blog, Enlightenment Ministry.
This blog is my legacy, a healing gift to the world in need of hope, kindness, empathy, compassion, encouragement, truth, forgiveness, faith, and love. I am here for you if you need me. Please feel free to leave a comment or question, and I will get back to you, free of charge. Click on the gray COMMENT word at the top left of any post to leave a comment or ask a question, and I will respond to you. Enlightenment Ministry is my healing gift to the world so much in need of healing at this time. There is much we can do to help ourselves to feel better mentally, emotionally, psychologically, physically, and even spiritually.
Mind, body, spirit healing involves these three legs of the wellness tripod. If one of these legs of the mind, body, spirit is missing, your tripod, which reflects your total wellness, will topple over. Each of us needs a life in balance to be whole.
Here is a bit more about my personal and educational history. While my five children were growing up, I initiated the first Girl Scout troop in Hopedale, MA, and served as a member of Hopedale Girl’s Softball Board of Directors.
I was co-chairman with the elementary school principal on the school council’s 1993 Massachusetts Education Reform Act. When I was not allowed to bring in a curriculum including ethics in light of the elementary school’s sex education program, (since the school already taught ethics on school yard behavior and how to interact with students and teachers), at the request of many parents, I decided to write The Virtue of Virtues, to help parents in teaching virtues and moral character education to their children. The Virtue of Virtues is now available to all home schools, Catholic CCD and Christian programs, as well as to parents and anyone wishing to re-discover The Virtue of Virtues worldwide.
The single most constant in my life is God, Father of Jesus Christ. All glory, praise and honor to God, the Father of All Creation, through His Son, Jesus Christ, who gifts us all with His Holy Spirit. My motto in my high school yearbook was, “With God, all things are possible.”
I have had a close walk with God since I was a very young child, attending daily Mass with my mother ever since I could walk to Mass with her. I think I might have been the only five-year-old who loved Holy Hour, because I loved feeling the presence of the Holy Spirit when we prayed. God has answered my most impossible prayers. For a while I thought I would become a nun, but five children, 12 grandchildren later, and caring for six foster children in the middle of all of them in their younger years, showed me a different path for my life.
I hold a teacher training certificate as well as a Master Catechist certification from the Worcester Diocese in the Catholic Church.
I have taught religious education to all ages including preparation for First Holy Communion, First Penance, Confirmation and Bible studies for adults for over 50 years, and am the author of The Virtue of Virtues, subtitled A CCD TEXTBOOK, second printing is now available both in softcover and eBook at:
I taught The Virtue of Virtues in CCD classes as part of the 6th grade Catholic curriculums. However, The Virtue of Virtues is perfect for grades five through eight. It was first published in 1999. It is now out for its second printing from iUniverse Publishers.
Within the Catholic Church, I attended a Women’s Cursillo including Leader’s School often giving the Study Talk on Cursillo Weekends. I have attended Life In The Spirit Retreats, Marriage Encounter, and led women’s and group retreats. I also became a supernumerary within Opus Dei, a personal prelature under the direct auspice of the Pope, before I left to study all religions, to better understand all humanity much better.
I am also the author of MYSTERY OF THE STURBRIDGE KEYS, subtitled Christmas Unlocked. This book goes back in time to the days of Old Sturbridge Village (1830’s), starting at the Christmas by Candlelight celebration in real time, back to the days of the Underground Railroad, Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin, and back further to the days of Noah and the Nephilim, and to the days of the birth of Jesus. It is available at:
I am a former feature writer and news correspondent for The Milford Daily News, and Laconia Daily Sun. I am also published in the book, “More Weddings, Funerals And Rites of Passage,” subtitled “More Sample Ceremonies for Celebrants, Officiate and Ministers” by Rev. Amy E. Long. I am among the contributing authors.
When we look at what is going on with COVID-19 across the globe, how on earth are we do put into practice the very things advocated by Dr. Dolores Seymour? There seems to be a contagion sweeping the globe with sickness, death and destruction in its wake. Is it possible to regain our mental health, even daring to be happy and choosing to be like the Phoenix rising?
Yes, we can.
We all have the freedom to have our own thoughts. No one in any country across this beautiful earth can take your very own thoughts away from you. Each of us has the God-given right to have our own thoughts. It is how we choose to manifest them that can either help or hurt us.
Let us start right where we are in our corner of the world, to choose to transform sadness into happiness, challenges into opportunity, mourning and loss into faith, hope and love. Let us choose to be courageous and kind.
Isn’t it wonderful to know that your previous history is not your destiny? You can manage your stress in a way thatYour previous history is not your destiny. Use psycholoogical tools and techniques to help you cope and feel better. diminishes, or even eliminates it, even in today’s COVID-19 pandemic. Here are some psychological tools and techniques that can help you cope and feel better. We can all use that these days. Will how we think and process extreme difficulties change our physical realities? No. We cannot wish bad things to stop happening. What does change is the way we psychologically handle our current crisis. It makes all the difference in the world how we acknowledge and respond, directly resulting in how feel. Most of us want to feel better. Dr. Dolores Seymour, director of the American Institute of Holistic Health and Wellness, explains time-tested techniques of how to release our baggage in the video below.
Psychological tools and techniques that help us humans process the stress that sometimes sends us into anxiety and panic attacks, work very effectively. To argue their validity or non-validity prior to trying them is lack of understanding how the human brain works. At this very moment, we have the ability to feel better or worse, simply by what we choose to think on any given subject, followed by the actions we decide to take, or not. Who does not want to feel better in dark and oppressive situations?
Our doctors and nurses in hospitals and nursing homes are on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide. Those of us who have been directly affected, physically, emotionally either by helping others, or who are the ones who were helped by these earthly angels, appreciate and support these valiant workers more than words can say. Everyone is affected in dealing with changes in employment, social distancing and new ways of doing things. Change is inevitable. Change is the only constant in life. It is how we deal with all of the above that can help or hurt us psychologically.
Whether it is you who is in a tenuous situation, someone around you, or the world at large, you have the ability to not only cope, but to excel in how you walk through this day. This video can help.
If you do not like how you are feeing, change how you are thinking. This works 100 percent of the time. Yes, you can. This next short video is part 2 of a 4 part series on free holistic healing counseling support amid the changing times and social distancing guidelines we are following these days. There are numerous posts in this blog I have written in the past on natural, holistic healing without the use of chemical medications.
Even if you take medications for relief with stress and its affect on your moods, you will still get to this starting point of self care and self improvement suggestions mentioned in this post. With or without medications, if you want to feel better, you will arrive at this exact point. Your moods involve your thinking, what you choose to think about. Did you realize you are the one who is choosing to think your thoughts, that they do not think you?
What you think about, you bring about. You are so powerful, that at this very moment, if you think you have had enough with this cloud of stress, or depression, or anxiety, however it is manifesting for you, you can stop it, turn it around, and begin to have a beautiful day. Yes, you can.
Now you will hear from my instructor from the American Institute of Holistic Health and Wellness, Dr. Dolores Seymour. She will tell you what I have been telling you all along.
If you would like further communication with me on this or any other post, simply click on the light gray comment word at the top left of this post. I will get back to you.
The good news is, it is possible to deal with anxiety in a way that will not cripple us. It is possible to move past stress and depression. It is possible to deal with these darker emotions, as long as the tight-fisted grip on the sabotaging habits is released. The question is, do we want to?
As long as we begin every sentence with the words, “Ever since …” whatever the trigger is that spiraled us into anxiety, stress and depression; as long as we cling for dear life to that dysfunctional part of our life, it is less likely we will move forward. It is a self-sabotage trick we play on ourselves, our badge of dysfunctional honor, that we cling to, unaware of the life changing choice we are making, is the very thing that sinks us as we cling to that deflated life raft. It is doomed to sink.
Sometimes it occurs to us only after numerous times of finding ourselves in the same place. How many relationships have we had that end up in the same dysfunctional pattern. Do I persistently have a fight or flight relationship with friends, money, jobs, or even with myself?
The beginning to healing life-long habits of anxiety, stress and depression is to recognize the dysfunctional habits that we have. This can be uncomfortable, because although we do not like how we are feeling, the exhaustion that accompanies anxiety, high stress levels and depression seems to overwhelm any and all past efforts to feel better. There seems no energy left except to keep repeating the familiar.
There is good news for a solution that works 100 percent of the time. It only does not work if we choose not to do it. It is a matter of the mind. It is possible to have a new thought.
Now before I start, please realize that the ego does not like change. It likes the status quo. Your mind will tell you, “This won’t work,” or “I’ve tried this before,” or “I can’t,” or “I won’t.” You will be 100 percent correct if that is what you decide to stick to.
Notice I said “decide.” The ego tries to run you in its comfortable old pattern of thought and behavior, even if it is something you do not like. The ego is not really in charge of you. It is more like the two-year-old having a temper tantrum, stomping and screaming until it gets its way. Yes, sometimes it is easier in the moment to cave to that demand. There is a deeper sense of satisfaction though, when we take charge of our ego.
Our thoughts do not think us. We think our thoughts.
Knowing this, now it is possible to move forward, into new territory, into taking charge of our emotional and mental health. Silence all negative and self-sabotaging thoughts with a new mantra, “Yes, I can,” and change your next thought into a positive step forward.
You can switch negative self-messaging to, “Yes, I can.” Notice I did not suggest for you to think, “I will try.”
To say “I will try” is to quit before you start. Do not do that. You are in charge of your run-away thoughts. Begin with, “Yes, I can.”
You can walk right out of anxiety, panic, stress and depression. The moment you fully realize you are in charge of you, not your emotions, no matter how big and scary they feel, is the moment you begin walking in freedom.
The concept of freedom is extremely helpful here. Does a courageous person never feel or experience fear? Of course they do. A courageous person sees the fear, but walks right on into helping the person needing the help anyway, because more is at stake. Just ask any member of the police and fire departments, or the doctors and nurses currently working on the front lines in our hospitals and nursing homes.
Each of us has that courageous lion in all of our hearts.
I am not saying to deny your feelings. I am saying to acknowledge them. But in the very next thought, think of a simple, positive solution. There is always something positive we can think. Play happier music, go for a walk as long as you can be six feet away from others, take a ride in the car. Start a new mantra, something you say to yourself to lift your spirits. Bake something delicious. Call a positive friend, or make new positive friends.
Now is not forever. I tell myself this every time I go to the dentist. It always happens to be true.
As long as we can leave behind the old mantra of, “Ever since I …” then there is hope. Theses days are a new beginning, especially with the equally new challenges we are going through with social distancing, quarantining, closed businesses and the sense of life being stifled. We build on hope, with faith in ourselves and faith in the good Lord who made us all. We are all worthy to fully participate in the human experience. When we add love, real love for our selves, our friends, our family and our world, we will feel better and begin to fully realize our mission here in this life.
I came across this beautiful meditation and wanted to share it with all of you. It would make an inspirational meditation during Holy Week. I also heard that with the world social distancing, for love of our neighbors, many of us will not be going to Church on Palm Sunday, which also means we will not be receiving palms. Instead, with full love in our hearts, I invite you to join in, if it is possible for you to do so, to put greens on the door of your home. These greens can be greens from the forest: pine, evergreen, fur tree branches for those of us in northern climates; palm branches for those of you in southern states and Hawaii, and any other greens from trees and/or bushes. God is not prejudiced about kind nor color. He loves us all!
Lent can be more than a time of fasting; it can be a season of feasting. We can use Lent to fast from certain things and to feast on others. It is a season in which we can:
Fast from judging others; feast on Christ Jesus dwelling in them.
Fast from emphasis on differences; feast on the unity of life.
Fast from apparant darkness; feast on the reality of light.
Fast from thoughts and reality of illness for a moment; feast on the healing power of God.
Fast from words that pollute; feast on phrases that encourage.
Fast from discontent; feast on gratitude.
Fast from anger; feast on patience.
Fast from pessimism; feast on optomism.
Fast from worry; feast on divine order.
Fast from complaining; feast on appreciation.
Fast from negatives; feast on affirmatives.
Fast from unrelenting pressures; feast on unceasing prayers.
Fast from hostility; feast on kindness.
Fast from bitterness; feast on forgiveness.
Fast from self-concern; feast on compassion for others.
Fast from personal anxiety; feast on eternal truth.
Fast from discouragement; feast on hope.
Fast from facts that depress; feast on thoughts that uplift.
Fast from lethargy; feast on enthusiam.
Fast from thoughts that weaken; feast on promises that inspire.
Fast from shadows of sorrow; feast on the sunlight of contentment.
Fast from idle gossip; feast on purposeful silence. ~ author unknown
I would like to point out that I am not proposing ignorance, like an ostrich with its head
I do not see any COVID-19, prejudice, poll tampering, voter fraud, ballot counting fraud, or bad news of any kind. Nope, I don’t see a thing.
stuck in the sand, or living blissfully in denial, as if there is no need to know what is going on in the world or in our environment or neighborhoods. Ignorance is not bliss.
What I am proposing is balance in mind, body and spirit. Our minds can do more than worry. Our bodies can do more than get out of shape. Our spirits can do more than be filled with self-delusion.
If we all get back to the virtues, we will witness the world becoming more fully human, as the Good God intended us to be.
I came across this beautiful meditation and wanted to share it with all of you. It would make an inspirational meditation during Holy Week. I also heard that with the world social distancing, for love of our neighbors, many of us will not be going to Church on Palm Sunday, which also means we will not be receiving palms. Instead, with full love in our hearts, I invite you to join in, if it is possible for you to do so, to put greens on the door of your home. These greens can be greens from the forest: pine, evergreen, fur tree branches for those of us in northern climates; palm branches for those of you in southern states and Hawaii, and any other greens from trees and/or bushes. God is not prejudiced about kind nor color. He loves us all!
Lent can be more than a time of fasting; it can be a season of feasting. We can use Lent to fast from certain things and to feast on others. It is a season in which we can:
Fast from judging others; feast on Christ Jesus dwelling in them.
Fast from emphasis on differences; feast on the unity of life.
Fast from apparant darkness; feast on the reality of light.
Fast from thoughts and reality of illness for a moment; feast on the healing power of God.
Fast from words that pollute; feast on phrases that encourage.
Fast from discontent; feast on gratitude.
Fast from anger; feast on patience.
Fast from pessimism; feast on optomism.
Fast from worry; feast on divine order.
Fast from complaining; feast on appreciation.
Fast from negatives; feast on affirmatives.
Fast from unrelenting pressures; feast on unceasing prayers.
Fast from hostility; feast on kindness.
Fast from bitterness; feast on forgiveness.
Fast from self-concern; feast on compassion for others.
Fast from personal anxiety; feast on eternal truth.
Fast from discouragement; feast on hope.
Fast from facts that depress; feast on thoughts that uplift.
Fast from lethargy; feast on enthusiam.
Fast from thoughts that weaken; feast on promises that inspire.
Fast from shadows of sorrow; feast on the sunlight of contentment.
Fast from idle gossip; feast on purposeful silence. ~ author unknown
I would like to point out that I am not proposing ignorance, like an ostrich with its head
I do not see any COVID-19, prejudice, poll tampering, voter fraud, ballot counting fraud, or bad news of any kind. Nope, I don’t see a thing.
stuck in the sand, or living blissfully in denial, as if there is no need to know what is going on in the world or in our environment or neighborhoods. Ignorance is not bliss.
What I am proposing is balance in mind, body and spirit. Our minds can do more than worry. Our bodies can do more than get out of shape. Our spirits can do more than be filled with self-delusion.
If we all get back to the virtues, we will witness the world becoming more fully human, as the Good God intended us to be.
The grass is not greener on the other side of the pasture, no matter whose pasture it is. How often have we looked at the lives of others compared against our own? This is a trap to avoid. Our minds can be our best friends or worst enemies, depending on our mood in any particular moment. Our moods are like the shifting sands in the desert wind storm. We can help ourselves and others by directing the way we think. You and I are in charge of our thoughts. Our thoughts do not think us. We think our thoughts.
We are all born where we are born, in that particular place, in those particular circumstances, with those particular parents or situation. We all have the personality we were born with, with the general outlook on life that we have. How many hours and dollars have been spent trying to manipulate our lives, thoughts, words and actions into other realities?
During these trying times, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, we need to be cautious and take the extra measures to keep ourselves and our families safe. This does not mean, housebound as we are, that we need to delve into depression because we erroneously think “that is just who I am, a person with depression.”
IF YOU DO NOT LIKE HOW YOU ARE FEELING, CHANGE HOW YOU ARE THINKING.
Not many other words cause as much outrage than those words mentioned above. These words are true. You are not a victim of your feelings, and you are not the victim of your life, even if it has been this way all your life. What this really means is that you have believed a lie. Yes, there may be chemical imbalances you may have to deal with. Seek help from your naturopath or herbal or flower essence therapist in these cases. Strong drugs are seldom the solution. Even if your doctor does prescribe medication for your situation, you STILL will arrive at the very starting point I am making here. You are in control of your thoughts. You will only heal when you decide to do so.
You will still stay depressed, even on medication, unless you CHANGE HOW YOU ARE THINKING. YES, YOU CAN! The question is, do you want to feel better? Sometimes we say we do, but deep down we really do not. Sometimes it is others who have sabotaged our thinking. Sometimes it is ourselves who have sabotaged our own thinking.
How do you control that negative, repetitive mental loop cycle that weighs you down? The second you realize your negative thoughts are repeating, STOP THEM. Do things that affect any or all of your six senses. You can:
change the music to happier music
boil cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves for a wonderful aroma
soak your feet in hot water with lavender
look for the birds and beauty around you or online
eat something delicious slowly appreciating every bite
pray and/or meditate, light a candle of faith, hope and love
It is not the case that you cannot change your mood or what you think about, even in the most horrific situations. As an international holistic health counselor/practitioner, I have been trained to guide people toward positive solutions and ways to keep a positive outlook in the midst of tragic life circumstances. There is so much we cannot change in the physical reality that we find ourselves in. However, we can change how we think, speak and act an deal with these situations.
I did not say this is an easy thing to do, although it can be. The difficulty with changing a negative mood, thought or state of being into a positive one depends entirely on the desire to do so AND taking the necessary steps to relieve depression. I am saying it is possible. Do not be discouraged by the facts as you see them in front of you. There are more facts to consider. Ask yourself these questions:
Why am I in this situation right now?
How can I help myself so I can help others?
If I am serving with life-saving care, where would these people be without me?
Do I realize God is working through me to help these people right now?
Do I realize God is working through my hands?
Do I realize God is speaking through my words of comfort to others?
Do I realize God is supporting me in my times of complete exhaustion?
Do I realize I can call on my guardian angel for help in every moment?
Do I fully understand how much comfort my presence brings to the situation?
Do I realize how needed I am right now, and always?
Do I realize how LOVED I am right now, by God and my LOVED Ones?
Do I realize that despite appearances, I am making a valuable difference in the lives of others?
You matter. You matter a lot. Bloom where you are planted. You are the most beautiful flower in your garden of life. You will bloom when you feed yourself with the right nutrients of the love of God, complete with the fertilization of faith in God and your God-given abilities, and the moral courage of hope in the promises of Jesus Christ.
DO NOT FORGET TO DRINK WATER. Did you know that when the brain is just two percent dehydrated that you can get “fuzzy thinking?” At moments like these you are not thinking straight. It makes you mentally exhausted. The brain is our hydro-electric machine, requiring water to operate in optimal condition. Drinking water will not cure anyone of COVID-19, but it will help with how we think and feel.
It is also hurtful to be away from family and friends physically for a while, and amid COVID-19 with the loss of life in its wake. Still, we can all do our best to be our very best, in all situations. We can bloom where we are planted. We can extend our love to those around us both family and friends via social media and social distancing. We can all give hope to those around us who need us. Sometimes it is us who need them. Rely on faith in God when all else seems impossible.
Jesus came to teach us the virtues of faith, hope and love. You and I can share these three theological virtues in this week prior to Holy Week as our Lenten gift to others. Let us all pray more and offer our prayers to God, seeking only His will in all things. Ask for the help of the strength of the Holy Spirit promised to us who remember to call on God in this way. Remember also that Jesus, while on the cross, gave his mother, Mary, to all of us when he told John, “Behold Your Mother!” Mary is also our Spiritual Mother.
Don’t forget, if we get completely overwhelmed by the trials of this life, it is Jesus who carries us shown by His footprints in the sand. He will never abandon us.
The harsh reality in this life that we will all face, is that we will all one day die. No one lives forever. Considering this sobering fact, how is it that we want and choose to live? My mother gave me a great gift when she taught me the childhood prayers, especially:
Now I lay me down to sleep.
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
If I should die before I wake,
I pray the Lord my soul to take.
I remember, as a five year old asking my mother, “Mom’s does ‘if I should die before I wake’ mean?” Here I was at such a tender age learning about life and death and the life to come in heaven with God the Father of Jesus, if I was good that is. Sometimes we live our lives as if we will never die, thinking we never having to be accountable to our actions, and basing all our decisions on materialism, consumerism and only physical realities. What a huge mistake this is. There is more to life.
May we come to fully understand how much every decision we make in this one life we get, and every opportunity we get at every new moment of every day, can benefit ourselves and all of humanity, in their and our temporal lives as well as their and our eternal lives to come. Now is not forever. There’s is more.
Do you want to feel better? We need to ask ourselves this question because we may not like how we are feeling, but somehow we have attached ourselves to the very depression which seems to be holding us hostage. I went to a seminar on depression about a dozen years back. If I wasn’t in need of the CEUs the program was giving me, I would have walked right out the door. But there I was, needing CEUs, so I stayed and listened to what I know works, but at the slowest rate possible. Do nothing was the solution of the speaker. I couldn’t believe me ears.
Let me ask you a question. When you are feeling depressed, do you want to get out of depression quickly, or would you rather wallow in the depression, going from bad to worse, until that one magical day, which ultimately does arrive, when you do not feel depressed anymore? It is true, as the speaker at this seminar was pontificating, that if you simply do nothing, eventually you know, as you have known in the past, that one day, sooner or later, depression lifts.
The more she talked, the angrier I got. The fact of the matter is that everything she said was true. However, it is also true that you can take positive action, at this very moment to begin to feel better. If you are depressed and want to stay in your depression, then do not read any further, because what I also know is true, is how to get out of depression sooner.
I am not saying you snap your fingers and you are magically better. But what I do know is, that there is a way out of depression that does not require you to stay under a depressive cloud until one day the winds of thinking change and voilà, you are no longer depressed.
There is a wonderful true statement in holistic counseling. It is, “If you don’t like how you are feeling, change how you are thinking.” That does work 100 percent of the time, unless someone refuses to do it. It does seem like our thoughts “think” us, but that is not true.
As soon as we realize that our thoughts have been hijacked by the merry-go-round of mental dysfunction, we tell our minds we are going to focus, think or dwell on something else; like making a creative meal tonight with candles, or a special dessert to share with our kids, or carve a pumpkin and toast the seeds, or plan a fun movie night with popcorn for the kids and their friends along with you, or a host of other new things we can do in that same amount of time, jump into fall cleaning, or go shopping for a bit of pretty stationary to write to a friend who now lives far away.
Yes there is social media, but there is nothing quite as special as receiving a handwritten letter in the mail … and a thousand creative other things we can choose to think about, write about and tell others about. We do not only have to talk about the negative, dark and/or depressive moments in our lives. Rather than constantly talk about negative things, depression can make you not talk at all, so that no one knows what pain you are in. No man (woman or child) is an island. We all need each other. This is our sign to reach out to others. You are worthwhile and loved no matter what bad things have happened to you in the past.
Nothing we can say or do will change the past. All we can do is to go forward. We can raise the tone of our minds, the words we choose to share with others, and the actions we choose to take. We have the power to make them positive, life-giving decisions; or make them by only choosing to keep depressive thoughts, words and actions simply because our ego wants to keep us there, stuck. We make this choice, one way or the other, every single time depression sets in. Don’t let the ego win on this one.
Choosing more positive thoughts, words and actions works whether or not we are on medications prescribed us by doctors to help us get through the day. There are real chemical imbalances out there. But even at that, nothing will change until we decide by making a firm decision to change what we are thinking about. That really is possible.
It seems we have an inner fight between the “good” us and the “bad” us. That would be our ego roaring like a lion that we cannot change our thoughts. There are so many things our ego does not want to do, because it likes the dysfunctions it knows. The ego hates change more than you hate being depressed. The good news is that you are the boss of you, not your ego.
Try to find moments to appreciate, a smile to share, look for the beauty in nature, feel the sun on your face. I know all of this does not take problems nor the past away, or make it so bad things never happen. The point is not to let the past dictate our present nor our future. Bad things do happen, but we need to look to the present moment and plan for how we will bring in light, love, peace and joy into our lives and the lives of those around us. It can be done in baby steps or by leaps and bounds.
I am sharing what has helped so many people (5,000 to be exact) who came to see me in counseling for this very situation. We cannot change the past, but we can come up with better coping skills for the present and the future.
Moods follow thoughts ALWAYS. So many people find themselves unable to cope with depression, and
What are you thinking about? Right now, choose to think of something beautiful. Yes, you can.
some turn to doctors and medications for help. Whether or not you are on medication, often nothing will change until you decide to change how you are thinking. Refusing to change how you are thinking keeps you hostage to depression. But you do not have to stay hostage to depression unless you want to. You actually do have a choice.
Usually when we hear this that little voice inside of us begins to revolt. It tells you, “That does not work. I have tried that before. If it were that easy I would feel better already.”
Sound familiar?
That’s the ego speaking to you. It likes the status quo, no change. The insane ego (not that you are insane) thinks it is running the show. It is not.
The ego inside of all of us can act as a bully to any challenge to change, whether it is diet, weight loss, fitness goals or any other change in goal setting, or whether it concerns your efforts to get out of depression, or any other life change you want to make.
We have to ask ourselves, “Are we ready, able and willing to make the necessary changes to feel better?”
How many times have we had a fleeting desire to feel better, yet are not ready, willing or able to do the thing that will get us up and moving, eat better, or get out of depression?
It is possible to get out of depression, whether you are on medication from your doctor or not on any medication at all.
Realize that thoughts do not think you. You think your thoughts. If a thought comes to mind that makes you depressed, change what you are thinking about. That sounds funny when you first hear that. You actually already do this when you have decided that you have had enough of a particular situation. You decide to change it, usually when you are at your wits end. But you do not have to lose all your wits in order to simply change your thoughts.
It is a decision you make. You can make this decision peacefully. You can make this decision without violence. You can simply take control of the present moment and change what you are thinking about. You have the ability to change your thoughts any time you want to. The question is, do you want to?
We seem to be comfortable with “the devil we know” over the one we do not know. Our mental state might be crippling us, but the sense of familiarity can seem better to us than the unknown of risking new ways of thinking and new behaviors, especially if we have tried and failed in the past.
There is something to that phrase, “the devil we know.” However, Jesus is stronger than any “devil we know,” so that is a very comforting thought.
Another good thing to know, which you probably do already, is that the past does not define who you are as a person today, no matter what has happened to you in the past. Because of your past, you might have learned how to stand up for yourself, or may still be learning this. But you are more than any set of circumstances.
The ability you have each and every day to transform into a new creation, without being bullied by the ego or sense of self-defeat is truly amazing. The only way the past can have any power over you at all is if you energize the past by your thoughts, or claim it as your identity, which would be a false identity, because you are not your past. That is another trick of the insane ego. Nothing can hold you back unless you let it. Your thoughts are so powerful that they make new realities every moment of every day. The more you think about something, the more it gets ingrained into your way of thinking.
What if you can only think thoughts that are depressing, sad or self-defeating? DECIDE TO CHANGE WHAT YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT. THINK OF SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL. THINK OF SOMETHING AWE INSPIRING AND POSITIVE. Put current negative thoughts on the back shelf of your mind. Next, expect your mind to argue with you (that’s the ego again) and send that to the back shelf too.
Yes, some situations around us are troubling, families are hurting, health is failing and a hundred other negative things all around us. That is the truth.
But it is also the truth that there is beauty in the world. Look for the wonder of each day. Try something new, like going for a walk and smiling at as many people as walk by you. Open the door for someone. Do something nice. Get outside of yourself. That alone is a refreshing thing to do for your soul.
Yes, our more negative thoughts will still be there. They aren’t going anywhere. But you also have the ability to look up, smell some fresh flowers or freshly baked bread at a bakery, make a plan to clean just one corner of the house or a table top, or relax in a hot tub.
Every time one of those negative thoughts come to mind, remind it you will get to it later, but for now, you are going to do something fun, go out with a positive friend (leave the negative friend on the shelf for later too), that is important if you want to begin or continue to feel better.
This is just the beginning. Act on faith. Jesus encourages us to go to him in times like these. He said, “Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”
Life is transient and mutable. We are all here for such a short time. Some of our friends and family may have already died. But we do not have to stay in sorrow. We do not have to stay in depression. Our real burdens are so much lighter when we choose to walk in faith, believing in all that Jesus taught us, about his Father and how to live by the Golden Rule.
Walking by faith might be something we have done all our lives or it might be something new we try. Faith is not fact. One cannot scientifically dissect faith to get to the kernel of truth that is held within it. Faith is experiential, not acquired by head knowledge, no matter which seminary one might go to.
Jesus did not come to earth, to live and die, so that we might remain depressed and without hope. We have these counseling suggestions that work 100 percent of the time when they are applied. Obviously they do not work at all when we do not apply them. More than that, we have the promise that Jesus will always be with us, through all our trials, simply by us asking.
“Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For the one who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened,” Jesus said.
Do you ever find yourself sailing on through life just fine one day, then all of a sudden
Are you emotionally derailed?
you feel like a derailed emotional train? What happened?
The following includes a list of emotional triggers and traps to watch out for, and constructive ways of personal transformation. Are you emotionally derailed? Are you emotionally derailed?
No worries; there is a remedy for each one of them, with or without medication. There is a big push these days for drugless therapies. I am trained and certified in drugless therapies, which I will share in this post. But I have also witnessed personal, emotional crashes from people deciding independently to take themselves off their medications without their doctor’s approval. While I promote drugless therapy as much as humanly possible, if you are on medications, you must have an honest conversation with your doctor, and decide the best course of action for you safely. You matter.
These emotional traps will be addressed in this article:
•emotional hijacking
•emotional quicksand
•emotional self-sabotage
•emotional sabotage
•emotional blackmail
•emotional pressure
•when friends are not friends
•SAD ~ Seasonal Affective Disorder
Here are some emotional triggers where you might derail yourself:
•sick thinking
•emotional immaturity
•self-esteem issues
•mood swings
•intentions
•emotional responses
•speaking before thinking
•peer pressure
Now for the self-help remedies that work every time, with or without medication:
•become the observer of your moods and attitudes
•decide to feel better
•take positive action to feel better
•realize you are not a victim
•adjust your thinking
•grow in virtues: integrity and honesty (especially with yourself)
•allow for mistakes
•have a plan
First, it helps to recognize the emotional traps: hijacking, quicksand, sabotage, self sabotage, pressure, friends, and seasonal affective disorder. These things can happen to us before we even recognize it is happening. We go along through life, happy and fine. Then before you know it, you find yourself hijacked by someone else’s agenda, without a conscious decision from your own personal power.
Emotional quicksand can happen both when we are alone, and when we are with others. The tone of the day or events can become so daunting, that they over-shadow you and your outlook. If this is not addressed head on, we emotionally begin to sink, right where we are in our spirit and soul, depleting us of much needed energy and our life force.
Emotional sabotage is like hijacking, only more sinister. With hijacking, we unwittingly go along with someone or something, ultimately in a direction we do not want to go in, until we have experienced that we do not want to go there. With sabotage, someone else intentionally seeks to rob us of our self control and self empowerment with the sole purpose of manipulating us to get what they want.
However, there are times when we want to appear to be trying to move in a particular direction, but in our hearts, we are not convinced we actually want to do this, so we intentionally, consciously or unconsciously, defeat ourselves. This is especially obvious when we are trying to get over addictions: gambling, over eating, drinking, drugging, and sexual and every other kind of addition. This also happens when we willingly let our lack of self confidence taken over our confidence. We see this when people try to better themselves, either with employment or personal gains, then sabotage themselves out of fear of success.
With pressure, it is not just peer pressure that can trap us emotionally. Family members pressure us, as do friends, but we can also get pressures from society, and from people we do not even know. When we care more about what others think of us or what we are doing, more than we do what we feel we want or should do, we give into pressure that is not necessarily good for us. Just because someone or something else has a different opinion of what we are to do, that does not mean that they know better than us what we should do.
When we feel weak we often turn to friends. But sometimes friends are not friends. Take a look at your friends. Are all friends good for us? Do all friends have our best interest in heart? Do our friends have other agendas, whether trying to keep us stuck so that we reach out to them? Do our friends keep us stuck with them, because misery loves company? Sometimes when we begin to heal ourselves, we need to separate ourselves with the very friends who we thought were our friends, but really, we not. Drinking buddies is a good example.
Seasonal affective disorder is a real disorder that affects our mood in a negative way. As the seasons change with less available sunlight, our moods can match the earth’s decreasing brightness. In order to naturally balance us out chemically within us, it is helpful to use light therapy lamps with full spectrum light, in order to maintain our circadian rhythms. Scotopically enhanced light has been proven to stimulate the eyes photoreceptors increasing visual acuity making this light more comfortable to use while lowering melatonin levels that directly affect energy levels in the body.
Without fully realizing what is going on with us during the months of the year with less light, we might think we need to deal with a depression problem, when in reality, we need to deal with a natural lighting problem.
Get emotionally back on trackGet emotionally back on track. Consciously noticing our triggers is the beginning of the healing process. In this case, take a full week to observe what hits your emotional buttons. Don’t do anything different in this week. Simply notice your emotional responses to everything, good and over the top. This is a very enlightening week. Sometimes our triggers are not what we thought they were, other times we will find we were right on. Very often we think we are upset with someone or something else that tripped us up, but by observing, we might find we are upset with ourselves for not standing up for ourselves, or not fully expressing what we wanted to say, in a way others could understand us better.
Begin by observing your thinking. Again, at this point, you are not looking to change how you think, merely observe. Are you defeatist in nature? Are you a bully? Are you a door mat? Are you your best cheerleader or villain? Do you act like a two-year old throwing emotional temper tantrums in arenas where they do not belong? Do you call yourself a loser or a winner? Do you believe the lie that if you are having a bad day that means you are a horrible person? What are your intentions? Do you expect to fail, or to succeed? Do you receive failure as a normal part of life, or do you take that personally? Do words fall out of your mouth before passing through your brain because, “that’s just the way I am?” Do I do what I want, or only what others want?
We have already begun the first step in self healing, by becoming the observer of ourselves in this first week. Now in week two, decide to take positive action, to get back into your skin so to speak, and get back in control of the rest of your life. Take a moment to thank yourself for taking the time to recognize where you have been emotionally, where you are, and where you want to go. Now that you have decided to grow in character development, to grow as a more full, conscious aware person, decide which actions you will take to go in a more positive direction. You might decide to stop that negative inner voice from making self degrading thoughts, or speak up for yourself in situations where others, by habit, try to put you down emotionally. Speaking up can be done calmly and with dignity. Speaking up for yourself does not need to be done with hostility and anger. You can speak up for yourself with a sweet smile. However it is done, it is better to speak your mind as opposed to choking back unspoken words.
Come to a full realization that you are not a victim anymore. You and I cannot control what horrible and unspeakable things have happened to us in the past. We need to come to terms with this. We may have been a victim of war, robbery, assault, or worse. But to choose to stay emotionally living in the past, is to choose to self inflict ourselves with injury that does not need to keep happening. We do have a choice to move forward in a more positive direction. Even with post traumatic stress, there is a road to recovery. But that is not what most of us are dealing with, those who choose to live with the victim mentality. This is the case where we might have adopted sick thinking, like, bad things always happen to me, or I’ll never get better, or no one has it as bad as me. The only way out of this thinking is to come to the realization that you and I are not victims, unless we choose to be.
So how do we get past all these traps and triggers so we can transform like a butterfly? If you do not like how you are feeling, change how you are thinking. Stay on track for emotional health. You can spend thousands of dollars going to counseling to get to know why you are the way you are. I studied under Dr. Dolores Seymour, who wrote a book, “Who Cares Why?” This is such a good point. Who cares why you are they way you are? What matters is, what are you going to do from this day forward, to improve, to get better, to get healthier, to grow in faith, hope and action, whatever you choose.
You may have noticed you are not perfect. Who ever said you had to be perfect? Was it friends or family? Was it yourself? So, why beat yourself up for being fully human. We all make mistakes. We trip up on our pride here. I say, get over it.
The answer? Make a plan. Plan to say enough to all the things that bring you down. Make a plan for all areas of your life, financially, socially, with family and friends, employment, spiritually or in matters of faith, and any area you see that you wish to tackle. Nothing is impossible with God.
Balancing peace and happiness amid the hectic pace of every day life can be quite challenging. Some of us are naturally happy and peaceful, yet not all of us are wired that way. We can all get in dysfunctional ruts. What practices can we include in our days to make them seem brighter and calmer in the midst of winter doldrums and/or days of depression?
The act of balancing requires focusing our attention on a desire to be balanced. How many times do we tell ourselves that we want balance, peace and happiness in our daily lives, but soon settle for our comfortable habits that pay no attention to these desires?
We might even act out and do the opposite, engaging in self-sabotaging behaviors just to prove to ourselves that we are in charge of ourselves, when the total opposite may be true. Without conscious effort it is easy to stay in a negative or depressing loop.
We may not realize it, but that is a choice we are actively making. Focusing our mental energy on the goal of balancing our life is the surprising answer to bringing peace and happiness to our life. No matter how long we might have struggled with this problem in the past, it is possible to fix this. Know that it is not impossible.
It is important to pay attention to our energy, especially to how we energize our thoughts. Whatever we think about, we bring about. If we do not like how we are feeling, it is vital we change how we are thinking. As a matter of fact, if we refuse to change how we are thinking, there is absolutely nothing anyone else can say or do that will change how we feel. Only we can do that. Yes, it is possible to do that.
We are not the victims of our thoughts. Thoughts do not think us. We think our thoughts. We have the ability to change our thoughts at any given moment. This particular point usually infuriates us the first time we hear it. However, this is a true statement and is encouraging for us to acknowledge this.
If we want to improve in balancing our lives with peace and happiness, we can ask ourselves these questions:
Do I weigh myself down with a victim consciousness, or martyr complex?
How is my self-esteem?
What messages do I constantly tell myself?
Do I find I need to explain myself to others?
Do I feel the need to justify my actions?
Do I believe in myself?
Am I a control freak?
Do I have a passive/aggressive personality, trying to solve other life issues outside of myself by aggressively controlling the inside of myself through my diet, exercise or any other means of not addressing the issue head on?
Do I allow others to speak to me in disrespectful ways?
Do I allow others to treat me in disrespectful ways?
Am I honest with myself?
How is my health?
How is my diet?
How is my weight?
How is my attitude?
How is my mental health?
How is my emotional health?
How is my spiritual health?
Do I approach life as a daily struggle, concentrating on my work load and to-do-lists, which are outside of me, rather than working on my own character development inside of my heart, mind and soul?
Do I have addictions to food, alcohol, drugs, gambling, sex or any other addiction?
Do I live my life as an imaginary or real fight against the ideologies of others?
Do I make time for exercise in my daily life to the level that is appropriate for me, either gentle stretches, walking, going to the gym, Yoga or other forms of exercise?
Do I take time to pray?
Do I take time to meditate?
Do I contemplate?
Do I really listen?
Do I listen with an answer running, which is not really listening at all?
Do I read or listen to audio books to learn or be inspired?
Do I give myself permission to change my mind when new information presents itself?
Can I admit when I am wrong?
Do I forgive* myself when I am in the wrong?
Do I forgive* others when they wrong me?
*A quick note regarding forgiveness here is, holding on to grudges and non-forgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.
The winter months are the perfect time for personal reflection on what can truly bring us peace and happiness, both of which bring balance to our days as a positive side benefit.
Moods follow thoughts, always. It is never the other way around. It always works this way. The only time this does not work, is if someone refuses to change what they are thinking about. Changing what you are thinking about is easy, unless you are addicted to negativity, or playing the victim, or the martyr, or you are just plain stuck.
Sometimes we wake up wondering if we will have a good day today, or what will our mood be, as if we have no idea the actual power we really do possess. Some of us have a good day until the wind blows in another direction we weren’t expecting, then go downhill from there as if we have to stay with the descending thought, or energy pattern.
Taking control of your thoughts works both if you are taking prescription medications or not. As a holistic counselor treating people with drugless therapies, please know that this always works, if it is practiced. The trouble is that we can get stuck in a rut of our own dysfunction. Consciously or subconsciously, we can revolt to hearing the idea that we can change what we are thinking. Wouldn’t we get out of a bad mood if we could? You can. It is a choice you make to stay with the thoughts you are thinking, or to change how you are thinking. Yes, you can.
Our ego can sometimes like to think that we are a victim or a martyr, so we can keep feeding the ego, not always a great thing to feed. The ego likes to be right, and cries for attention, puffing up our pride to such a height that the fall to reality can be startling. Take control of your thoughts anyway. Even your ego will thank you in the end.
Start by thinking the next lightest thought, the thought with the possibility of a positive solution. It is important that it be a positive thought, especially if you are stuck in negative thinking. Changing how you are thinking, if you are in a habit of negative thinking, is like wearing two left shoes. Changing any habit will feel odd. Another good thing to know is that it takes 21 days to change a habit. Day 22 of any life change will begin to feel more normal the more you continue to practice it. You have to start somewhere, so start today.
If you are depressed, have low self esteem, or experience moods you would rather not, try changing your thinking to the next most life giving, affirming thoughts. Begin by the improving the messages you tell yourself on a regular basis. You are a worthwhile, important, and beautiful person. There is nothing you cannot do if you set your mind to it.
Enthusiasm is power. Enthusiasm is inspiration. Enthusiasm concentrates and feeds the powers of the mind, and gives them wings of action. Enthusiasm is the magic emotion that transforms negative into positive emotions. Enthusiasm heals.
Enthusiasm is one of the greatest assets every member of the human race has at her or his fingertips. The effects of enthusiasm are stronger than money, power and influence.
Enthusiasm tramples over prejudice and opposition, spurns inaction, is the offspring of motive, and is faith in action.
Enthusiasm lifts the mind and heart, allowing Light and Love to overflow where formerly stagnant negativity dewlt.
Enthusiasm is dynamic, a burning desire, and a force to be reckoned with.
Enthusiasm steps up the vibrations of thought and alerts the imagination.
Enthusiasm takes the drudgery out of labor.
Enthusiasm gives a pleasing, convincing color to the tone of voice, adds attractiveness to your personality, inspires self-confidence, and aids in the maintenance of sound health.
Enthusiasm is a radiation of our spirit and it’s twin, our will, and is closely related to Infinite Intelligence.
Enthusiasm is the action factor of thought.
Enthusiasm does not mix with fear, envy, greed, jealousy, doubt, revenge, hatred, intolerance and procrastination.
Enthusiasm thrives only on positive thoughts and actions.
Enthusiasm inspires personal initiative, dispels physical fatigue, and overcomes laziness.
Enthusiasm, will power and persistance are triplets that give us sustained action with a minimum loss of physical energy.
Enthusiasm is positive mental attitute in action.
Enthusiasm is related to every faculty of the mind, and is the action-producing factor.
Enthusiasm arouses the subconscious mind to greater activity, inspiring it to project itself deeply into the reservoirs of Infinite Intelligence, where the answers to all human problems exist.
These excepts are taken from “Science Of Success,” by Napoleon Hill.
40 Tips for Happy Health Life has circulated on the internet, and has wonderful pearls of wisdom for your happiness health. It is interesting that the first tip is to drink plenty of water. Did you know if your brain gets two percent dehydrated, you can easily get muddled thinking and forgetful memory? We can choose to be happy, it helps to keep us healthy on many levels.
Health:
1. Drink plenty of water.
2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants, and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
4. Live with the 3 E’s — Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.
5. Make time for prayer and reflection
6. Play more games.
7. Read more books than you did in 2019.
8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.
9. Sleep for 7 hours.
Personality:
10. Take a 10-to-30 minute walk every day —- and while you walk, smile.
11. Don’t compare your life to others’. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
12. Don’t have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
13. Don’t over do; keep your limits.
14. Don’t take yourself so seriously; no one else does.
15. Don’t waste your precious energy on gossip.
16. Dream more while you are awake.
17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
18. Forget issues of the past. Don’t remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don’t hate others.
20. Make peace with your past so it won’t spoil the present.
21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
23. Smile and laugh more.
24. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
Community:
25. Call your family often.
26. Each day give something good to others.
27. Forgive everyone for everything.
28. Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.
29. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
30. What other people think of you is none of your business.
31. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your family and friends will. Stay in touch.
Life:
32. Do the right things.
33. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.
34. Forgiveness heals everything.
35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
37. The best is yet to come.
38. When you awake alive in the morning, don’t take it for granted – embrace life.
39. Your inner most is always happy. So, be happy.
There is Life in the Light in you. You are made of Light, by the Light, for the Light. Shorter winter days have fewer hours of light shining around you, but that is not the only place Light dwells. There are natural remedies that can have real and lasting effects. Light and Life come into our beings from a variety of places. It is not all about being in sunshine, although that also works. Sometimes there is a connection between the seasons and our bouts of sadness. Other times, our sadness has nothing to do with the seasons. Yet, whether or not we feel sad due to lack of sunshine, or caused by a difficult period in our life, natural remedies still work.
One of the biggest natural remedies is our inclination to allow the Light in. Have you ever felt blue and out of sorts, but wanted to do little to nothing to help yourself? If you have, you are not alone. This is all about your vibration in the moment. Sadness has a very low vibration to it. Like attracts like. Those of us who feel sad, don’t exactly want to put our dancing shoes on and go out to be the life of the party somewhere. At those times, it seems we’d rather be alone and be miserable.
Before we can switch gears, there needs to be conscious acknowledgement of being willing to allow the breath of change in. There needs to be a personal desire to “decide” to want to be happy. You are the ruler of your universe. If you want to stay sad, miserable, or depressed, no amount of coercing, manipulation, or force of any kind, either internal nor external will get you to change your mind. Whatever you tell yourself goes. No one listens to you quite the way that you do.
But if you have had enough of feeling low, there IS something you can do that does not include taking drugs. If your doctor has prescribed medication for you on your journey to happiness, please do not stop taking them without your doctor’s approval. What this article is saying, is that whether you are or are not taking medication for this very real condition, these natural remedies will work. They work 100 percent of the time. They only do not work if you stop doing them.
The low ebb of life force can be brought into balance by strengthening it. Life force runs through our bodies like the tide, with an ebb and a flow. There are also things we can do to gain
You are made of Light, by the Light, for the Light.
greater benefit from attracting more good “flow” into our life. Sunshine is one way, but so is getting out-of-doors, even if the weather is bad. There is something about being in nature that is very therapeutic. The wind and the rain are wonderful cleansers of our auric field. Getting outdoors on a winter day, no matter how cold it is, even for just a few minutes.
But pay attention to your personal mantras. You may not even be aware of the negative self messaging system that might be so constant, you might not be aware of it, or think you have a choice over it. Absolutely none of these suggestions are going to work if you are subconsciously telling yourself they are not going to. Again, the key is in being willing to step of our your habit and comfort zone, (yes sadness can be your negative comfort zone).
Life affirming energies also come in through using all of your senses, like listening to uplifting music, aroma therapy like some cinnamon in boiling water on the stove, looking at beautiful pictures, and do not forget laughing. Did I say laughing? Who wants to laugh when you are sad? Yes, I said laughing, for no apparent reason. This might feel a bit strange at first, but if you want to feel better, start laughing. Go online and check out Laughing Yoga. You will find numerous places all over the world where this is practiced.
There are amazing benefits physically as well as psychologically to laughing:
There is a new field of study called gelotology which is exploring the benefits of laughter, including:
* lower blood pressure
* increased blood flow and oxygenation of the blood
* give a workout to the diaphragm, abdominal, respiratory, facial, leg and back muscles
* reduce certain stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline
* increase the response of tumor and disease killing cells, such as Gamma interferon and T-cells
* defend against respiratory infections, reducing frequency of colds, by immunoglubon in saliva
* increase memory and learning, at John Hopkins University Medical School, humor during instruction led to higher test scores
* improve alertness, creativity and memory
Dr. Madan Kataria, a physician from Mumbai, India is the founder of Laughter Yoga and launched the first Laughter Club at a park on March 13, 1995. He combines unconditional laughter with yogic breathing. Anyone can laugh for no reason, without relying on humor, jokes or comedy. The concept of Laughter Yoga is based on the scientific fact that the body cannot differentiate between fake and real laughter. The physiological and psychological benefits are the same.
* William F Fry M.D., of Stanford University, says that humor and creativity work in similar ways. By creating relationships between two disconnected items, we engage both sides of the brain.
Laughing sessions each day results in positive energy and a hopeful attitude, making it easier to deal with every day stress and relieves depression. Laughter also has a beneficial effect on the immune system. Laughter has a higher vibration that sickness and depression. Our bodies naturally gravitate to the state of homeostasis when possible. There is really a vibration to vibration. Laughter “shakes loose” stuck energies. After a session of laughter, people have the sense of feeling lighter than air.
People going through cancer treatments or who have chronic illness, are often told to laugh, watch funny movies and concentrate on the lighter side of things as much as they can. Positive outlook and moments of laughter help to lift not only mood, but also has a beneficial effect on the system as a whole. Some studies suggest not viewing any of the darker, more negative TV shows and movies, to keep energy up, and avoid the excess cortisol and adrenaline in the body, which create undo stress.
Laughter Clubs and Laughter Yoga groups are gaining popularity. There are no negative side effects to laughter, unless our faces hurts too much from laughing.
In the year 2000, nearly 10,000 people laughed together in Copenhagen, Denmark to set a Guinness Book Record.
The first Sunday in May is World Laughter Day. Find some friends and laugh away.
“The people who have walked in darkness have seen a great light. Upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a great light has shone,” Isaiah 9:1. This Light shines in you and me.
“The Light shines on in darkness, a darkness that does not overcome it,” (John 1:5) Bring in Light where ever you are. Breath in Light with every breath. Find the Lighter side of everything. Be the Light and sadness will have no place to be.
worldwide outreach since its inception in 2012, and a 2005 graduate of the American Institute of Holistic Health & Wellness, studying under Dr. Dolores Seymour, director of the school and author of WHO CARES WHY.
I am trained in M.I.N.D.S. Holistic Alternative Psychology, with an emphasis on methods, individualized plans of action, fostering the ability of the individual to reach his or her highest potential physically, emotionally and spiritually; with advanced perspectives of positive personal growth, changing attitudes from negative to positive; enhancing intuition and self-discovery through creative endeavors, and improving health as impacted by psychological states.
beautiful earth can take your very own thoughts away from you. Each of us has the God-given right to have our own thoughts. It is how we choose to manifest them that can either help or hurt us.
possible to move past stress and depression. It is possible to deal with these darker emotions, as long as the tight-fisted grip on the sabotaging habits is released. The question is, do we want to?
fast from certain things and to feast on others. It is a season in which we can:
How often have we looked at the lives of others compared against our own? This is a trap to avoid. Our minds can be our best friends or worst enemies, depending on our mood in any particular moment. Our moods are like the shifting sands in the desert wind storm. We can help ourselves and others by directing the way we think. You and I are in charge of our thoughts. Our thoughts do not think us. We think our thoughts.
Don’t forget, if we get completely overwhelmed by the trials of this life, it is Jesus who carries us shown by His footprints in the sand. He will never abandon us.
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UNIVERSAL WISDOM ENLIGHTENMENT MASTERY 