Fear can be the most debilitating thing to keep you from the kind of life the universe has to offer. Is fear keeping you from achieving your true potential? Do you even know if fear is your root cause.
I wrote this blog in my early years trying to find the answers to my desperate need to heal and move forward from the abuse I suffered.
Ever wonder why victims stay with their abusers and DON'T leave? Many are handicapped by the years of fear and control instilled in them by the abuser. Fear of homelessness. Fear of the inability to provide for the children. Fear the abuser will kill the other parent, children, or everyone in a last ditch effort of control. Fear of financial disasters. Fear of losing their children. The list can grow with every threat and action.
Click here to read the entire blog ... http://fearandlawofattraction.blogspot.com/2009/05/fear-is-worse-than-abuser-themself-as.html
Thursday, April 11, 2013
The Power of "Believing"
This is a blog I wrote a few years ago for a grass roots organization whose mission is to research solutions to the epidemic of abuse and promote healing.
This blog was about the divine messages and support from spirit in healing from abuse.This blog was one of my firsts being confronted with the divine and the divine confirming to me that I was not alone. I do have support for what I was experiencing from all the abuse and repeated traumas.
Do You "Believe"? - Seven Days Of Fantastic Events and Flashing Billboard Signs
Here is the link to read this blog in its entirety. http://do-you-believe1234.blogspot.com/2009/12/do-you-seven-days-of-fantastic-events.html
This blog was about the divine messages and support from spirit in healing from abuse.This blog was one of my firsts being confronted with the divine and the divine confirming to me that I was not alone. I do have support for what I was experiencing from all the abuse and repeated traumas.
Do You "Believe"? - Seven Days Of Fantastic Events and Flashing Billboard Signs
2009 has been a challenging year for most, but with belief and trust, anything is possible & 2010 will be a much better year. Don't let fear dictate your future.
I personally have had the word "believe thrown in my face like a flashing billboard in such an obvious way for 7 days straight starting on December 6th 2009... Starting with a sermon at my church that Sunday on the word "believe". The biggest thing I noticed as much as I noticed the words is the word "believe" is what is prevalent...Not the words belief or believing, but "Believe"....
Here is the link to read this blog in its entirety. http://do-you-believe1234.blogspot.com/2009/12/do-you-seven-days-of-fantastic-events.html
Divine Intervention
Here is a blog I wrote for a new organization whose mission was to research solutions to the epidemic of abuse and promote healing.
I have had some life challenges the past couple years. Who hasn't right? Well I won't go into my life's story yet - that may have to wait for 20/20 or Oprah.
Have you ever questioned yourself or doubt. Let fear control your every thought and move? I have.
This blog is about the one single event that changed EVERYTHING and the pendulum swung the other way. After that day, I knew the only thing I knew I could trust was spirit and I never looked back except for asking for confirmations.
Here is the link to that blog http://isthisdivineintervention.blogspot.com/2009/05/i-have-had-some-life-challenges-past.html
I have had some life challenges the past couple years. Who hasn't right? Well I won't go into my life's story yet - that may have to wait for 20/20 or Oprah.
Have you ever questioned yourself or doubt. Let fear control your every thought and move? I have.
This blog is about the one single event that changed EVERYTHING and the pendulum swung the other way. After that day, I knew the only thing I knew I could trust was spirit and I never looked back except for asking for confirmations.
Here is the link to that blog http://isthisdivineintervention.blogspot.com/2009/05/i-have-had-some-life-challenges-past.html
Being Blessed & Life's Journey
I am blessed with spirit guiding me to the wonderful people in my life currently and assisting me with clearing out all the cancerous souls that were preventing my soul to flourish.
Life can hand you a deck of cards that at times makes you feel no matter what card is pulled, you lose and there is no way out of your situation. Not true. It's all an illusion to some degree as you can not choose the cards given to you, but you sure can choose how you react to them and how you play those cards. A hard lesson I have been learning over the past 10years and still learning.
However, I'm grateful for those life lessons going through this journey. These lessons give you the strength, wisdom, and endurance to move forward in even the darkest of light. It is like training for a marathon. You may not know how to start when you are in the thick of it, but as you journey through it, problem solving along the way, maintaining faith and belief, staying strong, sticking to your goals, treating your mind, body, and spirit healthy, you will prevail. Will it be as you exactly hoped it be? Probably not, but then again, life gives you surprises along the way and challenges you to make you better - better at your craft, better at relationships or family, a better person, better at gratitude or positive thinking, better at your health or whatever it may be. Someone once told me, "it is always darkest before it becomes dawn". I always tell myself that when I see myself possibly moving backwards.
Learning those lessons are very important so you will no longer have to endure the same hardships again. AND learning those lessons with a positive outlook and not with guardedness or preservation as those will give you a false sense of learning those lessons you are to learn.
So what cancers do you need to heal, treat or cut out of your life, and what lessons do you have to learn or struggling to learn to move forward in your life?
Life can hand you a deck of cards that at times makes you feel no matter what card is pulled, you lose and there is no way out of your situation. Not true. It's all an illusion to some degree as you can not choose the cards given to you, but you sure can choose how you react to them and how you play those cards. A hard lesson I have been learning over the past 10years and still learning.
However, I'm grateful for those life lessons going through this journey. These lessons give you the strength, wisdom, and endurance to move forward in even the darkest of light. It is like training for a marathon. You may not know how to start when you are in the thick of it, but as you journey through it, problem solving along the way, maintaining faith and belief, staying strong, sticking to your goals, treating your mind, body, and spirit healthy, you will prevail. Will it be as you exactly hoped it be? Probably not, but then again, life gives you surprises along the way and challenges you to make you better - better at your craft, better at relationships or family, a better person, better at gratitude or positive thinking, better at your health or whatever it may be. Someone once told me, "it is always darkest before it becomes dawn". I always tell myself that when I see myself possibly moving backwards.
Learning those lessons are very important so you will no longer have to endure the same hardships again. AND learning those lessons with a positive outlook and not with guardedness or preservation as those will give you a false sense of learning those lessons you are to learn.
So what cancers do you need to heal, treat or cut out of your life, and what lessons do you have to learn or struggling to learn to move forward in your life?
The Ripple Effect and Spirituality
First written September 2012
How many of you liked to skip stones when you are a kid? How many of you still like to skip stones? How many still actually do it?
We are all here for a reason today in this wonderful church. But have you actually stopped to think what brought you here? Have you actually stopped to think about what is spirituality and what it means to you?
Spirituality is a belief that focuses on one’s understanding of natural law enabling the person to discover his/her inner path of being and it is an integral aspect of many religious experiences such as Spiritualism.
Wikipedia definition: “Spirituality in this context may be a matter of nurturing thoughts, emotions, words, and actions that are in harmony with the belief that everything in the universe is mutually dependent; this stance has much in common with some versions of Buddhist spirituality. A modern definition is as follows: Spirituality exists wherever we struggle with the issues of how our lives fit into the greater scheme of things. This is true when our questions never give way to specific answers or give rise to specific practices such as prayer and meditation. We encounter spiritual issues every time we wonder where the universe comes from, why we are here, or what happens when we die. We also become spiritual when we become moved by values such as beauty, love, or creativity that seem to reveal a meaning or power beyond our visible world. An idea or practice is ‘spiritual’ when it reveals our personal desire to establish a felt-relationship with the deepest meanings of powers governing life.”
In Spiritualism, there is a fundamental belief in the continuation of life after the change called death as well as the personal responsibility for life’s circumstances.
With that said, in order to understand spirituality or spiritualism, you must first understand the human being and the ripple effects we create.
As human beings, we are energy in a physical body that creates energetic vibrations.
That allows your heart to pump blood throughout your body? Do you honestly know? Think about it before you read on…. What actually triggers your heart to contract that enables it to pump blood throughout the human body to nourish every tissue and cell? Have you figured it out yet? If not, that is ok. I will explain. Whether you call it God’s gift … the Universe’s Gift …Nature’s mastery…. you have two mini self generating electrical power plants in your heart called the SA node and AV node, otherwise known as the sinoatrial node and the atrial node. They self generate electrical impulses that stimulate the heart the contract and pump the blood throughout the human body. Now think about that. How amazing is that? You have a perfect natural machine like the engine in your car filtering and pumping the nutrient your body needs to stay alive. Have you ever wondered why we need two electrical paddles to stimulate the heart while jump starting the heart?
Everything we do, feel, see, hear, touch, happens due to an electrical impulse that triggered and sent to the brain for the interpretation of sight, sound, touch, etc.
When we understand the fundamental basis of our beings as energy and a one electrical conduction system, we can attune ourselves to be in vibrational alignment with the universe.
Remember I started off asking you about whether or not you like to skip stones? I am going to now explain why I asked that question.
Think dropping a pebble into the serene glasslike pond. What happens to the pebble? … It creates ripples.
Now what if your friend next to you drops a pebble into that same pond? It also creates a ripple.
What happens to your ripple? To their ripple? They eventually collide.
And depending on whose pebble that was dropped into the pond was larger will determine the magnitude and impact of the collision and whose ripple creates a greater effect. The vibrational alignment, just like sound can alter the tranquility of the water.
If our mind and body are as clear and smooth like glass on a lake, be careful what you toss in. Just like a pebble being tossed, you have the ability to create a small symmetrically balanced ripple effect with little disturbance to the overall lake. As it travels it magnifies in size the farther away it is from the original source but does so in a smooth fashion.
Now if you toss a boulder, the ripple can create what? An unbalanced volatile rocky big ripples in the lake that can take a much longer time for the lake to recover and restore itself to that quiet serene glass like appearance. So now these volatile ripples also magnify as it travels outward as well.
I challenge you to an experiment. Print this article out and keep with you when you do the experiment. Go out and toss the pebble into a lake. Watch what happens. Then toss a boulder into the lake and watch what happens. Then toss two pebbles similar in size and watch what happens. I encourage you to take notes on this experiment as to what you observe when you do this. I would be honored if you choose to write in the comments below your results and what you witnessed and what was revealed to you that you learned about yourself.
Just like the pebble or boulder, what you sent outward, goes out like ripples in the water and magnifies as it travels.
Your attitude – Creates ripples
Your body language – Creates ripples
Your actions and reactions – creates ripples
Your words – creates ripples
Your thoughts – Creates ripples
Your feelings – creates ripples
So be careful what ripples you allow in and be careful what ripples you put out or send out.
Are your ripples positive or negative?
Negative ripples can give you a feeling like your finger is stuck in an electrical outlet … a sense of being fried and exhausted that you feel you really cannot explain or do not know how to explain.
Positive ripples have more of a feeling of being in vibrational alignment with yourself and the universe … Like a free flowing balanced energy source.
If you are not in vibrational alignment, begin by building a sense of awareness. What do I mean by that?
To build a sense of awareness, you need to become intimately aware of your inner self and your surroundings using all of your senses.
Understand you cannot change what you can not acknowledge so you must begin here.
When you begin to master the sense of awareness, you choose the vibrations you are sending out. By keeping your vibrations high, you begin to start to enjoy life and begin to understand that it is possible to achieve your goals that you have been struggling so hard to accomplish. You start to create a surge of positive energy affecting everything around you.
For everything to change in your life, it starts with the self. Just as in spiritualism, you must take responsibility for your own life. It is a matter of yin and yang and the natural laws.
If your vibrations are low or you are exhibiting negative ripples, an avalanche affect can occur causing you to tumble into lower forms of consciousness and inferior ways of thinking. In many cases, you may be subconsciously self-sabotaging everything good you strive in your life without even realizing you are doing it. Just stop and think about that for a moment and digest what that really means.
So if your life is filled with fear, anger, and negativity and you perpetually live in that environment, this will eventually lead to dis-ease of all areas in your mind, body, and spirit. Your life will continue to spiral down unless you make a conscious decision right here … right now to change. The past is the past and can breed depression. The future has not happened yet and can breed anxiety and stress. All you have is the now so just be happy.
If your life is surrounded by lower vibrations, meaning your environment, you are allowing yourself to have these negative lower vibrational ripples impact and collide with your energetic core and your life. As a result, you will eventually cease to see yourself in a self loving, self nurturing, and balanced way. Someone once told me that if you are told you “no good” for so long and it is drilled into you, you start to believe it. In abuse, they call that “gaslighting”.
By mastering the art of awareness, you can self-correct your patterns of thinking and behaviors. Hence changing the kind of ripple effect you are sending out and receiving.
As we think of ourselves and others, we send out vibrational ripples in frequencies. We must nurture our inner child with self love, appreciation and gratitude. By doing so, the ripples we create, send out are of… love, appreciation and gratitude.
Spirit is always around us, and with spirit’s guidance, you have the ability to create endless ripples with a positive impact in your life and the lives of others. The choice is yours to make.
So I will leave you with a few thoughts and questions to ponder.
What does spiritualism mean to you and how does spirituality fit in your life?
What ripples are you creating right now … during this very moment?
What thought just passed through your head? Were your thoughts loving, compassionate, nurturing, healing and positive vibrationally aligned? … Or not?
Begin with building a sense of awareness. Choose a path for a self discovery of your inner being and a journey to enlightenment. Connect with spirit for guidance and help along the journey. Keep your life filled with love and compassion. And remember the pebble in the pond and the impacts it creates.
“I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” ― Mother Teresa
How are you going to change the kind of ripples you are allowing to impact you as well as change the kind of ripples you send out?
© 2012 ALL Rights Reserved. Healing With Spirit. May NOT be used for promotional purposes without the explicit written permission of the author.
How many of you liked to skip stones when you are a kid? How many of you still like to skip stones? How many still actually do it?
We are all here for a reason today in this wonderful church. But have you actually stopped to think what brought you here? Have you actually stopped to think about what is spirituality and what it means to you?
Spirituality is a belief that focuses on one’s understanding of natural law enabling the person to discover his/her inner path of being and it is an integral aspect of many religious experiences such as Spiritualism.
Wikipedia definition: “Spirituality in this context may be a matter of nurturing thoughts, emotions, words, and actions that are in harmony with the belief that everything in the universe is mutually dependent; this stance has much in common with some versions of Buddhist spirituality. A modern definition is as follows: Spirituality exists wherever we struggle with the issues of how our lives fit into the greater scheme of things. This is true when our questions never give way to specific answers or give rise to specific practices such as prayer and meditation. We encounter spiritual issues every time we wonder where the universe comes from, why we are here, or what happens when we die. We also become spiritual when we become moved by values such as beauty, love, or creativity that seem to reveal a meaning or power beyond our visible world. An idea or practice is ‘spiritual’ when it reveals our personal desire to establish a felt-relationship with the deepest meanings of powers governing life.”
In Spiritualism, there is a fundamental belief in the continuation of life after the change called death as well as the personal responsibility for life’s circumstances.
With that said, in order to understand spirituality or spiritualism, you must first understand the human being and the ripple effects we create.
As human beings, we are energy in a physical body that creates energetic vibrations.
That allows your heart to pump blood throughout your body? Do you honestly know? Think about it before you read on…. What actually triggers your heart to contract that enables it to pump blood throughout the human body to nourish every tissue and cell? Have you figured it out yet? If not, that is ok. I will explain. Whether you call it God’s gift … the Universe’s Gift …Nature’s mastery…. you have two mini self generating electrical power plants in your heart called the SA node and AV node, otherwise known as the sinoatrial node and the atrial node. They self generate electrical impulses that stimulate the heart the contract and pump the blood throughout the human body. Now think about that. How amazing is that? You have a perfect natural machine like the engine in your car filtering and pumping the nutrient your body needs to stay alive. Have you ever wondered why we need two electrical paddles to stimulate the heart while jump starting the heart?
Everything we do, feel, see, hear, touch, happens due to an electrical impulse that triggered and sent to the brain for the interpretation of sight, sound, touch, etc.
When we understand the fundamental basis of our beings as energy and a one electrical conduction system, we can attune ourselves to be in vibrational alignment with the universe.
Remember I started off asking you about whether or not you like to skip stones? I am going to now explain why I asked that question.
Think dropping a pebble into the serene glasslike pond. What happens to the pebble? … It creates ripples.
Now what if your friend next to you drops a pebble into that same pond? It also creates a ripple.
What happens to your ripple? To their ripple? They eventually collide.
And depending on whose pebble that was dropped into the pond was larger will determine the magnitude and impact of the collision and whose ripple creates a greater effect. The vibrational alignment, just like sound can alter the tranquility of the water.
If our mind and body are as clear and smooth like glass on a lake, be careful what you toss in. Just like a pebble being tossed, you have the ability to create a small symmetrically balanced ripple effect with little disturbance to the overall lake. As it travels it magnifies in size the farther away it is from the original source but does so in a smooth fashion.
Now if you toss a boulder, the ripple can create what? An unbalanced volatile rocky big ripples in the lake that can take a much longer time for the lake to recover and restore itself to that quiet serene glass like appearance. So now these volatile ripples also magnify as it travels outward as well.
I challenge you to an experiment. Print this article out and keep with you when you do the experiment. Go out and toss the pebble into a lake. Watch what happens. Then toss a boulder into the lake and watch what happens. Then toss two pebbles similar in size and watch what happens. I encourage you to take notes on this experiment as to what you observe when you do this. I would be honored if you choose to write in the comments below your results and what you witnessed and what was revealed to you that you learned about yourself.
Just like the pebble or boulder, what you sent outward, goes out like ripples in the water and magnifies as it travels.
Your attitude – Creates ripples
Your body language – Creates ripples
Your actions and reactions – creates ripples
Your words – creates ripples
Your thoughts – Creates ripples
Your feelings – creates ripples
So be careful what ripples you allow in and be careful what ripples you put out or send out.
Are your ripples positive or negative?
Negative ripples can give you a feeling like your finger is stuck in an electrical outlet … a sense of being fried and exhausted that you feel you really cannot explain or do not know how to explain.
Positive ripples have more of a feeling of being in vibrational alignment with yourself and the universe … Like a free flowing balanced energy source.
If you are not in vibrational alignment, begin by building a sense of awareness. What do I mean by that?
To build a sense of awareness, you need to become intimately aware of your inner self and your surroundings using all of your senses.
Understand you cannot change what you can not acknowledge so you must begin here.
When you begin to master the sense of awareness, you choose the vibrations you are sending out. By keeping your vibrations high, you begin to start to enjoy life and begin to understand that it is possible to achieve your goals that you have been struggling so hard to accomplish. You start to create a surge of positive energy affecting everything around you.
For everything to change in your life, it starts with the self. Just as in spiritualism, you must take responsibility for your own life. It is a matter of yin and yang and the natural laws.
If your vibrations are low or you are exhibiting negative ripples, an avalanche affect can occur causing you to tumble into lower forms of consciousness and inferior ways of thinking. In many cases, you may be subconsciously self-sabotaging everything good you strive in your life without even realizing you are doing it. Just stop and think about that for a moment and digest what that really means.
So if your life is filled with fear, anger, and negativity and you perpetually live in that environment, this will eventually lead to dis-ease of all areas in your mind, body, and spirit. Your life will continue to spiral down unless you make a conscious decision right here … right now to change. The past is the past and can breed depression. The future has not happened yet and can breed anxiety and stress. All you have is the now so just be happy.
If your life is surrounded by lower vibrations, meaning your environment, you are allowing yourself to have these negative lower vibrational ripples impact and collide with your energetic core and your life. As a result, you will eventually cease to see yourself in a self loving, self nurturing, and balanced way. Someone once told me that if you are told you “no good” for so long and it is drilled into you, you start to believe it. In abuse, they call that “gaslighting”.
By mastering the art of awareness, you can self-correct your patterns of thinking and behaviors. Hence changing the kind of ripple effect you are sending out and receiving.
As we think of ourselves and others, we send out vibrational ripples in frequencies. We must nurture our inner child with self love, appreciation and gratitude. By doing so, the ripples we create, send out are of… love, appreciation and gratitude.
Spirit is always around us, and with spirit’s guidance, you have the ability to create endless ripples with a positive impact in your life and the lives of others. The choice is yours to make.
So I will leave you with a few thoughts and questions to ponder.
What does spiritualism mean to you and how does spirituality fit in your life?
What ripples are you creating right now … during this very moment?
What thought just passed through your head? Were your thoughts loving, compassionate, nurturing, healing and positive vibrationally aligned? … Or not?
Begin with building a sense of awareness. Choose a path for a self discovery of your inner being and a journey to enlightenment. Connect with spirit for guidance and help along the journey. Keep your life filled with love and compassion. And remember the pebble in the pond and the impacts it creates.
“I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” ― Mother Teresa
How are you going to change the kind of ripples you are allowing to impact you as well as change the kind of ripples you send out?
© 2012 ALL Rights Reserved. Healing With Spirit. May NOT be used for promotional purposes without the explicit written permission of the author.
The Importance of Spirituality in Conquering Unhealthy Stress
Are you feeling overwhelmed and having a lot of difficulty in your life? Stress creeping in your life? Feeling like you’re losing purpose? Stress is different for everyone. What may be stressful for one person may not be stressful for another and stress appears in many different ways. However, chronic unhealthy stress slowly creeps in our lives and is a growing epidemic becoming toxic to our physical health, mental health, and spiritual health. At all times, in order to maintain a healthy mind, body, and spirit, we must be in a constant equilibrium or balance.
Spirituality, separated from Religiousness, can help manage your unhealthy stress, because spirituality in its core helps give your life meaning and purpose regardless of your religious beliefs.
How do I know if my stress is normal or if it is unhealthy? Normal healthy stress occurs during certain events such as child birthing, exercise, or even in cases like winning the lottery. The natural stress response is the body’sreaction to danger, uncertainty or change through various hormonal reactions.That is the first stage of stress, also called the “fight or flight”.
Although stress is a normal natural survival mechanism, it can quickly become toxic to our mind, body, and spirit if kept in overdrive taxing our system. Ever hear anyone say their nerves are fried? Well unhealthy stress puts your nervous system in overdrive. Research suggests that prolonged toxic stress contributes to high blood pressure, heart disease, coronary artery disease, anxiety, depression, obesity, and addiction.
Statistics according to the American PsychologicalAssociation:
Research also suggests that time management may be a significant barrier preventing people from taking the necessary steps to improve their health.[2] Most Americans have a general awareness and understand the general health impacts of toxic stress. Unfortunately, studies also show there is a disconnect when it comes to impact stress may have on an individual’s own health.
You cannot avoid stress, but there ways to better manage stress levels and spirituality can help.
First, in order to change the effects of stress, you have to learn to recognize and identify when you're feeling overly stressed and become more aware of the signs, symptoms, and triggers. Your body tells you everything you need to know by sending you signs and signals. Are you listening?
Spirituality can help you become reconnected with yourself. It allows for self discovery, and can assist in helping you build a sense of awareness. Because spirituality focuses on the inner self and our inner world, it encourages a passive shift in our attitude and how we react to certain situations that confront us.
Research suggests that those who believe in God or a higher power or have gone through a spiritual journey experience many benefits totheir overall health and wellbeing including a reduction of toxic stress.
Once you identify the stress, next is to choose a way to deal with it. One way is to find something positive in your life no matter how dire your situation may seem. Focus on positives. Find gratitude in the little things in your life that right now may seem mundane.
Another way, is avoidance or removal. However, avoiding your stressors are not always possible especially if the source of your stress is family. So what do we do? We change our thoughts and how we react to people, things or situations. You cannot change how someone treats you or what situations have been given to you, BUT you can choose how you react to them.
As you go through this process pay attention to you - not the ego self, but the inner you! There are various practices associated with spirituality that have also been shown to reduce unhealthy stress including:
Through various spiritual practices, you will quickly be able to restore calm, clarity and serenity to your chaotic life and restore the equilibrium in your body. In the process, your stress will naturally be reduced.
Finally, our mental strength and attitudes can be a deciding factor in identifying a stressor and the nature of our response to it. So becoming aware of our own inner thoughts, maintaining a positive attitude, and learning to laugh more can all help keep our mind, body, and spirit healthy.
So when life throws you a curveball, change how you react to the situation, and find the lesson to be learned. Those who practice some form of spirituality also view these types of situations as a karmic test or lesson to be learned for personal spiritual growth.
As someone once told me when I was at a place where I felt cornered with no possible solutions in sight while stress controlled my life, I was reminded “It is always darkest before it becomes dawn”. The light always triumphs the dark. Always.
Let spirituality and your spiritual path guide you in your life and help you reduce the unhealthy stress you have accumulated before it becomes too late. You will be glad you did. Have a blessed day.
References:
1. AmericanPsychological Association; Managing YourStress Through Tough Economic Times; November 2010; http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/economic-stress.aspx
2. The Mayo Clinic; Spirituality and Stress Relief: July23, 2010; http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stress-relief/SR00035
3. AmericanPyshcological Association; Stress inAmerica; 2011 http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/index.aspx
4. Life Positive; Spirituality for Stress Relief; http://www.lifepositive.com/mind/psychology/stress/mental-health.asp
5. Columbia CenterFor Psychiatry; Stress; David FischerMD, Medical Director; 2011; http://www.columbiapsychiatric.com/stress.html
6. The FreeDictionary by Fairafax; Stress; http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/stress
7. Harvard HealthPublications; Harvard Medical School; Understandingthe Stress Response; http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletters/Harvard_Mental_Health_Letter/2011/March/understanding-the-stress-response
8. Spirituality and health: What we know,what we need to know; Linda K George; David B Larsons;Harold G Koeing; Michael E McCullough; Journal of Social and ClinicalPsychology; Spring 2000; 19, 1; Psychology Module; http://www.psy.miami.edu/ehblab/Religion%20Papers/spirituality%20and%20health_george_larson_et%20al._JSCP.pdf
9. Stress Management; Stress Relievers: Top 10 Picks To TameStress; Mayo Clinic; http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stress-relievers/MY01373
10. Stress Management Health Center; Stress Management; Breathing Exercises for Relaxation; WedMD; http://www.webmd.com/balance/stress-management/stress-management-breathing-exercises-for-relaxation
11. The Mayo Clinic; Stress Management; Relaxation Techniques; http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/relaxation-technique/SR00007
©2013 Laura Joseph of Healing With Spirit.. All Rights Reserved. This information is forgeneral educational uses only. It may not apply to you and your specificmedical needs. This information should not be used in place of a visit, call,consultation with or the advice of your physician or health care professional.Communicate promptly with your physician or other health care professional withany health-related questions or concerns. Be sure to follow specificinstructions given to you by your physician or health care professional.
[1] American Pyshcological Association; Stress in America; 2011 http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/index.aspx
[2] American Pyshcological Association; Stress in America; 2011 http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/index.aspx
Spirituality, separated from Religiousness, can help manage your unhealthy stress, because spirituality in its core helps give your life meaning and purpose regardless of your religious beliefs.
How do I know if my stress is normal or if it is unhealthy? Normal healthy stress occurs during certain events such as child birthing, exercise, or even in cases like winning the lottery. The natural stress response is the body’sreaction to danger, uncertainty or change through various hormonal reactions.That is the first stage of stress, also called the “fight or flight”.
Although stress is a normal natural survival mechanism, it can quickly become toxic to our mind, body, and spirit if kept in overdrive taxing our system. Ever hear anyone say their nerves are fried? Well unhealthy stress puts your nervous system in overdrive. Research suggests that prolonged toxic stress contributes to high blood pressure, heart disease, coronary artery disease, anxiety, depression, obesity, and addiction.
Statistics according to the American PsychologicalAssociation:
- About 25% of Americans are experiencing high levels of stress
- About 50% report moderate levels of stress
- Over 76% of Americans cite money as a significant cause of stress.[1]
Research also suggests that time management may be a significant barrier preventing people from taking the necessary steps to improve their health.[2] Most Americans have a general awareness and understand the general health impacts of toxic stress. Unfortunately, studies also show there is a disconnect when it comes to impact stress may have on an individual’s own health.
You cannot avoid stress, but there ways to better manage stress levels and spirituality can help.
First, in order to change the effects of stress, you have to learn to recognize and identify when you're feeling overly stressed and become more aware of the signs, symptoms, and triggers. Your body tells you everything you need to know by sending you signs and signals. Are you listening?
Spirituality can help you become reconnected with yourself. It allows for self discovery, and can assist in helping you build a sense of awareness. Because spirituality focuses on the inner self and our inner world, it encourages a passive shift in our attitude and how we react to certain situations that confront us.
Research suggests that those who believe in God or a higher power or have gone through a spiritual journey experience many benefits totheir overall health and wellbeing including a reduction of toxic stress.
Once you identify the stress, next is to choose a way to deal with it. One way is to find something positive in your life no matter how dire your situation may seem. Focus on positives. Find gratitude in the little things in your life that right now may seem mundane.
Another way, is avoidance or removal. However, avoiding your stressors are not always possible especially if the source of your stress is family. So what do we do? We change our thoughts and how we react to people, things or situations. You cannot change how someone treats you or what situations have been given to you, BUT you can choose how you react to them.
As you go through this process pay attention to you - not the ego self, but the inner you! There are various practices associated with spirituality that have also been shown to reduce unhealthy stress including:
- Meditation – Meditation is probably the most researched practice showing profound benefits to improving a variety of chronic health issues such as stress, anxiety, depression, HBP, and improve immunity.The US Army has studied its effectiveness in using it as a treatment method for soldiers returning from battle who suffer from PTSD.
- Yoga – Yoga is considered a form ofcomplementary alternative medicine using various poses and breathing techniques. Research has shown yoga to reduce stress related symptoms, enhancemood, and improve overall sense of well-being.
- Tai Chi – When Communist China took over, TaiChi was the only martial art not banned. It is now considered a meditation in movement. With the use of the gentle flow and movements, Tai Chi can have tremendous health benefits including reducing stress.
- Breathing Exercises - Mastering the power of the breath with deep breathing techniques is one of the best ways to lower stress and can be done anywhere. This is because how we breathe affects the overall functioning and health of our body.
- Relaxation – Relaxation Techniques help activate the body’s natural relaxation response to combat stress. Methods include: hypnosis, meditation, breathing exercises, and yoga.
- Prayer - Prayer has also show to have many of the same benefits as meditation by bringing a sense of calmness that can help buffer stress. Prayer has long been associated with connecting to God.
- Touch Therapies such as Reiki and Acupuncture have ancient healing roots that promote healing and reduce stress.
- Laughter – Laughter has been shown to cause biochemical changes in the body leading to greater healing and changes of perspective.
Through various spiritual practices, you will quickly be able to restore calm, clarity and serenity to your chaotic life and restore the equilibrium in your body. In the process, your stress will naturally be reduced.
Finally, our mental strength and attitudes can be a deciding factor in identifying a stressor and the nature of our response to it. So becoming aware of our own inner thoughts, maintaining a positive attitude, and learning to laugh more can all help keep our mind, body, and spirit healthy.
So when life throws you a curveball, change how you react to the situation, and find the lesson to be learned. Those who practice some form of spirituality also view these types of situations as a karmic test or lesson to be learned for personal spiritual growth.
As someone once told me when I was at a place where I felt cornered with no possible solutions in sight while stress controlled my life, I was reminded “It is always darkest before it becomes dawn”. The light always triumphs the dark. Always.
Let spirituality and your spiritual path guide you in your life and help you reduce the unhealthy stress you have accumulated before it becomes too late. You will be glad you did. Have a blessed day.
References:
1. AmericanPsychological Association; Managing YourStress Through Tough Economic Times; November 2010; http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/economic-stress.aspx
2. The Mayo Clinic; Spirituality and Stress Relief: July23, 2010; http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stress-relief/SR00035
3. AmericanPyshcological Association; Stress inAmerica; 2011 http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/index.aspx
4. Life Positive; Spirituality for Stress Relief; http://www.lifepositive.com/mind/psychology/stress/mental-health.asp
5. Columbia CenterFor Psychiatry; Stress; David FischerMD, Medical Director; 2011; http://www.columbiapsychiatric.com/stress.html
6. The FreeDictionary by Fairafax; Stress; http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/stress
7. Harvard HealthPublications; Harvard Medical School; Understandingthe Stress Response; http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletters/Harvard_Mental_Health_Letter/2011/March/understanding-the-stress-response
8. Spirituality and health: What we know,what we need to know; Linda K George; David B Larsons;Harold G Koeing; Michael E McCullough; Journal of Social and ClinicalPsychology; Spring 2000; 19, 1; Psychology Module; http://www.psy.miami.edu/ehblab/Religion%20Papers/spirituality%20and%20health_george_larson_et%20al._JSCP.pdf
9. Stress Management; Stress Relievers: Top 10 Picks To TameStress; Mayo Clinic; http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stress-relievers/MY01373
10. Stress Management Health Center; Stress Management; Breathing Exercises for Relaxation; WedMD; http://www.webmd.com/balance/stress-management/stress-management-breathing-exercises-for-relaxation
11. The Mayo Clinic; Stress Management; Relaxation Techniques; http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/relaxation-technique/SR00007
©2013 Laura Joseph of Healing With Spirit.. All Rights Reserved. This information is forgeneral educational uses only. It may not apply to you and your specificmedical needs. This information should not be used in place of a visit, call,consultation with or the advice of your physician or health care professional.Communicate promptly with your physician or other health care professional withany health-related questions or concerns. Be sure to follow specificinstructions given to you by your physician or health care professional.
[1] American Pyshcological Association; Stress in America; 2011 http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/index.aspx
[2] American Pyshcological Association; Stress in America; 2011 http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/index.aspx
A Cardinal Message From Spirit
Written: April 9, 2013
The time is 5:35 a.m. and the faint sounds of what could be thunder in the distance get my attention or could it be the sounds of the trash being picked up from the dumpster? The sound happens once more, but once again too faint to clearly identify. Then at approximately 5:55 a.m. a much louder repeated echoing boom happened. Ahhhhh the confirmation it was thunder.
One could take one road to the dark, dank, depressing side of the morning and say, “oh how I wish I were still in bed right now”. However, realizing the rain is required for the earth to flourish … for spring flowers to bloom … and for nourishment to all life, I embraced the rain.
As I begin to leave my home wondering if I was going to be stuck in a downpour, I remind myself that it is April 9th and it will be 70 degrees and sunny later on. So I smiled and left my house.
It is now 6:06 a.m. Amidst the dankness and drizzle appears, red cardinal to my right about 10 feet above me brightly displayed on a limb of a branch as if I were watching a black and white film with a red hand colored painted bird singing his song and bolstering his voice. As I walk by him, I am reminded and in awe of his beauty. I felt as if I were watching a movie reel, but instead of the bird was not moving, I was the one moving and watching him as I slowly walked to my car.
His voice was clearer and louder and more beautiful than all the other morning songs combined by the other birds. This is not the first time I have heard him as I hear him every morning. So why is this day different? It is how he presented himself to me, and in a way I knew without a doubt it was a message.
What does this all mean? Well, for you, it can mean something completely different. One thing I have learned over the years is that nature and the universe works in synchronicity with our lives and will always present messages to us if we dare to listen. You can do all your research you want and what others say a meaning is. However, in the end, the meanings are customized in your own language that you must learn to interpret.
Symbolically, the rain can be a reflection of emotions and can symbolize rebirth, sadness, or cleansing. What it means to you is different than what it means to me. For me, it is symbolic of cleansing and rebirth and to know I am safe and protected. It is also to remind me to call upon my angels and ascended masters more as confirmed by the times which in numerology are reflected by the four and five. The four is about the angels and the five is all about transition.
The rumble of thunder was to get my attention and to help me realize the inner power and strength I have to overcome this latest obstacle in my life. Thunder is symbolic of great energy and power and is also associated with Zeus, the god of all gods. Hearing the thunder in the background is a reminder to harness my inner energy and power.
We are nearing the end of one cycle and beginning a new as represented by the date, which in numerology is a ten number. It is also a time of spring which has a long history of spiritual significance throughout the world. Spring is a season symbolic of rebirth, resurrection, and a time when great confrontations and polarities occur in nature: darkness and light, death and rebirth. For me, it is an important stage of self-realization and empowerment and a reminder that the darkness is fading and light is returning.
The cardinal may be a small bird, but it is strong and rich in color and voice, which happen to be the strongest characteristics of this bird. Because this bird is a year round resident, it is associated with the number 12. This can mean a host of things from changes occurring within the next 12 days, 12 weeks, or 12 months; or it can mean communication. Since this was a male cardinal, it is associated with perseverance. Since I am female and if I were to call on the female cardinal inside, it would be associated with intuition.
The color of the cardinal is also very significant. Once again, what it means to you can be different from what it means to me. The bright red color has associations to the base chakra, to the Cardinals of the Catholic Church, and to the kundalini in yoga.
The message for me is a simple reminder to listen to my gut and rise above the situation no matter how dire it appears to me. The message is reminding me to see the bigger picture and sing loud enough for the whole world to hear me in a voice that is strong, confident, unwavering, and louder than all the other voices around me. Keep singing until someone hears me and never give up. It is time to activate the personal power within and leave behind all fears and excuses.
Considering the very challenging events that have transpired over the past two weeks, I am grateful to spirit for this day and for this confirmation message I needed to empower my strength and courage and quell my fears. Thank you for helping me walk the walk, speak my true voice, and have the strength and confidence to do so.
Namaste.
 |
| PHOTO: http://townofcanandaiguarepublicans.org/gallery/Spring_cardinal.JPG |
The time is 5:35 a.m. and the faint sounds of what could be thunder in the distance get my attention or could it be the sounds of the trash being picked up from the dumpster? The sound happens once more, but once again too faint to clearly identify. Then at approximately 5:55 a.m. a much louder repeated echoing boom happened. Ahhhhh the confirmation it was thunder.
One could take one road to the dark, dank, depressing side of the morning and say, “oh how I wish I were still in bed right now”. However, realizing the rain is required for the earth to flourish … for spring flowers to bloom … and for nourishment to all life, I embraced the rain.
As I begin to leave my home wondering if I was going to be stuck in a downpour, I remind myself that it is April 9th and it will be 70 degrees and sunny later on. So I smiled and left my house.
It is now 6:06 a.m. Amidst the dankness and drizzle appears, red cardinal to my right about 10 feet above me brightly displayed on a limb of a branch as if I were watching a black and white film with a red hand colored painted bird singing his song and bolstering his voice. As I walk by him, I am reminded and in awe of his beauty. I felt as if I were watching a movie reel, but instead of the bird was not moving, I was the one moving and watching him as I slowly walked to my car.
His voice was clearer and louder and more beautiful than all the other morning songs combined by the other birds. This is not the first time I have heard him as I hear him every morning. So why is this day different? It is how he presented himself to me, and in a way I knew without a doubt it was a message.
What does this all mean? Well, for you, it can mean something completely different. One thing I have learned over the years is that nature and the universe works in synchronicity with our lives and will always present messages to us if we dare to listen. You can do all your research you want and what others say a meaning is. However, in the end, the meanings are customized in your own language that you must learn to interpret.
Symbolically, the rain can be a reflection of emotions and can symbolize rebirth, sadness, or cleansing. What it means to you is different than what it means to me. For me, it is symbolic of cleansing and rebirth and to know I am safe and protected. It is also to remind me to call upon my angels and ascended masters more as confirmed by the times which in numerology are reflected by the four and five. The four is about the angels and the five is all about transition.
The rumble of thunder was to get my attention and to help me realize the inner power and strength I have to overcome this latest obstacle in my life. Thunder is symbolic of great energy and power and is also associated with Zeus, the god of all gods. Hearing the thunder in the background is a reminder to harness my inner energy and power.
We are nearing the end of one cycle and beginning a new as represented by the date, which in numerology is a ten number. It is also a time of spring which has a long history of spiritual significance throughout the world. Spring is a season symbolic of rebirth, resurrection, and a time when great confrontations and polarities occur in nature: darkness and light, death and rebirth. For me, it is an important stage of self-realization and empowerment and a reminder that the darkness is fading and light is returning.
The cardinal may be a small bird, but it is strong and rich in color and voice, which happen to be the strongest characteristics of this bird. Because this bird is a year round resident, it is associated with the number 12. This can mean a host of things from changes occurring within the next 12 days, 12 weeks, or 12 months; or it can mean communication. Since this was a male cardinal, it is associated with perseverance. Since I am female and if I were to call on the female cardinal inside, it would be associated with intuition.
The color of the cardinal is also very significant. Once again, what it means to you can be different from what it means to me. The bright red color has associations to the base chakra, to the Cardinals of the Catholic Church, and to the kundalini in yoga.
The message for me is a simple reminder to listen to my gut and rise above the situation no matter how dire it appears to me. The message is reminding me to see the bigger picture and sing loud enough for the whole world to hear me in a voice that is strong, confident, unwavering, and louder than all the other voices around me. Keep singing until someone hears me and never give up. It is time to activate the personal power within and leave behind all fears and excuses.
Considering the very challenging events that have transpired over the past two weeks, I am grateful to spirit for this day and for this confirmation message I needed to empower my strength and courage and quell my fears. Thank you for helping me walk the walk, speak my true voice, and have the strength and confidence to do so.
Namaste.
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