How to Be Inspired

Hi,
I came across the following 10 tips the other day to leading an inspirational life and decided to post it here. Enjoy!

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"The Top 10 Steps to a Successful Life"
by Lynn A. Robinson

1. Make your intuition your ally.

How does your intuition speak to you? Do you receive information in words, feelings, a body sensation? Do you just know? Ask your intuition questions and pay attention to the answers and act on the information you receive.

2. What are you enthusiastic about?

The root of the word enthusiasm is entheos. It literally means "God Within." Just think, when you feel enthusiastic about your dreams it means that God is speaking through you and saying "yes" to your goals! The feeling of enthusiasm is one of the ways your intuition speaks to you. What makes you excited, happy, delighted? What do you look forward to each day? Do more of it!

3. Be clear about your goals.

We are often quite clear about what we don't want. Spend time thinking about what you do want. What does your ideal life look like? Draw pictures or cut out scenes from magazines that illustrate the life you want to create. Write in your journal, envision. Spend time each day imagining your ideal life. Envision the details of that life. Imagine you are living it now. What are you wearing? What are you feeling? Who are the people around you? The power is within your mind and heart to bring forth the new life you want.

4. Spend time in prayer and meditation.

Answers often come to life's questions through self-reflection. Prayer and meditation are two ways we have of slowing down enough to listen to the still, quiet voice of our Higher Self. Remember that the answers don't always pop into your mind fully formed as you meditate or pray. You may find them slowly evolving into your consciousness over several days or weeks as you ask for insight.

5. Create positive self talk.

Pay attention to what you tell yourself about yourself and your life. If the general tone is hopeful and positive you feel better and are more optimistic. William James said, "The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives." It's easier to create a life you love when you give yourself affirmative message.

6. Practice an attitude of gratitude.

Research has shown that the happiest people are the ones who have gratitude for all that they have despite their circumstances. You don't have to postpone happiness until you have achieved all your goals. Joy is an inside job. In the Talmud it says, "In the world to come each of us will be called to account for all the good things God put on this earth which we refused to enjoy." Learn to appreciate the unfolding process of your life, not just the realization of your dreams.

7. Take action.

People often get stuck because they can't figure out how to get from Point A to Point Z. What is one thing you could do that would be a next step? Take a class, talk to a friend, read a book on a topic of interest, learn a new skill. Take action on what feels exciting to you.

8. Look for coincidences and synchronicities.

It has been said that coincidences are God's way of remaining anonymous. We often have serendipity occurring in our lives as a way to show us we are on the right path. As you trust your intuitive knowing you'll find these synchronicities occurring more often.

9. Know that there will be ebbs and flows.

We often reach success through a series of ups and downs. When you are in a "down" place and feeling stuck, know that it won't last forever. Find some ways to enjoy your life despite the lull and continue to focus on what you want.

10. Trust in divine order.

Maybe you're beginning to feel as Mother Theresa once did when she said, "I know God will not give me anything I can't handle. I just wish that He didn't trust me so much." The Universe has a perfect plan for your growth and unfolding as a human being. As you learn to be guided by your intuition you're beginning to act on this wisdom from the Universe.

<>**********************************************************************<>

About the Author
This piece is by Lynn A. Robinson, who can be reached at Lynn@lynnrobinson.com. Lynn A. Robinson wants you to know: She has a FREE "Intuition Newsletter." Visit her web site at http://www.lynnrobinson.com.

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Can a Change of Attitude Really Beat The Flu?

I have a very interesting article to share about the effect of attitude on health.

I don't know about you, but when I read it two friends came to mind straight away where I could see just how true this is

Take my friend, Julia for example, (I've used a different name to protect her identity) who's not very happy in her job and feels she doesn't really fit in. She often talks about being overcome by tiredness and feeling low very soon after she arrives at the office. And I've noticed that over the years she has always seemed to suffer from one kind of virus after another and from constant health problems that ultimately meant many extra days off work and plenty of stress.

And yet I have another friend who works for herself, enjoys what she does and always seems so full of energy and never seems to get ill at all. Could the difference be simply down to attitude?

Read this article and let me know what you think. You can add your comments below

Can You Avoid the Flu by Changing Your Attitude?
by Dr. Simon Evans

Do you want to avoid getting sick this winter? Try changing your attitude. A new study shows that a 'Positive Emotional Style' can protect you against the flu and common cold. The study, reported this week in Psychosomatic Medicine, looked at how emotional style altered the susceptibility of a couple hundred healthy volunteers to two different viruses.

The researchers spent a couple of weeks conducting multiple phone interviews with the volunteers to rate them on positive attitudes (vigor, well-being and calmness) and negative attitude (depression, anxiety and anger). Then they infected the crazy volunteers with either a common cold virus or a flu virus and quarantined them for six days.


Positive Attitude Protects you from Illness.


During the quarantine period, the researchers looked at objective measures of illness (blood tests for the virus, mucus production, etc.) and subjective measures from self-reported symptoms. The investigators found that a positive attitude protected people from showing symptoms of the illness - even though it didn't protect them from infection!The percentage of folks that were successfully infected (shown by blood tests) was not different between positive and negative people - but the ability of the virus to make them sick was different. This suggests that people with a positive outlook actually stave off infectious illnesses.

Another part of the study showed that the positive people also under-described their symptoms while the negative people exaggerated theirs. The researchers looked at the medical measures of the symptoms vs. what the volunteers were telling them about how they felt. The positive folks described their symptoms as not as bad as what the medical measure predicted and the negative folks did the opposite. This is not surprising but an interesting point anyway.

Perceived Lack of Control Increases Stress Hormones

In a couple of related articles from the same journal issue,studies showed that the inability to feel in control leads to potentially damaging physiological processes. One of the studies showed that people who felt higher degrees of stress in anticipation of an event had higher levels of blood-clotting hormones during the stress. This means that anticipating less control of an upcoming event may cause your body to react in ways that can lead to cardiovascular problems.

Another study showed that people who spend more time in their day doing things related to their goals have lower levels of stress hormones in their blood. Researchers looked at married couples with preschool age kids. They monitored the daily activities of both parents and whether or not those activities related to stated goals. Time spent working on goals was associated with increased mood and
lower stress hormones.

The studies all speak to the perception of having control over your life - the more you feel in control or that you are working toward more control, the better off you are from a physiological perspective. All three of these studies underline the power that your attitude has over your biology. The more time you spend with a positive outlook and feelings of empowerment the healthier you will be.

There are many prior studies supporting pieces of this argument. We are not simply biological products of our experiences but have a lot of control based on the way we filter those experiences. The whole concept of having a positive mental attitude is not just psychobabble mumbo jumbo. There is emerging biological evidence that it makes a real difference.


See the Glass as Half Full


We all have problems. Life without problems may seem very attractive but it would get boring very quickly. Jim Rohn, a well-known business philosopher says this, "Don't wish for less problems, wish for more skills". In other words, see challenges in life as a way to improve your ability to handle them. Getting more skills will give you more control over future events and, based on the above studies, lead to a healthier life.

***********************************************************************

So in summary it would seem that:

*A Positive Attitude Protects you from Illness
*Being calm about a situation is better for you than being
anxious or angry
*Focusing on a goal can reduce stress levels
*The more time you spend with a positive outlook and
feelings of empowerment the healthier you will be
*These are skills you can develop and practise

Look out for my next post coming soon when I'll be sharing
a guided visualisation exercise with you around the subject
of easy attitude change

Wishing you much love, light and laughter

Joy Idries

Sad Tales Can Have Happy Endings

I always wanted to be happy. I don't really know anyone who doesn't. Do you?

But I was sad for much of my life. Actually I wasn't aware of feeling that way for the first 25 to 30 years. I played the clown, was the life and soul of the party ... but it was to make others happy, to cheer them up, to help them out of their sadness and depression. I guess looking back, deep down it was really so that I wouldn't be rejected or so that I would be accepted although I wasn't really aware of that at the time.

There was no sense of self. Being so focused on others I had forgotten about me.

But then came a 'crunch' point. My body gave me a signal I couldn't ignore and I developed Chronic fatigue, or ME as it is usually called. And I found myself starting to face a deep and dark emptiness inside. I had lost touch with who I really was. I had been only what other people saw me as... no wonder I felt a crushing defeat whenever anybody didn't like me. My self worth had been invested in other people.

From this moment on the healing process began and so did the tears. All my inner emptiness and loneliness, grief, carrying the family shame and much more just flooded out, wave after wave. I cried every day for over 7 years and sometimes didn't even know what I was crying for. My body cried out in pain after pain. Ache and exhaustion was the order of the day. My body wasn't going to let up until I heard what it was trying to say. I listened. The pain started to lessen. My body began to relax and be well. I began to spontaneously smile.

During all of this time I used the practice of mindfulness and dynamic meditation and inner journey work. I started to become stronger from within. I found my 'inner child' and nurtured her. She was afraid to be excited and joyful. As if it wasn't allowed... maybe she would be punished for taking delight in herself and her surroundings. Maybe the family would think she was being disloyal by not grieving like they were.

I found a way to let go of carrying this burden of family sadness and shame. Using energy therapy and inner guided visualisation 'journeys' I found myself opening into A NEW WAY OF BEING and I started to be really, truly and consistently happy for the first time in my life. I started to enjoy the wonderful beauty of nature, the beautiful colours of autumn, the earthy smells of grass and other foliage, breathtakingly beautiful pure blue skies. The exquisite delicate soft white petals of a newly opened flower. The palpable warmth of love and support coming towards me from the people I love... a body that could dance and glide to the sound of uplifting music.

And as I opened into this higher natural vibration the happiness spread, like a magnificent yet very soft and fine wave of gratitude, lifting up my heart in appreciation of so many things, small and large in my daily life and interactions.I have now come home to true happiness and it wells up from inside, overflowing naturally outwards without fear and with a feeling of pure and abundant joy.

Of course I still sometimes fall into old patterns and have a tear or two now and again but I have the tools to deal with it whenever it arises. The ground of my being is very definitely rooted in the Abundance of God which I now realise is always here, always has been, always will be ... and which just needed me to strip away the dark layers that had been covering it up all those years

... which made the reunion all the more sweet and delightful.

Joy Idries is an internationally acclaimed Self Growth Expert and Spiritual Awareness and Wellness Coach. See her preview Video, the first of a full series that makes use of the Law of Attraction, energy healing, dynamic meditation, creative visualisation, laughter therapy and inner Journey work to help you clear your blocks and work through physical AND emotional pain, to claim a life of pure fun and joy. Go to http://www.instantnaturalpainrelief.com

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Optimism Can Enhance Your Long-Term Health

Hi

here's a geat article about the value of 'Optimism Exercises' ... sounds strange dosn't it? Yet taking this advice on board can have real beneficial effects on your health and you can have great fun doing it too!

Optimism Can Enhance Your Long-Term Health
Positive attitude and overall emotional wellness
can help boost mental fitness at any age.

By Gina Roberts-Grey

It's a well-known fact that being optimistic and focusing on emotional wellness seems to reduce stress. But did you know that a glass-half-full kind of attitude can offer even more tangible health benefits? Research has found, for instance, that an upbeat attitude, or happiness, can help lessen the burden of chronic pain, say from arthritis, or even reduce your chances of developing cardiovascular disease.
In fact, some experts now think that staying positive can help you live longer. In an intriguing study done at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, researchers followed a group of people for 30 years. They found that those who were originally classified as "optimistic" on a standard personality test turned out to be 20 percent less likely to suffer an early death than those classified as "pessimistic."

Opt for a Good Mood, Opt to Live Longer Happiness plays a pretty important role in keeping your brain healthy and vital, too. Staying positive, say experts, helps fight the "blues." This is good news in terms of longevity since, among other factors, depression has been shown to increase a person's risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

According to Marion Somers, PhD, a geriatric-care manager in Brooklyn, New York, an optimistic outlook isn't hard to achieve, and doing a few simple "optimism exercises" can yield a big reward. "Optimism exercises don't have to be formal," she says. "You can [improve] your attitude just by taking a brisk walk, petting your dog, or playing with your grandchildren outside." Anything that lets you release pent-up negativity and experience calm, peaceful thoughts can go a long way toward helping you become — and stay — more positive.

Training Your Brain to Stay Positive There are also some specific activities you can undertake to boost your brain's vitality. The ancient practice of yoga, research has found, can improve your cognitive function, including your memory. Registered yoga instructor Jennifer Edwards in New York City says, "Practicing yoga trains your brain to stay focused." It requires you to concentrate on your body's movement in space and the actual mechanics of your breathing, while tuning out distractions. "That focusing," says Edwards, "can improve your brain's ability to function during the day."

Yoga also promotes relaxation and eases stress, something David Eagleman, PhD, neuroscientist and assistant professor in the department of neuroscience at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, says is very good for your brain's overall health and vitality. "Stress can wear down your brain's cognitive abilities. So anything you can do to eliminate stress will help keep your brain sharp."

"Another powerful tool to rev up your brain's vitality is meditation. This technique clears your mind and lets you concentrate on being peaceful," says Dr. Somers. Scientists agree. Researchers at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, found regular meditation sessions slowed the normal age-related decline of brain cells. And according to Harvard researchers, daily meditation also reduced normal age-related thinning in regions of the brain thought to be involved in integrating emotional and cognitive processes.

Dr. Somers says activities like yoga and meditation, which require concentration and focus, are good for your brain in indirect ways, too. "We breathe every day, but, consciously and deliberately thinking about breathing while meditating or doing yoga increases lung function," she says. That increased lung function boosts oxygen levels in blood that circulates through your body, including to your brain. Says Dr. Somers, "Oxygen-rich blood keeps the brain healthy and increases alertness."

A Vital Spirit, a Lengthy Life Participating in religious or spiritual activities can also keep your brain humming along more smoothly. "The rituals of religious services and the social elements of being part of a congregation stimulate your brain," says Dr. Somers, "The sense of belonging and being able to connect with others who share your beliefs heightens alertness, which keeps your brain engaged in daily activities."

Being spiritual or religious can also perk up your mental outlook. British researchers found seniors with chronic diseases who attend religious services or who pray on their own showed a greater level of optimism about their overall health than those who did not.

You don't necessarily have to leave your house or attend formal religious services for your brain to soak up the benefits of spirituality, however. Dr. Somers says the concentration and focus required to pray anywhere — in your home, your car, or your shower — and to live a life that's in line with your spiritual beliefs, is really what has the most positive influence on your brain over the long term.

Have a great day!

Joy :-)

The Attitude of Friendly Acceptance

THE ALOHA SPIRIT


The Aloha Spirit is a well known reference to the attitude of friendly acceptance for which the Hawaiian Islands are so famous. However, it also refers to a powerful way to resolve any problem, accomplish any goal, and to achieve any state of mind or body that you desire.

In the Hawaiian language, aloha stands for much more than just "hello" or "goodbye" or "love." Its deeper meaning is "the joyful (oha) sharing (alo) of life energy (ha) in the present (alo)."

As you share this energy you become attuned to the Universal Power of God. And being in loving alignment with His incredible Power is the secret for attaining true health, happiness, prosperity and success.

The way to tune into this Power and have it work for you is so simple that you might be tempted to pass it off as being too easy to be true. Please don't let yourself be fooled by appearances. Take the time to try it out.

This is the most powerful technique in the world, and although it is extremely simple it may not prove easy, because you must remember to do it and you have to do it a lot. It is a secret which has been given to humanity over and over again, and here it is once more in another form. The secret is this:

Bless everyone and everything that represents what you want!

That's all there is to it. Anything that simple, however, does need some explanation.

To bless something means to give recognition or emphasis to a positive quality, characteristic or condition, with the intent that what is recognized or emphasized will increase, endure or come into being.

Blessing is effective in changing your life or getting what you want for three reasons: First of all, the positive focus of your mind stirs up the positive, creative force of the Power of the Universe put at our disposal by God. Secondly, it moves your own energy outward, allowing more of the Power to come through you. Thirdly, when you bless for the benefit of others instead of directly for yourself, you tend to bypass any subconscious fears about what you want for yourself, and also the very focus on the blessing acts to increase the same good in your life. What is so beautiful about this process is that the blessing you do for others helps them as well as you.

Blessing may be done with imagery or touch, but the most usual and easy way to do it is with words. The main kinds of verbal blessing are:

Admiration - This is the giving of compliments or praise to something good that you notice. E.g., "What a beautiful sunset; I like that flower; you're such a wonderful person."

Affirmation - This is a specific statement of blessing for increase or endurance. E.g., "I bless the beauty of this tree; blessed be the health of your body."

Appreciation - This is an expression of gratitude that something good exists or has happened. E.g., "Thank you for helping me; I give thanks to the rain for nourishing the land."

Anticipation - This is blessing for the future. E.g., "We're going to have a great picnic; I bless your increased income; Thank you for my perfect mate; I wish you a happy journey; May the wind be always at your back."

In order to gain the most benefit from blessing, you will have to give up or cut way down on the one thing that negates it: cursing. This doesn't mean swearing or saying "bad" words. It refers to the opposite of blessing, namely criticizing instead of admiring; doubting instead of affirming; blaming instead of appreciating; and worrying instead of anticipating with trust. Whenever any of these are done they tend to cancel out some of the effects of blessing. So the more you curse the harder it will be and the longer it will take to get the good from a blessing. On the other hand, the more you bless the less harm any cursing will do.

Here, then, are some ideas for blessing various needs and desires. Apply them as often as you like, as much as you want.

Health - Bless healthy people, animals, and even plants; everything which is well made or well constructed; and everything that expresses abundant energy.

Happiness - Bless all that is good, or the good that is in all people and all things; all the signs of happiness that you see, hear or feel in people or animals; and all potentials for happiness that you notice around you.

Prosperity - Bless all the signs of prosperity in your environment, including everything that money helped to make or do; all the money that you have in any form; and all the money that circulates in the world.

Success - Bless all signs of achievement and completion (such as buildings, bridges, and sports events); all arrivals at destinations (of ships, planes, trains, cars and people); all signs of forward movement or persistence; and all signs of enjoyment or fun.

Confidence - Bless all signs of confidence in people and animals; all signs of strength in people, animals and objects (including steel and concrete); all signs of stability (like mountains and tall trees); and all signs of purposeful power (including big machines, power lines).

Love and Friendship - Bless all signs of caring and nurturing, compassion and support; all harmonious relationships in nature and architecture; everything that is connected to or gently touching something else; all signs of cooperation, as in games or work; and all signs of laughter and fun.

Inner Peace - Bless all signs of quietness, calmness, tranquility, and serenity (such as quiet water or still air); all distant views (horizons, stars, the moon); all signs of beauty of sight, sound or touch; clear colors and shapes; the details of natural or made objects.

Spiritual Growth - Bless all signs of growth, development and change in Nature; the transitions of dawn and twilight; the movement of sun, moon, planets and stars; the flight of birds in the sky; and the movement of wind and sea.

The previous ideas are for guidance if you are not used to blessing, but don't be limited by them. Remember that any quality, characteristic or condition can be blessed (e.g., you can bless slender poles and slim animals to encourage weight loss), whether it has existed, presently exists, or exists so far in your imagination alone.

Personally I have used the power of blessing to heal my body, increase my income, develop many skills, create a deeply loving relationship with my wife and children, and to establish a worldwide network of peacemakers working with the aloha spirit. It's because it has worked so well for me that I want to share it with you. Please share it with as many others as you can.

How to Enhance Your Power to Bless

There is a technique practiced in Hawaii which enhances your power to bless by increasing your personal energy. It is a simple way of breathing that is also used for grounding, centering, meditation and healing. It requires no special place or posture, and may be done while moving or still, busy or resting, with eyes open or closed. In Hawaiian the technique is called pikopiko because piko means both the crown of the head and the navel.

The Technique
1. Become aware of your natural breathing (it might change on its own just because of your awareness, but that's okay).

2. Locate the crown of your head and your navel by awareness and/or touch.

3. Now, as you inhale put your attention on the crown of your head; and as you exhale put your attention on your navel. Keep breathing this way for as long as you like.

4. When you feel relaxed, centered, and/or energized, begin imagining that you are surrounded with an invisible cloud of light or an electro-magnetic field, and that your breathing increases the energy of this cloud or field.

5. As you bless, imagine that the object of your blessing is surrounded with some of the same energy that surrounds you.

Thank you for being my friends

Wishing you much love light and laughter

Joy

Laugh It Up: It's Good For You

Do you take time out each week, or even day, to do something that tickles your funny bone? Would you say you’re generally happy? Would people describe you as being cheerful and having a good sense of humor?

Most people don’t ask themselves these questions, but they probably should. Each year brings fresh evidence to support the idea that thoughts, moods and emotions have an impact on the body’s basic health and healing mechanisms.

Studies show the body’s healing system responds favorably to love, hope, optimism, caring, intimacy, joy, laughter, and humor, and negatively to such emotions and states as hate, hopelessness, pessimism, anxiety, depression, and loneliness.

This being the case, you’re going to want to be as positive and happy as possible.

That’s a tall order - especially in these challenging economic times - but
definitely something worth working on. And the upside is you’ll feel great.

It’s difficult to feel stressed or depressed when you’ve got your giggle on. So, pick up that DVD box set of your favorite comedy show. It’s actually good for you!

Dr. Paul McGhee, president of the Laughter Remedy, shows us how humor contributes to good health:

Muscle Relaxation.

Research has shown that muscle relaxation results from a good belly laugh. Try it. Get a good chuckle going for 30 seconds and see how you feel. One study even showed that people using a biofeedback apparatus were able to relax muscles more quickly after watching funny cartoons than after looking at beautiful scenery.

Reduction of Stress Hormones.

When you’re under stress, your body undergoes a series changes, including hormonal ones, which make up the ‘fight or flight’ response. Even though there is no physical
threat to your life, your body reacts as if there were. If you’re under this stress day after day this poses a serious threat to your health. Anything that reduces
that level of stress hormones in the blood on the regular basis helps reduce this health threat. Research on stress-related hormones and humor has shown that laughter reduces at least four neuroendocrine hormones associated with the stress response, including cortisol, dopac, epinephrine, and growth hormone. So, get to the comedy club once a week to unwind. You’ll be healthier for it.

Immune System Enhancement.

For a long time, we’ve known stress weakens the immune system, but only since the mid-1980s did researchers start to study the impact of humor and laughter on the immune system. The best evidence that humor boosts the immune system comes from studies where immune system measures were taken before and after a humorous event.
Immunoglobulins. Most of the research to date has focused on immunoglobulin A. This is a part of your immune system which serves to protect you against upper respiratory problems, such as colds and the flu. Our saliva contains immunoglobulin A and is often referred to as the body’s first line of defense against upper respiratory viral and bacterial infections. Here is the interesting part: several studies have shown that watching as little as 30 to 60 minutes of a comedy video is enough to increase both salivary IgA and blood levels of IgA. This has been shown for both adults and kids.

Cellular Immunity.

Several different aspects of the cellular immune system have been shown to be
enhanced by watching a comedy video. B cells, which are produced in the bone marrow, are responsible for making the immunoglobulins. If you count the number of these cells in the blood before and after a comedy video, you can see a significant increase in the number of B cells circulating throughout the body. Watching a one-hour comedy also elevates the activity and number of natural killer cells, the number and level of activation of helper-T cells, and the ratio of helper to suppresser T-cells. Natural killer cells have the role of seeking out and destroying tumor cells in the body.

Pain Reduction. Dozens of studies have now documented that humor has the power to reduce pain in many patients. In a study of 35 patients in a rehabilitation hospital, 74% agreed with the statement, “Sometimes laughing works as well as a pain pill.” So, why is there a reduction in pain following laughter? One possibility is distraction. Humor draws attention away from the source of discomfort. The most common explanation given, however, is that laughter causes the production of endorphins, one of the body’s natural pain killers. The pain-laughter connection can also be partly attributed to the reduction of muscle tension. Even brief relaxation procedures have been shown to reduce pain, and laughter acts much the same way.

Now that you better understand the mechanisms behind the healing power of humor, I’d like to hear from YOU.

What techniques are you using to increase the amount of laughter and joy in your life?

Please share how these methods are working for you, so we can all benefit from your experiences.

This post, written by Marrian Hughes, was published in Mind, Body & Healing. If you enjoyed reading this post, please share it with your friends, leave a comment and help promote it, thanks!

Joy

Beyond The Limited:Practical Steps

In my previous article, "Moving Beyond the Limited", I talked about how getting what we want in life can often be sabotaged by the existence of deeper underlying fears and beliefs that we may not even be conscious of and that these need to be brought to light and cleared in order to achieve what it is we truly desire.

So how can we do this on a practical level?

Well, let me give you an example of something that happened to me the other day which might help to put it all in perspective. I recently came out of hospital after major surgery for a total hip replacement. Whilst I was away my partner had worked very hard to make the bedroom as comfortable as possible for my return and convalesence, putting down new flooring and refreshing the layout, including, for my convenience, the construction of a very functional and well-crafted bedside table on wheels.

However on the very day that I arrived home I found him suffering quite badly from a flu virus that resulted in swollen tonsils and aching muscles and so he was in need of rest and recuperation himself.

This immediately 'triggered' in me the old lament - just like the song - that he (i.e the whole world!) wasn't available just when I needed him most. I was flooded with feelings of being abandoned and alone and with an unfulfilled yearning to be rescued and comforted. Neeedless to say the by now all too familiar tears welled up and overwhelmed me, leaving me to feel an utter and total victim to my perceived 'lot'.

And with the increase in emotional pain came a corresponding increase in tiredness and physical pain in and around the newly replaced hip.

I could have stayed there wallowing in this state, feeling sorry for myself and remaining a victim to pain ... and many years ago I would have definitely remained stuck in this miserable condition for quite some time. After all it was a well learned family pattern. Who am I to be disloyal!

But this time I was well prepared, after years of personal growth experience behind me and some excellent tools I could use to change things around. One of these is the practice of AWARENESS. This involves slowing down enough to listen to the body and its emotional responses, noticing its reactions but from a place slightly removed, as an observer or witnesser and this helped me to disengage from being completely immersed in or overtaken by the experience, enough to make use of another very simple yet very effective practice of making the choice to focus my thoughts on SOMETHING BETTER THAN IT

And according to the Law of Attraction the best way to attract what you want into your life is to always start by looking for thoughts that are better than the current negative ones (even if only slightly better)

So I chose to remember all of the heartfelt effort that my partner had put into making life comfortable for me, despite the fact that he wasn't well.

I'd like to add that, in reality, I didn't IMMEDIATELY go to a place of supreme ecstasy and joy. The addictive 'pull' towards feeling abandoned was quite strong - maybe because there was a higher percentage of 'abandonment' vs 'joy-receiving' receptor cells clustered together on the surface of the cells in my body, linked to thoughts and learned beliefs about 'support' in my body structure

But it did enable me, as a first step to GO INTO NEUTRAL - neither deeply sad nor
blissfully happy - and then from there it became much easier to make the transition to feeling joyful which I accessed -now that I was no longer held back by heavy feelings of abandonment and such - by making a conscious choice to appreciate the beautiful flowers in the room that had been sent by various dear friends to wish me well.

With this transition came ease of physical pain too.

So if you find yourself hooking into a particular way of thinking that you know doesn't serve you, that maybe even sends you on a downward spiral to feeling hurt or angry or lost and alone, that somehow you can't seem to get out of even though you really want to be happy and joyful, it is no use beating yourself up for not being able to just 'snap out of it'.

This will just make things worse because you are still focused on the negative and on the problem. In fact the body's addiction to bad feelings may even be leading you to make things worse by inviting self-criticism. Maybe this feels somehow friendly and familiar in a funny kind of way.

The way to get out of this spiral is to let yourself become aware of what is
hooking you and how you are responding to it.

You could try taking a few deep breaths and this will give you some space to reflect and start listening to and observing what's going on inside. This will help you to disengage enough to turn your attention to thoughts that are better than where you are currently, even if just slightly better. You could, for example, bring to mind a time when you watched a magnificent sunset or listened to some beautiful music or looked into the delightful eyes of an innocent child, or even just concentrate on your breath which can be quite calming. By the law of attraction such thoughts will magnetise more thoughts and feelings towards you that are of similar nature and you will begin to feel much better.

It is something that needs to be practised and this practice can be enhanced with other useful tools and processes such as various forms of energy medicine. Over time, as you come to embody what is essentially the Truly Abundant and Joyful Being that you are at heart, you will find yourself naturally coming to a place of peace within yourself and the world, able to attract towards you whatever you desire

Wishing you much love, light and laughter

Joy

P.S Please feel free to comment or pass this on. I would love to get your feedback

Moving Beyond The Limited

If you find yourself falling back into the same negative patterns of thought and behaviour, the same negative reactions to the daily events in your life, no matter how positive you try to be, you are probably being held in the grip of your own self-limiting beliefs.

These are often to be found lurking in your subconscious body-mind and are considered to be at the very root of what stops you getting what you feel you really want in life.

So in order to manifest what you really want it's important first to bring these limiting beliefs up, out of the unconscious, into the light of consciousness and
identify what they are so that you have choice ... because with awareness comes choice

Limiting beliefs and the inner struggle and conflict that comes with them usually come about because you feel you DON'T DESERVE the things you desire. This feeling
is often at the bottom of other feelings such as fear of abandonment, anger, jealousy, self-criticism and so on.

On the surface you may be focused on, and conscious of, your wants and desires and may even make positive affirmations about them but deep down in your subconscious if you're convinced you don't deserve them you will be prevented from accomplishing your heart's desire. You can't take control of something you are not conscious of.

So you need to do a clearing out of these old limiting beliefs from your subconscious. It's probably not the first time you've wanted something and found yourself feeling held back, locked in and paralysed by an inner struggle between two conflicting parts of you, one wanting the wish to be fulfilled and the other not.

Despite the fact that at heart we all have a natural bias towards reaching for the best and at the deepest level our nature is one of unlimited potential, truly capable of manifesting our deepest heart's desires, this often gets covered over or blocked. We develop protective layers to cover up what we see as our vulnerability - something we learned during the stages of growth of our own personal history.

Most of these limiting beliefs and blocks are not just abstract ideas or concepts but are actually physically present as they manifest in the body.

Thoughts and feelings become 'embodied' and show up in the structure of our cells. On the surface of these cells are receptors which are fine tuned to receive certain signals and some of these signals are emotionally configured. So if, for example, there was a time or two (or more) when you flooded your body with feelings of "don't deserve" your cells became attuned to that emotion. You could almost say that they developed a bias or 'red flag' alert towards "not deserving" and if it happens often enough it may even be experienced almost like an 'addiction'.

So the thought, the desire for something, automatically triggers a "don't deserve" response as it attaches biochemically to the receptors on the cell.

But also, since like attracts like, any thoughts that are SIMILAR to the original thought or desire will ALSO trigger feelings of not deserving as these similar thoughts and desires feed into the already 'primed' receptors. Eventually the cell may grow so many of these receptors that there's no more room on the surface of the cell to grow or accomodate the more positive 'joy-' or 'self worth-' receptors.

So the experience of joy is inhibited even though you may want to be joyful.

And this is what you might call SABOTAGE... This can happen equally with other negative thoughts, beliefs (which are simply thoughts repeated over and over) and emotions like fear anger, doubt, judgment, depression, sadness and so on. They literally build a barrier that rejects or blocks the more positive signals sent to you from your Essential Higher Self.

The usual pathway can be described like this:

Your wish goes to God, the Source of your Well-Being and the inspiration you need to accomplish your wish comes back to you. But because of the block or barrier, the inspiration doesn't reach its intended destination.

Every time you call for help the answer is always available but you don’t receive the response if you have limiting beliefs or are addicted to negative emotions.

They really have to go, to be cleared completely out of your body-mind because they limit the abundance that is constantly available to you.

The trick is to learn to recognise these triggered responses at the time that they occur so that you can then make the transition... to something more neutral perhaps at first, and then as the negatively tuned receptors fall away through disuse, room is made for a higher more joyous vibration to be embodied.

Step by step you can learn to make more empowered choices for yourself, embodying them in the growth of receptor cells attuned to these choices which will then provide pathways to reach the abundance that has always been here for you... and which you will then be able to experience, savour and enjoy

Where Does It Hurt You?

A few months ago I started to suffer from severe hip pain and it often kept me awake at night so a horrible nightmare was the least thing I wanted right then!

I woke up screaming, frightened and alone...

... and was overcome by this wave of feeling that surged through my whole being as I turned over to find my partner wasn’t there to give me the hug of reassurance I so badly needed at that time. Of course at some level I already knew he had arranged to go and sleep over at his mother’s place that night, but the fact that he just wasn’t available when I really needed him, triggered something in me ...

... deep hurts from the past.

I was brought up in a family consisiting of an alcoholic father and an overstressed, highly strung and depressed mother of five. Constant worrying seemed to take up so much of her time there often wasn't very much left for us. Needless to say,I ended up adopting the role of ‘parent carer’. My needs came last and often didn’t get met at all. It was a Love-Pain connection where I gave my all and was left longing for a love that never came. They just weren't there for me.

Now it might not seem immediately obvious but there is a rather interesting connection here with the excruciating pain I was also recently suffering from osteoarthritis of the right hip which had become inflamed of late - as if to flag that there was something that needed my urgent attention. I believe pain is here to get our attention and sometimes if we are not listening straight away it has a tendency to get louder and louder until we are 'driven' to do something about it!

So then, I had what I saw as two choices here. I could of course take the conventional path of pain management and start a course of pain relieving medications - and for the first few days I did, as an emergency measure. The other choice was more in line with my belief that all pain has an underlying cause that, once addressed can remove the need for pain to manifest at all.

This meant finding a quiet space, bringing all of my focus to the hip and asking at a deeper level the question ‘Where does it hurt?’

You see, pain has different levels.

When the doctor asked me ‘Where does it hurt?’ I let him know it was my hip, that my movements were stiff and restricted and that some related areas like the groin, the knee and lower back where also in pain. He examined me by moving and rotating my leg mechanically to see where it hurt. The whole focus was physical and resulted in some 'ouch!' noises, some prescribed medication, physiotherapy and a referral to orthopaedics for further investigation.

As a Journey Practitioner, Therapeutic Counsellor and EFT Specialist on the other hand I also addressed the pain at a different and deeper level. So when I turned inwards and asked my deeper self ‘Where does it hurt?’ my hip whispered ‘feeling unsupported and unloved’ and I experienced an intuitive urge to let go of and resolve these issues once and for all in order to move on and step forward confidently in life again. Through the use of deep inner reflection and focus work, creative visualisation and some energy healing I found myself opening to a place of peace and deep inner support as I let go of the hurts of the past that I had apparently stored in my hip. At the same time I found the hip pain going down so dramatically that I didn’t need to carry on taking the pills any more.

My nightmare, in relation to all of this then made much better sense. It had in fact been a 'wake-up' call (doh!) alerting me to these deep hurts of feeling unsupported and unloved. It was a ‘clearing out’ process at the same time, almost like the ‘whoosh!’ of a wave as my body energy, like a river that had been clogging up with ‘emotionally charged’ debris over the years, finally become unblocked and began to flow freely once more.

Back Pain: What Does it Mean?

There's more to back pain than meets the eye.The key to its cure may lie more in dealing with the underlying meaning of pain than simply dealing with its physical manifestation and symptoms.

I was a young woman abroad, travelling around and teaching to pay my way. It had begun as a very enjoyable adventure, exploring and interacting with the many different cultures, people and places I cam across as I savoured the sense of freedom and play that being abroad seemed to bring.

Then one day I got up in the morning to go and deliver my class as usual and felt a nagging and persistent pain in my back It came across as a deep, tired ache. Bending backwards was a real problem for me. It was the ability to bend forwards that led the doctor to say I was fine and should go to work. By the look in his eye it was obvious what my backache meant to him –that I was playing a 'fast one' to get out of a day's teaching!

To me it meant:

* suffer silently, ignore the problem and pop the pills as I go to work so I don’t lose my job

* not being able to deliver my teaching well through lack of concentration and energy

* that when I need help no-one listens as often happened in childhood

* feeling unsupported and alone - that no-one cares or understands, or even wants to

* feeling like a victim - 'why me?'

* that my efforts to be happy are usually sabotaged by unexpected events

* remembering the car accident a few years before, during a traumatic kidnap attempt where my back took the brunt of the impact

* being burdened with yet another challenge and having to make the best of it

* a drain on my energy turning a natural zest for life into an act of suffering and 'bearing up' under the strain

I think the conclusion of all of this is that back pain is not as straightforward and simple a condition as it sounds. We need to look at what MEANING it has for the person who is experiencing it and understand that all of these thoughts, memories and accompanying emotions can act as additional stressors to aggravate or even cause the condition in the first place. So any treatment of the pain needs to include an investigation into what meaning it has for the patient and a way needs to be provided to work through or let go of these stressors which otherwise can get in the way of our body's natural healing processes

We could explore what 'new meanings' might be assigned to the experience to enhance and encourage restoration and wellness.

* seeing the pain as a 'wake-up' call, a message that something needs to be done. Being the ‘victim’ is just one way of seeing it. I can make a more empowering choice for myself and see the pain as a simple and supportive message from the body that 'something needs to be addressed'

* It is an opportunity to take a nurturing attitude towards myself. I can experiment with laughter or EFT for example, since it is well known that these techniques are very good for pain relief and wellness

Understanding the effects that 'meanings attached to pain' can have gives us the choice and opportunity to address the underlying factors and come up with a cure instead of just 'putting up' with the pain or popping pills that can often do more harm than good

And you can make a fast start in that direction right now by getting hold of my free video at
www.instantnaturalpainrelief.com

Time to be Happy

I think it’s a sad comment on the sign of our times the many people who tell me they are so busy these days they don’t have a minute to think! At one time that statement would have been taken with a pinch of salt, easily recognisable as an overstatement: “Oh, come on, you’re going too far, it’s not that bad.” But now it seems to be more and more a statement of fact, taken literally without so much as the blink of an eye.

So where has the time gone?

Why does life seem to flash by at warp speed? Or is it just me? It has become the norm to dash down the escalators to catch the incoming tube train as if it is the only one available. In fact we are so busy we don’t give ourselves a minute to think about what it means to be happy, content, satisfied.

It sounds almost like a foreign language to some:“I’m too busy working to pay the bills, to make ends meet, to try and get ahead” is the more common lament, as if our happiness lies in the future AFTER we have done all of this ‘struggle and strife’ thing.

Many of us are caught on the treadmill of paying off our debts, the mortgage, the student loan, the car, the furniture... So we could be forgiven for thinking that happiness is a luxury and only for the future, maybe when we retire.

The trouble with this kind of thinking, however is that we attract into our lives more of what we are focusing upon. Our happiness doesn’t lie out there somewhere at another place and time, waiting for us to arrive. It is here, now, in the ever present, waiting for us to claim it.

It is only a decision away. We can CHOOSE to be happy. Happiness is our natural state. In fact by just getting out of our own way we can become happy no matter what our present circumstances. The secret seems to lie in first BEING what you desire.

We have learnt to think ‘struggle’ over the years and this becomes our reality, when in fact reality is relative and depends on a thought or a decision to act a certain way.

Did you know that we are free to choose our thoughts? Imagine getting the house of your dreams. Imagine how that feels. Everything just as you like it, down to the décor, the swimming pool, the magnificent gardens ……

What did you feel?

Maybe you felt resistance, experienced as a rigidity or tightness in the body and usually connected with negative thoughts, “What’s the point, it’s never going to happen anyway” …

On the other hand if you are anything like me you would be feeling uplifted, happy, relaxed, maybe excited. Your body relaxes and expands.

Let me ask you something: is it the house that has made you happy or your imagination?

Do you, in fact need the house to make you happy? Some people get the house and still don’t feel happy. The funny thing is, if you continue to be happy at the THOUGHT of being in possession of this house you are much more likely to attract into your life more things to be happy about. More than if you keep on trudging along on the ‘never-ending’ treadmill of lack, need and denial.

Ultimately it is your choice. There is more than enough to go round and you only need to tap into it. You are free to live happily right now, in this moment because thoughts are just thoughts and you can change them, change your focus, your attitude, how you respond. Imagine, for example, choosing to be be grateful that you have some money in your hand to pay this bill or that, instead of thinking ‘where am I going to get the money for the next one?’ If you make a deliberate choice to practise the attitude of gratitude then don’t be surprised if you find more things turning up in your life to be grateful for!

The secret to a happy life is to remember that all of our thoughts are just thoughts. What we want ultimately is to be happy. So why not start there? Open into being happy from the inside out. Be grateful for all the good things that you already have.

Laugh for no reason. What? Yes, laugh, whether it is artificial to begin with or genuine, laughter acts as a natural stress reliever and makes you feel good. Take the serious things in life and look at them with a sense of humour and fun. Let go of resistance and learn to connect with a playful attitude, your more spontaneous and delightful inner child, who you were before you learned how to be negative and judgemental, before you learned fixed ways of responding to the world. Be present to life, open up again to your flexibility and sense of adventure and allow life to touch you in new and deeply enriching ways.

When was the last time you stopped to smell the roses?

All in all it is about moving from busy and mostly negative thoughts of the mind to living from an abundant and open heart. Your choice.

The Benefits Of Laughter and Playing on Purpose

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The benefits of Laughter and Playing on Purpose
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Part 1: The Happiness Factor: Foundations for a Healthy World
*****************************************************

When it comes to improving your health and well-being, one of the best things you can do is have a good laugh! Not only does laughter help to improve the health of your body, it also brings more happiness and joy. In addition, the more you laugh with the people you love, the closer you become and the healthier your relationships can be.

More and more people today are looking for ways to cope with the stresses and strains of everyday life, to find a way to more joyful and vibrant living

Laughter can help you deal with the trials and challenges of your day. When you find a way to laugh in the midst of your problems, you automatically shift towards a more hopeful and optimistic frame of mind and this can be quite contagious.

Compassion, joy, love, and humour are the main ingredients for a healthy heart, mind and soul and the ability to truly celebrate life

So make it your goal to find something to laugh at every day, and to take yourself a little less seriously

Laughter is All in Your Mind
****************************

Researchers have found that, when we laugh “feel good” hormones called endorphins are released in the brain. Laughter has long been considered a great medicine.

Numerous studies have shown that the act of laughing can have important healing effects – including helping to keep the heart healthy, lowering blood sugar levels, and giving the immune system a boost. So, not only does laughter make your heart feel light and happy, it actually improves your health as well!

When you ‘play the clown’ and combine that with the practice of mindfulness you can develop a conversation with the soul and connect with your own strengths, inner wisdom, joy and optimism.

This ‘Clown Focus’ raises the spirits and nourishes your body, through the practice of using your imagination, sense of humour and laughter.

Laugh When Things Are Going Wrong
*********************************

It might be fairly easy to laugh and joke on your good days but what about when things aren’t going quite so smoothly?

It is important to actively develop the skill of using humour to deal with stress and apply it as a highly effective coping strategy at times when the going gets tough.

There is a real sense of exhilaration that comes from learning to use your
sense of humour to pull yourself up. One way of accessing this is to get in touch with your Inner Clown

We all have an Inner Clown inside of us waiting to be discovered.
It's a character we can play that gives us permission to be free, to rediscover our childlike spontaneity, creativity and pure delight. It invites us to reconnect to the playful child inside.

Through the years, we lose touch with the brightness of life, our inner spark and things become dark and grey. But the clown helps to rekindle that spark, to restore the color and brightness, to restore our sense of wonder and joy.
It involves stepping outside of your usual way of looking at the world, being curious and intentionally naïve, excited by everything, out to explore and stepping into a world of wonder and delight.

Clown Focus Therapy is a program that enables you to get in touch with your Inner Clown in a way that is both fun and sacred, using the Language of the Soul which often uses compassionate humour and metaphor to communicate to you what you most need to know to live joyfully and in the best of health.

Laughter becomes the focus, to develop an awareness of the ‘bigger’ you which exists beyond all of your problems. From it you can draw inspiration and connection to the happiness that already exists within.

People who can tap into their sense of humour in stressful times have a much greater resilience and are more emotionally flexible in the midst of the difficulties they face. It is a great coping tool and a skill that you can easily learn to develop.

"I would never have made it if I could not have laughed. Laughing lifted me momentarily. . . out of this horrible situation" (Victor Frankl on his experiences in a Concentration camp)

Terry Anderson, held captive in Lebanon for over 6yrs, describes in his book, Den of Lions, how a sense of humour helped him and his fellow prisoners cope.

"Despite everything, it's amazing sometimes how much laughing we do.. .. It's just a relief to be able to laugh at something."

Jokes can help you to take emotional control of the situation

Just imagine what a daily dose of serious attitude does to the quality of your life. It can be seriously stifling and can rob you of the many opportunities for joy that a more upbeat, positive attitude brings.

"Laughter sets the spirit free to move through even the most tragic circumstances. It helps us shake our heads clear, get our feet back under us and restore our sense of balance and purpose. Humour is integral to our peace of mind and ability to go beyond survival." (Captain Gerald Coffee, POW in Vietnam)

Love Yourself for Who You Are
*****************************

When you stop taking yourself so seriously you become free to accept yourself as you are, enabling you to release the internal struggle that is taking place inside. As a result, you will actually feel revitalized and energized.
And the happier you are, the more at peace you are with yourself. This results in a continual cycle of positivism, as being happy leads to even more happiness.

After all, continually battling with that internal tug-of-war is physically, mentally, and emotionally draining. When you lay that battle to rest, your body and mind can rest as well.

Exercise your laughter muscles
******************************

Clown Focus Therapy shows how Humour Skills, such as Caricature, or Exaggeration With Compassion, can free you from internal struggle. You learn to step outside of your limiting roles, those ‘parts’ that you believe you should ‘play’ a certain way. Roles such as being a parent, a child, an office employee, or a significant other can often become heavy with expectation and feel suffocating. In order to find true happiness, you need to realize that you are bigger than the roles you take yourself to be. Learn to master them and the emotions they are attached to rather than allowing them to master you

It can help keep your problems in perspective

By bringing your feelings and thoughts out into the spotlight, you can effectively find ways to change your way of thinking and release internal struggle. You become more able to loosen your attachment to the negative feelings or stressful situations and become empowered with more positive choices for yourself.

Bill Cosby once said, "If you can find humour in anything, you can survive it."

*********************************************************************************

Joy's unique style and teaching comes from 30 years' experience in the field of personal and spiritual growth making use of a wide range of ancient and contemporary techniques blended into an approach and style which she likes to call "Spiritual growth, healing and fun!" This includes dynamic interactive meditation, creative visualisation, energy work, the practice of mindfulness, sacred clowning and inner spiritual adventures.

Her strong belief in the greatness that lies within everyone makes her a fine spiritual journey facilitator and guide as she invites you to dive deep into your essential being to re-emerge celebrating and free. Joy 'dances' with the inner wisdom of her clients through a gentle, yet deep, soul searching experience, to encourage and support an opening on the path of healing and spiritual growth, beyond blockages and pain to true, transformational awakening and joyful vibrant living

http://www.clownfocustherapy.com
http://www.selfgrowth.com/experts/joy_idries.html

Everybody Wants a Hug!

Hi, Joy here
I just came across this lovely article about HUGS and wanted to share it with you. Have a GREAT day! Love and Hugs

Dear Loved Ones,

Good day to you all on this glorious day and I Love you, love you, love you.

Tools for life.

The Power of Hugs

Can you recall a time when you experienced a Hug so unforgettable?

This Hug was so juicy and it felt so gooooooood! This Hug that you received changed your day. This Hug raised your energy. This Hug that you received was Awesome in every way. This Hug was like God hugging you! God hugging us.

Can you recall a time when you Hugged someone and they felt so goooooood? They just didn't want to let go of your Hug. Your Hug changed their day. Have you ever hugged someone who is going through a hard time and your Hug just lifted their energy level to such a level that they were able to see the light?

The Power of our hands wrapped around another human being. God has given us such a Gift. God has given us such a Powerful Gift. This Gift has the Power to heal not only us but others as well.

When was the last time you gave yourself a Hug? Silly? Only if we believe so.

Do you believe that you are deserving of a Hug? I do!

I know that we are all deserving of embracing God's Gifts. Let us all start today to expect God's Gifts to humanity in such a way that healing takes place when we wrap our arms around ourselves and each other. Let us believe that God only wants the best for us. Let us believe that God has given us many Gifts to play and live with. We must open up our eyes and hearts to experience this truth.

Today and every day in every way I encourage all of us to let go of our perception that we are beneath God's truth, for God's truth is our truth.

Let us all open up to want to receive the gifts of Hugs and give this gift to others. What goes around, comes around.

Let us circulate God's gifts in our lives and be a channel of good. What else is more pleasing than this to bring Joy to our Souls and to others?

Today Give yourself a Hug from the God within you and truly experience the Power of Hugs through your own Soul. Then, if you choose to go forward, give another being your Godly Hug. For we are all worthy and deserving of this healing act of Kindness and Generosity.


With Big Hugs. I love you. I love you. I love you.

Please feel free to share these insights to Create a global awareness about the Power to heal oneself and others.

May the love and light of God and the Universe surround, protect and heal you, your loved ones and the planet earth.

Have a Beautiful Blessed life in every way.
www.Spiritualityinsideandout.com

With Love, Gratitude and Respect,
Michelle Morovaty
Truly, With God All Things Are Possible

© Copyright 2007 Spirituality Inside and Out, LLC

ABOUT MICHELLE
Michelle Morovaty is an Intuitive Spiritual Teacher and Healer. She has healed herself from many challenges including Lupus CNS, a car accident and divorce. She uses her intuition and universal guidance to assist people through the healing process.

For more about Michelle see http://www.spiritualityinsideandout.com and for her healing guided meditation CD's see http://www.insidenow.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Michelle_Morovaty

A True Story

I was born as the fifth child into a family in poverty due to my father’s alcoholism. I was the fourth girl and from a very early age I had felt unwanted both as another mouth to feed and a girl at that!

My mother was angry to find herself pregnant again and had the sixth baby terminated because she "couldn’t even feed the five they had!" which caused me to feel that I was a burden.

It would have been better for the family if I’d never been born!

This severely affected my attitude to life, so much that I married an alcoholic like my father who became violent sometimes when drunk and whose anxiety made him controlling even when sober. I thought I could "love him better".


In February 2005 I finally left him after thirty years of marriage. I had avoided therapy because I thought I would leave him if I ever got up the courage to tell anyone what was happening. So I then began a course of counselling.


At the same time Joy Idries, who is an amazingly gifted and accredited Journey Therapist, offered me some Journey Therapy: It is like an intense internal personal journey. I was invited to go down some steps in my imagination, which helps to let go of the thoughts usually swirling about my busy mind and focus on becoming ready to listen.

I pray regularly and am used to listening to God who has spoken to me many times.

This particular day I imagined that I was an egg in my mother’s Ovary. I know it sounds a bit weird but it didn’t feel weird at the time. There were lots of other eggs in there with me but I was on the threshold and I felt as though I was being jostled. I realised that they were all happy and smiling and they were acting as if it was a party. They were cheering for me and I distinctly heard the words "Go on, it’s your turn! Off you go!"

The feelings I had overwhelmed me as I was so used to keeping my emotions in check in order to keep my marriage. I realised later that I had been suffering from the equivalent of survivor’s guilt.

Since then I have been training to be a counsellor myself and intend to open a respite centre in the Lake District for people who feel like shouting "stop the world I wanna get off". I already have the domain name so that I can set up a website to raise funds so that people who are or who have been suffering from domestic abuse but can’t afford a retreat can go there.

I have come a long way from the down-trodden doormat I had become who when told to jump would meekly ask "how high?"

Today I know myself to be a fun-loving, decisive, powerful, beautiful, sensitive, compassionate and intelligent woman who is putting myself first and seeing to my own needs.

I found this wonderful poem and some post-it replies which have some good bite-size quotes in it too:-

Stop the world I wanna get happiness
A poem by Serendippidydog 11 August 2004

Happiness is a state of mind

How is it then that for some of us it seems hard to find?

Has our mind moved to another state?

Or have we not the time for happiness to contemplate?

Fast world on the move gotta keep the pace.

Isn’t life meant to be more than a race?

Down shifting down scale down hearted.

Is happiness so elusive? So departed?

Can it be that it’s in the simple things that we take for granted?

Maybe we have obscured those things or at least look at them slanted?

Good humour warm intentions sensitive connections.

Is this more in happiness’s direction?

Languishing beach walks drinking in the setting sun’s artistic wonderment.

Revelling in summer’s glories with all its fruits and rich tapestry of abandonment.

Looking through the world in simple appreciation coloured glasses.

It’s gotta be a happier alternative than being run off our asses!

"Life is about being UNHAPPY with CHUNKS of happy thrown in. And if you think about the happy things for longer you forget the unhappy things."


"I always seem to be in pursuit of happiness and then, when I look back on my life and experiences I know I have been. Its just that at the time, I was too busy to notice."

"I've done the whole 'downsizing' thing. A few years ago I was working so many hours I didn't have time to spend the money I was making, and I had to pay other people to do the things I would have liked to do myself. But when I gave up work, the kids missed their nanny! I had no money and was miserable all over again!"

"In my experience the grass isn't greener, its just different grass! " "Happiness is hard to recognise and maybe that is because we don't have the time often to just experience the moment, the time to contemplate what makes us happy....I personally like some nice relaxing music, warm bubble baths..swims in the ocean..walking the dog.. good company"

Oh wow! I feel so normal and HAPPY!!!! (that's my comment not another quote but feel free to use it!! Ha! Ha!) Flo UK

http://www.selfgrowth.com/experts/joy_idries.html

What Is Your Heart's Desire?

Your desire is what motivates you. It drives the search, to bring into your life what you feel, think or hope will make it better. It can manifest in many ways and at a variety of levels. From something as simple as the desire for chocolate or a holiday in the sun to finding your soul mate or losing yourself in the ecstasy of an experience of reunion with Infinite Oneness.Whatever level you experience it at, it is a feeling of being pulled towards something higher and more.
In fact what you are looking for is connection to the richness of Being.
We all seek Soul. At those rare and precious moments when we connect with Soul we feel happy because we are tapping into an infinite wellspring from which springs our highest and truest Being. There is a feeling of "I’m home" where desires simply dissolve into a complete sense of satisfaction, fullness, contentment and peace. It is a moment of ‘no time’, an infinite ‘Now’.
To a Soul, the only real time is right NOW, the present moment. Soul lives and communicates through connecting deeply with the rich experience of each moment. It is that experience of being lost in a breathtakingly beautiful sunset, an ‘aha!’ moment when the metaphor of the Soul suddenly speaks a thousand words and an instant surrender to truth and transformation
occurs.
I remember one such occasion when I was doing a dynamic meditation one day and suddenly ‘found’ myself on a magic carpet, as it were. On the carpet was a nest of eggs. The moment it came to my attention I immediately started to cry. Now you may be wondering why I would cry over a nest of eggs? Let me explain. In fact it had triggered a re-experiencing of my own unresolved grief about not being able to have any more children since I had been diagnosed with cervical cancer (which had required drastic surgery) some years before. As I continued to focus inwardly the eggs then suddenly seemed to hatch and out popped what I can only describe as ‘little angel children’ that promptly flew up to heaven with the message that they were waiting for me there. Now you may think I am crazy and I am not about to engage in any debate about that but suffice it to say that whatever remaining grief I had instantly dissolved right there and then into a complete sense of wholeness and inner peace. And it didn’t even need to have made any logical sense!
We work hard to build defences, to prove to the world that we are strong and not vulnerable. At least our sense of Self does ... what we often call our Ego, or personality ... who we generally believe ourselves to be. We say, "I am strong. I can carry on" when we really are covering up a fear that we are weak and might collapse. Yet in truth we are strong but not in the usual sense of the word .. rather at a much deeper level where strength is an essential quality of Being where ‘nothing can touch you’ because you are already essentially part of everything and boundless.
It is our so-called personality, identity or Ego that believes it is a concrete boundaried entity that therefore needs to be protected from external threat. So we find ourselves constantly on high alert (as if our very survival depended on it) for instances of criticism, judgement, rejection and abandonment. We work hard to build defences and to armour ourselves against possible attack. We try to prove to ourselves and the world that we are loving and loveable because we are afraid that we are not. We search for meaning and purpose, to ‘know’ the answers, to make sense of it all because we are afraid that otherwise we might be nothing.
Ego existence is an existence based on fear and on being driven to find safety through control, manipulation and pushing away the things we don’t desire, the things we dislike or hate. To access Soul requires taking the time to stop and reflect, opening to the NOW with focused attention. It means letting go of judgement, almost disengaging the mind and allowing yourself to witness in a detached kind of way, what unfolds in your inner world. It is a process of surrendering to Soul in trust and openness.
With guidance and support you can learn how to become less attached to personal identity to not be so easily swayed by its grosser fears, angers and passions. When we become able to look at things from a different and wider perspective we become able to tether it and not let it run wild... more next week http://www.rekindleyourspark.com

Taking Time to Stop and Smell the Roses

So who’s not busy in their lives right now! So many things to

do, bills to pay, things to organise. We are lucky if we even get

a decent full night’s sleep any more.Yet if we could just take

that momentous decision to stop, reflect and pay attention to

ourselves, we might just begin to start clearly seeing the many

habits and patterns that have kept us asleep, confused and

misguided for so long. And with the growing practice of

deepened awareness, we might even start to be able to choose

to shift from the narrow outlook of our everyday busy

personality to the all-embracing timeless generosity of our

soul.

All this simply by choosing to change our focus and

perspective. Being conscious of what’s happening frees us from

being trapped in the game. Many of us have had that special

glimpse of our spirit, our soul at some point in our lives, of our

true, spiritual or higher nature. Can you remember the feeling

you opened into at the sight of a beautiful sunset, for example

when you felt your chest expand in gratitude and delight. It

may have happened when listening to a moving piece of music

or looking at a delicate and exquisite newly opened flower?

Yet for many this enlightening experience often seems all too

quickly to fade back into the background instead of becoming

joyously integrated or actualised into everyday living.

How do we keep it up?

Or will it remain a missed opportunity, a lost chance for real

depth and richness, for living to our best potential. We need to

become more rooted in the awareness of ourselves as something

deeper and more essential, to recognise that our deeper nature

is peace, harmony, joy and oneness. And we need to know that

it is possible to bring this dimension into our everyday busy lives.
So what can be done to open to this possibility, to keep it in focus

and to be able to live more consistently from this higher

harmonious perspective? More next week ....