Gratitude Exercises For Happiness

When Thanksgiving comes around, we may often find ourselves running back to the grocery store at 10am for that last minute purchase, pulling our hair out, or engaged in a seething inner argument about whether to let that last comment from Aunt Edna go, rather than practicing gratitude as the Holiday suggests.

It brings up an interesting aspect of the Holidays.  The meaning of the season often gets left behind as people scramble for Black Friday deals, and bend over backwards to give their families the best that they can with limited time and, often, limited budgets.

In a recent newsletter sent out to our mailing list, Janice implores us to remember that there are many people in the world who cannot celebrate or do not have anyone to celebrate the holidays with.  It's a good reminder, especially as we eye Aunt Edna gearing up for a tirade...

In years past, the holidays have felt forced to me.  Thanksgiving's original celebration seems overshadowed by the grim events that followed for the indigenous people who were helpful to the settlers that first Thanksgiving.  Christmas, too, has felt less and less about the original purpose i.e. celebrating the religious holiday and birth of Christ, and more like a consumption riddled frenzy.  I'm not religious, so attempts to make it feel more sacred aren't necessarily the answer.

Somewhere under all the glitter, and the signs, and the deals, and the gluttony; there is a real reason for celebrating the holidays.  I would like to tease this out of the rituals and habits visited each season without much thought.

It seems to make sense to go back to the root of the Holidays.  Despite what happened since; Thanksgiving is a day in which friends and family gather, after the Harvest, to express their thankfulness.  Gratitude itself is such a wonderful and important part of a healthy lifestyle.  Many studies have shown that those that practice gratitude everyday tend to be more optimistic and healthier.

This article from Harvard mentions several such studies where the outcome proved, once again, all the benefits of practicing gratitude.

If we are to take anything from the Holidays; perhaps it should be that this feeling is one that shouldn't occur only once or twice a year, but something that we practice all year long.

This isn't a new concept, by any means, but it's one that we see people struggling to put into action.

Exercises for gratitude can include:

• Journaling each day and listing something you are grateful for, no matter how inane or seemingly unimportant.
• Remembering to thank the people in your life for their assistance and for going out of their way for you.
• Looking at the things we often feel plagued or upset by and trying to find something positive in it; perhaps a lesson learned, a connection, or recognition of having overcome it.  Be grateful for the silver lining.
• At meal times remembering to be thankful for your food, and sharing that gratitude out loud with those you may eat with, or thanking those that prepared the meals not only verbally but in your actions (perhaps by helping to clean up).

Christmas, too, can have the the true meaning teased out.  If Thanksgiving is expressing thanks and practicing gratitude, that I see Christmas as a time of giving and showing people we care and appreciate them.  Here are some of the ways to do this other than opening you wallet too wide:

• Have a story time, let everyone share something from their life that the others may not know and really listen to them.  Our culture typically has us glossing over the meaningful things in our lives and staying very surface with each other.  Practice deep listening.
• Make something for someone, especially something that you know that they really need.  Again, this means having listened and paid attention to each other.
• Do something nice for the other person, if that means helping them dig snow or clean up the house, bake something or invite them to dinner.  Actions can often speak louder than words.  What has someone in your life been putting off for a long time that you can help with?
• Let people know you love and appreciate them.  Use the traditional 12 days of Christmas as a starting point, and maybe leave them a note for each day with something else you appreciate about them.  If we do not tell someone we care and appreciate them, they may not know!

In other suggestions, planning to do something together in the future, or to work on a project together, create something, or help another with something, go on a trip or otherwise spend time together is another wonderful way to surpass the over-materialism of the Holidays.  

Experiences and spending time together is what it's all about, learning and growing with each other!  

Let me be clear that I have nothing specifically against present giving - it's more the unconscious purchasing of things that people do not need or cannot use very much just as a sort of throw away giving that I dislike. The world needs us to be more thoughtful with our consumption, and in the end; I believe it detracts from the purpose of the season.  If getting the mashed potatoes just right is going to take you away from actually enjoying your Holiday, then screw the mashed potatoes and eat chips with your turkey.  

Let yourself have fun and play with the Holiday, trying your best but not beating yourself up if for some reason it doesn't go the way you expected.  

Focus on your intention of gratitude and giving and all will go right!

​
- Christine

Who is a Bully?

We've all had issues with bullying in some capacity....


 "Don't pick on her," Jessica said angrily.  We all stood stock still, gaping at the girl who said something to the ones picking on a girl in our class, Maddie.

"Thank you, Jessica," Maddie said in a way that made it seem like she just won an academy award.  I was shocked.  Who was I in all this? I was the bully, and Jessica had just stood up for the girl I was bullying.

I don't remember what I had said to Maddie, but a few friends and I were poking fun at her.  We were in 5th grade. 

The reason we bullied Maddie is because, honestly, she was an easy target.  She was different, maybe a little nerdy, and a little socially awkward.  Basically, she was everything I didn't want to be (but was, anyway) and since I didn't like myself and was afraid to be myself, it seemed the thing to do was to attempt to separate out the things I didn't like about myself.  I did this by finding them in someone else and ridiculing them for it.  I was trying to prove that I was different than her, but instead I made myself into something far worse - a hypocrite and a bully.  It took a long time to figure out what I was doing and begin to accept and appreciate the pieces of myself that I had made fun of in Maddie.

It all seems pretty cut and dry, but there's more to it than that.  Through my work with Janice; I've begun to learn about energy and beliefs. Have you ever been feeling fine, and then you'll get a phone call from someone who is complaining about something they are trying to do and how they can't get it right?  Instead of just calmly being able to answer their question or reassure them they can do it,  you may begin to feel angry or frustrated with them. You respond with criticism or lash out; telling them that they should know how to do this already or ask them, "how many times are you going to call me with the same stupid thing," etc.  What we don't realize is this:

People who feel bad about themselves can draw out anger, frustration, or ridicule with their energy, especially from those closest to them. We can mirror what others feel about themselves without even realizing that is what is happening. 

Have you ever been feeling really bad about yourself, like you just can't do it, or you feel like you're a real screw up; and then someone comes along and says something to reinforce this idea?

I'll give you an example: I was running behind one morning and didn't clean up my dishes from breakfast.  As I'm walking out the door, I am feeling frustrated, like I just can't get anything right, be on time for anything, and am generally just a disaster.  As I am driving to work; I get a message from my roommate "Can you please clean up after yourself!? You always leave things a mess!" it said.  I already felt bad about not being able to do my dishes, and I was beating myself up for running late.  Then, I get this message and it just reiterates to me that I am a screw up.  

It felt awful.  But is it real?  

My roommate was responding to the way I already felt, and her emotions, fears, and beliefs got mixed in there too.

Bullies and their victims often share similar beliefs.  Often, they both feel there is something wrong with them, that they won't be accepted the way they are, that they don't matter, and/or that they can't do anything right.  For these reasons, they feel they are different or don't fit in.  We often hear in our work that people feel like they just don't really belong, that no one will accept them the way they are and that no one really cares.  Underlying all of this, are the feelings that we are "not good enough."  The difference is in what people do with it.  Some people hide, and hold their energy in close to themselves. They are fearful that others will see their flaws and they try to keep people from seeing them.  They don't feel good about themselves and try not to draw attention to themselves. They can feel very victimized by the people around them and the world.

The second type of person is someone whose fear and dislike for themselves is also profound, but instead of turning in; they turn out. The will strike first, draw attention to others, ridicule, can be abusive and mean.  By doing this, they feel more powerful. Instead of being the victim they become the victimizer.  They use their abusive actions and judgements to make themselves feel better, feel like they matter, and/or are important. They instead choose to focus that dislike outside themselves and blame others.  

People are afraid to really be seen, but how we handle it will differ from person to person.  A bully and their victim typically have more in common then people really realize.  It is a relationship that is built on the beliefs they share about themselves.  It is almost more like a dance.  One of the ways Janice helps people manage bullies is to teach them about this energy connecting them, and help them to alter or change it so that the bully isn't drawn so much towards the would-be victim.  She also emphasizes the need for the group to stand up against bullies.  Many people are afraid that they'll be next if they stand up to a bully, but typically a person who doesn't feel bad about themselves already can stand up to a bully and avoid becoming a victim.  Even if the bully says something mean; it won't affect them because they feel good about themselves.

Bullying is a real problem, and one of the biggest issues with it is that a lot of adults actually bully. It may seem different, or that we have a good reason for the way we treat others. The judgement, the hate, and the fear may feel different than when we were children.  We may have grown up but we, most of us anyway, have not grown out of our own insecurities that we felt as children. We are the role models for our children and what we teach them, whether we know it or not, is very much the same cycle as what we learned.  It is possible to change this, but it must change from a standpoint of awareness, not blame. Most of us don't go around hurting others on purpose, and if we do it is because we feel we have been hurt. 

Bullying isn't a child thing, it's a people thing and a world epidemic.

That's why we call our program Bullying Exposed.  We are working on getting to the root causes of bullying: which are our feelings of low self worth and self esteem, and our feelings of not being good enough.  We try so hard to be the same or to fit in with the crowd instead of embracing our differences. 

Bullies are really people who are just afraid of their own insecurities.  When kids, adults, organizations, or governments bully; it's because they are afraid.  Often, they are trying to make themselves feel better by highlighting the difference between themselves and the people or ideas they are ridiculing.

​We have to help people who abuse, try to control, make fun, and cut others down understand what they are actually doing, which is really just hiding behind their fear/anger and not actually dealing with the real problem.  They think that by hurting others; they will make themselves feel better.  Well, I can tell you from first hand experience that this is not the case.  When Jessica stood up for Maddie that day; I felt really bad about what I had done.  Here, Jessica was one of the more popular girls in school, and I wasn't.  The fact that she would stand up for Maddie, a girl who I considered "below me" really stuck with me, and I realized that what I had done was wrong and I was really mad at myself.  I had been punishing myself for a long time for that, believing myself to be a mean or bad person, and treating myself as if I was.

It is worth noting that the teacher was right there, and hadn't said anything to myself or the other girls.  It was only Jessica who said something, and then, after the fact, the teacher gave her a pat on the back for sticking up for Maddie.  Janice says that this is actually a good thing.  The adults shouldn't get involved with the group dynamics of the kids.  Children need to learn to band together as a group to stand up against bullies.  Otherwise, they will always be looking for an authority figure to protect them or handle their problems.  This is all well and good until there isn't one to be found.  

As a side note- I really wish that at some point, the teacher had spoken to me about why I bullied Maddie, and helped me understand that the anger and frustration I was feeling was a normal thing to feel at that age, but that I needed to find ways to deal with it other than lashing out.  Another options was if she had helped to facilitate a talk with Maddie where we went into bigger depth about what it had made Maddie feel for me to be mean to her, and why I had done it in the first place.  It's important to realize that bullies are hurting too.  They just are funneling that pain into anger and hate rather than into sadness.  I'm not saying it's excusable, especially when people know better, but it is understandable, and what's more, given time, patience, and practice; I do believe it is possible to fix as well.  We need to expose the dynamic that creates bullies and we need to help victims to begin to gain self confidence and love for themselves so they don't present as targets so easily.

No one is truly a victim, we all have a choice about how we feel.  No one can make us feel anything.  They can try.  But on some level we have to agree with them.  We have a choice how we react to people.  Awareness is key.

It's worth mentioning that in my youth; I was bullied, too.  I had blocked this out for a long time,  but I remembered recently that in 3rd grade, my whole class made fun of me for having a crush on a boy.  I think someone had overheard me say something and it began to spread throughout the classroom.  Everyone began singing and chanting, "Christine has a crush on Jeremy" and I got really upset, and started to cry because he was sitting there.  I didn't go back to school for two weeks.  So, maybe that has something to do with why I wouldn't want to feel vulnerable anymore, and made fun of another girl.  And that is typically the way it will go.  Bullying is a cycle, just like abuse is a cycle.  People learn it somewhere, and it's usually because they have been hurt and don't want to let that happen again.  I have learned alot just from looking at the ways I have been hurt in my life and how I then changed my behavior to try to protect myself from further hurts.  If you've ever had an experience with bullying, whether you are the bullied or the bully; I highly suggest you begin to explore the programs we offer here at Miylana and Bullying Exposed.  Janice offers much in the way of workshops and resources to begin to identify the parts in you that were hurt, felt victimized, or lashed out to protect.  As Janice says,

"Most people are not trying to hurt you unless they are mentally unsound.  If they are hurting you, it's because they themselves are in pain."

Learn more about bullies and ways to use your energy to protect yourself, check out upcoming Energy Affects classes or our Bullying Exposed programs.

Does Hypnotherapy Work for Anxiety?

A Major Component of Janice's Work Is Her Hypnotherapy Sessions...
But Does It Work?

One of the first things Janice will give to new clients is a hypnotherapy cd (and a copy of her book - This Is Only a Dream - When You Die You Wake Up!).  She currently has over 15 different hypnotherapy cd's that she can offer to clients, ranging in topic from Abundance to Weight Loss.

When she handed me a hypnotherapy CD to help improve Self-Worth, I was indifferent.  I was open to it, but I certainly didn't run home and throw it right on.  I think it took me a few weeks before, after a reminder from Janice, I finally took a listen.

The intro to the hypnotherapy sessions recommend that before you begin, you make free time to listen in a quiet place and that you set yourself up comfortably without any distractions or responsibilities for alertness- aka. don't drive a car and listen to hypnotherapy.

I had been told that before going to sleep was a good time to listen, so I got into my pajamas and popped on the cd, and climbed into bed.  The soothing music began to play, Janice's calming voice began to speak, and before I knew it; I was asleep.

This cycle repeated itself over and again.  I was so relaxed by the cd that I had never actually heard the end of it consciously until several months after I began to listen to it.  So what was the deal?  And what was it doing, if anything, while I slumbered?

Research shows that even while we are asleep, our ears remain active.  Our brains still register auditory stimuli, and this can impact the depth of our sleep, and how well rested we are.

If you often feel like you sleep a good 8 hours, but are still waking up feeling exhausted, noise may be the culprit.

 In fact, research has linked traffic noise and chronic bad sleep with cardiovascular disease.

Obviously, our body still registers the sounds we hear during the night, whether we are actively aware of them or not.  Regardless, and my situation aside, what does hypnotherapy actually do for our bodies and minds?

First we must understand what hypnotherapy is.  The cut and dry definition of hypnotherapy is the use of hypnosis for therapy.  Ok.  So then we must ask, what is hypnosis?  Hypnosis is an induction of a trance or dream like state in which the subject is highly susceptible to suggestion.  We've all heard the stories of the man who would act like a chicken when a master hypnotist snapped their fingers, but this spectacle doesn't necessarily suggest therapeutic value and can scare people to believe that hypnosis is scary and can control you.  Actually, you would never do anything you would not normally do.  If someone gave you a suggestion to "rob a bank" for instance, unless you're a bank robber, you would not do it and even then you would still be making the decision.  You are just in a relaxed deeper state of mind, which makes it easier for you to make changes.

What most of us don't know is that at least 80% of the time our beliefs and programs are running our lives.

Most of us really do not know what we believe, but we can start to see our beliefs by looking at the patterns that show up in our life. To really change these beliefs, we need to change them from the place where they are stored and running to begin with, our subconscious mind.

During a hypnotherapy session, the hypnotherapist helps you to become very relaxed, and then will suggest concepts to you.  If you are struggling with self-worth, for example, she might suggest that you are a worthy, confident, and capable individual.

When we say "beliefs," we don't mean spiritual or religious beliefs.  The idea is that our minds create our reality.  You can be the most independent, capable and worthy person in the world; but if you are always thinking that you aren't any good, that's the reality you will live in.  That's a belief.  You'll make decisions from that place, and constantly sabotage or under value yourself because you don't actually believe you can do it.  The idea is that if we can change the script your mind is playing, then you may begin to see examples of how worthy and capable you are when those experiences come up.  Perhaps you begin to see opportunities that were always there but that you didn't recognize as viable options before.  Much more is open to you, because you began to use the up-till-this-point cobweb infested parts of your mind that said you were worth a damn.

Janice often says that one of the major benefits of hypnotherapy is that it helps to re-wire your brain.  If you've always had low self-worth, then that means you've created a bridge between any sort of criticism, rejection, or disapproval as a reflection of who you are and what you are capable of.

Eventually you may begin to see that criticism, rejection, and disapproval in advance, as a sort of inevitability.  

It is here that we come to a crossroads, and we begin to shift from a place of perception to a place of creation.  We begin to create the experience of rejection and the feeling of unworthiness even though it is essentially only in our minds.  You begin to live from this cycle.  Many arguments stem from this inevitability of response.  People foresee criticism when it isn't there, and project their own fears on the other person's actions.  It's really quite amazing what we do.

One experience can fit into many different interpretations.  Hypnotherapy allows our mind to experience, while in an open and relaxed state, the other possibilities and helps change your old beliefs that have been keeping you stuck, repeating the same reactions and experiences.

So, if you're feeling like you may need assistance in any particular area; whether it be anxiety reduction, weight loss, smoking reduction, abundance, etc. than I highly suggest hypnotherapy.  It will help you see the other possibilities, and at the very least is very relaxing.  Studies currently have shown that hypnosis can be effective for a range of issues from pain management to anxiety reduction.  The effectiveness will depend of course from person to person and from hypnotist to hypnotist.

My own experience with hypnotherapy and listening to the cds was highly positive.  It seemed to help me relax, get to sleep faster, and definitely encouraged me to wake up on the right side of the bed.  That, coupled with my ongoing sessions with Janice, and the work I'm doing to 'change my mind' has really helped me make better choices for myself and feel happier.  If you have anything to add to this, please feel free to comment below!

If you want to try out one of Janice's hypnotherapy sessions, you can see this one on youtube!

Hypnotherapy audio downloads are available here.

For more info or to hear Janice's unique perspective on solving the world's problems, check out our podcast, How to Survive Earth School, available on Soundcloud or Itunes!
 

The Season Of Change- How do I Change My Life

There are two things that we can all be looking at right now to totally transform our experience of the world.  The first is to look at what our energy is doing.  Energy, as we say, is everywhere and is everything.  From a blade of grass to the sun's rays, a beautiful piece of music, and the light flickering in the store; we relate to our world and each other through the exchange of energy.  Energy can come in many forms and we express it in many different ways.  Learning how to manage our energy is absolutely pivotal for this time.  What signals are you sending?  Identifying these will be the key to understanding your world.  Just as important is recognizing the energetic messages you are receiving.  We are a receptor as much as we are an antennae.  If you do not begin to actively work on identifying what messages are coming from outside of you; you will have a very challenging time going forward.  Have you been feeling crazy?  Overwhelmed?  Anxious?  Most likely, much of that feeling is coming from outside yourself.  If you do not recognize that the feeling is coming from outside yourself, however, the experience of life can be maddening.

What are you doing to manage the energy exchange in your life?  If your answer is nothing, we need to change that.

The second thing we can all be doing to totally transform our experience of the world is to begin to identify how what you believe, or what you expect from life, actually creates the experience of it.  The one thing we should all be asking ourselves is "what is this showing me?"

"What is this showing me" is a question to ask frequently to better see your patterns.  It calls your experience into question, and highlights the assumptions you are making day in and day out about life.  We assume so much, jump to conclusions, and live from an understanding based in our own false perception.  I know that it can seem utterly bizarre to think that you are creating your world, but you are.  Just remember that for every one explanation you have given to the reason something has happened; there are literally hundreds of others.

We are going to be exploring these topics much more going forward.  It's time to move from
"I know I should be doing this..." to actually doing it.  It's so important you do the work right now, and recognize the message you are sending to yourself and others through the communication of your energy and beliefs.

We have a few opportunities to go more in depth with these concepts.  I highly suggest you attend an Energy Affects class.  We have class a few times in November and December (www.miylana.com).  We are offering a two part seminar on energy.  These teleseminars are the beginning of training's we will be offering entitled Magic and Mysteries.  These first two will take an in depth look at the idea of energy and explore tools to protect yourself, project yourself more clearly, and recognize energetic messages from others.  If you still haven't shared this work with your friends and family; now is the time to do so.  It's so important that everyone begin to recognize just how they are creating their life and how energy works.  We can help so many people if we start to understand, use the tools, and more fully explain how all of this works.  It's time to give everyone the gift of new perception!
​
​- Christine

How to Raise Your Vibration

"Raise your vibration" is a term that is thrown around a lot these days, and especially in the sort of work we do here at Miylana.  Janice relays often that the earth is going through an intense period of change where the planet's vibration is becoming faster/higher.  If you are curious about how and why this is happening, I suggest an article by Our Ultimate Reality for an explanation on vibrational changes in our world.

Vibration can be used to describe the physical characteristic of a particle or wave, and this is it's more scientific usage.  We also use it to describe the feeling we may get from someone, as in "he gave me a weird vibe," or the Beach Boys' famous song "Good Vibrations."  For our purposes, these terms can be almost combined into the characteristic energy of a person or thing that another can perceive or detect.

One of the effects of the vibration of the Earth raising is that information, other people's energy and emotion, is traveling much faster.  This can effect us by making us feel ungrounded, really sensitive to things like light and sound or each other, and we may feel more emotional.  Emotions are energy too.  If you are all over the place with regard to your emotions, do some of the following exercises to help yourself ground and re-calibrate the energy.  These exercises help you to ride the wave of the energy, as opposed to being stuck under the swell getting crushed by the power of the breaking wave.  When you are aligned with the higher vibration, you will feel more joyous.  When you aren't, well then - watch out!

THOUGHTS, ENERGY, AND EMOTIONAL CONTAGIONS

Janice teaches that thoughts and feelings have energy.  I believe we can all relate to this idea.  When we meet up with a friend who is having a tough time, we may recognize that something is the matter before we even speak to them.  Our minds and bodies are very adept at picking up on cues, and so some people may explain this away as our subconscious minds being aware of the person's state of distress as evident from an obvious clue, like bags under their eyes, or clothes in disarray, etc.  But if a person has no perceivable change to their exterior, we can still recognize how they are feeling.  Sadness, happiness, and excitement all have characteristic energetic signatures that an attuned antennae can pick up from another person.

We can also pick up emotions from each other.  In Psychology, they call this the emotional contagion, and many studies confirm what we know intuitively.  One person feeling downtrodden or angry has been shown to effect the people close to them.  Thoughts, feelings, and even reading rude words, or being exposed to angry or violent media will also have an effect on how we feel and go about our lives.

We absorb the attitudes and emotions of what we are exposed to, and often act on them.  We feel less happy with ourselves and our performance when we are around unhappy people.  Even though this emotion begins with someone else, we take it on as our own.

Thoughts have energy - are energy, in fact.  Neurons in our brain interact, releasing various chemical and electrical signals.  Tendencies of human behavior including facial mimicry, and related brain chemistry indicate that we commonly and unintentionally pass around and feel the effects of another person's bad, or good mood.

Learning how to be in control, rather than at the whim of this process is a major aspect of working with Janice.  It often entails figuring out how to identify when something - a feeling or a thought - isn't actually yours, and learning to override it with your own, more positive, feeling or thought.  Practice makes perfect here.

So where does vibration come in?  While we cannot, yet, measure someone's vibration; the idea is that low vibrational energy encompasses all of the feelings we typically find uncomfortable, such as anger, fear, frustration, sadness, or worry.  These feelings often result in disordered thoughts, and chemical changes in the brain that increase in power the more these feelings are felt.  This contrasts to high vibrational energy.  High vibrational energy results from positive thinking, feelings like joy and happiness.  You might, literally, feel like you are walking on air.  This feeling is excited and gifts you with the feeling that you are elevated, aware and can see potential pitfalls and problems from above.  Others can also feel this heightened joyful feeling when they are around you, and may feel happier around you.

Still, it's easy to get wrapped up in a negative emotion and fall back into a lower vibration.

Studies have also shown that a negative event holds multiple times the impact of a positive one.  That means that when something bad happens, it makes a much bigger impression and takes longer to recover from than a positive event.  '“Put another way, you are more upset about losing $50 than you are happy about gaining $50,”' relays this article from the NY Times.  When we come into contact with a negative person, you are more likely to get pulled into their bad mood than pull them out of it.

So what does all this mean?  It means that you have to work, really work, to maintain a healthy positive or even just neutral outlook.  Our psychology, and our brains are hardwired to pay attention to the negative, to absorb those uncomfortable emotions from others, and to emulate them.

So let's talk about how to raise your vibration.  It should follow, based on the studies and information above, that much of it has to begin in the brain - with your thoughts.  I asked Janice what we should do to improve our vibration and make it easier to have a positive outlook.  Here's what she said:

A FEW WAYS TO RAISE YOUR VIBRATION:

1.  SHUT UP.

No, really, this is what she said.  She said we really need to shut up and listen more.  Not necessarily to each other, but to ourselves.  Our own thoughts.  She said many of us are not at all aware of what we are thinking, and so can more easily be affected by those around us.

2.  SAY/THINK SOMETHING POSITIVE- CREATE A MANTRA

Replace your repetitive inner monologue ("I have to get to the bank, I don't have time, I'm late for this thing, my friend is being an asshole, I want this thing and it's not happening, ugh!") with something much more positive.  Create your own personal mantra full of significant keywords for what you really need in your life: not a better job but more happiness, not more money but more abundance, not someone to listen to you and do what you want all the time but more love.

Ex: I am in the process of creating my life.  I now call more love, abundance, peace, and joy into my life.

Then repeat it.  Whenever you fall into a negativity trap and begin to feel dissatisfied, use your mantra, and smile.  Smiling has a wonderfully positive impact on the brain.

3.  TAKE A BREAK.

We're all running around like chickens with our heads cut off most of the time, are aren't in touch with how we really feel.  People really do need to learn to stop, and take a break.  In Janice's words, "feel the sun on your face."  When you do this, you may be surprised to see that you are actually feeling fine, and whatever was happening before was a result of rushing, or being around someone who is giving off some low vibrational energy.

4.  SHAKE IT OFF.

This is one of Janice's go to exercises.  Put on some upbeat music and shake, moving your body, and imagine excess energy falling into the Earth to be recycled.  Do this for a few minutes, and then put on a slower, more meditative song.  Stand still, rooted to the Earth.  Your hands should be placed on your belly below your belly button and over your hip bones.  Feel comfortable and breathe deep, imaging white light entering your head through the top of your skull and filling you from the bottom up.

IN CONCLUSION

While we still can't measure our own vibration and see where we are at on a high to low scale, we can certainly be aware of it and recognize that when we are feeling better; things go smoother, and we can find more joy in them.  High vibrational energy is all around us, carrying with it energetic signals and messages that come in the form of intuition when we can match them with our own high vibrational energy.  If we are vibrating lower, they may feel more like anxiety and seem overwhelming.  If we really aren't receptive to them, they can jam the circuits of our mind so to speak, and we may feel like hiding or numbing out.  Regardless, this energy is here to stay so the better choice would be to learn how to thrive in it.  If you do, you'll see that other things don't effect you so much, and that, what's more, you can have a positive impact on those around you.  Now, those are some good vibes.

Are You Lying To Yourself? I was.

During our most recent podcast How to Survive Earth School recording (available on Itunes and Soundcloud), I had an epiphany of sorts with the help of Janice and Christine D.

While I do this work, and feel like I have gotten so much better recognizing my old programs when they begin to run, I am realizing that I am still operating on really basic underlying truths that tend to always be playing in the background while my awareness is distracted.

Typically, when this happens, it's because something has upset me.  But rather than move from this feeling of being upset or hurt, I move directly into anger at the supposed perpetrator of this transgression.

Why don't they know what they did?  Why do they continue to do this despite my asking them not to?  Why don't they listen to me?

This inevitably leads me to my programs, which take these thoughts into the realm of absolutes.


People don't care.  I'm unlovable or there's something wrong with me.  People do not listen.

While I have gotten so much better, particularly in the area of feeling not listened to, and not taking things personally when people do things that feel inconsiderate; I realized that my awareness and recognition is limited to specific acts that I have just begun to recognize.  But, there are some other things that are falling through the cracks.

What are these?  The tend to have to do a lot with not belonging, abandonment, and the home.

While I am doing so well at not taking things personally from friends, family, career, and even relationships; when it gets into an arena that activates my fear of abandonment, not belonging, or my home space; it really begins to unravel my well formed identity.

Particularly in my home life, I have been taking it for granted that the people you live with simply will not care about how what they do will impact you.

Saying it out loud this last week really hit home just how apart of my understanding of the world this concept was.  I never even gave it a second thought these last couple of years working with Janice.

It's so bizarre for me to still be finding these hidden beliefs stuck in the mud of my fears.  I suppose some things simply just take time to rise to the surface so that you can deal with them.  While this may be a small thing, it really isn't.  I was dedicating so much time to feeling angry, to feeling hurt, and to feeling resentful all while feeling like there was simply nothing I could do about it.

While I haven't perfected asking for what I want, I have gotten alot better at it.  What I am still working at, and which is coming a bit slower for me, is letting people know how I feel.

I don't know why this is so hard.  I suppose because it feels like the ultimate test of someone's caring for you.  If you say how you feel and nothing changes?  Well, then they obviously don't care.

But change takes time, and so many people are stuck in their own illusion - their own programs - that to continuously take another's behavior as a reflection on you is almost insane.

Learning to remind people, gently, when they've dropped back into their old routines is a wonderful way to keep things from turning into a button pressing game.

Rather than get your hackles up, and begin to create an argument or defense in your mind; look for a way to discuss your feelings in a non-confrontational way.

The reason discussions devolve into confrontations is because somewhere we, or the other person, believes that they are not entitled to their feelings or else they are afraid that the person won't care or listen to what they say.  Practice slowly, and reiterate your caring for the other.  It's ok to not always see eye to eye, but compromise is a gift and should be employed whenever and towards whatever thing you need to resolve.  Not discussing the problem is no longer an option.  It will grow and grow until it consumes you and it's all you think about.  Is someone leaving dirty dishes in the sink really worth all that?

So, in conclusion.  Yes, I have been lying to myself.  People do care, and I know because I talked to them about it. 

http://www.miylana.com/blog/are-you-lying-to-yourself

Am I Psychic?

 Everyone has gifts.

The level to which we can access and utilize them is another matter.  Our psychic abilities are alot like other gifts, such as the gift of music, song, skills in sports, or business acumen, in that you have to practice and learn about it in order to hone your skills.


While some people are born with the ability to know and see far beyond what most of us are able to, we shouldn't get discouraged by the ease with which they access their gifts.  


Some people are born with this door more open, but some people are born as business prodigies and musical virtuosos, as well.  That doesn't mean that we shouldn't work on learning the instrument of our choice.  Most people don't have innate ability when it comes to their successes.


It turns out, that most, if not all people, had to work hard to get what they achieved.


So, what are the steps to accessing this knowledge?  This will range from person to person, but it certainly will begin with awareness of yourself.  If you are running from point A to point B, never taking a second to care for or inquire deeper about yourself- then you likely aren't developing the awareness to hear beyond your inner monologue.


The first thing you have to do to receive an answer is to ask a question.  If you aren't questioning, than this is your first mistake.


Here are a few steps to beginning to open to your own psychic abilities:


1.  Set aside time dedicated to yourself and to increasing your inner awareness.
For most people, psychic thoughts and feelings will come from inside as a intuitive "lurch," not in a movie-eque way with visions and involved dream sequences, although this may happen with time! (Hey, anything is possible so don't discount it..)

2.  During this time, close your eyes and really go within.  
Begin to play with your other senses.  See how far you can hear into the distance.  Put a series of objects in front of you and use your fingers to trace and explore them, use your sense of smell and taste to explore your environment.  Question yourself about what are sensing.  What do you notice that you hadn't noticed with your eyes open?

3. Exercise.
Our mind is more rested and more open when our body is tired.  So many people spend their days at the desk and then go home to flop on the couch.  Despite the exhaustion many of us feel at the end of the day, our body has unexpressed energy that it is holding onto; maybe it's frustration from an interaction with a co-worker or excitement over a promising deal; whatever it is, releasing is necessary.  Some suggestions include joining a sports league, doing yoga, dropping into a dance class, or hiking.  Whatever way you enjoy using your body, make time to do it. 

4.  Begin to question when you want to know something.
Start with small things.  Where is there a parking spot?  What time will my wife be back?  etc. etc.  See if you can begin to get answers to some of these questions.  You'll find the more you do this consciously, the easier it is to question subconsciously and start to get answers to the questions you are asking.

5.  Consciously note your predictions and intuitive feelings when they come true.
It's almost like a stream that starts as a trickle and begins to gain momentum.  Become aware and consciously make note of when when you are using your abilities.  This is a good way to better understand when a thought is your intuition knocking or when it is something that's been generated from your thoughts, feelings, wishes or fears.  Being an "active antenna" also makes it more likely that messages will be sent your way.  People tend not to send mail to an address that isn't checking the mailbox!

6.  Recognize the intersection of manifestation and psychic ability.
We all also have the power to manifest what we want.  The intersection between manifestation and psychic predictions can be confusing.  Did that thing happen because I wanted or feared it was going to happen or because I knew it would and it was inevitable?  Much of our lives are created by us and our thoughts and feelings.  Begin to play with the idea of creating your future from your desires.  Set intentions and create goals and action plans.  You may be surprised to see that this helps you to tap into your abilities, to foresee possible pitfalls, recognize when a person is an ally that can assist you, and attract more fortuitous coincidences.


Using these tips and practicing everyday will begin to open you up to the amazing amount of information that is bouncing around at any given moment.  Make sure you protect yourself when you begin to play with your psychic abilities in the white light of love and protection.  You want to surround your aura with a golden net to keep out negative energy.  Being more sensitive is wonderful, but you want to make sure you are only letting positivity and light into your sphere.

Have fun!  Let us know your results!


- Christine