I'm absolutely enthralled at the moment with the idea that with modernisation and science, we've lost so much and put our earth, health and future at risk. The information that I have read and watched over the last week has been enlightening to say the least.
First one is the new book by Dan Brown - the Lost Symbol. Now, I do love Dan Brown's work, he writes such thrillers about historic data which sends people into frenzies on whether what he's written is fact or fiction. I'm not going to weigh into the debate. What I do like about his book, so far (I haven't finished it yet) is the mentioning of Noetic Science.... I didn't even know that this science existed and yet I work with it almost on a daily basis! www.noetic.org states that their mission is to advance the science of consciousness and human experience to serve individual and collective transformation. How fantastic is that! The book explains that it is about the potential of the human consciousness to transform, heal and read the human information field or conscious blue print of every living thing on this planet.
The second piece of information I received yesterday is the film - The Living Matrix. I saw about 10 minutes of this at the EFT extravaganza conference I attended a couple of weeks ago and knew I had to see the whole thing. I can't recommend it highly enough to anyone in the healing/alternative health or even mainstream medicine fields. It talks about the human morphogenic field which is energetic and which our cells use to determine how to react. The old Newtonian way of believing that we are machines does not hold true any longer and there is a split in the scientific world now between the old physics and the quantum physics world. This film shows how you can help yourself and tells you why you shouldn't just trust the current medical model to help you get well. It's too limited and they work in the dark about why you are unwell in the first place. Did you also know that it is well known that over 1/3 of medical cures are because of the Placebo effect? The Placebo effect is where the person's belief that the cure will work actually cures the person. The film provides one example where a number of arthritic patients were selected to have the same operation on their knees and half of them were only cut open and then closed and yet up to 3 years later they were saying how much better they were and had no further pain. Nothing had been done to them other than supplying stitches!
Lastly... I subscribe to the Food Matters newsletters and they have released this free 1/2 hour documentary on the Gamo Highlands of the African Rift Valley and the unique worldview held by the people of the region. This isolated area has remained remarkably intact both biologically and culturally. It is one of the most densely populated rural regions of Africa yet its people have been farming sustainably for 10,000 years. It shows how much we have lost in the green industrial revolution since the 1950s. I also love the fact that they have a spiritual approach to growing their own food and give thanks to the creator and to the mountains. Watch it here:
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
At last the Science is catching up what some have known for hundreds of years
Today I've been learning a technique called Matrix Reimprinting and it has been totally fascinating. The science behind it is provided by Dr Bruce Lipton. The information is not new if you look deeper into spiritual practices like Buddhism and the Course in Miracles.
If you're interested in how our health is affected by our environment and beliefs then there are a number of Youtube interviews with Dr Lipton. Here's just one:
Dr Lipton talks about the importance of changing the pre-recorded tape we have going in our minds. He also offers a couple of ways to do this. Over the last week, I've learnt two other ways. One is the Matrix Reimprinting technique which uses EFT to change the tape (our unconscious or subconscious mind largely works with pictures) into new empowering pictures and releases the trauma that you may have experienced previously. After all, it is in the past, why would you want to hold onto it?! Especially if it is currently providing you with a trigger that brings about a behaviour you'd rather not have or do (such as over eating, anxiety attacks, yelling at the kids etc).
The second process goes towards creating new behaviours by changing our negative way of thinking. The technique is called DreamCatcher. For one minute a day, you write down what you would have/do/be if you had absolutely not limits on money, time or talent and seems impossible for you to have right now! The idea is not necessarily to reach for these ideas/items/desires, it's to retrain your mind into a more positive way of thinking. To stop arguing for your own limitations! What a wonderful idea that would be... here's what I put down in one minute..
I'd have my own Panda, Zoo and Nature reserve in Africa. Be the queen of animals so that I could stand up for their rights and repatriate animals out of captivity. Be a star in the universe. Own 10 different houses in all the continents of the planet. Open my own gallery in NYC full of my art.
So try it... one minute each day... challenge yourself to change your mindset. Like Dr Lipton says, you need to make it a habit.. so do it for at least 21 days and see the difference.
If you're interested in how our health is affected by our environment and beliefs then there are a number of Youtube interviews with Dr Lipton. Here's just one:
Dr Lipton talks about the importance of changing the pre-recorded tape we have going in our minds. He also offers a couple of ways to do this. Over the last week, I've learnt two other ways. One is the Matrix Reimprinting technique which uses EFT to change the tape (our unconscious or subconscious mind largely works with pictures) into new empowering pictures and releases the trauma that you may have experienced previously. After all, it is in the past, why would you want to hold onto it?! Especially if it is currently providing you with a trigger that brings about a behaviour you'd rather not have or do (such as over eating, anxiety attacks, yelling at the kids etc).
The second process goes towards creating new behaviours by changing our negative way of thinking. The technique is called DreamCatcher. For one minute a day, you write down what you would have/do/be if you had absolutely not limits on money, time or talent and seems impossible for you to have right now! The idea is not necessarily to reach for these ideas/items/desires, it's to retrain your mind into a more positive way of thinking. To stop arguing for your own limitations! What a wonderful idea that would be... here's what I put down in one minute..
I'd have my own Panda, Zoo and Nature reserve in Africa. Be the queen of animals so that I could stand up for their rights and repatriate animals out of captivity. Be a star in the universe. Own 10 different houses in all the continents of the planet. Open my own gallery in NYC full of my art.
So try it... one minute each day... challenge yourself to change your mindset. Like Dr Lipton says, you need to make it a habit.. so do it for at least 21 days and see the difference.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Viva le Revolution!
For as long as I can remember my family always had some form of veggie patch in suburbia Melbourne and Canberra. When I moved out of home, it wasn't until I moved into my first rental house that I could start growing veggies again and it didn't take me long to get back into it - even as a single mum at the time, I loved the idea of going out the back and picking what I was going to eat that night.
Most people don't bother. They just go to one of the big super markets and purchase their food there. It's convenient. But at what cost? Listen to any media these days and they are reporting higher obesity levels, increased cancer, diabetes and disorders such as ADHD and Autism. Food allergies and sensitivities have gone through the roof also. When are we going to realise that our move to production and processed food is in line with the increase of dis-ease and dis-orders we are experiencing today? A move to a natural, sustainable approach is on the way... not only because many people don't want chemical, genetically modified food, but because we have to.
How much more can you're body take? A veggie garden doesn't have to take hours each weekend and by getting the kids involved, then you create interest and ownership in the food that lands on the table. I found this Youtube movie inspiring, hopefully you will too.
Most people don't bother. They just go to one of the big super markets and purchase their food there. It's convenient. But at what cost? Listen to any media these days and they are reporting higher obesity levels, increased cancer, diabetes and disorders such as ADHD and Autism. Food allergies and sensitivities have gone through the roof also. When are we going to realise that our move to production and processed food is in line with the increase of dis-ease and dis-orders we are experiencing today? A move to a natural, sustainable approach is on the way... not only because many people don't want chemical, genetically modified food, but because we have to.
How much more can you're body take? A veggie garden doesn't have to take hours each weekend and by getting the kids involved, then you create interest and ownership in the food that lands on the table. I found this Youtube movie inspiring, hopefully you will too.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
The Amazing Chook
I never thought I could go ga ga over a chook, after all they are just something you eat on a Sunday night aren't they? You just buy it at the supermarket and take it home and cook it. That was before my son was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of five. At that point we decided not to put him on the drug Ritalin or any other drug. What we did was clean up his diet and went organic where we could. Which wasn't very easy in the early 1990s. One of the most memorable moments was comparing his organic chicken breast to ours (purchased from the supermarket) and saw that his looked pink and healthy, whilst ours looked grey and off. The taste was different too. We ended up getting an organic Turkey for Christmas dinner that year and the taste was devine. It's hard to say that we went back to supermarket food, but we did. Cost and time was an element and the fact that Ben was swapping his gluetin free, sugar free, preservative free, organic food with other kids in the play ground. Somethings never went back into his diet (like Coke a Cola) and we limited what sugar and preservatives he had to help him. That and lots of love and changing primary schools to one that supported him and our decision not to put him on drugs helped Ben become the man he is today.
Since then, two other members of our family (niece and nephew) have been diagnosed with Autism and one sister is aggressively pursuing the link to diet and digestive issues now associated with this disorder. So she is now on the path I was 16 years ago and thankfully it's much easier to get organic food. We of course, supply her eggs from our amazing chickens who huddle around us for scraps and pellets and proudly announce arrival of their eggs by clucking rather loudly. We have a lovely male Bantam Rooster who is an absolute delight to have. He shows off to the girls, looks after them and is a pleasure to be around. We put him into a cage in the shed at night as he tends to crow at all hours of the morning and continually for about 5 minutes. He's used to the routine now and walks (and sometimes bounds) down to the chook yard in the morning.
We have a large chook yard (as shown in my last update show) and our new addition is a chook tractor. It was built out of scraps where possible and used giant bamboo for the frame. The bamboo was collected from a friends place down the road. In the tractor we have four of our old girls which were purchased for next to nothing from an egg farm. These girls do not lay very often but still enjoy the social life of a hens life. They scratch the dirt and create baths, fertilize where ever they go and generally prepare the bed for the next planting by eliminating old plants and all weeds. This is why I think they are amazing. They do this work for us, for next to nothing.. Occasionally we put Fifi in (a rooster we named as a chick when we didn't know she was a he), just to keep the girls amused (they hen peck him and put him in his place).
If you'd like to see what it looks like in action , click here:
Since then, two other members of our family (niece and nephew) have been diagnosed with Autism and one sister is aggressively pursuing the link to diet and digestive issues now associated with this disorder. So she is now on the path I was 16 years ago and thankfully it's much easier to get organic food. We of course, supply her eggs from our amazing chickens who huddle around us for scraps and pellets and proudly announce arrival of their eggs by clucking rather loudly. We have a lovely male Bantam Rooster who is an absolute delight to have. He shows off to the girls, looks after them and is a pleasure to be around. We put him into a cage in the shed at night as he tends to crow at all hours of the morning and continually for about 5 minutes. He's used to the routine now and walks (and sometimes bounds) down to the chook yard in the morning.
We have a large chook yard (as shown in my last update show) and our new addition is a chook tractor. It was built out of scraps where possible and used giant bamboo for the frame. The bamboo was collected from a friends place down the road. In the tractor we have four of our old girls which were purchased for next to nothing from an egg farm. These girls do not lay very often but still enjoy the social life of a hens life. They scratch the dirt and create baths, fertilize where ever they go and generally prepare the bed for the next planting by eliminating old plants and all weeds. This is why I think they are amazing. They do this work for us, for next to nothing.. Occasionally we put Fifi in (a rooster we named as a chick when we didn't know she was a he), just to keep the girls amused (they hen peck him and put him in his place).
If you'd like to see what it looks like in action , click here:
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Sustainable Health Care
If you prefer to put natural substances in your body so that you remain healthy and feel good and yet sometimes, despite trying to do all the right things, still getting sick then your mind body system is not working as efficiently as it could be.
If your plants get sick, you can apply compost, seaweed tea, mulch them, water them, and feed them with organic fertilising solutions. You nurse them back to health or you check the PH of the soil and nurse it back to health for the next planting. When we get sick, many of us are powerless to find out what is wrong quickly to restore the balance to the body so that you flourish again. We're force to go to a doctor or "expert" to help us deal with the symptoms of the problem.
When a body (or plant) is operating at its optimal level, each system, cell and atom is in constant communication with each other at all times. Through exposure to the stresses of day-to-day life, poor nutrition, and over exertion of the body, these lines of communication can become compromised and illness or decline in physical and /or emotional health occurs.
When you get sick and visit the doctor, any prescription of antiviral, antibiotics, anti-inflammatory or worse a cocktail of drugs is being taken in by your body and targeting the problem using a sledge hammer approach – killing more than it needs to and doing harm to the natural order of the mind body system. Taking too much medication ends up weakening our immune systems and making us more prone to more and more illnesses.
If you can imagine an iceberg – Western medicine mainly focuses on the tip of the iceberg (the symptoms and signs of disease) and what’s under the water (the cause) is not uncovered. The result can be years and years of visiting doctors and keeping the pharmaceutical companies stocks increasing. Eastern medicine goes towards looking at areas not widely understood in the western scientific world – the energy centres and meridian pathways which deal with the bodies energy system which govern the complex exchange of messages between organs, endocrines right down to cell level.
Except for such still rare and sometimes invasive applications, (EEG, EKG, PET and MRI scans), Western medicine has produced few treatment modalities to date that take full advantage of the ways the body’s energies can be directed to mediate the complex flow of biological information to restore health.
Natural health systems work with the body and do not rely upon chemicals to kill off bacteria or restore order. Many of these health systems you would know of, they include naturopathy, osteopathy, chiropractic, yoga, acupuncture, and so forth. Some of these systems work more efficiently with your body if used regularly as a proactive (rather than reactive) measure to reduce stress and restore the body to a natural state before it brings on more serious illness. Regular applications of natural alternative methods can help keep the body healthy and more resistant to illnesses.
One of the most elaborately articulated sustainable models, and one that has held up relatively well to Western scientific scrutiny, is the practice of acupuncture. Some western medical schools are now offering Acupuncture as a learning module for new doctors. Acupuncture is not only among the oldest known medical treatments, extending back at least 4,500 years, it is one of the most widely used health care systems on the planet. The World Health Organization lists more than 50 conditions for which it is effective, including psychological problems such as anxiety, depression, and insomnia.
However, many people do not like the idea of someone sticking needles in them and in addition to that issue, it relies upon you seeking the expertise of another person to have the procedure being done to you. What if there is a better way?
A relatively new approach has been formulated by an Australian pioneering man, John Veltheim, and is called The BodyTalk system (http://www.bodytalksystem.com/). BodyTalk is an astonishingly simple and effective holistic therapy that allows the body's energy systems to be re-synchronized so they can operate as nature intended.
BodyTalk is non evasive, does not require any medications or machinery and utilises the body’s natural abilities to heal itself. BodyTalk is considered the missing link between western medicine, eastern medicine and alternative therapies. It encompasses:
The BodyTalk Access wellness routine helps your body maintain its best energetic balance so that it can maintain good health, thus preventing disease. Being proactive in your health routine is one of the best things you can do for yourself. It's right up there with eating healthfully, getting enough sleep and being physically active.
Each of the 5 techniques are easy to perform and if performed on a daily basis (approximately 10-15 minutes of your time). The course also provides techniques to allow you to respond quickly to any injury to stop the hurting, throbbing or swelling.
BodyTalk works with the premise that we can heal naturally if we address all the issues under the iceberg. Due to the fact that BodyTalk and BodyTalk Access only utilize the natural healing tools already found within us, this is a sustainable personal health practice. There are no medications prescribed or given, the techniques are totally non-invasive and they also do not require any outside tools or resources. BodyTalk Access is good for you and good for our planet!
In addition to being a health tool for you and your family, BodyTalk and BodyTalk access can be used on your animals, land and plants. For more information about BodyTalk and the BodyTalk Access course, please contact vanessa@love2live.com.au or come and listen to her talk at the November CROPO gathering.
Loesje Jacob talks about BodyTalk Access
If your plants get sick, you can apply compost, seaweed tea, mulch them, water them, and feed them with organic fertilising solutions. You nurse them back to health or you check the PH of the soil and nurse it back to health for the next planting. When we get sick, many of us are powerless to find out what is wrong quickly to restore the balance to the body so that you flourish again. We're force to go to a doctor or "expert" to help us deal with the symptoms of the problem.
When a body (or plant) is operating at its optimal level, each system, cell and atom is in constant communication with each other at all times. Through exposure to the stresses of day-to-day life, poor nutrition, and over exertion of the body, these lines of communication can become compromised and illness or decline in physical and /or emotional health occurs.
When you get sick and visit the doctor, any prescription of antiviral, antibiotics, anti-inflammatory or worse a cocktail of drugs is being taken in by your body and targeting the problem using a sledge hammer approach – killing more than it needs to and doing harm to the natural order of the mind body system. Taking too much medication ends up weakening our immune systems and making us more prone to more and more illnesses.
Except for such still rare and sometimes invasive applications, (EEG, EKG, PET and MRI scans), Western medicine has produced few treatment modalities to date that take full advantage of the ways the body’s energies can be directed to mediate the complex flow of biological information to restore health.
Natural health systems work with the body and do not rely upon chemicals to kill off bacteria or restore order. Many of these health systems you would know of, they include naturopathy, osteopathy, chiropractic, yoga, acupuncture, and so forth. Some of these systems work more efficiently with your body if used regularly as a proactive (rather than reactive) measure to reduce stress and restore the body to a natural state before it brings on more serious illness. Regular applications of natural alternative methods can help keep the body healthy and more resistant to illnesses.
One of the most elaborately articulated sustainable models, and one that has held up relatively well to Western scientific scrutiny, is the practice of acupuncture. Some western medical schools are now offering Acupuncture as a learning module for new doctors. Acupuncture is not only among the oldest known medical treatments, extending back at least 4,500 years, it is one of the most widely used health care systems on the planet. The World Health Organization lists more than 50 conditions for which it is effective, including psychological problems such as anxiety, depression, and insomnia.
A relatively new approach has been formulated by an Australian pioneering man, John Veltheim, and is called The BodyTalk system (http://www.bodytalksystem.com/). BodyTalk is an astonishingly simple and effective holistic therapy that allows the body's energy systems to be re-synchronized so they can operate as nature intended.
BodyTalk is non evasive, does not require any medications or machinery and utilises the body’s natural abilities to heal itself. BodyTalk is considered the missing link between western medicine, eastern medicine and alternative therapies. It encompasses:
- Western medical expertise
- The energy dynamics of acupuncture (without the needles)
- Osteopathic and Chiropractic philosophy
- The clinical findings of applied kinesiology and
- The insights of modern physics and mathematics.
Since 2005, the International BodyTalk Association has been offering a one day course for the layman, on 5 techniques which provide assistance to returning the body to optimal health and increase resilience to illnesses and injuries. Now that’s sustainable health. The course is called BodyTalk Access and is taught in over 39 countries, many of these where access to doctors and medicine is in short supply. In Australia, it’s becoming popular due to the shortage of GPs and or easy access to doctors. In Ben Franklin's words, the phrase "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" goes a long way to describe the good health and balance that can be found with BodyTalk Access as a part of your daily life.
Each of the 5 techniques are easy to perform and if performed on a daily basis (approximately 10-15 minutes of your time). The course also provides techniques to allow you to respond quickly to any injury to stop the hurting, throbbing or swelling.
BodyTalk works with the premise that we can heal naturally if we address all the issues under the iceberg. Due to the fact that BodyTalk and BodyTalk Access only utilize the natural healing tools already found within us, this is a sustainable personal health practice. There are no medications prescribed or given, the techniques are totally non-invasive and they also do not require any outside tools or resources. BodyTalk Access is good for you and good for our planet!
In addition to being a health tool for you and your family, BodyTalk and BodyTalk access can be used on your animals, land and plants. For more information about BodyTalk and the BodyTalk Access course, please contact vanessa@love2live.com.au or come and listen to her talk at the November CROPO gathering.
Loesje Jacob talks about BodyTalk Access
Monday, September 21, 2009
How to make your kids safe....
Here in Australia there has been a huge story on the news about a known Paedophile Dennis Ferguson being released from jail and located in a housing complex right next door to families with kids. The families are very upset, more probably because of the intense media coverage and the pressure to "do something" to protect their children. Police have had to guard this mans abode due to protests and incidents of fighting outside of his house. He is refusing to be moved and it has also raised the question of where to? Where do you put someone who is considered the lowest of criminals? There must be hundreds of them out there. They do get released, and it is into public housing that most of them go. They have served their time and now the tax payer gets to fund their housing and provides them with funds.
I lived in government housing when I was younger and I had a small child and was very aware that around me where drug dealers, families suffering through mental and physical abuse and people just released from jail for goodness knows what. It can be very scary when you are surrounded by this kind of energy and misery (who in their right mind would do that stuff if they were happy?).
Later in life I worked as a counsellor. I was fortunate enough to work with an amazing supervisor who had 20+ years in counselling including rape and sexual abuse counselling. She did her thesis on recovered memories and was pursued by paedophilia rings to try and not have her work released and published. What she told me scared me to death. They are out there, they are teachers, priests, corner shop owners, scout leaders, neighbour, uncles, grandparents, and fathers. They could be anyone and they work together to keep their acts below the radar as much as possible. And we can't rely upon the government to weed them out, the problem is so extensive. There is no test we can give people. It's not just about the sex either, so castrating them doesn't make it stop. It's about power and domination.
So how do you make your kids safe? I was horrified to hear our very own minister for Housing and the Status of Women Tanya Plibersek on the ABC Q and A show this "To have to explain to them why it is that they shouldn't be talking to this particular next door neighbour when they're six or eight or nine years old, I think they're very difficult things to ask parents to do". That's exactly what we should do as parents!
We actually don't protect our children by not providing them with information that they need to protect themselves. We make them easy targets. You need to talk to your children about this very issue. It's just as important as everything else you teach them. You can do it in a gentle and sensitive way and one that gets the message across. Give them options on what actions they can take. Some of the points to discuss should include:
Actually, having Dennis Ferguson next door wouldn't be such a bad thing to me, at least I would know where he is and that my daughter and son were safe because they know what he's capable of and they would steer clear of him and tell their friends too. Its the ones you don't know about that are the issue...
I lived in government housing when I was younger and I had a small child and was very aware that around me where drug dealers, families suffering through mental and physical abuse and people just released from jail for goodness knows what. It can be very scary when you are surrounded by this kind of energy and misery (who in their right mind would do that stuff if they were happy?).
Later in life I worked as a counsellor. I was fortunate enough to work with an amazing supervisor who had 20+ years in counselling including rape and sexual abuse counselling. She did her thesis on recovered memories and was pursued by paedophilia rings to try and not have her work released and published. What she told me scared me to death. They are out there, they are teachers, priests, corner shop owners, scout leaders, neighbour, uncles, grandparents, and fathers. They could be anyone and they work together to keep their acts below the radar as much as possible. And we can't rely upon the government to weed them out, the problem is so extensive. There is no test we can give people. It's not just about the sex either, so castrating them doesn't make it stop. It's about power and domination.
So how do you make your kids safe? I was horrified to hear our very own minister for Housing and the Status of Women Tanya Plibersek on the ABC Q and A show this "To have to explain to them why it is that they shouldn't be talking to this particular next door neighbour when they're six or eight or nine years old, I think they're very difficult things to ask parents to do". That's exactly what we should do as parents!
We actually don't protect our children by not providing them with information that they need to protect themselves. We make them easy targets. You need to talk to your children about this very issue. It's just as important as everything else you teach them. You can do it in a gentle and sensitive way and one that gets the message across. Give them options on what actions they can take. Some of the points to discuss should include:
- Touching - what is safe touching, who is allowed to touch their bodies and who is not and what to do if someone does touch you.
- Who is allowed to touch them - Doctors, mum, dad (but only in their safe places and with their permission - make them their own boss of their own bodies). You also need to talk to them about the fact it could be from someone they know and may even be family.
- Grooming language - Talk to them about how these people sometimes try and make them into special friends and have secrets.
- Secrets - Talk to them about what is a good secret and what is not. Also need to talk about potential threats they may be told, like "if you tell daddy, he won't love you anymore and will give you away". Tell them that this will never happen and not to believe the person.
- Action - Tell them what to do if they feel uncomfortable - scream, run away, come to a safe place (home, or person they feel safe with). Arm your kids with knowledge and action plan if it happens.
- Love - tell them that you will love them no matter what and that this is a very important thing to remember. It's the one thing they need to know so that they can safely tell you if something has happened already.
Actually, having Dennis Ferguson next door wouldn't be such a bad thing to me, at least I would know where he is and that my daughter and son were safe because they know what he's capable of and they would steer clear of him and tell their friends too. Its the ones you don't know about that are the issue...
Friday, September 11, 2009
Is The World as a Result of My Thinking?
Many philosophies point to the world being a result of what our unconscious and conscious mind is experiencing. How can this be? The Course In Miracles (which was written in 1977 by two Psychologists at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons in NY city) states that what we deny to be our true self shows up in others, both good and bad. So the person that annoys you the most is really just a reflection of what you dislike about yourself and if you accepted and integrated that part that annoys you, the other person would stop behaving that way. The Hawaiian problem solving approach Ho'oponopono also takes this approach. Carl Jung also points to the same reflection when he talks about that in a therapeutic session, half the treatment consists of the "healer" or therapist's own self examination and that that true healing can only take place if we have an ongoing relationship with our unconscious mind and a willingness to examine ourselves when faced with another's issues or behaviours. Is this true?
Well in my experience it is. If I look at all my relationships, the good and the not so good, the person is displaying a trait, behaviour or approach to life that I either agree/like (the good) or dislike about myself. It can be pretty hard to swallow but it's worth the effort. Especially when you are in close relationship with the other person, like a child or partner. They are our mirrors, our teachers and we their students.
Let's take an example. Last year I had a particularly difficult manager who didn't listen to his staff, threw tantrums when he didn't get his way and constantly talked himself up like he was the best thing since sliced cheese. He constantly engaged in aggressive behaviour and fought regularly with two female co-workers. I used to step in an mediate with limited success. I also use to advise him one on one on how to manage the difficult situations he was getting himself into. He seemed to listen but returned to throwing a tantrum or getting aggressive if he didn't get his way. It was like watching a 3 year old! It was also putting a lot of stress on the team, me included.
I'm guessing reading this, you too would dislike the behaviour that I am describing. We've all been told that these behaviours are unacceptable. Aggressiveness, admiring yourself, tantrums, not listening and so forth.
What did I do? I really searched inside for answers... the first question was What did I do in order to attract this boss? (He wasn't the first one of his kind either... he just amplified what I hadn't dealt with yet.) The second question was What part of me had I not accepted in order for this person to display this behaviour? First thing I discovered was that yes, all of the traits and behaviours that this person was displaying I had at one point or another done myself. Here I was pointing the finger at his bad behaviour, when I had done the same things myself. Why was I denying that? Yes!
Third question Was what did I need to learn? Was I willing learn from this and to accept myself despite not liking this behaviour? What is the problem with this behaviour? Isn't there some point in your life when behaving "badly" is actually appropriate? Sometimes it does pay to be aggressive! It tells the other person to back off! If you're in a threatening situation, then being aggressive may just get you out of it quicker and safer than submission. Talking yourself up is also a must! You can't win in a job interview or sell your services without doing so. Focusing on your bad points will not get your that job or client.
The issue with accepting our own behaviour is more about what we have been conditioned to value and not value in behaviours. All the messages we have received growing up from our family, friends and media. You know... in some countries it is very polite to burp after eating, in western society it is not. When we place a value on anything, we place a judgement... a black and white, good or bad and ultimately create an inner conflict which we then beat ourselves up with when we end up crossing over that line.
In family counselling, I have always helped people to understand that between two people there is a hidden mirroring relationship. If the image in one mirror changes then the other has to reflect that change regardless. This means that we should not look to the other person changing their behaviour, if we can look within ourselves and see what it is we need to heal and accept then the other persons behaviour will automatically change... it has to! It works every time... without fail...
So what did I do about the difficult manager? I looked within myself... I accepted that the behaviours he was displaying I also had done in my past. I accepted myself and forgave myself and him. I had compassion for him and I let his behaviour go... and he suddenly stopped behaving badly... it was like the energy within the team changed immediately and within a month he moved on from that position.
That's the last part of the puzzle... the challenging people in your life are here to show you what you haven't resolved in yourself yet... If you want more peace then you need to look for the answers within yourself...not expect the other to change... they can't! They are reflecting back your stuff! Get the lesson they are providing you... thank your teacher... bless them... forgive yourself for needing to be taught that lesson... love yourself (yes that is essential) and feel the peace descend upon you.
Well in my experience it is. If I look at all my relationships, the good and the not so good, the person is displaying a trait, behaviour or approach to life that I either agree/like (the good) or dislike about myself. It can be pretty hard to swallow but it's worth the effort. Especially when you are in close relationship with the other person, like a child or partner. They are our mirrors, our teachers and we their students.
Let's take an example. Last year I had a particularly difficult manager who didn't listen to his staff, threw tantrums when he didn't get his way and constantly talked himself up like he was the best thing since sliced cheese. He constantly engaged in aggressive behaviour and fought regularly with two female co-workers. I used to step in an mediate with limited success. I also use to advise him one on one on how to manage the difficult situations he was getting himself into. He seemed to listen but returned to throwing a tantrum or getting aggressive if he didn't get his way. It was like watching a 3 year old! It was also putting a lot of stress on the team, me included.
I'm guessing reading this, you too would dislike the behaviour that I am describing. We've all been told that these behaviours are unacceptable. Aggressiveness, admiring yourself, tantrums, not listening and so forth.
What did I do? I really searched inside for answers... the first question was What did I do in order to attract this boss? (He wasn't the first one of his kind either... he just amplified what I hadn't dealt with yet.) The second question was What part of me had I not accepted in order for this person to display this behaviour? First thing I discovered was that yes, all of the traits and behaviours that this person was displaying I had at one point or another done myself. Here I was pointing the finger at his bad behaviour, when I had done the same things myself. Why was I denying that? Yes!
Third question Was what did I need to learn? Was I willing learn from this and to accept myself despite not liking this behaviour? What is the problem with this behaviour? Isn't there some point in your life when behaving "badly" is actually appropriate? Sometimes it does pay to be aggressive! It tells the other person to back off! If you're in a threatening situation, then being aggressive may just get you out of it quicker and safer than submission. Talking yourself up is also a must! You can't win in a job interview or sell your services without doing so. Focusing on your bad points will not get your that job or client.
The issue with accepting our own behaviour is more about what we have been conditioned to value and not value in behaviours. All the messages we have received growing up from our family, friends and media. You know... in some countries it is very polite to burp after eating, in western society it is not. When we place a value on anything, we place a judgement... a black and white, good or bad and ultimately create an inner conflict which we then beat ourselves up with when we end up crossing over that line.
In family counselling, I have always helped people to understand that between two people there is a hidden mirroring relationship. If the image in one mirror changes then the other has to reflect that change regardless. This means that we should not look to the other person changing their behaviour, if we can look within ourselves and see what it is we need to heal and accept then the other persons behaviour will automatically change... it has to! It works every time... without fail...
So what did I do about the difficult manager? I looked within myself... I accepted that the behaviours he was displaying I also had done in my past. I accepted myself and forgave myself and him. I had compassion for him and I let his behaviour go... and he suddenly stopped behaving badly... it was like the energy within the team changed immediately and within a month he moved on from that position.
That's the last part of the puzzle... the challenging people in your life are here to show you what you haven't resolved in yourself yet... If you want more peace then you need to look for the answers within yourself...not expect the other to change... they can't! They are reflecting back your stuff! Get the lesson they are providing you... thank your teacher... bless them... forgive yourself for needing to be taught that lesson... love yourself (yes that is essential) and feel the peace descend upon you.
Monday, August 31, 2009
What's happening in Nana Glen this late Winter?
Just a quick update on progress on the organic Love2Grow farmlet.. Unfortunately I haven't worked out how to launch content from my web domain into this blogger domain. So you will need to click on the link and be redirected to a new page and a slide show will begin. You can use the controls at the bottom of the slide show to navigate or just let it run through.
Nana Glen - Late winter 2009
Nana Glen - Late winter 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Look how far I've Come...
It's a song by Ben Lee which is very apt at the moment. I was thinking about where this all started and realised it's almost 4 years since my life took a dramatic turn for the better. In 2005 I was lamenting about everything, my job, my relationships, my life in general and it seemed that I couldn't change anything or do anything other than hop back onto that treadmill again. I was also shocked to discover that I was depressed! I didn't find this out by going to the doctor, I found it out through a course I was attending on Depression and Anxiety which Parentline ACT had funded for my attendance. (I was a volunteer counsellor for that non profit organisation for several years.) What I discovered on that course was that I had all the symptoms of depression, though not on a major scale... but it made me realised that I was heading down that way... I already had anxiety attacks which were crippling and felt shame for having them. I was not living a life, I was surviving it... I felt powerless to change anything and everyone suffered around me because of that.
So what turned it around? Well I was walking into work one day when a I noticed a sign in a shop window that said "Does your life feel like a treadmill?" and it listed about 10 of my woes which I had literally complained about to Tony (husband of 14 years now) that morning on our daily walk with our dogs. It was weird seeing it in print using almost the same words. Later that day I went off to a stretch and flex class and went into the change rooms to change and there it was again... on the back of the change room door. I wasn't one who followed whims or believed in omens at that stage but I felt a strong pull to it and wrote down the number and attended the information night for a course that changed my life. Tony and I both attended that one and the next one and I went on to do another one specifically for women. With each one, I felt my personal power returning to me and I made immediate and positive changes in my life.
I was studying to be a counsellor at that stage and was close to ending my diploma. I quit my day job as an IT Project Manager and went and worked with Parentline doing face to face counselling and ended up landing a job with the YWCA as a family counsellor. I also became a parent effectiveness trainer and ran courses for Parentline and the YWCA. I loved it! I could see people's lives change and I could see how amazing just the gift of listening without judgement was to another being. The one thing I could not comprehend was how much undervalued counsellors were. Working in the community sector means basically get little more than minimum wage whilst trying to help people change their lives. The financial returns were just not there and in addition I still had health and anxiety issues which I couldn't resolve. We (Tony and I) also had decided that we wanted to move from Canberra and we couldn’t do it without an injection of funds. So it was back into the treadmill again, however, this time we had a plan of attack to get off permanently!
I've never been one to resort to drugs to solve my problems. Drug companies have no interest in getting you healthy, that would mean that they would lose out on a source of income... no it's much better to insure you have to remain on their product for many years and just mask the symptoms. So my first foray into Energy Therapy began and the results were immediate... even if I didn't understand what it was at the time! The most basic technique available to anyone is Emotional Freedom Technique and I still teach it to clients all the time. Western medicine is slowly recognising the value of Eastern medicine and acknowledging the energy system in our bodies. The reason why they have taken so long is because they can't probe it or see it in the naked eye, but they are realising it's importance. New understanding about the relationship between energy and the flow of information within the body is causing conventional medicine to rapidly update the perspective that views the person primarily as a biochemical entity. The EEG, EKG, PET, and MRI are diagnostic instruments that build on this principle. But again I digress... (more on this subject later).
I got so excited about the positive effects of EFT that I started seeking more information about energy modalities and met a lady one day who told me she did BodyTalk. I didn't know what this was at all and she offered me a session at half price. Oh My God... it was amazing and she knew so much about me just from touching my skin. She brought up past memories and experiences that were affecting my life now! She resolved them in the body and the effect was that over the next period of time, things improved in my health and my mental health. I had to know more, so I signed up for the first modules to learn it for myself. That was in 2007 and that year turned out to be a greater learning curve than my studies for my diploma. On top of this I also learnt NLP coaching techniques and a technique which allowed me to release unconscious belief systems which affect the way you act and your health.
Over the last 2 years I have completed almost all of the modules for BodyTalk (there are 2 basic modules and then 5 advanced) and will continue onto further study with the International BodyTalk Association. I have finally left my treadmill life behind. My relationships are better than ever and now I've just moved myself to the best climate in Australia to start my business here and grow and consume good food. Next blog I will talk about the effect of food on your body and mind and what you can do to help yourself and your kids.
So what turned it around? Well I was walking into work one day when a I noticed a sign in a shop window that said "Does your life feel like a treadmill?" and it listed about 10 of my woes which I had literally complained about to Tony (husband of 14 years now) that morning on our daily walk with our dogs. It was weird seeing it in print using almost the same words. Later that day I went off to a stretch and flex class and went into the change rooms to change and there it was again... on the back of the change room door. I wasn't one who followed whims or believed in omens at that stage but I felt a strong pull to it and wrote down the number and attended the information night for a course that changed my life. Tony and I both attended that one and the next one and I went on to do another one specifically for women. With each one, I felt my personal power returning to me and I made immediate and positive changes in my life.
I was studying to be a counsellor at that stage and was close to ending my diploma. I quit my day job as an IT Project Manager and went and worked with Parentline doing face to face counselling and ended up landing a job with the YWCA as a family counsellor. I also became a parent effectiveness trainer and ran courses for Parentline and the YWCA. I loved it! I could see people's lives change and I could see how amazing just the gift of listening without judgement was to another being. The one thing I could not comprehend was how much undervalued counsellors were. Working in the community sector means basically get little more than minimum wage whilst trying to help people change their lives. The financial returns were just not there and in addition I still had health and anxiety issues which I couldn't resolve. We (Tony and I) also had decided that we wanted to move from Canberra and we couldn’t do it without an injection of funds. So it was back into the treadmill again, however, this time we had a plan of attack to get off permanently!
I've never been one to resort to drugs to solve my problems. Drug companies have no interest in getting you healthy, that would mean that they would lose out on a source of income... no it's much better to insure you have to remain on their product for many years and just mask the symptoms. So my first foray into Energy Therapy began and the results were immediate... even if I didn't understand what it was at the time! The most basic technique available to anyone is Emotional Freedom Technique and I still teach it to clients all the time. Western medicine is slowly recognising the value of Eastern medicine and acknowledging the energy system in our bodies. The reason why they have taken so long is because they can't probe it or see it in the naked eye, but they are realising it's importance. New understanding about the relationship between energy and the flow of information within the body is causing conventional medicine to rapidly update the perspective that views the person primarily as a biochemical entity. The EEG, EKG, PET, and MRI are diagnostic instruments that build on this principle. But again I digress... (more on this subject later).
I got so excited about the positive effects of EFT that I started seeking more information about energy modalities and met a lady one day who told me she did BodyTalk. I didn't know what this was at all and she offered me a session at half price. Oh My God... it was amazing and she knew so much about me just from touching my skin. She brought up past memories and experiences that were affecting my life now! She resolved them in the body and the effect was that over the next period of time, things improved in my health and my mental health. I had to know more, so I signed up for the first modules to learn it for myself. That was in 2007 and that year turned out to be a greater learning curve than my studies for my diploma. On top of this I also learnt NLP coaching techniques and a technique which allowed me to release unconscious belief systems which affect the way you act and your health.
Over the last 2 years I have completed almost all of the modules for BodyTalk (there are 2 basic modules and then 5 advanced) and will continue onto further study with the International BodyTalk Association. I have finally left my treadmill life behind. My relationships are better than ever and now I've just moved myself to the best climate in Australia to start my business here and grow and consume good food. Next blog I will talk about the effect of food on your body and mind and what you can do to help yourself and your kids.
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