Going Into the Darkness to Heal

We all deal with challenges in our lives.  Maybe you call it Chaos or Crisis or Drama.  When we meet resistance, challenges and blocks in our lives, it may send us tumbling into the dark abyss of the unknown.  We may lose fingernails trying to catch a grip on the rocky walls of the tunnel or just fall in a tailspin with nothing to grasp. 

But the fall may be exactly what we need in order to shake us out of our self-sabotaging thoughts and actions.  It may be the call for leaving the security of what we know behind because it’s not helping us to grow.  Security is that which is familiar, not necessarily pleasant.  A crisis can be a call to action, to trust ourselves even when the world is lobbing lemons at us. 

I know that going to the “dark place” isn’t applauded in our society.  Generally, people think we’re weak, crazy, or unhinged if we do.  But in truth, by denying that part of ourselves, that Dark Space inside, we are denying our whole selves!  It’s like the movie, Pleasantville, a town where nothing changes. The temperature and weather are always nice, and it never rains. Sex is an unknown word, passion is outdated, and the most intimacy anyone sees is when people touch hands. But we know that’s not reality.  We need contrast in order to see the beauty of life and the fullness of ourselves.  By experiencing deep sadness, we can recognize great love when it appears. 

 The dark part of us isn’t evil.  It’s just the space that holds all the untruths about us. And these ‘untruths’ were birthed from perceptions of our childhood experiences based on what we saw outside ourselves such as angry looks, hurtful words, and/or striking hands.  We thought and felt that we were bad, useless, helpless, rejected, abandoned when these things happened.  And they did happen in some form or another.   It made us believe we weren’t worth of anything associated with love. But we didn’t know any better.  We didn’t have the experience and knowledge to understand that no matter what happened to us, it did not change us!  So the dark space is full of lies encrusted with pain, sadness and anger. 

But here lies the power locked inside us.  The darkness offers up an opportunity to change our paradigms, these patterns that repeat in our lives day after day based on what is false.  Denying the dark side of ourselves is what will weaken us, bend us, and torture us.  Going into it allows for redefining our relationship with ourselves, to undo the beliefs that we formed that had us believing we weren’t enough: smart enough, nice enough, capable enough, tall enough, slim enough.  ENOUGH of that. 

Our mind and body cries for balance, to bring light to the dark with courage as our lantern.  Yes, it does take courage to defy what we think we know is our worth.  But once we’ve regained the truth of what and who we are, always worthy, always deserving, always imperfectly perfect, we change the way we feel not only about ourselves but about how we see ourselves in the world.  And we then open up to the love that surrounds us in life as we now look with our inner eyes, healed and much more whole.

The Law of Reflection

 

 

The Law of Reflection

 

The struggles you see in your outer world are simply a reflection of the struggles in  your inner world.  How is that possible?

Well, look at it this way.  Have you ever woken up and immediately felt it was going to be a lousy day?  Or have you looked out your window first thing in the morning to see that it's raining buckets and thought the same thing? How did your day end up?  Did you forget your wallet at home?  Did you end up in a fender-bender?  Did you get into an argument with a work colleague, a friend or your partner that day?  Maybe it wasn't so drastic but be honest, once you decided it wasn't going to be a good day, didn't it turn out to be a crappy day?

How does this happen? It's about energy and Quantum physics.  Quantum physics proves that everything is made up of atoms, which are made up of particles called quanta.  Quanta is energy vibrating at a certain frequency, which attract other quanta vibrating at the same frequency. 

The particles that form everything, including our body (energy powers our body) and mind (thoughts with feeling) energy, are always vibrating so it's energy in motion.

Our thoughts are energy so they vibrate at a certain frequency and attract other thoughts (think "monkey-mind) or other energy that vibrate at the same vibration (getting into an argument with a co-worker).  This is why there's the saying, "like attracts like".

It's like a reflecting mirror.  You send out your vibrating energetic thought and what is reflected back to you is a like-energy.  And depending on the vibration, positive or negative, of the thought you had and sent out, you'll attract the same energy back at you.

But you can choose to direct your thoughts in a certain way.  The results of our thought don't manifest right away.  They are compounded.  It's having one positive or negative thought built upon by another positive or negative thought and the bigger the energy, the more you attract a like-minded energy. But sometimes the results of our thoughts are immediate.

Like attracts like so positive, compounded thoughts through repetition attract positive events and experiences into your life. They are reflected back to you.

You can begin to shift what you reflect by catching the thought.  Ask yourself if it's a positive thought.  If it isn't, dump it.  Let it go.  You can also just turn it around.  Rather than, "It's going to be a lousy day" (because it's raining outside), think, "It's refreshing to have cleansing rain".  It's the feeling behind the thought that will change the vibration.  Imagine feeling content as you drive to work knowing the trees are being watered, or, for that matter, that you have clean water to drink because of the rain.  You don't have to pull your car over, park, and start singing "Kumbaya".  Just find the positive feeling that comes up for you and let that flow out from you.

Practise. The energy of thoughts gathers momentum, and more thoughts that are alike will come to your mind. You can do this to brainstorm, to put yourself in a positive frame of mind, or even to bring calm and optimism into your day.



Some Easy Ways to Feel Happier in the Moment

Many people choose hypnotherapy to change the way they experience themselves – their thoughts, feelings, habits and actions. Often the causes of their discomfort are triggered by a past event which is associating the feelings of the past with a current situation.  These triggers can cause anything from severe anxiety, insomnia, depression, addictions to weight gain.

Many people would agree, myself included, that even when one is those heavy feelings, it isn’t always prolonged because we can’t sustain a feeling forever.  So we experience “manageable moments”.  Our feelings are transitory; they flow from one to the next in layers.

People look for all kinds of ways to feel better but unfortunately, these may be really unhealthy.  Some people turn to self medicating with drugs and alcohol or unhealthy activities such as eating their emotions, smoking, gambling, or even becoming anti-social.  Hypnotherapy can help those who want to change from the inside out so as to shift in their outlook, feelings and behaviour.

And we all as humans have ability to, in the moment, use our imagination and senses to direct and generate predictable and positive responses. So here are a few science-backed ways to shift to a happier state in moments:

Eat a Clementine. The scent of this fruit is one of the most positive and arousing things you can smell, according to a study conducted in the journal Chemical Senses.  I think they’re in grocery stores now (http://chemse.oxfordjournals.org/content/30/suppl_1/i248.full)

Light a vanilla-scented candle. In the same Chemical Senses study, participants ranked the smell of vanilla bean right up there with Clementine as a super-uplifting scent that's even more relaxing.  (http://chemse.oxfordjournals.org/content/30/suppl_1/i248.full)

Go out and do a “happy walk”.  We don’t always realize that our posture reflects how we feel.  When you are down, feeling overwhelmed, you likely round your shoulders inward and stoop. So stand up straight, roll your shoulders back, and add a spring to your step. Fake it till you make it because "happy walk" can actually make you happier, according to a recent study (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0005791614000809)

Make your desktop or phone background green. The calming color or green is associated with happiness, comfort, peace, and hope.   So bring some green inside.  (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3743993/)

De-clutter your desk! Clutter elevates stress levels, which it does for me.  So organizing your workspace can be the perfect anecdote when you’re feeling crappy. It “clears” the way for better vibes.  Or...clean your house! (http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/trouble-in-paradise-new-ucla-book)

Cut out the sappy music and go for upbeat. People who listen to positive music with the INTENTION of improving their mood were happier and more successful than people who listen to any kind of music, according to a research conducted at University of Missouri. However, if you have a hard time having a good cry, go for sappy.  It will help you release the sadness and offer some relief
(http://munews.missouri.edu/news-releases/2013/0514-trying-to-be-happier-works-when-listening-to-upbeat-music-according-to-mu-research/)


If you have a beloved pet, have a lovin’ sit-in.  Pets just make you feel good, whether it’s a dog, cat, bird or exotic snake, depending on your taste. Go and google puppies and if you’re human, it will bring a smile to your face as well as some needed ‘warm and fuzzies’


Find the Light. When I wake up and see blue skies, I’m instantly happier.  And if I’m walking outside in fresh air, I feel peaceful..calmer.  You can find those days, even in the world's worst mood in Vancouver in the Winter. When you can't get outside, open the blinds or turn on some lights: In a study where older adults suffering from depression were exposed to either one hour of pale blue light or one hour of dim red light (the placebo) every morning for three weeks, the blue light improved people's moods and reduced their stress more than the dim red light, with results that lasted into the evening. White light will do the trick too — the brighter, the better. (http://archpsyc.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=211002)


Think in the now. Letting your mind wander makes you substantially less happy than focusing on the task at hand.  You can get trapped in the ‘monkey mind’.  This is shown in a study by Matt Killingsworth in which over 650,000 real-time reports from over 15,000 people were collected by the Track Your Happiness iPhone app, which monitors people's happiness in real time.

Mr. Killingsworth stated, “As it turns out, there is a strong relationship between mind-wandering now and being unhappy a short time later, consistent with the idea that mind-wandering is causing people to be unhappy. In contrast, there’s no relationship between being unhappy now and mind-wandering a short time later. Mind-wandering precedes unhappiness but unhappiness does not precede mind-wandering. In other words, mind-wandering seems likely to be a cause, and not merely a consequence, of unhappiness”. 

(http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/does_mind_wandering_make_you_unhappy)


Think quick. Research shows that quick, varied thinking can lead to feeling happy. In six experiments, researchers at Princeton and Harvard universities made research participants think quickly by either problem solving, reading or watching a clip of I Love Lucy on fast forward.YIKES! The research showed that thinking fast led to the participants feeling more ‘elated’ and “creative”


Learn Mindfulness Meditation.  This involves quieting your mind and focusing it on one thought in the moment, like your breathe or the beating of your heart.  Observe without participating.  Lots of benefits here.  http://io9.gizmodo.com/how-meditation-changes-your-brain-and-makes-you-feel-b-470030863

Try these out!  And if you need to go deeper to feel like your best-self, give me a call.

 

 

Like engineers, we all draft and work from a blueprint, one that contains the history of all of our experiences all the way back to the womb. And within this blueprint is a series of expectations built from the foundation of our childhood bonding or disconnection with parental role models. No one escapes this.

 

Raised with secure loving patterns and expectations, we feel our own sense of worth in the world and we subconsciously expect the same in our adult relationships. We navigate our lives, which are filled with all types of relationships, in a state of ease vs. uneasiness.

 

When those patterns are stitched together with threads of criticism, fear and judgment, no matter how much or how little it is experienced in our early childhood, we sew these effects into our internal blueprint of self value.  All infants are born with an instinctual sense to bond with their caregivers, even before there is thought to apply to the concept and words to attach the though. Infants look for queues about their value through their connections with Mom and Dad.  This tie that binds children and parents leads the infant to experience pleasure, joy, and safely…or not. And these impressions form the blueprint we work from in what we expect from others we bond with or want to bond with.  Our cup is either flowing or seriously lacking with self worth and this is the paint with which we colour our relationships.

What you expect tends to be realized and so many of us expect less than we deserve or expect more than it’s possible for anyone to give back.  If we fed our own sense of self esteem we would be much happier because nothing outside ourselves can fill the void of self love. Self love is the ink that we use to redraft our blueprint.  Self esteem is an appreciative opinion of oneself based on being accurately and honestly aware of our strengths, weaknesses and everything in between.  It is realizing that no matter what we do or how much we measure ourselves against others achievements, physical attributes, status or material wealth, we will never be anything other than ourselves and that is imperfect.  We are perfectly imperfect. And there lies our uniqueness in the face of billions of people.  No one the same.  No one exactly alike.  And that allows for us to re-forge the blueprint of our lives with the knowledge that we are all on the same journey with different paths to follow, with unique strengths and creative abilities to bring to the world.  No ego required.  Just an appreciation for our distinctness and how irreplaceable we are.

  

I was looking for information on the Mind-Body connection which is something I fully believe in and use the concept in my Hypnotherapy/Mind Coaching practise.  I help clients listen to their bodies and rather than judge it, I guide them to observe the feelings and the thought alignment attached to the feeling.  There is such knowledge to be gained from connecting to the body.  When it hurts, it's telling you to be aware that something is not in alignment.  You're not in harmony with it.  And the cause is found in our thoughts which are found subconsciously. 

I recognize and value affirmations as a tool to re-align thinking to heal the body.  Perhaps you'll find some truth in this article by Mona Lisa Schulz M.D., Ph.D.

The Most Common Cause Of Lower Back Pain

What To Do To Start Feeling Better

Mona Lisa Schulz M.D., Ph.D.

People who experience lower-back and hip problems tend to be insecure when it comes to both money and love. Though they generally have the unwavering support of their families, they tend to have difficulties with finances and relationships—no matter what they do. This is partly because they don’t trust in the competence or intentions of people around them. When these folks are part of something that fails, it’s hard for them to see how their actions played into this outcome but they can easily identify the fault of everyone else who was involved. After one relationship debacle after another, when one financial crisis is followed by another, these folks seize power to feel more in control. The idea of shared decision making in relationships and money transactions goes out the window as these people stop listening to the views or ideas of others. In reaction to constant disappointment, they end up feeling alone, stranded, and unable to move forward.

If you have lower-back problems and you recognize these negative thoughts and behaviors, consider what you need and how you can get it. If what you need is to get healthy, be free of pain, and feel strong and supported, you can reverse the effects of negative thoughts by using the affirmation: I trust the process of life. All I need is always taken care of. I am safe.

Specific affirmations help us take healing to the next level. Lower-back and sciatic pain has to do with fear about money, and hip problems have to do with fear about moving forward. If you have lower-back or hip problems, it important not only to understand your thought patterns but also to practice the affirmations. So, for example, if you have hip problems that have to do with fear of making major decisions, use the affirmation: I am in perfect balance. I move forward in life with ease and joy at every age.

If you have sciatica that stems from being highly self-critical and fearful of the future, the affirmation would be I move into my greater good. My good is everywhere, and I am secure and safe.
As with the health of every body part, the important thing to focus on here is balance. If you suffer from lower-back or hip pain, it’s time to look at your relationship both with yourself and with the people around you. Honestly assess your life and make some changes. Do you get support from your family that you’re not getting elsewhere? Notice where you are getting support and openly acknowledge it and have gratitude for it. Do you tend to always blame others when things go wrong? Try to see the whole picture and see whether you are doing something that might be contributing to the problem. Do you feel out of control when it comes to finances? Look closely at any financial downfalls and try to pinpoint where things shifted from good to bad.

Your goal is to adopt a new view of the world. To really figure out what’s going wrong in your relationships and finances, you must take a big-picture look at the reality of both. And to do this, you need to get a grasp of your emotions, be able to identify and address them.

The most powerful practices you can do to rebalance your life involve meditation and mindfulness. While those who are prone to reproductive issues need to use these practices to slow down and recognize the beauty in the world, if you have lower-back and hip pain, you need to get a handle on your emotions. Meditation teaches you to observe and describe, but not judge, your emotions while you’re experiencing them. You will come to know that emotions are not reality, which means that they will not have so much power over you. Eventually, after practicing mindfulness and meditation, you will be able to detach from your feelings in a way that will help you take a more well-rounded view of the world and the people in your life. You will be able to interact with people in more respectful and productive ways that will ultimately lead to healthier finances and relationships.
Another important step you should take when it comes to healing lower-back and hip pain is to set up time to spend with people outside of your family or direct circle of friends. Widen your network of support. Even if it’s only for a few hours each week, get out and experience life from a different perspective. Perhaps volunteer at a nonprofit organization. Offer yourself to this group as both a leader and a part of a team. This will help you learn how to balance your own opinions with the ideas of others.

With affirmations, a more positive mood, and some changes in behavior, it is possible to lead a rewarding life—financially and emotionally. By balancing your attention to money and love relationships and family and self, you can remove the stressors that aggravate this health region. Acknowledge the negative thoughts and behaviors having to do with financial ability, and love and relationships. Then use Louise’s affirmations to counter the negative thoughts in these areas and establish new thought patterns and behaviors by meditating on the phrases “I trust the process of life,” “I know that Life always supports me and takes care of me,” and “I am lovable and loved.”

Healing happens in layers.  And the deeper you go into these layers, the more you will shift into what you want to be.  Self exploration and examination is not easy from the sense that we run from feeling our huts but it's doable if you courageously begin shifting through the mired layers.

May 3, 2013
Self-Examination at Depth
Going Deep

by Madisyn Taylor

To reach the depth we wish to access, we must dive below these layers to the deepest parts of ourselves.

There are times when life urges us to seek more. Small changes to our comfort zone may fail to alleviate any sense of stagnancy or frustration, and we may need to examine our lives and ourselves more deeply to find the right place to start. Everything we need for success and joy lies within. But so often, life’s debris accumulates, building layers around our core that makes it difficult to access the truth that resides within. To reach the depth we wish to access, we must dive below these layers to the deepest parts of ourselves.

The first layer can be found in our minds. Our to-do lists and busy work are usually less important than we think, so we must look past them to examine the thoughts that matter most to us. The next layer can be found in our hearts, where past hurts and disappointments can sometimes cover up our vulnerabilities, as well as the truth of who and what really stirs the love within us. We can choose to go even deeper – to our center. If we can go beyond anything has affected us to the point that it blocks us at the gut level, we can reconnect with our power, our raw instincts, our organic yeses. Here, at the core, lies our truth. Our core is our foundation that supports us and what we’d like to build our authentic life upon.

When we examine ourselves to these depths, we are able to find what we wish to bring to the surface and what we wish to let go. When we remember what lies beneath our layers, we can look at what was floating on the surface, causing blocks and pains, and understand the purpose that they served. Oftentimes, it is the built up debris that causes us to go deeper, so we can search for the truth. Go deep, live life from your truth within, and watch your innate beauty manifest outward.



A Load Off Your Mind Hypnosis & Mind Coaching:

Hypnosis for Past Life Regression:
PAST LIVES - REAL OR IMAGINED? Find out for yourself!

There has been a lot of interest and controversy about Past Lives. Even some medical doctors are getting in on this powerful, healing therapy. One in particular who brought the concept to light over the years is Brian Weiss MD, who wrote Many Lives, Many Masters. As a result of his experience there is a new field of clinical therapy that seems to require past life regression. Having met him in person a few years ago, I know that as a scientific Doctor, he too questioned what was happening when his first client regressed into a past life when doing therapy in 1980.  There were too many authenticated facts in her past life to ignore as pure fantasy or wishful thinking.

Dr. Ian Stevenson (October 31, 1918–February 8, 2007) also brought the topic of Reincarnation to the light.  He worked diligently to conduct his work with appropriate scientific rigor. He was a Canadian biochemist and professor of psychiatry. Until his retirement in 2002, he was head of the Division of Perceptual Studies at the University of Virginia, which investigates the paranormal.

Stevenson considered that the concept of reincarnation might supplement modern medicine to understand aspects of human behavior and development.  He traveled extensively over a period of 40 years to investigate 3,000 childhood cases that suggested to him the possibility of past lives.  Stevenson saw reincarnation as the survival of the personality after death

We sure don't know complete why, but we do know it has a profound effect on some people's lives. Many illnesses somehow miraculously clear up after a client finds a past life that held that same trauma. In my practice I have experienced a client releasing a life-long phobia, and another finding a driving purpose in this life that went unfulfilled in past lives. I have observed symptoms of a physical nature clear up, and those of an intense emotional origin be released.

One man released a 20 year old stomach pain after find its cause in a past life. As a result this client also experienced profound peace in his current life. In almost every past life I’ve been privileged to witness, I’ve seen there is a major positive change in the person's life. Some of my clients didn’t come for a Past Life Regression, had never inquired about it and yet, when I asked their subconscious to take them to the cause of the problem, they regressed to the origin of the problem and it happens to be in another body, in another time. And every one of them experiences it as very real and relevant to the struggles they are experiencing.


Another interesting event is when someone "sees" a friend or loved one while experiencing the past life and recognizes hi, beyond any doubt, even though that person is in a totally different body. Usually the client is sure of familiarity. They tell me they just know. A client "sees" a loved one who has died and it can bring great comfort to have a new understanding of the relationship and the death process. In all cases it has been a positive, life changing experience. This is a therapy that is definitely worth more exploration. And with the right guidance, the process is one of truth.  For instance, a client may have wanted to have been someone famous. In reality that is not usually the case. There couldn’t have been 300,000 Cleopatras. No amount of wishing will make you go into the past life of your choice. You must just allow the process to take you where your subconscious mind KNOWS you need to go. It seems to be out of the conscious control of the client. But remember, it is always a positive and healing experience.  The benefit is sometimes beyond earthly description.

The other very important area to explore is the in-between life state (also referred to the Life Between Life state) when one is pure energy.  In every Past Life Regression, I guide clients though the death experience, without the actual reliving of the death, to the Universal Energy state.  Here is where the deeper learning is achieved for there is no body, no heavy energy.  This is where there is access to all Universal knowledge whereby deeper learning about your Soul's purpose in that past life (as well as in this life) the life lessons you scripted into being for your evolution.  This is also where deep and beautiful forgiveness of perpetrators and of the SELF is achieved. And that creates the space for peace.

 

My belief about past lives? Sure, it could be only imagination, or the collective unconscious memories, or a metaphorical way for the mind to find answers to challenges, or an actual journey to a life that we have lived before. I am always open to new ideas, having experienced Past Life Regression myself.  My clients would say that for them, it was real, not because of scientific analysis, but because the feelings they experienced were real and he the knowledge gained was invaluable. 

Millions of people believe this is within the realm of possibility and there are many books written on the subject.  And after many hours spent guiding clients through past lives, I know this: We don't know all there is to know!  I also know that it has brought tremendous healing to clients whereby their symptoms alleviated and often disappeared due to the release of the energy attached to karmic beliefs repeated throughout their lives.  The self awareness is invaluable in our continued journeys as spirits having human experiences.

Hypnosis will help you access your past life records, and heal the past. One thing you can be assured of is anyone can be regressed, as long as they are willing and open to it.  Regardless of your personal faith or belief, regression can work for you through gentle and relaxing hypnosis. The hypnotherapy process is so healing.  I am a trained Past Life Regression Facilitator, and a professional Transpersonal Hypnotherapist.  I pride myself in creating a professional and safe place for clients to let go and learn through personal experience.  Sessions are 2 - 2.5 hours so we have plenty of time to explore (average sessions are 1.5 hours).

If this speaks to you and you’ve been curious about past lives, come take this journey to experience this life changing therapy.  You can also look at this Oprah article by Dr. Brian Weiss http://www.oprah.com/spirit/Dr-Brian-Weiss-Past-Life-Regression-Therapy-Common-Signs. 

Call me today at 778-238-2427 or email aloadoffyourmind@shaw.ca

Here’s what clients have said:

"Wow, what an experience.  Thank you again, so much, for that.  I was extremely comfortable having you guide me through that important life!  I can't believe how much that life affected everything in this one.  Everything I felt/sensed held so much information that was necessary for me to witness to release and undrstand things today!" - K.A., Vancouver, BC

"Just a huge thank you for providing me the opportunity to experience what I did.  Under your professionalism and bright light I felt extremely safe and indeed excited for the experience. I am so glad I finally did this!"  - Beck, Vancouver (Past Life Regression)

“HOLY SHIT!  What a ride!  I can’t believe that after a week since our session, my skin has cleared up! Are you kidding me?  In all seriousness, I do understand how I connected all the shame and self loathing I carried into this life, especially in the life as the Slaver.  I have always felt uncomfortable with any position that I thought gave me power over others and I know that my professional life will improve now that I finally get it.  Thanks, Rosa...should have done this years ago.” – Kevin, N. Vancouver (Skin condition was facial exema which flared with stress)