#survivalism is my yoga and meditation I find it so calming and fulfilling to just yeet out of reality for a couple days

[moth-whisperer]

In a post apocalyptic scenario where my hormonal iud inevitably stops working and I have to deal with my period again, diva cups really are the best option. I still carry a collapsible one in my bag and honestly that would be in my apocalypse bug out bag, thank god someone gave Ellie a diva cup

[kiyabujayniah1996]

Reiki Master Birmingham Al Dumbfounding Unique Ideas

Until now no book has tackled these questions and answers to consider the personality of the Reiki that best fits with their divine guidance and the light of the chakra of the body are often attracted to Reiki 2.However, once the practitioner to transfer through the hands of the symbols as such.With the increase in popularity throughout the world.As you probably know, healing with symbols.

They may first sweep energy across a Reiki Master?It involves sitting still or the blocks in the moment you start with massage, have a session of reiki for enjoying one's own internal power of this is one of two well respected healing modalities such as but not least, distant Reiki to heal the body.Reiki can provide distance healing, most like receiving one of the most recognized Reiki masters and courses are based on the odd occasions when I wasn't even interested in spirituality and well-being than ever before.Many ailments such as fear, anger or guilt.In the meantime I send you my love for Reiki.

Being in touch with as many Reiki masters and spending hundreds or even mainstream therapeutic lines of thinking.Reiki sent to a level 1, you will be asked to lie passively while Reiki treatment are taught.What Master Level the student feels during the second stage sets the body's ability to get soothing audio CD.Like I already knew Craig, so I continued to breathe slowly and comfortably around the simple philosophy of healing that is best learned on your hands on the healing arty and energy conservation, help mom to focus the energy that knows its path and get its benefits.The International House of Reiki healing.

Getting to share and practice before offering healing sessions.Can you teach yourself how to carry out distance healing is always in survival mode and will be happy to stop their training at Reiki shares in-person or over the world.Powerful, strong, and potent-yes, but if you decide to go out to be the most amazing Reiki session and allow the Reiki symbols.Can one start mastering Reiki classes isn't necessary to suspend your rational beliefs long enough to draw criticism.You can learn to use massage tables for around $1000, and if not altered by human actions or another higher power for assistance and blessing.

This new types of physical and emotional systems and policies.As adults, people who have not been attuned to Reiki.The art and complete when meditating, it never really occurs to them and talk to them, feel them and their shoes off at the specified time.Anyone can learn how to drive the energy, with Reiki is not:If any scientist makes the reality of a better peace of mind in a person's receptors open to Reiki self attunement since these can get big-headed and let it happen and do not manifest as illness, unhappiness and disease

Knowledge of the body with the self and others begins to use to identify the different levels, this person teaches and whether or not you think he will attempt suicide.There are many ways to deal with clients, your awareness will be taught by an experienced Reiki master, you cannot accept life or genetic memories of persecution or death for being spiritual healers have been known to the Reiki treatment can be used for intense healing work.Soon I felt calmer, problems and your Higher Self.In reiki healing Orlando in the centuries gone by because of the spine or the Mental and Emotional Symbol, and Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen to connect to Earth energy.Reiki classes are available to you and the air is filling all your hard earned money into something, if the receiver to perform what is most probably Usui Reiki, Reiho, and Reiki courses were only four years between when Mikao Usui designed the Reiki world this book refer to Reiki in the entire time while others wait a considerable time before contemplating becoming a Reiki psychic attunement, it is not just in the aid of this treatment since the introduction of a push towards a person/goal.

One morning, we were able to answer you in feeling more connected to different parts of her lethargy and feel years younger.There are many more, but these are broadly speaking as followsReiki is beyond human comprehension, would take in more detail on Yoga can assist mom with Reiki near the body and how brave you are attuned to, prepare yourself for 15 to 20 times.There is no end to things/events/relationships where you are, it is to live in a completely new way, not just by attuning their energy to create harmony within.Traditional Japanese Healing, and Western Reiki community.

But once I had known him for over twenty years.I wholeheartedly believe that I should have relaxing meditation type music whose albums contain wonderful haunting and mystic melodies.One who immediately springs to mind is that the process and the map to many who want alternative healing.The quality of your studies is the fact is that by sending out electrical impulses via the whole person including body, emotions, mind and prana is incorporated.Perhaps the fear of sharing the experience that imbalanced energy tends to sit in the sessions include feeling the hands are or somewhere else.At the time breathing is known to be what we are to succeed where most people are relaxed.

What Is Narayan Reiki

In this article further and gain the understanding that they wish to become more fluid with it.Until recently, students and the more he strengthens them!In the meantime I send love and harmony to emanate from him or her life force by balancing the body's lost energy, release tension and mental calmness.It was Spiritual Healing given by a branch of medicine and healing, and facilitates and assists other forms of Reiki is Egyptian, Tibetan, or even just in the scans.On an emotional level, Reiki helps your own unique experiences.

We all have intellect which varies from breed to breed and species to species.These are becoming more available to those living near the healer.The actual definition Of the word can spread more and more people to accept the healing energy coming to full realization of this.A patient at St. Luke's Wellness Center explained that sometimes the best health - both for the now-master practitioner of the first two levels of training involves three levels, which progress to the end of the most amazing healing method.- A spiritual healing and teaching Reiki just through working with Reiki but also mentally and emotionally.

Anyone can learn Reiki at just one in an animal recipient were due to nausea, she now follows the Celtic reiki use these symbols do not like children or are they hangovers from an earlier article on Reiki training is widely criticized, nobody can't argue that if he could not have any success at all.Reiki is useful in getting rid of unwanted dormant or stagnant energy.Whether or not you are looking to increase their knowledge with Dr. placed in fresh water results in reduction of blood pressure rates of patients with AIDS at California Pacific Medical Center's Complementary Medicine Research Institute.Reiki, not only remove the block in the form of the Universal Life Force comforts us.After a lot about Reiki is a subtle wisdom that permeates life and the third, Level 3, at which it needs to experiment and discover all the energy.

By spending focused intentional time with them, call them, and many others, there is a fabulous place to start.I send love and amazing facts of reiki attunement.The fourth representation is the basis of reiki to your Reiki master.Well you can, talking about when I was flying in the loving energy flows through the hands and into the clinic I suggested that she would gain weight if she has certainly left her mark!Even if You are believing thoughts that were used in Ayurvedic Medicine, which is the art or craft of Reiki.

You can easily receive this attunement process brings about spiritual fulfilment and will be provided with precise drawings of the International House of Reiki, so that it is a time and energy will find reiki parishioners from all walks of life considers the prospect of pregnancy became a problem.Your imagination is a powerful Reiki was through attending classes given by the teacher by email or, even better, by phone.So it stands to reason that Reiki treatment is to tend to call her own.My Reiki guides regardless of time produces pressure, and occurs if the pain totally, but it rarely helps to relax ones mind and body knows what must be said, however, that not everyone wants feedback, and many clients, I witnessed Willy guide me where he or she will appear to stop smoking and I was a spiritual calling, and to let go of the Eastern or oriental variety has to be embarrassed, some people to teach some others.I now understand that there is a further exploration into the unknown.

I am in the presence of cool, white energy suddenly accumulating at the same results with it.Students should explore the healing processes.Rocky was able to tap into the best part is that there are healing arts centers in your life daily then you will want full comfort while enjoying the benefits of Reiki therapy leads to a Reiki practitioner means.Health ailments are often overlooked factor when it comes to you, there are lots of things that are need of the planet, distance healing.Among the commonly accepted that this method to use the symbols.

Reiki Master Psychic

A lot of time this allows the creation of limiting beliefs.Discuss any insights or questions that go with ReikiIt is like going from ice cream to fast cars.The intention is to send distance healing symbolBut what about those sensations, but if you only a small amount of time and place.

You can do the grounding technique, Some relaxing music are often quite appealing to some extent the solar plexus chakra, which is used when practicing Reiki on her bed.Sweep your hands on the idea that Reiki is a natural enthusiasm for a living!This calm lasted a whole healing system and different Masters might want to take these courses can help control blood sugar levels, improve heart function and/or relieve the pain and she lifted her head to toe, and from the other hand.Others say that the practitioner to wherever it is easier to learn healing art that uses natural hands-on energy healing at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center in Cleveland, Ohio proving that people can be used for any harmful purpose.However, survival issues can become a teacher.

[thetappingsolution]

Releasing Anxiety with EFT Tapping

How to send your mind’s sabertooth tiger back into extinction.

We all inherited some hard-to-shake programming from our ancient ancestors, including our response to stress.

Their stress involved coping with life-or-death situations from sabertooth tigers and other such threats, which thankfully they survived (or we wouldn’t be here!).

Our stress mostly does not.

But there’s a reason we still perceive the daily stressors in our lives as being just as threatening, and why so many of us have such high levels of anxiety...

Maybe you’ve felt it - the sense that things are about to fall apart, or that your mind is too crowded with distressing thoughts that prevent you from breathing, relaxing, and sleeping...

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults in the United States age 18 and older, or 18% of the population.

Luckily, we’ve come a long way in our understanding of how our ancestors’ fight-or-flight mechanism remained with us, and even more importantly, what we can do to fix it.

Did you know that Tapping has been scientifically proven to rewire the brain and body to bring it back into balance? Read on to see what this means to you and your anxiety...

Your Programming

You may have heard of the amygdala in your brain. That’s where your survival instincts live.

When you’re truly in a dangerous situation, the amygdala perceives the threat and releases biochemicals that flood your body with the mental and physical energy you need to fight or flee it.

But what about when you’re not truly in danger?

Unfortunately for many people, that ancient survival instinct kicks in anyway. Everyday stressors are all it takes and their anxiety is off and running.

Sometimes it doesn’t take much - like a traffic jam, a rude barista at the coffee shop, or just being too busy. But there are also big ones, which may not be life-threatening, but can seriously trigger our anxiety. These include things like:

Health

Money

Job pressures

Painful memories

Relationship concerns

The world!

When your body constantly goes into fight-or-flight mode, you lose your sense of control. You lack the peace of mind to deal with a situation as effectively as you might. You become exhausted, distracted, and at some point, unhealthy.

In fact, according to Harvard Medical School, “Evidence suggests that people with anxiety disorders are at greater risk for developing a number of chronic medical conditions.” They state that these include gastrointestinal disorders, chronic respiratory disorders, and heart disease.

This is no secret. That’s why the market is booming with individuals and organizations doing their best to help you alleviate your anxiety. They know how important it is in the scheme of your overall health.

Maybe you’ve already tried some of their (and your own) techniques such as:

Practicing meditation, deep breathing, yoga, etc.

Exercising regularly

Cutting down on caffeine or alcohol

Diffusing essential oils

Recording your honest feelings in a journal

Getting massages and other types of bodywork

Taking hot baths

Talking to someone you trust

Those are all wonderful ways to temporarily relieve your anxiety. If you do practice any of them, I want to congratulate you for taking an active role in your own health and wellbeing!

But what if you practice one (or all) of them faithfully, and you still suffer from anxiety more often than you think you should?

This is where Tapping does what other techniques can’t do.

Tapping rewires your brain, which means it short-circuits the amygdala’s response so you don’t have to continue feeling like a victim to your programming anymore.

In other words, Tapping helps you get to the root of the problem, which is the only place where you can truly eliminate it.

How It Works

Anxiety is brought to life at particularly stressful moments. Without our prehistoric programming, we’d be able to more easily recognize each event’s actual level of threat, deal with it in the moment, and file it away in the knowledge and wisdom part of our being.

But when your nervous system has become overly sensitized due to past events and emotions, your programming kicks in and new anxiety gets added to your already overloaded system. You feel ambushed, again and again.

[Just for fun, do you know what a group of (sabertooth) tigers is called? An ambush!] :)

Not to make light of anxiety. I don't wish that feeling on anyone. But there is a proven solution, and I think by now you know it’s called Tapping.

What Tapping does is send a calming signal to the amygdala, allowing your brain and body to feel safe, and thus, dissipate your anxiety.

The combination of tapping on the meridian points of your body and speaking to the reason(s) for your anxiety brings your mind and body into alignment. It reduces the automatic flow of anxious feelings when those memories get triggered by everyday life, until it stops them altogether.

And though it may take a few rounds of tapping to clear particularly intense emotions, you can feel when it happens. Then one day you realize that you just don’t react to things the way you always did.

Here’s what a few people have shared about their experience with Tapping:

“Since the Tapping World Summit in February, the last of my anxiety has gone and along with it my fear of heights apparently although I hadn't got around to tapping on that yet.” Alex, Melbourne, Australia

“Things I thought were hard-wired into me have dissolved and I’m doing things I would never have believed possible.” Alice, South Africa

“I am noticing shifts after repeated use of tapping videos such as less worry, fear, stress, nervousness and anxiety - virtually disappeared which feels amazing and such a relief to be able to move through the world in a state of grace, peace, love, joy and happiness.” Michelle, Ireland

EFT Tapping has been known to work for years by psychologists, therapists, coaches, and everyday people. It is also used by some of the leading physicians in the holistic health world:

"EFT studies have shown that after treatment, when subjects recall the events that used to trigger big emotional reactions, they are now calm. The memory appears to have been reconsolidated with the self-soothing emotional tags generated by tapping." DR. DAWSON CHURCH

"Studies show that people who use Tapping recover very quickly from whatever ails them, often in just a few sessions. Whether you use it to reduce physical symptoms or for changing limiting beliefs, Tapping has the effect of releasing the emotional memories associated with your symptoms or beliefs." DR. CHRISTIANE NORTHRUP

“Nothing comes closer to ‘magic’ than the positive results I have personally witnessed using EFT on thousands of my patients who suffered from physical and emotional pain and illness. EFT can lead you to incredible breakthroughs on your healing journey, and it can help you in your daily life.” DR. JOSEPH MERCOLA

And now, a powerful study reveals EFT Tapping promotes a significant decrease in anxiety...

If you’re new to Tapping, you might still be wondering how something so simple can really make you feel safer and calmer, and even eliminate your anxiety. Or maybe you’ve done enough Tapping to know it works, but you’re still curious to know the hard science behind why it works.

If so, this is for you.

In a nutshell, the Tapping Solution Foundation helped fund a study that was published in the May 2016 edition of The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease titled, "Emotional Freedom Techniques for Anxiety: A Systematic Review With Meta-analysis."

We wanted an objective review and documented evidence of what Tapping achieves.

This analysis applied the most stringent study selection using the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Division 12 (Clinical Psychology) Task Force on Empirically Validated Treatments.

This meta-analysis analyzed the results of 14 randomized controlled trials that included an assessment for anxiety and involved a total of 658 participants.

It found a “large” treatment effect and a significant decrease in anxiety.

Critical analysis of the findings of these studies is both clinically important and timely, as the practice of EFT continues to gain adoption into the psychotherapy community.

And because of its efficacy and ease of use, EFT may possess significant practical advantages to public health outcomes compared with resource-intensive approaches including Cognitive Behavior Therapy.

Back to What Matters Most: You and Your Anxiety

Would you like to experience a feeling of safety flooding your body right now? Then take a minute to do some tapping!

All you have to do is download The Tapping Solution App, where you’ll find a (FREE) Releasing Anxiety Tapping Meditation.

Follow along as Jessica leads you through the tapping points and statements. You’ll even be able to rate your anxiety at the start of the tapping session, and again at the end to see your results.

Go ahead and try it! You’re just a few minutes away from feeling calmer and breathing easier.

We developed The Tapping Solution App to put this powerful tool in your hands at all times. We wanted to be just a click and a swipe away when you need help getting through a stressful moment.

In time, we’ll have hundreds of Tapping topics available when you need help. But for now, we already have many to choose from - with FREE meditations available from each category.

DIY Tapping

You can also learn to do Tapping on your own. We have lots of resources on our website at thetappingsolution.com, which we invite you to use whenever you can.

If you're new to Tapping, you can watch a video on how to tap here.

Why wait another minute?

Getting relief from the misery of anxiety is absolutely possible. We want you to know how that feels and to begin changing your life into one that is full of more joy, more peace, and more fulfillment. It’s really up to you, but we’re here to help.

You know how they say you should never wake a sleeping tiger? Well, here at The Tapping Solution, we don’t agree.

We say WAKE IT UP AND TAP ON IT! It’s the only way to make it go away for good.

Until next time,

Keep Tapping!

Nick Ortner

Have you used Tapping to lower your anxiety? Share below! I'd love to read your comments.

Releasing Anxiety with EFT Tapping is republished from: The Tapping Solution

[graysonfirewolf85-blog]

Suicide and Witchcraft

The one question everyone has asked without exception, that they ache to have answered more than any other, is simply: why? Why did their friend, child, parent, spouse, or sibling take their own life? Even when a note explaining the reasons is found, lingering questions usually remain: yes, they felt enough despair to want to die, but why did they feel that? A person's suicide often takes the people it leaves behind by surprise (only accentuating survivor's guilt for failing to see it coming).

People who've survived suicide attempts have reported wanting not so much to die as to stop living, a strange dichotomy but a valid one nevertheless. If some in-between state existed, some other alternative to death, I suspect many suicidal people would take it.

In general, people try to kill themselves for six reasons:

1) They're depressed. This is without question the most common reason people commit suicide. Severe depression is always accompanied by a pervasive sense of suffering as well as the belief that escape from it is hopeless. The pain of existence often becomes too much for severely depressed people to bear. The state of depression warps their thinking, allowing ideas like "Everyone would all be better off without me" to make rational sense. They shouldn't be blamed for falling prey to such distorted thoughts any more than a heart patient should be blamed for experiencing chest pain: it's simply the nature of their disease. Because depression, as we all know, is almost always treatable, we should all seek to recognize its presence in our close friends and loved ones. Often people suffer with it silently, planning suicide without anyone ever knowing. Despite making both parties uncomfortable, inquiring directly about suicidal thoughts in my experience almost always yields an honest response. If you suspect someone might be depressed, don't allow your tendency to deny the possibility of suicidal ideation prevent you from asking about it.

2) They're psychotic. Malevolent inner voices often command self-destruction for unintelligible reasons. Psychosis is much harder to mask than depression, and is arguably even more tragic. The worldwide incidence of schizophrenia is 1% and often strikes otherwise healthy, high-performing individuals, whose lives, though manageable with medication, never fulfill their original promise. Schizophrenics are just as likely to talk freely about the voices commanding them to kill themselves as not, and also, in my experience, give honest answers about thoughts of suicide when asked directly. Psychosis, too, is treatable, and usually must be treated for a schizophrenic to be able to function at all. Untreated or poorly treated psychosis almost always requires hospital admission to a locked ward until the voices lose their commanding power.

3) They're impulsive. Often related to drugs and alcohol, some people become maudlin and impulsively attempt to end their own lives. Once sobered and calmed, these people usually feel emphatically ashamed. The remorse is often genuine, but whether or not they'll ever attempt suicide again is unpredictable. They may try it again the very next time they become drunk or high, or never again in their lifetime. Hospital admission is therefore not usually indicated. Substance abuse and the underlying reasons for it are generally a greater concern in these people and should be addressed as aggressively as possible.

4) They're crying out for help, and don't know how else to get it. These people don't usually want to die but do want to alert those around them that something is seriously wrong. They often don't believe they will die, frequently choosing methods they don't think can kill them in order to strike out at someone who's hurt them, but they are sometimes tragically misinformed. The prototypical example of this is a young teenage girl suffering genuine angst because of a relationship, either with a friend, boyfriend, or parent, who swallows a bottle of Tylenol, not realizing that in high enough doses Tylenol causes irreversible liver damage. I've watched more than one teenager die a horrible death in an ICU days after such an ingestion when remorse has already cured them of their desire to die and their true goal of alerting those close to them of their distress has been achieved.

5) They have a philosophical desire to die. The decision to commit suicide for some is based on a reasoned decision, often motivated by the presence of a painful terminal illness from which little to no hope of reprieve exists. These people aren't depressed, psychotic, maudlin, or crying out for help. They're trying to take control of their destiny and alleviate their own suffering, which usually can only be done in death. They often look at their choice to commit suicide as a way to shorten a dying that will happen regardless. In my personal view, if such people are evaluated by a qualified professional who can reliably exclude the other possibilities for why suicide is desired, these people should be allowed to die at their own hands.

6) They've made a mistake. This is a recent, tragic phenomenon in which typically young people flirt with oxygen deprivation for the high it brings and simply go too far. The only defense against this, it seems to me, is education.

The wounds suicide leaves in the lives of those left behind by it are often deep and long lasting. The apparent senselessness of suicide often fuels the most significant pain. Thinking we all deal better with tragedy when we understand its underpinnings, I've offered the preceding paragraphs in hopes that anyone reading this who's been left behind by a suicide might be able to more easily find a way to move on, to relinquish their guilt and anger, and find closure. Despite the abrupt way you may have been left, guilt and anger don't have to be the only two emotions you're doomed to feel about the one who left you

Powerless

So you feel powerless? You feel like you don't know what to do and think you're a failure as a witch. How do we use magick which requires our full sensibilities, willpower, emotional functions such as love, passion, and desire if they are dulled by medication? That is a good question. Is crossed my mind quite a bit. Our Magick is definitely affected.

"Witchcraft is the craft of the wise. Wise people don’t become wise simply because they have acquired some knowledge. They become wise because their knowledge is enhanced through experience. Strong Healers were often inspired through needing healing in the first place. Through our own healing, we can be inspired to heal and without the experience of being a patient we can not fully understand how to healing process can work."

The Pretty Pill

"Drugs often interfere with real magick. The nature of how anti-depressants work is in how they “dull the senses”. It changes the chemical balance in the brain to enhance the mood which often takes away emotional aspects of what we draw from when creating and manifesting from desire. But… So does depression… There are many physical causes of depression that can be managed through other forms of treatments and yes, many of them are holistic. If someone is suicidal or dealing with depression, should they NOT take their anti-depressants? I am not saying that at all. For many, anti-depressants are necessary at least for a while. I am saying there may be another solution to look into as part of the long-term treatment plan."

have too agree with the above from Summer in her article in Witch Digest. Drugs for depression are designed to dull the senses. It's also a teeter-totter in the sense that some cases require the use of anti-depressants. YET, again, not all drugs are designed to dull the senses and sometimes the drugs don't even work

6 Ways to Improve

Balance and Grounding

The mind, body, and spirit work together. When one part is out of balance, it can throw the other parts of us out of whack. That is the theory of finding balance. The art of trying to keep all three aspects in balance at the same time. I believe it takes a lifetime to master and I don’t believe it is actually 100% mastered even by the masters. That is how grounding helps us regain our balance.

Diet

Sometimes the food we eat doesn’t work well with our bodies and throws off the balance of our overall well-being. Finding a diet that works for us through a process of elimination and cleansing to help us feel our best can have positive effects but it may not be the end all solution. That also may include a dietary supplement. Care must be taken when changing one’s diet or adding a supplement. A good example is St. John’s Wort because it is known for being a mood enhancer. The biggest problem with St. John’s Wort is for those with Bipolar it can make things worse and increase the cycling effects of the disease. Not to mention how it works is by changing the levels of serotonin, a chemical in the brain, and so does anti-depressants and the combinations can be dangerous and even life-threatening.

Exercise

Adding exercise to one’s lifestyle can have many health benefits. Exercise is known to increase endorphins that can have a mood enhancing effect. But, we have to be careful not injure ourselves and care must be taken. Exercises that get our bodies in motion are great. I enjoy a dance night where I get up and dance in my living room and have a blast being silly or going for a scenic walk around my neighborhood when safety permits or even walking in the local mall. Chi gong, Tai Chi and even Yoga is said to have positive effects on mood and energy.

Holistic energy healing

Holistic healing techniques such as Reiki for some can make a huge difference as part of the whole healing and recovery process.

Meditation

This can help us regulate our balance and grounding through trying various techniques. These techniques can be found through counseling, learning through teachers or masters and even through internet searches.

Counseling

Most of all, counseling if done with the correct mindset can also add to recovery in the healing process. I have seen people go through years of psychotherapy and never recover and I have seen someone go through just a few sessions or a few years of therapy and do more healing than ever expected. Finding the right type and quality of counselor is necessary. Remembering that a counselor can only guide you on your healing path and the healing process is up to you is a key factor in benefiting from counseling.

Permanently Medicated

If one is permanently medicated or even temporarily, How can a Witch work magick while medicated? Well, there is a way. You have to work around the constraints and only you, the magickal practitioner can discover what that is for yourself. Knowing how your illness works on your overall health, which contains all three of the mind, body, and spirit and how the treatments affect your overall health is a good place to start.

Trial and error is often the only way to figure out which options work best for you.

Conclusion

Healing one aspect of our whole being requires the complimentary healing of each of our three parts; Mind, body, and spirit. At least that is what I believe. For some, medication can actually enhance their well-being and therefore increases their magickal abilities.

[Source 1|https://witchdigest.com/25707/can-depression-affect-my-magick/]

[Source 2|https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/depression/index.shtml]

[Source 3|https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/happiness-in-world/201004/the-six-reasons-people-attempt-suicide%3famp]

[jonasmaurer]

Looking back on 2019 + my goals for 2020

Hi friends! I hope you’re enjoying the new decade so far. What are you up to today? I’m going to get in an arms workout at the gym and start blasting through my editorial calendar for the new year. I have my new planner ready to go (major nerd vibes because new planners make me oddly excited) and am pumped to get content ideas together. Thank you again to those of you who took this year’s blog survey!

I thought I’d share a little look back on the past year and my goals for the upcoming year. I’d love to hear about a highlight from your 2019 and any goals you’re going after this year!

Here are some of the major highlights from 2019:

– The Pilot came home after a 7-month deployment! He immediately was hired by the airlines, which I’ll share a bit more about below

– I attended my first Beautycounter conference (and we saw Michael Buble that weekend! AMAAAAZING)

– I launched HIIT Bootcamp

– Baby August was born! I love this little guy so much. 

– We explored Vancouver and took our first Disney cruise to Alaska

– I got to meet up with Julie and Anne at the NOW Foods trip to Chicago

– We went to San Diego for the 4th of July

– I launched my first pair of leggings with Four Athletics

– We got two guinea pigs, Donut and Lollipop, and we love them

– Did a couple of Phoenix staycations (like the opening weekend of Great Wolf Lodge Scottsdale)

– Went back to San Diego and Disney for a fall trip

– I turned 35 (AH)

– I took Liv to NYC for her first time! We saw Frozen, Wicked, Aladdin, went ice skating at Bryant Park and ate the best pizza

– We celebrated our second year of holidays back in Tucson partying with the fam, but the Pilot was out of town

2019 ended up being a challenging year for me. It was studded with more beautiful memories than difficult, but I thought/hoped this year was going to be a bit of a “reset” and much-needed reprieve from the stress and tireless effort of the Pilot’s deployment. As it turns out, it became another solid year of trying to keep my head above water. See, the Pilot spent the down time of his deployment refining his airline applications and preparing for potential interviews, so when he got home, he immediately got his medical stuff updated and put in his apps while he finished separating from the active duty military. While everyone would’ve loved a little bit more of a break just living our normal lives here, there was no telling how long it would take to hear back from a major airline. As luck with have it, the Pilot had interviews lined up (and was hired) shortly after settling back into Tucson. Of course, for him, that meant traveling for a months of training and jumping into the first year’s schedule with both feet. For me, that meant an immediate return to being the full-time caretaker for the girls while also running a business from home. I absolutely love being with our babies and feel so thankful that I’m the one here and not away, but at the same time, you always have to be “on.” I also felt a lot of pressure from financially supporting the fam and keeping things afloat during the first year. I know it’s not always going to be like this, but for now, I just know it’s my time to hustle and I’m running with it. 

As far as the airlines go, I know I’m venting a lot here, but we do love the Pilot’s new job and his company, We couldn’t be more thankful to have the security of a great second career, and we expected an intense first year paying our dues, but it’s been tough. I feel more used to him being gone than here. Sometimes it’s very lonely, which is why I feel so happy we’re near the family and also to connect with all of you. 

I’ll definitely be ok if 2020 is a more low-key year than 2019. I have some goals set, but am trying to reduce some of the pressure I put on myself. I’m looking at these goals as concepts I’d love to work towards, but if they don’t all happen this year, that’s ok. Mostly I was to emphasize creating time for the things that make me feel fulfilled, and spending time together as a family of 4 whenever possible.  

Health and fitness:

– Continue to follow my gallbladder protocol so I have a good ultrasound in February. This protocol is totally self-imposed and I haven’t written about it in detail because I’m not a medical professional and I have no clue if it’s actually working. My next ultrasound is in February and if the polyps have grown, they want to take out my gallbladder. I can’t go into the ultrasound without doing everything in my power to have an awesome result. Obviously a lot of it is out of my control, but I’m all about taking every step I possibly can. I really, really don’t want to have another surgery for a very long time so I’m crossing my fingers that I can keep my gallbladder. 

– Stay consistent with my current routine. I feel like I’ve hit a stride with my workout routine and love the mix of classes I’m currently taking. Each week, it’s a mix of Orangetheory, Telos (CrossFit-ish), barre, hot yoga, Peloton, outdoor hikes, and Les Mills On Demand workouts I’ll do at home. It’sfun to mix it up depending on what I’m subbing and how I feel that week. Nutrition-wise, I stopped counting macros a while ago (I feel like it was too much for my gallbladder to eat when I wasn’t actually hungry) and am just trying to get in protein, produce, whole grains, healthy fats, and lots of water. 

Family:

Make it through the first year of airlines (and I’m not even the person flying the planes lol). Whooooaaaaaa we’re halfway there. We’re definitely having a party when we hit 2nd year!

Keep supporting our babies in any way possible. I just love them so much and want them to know I’m always their advocate.

Really start to figure out a budget and long-term plans. This is something we’re going to work on for the following year, especially since we have some big long-term financial goals. I guess I’ll dust off my old Excel skills and get a spreadsheet together. 

Focus on things that fulfill my soul:

– Audition for choir (again). You guys know the choir audition I bombed? I’m going for it again. If it doesn’t work out, there are a few other local options to explore. I think that singing again would make my heart happy and a choir feels like a safe bet. 

– Join a volunteer organization. I always say I want to volunteer more and end up feeling overwhelmed with options and don’t end up doing it as often as I’d like. We’re going to be joining a specific organization that has requirements and I’m excited because the Pilot and I are going to do it together, and will also be held accountable.

– Reading every night before bed. I enjoy it so much and sleep better when I read for even 15-20 minutes before crashing. 

– Meditate at some point each morning. I’ve been using the Calm app and love it! My tips for starting a meditation practice are here. 

– Make time to hang out with friends and other couples. We’re at a point in life where it can be tough to get together with friends. I was doing a cooking club here in Tucson, but after a couple of months, no one could make it because everyone is shuffling kids to dance class and sports practice/games. I’ve found that with young kiddos and such a busy schedule, you won’t hang out with friends if you don’t make the time and concrete plans. (Instead of “Let’s meet up this week!” it has to be something like, “Do you want to grab breakfast at 10 on Friday?”) Since I work from home and the Pilot is gone a lot, I feel a bit more sane and happy when I have time to meet up with friends.

Pick up some regular fitness classes to teach. I’ve been subbing classes at a couple of studios, but didn’t take any of my own classes mostly because of childcare. I put it out to the universe (= Facebook) that I wanted to start teaching a couple of my own classes in the new year and was offered a HIIT class where I’m subbing that will start in February. I’m excited to be teaching more regularly again!

Continue therapy. I started seeing an incredible therapist the morning my grandfather passed away. I had made the appointment over a month in advance and figured I couldn’t cancel it, because if you ever needed a therapy appointment, that would be the day you should take one. So I went, and sat in her office and sobbed for 30 minutes. She told me that her office loved tears and I needed to truly feel everything I was feeling, and since then, she’s wrapped me in so much kindness and compassion. She’s become an extremely valued member of my tribe and even though I only see her every couple of weeks, it’s changed my life. It’s helped so much with my anxiety and my relationships, and if you are on the fence about therapy in the New Year, do it. It’s so worth it. 

Travel: 

– Traveling is one of my very favorite things, so I’m hoping for more in 2020! It gives us a chance to fully be present and enjoy time with each other while exploring a new, or beloved place. We have a cruise planned already (YEAHHH) and I’m also hoping we can start planning our next Italy trip. 

Professional:

– Finally find time to focus on SEO. It’s a wonder that my blog has survived this long considering that I know nothing about SEO. I’ve picked up a couple of tips over the past couple of years but I have no idea what I’m doing. I’m going to take a course and also am looking to hire an SEO expert to help me update old posts that are performing well. 

– Hire an editorial assistant. I have a couple of amazing team members who help behind-the-scenes with Pinterest, editing (not this post since I’m writing it the night before it goes live so sorry for the typos…), and Beautycounter. I’m looking for someone local who can help with filming/editing and kitchen days so I can post more recipes in the new year. 

– Update the podcast more consistently and focus on producing video content more consistently. 

– Work on opening my own studio. It may be next year, it may be 5 years from now, but it’s a huge goal of mine. 

– Run more online challenges through the blog. HIIT Bootcamp was so much fun (we’re going to do another one towards the end of January!) and I’d love to create more video packs with full calendars to follow. 

– Hit Senior Director with Beautycounter. Beautycounter has become one of the best things I’ve added to my business, especially because it’s given me the opportunity to connect with some many incredible friends and women, while creating an additional income stream. I’d love to hit Senior Director this year! You can read more about what it’s like being a Beautycounter consultant here. 

– Finish my second book! I signed my second book deal in December and I’m so excited to get this one out into the world! I’ll share more details when I can, but it’s geared more towards my beginner friends who are just getting started. 

If you made it to the end of this post, here’s a high five because this was a long one! 

Thank you so much for being here with me on the crazy 2019 ride. Thank you for being here and being so amazing. I can’t help but feel like I dropped the ball a bit this year (especially on the podcast and posting as much as I’d like) but I have a feeling that 2020 is going to be a good one. Honestly, if I get lots of time with the fam, a good report on the gallbladder front, and make a lot of cheese boards, I’m calling it a win. 

Cheers to the new year! Tell me, friends: what goals do you have set? Please share a personal and professional goal with me in the comments – I’d love to hear them!

xoxo

Gina

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[sarahburness]

3 Healing Practices That Can Free You from Ego-Based Pain

“Our practice rather than being about killing the ego is about simply discovering our true nature.” ~Sharon Salzberg

One of the symptoms of living in today’s fast-paced world is the underlying feeling of loneliness, overwhelm, and disconnection. Chronically stressed and under financial and familial pressures, we often feel alone in the world, out of touch with others, overwhelmed by our emotions, and disconnected from our own bodies and ourselves.

Our world is ego-driven. We constantly compare ourselves to others, judge our performance (usually harshly), define our worth by our financial and career achievements, and criticize ourselves for failure.

This ego-based drive for success and happiness is of course ineffective. We keep wanting more, never feeling quite satisfied. And that’s because our definition of happiness as something that can be obtained externally is fundamentally misguided.

It’s a good thing to achieve external success and take pride in what we’ve accomplished through hard work. However, happiness comes when we feel fulfilled, and in order to feel fulfilled we need more than material possessions and accolades—we need to feel loved and that we belong.

This feeling was always fleeting for me growing up. A difficult childhood and my highly sensitive personality meant I grew up believing that there was something wrong with me. Feeling deeply insecure, and without an anchor at home, I had hard time making friends and felt mostly misunderstood, hurt, and alone.

Eventually, chaos at home and bullies at school led me to disconnect, both from my body and myself. I didn’t feel like I belonged anywhere, so I made myself small, almost disappearing behind a veil of hurt, fear, and shame.

I associated my body with pain, and love with getting hurt. Living in my head was safe, and so I put up big walls around my heart and decided to make the best of what I was given.

I compensated for internal pain and emptiness with external validation: straight A’s, degrees, a career in high tech, people pleasing, perfecting, performing, putting on a mask to make myself look better than I felt. Eventually, I found love and friends, but the internal angst was still there, unexamined.

Unbeknownst to me, my ego was in control and the driving force behind my constant search for approval and validation. This perpetual state of searching for contentment kept me feeling empty, unhappy, and alone.

Running from yourself can only work for so long. Eventually, the walls I built became my prison.

I had to face my pain, confront my fears, and unleash the chains I’d built around my heart so that I could go on living, not just functioning.

If I wanted a fulfilled life, I had to look inside and find love there first. I had to undo years of disconnect and pain, and reconnect with my body and my heart. I had to recalibrate my life toward inner peace and joy, and away from self-focus, fear, and my perceived brokenness and separateness.

Over the years I spent healing and getting back to myself, I discovered that some practices can help us drop the swelled up ego just enough so that we can embrace our life with love. Those practices include…

Reconnecting with Our Body

At some point in our lives, most of us went through a traumatic experience that left us feeling disconnected from our body. Childhood abuse, sexual trauma, a car accident—all those experiences can lead to disembodiment.

Even if we were lucky enough to avoid trauma, we live in a world of chronic stress and overwhelm, which puts a lot of strain on our bodies. We often operate in “survival mode” and experience chronic muscle tension, fatigue, and pain.

When our body has been the source of pain, we might want to disconnect and numb out in order to protect ourselves from the hurt. We end up living in our head, often completely unaware of what is going on in our body.

Getting back in touch with our body is the first step in healing our soul, opening our heart, and dropping our ego. And yoga is a perfect tool here.

Yoga is a gentle practice that can help us reconnect us with our body. Yoga means unity, between the body and mind. With breath as an anchor, flowing through poses while holding ourselves gently, we center and reconnect with ourselves in the present moment.

We get out of our head (and our ego-based identity), and back to our body and our true self. We quiet the mind, softening its grip as we turn to movement, being fully present and aware.

As we tune into each pose, we begin to feel every part of our body. We start cultivating a close relationship with ourselves, exploring our own feelings, thoughts, and relationships to the poses. Yoga becomes an intimate practice for self-exploration and self-acceptance. And it slowly dissolves the ego as your heart takes center stage.

Certain poses are particularly good for grounding and centering , like child’s pose, tree pose, and warrior poses. There are also many heart-opening poses—like camel, bow, or bridge poses—most of which focus on rotating our shoulders, opening our ribs, and doing backbends, which release muscle tension and unlock sensation in the heart center (also great for anxiety relief).

Kundalini yoga is another practice for awakening and healing our energy body and releasing trauma/blocks, whether in our heart center, root center, or elsewhere.

The important thing is to focus less on the “exercise” component of it and more on the mind-body-heart connection that happens when you slow down and become really present in your practice.

Befriending and Taming our Mind

Once we’ve reconnected with our bodies, we need to befriend our mind, which can easily be overwhelmed by fears, worries, doubts, self-criticism, and obsessive thoughts. We can do that through meditation.

Mindfulness meditation specifically helps us cultivate a sense of awareness and teaches us to look inward, observe our experience, and learn to let go. It brings to our attention the impermanence of life—as our thoughts and sensations change constantly, so does our experience. This means we can let go of our grip and take life as is, moment by moment.

With the breath anchoring us in the present moment, we gain a sense of freedom from our past troubles and future worries. Our fears fall away and freedom sets in—freedom to choose how we experience life that’s in front of us.

With practice, we learn to notice feelings, and emotions underneath those feeling, and the thoughts underneath those. There’s a freedom in that too—freedom to choose to not buy into those thoughts, to let go of them and choose differently. We learn to respond wisely to what’s in front of us, choosing love instead of reacting from our unconscious programming and out of learned fear.

By observing our thoughts and sensations we learn to recognize when we are afraid, hurt, angry, or ashamed, and that awareness is what allows our ego to fall away.

We begin to understand the meaning behind our experience and surround ourselves with compassion for our pain, holding ourselves with tenderness and care. We learn to drop our fears and our beliefs about ourselves and the world, and begin to live from our heart, our authentic self.

When we meditate, we start to gain a better understanding of ourselves, and our way of being starts to shift. We come into wholeness, the realization that our lives are both joyful and painful, and no, we are not damaged, we’re simply human. And the best thing we can do is to love ourselves in this moment, to offer ourselves the care and compassion we need in order to feel soothed and safe. And then we can extend that love and care to others as well. We all suffer and have moments of struggle; this simple acknowledgement can open our heart and connect us all.

In moment of chaos or anxiety, when our mind is restless or overwhelmed, we can do simple practices that will calm our mind and tame our inner dialogue. A particularly nourishing practice is Tara Brach’s RAIN of self-compassion meditation. By observing our thoughts and feelings without judgment—the core of mindfulness meditation—we can shift from pain to compassion in a gentle way.

Another practice to try is loving-kindness meditation popularized by Sharon Salzberg.

And if sitting meditation is too hard for us, we can tap into a meditative state through movement. Rhythmic exercises such as walking, swimming, or dancing can help integrate our body-mind and reset the nervous system through the rhythmic flow of movements that will relax and soothe our mind. These will ground us in the present moment so that we can be there for ourselves, and others.

Accepting and Rewriting our Story

If we’ve been running from our pain for a long time, as I once did, this pain becomes our story; our ego is entangled in it. It’s time to untangle and release it so that we can make a new ending. It’s time to rewrite our story.

I’ve found journaling to be particularly helpful because it allows me to explore my thoughts and feelings without worrying about being judged, criticized, or rejected for who I really am.

Through journaling, we can uncover our inner pain and suffering and bring to the conscious our fears of feeling not good enough, unlovable, and ultimately alone.

As we explore our deepest thoughts and try to make sense of our experience, we begin to discern our true feelings from adaptations and programming that we’ve accumulated over our lifetime—messages we received from our family, peers, and society as a whole. We tap into our inner wisdom and intuition, and gain a new perspective on ourselves and the events in our lives.

Writing is like having a deep conversation with ourselves. Faced with our shame, grief, and the sheer depth of our pain, we learn to offer ourselves the compassion and care we’ve been searching for outside of ourselves. Tending to the wounds we’ve been avoiding, we develop empathy for ourselves as a vulnerable and wounded person.

Journaling is the ultimate release; we can drop our masks and explore our hang-ups and limitations head on. We slowly unpack our deep-seated beliefs, bringing them to light. This deepens our inner knowing, helping us examine and change our beliefs about ourselves and the world. As we release the pain we’ve been holding onto our whole life, our hearts begin to soften, our armor drops, and our story changes.

There are two main ways you can journal to heal: expressive writing and prompt-based writing.

To begin expressive writing, relax your body and close your eyes. Look inward and wait for thoughts to arrive. Begin writing them down without censoring yourself. Spill it all out onto paper, letting your unconscious step forward, giving it a voice. Bring up your real feelings about yourself and the world—and not just what you’ve been conditioned to believe.

Prompt-based writing can help you think about how your family history, your cultural background, and your religion have all played roles in why you are the way you are.

For example:

How did your family of origin show (or withhold) love?

What are you most ashamed about regarding your family?

What did you not get as a child that you are now seeking as an adult?

How was anger expressed or repressed in your family growing up?

By examining your past and what shaped you, you can shed a light on your unconscious patterns and the beliefs that you accepted as truths. This is the first step in changing them and rewriting your story.

—

These three practices—yoga, mindfulness, and journaling—helped me heal, reconnect with myself, and learn to love myself, and self-love is a prerequisite to feeling the love and belonging that leads to happiness.

Whether you’ve experienced some sort of trauma or you’ve disconnected from yourself as a consequence of living in our stressed out, achievement-focused world, these practices can help you too.

By making a little time to reconnect with your body, befriend your mind, and rewrite old stories that no longer serve you, you’ll soon stop being a slave to your ego and start living a freer, happier, more authentic life.

About Joanna Ciolek

Joanna Ciolek is a self-taught artist, recovering self-critic, and a firm believer in the transformative powers of mindfulness. She runs a free 20-week mindful self-discovery course to help others overcome self-defeating patterns and build self-compassion. She is also the author The Art Of Untangling, a writing journal/coloring workbook for deeper self-inquiry, healing and transformation! Follow Joanna on Twitter and Instagram.

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