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- Learning the Importance of Saying No - by Submitted on Apr 19, 2017 from Merryl LentzIt's only a two-letter word. It's small and simple. Tiny, even. Microscopic. Yet it's sometimes one of the hardest words to say in the English language. It's the word "no." But there are times when saying "yes" to the word "no" can be profoundly liberating, and can assist you in staying true to ...
Views: 1131 - What's Up With These people? - by Submitted on Apr 17, 2017 from Rick HansonResearch shows that relationships are built from interactions, and interactions are built from moments. A critical moment in an interaction is when one person wants something from the other one. ("Wants" include wishes, needs, desires, hopes, and longings.) The want could be simple and concrete, ...
Views: 521 - FAQs about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy - by Submitted on Apr 11, 2017 from Karen Kerschmann, LCSWOver the years, I’ve found that there are some questions that I’ve asked time and again about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and how it works. Thought I’d share them with you- please comment if there are others you’d like me to address in future blogs! WHAT IS COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY ...
Views: 646 - FAQs about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy - by Submitted on Apr 11, 2017 from Karen Kerschmann, LCSWOver the years, I’ve found that there are some questions that I’ve asked time and again about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and how it works. Thought I’d share them with you- please comment if there are others you’d like me to address in future blogs! WHAT IS COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY ...
Views: 637 - Two Simple Approaches to Get Out of the Power Struggle with your Teen - by Submitted on Apr 11, 2017 from Karen Kerschmann, LCSWPlenty of parents call me this time of year, exhausted and tell me, “my teen needs therapy stat!” or “I was fine raising my child but now that he/she’s an adolescent I’m at a loss”. Parenting a teenager is a new and scary experience for most, and to shift how you interact with your children can ...
Views: 870 - Who’s Left Off Your Gift List? - by Submitted on Apr 10, 2017 from Rick HansonCan you remember a time when you offered a gift to someone? Perhaps a holiday present, or a treat to a child, or taking time for a friend – or anything at all. How did this feel? Researchers have found that giving stimulates the same neural networks that light up when we feel physical pleasure, ...
Views: 496 - Breathing - by Submitted on Apr 04, 2017 from Mary FitzpatrickWe all want to feel comfortable in our bodies, and in our lives. The simple act of breathing, or focused relaxation can have surprising physical and mental health benefits. Research shows us that meditation or focused relaxation helps ward off disease by strengthening our immune systems, ...
Views: 926 - Are You Thinking Too Much? - by Submitted on Apr 03, 2017 from Rick HansonThe traditional saying that's this week's practice has been sinking in for me lately. Thoughts have been swirling around like a sandstorm about work, things I've been reading, household tasks, finances, concerns about people, a yard that needs mowing, loose ends, projects, etc. etc. The other ...
Views: 623 - When Are You? - by Submitted on Mar 27, 2017 from Rick HansonThere’s a profound and miraculous mystery right under our noses: this instant of now has no duration at all, yet somehow it contains all the causes from the past that are creating the future. Everything arising to become this moment vanishes beneath our feet as the next moment wells up. Since ...
Views: 568 - SPRING 2017 SOUL-LEVEL CURRICULUM: The Karmic Consequences of Entitlement (and it might not be what you think) - by Submitted on Mar 23, 2017 from joan pancoeTO SEE ALL IMAGES and activate links, PLEASE VIEW IN BROWSER: /joanpancoe.com/page-newsletter-details.php?nl=114 “We have the wrong perception that we are separate from the other. So, in a way, Trump is a product of a certain way of being in this world so it is very easy to have him as ...
Views: 1143(1 vote) - FIND YOUR JOY - by Submitted on Mar 22, 2017 from Emperor HarvardFIND YOUR JOY.... Part 1 (the Edge of negativity) Truth be told, sadness, grieve, hardship, and negativity is the order of the day. From the very moment you wake up on a new day, to the close of the day, there is a likelihood that you would be bombarded with all forms of negativity, from ...
Views: 904 - How to take responsibility for your own happiness! - by Submitted on Mar 22, 2017 from Martin Hrnyak“Ships don’t sink because of the water around them; ships sink because of the water that gets in them. Don’t let what’s happening around you get inside you and weigh you down.” -Unknown To the above quote, the self-proclaimed realist might answer “But I am not a boat and my problems aren’t ...
Views: 848(1 vote) - Do You Bear a Grudge? - by Submitted on Mar 20, 2017 from Rick HansonGoodwill and ill will are about intention: the will is for good or ill. These intentions are expressed through action and inaction, word and deed, and-especially-thoughts. How do you feel when you sense another person taking potshots at you in her mind? What does it feel like to take potshots of ...
Views: 630 - 10 Must-Try Ways of Loving Yourself Through Your Divorce - by Submitted on Mar 15, 2017 from Mike SmithGetting a divorce is one of the toughest and possibly lowest points in anyone’s life. In fact, fully getting through a divorce can even take years for some people. With this in mind, there’s no harm in trying to make living through a divorce easier for yourself. After all, there is no way ...
Views: 981 - Do People Ever Make You Mad? - by Submitted on Mar 14, 2017 from Rick HansonAs the most social and loving species on the planet, we have the wonderful ability and inclination to connect with others, be empathic, cooperate, care, and love. On the other hand, we also have the capacity and inclination to be fearfully aggressive toward any individual or group we regard as ...
Views: 563 - Can You Come Home To Yourself? - by Submitted on Mar 06, 2017 from Rick HansonMeditation is to the mind what aerobic exercise is to the body. Like exercise, there are many good ways to do it and you can find the one that suits you best. Studies have shown that regular meditation promotes mindfulness (sustained observing awareness), whose benefits include decreased ...
Views: 604 - Are You Doing Too Much? - by Submitted on Feb 21, 2017 from Rick HansonYou may have seen the old Mickey Mouse movie in which he is working at a conveyor belt in a factory. More and more widgets come at him that he has to handle, and he gets increasingly frazzled as he struggles to keep up. Do you ever feel the same way? Think about all the dishes, emails, ...
Views: 577 - What's Precious To You? - by Submitted on Feb 14, 2017 from Rick HansonThe word, sacred, has two kinds of meanings. First, it can refer to something related to religion or spirituality. Second, more broadly, it can refer to something that one cherishes, that is precious, to which one is respectfully, even reverently, dedicated, such as honesty with one's life ...
Views: 539 - E-motions= Energy in Motion Part One of Two - by Submitted on Feb 12, 2017 from Sharon ShoresNikola Tesla said: “If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.” In this blog in part one I talk about emotions, the energy and vibrations of emotions. I will also be talking about how emotions impact us and potentially even future ...
Views: 922 - What's The Hurry? - by Submitted on Feb 06, 2017 from Rick HansonAs I was meditating this morning, our cat hopped up in my lap. It felt sweet to sit there with him. And yet - even though I was feeling fine and had plenty of time, there was this internal pressure to start zipping along with emails and calls and all the other clamoring minutiae of the ...
Views: 536 - To What Is Your Mind Given? - by Submitted on Jan 31, 2017 from Rick HansonI'm old enough to remember a time when people usually answered "good" when you asked them the standard, "How are you?" (often said "harya?"). These days the answer is commonly "busy." In the last few months I've been very busy myself and starting to feel dispersed: juggling a dozen priorities ...
Views: 560 - Positive Mental Attitude - by Submitted on Jan 31, 2017 from Mitra ShahidiWe control our mental attitude by positive attitude not by rules. Change your mental attitude, and the world around you will change accordingly It is our own mental attitude which makes the world what it is for us. Our thought make things beautiful, our thoughts make things ugly. The whole ...
Views: 952 - Why Being "Crazy" Is The Only Way To Evolve - by Submitted on Jan 30, 2017 from Geoff BladesThose of you who have been around here for a while and know how I roll, know that part of my life is exploring how deep the rabbit hole goes. It’s “crazy” to tell a “normal” person that you do meditation and hypnosis a couple of hours a day because you perceive that world to be deeper than ...
Views: 1000 - Pessimistic? It may be a result of THIS! - by Submitted on Jan 27, 2017 from Taryn DeCiccoThis article was originally posted at http://www.apple-a-day-clinic.com/Health_and_Nutrition_Blog?m8:post=pessimistic-it-may-be-a-result-of-this Most people assume their personality type is written in stone, but that may not be the case. Pessimism, a personality type is characterized by ...
Views: 848 - Ramana Maharishi’s Message – A Promotor and a Sustainer of the Inward Journey - by Submitted on Jan 30, 2017 from Gopalakrishnan ChandrasekaranGenaral Known as the Sage of Arunachala, Ramana Maharishi lived in Tiruvannamalai, a town in southern India. His esoteric messages can take people to higher levels of consciousness making them sense a radical departure from the habitual neurology. The Sanskrit word Maharishi refers to a ...
Views: 1108 - ***Loving Yourself Fiercely and Relentlessly - by Submitted on Jan 23, 2017 from Margaret PaulBy Margaret Paul, PhD January 23, 2017 How fiercely and relentlessly devoted are you to wanting to love yourself and wanting to learn to treat yourself lovingly? Gerard sat opposite me at one of my Inner Bonding Intensives. "My body hurts and I feel irritated," he complained, in a ...
Views: 776 - Are You Breathing? - by Submitted on Jan 23, 2017 from Rick Hanson[If for you the breath is associated with trauma and discomfort, you probably shouldn't try this practice in its form below. But you might adapt it to something that is more nurturing for you, such as a saying or image.] Breathing brings you home. Body and mind twine together in the breath. ...
Views: 597 - "Feeling ALL Our Feelings" - by Submitted on Jan 17, 2017 from Barry and Joyce VissellThere are popular feelings: joy, happiness, love and affection, to name a few. And then there are unpopular feelings: anger, sadness, grief, hurt, and fear, among others. Most of us tend to hide the unpopular feelings and, instead, only feel and show the popular ones. If we want integrity and ...
Views: 1010 - ***Loving Yourself When Public Speaking - by Submitted on Jan 16, 2017 from Margaret PaulBy Margaret Paul, Ph.D. January 16, 2017 Has giving talks or presentations been scary for you? Discover why and what to do about it. Michael, one of my clients, asked me for help in one of our phone sessions: "I have to give a presentation to my boss and others on our staff on Friday. ...
Views: 760 - Where Are You Headed? - by Submitted on Jan 16, 2017 from Rick HansonThe Practice. I recently did a meditation retreat (at Spirit Rock, wonderful place, including for workshops). One evening as we walked out of the hall after the last sit, I was feeling rattled and discombobulated. (One of the benefits of a retreat - though it can be uncomfortable - is that it ...
Views: 596 - Fighting for My Mental Health: Battling My Insurance Company for Coverage - by Submitted on Jan 13, 2017 from B.L. AckerI have struggled with depression my entire life. Before I even knew what mental illness was, back in a time when it was the gorilla in the room that nobody talked about, I knew something was different within myself. Off. Wrong. Unlike many people suffering from depression that can pinpoint a ...
Views: 1152 - Negativity Not Allowed - by Submitted on Jan 12, 2017 from Judi MoreoNegativity Not Allowed - Determined Optimism It seems like every conversation I have had with someone lately, they have brought up the terrible state of the economy. I’ve started off many conversations with my friends this week with the sentence, “No negativity allowed.” I refuse to accept ...
Views: 1319 - A Powerful Concept to Alter Children’s Behavior - by Submitted on Jan 10, 2017 from Gary Direnfeldhere is a Jewish word that doesn’t translate directly into English, but it informs my attitude to people who have undergone hardship and need help. Translated, the word is a hybrid of several concepts, not standing alone on any one, but really the combination of all. The concepts or words ...
Views: 762 - Wishing well? - by Submitted on Jan 09, 2017 from Rick HansonLately, I've been wondering what would be on my personal list of top five practices (all tied for first place). You might ask yourself the same question, knowing that you can cluster related practices under a single umbrella, your list may differ from mine, and your practices may change over ...
Views: 600 - TOP TEN REASONS to CELEBRATE 2017 (Even if “Send in the Clowns” is the inaugural theme song) - by Submitted on Jan 04, 2017 from joan pancoe“Don't you love a farce? My fault, I fear I thought that you'd want what I want sorry, my dear But where are the clowns? There ought to be clowns Quick, send in the clowns Don't bother They're here” Dear One, Happy New Year! As 2017 begins, I’ve ...
Views: 1382(1 vote) - What Can I Do? - by Submitted on Jan 04, 2017 from Rick HansonI'm doing a series on my personal top five practices (all tied for first place), and have so far named three: meditate (including mindfulness, self-awareness, and, if you like, prayer), take in the good, and bless (including compassion, generosity, and love). I saw one way to bless on a ...
Views: 504 - Is There Enough? - by Submitted on Dec 26, 2016 from Rick HansonOne slice of the pie of life feels relaxed and contented. And then there is that other slice, in which we feel driven and stressed. Trying to get pleasures, avoid pains, pile up accomplishments and recognitions, be loved by more people. Lose more weight, try to fill the hole in the heart. Slake ...
Views: 894 - Control Your Anger - by Submitted on Dec 23, 2016 from Mitra ShahidiControl your anger or it will control you. Control your anger as it can cloud your ability to make good decisions and find creative solutions to problems. It can negatively affect your work performance. With insight about the real reasons for your anger and learning anger management ...
Views: 1042 - What's Carrying You? - by Submitted on Dec 20, 2016 from Rick HansonFeeling both the world and myself these days, one phrase keeps calling: lived by love. Explicitly, this means coming from love in a broad sense, from compassion, good intentions, self-control, warmth, finding what's to like, caring, connecting, and kindness. Implicitly, and more ...
Views: 497 - *** Loving Yourself Through Holiday Stress - by Submitted on Dec 19, 2016 from Margaret PaulBy Margaret Paul, PhD December 19, 2016 ________________________________________ Do the holidays and other family events or gatherings stress you out? Discover what might be the underlying cause of this stress and what to do about it. ________________________________________ "OMG, ...
Views: 655 - What Are You Bracing Against? - by Submitted on Dec 13, 2016 from Rick HansonThe title of this practice is a little tongue-in-cheek. What I mean is, most of us - me included - spend time worrying about criticism: past, present, and even future. Yes, try hard, keep agreements, "don't be evil," etc. But sooner or later - usually sooner - someone is going to point out the ...
Views: 520 - Are You Getting Rope Burn? - by Submitted on Dec 05, 2016 from Rick HansonAs a rock climber and a parent, I know some physical kinds of clinging are good - like to small holds or small hands! But clinging as a psychological state has a feeling of tension in it, and drivenness, insistence, obsession, or compulsion. As experiences flow through the mind - seeing, ...
Views: 618 - Mirror, Mirror, On The Wall, What Are The Deepest Wants Of All? - by Submitted on Nov 28, 2016 from Rick HansonI did my Ph.D. dissertation by videotaping 20 mother-toddler pairs and analyzing what happened when the mom offered an alternative to a problematic want ("not the chainsaw, sweetie, how about this red truck"). Hundreds of bleary eyed hours later, I found that offering alternatives reduced child ...
Views: 563 - 5 Tips for Obtaining Mind and Body Balance - by Submitted on Nov 26, 2016 from James BurbankEstablishing a balance between body and mind is vital for the general well-being of a person. Body and mind are inextricably connected, so everything we think about, affects our body in a certain way. Just think about how many times you’ve heard people say they have a headache, and after a ...
Views: 809 - What Is Your Sense Of Peace? - by Submitted on Nov 21, 2016 from Rick Hanson“Peace” can sound merely sentimental or clichéd (“visualize whirled peas”). But deep down, it’s what most of us long for. Consider the proverb: The highest happiness is peace. Not a peace inside that ignores pain in oneself or others, or is acquired by shutting down. This is a durable peace, ...
Views: 537 - What Can I Do? - by Submitted on Nov 14, 2016 from Rick HansonI'm doing a series on my personal top five practices (all tied for first place), and have so far named three: meditate (including mindfulness, self-awareness, and, if you like, prayer), take in the good, and bless (including compassion, generosity, and love). I saw one way to bless on a ...
Views: 542 - What Are You Resisting? - by Submitted on Nov 07, 2016 from Rick HansonAs general clusters that each include a number of specific methods, my Top 5 types of practices (all tied for first place) are: * Be mindful * Love * Take in the good * Go green * Open out So far, I’ve written about the first four of these clusters, and you can click the links just above ...
Views: 604 - How To Let Go Of The Past And Forgive Yourself - by Submitted on Nov 01, 2016 from Mitra Shahidi“In the process of letting go you will lose many things from the past, but you will find yourself.” ~ Deepak Chopra There is no life without emotional scars; no one escapes flawless; no one can claim perfection without committing mockery upon himself. Jesus, the great example of humility for ...
Views: 1217 - How To Stop Having Negative Thoughts - by Submitted on Nov 01, 2016 from Mitra ShahidiLet go of negative thinking as it can become a habit of mind, and it can have a serious, sometimes devastating impact on all aspects of your life. It seems unfortunately that with most people, positive thinking requires some effort, whereas, negative thinking comes easily and often ...
Views: 1162 - Who Are You Resisting? - by Submitted on Oct 31, 2016 from Rick HansonI admit it: whether close to home or far away, I wish some people were different. Depending on who they are, I wish they'd stop doing things like leaving cabinet doors open in our kitchen, sending me spam emails, or turning a blind eye to global warming. And I wish they'd start doing things like ...
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