I recently had a conversation with a client who was pondering the fact that death is the ultimate act of release. She wisely pointed out that some things are easier to release than others, and I am inspired by the way she is actively practicing letting go in different areas of life.
All humans have attachments. That’s completely normal. However the more attached we are, the more we fight to hold on to the thing we are attached to.
When we become truly attached to something, we will fight to keep it even when it damages our wellbeing. The thought of losing it creates distress and anxiety. For example, for the alcoholic, the thought of living without daily alcohol may cause panic, even if she is aware that the alcohol is damaging her health in many ways.
Some people remain in abusive relationships because they cannot imagine a life without the person who is abusing them. Some people choose to remain in extremely stressful jobs that cause health problems because they can’t imagine earning their big salary any other way. We can become attached to all kinds of beliefs that create fear and anxiety. (I’m not ‘whatever’ – smart, thin, rich, worthy, healthy, pretty, educated, experienced – enough.)
An infinite variety of manufactured foods deplete our energy and damage our health. These have been designed specifically to be addicting in order to drive up corporate profits. People often reach for these addictive foods to soothe themselves long after we realize the effect that food is having on our health. It’s hard to give up a food or an addiction that makes us feel better!
Habitual thoughts and behaviors can also limit our potential for optimum happiness and wellbeing. Judgement and self-criticism are two of the biggest limiting behaviors that humans develop by way of constant cultural conditioning.
Give it up!
I know it’s not easy to release something that is woven into the fabric of our lives! However, I invite you to begin playing with letting go of whatever it is that’s limiting you. If there is something you can’t imagine your life without, I encourage you to begin imagining your life without it.
Play with letting go of judgement and criticism and see how it feels. What happens to your energy? Your mood? Imagine doing the kind of job that leaves you happy and satisfied at the end of the day. What would that look like for you? I’m not asking you to figure out HOW to leave your crappy job and find a lucrative career you adore, I’m just inviting you to imagine that it is POSSIBLE.
Imagination is the first step of manifestation.
Practice letting go of anything that no longer serves you. If your food choices are not helping you manifest optimum health, practice letting go of some of those foods for awhile to see how you feel. You can always go back to those foods later if you want, but at least allow yourself to experience what it’s like to let them go for a few weeks. What’s the worst that could happen? You might feel better!
Do you HATE to work out, and prefer being sedentary? Imagine yourself deeply enjoying some FUN kind of movement that feels good to your body. I’m not asking you to go join a gym, I’m asking you to imagine yourself enjoying movement. I’m encouraging you to give up the idea that you hate moving your body. Play with some new ways to move that MIGHT feel good to you, and just IMAGINE doing them for awhile. Maybe you’ll get inspired to move. What’s the worst that could happen? You might really have fun!
When we play with letting go of anything that limits us, we can begin optimizing our health, wealth, and unlimited potential!
Grow on!
What’s holding you back? What habitual patterns would you love to release? What does it feel like when you imagine releasing them? What are you ready to release? What are you ready to IMAGINE yourself releasing? How will your life be different when you release that?
Need some help? If you want help releasing what’s holding you back, schedule a chat with me to see if coaching can help you move from where you are to where you’d LOVE to be!
Project your energy wherever you wish to be. It’s really easy.
Begin with a FAVORITE memory, one so good that’s it’s still ALIVE in your mind, like you are still in that moment when you think about it.
One I return to frequently is a particular lanai of a condo I once rented in Kona. I spent many magical hours watching the ocean roll in to the Kona Reef. I’m always up hours too early in Hawaii due to the time difference, so I would savor a cup of coffee on the lanai and watch morning break over the reef, letting the sound of the waves meditate me.
When I close my eyes, it takes almost no effort to call that feeling – that energy – of glorious perfection back to me, as if I were still there.
I milk it. I let it feed my soul. I plug into it deliberately to charge my spiritual batteries. In those moments, I AM in Kona looking out over the reef. I am present to the sight, sounds, taste, smell, and even the feel of the breeze and salt spray! It doesn’t matter if my body is in California, my essence – the energy of my True self – is fully experiencing being in Hawaii.
As many of you know, I also do this a LOT with Croatia.
I live in Croatia in my mind sometimes because it gives me GREAT joy to do so. I love to promote things that make me happy, so when more than one friend asked me recently to help them plan trips to Croatia, I may have gotten a little swept up in the idea!
It took about two days to put it together, but it was like being in Croatia for a weekend! I swear when I had to go somewhere on Sunday, I felt like I just returned from an amazing vacation!
But I digress. I was speaking of being in two places at once.
I invite you to practice putting your energy back into a very pleasant memory. When you feel your energy lift, you’re doing it right. Practice with happy memories until you get the hang of it.
Then start practicing putting your energy where you WANT it to be – wherever that is. Allow yourself to FEEL yourself in that next travel adventure. Feel yourself being happy, satisfied, and financially independent in your new career. Imagine yourself in the arms of your perfect partner, content, confident, and emotionally held.
Imagine BEING in that moment and let the joy you feel charge your batteries! Enjoying these moments causes the Universe to bring more things to us that FEEL like what we are enjoying.
Imagination is the first step in manifestation.
I once had a client tell me that she never dared think of herself in relationship with her perfect partner because it instantly made her sad that the relationship wasn’t real (yet). Her goal was to attract her soulmate, but she refused to imagine herself achieving that goal!
Anything we want is for no other reason than we think it will make us feel happy. Allowing our energy to feel that happiness NOW brings that happiness – that manifestation – to us more quickly, BECAUSE – say it with me…
I am planning my next trip to Croatia. I think about all the fun we have created there. I put myself on top of the Walls of Dubrovnik in the sunshine with a camera in my hand and a sea breeze in my face almost every day. It never fails to make me feel on top of the world.
Sharing that joy with you, and the world helps me manifest my next travel adventure, my next friendship, my next great joy. Creating those two pages was FUN. It put me right where I wanted to be, and it thrilled me to my toes. The day after I shared my creation, a friend in Croatia reached out to invite me to stay!
I am thinking about what I want. I am enjoying playing with the energy, and I attract the energy I want to experience.
I am THRILLED and excited to be here with you, and to also be there with you!
Happy bilocating!
Grow on!
Find a favorite memory and milk it for all it’s worth! Journal about it. Recall it as vividly as possible until your energy remembers fully the glorious feeling of being there!
Then practice casting yourself in the starring role of living your dream – whatever your dream is. How do you feel when you accomplish it? Safe? Happy? Fulfilled? Successful? Feel that energy vibrating within you, and practice it frequently to attract MORE to you that feels like that!
If you begin to focus on the lack of the arrival of your manifestation, that’s normal! Don’t be hard on yourself. Gently shift back into the memory of joy you have practiced, and just steep in that energy awhile before projecting forward again.
When I was little, I used to lie on my grandma’s bed and listen to music on her clock radio. I was mesmerized watching the numbers flip over one minute, and hour at at a time. To a four-year-old, it seemed like magic.
In first grade they tried to teach me how to tell time using hands on a clock. I didn’t get it. Partially because I hadn’t yet been taught to multiply by five, and partially because it seemed redundant when you could just look at a magical flip clock and see the answer to what time it was if you cared to know.
My teacher sent home an angry note disparaging my analog time-telling talents. My father was furious that I was behind in this lesson. I cheerfully explained to him that it was ok, because I could get a flip-clock like grandma’s so I could always tell what time it was. He did not appreciate my optimism, and let his fury fly.
He sat me down at our dining table and slammed the worksheet down in front of me. I worked out the time on the clocks on the worksheet, and for every incorrect answer, I got smacked.
After my first wrong answer, a furious voice arose in my mind, “Do NOT get one more wrong! Do not answer until you KNOW you are correct!” I was very careful and found that when I applied myself, I could avoid the wrath. The protector in my mind helped me survive.
Over the years, the voice that arose to protect me from wrath was generally the first to hurl it. Any mistake I made was met with choruses of vehement anger. HOW could I be so stupid as to make one mistake? I am SUCH an idiot! Will I NEVER learn?
The protection from wrong answers transformed into criticism for everything that SEEMED like it MIGHT be in error. It was easy to be anxious and uncertain, and then not even try if I was the least bit unsure of myself.
I’m not telling this story to gain sympathy, I tell it to illustrate the fact that I have excellent fucking reasons for the critical voice in my head telling me NOT to fuck this up. And, I am willing to bet that if you hear constant nagging criticism in the back of your mind, you have excellent fucking reasons, too.
I also know that if you hear constant nagging criticism in the back of your mind, you’re dealing with one of the biggest stressors in life. It’s no fun, it wreaks havoc with our digestion, and it’s one of the biggest reasons that women overeat, or turn to sugary treats.
That’s right. You heard me.
If you, like millions of other women struggle with overeating or overuse of sugar, one of the biggest reasons may be the voice in your head telling you you’re a loser for reaching for the sugar again!
So, we have excellent fucking reasons for the critical voices in our heads, AND that may be one of the major causes underlying compulsive eating patterns that we deeply desire to release.
What can we do about this confusing challenge?
It’s pretty clear that we want to learn to stop being so critical of ourselves, but how do we begin to release a habit that has lasted a lifetime? It’s a process, and it takes practice!
It’s not going to happen overnight despite the critical voice telling us that our life depends on making changes NOW, or that we should have made changes yesterday. Often, just hearing the voice saying that something MUST be done is enough to induce our anxiety.
Take a deep breath, and exhale fully.
Changing the voice in our head is not only possible, it is essential, and it is life changing! Go ahead and take another deep breath, because just knowing that change is possible begins to relieve the tension – as does breathing deeply.
Somewhere to begin.
Here is a simple process I teach my clients to begin letting go of the inner critic, and ALL the stress she causes us to feel!
ABC Process
Awareness Practice becoming aware when it’s happening. For many people, it’s simply a sudden feeling of being judged or disapproved of. For others, it’s hearing full sentences of disapproval and harsh judgement. It can be different for each of us, so we need to pay attention to try and catch it in the moment we are doing it.
Once we are aware in the moment that it’s happening, we can take action. As soon as you are aware of the critic voice:
Breathe Take a nice deep grounding breath.
Choose Choose love. Choose a voice who speaks gently to you. Choose to treat yourself as you would treat someone you adore, someone you would never criticize.
Instead of criticizing yourself, choose to love yourself for being human.
It’s as simple as ABC, though it takes some practice to become aware and remember to do it in the moment. And if you don’t catch it in the moment, don’t beat yourself up.
When you do catch it with your improving Awareness – Breathe, and Choose love!
Somewhere to practice.
Letting go of the constant self-criticism takes time and practice. Three times a year, I run a two-month group for women who are ready to release self-criticism and get relief from stress, and the myriad symptoms that stress creates in our lives. We also release recreational sugar for three weeks in a fully supported, nonjudgmental way to see how much RELIEF we can create from any unwanted symptoms we are experiencing.
If this sounds like something you want to play with, you can sign up for the next Masterclass at THIS LINK, or read all the information about the upcoming Playgroup HERE.
Grow on!
Print the ABC process somewhere you will see it daily to help remind you to let go of self-criticism.
Check out full details of the next Relief through Release Playgroup at THIS LINK.
Remember that you are WORTH the investment of time and energy that it takes to be kinder to yourself!
A major factor in anyone’s ability to release excess weight is our ability to release stress. If we are under a lot of stress, or even chronic low-level stress, our insulin and cortisol levels rise. Increased insulin and cortisol can lead to:
weight gain
inability to lose weight
inability to build muscle
decreased calorie burning
increased fat deposition at midsection
increased inflammation – exacerbates every known disease
die off of good gut bacteria – leads to many types of digestive issues
wasting nutrients – we don’t get the nutrients from the foods we eat
decreased immunity – we get sick more easily
decreased energy
dysregulated appetite – we may NOT feel hungry when we need to eat, OR we may feel hungry all the time.
desensitivity to pleasure – we need MORE food to feel satiated.
decreased Mitochondrial function – can lead to muscle weakness, and organ disease
decreased Thyroid function – can lead to fatigue, weight gain, joint pain, dry skin, thinning hair, irregular menses, fertility problems, slowed heart rate, or depression.
poor sleep quality
reduced sleep quantity
So it’s clear that if we want to release excess weight, we MUST find ways to RELEASE the stress we experience in our lives.
Stress & Perception
Normal life stressors include death or illness of a family member, financial worries, work-related stress. This kind of stress can’t be avoided, but we can learn ways to diminish it, so that it has less effect on our health. We can also learn techniques to help us shift the way in which we perceive stress. Perception determines everything, and certainly colors how normal life stressors affect us.
For example: Several employees are let go from a company.
High-stress perception of the situation says loss of income is a huge setback, we’ll fall behind on bills and maybe lose our home. Now THAT will stress you out.
Low-stress perception of the same situation says that my next income will be higher, affording more economic opportunities, and that the Universe always has my back so it was obviously time to leave that position to find something better and more fulfilling for me. What a blessing! No worries, no stress.
Self-Chosen Stress
Reducing the stress in our lives is absolutely essential if one of our goals is to release excess weight, and the stress easiest to release is the self-chosen variety.
Are you kind to yourself like you would be to someone you love? Or do you criticize yourself for every perceived imperfection, belittle and shame yourself for not doing enough? Do you compare yourself to others and always judge yourself less than?
When you look at your body in the mirror, do you lavish it with love and praise for supporting and sustaining you every day of your life no matter how much you abused it? Or do you heap shame on it for not looking like some swimsuit model who’s been surgically enhanced, tucked, and airbrushed?
Self-criticism and body shame create a toxic stew of stress. It’s like living in a situation where we are being attacked every day, because we are attacking ourselves daily!
Weight release requires learning to love ourselves, or at the very LEAST, learning not to treat ourselves like shit. This process takes time, patience, and constant reminders, but pays off in improved health, happiness, and more success reaching all of our goals!
Processed Foods
Perhaps one of the most treacherous self-chosen stressors in modern life is processed foods because most people choosing them don’t even know that processed foods cause stress!
The chemicals being put into manufactured foods affect our energy and our mood. According to Dr. Joan Ifland, people who eat a diet high in processed foods tend to anger more quickly, be more anxious, and irritable.
Processed foods tend to be very low in nutrition, and poor nutrition is perceived by the body as STRESS.
Poor nutrition is also a major reason that we overeat after dinner. Our body has done the calculations, found us missing essential nutrients, and sent off alarm bells that scream, “We did not get adequate nutrition. EAT MORE FOOD!” If we reach for more processed foods, we still don’t get the nourishment our body is screaming for, but we pack on pounds from the excess empty calories.
Here in the United States, processed foods tend to be high in many kinds of sugar, wheat flours processed with roundup, GMO corn, low quality soy, and saturated fats – ALL of which cause inflammation and have the potential to disrupt digestion.
Digesting and metabolizing even one of those inflammatory ingredients is stressful on our intestines, liver, and cardio-vascular system. Digesting many of them all at once, maybe several times a day leads to serious health issues like heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
If we eat processed foods, it’s adding stress to our life in multiple ways, and most of us aren’t even aware of it!
Bottom line is that if we want to release any excess weight we may be carrying, we must begin to learn to release whatever stress it is within our power to release, including processed foods.
Processed Food Addiction
Now, if you are sitting there thinking that you can’t even imagine a life without processed foods, you are NOT alone.
A recent poll done by the University of Michigan found that older adults reported intense food cravings. Twenty four percent said that at least once a week they had such a strong urge to eat a highly processed food that they couldn’t think of anything else. Nineteen percent said that at least two or three times a week they tried and failed to cut back, or stop eating, these kinds of foods.
Twelve percent said that their eating behavior caused them a lot of distress more than twice a week, so if any of this resonates for you, I hope you are starting to see that you are not the only one.
Dr Joan Ifland wrote the text book, Processed Food Addiction. You will find a wealth of interviews of Dr. Ifland on YouTube where you can learn more about processed food addiction and it’s treatment.
Elimination Diet
One of the fastest ways to get relief – from stress, inflammation, excess weight, and a long list of unwanted symptoms – is to release the thoughts, foods, and behaviors that are causing us stress, inflammation, and unwanted symptoms.
If this resonates for you, experience has shown that an elimination diet is one of the best tools for identifying foods you suspect may be causing the unwanted symptoms, and is very safe.
An elimination diet is an eating plan that omits a food, or group of foods, believed to cause unwanted symptoms. By removing foods for a few weeks and then reintroducing them during a “challenge” period, you can learn which foods are causing symptoms or making them worse.
We often think of reactions to food as happening quickly, however, many other ways our bodies react to food may not be so immediate or noticeable.
My mission is to help people revitalize their lives and transform their lives around food and body, so I created the Relief through Release Playgroup to fully support women who want to play with releasing thoughts, foods, and behaviors that are creating unwanted symptoms, for the purpose of getting relief from those symptoms!
Relief through Release Playgroup
R&R Playgroup is an eight week online playgroup. For three weeks of those two months, we release self-criticism and sugar – two of life’s biggest stressors – with all the support it takes to make that shift.
In R&R Playgroup, we learn:
the science behind overeating, and create strategies to reduce overeating.
to listen to our appetite instead of trying to suppress it.
to tap into our body wisdom to understand what foods truly serve our health.
to identify and overwrite limiting beliefs, and shift to less stressful perspectives.
how to increase our energy and awareness, build confidence, and celebrate every success.
to marinate our energy in thoughts and ideas that feel good and uplifting, instead of stewing in a negative vibration that diminishes everything we try to do and be!
All of this adds up to creating the healthy energized lives that we long to lead!
The next playgroup starts in a few weeks! Get complete details at THIS LINK.
Whether you choose to let go of self-criticism, take up yoga, learn to shift perspectives, or try an elimination diet on your own, or with a group – don’t you owe it to yourself and your health to play with some new ways to relieve stress?
Grow on!
What foods do you suspect may be causing issues for you? What processed foods do you crave? Which unwanted symptoms do you have that might be tied to food? How willing are you to play with letting go of suspect foods? What thoughts are you thinking that you would like to release? What self-chosen stressors can you identify, and play with releasing?
Many unwanted symptoms we experience are rooted in the foods we eat. What kind of symptoms? All of these and more:
• compulsive overeating • excess weight • sugar cravings • low energy • poor sleep quality • irregular BM (loose/solid) • gas, bloating, gut issues • trouble with digestion • brain fog • lack of motivation • acne, rashes, rosacea • joint pain & back pain • headaches • phlegm or congestion • acid reflux or heartburn • difficulty losing weight • night sweats
If the foods we eat are causing unwanted symptoms, and we want to get relief from those symptoms, we need to stop eating the food causing the symptoms.
Sounds simple enough, but how do we decide which foods are causing the symptoms?
Elimination diets are a cheap, simple way to experiment with releasing foods or groups of foods that we suspect may be causing symptoms to see how those symptoms change or improve. Then we reintroduce the food to see if the symptoms return. Experience shows that an elimination diet is one of the best tools for identifying food issues, and is very safe, provided a variety of foods are eaten to supply essential nutrients.
Which Foods are Suspect?
I advise starting by releasing foods that you have noticed cause you some adverse symptom, or create a phlegmy response in your body. Does a particular food create a headache, or cause trouble with digestion? Do you always break out after eating a certain nut? Tune in to your own body wisdom and pay attention as you prepare for the release of suspect foods.
Foods that everyone might suspect for a variety of reasons include dairy, wheat, corn, soy, peanuts, eggs and shellfish. These foods have been shown to be highly irritating in large numbers of humans.
Make a list of foods you are ready to release and, so you’re not solely focussed on what you’re giving up, make a list of the abundant foods you plan to INCLUDE as well.
Eat only the foods on the “include” list for a period of two to four weeks. Then reintroduce one food at a time (at least 4 days apart) to see which foods cause the reaction.
Then you are free to create a healthy eating plan that serves your individual needs based on foods to which you are not sensitive.
This is a very simple way to see which foods create symptoms you’d rather not have, but it’s not always easy to release foods we enjoy, or are in the habit of eating regularly. If you want to play with releasing foods in community with other women who are also playing with releasing foods, in an elimination diet playground designed to fully support you as you transform your relationship with food, click THIS LINK for complete details.
Mystery Symptoms
I frequently hear from clients that their set of symptoms have a name, but the doctor has no idea of the cause, or what to do to relieve those symptoms except prescribe drugs with innumerable effects on health.
Elimination diets can often provide evidence of at least part of the problem, because inflammation is one of the first symptoms for which we get relief when we release foods to which we are sensitive or allergic. Inflammation causes many unwanted symptoms, and those it doesn’t cause, it intensifies.
I truly hope that if you are experiencing unwanted symptoms, you will experiment with some form of elimination diet to see if you get rapid RELIEF by simply releasing one or two problem foods.
It may just be the miracle you’ve been looking for!
Grow on!
What foods do you suspect may be causing unwanted symptoms? What processed foods do you crave? Which unwanted symptoms do you experience that might be tied to food?
A shift in mindset can literally be the difference between experiencing a living hell, or living heaven on earth.
Mindset is EVERYTHING. Mindset is the vibrational set point of our thinking. It is the accumulation of established thoughts and beliefs we hold to be true.
Energy attracts like energy, so what we vibrate, we attract.
We can think of our vibrational set point (mindset) as our radio station. Our current mindset is the station to which we’re tuned. Therefore the ONLY thing we can currently experience is what’s being broadcast on our station. If we do not like our experience, we must change the station to get something different.
We cannot change the experience being broadcast. In order to experience a different broadcast, we must change our station, by changing how we perceive.
What we perceive is what we receive.
If we believe that we live in a godless universe, where others cannot be trusted, where we must do it all on our own, and struggle for what we have; we are having a very different experience broadcast to us than someone who believes that the Universe has her back, sends frequent angels to support her, and flows resources to her effortlessly.
Changing our radio station (mindset) allows us to attract something different than we have been experiencing. If we are not currently enjoying our experience, it is vital to shift our mindset. In order to shift our mindset to attract something different than we have been attracting, we must begin to shift the thoughts we are thinking, and be willing to let go of beliefs that do not serve us.
The question then is, how do we change what we believe?
Awareness is always the first step! We can only change something if we are AWARE that we want to change it. Once we have recognized that something we think or believe no longer serves us, we need a process to help us overwrite those beliefs with new ones that support and inspire us!
We need a process because if we truly believe something, we cannot simply stop believing that, and start believing something contrary. The human brain won’t leap like that.
For example, we cannot go from thinking, “I hate my body because it’s fat,” to thinking, “I love my body unconditionally,” in the same breath. Our vibration will physically reject the opposing thought because it does not resonate with our current mindset/vibration.
Wheels & Ladders
Here are four processes wonderful for shifting mindset, or point of attraction.
Focus Wheel Process
Esther Hicks and Abraham offered us the Focus Wheel Process in the book Ask and it is Given.
We place the thought we wish to believe in the center, then write thoughts around the outside which we already believe, thoughts that resonate with our current mindset, meaning – we already believe them. Practicing these believable thoughts moves us closer to the center thought we wish to believe.
Esther says to use the focus wheel process:
When you realize that your current Vibrational Point of Attraction is not where you want it to be.
When you are aware that you are feeling negative emotion about something that is important, and you want to find a way of feeling positive emotion instead.
When something has just happened that is not to your liking, and you want to think about it while it is on your mind and change your point of attraction so that it does not happen again.
When you are reaching for a feeling of relief.
For me, the key bit here is reaching for a feeling of relief. When we are thinking thoughts that make us feel icky, anxious, or worried, finding thoughts that RELIEVE the anxiety, worry, and shame is solid GOLD.
Abraham’s Focus Wheel Process is highly effective for many people.
Training Wheels
Another process we can use to shift our thoughts, our mindset, our vibrational point of attraction is Training Wheels. Training wheels help us soften the thought we desire to believe, and bring it closer to our current vibrational range. Training wheels are sentence fragments tacked onto the thought we wish to believe.
Examples of Training Wheels: Why is it so easy to… I am learning to… I am ready to… I feel empowered when… Today I begin to… I choose to…
Training wheels on our example: I love my body unconditionally. Why is it so easy to love my body unconditionally? I am learning to love my body unconditionally. I am ready to love my body unconditionally. I feel empowered when I love my body unconditionally. Today I begin to love my body unconditionally. I choose to love my body unconditionally.
If the training wheel thought is one we BELIEVE, we are on our way! Shifting from a limiting belief to an inspiring belief takes PRACTICE, so we want to practice the training wheel thought frequently until we feel ready to take the training wheels off.
Training Wheels Process is a super effective way to begin shifting our beliefs!
Laddering Thoughts
I love Laddering Thoughts Process! Imagine the limiting belief on the bottom rung of the ladder. Now place the thought we WANT to think at the top of the ladder.
Now we climb the ladder one better-feeling thought at a time! Each thought is a rung on the ladder taking us closer to the empowering thought at the top. You can absolutely use Training Wheels to help you up the ladder if you find some that raise your vibration.
You can also use neutral thoughts since neutral is always a higher vibe than negative. For example, instead of the negatively charged, “I hate my body” we can use the neutral statement, “I have a body” to climb one rung up on the ladder. That’s a true statement, so it can resonate with anyone. “My body has physically supported me since birth,” is also true. If it resonates, we can use it to climb one rung closer to the higher vibration we desire!
Try these thoughts, and if they resonate, we can climb the next rung:
Some people love their bodies unconditionally. I would like to love my body unconditionally. The more I love my body, the more it loves me back. Occasionally, I love my body unconditionally. It is possible to love my body unconditionally.
Remember: you need to practice the Laddering Thoughts that resonate for you every day, throughout the day. Once a thought feels more believable, move up the ladder!
Stairway to Heaven
I adore the Laddering Thoughts Process, and I love to shift thoughts from bad feeling to good feeling, and from good feeling to better feeling.
So I shifted the idea of the thought ladder into the image of a fully supported staircase with double handrails. Now instead of my steps being shaky, or unstable, I feel steady and supported as I climb my Thought Stairway!
The handrail I offer is a choice of uplifting thoughts galore. Many years ago I began creating positive affirmation cards (daily mantra or empowerment cards) for a friend who was going through challenging times.
I take positive statements that feel good when I say them, and print them on my inspiring landscape photography. Currently I have created more than 500, and I invite you to freely download any that resonate for you, and use them to support you on your Stairway to Heaven on Earth!
My fabulous fucking Toy Box contains a treasure trove of guiding support from many wise hearts who are consistently lighting the way toward Heaven on Earth. I invite you to explore and play with these amazing resources, and incorporate whatever resonates for you. This is how we feel supported and guided as we shift our thoughts up the stairs.
We can use our Thought Stairway to climb from wherever we are on the vibrational scale to wherever we wish to be on the vibrational scale. Thought Stairway can lift us from the deepest depths of despair, unworthiness, and shame, right up to heaven on earth!
With PRACTICE.
These wonderful processes help us retrain our neural pathways, and that takes time and practice.
I encourage you not to give up! We reach a tipping point when we finally feel closer to the top of the staircase than the bottom, and that is when we keep practicing!
We play with shifting our thoughts upward. We keep joyfully rising toward that higher vibration, toward renewed mindset, and fresh perspectives.
This is our spiritual practice, to move ourselves closer and closer to the perspective/vibration of that which we call God, Source Energy, Infinite Wisdom. Because living fully in that energy here and now is what it means to live in Heaven on Earth.
Grow on!
What thoughts are you thinking that are limiting your growth? How does that thought feel when you think it? What emotion would you rather feel? What thought can you think that creates that desired emotion within you? Play with the above processes to climb from the limiting thought to the freeing one!
Millions of thoughts pop into our heads every day. Some of them are constructive, and some, not so much. Some of them feel wonderful, and some create fear. Some inspire confidence, others manifest self-doubt.
The trick is to remember that if they pop in uninvited, you only need to entertain the ones you enjoy!
I talk to my clients all the time about “milking the moment” when they have a thought that feels wonderful. We want to hang onto those as long as we can, and really milk them for every drop of pleasure that we can get.
Why? Because energy attracts like energy.
The more we focus on what we enjoy, the more the Universe brings us to enjoy!
So what about those thoughts that pop in unannounced that are destructive, fear filled, and confidence crushing? My advice is to get rid of them the instant we become aware of them.
It’s perfectly understandable, when experiencing a financial or medical uncertainty, that scary thoughts and worst case scenarios might pop into out head. But these thoughts are here without invitation, so we don’t throw them a big party and invite them to stay!
As soon as I notice that my mind has wandered into a scary neighborhood, I quickly repeat “nope, nope, nope!” It’s like a little energy canceling mantra I use to retrieve my energy from unwanted territory. The quicker I can catch myself, and redirect with “nope, nope, nope” the better!
Why? Because energy attracts like energy.
The more we focus on what is unwanted, the more the Universe brings us what is unwanted!
Of course we occasionally must focus on something we’d rather not, like preparing our taxes. But I’m talking about creating stories in our head of unreal events that may never happen. It’s a HUGE, and completely unnecessary, waste of our energy. The faster we vacate that territory, the calmer, happier, and more energized we will feel!
Nope, nope, nope!
Then we can intentionally shift attention onto something we DO want to attract. We can entertain best case scenarios and visualize those. Or if the energy is currently too charged around that topic, shift subjects entirely and focus on something that is sure to lift your energy and inspire you. Your grandkids, your pet, crafts or hobbies, podcasts meant to inspire. Whatever it is for you.
After the nope, nope, nope disrupts the negative energy, focus on anything that allows you to feel uplifted, happy, empowered, or inspired.
Grow on!
What thoughts are you currently entertaining that could use a good “Nope, nope, nope!”?
Create a list of as many people, places, and practices you can think of that never fail to comfort you, or make you feel amazing.
For an incomplete list of resources that inspire the crap outta me & my clients so we can energize our lives & thrive, check out my fabulous fucking toy box at THIS LINK!
I am magic. I know I am magic, and no one can stop my magical ass!
I have a T-shirt that announces this truth to the world, and yet sometimes I still forget. Why? Because I’m human. When humans come here from nonphysical, we agree to forget our magic so that we can have the expansive experience of finding our way back to our magic, back to our power – the power of All that Is.
We come here intending to find our way back to magic, and to remind our fellow travelers of the Truth that we are all made of magic, and that we are surrounded by miracles everywhere.
At our core – each of us is magic with the power that creates worlds at our disposal. And we are also magically human.
Being human comes with challenges. We can experience confusion and doubt about our own magic. Some of us have been taught by other humans that magic is not real, yet we may sense it’s presence occasionally and feel drawn toward it. Even those of us who strongly believe in magic are human with human challenges.
When those who are asleep to their own magic lash out in fear at the magic-believing human, it can feel like a punch in the gut. It can feel like being plunged into darkness where the light of our own magic does not shine.
This does not mean that anything has gone wrong!
If we do not experience darkness, how can we know that we prefer the light? The darkness is simply one experience. It is not permanent. Whatever emotion we experience – positive or negative – is temporary and will pass.
Acceptance of the unwanted emotion is key.
We can face it head on and say something like, “I would prefer to not feel this emotion, but it is the emotion I am feeling, so I will choose it. I will allow myself to feel it, and be with it until it begins to transform.”
We can dance with unwanted emotions, or hike with them to help move them more quickly through our experience. Any enjoyable physical activity helps move emotions. We can sit calmly with the unwanted emotion as if it were a visitor, and ask what message it has for us. Welcoming unwanted emotions and listening to them diminishes them, and empowers us.
Emotions are energy in motion. If we resist them, they stay with us longer, and can sometimes get stuck. If we choose to accept the experience of the unwanted emotion, the energy will stay in motion and transform more quickly.
Remembering our magic is key.
There is magic in reminding our fellow travelers of our magic. And while it is purpose-filled, and fulfilling to call others back to the light, we bear no responsibility for the ability of others to see their own light, or to connect with their magic.
Let go of people who tear you down and diminish your light, or make you doubt your own magic. Follow your inner light. Ascend into your own magic without feeling responsible for bringing everyone else along with you.
Find people who remind you that you ARE the light! Read books by authors that remind you that Source energy flows through you and everyone around you. Subscribe to blogs, tune in to podcasts, and watch YouTube videos that remind you of your magic and help reconnect you to the magical flow of life.
Grow on!
When you discover that someone or something in your life diminishes you, or depletes your energy repeatedly, have the courage to let it go.
Make a list of all the people, places, books, or blogs that remind you of your magic. Enjoy everything on your list frequently! Share those uplifting sources with everyone to remind them of their light too!
In my toy box, I keep a running list of resources that inspire the crap outta me and my clients. Share your favorites with us in the comments and I’ll add them to the list!
How often do you charge your cell phone? Put gas in your car?
WHY so freaking often?!
Because when we use something constantly, that’s how fast the energy gets consumed.
Now, how often do you use your body? And how frequently are you charging your batteries? Do you know how to refuel your own energy?
These are crucial questions to consider, and ones I ask my clients every week. One of the biggest reasons we can feel depleted is because we have no idea how to fuel up, fill our reserves, charge our batteries. The things that drain our energy are unending, and come at us all day every day. Just lying still breathing requires some energy! If we actually go out in the world to school, careers, social engagements, and all the rest, we are constantly spending our energy supply.
If we are not making space in our schedule to recharge, or have no idea where to go to plug in, is it any wonder we feel drained, exhausted, and overwhelmed?
We can optimize health and energy by defining what recharges us (energy gains), and releasing any energy drains that are optional.
Killing Time vs. Creating Fun
Just to be clear – relaxed scrolling, or watching TV is not the same as being plugged in. There is nothing wrong with those activities, but they can’t really be counted as recharging. It’s kind of like not charging the phone, but not using it either. We end up with no net loss or gain in energy. Our battery charger MUST be plugged in for a gain in energy to occur, so simple “down-time” activities like scrolling social media or watching entertainment are not inherently energy building and should not be included when listing energy gains.
Rather than helping us disengage (like watching or scrolling), energy gains are usually things that engage our energy and feel like fun. With this distinction in mind, we can begin to define a list of people, places, and practices in our lives that actually feed us energy and fuel us up, and which ones drain our energy and leave us feeling exhausted and empty inside.
The lists below are merely suggestions to get us thinking about what fills us with joy, and where we actually choose to spend our energy supply. They are not meant to be all inclusive.
Maximize Energy Gains
Any self-care practices you already do, or want to begin doing.
Spend time in nature.
Look at beautiful nature photography.
Enjoy nature videos on YouTube.
Move your body in any way that’s FUN.
Read uplifting books and articles. – Find people who inspire you and LET THEM!
Listen to inspiring podcasts. – Find people who inspire you and LET THEM, but with your ears.
Talk to a coach or therapist. – This is an excellent way to personalize a shift in mindset.
Breathe deeply.
Relax often.
Slow down with meals to gain more pleasure from your food.
Offer yourself unconditional love. – This takes practice, and often requires support from others.
Frequently tell yourself and others what you appreciate in them.
Hug everyone.
Say what you think always, but say it with love. – Speaking our truth is essential for health, and so is not harming others with our words or emotions.
Schedule time to do the things that make you happy! – THIS is the key to increasing the energy available to us!
Dive into my toy box and find lots inspiring ideas!
Play with any or all of these as feels right in your experience!
Minimize Energy Drains
Negative self talk! – This is the most energy draining activity humans do.
Neglecting self-care.
Judging self and others. – Everyone is right where we need to be, and doing the best we can in each moment.
Negative emotions like anger, frustration, irritation, depression, fear, guilt, worry… – These are NORMAL human emotions to feel and then move through, and they drain our energy when we get stuck in them.
Doing things you do NOT want to do. – Don’t force yourself to say yes when you want to say no.
NOT doing things you want to do! – Not doing what charges our batteries drains our energy double time.
Limiting beliefs. – Any thought we keep thinking that keeps us from moving forward.
Taking things personally. – Their behavior is never about me and always about them.
Clutter, disorganization. – Visual clutter can drain our energy.
Overuse of caffeine, sugar, or alcohol. – There is nothing wrong with using some caffeine, sugar, or alcohol, and overuse of any of these powerful substances will deplete our energy.
Play with watching what shows up in your experience. Play with identifying where your energy is leaking. Play with letting go of these as you become willing to release them!
Once we create our own lists, we are able to make choices based on how much energy we have, and how we most want to spend it!
Grow on!
Try creating your own lists of what fills your fuel tank and what leaves you feeling empty! Then schedule some of the battery chargers in your calendar, and play with letting go of some of the behaviors that drain you.
Please reach out if I can help! Schedule a chat at THIS LINK so we ca connect!
I’m sending this blog post out to ALL of my email lists – family & friends, massage, photography, and coaching clients – to announce my graduation from the Institute for the Psychology of Eating!
I’m thrilled and excited to have completed this amazing course in Mind Body Nutrition and Dynamic Eating Psychology. I’m even MORE thrilled by the amazing results my clients are already reporting!
Please click THIS LINK to read what my clients are saying.
I have found my passion and purpose in life. I adore helping people grow in awareness, and watching them transform their relationship with food and body!
The clients I am serving now are those who struggle with weight, body image, low-energy, digestive issues, or compulsive eating behaviors like stress eating, overeating, and binge eating. I am delighted to have all kinds of new processes and practices in my toy box to help people navigate some of the same things with which I have struggled in life.
Please share this blog post with everyone just in case I can help support them through any of these challenges! I truly appreciate you taking the time to refer me to others!
So WHO might benefit when you share this? Those who wish to:
Replace endless dieting with lifelong nourished eating.
Release unwanted, or compulsive eating behaviors.
Find a natural and sustainable way of eating that suits their own body.
Savor life instead of rushing from one moment to the next.
Feel confident in the skin they’re in, instead of feeling worried about what they weigh.
Join me on the Transformation Playground!
Something else that has me super excited and delighted is rebranding my Empowerment Blog into the Transformation Playground!
Empowering people to transform their life from exhausted and striving to energized and thriving is still my objective, but the former title makes it sound like I am the one responsible for the empowerment. People empower themselves by playing with new ideas, and experimenting with releasing depleting thoughts, beliefs, and behaviors.
The Transformation Playground provides toys and techniques that help us examine new ways of thinking. It’s a supportive space for each individual to explore what feels healthy for them, so that we each empower ourselves through exploration and choice.
Jill Lebeau and Amit West bring high vibes, unconditional love, and a whole bunch of laughter to this incredible resource for upliftment and expansion. Spiritual growth has never been so fun and easy!
There will be MUCH to explore on the Transformation Playground, but I will always point the way to the Sandbox first!
Grow on!
Here are some great ways to begin YOUR journey of transformation!
Subscribe to the Transformation Playground at THIS LINK, and each week you will get tidbits, toys, and techniques that allow us to transform our relationship with food & body, motivational images, ongoing encouragement, and recommendations for all kinds of fun that helps us grow, and evolve into the highest version of ourselves.
Ready to invest in yourself and commit to the changes you truly want?
Act NOW and save $500!
Empowerment Package
Special Value through December 20 ~ Pay just $1,000
Your investment includes ~ Discovery session ~ 75 to 90 minutes Nine coaching sessions ~ 45 to 60 minutes each ~ support over three months
Because I’m EXCITED to help MORE people! 707-515-8324 Call today!
Not sure if coaching is right for you? Invest in yourself with a Discovery Session!
Discovery Session
In-depth 75 to 90 minute coaching session culminates with insights into personalized solutions for your challenge, a plan to move you forward, and at least one action that moves you toward your goal!
