Tag: essays

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Managing Your Mental Health

What are mental health challenges? We’re all emotional beings who have feelings. Mental illness is not managing your emotions or never confronting them until they spiral out of control. Somebody once told me that mental illness is caused merely by conditions, environment and circumstances. I’m not going to argue with that statement by saying it has no impact on our health. However, saying our condition is merely a chemical imbalance or a poor upbringing is saying the illness and environment is controlling us. With this mindset we are powerless and weak. Do you want to be tossed and turned by the conditions in your life, or do you want to say I’m in control, I define myself and I determine my life and future? 

When we don’t manage our finances, we become broke and in debt. Same applies when we leave our troublesome thoughts on the back burner until disaster hits. Eventually one of the links break. 

Managing your mental health means practicing self care. Practicing self care means quieting your mind, changing your inner dialogue and finding purpose in your life. Quieting the mind can be done through meditation, a walk in nature or yoga. 

Changing your inner dialogue is listening to your thoughts, understanding their depth and reason for being. It’s easier to change your thoughts when you can identify them. It’s refocusing your thoughts into what you wish to create. It’s focusing on productivity and optimism rather than the negative dialogue.

Finding purpose in your life is following your passion, your zest for life and gifting. It’s following your inspiration and inner guidance. When we have purpose in our life, and we’re of service to others, we feel greater satisfaction. 

Greater satisfaction, finding purpose and following your intuition all contributes to your overall mental health and happiness. And happiness is key to greater health. 

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From Depression to Happiness

What is depression: depression can be described as sadness, pessimism and bitterness. It can also delve into despair in which people don’t have the will to live. 

What creates depression: usually it doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a long perpetual focus on the negative. Environments have an effect and so does bodily conditions. However, two can experience the same environments and conditions, yet one is happy and the other is miserable. So we can agree that reaction to environments and circumstances have a tremendous effect on your mood. It’s easier said than done for some people who experienced severe trauma or sickness. However, is offering support merely offering sympathy? Sometimes we relate sympathy with compassion, and at times it is compassion. But if the person always offers sympathy without focusing on the solution, is that really helping the situation? Do you want someone to tell you I feel for you, you have a condition or you had a rough life, and it must be so difficult? Or do you want someone to tell you yes you have a condition or yes you had a rough life, and I give you my support and advice? There’s nothing wrong with speaking your mind, however, you must focus on your desired outcome. If you focus on the solution and you continue to do so, you’re well on your way to recovery. 

Here are my insights on healing from depression:

We can agree that depression is an inner dialogue that focuses on the negative. It can be pessimism, bitterness, grief, confusion, ongoing pain, ongoing symptoms and the list goes on. The more we focus on these negative emotions, the more sadness or depression we feel. Have one day when you feel these negative emotions, and you had one bad day. But have several months or years feeling these emotions consistently, and you have depression. It’s easier to deal with these emotions when you know what they are. Ask yourself, why am I depressed and unhappy? Perhaps over time you developed a negative view of life and the world. Perhaps over time you witnessed moments of inequality, judgment and unfairness. These thoughts consumed you and over time it spiraled into depression. You found more reasons to be depressed. Add another likeminded thought to the list over and over again and you become essentially what you think about, which is unhappy. You may say I’m just emotional. Perhaps someone hurt you and you didn’t let it go, or perhaps you find your challenges overwhelming. Or perhaps you haven’t let go of grief. You may say I’m just tired and I don’t have the will to do anything, or worse I don’t have the will to live. Ask yourself why you’re feeling this way. Maybe you lost your excitement, enthusiasm and zest for life a long time ago, because of trauma or because someone hurt you. Saying it’s your reality and not doing anything about it and not thinking differently will only keep you in this frame of mind. Saying I have a chemical imbalance and it’s incurable is feeding your mind with thoughts that will keep you in the same state of mind. 

Another practice to consider: focus on gratitude and appreciation. We can agree that gratitude and appreciation are positive emotions. When you feel these emotions most of your day, depression cannot remain. The more you feel gratitude, the greater you feel, and the more you practice feeling this emotion, depression vanishes and cannot remain.

You must find a way to change your inner dialogue early before depression begins or alter the course if you’re already in this negative state of mind. Changing your inner dialogue means making peace with your thoughts and emotions. It means speaking affirmations that will bring relief and healing. It means focusing on your desired outcome. It means seeking support, speaking your mind while being open minded for advice, and listening to your thoughts to improve them. The key is to be mindful of your thoughts, and focus on quieting the mind. The more you apply mindfulness and these practices, the greater you’ll feel and the easier your recovery will be. 

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From Anxiety to Wellness

Anxiety can be described as an overactive mind. You either have an overactive mind over a number of different concerns or you’re obsessing over one particular concern. In most cases, you’re fearing or dreading the future, or you may have too many thoughts simultaneously which causes overwhelming emotions. You may also be obsessing over the past in which you experienced trauma or guilt over poor choices and now you cannot get your mind off of it. Many people experience anxiety, however, it doesn’t mean they have an anxiety disorder. Anxiety becomes a problem when you cannot function, it’s taking away from your “joie de vivre” and you’re beginning to withdraw from daily obligations or social situations. 

Here are a few practices that I believe are beneficial to your mental health:

Recognize there is a problem. So many don’t want to admit they have a problem, so they ignore it altogether and their illness progresses and gets worse. Let’s say you’re not at your ideal weight and you wanted to lose weight. Are you going to ignore the fact you’re overweight, or are you going to take action by watching your diet and exercising regularly? If you’re not mindful and taking action steps, life remains, and doesn’t change.

Another approach is practicing mindfulness: be in the present moment because when you’re in the present moment you’re more likely to make wise choices with your thoughts and behavior. You’re more likely to think before you speak which will create less conflicts. Furthermore, when you’re focusing on several different stress related concerns, you act on impulse. Acting on impulse leads to poor choices. If you have several conversations in your head, isn’t it more difficult to think of consequences or benefits to your choices? In such cases often you end up lashing out to others or make choices you regret later on. When you’re constantly thinking, your mind gets exhausted from your overactive mind and you end up loading up on stimulants to counteract the effects. When you become more in tune with the present moment and your thoughts, conscious and subconscious, you become more aware of what’s causing your anxiety and behavioral issues. You realize that sometimes a simple adjustment can make a huge difference. 

Practice meditation: meditation is a simple act of sitting or lying down awake with your eyes shut and trying to think of nothing. This is beneficial because your brain needs a time out from time to time, hence the reason we need sleep. This is the same process of sleep and it has similar benefits except your mind is awake. What is the opposite of an overactive mind? Stillness, tranquility and mindfulness. In addition, meditation lowers your pulse, lowers your blood pressure and helps you sleep because it relaxes you. It also lengthens your telomeres which reverses your biological age, therefore, it helps you stay young. Longer telomeres also indicate longer life spans. Decreased pulse and lower blood pressure reduces anxiety. And we all know when we get a good night of sleep, we feel rested and better the next day. All this has benefits to your mental health and physical health as well. Mental health and physical health are interconnected. They both affect one another. Mental health challenges often end up causing physical health problems such as high blood pressure, erratic heartbeat, and insomnia and many other symptoms. So we can agree when we are mentally healthy, it not only improves our mood but our physical health as well. 

Change your inner dialogue: anxiety is a conversation going on inside your mind about the future, the present and the past. You’re either fearing or dreading the future or the present, or you’re focusing on past trauma and regrets. Changing your inner dialogue means speaking affirmations of well being. It means focusing on the exact opposite of the fear or seeking relief from your fear. Don’t believe the misconception that these illnesses are for life. How many people recovered and healed? What do they have that you don’t other than philosophies, strategies, and perhaps therapy and medication. Affirmations also interrupts the negative thought and stops you from focusing so much energy on the worst case scenario. The more you focus on affirmations of well being, the less you focus on the worst case scenario, your symptoms or dread. The less focus on negative emotions, the greater you feel and the greater your outlook for your life and future. All this together creates wellness and recovery. Everyone can implement these practices in their lives, and everyone can receive benefit from being mindful, persistent, and taking action steps to wellness. 

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Contemplating the Truth

There will always be questions we choose to ignore, and sometimes it’s a good thing, and other times it’s not. It’s all about balance, living in the present while not forgetting there’s a future ahead. 

There are those who live in fear never wanting to embark on unknown territory, and there are those who are always taking risks without any contemplation. Living in the present should not ignore future choices and obligations.

So many people act on impulse and forget about the consequences to their actions. They choose what feels good in the moment without giving it much attention. This results in poor choices and negative events and circumstances. 

Seeking inward and wisdom should be contemplating those questions that will be beneficial for our future. Contemplating self care through spiritual rituals, diet, exercise, and sleep are examples of what you can do that will be beneficial for your mind, body and spirit. 

Research has shown that meditation lowers blood pressure, lowers your pulse, and helps you have clarity of thought. Research on meditation also indicate that it lengthens telomeres, which reverses your biological age. Lengthening telomeres also indicates longer life spans. 

And we all know stress has an effect on our mind and body. The opposite of stress is gratitude, appreciation, compassion, optimism and faith. Therefore, we can conclude that the more we focus on these positive emotions, the less stressed we feel. 

Everything is an affirmation whether it’s negative or positive, and an excuse for negativity is also an affirmation. Ongoing stress can cause pessimism or negative thinking of every type. Every negative thought is a form of stress, and we all know that prolonged and ongoing stress affects the body and mind. 

Investing time to remain in a grateful, optimistic and faithful mindset reduces or eliminates stress. It also has creative power for we all know inspiration and great ideas comes from being productive with our thoughts, and focusing on our desired outcome.  

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Focusing on Our Calling

One of my favorite authors and teachers Neale Donald Walsch stated in one of his books that the majority of people are spending most of their time on things that don’t matter. This is not to create criticism, it’s meant to create awareness and to refocus our thoughts and behavior. 

Here are examples: The gossip column which holds no depth for change. Violent films and I’m not talking about action films that actually have a story. I’m talking about those films that are merely violence for the sake of violence. I’m also talking about those posts on social media that insult, ridicule, or only complain about the world and its current condition. What change can occur from complaining about the situation? 

If you truly want to create change, you’ll want to focus on exactly that, creating change. Creating a brighter outcome in other words. What if most people would be spending their time on things that allow us to grow personally? What if the majority of people would be spending time reflecting and contemplating on topics that would bring peace, happiness and abundance? What if the majority would meditate on compassion, wisdom and God? What if most would pray for others sickness to be healed, or for unity? 

I understand many people are already taking action, but I agree with Neale when he said most people are not. What we focus on, we perpetuate. The ones in the entertainment industry have a role to create peace, compassion and inspiration. The ones in the government have a role to create fairness, equality and justice. We as writers and journalists have a role to make a difference with our words. These are just a few of examples and there are endless more. We all have a role to play, but if we continue to focus on meaningless things, we get meaningless things in return.

If we want global change, we need to focus our time on things that matter. Why are we here? What can we do to help? What can we do to grow as humanity? These are all questions that will create positive change, and we are all authentic and have something to give. 

Ask yourself these questions and then ask the world to focus on these questions, and you’ll spark change in your unique way. The more people embark on this journey of transformation, the greater the change will be globally. 

The mission begins with you, and what you can do to make a difference. As Martin Luther King, one of the great men in our history said, “take the first step, you don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”

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Meditation and Mental Health

We’ve heard the saying where the mind goes, the body follows. There’s been numerous research on mental health causing more health issues and more complications in our personal lives and in our professional lives as well. Less tolerance for minor problems, greater stress, less productivity or less motivation. 

When our thinking becomes contorted, it affects many areas in our lives. It’s hard to have clarity of thought when we have an overactive mind or when we have obsessive compulsive problems. 

Anxiety can be described as an overactive mind. You may be focused on many concerns in your life or perhaps you’re obsessing over one particular concern. Depression is focusing on a number of different problems or it can be focusing and dreading one particular problem. Either way anxiety, depression and OCD is an overactive mind. 

What is the opposite of an overactive mind? Stillness, tranquility, and inner peace. How do you achieve this state of mind? By doing the opposite of what you’re currently doing. You’re overthinking, so stop thinking so much, and give your brain a break by quieting your mind. 

Go someplace quiet if possible, close your eyes, sit or lie down and try to think of nothing. Focus on your breath. If some thoughts come and they probably will in the beginning of a meditation practice, let them drift and don’t try to fix anything. Let them be, don’t fight it, and let them run their course. In time you’ll think of those thoughts and they won’t cause you great concern. 

There’s a time for contemplation and trying to solve problems, but if you do this all day long without a break, your mind will become exhausted. That’s what causes mental health challenges. 

Try to aim for at least 15 minutes of meditation, but even 10 minutes or 5 minutes can make a difference. Perhaps with time, you’ll work your way up to 15 minutes or 20 minutes. Reflect on this statement, why is sleep so beneficial? Because your mind is at rest, and your brain recuperates. Why is meditation so beneficial? Because your mind is at rest, and your brain recuperates. The only difference is that in meditation your mind is awake, however, your mind still benefits from this practice. 

Try not to compare yourself to others because if you do, you risk not completing the task or quitting all together. I meditate 20 minutes every day, but if I thought because Deepak Chopra wakes up every morning at 4am and meditates for 2 hours, I should do the same, I probably wouldn’t stick to it nor would I want to. 

Assess your needs and determine what’s best for you. You may feel 5 minutes or 10 minutes is plenty to release some resistance and get on with your day. Find what works for you. There should be no comparison, just focus on improving you. 

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Walking on A Thin Line

I watched a movie recently and I was fascinated by it. It’s called “The Walk” and it’s a true story. It’s the story of Philippe Petit, a wire walker, who walked between the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York in 1974 on a thin line. 

I was fascinated by his focus and technique in achieving such a task. He was fearless, and he went through such intense training to achieve his dream. As practice, before walking between the World Trade Center, he tried everything on a wire. He walked on a wire while his friends were deliberately shaking the wire, because he knew if it was windy, he would need to practice walking under these conditions. He walked with his hands behind his back to practice balance. Most wire walkers use a poll that they hold horizontally to keep their balance. He practiced laying down on the wire and standing back up. He practiced wire walking endlessly under any and all conditions.

There was also a lot of investigating by himself and his colleagues to find the best procedure of achieving the walk. Investigating included making sure the wire was securely fastened, and stable enough despite the wind and pressure. 

To add more stress to the plan, when investigating, he ended up walking on a plank with a nail sticking out. The nail went through his foot only two weeks before the walk. Despite his girlfriend saying he should not walk with his injury, as many would have said, he persevered and remained steadfast to his dream. When he performed the walk of the Trade Center, blood was still seeping through his sock. He was so fixated on his dream, and confident he could do it, that he didn’t allow anybody else to convince him otherwise. 

Most of his friends who were involved in the planning stages thought from time to time he was losing his mind. He on the other hand, had faith that it could be done, and the minute doubt started creeping in, he returned to his dream. The twin towers were approximately 546m in height and the two towers were approximately 200 feet apart. He decided to perform the walk without a harness, so one misstep, or lack of focus, and he would fall 546m on the grounds of New York. 

We all know wire walking requires tremendous precision and focus. One of his friends and colleagues said everyone that were involved in the planning stages thought at one point that he could fall, but the difference was they had faith in him and they knew it could be done. They wouldn’t allow their thoughts to become an expectation. 

He ended up performing the walk and making headlines all over the world. There were moments he laid down on the wire, and there were moments he saluted his audience on the grounds of New York. He walked across the towers several times while his friends were taking photos of him in astonishment. 

The point of the story I’m trying to make, is what appeared impossible became reality because one man believed, he persevered and he didn’t give in. Almost everyone who accomplished great things had risks involved, and some people such as Phillip Petit even risked death for it. 

Take this insight and memoir and see how it can help you in your life. It’s not very likely you’ll walk on a wire 546m high, and you may even think it’s unwise, as many would believe the same. But look at your own life and know if one man or many beat the odds, so can you. If one man could walk on a thin wire with such precision and focus over 500m in the air, and salute his audience, what can you do with your life?

We all have a body, and we all have a spirit inside us, interconnected to everything in the universe. Use this memoir for your own life. What do you want to do with your life? What are your gifts? What gives you passion and joy? Phillip Petit’s faith, determination, and perseverance can be used in your own life for your own endeavors. Faith, determination and perseverance all comes from within, so you can seek it and claim it yours. Seek inward and you’ll find your calling as Petit found it, and succeeded. With enough faith and persistence you’ll see it through, as the great minds of our time achieved greatness with unwavering faith. 

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Programmed the Right Way

Over time we get programmed with mistranslations, misconceptions and contradictions. Mistranslations are beliefs and expectations that have lost their essential meaning. Misconceptions are beliefs and expectations not based on solid truth. Contradictions are beliefs and expectations that have been thwarted from its previous meaning. 

We listen to the world around us and little by little, we become programmed with lies. Some knowledge is beneficial, other knowledge are preconceived notions we picked up along our physical trail. 

Slowly and gradually we move into others perceptions of reality, and we claim it as ours. Their perception has nothing to do with us, but we call it our own. The more we feed ourselves with these lies, the more we become entrenched in this vicious cycle of life. 

Take a step back and assess your emotions. Listen to your feelings and realize if these thoughts create inner peace and wisdom, or confusion and pessimism. God speaks to us through a spirit of peace and mental clarity. He speaks to us through wisdom and inspiration. He’s not a source of confusion or pessimism. 

What good can you do in a constant state of confusion and pessimism? Can you uplift others? Can you motivate your loved ones? Confusion creates frustration, uneasiness and poor choices. Pessimism creates unresolved anger, fears of every type and a negative outlook on life. 

Eventually this negative thinking wears you out and you become battle fatigue, so much that it’s difficult to summon the enthusiasm to get up. This negative energy has a way of causing exhaustion, sickness and burnouts. 

Out of peace, all answers lies. Out of peace springs forth all wisdom. Isn’t it easier to think when your mind is at peace? Isn’t it easier to understand when your mind is at peace? Wisdom combined with inspiration has a way of manifesting your deepest desires. 

When you align your thoughts, words and actions with the wisdom of God, you allow the inspiration to lead the way, and surely in time you will arrive at your destination. Don’t allow confusion and pessimism to lead the way, and don’t allow misconceptions and preconceptions to find their way indefinitely in your heart and soul. 

Quiet your mind, and find that spirit of stillness and tranquility. In time your strength and vitality will be rejuvenated and replenished. You’ll find that special calling to your happiness and success, and you’ll know it’s destined to be.  

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Know Your Power

The first step to achieving greater insight and awareness is asking questions. By asking questions, I don’t mean only asking our spiritual leaders and teachers. By asking questions I mean realizing we have a source within us all that transcends the universe, and it has the answers we’re looking for. 

Remember, life is an unending journey, for as soon as we get our answers, we have a new platform to ask again and create anew. We’re all Gods and Goddesses in human form. As before we depended on a God outside us, and we would rely on him to solve our problems and provide answers. We would rely merely on healers to heal us or mentors to teach us, which sometimes worked and other times it did not. 

Recognizing we all originate from the divine, and that we’re all divinity housed in a physical body, is acknowledging our power and self control. Every spiritual master of our time teaches self reliance. If we can’t rely on ourselves, we’re depending on something outside us, and with this approach, we lose our power. 

Being dependent on an outside source is saying we don’t have what we need within to achieve our desires. With this philosophy, we always seek outside ourselves to get fixed, which has no guarantees. 

However, we can always rely on ourselves, and when we do, we know change and growth is always within our reach. We’re all unique, and when we seek our authenticity, and ask our inner being questions, we know we always have something to give to ourselves and others. 

There’s not one being on this planet that is created exactly like another, so know you have reason and purpose to be on this physical plane. You have something unique to share with the world. Realize this, know your power and role in your evolution and the evolution of humanity. 

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The Benefits Of Stillness

Spending time in isolation gives us much more free time to reflect, slow down, and return to ourselves and our loved ones. At times when production and wealth becomes the primary focus, the universe has a way of bringing us back to what matters most. What matters most is our relationship with ourselves, God, and our loved ones. 

We get lost in achieving more, accumulation, and at times this can be destructive to our behavior and our relationships with our loved ones. We don’t spend as much time unwinding, we’re constantly living under stress, and our work affects our family life. 

What happens when the world shuts down? We’re forced to spend time with ourselves, we begin to contemplate, and reflect. We have so much free time in our hands to fulfill our purpose. 

Some people will use this time unwisely and make poor choices, and they’ll end up worse than before. Some people will let fear consume them. Others will be bored and not know what to do with themselves, so they’ll end up partying, abusing drugs and alcohol. There will be those people who use this time constructively, and stretch their boundaries. They’ll use this time to grow as a person, to grow spiritually, and let go of negative habits or addictions. 

What else happens when the word shuts down? We learn to be by ourselves, and this can be very difficult and daunting to some people. It’s difficult for them because they never learned to be by themselves. Perhaps because when they are alone, memories come back to haunt them. Perhaps when they are alone, fear of the future comes back that scares them, or they know they don’t take anything seriously, and they’re just bumbling through life with no expectations. 

Maybe life is calling them to change. My question to you is what change do you want to have, and what impact do you want to make? Find balance even when this is all over. Find balance by cutting distractions, and not letting others steer you off course. 

There’s a fine line between listening to advice and listening to your inner guidance. Both are positive, but find what resonates with you.