JUST WHAT IS HEALING, ANYWAY?

While thinking about natural healing today, it occurred to me that healing is a difficult-to-define word.  I talk and write about it all the time, rather assuming we are all on the same page about what it is.   

There is of course physical healing of our body, but there is much more to healing.  In a broad sense I define healing as "changing whatever one needs to change in your life." 

Perhaps we need to "heal" a relationship, and of course I don't know anyone who hasn't had that challenge.  Perhaps it is a psychological or behavioral challenge we need to heal.  Then there are those who have a sickness or any one of numerous addictions.  Most of us, if we are truly honest with ourselves, will admit to being or having been addicted to some thing at some time.   

All of the above in a broad sense are sicknesses.  And of course there are many more.  Sometimes we just need to heal how we handle certain situations for which there is no solution.  I do believe, however, that most of the avenues to ALL HEALING have very common denominators, while keeping in mind that there are definitely no magic wands, although some healing tools seem almost to fit that definition. 

CONNECTING WITH OUR SOURCE:   Mending and/or strengthening our connection to our SOURCE, CREATOR, THE UNIVERSE, GOD, or whatever one chooses to call that all powerful, all knowing energy that fuels our universe.   I believe the best way to connect with our Source is through meditation, which is in a way a form of prayer.  Meditation and visualization can open the door to healing on all levels.  If you haven’t already done so, I urge you to make the time to practice meditation at the start of each day. A habit very soon becomes a routine or ritual, and this is one that will very soon become a highlight of each day.  

OUR MIND IS POWERFUL:  Recognizing the incredible, awesome power of our mind!  Paraphrasing Henry Ford, "If you think you can, you are right, and if you think you can't you are right also!  The thoughts we think, and the words we say, are more powerful than we can even imagine.  

INTENTION IS POWERFUL:  Healing will never occur unless and until we set our intention to heal.  That encompasses our belief and attitude.  Brian Johnson of PhilosophersNotes.com (whom I very highly recommend) talks about being diligent, passionate, persistent, and playful.  My experience is that one needs all those attributes in order to succeed at healing.  Connect with Brian at PhilosophersNotes.com.  He is an awesome young man. 

BUILD YOUR BELIEF:  Everything else is built on a foundation of belief and attitude.  Read transformative books and create positive affirmations to aid in all the above. 

THE PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF HEALING:  Cornerstones of healing must include a commitment to nutrition, exercise, and restorative sleep.  The physical side of healing must be part of any wellness program. 

I WILL UNTIL!  Persistence is extremely important.  In his book, Real Magic, Dr. Wayne Dyer says you can have instant transformation, which he calls satori (sa-tor-i), or you can take a few years to accomplish that goal.  In either case, you get to decide which path you take! 

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!!!  There is no such day on any calendar as "tomorrow."  We only have today.  I hope you will have the courage to start on your own healing path today. 

I invite you to read my healing story at www.BettysHouseLifeAfterMS.com.  You can heal and transform your life.  The power you possess is awesome!  

My message is clear: 

I CAN, YOU CAN, WE ALL CAN . . .

                    heal whatever we need to heal

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WHAT KIND OF ENERGY ARE YOU SENDING OUT?

We are all energetic beings.  And we are always sending out energy by the thoughts we choose to have about everything and everyone we encounter.  The next time you come into contact with a negative and/or upset person, instead of just reacting in like fashion, choose to respond by visualizing that person surrounded by a white light.  Then mentally send them positive, loving energy.  The results will amaze and astound you. 

                Deepak Chopra teaches that we are surrounded by,

                         and a part of, a kind of quantum soup,

                              that responds to our thoughts.   

"I am in control of my life?"  I can almost hear you say, "Come on Betty, how can you say I am in control?  Obviously if that were true I wouldn't be experiencing ( - fill in the blank of your challenge - )."  I can certainly understand that reaction. 

When I was first exposed to this teaching by such masters as Drs. Deepak Chopra, Wayne Dyer, Bruce Lipton, Brian Weiss, and many others, I was searching for ways to help my body overcome Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis.  As I delved deeper into how my thoughts become my reality, I developed heightened intuition that ultimately lead me to a number of natural healing techniques that became the cornerstone of overcoming my MS.  These healing techniques included meditation, the ancient healing art of Qi Gong, very important breath work, and a diet consisting of whole, unprocessed foods.  You may read my MS story at www.BettysHouseLifeAfterMS.com.    

I believe in KIS - keep it simple - so I'll try to reduce this powerful truth and make it simple and easy to understand.  There are two kinds of control - conscious and subconscious.  Dr. Bruce Lipton, author of the world wide best-seller, The Biology of Belief, tells us that 95% of our actions are guided by our subconscious programming.  But that we can remove old negative programming by replacing it with positive new beliefs and thoughts.   

For some of us just learning that is enough to set us on a new conscious path.  But for most of us some "re-programming" is required to consciously choose different thoughts and attitudes. 

It is my experience that when we accept that we have the ability to have conscious control of our life, everything changes.  In the next few weeks it is my intention to share various ways one may build up our ability to positively affect our reactions.  

        STAY TUNED!

MILESTONES

     Those of you who are 40 years of age or older will remember an early popular daytime TV program called "Queen for a Day."  I always wondered what it would be like to have that experience.  Well, September 24 I had an opportunity to enjoy such an experience . . . well at least close to it anyway! 

     September 24 was my 75th birthday, and it was the most incredibly wonderful day. My daughter-in-law Christine and grandson Zachary hosted a birthday party for my close friends, and we had a really grand time. I  am truly blessed with the most amazing "daughter" in Chris, and equally amazing 15-year-old grandson Zach.  Only 10 years old when we lost his father, Chris has  done an incredible job of being mother and father to Zach, and surrogate "mother" to me.   

     Chris invited my close friends from the neighborhood where I live, as well as one of the secretaries who used to work in my son's law firm.   She and I became very close during Kevin's 2-1/2 year struggle with lung cancer, and she was literally my "emotional rock" during that period.  I had not seen her in a couple of years, and it was wonderful to reconnect with her.  Chris even served a lovely sit-down dinner at her beautiful home. I am truly blessed.

     Increasingly over this past year I have contemplated that I am now closer to the end of my life than the beginning - which is a very interesting place to be. Something about the number 75 made it seem like a significant milestone to me.  It is certainly true that with each passing year of age the perception that time is moving at a faster and faster rate of speed becomes true.  I keep thinking that there remains so much that I want to do, and so little time remaining in which to accomplish them.  And I consider what my legacy will be.  I hope it will be the body of writing I have done, attempting to get across the message that the healer resides in each and ever one of us. 

               If one could outrun the aging process,

               I would be the first one to get in line,

                      but unfortunately we were

                          not given that option. 

Since MS (my "uninvited guest") came into my life and through sheer determination, dedication and belief in my own innate self-healing ability I was able to stop it in its tracks, I have been dedicated to trying to get the message out to anyone and everyone that there is nothing truly unique about what I did, and that they can do it too!   

For as long as I have breath I will continue to be committed to sharing my YOU CAN DO IT TOO! message, including sharing "how to" techniques.  And that it makes no difference what your challenge may be - physical, emotional, relationship, career, etc., YOU have a built-in innate self-healing system, and YOU have the ability to activate that system and heal (change) whatever you wish to heal in your life.

Please check out my awesome story at www.BettysHouseLifeAfterMS.com.

CONQUERING LIFE'S CHALLENGES

WHEN FACED WITH CHALLENGES,

WE - YOU - CAN BE A WINNER!

Always surround yourself with positive people. The kind of awesome people who always have an "I Can" attitude.  They  will encourage, inspire, and support you. We are all influenced by our environment, and if we associate with people who are always putting us down, and who always have a defeatist attitude, we will automatically feel down about ourselves. Conversely, If we surround ourselves with positive people, we will have a more positive outlook on our self and life in general.

Look at your situation without judgment. Look at your challenge for what it is.  Whatever your challenge is, it is not your entire life – just an aspect of your life.   

Balance all areas of life.  In order to find true happiness, health and abundance in all areas of our life, we must find balance in all areas of our life – love, health, family, career, etc.   But without doubt the most important relationship we have is with our self.   It is often said that we cannot love anyone else unless and until we truly love our self.

Spend more time on whatever you are passionate about.  We all should have something – some activity – about which we are passionate, something that we love to do, something that brings us joy.  When we spend more time doing those things that we truly enjoy, we will inevitable have more joy in all areas of our life.

'Stuff' happens.  Everyone at some point has been down.  Whatever our challenge happens to be, whether health, relationship, financial or some other  personal challenge, we have all been there at one time or another.  It is the meaning we give something - what we tell ourselves about it - that determines whether we see it as good or bad, as well as how it turns out.  

Learn to be non-judgmental . . . about everything.  Learn to accept that everything just "is."   When we give up labeling everything as right or wrong, and accept that everything just is whatever it is, then we totally change our perspective.  Remember that things don't change . . . only we can change how we look at things.

The Morton Salt Syndrome  -  "When it Rains it Pours."  We have all had times when it seemed as though we were experiencing this well-known syndrome.  My experience is that tipping  the scales back in our favor is 100% an inside job.
 

Visit me at www.Betty'sHouseLifeAfterMS.com., wherein I share how I overcame a major life challenge.

                                     IF I CAN DO IT, YOU CAN DO IT TOO!

Change is Inevitable

Back in March 2011 I posted the last previous note to this blog. I apologize for the long period of silence. At the time of that last posting I had no idea how my life was about to change.

For the last 2-1/2 years I have Vice President of a non-profit corporation which is the support arm of the Senior Center in the University town where I live in Davis, California. It honestly never occurred to me that I might suddenly have to take over the presidency.

But that is exactly what happened in the first few days of April 2011 when the president resigned due to health reasons. I found myself suddenly running a corporation. Even though I have a rather extensive background in management, I had no experience with non-profits. My 2-1/2 years of sitting the board of directors did nothing to prepare me for assuming the reigns.

I suddenly found myself in a position of being challenged for the presidency (in violation of our bylaws) and the situation was extremely stressful. During that period I came down with a very serious bronchitis and was very sick for about a month. My doctor confirmed that it was obviously related to my acute stress level.

Gradually I bounced back, but it was a very distressing time. That is the reason you did not hear from me for over three months. It was a great learning period for me, because I had not been ill in many years. I always said that “I don’t get sick.” And that had been true. But the lesson was that acute stress interferes with the body’s ultimate self-healing tool, the immune system.

Prior to that I couldn’t even remember the last time I had been ill.

STRESS IS RESPONSIBLE FOR MOST DIS-EASE

My personal physician indicated to me that acute stress places the entire body in a state of assault, making it easy if not inevitable for the body’s protective mechanisms to break down.

In my own healing journey from multiple sclerosis, I have learned that a few simple “tools” like meditation, breath work, exercise, a few simple supplements, etc., help to maintain the immune at a high level of performance. But these building blocks of the immune system were more or less useless in the face of the onslaught of acute stress.

I had come to think that I would never be really sick again. The lesson I learned . . .

CHANGE IS INEVITABLE ― EVEN RELATED TO HEALTH ISSUES
WHEN WE DO SELF-DEFEATING THINGS

Please go to my primary website, http://www.bettyshouselifeafterms.com/ where I share my healing journey. Once there you may register to receive my monthly e-mailed newsletter, Journey to Wellness.

FEEL THE FEAR - AND DO IT ANYWAY

What is fear? Webster defines fear as “To be afraid,” or to be “frightened or apprehensive.”

Fear can be paralyzing. Fear can cause us to expect the worst. Fear can be incapacitating. Just imagine that you had just been diagnosed with what was to you a fate almost worth than death.

I have known paralyzing fear, and I have learned the secret to overcoming that fear. When I was much younger I was a very fearful person. My first memory of being fearful was when I was an adolescent.

      I was afraid of death.
      I was afraid of being sick – probably because of my fear of death.
      I was afraid to fly.
      I was very fearful in elevators.
      I was fearful of sitting in the middle of a long row at a theater.
      I was afraid to drive long distances alone.

As I got older I became afraid to leave my house. For years I had what is known as agoraphobia – a fear of open spaces. I was OK as long as I was home, but just going to a grocery store alone was paralyzing.

In short, I was an acutely fearful person. I had a friend many years ago who was a commercial airline pilot, and he talked me into taking a class to get over my fear of flying. It was taught by a psychologist and a senior TWA pilot. Since that class series (once a week for six weeks) I have flown over much of the world. In the process I learned that I was never afraid of flying, or of elevators, etc., I WAS AFRAID OF FEAR. I was paralyzed by my fear of having a panic attack – basically a fear of fear!

But I have good news for you . . . the answer to paralyzing fear is really simple. I learned it in that class to overcome my fear of flying. 

The answer:

                 FEEL THE FEAR AND DO IT ANYWAY!

Once you do whatever it was that you thought you were afraid of, you break free from the fear and it no longer has any hold on you. In my case in short order all my fears disappeared. As I think back to all those years when I was so fearful, it is still difficult for me to believe that the answer was so simple.

Whether your fears play a small or major role in your life, why not look those demons in the face and not allow them to reduce the quality of your life for even one more day.  YOU CAN DO IT.

Please visit my primary website or write to me privately if you wish.

You'll find me on Twitter and Facebook.

I AM NOT A MEDICALLY TRAINED PERSON,
AND I DO NOT GIVE MEDICAL ADVICE

YOU CAN OVERCOME ANY DIS-EASE

When I was 17 years old my mother had her first episode of what we later learned was what doctors call multiple sclerosis. At the time it was thought she had probably had a mild stroke. It was several more years and several additional episodes before she was diagnosed with MS. I had watched MS devastate my mother and gradually over the years saw her become trapped in a body that no longer worked, eventually leading to a wheelchair and finally to the last 18 years of her life confined to a nursing home.

Interestingly mother never gave up her belief that doctors were going to help her, even after the medications at the least did not help her nor slow the progress of her disease, and at the most made her situation worse. It never occurred to her that she could do anything to help herself.

When my first neurological symptoms gradually appeared, I was my mother’s only contact with the world. MS is a very insidious neurological disorder which is thought to result from a deterioration of the myelin sheath which insulates the brain and spinal cord, causing ineffective signals between the brain and/or spinal cord to various parts of the body. Because the central nervous system is so vast it effects everyone in a somewhat different way.

As if that wasn’t enough, there are two primary kinds of MS. The most common kind is called relapsing remitting (RRMS) and primary progressive (PPMS). As seems obvious, relapsing remitting means one’s MS is characterized by acute periods, followed by periods of remission. Primary progressive is normally characterized by a continuing gradual decline without any periods of remission. My mother had RRMS, by far the most common kind, accounting for about 80 - 90% of all MS.

When I was 55 years of age and encountering the symptoms of menopause, I found myself after three years of searching for the answer to my “strange” symptoms, sitting across the desk from a neurologist and hearing him say, “Betty, there is no doubt after a careful examination of your thoracic spine MRI, that you have primary progressive MS.” Inasmuch as there is a familial predisposition to MS in many families, when I was diagnosed the symptoms were so completely different than my mother’s that two previous neurologists, over a three-year period, even knowing my family history, never suspected MS.

Today, after 16 years, I have totally defeated MS and live a very normal and active life. I often think of why the difference between the path of my mother’s MS and mine.

I wasn't willing to accept the

inevitability of life in a wheelchair

as the neurologist predicted!

My mother had a traditional belief in the medical intervention of doctors. Conversely I had been a student of metaphysics for quite a few years prior to my diagnosis, and I totally accepted that I - and only I – created and controlled my world. I believed that my body was/is designed to be self-healing, and I set out to discover how to correct whatever imbalances were responsible for my MS.

I also believe that whatever dis-ease our body may be demonstrating – whatever name doctors choose to call the symptoms – it is merely demonstrating a body out of biochemical balance. I also believe that we are ALL triune beings, with equal physical, mental and spiritual aspects, and in order to heal and return our body to that state of healthy biochemical balance, we must address all three aspects of our being.

Based on my own experience, I believe the greatest healing energies are love, and our own mental attitude, as well as a stress-free lifestyle, and connecting to divine energy, however one defines that. Please understand that I am not talking about religion. I am not a religious person at all, but I am a deeply spiritual person. Anyone can develop a connection to the Universal Power by developing the skill – and it is truly a skill – of meditation.

A major part of my transformation came from learning the self-healing power of Qi Gong and its powerful breathing practices. I believe the breath is a very powerful connection to the Universal Creative Power of the Universe.

My formula for creating health is:

GENTLE MOVEMENT EXERCISE OF QI GONG OR YOGA WITH

SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON THE BREATH, MEDITATION, A HEATLHY DIET,

SUPPLEMENTATION WITH OMEGA 3 OILS,

AND THERAPEUTIC DOSES OF VITAMIN D

in that order of importance.

Consistency is of utmost importance.  And please remember that there is no free lunch or magic formula.  There is a price to pay for everything, and my message for you is that you can do it too, whatever physical challenge you may have, if you want to badly enough to pay the price!

If you truly want to change your life, go to my primary website, www.BettysHouseLifeAfterMS.com to explore my story further. I have written an e-book, Four Steps to Overcoming Multiple Sclerosis, which is not just about MS but rather about how to heal your life. You’ll find all the details at my Betty’s House website.

You'll find me at THIS WEB ADDRESS or E-MAIL ME if you have questions. You may also connect with me on Twitter and Facebook.      


I am not a medically trained person, and I do not give medical advice.

GETTING YOUR LIFE ON TRACK

What is your dream for your life?  Do you feel that you are on track to accomplish that?  If not, why not?

We have made tremendous strides in understanding human behavior and how we "drive" our accomplishments with our thoughts and beliefs.  When coupled with emotion we can change our lives to achieve whatever we want to achieve.

What if you knew, absolutely knew, that you could begin with a clean slate . . . to finally move forward . . . to live the life you have always wanted . . . on your own terms, to experience more joy and happiness, better health, better relationships, more abundance?

You are probably shouting YES!!  But at the same time you ask these familiar "what" and "how" questions:

• How do you discover your true life purpose?
• Do we really have inner guidance?
• If so, how do we tap into that source?
• How do we create a healthy lifestyle?
• Can we really turn unhealthy into healthy?
• How do we lower our chances of the 3 big killers?
• How do you stop allowing your past to dicate your future?

The first step is to accept that you can truly create an AWESOME life for yourself.  Unless and until you accept that you are in the driver's seat, and that your choices determine how EVERYTHING in your life turns out, things will not change.  It is important to know that we do not have to understand exactly how that works in order to apply it in our lives.

The primary key is learning that YOUR answers are all inside of you.  You just need to learn to tap into that well-spring that resides inside each and every one of us.  It is commonly called meditation.  I understand people who believe they cannot meditate, or perhaps they have tried meditating for a while and didn't seem to find any meaning in it.  I too was one of those for a few years.

What I came to learn was that I had a misperception of what meditation is.  I was expecting something miraculous to occur, and when that didn't happen I felt I had failed.  When I was diagnosed 16 years ago with Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis, I made a decision that I would persevere until I was successful at meditating. 

I first learned that at an elementary level meditation is merely turning off the mind chatter, the natural internal dialog we all have with ourselves.  Once we have learned to do that, we can begin to tap into our internal guidance system, and our purpose in life will be reestablished.  From that time we are able to take responsibili;ty for our own health.

How long does that take"  The answer is different for every person.  Every accomplishment begins with a signle action, a single.  Why not get started today? 

Today I am symptom free and live a very active life.  And I am devoting this period of my life to helping others find what I have found.  I assure you that it is worth all the effort to reach that point. I hope to have the opportunity to help you.

Check out the "Introduction to Meditation" at my primary website, www.BettysHouseLifeAfterMS.com/Meditation.htm.

MOTIVATION = STRONG DESIRE

Motivation is required to achieve anything. And motivation is simply strong desire, or wanting something badly enough to propel you toward your goal. How do you put motivation and desire together? To build a strong desire think of three or four things that you would enjoy AFTER you achieve your goal.

Now activate your goal by taking a first step in the direction of your goal. What? I know . . . that seems overly simplistic, but remember that long journeys begin with one step. That first step can be anything to begin moving you in the direction you want to go. It is a little bit like planting a seed.

Next take an action in the direction of your goal. A very effective first action step is visualizing the accomplishment of your goal. All personal development approaches teach meditation and visualization (creating an image in your mind) of the end result as a first action step toward reaching that intended goal.

Meditation is important because it helps you to focus your mind. Without it there is a great deal of minutia that distracts your mind. I like to call that mind chatter. Meditation helps you to eliminate all that. Meditation means your attention is concentrated on one thing or subject. As it relates to goal setting, meditation concentrates your attention on that one subject, and that energizes the mysterious creative energy that we all possess.

Through meditation we increase that creative energy many times over by helping us to reconnect with our Source. The message of our desire of a particular goal goes out to the entire universe, through that unseen energy which connects everything and everyone, and in some mysterious way sets into motion the necessary ingredients to bring about your desire. It literally reaches the people you may need to help you achieve your goal.

EXERCISE: Close your eyes and take a few deep slow breaths, exhaling very slowly. Then visualize the accomplishment of your goal. Make your visualizatiion as vivid and real as you possibly can. Some people have a difficult time with visualization. If that is true for you, then just picture the words of your goal in front of you, as though you are reading a sign, as on a mind screen.

Behavioral pshychologists tells us that when we remember things we have read, we are actually "seeing" the words in front of us. Or when we remember a favorite place, the mental process is a simple visualization. In reality convincing yourself that you cannot visualize wouild be like convincing yourself that you cannot walk.

Now put a realistic date on your goal. Think, "By such and such a date I have (insert whatever you wish to achieve)." See that date on your mind screen. The more emotion you put behind your visualization the more effective it will be.

VISUALIZATION - MEDITATION - QI GONG - YOGA

Visualization is a great natural self-healing tool. Together with daily meditation and a consistent Qi Gong practice were the cornerstones of my own recovery from Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis. I cannot tell you how many hundreds of hours I spent visualizing myself walking and running. VISUALIZATION WORKS!

You may read my story at my primary website, www.BettysHouseLifeAfterMS.com. While there sign up for my companion Journey to Wellness newsletter, now in its 14th year.

Find me on Twitter and Facebook.

Betty

THE BEST TIME OF YOUR LIFE

One of my favorite affirmations is . . .

"This is the best day of my life so far."

Is that statement true for you? If not, why not? Actually it is just a decision away. I know. That sounds overly simplistic, but it is nonetheless true. We human beings have a way of making the simple seem difficult.

Think about those New Year's resolutions you made a couple of weeks ago. How are you doing? If you are like most people I know you have already given up on them. I hope that isn't the case for you.

Actually there is no time like the present. Realize what you're truly capable of and take the first step toward your goals, whether they are about creating a healthier healing lifestyle, learning to meditate producing greater abundance, improving or creating better relationships, etc. They are all just a decision away.

Remember, it is your body, your life, and your health. You are in charge. The positive side of that is you get to make your own decisions . . . you get to decide how your life turns out. But of course there is a balancing negative side, and that is that you are in charge. YOU must take responsibility for your decisions. No one else can do it for you, and no amount of wishing can make it happen.

Research has shown that very specific yet simple techniques provide the keys to improving your relationship with your body, as well as other aspects of your life, by learning how to use the awesome power of your mind.

You have the power to open the doors to whole new levels of greater, health, happiness and achievement that you've ever experienced before.

My wish to you in 2011 is that you believe and accept that . . .

The Rest of Your Life Can Be the Best of Your Life

I truly do speak from experience. About fifteen years ago I was diagnosed with Primary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis, after several years of increasingly progressive neurological symptoms. I was told that there was nothing allopathic medicine could do for me, and that I would soon need a wheelchair. Today, after developing a lifestyle program for myself, I am symptom free. I now devote myself to helping others discover that their body is designed to be self-healing.

You may read my story at http://www.bettyshouselifeafterms.com/. Once there you may subscribe to my monthly e-mail newsletter, Journey to Wellness. Please stop by for a visit. I think you will find it empowering. You'll also find information about my LifeDesign videos, which are short life-changing little movies.

To a Happy, Healthy and Abundant 2011.

Look for me on Twitter and Facebook