CAITLIN JOHNSTONE: “On Maintaining Perspective In The Year 20 F*cking 20”

Whenever an author, filmmaker or other artist sets out on the noble endeavor of pointing people toward the ideal of living life to its fullest, they usually wind up depicting a character going off on all sorts of wild adventures, skydiving, trekking across the Himalayas, and so on.

In my opinion reminding people to live life to its fullest is the artist’s single most important job, but this is also where most storytellers get it wrong. Most people who live wild, interesting lives sleepwalk through the whole ride just like everyone else; in the end they’re left with a few amusing anecdotes rattling around in their skulls and a secret sense of dissatisfaction.

This is because most people don’t really show up for life. Even if they’re outwardly doing all sorts of amazing things and racking up a bunch of impressive accomplishments, their attention was mostly consumed with babbling mental chatter almost the entire time. Whatever happens in their life, they weren’t really there for it.

The real way to live life to its fullest is to simply be present for it.

I point this out because, at the midway point of the year 2020, I think it’s extremely relevant.

For better or for worse, we are at a time of great change from which the world will likely never return. We are heading into what is probably the most significant period in human history to date, and it would be wise to pay attention.

But when I look at what people are talking about in my social media feeds, even relatively awake and tuned-in people, I see a lot of chatter about the same-old, same-old. People are still yammering on about the same old electoral politics they’ve been on about for years, still babbling about PC culture being out of control and how crazy some people’s gender pronouns are, still dunking on shitlibs for likes and retweets. Even my own articles I notice get a lot more shares and attention if they involve something that tickles mainstream partisan interests like criticizing Trump or bashing the Democrats.

And I just cannot for the life of me imagine continuing to hold such priorities halfway through the year 20-f*cking-20.

At this time we need to drastically change our perspectives and seriously re-evaluate our priorities. We’re all standing on a precipice together and we have no idea what the plunge will look like, and people are still babbling about whether or not you should wear a face mask at the grocery store. This, to me, is a nonsensical approach to our current predicament.

All the stuff that used to consume so much of our attention in the analysis of establishment power structures has been rendered far less important by recent developments. All these recent developments will probably be rendered less relevant by whatever major events are coming next. The only consistent pattern this year has been a greater and greater deviation from old patterns.

For that reason, it makes sense to do two things:

Shift toward emphasizing a bigger-picture perspective of what’s going on. Fixate less on smaller occurrences and pay more attention to broader overall trends. It doesn’t mean ignore the smaller things, it just means view them in the proper context of a world that’s moving into more and more unfamiliar territory in bigger and bigger ways.

Pay attention. Big things are happening right now, and it would be a damn shame to miss them.

We are experiencing something huge here, and it would be a shame to let it go to waste.

We should rather all approach our current situation at this point in history like someone who is trying to live life to its fullest: mindful, curious, not hung up on petty mental narratives, and appreciative of how lucky we are to be here right now to witness this thing.

And, much like the approach of the end of life, this moment in history should ideally cause us to cast aside petty differences and bring us closer together.

 

~via Caitlin Johnstone

CAITLIN JOHNSTONE: “How To Effectively Cope With Your COVID-19 Anxiety”

As 2020 gets crazier and crazier, emotional self-care is getting more and more important. A lot of people, especially the “plugged-in” types who like to pay close attention to what’s going on in the world, are getting into some looping stress patterns over the COVID-19 pandemic that are unnecessary, unhealthy, and unhelpful.

It’s an understandable web to get tangled in; there are all these alarming news stories and statistics pouring in every single day, many of which speak of dangers which may pose a direct threat to the lives and livelihoods of ourselves and our loved ones. Some people spend hours online combing through all the latest information they can find about this thing, and as they’re doing this a tremendous amount of stress builds up in the background of their experience, ultimately culminating in depression, panic attacks, angry outbursts, substance abuse or other unpleasantness.

You see strategies for coping with this increasingly common problem everywhere online, from common healthy stress management techniques like deep breathing and meditation, to escapist claims that the virus doesn’t pose any real danger, to many people simply unplugging from their news feeds altogether. What people aren’t talking about nearly enough, in my opinion, is the simple yet highly effective practice of consciously feeling your feelings.

You wouldn’t think “feel your feelings” is something that needs to be said; it sounds not just like common sense, but like something that happens automatically without your intention or permission. We’ve all experienced emotions we’d prefer not to experience if given the choice, so we assume emotion arises unbidden like a force of nature.

While that can certainly be true, a tremendous range of our emotional spectrum is often blotted out by a basic lack of emotional attentiveness. Our culture tends to encourage us to put all but our loudest emotions on the back burner and focus on other matters, and Covid-19 happens to feed into that dynamic especially well by giving us a bunch of sparkly news headlines and statistics to focus on while this low-level background anxiety slowly builds unnoticed.

Feelings need to be felt. Not acted out on other people, but felt. They’re like small children; if you just give them a cuddle, let them cry and listen to their grievances they feel better in a few minutes, but if you deprive them of attention they’ll start acting out to get it.

At some point between childhood and adulthood, most of us consciously created strategies to stop our feelings from coming up unbidden. At some point, crying in front of your peers became embarrassing and you learned how to stop it from happening. Most of us never thought to take down those defences after they were installed. Some of us have never even re-learned how to cry again. Letting your feelings flow again will take a conscious effort from most of us.

No matter how much mantra repetition, deep breathing or positive affirmations you do, unless you’ve felt those feelings all the way through you’re just wallpapering over the actual issue. A huge percentage of the anxiety that people are currently experiencing is just a big backlog of feelings that need to be felt.

For some of you, just reminding you of that will be enough. Put down the phone and quietly meditate on it until it bubbles up. Hold your feelings like they’re a little baby newborn. Let them happen until they’re all the way done.

Others might need to try out some different strategies. Here are some of mine.

First, I always check in with my body. Am I clenching anything? Hands, bum, tummy, forehead, jaw? What else is happening? Is there background nausea, or a lump in my throat, or is my heart thumping too hard? I investigate. Close your eyes now and try it with me. Scan around for a few minutes.

Try tapping around with the tips of your fingers on one hand of the areas that you identified are tight. You’ll find spots that are a little bit sore. They feel like a light bruise. Tap on those spots for a little longer until they release. Once you’ve done that, let your fingers tap round your body and find other tight spots. Do this for at least a few minutes.

As you’re doing this, the loud buzz of anxiety releases and the actual root feelings become more clear. Sometimes all you have to do is feel them. You will probably feel embarrassed to feel them. That’s just one of the layers of defence you put in all those years ago. If it feels stuck, use your theater improv skills to exaggerate and try some feelings on until you find the source feeling. Feel them all the way through. Sometimes they feel their way to the other side, oftentimes they end abruptly with a burp, the shakes, a yawn or some other release.

If that doesn’t work, I usually hop up and do a very easy qi gong sequence a dear friend of mine taught me years ago. I think any kind of repetitive energy movement would do though. Basically I do the same movement over and over again with my eyes closed. Once the energy is moving around the body I can sense areas of blockage. I just keep looking at them until I’ve fully seen all the parts of it and then it releases, usually by a big expression of feeling like a roar or something, that usually ends in dry retching.

I know I’m done when I’m at zero again. I don’t stop until I feel totally at peace. I think that’s important to note because some people really get off on having big feelings and having their big feelings all over everyone else. Sometimes people want other people to “own” their feelings. Rather than feeling them, they try to make other people feel them by proxy. They’re usually referred to as drama queens.

The point is to release the feelings so your natural peaceful zero point can shine through again. You are the sky, the feelings are weather. Identifying as the weather will mean you are invested in keeping the weather going. Identifying as the feeling will mean you will be invested in keeping the feeling going. Set the intention to let it speak to you, and then let it pass. That’s where health is.

A lot of people are saying that the fear of the coronavirus is more damaging than the virus itself. I think that’s true, but not in the way they mean it. They’re often trying to say that the coronavirus itself a nothingburger and the fear is being used to manipulate us. I think the virus is a real thing, and also our fear will be used by ourselves and others to manipulate us. We need to clear a path to inspiration by feeling through our feelings and getting back to zero as often as possible. This will help us in the big picture by seeing what’s happening and responding with grace, and in the micro by keeping our immune systems in full relaxed readiness and not tangled up, tripping over itself, fighting ghosts and in panic-mode.

Do the internal work and the external work will follow. This is how we save ourselves.

 

~via Caitlin Johnstone

LISA RENEE (Time Shift Blog): “Relaxation and Fluidity”

“During these times learning how to slow down and achieve a relaxed state of mind is of vital importance, especially when retraining and clearing out our subconscious mind programming. Our brain and our mental body is much more effective when we have slowed down and works more optimally when we are in a relaxed state and calm atmosphere, because this is the natural state of our core spiritual essence. All forms of mental anxiety, stress, and over intellectualizing makes our mind speed up to having too many thoughts at once, and this overwhelms and clouds our Discernment, causing us to make poor impulsive decisions. To make contact and communicate with our subconscious layers, as well as our super consciousness layers, we need to go slower in order to reach a totally relaxed Meditation state and stay fluid within the energies. Energy bodies behave like waters moving in an ocean or river, if we can sense our inner energy when it meets the outer energies, we can navigate the surrounding waters by paying attention to the energy flow. We go with the flow in a state of relaxed fluidity. If we are moving too fast and not paying attention to the energy flow, we can get carried in the current of stronger forces in a sudden and unexpected tidal wave and this is when we get hurt or injured.”

~Lisa Renee

 

During these times learning how to slow down and achieve a relaxed state of mind is of vital importance, especially when retraining and clearing out our subconscious mind programming. The simple truth is that when we rid our body and mind of destructive habits and useless distractions we create more balance, which naturally manifests more grace and ease in our life.

Our brain and our mental body is much more effective when we have slowed down and works more optimally when we are in a relaxed state and calm atmosphere, because this is the natural state of our core spiritual essence. All forms of mental anxiety, stress, and over intellectualizing makes our mind speed up to having too many thoughts at once, and this overwhelms and clouds our Discernment, causing us to make poor impulsive decisions. To make contact and communicate with our subconscious layers, as well as our super consciousness layers, we need to go slower in order to reach a totally relaxed Meditation state and stay fluid within the energies. Energy bodies behave like waters moving in an ocean or river, if we can sense our inner energy when it meets the outer energies, we can navigate the surrounding waters by paying attention to the energy flow. We go with the flow in a state of relaxed fluidity. If we are moving too fast and not paying attention to the energy flow, we can get carried in the current of stronger forces in a sudden and unexpected tidal wave and this is when we get hurt or injured.

Thus, it is important that you learn to induce a simple meditative state in yourself, where you become the observer and are incredibly relaxed, and yet you are alert, not so relaxed that you fall asleep. Obviously, this state is not for when you are doing heavy physical exertion, but in the majority of your waking life, you can be in this relaxed state of fluidity paying attention to how the energy feels around you, while doing simple tasks or at work completing responsibilities. Using single focus and staying presently focused on the task in front of you, while naturally adjusting to the energies that are making subtle changes to the environment. In the early stage of developing Meditation skill we have to sit, relax and learn to observe the thoughts passing through without having attachment to them. Once we notice the thought pattern, we let it go and bring our focus back to the now moment. The next stage is adjusting to the energies inside you and outside of you. Each of us must find the most natural state of being for our body that feels good in the energetic flow, and not let our mind interfere with that natural state of calm and equilibrium. In our natural state, our inner self will strongly align with the outer self to bring harmony and wholeness between the inner and outer.

Also, we need to know how to stay as calm as possible even when under great stress in the moment. Stress causes our body to enter a heightened state of reactivity due to the release of hormones and Neurotransmitters when we’re feeling overwhelmed and stressed out. So, remaining calm and slowing down, even during potentially tense situations can establish a sense of powerful stillness that will help your mind stop racing from one thought to the next.

To be effective we need to establish a peaceful mind-set before concentrating on any one thing, especially when facing conflicts or challenges. General fluidity and relaxation of both the mind and body will greatly improve higher sensory perception development and build spiritual communication links, helping to bring more ease and clarity for problem solving. When a person is fluid and relaxed, their Energy Receivers are open and more receptive to guidance and creative resolutions. Listen to your body, treat your body with care and make corrections when you feel tense, by returning back to a state where your bio-rhythm feels relaxed and open. With practice you can discipline your mind and emotions from overwhelming your effectiveness in a range of social settings. The more we dis-identify from our need to control the external influences and learn to allow and accept situations we have no control over, the more quickly we can adapt and stay relaxed while addressing stressful situations.

As many of us in the spiritual community are fully aware, we must move out of the Subconscious Programming and Mind Control conditioning of the 3D way of existence and be hypervigilant to constantly refocus ourselves into higher states of being. Expressing unconditional love, Compassion, gratitude, appreciation, and the Spirits of Christ, are great sources of higher states. Knowing that love, heartful presence, being in alignment with nature, and being an authentic and caring human are the simple keys to ensure our success in every way to rebuild our lightbody. May we inspire others who may come into contact with us, to know the truth in the path of unconditional love, as it is the only path of spiritual freedom!

(Source: ES News- Subconscious Programming)

 

~via EnergeticSynthesis.com – Time Shift Blog – March 31, 2020

CHRIS HUGHES: “11 Reasons To Meditate Daily”

Here’s a short list of the benefits that come from a daily meditation practice….

1. Your life becomes significantly more clear and calm

The hustle and bustle of everyday life is choking our minds of the peace we deserve! Our technology advancements shouldn’t suffocate our minds, it should allow us to achieve more peace. Meditation helps put those events in perspective for our daily tasks.

2. Your blood pressure is lowered

Science has proven it, meditation lowers the blood pressure, which in return is related to your stress levels and stress management. Much better than taking pills to lower your blood pressure!

3. People around you enjoy your company

Regular meditation leads to higher/positive energy that you are consistently tapping into. This effectively makes you very pleasant to be around, and people like that! People naturally gravitate to the people that make them feel good.

4. Your connection with God is strengthened

Spiritual awareness is strengthened with a daily meditation practice. You naturally become more aware of your surroundings, and higher awareness always leads to a deeper connection with God. The trees begin showing personalities, and the landscape takes on different meanings… all through a deeper awareness.

5. You achieve several hours of sleep in one 20 minute meditation session

Another scientific fact is that meditation is known to put you into a deeper state of rest than deep sleep. Deep sleep is associated with a delta brainwave. Deep meditation can drop you into that delta brainwave rapidly, achieving the effects in a shorter amount of time.

6. Problems that seemed very difficult suddenly have clear solutions

For every problem a solution exists. When your mind is clear and your in a state of peace, solutions appear. Being in a state of peace just naturally attracts solutions and pathways into your field of view.

7. Your productivity skyrockets because of your ability to have clear focus

If solutions to problems appear more frequently when meditating daily, then imagine what happens to your everyday tasks. Solutions to everyday life become more and more obvious. And you begin to take note of these subtle changes as your spiritual vision grows clearer and wider.

8. Your life expectancy increases

Science has shown that regular meditation will increase your life expectancy. It’s pretty obvious to see… less stress and more peace promotes healthy cells and healthy cells regenerate healthier cells. And likewise, stressed cells regenerate more stressed cells. So live longer by choosing more peace in your life.

9. You effectively reduce stress in your life

Speaking of stress, meditation has a profound effect on reducing stress in your body. Because meditation promotes peace and inner calm, stress dissolves dramatically from this meditative process. Again, science has proven it.

10. You can visualize powerfully when combined with positive affirmations and meditation

Meditation is powerful at clearing the mind and focusing on simple things… like breathing… or a flower. But, it can be used for so much more! To powerfully manifest your desires, you must get into a clear connection with the source of manifesting (God/Universe/Ethers). If your spirits are on high while you visualize then the communication channel for manifesting positive events in your life is strengthened.

While meditating I like to repeat affirmations, otherwise known as mantras, to help focus my energy into the positive. These statements can be as simple as “love” or “I am love, I am joy, I am peace”.

11. You feel fantastic throughout your day!

And finally, when you meditate on a regular basis, you just feel fantastic. Plain and simple. You feel good. Everything else is details

 

~via In5D.com

NANICE ELLIS: “Are You Suffering from PAST LIFE Traumatic Stress Disorder?”

Most of us know that unhealed emotional trauma can result in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and many of us have even experienced it. But, did you know that we can also carry unhealed emotional trauma from past lives? In fact, there’s a direct link between past life trauma and present day fears, phobias and panic attacks. If you’re experiencing any of these conditions, you could be suffering from Past Life Traumatic Stress Disorder!

Maybe you’re wondering, how can you carry unhealed emotional trauma from one life to the next?

Although you may live many lives and incarnate as very different characters, your soul remains with you from life to life, and even though you may not remember a thing, your soul maintains the memories from all lifetimes and keeps track of “unfinished business.” So, each time you reincarnate, you take it all with you, and this means that if you die with unhealed emotional wounds in one lifetime, you’re born with the same unhealed emotional wounds in another.

Past Life Trauma — Current Day Issues!

Most of us have no memories of traumatic events that occurred in other lifetimes. Nonetheless, when we carry unhealed past life trauma into our present life, it often manifests as some type of distressing issue that is somehow related to the original event.

When past life trauma surfaces through current life issues, it often triggers Past Life Traumatic Stress Disorder, and, as a result, we might experience irrational fears, anxiety, phobias or panic attacks.

Here are some examples of how Past Life Traumatic Stress Disorder shows up:

  • If you were ever severely punished for not following the rules in a past life, you may have an irrational fear of authority.
  • If you were ever rejected or abandoned in a past life, you may have an irrational fear of being different or not fitting in.
  • If you were ever enslaved or imprisoned in a past life, you may have an irrational fear of losing freedom.
  • If you were ever excommunicated for voicing your beliefs or taking a stand in a past life, you could have a fear of being seen or heard (by the way, this is often the cause of public speaking phobias).

Furthermore, when the same type of trauma is experienced in more than one lifetime, past life scars often become amplified, and, subsequently, with each repetitive experience, the symptoms of Past Life Traumatic Stress Disorder intensify.

Also, keep in mind that irrational fears and phobias can include basically anything associated with trauma — even as simple as the fear of pencils or shoelaces.

Unfortunately, until we understand the cause of our irrational reactions, we have no control over the triggers.

Traumatic Death

Oftentimes, Past Life Traumatic Stress Disorder is the result of a traumatic death. For instance, one of my friends had panic attacks whenever someone touched his neck or he had to wear a necktie. Not surprisingly, he often had “flashbacks” of being strangled to death in a past life.

Here are some more examples of how a traumatic death can result in present day fear:

  • If you ever died by drowning, you could have an irrational fear of water.
  • If you ever fell to your death, you could have an irrational fear of heights.
  • If you ever perished in a burning building, you could have an irrational fear of fire.
  • If you were ever fatally trapped, you could have an irrational fear of being confined (claustrophobia).
  • If you were ever killed by a ferocious animal or deadly insect, you could have an irrational fear of certain animals or insects.
  • If you were ever accused of being a witch or burned at the stake for possessing psychic powers, you could have an irrational fear of sharing your gifts.

Frozen to Death

For most of my life, I had an irrational fear of being cold, and, needless to say, this made long, winter months quite unbearable. Honestly, whenever I was cold, I would instantly go into mild shock, and while I couldn’t think clearly, I felt like I was going to die.

Then, one brisk autumn evening, I got terribly lost while hiking through the wilderness alone. As the sun began to set and I was beginning to feel very cold, that familiar panic started to takeover. But this time, something different happened. Suddenly, I experienced myself as a tribal warrior who lived in another era. Evidently, I just lost a major battle, and while I was fatally injured and all alone, I was left to die in the frozen wilderness.

After remembering this slow and brutal death, I finally understood my irrational fear of the cold — and why I associated it with death. Believe it or not, after I recalled this memory, the fear of being cold completely disappeared, and, in fact, winter became my favorite season!

The Purpose of Re-enacting Past Life Wounds

Let’s be clear; whenever past life trauma manifests as current day issues, it is never due to punishment nor karma. Instead, past life trauma is carried from life to life in order to support our human survival and spiritual evolution.

You see, in response to past life wounds, we develop survival mechanisms, such as specific fears, anxieties and phobias, and due to these protective mechanisms, we automatically stay away from potential risks that could result in similar traumas.

Additionally, when emotional wounds are healed during a human incarnation, we master certain virtues that our souls intended to attain — and this is why we experience emotional wounds in the first place.

In a nutshell, while past life trauma is carried from life to life in order to protect us from similar threats, it also gives us the opportunity to reap intended virtues as we heal.

Repeat, Repeat… Heal!

While past life fears keep us from partaking in risky behaviors and also provide opportunities to attain virtues, they also prevent us from living our lives, fulfilling our dreams, and reaching our full potential.

Furthermore, even though details may change from life to life, until we heal our emotional wounds, we could repeat the same type of issues over and over again.

Although free will allows us to ignore our wounds indefinitely, if we don’t properly address the cause, these issues inevitably escalate in frequency and intensity, and, at some point, and in some lifetime, they likely result in a personal crisis that cannot be ignored. Eventually, when emotional pain reaches a personal breaking point and familiar coping strategies no longer provide relief, we inevitably seek healing.

However, keep in mind that you don’t need to reach a breaking point in order to heal and you don’t need to repeat the same issues lifetime after lifetime.

Simultaneous Lifetimes

Before we continue, I’d like to acknowledge that the term “past life” could be very misleading. You see, according to quantum physics, all moments of time occur simultaneously, and, if this is true, it means that we are actually living parallel lives. Although we are only aware of this “current” life, who knows what we experience when we’re asleep or when we’re blinking in and out of reality countless times a minute.

Nonetheless, this concept doesn’t change a thing, and, in fact, when it comes to healing, there’s no time like the present!

So, how do we heal past life trauma?

Well, some people choose to heal past life trauma through past life regressions, and this means that under hypnosis they “go back” and remember one or more past lives where they experienced a particular trauma. Although this may sound somewhat “woo woo,” I personally guided past life regressions for many years and the results were often astounding.

Sometimes, just remembering past life trauma is enough to heal it, (for example, my fear of the cold), but, more often than not, healing is a process that must be actively embraced. Therefore, if you want to heal past life trauma through a past life regression, remembering your past lives is just the beginning. This is why it’s important to find a reputable past life regression therapist who knows how to work through multiple life traumas.

Present Life Healing

Even though it might be interesting to remember who you were or what you experienced in one or more past lives, there’s actually no need to do so. In fact, you don’t need to remember past life trauma in order to heal past life wounds. Since the same issues repeat from one life to the next, and all lifetimes are interconnected through your soul, when an emotional wound is healed in any lifetime that same emotional wound is simultaneously healed in all incarnations.

Therefore, by healing emotional wounds as they surface in your current reality, you inevitably heal those same wounds in all lifetimes!

So, exactly how do we heal emotional wounds?

Well, before we can heal an emotional wound, not only must we identify it, we must also address the real cause. Although we tend to confuse emotional wounds with precipitating traumatic events, emotional wounds are not caused by traumatic experiences!

Regardless of details or timelines, emotional wounds are caused by emotional reactions (how we react to trauma). For instance, if we react to trauma by adopting disempowering beliefs or abandoning ourselves, we self-inflict emotional wounds. Although few can argue that emotional wounds appear incredibly real, if it were not for emotional pain, it would be easy to see that all emotional wounds are based on disempowering beliefs and/or self-abandonment.

Since there’s no quick fix or easy escape, emotional wounds remain with us until we release disempowering beliefs and we stop abandoning ourselves.

By healing these two pivotal components during this lifetime, you inevitably heal all lifetimes!

Although you may have tragically died in a past life, the fact that you’re reading this now clearly demonstrates that you really didn’t die — did you?

So, despite one or more traumatic deaths, the Real You survived! If this doesn’t prove that you’re a powerful and eternal being, I don’t know what does?

However, if you still need more proof, please consider that your nighttime dreams might also reflect this truth. For instance, if you’ve ever been harmed or killed in a dream, you know that when you wake-up in the morning, you’re perfectly fine. Well, believe it or not, life operates in much the same way.

In fact, since we are all “willing dreamers” in the dream of life, every one of us withstands an array of challenges, triumphs and adventures throughout many lifetimes. Yet, no matter how realistic the dream called “life” may be, when we awaken in the afterlife, we are completely unharmed, no worse for wear, and immensely better for the experience.

So, rest assured, not only is your survival guaranteed, the ultimate destination ensures a successful outcome!

Just like light illuminates darkness, this truth can heal you and set you free!

In grace & gratitude,
Nanice

 

~via WakeUp-World.com