Lift Your Mood, Change Your Life

Being a melancholic sort of gal (can you tell from my smiling picture?), I need all the help I can get to lift my mood and raise my vibration. I will stay in the basement most of the time unless I consciously decide to take the elevator up. In their wonderful book, Ask and It Is Given, Abraham-Hicks lists an emotional guidance scale:

1. Joy/Knowledge/Empowerment/Freedom/Love/Appreciation
2. Passion
3. Enthusiasm/Eagerness/Happiness
4. Positive Expectation/Belief
5. Optimism
6. Hopefulness
7. Contentment
8. Boredom
9. Pessimism
10. Frustration/Irritation/Impatience
11. “Overwhelment”
12. Disappointment
13. Doubt
14. Worry
15. Blame
16. Discouragement
17. Anger
18. Revenge
19. Hatred/Rage
20. Jealousy
21. Insecurity/Guilt/Unworthiness
22. Fear/Grief/Depression/Despair/Powerlessness

If you are like me, and tend to hang out in the basement, at the bottom of the emotional scale, then it’s time to lift off! I am always on the lookout for what can pull me up to at least a 5 on the scale. I have found two that I want to share with you.

You may know Mike Dooley as one of the teachers from the movie, The Secret. Well, he and his brother Andy are vibrational kingpins. Both, each in his own way, has made me smile and given me that necessary lift I need.

Mike has these wonderful daily quips called Notes From the Universe. Every day you will receive in your inbox a personalized note signed, The Universe. The notes are whimsical and light, though profound and always true; though sometimes we cannot see the truth of who we really are. Why? Because the truth is buried deep underneath all of our fears, limiting beliefs and negative thinking.

Andy is the artist and his art is vibrationally uplifting. The sample above is one of my favorites. Every week you get Law of Attraction artwork complete with a poem to lift your spirits.

So, need to lift your mood from out of the basement to the top floor? Check out:

Mike Dooley’s Notes from the Universe

Andy Dooley's Law of Attraction Art




Lift your mood, change your life!
Coach Carolyn

Friday's Purposeful Question

“…Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms and like books that are written in a very foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now." ~ From Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke

"How do you define success?"

"Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary." ~ Steve Jobs

Here's to your definition of success!
Coach Carolyn

Why Take Offense?

The second of the Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz:

"Don't Take Anything Personally"

I was on the NYC subway one night, forced to listen to one side of a cell phone conversation. The subway was elevated outside, so perfect opportunity to use some of those free minutes! Yikes!

Anyway, the sister was hollering at another sister about being offended that this dude thought she was 28 years old!

"How dare he! Do I look like I'm that old?" she shrieked.

I would love it if someone would offend me like that ~ but I digress!

My first thought was why was she taking the offense. And this is the topic of this post, which ties in with the second agreement ~ not to take anything personally.

If I handed you a bottle of poison (no, not the cologne, please keep up!), and you took it and not only took it, but drank it. Who dies, me or you? No, this is not a trick question.

I handed it to you. You could have refused to take it. Not only did you take it, you ingested it, meaning you made it about you. That was your choice.

You also have the choice to say, "No thank you!" Ever heard of those words? Well, use them and relieve yourself of the drama. Then I won't have to listen to one-sided cell phone conversations on the New York City subway at 11 o'clock at night about being offended.

Just don't take the offense. Enough said.

Coach Carolyn

Want Inner Peace? Take a Breath...

"Peace of mind is not a goal I need achieve. It's a place inside I never want to leave. Close my eyes, I still my thoughts and then I say I will choose to live in peace today." ~ Robert Alan

It has been said that taking a few deep breaths not only lowers your heart rate but also your brain waves creating inner calm.

So, when in doubt... don't. But simply, STOP, TAKE A BREATH, and BE!

"Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths." ~ Etty Hillesum

Take a breath!

Coach Carolyn

Two Powerful Teachers

"Every person, all the events of your life are there because you have drawn them there. What you choose to do with them is up to you." ~ Richard Bach

Anger and fear are two of our most powerful teachers. Yet, we have been conditioned to derail those two teachers whenever they show up to present a new and exciting lesson. We must welcome the teachers, the lessons, the gifts and the blessings. They come to do their job, and then they leave. We have placed our cosmic orders; we have somehow made it known what our wishes, dreams, and desires are. And because we do not hold the dream or desire in the highest feeling of joy and love, we create massive confusion and we get what we absolutely do not want. And while this confusion is going on, one or both of those powerful teachers show up to protect us and help us along. And what do we do? We shun them, ignore them, deny them, medicate them, numb them, suppress them, and attempt to play dumb. That is not going to work. Guess what? Those powerful teachers were sent to you to do their job because they love you and by golly, they are going to do it ~ with or without you. So, you had better sit up straight in your chair and learn the lesson.

All of the events that show up in your life, including the ones you do not want, are there because you have drawn them there. What are you going to do with them? Learn the lesson, and let them go.

"The soul attracts that which it secretly harbors; that which it loves, and also that which it fears." ~ James Allen

Receive your lessons and your blessings!
Coach Carolyn

Our Thoughts Create Our Results

"People are always blaming circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can't find them, make them." ~ George Bernard Shaw

What actions will you carry out today to begin to produce the circumstances you really want?

To produce the circumstances we really want, the results that we see in our lives, we must consciously become aware of the thoughts that lead to our negative outcomes in life.

"I am determined to be cheerful and happy in whatever situation I may find myself. For I have learned that the greater part of our misery or unhappiness is determined not by our circumstance but by our disposition." ~ Martha Washington

"You can not always control circumstances, but you can control your own thoughts.” ~ Charles Popplestown

Consciously choose your thoughts to create a better life!

Coach Carolyn

Friday's Purposeful Question

“…Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms and like books that are written in a very foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now." ~ From Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke

What is your heart’s desire?

When you can answer this question, you'll be amazed at how much clearer the rest of your life becomes.

To your success!

Coach Carolyn

Silence Before Words

“Nothing needs to be fixed. Everything is unfolding perfectly. So when you stand in your now accepting that all is well, then from that vibration, you become surrounded by more and more evidence that all is well. But when you're convinced that things are broken, that there is pollution, or that things have gone wrong, or that the government is doing conspiracies... then what happens is you get caught up in that vibration, and you begin to manifest that kind of stuff, and then you say, ‘See, I told you that things were going wrong.’" ~ Abraham-Hicks

The first of the Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz is “Be impeccable with your word.”

Your words have power and magic in them. Use your words with conscious deliberation. Don’t just speak to fill up the silence; we need the silence more than we need the speech. Most people cannot see this point. Our words must be used to heal, empower and inspire others. If what you are about to say to someone doesn’t lead to them being a better person, STOP, TAKE A BREATH, and ASK…

Is what I am about to say an improvement to silence right now?

"Drawing on my fine command of the language...I said nothing." ~ Robert Benchley

Coach Carolyn

STOP... and Listen

I received this article from author, teacher and coach Debbie Ford on listening to your inner voice. Manifesting inner peace begins with stopping ~ a spiritual action, and listening. You cannot hear unless you stop and turn down the noise. Enjoy!

What will it take to make you listen to the voice of your own soul? To make you tune into your wants and needs? How many sleepless nights must you stay awake to unfold the great mystery from within?

There is a small whisper of a voice that is wanting and needing to be listened to. There is a voice of love and compassion that wants to sing out loud ~ without suppression. It is time for the voice to be heard, to be listened to, to be honored and acknowledged as the voice of your own soul. Now is the time that you must stop tricking yourself into believing that you are the one in total control of your life when, in reality, there is a wounded and hurt part of you that is screaming to be let out, that is tired of you marching to the same drummer. Maybe you're aware of this small voice that shouts out in anger as it can no longer tolerate living a life of business as usual.

So stop it. Stop it now. Don't head to the same old nonsense. Try being sick of it because, believe me, that part of you is probably sick of you and some of the repetitive lies and stories that you continue to swim in each day. You might ask, How do I swim in them each day? You wake up and say "I am not going to eat so much, spend so much, procrastinate so much, or tolerate the suppression." You must allow your soul and the highest aspect of yourself to take control of your life. Tough love is what we're calling on here. When you are tempted to follow the path of your wounded self, you must say, "Stop it! I can't listen to your nonsense one more day." Remember, you're the parent now.

Now is the time to get out of the pool of the past. Now is the time for change, to wake up and smell the rose scent of a greater reality. Now is the time to give yourself permission to decipher the language of your higher calling. You are loved, you are cared for, you are important and you have a special purpose here on earth. Now is the time to confront the shadows that keep you behind the prison walls. Set yourself free. You have the key. Now open the door.

(1) Make a list of all the places you're tolerating mediocrity and can't take it anymore.

(2) Spend five minutes in the morning and five minutes in the evening calling forth and listening to the voice of your own soul.

*~*~*~

Visit Debbie's website to access free affirmations, meditations and worksheets to assist you in being your best self.

Are you listening? Just for today, stop and listen!

Coach Carolyn

What You Resist, Persists

"Instead of trying hard by conscious effort to do the thing by iron-jawed will power, and all the while worrying and picturing to yourself all the things that are likely to go wrong, you simply relax the strain, stop trying to "do it" by strain and effort, picture to yourself the target you really want to hit, and "let" your creative success mechanism take over." ~ Dr. Maxwell Maltz, PsychoCybernetics

Resistance is the leading cause of suffering, strain, struggle, and becoming stuck. Any desire that is your true heart's desire also comes with it the magic keys to unlock the doors to making your desire a reality. Our loving and divine Creator would not have given us a desire without a way to fulfill that desire. When obstacles arise, see them as opportunities for learning and growth. Stop resisting what is. Settle into your desire and its path will unfold before you.

I am creating my heart's desire in an easy and relaxed manner...

Coach Carolyn

Set Your Mind

"The achievement of your goal is assured the moment you commit yourself to it." ~ Mack R. Douglas

Nothing in your life will change until you decide to make the change. Wanting and hoping will only get you more wanting and hoping. You have to make the choice and decide that your life can and will be different. Once you make the decision, the universe will open up to you all you need to fulfill your desire.

"You can have anything you want – if you want it badly enough. You can be anything you want to be, have anything you desire, accomplish anything you set out to accomplish – if you will hold to that desire with singleness of purpose." ~ Robert Collier

Set your mind to choose success!

Coach Carolyn

Time to Let Go...

In keeping with our theme to release and let go, rock with Rickie Byars Beckwith from the Agape International Spiritual Center in California.




Can I just let go…
Can I just let go…

If I can let go, the darkness will fade
If I can just let go

There’s a light all around me
But the pain in my thought has kept me holding on

But I feel like letting go
I’m ready to run and I’m ready to leap into what is real

I got a sweet invitation, a mandate of ecstasy
Let go of your will, drop your tools and follow me
I am the life within you, it’s time to be free.

I feel like letting go; Let go, let God, let go
I feel like letting go; Let go, let God, let go

If I can let go, heaven’s at hand right now
New life is awaiting, while I’m rearranging these old facts of mine
But I’m tired of holding on, my heart is making an authentic appeal

It’s such a sweet invitation, a mandate of ecstasy
Don’t hold any longer, drop your tools and follow me
I won’t abandon my vision, it’s time to release.

I feel like letting go; Let go, let God, let go
I feel like letting go; Let go, let God, let go
(Repeat)

The power of God is guiding me
To surrender to what I’ve got to be
And deep within God loves me so
Let go, I’m letting go

With God, all things are possible
With God, all things are bountiful
And deep within God loves us so
Let go, I’m letting go.

I feel like letting go; Let go, let God, let go
I feel like letting go; Let go, let God, let go
(Repeat)

If we can let go, the darkness will fade
Pray to let go
Let go, let go

Let go, let God, let go
Let go…



I feel like letting go...
Coach Carolyn

Make An Agreement...On Purpose

Remember the Fourth Agreement:

Always Do Your Best!

Be the bestest YOU!

Coach Carolyn

Manifesting Inner Peace

"Never continue in a job you don't enjoy.
If you're happy in what you're doing, you'll like yourself,
you'll have inner peace.
And if you have that, along with physical health,
you'll have more success
than you could possibly have imagined." ~ Roger Caras

Be peaceful...on purpose!

Coach Carolyn

3 Ways To Conquer Fears

Here is a wonderful article by my sister blogger, the rockin' ipopin Kirsten Harrell. Kirsten hangs out at Think Positive!

When fear creeps up, tune into one or all of these. I am a personal student of meditation and meridien tapping. Enjoy!

Everyone feels fear at some point in his or her life. Fear is a natural and useful emotion. Feeling afraid to pick up a poisonous spider, walk down a dark deserted alley in a high crime area, or walk across a busy highway keeps us safe. However, many people suffer from unnecessary and sometimes irrational fears. This type of fear can keep you from achieving your goals and enjoying life - especially if you have many fears. Some common fears include, spiders, snakes, terrorism, public speaking, dogs, and heights. If you are struggling with fears and you want to learn how to conquer them, I suggest 3 different paths you can try.

The western way – A tried and true approach to reduce and eliminate fears is to use the process known as systematic desensitization. This involves repeated and graduated exposure to the feared stimulus paired with relaxation techniques (deep breathing, guided imagery, progressive muscle relaxation, etc.). For example, if you are afraid of heights you might start by viewing a video taken from on top of a tall building and practice your relaxation techniques until you feel comfortable viewing this video. Once you can look at the video without any fear, you might try going to the top floor of a small building and looking out the window while practicing your relaxation techniques. Continue with these graduated steps paired with your relaxation techniques until you can go to the top of a tall building and feel comfortable. If you have intense fears, you will probably want to seek the support of a therapist to help you use this process.

The eastern way - Meditation can help you reduce your fear response. Scientific research has shown that meditation can change the brain and help reduce fear, anxiety, anger, and depression. Dr. Richard Davidson (University of Wisconsin) found that meditating helps increase activity in the left pre-frontal cortex (part of brain associated with happiness and positivity) and quiet activity in the amygdala and right pre-frontal cortex (parts associated with fear). Regular meditation can also help you connect with your inner resources that help you to feel more calm and confident. To start a meditation practice, I suggest that you start small – try for a few minutes each day and work your way to a length of time that works for you. Remember that meditation is NOT about stopping the brain from thinking! That is what the brain does by nature – it thinks. The key to meditation is to be aware of these thoughts (and they will come) and then bring your awareness back to the present moment.

East meets West - Tap, tap, tap your fears away with Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT). There is evidence to support this new technique that involves acupressure combined with mental activities to reduce fear quickly and easily. EFT, a particular type of energy psychology, is showing great promise as a quick and efficient method to conquer fears. EFT involves simple stimulation of certain acupressure points in order to reprogram the energy system to have a new reaction to old fearful thoughts and stimuli. Tapping acupressure points while focusing on a fearful memory seems to deactivate areas of the brain that are involved in fear and pain. EFT is something you can learn from a book, the EFT website, or a practitioner and then practice on your own anytime you need it.

If fear is interfering with your life, there is hope. You don't have to simply put up with a life full of fear. Any of the above techniques can help you conquer your fear and move forward with your life feeling more calm, cool, and confident.


~*~*~*~
Coach Carolyn

Choose Your Thoughts

"The major block to compassion is the judgment in our minds. Judgment is the mind's primary tool of separation." ~ Diane Berke

Our lives are not determined by what happens to us but by how we react to what happens; not by what life brings to us, but by the attitude we bring to life. A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts feelings and outcomes.

"We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make our world." ~ Buddhist Quote

We have been given the greatest gift ~ the gift to choose. We can choose the thoughts that will create and shape our lives. So, what thoughts are you choosing?

Choose wisely,

Coach Carolyn

Friday's Purposeful Question

“…Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms and like books that are written in a very foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now."
~ From Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke

“What are you ready to let go of?

“The most powerful way to control your focus is through the use of questions.” ~ Anthony Robbins

Have a blessed weekend!

Coach Carolyn

Repetition...On Purpose

"Attention is the ability we have to discriminiate and to focus only on that which we want to perceive. We can perceive millions of things simultaneously, but using our attention, we can hold whatever we want to perceive in the foreground of our mind. The adults around us hooked our attention and put information into our minds through repetition. That is the way we learned everything we know.

From The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz

Remember, this works both ways. What are we repeatedly saying to ourselves on a daily basis? Is it negative or positive? Repetition is key.

Think positively...feeeel good...repeat as needed!
Coach Carolyn

Mind Control for Manifesting Peace

"Eventually, meditation will make our mind calm, clear, and as concentrated as a laser which we can focus at will. This capacity of one-pointed attention is the essence of genius. When we have this mastery over attention in everything we do, we have a genius for life itself: unshakable security, clear judgment, and deep personal relationships." ~ Eknath Easwaran

If the thought of meditating makes you cringe, then re-define the way you do meditation. Personally, I could never sit still on my own to meditate. I would squirm, fidget, itch, and forget about my mind. There would be a full length feature film of my past, present and future.

I truly wanted to meditate; I wanted to have that stillness and that moment of inner peace. So, I determined to see this through. I can now meditate for an hour at a time ~ still wanting more time. What was the catalyst to change?

Firstly, I made the decision to meditate. I could either choose to meditate or choose not to meditate.

Secondly, I changed my thoughts about meditation. It was no longer this big thing that I could not do. I simply did it five minutes at a time, with music or a guided imagery. Five minutes became ten minutes which became twenty minutes, finally moving to sixty minutes. There are many guided meditations from five minutes to sixty minutes. So seek out what would help you. And be consistent.

Train your brain for inner peace,

Coach Carolyn

Success...Yes!

"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful." ~ Herman Cain

"Success is the sum of small efforts - repeated day in and day out." ~ Robert Collier

"I couldn't wait for success, so I went ahead without it." ~ Jonathan Winters

“Success is a state of mind. If you want success, start thinking of yourself as a success." ~ Joyce Brothers

To your success!
Coach Carolyn

Kisses to Make You Smile

I received this from Dr. Joe Vitale this morning. It certainly made me smile. Hope it makes you smile too. Happy Monday!




Check out Dr. Joe's transformation!

Coach Carolyn

Carnival of Healing #200 ~ Healing with Purpose

Welcome to the 200th edition of the Carnival of Healing. The carnival is a weekly round-up of personal blog posts on the topics of holistic health, wellness, spirituality, and self empowerment. It is such an honor to host the 200th carnival.

Thank you to those who have submitted blogs to explore. I had a great time exploring new blogs, especially on the topics I am passionate about.

Purposeful Health and Healing is about living consciously in body, mind and spirit. So, without further ado, on with the carnival!

Body

Health Fitness Hot To shares Simple Secrets for Natural Healing of any Diseases in this post that says, “The secrets of natural healing revolve around our own body’s system – the immune system which is already built-in within us to combat any bacteria or viruses which are attacking us and if you learn how to properly nourish and ‘exercise’ our immune system, you have already discovered the core secret to good health.”

Be In Health Now posts about being healthy with How to Lower Blood Pressure . Author Emily Simmons writes, “Eating low-fat is all good and well, but paying attention to your sodium intake is important too. This article explains the importance of keeping blood pressure under control and offers some simple steps to do so.”

I was fascinated by Barbara Williams’ NursingDegree.net blog post, 100 Useful Sites for School Nurses. This wide-ranging list includes special sites for nurses to connect and discuss; symptom checkers; blogs by school nurses; job sites for nurses looking for a new gig; and professional and trade organizations for nurses.

As a humorous aside, want to know the Top 10 Nurses in Pop Culture?

Dame Scribe at HubPages talks about creating a Personal Recovery Room. She includes things like the lighting, the furniture, and the storage space. To promote better healing from an illness or surgery, one needs a better environment.

For a delightful reflection on summer foods and the body, check out The Heart of Summer at Grace in Gravity.

Mind

If you are a Christian mom, then Online Christian Colleges Blog has a fantastic post on the 100 Best Blogs for Christian Moms. Author Adrienne Carlson includes blogging and social communities, and lists blogs for single, Catholic, Mormon, and homeschooling moms.

A dear friend is beginning her studies to become a teacher. She shared the story of her mentor doing a home visit of a four-year-old child. The first thing the mentor noticed was there were no books in the home – only computers and televisions. Is it any wonder, our children are not as imaginative as days of old, and on top of that, obese.

Brain Blogger shares some interesting data about the how to Improve Children’s Mental Health – Turn Off the TV that speaks to this very problem.

Self-Improvement-Articles.com has a wide variety of articles and blog posts on mind, body, and spirit healing and living; including Spiritual Growth: the Spiritual Challenge of Modern Times. In this article, spiritual growth has four premises. To grow spiritually means to 1) look inward; 2) develop your potentials; 3) search for meaning; and 4) recognize interconnections.

As I am a great fan of brain repatterning, Aromatherapy Essential Oils gives some great suggestions on Essential Oils for Absentmindedness.

Spirit

Sustainable Halo speaks of the gentleness of Gratitude in a heartfelt post.

I use binaural beats and meditation as a method of pain management. Check out this primer, Heal Thyself at LifeAdviceSite.com.

Having trouble meditating? Try mind watching instead in this post Live Consciously Without Meditation from The Conscious Life.

Check out Covenant Blessings for one woman’s beautiful reflection on her personal relationships with God, Blessed In His Image.

NaturalCounselor Blog by Irina Wardas for women’s health, nutrition and wellness. Irina combines written blog posts with podcasts to teach about everything holistic, including wrinkle reduction, weight loss, recipes and touch therapy.

*~*~*~*~
I know you will enjoy visiting and reading these blog posts as much as I have. You support many passionate bloggers when you do. The carnival home is on my About.com Holistic Healing.

Also, become a fan of the Carnival of Healing Group Page on Facebook. And, while you're there, look me up and friend me!

Thanks so much for coming to play with me at my carnival! Leave a comment if you have any AHA moments!

Looking Back: Last week the Carnival #199 was hosted by Phylameana Lila Desy of About.com's Holistic Healing Blog.

Looking Forward: Next edition of the carnival (August 8th) will be hosted by WP of The Conscious Life.

Stay passionate in body, mind and spirit!
Coach Carolyn