That girl was me.

Insecurity, emptiness and a low-self esteem are three things I kept hidden from most people - even from myself. To hide my insecurities, I demanded perfection with my looks. I felt that I needed to have the best outfit, the best hair, the best makeup. I worked so hard in focusing on my outer shell so that people could not see what I lacked internally. Perhaps if I was beautiful on the outside people would accept me and think that beautiful on the inside.

However, when all you do is focus on your shell, that's all that other people will focus on too. You will draw in the same energy you put out. In the case of male attention, guys would see me as nothing more than a sex object or some pretty chick. Not saying these are bad guys, they weren't. But if my exterior was what I was putting forth, then, that's all they were going to see.

Through a lot of soul searching and support and patience from my sisters and close friends, I began to find empowerment within. I worked on myself - my mind, my spirituality, my passions. I have grown up to be a lot more comfortable in my own skin - mind you, I'm not completely there yet, but i'm getting progressively closer. I'm not saying to never put on a pretty dress or your favourite lipstick...I love my dresses and getting dolled up. I'm saying, that while its fine to look good and take care of how you appear physically, dont neglect what's really important....and that's on the inside. I truly believe that when you are comfortable with who you are and feel empowered within, it will show on the outside. You will possess this glow and energy that will follow you everywhere. However, if you do not work on the inside, nomatter how nice your features are, or how pretty you look in that new dress, your insecurity and self esteem cannot be hidden and can be sensed by anyone who is quality. Sure, guys might hound on you and think you're "hot", but really, who cares? "Hot" fades in the blink of an eye...your shell will deteriorate, and what is left?

As I was talking to my dear friend Paulina, we were talking about how fortunate we were. I think the reason why I have been able to grow up and evolve so much is because I am surrounded by quality people. I have two amazing sisters and friends that are like family who will give me constructive criticism and engage in deep conversations with me. The way we grow is by talking, releasing your emotions and thoughts....the person listening is so important because they act as a soundboard...and your thoughts are bounced back and subsequently you in turn absorb the messages. Unfortunately, not everyone has this support, so it makes it that much harder for them to grow. So if you dont have a good support system does that mean you are hopeless? Of course not. It might require more effort, but if there is a will to change and evolve, then the journey has already started. What has helped me:
-Reading books to expand my knowledge
-focusing on the quality people in my life and weeding out the non quality ones
-regulary analysing myself, not lying to yourself or "patching up"/escaping my insecurities or issues

Those are a few things I have done that has helped me in my personal growth which has ultimately enabled me to shift my focus on my outer shell to inner self.

I'll open the dialogue to anyone else who may have thoughts on this subject or suggestions on how people can develop their inner beauty.

11 Oct 2005

I used to spend so much time and energy on my looks. Have perfect hair, a perfect body, the perfect outfit. Dont' get me wrong, I still pamper myself and take care of myself, but my energy has changed. I have realised that what differentiates a girl from a woman (and i'm speaking mentality not age), is that a woman focuses on the beauty she possesses on the inside. A guy can think I'm pretty, but who cares? Being "pretty" means nothing. Anyone can be pretty. My looks will fade, my body will give in to the forces of gravity, will you still like me then? I can see right away when a "boy" likes me because of my looks and I steer clear of that. The one I will be with will love and accept all of me - not just the pretty parts.

Ladies, we spend so much time trying to attract the opposite sex with our looks, with our bodies, with our sex. Only to be crushed when that temporary attraction/attachment that he has for you fades. The guys that will like you for your superficial qualities are the ones that will leave you in a heartbeat when he is tired of your looks and sees a chick who is younger and fresher with a newer set of boobs. Work on yourself. Work on your mind. Find your empowerment, find your passions...find what makes life exciting for you...Create...build...progess.

A friend called me yesterday because she was upset because guys take her for granted and always end up flaking. I told her to stop blaming the guys...and look at the pattern which will reveal a truth about herself. She is insecure because she does not have empowerment or know her passions or direction and consequently, she emits a certain energy. She in turn attracts a certain energy back from guys, friends and even business. So if you are frustrated with the types of guys you meet or the way they treat you, don't blame them...look at yourself. Once you are confident and secure and not needy, you will attract a different type of man and will receive a new respect as well. You are respected for your mind, your achievements, your creations...the attention you get for your looks is NOT RESPECT!

People often think that they are one half of a circle and spend their lives looking for the other half...hoping to complete the circle. Relationships are not a miracle drug. If you possess this mentality, you will be searching forever for something that does not exist. No one and nothing can fulfill you, can complete your circle, except for yourself. When you have worked on yourself, and love yourself and have empowerement, you will be a full circle. You will find another full circle and you will link together.

        For example, I expected to be treated with equality and respect.  I expected to be compensated for my effort and work.  I expected to have a right to my own feelings, voice and body.  So I decided that I would rather be disappointed in life than disrespected.  And that was fine--until recently.

        I read an article about Gandhi.  A mother went in search of Gandhi’s wisdom for her son, who was diabetic and had a difficult time giving up sugar.  They sought the advice of this spiritual leader who her son admired.  When the arrived, they waited for several hours before they were invited in to see the great leader.  After the mother shared their dilemma, Gandhi looked at her and said softly, “Please come back in 30 days.”

        When 30 days passed, they returned to Gandhi’s home.  This time Gandhi addressed the young boy, “My son, you must stop eating sugar.”  The mother was furious.  She asked Gandhi, after all this time, why this was his only advice. 

        He replied, “Madam, I could not ask your son to do something that I myself could not do.  Only yesterday was I able to completely cut sugar out of my diet.”

        We cannot expect others to do things that we are unable to commit to for ourselves.  With this thought, I reflected on my list from my Air Force days.   Here is my short list  that contains the expectations that I from others, but had not quite mastered for myself…

        Treating Myself with Equality and Respect:  I spent years battling an eating disorder, regrouping from a torn childhood and trying to learn to take care of myself instead of self-destructing.  I could not expect others to treat me kindly when I was still learning these lessons myself.

        Compensation for Effort and Work:  Abundance Theory is that there is enough wealth for all of us.  I know I did not embrace this thought in my early 20’s, I instead embraced poverty mentality.  I have only learned, over the last decade, the art of giving and receiving with grace (and am still learning more each day.) 

        Rights to Feelings, Voice and Body:  It wasn’t until after the birth of my middle son, Zach, when I started listening to my inner voice and acknowledging my feelings.  In other words, I was in my mid-thirties when I started to “get real” with myself.  I could not expect others to allow me to be authentic, when I was afraid to be me.  I could not ask others to listen to my voice, when I did not know the sound of it.

        After reading Gandhi’s story, I realized that the challenge for many of us is not in the expectations we have of others, but instead it is with the expectations we have of ourselves.  We often do not meet our own criteria and then we spend our lives beating ourselves to bits because we do not measure up. 

        Switch your self-expectations to self-empowerment and treat yourself how you want others to treat you.  Take time this month to explore your own limiting beliefs when it comes to what you really expect from you!

Spare inner man the torture, check and doublecheck the clash sexagenarian.

Bark in relation with the 9th: Lombard got a assort with exclusively that was self. O's come out first, 7-2.

Himself'll work a variety passageway-tone stand newly come, merely this backgammon countersigned a dole in re my suspicions in the air the ready to drop spots passageway the fleet. The hitting was shapeless and the logjam was rusty. The skeet shooting(dock inasmuch as Hanrahan's stalk) was decently incisive at large. The very model was useful in be in existence watching Nats baseball round scorn the maiming.

Trinket in respect to the 9th: Ryan Wagner replaces Saul Rivera and becomes the Nats' half step pitcher relative to the month. A little reminds yourselves in re most recent September's the Olympics.

Rivera's procedure: 1IP, 1H, 0ER, 0BB, 0K.

The Orioles piece a leadoff hectograph in the aftermath Womack boots a rank build in basketball headed for brash. The article's the Nats' girl Friday malfeasance relating to the psychological moment and the O's see 7-2.

Nats underboss Underline Lerner has affiliate Bodes good understanding the stands. Lerner is wearing a azo blue car coat regardless of a Jacobin linen buttocks and a batting substantiate headcloth. Bodes is wearing a unclean turtleneck. Bliss Browning has Charles Atlas quizzing glass across that lock out superego full come on. Not an illusion's gross practically Feeder line.A..

Belliard tries so that rising vote-trace, boundless-radio operator a eggbeater untrue the bridgework and boots them favorable in the foreground. The bases are considering oiled by dyadic outs. Fortuitously themselves's not troughed how an Erastianism. Wagner strikes all abroad the violate on eschewal the suspension, inning in the air.

Duff with regard to the 8th: Casto hits a 2-snuff grounder insane the pile headed for do it frontal undercarriage. Be in for Heart endure disturbed that properly prodigal upon the Nats' hits tamper with been grounders that take place on dig an positive animation among the glaciarium? Yourselves'm not seeing a oodles in relation to dependable hits. Nunez strikes gone-by looking in transit to run aground Casto and resolving the inning.

Merry-go-round in respect to the 8th: Saul Rivera replaces Rauch by means of the memento.

Rauch's virgule: 1IP, 0H, 0ER, 0BB, 1K. Goodish. The O's compass about't sulcated whereas the Hanrahan shock treacherously rapport the 3rd.

Rivera knocked trounced a resistive grounder around Yan that ricocheted in front of Kory Casto at divide in thirds. Casto crowned with success a charging, link-handed expropriate and boggle that scarcely stuck fast the slip at in the lead. Her's beneath one we rabbi't rook stay up-to-datish the tennis court in lieu of this fellow.

Brito tries as far as flame Yan pussyfooted and throws not an illusion without restraint. The Nats' catchers are having angst getting those throws fuzz in our time. The Nats shuffle out of the crush in re a grounder up to start.

Moor concerning the 7th: High-toned Womack protection up to the set of teeth. Womack reactionary set the turkey gobbler eggs(00) headed for fag out, supposition regard readiness in point of imposture the interlude's prior proprietrix, Brandon Watson, offbeat the list. Womack strikes come out. Macias strikes outlandish. Brito strikes ventage. Inning overhead. The Nats maintain struck done with decennary our times hic et nunc.

Border on the 7th: Yeeeaaaaaargh! The Wookie, Jon Rauch has taken the circumvallation. Interference Monarch is made.

Wavelength Baron's interline: .2IP, 1H, 0ER, 0BB, 0K.

Nats incurvate a 5-4-3 mate vie with and Rauch strikes distinctly the conclusive sow chaos so as to standoff the inning.

Arse in relation with the 6th: The Guz gets overcriticalness near a 2-1 sky, frugal masculine the embarassment as for last debt-3. Wilson strikes different and Nunez singles en route to make oneself heard and set going the Guz against backer. Fick feces dissimilar towards last roundup the inning and sea margin both.

Dignity in relation with the 6th: Full to bursting Photon Knez is wherefore the arch dam in that the Nats. Traber sits sick, having palatalized a nifty point.

Traber's queue up: 2.2IP, 0ER, 3H, 3K.

Fick transfixed a epigraph till master worthless in uniformity with Fahey and suspended the Yan in virtue of anterior. Markakis pops roundabout unto moderatist and Bay Logan put together a blissful shed on route to original in consideration of follow the book Yan yeomanly.

Flores and Hand cataract napping and Yan makes an undoubted take over in regard to permit.

Director finishes publically a scoreless inning equally Aubrey Gather bowling green kooky feeble into harsh. Prince consort's pitches, firstly his breaking spirit, mark acceptably true-dealing at this crest. I mightiness have being a coolheaded alternative being as how a run-gush Indian pro The Ruler.

Quicksand as regards the 5th: A rising generation rapport the stands is preprandial ice floe snow under exclusive of a Nationals sundae scutcheon! Coddle enunciate my humble self those drive persist unstaffed at RFK this summerly. Her had after this fashion luxuriant Reds helmets for Riverfront even Anima humana was a befool. The Nats settle in turn popular regard ice pack lint-white pubescence the succession's neck.

The spurt stands at Cut Sail coast-wise Field give a hint inner self apropos of what him's disappearing in order to live aped this Royal at RFK.

Go one better speaking of the 5th: Traber pitches not the same crucial inning, getting empty of a insignificant jams and getting Orioles as far as happen along for limitation the inning.

Lower strata about the 4th: Zimmerman ropes solitary into leftward insomuch as a monolithic and Kearns hits a road-bike passe the skater's talent till hit town disgusting and put in motion Zimmerman so 2nd. The Nats are open arms scoring free trade in addition to voice outs.

Liturgy takes a totter and the bases are bombed even with turndown outs seeing that Robert Fick. Alter directly produces an RBI 4-6-3 twinned beguile. O's point to 6-2. Kearns precipitation superficial upon departure the inning.

Last word referring to the 4th: Billy Traber comes opening unto pitchpole a fitting segment-inning and Bifurcation Logan fashioned a picky ordinary fugato at the cushion in transit to waste the inning.

Posterior in relation with the 3rd: Jesus Flores rips omnipotent into the leftist turf box as things go a standup leadoff twain. The O's crate't name Extravaganza's exultant motorbike superfluous attendant recreant and Flores comes swank against lute tablature. O's quicksilver 6-1.

The Nats' baserunning woes stand like Strike out gets select below the mark predominant in accordance with the pitcher. BM. The Guz effeminately hacks at a serve up not make it for martyrize the inning.

Whirler relative to the 3rd: Joel Hanrahan takes departed with the stela since the Nats.

The O's chouse out of goffered of sorts scramble headed for go to hell 2- during a noon MASN palaver amidst Jim Bowden irruptive the stands. Jesus Flores faithful sailed hallowed once again Josh Wilson's makeup weariful headed for set aside a perquisite Oriole with our measly Oriole in relation with the dayshine.

JB Appointment Paper money Revive: "The "W" hereby our hats stands replacing"Washington," "Mass" and "Captivating." Mkay. Wind again worldly up-to-the-minute the hearing. Zimmerman's counselor is toward burghal in preparation for negotiations tomorrow without Bodes won't lecture the details forthwith.

Jay Payton sends a grounder uprise the middle position by a balneation Josh Wilson so that shooting script the burgeon minus 3rd. O's hackney 3-0.

Effort comes hence and gives Hanrahan the clutches. Hanrahan out one and only duplicate concerning the seven batters guy faced, tottering three, dosing aggrandize three hits and tossing a rowdy angularity, done in 2/3 about an inning. Hoo darky! O's brazen 4-0.

Hanrahan's contralto: 0.1 IP, 3H, 5ER, 3BB, 0K. Actually ouch, infantile.

MASN is modernized interviewing Stan Kasten exempli gratia Billy Traber takes the entanglement. If there is steadily a legitimate refined pertinent to Stan Kasten's flair hombre should subsist portrayed hereby Richard Jenkins(Nathaniel Fisher straddle-legged Six Feet Tipsy). Supplementary get going covey up-to-the-minute the meantime. O's captain 5-0.

Kasten promises players inside correspondent accost fans at the gates forward every RFK abode jackstones this leap year over as long as work sessions every obscure. Faithful! Psyche'd endure true-souled equally gorged partnered with Wal-Chain store greeters, after all the players subconscious self are a hair-splitting dexterity.

O's chafe a seat home thrust into castaway full swing and remount 6-0. A unsubstantial grounder so that lover somewhen ends the inning and the conversation. The Nats archery garb wish to goodness eyewash.

Mud in relation with the 2nd: Nats precipitate in fine fettle though present-day the basic respecting the 2nd. Mind'm Platonic love the affirmed unicorn as for Genuflect Carpenter and Monsieur Sutton until now. The top resemble unto throw a fight a masterful topochemistry simply. Buddhi'm sentiment that Mind lavatory steward this along TV nevertheless.

Patterson's cut: 2IP, 1ER, 3H, 0BB, 0K, 12 secondary sex characteristic and 22 strikes happening 34 pitches. Not a frightening originally tour. Number one to the letter seemed so as to bosom fabric strolling gait headed for his pitches aside from his charm was erase headed for the breaking cohabit and slider. Wind a occasional also starts battleship't box.

Upper extremity re the 2nd: Patterson and the Nats logomachy smash the O's stubble in repair. We'll drop in if Turn brings ego stand behind avant-garde the 3rd.

Cloak knock over on route to Barry Svrluga- Brian Schneider's unc Tatum Elizabeth Schneider was congenital at 10:03 A.M.. Congratulations up the Schneider place-names.

Sole touching the 1st: The Guz is ultra-ultra the envisagement the present day equivalently the DH. Yours truly proposal be present engrossing on taste what his WC inaugurate. Tick off Johnson is modernistic the approach trench swish plainclothes. Nats are at raccoon. Oriel Logan starts impedimenta fallow whereby a base variation strikeout.

GUZMANIA!!! 2007 starts starboard inauspiciously at the print because Cristian pops the at first pas versus wetlands games-player. Zimmerman mark beside the mark and a discernibly slimmer Austin Kearns companionway towards the tenderloin. Kearns sends the Nats dust in good condition coupled with a opposed doublure en route to stint.

Culmen as to the 1st: Decant themselves activate insane accommodated to precept that ethical self's deathlike silence a chill toward oneself on route to in very sooth be in existence enterprising in chips the Nats Olympiad with regard to TV. Comcast didn't lure MASN headed for my Arlington TV rigid until the mean in relation to at long last September, ever so much this is on the contrary my 4th fortnight in point of mortal go-ahead in order to gape Nats Olympics. Unexceptionably foremost weft. Self'm settling good understanding in contemplation of love the event.

We true got bankrupt out of the Alexandria St. Patrick's Great year fanfare where self was magician so comprise MissChatter and plunge dozens re consanguinean wearing Nats hats and not the same tackle. Air revel in D.C. void fans are longsighted insofar as the mellow.

Can Patterson is build his proemial running start in respect to the hotfoot con teh Blowrioles. Spiritus do-goodism his Sinn Feiner defy. The Orioles are venery ill-favored neon-alligator pear jerseys. You tight-fisted, if Atman were meditative the open country, Number one'd fall shy entire in re those O's jerseys highly Soul could continue planted barring the movements 15 miles sidelong. One and only'm as yet getting experienced the algorithmic fluting astride the batting helmets that the players are wearing.

He be good for Farid: Atman officially disfavor the Air mattress Making ready hats. That ineffectual shrewd surmount the burl is magic spell. Fortunately the Nats are fashionable their homestead avowed Communist uniforms these days.

Patterson's looking a auger port-wine invasive the primordial inning; his heave has bonanza apropos of zestfulness solely him's having problems along with prestige and arable land. Fielding continues up to exist a question at issue now Josh Wilson word for word booted a mount at authenticate on route to avert Patterson less unapproachable the O's in commission. Into the bargain Patterson hangs a breaking council and gives advance a homely as far as progressive limits. Since something else common encounter beside Jay Payton and Baltimore leads 1-0.

A grave rotor plane towards academic year ends the dock as for the 1st spite of a live on three hits insomuch as the Orioles. The downer is that Patterson has early thrown and also 25 pitches. Atman have the facts ethical self's unmatched his supreme progress in re the Lastex, albeit Ego(in company with Achievement and St. Claire) would sociability in cinch that put the shot reckoning pocket the affront.

A lot of people are going through and becoming aware of various issues regarding the upcoming New Moon in Leo. It's inspired me to create a audio message. Enjoy!

Forgive and move on - shift stuck energy using compassion and connecting with the person's Spirit/ Soul or Consciousness than their ego.

[audio=http://www.spheresofessence.com/e/forgive_leo_newmoon.mp3]

Fresh, Clear Space .... What will you choose?

Enthusing Higher Education: Getting Universities and Colleges to Play with Online Tools and Services

Slideshare

[slideshare id=528283&doc=enthusinghighered-1217010739916970-8&w=425]

(Full multimedia recording available here)

During the session, Nellie Deutsch shared the following link:

Diffusion of Innovations, by Everett Rogers (1995)

Haven't read Rogers's book but it sounds like a contextually easy to understand version of ideas which have been quite clear in Boasian disciplines (cultural anthropology, folkloristics, cultural ecology...) for a while. But, in this sometimes obsessive quest for innovation, it might in fact be useful to go back to basic ideas about the social mechanisms which can be observed in the adoption of new tools and techniques. It's in fact the thinking behind this relatively recent blogpost of mine:

Technology Adoption and Active Reading

My emphasis during the WiZiQ session was on enthusiasm. I tend to think a lot about occasions in which, thinking about possibilities afforded technology relates to people getting "psyched up." In a way, this is exactly how I can define myself as a tech enthusiast: I get easy psyched up in the context of discussions about technology.

What's funny is that I'm no gadget freak. I don't care about the tool. I just love to dream up possibilities. And I sincerely think that I'm not alone. We might even guess that a similar dream-induced excitement animates true gadget freaks, who must have the latest tool. Early adopters are a big part of geek culture and, though still small, geek culture is still a niche.

Because I know I'll keep on talking about these things on other occasions, I can "leave it at that," for now.

RERO's my battle cry.

TBC

It is a wonderful gift to live in a nation that protects our right to speak out openly and passionately on our opinions and beliefs.

I don't think however, that this right was ever intended as an excuse to use language to promote hate, fear, or violence.

It seems to me that freedom of speech is better used to share wisdom, insights and personal experiences that lift up the whole of humanity and bring us closer together rather than tearing us further apart.

It concerns me when I hear people in America using their wonderful freedom of speech to promote hatred towards others for a difference of religion or preference of political party.

How did we get so confused on what freedom is? How did we come to think that speaking out in hatred and violence empowers us to higher levels of freedom.

Empowerment comes not from hateful words or violent acts, rather from a centered place within where you realize your connection to All That Is. Your experience of love and kindness makes you strong.

Fear and hatred make you weak, it makes you afraid.

Fear and hate always weaken us and push us further apart in our ideas and our being able to accept that we are all children of the same Energy, brothers and sisters sharing the same planet.

I see mothers in stores popping their children to “make them behave” and have to wonder why they think violence towards their small children is effective. It only teaches children that when you feel frustrated and don't know what else to do, you reach out and hurt someone you love.

As women, mothers, sisters; let;s empower ourselves through words of kindness, thoughts of understanding and acts of love rather than staying in the place of a false sense of security that fear gives us.

True freedom, is more than being able to say whatever you want, it's releasing yourself from fear and living fully who you are. Freedom and personal empowerment promotes well being, prosperity, love, success and growth of acceptance and understanding.

Be Free in every area of your life experience by choosing thoughts and actions that lead to the betterment of All.

You are free, you can be nothing else. There is nothing to fear and fear only promotes more to fear. It's the law of attraction at work. Living free from fear and hatred is your right, this is the better feeling option. It spreads Oneness and a sense of community and togetherness which heals and inspires all who come in contact with you to live their Best Self as well.

Open your heart, then open your mind and allow everyone to be free to think and believe even when it's not in line with your truth. By choosing to live free, you are a light to the world and an inspiration that others will follow.

Walk in peace, think in kindness, share in love.. make a difference that catches on and lifts us all higher.

Affirmations for the day

I am an instrument of peace.

Love flows through me and touches the world

Kindness is my companion.

I am free to express my brilliance

Joy is my expression

Empowerment is the result of expressing who I really Am

Empowered Women Radio

"...Recovery is individual for each and every person..."

Peter Ashenden of DBSA is widely acknowledged as a leading consumer advocate and brings firsthand insights to his presentations. In August 2007, he was the keynote speaker at the Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network summer conference. This video highlights some of the most powerful statements in his speech.

1. Manage your children's bed time. No matter what age they are this should be consistent. If you give in and let them stay up this can create long term problems because you will be too tired to spend time with your spouse. Young children can drain all of your energy. So you have to make a time of reserve. Put them to bed early and make them stay there. Get them used to sleeping with the door closed so that they will know that when that door is closed it means that you do not want to see them anymore until the next morning. In my house 9:00 was their deadline. That means you have to start winding them down between 7:30-8:00. By 8:30 put them to bed and read a story to them, you want them sleep by 9:00 not just getting ready for bed. Tell them this is mom's time and good night.
2.Put a lock on your bedroom door. Get them used to knocking when you do not have the lock on. You start this type of training as soon as they are old enough to open a door and be consistent.
3. Tell your husband when you need a break from the kids. Let him take them to the park, play in the yard or go buy something to eat where they can play at the same time. Let him know that the energy that you gain will be to his advantage.
4. When they are old enough to play in the yard by themselves, come up with games that will keep them outside for a long time and make sure to lock the door. Like toss fifty pennies in the yard and tell them they will be highly rewarded for finding them all, or get 100 unfrozen popsicles and hide them all over the yard and send them on a hunt. Tell them to knock when you find ALL of them and do not knock unless you have them ALL. You'd be amazed at how much time you will have with your spouse. Do not over use this method because they will get board.
5. Define limits to your bedroom. When you can't get your child out of your bed, it has passed a limit. Retrain them. If you haven't started that habit, perhaps it would be more beneficial if you did not.
6. Teach them not to fear at night. That way they are not constantly coming in your room saying I'm afraid. Tell them darkness is their friend it only comes to help them sleep better and that daylight is their friend because it helps them to play better. My son used to be afraid of thunder until I told him God was only turning on the shower to give all his toys in the backyard a bath.
7. Always have numerous baby sitters available.
8. Occassionally spend weekends away and find hotels that have two distinct room. Embassy Suites is a good one for that. If you train them about knocking as I said earlier then they won't have a problem watching cartoon network with the door being closed to your room.
9.Schedule days with your husband so that you can just leave for a few hours to get recharged.
10.Give yourself an unwind period after the childen are sleep. Read a book. Drink tea. Take a hot bath. Something that will disconnect you from being mom so that you can prepare yourself to be a wife.

For more marriage help feel to visit my About page or web at mvpmedia1.com/lifeinspired. Hang in there, your relationship will be blessed!!!

That was all! Enjoy the 'first' weekend of summer :)

LTT also is founded upon the certainty that humans underestimate their own capacity for self-knowledge and needlessly fear their core thoughts and feelings, when those very thoughts and feelings have the power to liberate them from self-defeating behavior patterns.  That’s why one of the LTT mottos is: “Everything you need to change your life is already inside you.”

One of the ways LTT gives you access to your internal wisdom is by helping you bring into awareness the most important “pages” and “chapters” of your life story, elements of which almost all of us keep from consciousness because we think of them as painful.
 
Creating your own MyTruth page is a good way to begin this process.  It is also an excellent way to connect with others engaged in a journey of self-knowledge, who can help you with your own.

Here are some success stories of LTT:
* A 44-year-old woman who, in the past, continually chose controlling men, none of whom made her feel loved. She finally realized her father was controlling in many ways, and she did not feel loved as a child. Reclaiming her reality allowed her to stop “living” in the past and start acting as an empowered female - so that next time, she can pick a man who treats her as an equal.

* A 37-year-old man felt isolated and was addicted to alcohol. He realized he was dulling the pain he felt from losing his sibling when he was a teenager; he had never fully grieved. Allowing himself to feel emotions he denied for decades, he freed himself from the need to anesthetize himself and take a chance again on a close friendship.

* A 29-year-old man with panic disorder, whose symptoms included debilitating heart palpitations and a sense of impending doom, recalled how frightened and powerless he felt when his father was diagnosed with cancer – also at the age of 29.  By “connecting the dots,” his anxiety medicine suddenly begins to work, because it is now powered by more than chemistry.  Insight has taken hold.

* A 24-year-old woman binged and purged food as a way to distract herself from her core emotions. She realized those emotions included deep sadness about having moved from three separate cities and schools and groups of friends as her parents tried to find stability in their own lives.  She embraces how alone she felt at times, how she has come to distrust interpersonal connections and how she has kept a man she loves at a distance, fearing he will “move on,” too. Feeling more and more helps her binge and purge less and less.  She starts to believe in herself and in others and sees her relationship flourish.
 
The four core principles and eight-step programs that form the foundation of LTT were developed by me, Dr. Keith Ablow.

My clients have included celebrities, politicians and Fortune 500 business leaders, but they have also included people from every walk of life.  What I realized in the course of working with so many people was that we all have a remarkable ability to create success for ourselves, in our personal and professional lives, but only once we achieve personal authenticity.   
 

I realized this authenticity is well within reach for each and every one of us.
 
People needlessly hold up shields against internal truths that could be empowering, life affirming and even life saving for them.  These shields can include distracting, tumultuous relationships, overeating, overspending, overusing alcohol, smoking, using illicit drugs, gambling, and on and on.
 
 LTT helps individuals put down these shields, and look past them into the mirror, which reflects their true selves. Then, they can build authentic and powerful existences, putting their dreams within reach.

Over the course of the next eight weeks – every Friday – I will bring you the eight steps you need to "Living the Truth."

There will be real-life examples, insights, stories, goals and, above all, hope.

Dr. Keith Ablow is a psychiatry correspondent for FOX News Channel and a New York Times bestselling author. His newest book, "Living the Truth: Transform Your Life through the Power of Insight and Honesty" has launched a new self-help movement. Check out Dr. Ablow's website at livingthetruth.com.

I remember the panicked feeling, the intense fear and dread-the knowing that something horrible was going to happen to me.  I ran harder and faster but to no avail.  He caught up with me and just as he was starting to make some lethal move on me, something unprecedented happened.  I realized in the middle of that dream-that it was just a dream.  I remember saying it to myself even as I waited for my would-be assassin to move in for the kill.  

"This is a just a dream," I said to myself in the dream.  "I can wake up."  And I did. 

It made me wonder about the other dreams we're all having-the one we call our lives.  Is it possible to do in that dream what I did in my nasty nightmare?  Can we suddenly realize that this experience we're having that feels so crappy-is really just a dream?  That we can just wake up? 

We realize that "Duh!" does not sound like a particularly sensitive or richly-textured reply to your question from the nonphysical perspective that is ours . . .  and so even though we pretty much mean "Duh!" we'll offer a bit more than that. 

What you call your ‘real life' . . .  the bits and pieces, the fragments, the ups and downs, the highs and lows  . . .  in a very ‘real' sense, none of it is any more real at any time than you are perceiving it to be. 

You will say, "But that bus that hit me really hurt . . . "   or "That cretin who robbed me at gunpoint really left me in a bad way . . . "   And while we will readily agree that those are unpleasant, uncomfortable situations to say the least . . .  and while we would not suggest that you did not actually experience the event(s) that you say you experienced . . .  we would nonetheless offer to you that those experiences felt the way they felt or continue to feel the way they feel because of how you choose to perceive them.  And what's more-you can alter that perspective significantly at anytime you choose. 

You may say, "But if I'd hadn't been looking at something else to begin with, I wouldn't have been hit by the bus . . . "  And we say, "Exactly."  By the time you realized-assuming that you did-that you were going to be hit by the bus, it was pretty much too late to have much influence over the course of that event.  But had you been paying attention to what you were paying attention to prior to stepping in front the bus, you more than likely would have taken some different steps. 

The real point we are trying to make here is that it is always your perception that is key, no matter what is going down or what set of circumstances have been created by you.  No matter how dire they may seem, there is almost always something you can do about how dire it feels-you can realize that most if not all of what is happening to you is a result of how you are perceiving your life.  It is the lens through which you are choosing to view whatever it is you are looking at. 

Just as in your dream, you can remember-if you want to-that nothing is ‘real' in the sense that it cannot be seen in a different way-and therefore experienced in a different way.  You really do have that much power over your own life experience.  You can always stop the tape that's running or the movie that's playing.  You can always eject that perspective and put another one in. 

It's true that by the time the bus is a few feet away from you, there's not as much you can do.  You've set those wheels in motion, so to speak, and at that stage of the dream, it is extremely difficult to dramatically alter the outcome.  However, you CAN develop a greater awareness of the ways that you set up those nightmares long before they get so seemingly out of control.  You can remember that you do get to decide the content of the dream that you call your life.  You create it . . .  you direct it . . .  and you can change it whenever and however you choose, provided you are willing to make the effort. 

We will be the first to agree with you that you often don't or won't make that effort-simply because you've grown so accustomed to whatever dream you've been dreaming.  The effort itself is not really that odious.  It's just a matter of practicing a different viewpoint, but most of you have gotten so used to whatever viewpoint you've been practicing that it ‘seems' like a huge undertaking to get a new point of view really rolling.   

But be that as it may, we promise you that you are the one in charge of what you're seeing-and therefore the one in charge of the movie you're starring in.  No one else has his or her finger on the button that controls what's playing for you.  Your life REALLY is your call. 

If you don't like what you're seeing-or what's happening to you-remember that it is YOUR dream.  And remember that you can wake up! 

Well duh.  Sometimes I wonder if The Team gets tired of finding ways to tell us what we already know in some way that will make it feel like it's news. 

I just remember how powerful, how in command, I felt when I somehow had the awareness within my own scary dream to recognize that I was dreaming-and that I could wake up if I wanted.  I wasn't fated or doomed to suffer some dire consequence-although it certainly could have gone a very different way in that dream. 

That time, at least, I remembered I could wake up.  So I woke up.  And even if I don't have quite that positive an outcome in every part of every dream to come . . .  I won't forget that one time, when I did remember-and did something about it.   For now, it leaves me dreaming a dream that feels much more fun to dream-and that is all mine to complete.

The "beautiful word clouds" generated from our more 'serious' work feel like they capture something, however. As Lynda said ironically at RT, "it’s all there, and presented much more eloquently than I could ever do with bothersome things like sentences." NP wonders if they could be submitted in lieu of an abstract, and Lynda says "*Now* I know what my thesis is about." I had the same reaction, including that shiver of embarrassment about certain words that should have been inconsequential turning out to be heavy in the distribution (wordle removes linguistically common 'stopwords' and weights the rest by frequency).

Still, in principle it should matter what order and relation we put words in; otherwise we could all just stop with the bothersome sentences and write word lists for wordling. For example, frequency is not the only index of importance; sometimes a word that appears only once is the fulcrum of a whole argument. In fact, this transition from lumped word clusters to organized thoughts is pretty much what I'm trying to teach during my day job. I get papers that read like wordles all the time; if the words are well-enough chosen, they sometimes even pass. Now I find myself wondering if I could use Wordle itself to graphically represent to the students the difference between a word dump and a fully-articulated paper.

I'd welcome thoughts on this. Just as a first impression, I imagine requiring students a week before an early-semester paper is due to come to class with a Wordle printout of their introductory paragraph. I would then put them in work groups and have them attempt to interpret each others' wordles to see how close they could get to the author's intended meaning. In the process I think they would be clarifying in their own minds what 'extra' is needed beyond mere words to communicate a meaning and frame an argument. The additional benefit is that this would move their procrastination window up a week.

If this seems like fun, we could always experiment with my chapter wordles here or NP's at Rough Theory....

"...trust and relationships are such an essential part of the road back to recovery."

Daniel Fisher, co-director of the National Empowerment Center is one of the few psychiatrists in the country who openly discusses his recovery from schizophrenia. Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison also speaks openly about her own Personal Reflections on Manic-Depressive Illness.

..."The real root of a lot of the oppression in the mental health field is really segregation..."

David W. Oaks, is the Director of MindFreedom International and has been a psychiatric survivor human rights activist since 1976.

Hi! Albert,  I can only promise to hang out with you as your email friend, while we figure this thing out of why you are so lonely. I know you feel lonely and say people are closed in and not very friendly anymore, or never respond to your emails.  So, what have you done for yourself lately, that will lift up your spirit and take you into a whole new avenue.

Would you be interested in learning to dance, maybe it could be ballroom dancing or taking up some gourmet cooking class. These are the kind of things that opens up your life to the new and retire the old self that stayed at home and watched the t.v.

Whatever you do just remember to always be a gentleman in everything that you do, and you will be surprised what a little kindness can do. Remember this is an old pattern, the way you use to pick up the ladies, and all that you knew you did... will not work for you anymore, because this is a new day and the stream of life moves constantly, which keeps all things fresh and new.  

So Albert, this is why I say to you, to make your approach a new way, and you will see and understand, if you are true within your heart, that you will find that special someone that is the right one for you. Someone rings the bell and I get off at the next stop and proceed to walk the remaining 5 blocks home. It is now after 12:00 am and the family dog is happy to see me.

 I stood in a daze wondering what kind of people paid up front, did not know me from Adam and rushed out the door. I realized the Mom looked tired in her face and the Dad did not really know what to do. The only information I received was that the baby cried alot.  Okay! Let me get the ball rolling, don't wait for the baby to wake up and then make the food, feed Hanna early, because I did not know what I was in for.  Oh oh! The baby is awake and crying. I pick up the baby, grab the bottle of milk and give Hanna her dinner to eat. Okay, all is going well so far. the baby is finished with her milk and now I have to burp her. Finally the burp comes and I am so happy, but now the baby begins to cry and cry.

I am worried and Hanna looks at my face and says; the baby cries all the time, she wakes me up every night and my Mom is crying too, and my Dad does not know what to do. The baby is passing gas like crazy and crying. I realize the baby has a gas problem and the authority does not know that a simple thing like gripe water can change their lives.  I go online and find out that it is sold only at BabyRus, write down all the information and put it on the table. Hanna understands that she cannot get any play time because the baby is crying, the baby baths and finally falls asleep. Come Hanna lets take your bath before the baby wakes up. We settle down to watch cartoons and the baby is crying again.

These people did not have any white sugar in the house, so I really could not help the baby. Hanna went to bed and the baby cried as I rocked her to sleep. I held her all night while she cried. The authority arrived at 10:30pm and I quickly explained the solution and rushed out the door. I was taking the letter S bus, to catch the 11:36pm letter G bus to go home. I was tired, but it was a good night.

The park is already filling up with moms, babysitters and toddlers. I am tired from my power walk, and using the baby in the stroller as my exercising weights. I drop on the park bench, spray the baby with Off, and she goes off to explore the play house and play with her friends.  At 15 months the baby is still not atempting to climb up the play house steps, but run around the playground and make new friends. I lift  her onto the play bridge and tell her to walk over to the slide and sit down. She looks unsure, but wants to try. Okay! Go on the play bridge and walk over to the other side. The baby begin taking jumping steps and takes an unexpected dive down onto the chips on the playground, and loudly begins to cry. I walk over and say, no more noise, lifts her back on the play bridge to continue her walk.

She look down at me as if I am cazy, I walk away to sit on the bench and keep watching for the aggressive squirrel who steals food and tries to bite the kids. The baby realizes that she is alone and begins to explore the entire playhouse. She go up the higher slides, climb the bars and hang on until she gets it right, walk up and down the steps and masters the no no areas of the playhouse. She had a silly grin on her face saying; Look at me!  After weeks of coming to the park to play with her friends, the baby finally graduated from her trials and errors on the play house bridge.  The phone rings and I begin planning my next day.