Your Year of Miracles

Tag: visualization

  • Finding Your Happy Place

    Finding Your Happy Place

    Today’s Miracle Moment Is About Finding Your Happy Place…

    I was inspired to do this Miracle Moment because I’m actually in my Happy Place right now – Maui. And not only that, but the house that I’m staying in is filled with little signs that say “Find Your Happy Place.” I even found out that the street I live on, which is Luana Place, is Hawaiian for “Happy.”

    Outside my house, here there is the most magical garden surrounded by trees and beautiful plumerias and hibiscus flowers. I’m just a short drive from the most fantastic beach with crystal blue waters and I love going there to watch the epic sunsets at the end of the day. All around Maui, there are waterfalls and hiking trails and glorious sunsets. 

    It’s deeply life-giving and nourishing to spend time in beautiful parts of the world, and happiness research can also tell us why it feels so good. 

    Taking a walk by an ocean, a river, or a lake allows you to breathe in air filled with negative ions, which can decrease stress and lift your mood. 

    If you have a garden at home and love to dig in the dirt, you’re getting yourself around great beneficial bacteria which has been shown to act as a natural antidepressant.

    When you take a hike in a park, you’re surrounded by trees and you can take a deep breath and flood your body with oxygen.

    Sunlight can reset your serotonin and melatonin levels, the feel-good hormones that you need in order to get deep sleep at night so you feel amazing the next day.

    At the same time, being somewhere out in nature, like Maui, is just part of the equation. You also have to build the muscle of taking in how good it is!

    Dr. Rick Hanson talks about the power of taking in the good.

    He says that “the brain is like Velcro for negative experiences, but Teflon for positive ones. That leads to your underlying expectations, beliefs and mood to be in an increasingly negative direction. Dr. Hanson says that you need to train your mind to take in the good, and notice any resistance to it, and one way you can do that is by savoring the good for 20 or 30 seconds.

    So it’s not just about being in your happy place – it’s about training your mind to take in all the good of your happy place! And the more you allow yourself to really take in a positive experience, the more you rewire your brain in that direction. By taking in the good, not only can you enjoy your happy place even more, but take it with you wherever you go.

    This week, I invite you to take yourself out to a place in nature that you love.

    While you’re there, take some time to intentionally take in the goodness of it. Notice all of the colors around you, allow your feet to connect with the sand or dirt or ground, notice the wind or the breeze or the sunlight. Savor the goodness your body is taking in from all the seconds. Breathe it in and spend at least 20 or 30 seconds really intentionally enjoying it.

    I’d love to hear where your Happy Place is, and what it is you enjoy about it! Share with us in the comments! And I’ll leave you with this quote from Mary Davis: “A walk in nature walks the soul back home.”  Have a fabulous week!

    Please share with us below what your experience is with finding your happy place.

  • How to Open to What You Resist

    How to Open to What You Resist

    Today’s Miracle Moment Is About How to Open to What You Resist…

    What is that difficult thing that you know you need to do, but you’ve been resisting it or putting it off? Maybe it’s a conversation you need to have or overdue paperwork you need to handle or any looming task on your to-do list that’s hovering over you. Whatever it is, it’s something that the thought of doing gives you a sunken feeling. 

    All of the big or small things that you’re putting off doing take up space in your life energetically. What you resist tends to persist.

    Your resistances can end up as a pile of incompletions that are actually weighing you down and taking up your energy. To create more space for miracles to flow, you need to handle incompletions and the things you’re resisting.

    So how can you get yourself to do that thing you’re resisting? Many productivity experts say that the best way to handle this is to start your day doing the most difficult task first. By doing that thing you’re avoiding, you can lift that feeling of overwhelm from your shoulders.

    Brian Tracy calls it “eating the frog.” This comes from a Mark Twain quote where he said, “If the first thing you do every morning is to eat a live frog, then you can go through the day with the satisfaction of knowing that that’s probably the worst thing that’s gonna happen to you during the day.” 

    I actually need to change that analogy since I’m a vegetarian! But the idea being is that you start with a difficult task first.

    And it’s not just beneficial for that one thing on your list. Research has shown that when you complete a difficult task, it triggers the release of endorphins in your brain and it gives you a natural high that’ll last for hours. And that energy can carry you through your day and you can put it towards the other important things in your life. 

    You can actually develop a positive addiction to these endorphins, and that’s going to make you want to go after the harder things first so that you get that endorphin high.

    So let’s take this a step further and bring some miracles energy in to help you to face what you’re resisting.

    Let’s do a short process together that will support some of those deeper fears or worries about whatever it is you’re avoiding to dissipate:

    • Start by getting in your body. Feel your feet on the ground and your body in the chair or wherever you’re watching or listening to this from. Imagine a chord going all the way down from your base chakra connecting you to the earth, and another chord going from your crown all the way to the heavens. Feel your physical body deeply rooted and supported by Mother Earth, and your spirit supported by your guides or your angel team and the celestial realms. And put your hand on your heart, and take a couple deep breaths in and out.
    • Next I invite you to explore your answers to the following questions.
      • What am I resisting?
      • What am I afraid will happen if I handle this?
      • What is a new, empowering Miracle Affirmation I could give myself about this situation? Maybe: I can do this. Or: I have the capacity to figure out how to handle this situation. Or: I trust that I’m supported by the Universe no matter what.
    • Now, imagine that you’ve faced what you’re resisting, and it goes very well. How do you feel after completing this? Maybe deep relief, ease, and gratitude. Now that you’ve moved the stagnant energy, there’s greater space for miracles to flow.
    • Finally, imagine going through your day with more energy to put towards everything that’s important to you. Feel the lightness you feel now that what you’ve been resisting is off of your shoulders.

    And now, from this energy, I invite you to go forward with your day. Start checking off those incompletions and make it a practice to do what you’re resisting. 

    And I’ll leave you with a quote from the past president of the American Institute of Psychoanalysis. His name was Theodore Isaac Rubin, and he says, “Happiness does not come from doing easy work, but from the afterglow of satisfaction that comes from the achievement of a difficult task that demanded our best.” 

    I’m wishing you a week where you courageously face those things you’ve been putting off and feel the weight lifted off your shoulders, and have more space for miracles! I send you love.

    Please share with us below what your experience is with trying today’s process to help you open to what you resist.

  • The Antidote to Anxiety Spirals

    The Antidote to Anxiety Spirals

    Today’s Miracle Moment Is About The Antidote to Anxiety Spirals…

    People are more anxious than ever these days. A recent poll by the American Psychiatric Association found that 43% of adults say they feel more anxious than they did last year. And the American Psychiatric Association suggested that anxiety might be more rampant due to the unprecedented exposure that we all have to everything going on in the world. 

    I’m sure you’ve experienced having a spike in your stress levels after spending just 5 minutes on a smartphone. You could even be staying away from news, but just checking your social media feed can wreak havoc on the nervous system – whether you see people sharing about current events or get FOMO (fear of missing out) after seeing someone’s fabulous travel photos. 

    You can also get caught in anxiety spirals when worried about the state of the economy, the climate, or the pace that technology is evolving… Or if you’re worried about a family member’s health, or our kids’ future, or finances. The list goes on. 

    Whether it’s personal or it’s an issue that affects all of us, how can you break out of the anxiety spirals when you’re stuck in them? 

    A renowned anthropologist and a beloved mentor of mine, Angeles Arrien, had a saying that goes, “Action absorbs anxiety.” The idea is simple – by taking an action, the anxiety and despair you’re feeling about a situation is absorbed – whereas if you just sit and ruminate on a worry, the anxiety grows.  

    A lot of things are out of our control. By focusing on what you can do, you can shift our internal state, and make a positive and energized step forward.Now, when you’re stuck in anxiety, taking action can feel overwhelming or difficult to do. This is why it’s really important to take a small baby step.

    There’s a word in Japanese called kaizen which literally translates as continual improvement.

    Using Kaizen, you accomplish the most through small consistent steps, because it is the best way to overcome resistance to change. 

    The brain often views change with fear, so if you make gradual steps to change, you fly under your brain’s fear radar. And consistent baby steps will actually take you where you want to be farther and faster than trying to do it all. 

    And so the next time you find yourself stuck in an anxiety spiral, first, put your phone or device away. Put your hand on your heart, your other hand on your belly (calms the vagus nerve) and do some breathing to support your system to regulate. Watch today’s video and let’s do that together…

    Try this technique to free yourself from anxiety:

    1. Put one hand on your heart and the other on your belly
    2. Breathe in to a count of 4
    3. Hold the breath lightly for a moment
    4. Exhale to a count of 8
    5. Repeat as many times as feels good to you (at least 3-5)

    Now bring your attention to the thought that is most triggering the anxiety.  Maybe there are a few of them – but focus on what’s strongest. It might be a relationship challenge, or financial stress. Identify what the mind is most hooked on in this moment. 

    Next, brainstorm – what are some baby steps I could take to support myself in this area right now? Just brainstorm first to get yourself thinking forward. For example, if it’s a relationship challenge, maybe there’s a phone call you need to make or you can take responsibility for your part in a rupture. If you’re in anxiety about finances, look for an empowered baby step you could take, like reviewing your accounts instead of avoiding them. 

    You can always look to a supportive self-care action you could take – like reaching out to a friend you trust, putting on your shoes and going for a walk outside, taking a bath, or making yourself a cup of tea.

    Once you get yourself thinking in terms of positive baby steps, if you still need a boost of help in that area, visualize yourself actually taking the baby step forward. Imagine yourself successfully taking that step. And then do it. Lace up those tennis shoes and walk out the door, or give the friend a call, or whatever it is. Take the baby step. That will propel you into a more supportive energy to move forward in your day. 

    This week, I invite you to notice if you’re stuck in an anxiety spiral, and if you are, come back to this process and take one baby step forward to absorb the anxiety. 

    So I’d love to hear your thoughts on what baby steps you can take to shift out of anxiety spirals – please share in the comments. And I’ll leave you with this quote by Aesop: “Little by little does the trick.”

    Have a fabulous week – I send you love!

    Music Credit: Jim Oliver “Soul Heart Merge”

    Please share with us below what your experience is with using this approach to counteract anxiety spirals.