Signal for Change

If you are driving with a destination in mind, is your focus in the rear view mirror?

Are you moving away from something or are you moving toward something?

Are you focused on where you were or where you are going?

If you touch a hot stove, it’s supposed to hurt

If you are living a life that is not up to the standard of who you are – if you are living someone else’s life, if you are living off purpose…it’s supposed to hurt and nothing is supposed to take away that pain until you change the path you are on.

If you are not feeling the pain, when you take the behaviors and thoughts that are not in your highest and best, you will begin to feel ok with living a life that is beneath you.  You will begin to lower your standards.

What if your disease, pain, symptom was the cure?

If you take your hand off of the hot stove, it will stop hurting

When you begin living your life to your highest standards, it will stop hurting.

Are you asking the questions, “How far can I get from what I do not want to feel?”

Or are you asking the question, “How can I develop new resources to create an ideal experience of life I have never experienced before?”

No matter what happened in your past, starting now, we are moving in a new direction.

No matter what you came in with, starting now, we are looking to the future, not the past.

The only reason you should look in the rearview mirror is to celebrate how far you’ve gotten from there

What’s behind you will not help you

Your past is not there and your future is not either, but by taking a different path, you definitely won’t meet the past…and definitely meet a different future than the path you are currently on.

Rather than asking, “How can I make it go away?”

Let’s ask:

“What can I focus on differently….what new actions can I take….what structures in my life can I change, to create the life I would prefer?”

Let’s ask a different question.

Let’s choose a different path.

With Love and Appreciation,

Dr Barry

www.placeforhealing.com

Healing Process of the Heart #4: Appreciation

Once you have reached the level of Acceptance, your healing process will truly accelerate.  There is something magical that occurs within you.  It is as if you embrace whatever may be and welcome whatever may come.  You come to understand and know that your body and mind are incredibly intelligent and wise, and that their every move is on purpose with your highest regard and best interest in mind.  Even when things seem bleak and the process is uncomfortable and scary, you know that it is for the purpose of your healing and you can glimpse the light at the end of the tunnel…the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow…your vision realized at the end of the path.

With this understanding, you come to Appreciate everything the body does, everything that comes to mind, and everything you may feel.  No matter how strange, uncomfortable, or frightening the things that arise may appear, you appreciate them, for you know that they are in your best interest.  There is no longer any fear and all doubt falls by the wayside.  Your disease or condition is no longer seen as such, but instead is witnessed as a blessing in disguise…a sheep in wolves’ clothing.

This is a wonderful place to be.  When you can see the good in your hardship, you can see the good in anything.  Your mind fills with gratitude and joy, for you are no longer prisoner to your condition, but instead allies.

It is at this stage in the healing process that heroes are formed.  The warriors who can stand before us, in spite of their illness, and inspire us to tears.  We hear stories of individuals who have overcome cancer by learning to appreciate its lessons.  They tell us that if it was not for the illness, they would not have developed the strength and wisdom to pursue their life’s mission and dearest dreams.  We hear of the man who experiences a cardiac arrest, after which discovering that he has been neglecting his family for work, begins a life in which he makes his family top priority.  He starts a healthier lifestyle of a clean diet, exercise, and a stress-free job.  We hear of the alcoholic or drug addict who suffered their whole life with anger, self-hatred, and depression, suddenly admitting to their problem and discovering the inner peace and love that was there all along…and then go out into the world to help others do the same.

These are all examples of the power of Appreciation.  When you begin to appreciate yourself and your world, you begin to care more about the person inside of you and the people around you.  You begin to have a deep core desire to participate more in your healing process and begin taking responsibility for your own health.  As the Helplessness fades away, you find an inner power which seems to come from deep within, has no boundaries or limits, of which you have an infinite abundance of supply.

With this Appreciation, you accept your inner power to heal and manifest as real that which you desire.  With each day that you experience this miracle of life within you, and witness the changes outside you, it no longer is something you have to think about…to think about.  It becomes a deep, inner core belief and you begin thinking about it and speaking about it the way you would say the sky is blue and water is wet.  It is a knowing, and through this knowing you begin expressing it through your actions and your words.

In the next entry, we will explore the fifth “Healing Process of the Heart” – Affirmation

Adapted from an excerpt from the book, A Clear Path to Healing, by Dr. Barry S. Weinberg

With Love and Appreciation,

Dr Barry

www.placeforhealing.com

 

The Healing Processes of the Heart cont. – Awareness Exercise

Let’s take a walk… That’s right, print this out,  go outside and let’s take a walk.  As you walk, pay attention to how the clothes feels on your body.  Actually feel the presence of your clothing against your skin.  Feel the pressure of the ground against your feet with each step.  Feel the temperature of the air.  Is it warm or cool?   If there is a wind, feel its gentle caress on your face.  Become aware of everything you feel with your sense of touch.

Pick up a stone.  Close your eyes and run your fingers over the surface.  Squeeze it.  Feel its hardness and texture.  Rub it first gently and then firmly.  Become one with the stone. (Smile!)   Do the same with a leaf…some soil…and the grass.   Rub your hands over the trunk of a tree and if you feel so inclined, hug it.  Is there a neighborhood cat nearby?  If so, go over and pet him.  Feel the softness of its fur.  If he rubs against you, feel his caress.  Touch and feel as much as you can.  Become aware of all the things available for you to touch.

When you are finished touching things, continue your walk.  How does your body feel?  Are there any areas of tension or discomfort?  What areas feel good?  What areas do you not feel at all?  Scan your entire your body from the top of head, down across your face…past your neck to your chest and back…your arms…hands…abdomen and low back…legs and feet.  How do all these parts of you feel?  Become aware of every part of your body.

What are your thinking?  What thoughts are passing through that mind of yours?  Are they happy thoughts or sad thoughts?  Are they pictures, sounds, or just words?  Are you thinking of something you wish to achieve in the future or are worrying about something that happened in the past?  Pay attention to your mind for a few moments and observe the thoughts as they enter and exit your mind.   Do not try to change, correct, or fix anything…this exercise is merely to observe and become aware, not to change.

How are you feeling emotionally?  Do you feel happy or sad?  Calm or anxious?  Angry or serene?  Pay attention to how you feel emotionally.  Are these new feelings or do you have these feelings often?  As you walk, think about some habitual emotions and thoughts you might have on a regular basis.

Once you are aware of everything that you are feeling (physically, emotionally, and mentally), take a deep breath through your nose.  What do you smell?   Notice all the different fragrances which are in the air.  The grass.  The flowers.  Perhaps it recently rained.  I love that smell.

Listen to the sounds around you.  The wind blowing through the trees.  The birds singing.  A dog barking.   Cars or bicycles going by.  Take in all the sounds around you.

Finally, look around.  Rather than looking at the familiar shapes that you are accustomed to seeing (the trees, houses, etc.), look at the space between.  For example, instead of looking at the leaves of the trees, look at the empty spaces between them.  Look at the colors.  Look at the shapes that all things are made of.  Search for new ways to look at familiar things.

Take it all in.  The sights…sounds…smells…sensations…feelings…and thoughts.  These things make up the foundation of your awareness.  By being present in the moment, and observing everything around you and within you on a daily basis, your perception will begin to become more sensitive and you will begin to become more aware.

In our next entry, we will explore the 2nd “Process of the Heart” – Acknowledgement

Adapted from an excerpt from the book, A Clear Path to Healing, by Dr. Barry S. Weinberg

With Love and Appreciation,

Dr Barry

www.placeforhealing.com

 

The Cause of All Disease Part V: The “Mama Bear Incident” cont . – Recovery and Evolution

Let’s return to our story.. 

Let us return twenty years into the past, back to the tree where you find me shivering, watching the mama bear and her cubs prance off into the distance.  As I start climbing down the tree, let us look at a different scenario.  Everything returns to normal, I recover beautifully and no subluxation is created.  My pulse rate is calm and steady.  My blood pressure and adrenal function return to normal resting levels.  My pupils contract and my digestion turns back on.  I pass Step Three:  I recover.

I now look around the vale in which I stumbled and notice scratch marks on the tree and a unique pile of feces on the trail that I had previously not noticed.  I observe a distinct smell in the air and notice some paw prints and a few hairs scattered across the ground.  I take careful note of all these things.

Let us again jump twenty years into the future, but instead of an overweight couch potato, the experience has driven me to become a fit naturalist backpacking in the mountains of North Carolina.  Walking down the path, I suddenly notice a strange smell in the air.  It is vaguely familiar, but I just can’t place it.  I continue further and notice a pile of fecal matter on the side of the trail.  It also looks familiar, but it can be from any number of creatures. Suddenly, I begin to notice some scratch marks on the tree, and I perceive an all too familiar change in the environment.  I immediately, and consciously, hold my breath, turn around, and very quietly, tip toe the other direction.

Notice the difference between this event and my experience twenty years ago.  I have learned and evolved.  I am now able to adapt to the same stress with far less energy and far less internal change, making the recovery much easier and effortless.  The next time I will need only to notice the smell in the distance and I will adapt very easily to the situation.  This is how we, both as individuals, and as a species, evolve and grow.  I passed Step Four:  I evolved.

Stay tuned as we continue to explore the 7 response abilities through the “Mama Bear” Incident in the next entry.

We will continue exploring the 7 response abilities with our “Mama Bear Incident” story in the next entry.

Adapted from an excerpt from the book, A Clear Path to Healing, by Dr. Barry S. Weinberg

With Love and Appreciation,

Dr Barry

www.placeforhealing.com

Response Ability #5: Expression

Often when the wind blows across the land, they carry with them seeds.  What is a seed? A seed is nothing more than an intention.  Look inside an acorn.  Do you find a little oak tree?  No.  What you find within an acorn is dust.  Yet, within that dust is the information and intention that, if in the right conditions, will produce the mighty oak.  In other words, what separates an acorn from a stone, is that the acorn has the ability to express physically a non-physical, or intelligent  intention.

In any body, organization, or situation, the ability to express physically a mental or emotional intention is necessary for it to be considered healthy.

If we look at the previous four Response Abilities, they are, in most cases, unconscious responses.  The processes of perception, adaptation, recovery, and evolution are in most cases automatic, subconscious processes of which most people are unaware.  By making a conscious effort to improve our health and increase our awareness through the exercises and tools I will share in the next three chapters, we can become more perceptive to the subtle and sublime, becoming more aware of, and even participatory, in these four Response Abilities.

The fifth Response Ability of expression is a more conscious process by which we express physically a mental intention.  The simplest example of this would be to wiggle your finger.  You create the desire in your mind to move your finger, you transform that desire into an intention, and you physically move your finger.  Other examples would be to run from danger, eat food when hungry, and pursue your inner urge to find a mate.

Once we embark upon this Clear Path to Healing, we may begin to experience the increased awareness of more subtle perceptions, and begin to control and manifest previously, otherwise unconscious activities.  As we learn, grow, and evolve through our life experience, we begin to act with conscious intention, rather than allowing ourselves to work on autopilot and unconscious direction.  For a simple example, we could allow ourselves to reach extreme levels of thirst, ingesting water only once our primal instinct kicks in and, in the behavior of a wild beast, run for the nearest stream or puddle and lap visciously at the succulent liquid.  Or, we may consciously decide to regularly drink 8 glasses of water each day, whether we are thirsty or not.  We could wait till we experience heart disease or diabetes before we give up our hot dogs, French fries and cigarettes, or we can choose to eat more fruit and vegetables on a daily basis now, preventing the crisis from occurring.

On a more subtle level, people have been known to slow their heart rate, control organ function, and adjust their own biochemistry through focused biofeedback and intense periods of meditation.  Whereas this ability has a wide range of possibilities, in order for us to achieve our optimum healing potential, this ability must be working at its optimum.  In order for us to act in such a manner as to maintain our health and achieve higher levels of healing and wellness, we must be capable of acting physically upon a mental intention.  If we do not, we move nowhere in life, existing merely as dreamers.   If we instead take our dreams and act upon them, we can experience Heaven on Earth and begin to create our own Garden of Eden, as we live and breath on this planet…in this lifetime.

We will explore the next Response Ability, Harmonious Interaction, in the next entry.

An excerpt from the book, A Clear Path to Healing, by Dr. Barry S. Weinberg

With Love and Appreciation,

Dr Barry

www.placeforhealing.com

 

Response Ability #4: Evolution

Often when the winds of change blow, they can change the landscape of our environment.  Sand and soil may be pushed into hills, and over time, mountains.  Rivers may be redirected, and lakes may, over time, form.  Whereas the wind has stopped blowing, its effects may create a lasting impression.  In these cases, we have two choices: we may grow or we may decay.  Living, healthy things, such as trees, animals, and people, grow and evolve.  Inert, non-living things, such as stones and sticks, decay.  Wash running water over a seed and watch what happens…it grows.  Wash running water over a stone and what happens?  It erodes.

Growth and Evolution is a continual process of change by which a seemingly lower and simpler state or condition is transformed into a higher, more complex state.  A healthy body or any other organization always allows for change to cause growth and evolution.  On the other hand, an unhealthy body decays and eventually ceases to exist.

Evolution and growth is nothing more than a long-term adaptive response.  An example of this would be the experience of muscle building as a result of weight training.  The act of lifting heavy weights over and over is actually perceived by the body as a danger or crisis.  These heavy weights place stress on the muscles, bones, ligaments, and joints.  In order to protect itself, the body builds more muscle tissue in order to prepare itself for future experiences of such stress.  If we continue to work out regularly, frequently increasing the weight as we get stronger, this process will continue indefinitely.

What differs in this situation from the previously mentioned adaptive response, is that now the body is stronger, more effective, and more efficient, even after the stress is gone.  Recognizing this, theoretically, the body says, “I am stronger, more effective, and more efficient as a result of this adaptation…this one’s a keeper.”

Another example of this would be that of sun-tanning.  The darkening of the skin as a result of laying in the sun is a healthy response of the body producing more melanin in the skin.  Melanin is a pigmented protein that protects the skin from the damaging effects of ultraviolet radiation.  The tanning of the skin is caused not by the sun’s rays, but by an adaptation produced by the body in response to the exposure of ultraviolet light.  If the exposure to sunlight is continuous and frequent, like muscle building, this adaptation will become permanent.

Whereas the Response Ability of Adaptation is necessary to protect us from sudden changes that may be damaging or even deadly, the Response Ability of Evolution, whereas not as urgent, is necessary for the long-term survival of our species, and life in general, on our planet.  Through this ability we can learn from our experiences and become stronger, wiser, and more effective as a species.  This process is perpetual and is responsible for our human family moving from the primitive existence as an ape to the spiritual and intellectual wonder we are today.  In this infinite arena we call our universe, we are yet at the beginning of our evolutionary experience.  The sky’s the limit, and what we are capable of becoming is but a tiny glimmer in our imaginations and wonder.

We will explore the next Response Ability, Expression, in the next entry.

An excerpt from the book, A Clear Path to Healing, by Dr. Barry S. Weinberg

With Love and Appreciation,

Dr Barry

www.placeforhealing.com