FINDING ADDICTION'S ROOTS finding our passion
This series of PDFs are free to download, simply send a message on the contact page or at the Birdsong Holistic Facebook page, and I will send you a link to download this fifth download. This exercise is designed to help you safely explore what the roots of your addictive behaviour may be. Gabor Maté defined addiction as any behavior that is associated with craving and temporary relief, and has long-term negative consequences, and yet a person is not able to give up. In his experience, addiction provides a coping mechanism that helps us to get through another day, or in other words sooths, comforts, distracts or protects us from some sort of pain. There is a direct link between the energy that drives us towards our purpose and towards our preferred addiction. This quote by Maté helps to explain this, “The difference between passion and addiction is that between a divine spark and a flame that incinerates.” When we know what is driving us to addiction, we can know more about who our inner passionate, creative self is. He also said, “Passion creates, addiction consumes.” This is as much a self exploration, as a way to resolve the reasons for our addictions. If you are working with a Homeopath or Naturopath it is also good to understand that addiction is part of your process. It is understood that addictions can suppress our susceptibility and therefore interfere with the action of homeopathic remedies. We can also consciously or unconsciously change the effect of a remedy if we are not ready or resistant to the change that is occurring by increasing or returning to our addictive behaviour. This can slow down or stop the process. This exploration can be very helpful for the continuation of your process.
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FORGIVENESS JOURNAL A way to self acceptance
This series of PDFs are free to download, simply send a message on the contact page or at the Birdsong Holistic Facebook page, and I will send you a link to download this fourth free download. Your 31 day journal is a means to explore, develop and practice forgiveness. Practicing forgiveness is a way to reduce anger, depression and stress and encourage greater feelings of hope, peace, compassion and self confidence. What can happen?
Lewis B. Smedes Unfortunately, a lot of us develop anxiety and tension around the holiday season. The reasons can be multifold but the result is usually the same. Sitting at the dinner table with family members who, for whatever reason, get under our skin, press our buttons and have us reaching for one too many glasses of wine. The mood is tense, something huge is never said, or it is and then the evening goes from pleasantries to dramas, and everyone goes home exhausted and wondering why that person can't be more something or other, or why that family member just doesn't get it. Get what? Be more like what? What is it we are really trying to achieve? Ultimately, we may hope to change the other person, or have an ideal become reality and play out how we imagined it. Most of the things we try in order to improve the situation don't work if we address only parts of the issue or we focus on changing what is outside of our internal experience. If we are fortunate, our partners and maybe the whole family, will go for counselling or decide to learn a communication technique such as Non-Violent Communication or Bohm Dialogue. Otherwise, we are on our own to face our pain and confusion and find a way back into the fold that is thicker than water and lasts a lifetime. Is this a journey worth taking you might be asking yourself? I have known good friends whose family issues are dangerous or even life threatening, but for most of us they are just unpleasant, trigger our most sensitive buttons and leave us feeling things we would rather resolve, avoid or medicate. What if there was a more compassionate and global approach to how we view our experience with family? (For real life examples, read below) Self-Rated Health methods Research on the Self-Rated Health method (SRH - defined as an individual’s perceived global health state) suggests that it is a valid and powerful predictor of disease indication and of mortality. This 'global health state' is best understood and expressed by the individual and not captured by assessing and testing parts of the body or mind by various health domains (biological, psychological, social, behavioural, spiritual). It is the 'experience' of the individual that is sought, and it is filled out on a questionnaire or shared with a holistic health professional in a session. With insight into an individual’s experience of their own health and their own association to their bodily functions and processes, SRH taps into a global health construct of 'true health' in a way that other methods cannot. SRH shows us, when seen from a transdisciplinary or holistic perspective in regard to health outcomes, that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. With a greater ability to address chronic health conditions, SRH is a complex indicator of global or ‘wholistic’ health and requires a transdisciplinary perspective to decipher it. Transdisciplinary is an approach that harmoniously integrates multiple aspects of an issue to create new emergent forms of knowledge that require global solutions to resolve health problems. The Global or Wholistic approach This is where a holistic practice such as homeopathy can be helpful. The homeopathic treatment process is similar to the non-leading questions and approach of SRH and allows the person to provide the symptoms and their inner experiences. This creates a complex of symptoms on many levels such as physical, emotional, social and non-physical, that can be assessed as a global state. A homeopathic remedy is doing exactly that, especially a core remedy, helping the body to reach a healthier state globally. In my clinical experience I have seen this first hand.
It is challenging work to look at ourselves and take responsibility for our part in the way relationships with our family are experienced. It is something we can do however, and each step we take can positively affect the people around us. Here's to more enjoyable and energizing family dinners this holiday season! ~ How does holistic treatment support healthy living? Why try homeopathy? Having a life long study in the principles of nature and healthy living, Lauren Trimble is happy to share her knowledge and experience. The art of retuning the body’s natural healing capacity & developing consciousness in a compassionate and gentle way is the gift that homeopathy brings to her current holistic practice. If you enjoyed this article find out more at Birdsong. Anger Meditation Taking our space
This series of PDFs are free to download, simply send a message on the contact page or at the Birdsong Holistic Facebook page, and I will send you a link to for this third download. Anger is such good energy, why do we waste it? This meditation is a helpful way to re-channel that good energy so that we can more easily take our space. The Will and Anger In Chinese Medicine and Five Element Theory anger is related to the Gall Bladder and the Liver. These paired organs are part of two energy meridians related to the colour green, the spring season and to the will. Will is the healthy expression of the e-motion of anger. When we express our will we can make plans and then act out those plans. Just like the tiny seed that lies dormant all winter and then in spring magically sprouts into a seedling and then grows into a fully mature plant. Words related to the will include determination, resolve, motivation, drive, planning, vitality and getting the job done. If this energy is impeded or blocked, this can lead to what we call anger. Imagine all that energy wanting to transform formlessness into form, thought into action, and yet it can't. Then we can experience anger on a spectrum from mildly frustrated to furious. Instead of eliminating anger as many methods suggest we do, what if instead we turn this energy back into its useful will energy. There are basically four things we can do with anger, we can direct it outwards, we can direct it towards ourselves or we can suppress it. We either beat up the world, or beat ourselves up, or we ignore it. The fourth way is to turn it back into a good and useful energy, and this meditation can show us how. GRATEFUL THOUGHTS JOURNAL A way to come home
This series of PDFs are free to download, simply send a message on the contact page or at the Birdsong Holistic Facebook page, and I will send you a link to download this second free download. This 31 day journal was designed to help you develop and exercise your gratitude 'muscles.' Inside the journal there are reminders of things you can be grateful about, quotes and reflections on gratitude, and how gratitude is directly linked to our health. Taking time to express gratitude improves health, relationships, emotions, our work and play. After working with thousands of people, the psychiatrist and brain disorder specialist Daniel Amen found that the best antidepressant by far was asking his patients to write down 3 things a day that they were grateful for. He found that people who did this for 3 weeks saw a significant increase in their level of happiness. Those are good odds to work with. The word 'appreciation' means to be thankful and express admiration, approval or gratitude. It also means to grow or appreciate in value. As you appreciate life, you become more valuable, both to yourself and others. (From the book The Hidden Power of the Heart by Sara Paddison.) Appreciation is what being a human being is all about and gratitude reminds us of this! |
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