34 Comments

1. This page looks and feels beautiful….. a lot like us!

2. Thank you Laura.
   Judy

3. Debby, it sounds like you have a career close to my heart. Debra thought you might be doing something similar in the Litchfield area in AZ. If so, I would love to meet with you. It has been a long long time. Sandra Hinkle Tusa

4. Forgiveness seems to be a common theme in recent days and weeks. Many of us at A Healing Place and our clients have been exploring what it means to forgive…to let go…to surrender. Most often it seems the path of discovery leads to the ultimate forgiveness – of onesself. I have been softening into this truth as I’ve sat with what seems like a “collective unforgiveness” – that of being unclear about my personal integrity. Through that unclarity, many obstacles and relationship challenges arise and I am realizing how they come back to me. Something within me that was shaped by an early experience or belief that I’m now seeing no longer fits. The obstacles and challenges are being tranformed by the healing opportunity that they are, into a deeper appreciation of myself…as I recognize and let go of what I thought was truth and no longer is. I am defining new truth for me.

5. When I expand my energy, ground and allow my consciousness to be in my heart, I can feel my body, my thoughts, and my soul (unconditional love). Being in my heart allows me to experience everything through love. Every day this process is growing and is integrating deeper in my being. This awareness offers me choices that support my healing and the healing of others. This is a brief description of what I am learning and experiencing as an apprentice at the Arasini Foundation.
   The Apprenticeship Program is about my healing and sharing my healing presence with others. I use to imagine (very much like John Lennon song) a world that creates peace and joy, where relationships are created from the heart. It’s a process of unlimited potential, and I am forever grateful for Deborah, the Balancing Team; the Apprentices and clients who have created a healing place.
   I am learning to love more of me every day. In the beginning it was awkward and uncomfortable. I now can look in the mirror and say I love you Sharon, and I feel the care and love. The more I appreciate and love myself the more I love and accept others. I do struggle with my feeling of fear, acceptance and discomfort with old patterns that do not work for me any more. I recognize they are just old patterns and it’s about the journey of discovery and transformation. With each step I become more peaceful.

6. Here are two insights that eased into my days last week~don’t you just love the way the Universe reveals truth?
   1. When I finally located the ‘bug’ zooming sound , a moth was going around and around inside the bottom of a 1944 empty porcelain vase of my Mom’s. I quickly set the vase outside. As I watched, the moth was attracted to the outdoor light and found it’s way out of the vase and flew to freedom.
   2. I was reminded of the physical healing path for someone who experiences a burn~ the burned area must cleaned regularly preventing a scab or a scar from forming. Healing must come from the inside out.

7. Perceptions.
   I have always held the belief that I am afraid of public speaking. Holding this belief it has always been my perception that I, as the speaker, am the expert. With this perception then I had to have all the answers. You the audience therefore, were there to learn and ultimately bathe in my wisdom.
   What if, however, I don’t know everything? What if I stumble and fall? What if you call me out? …And there we have the reason for mine, and many others fear of public speaking, I believe.
   What would happen if I held a very different belief? What if I choose to believe instead that I am a student of life, which by the way seems closer to the truth. Would that change the dynamics slightly? As a student of life I am forever learning, and therefore can’t fail. If I see myself as a student it allows me to see you and others as students too. As students, you too perceive all opportunities as potential for growth, for sharing, for change.
   How do your perceptions affect your view?

8. There has been such a gap in my story online and part of the jnoruey was do the healing that was needed and not record it. Hard to explain that after so many years of journal projects and having everyone who came through the Talk Zone be so personally involved with our healing. There is a point at which some healing has to be done alone. And I would guess that is when we are strong enough to go it alone. Which of course for me seems to have made these last years some of the hardest in many ways. I will say though the most rewarding because there was no one to answer to accept myself. As new students/friends/fellow advocates are coming through the Talk Zone I will do my best to get this started and active again. Truthfully though not hard to find the topics, it is truly choosing which one to start with again. So today we start with the first question asked and then work from there. Each day I’ll pick the first question if I can and place my replies and answers with them. If there is no question that morning I’ll pick something else and put the questions in the next morning. I am trying to limit the time I spend at this each day so not to over do it as before. Yep, there is such a thing as doing to much online. Who would have thought! lol Hugs and Healing for everyone! Lady J

9. I enjoy being around ppeole that push themselves! I appreciate your effort to grow in all areas. It’s very easy for me to slide into a sedentary lifestyle in every area, if I let myself. I’d leave a note on all of the topics that you’ve mentioned on the blog, but I think I’ll just leave some general thoughts here instead. For some reason, I’ve always had an impression or an image of the line I thought my life would follow. I don’t think the path has been necessarily what I thought it would be, but I believe that the destination will be fairly close. It would be hard for me to live without dreams and goals even if they’re not defined on a piece of paper or in some other written form. It seems if you wander aimlessly, you end up missing the mark altogether. If it wasn’t for divine providence, I believe some ppeole would enter and leave life without an inkling of purpose. Don’t know just a thought.The last thought carries over into the next. If a ministry doesn’t consider purpose (whether music or other), there is no relevancy. God can always intercede and do what he wants, but I believe he calls us to do the best we can with what we have within the boundaries of the Word. If you’re singing just to sing, Christian or not, ppeole just don’t engage. I don’t know about you, but I can smell passion. It excites me and makes me want what the person emitting it has. To me, you can always tell when a person is going through the motions. The industry is changing and we have to remain relevant. I think if your passions are in the right place, then you’ll seek out what’s effective and what’s not!For me, physical discipline translates into spiritual discipline. Spirtual discipline then spills over to every area of my life. My body and the way I feel determines way too much of what I accomplish on a daily basis. The focus and determination that it takes for me to wake up and exercise and restrain from foods that won’t get me where I want to go helps me in my relationship with God. It sounds strange but when my fitness regimen is right, so are my spiritual disciplines.

10. In the Quiet is the Healing . . . For many years my journey has been to calm down, slow down, get quiet . . . chill out . . .and once I think I am there I find I have to calm down, slow down, and get even more quiet than the time before! Trust me this has not been easy for this Aries nature. My healing goes in cycles of awareness about myself and it feels as if I am continuously sinking down to a deeper, deeper quieter part of myself with no end to the depth. Along the way I have come to realize how much anxiety and stress this body carried since childhood. I never realized that I even had anxiety or stress until I learned how to be QUIET and practice being quiet through meditation and energy work taught by Deborah Singleton. Through experiencing this quiet, an amazing personal healing has emerged where symptoms of allergy and illness have just disappeared! How wonderful is that. So I encourage you who are reading this comment if you want healing be willing to get really, really quiet! Do what ever it takes to be with yourself. If you want professional help with healing call A Healing Place 972.437.5332. I am so grateful.

11. In the preface to my book, Intentional Healing: One Woman’s Path to Higher Consciousness and Freedom from Environmental and Other Chronic Illnesses, Deborah Singleton, Founder and President of the Arasini Foundation as well as of A Healing Place, noted: “The task and the path of healing are both burden and blessing. They require looking deeply within and letting go of the past, which can be filled with judgments, resentments, guilt, and other fears that have kept us in unhealthy thought and emotional patterns, contributing to our illness.” The intense introspection Deborah describes was, and still is, a crucial component of my journey to wellness and wholeness not only from illness but also from a spiritual disconnection that may be felt by many people today. Spiritually adrift after alienation from my childhood faith, I nevertheless led what could be considered by any measure an ethical life. Although I no longer identified with religious dogma, an internal compass guided my behavior. Little did I know, when I began my healing journey, that I would not only discover the nature of my compass but also use its many levels to heal myself—body, mind, and soul—and reconnect with my spiritual nature in a way I had not known was possible.
    What is it that separates us humans from all other creatures on Mother Earth? Altruistic behavior? Ants engage in highly altruistic and self-sacrificing behavior. Opposable thumbs with the ability to use tools? Chimpanzees debunked that theory long ago. Language? Dolphins and whales “speak” to each other. The characteristics we naively associated with human superiority turn out to be rooted in the basic natures of other animals as well. If we humans can lay claim to unique characteristics, they are the ability to create on a grand scale—from villages to great cities, small groups to grand societies, parochial to universal systems of thought, and works of art, literature, and music—and to act on thought as well as instinct, the latter characteristic being the crown jewel of “humanness.” In acting on thought, we create, and in the act of creation we connect with who we really are, tapping in to a universe of creative thought and universal truth.
    If this seems like a digression from a discussion of healing, it is not. It goes right to the heart of healing as illustrated in the opening of John’s gospel: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and God was the Word.” If we think of “word” as “thought, and “thought” as “creative impulse,” we begin to approach the origin of all healing, namely, thought. Thought is our doorway to the divine. Many ancient worldviews looked upon thought as energy and our connection to the realm of spirit and soul. Shamanistic journeys often began with the ingestion of hallucinogenic substances that altered thinking and opened the practitioner to expanded consciousness. During the 1960s and 1970s the hippie generation adopted some of these practices to usher in an expansion of consciousness worldwide. Many traveled to ashrams in India or visited shamans in South America to learn consciousness practices. Soon ashrams and centers for meditation began multiplying in the United States as well as in other Western countries. Other practices and knowledge started to be imported as well, and what was once considered sacrosanct in the Western healing arts, that is, the path of treatment from doctor to patient expanded to include practitioners of acupuncture, Ayurvedic medicine, faith healing, native or aboriginal healing, energy medicine, and numerous other alternative and complementary modalities, as they are known today.
    When I met Deborah and her healing team in November 2002, I had not previously given thought to consciousness. I suspected that I had strong intuitive abilities because I used to see or sense events ahead of their occurrence. I referred to these sensings as “shower visions” in my book since they often occurred in the shower. In truth, I didn’t think about them other than to notice them until unusual physical symptoms brought me to Deborah’s doorstep. I had been referred to Deborah by Dr. William J. Rea, founder and medical director of the Environmental Health Center-Dallas, for treatment of sensitivity to electromagnetic fields. It didn’t take long for me, however, to experience breakthroughs to higher consciousness under the guidance of Deborah and her team. Changes in my senses, which I had been noticing for a while, were suddenly magnified. And that secret desire we humans harbor for connection and communion with the divine was suddenly requited.
    Have I completed my healing journey? Of course not. Has it been easy? Far from it. Have I wanted to give up at times? Too many times to enumerate. My inner compass, which I now know as soul and spirit, moves me forward despite the difficulties of the journey. And when I really need support, I turn to Deborah and her healing team.
    To encourage those of you who are just starting on your healing journey and are new clients of A Healing Place (first appointment in December 2012 or January 2013), I will offer a giveaway to one winner of an autographed copy of my book, which outlines the guidance I received from Deborah and her healing team. Just send an email to me at info@jenniesherwin.com telling me why you’d like to read my book. I’ll select a winner during the first week of February.

    January 21, 2013
    Jennie Sherwin
    http://www.jenniesherwin.com

12. Thoughts on Healing versus Curing an Illness

    At A Healing Place I learned through body awareness exercises to recognize the consciousness and intelligence in my body. Those exercises were the first healing tools I acquired to optimize the medical treatment that was helping me to rid my body of the toxins that had sapped my health and vitality. I recovered from multiple chemical sensitivity as well as sensitivity to electromagnetic fields. What I discovered during my course of energy balancing treatments, however, is that healing an illness is not always the same thing as curing it. Whereas curing an illness has clearly defined endpoints, healing an illness is a process that uncovers layers of complex interactions within body, mind, and spirit. Although I no longer think of myself as chemically sensitive and certainly have no restrictions related to that sensitivity, I know that I continue to heal and that I have a responsibility to teach others about the consequences of polluting our air, our workplaces, our schools, and our homes. The kind of healing about which I write is a deep healing of body, mind, spirit that has far-reaching implications not just for ourselves but also for humanity and our planet. The path is difficult, but my inner compass, which I now know as soul and spirit, moves me forward despite the difficulties of the journey. And when I really need support, I turn to Deborah and her healing team. Posted in gratitude for the love and healing I receive from Deborah and her amazing healing team. Jennie Sherwin

13. EMF Sensitivity: Effects on My Life and Its Transformation through Energy Balancing Treatments

    I am a survivor. I recovered from multiple chemical sensitivity as well as from sensitivity to electromagnetic fields. Because I recovered, I shared my story in my book, Intentional Healing: One Woman’s Path to Higher Consciousness and Freedom from Environmental and Other Chronic Illnesses. When I speak about my experience at book signings and author talks, audience members often ask: “How did you know you had EMF sensitivity?” In truth, I was sensitive to electromagnetic fields for some time before I knew what I was experiencing. I remember feeling nervous when I sat in our breakfast nook under track lighting. We had been living in that condominium in New Orleans for almost three years when the nervousness started. I can recall feeling a buzz around me when I stood close to the mirror over the vanity in the bathroom, which was lighted with bulbs that fit into receptacles above the mirror. It was not until I entered treatment at Dr. Rea’s clinic in Dallas that I fully “unmasked” for EMF sensitivity, and it happened in a dramatic way. Here is an excerpt from my book:

    “…. On Sunday early evening, as I was checking e-mail on my laptop, Pretty Woman was playing on one of the cable TV channels, and dinner was baking in the oven. All of a sudden, as I was typing, I felt a strange sensation. My fingers felt prickly. The sensation spread into my hands and up my arms. The next thing I knew waves of pain exploded in my chest, and I started shaking. I felt as if I had my finger in an electrical outlet and waves of electricity were coursing through my body. Electricity! That was it! I shut off the television, the computer, the oven, and all of the overhead lights. I sat in the dark, shaking, wondering if I was experiencing electro-magnetic field (EMF) sensitivity. Remember Susi who couldn’t use a telephone? She was EMF-sensitive, and for that reason she could not touch or be near a telephone or other devices that emitted electromagnetic fields for very long. My third week at the clinic had ended, and I found myself much sicker than when I had arrived. I was incredulous. It has gotten worse. I looked at the telephone and took a deep breath. Will I be able to use the phone? Tomorrow morning, Roger would call me, and I would know.”

    The next morning when my husband called, I was on the line only a minute or two when the drama of the previous day was repeated. When I got to the clinic later that morning, I was told I had “unmasked” (become aware of a sensitivity that had been hidden to my perception because of more dominant sensitivities) for EMF sensitivity as a result of the detoxification process. Life from that moment entered a twilight zone reality for me. I felt electricity from anything that emitted an electromagnetic field: telephones, appliances, air cleaners, lights, hair dryers, computers, cell phones, compressors, wires, and cables. I felt as if I were continually plugged into an electrical outlet, and I thought my nervous system would be damaged from the assault.

    At the clinic I was referred to Deborah Singleton, founder and president of the Arasini Foundation and director of A Healing Place, and her healing team. With their guidance, I learned to quiet my energy fields, clear an EMF reaction, and maintain my personal energies in balance in order to heal. I attribute my ability to benefit fully from the treatment at the clinic and transform my perception of electromagnetic fields from illness to a tool I now use for information to the energy balancing treatments and the guidance I received at A Healing Place.

    How this transformation came about, as well as some of the exercises and practices I learned at A Healing Place, is outlined in my book. See the book giveaway for new clients in an earlier post.

14. I have had a life long struggle with being fearful of my body. I always thought my body would let me down – big time. It is not surprising then that those strong beliefs led me to illness and to a true disconnection from my body. Coming back from that great distance of fear to embrace my body has been quite a journey.

    Recently I returned to my home in New Mexico from spending time at A Healing Place in Richardson, Texas. This time when I was working with Deborah Singleton and her healing team there was a significant shift toward releasing those tired old patterns of fear and distance. I actually began to truly appreciate this journey of illness. Within that struggle I am finding a new strong part of myself that is renewed and energized by my body’s intelligence and desire to get well.

    As I left A Healing Place for the long journey home, I felt as if I were finally coming home inside myself as well.

15. Jennie – I like what you have written about healing vs. curing. It gets me wondering if there truly is a cure for anything. What you seem to be saying is that by entering a multi-tiered healing process that involves all parts of you, that an illness actually offers an ongoing journey of self-discovery. And that is the healing. Thank you for sharing your story and perspectives!

16. Recently while in session at A Healing Place the idea of generosity came up. Deborah commented on something I had done as being very generous…and for me to think about that. From those few words my mind completely went to the negative extreme – that I was wrong for being too generous. Of course that was not implied yet it was my reaction. I did think about it…and as I felt into it began to connect with and review how choices of generosity played out in my life. What really got me to still myself and take a look was when I began noticing the intent behind some of the generous gestures.

    As a child I remember just wanting to fit in, wanting peaceful surroundings and to be loved…pretty much the opposite of my reality. Did you ever purchase Legs pantyhose back in the 60’s or 70’s? They came packaged in a plastic egg (the Legs egg!). I used to save the eggs from my mom’s pantyhose and come Easter, would fill four of them, one for each brother, with all sorts of candies nestled in a little bit of green Easter grass. I remember the feeling of love within my heart for my family as I prepared and then gave the eggs to the boys. I can also remember an underlying intent – that maybe if I gave them the candy-filled eggs it would buy me a day or perhaps two without cruelty or punishment just for being me. This may have been the beginning of a life-long pattern whereby I often, although not always, used generosity to buy a need or to save myself even just for a day.

    Coming back to present and following that healing session, through the week many instances and people crossed my path that reflected unconditional love gratitude and generosity toward me. I was present with each one and soaked it in. A few days later a wonderful realization came together. I entered a church holding a memorial service for a business associate’s 16-year-old son who had passed away from a terrible accident. The church was filled with many families and teens as it was in a small and close-knit community. I walked in and stood at the back to assess how it felt and where I might like to sit. I began to feel a warm presence coming toward me and looking to my side saw my x-husband standing beside me with a smile. I was so surprised to see him and as we took each other’s hands he asked if I would like to sit with him. Yes I would and so I did.

    I hadn’t seen him in over a year. Just a few days earlier we’d had a brief phone conversation that involved asking for his help on a work-related matter. He instantaneously gave me the information and made contacts to pave the way for what I needed. At the service I was feeling how nice it was to sit with him with none of the old trappings of our marital struggles. I felt comfortable and supported next to him, and knew he felt the same. When the service was complete we gently parted ways, like two ships passing in the night.

    As I drove away an instant reflection of that experience plus the earlier experiences of my week all came together in my mind and body as my heart spread wide open. A deep inner knowing arose within me of how grateful I felt for my generous heart. I had never before seen and felt myself in this way so clearly…rather I would often doubt and second-guess my very nature. Seeing my x-husband and the whole feel of it showed me that all of the hard work that went into the relationship and then into the break up, always fueled by my generous nature, was being offered back to me through an experience of warmth and kindness.

    Now I am seeing that generosity, like everything, needs to have boundaries and needs to be offered with unconditional intent. If an act of generosity is done out of fear, for personal gain, to fulfill expectations, or from obligation or guilt, that energy becomes a part of the gesture. And is returned in kind. As children, my brothers never did change how they treated me, but maybe for that one day. That was my part in setting up the pattern. As an adult acting out of the pattern it created many unhealthy expectations and experiences. But my acts of generosity began to shift and mature as I grew and learned through the unconditional love and healing I received and continue to receive at A Healing Place. Deborah and all the practitioners are my impetus and inspiration for inner change, growth of spirit and being grounded as a woman. Today my intent is for acts of generosity to be extended from the purest place within my heart. As I continue to let go of old worries and fears that intertwined all of my generous decisions, I will get even better at it…and I’ll never again doubt the goodness of my generous heart!

17. “GREAT THINGS COME MY WAY – THE HAPPIER I STAY!!!”

    This was a gift “I heard” from the Universe this year on January 28, 2013. It means so much particularly to me. There is very deep meaning in this phrase. Back this time in 2005 I was not happy but great things were coming to me by way of the Universal Plan! By the time Dr. Rea referred me to Deborah Singleton at A Healing Place in mid-March 2005 I could not walk on my own. I had a person on each side of me to get in her office….I am a very hard-headed Aries and would not give it up to a wheelchair that so many insisted on. Needless to say I am so very, very, very grateful for the past 8 years. I have transformed!!! It took many long hard days, months and years including what I call “trips to hell and back” exploring myself and my subconscious but even with all the extreme physical, emotional, mental and spiritual pain I was able to endure it and grow. That was possible ONLY (and I strongly emphasize ONLY) with the help of Deborah Singleton, her team, the indispensible Dr. Carol Cole, and my family!

    This is not to say everyone has to take this long to make transformation in their lives….remember I said I was very hard-headed and I forced the Universe to take extreme measures to wake me up. My advice would be learn to listen to what your body and intuition are “telling” you daily, pay attention to it, and take action on it!! Life is meant to be fun and it is for me now! And always remember we never get it all done….change is FOREVER ongoing. Lighten up and Love yourself more!

18. Laura, Your sharing is so deeply touching. It helps me feel safe being who I am when I am at A Healing Place. Thank you for being a wonderful guide, mentor and friend for so many years now.

    Love, Susan

19. Creativity has been your hallmark along the way Kathy. In the midst of all you went through were your mandalas and painting soirees, not to mention tasty foods, sense of humor and ventures to special places. I admire your persistence and spirit.

20. Sharon, I can feel the peace you were feeling when you wrote this. It is soaked into each word. When I read it I feel more peaceful.

21. Presenting at a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Parents Support Group

    Two of us with Arasini Foundation recently spoke at a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) support group that is offered to the parents and families of the infants being treated. Our talk was about stress and how it can affect our body and energy system, and ways to shift to calm through simple relaxation techniques.

    The young dads arrived from work and met up with their wives as they began filling their plates with the bountiful dinner generously provided by the unit. We quickly began to learn about some of their stories. One couple had been coming to the hospital daily for four months, driving an hour each way, while juggling work and another young child at home. Coordinating the care of their three year old, maintaining work, being at the hospital every day, living on high alert awaiting news and changes about their infant, and financial concerns all weighed heavily on the couple. As this and other similar stories were shared there was a feel of anxiety and stress in the room, as well as a sort of surrender and acceptance to their situations.

    My colleague, Susan, felt into that and had us all get quiet for a moment. She guided us to tune in to our hearts, our natural good intentions, and to create a connection with one another. As she talked I noticed everyone sort of trying to grasp the context of what she was suggesting. Then I could literally feel everyone settle into a place of letting down and just letting go as she guided us to have a feeling of good will for all others in the room…and to offer that from the heart to the persons on either side. It was a beautiful moment in time as everyone participated in their own way, creating a circle of heart connection around the table.

    We began a discussion about the underlying circumstances and feelings contributing to the stressors of their situations. The dads opened up first, talking about challenges with changes to their work routines and maintaining focus while at the same time being there for their wife and infant. Then a few moms began to share, from a different perspective than that for which we thought we were there. As one, then another shared, I began to feel the validity of their need to be heard and the importance to them of the NICU-related issues being raised. Individuals from the NICU staff addressed their concerns with great respect and care. While observing, it struck me how much stress – particularly emotional stress – some of the staff members must feel and carry with them throughout the shift. I began to wonder how they release that stress for themselves to start anew once again the next day.

    The meeting was running longer than planned and soon we had the opportunity to bring everyone back to the center of focus, acknowledging the stress that we all carried in the room, and to take the earlier gesture of good will to a deeper place of relaxation and letting go. I guided us through a relaxation exercise using focused breathing and visualization as the gateways to inner peace. The space felt alive with our quiet focus and heart connection…supporting each other with gentleness and mutual desire for love and peace.

    Two lessons stood out for many at the end. One was that our breath is available to each of us in every moment to use consciously for calming and quieting our system. Secondly – we all have felt how it feels to be around someone who is stressed, and how that can cause us to become tense. Conversely, most of us have felt how being around someone who is relaxed and peaceful can help us to soften. The staff and families made the connection that they can positively affect the infants by first taking a few breaths and calming themselves. This calms everyone.

    One of the NICU staff members later commented that the beneficial information provided valuable tools for the families to be able to cope with their stressful and unpredictable journeys. What a gift the experience was…especially for me.

22. A Talk about the Energy Body with a Cancer Support Organization – –
    It was a delight to be in an intimate circle of individuals who came together for an exploration of our energy body. We were at an organization that provides support and programs for those experiencing cancer as well as for their family and friends. Sometimes cancer or any illness can affect us in such a way that we begin to micro-focus on our bodies, body image and symptoms. However, we are bigger than our physical body and any symptoms or illness that we may be experiencing. Through discussion we began to explore the concept of our energy body. We then viewed a diagram created by Deborah…more than a diagram really it is a work of art and awe. The image portrays a portion of our complex energy system including beautiful dynamic colors and layers that reside within as well as all around our body…divinely connected to the Universe above and earth below. Each of us was invited to begin with a simple experiment feeling our own energy using awareness and movement with our palms. It was exciting to witness the wonder as we each in our own way began experiencing how we saw and felt our energy. We got into some deep breathing and learned how focused breath can be utilized to move energy. The exercises along with Deborah’s diagram of the human energy system generated many questions about how we experience our own energy in our daily lives, as well as the energy of others. One way we noticed energy is experienced is through pain in the body. We used the awareness along with focused breathing to help move, ease up and in some cases clear the pain. Later through a guided visualization we explored some energy centers along our spine and in our head. We paid particular attention to the “energetic heart” – its gentleness and power – and how being in our heart can bring a gentleness and ease to our life moments and experiences. We wrapped up with a lovely grounding meditation, bringing the focus and energies that were stirred all to our feet, and from there down deep into the earth. Everyone seemed open, receptive and grateful for the experience. Part 2 of our series about getting to know and healing ones own energy will be Thursday, May 16th from 6:30pm – 8:00pm in Allen, Texas. If you would like information on how to attend please let us know. It is open to all.

23. I was recently invited to be a contributing writer on Conscious Life News. My first article posted on Saturday, and I am sharing the text here. To view the article and its embedded images, go to
    http://consciouslifenews.com/developing-awareness-journey-authentic/1156677/. Comments are welcome.

    Developing Awareness: Journey to the Authentic Self

    How many times a day do you catch yourself talking to yourself? None, you say? Then here’s a little test. The next time you are in the shower, bring your attention to your feet and hold your focus there. How long can you do it before your thoughts intrude? I really need to give Mom a call. We haven’t spoken since last Wednesday, and she’ll think I don’t love her….Why did Frank ask me to stop at the cleaners after work? Doesn’t he remember Dale’s soccer game starts at five? I’ll barely make it there as it is….I hope the boss is in a better mood today. He was really out of it yesterday….I have a paper due tomorrow. Why did I put off working on it? And the guys are getting together tonight to watch the game. I really need the extra credit. If I don’t turn that paper in on time, I’m screwed. If you are not talking to yourself, who is talking to you?
    When meditation was suggested to me several years ago as a way of helping my body to heal while I was in treatment for exposure to toxic chemicals, I had only a foggy notion of what meditation is. Coming of age in the 60s and 70s, I recalled reading about college students who smoked pot or ingested LSD and claimed to meditate, thus linking meditation for me with the use of a mind-altering substance. Faced, however, with the bizarre symptoms brought on by toxic exposure, I was ready to try anything.
    I started my meditation practice in the environmentally safe apartment I occupied while I was in treatment. I had been advised to sit quietly in the early morning hours and still my mind. How hard could that be? you might think. What if I told you it was next to impossible? I would sit there in silence, and within seconds the internal chatter would start. Who is in control here? I remember thinking. It isn’t I. That’s for sure. I’m sitting here listening to all this internal chatter while all I wanted was to be quiet. Totally frustrating!
    It took months of frustration to understand that I had taken the first step toward discovering my authentic or higher self through these early attempts at meditation. Coupled with the energy balancing treatments I was receiving, meditation was teaching me to observe myself from a new perspective, the perspective of a conscious being in a flesh and blood body. In addition to being crucial in helping my body to heal, not only from the toxic exposure but also from the many chronic illnesses that had made life difficult for me, that change in perception altered how I see the world and everything on it and in it. It led me down a path of ever expanding consciousness that changed me forever.
    Who has time for meditation? If you think you need to climb to the top of a mountain and seek solitude to meditate, think again. Meditation can be as simple as taking a deep breath and, when you exhale, sending your breath to your feet. You can take quick meditation breaks at work—never, of course, while you are operating machinery and needing to stay focused on what you are doing for safety sake or if you are responsible for the safety of other people. In those cases when you cannot change focus for a brief moment, then it is better to wait for your rest or coffee break. If, however, you work in an office, then a 20-second meditation break once or twice a day is all you will need to strengthen awareness and refresh your bodymindspirit. And there is an added bonus for your employer. You will think more clearly afterwards.
    Let’s learn a few basics. We inhabit bodies that are animated by energies within us and around us. Those energies respond to metabolic changes as well as, for instance, emotional states, food, drink, prescription or other drugs, exercise, thoughts, and breathing. The simple act of taking a deep breath with the intention to clear your mind and be aware of your body is a powerful tool for change.
    The energies within and around us form the human energy system. The major components of the energy system include vortices of energy called “chakras,” a Sanskrit word for “spinning wheel.” The major chakras that we generally teach include the root or base (first chakra, dominant color: red), the sacrum (second chakra, dominant color: orange), the solar plexus (third, dominant color: yellow), the heart chakra (fourth chakra, dominant color: green), throat chakra (fifth chakra, dominant color: sky blue), third eye (sixth chakra, dominant color: indigo), and crown (seventh, dominant color: transparent white or lavender). Minor vortices dot the body and number twenty-one.
    Energy flows through and around the body in major and minor pathways. The flow that is usually learned first is the simplest. It begins just above your head, flows through the head, down the spine, and exits through the perineum and into the earth. When I first learned to use this flow, I think of it as the primary flow, to ground or “earth” myself, I felt tingling in my feet. That is desirable because, in fact, this major flow moves also through the legs and feet.
    Now that you know the basics, let’s try a twenty-second awareness meditation. Visualize, or imagine, the primary flow in your body. Picture the light above your head. As you inhale, see the light move into and through your head and down your spine. As you exhale, see the light move into the earth and send it down deeply. You may feel tingling in your feet, or you may feel nothing at all. Either way, stay in the moment briefly and then let it go. You have just grounded your energies, the first step in supporting the health of your bodymindspirit. Bring your attention back to what you were doing before you started and go on with your day.
    You can practice these twenty-second meditations until you are drawn to a longer session. Then, at home or in another comfortable environment, instead of jumping into a more difficult stillness meditation, try this visualization exercise. Sit comfortably in a chair. Remove your shoes. Wiggle your toes and feel the bottoms of your feet. Ground yourself, as described above, that is, complete a twenty-second meditation. Next, set the intention to be peaceful and relaxed. Begin breathing slowly and deeply. With your eyes closed think of a place that appeals to you—a mountain top, a garden, a path in the woods, a beach. See yourself there and allow the scene to unfold in your imagination. For example, if you chose a mountain top, you can begin by hiking a path to the top. Observe what you see during the hike. Animals, birds of a certain size and color, plants or flowers, waterfalls, any or all of these might come into view. Choose an animal, bird, plant or flower to bring to the mountain top. Sit down and allow your companion to communicate with you. You may see images or experience certain feelings. Don’t analyze. Just experience. When you are ready, make your way back to the bottom of the mountain. Return your breathing to normal. Wiggle your toes. Allow impressions of your experience to come forward. Did a certain color dominate? If red was dominant, you may need to strengthen your root chakra. If yellow, then your solar plexus may need support. Were there feelings you need to explore? The best way to explore these feelings is with a counselor, preferably a holistic counselor, who will see you in wholeness.
    You can practice these visualizations several times before you attempt a stillness meditation, or you can alternate between the two types. For a stillness meditation, you need a quiet environment where you can focus inward without interruption. Early in the morning before anyone else has risen is generally a good time. Sit in a comfortable chair with your feet on the floor. Ground yourself, that is, visualize a cone or column of light above your head. As you inhale, imagine you are drawing in the light and see it move through your body and into your feet. See your feet as pools of light. Imagine the light creating ever widening circles of light around your feet. As you exhale, send the light into the earth. Thought and breath are your body awareness tools. Send the light down deeply into the earth until you reach a place of light in the earth. Light exists everywhere and predominates over darkness. Connect your light with the light you visualize in the earth. You are grounded. Focus on your breathing. Picture your abdomen as a balloon. As you inhale, see the balloon fill with air, allowing your abdomen to expand. As you exhale, see the balloon deflate. Do this several times. Then set your intention to sit in stillness. You can use your own words, or these: “I sit in stillness to connect with my authentic self.” Then observe what happens. Thoughts will start to intrude. Observe what they are. Understand that they originate in the persona you have created and through which you experience and interact with the world. Surround each thought with light and send it into the earth. Then repeat your intention to sit in stillness. Sit quietly for as long as you can, continuing to surround each thought with light and sending it into the earth. You can time your session for twenty minutes. Then end your session with closing thoughts: “I am grateful for this opportunity to observe myself. I close myself to all but my highest truth.” Then go about your day.
    If you are curious about the intersection between developing awareness and higher consciousness, then check back for future visualizations and meditations. To learn more about the voice that talks to you, I recommend you read the untethered soul: the journey beyond yourself by Michael A. Singer. You will not be disappointed. It is the best discussion of levels of consciousness I have ever read.

24. I’ve just posted another article on Conscious Life News. I share the link here http://consciouslifenews.com/color-meditations-nurture-chakras-expand-consciousness/1158029/

    I welcome comments. Blessings, Jennie

25. I just want to mention I am just new to weblog and really savored this blog. Likely I’m want to bookmark your site . You surely come with terrific writings. Cheers for sharing your web site.

26. “Today I plant seeds of my future with the thoughts I choose to think.” -Kathy Carter

    “If you believe change occurs everyday then you believe you can heal.” -Kathy Carter

    “Ask yourself when negative….What is right in this moment?” -Kathy Carter

27. Just wanted to say how lucky we all are to have a world class teacher and healer like Deborah here in the metroplex!

28. The First Chakra, located near the bottom of the spine is the chakra that has to do with our connection to the Earth, our sense of safety, security and belonging in our life. There is more to the First but, for now, here are a few thoughts/affirmations that came to me last night.

    “I have always been safer than I understood myself to be—nearly every second of my life. In fact, every second of my life.”

    I matter to me, on all levels.

    I belong… to Life

    I choose my Tribe. As a conscious Being, I choose my Tribe.

29. I feel the same Randy. The internal growth that comes through doing personal healing with Deborah’s guidance and oversight is profound. I see it in those people who have been associated with her for years; it is further inspiration to keep moving forward with my own changes–a process of willingness, choice, intention and effort to change for the better. Challenging territory. But when we release chunks of “baggage” there is a lightness and relief that comes with it. And so much help we receive if we make those choices. I wish you strength as you follow the winding path through your personal process. The fruits of the Spirit are waiting within!

30. Monday night we held our monthly meditation gathering. It was a joy to share the space with so many willing and interested people! Some there for the first time, others our “regulars”…and we all blended into harmonic sound waves as we explored listening to and expressing sound. We began with a calming and centering practice. As our hearts were opening and connecting, Susan ever so gently hummed us deeper….it seemed we all took in the vibration. We practiced with breath, belly breathing, and allowing tone to come out from deep within. As we explored and expressed someone commented that circulation within her body had opened up….she felt like water. Another noted that he had arrived with a clenched jaw that now felt slack and soft. Another noticed how as we began the tones we were at all different levels of notes, yet somehow harmonizing. And towards the end we had traveled through the tones to end up all on the same note, albeit at different octaves!

    Melissa created what one person described a turning point in the evening by playing her Native American Indian flute. A spontaneous instrumental song that was born of the group energy we had created floated around and through each one. We ended with a chant, “I am the light” and the conviction in which it was spoken felt alive and real. The chant melted into a whale song accompanied by water and piano. Some sharing at the end revealed calm states, relaxed and flexible bodies, and lots of smiles! Later someone shared that she had done lots of sound with other groups, still this was the best. All in all a beautiful and energizing experience! We are grateful for each and every one of you who chose to be a part.

31. I am sharing an article I just posted on Conscious Life News. Those of you who attended the living from your heart conference may especially relate to it. Here is the link: http://consciouslifenews.com/authentic-leading-heart/1163050/comment-page-1/#comment-179276

32. On the path of growth there have been many times I have found myself working hard. Change is hard work. It takes commitment, fortitude, time, intention.
    There have been times I have worked when I needed to let go, our just “be”, however. That’s a tough one for me and for many of us. Finding peace or quiet within the storm. Not thinking I have to do it all myself, like it’s all on my shoulders.
    I remember when I decided to let go of my anger towards my father. It was a conscious decision I made because I wanted greater healing and peace in my life. This brought forth a lot of my unresolved issues with him and gave me the opportunity to deal with them. My approach to healing at the time was similar to what it had been during my time of illness, to approach it with gusto, to work hard, breathe hard, stomp my feet hard, process hard.
    I’ve since learned how to “be” more, which is a learned skill, but one anyone can do, which is to just notice the feelings and thoughts as they come up. Instead of engaging with them, I have taught myself to relax and breathe, allowing the feelings to just flow, and the thoughts to just come and go.
    There are times I still struggle, and like everyone still have triggers. One has been about food. I don’t like people talking “badly” about food, especially when I’m eating it. Sometimes I would say this, at other times I would find myself sitting down to eat again afterwards faced with a battle going on in my mind. I would be confronted with this individual whom I had to convince of my beliefs, or otherwise feel invisible. And so at times I found myself working hard, when in fact there is no one to convince, no one to fight, to defend myself against; just an opinion, someone’s thought, and I’m just left fighting with myself.
    Just “be”.

33. Thanks Mark. There is always something new to learn within the perspectives you share.

34. I needed to read that today, Mark. Thank you…

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