Transforming Past Fears into Present Joy
Fears about the future often stem from past experiences, leading to self-fulfilling prophecies of failure. By recognizing and rewriting these narratives, individuals can...

We live in the age of connection. Through the wizardry of personal computers and the Internet we can come into instant, even intimate contact with others throughout the world. We live in a worldwide web, truly, as every living thing connects to every living thing. Yet when it comes to a typical relationship between two or more people...

Granny was satisfied with life. Despite adversity, she did not dwell on or run from the disappointments of life; she courageously faced hardship by grieving, accepting, forgiving, and moving on. She made mistakes. But instead of living with regret, she made the effort to make a better choice the next time she faced a similar situation.

Who was Mary Magdalene? What do we know about her? And how do we know it?

A knowledge of basic psychology can be extremely useful in giving us insights into our psyches so that we can learn our true needs. Anne Miller, a friend of mine, was a mother of five children when she started studying psychology on her own. From this she learned that she wanted to become a lawyer, and...

Certainly, in our role as parents, teachers, or care-givers, we watch as our children are shaken up by the inescapable barrage of scary news involving death, bombs, enemies, and the like. They are frightened and confused...

As parents, our desire and role is to have children who have a positive sense of self, feel fulfilled and can lead a positive life with the ability to thrive on their own after leaving the nest. We want to give them necessary tools to move easily through challenges in life and create the best life they can.

When we look at the various stories we tell ourselves about our lives, certain patterns become apparent, and it may be possible to discern in these patterns two (or possibly more) dominant themes. One might represent the “old story” of one’s life, and the other the “new story.” The first is often associated with various wounds one is born into or has grown into as a member of this culture. The second story represents where one is going, and is consistent with the healing of these wounds.

It seems to me that many of the battles within humanity today arise because most of us have no idea how to differentiate what we believe from what is true. We don’t know how to separate our opinions from bare facts. We have not been consistently encouraged to critically think...
Rather than narcissism, frequent use of first-person singular pronouns—I, me, and my—may indicate a tendency for emotional distress, new research finds.

Generally we think of fear as something negative to be conquered, however fear isn’t always bad. In the right circumstances and in small doses it looks like caution or prudence, and it can play a constructive role in your decision making.

Stress is part of life, especially when you have a career, family, and other responsibilities. But we can’t let it control our lives. We have to preserve ourselves if we want to accomplish everything and maintain balance.

The inaccuracy of generalizations lead to much confusion in our attitudes, which then translates into inappropriate actions. I’ve learned to pay very close attention to how people speak and write and have discovered that expressed generalizations are all too common...

Years of ongoing shamanic and spiritual training have taught me many lessons. Perhaps the main lesson is that life is a never-ending learning process. Although we reach a certain level in our growth and development, there is always something new to learn, to experience...

Our earliest ancestors had an innate understanding of the Universe and the nature of the Soul. As keen observers of the natural world, they marked the waxing and waning cycles of the sun and moon, the yearly rotation of the seasons, and the birth, death, and rebirth of their crops each year. They saw the sun rise at dawn and disappear on the horizon each night, only to be reborn the next day, repeating the sacred Circle of Life...

In the cosmic sphere of energy, wu-wei is the feminine (yin/passive/receptive/earth) principle of the universe. Translated into English from Lao-tzu’s perspective, wu-wei means “non-doing,” “non-action,” or “effortless action.” These translations are literally correct and lead us to the intuitive and ultimate psychological experience of wu-wei.

Sometimes our perceptions can get us into trouble. What appears so clearly to be our reality may not be real at all. Or it may be partially correct, but not the whole picture. We humans have a tendency to interpret our partial experiences as the whole truth and ignore other people's partial experiences.

While checking out at a grocery store I noticed that a cashier had an unusual tattoo on her forearm. “What is that tattoo?” I asked Ciani. She smiled. “It’s a copy of the EKG of my grandmother’s last heartbeat.” Suddenly the checkout process faded to background. I wanted to hear more.
Suppose you want to get in touch with a friend. Once, your options for doing so might have been sparse: pick up the phone or write a letter.

For the family and friends of people who self-injure, as well as the doctors and services that try to support them, a key question is often: why do they do it?

Relationships are funny... You go around searching for the 'perfect' mate, and of course, the 'perfect' mate turns out to be not so perfect. What happened? Since everyone is your reflection, you ended up with the perfect reflection of yourself. And of course...

As long as we allow our True needs to be answered by the familiar, we are going to live out our lives making unseen circles. We need to go up, not around. What we really need is to make contact with that Higher part of our own True Nature which alone has the power to...