High Energy Life in 12 Weeks

Eight Basic Recovery Tips for Physical Health

admin — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 06:54:11 +0000

Falun Dafa the fifth exercise by longtrekhome

My eight basic recovery tips for my physical health are:

1. Have a plan for healing your body and work your plan.

2. Decide your heaviest eating time period. Be sure to have healthy foods on hand for those craving periods.

3. Don’t ever go on a diet. Diets are deprivation. Life is to be lived and enjoyed. Instead develop your own food program. Your food program should include the things you love to eat. Choose to eat from a small plate. Eat half as much as you used to eat.I use a 1/2 cup measure.

4. Remove food temptations from your home. If you are eating right, you will never be uncomfortable after eating.

5. Plan daily times for exercise. You may need to schedule several shorter periods rather than one long one. The new recommendation is for 60 minutes per day. I belong to a gym because it gives me motivation when I see all the other people there. I was not a natural lover of exercise. I am now because I have an exercise plan and I follow it.
But mainly I exercise because it makes me feel better.

6. Divide your exercise among strength, balance, aerobics(cardiovascular), and flexibility.Rotate among these types of exercises throughout your exercise week. The main reason that people don’t complete exercise programs is because they are bored–plan your exercise to be fun. Also learn to monitor your heart rate. Since I am 64 (in 2004), I checked with my doctor first before I joined the gym. I believe anyone at any age should see what their doctor recommends for them. Learn to measure your target heart-rate zone. This zone is the number of beats your heart beats per minute. Learn to measure your heart rate recommended for your age.

7. Develop a list of 20-30 healthy things that you like to eat that are 100-200 calories each. Be sure to include several of these daily and always have them on hand.

8.Break away from people who aren’t supportive of your choice to be healthy. Criticism is not support. You need to be around people that love and support you. From time to time, you may have someone around
you who is draining your energy. They “yes, but” you about everything. I say about these people that I can’t emotionally afford them. How can I help anyone if I allow one person to drain me? Our energy is like a battery–drain the battery, no energy.

Finding the Career You Were Born to Do A-Z Directory

admin — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 06:10:43 +0000

the best mode of transportation by notsogoodphotography

13 ideas to make boring jobs bearable and a little more interesting

Penelope Trunk’s Brazen Careerist–social media community for career seekers-has good community/groups

Career toolbox: 100+ places to find jobs

Which type of career is right for you, based on your personality type?

15 things you can do right now to help your career

It takes courage to do what you love

Career advice blogs

Discover your personality type with the enneagram

Top 7 ways to discover the work you were born to do

See what employees are saying about 70,000 companies

How we use our emotional energy

Enneagram links

Entrepreneurs

The monster list of freelancing job sites

What Charlie Weis can teach us about job failure

Fuel your creativity

Good info and terrific blogrolls for more links

John Holland personality types

Holland’s theory of career choice and you

How to tell if your career is right for you

How to know you’re working for the wrong company (if your glass is half full)

Practical advice for setting up an information interview

How to find a job you’ll enjoy

Job search engine: find jobs by category

Job search tips

10 job listing sites with unique opportunities

The worst job search advice

Simplify your job search with RSS and Google Reader

Top 10 jobs of 2010 and beyond

Learning what you are saying to yourself

LinkedIn–55,000,000 users

Managing your career via your iphone

Match yourself with the perfect job

Myers-Briggs test links

Learn 10 of your personality labels

Putting yourself out there

Personality labels

Resources for careers in government, sales, nonprofit, hospitality, forensic sciences, environmental sciences, design, arts, communications, research and writing, information technology, sports, and families

10 great social sites for resume building

Career research center: job salaries, growth, and education data

10 steps to an insight resume

Resumes–inside scoop on getting (and keeping) a great job

Simply hired blog–expanded Linkedin integration

The smart way to get hired, a review

Spherion career blog

30 ways to transform your career

Things I wish I had known when starting my career

Turbo charge your career

Up to the minute career advice from Alexandra Levit (great blogroll links)

What can I do with my personality type?

Work at home links

Work as play–the great Alan Watts

Prayer is Two-way Communication

admin — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 06:17:42 +0000

prayer 2 by khrawlings

When I have trouble “hearing” God’s direction, a prayer of Thomas Merton (one of my pilgrims) always helps:

“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.”

Although I’ve read several books about praying techniques, I rarely have found a post as good as How to Pray for Healing . His “Today is the day to respond” gives 10 steps to using prayer. It includes helping people stuck in difficult situations, how to get more power in prayer, how to get practice, and what to do when you’re healed. The author, Mark Dahle, also gives 10 reasons to pray for healing.

Some of the Dahle’s suggestions are: (1) pray at every opportunity, (2) ask for permission to touch people’s heads or shoulders ( I prefer to rub the upper middle back as this is a place where tension may be), (3) focus on God before you begin, (4) be open to intuitions from God, (5) watch for visual cues, (6) speak directly to the condition and tell it what to do, (7) have confidence even if nothing seems to happen, and (8) practice the steps that feel uncomfortable—you’ll improve.

Some more help with how to pray:

1. How to pray from wikihow

2. How to pray: Forgiveness is your path to miracles

3. How to pray Bible study

4. How to pray when you are depressed

5. How to pray to God-What does the Bible say?

6. How to pray: Prayers that get answered

7. How to pray so that God will hear

8. How to pray effectively

9. How to pray: A Catholic guide to the interior life

10. How to pray with power

Starting a Grow Group A-Z Directory

admin — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 09:15:50 +0000

Brighton Ruby Users Group by Yandle

ACOA, Codependency and My Inner Child

Adult Children of Alcoholics

Institute on aging: social and emotional support for family and caregivers

AIDS affected special groups: immigrants with language barriers in the USA

AVM survivors network

Book recommendations available at Amazon about small group ministry by Peter Bowden (Co-founder of the UU SGM Network)

businessballs.com is a huge resource for ideas about ethical work and life learning

resources at businessballs.com arranged in an alphabetical subjects index

About Online Communities

Small group dynamics: An inspiring community for small-group leaders

Changemaker Basic Beliefs

Changemaker grow group techniques

Do you need to be in therapy (instead of a grow group)

Depression/Anxiety support groups–

Stress, depression. and anxiety forum

Focusing on mood disorders, anxiety, and substance abuse

Depression support groups

Surviving divorce and separation: support groups

DMOZ directory of support groups–includes 196 groups

An easy plan for 5 simple steps

Emotional support for Multiple Sclerosis

Emotional support meetups around the world

Everyday democracy: Ideas and tools for community change

Normal eating support group

Famous models–stages of group development (forming–storming–norming–performing)

Group dynamics: Basic nature of groups and how they develop

Grow Australia–a community of persons working towards mental health through mutual help and a 12 step program of recovery.

Grow in America–international mental health movement with a network of member-run support groups in four different countries, including the USA, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland.

Grow in Ireland–is co-branded with the National Group of Suicide Prevention.

GROWW grief recovery online for all bereaved

The healing circle online–also tells you how to organize your own healing circle

Homeschool support groups

Kid cultivators homeschool group (a Ning group)

I am everybody’s emotional support group

I battle with emotional eating group

I don’t want to grow old group

Largest online resource center for small groups is by The UU Small Group Ministry Network (www.smallgroupministry.net)

Large link links for websites with many free resources for nonprofits and for-profits

Mental health support groups list for Australia

Mental health groups for bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, PTSD, and domestic abuse

Moving beyond icebreakers: An innovative approach to group facilitation, learning, and action

Online degrees for counseling (48 degrees are available)

Online support groups for depression

How to grow your own parent support group

Parkinson’s disease support groups grow

Small group resources

About self-discovery

Self-discovery in a group

Self-help and alternate therapies

Starting Small Groups–

Starting a small group suggestions

10 steps to starting a small group and shaping its character by Wes Stecker

Getting started with small group ministry

Small groups at Long Hollow: Doing life together throughout the week (Long Hollow Baptist Church)

Grow groups available at Central Presbyterian Church

Topics for group discussions

Using YouTube to train small group leaders and publicize your small groups

Wisdom circles: Self-discovery and community building in small groups

How Christianity is Using Small Groups

admin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 09:16:58 +0000

Group@Nativity Church by hoyasmeg

The United States and the world are experiencing a revolution in the Protestant faiths. In many countries, the change is labeled as emergent.

Although the experiences are slightly different at all the different denominations, one characteristic is true of all of them. They are organized around the small group. The groups meet in each other homes and are founded on the need we have for community and honesty. Too often in the organized religions, everything is done according to plan with little time given to the reality of each of our lives.

Of course, I have a particular belief that sharing and community in small groups has been greatly influenced by the leader of the 12 step groups—AA. Founded in 1938, AA has been such a phenomenon that it is estimated that there are close to 200 different types of 12 step groups.

Jesus and His disciplines used small groups to spread the Gospel. One organized church of today, Unitarian Universalist, has a well organized website devoted to topics, ideas, suggestions, for their small group ministry. The site has extensive resources for small groups with links for Christian and secular small groups. All the links for small groups is here. The links include: Leaders’ Library, the joys and challenges of covenant,publications, small group ministry for young adults and campus groups, and the complete guide to small group ministry.

How to begin a spiritual cell group is defined by Touch Outreach Ministries as “A spiritual cell group is very similar to a biological cell. Followers of Jesus Christ edify one another and increase the kingdom by sharing their lives with unbelievers. New leaders are raised up from within the group (with the support and training by their pastoral staff) to grow and expand the ministry to a hurting world. When the group multiplies, the process repeats itself.”

“Cell groups aren’t simply another name for a Bible study, fellowship group or Sunday School class. They are a group of believers who have banded together for a season in life to reach the lost, minister to the hurting and each other, and discover their leadership potential. Sure, cell groups study the Word, but they do so in order to live out what they read and use it effectively to penetrate a dark world with the light of Jesus Christ . . . which is quite different from studying a passage each week for general knowledge. Cell groups also have lots of fun together . . . but this fellowship is specialized in that it usually exposes unbelievers to a group of fun, Jesus-loving people. In other words, cell groups even use fellowship as an evangelistic tool! And last, it wouldn’t be right to call a Sunday morning classroom experience a cell group. A cell group should meet in a place and time that is comfortable for both the believers and unbelievers visiting, and provide enough time to share deep concerns and pray for one another. Rarely can either of these things be done within one hour at a church building, early on a Sunday morning.”

International church planting links has links for emerging churches, the new way of being church, church planting institute, evangelism, Cell Church International, Hope for Europe, Littlefalls (help for your cell church), and MisLinks (a web-based directory focused on offering helpful links to Web-based resources for missionaries, mission pastors, teachers, and researchers, students of mission and mission agencies0 as well as many other links.

Another source for small group topics is Building Small Groups from Chrisitianity Today. Some of the topics there are: reaching people, building a team, healthy small groups, knowing God, becoming outward-focused, growing small groups, unity in diversity, setting goals and measuring results.

Stress Proof Your Life Link Directory A-Z

admin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 06:48:00 +0000

Balanced life–

Balanced life-Part 1

Living a Balanced Life

Booster technique: Hidden meanings and the unresolved past

Codependency–

ACOA, Codependency and My Inner Child

Codependency is the Breeding Ground for Addiction

Codependency and PTSD

Codependency Links

In Codependency, Are You Top-Dog?

How I Keep a Check on My Codependency

Creativity–

My Favorite Creativity Quotes

Creativity Links

Exercise–

Boomer brains need exercise

Emotional Healing–

Mind, Body and Soul: Emotional Healing

Growing Your Positive Self from Your Sadness

Emotional Health

The Mind-Body Connection of Emotional Healing

Energy–

Need More Energy?

Coming Alive to all Aspects of Your Life

Helping Others

Mastering your own mind

Mental–

Healing the Mind

Mind-Mapping–

How to Use Mind=Mapping to Enrich Your Life

Mindfulness–

Communicating “Mindfulness”

The Mindfulness Approach

Physical relaxation techniques

Remember to breathe

Spirituality–

Using Spirituality for Change

The business of spirituality

About stress–

Reducing stress proving to prolong life

3 U’s that cause stress (uncertainty, unrealistic expectations, and unresolved conflict)

How you can change your stress level

Using stress as a positive

How you can change your stress level

Stress reduction tips

Effects of stress

Stress techniques for patient and physician

Using the relaxation response to lessen stress

Understanding stress

8 unconventional ways to de-stress and release tension

Combating workplace negativity

How to handle work stress

Changing Your Life Tips A-Z Link Directory

admin — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 06:36:04 +0000

sol17 by Peta-de-Aztlan

A reader’s strategies for coping with adult ADHD and procrastination

Break out of your comfort zone to achieve success

6 reasons why you should be your own boss

Beyond thinking different to doing different

An exercise in changing yourself

Change-here’s how!

Hoping to change careers in the New Year? Try these seven radical steps

Using your decision-making style to improve your career planning

Choose to be gracious every day

Changing your mutual fund portfolio

10 ways to embrace change

Could you achieve more by doing less?

Conscious living–seven tips

Seven simple steps to realizing your dreams

Falling in love with your life

What to do if you are unhappy at your job

Simplify your job search with RSS and Google Reader

Lessons from Africa: how to stay sane when things don’t go as they should

5 ways of using limits to get more enjoyment out of your life today

How layoffs can sometimes be a good thing

Luck is no accident: 10 ways to get more out of work and life

How to create the habit of daily meditation

Ways to keep your mealtime sane

Motivation to stay sober

To change the world, change your mind

Need help with your New Year’s resolutions

New Year’s resolution: build your strengths

No limit for better

Find your passion–6 tips to discovering what ignites your fire

Productivity bleeds through

365 day project–explore your potential

6 steps to finding your true purpose

Setting yourself up to succeed

Sleep tips: how to make going to bed fun

20 powerful beliefs that will push you toward success

If it matters to you, keep track of it

My transformation from high school drop out to surgeon

Creating a good work environment and a great brand

5 reasons why you might not want to work for yourself

Roots of PTSD, Codependency and Addiction

admin — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:34:28 +0000

a prayer by notsogoodphotography

My 33rd year of recovery from alcohol addiction began Nov. 24, 2009. Needless to say to anyone living a spiritual quest, many emotions are stirred up during an anniversary.

In taking another 5th step, I realized that I had recreated the home of my childhood (aftermath of my recent fifth step). I had the good mommy role and my husband was the bad daddy. As I stated there, he acted out his misery by having an affair and leaving me.

This experience has led me on the path of healing my childhood wounds. I was the oldest child–or rather, I was the youngest parent in that home. I took my duties so seriously that I taught myself to deny pleasure. In return, the power connected to this role of being the boss was my first addiction. One that I am only now giving up.

I believe those of us growing up in violent homes suffer from PTSD. I was particularly drawn to the definition of PTSD. Wikipedia defines it as “Posttraumatic stress disorder^[1]^[2] (commonly referred to by its acronym, PTSD) is a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any event which results in psychological trauma.^[3] This event may involve the threat of death to oneself or to someone else, or to one’s own or someone else’s physical, sexual, or psychological integrity,^[1] overwhelming the individual’s psychological defenses.”

In reading about Iraq veterans and PTSD, I identified immediately with the social isolation. I have done this all my life. Although I am a loner and am suspicious of anyone not content being alone, isolation leads me to paranoia and discontent. I am learning a balance finally because I am now free to talk about all my feelings.

I have also identified the brain chemistry associated with my codependency (Links from 10/26/2009.) So I have begun learning how to reparent myself.

So, you can imagine my delight to read this post: What causes addiction? by Jann Gumbiner. Over my 33 years in addiction recovery, I have read many articles and books about the origins of addiction. I was thrilled to find in this article a mention of Dennis Thombs’s book, Introduction to Addictive Behaviors. What I identified with was his belief that we used our addictions to combat feelings of anxiety (fear) that we never learned to process.

My comment to this post:

“After 33 years of recovery from alcoholism, I am so grateful for your mention of Dennis Thombs’s Introduction to Addictive Behaviors”. It so resonates with my experience. My reaction the first time I drank was akin to finding the Holy Grail. I only ever had the same experience when I had been in labor for 33 hours with a double footling breech delivery. I remember gulping down the pain killer that they could only give me as she was through the birth canal.”

I will continue researching PTSD, codependency and addiction as I know that my addiction began when as a child, I didn’t l know how to deal with anxiety and fear. Instead I used these feelings of power over people to feel better myself.