Learn to express yourself and own your power. Assertiveness & Self Esteem Six Thursdays October 15 - November 19, 2009 6:00 - 8:30 PM, Kaiser Permanente San Jose. Call 408-972-3340.

Learn to reprogram your inner critic... Using Affirmations to Raise Self-Esteem Wednesday, November 3, 2009, 6:00 PM - 8:30 PM. Kaiser Permanente, San Jose. Call 408-972-3370.

Find out what Narcissism is and why you need to know how to deal with it. Narcissism in the 21st Century: A Call to Consciousness Friday, December 3, 2009 6:00-9:00 PM. Location: TBD

NEW Audio Program
How to Make Affirmations a Powerful Force for Change
This is a recording of a live teleseminar providing everything you ever wanted to know about effectively using affirmations...

It is also available as an MP3 download from Amazon.com

Positive Affirmations & Prayers to Lift Your Spirits Audio Program.

Also available as an MP3 Download from Amazon

Affirmation: I conspire with the universe to manifest and support my highest good.

Quote: "Grief is about a broken heart, not a broken brain." John W. James and Russell Friedman (from The Grief Recovery Handbook)

When I sat in front of the clerk to submit some important papers and she told me they weren't complete, I was dumbfounded. How could this have happened? I reviewed them so carefully. I wanted to go right to the belief that when things don't go smoothly or easily, they weren't meant to happen. It's very tempting to blame circumstances, the universe, other people. It must not be in the cards, not be God's plan...

Could it be that the universe was simply responding to my own unconscious beliefs? It seems we all have times when we unconsciously resist our success. Sometimes it looks like procrastination. Sometimes it looks like a day when nothing goes right.

I believe the only person who is preventing me from being who I'm supposed to be, doing what I'm supposed to be doing is me. When things don't go well, when there are constant obstacles to a project I'm working on, it behooves me to look a little deeper. Are these obstacles showing up because I'm secretly or unconsciously afraid about some aspect of the project? Is there an underlying negative core belief that says "I don't deserve success"? Did I make a decision at some point in my life to hold myself back so someone else could shine?

I tried repeatedly to load a program onto my computer and encountered failure after failure. When I looked a little deeper, sure enough there was an underlying fear. I've put my heart and soul into this project, what if it is rejected? That would be hard to take. It's safer to deal with frustration than to encounter rejection.

The answer to self-sabotage is always to bring to consciousness that which is unconscious. There is usually some fear or negative core belief at the root of all negativity, resistance or failure. Coaching can help you identify and resolve negative core beliefs that are blocking your success.

If you are trying to break through your own self-sabotage and procrastination to complete or even start a new endeavor or dream you have, please contact me for a free 1/2 hour consultation to see if coaching might be the avenue for you.

This is my new affirmation: I conspire with the universe to manifest and support my highest good.

Newsletter Archives:
September 2009 - The Definition of Insanity/Affirmations Have Changed My Life

August 2009 - I Learn More From Failure/You Can't Push the River

July 2009 - Are You Stuck in the Freeze/The Deepest Truth

Testimonials: Have you benefited from a program or service you've taken with me? I'm looking for people who would be willing to write testimonials for inclusion on my new website. Please contact me, and thank you in advance.

NEW: Please check out my new website as it grows and expands daily: www.theevolvingself.com

There was a time when it was commonplace to wail loudly in grief over the loss of a family member or friend. Believe it or not, the practice of wailing was outlawed in Elizabethan England. Why? In my opinion, grief openly expressed can be very uncomfortable to people who are not able to express or even to feel their own pain.

It is common for people in the midst of a loss to hear others say things like, "He's in a better place", "Time heals all wounds", "She led a full life", etc. These comments, though well-intentioned, address the intellectual aspect of grief, but not the emotional aspect and often leave the griever feeling unheard and unaccepted.

"Grief is about a broken heart, not a broken brain. All efforts to heal the heart with the head fail because the head is the wrong tool for the job. It's like trying to paint with a hammer it only makes a mess". John W. James and Russell Friedman (from The Grief Recovery Handbook)

For many of us, it's not just in the midst of loss but in general that we missed the experience of having a person really listen to us, hear our feelings and acknowledge our pain. This can cause painful feelings to accumulate over many years, contributing to depression, anxiety and apathy.

If you have unresolved feelings from a specific loss or a general experience of not having had your needs met, Spiritual Counseling can help you release them through the grief process. Please contact me for more information.