I just watched a show about teens with social anxiety: they don’t want to go in public as they think everyone is looking at them and judging them, or that everyone is talking about them behind their back.  Whether it’s youth or just lack of life experience, what they don’t realize is that nearly everyone feels that way.  They also don’t realize that everyone is so stuck in their own little thought bubble of self absorption and fear, that they’re not looking at YOU anyway, they are staring down at their toes the same as you are, avoiding eye contact for dear life.  God forbid we actually look at each other and acknowledge each other.  I counsel with so many people the past 20+ years that I see patterns in behavior that others don’t get to see.  I average maybe 50 people each month with an hour to tell me about their most important concern.  When I hear 5 or 10 people having similar detailed experiences, I begin to see the pattern.  And I see a lot of patterns in behavior.  It’s one reason I’m good at my job: if I can experience enough of something that it enables me to see patterns within it, that allows me to see the bigger picture.  The bigger picture here is that maybe 90% of us have social anxiety and we all think we’re the only one.  So instead of spending valuable time head tripping over what someone else is thinking, try instead to get out in public, smile and make eye contact, help others feel at ease.  Life is too short to waste it stuck within our four walls alone and unfulfilled.  It’s not always about you.  Try letting it be about someone else for a change.

Sessions with Andrea

My pal Sheila Rindge

Let’s say some prayers for Sheila Rindge, recovering from a stroke on December 19th, 2011.  She’s doing well, yesterday out of the hospital and transferred to HealthSouth Sea Pines on Babcock for rehab.  She can’t do the phone yet but she’s getting better.   I visited her yesterday – she looks good! She’s in good spirits and chatty, of course it’s that in-between/unknown language right now but hey, it’s not stressing her out!  She knows it’ll pass, she just rolls her eyes and shrugs and chatters on.  I laid on the bed and hugged on her while she ate dinner. She’ll be up in no time.  She’s fully aware, can understand, just not speak well yet and loses the word, no facial paralysis, right arm and leg down right now but 4+ hours of physical therapy a day will get it all back working in no time.  No calls obviously but go visit her if you know her.  Her physical therapy is noon to 4pm so visit after that. I was there at 5:30 and dinner had just arrived. It’s a trip feeding herself with the wrong hand laying in bed but she’s getting the hang of it and her spirits are high and light.  Their office office has moved to 1601 Airport Blvd, Suite 1 that says  “Disc Jockeys” on their parking spaces.  I’ll bet husband Dr. David could use a hot meal at lunch or near end of day, just saying… (he’s a vegetarian but cheese is ok.)  I’m sure he’d appreciate a quick drop off while he’s busy getting the new office ready for clients.  Prayers for both of them!

The last two months I’ve been up to my ears in a writing project that has taken me away from this blog.   I’ve been pouring first fruits into the project instead.  I had a pretty active flare up of the old carpal tunnel since I was doing magazine layout at the same time, but hands are back to normal again.  It never lasts long.  I’m such a glass house kind of person, sharing personal stuff all over Facebook and my blog, that when I get a project that I can’t talk about, it blocks out one of your windows into my world.   And there’s usually such interesting stuff going on in that room that it’s hard to not talk about it! Continue reading →

Melatonin is a hormone that is produced and secreted at night, and only at night, by the pineal gland. Exposure to light at night completely suppresses the production of melatonin. It doesn’t require very bright lights to stop the production of melatonin—bright indoor white light  at 300 lux) as well as very dim light at 0.25 lux, were both sufficient to prevent all melatonin production in laboratory animals.  Moonlight is about one lux.  Research conducted by the National Institutes of Health showed that even a very brief light exposure suppresses melatonin production in lab animals: a one minute exposure to white light every two hours during the night suppressed melatonin production by 65 percent. The only type of light that does not affect melatonin production is red light. Continue reading →

Meditation and creative visualization is the ethical manipulation of energy for the benefit of mankind.

RELATED:  Andrea’s Meditation Process
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Preparing For Relaxation; Preparing For Meditation; Daily Practice
Herbert Benson’s Relaxation Response is Transcendental Meditation minus the ritual
Paving neural pathways to achieve meditation and access elusive inner states
Neurotheology: How God Changes Your Brain
Regulate your body chemistry: meditation as anti-aging medicine
A list of meditation’s positive effect on some of your body’s chemicals
A Creative Visualization to Attract Dollars
The Creative Visualization Process
Creative Visualization the 51% rule

Listen to free samples: Out of Body Experience
Connecting with your Angels, Guides, Teachers
 

One Dervish to another, What was your vision of God’s presence?  I haven’t seen anything.  But for the sake of conversation, I’ll tell you a story.   God’s presence is there in front of me, a fire on the left,  a lovely stream on the right.  One group walks towards the fire, into the fire, another toward the sweet flowing water.  No one knows which are blessed and which not.  Whoever walks into the fire appears suddenly in the stream.  A head goes under on the water surface, that head pokes out of the fire.  Most people guard against going into the fire,  and so end up in it.  Those who love the water of pleasure and make it their devotion are cheated with this reversal.  The trickery goes further.  The voice of the fire tells the truth saying, I am not fire.  I am fountainhead. Come into me and don’t mind the sparks. Continue reading →

The Light shines on

Betsy Shanahan

Betsy’s sister writes:  Betsy’s pain and struggle to breath are over. She was transfered to Hospice care on December 8th and apparently she thought there was somewhere else she would rather be because less than 12 hours later at 1:50am she peacefully took her last breath, holding the hand of a hospice nurse early Friday morning.  It was such a shock to all of us.  She has been freed from her pain and suffering brought on by the Pulmonary Fibrosis and is now at peace.  She is now in a much better place where she breaths in only wonderful, sweet air and is now in the world she has always imagined. I want to thank all my family and friends who have lent me their ears, shoulders and arms to help me through these last couple months. I love you all! There are no words that can ever thank you for your kindness and friendship. To all of Betsy’s friends who have left such wonderful messages on her Facebook page, we will have a celebration of her life sometime after the first of the year. Please check her Facebook page in early January for details. Continue reading →

What do these keys tell you?

A friend returned a drum yesterday and asked me if drumming helped or hurt my carpal tunnel when I was having a flareup.  I told her I didn’t know if drumming aggravated it.  I was more afraid to lose sensitivity in my fingers since that’s how I read photographs and physical items.   It may be that I think it’s important to have the skin on my fingers be uncalloused, when it’s not important at all — but if I have the belief it matters, then it will matter.   I’m working on it,  I can surprise myself too when I don’t expect it.   Once after the car accident of September 2000 when both hands and arms were in splints up to the elbow, someone put their sweater over the splint (for me to hold it for her) and — surprise — I totally read it, no problem. Continue reading →

God has no hands but ours

PALM BAY, FL Angela was a 28 year old that was recently diagnosed with leukemia and passed on very quickly. She left a husband and children behind who are struggling with their loss. Single parenthood, medical bills, and Walmart wages add up to make it a tough road for this family. Walmart stores in the area are all pitching in this Saturday, December 3rd, 2011 for a fundraising event in front of the store at 845 Palm Bay Road, just east of I-95 exit 176. There will be a ton of food, so come grab some lunch and help this family out with donations of cash or canned goods.  The event will be from 10AM to 5PM.  Live Music: Musicians Mark Mahoney and Ken Sharp will stop by to do a special ‘unplugged’ set for a couple hours leading up to lunch. Bring some friends.  Every dollar helps.  It will return to you a thousandfold.

God has no hands but ours

I just had a big evidential that doing intensive forgiveness work can turn around even the most hardened heart. A friend’s wife had been hateful and mean as they split, then today she visited him and apologized, realizes how hard he worked at it when she didn’t and offered him money. A big red letter day turn around. We’ve been doing ho’oponopono on it. Thank you God

Ho’oponopono, a Hawaiian Healing Process