To read any of the following articles written by Sheri Baker, simply click on one of the links below.
The Courage To Heal
Living On Purpose
The Almost Perfect Therapy
The Courage To Heal
By Sheri Baker
Healing. It's something we all say we want, but few of us actually have the courage to do.
After all, consider the ramifications. To heal, we would first have to admit the necessity to do so. Then we might possibly have to reach out to others for assistance. And who among us is really keen on taking journeys into the unknown to face our deepest doubts and fears? Even scarier, once free of our emotional dead weight, we might be tempted to show up fully in life, present in every moment. What if we try and fail? Worse yet, what if we fail to try?
Like it or not, there's a part of all of us that simply doesn't want us to heal. It's often referred to as ego and true healing would signal its demise. It therefore presents us with a highly fallible but convincing case against any real healing. "But I'm in pain," we argue. "Take a pill," the ego retorts, "or have the problem surgically removed." Unable to see through its deceptive logic (just numb the pain, and all will be well), we render a guilty verdict against ourselves and live out a self-imposed life sentence in what Henry David Thoreau describes as "quiet desperation."
Fortunately, there's a part of us that DOES want us to heal and it can overpower ego any day of the week. By whatever name you call it, our Higher Self is always connected to our loving Creator, inviting us to remember our Source. It takes courage to accept this invitation because ego isn't going down without a fight.
In the classic tale, "The Wizard of Oz," Dorothy courageously works her way through a frightful forest loaded with disgruntled apple trees, flying monkeys and a wicked witch to get back to her Kansas home. For us to return home - to the knowledge of who we truly are - we've got to make our way through a similar jungle filled with fear-based thought patterns, limited beliefs and unresolved negative emotions. It's a scary ride for even the most intrepid spiritual thrill seeker.
To start with, we acknowledge responsibility for creating everything that happens to us. This thought alone can send shivers up many an otherwise grounded spine. But if we're so powerful that we can create the problems, it stands to reason we can use that same power to uncreate them. Whatever the issue, there's always another, more enlightened way to look at it. And while there are certainly more fun things to do than dive head first into our core of fear, the positive results more than outweigh the effort. Unlike most medications, true healing requires no warning of potential side effects, the most common of which are vibrant health, harmonious relationships, a meaningful career, inspired creativity, inexplicable joy, and peace of mind.
Dorothy successfully completes her journey, but doesn't travel alone. Mighty companions walk beside her and assist where needed. If you have the courage to walk your own healing road, be it yellow brick or otherwise, know that help is always available. Be they family, friends, and/or qualified healing practitioners, your support team will show up when you're ready.
If cowardly lion could find the courage to heal, maybe there's hope for the rest of us.
Living on Purpose
By Sheri Baker
Have you ever asked yourself, "Am I doing what I came to this earth to do?"
It's like asking, "Am I in love?" If you have to ask, chances are good the answer is "No."
Some of us, of course, are too busy to ask. We're preoccupied with life's daily details and bulging to-do lists designed unconsciously by us to keep us distracted from what's really important. Whether we're afraid of failure or even success, many of us are immobilized by fear of some kind. We can either continue to sleepwalk through life, numbing our existential pain with chronic busy-ness and anti-depressants, or we can start living on purpose.
Collectively, I believe our purpose is the same: to remember how magnificent we truly are. And one of the best ways to awaken this memory is to connect with and actively pursue our greatest passion. Are you aware of your heart's desire? Many people claim they have no idea what makes their heart sing and have blown many a brain cell trying to figure it out. Who knew it would be such a tough assignment.
On some level, we know already whether we're living in accord with our highest plan. When our compass needle is pointing in the right direction, we can feel it. Doors open (or close if that's what needs to happen), the right people show up, and answers are provided, all in a synchronistic pattern that we often refer to as coincidence. If you feel unsure of whether you're aligned with your soul's purpose, it may be helpful to ask yourself the following:
• Do I enjoy what I do?
Do you spend the majority of your day involved in something other than what brings you joy? Do you dread waking up in the morning, stare at the clock all day, feel exhausted for no reason, or would prefer to clean your gutters than go to work?
If your daily activity brings you no reward aside from a paycheck or if your grandest goal in life is to retire, that's a clue. You may be due for a change, but not necessarily in what you do. You may simply need to change the way you look at what you do. Perhaps the form of your work is not at the level you feel it should ultimately be. If so, that could mean that you need more experience, not that you should completely abandon what you're doing now. Maybe you need to expand your activities to include other interests which could lead you in exciting directions. It's important to remember that everything you're involved in, including what might appear to be a meaningless endeavor, is preparing you for your greater good and maximum contribution.
• Do I feel the passion?
Is there a driving force behind what you do or are you doing something just because it's what you've always done? The next time you describe what you do for a living, listen to your voice. You'll either hear the passion or you won't. If you do hear it, you'll notice you also have more energy. Your face will light up. You'll smile more often. It has been said that your vocation should be your vacation. Is yours?
• Is the "Force" with me?
When we're aligned with our soul's purpose, the path unfolds before us and obstacles dissolve with relatively minimal effort, as though we're being assisted by an invisible force. Actually, we are. It's the power of God, disguised as luck or coincidence, working in tandem with our own best efforts. This doesn't mean that if we're on the right path everything will be easy and we won't have to work hard. It means that we'll start to notice a certain synchronicity flowing through our life. Opportunities abound, people show up to help at just the right moment, you find yourself in the right place at the right time, and money appears on schedule in the exact amount needed.
• Is my day an authentic reflection of who I truly am?
Are you the author of your life or is someone else writing your story? Do you have to compromise your values to get through your day? Are you simply going through the motions toward a goal that isn't your own or no longer serves your highest good? There may be nothing more unsatisfying than to climb the ladder of success only to find that it was propped up against someone else's wall. Who wants to live someone else's dream?
• Is the world a better place because I was here today?
Even if we feel we know what we came here to do and are actively engaged in it, we're off track if we're acting in an unloving way toward those around us. We may be the best salesperson in the world, but if we responded with anger to the person who cut us off in traffic this morning or yelled at the co-worker who interrupted us for the fifth time to ask for help with something they should already know how to do, then we're missing the point. Knowing what instrument to play in this great symphony of life is certainly an important part of the equation. But we can wreak tremendous havoc with the rest of the universal orchestra if we steal someone else's sheet music, stomp on the violinist's foot, or refuse to take our cues from the conductor.
If you answered 'yes' to the main questions above, congratulations! If 'no' was a frequent response, then why not have a look at what prevents you from realizing your highest potential? Fear is usually the culprit, but fear of what? Do you fear you won't succeed? Or do you fear that you will? Is there a fear of not being able to make enough money to pay bills? Fear that there won't be enough time to start that business or get that degree? Perhaps you fear what other people will think if you pursue your heart's desire, especially if it involves a departure from conventional avenues. If we allow fear to run our lives, it's a safe bet we're headed nowhere. If we let our higher selves do the driving, not only will we arrive at our destination, we'll get there on time and in one piece. Guaranteed.
While most of us can agree with this concept in principle, we tend to lack total faith that life actually works this way. If you have a burning desire to do something, suppose for a moment that this desire was placed there by God. If that's true, wouldn't you likely be given the means with which to accomplish it? Why would a parent ask you to learn how to ride a bicycle without making sure you could first obtain the bike?
If living my passion is so important, I used to wonder, then why didn't God tattoo it on my forehead or something? "It's tattooed in your heart," I felt I heard Him reply. "Go there sometime and listen."
What a novel idea, this business of looking within for answers. I suspect it's not usually your first choice. If you are not involved in some type of daily meditation or prayer, perhaps you've thought: "I just can't get quiet," "It's too weird," "I don't hear anything," "I don't have time," "Too much noise in my house," "The kids won't leave me alone," etc. While these sound like plausible excuses for not getting quiet, the real reason we hesitate to pull within is because we're afraid of what we'll find.
As much as we say we want to connect with our passion, perhaps it would be easier to hide behind the rationale that we don't know what it is. After all, once we do know, the next step would be to take action. And that's probably our greatest fear. To put down the TV remote, turn off the video game, or get up off the lounge chair and move forward would upset the status quo. We've turned procrastination into an art form. We complain about things in our lives that aren't working, but refuse to take any responsibility for changing them.
It's your choice. There may be no greater joy than living life with purpose and meaning, but it's up to you to at least point yourself in the right direction. Even God, it has been said, cannot steer a parked car.
We've got the power to create the life we truly want. Why not take this power out for a spin and see what it can do?
The Almost Perfect Therapy
By Sheri Baker
If someone told you there is a relatively quick and easy way to reduce your stress and anxiety; permanently eliminate your fears and phobias; discard your anger, grief and feelings of guilt; manage your addictive cravings; improve sports and personal performance; relieve physical pain and more, you might say, "Sure and I'm Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and Tooth Fairy all rolled into one!"
Yes, it may sound like storybook fantasy, but sometimes truth is stranger than fiction. While most people agree that quality of life is directly related to emotional health, few of us have figured out how to rid ourselves of the negative emotional baggage we've been carrying around, often since childhood. At best, we've tried to stuff our emotions neatly "under our seat cushion or in the overhead bin." On some level, however, we know that these unresolved emotional upsets can compromise our potential for health, wealth, joy and peace of mind.
Fortunately, there is now a ground-breaking healing modality called the Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) that is changing the way we heal. This elegantly simple procedure combines an emotional component with the ancient principles of acupuncture, only without the use of needles. Instead, EFT helps to clear both physical imbalances and unwanted emotions by gently tapping with the fingertips on key acupuncture points on the body while focusing on a specific issue to be released.
EFT is easy to learn and apply, is non-invasive, requires no drugs or equipment, works in a complementary way with other therapies and often works when nothing else will. And, since many people have initial doubts about unconventional healing methods, an added bonus is that EFT works whether you're skeptical or not.
Leading experts in the field of medicine and psychology are impressed with the effectiveness of EFT, having witnessed the emotional and physiological changes it can produce. Dr. Eric Robins, a California urologist and co-author of Your Hands Can Heal You, uses EFT in his medical practice. According to Dr. Robins, "At least 85% of medical problems are physical manifestations of how stress/anxiety/past traumas are held in and processed by the body. The best technique to address these issues and to clear them out of the body is EFT."
To better understand the potential of EFT, consider how it can be used to battle the current stress epidemic. Stress is now associated with most serious illnesses and, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIH), job stress is more strongly associated with health complaints than family or financial problems.
To reduce stress, the NIH offers four recommendations:
Great advice, but the NIH simply recommends making an effort to stop thinking negatively. Much easier said than done. According to EFT theory, unresolved negative emotions and thoughts are caused by a disruption in your body's subtle energy system. Until that disruption is balanced, through EFT or a similar technique, willful attempts to change negative thinking will likely be unsuccessful.
It comes as no surprise that poor nutritional habits stress the body. Using EFT to address emotional issues at the energetic level can correct self-sabotaging eating behaviors.
Exercise is a great idea, but can be difficult to put into practice if you have a mental block to starting a fitness program. EFT can remove this blockage, allowing you to access your natural motivation to keep your body in shape.
The NIH suggests that hobbies, outside interests or other means of relaxation such as meditation, yoga and massage therapy can help us handle stress. But many people, especially women, have emotional blocks to taking time for themselves. EFT can release these blocks, making it easier to take relaxing, guilt-free breaks.
While no healing technique is perfect, experienced practitioners claim at least an 80% effectiveness rate in the application of EFT. Sound too good to be true? It almost is.