Public Event · By Lori Nelson, LMHC                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Wednesday, December 19, 2012  7:00pm in EST

In response to the recent events at the Sandy Hook, Connecticut Elementary School, Lori Nelson, LMHC will be offering a meditation on Wednesday evening December 19, 2012 at 7:00pm EST. in her Jensen Beach Office located at 3412 NE Sugarhill Ave.

Loving the Wounded Souls of our Communities

Public Event · By Wake Up & Remember                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Thursday, December 20, 2012
 8:00pm in CST
Everywhere!

In response to the recent events at the Connecticut Elementary school, Wake Up & Remember will be hosting a worldwide collective meditation & healing.

Every problem has its root. When something negative arises and we condemn it, hate it, try to protect ourselves from it with fear, we are only adding to the problem.

What happened in Connecticut is a manifestation of something within our collective that is screaming for Love, Acceptance, & Healing. There is no need to know in detail what the root cause to these random acts of violence is in order to drastically and completely shift it. Simply understanding there exists a root energy in need of acceptance and love is enough.

Offer Love, Acceptance, & Forgiveness is the only way to end these cycles of violence.

***INTENT: We will be offering Unconditional Love to the root cause that is manifesting as random acts of violence. Love is the most transformative & powerful force in the universe. When dense, negative, & violent energy is met with Unconditional Love, it loses all power and must dissolve. 

(You can actually experiment with this and you will experientially see that it is true. Next time you find yourself in an argument or disagreement with someone... consciously choose to project love to that person instead of anger or hatred, allowing it to be OK for them to act/be exactly as they are. Notice what happens as you project unconditional love & acceptance to that individual. Love them harder, just BECAUSE they are the way they are!)

 ***PROCESS: Very simple. Envision the root cause to this collective problem, and project Unconditional Love to it. You may see the root cause as a ball of energy, a person, a troubled child, a collection of images/visuals, a word, a sound, a smell... it does not matter. However the idea of the root cause shows up for you, is absolutely perfect.

You may want to simply feel your heart open and love pour out to the root cause. You may envision physically hugging the root cause. You may send healing energy. Shower the root cause with compassion, forgiveness, understanding, & of course, Unconditional Love.

 ***If the time or date doesn't work for you, you may still join the event and offer your love whenever/however you're able.

Love & Thanks!
Wake Up & Remember

We welcome everyone to invite others to join this event. Even if they don't join, by inviting them you will be increasing their awareness of the power of Love. This alone, will transform a person.

Plant seeds everywhere you go & soon you will be surrounded by gardens of beauty!

Our Hearts Go Out to Sandy Hook Elementary

 DECEMBER 14, 2012 BY RUTH BUCZYNSKI, PHD &
 LORI NELSON, LMHC                         
 
How can this keep happening?
 
That was my immediate thought upon hearing the tragic news of this latest school shooting that took place in my hometown in CT.  Growing up in Bethel, bordering the Newtown line, I have many fond memories of our quaint and quiet town. 
  
The unthinkable has happened again, this time at an elementary school in Sandy Hook, CT – 27 dead, 20 of them children.
 

The details, I’m sure, will keep trickling out for weeks to come. 
But the heartbreak is here and now, and the wounds of such trauma run incredibly deep for the families whose lives have just changed
irrevocably.
 
And even though in our work as practitioners we’re seeing (and trying to help heal) the scars of trauma every day, tragedies like these can wound our spirits and grieve our hearts as well . . . . .. But we also hope that it will strengthen our resolve – all of us – to keep reaching out with compassion and healing and belief in the basic good of the human spirit.
 
Sandy Hook Elementary, our hearts go out to you and our thoughts and prayers are with you.

Mindfulness Meditation – One Cure for Holiday Stress

The turkey’s in the oven, pies are cooling in the garage, you’ve moved the cars so everyone has somewhere to park, and you’ve somehow squeezed every appetizer platter onto the dining room table.  But you’re also dealing with family arguments, a sick nephew, a surprise “guest” (your in-laws brought their new puppy) . . . and something’s burning.  Amidst all the chaos, a little mindfulness meditation might help you de-stress.

In fact, mindfulness can be one of the healthiest ways to handle stress. That’s important – a recent study suggests that dealing with stress the wrong way could have lasting effects.

David Almeida, PhD, a professor of human development and family studies at Penn State, suspected that how people react to the stressful events of everyday life could actually impact their health years later.  To get a snapshot of daily stress, researchers surveyed 2,000 individuals by phone every night for eight days. They asked questions about participants’ moods, what had happened to them, the physical symptoms they’d felt, and anything stressful that they’d experienced, like arguments, for instance.  They also asked how they were responding to those stressful events – whether they were ruminating over them, for example.

Researchers also collected saliva samples on four of those eight days which they used to measure cortisol – a hormone released in response to stress.
Finally, they linked the 2,000 participants to a whole host of data from a larger study – including their demographic information and chronic health conditions.
The entire process happened twice – once in 1995, and again ten years later. This longitudinal approach allowed the researchers to measure how stressful experiences affect people well after the actual event is over.

So what did they find?

People who persisted in dwelling on stressors – even after they had ceased – were significantly more likely to suffer chronic health problems ten years later.
And, they noticed a particular connection between stress and pain conditions, such as arthritis, as well as cardiovascular issues.

I like this study because it keeps the order of events clear. In other words, because we know the health problems came after the stress, we don’t have to wonder whether dwelling on it led to health problems or the other way around.
Of course, it’s still possible that something else causes both. For example, a certain type of person might be more likely to dwell on stress and experience health problems.

Nevertheless, this is useful research, and it’s also helpful wisdom.
This Thanksgiving, if we can manage to keep the stress of cooking, cleaning and entertaining guests from getting to us, we’ll be able to enjoy the holiday so much more . . . and help prevent possible stress-induced health problems later on.

The full study was published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine. NOVEMBER 20, 2012 BY RUTH BUCZYNSKI, PHD