Forgiveness - Release and Let Go of Your Past!

Next to love, forgiveness is the most misunderstood concept. Forgiveness has been twisted by a lack of awareness as to how it functions. To forgive does not mean we must rejoin with our ex-lovers, free criminals from prisons, return to old jobs or anything else absurd. We are taught to believe that if we are to forgive the one who hurt us, it must manifest in some form of behavior and it reflects weakness.

Forgiveness is a function of love that seeks to understand the negative impact of another person and then to release the pain and find inner peace. When you choose to forgive somebody this does not mean that you acknowledge their cruel behavior as acceptable, for doing this would be dishonest. Above all, it does not mean that we assume a superior (holier than thou) attitude to pardon the sins others.

Let's explore the truth of forgiveness. The meaning of the verb forgive, translates into "to let go", which is the act of forgiveness. Forgiveness is the release (letting go) of negative feelings generated in you by another. It is your responsibility to let go of the hurt that another produces for you. The other person can apologize to you for their negative impact, but you still have to let go of the hurt feelings in order for forgiveness to become a healing experience.

What makes forgiveness so difficult, for so many? The greatest obstacle in the living of our life is the negative ego, which loves to hold onto a grudge and is our greatest source of resistance toward forgiveness. Our negative ego is what blocks our happiness and peace of mind. We hold within us grudges, bitterness and resentment which later manifest into stress, ulcers and poor health conditions. Ultimately, we have a choice to support our EGO or our SOUL, to be RIGHT or find PEACE.

Forgiveness like all other soul qualities (peace, love, innocence, respect, oneness, and passion) does not require a type of behavior. It begins with a relinquishing of emotional baggage and the choice to function from your Soul versus your negative ego. Forgiveness is a willingness to perceive everyone, including yourself, as either feeling and expressing love or perceiving it's absence, and having a need for more love. It is a relinquishing of a harmful train of thought that leads to constricting feelings. Forgiveness offers freedom to live a full and harmonious life.

The bi-product of forgiveness, is our own willingness and ability to forget. If we can not seem to forget then we have never completely let go. Holding on to pain only weaken us and produces misery. The purpose of forgetting is to prevent the mind from becoming a battle field. Negative feelings evaporate whenever they are looked at calmly and honestly and are dealt with responsibly. Often this process is gradual. The desire to function from your Soul (love) and to live your life in peace is the greatest motivation for forgiving another.

If you feel that forgiving adds one more grudging obligation to your life, you are functioning from your negative ego. Understanding that forgiveness is the doorway to your happiness and is the choice to function with love. When you are attacked by another, you must first deal with the hurt feelings that you honestly feel. Forgiveness is not a short cut to avoid dealing with the negative impact of your emotions. Too many try to forgive without releasing their anger and hurt. That common mistake only represses the anger and it putrefies into resentment down the road.

A great habit to cultivate is to pause whenever you are having difficulty releasing an upset from your mind. Look directly, and in detail at the contents of your thoughts. Dissect your emotions. Step back from them for a moment and gain new perspective. Write them down in a journal to gain deeper clarity. And give yourself time to forgive, it doesn't have to be instantaneous, but know it is necessary to your happiness and peace.

A person who claims they "love everyone equally" and are never hurt by others are not more spiritually evolved, but more likely emotionally repressed. To be a spiritual, doesn't mean you have to like the ego of everyone that crosses your path, for you would then become transparent and lose your individuality. Liking somebody and letting go of someone's negative impact upon you are two completely different issues.

Steps to Forgiveness:

1. Release the Charged Emotions: Take a legal pad and write at the top of the page, the person you wish to forgive. Write out all your feelings about the situation that you are forgiving. Release the anger, hurt, frustration or any feelings you have due to this experience. Take your time and feel your words as you write them down. 

2. Forgive Yourself: Close your eyes and relax. Mentally repeat, I forgive myself for allowing myself to be hurt/disappointed by this experience with _________ (person's name).

3. Express Your Emotions Meditatively: While you are still meditating begin to express your thoughts and feelings to the person you are forgiving. Let them know how much it has hurt you and how upset you are by their actions. If you are so angry you want to hit them, then do it (IMAGINATIVELY) express your pent up emotions within your imagination.

NOTE: Your intention is to release the feelings around this person and to forgive them. That is where the energy will go towards. You will not be sending this person negative energy unless that is your intention.

4. Forgive Them: With your eyes still closed, sense a light coming down from above you. It is a warm healing light that surrounds you and creates a safe environment for forgiveness. Visualize the person you wish to forgive, and see them inside the light. Mentally tell them, I forgive you for hurting/disappointing me in this way. Mentally reaffirm what you are forgiving them for. Then release them into the light.

When you finally understand that you can generate the healing of forgiveness, by choice. It will never happen until you take full responsibility for every facet of your life and your relationships with others. When you stop looking for love, security and peace outside yourself, and discover it within, you are finally set free and the magic of forgiveness has worked it's spell.

Common Depression Symptoms to Watch Out For

A romance gone wrong, a death of a loved one, a disappointment in your endeavours are just a few of the reasons why we become sad. Sadness and grief are normal. It's just how the body reacts and cope to some of life's stressors. Typically, most people will heal and then revert back to their natural selves. However, if these feelings of sadness and grief do not go away, and they start to disrupts with the person's daily life, it is no longer normal. It becomes a mood disorder, called depression.

It is important that we watch out for depression in those people we care about. If it is unrecognized and untreated, it could lead to suicide ideas. There are a lot of depression symptoms we could watch out for as it could affect almost every aspect of a person's life. It affects your physical health, your thoughts, your behaviour, your feelings and even your relationships with other people.

Depression is more than just a state of being sad. Most depressed people also experience irritability, anger, hopelessness, anxiety, fear, fatigue, confusion and feelings of shame and worthlessness. They often feel weak and ill. Others even have hallucinations. Here are other signs of depression:

1. A lack of interest in pleasurable activities or even in any activity
2. Inability to feel pleasure, which is known as anhedonia
3. Weight changes (a loss or gain of at least 5% of the total body weight in a month)
4. Insomnia, oversleeping and other sleep problems
5. Restlessness
6. Slowed movements
7. Feelings of guilt about something that they cannot control
8. "Brain fog" or the decrease ability to concentrate, think and make decisions, and
9. Thoughts about death such as suicidal ideas, whether its planned or not

People with depression often have crying spells to express their sadness. Some of them self-medicate or even try to numb themselves by abusing a drugs and alcohol. Others engage in self-destructive behaviour to try to relieve the emotional pain they feel. These activities include overeating, sexual promiscuity, or physically injuring themselves.

Depression can either slowly progress or suddenly occur due to a stressful or traumatic experience. It is important for people to understand that those who feel depressed need all the support they need. Depression is a real illness and they cannot just simply snap out of it. They need your help, and when you know about the symptoms of depression, you'll be able to identify who needs support.

Just like other illnesses, depression can be treated. There are a lot of treatment modalities that can help control and diminish its signs and symptoms. Medications, psychotherapy and counselling are commonly used to treat depression. There are several options for antidepressants and several forms of psychotherapy available, so it is important that anyone suffering from depression symptoms to go see a doctor. With the proper support and the right treatment, a depressed person can return to his normal self and become a productive and happy member of society once more.

Remember that depression is the number one cause of suicide. Do not let depression take one of your loved one away. Watch out for the different depressions symptoms, and if you notice that someone you love has these symptoms, make sure that he or she gets treated. It could mean the difference between life and death.

How To Cope With Loss And Trauma For A Person With Manic Depression

Dealing with loss of family can be especially difficult for those who suffer from manic depression. Not only are they trying to cope with the traumatic experience, but they are also trying to remain stable and trying to avoid a depressive or manic episode as a result of the stress it caused. Some with manic depression may even need to seek extra support to cope with the grief or anxiety that the traumatic event causes.

Everyone handles grief or anxiety differently during a loss or trauma. Living with manic depression can be a delicate balancing act. If something creates a lot of stress or anxiety for them, they can easily become overwhelmed and slip into mania or depression. When grieving, it is not unusual for someone to feel depressed. However, if someone with manic depression grieves and feels depressed, they have to make a conscious effort to try to avoid having a full-blown depressive episode. However sometimes, the looming depressive episode simply cannot be avoided.

A support system is absolutely necessary when dealing with trauma. Family, friends, support groups, and mental health professionals can all help the manic depression person through the traumatic event. Often, all it takes is an understanding individual to listen to the person with manic depression and offer encouragement.

Helping alleviate some of the stress and responsibilities from the person suffering from manic depression can help them focus on maintaining balance and managing the additional stress the trauma has caused. Encourage the manic depression person to take some time for himself to do something they enjoy. Taking a walk with the person can help provide exercise and social stimulation, which is often lacking. Many people with manic depression tend to isolate themselves when under too much stress. This can be counterproductive to their health and emotional well-being.

If the person with manic depression begins to experience nightmares, sleeplessness, anxiety, restlessness, distress, or if they are repeatedly recalling or reliving the acts of the traumatic event, they probably need additional assistance from their psychiatrist or doctor in order to cope with the trauma. Medication can help the person to manage the anxiety and distress caused by the event. It is better to get the extra help necessary to control the effects of the trauma and avoid an episode than to neglect getting help and face the anxiety and distress plus a manic or depressive episode.

People with manic depression who have experienced trauma or a loss should consider expanding their support system to include support specifically related to the trauma. Depending on the nature of the trauma, support groups and specialized counseling may be available. If the person with manic depression had not been receiving therapy, they should consider doing so to help them through this difficult time.

How To Stop Being A Victim And Create The Life You Want More Easily

There are times when people get stuck in a negative rut. They begin to feel like victims that are caught in challenges and circumstances that they cannot change. As a person become more negative, feels more like a victim and gets more depressed, they will often begin to think that there is no escape and no way to stop being a victim. However, there are some techniques that you can use to change your attitude and begin creating a new, and more positive, reality relatively easily.

Attitude

An individual with the attitude of a victim attracts negativity. Victims are often the prey of unscrupulous individuals and often fall into dire circumstances because they just don't know what to do. One of the techniques that is taught in self defense classes for women is to "walk with confidence." A mugger will rarely strike a woman who is walking with confidence, head up, and shoulders straight. The class does not teach you how to "be" confident, but "acting" confident makes the difference. As a very famous entrepreneur once said, "The secret to success is to fake it til you make it". This woman was one of the first millionaires to start a company that no one thought would be successful.

When you have a positive attitude, you do not ignore challenges and hope they will go away, you do not deny problems or trials. But, you also do not allow negativity to take up residence in your heart and mind. Acknowledge the problem, look for solutions, move on. Make a mistake, acknowledge it, learn from it, move on. In order to change your reality, you must change your attitude or, "fake" a positive attitude until you "make" a positive attitude.

Re-Evaluate Your Goals

Goal oriented people often sink into deep depression when they have reached goals, until they create new goals. If you have never set goals, or if you are between goals, putting short-, mid- and long-term goals on paper will have a tremendous impact on your attitude and your direction. It is important to re-visit your goals and change them as you progress and to celebrate when you have reached goals.

Acknowledge Your Success

The brain cannot hold onto negative "victim" attitudes and positive attitudes at the same time. When people have a victim attitude, they often do not acknowledge their successes or think about their past successes. In order to successfully overcome a victim mentality and recreate your reality in a more positive way, you need to treat yourself like you would your best friend. People have a tendency to be very harsh and judgmental with themselves, this is not a way to build self-esteem in a friend and it is not a way to build self-esteem in yourself. Make a decision to treat yourself like your own best friend and, while acknowledging and learning from mistakes, don't hang onto them or beat yourself up with them. When you begin to feel like a victim, look in the mirror and give yourself positive affirmations. Talk to yourself as you would a friend, "I'm here for you and you are going to be OK. I am the best friend you will ever have and I'm gonna support you."

When you being to take steps to change your attitude, you will be able to take the positive steps to stop being a victim. It is all right to acknowledge mistakes, circumstances and problems, but it is very important to keep them in perspective and begin to think positively. When you begin to see things more positively you will find that positive things will start to happen. Once you become open to the positive that life has to offer, the law of attraction will begin to bring you a more positive life experience.

Running Book Review - What I Talk About When I Talk About Running, by Haruki Murakami

Rarely have I felt a sense of kinship with an author like I felt while reading "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running," by Haruki Murakami. I was at first skeptical when I saw this book, thinking that it would be heavy on philosophy, and unsure whether or not it was really a book about running. I can now assure you that if you're a runner, you'll love this book. At its heart, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running is Haruki Murakami's answer to a question that many runners ask of themselves: Why do I run?

The book is his eloquent response to this question, and he answers it with stories about running, race reports, and various other types of personal anecdotes. Murakami sprinkles in a heavy dose of philosophy, but it's a philosophy that any runner or triathlete will appreciate, and I found myself nodding in agreement on numerous occasions. Murakami is a guy that I would love to go on a run with myself - he is clearly a genuinely passionate runner.

Perhaps what I found most appealing about this book was the author's sincerity and honesty. Like many of us who log miles with no hope of ever winning a race, running for Murakami is a labor of love, and it plays a central role in his life. He runs so that he can stay healthy and continue to write novels, and he runs because he simply loves to run. Murakami is also very comfortable with his shortcomings, and he openly admits that he is not a perfect person.

His description of overcoming his fear of the swim leg of triathlons is both humorous and heartfelt - you really feel for him (and laugh at his fear of jellyfish and vicious bears). Murakami's open admission that his best marathoning days are long passed is impressively honest, but it doesn't dampen his love of the sport. Reading this book is like reading a book written by you favorite running partner, which is a nice change from some of the other running-related books I have read. In its totality, it's truly a wonderful book, and it deserves to be read.

Consolidate Your Debts With Bad Credit Debt Consolidation

Bad credit debt consolidation is a kind of loan which is specially meant for people having bad credit tag. With the help of this loan, a bad credit holder easily consolidates all his unpaid debts and can think about a better life far away from the depression of debts.

The word 'bad credit' is usually associated with those, who are suffering from CCJ, default or arrear etc. Bad credit debt consolidation loan is always a better option for a bad credit holder. Here he can obtain a good amount of money with which he can combat any financial crisis.

Bad credit debt consolidation loans are marked for their flexibility. Here a bad credit holder can easily reduce his monthly payments by consolidating all his unpaid debts in to one single loan. Besides that, bad credit holders get a great chance to improve their credit score also. It is done by repaying the loaned amount in proper time.

You can find several debt consolidation companies available in the loan market. They are well known for proving bad credit debt consolidation loans for a long period of time. They provide important tips regarding debts and also assist you to lead a debt free life. You can find several lenders through online method, who also offers bad credit debt consolidation loans. Here in this method, you get the flexibility to opt for a good amount of money. These lenders offer you attractive loan quotes which are according to your requirements. Just by applying your own mind, you can easily select a lender with the best loan offer.

Are There Effective Vitamin Supplements For Depression?

There are research studies showing that vitamins and nutritional supplements specially targeted for depression are just as effective as prescription anti-depressants for some people. There are many natural health care providers who rely on this approach.

Admittedly, a natural approach to depression and anxiety treatment is not the "mainstream" strategy in the U.S., although acceptance of this approach is growing. This is not the case for many countries in Europe, where herbs, vitamins and other nutrients are often recommended to help ease the symptoms of depression.

If you're experiencing depression and have not found relief by using prescription anti-depressants, there are natural options available. It is now known that nutritional deficiencies are many times at least part of the cause of both physical as well as mental and emotional symptoms. This is why simple diet changes along with vitamins and nutrients can often provide depression relief.

Research has shown these vitamins and supplements for depression to be the most effective at this time;

* The nutrient SAMe is naturally found in abundance in the body, but levels tend to decline with age. There are many important processes in the body that involve SAMe, and current neurological research suggests that it plays an especially important role in brain and nervous system function.

* Although fats have gotten a bad rap in the last several decades, there are healthy fats which are essential for optimal health. These fats are called Omega-3 fatty acids. Dietary sources of Omega-3 fats include oily fish like salmon and flax products (seeds, meal, oil). For deficiencies severe enough to produce depression, stress or anxiety, supplementation is a good alternative.

* The African plant griffonia simplicifolia provides the important nutrient 5-HTP, which is being used successfully to address issues such as migraine and tension-type headaches, as well as anxiety and depression. It has been noted that some people with so-called "treatment resistant depression" have had positive results with 5-HTP.

* It has been known for decades that B vitamins play a large role in nervous system and brain function. Deficiencies occur sometimes for various reasons such as in alcoholism and poor diet. B vitamins cannot be stored in our bodies, so we depend entirely on our daily diet to supply them.

There is some variability in the quality of nutritional supplements. For effective results, it pays to seek out manufacturers who use the highest quality ingredients and production methods. Certain nutrients are very fragile and can easily be destroyed if special care is not taken during production.

An enteric coating is often used by the companies which produce the highest quality supplements. The enteric coating protects the fragile nutrients from being destroyed by stomach acids, and ensures that they are released in the small intestine where they will be better absorbed.

Since depression and anxiety symptoms involve both the mind and body, it's important to pay attention to dietary choices. After making healthy diet adjustments, vitamins and supplements for depression can help to provide additional benefits which can help to make up for any gaps in dietary nutrients.