What diet are you on?

"You should definitely be on the Paleo diet," said, well, everyone in the last three years.

There is so much talk about which diet is right -- Paleo, Primal, Atkins, Flat Belly, Macrobiotic, Vegetarian, Vegan -- that sometimes, on information overload, I think, "Blah, blah, et cetera, ad nauseum, whatever."

Everyone is looking for foods that work for their body. Some people want to loose weight, others want to gain it. Others want to have more energy and vitality. Some folks want to cure long-standing ailments and illnesses, while others want nothing more than to look good naked. Hey, whatever blows your skirt up (or floats your boat). It's important that we eat healthy if we want to maintain health, right?

Right.

But why is it so hard to find what works for us?

When I was in college, I studied environmental science and became shocked at how much environmental degradation occurred because of factory farming and the meat industry. I decided that I would become vegetarian. Later, for the same reasons, I went vegan. And I thought everyone should be vegan. I read books that supported my views on how my chosen diet was the diet most "optimal" for human health and the health of the planet and felt very smug that I had all the answers.

And I was right. But not for the rest of the world -- for me. And only for a little while.

Four years later, I was having health problems and went to a naturopathic doctor. She noted all of my symptoms, took blood tests, and said to me, "You have a grain intolerance. You have to stay away from grains, wheat especially, and you need to start eating meat again."

That pretty much rocked my world.  I made the dietary changes, I knew she was right. Eating meat and staying away from wheat was really resonating with me -- my stomach problems subsided, I had more energy, and my brain fog went away. But it wasn't because I was on a specific diet. It was because I was eating the foods my body needed at that period in time.

Our bodies reside at a certain energetic vibration. This vibration is a result of our belief systems, family and cultural programming, individual experience and emotional health, to name a few. The newest, sexiest diet isn't going to work for everyone because WE ARE ALL DIFFERENT. We are also different at different phases of our life, given that our vibration changes as we move through life.

Whenever I hear someone recommending their newest fad diet or weight loss program to everyone they know, I cringe.  It's natural that we want to share our success with others, however, we must recognize that what works for us is working because of where we are in our life and how the energy of our successful program resonates with us.

In trying to battle a Candida infection, I gave up sugar, grains, caffeine, fruit, alcohol and vinegar and started eating a diet of vegetables, meats and healthy fats. This diet, while recommended by most health care practitioners for eliminating Candida, didn't resonate with me intuitively. There were components of it that made sense, but others that seemed counter-intuitive. Since I'd asked a professional for help, I took the advice.

I gained 5 pounds and my infection didn't go away.

Just because something works for one person, or a thousand people, doesn't mean it will always work for you. This is why learning to trust your own intuition is so important.

When we learn to be in communication with our body and what our body really needs, we often learn that our needs changed based on season, temperature, age, emotional climate, ailment, etc. Our body is an excellent barameter that constantly gives us feedback as to what is working and what isn't. Often, we meet signals of pain, weight gain, or other "negative" messages with frustration, when really, our body is simply giving us an answer. "What you're doing isn't working for me. Please try again."

In Ayurveda, there's a term used often in treatment called "Upashaya," which means "trial and error." Sometimes we need to try a few things before settling into a new diet or treatment plan. Intuitive counseling provides us with more information as to what's resonating with the body and which dietary changes can be most effective.

With all the diet and health advice out there, it's easy to start believing that you need to "do something" for yourself, or "fix something" within you. We are constantly told that we are too fat, thin, smart, sensitive, forward, timid, dramatic, weird, etc. We live in a society that tells us that we need to fix ourselves in order to fit in.

There is nothing to fix. You are perfect, and your body is a perfect representation of where you've been in your life and where you are right now. Maybe we want to take steps to find a higher level of health and vibration, and that's okay. Your body is giving you all the information you need to take the steps to be healthy and stay there. Once you remember that you are a spirit in a beautiful body and don't need fixing, this information will make itself available to you.

Psychic Myths Debunked

This week, Hay House Radio is hosting a "Best of Hay House World Summit." That basically means that they've taken some of their best authors, brought them together to have conversations about a wide variety of spiritual topics, and are broadcasting these talks all week long, for free. (If you're into all things spiritual and you're not sure what Hay House is, please check them out). On Sunday, I listened to a great talk between John Edward and John Holland, two well known psychic mediums, about psychic fact or fiction. The things they talked about are such common misconceptions about the work that I and other psychics do that I wanted to share some of their thoughts along with my own.

First, a little clarification of terms. Most of you notice that I don't use the term "psychic"very often to describe the work I do. This is because I feel like this term carries a lot of negative connotations. Psychics have long been cast as scary witches, crazy people, and those who have lost touch with reality. And, frankly, there are a lot of fakes out there who use the term to wield a false sense of power. The only place I use the term psychic in my business is when I'm speaking directly to that audience. Today, I'll be using that term a lot, so let me define it.

A psychic is simply someone who makes use of their innate intuitive abilities, which usually include a mixture of clairvoyant (ability to intuitively see pictures of information), clairaudient (ability to hear information), and clairsentient or empathic (the ability to feel information) abilities. As a move through this post, I'll try my best to explain some of the myths out there about psychics and provide the truth as I understand it.

Some people call themselves psychic. Others call themselves a medium. Others still use the term psychic medium. A medium is different from a psychic, and is a person who speaks to those who have passed over to the other side. Psychics can be mediums and vice versa. The difference is that, while some psychics can gain snippets of information from loved ones who appear during readings, they don't usually have the ability to have full conversations with passed spirits. In the interview I listened to, John Holland stated that he believed that mediums were born and not trained. After receiving much psychic training, I would tentatively say that I agree with him.

I am a psychic, not a medium. In my readings, I sometimes receive small pieces of information from passed loved ones, always in the context of what I'm reading, as if they want to add something. But I don't often see or communicate with the dead.

This leads me to Psychic Myth Number 1: Only some people are psychic

Everyone is intuitive, or psychic. Just like any other ability, you have to train and practice in order to develop it. And just like some people are naturally better at sports or writing than others, some people will naturally be better developing their psychic abilities. Just because I'm not naturally good at tennis (and I'm not, trust me), doesn't mean that I can't play. It will take me more training and practice to become a pro, but if I love it, I can get there.

Everyone has the ability to "listen to their gut," or "trust their inner voice." Doing this is following your intuition or being psychic. The first psychic skills you learn to develop are those that tell you more about yourself, your anatomy as a spirit, and the tools and concepts needed to navigate the intuitive realm.

That being said, if you want to develop your intuitive skills, it's really important that you choose a method that supplies you with tools to navigate the psychic world. I've been sharing some of the tools I use in readings because they are central to the work I do. When a surgical student starts medical school, they aren't handed a scalpel and told to start cutting someone else. Instead, they're taken through years of learning about physical anatomy, pathology, and how the body works. Then they practice, practice, practice, before they start performing surgery on others. It's the same with psychic skills. You first must learn to ground yourself in the knowledge of spiritual anatomy before you start learning to work with others.

I've really enjoyed learning through several psychic schools that share similar teaching principles -- the Berkeley Psychic Institute, Spirit is Calling and, locally in Seattle, Psychic Awakenings. All have beginner meditation classes and workshops for beginners to start to play with your intuitive skills. But just like there are several medical schools or sports programs, these aren't the only schools out there. Like anything else, do some research and see what resonates with you.

Psychic Myth Number 2: Psychics are Always "On"

Just because you play tennis for a living doesn't mean you carry your racket with you into a restaurant, right? Similarly, just because I conduct intuitive sessions for a living doesn't mean that I'm reading you intuitively while we're out for coffee. I'm not.

Keeping with my tennis analogy -- when you're on the court, there's a lot you have to field. You have to estimate where your opponent might hit the ball, what kind of spin there is, where your shot should land, how tired you are, etc. It's exhausting work! Good thing you can walk off the court when the game is done!

As a psychic, when I'm in a reading, I have to be aware not only of the energy of the person I'm reading, but of my energy -- I need to keep my emotional and survival energy low, I need to stay grounded and keep the readee grounded. I need to keep the reading space free and clear of outside energy. I have to shield myself from outside energy and the energy of the readee so that I'm not not "taking on" their energy or being influenced by it. This can become exhausting, too! Just like any other profession, we have the ability to turn off the psychic screen when we're finished with our reading.

Also, reading people without their permission is psychic attack. Just like a tennis pro wouldn't go around hitting people with tennis balls to try and get them to play, an ethical psychic won't go around reading people without their permission. On the show "Long Island Medium," Theresa Caputo regularly goes up to people on the street and tells them what their loved ones are communicating to her. The show always shows these happy, sappy responses that probably are heart felt. While I enjoy her show, I think that style of "attack reading" is unethical.

So next time we're having coffee, remember that I may be picking up information about my surroundings intuitively. Intuition and spirituality is the lens through which I see the world. So I may notice that the barista is hiding some greif, or that I feel uncomfortable by the couple arguing silently in the corner because my sensitive shell picks that up. I may notice that you feel aggravated or joyful or whatever it is that you're feeling. But I'm not reading your thoughts or trying to pick up more than I need to in that moment. That would be truly exhausting.

Psychic Myth Number 3: Psychics Read Your Mind

Psychics do not read minds. They read energy. Psychics have the ability to read your energy field as it is currently. If your energy changes, which it does constantly, a psychic can read that, too. Sometimes, your energy field is projecting a question that you've been throwing around in your mind. I remember once during a reading, I looked at the third chakra of my client and inside was a big question mark and the word, "ego." I said, "It looks like you have questions about the ego." She replied, "Oh my god, I've been thinking about that all night!" So it may have seemed like I read her thoughts, but I really just read her energy, which at the time was a reflection of her thoughts.

Psychic Myth Number 4: Psychics Predict the Future 

.....in movies. They predict the future in movies with a crystal ball. But like I just stated above, psychics have the ability to look your energy as it exists now. It's like John Holland said on Hay House Radio, that psychics have the ability to tell you about the highway you've been on, the twists and turns you've taken to get there, and which exits are available to you. I would add that, in times of transition, I can help you look at the energy of those "exits" to see what challenges or opportunities each would present. But we all have free-will -- you ultimately choose your own destiny.

A bit more about predicting the future -- there are a lot of psychics out there today who claim to know future events. Many of these psychics use the help of spirits that they channel into their bodies. I call these psychics "Transmediums," as they are inviting the spirit of another being into their body and then gathering information. While I believe that transmediumship can be a valid form of gathering information, it is a skill that takes a lot of practice and a very solid foundation in psychic skills in order to stay protected and receive valid information. I tend to take channeled information with a grain of salt, especially as it pertains to future events, but you are always free to make your own decisions about such information.

Our current reality is based on our thoughts, feelings and perceptions -- our energy. I've described before my thoughts on fate and destiny -- your fate is the deck of cards you are dealt. Your destiny is how you play your cards. Similarly, the current state of humanity and our world is based on the overall energy of humans at this point in time. Thus, our future is changeable and predicting it is like trying to throw a lasso around the wind. The more we each work with our energy to create the reality we want for ourselves and for our world, the more that future worldly events will reflect that.

Psychic Myth Number 5: All Psychics Want To Be Famous!

There is a certain power to any profession. We live in a culture that values fame, fortune and power. Being psychic, or being in any field that claims to "have answers," tends to attract a lot of attention from others. Some attention is good, other attention is not so good. People today want answers. They want reassurance and validation of their choices and their existence. What you'll find in a true psychic reading are simply the answers that are inside of you. In a true psychic reading, the psychic reads just your energy field and the answers you have displayed there. They do not tell you what you should do or judge you for past mistakes. They objectively show you what IS, and let you decide what to do.

I "came out of the psychic closet" in order to help people. Understanding my energy field has been a tremendous help in understanding my world and my relation to my world. It's been a gift in my life that I want to share with others. I have always been drawn to intuitive arts, and how the health of the energy body reflects in our physical body more than any other thing I've done or studied. This field of self inquiry has been a gift in my life and I simply want to share it with you.

The more I put myself out there and gain new clients, the more energy I have to be able to handle. I am a highly sensitive person, which allows me to do the intuitive work I do so naturally. However, it's a double-edged sword. As I grow into a bigger business, my ability to handle the attention, admiration, questions, concerns, resentment, jealousy and any other energy thrown at me by my clients must grow as well. It requires a lot of personal work, skill growth and meditation for me to keep up with it. Most psychics I know feel the same.

With any amount of power comes responsibility. A responsible psychic is not one who wishes to be famous, but rather to help people. Helping people at a psychic level requires that the psychic be grounded firmly in their own practice of skills and knowledge, and that they monitor their level of business growth equal to the amount of energy they can handle.

Psychic Myth #6: All Psychics Are Fakes and Shouldn't be Trusted

There is a lot of pressure in our culture to laugh at any information that doesn't have a firm foundation in science. However, science itself is simply a belief system. I am a scientist -- and I have two advanced degrees to prove it. But I firmly believe that there are other ways of knowing and understanding the world.

Some psychics are fakes. And unlike tennis pros, it can be harder to tell if a psychic is faking. Trust your gut. If the psychic is playing on your fears rather than reading your whole energy, asking general questions to gain answers, or claiming they see your future clearly, they're probably a fake. If they've done no training and have no skill set or qualifications, they may either be a fake or an amateur without proper training. We all get to have our own thoughts, feelings and opinions about the world. Let your inner voice guidance tell you what is real and truth for you.

Please let me know if you have any questions about this topic or the spiritual world in general. I will answer to the best of my abilities. Like anyone, I am still learning and I do not have anywhere near all the answers! I am having fun on my own journey and through the process of helping others. Thanks for reading.

Get Well and Stay Well, Even When Everyone Else is Sick

Autumn is around us. I can tell because the leaves on the Seattle trees are changing colors and starting to fall, sweeping around streets and trails with the wind. Mornings are chilly and crisp, and it smells cold. I've brought out the space heaters, stocked the tea cabinet, and my stomach asks me for soups and heated foods instead of raw salads. Also, all around me, people are getting sick.

I took a three day vacation a few weekends ago and when I got back to work my co-worker said, "Oh, by the way, watch out -- everyone's sick." She was right. Our office manager had a cold that lasted two weeks. Some clients were calling in sick and others were coming in sick. When I asked them how they were feeling, so many of them said, "Oh, you know, I've got this cold that's going around."

There is lots of science out there about germs and how germs are spread. I know my aunt watched some Opera special on germs and became almost OCD about public bathrooms. How was it that she had been in public bathrooms all her life and hadn't caught some terrible disease? Oh my, better protect myself with toilet liners and hand sanitizer and not touch door knobs or shake hands or look at people too closely...can I contact disease through eye contact? 

I exaggerate. A little.

I'm not arguing that science has been able to show how germs, viruses and bacteria travel between people, places and things and have the potential to make us sick. But what makes some people sick and not others? Science says the immune system, and I agree, but I want to add another layer to that. Not only do we have a physical immune system that relies on our diet and lifestyle for strength, we also have an energetic immune system, and its strength relies on the information we have about how we get sick, how we stay well, and what belief systems we have in general about health and wellness.

Sickness, like everything else, is essentially a vibration. Whether or not we get sick depends, in large part, to whether we match the vibration of sickness.

When I was in graduate school I got sick a lot. I was under so much stress that my poor immune system was shot. I was also at the beck and call of my graduate professors, my thesis, and to my fellow students. I'd feel myself start to get sick and I'd say to my body, "No! Not now! I can't afford to be sick this week/this semester/until after this test!" I'd drink tea and exercise and go on with my busy-ness and stress. But I could feel that vibration of sickness working to pull me down. Eventually, when the test was over (or the project, or the thesis) and I had no energy left to fight, I'd get sick. It was usually over a holiday or a long weekend -- you know, during some time when I could "afford" to be sick.

I'd given up my fight -- and matched the vibration of sickness. I know I matched the low, icky vibration of sickness because of that feeling of it pulling me under, into its depths, and taking over.

There are some things in life that are inevitable. Like death. Some day, we each of us will die. But how we live until that point is almost entirely up to us. How we choose to set our vibration of health and vitality is up to us.

Sickness is essentially an attack on our vitality.  Sickness means that something is attacking our inherent right to health and vitality. Whether caused by poor diet or lifestyle, by belief systems that do not serve you, or by accidents, it's all still blockage. Remove the blockage and you restore vitality.

In this day and age, improper diet and lifestyle routines are one of the major reasons so many of us become sick each year. We can change what we eat and how we take care of ourselves pretty simply. The other reason I believe so many of us get sick is by running energetic belief systems that keep our immune system from functioning fully.

One of the main blocking beliefs I already mentioned, "A cold is going around." If your body is running off of the belief system that there is a "cold going around," then a belief that probably follows is, "so I could catch it at any time." This is a belief system that opens the door for the vibration of sickness.

Another is the belief that "I always get sick in the fall/winter/spring." You just affirmed your reality. The universe is there to give you what you ask for.  This belief system opens the door for the vibration of sickness.

A third belief is an unflinching belief in the science of germs. As we discussed, science shows how germs can make us sick. However, science, just like anything else, is essentially a belief system. It's belief that the scientific understanding of germ theory is the final word on disease transmission. That belief limits you by putting you at the mercy of that scientific theory.

So how do we strengthen our energetic immune systems? First, by looking at blocking belief systems that might be contributing to getting sick and clearing those out. It takes shifting our perspective from believing in being the "victim" of yearly sickness to being the owner of our own bodies.  Second, we work on holding our highest vibration of health and vitality even amidst the pressure of lowering our vibration to match the sickness around us.

(There's always pressure to match energy -- matching energy is natural for us. It's one way we can relate to the experience of others. There's energetic pressure to match the vibration of sickness, even if the afflicted person doesn't want to spread germs. Part of this pressure is from the strength of a very large societal agreement that we have about belief in germs and germ theory that says if one of us is at the mercy of germs, we all should be. Disagreeing is like energetic rebellion.)

If you're not sure about what your belief systems are or how to remove them, Intuitive Wellness Coaching can help. We can do exactly what I'm describing so that you can have a vital year of health and wellness!

What happens if you still get sick? Learn from it, and don't beat yourself up over it. Gather information about how you got there, what you were feeling, what the beliefs were that you or others around you held, and then practice wellness. Pull in the vibration of wellness and allow yourself to truly have it. Ask yourself what wellness practices you can do to get well and stay well, and see what responses you get. In my meditation, I was told to drink lots of broth, add green juice to my mornings, and to eat lightly. Listen to your body.

Wellness is a practice. Practice well.

Releasing the past; right and wrong.

Sometimes, I get in a bit of a funk. Do you ever feel that way? Like something isn't quite right, and you're not sure what it is, but you just feel kinda stuck? I've had that feeling for the last couple of days.

I really don't like having that feeling.

It makes me feel like I'm doing something wrong, because this is what I help people do for a living -- I'm intuitive and should be able to figure things out, immediately, right?

But I'm also human. Thankfully.

This thing that was bringing me down felt arduous, felt heavy like pregnant clouds, but ever out of my reach of understanding. My analytical mind was having a hay-day trying to figure it out.  It's amazing to me the myriad of ridiculous thoughts my analytical mind (ego) can come up with to justify me feeling down. I swear, if the only way of knowing things on this earth was through analyzing them, I'd go crazy.

Luckily, there are other ways of knowing.

Last night, I had a dream that I was being denied access through a gate that lead to this beautiful mountain top. I was being denied access until this person from my past came back and allowed me to move through the gates. I was furious, because I wanted to hike into the beauty of the mountain, to access the healing available there, and to gaze back at the view. I was also furious because I didn't want to wait from this person from the past to catch up to me and to interact with him -- not because I had anything against him, but because I wanted to move forward.  I felt torn -- part of me wanted to just blow through the gates but another part of me was fearful that if I did, something bad would happen.

I woke up with a feeling of unease. It reminded me of the feelings I'd had when I suspected I might get fired that day, or be broken up with, or be reprimanded for something. It was a feeling of failure.

I immediately put on my hiking shoes and drove out to my favorite forested park for a walking meditation. As I started walking, I realized two things that my dream seemed to represent to me. The first was that my past was haunting me and keeping me from enjoying the dreams and aspirations I have for the future. And second, the reason that the past is haunting me is because I've been stuck on ideas or energy in my space that want to affirm that there is a right and wrong way for living in the world.

There have been several instances just this week where counseling others included the spiritual truth that there is no right or wrong in the spiritual world -- there is just our experience. Right and wrong are concepts that our analytical mind create (don't get me wrong, moral judgements can have a place in society, I'm not here debating that).  When we get stuck not wanting to make the "wrong" decision, we are essentially stuck in fear -- fear that if we "do it wrong," something bad will happen and we won't be good enough. Our actions just have consequences, that's it. Some consequences we will like better than others, but essentially it's trial and error, learning and growing.

As I walked through the beautiful, rainy morning, I practiced turning off my analyzing mind of focusing on my breath. As I watched the morning unfold, I had the realization that everyday, nature lets go of the old and moves forward. Sometimes, like during the change of the seasons, letting go takes some time -- leaves dry out, drop, and trees release excess wastes and waters and prepare for the winter. It's a process. Sometimes, it happens quickly -- like during a big storm, when a branch just isn't strong enough and snaps off the tree. Either way, the tree keeps on living and the forest finds a new way to support the change.

Sometimes, letting go of our past takes time. Sometimes it's a process. But the more we keep ourselves within the limited mindset of right and wrong, the longer that process will take. Today I remembered to be gentle with myself, to keep practicing the miracle of being in the present moment and accessing the joy that is found there.

Spiritual Tool #3: Filling up with YOU!

How many times have you come home from a day and said, "I feel so drained!"? If you're like me, it happens regularly, especially when around lots of people, when helping lots of clients throughout the day, or when intense or stressful situations present themselves. This post is about helping you call your energy back, which makes you feel more grounded, yourself, and literally gives you more physical energy!

In my post about grounding, I talked about how our energy bodies can be like little sponges, picking up energy from other people -- people we talk to, care for, or interact with. That entry talked about the importance of clearing or grounding those outside energies away after each day.  But just as we pick up other people's energy, we often give our energy to other people, events, or projects. Sometimes we leave our energy there, in the past, where it really does us no good. In order to keep our energy levels high, we need to fill back up with us!

The only moment that we have to work with is the present. When our energy is in the past, or the future, or with mom, or with your latest craft project, or planning dinner, we don't have as much energy available to work with in the present moment. I'm sure we've all experienced it before -- we are excited about a new project, or we have a family member or situation we're worried about, and so our energy is focused there while we try to move throughout our day and complete our day-to-day tasks. We find ourselves becoming sloppy, unable to concentrate, and feel completely wiped out by the end of the day.

It doesn't do us any good to keep our energy anywhere but right inside our body and aura. It's been said that worry is a misuse of imagination. I say energy directed anywhere except the present moment is a cheat to ourselves and the lives we're creating.

So many of us in the healing field struggle with this. We worry about our clients, or we continuously try to problem-solve other's situations while we're going through the motions of present day activities. Even those outside the healing field can relate -- we've all experienced a loved one who is going through a tough time, and often we feel emotionally connected or responsible for their well-being.  Often, we keep our thoughts or prayers with them and forget about the quality and importance of our own attention in the present moment.

Guess what -- that doesn't serve either party.

If my energy is with one of my sick clients, not only is it not with me, but it's also clogging up their space and keeping them from being able to find their most authentic self and their own healing solution. It is always best to keep our energy with us so that we can use the power of the present moment to direct all of our energy to the focal point at hand.

Our attention is the most powerful tool we own. If we can gather up all of our energy and direct our attention at just one thing, the rest of the world falls away. We've all experienced this -- maybe in a yoga class where you observed your thoughts rather than listening to them, or when you become so focused on a project that you lost track of time and created your best work. As a healer, I know I can help my client best by focusing on them and only them in a session, or when I'm doing extra research to help them -- not by focusing on them while I'm blogging, making dinner, or listening to my partner.

So how do we practice calling our energy back to us and keeping it there? (Because, remember, it's ALL a practice).

It's simple. Sit in your meditation space and ground yourself. Use the grounding meditation listed here. Start by clearing away all those energies that you might of picked up during the day -- your client, that stranger on the bus who gave you the eyes, that cute barista who drew a heart in your cappuccino, -- all of it! Once you feel clear, start to imagine all the places you might have left your energy that day. I usually start with my dream space, which is generally very active. Then, I call my energy back from clients, from my mom, from anyone I might be healing inadvertently, from my boss, from that person on the bus I gave the eyes to, from my enjoyment of my (decaf) cappuccino, and from any other situation or project that keeps stealing my attention.

Imagine that energy collecting into a big ball of golden energy above your head that is as big as you are. Let that golden ball of light fill all the way up with your energy in present time. When it's full, pull it down around you and let it fill up your whole body and aura with your energy. Do this several times until you feel full of the live that is YOU. You can't have too much!

Often with this exercise, I get asked if calling energy back will hurt or affect the people, projects or situations where your energy was left. Calling your energy back will not hurt someone you've been helping -- like I said before, your energy of worry or healing, while fabulous in the present moment, can create confusion for that person once you've moved on physically. Your heartfelt intention of help or healing, when used in the power of the present moment, is beneficial. Once you move on, if your energy doesn't move with you, it can create the same energy of confusion and clogging that we clear out of our own spaces.  Similarly, your projects can't keep moving forward if you're working on something else, so it's more effective to always have your energy in the present moment. The same goes for situations or interpersonal relationships -- focus on the task at hand while it's at hand and communication will be smoother (that doesn't mean you can't procesas and reflect later, just make sure that's you're intention at the time).

Have you ever heard someone say, "I'm running on a quarter tank today?" This is often how full our bodies are of our own energy, but it doesn't have to be. Fill up with the golden light of your energy several times per day and keep your energy gauge at full all the time.

You always deserve to be full of YOU. This isn't about ego, it's about spiritual energy. In the spiritual world, you can't get enough of yourself, so fill up! When you are full of yourself and clear from other energies, that is your quiet, soft space where you can hear the clear voice of your soul. This is where you'll make your best decisions, heal yourself, and start to have an effect on others because you're brave enough to fill up and be your own creature. Here's to being YOU!

Intuitive Wellness Coaching in Your Words

For the past month or so, I've been lucky enough to take two full days a week to start turning what I love to do into a career. This process hasn't been easy, and I'm nowhere near finished, but I can start to see the first iteration of my offerings taking shape in a concrete way that they never have before. This process is teaching me a lot  -- how I relate (or don't relate) to business and business practices, what my relationships are to money, how I tend to undervalue myself and my offerings, and how difficult I find it to stand up and shout from the rooftops what it is I do.

Behind the scenes, I've been busy clarifying and re-clarifying my message -- who I am and why I do what I do. I've had to ask for help to describe it, because I tend to use technical terms that only make sense to me, and to complicate the simple. This process has humbled me, because I began to ask my clients to explain to me, in their own words, what I do for them. While I'm still working on my verbiage, I wanted to share with you a recent testimonial from on of my clients. If you're unsure what it is, exactly, that I do, please continue reading as Holly has explained it so eloquently here:

As comforting as it sounds when traditional medicine claims to provide "individualized treatment" and "client-centered care", the first time I ever actually experienced that was during my sessions with Anna.  Anna moves through the confusion that disease and injury can create, methodically examining each body system and, laser-like, strikes right at the heart of the source, the cause, and the cure.  For me, the source of my disease was outside of my awareness.  Buried beneath my symptoms were layers of unintegrated emotions, images from the past, energies that didn't belong to me, karmic influences, and seemingly unimportant details that Anna brought to the surface.  As she explained the images she saw I was transported into the realm of my soul and the source of my own power to heal myself.   Far from being a painful process, Anna's humor, love, and light touch made "coming home to myself" and healing my illness a joyful experience. She was able to give me practical guidelines for grounding myself, for stepping out of the way of the healing energies that emerged, for enhancing those energies, protecting them, and for understanding my soul's intent and purpose as it related to my disease.  She was also able to quickly and painlessly remove harmful energies that were not aligned with my intent to heal. Sessions with Anna far exceeded my expectations and moved me to a place of health and unprecedented enthusiasm for my unleashed life. She represents a new kind of healing that takes into consideration the body's innate ability to heal itself given the right environment.  Anna is an expert in understanding what that environment looks like and has the amazing gift of knowing how to create it.  Personally and professionally I am privileged to be able to recommend her without reservations.    

If you've been on the fence about experiencing the freedom that intuitive wellness coaching, healing and mentoring, now is the time to try it. I have some new fall specials coming out with my next newsletter (email me if you want to sign up). I'd be honored to be part of your healing journey.

Spiritual Tool #2: Holding a Vibration

Albert Einstein said, "Everything is energy and that's all there is to it. Match the frequency of the reality you want and you cannot help but get that reality. It can be no other way. This is not philosophy. This is physics."

One of the ways in which I work with clients is to help them get out of the uncomfortable reality they're in and into the reality they want. Usually, there are a lot of belief systems, family programming energy, emotions, fear or guilt keeping them from embracing the reality they want to claim as their own. As I work with clients, I help them to identify these limiting patterns, drain them from the energy body, and help them start creating the reality they want through energy.

How do we do this?

Similar to how Einstein said to "match the frequency," I say, "hold the vibration" of the reality you want and you will have it.  On one hand, it sounds so simple. On the other hand, it seems incredibly complex and perplexing and perhaps even illogical to our analyzing mind.

The spiritual world, and thus our energy bodies which are our link to Spirit, operate in an arena where time and space do not exist. Our bodies, and more accurately our minds, experience time linearly, which can make spiritual concepts seem illogical. But you know how sometimes you set a goal, and maybe you send out prayers asking that you reach your goal, but the goal always seems to be out in the future? That's because the Universe responds to us in present time only. In the spiritual world, you either have something or you don't, there is no "getting it later."

This is why the vibration of our aura in relation to the reality we want to have are so important. Similarly, this is why affirmation as mantra and as prayer is so effective -- we are no longer asking to have something in the future some day, we are stating to the Universe that we already have it.

To some of us, this may seem selfish. Especially when it comes to goals around finances or achievement.  Many of us in the spiritual field incorrectly assume that self-serving goals aren't spiritual, but that's untrue. The Universe wants us to be fulfilled. It wants us to have our hearts desire and will give us the reality that is reflected in our energy body and in our thoughts.

This doesn't mean that receiving what we want won't require some work. Spiritual growth always requires work. But by showing the Universe exactly what we want through holding the vibration of the reality we desire, the work will illuminate itself, pushing our bodies and minds through linear time more quickly to achieve our new reality. The work may manifest itself as taking a deep look at our belief systems, our relationships, our value or our self esteem and making the changes necessary to fully vibrate at our new reality.

So, how do we start? The work for changing our reality starts, like most spiritual tools, in meditation. This is how I like to use the "hold your vibration" meditation, but you may find that another method works better for you, so feel free to play with it.

Sit quietly in your meditation space. I like to sit in a chair with my feet on the ground, or include this meditation before I start a yoga practice so that the movement helps me clear out blockages. Again, it's up to you. First, become grounded. You can use the grounding technique I've described in another post, or choose a grounding technique of your own. Breath deeply and smoothly, and allow any stresses or uncomfortable energy to ground out of your space.

Once you feel clear, allow yourself to visualize the reality that you want. Maybe this is surrounding a health issue, finances, or relationships -- whatever it is, see your best and most vibrant reality out in front of you. Allow any negative energy or negative self talk drain out of your vision naturally. Notice how it looks -- I like to attach a color to the vibration, so that I can easily call it back later on. Notice how your reality feels -- every cell in your body will respond to the vibration you choose, so allow yourself to really feel that vibration.

Next, use your hands (or your psychic hands) to pull that visualization into your body, starting at the crown of your head and moving all the way down to your feet. Visualize yourself bathed in that reality, perhaps seeing yourself in the color you chose. Allow yourself to feel that vibration in every part of your body, and allow yourself to know that this reality is yours right now. Send some gratitude to the Universe for helping you with your creation.

Throughout the day, check in with yourself and your vibration. When you find yourself slipping into old thought patterns or behavioral habits that aren't in alignment with your vibration, take some deep breaths and call the color of your vibration back around your body. Notice the thought patterns that you were stuck in and work on releasing those in your meditation practice. Assert an affirmation in place of negative thoughts. The affirmation, "I easily create the reality I most deeply desire," may work well for this meditation, but feel free to chose another one.

Getting started on a spiritual journey can seem daunting, but remember that you have the full support of the Universe behind you. A spiritual journey is the process of self-discovery -- finding out who you are, who you want to be, and how to get there. If you find yourself stuck, I am only a phone call away. I'd be happy to provide some clarity and build your confidence so you can move freely along your path.