If you’ve ever had a thought along the lines ‘I’m, so sick of this condition I just want to be rid of it’

In the DVD The Living Matrix, Arlelle Essex tells how she had troublesome headaches for 10 years, some lasting as long as 5 days. It transpired she had a brain tumour, and she decided to treat it with NLP.

At a low point she found herself saying

“I’m so sick of this, I just want to be rid of this tumour”.

She suddenly realised all her thoughts about making her tumour go away, involved much anger and frustration, which could not be healing.

Arlelle says the turning point in her recovery came when she asked herself what the opposite would be, and realised it was acceptance. This helped her see the benefits her tumour had brought her including a change of career, meeting wonderful people and more. So she asked herself another question

“What would happen if I gave it permission to stay for the rest of my life?”

Six months later her tumour was gone, and her doctor told her she was a different person to the one he first met.

The process of embracing opposing thoughts helps you unlock yourself from the fixed position of desperately wanting your health condition to go away, which only attracts more of the same.

Imagine a spectrum with ‘I want to be rid of this’ at one end and ‘I accept this condition’ at the other end. Once you are aware of the duality of both thoughts, your perception can easily shift out of its locked position at one end, and move to a more healthy position somewhere else on the spectrum.

Two ways to shift your perception with opposites

This approach of considering opposites, or ‘polarities’, is embedded in many healing approaches, including The Sedona Method and TAT.

The Sedona Method

Holistic Releasing is a very powerful Sedona technique, which involves alternately welcoming opposing thoughts or feelings, as a way to shift from the stuckness of your discomfort.

You start with the emotion or thought you have in the present moment. Eg ‘My sore head’, or ‘Not knowing which treatment to use’, and ask yourself:

1.  Could you feel the soreness, as much as it is?

Whether you get a ‘Yes’ or ’No’ response move on to the second question.

Decide what the opposite would be, eg .My comfortable head’, and ask yourself:

2. Could you feel a comfortable head, as best you can?

Don’t worry if a sore head seems impossible – be open to getting just an inkling of it to start with.

Continue to ask yourself questions 1 and 2 alternately, until you no longer feel attached to either polarity. You may be surprised how much your sore head shifts in a short time.

TAT (Tapas Acupressure Technique)

TAT involves holding the TAT Pose – one hand on the front and one hand behind your head in specific positions – while putting your attention for about a minute on each of a series of 9 statements. The first two statements address opposites.

The first statement acknowledges the problem. You take the TAT Pose and consider the statement, eg ‘My sore head happened’. In this step you are identifying with, and acknowledging, the problem

The second statement is the opposite of the first. You take the TAT Pose and consider the opposite statement, eg ‘That sore head happened, I no longer resonate, identify or connect with it’. In this step you offer your system the opposite point of view to consider. You don’t have to believe the statement, just consider it, and be open to see what happens.

By considering the opposites your identification with the problem dissolves. Often these first two steps of TAT alone will shift your perception, and hence improve your health condition.

The Delicious Nugget: Considering a health problem and its opposite is a very effective way to shift your point of view away from being fixated with ‘wanting to be rid of it’. Seonda’s Holistic Releasing and the first two Steps of TAT are effective ways to do this.

Or, if you are at home, you can add vinegar to boiling water, and inhale.

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What if there were an easy way to move your focus from your symptoms to all the possible ways of resolving them?

If you have recurring migraines, you may spend a lot of time thinking about your splitting headache, the nauseous feeling and your acute sensitivity to light and fumes. You may be frustrated because: you can’t do your work properly, you’re only giving part of your attention to your family, and you can forget about that night out. It feels like a dead end.

This sucks up your energy, closes down your receptivity to solutions, and may create a vicious circle that perpetuates your discomfort.

You may try some of the many natural methods known to alleviate a migraine – from the herb feverfew through massage to cell salts – which may or may not be effective for you

What if there were an easy way to help you move beyond your migraines?

There is a simple way to open yourself up to the all of the possibilities of moving beyond migraines, or any other discomfort you’re experiencing. It comes from Access Consciousness.

1. Ask a question

Ask an empowering question, such as:

How does it get any better than this?

What are the infinite possibilities for eg: me to always have a clear head?

Do you notice the expansive feeling you get when you ask the question? It unlocks your focus on symptoms, and opens you up to the field of all possibilities.

2. Live in the question

Rather than expect an immediate answer, try living with the question. So, each time you become aware of your sore head, or that nauseous feeling, simply ask your question again.

At first you may need to remind yourself to move your focus from the frustrations of your condition to ask the question again. You may want to use the question as a mantra for a while, until it becomes second nature.

Living in the question allows energy to flow; you’ll be surprised what comes up for you. An insight about your migraine trigger, meeting someone who tells you about a new solution, or something else?

Living in the question makes you feel lighter, expectant, curious and hopeful.

How does it get any better that that?!

The Delicious Nugget: There’s an easy way to move from thinking about your symptoms, to open yourself to all the possible solutions. Simply ask yourself; “How does it get better than this?”, and/or “What are the infinite possibilities for …?”

As a change from a slice of lemon in your water, try a slice of cucumber.

One slice in a glass of water, or four slices in a jug. To comment click:

Sounds easy enough, and like many simple concepts, being present can be tricky to achieve.
When you take time to meditate, connect or do some healing for yourself, how often do you find yourself:

• Distracted by ‘outside’ things: like the phone, email pinging in, your loved ones?
• Distracted by your own thoughts?
• Thinking about the past?
• Thinking about the future?
• Expecting a specific outcome from your ‘me time’?
• Trying to figure out: how it happened, or what the solution is?
• Wanting the current moment to be different?
• Wanting someone’s approval?
• Judging yourself or others?

If you’ve nodded your head to any of these, the following ideas may help you get more present with yourself..

The practical aspects are relatively easy to deal with. Time you set aside for yourself is as important as the appointments you have with others; so go through the same motions of finding a quiet space, turning on the answer machine, and letting your family or friends know you don’t want to be interrupted for, say, twenty minutes. A few years ago my daughter made a sign for me to put outside my home office door, which works well.

What goes on in your head is another matter!
Simply being aware of the barriers to being present is the important first step. So, when you notice your mind meandering down memory lane, you can gently lead it back to the present moment. But it’s difficult to remember and deal with all those distractions!

How about using a healing method to address the problem? Here are some possibilities, that you could use on your own, with a partner or in a group.

5 healing methods to help you get more present with yourself.

EFT

When you become aware of a barrier, tap on it until it is neutralised

TAT

Put all the barriers to being present that affect you into a ‘bundle’, add any ‘unconscious ones you’re not aware of’ and dissolve them using the 9 Steps of TAT.

The Sedona Method

When a barrier comes to mind, welcome the feeling associated with it, and ask yourself ‘Could I let it go?’ Repeat until that feeling is gone, and then address the next feeling that comes up. Keep going until you feel peaceful when you consider the barrier.

The One Command

Make a command along the lines: ‘I don’t know how I’m fully present myself when I meditate, I only know I am now, and I am grateful’.

Access Consciousness

Access focuses on living in the question, so you could ask yourself: What are the infinite possibilities of me being fully present? Notice how expansive this makes you feel, and see what unfolds.

The Delicious Nugget: Meditation and self-healing are more effective when you are fully present with yourself, and you can use self-healing methods to help you enhance your presence.

If you’re plagued by too many thoughts spinning around your head, try this Eckhart Tolle technique.

Ask yourself  ‘I wonder what my next thought is going to be?’

If you’re like me, you’ll suddenly find your mind goes blank!

Should you find yourself ‘thinking’ again, repeat the question….

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But what exactly is the message? How do you receive it? What language does it speak?

Look up the clues

If you’re new to interpreting what knee problems mean, you could start by looking up ‘knees’ , for example

Louise Hay, gives a general interpretation:
Knee Problems: Stubborn ego and pride. Inability to bend. Inflexibility. Won’t give in.

Heal Your Body, p46

Debbie Shapiro interprets three separate knee problems:

• Water on the knee – a holding of emotional energy.
• Inflamed knee – something or someone is making us feel irritated or angry.
• Dislocated knee – a resistance to giving way.

Your Body Speaks Your Mind, p125

These interpretations will give you some clues about your knee’s message. Sometimes they are sufficient to trigger an insight to what’s going on.

Other times they feel too vague, or you just can’t relate to them. That’s when you need to move from the general interpretations of knee problems to find out exactly what your knee is saying to you.

Discover your knee’s specific message to you

The best way to discover your knee’s message is to ask it to tell you. Have a conversation with your knee! This may seem strange at first; only because we’re not in the habit of communicating with our bodies.

The key is to find a way to access your intuition/higher self. Here are two ways I use:

1. Trick your way past your conscious mind!

This question (from NLP) helps bypass all the doubts of your conscious mind, and allow your intuition to speak up. It is surprisingly effective!

Ask yourself:
‘If I did know, what would the message be?’
Accept the first response you receive, however strange it may seem.

2. Tap, alongwith a Command

This is a blend of EFT and the wording used in The One Command.
If you’re new to EFT you can use just one tapping point – the knobbly, inner end of your collar bone, at the bottom of your neck. If you know the EFT points, you can move to a new point with each phrase of the sentence below.

As you tap with two fingers on your collarbone, slowly say to yourself:
I don’t know how, I know the message my knee is giving me, I only know I do know now, and I am grateful.

Repeat the tapping and repeat the sentence slowly, several times. As you start to feel calmer you open to your intuition, and your knee’s message will come to you.

Whichever method you use, the keys are:

1. Relax
2. Be receptive
3. Trust the first message that comes to you, whatever form it takes – words, images, a knowingness etc.
4. If the message isn’t clear, ask for clarification.

The Delicious Nugget: The discomfort in your knee has a message for you so you can help yourself to heal. To receive the message you need to access your intuition, relax and be receptive to receiving the message in whatever way it comes.

Ginger has a multitude of healing properties

Cut thin slices of fresh ginger root. Add boiling water and a slice of lemon. Allow to infuse until it reaches the strength you like. Sip and savour!

I first tasted this tea with an Italian fig biscuit in the tranquility of the Botanic Gardens in Cambridge! To comment, click

Healing often involves going deeper than change to transform your mindset, which includes your attitudes, your assumptions and your beliefs. All of these aspects of your mind can get in the way of ‘Be-ing’ which is the space where healing takes place.

Most forms of energy healing help you transform attitudes, assumptions and beliefs that are getting in the way. Some modalities, such as EFT help you consciously identify and neutralise the barriers, whereas others such as The Sedona Method and The One Command do the transforming at a less conscious level.

Three mindsets to transform

1. Conscious

If you have an attitude along the lines “I’ll give green smoothies a go, but they probably won’t work, as nothing else has cleared my skin so far”, the chances are you’ll give up before too long.

On the other hand, if you are aware of your limiting attitude, and neutralise it, you’ll be more likely to give green smoothies a fair chance.

EFT is ideal for neutralising limiting attitudes, assumptions and beliefs that you’re already conscious of.

2. Unconscious

If you have a deep-held belief that you don’t deserve to get better, which you’re probably not aware of as it’s safely locked away in your sub-conscious mind, sooner or later you’ll sabotage your attempts to exercise three times a week.

Once you have a way to dissolve that belief, and any others that may be in the way, you’ll find yourself easily exercising.

The Sedona Method is a great way to chip away at unconscious beliefs by gently releasing the associated emotions.

3. Emerging

You may make good progress with your green smoothies, or your exercise for a few weeks or months, and then find uncomfortable emotions emerging. (These emotions usually reflect deep beliefs.) This is a very common experience for people transitioning to eat more raw food. As the body becomes ‘cleaner’, other parts of your being, including your mind, are prompted by your emotions to catch up.

The One Command’s follow-up process of ‘meeting yourself in the moment’, to command positive replacements for the doubts that crop up, is a very effective way to transform emerging aspects of your mindset.

The Delicious Nugget: Healing usually involves transforming unhelpful attitudes, assumptions and beliefs so you’re free to easily make the changes you seek. Most energy healing methods will help you transform conscious, sub-conscious and emerging mindsets that are getting in the way.

They are less likely to be contaminated with pesticides. And, freshly picked, you get the full benefit of all their nutrition. Here are the wild plums I picked from the woods near our house. I’ll soon be on the lookout for blackberries, elderberries and rose hips.

What wild fruits could you enjoy?