Deal With Depression

Defining Symptoms

Depression is an experience that can have a very wide range of symptoms from mild feelings of disappointment, sadness and tiredness to dark feelings of hopelessness, despair and sometimes suicide. It might be helpful to understand depression as “REPRESSION,” a pressing down and damming up of anger, emotions, energy and action. Like a river cut off from fresh water, without new energy flowing through us, we are led eventually into feelings of stagnation and deadness.

Causal Factors

Depression usually follows some kind of change, trauma or loss experience. This might include the loss of someone close, a job, our home, a relationship, belief system, or any way of life that we have relied on for our security and support in the past. In my experience, people who struggle with depression find it hard to accept change and give up control, from a fear of the unknown I suspect. Any trauma, loss or change we experience shakes and threatens our control and security. Then we struggle even harder holding on and holding back to regain control or resist the change. This is what drains energy and causes much of the tiredness felt during depression. Over time, this “fear response” and “energy drain” changes body and brain chemistry, causing the darkening of emotions. If this drain extends over a long period, an “energy crisis” and the compromise of our immunity system may follow that will lead to more serious physical or emotional break down and disease. Gestalt Therapy looks at depression as fear-based anger turned and held within. When working with a depressed client, Fritz Perls, the founder of Gestalt Therapy, would confront them with the simple question. “Who are you angry at?” Understanding that negative feelings most often follow blocked energy, getting his clients to express anger was Fritz Perls’ attempt to help his clients to “EXPRESS” rather than “REPRESS” their feelings and open the door to release the more frightening and painful emotions hidden beneath the anger. As soon as we begin to appreciate depression as a form of REPRESSED ANGER, we can then begin to search for the HIDDEN PAIN AND FEAR that activated this defensive response in the first place. Then, if we are ready, we can deal more constructively with them. Anger is best understood as an attempt to defend or gain control in a situation where we feel “NOT IN CONTROL,” helpless and FRIGHTENED. Depression, on the other hand, can best be understood as the destructive consequence resulting from holding on or holding back to resist and repress emotions, action, energy and change, fearing their unknown consequences.

In addition to the more traumatic changes already mentioned, at some point, many of us begin to wake up and realize the disillusionment of life itself. We have been led to believe happiness, security and peace will eventually be found in this world through our relationships, education, career, success and money. Through life experience, we begin to realize this is not true. By their nature, people and situations in this fast-paced world are often threatening and constantly changing leaving us disappointed, lost, anxious, angry and depressed. Some can avoid facing this realization longer than others distracted by family, raising children, career goals, relationship changes, travel and hobbies. Eventually, however, we all face the fact that the long-term security, happiness and peace we seek cannot be found in this world of change, loss and separation. Facing this cannot help but lead us to feel deep loss, depression and despair. We would be insane, if we did not. Although threatening and painful at first, this is what eventually presses us to search for a different way and path to peace and security. The less distracted, more sane and ready we are, the sooner we will begin to search for our peace, security and love in other places and in different ways. “When the learner is ready, the teacher will appear.”

Summary Of Cause

Since we live in a world of constant change, this inevitably forces us into unexpected situations with unknown consequences we cannot see or control. Some are gifted with an ability to handle these changes; others are not. For those of us who find change more threatening, anger and depression become real and difficult hurdles to overcome. We tend to live our lives anxious and frightened about the future, constantly trying to avoid its possible pain through worry, planning, painful procrastination and control that will eventually lead to anger or depression. Faced with any threatening experience, the “Fight, Flight, Freeze,” fear or adrenaline response is activated within us to help us survive. Anger is part of the “Fight Response,” an active attempt to establish control through intimidation. Flight or retreat is another active response to threat. Both use and release energy, muscle tension and adrenaline to fulfill their defensive function and thus release some of the tension. Depression, on the other hand, is part of the “Freeze Response” to fear and results from the resistance and repression of any emotion or action that might lead to change. All three are ways we attempt to defend against our fear of the unknown, a fear we will be hurt by unknown forces within or without in some future situation we may not be able to control or survive.

Dealing With Depression

Depending on an individual’s fear, readiness and depth of disease, depression must be dealt with at different levels and in different ways. What will help to dissolve depression for one person, another may not be ready to understand, explore or use. How we deal with depression is limited by our belief systems and readiness to take personal responsibility for the healing of our disease.

A. For Those With These Beliefs

*The people and situations I encounter in the world are responsible for most of my pain and fear.
*I contract pain, fear, illness and disease from others and thus need to protect myself from them.
*My illness and disease are not connected to the pain and fear I experience in my relationships.
*My thoughts and feelings do not influence the people and situations I experience in the world.
*My thoughts do not affect my feelings or emotions.
*My thoughts, emotions and feelings about myself do not influence how people treat me.
*I do not have much ability to affect the people and situations I encounter in the world.
*I am largely at the mercy of the world and often feel unfairly treated by it.
*Doctors and medicine are responsible for healing my illness and disease, physical or mental.
*It is impossible for me to relax or be happy unless I am busy or have something to look forward to.
*It is impossible for me to relax, quiet my thoughts and have fun without drugs or alcohol.
*My mind and emotions do not affect my body and my body does not affect my mind and emotions.
*I do not believe there is Healing Energy within me or outside that will guide and help me if I ask.
*If I do not carefully plan, control and protect myself, I will end up hurt, alone or a failure.
*My happiness depends on job and relationship security, friends, acceptance and success.

If you agree with the majority of these statements of belief, then you may find one or more of the following methods helpful in reducing the symptoms of depression you experience. Even if you do not agree with these beliefs, you will still find some of the following methods helpful.

A. Methods For Dealing With Depression

1. In the beginning, as a form of crisis intervention, anti-depressant drug therapy may prove necessary and helpful. This seems to be more successful for some than others and rarely the long-term answer for a number of reasons, side effects, some dangerous, and possible dependency being two of the more obvious ones.

2. Since long-term depression changes body chemistry, many individuals find natural replacement products like 5-HTP that replaces serotonin, helpful in dealing with depression. There are many natural replacement products available and results seem to vary. Unless an individual is willing to do the work necessary to deal more constructively with the underlying pain and fear, it is likely the depression will return no matter what the product or level of initial success.

3. The stress of long-term depression seems to deplete enzyme production and immunity leading to various forms of food and environmental allergies. You can find the foods you are not metabolizing through muscle testing methods, sometimes known as applied kinesiology. (Google) Eliminating the foods you are not fully digesting will reduce the toxins in your system elevating your energy level and often improve your feelings of well-being.

4. Some physicians use hormone replacement therapy when dealing with depression, especially when associated with menopause or hysterectomies. Dr. Christine Northrop, a long-term expert in the field of women’s health issues, has concluded that synthetic hormones are not as effective as non-synthetic ones when dealing with menopausal health issues and can even prove dangerous. She also concludes that meditation (relaxation training) is the one activity she has found that most consistently reduces the more difficult symptoms associated with menopause.

5. Research suggests that physical exercise leads to the release of endorphins that create positive feelings of well-being. Most people lost in a state of depression, however, have little if any desire to move or change in any way, for any reason. Forcing myself to exercise in the form of running and swimming when overcome with deep depression had a significant and positive effect in helping me survive the times of dark and desperate depression I have experienced in my life. Most often these experiences were activated through unexpected change and loss. Very simply, cardio vascular exercise relaxes muscle tension and forces increased oxygen intake and blood circulation to the entire body. It also helps to release endorphins that cause more positive feelings, as mentioned above. As a temporary measure, exercise will help to counteract the shut down, lack of energy and negative feelings experienced with change, loss, fear and depression.

6. Because depression has links to future fear and the attempted control of its possible painful experiences, activities that force us to focus on the present can prove very helpful, especially when combined with physical exercise. Ti Chi and Yoga have proven very successful in reducing many of the symptoms that accompany depression. Sports like archery, golf, playing or listening to music, even fishing, can have similar, positive results because of their need for here and now focus. The biggest block to their success is the need for action when a depressed person has little energy.

7. In a CBC documentary titled “Urban By Nature,” Roberta Walker presents research done by Esther Sternberg from her latest book, “Healing Spaces, The Science Of Place And Well-being.” This research demonstrates the powerful effect Nature has on changing brain chemistry by stimulating endorphins. This change in brain chemistry results in positive feelings of well-being which help to reduce anxiety and depression.  This research suggests that regular walks in green spaces or nature of any kind will help to counteract the stress, anxiety & depression found in our fast-paced urban life

8. Deep relaxation training is another method I have used both personally and professionally with significant, positive results. Lee Pulos, PhD, has a “Self Healing” relaxation training C.D. that can prove very effective if an individual is ready to entertain this kind of approach. I also have a similar “Peak Recovery” meditation on “The Zone” page of my “Peak Recovery” web site. http://www.peakrecovery.com/ This method leads a person into the “Relaxation Response,” a response that counteracts the “Fear Response.” There has been a great deal of research done on this “Alpha Wave” or “Relaxation Response” that demonstrates significant recovery from many forms of stress-related disease, including depression. Sometimes muscle relaxation will bring to the surface stored emotions that will need to be released before the full benefit of this method can be experienced. I will, in the next section, outline a method for releasing these painful emotions.

9. Taking care of plants, pets or young children, forming any non-threatening relationship where you can relax your mind, body, emotion, defenses and allow the healing energies of love flow from your heart more freely will have a very powerful effect in dissolving the feeling of depression within you. It is by giving the healing energy of unconditional love to others that we receive healing and love for ourselves. Of all the healing methods suggested so far, this is the most powerful and effective.

Summary

Anything that reduces the pain, fear, tension and control associated with depression will be helpful. The methods that reduce muscle tension and demand present focus will probably prove most beneficial in the long term. Although every one of these methods can help reduce the painful symptoms associated with depression, in the long run, deep relaxation training, together with healing visualization, will more significantly help to reduce the pain, fear and ego defenses that drain energy and cause depression. If you are able to practice healing meditation or deep relaxation training, in addition to physical exercise, I urge you to do so. Forming non-threatening relationships where you can relax defenses and allow the healing energy of unconditional love to flow more freely from your heart will ultimately return to you and heal your depression most effectively.   For more lasting peace and joy, you must begin to move this “defenseless” stance out into more threatening relationships continuing to express this same unconditional love to others crying for love and healing through their anger, depression and sometimes hatred.  This is our ultimate challenge and function here, to offer unconditional healing love to others lost in the illusion of their pain and fear.  The healing energy we send forth will eventually help them dissolve the illusion of their pain and fear and they will then awaken into the peace power, joy and love within them.  The healing and love we give to others will return to us through the “Law Of Karma” and we then awaken more fully to the love and peace within.

B. For Those With These Beliefs

*When I get tired or run down, I more easily become ill or have an accident.
*My illness and disease are connected to the pain and fear I experience in my relationships.
*My thoughts and feelings do influence the people and situations I experience in the world.
*My thoughts do affect my feelings or emotions.
*My thoughts, emotions and feelings about myself influence how people treat me.
*I have the ability to affect the people and situations I encounter in the world.
*I do not feel I am at the mercy of the world and rarely feel unfairly treated by it.
*I have a large responsible for preventing and healing my illness and disease.
*It is difficult for me to relax or be happy unless I am busy or have something to look forward to.
*I am able to relax, quiet my thoughts and have fun without drugs or alcohol.
*My mind and emotions do affect my body and my body does affect my mind and emotions.
*I believe there is Healing Energy that will guide and help me if I ask.
*There is a plan or destiny I do not consciously control that seems to guide me.
*I am most happy when I can be helpful.

If you agree with the majority of these beliefs, then there is a good chance you will be able to add the following methods to the ones already suggested to further assist your healing process.

B. Curing Depression

Introduction

We all carry an unconscious body of pain and fear within us that will eventually draw us into situations and relationships that will activate or reflect them to us for healing. When this happens, it looks and feels like other people or the circumstances we face have caused the fear and pain we experience. Then we usually fight, flee or freeze and demonstrate the fear response that underlies anger, depression and disease. We project this world of duality from within our own consciousness. This allows us to see, feel and release the pain and fear within us that blocks our inner joy and peace, when we are ready. That is what this world is best used for, a mirror to hidden parts of our unconscious mind that need to be revealed and healed. It is a gift if we can use it effectively to release this pain and fear within us and find peace. On the other hand, if we become frightened, defend and attack, it becomes a curse. In this world, which is a projected reflection of our own consciousness, “All that I give I give to myself.” (ACIM) This means that if I attack, I will be attacked and the cycle of pain and fear I experience will continue to escalate. Look at the Middle East. To stop this destructive and useless cycle, we need to recognize we are fighting with shadows that are ourselves and then be prepared to give up our attacks and defenses. This terrifies the ego, which fears its death. “We are not the victims of the world we see. We are the creators.” (A.C.I.M.) When we suffer enough and finally gain the readiness to accept the truth of this statement, we will then learn more constructive ways to feel and release our inner pain and fear, ways that will awaken or release the creative and healing energy of peace, joy and love that has been dammed up and hidden within us. This will cure the cause of our depression, not just suspend the symptoms. The following methods will help to accomplish this goal with your readiness to patiently practice them.

1. Always find the pain and fear beneath your anger or depression. Sometimes this is difficult, especially when deeply buried under anger and deadness. Look for feelings like sadness, emptiness, failure, loss, helplessness, deadness, lost ness, separateness and despair.

2. Next locate the experience of this pain or fear somewhere in your body if you can, usually in your heart or abdomen area.

3. Then take a slow, deep breath and as you breathe out, let go and relax into the place within your body where you experience the pain and fear. Be patient and take time to relax more and more deeply into the pain of this experience on every out breath until you begin to lose your fear and calm somewhat. This could take a number of minutes if you are very upset.
4. Speak directly to this experience using this statement that reflects the fact you are facing your own projections. “You are an appearance only, not the truth.  You are an effect caused by my own feelings, fears and thoughts.  You cannot be a cause.  I give you no power over me.” (“The Infinite Way,” Joel Goldsmith)

5. You cannot heal yourself. When you break a bone, apart from setting and placing it to rest in a cast, a doctor does not mend it.  The healing energy within you does.  This applies to your emotional body as well.  For this reason, make this sincere request to the Healing Energy within you, “Healing Spirit, I willingly give You this appearance of pain and fear within me, not of love (fear) and ask you to dissolve it into the nothingness from which it was born.” (ACIM)

6. Then let go, be still and wait with infinite patience, patient expectancy and calm certainty for the Healing Energy within you to answer your request, as with patient faith, It surely will.

7. Finally, realize that your complete healing and release from the pain and fear within you will come through an ongoing process of “Authentic Forgiveness,” the ability to accept without resistance or judgment and overlook with compassion the painful, fearful and defensive parts of yourself, not of love, activated and reflected in your dream of separation here. End your healing session with this prayer. “Healing Spirit, help me to accept without resistance or judgment and overlook with compassion this part of me not of love that I now experience in my dream of separation here. This person is an appearance only, not the truth, mistaken like me. There is nothing to fear or forgive ”

Concluding Explanation

The healing methods outlined in section “B” of this article come from Gestalt Therapy and the “Non Dualistic” philosophies found in early Christianity, parts of Buddhism, the Hindu Vedanta, “A Course In Miracles,” and the “Infinite Way” material of Joel Goldsmith. Quantum Physics confirms important aspects of this philosophy with its research that demonstrates the world we see is held in place through our individual and collective belief and attention. In other words, we make real and give power to anything we believe in and attend to. This suggests the world we experience through our five senses is not real, rather a dream we project from within our own consciousness, collectively miscreated from the fear-based wishes, thoughts, beliefs and emotions we attend to. This explains why we see so much pain, fear, anger, attack, illness and suffering reflected here. You can see, therefore, why our release comes from not responding or attending to the fear-based issues we seem to encounter. When we do, we affirm their reality and give them power. The Buddha called this physical world Maya, another word for dream or illusion. Once we begin to understand and accept that the world we see is a projected reflection of our own fear-based consciousness, we can then begin to use it to release the unconscious pain and fear within us. This is the gift offered by it, an opportunity to see, experience and release this hidden body of pain and fear housed within our unconscious mind. This “Pain Body,” as it is called, separates us from the peace, power, joy, love and healing power of our Spiritual Identity. Once we understand and accept that what upsets and frightens us in the world is really a projection of the disowned, pain, defenses, and fear hidden within our own unconscious mind, then we can use the methods I have suggested above to release them. The natural consequence of releasing this unconscious body of pain, fear and the defenses within us is that we then awaken from our dream of separation and fear, this physical universe, into the infinite peace, power, joy and love our Spiritual Identity, our True Self. Teachers like the Buddha, Jesus and to some degree Joel Goldsmith have done this and gone on to demonstrate the healing power of peace and love housed in our consciousness, beneath the layers of our fear-based mind, body, emotion or ego self. Spiritual Healings and Spiritual Healers merely demonstrate the healing power we all house within us, once we release or surrender these layers of ego defenses and allow the healing energy of our Spiritual Identity, Love, to shine forth from within. This is what it means to “Awaken From The Dream,” or become “Enlightened,” the foundation of all Healing and Miracles.

Summary

It is unfortunate that because of limited belief systems and lack of readiness, many individuals, perhaps a majority, are restricted to dealing with depression largely through crisis intervention, avoidance and symptom control. In many instances, individuals avoid their boredom, anxiety and depression by distracting themselves through compulsive activities like texting, gaming, web surfing, sex and TV, or by sedation and self-medication through food, smoking, drugs, and alcohol, methods that can become addictive and harmful over time. In addition, they rob us of the opportunity to find lasting security and peace. Keep in mind, when deep depression hits, they will not work.

In this article, I have attempted to outline the cause of depression and presented methods for dealing more constructively with, both symptoms and the underlying pain, fear and defenses that cause it. In the beginning, you may need to repeat these steps or methods often, probably with every occurrence of the symptoms. Eventually, you will begin to experience the peace within you beneath your pain and fear. Then, you will become increasingly more willing to trust, give up control and fully release your pain, fear and ego defenses, the underlying cause of your depression.

David Ott, M.Ed.
April 14, 2011
Ucluelet, B.C.

Driven To Hurt

When You Want To Hurt

When our ego control and defenses are close to being shattered, we become very frightened of the unknown and begin to think hurtful thoughts. This is our ego's way of trying and gain control in situations where we feel overwhelmed, helpless, alone and lost. When the ego feels helpless, not in control, alone and lost, it fears the worst, its death. Throughout the ages this experience has been called, "The Dark Night Of The Soul," and yes, has led some to suicide and murder in a final and desperate gesture to gain control when feeling helpless, lost and frightened. This whole experience is like suffering your death, before you die, a process where you are forced to let go of every support you have relied on in the past for your feelings of safety. Fritz Perls, the Gestalt Therapy founder, in an understatement said about this loss of control experience, "To suffer your death and be reborn is not easy."

Although some have lashed out and hurt either themselves and others when faced with the terrifying feelings of losing control, helplessness and possible death, many others with the readiness and courage to risk LETTING GO and GIVING UP CONTROL do ASK FOR HELP and have found that, like the butterfly caterpillar, what looks like death is really CHANGE into a higher form of life that could never be understood or grasped from the less, evolved caterpillar-like state. What looks like death to our ego is really the opportunity to WAKE UP, like in the "Matrix," from our less, evolved physical dream-state of separation and fear. I have tried to demonstrate this potential in the illustrations and short power point slide show I have prepared titled "The Cloud-Layers Of Ego." (See bottom-right margin of this Blog Site.)

Underneath the layers of the mind, body, emotion, (ego) defenses, our ego, sees only death. At this point, by giving up ego defenses and control, letting go and asking for help, we will be led instead into the Peace, Power, Joy and Love of our "Spiritual Identity." Here we are universally connected and safe. You will never believe this truth until you take the risk, give up control and EXPERIENCE IT FOR YOURSELF. Those who do gain what Joel Goldsmith calls, "The Mystical Experience Of God Presence." Most have suffered greatly to gain this Truth and experience. Through your suffering, there will come a point of readiness where you will risk giving up your ego control and probably scream out in desperate fear for your life, "God Help Me!" When you do, you will, like Fritz Perls says, be "Reborn" into your Spiritual Identity where you will feel at home and find Peace. I believe every person on this planet is on a path that will eventually lead to an opportunity to discover this same truth. In my mind, when your sensitivity and suffering leads you to feel desperate, it means you are almost ready to experience this, your True Identity. This kind of experience comes to us only when we are ready and none of us have conscious control over the timing of this readiness. What I have attempted to do is prepare you so you might be more willing to take this risk of giving up control and ask for help at those times when you are in deep suffering and frightened to let go. The level of our suffering is in direct proportion to the level of our fear and unwillingness to give up control. The Buddha said, "All suffering is attachment," meaning our attachment to ego control.

As a result, I urge you to allow yourself to feel overwhelmed, helpless and not in control. When you start to feel overwhelmed, helpless and desperate, realize you are indeed alive at the moment. Then give yourself permission to feel helpless and not in control.  Imagine you are like the caterpillar in its cocoon, in a process of change for the better. Since, like the caterpillar, we can never know what is best for us from our limited perspective, give the control of this change to the highest part of your right brain, unconscious mind. Echart Tolle would say, "Accept what is." Pretend you are a little child and allow yourself to give up your control to an unconscious wiser part of yourself who will look after you. ACIM would say, "All things are gently planned by One whose only purpose is our good." This truth has been driven home to me again and again in my life, in hindsight, after going through desperate times of change, pain and fear. Try to keep in mind when you become frightened or in pain that holding on and resisting will increase your suffering. Instead see if you can breathe and let go into it and give it to the Healing Energy within you.

Remember when you feel desperate and want to hurt yourself and others that this only happens when you resist feeling helpless and giving up control. The desire to hurt others or ourselves is always the ego's desperate way of attempting to assert control in fearful and painful situation when we feel helpless, lost and alone. The alternative and more constructive reaction at these times would be to simply accept that you are not in control that you feel lost and need direction and help. A book by Anthony Peaks, “Is there Life After Death,” documents the important support we gain through the right brain part of our unconscious mind at times when we feel we are about to die and give up all hope. This should not be hard to accept when you consider the experience of artists, writers, poets and athletes who are consistently inspired and guided through the right brain, creative or intuitive part of their unconscious mind. When we give up left-brain or ego control, our ego becomes frightened, lost and it feels like death. In truth, we are only turning control over to a higher or Wiser Voice within our mind that has access to unlimited information and strategy.

Summary:

The next time you feel overwhelmed, desperate and want to hurt yourself or others, openly admit to yourself, out loud if you can, that you feel helpless, not in control and frightened. Then simply breathe fully and on the out breath, let go into this experience. Finally accept you feel helpless and simply say to the wise and healing energy of your right brain, "Help me any way you can." Realize you have accepted the truth of your plight and then realize you can do nothing more. By giving up ego control, you bring stillness and surrender to your left-brain, ego. This allows access to the more wise and better-informed right brain to handle the situation. Inspiration and solutions to your issues may not come immediately. Trust, however, eventually they will be worked out and solved for your greatest good by the Wisdom gained through your right-brain consciousness. I link this right-brain consciousness to our Spiritual Identity, although you may not want to make this link. I think when you link religion with spirituality and reject both, you throw out the baby with the bath water. I encourage you not to make this mistake. The recent Quantum Physics research supports the mystical view of energy or spirit and the illusion of matter. Life as we experience it through our five senses and this physical universe is largely a mess filled with change, fear and separation. It does, however, give us a chance to heal our pain and fear and awaken from this dream of separation. For this opportunity alone, it is both important and essential to our awakening process where we will then find Peace and our True Identity.  These ideas are continued in the next two Blog entries.

David Ott, M.Ed.
http://www.peakrecovery.com/

The Perfect Storm

The Perfect Storm
Our Role In Healing Dramas

I am always amazed how innocently we enter and how perfectly we are cast for the relationships and healing dramas we are drawn into. If we or others have a lesson to learn or emotional wounds and fears to experience for healing and release, ego needs, circumstance and opportunity all come together in some unexplainable way to create a perfect storm to shatter all our carefully constructed walls and defenses. In hind site, it looks like some all-knowing writer and director have created the perfect drama and cast the perfect actors to play each and every role. Ego needs, weaknesses and strengths are all taken into account so that the words and actions from each character, including us, flow forth effortlessly to produce the perfect plot, conflict, action and climax.

In order to release and heal our emotional pain and fear we need only experience and suffer through it without blame, anger, or any other defensive strategy. To gain this kind of healing opportunity, it is obvious that all our carefully built controls and defenses need to be shattered so the emotional wounds and fears beneath can be experienced and released. The suffering we experience is directly proportional to the energy we put into resisting or avoiding this process. “What we resist will persist and strengthen.” The healing process is like giving birth. By breathing, experiencing, and letting go into the physical pain on every out breath, we greatly minimize the suffering we experience. The more we resist feeling our pain and fear, the stronger and longer we will suffer. The next time you find yourself feeling hurt and upset in a relationship or healing drama, stop a moment before you lash out with anger, blame, or use any defense. Realize the feeling, releasing and healing of this pain and fear within you is “all this world is for,” (ACIM) the only lasting purpose it can serve and the real reason you are here. See this situation and all the people involved as gathered together by some more knowing and higher part of yourself to assist in your healing and release. Understand this drama has been carefully orchestrated as an opportunity for you to feel and release the layers of pain and fear that keep you separated from your inner Peace and Joy. Choose, this time, to let go your blame, anger and anything else that will rob you of the opportunity to feel and release this heavy body of pain and fear you carry within. This is the way we awaken from our ego’s dream of separation, pain and fear into the Light, Love, Peace and Joy that is our Truth.

Breathe, relax and let go into the upset and pain on every out breath. You will usually find it located somewhere in your heart or abdomen. At the end of every out breath, let go and repeat this simple release and healing prayer. “Spirit, I willingly give you the appearance of this pain and fear and ask you to dissolve it into the nothingness from which it was born.” Then let it go and begin again. The more you can relax and let go the sooner will be your release. Our role is to feel, let go and sink into our pain and fear without resistance. Our Inner, Healing Energy can then release and heal us. The doctor sets and then places a broken bone to rest in a cast. Nature’s Healing Energy or Spirit does the rest. This same Healing Energy, with stillness and surrender, will heal the pain and fear of our Emotion Body too, if we are willing to experience the pain and fear, ask for help and give it over to this Healing Energy within us. Continue this release and healing process until you find some degree of calmness filtering into your consciousness. At first, when your mind wanders into the future or past, your pain and fear will probably reappear and you will need to begin this whole process once again. Take heart, however, with patient persistence, the pain and fear you experience that is always “an appearance only and not the truth,” (Joel Goldsmith) will eventually dissolve like mist in the summer sun and you will then feel much lighter and brighter. Whenever you experience inner upset, pain or fear, you might use the approach suggested by Joel Goldsmith, author of, “The Infinite Way.” Speak directly to the experience of your pain and fear the following: “You are an appearance only and not the truth. I will give you no power over me.” I would then repeat again, “Spirit, I willingly give you the appearance of this pain and fear and ask you to dissolve it into the nothingness from which it was born.” “The ego effects can be dispelled merely by denying their reality.” (ACIM) With patient persistence, this process will eventually succeed and, like learning any skill, becomes easier and more effective with practice.

All relationships house potential for healing dramas with opportunities to experience and release our unconscious pain and fear. Unfortunately, few of us are ready and willing to give up our anger and blame so we can feel and release our pain. Until we can meet and release the pain and fear within us without resistance or defense, their vibration will continue to draw us into painful and fearful dramas with ongoing opportunities for their experience and release. This is the “Law of Attraction.” Every pain and fear we experience and release allows us to open more fully to the Joy and Love beneath the clouds of our fear-based ego. All the relationships and healing dramas we draw to ourselves will either mirror or activate some aspect of the pain and fear we house within our own consciousness. We then gain the opportunity to feel, release and finally “Forgive,” accept without resistance or judgment and overlook with compassion this part of our unconscious mind, not of love, (fear) that has been reflected to us or activated within us by the words and actions of others within our healing drama. Since others only mirror or activate the pain and fear within our own consciousness, by forgiving or overlooking with love and compassion their words and behaviour, as well as our own pain and fear, we are forgiving and healing ourselves. We are also undoing the ego by denying its effects or reality. However real the ego perceptions or effects seem, they are appearances only and not the truth. Because they are effects that were caused by our own ego or fear-based consciousness, they cannot be CAUSAL and therefore can have no real power over us without our attention, acceptance and reaction. Remember always that the only way our ego gains any power is through our own attention and reaction. By overlooking, denying and not reacting to our ego’s effects or perceptions, we dispel it and awaken from our ego’s dream of separation and fear into the light, love peace and joy with in us. This is our True Identity as Spirit. This is the process of Authentic Forgiveness. “A Course In Miracles” proclaims this to be our only legitimate function here.

The experience and release of our pain and fear together with the practice of Authentic Forgiveness within our relationships and healing dramas are the most difficult and essential aspects of our healing and awakening journey in this world. This two-fold process takes readiness, the courage to surrender and a willingness to ask for and accept the help of the Healing Spirit within us. To the extent that we can "Authentically Forgive" others within our relationships and healing dramas, to that extent we gain healing and forgiveness for ourselves. In truth, we do not relate to others but to our own consciousness projected onto them. That is why “A Course In Miracles says, “When you meet anyone, remember it is a holy encounter. As you see him you will see yourself. As you treat him you will treat yourself. As you think of him you will think of yourself. Never forget this, for in him you will find yourself or lose yourself. “

David Ott, M.Ed. 30/08/10.

http://www.peakrecovery.com

The Underlying Cause of Disease & Suffering

To cure illness and suffering, we need to know the underlying CAUSE. Practitioners are often content to work with and remove the symptoms alone. Unfortunately these symptoms will eventually reactivate within the individual until the route cause of the illness has been dealt with, mentally, emotionally and physically. Joel Goldsmith, a famous spiritual healer in the 50s, founder of “The Infinite Way” movement wrote, “Unless there is a change of consciousness, there will be a re occurrence of the disorder.” (i)

Although it is difficult for our left brain ego to believe or even grasp, keep in mind that before pain and suffering, before illness and disease, before criticism, judgment, blame, anger, and rage, before depression and despair, before suicide or murder, before any destructive, abusive, addictive or compulsive behaviour, we have held within our consciousness for a period of time, perhaps lifetimes, some form of anxiety, pain and fear. The right brain part of our consciousness, with unconscious connection to our Spiritual Identity or Eternal, Energy Self, carries this anxiety, pain and fear into every physical lifetime we choose to learn and grow in, with the underlying pressure to heal and release it. This accounts for the occurrence of childhood cancer, diabetes and other genetic illnesses that occur early in life. It is also likely, our genetic families here hold links to energy or soul families on a spiritual plain and that family fear-based issues may be worked on over many generations until they are finally healed and released. I have noticed, for instance, that throughout my lifetime, I have encountered fear-based physical and emotional issues very similar to those my parents tried to deal with.

If it is difficult for you to accept that illness, disease, addictive, compulsive and destructive behaviour, in addition to various forms of mental, emotional and physical illness and suffering are routed in, or caused by, anxiety and fear, it might be of interest for you to look at the works of Dr. Hans Selier and more recently, Michael Meaney, a Neuroscientist at McGill University, Montreal. Both have studied the effects of the “Stress” (“Fight, Flight, Freeze”) Response on the systems of the body. In the 40s, Selier came to the conclusion that over 75% of the reasons why patients visit medical doctors are directly or indirectly related to this Stress, Fear or Adrenaline response. At the time he was laughed out of a medical conference for this suggestion. Now the ultra conservative medical profession, as a whole, has admitted that this percentage is probably above 85%.

The issue to understand here is that this stress or fear response, if extended over a period of time, drains energy causing an "Energy Crisis" and changes to our body chemistry, which then compromises our immunity and many other body systems. It also raises our blood pressure and blocks enzyme and insulin production often resulting in food, environmental allergies and diabetes. Anyone connected with sports or physical and mental activity of any kinds knows that most mistakes and accidents occur when the mind and body are tired and weak. When we are rested, exercise and eat properly, free from pain and fear, our mind and body have the innate ability to function well and, in most cases, protect themselves from accidents, illness and disease. Unfortunately, in this fast-paced, modern age of change and stress, we lose focus and fall prey to the devastation brought about by this “Fear” or “Adrenalin” Response.

The first thing we need to do to protect ourselves from this devastation is, whenever possible, place ourselves in relationships, jobs and situations where, for the most part, we feel happy, supported, successful and unthreatened. Since we live in a world filled with change, pain, fear and loss to varying degrees, it would be naive to think we could accomplish this goal throughout our entire life. We can, however, counteract the devastation of this “Fear Response” with the “Relaxation Response,” through various forms of meditation and relaxation practices. The goal of these practices is simply to “QUIET” or “STILL” the Left Brain part of our Mind, Body, Emotion (ego) self for periods of time each day. This allows access to the Life-Force Energy and Peace that flows naturally through the Right Brain part of our unconscious mind. Research has consistently shown that individuals who practise meditation or other forms of relaxation response techniques prevent, or recover from, illness, disease, and surgery much faster than individuals who do not. For this reason, I encourage you to explore these techniques to see if you are ready and able to use them to assist in your own disease prevention and healing. You will find information about these techniques on the “Zone” page of my “Peak Recovery” web site.

http://www.peakrecovery.com/peak_recovery_007.htm

Finally, it might be worthwhile to explore and understand the importance of healing the unconscious body of pain and fear we carry within our consciousness. Whenever these wounds and fears surface within in the relationships and situations we encounter here, the “Fear Response” is activated once again. Then we usually react with some form of defensive response like criticism, judgment, blame, anger, muscle tension or flight, all of which block the possibility for their healing and release. One of the prime reasons our souls choose to journey in this physical universe is to gain the opportunity to physically experience our emotional pain and fear. To heal and release it, we need first to feel it. How else would we know it exist within us? By clearing these wounds and fears, we automatically awaken more fully into the peace and joy we experience through the “right brain,” part of our unconscious mind. These wounds and fears, along with the defences we use to avoid them, which Echart Tolle calls our “Pain Body,” (ii) act like heavy clouds to hide from us the peace and joy we carry deep within our unconscious mind. See the " Cloud Layers Of Ego" illustration at the end of this Blog.

The mystics have always known and the research of quantum physics is now proving that the world we experience with our five senses is projected from within our own consciousness. This means that until we release the emotional wounds and fears we carry within our consciousness, through the “Law Of Attraction,” they will continue to be activated and reflected in the relationships, activities and situations we encounter here. As long as we avoid experiencing them through distraction, sedation, blame, anger and other destructive coping choices, they will return again and again to haunt us. Then we will begin to live our lives in a state of fear-based worry, control, defence and attack that will eventually drain our energy creating an "Energy Crisis," causing illness and block our joy as well as the ability to love and relate to others. Sadly, this is the state of mind of vast numbers of people here on this planet. Pain and fear-based dramas are continually being acted out within individuals, relationships, families and nations. Whenever we get hurt or frightened, our ego perceives our suffering as caused by a person or situation outside us and immediately begins to defend against or attack it. In order to heal, it is essential that we begin to understand and accept that the pain and fear within us has attracted, projected and manifested this situation, person or drama giving us the opportunity to feel, acknowledge and ultimately, to heal and release it from our consciousness.

To do this, slowly begin to train yourself to view and accept that the frightening and painful situations and relationship dramas you experience have be initiated from within your own consciousness and that this gives you and opportunity to heal and release the pain and fear so they will not return. Next, whenever you begin to experience any form of pain or fear, begin to breathe more fully. Let go or relax into the physical experience of this pain or fear on every out breath. You will find this physical experience somewhere in the area of your heart or abdomen. Continue this form of out breath surrender until you begin to relax a little and your desire to attack, defend or run lessens. Then address the Healing Energy within you with these words: “Help me to accept without resistance or judgment and overlook with compassion this part of me not of love (fear) that has been projected, reflected and activated in my dream of separation here. I willingly give it to You to dissolve into the nothingness from which it was born.” Continue to breathe slowly and fully for the next two minutes, remembering to let go and relax on every out breath. "A Course In Miracles" makes it clear that whatever we willingly give to the healing energy within us that is not of love (of fear) will eventually dissolve like mist in the summer sun. A doctor does not heal a broken bone. He places it at rest or still in a cast so the Healing Energy within can mend the break. It might be helpful for you to appreciate that, through mental stillness and surrender, you are releasing your fears and wounds to this same energy. Is it not likely it will heal and the wounds and fears within your emotional body too? I encourage you to experiment with this method for at least a month. If you do, you will find, I am sure, an ever-increasing freedom from the painful and fearful dramas you experience in your life and relationships. The following three articles from my “Peak Recovery” web site may help to further clarify this topic:

http://www.peakrecovery.com/painenergydisease.pdf

http://www.peakrecovery.com/a%20better%20way.q.pdf

http://www.peakrecovery.com/heal.chall.rel..pdf

David Ott, M.Ed.  http://www.peakrecovery.com/

i Joel Goldsmith, “Consciousness Transformed” Hawaii Hotel Talks, page 13

ii Echart Tolle, “The Power Of Now,”

Meditation, Purpose,Process & Practice

About Meditation, Further Comment:

I'm really happy to hear you understand a appreciate some of the advantages offered by meditation and the awakening of the right-brain or intuitive part of our unconscious mind. I did not realize you had explored this facet of your identity. I know that if you continue to be drawn into this process of STILLING the mind, body or emotion (ego self) you will continue to find increased freedom from fear and anxiety in your life.

Personally I do think it is important to link the peace you begin to experience with ego surrender or meditation to the understanding that you are awakening to the spiritual or eternal part of your identity where we are universally connected to everyone and everything we experience here in what "A Course In Miracles" would call our "DREAM of Separation and Fear." This is what the movie, "The Matrix" was trying to teach us, what the Buddha discovered through meditation and more recently what Quantum Physics has concluded with its experiments. See the DVD "What The Bleep" if you are interested in these kinds of concepts. Very simply its says that we hold matter, or this world into place with our attention, and like the Buddha said, what we see, hear, touch, taste or smell with our five senses is an appearance only, a dream and not real at the level of Eternal Truth. That is why when we put our trust in our ego constructed world or dream (maya) we feel so separate, lost and fearful at times.

When we mediate and connect with our Spiritual or Eternal Identity, even for moments, we feel deep peace because in these moments we are connecting with Infinite Peace, our True Identity and beginning to wake up from our dream that we are separate from each other and from our Divine or Spiritual Self. It takes time and patience to meditate enough to break the ego's hold and begin to awaken more and more fully to our True Identity as Spiritual Beings, all connected through a Divine Energy Source often referred to as Love or God. I urge you to press forward with "Patient Persistence" because in the end, this awakening from our dream and the discovery of our Spiritual Identity is the greatest gift a lifetime in this world offers us. Eventually we will all learn this lesson and find our way back Home to our Divine or Eternal Truth. If you are beginning to explore meditation already, then you are well on your way. You will only come to believe in your Spiritual Identity by actually EXPERIENCING its Peace and Love (Gratitude) through mediation and ego (mind, body, emotion) surrender. Remember we are drawn to this path only when we are ready, so do not beat yourself up if you are not. As soon as you are ready, I urge you to find your own meditation teacher or group to encourage and support this road or path that, in this dream, is THE ONE LESS TRAVELLED.

In groups, stilling the mind, body, emotion self is often easier and you can find a deeper sense of inner stillness and peace.  Once again I suggest that you copy one of the meditations on my web site into your mp3 player and listen to it lying down with ear-phones. The "Layers Of Self," short power point show on my web site (link below) might help you to more fully understand the purpose, process and practice of meditation. http://www.peakrecovery.com/cloud%20layers.pps

Good Luck and "May the Force be with you!"

David Ott,
http://www.peakrecovery.com/

Healing Challenges In Relationships

Everything seems to go well in relationships until circumstances or interactions activate some aspect of the pain and fear we carry within us. Unaware we carry this pain and fear, the probability is high we will become frightened and defensive when it surfaces. To us, it looks and feels like the person or situation that brought these painful feelings to the surface has CAUSED them. When this happens, through lack of readiness, skills or stamina, the pain and fear we experience often feels threatening and overwhelming. At this point, we usually turn to defensive patterns we have learned in the past to try and shut them down. They might include avoidance, flight, blame and anger to escape or drive away the seeming cause of the pain and fear we are being pressed to experience.

As long as we have pain and fear within us to heal, through the "Law of Attraction," these "Pain Body" vibrations will continually draw to us relationships and situations of like vibration that will activate and bring them unexpectedly to the surface. It seems to me that the only meaningful way to deal with this pain and fear is to find appropriate ways to feel, release and heal it so that it will not damage the good and valuable parts of our relationships or keep returning. It makes no sense to continue behaviour that does not help in some way to release and heal the pain and fear blocking the Peace, Joy and Love hidden beneath. This pain and fear is, as Joel Goldsmith says, “an appearance only and not the truth.” These are the “Mythical Dragons” found in the tales of middle-age literature that appear to guard the castle, a symbol of the heart, to try and stop the questing knights from finding, “The Holy Grail,” the Joy and Love hidden deep within. Finding Inner Peace and Love, therefore, depends on our willingness to face and defeat or dissolve the illusion of these Fire-Breathing Dragons, metaphors for the pain and fear, housed within the ego, that try to stop us from finding inner peace and love.


We defeat or dissolve these “Mythical Dragons” simply by facing and experiencing them. We need only breathe fully and relax into our pain and fear with each out breath. As you begin to calm somewhat with the realization you are surviving the pain and fear of the experience, use the Joel Goldsmith approach for dealing with this kind of situation. Confront these painful illusions with, "You are an appearance only. You are not the truth. I will give you no power over me!” Then follow the directions found in “A Course In Miracles” with, “Holy Spirit, I willingly give you these appearances that are not of love to dissolve into the nothingness from which they were born." (T-12.11.10) The more often you practice this exercise whenever your pain and fear is activated, the sooner you will come to realize, through experience, that it will eventually dissolve like mist in the summer sun. In the beginning, expect your ego to resist and want you to see the cause of the pain and fear coming from outside you and press you to attack or defend against it. This will keep you suffering as its hostage. Always remember, even though your pain and fear might look and feel like someone or something outside you caused it, this is NOT THE TRUTH. Our pain and fear is held within our own consciousness, projected and then reflected or activated by seeming outside forces. It is our willingness to give up our struggle with these outside forces and experience the pain and fear within us, without resistance, attack or defense that will dissolve it forever within our mind. “All that I do I do unto myself. If I attack, I suffer. But if I forgive (overlook with compassion) salvation will be given me.” (L-216, ACIM) To better understand and accept this “non dualistic” philosophy of “A Course In Miracles,” that the world we seem to experience outside us is really housed like a dream within our own mind, I encourage you to read the book, “ Is There Life After Death?” by Anthony Peake.


It is both possible and simple to develop more constructive strategies to deal with these Dragons when they become aroused within our relationships. In fact, the only reason we are here is to do just that, to undo our ego and its defenses. Usually when the pain and fear within us becomes activated, we become frightened and overwhelmed. Often our partners or others we interact with appear to cause our upset and we lash out at them with blame and anger attempting to stop the seeming cause of the pain and fear we experience. Sometimes we will withdraw instead. The purpose behind more constructive coping choices is to help us face, feel and release the pain and fear within us, instead of defending or attacking the situations and individuals that activate them. Unless we face and release this pain and fear, it will continually return to haunt us. If we attack, we will be attacked. If we forgive, (overlook with compassion) we will be forgiven. "All that I give, I give to myself," (L-126, ACIM)


When we have suffered enough from our relationship conflicts, dramas and the pain and fear that drew them to us, we will eventually become ready to ask for and try, “A Better Way” to heal and release this inner pain and fear. The readiness and willingness to surrender the old destructive patterns is always the hardest part the healing journey. It is sometimes difficult at first to discover the painful emotions and fears that are being activated within us. In most instances, they will revolve around issues like, unexpected change or loss, disappointment, betrayal, failure, the unknown, sadness, worthlessness, separation, emptiness, helplessness, feeling overwhelmed, trapped or abandoned. Their pain and fear will be physically experiences somewhere in the area of the heart or abdomen. These will be the areas to breathe, let go and relax into on every out breath. This will release and heal them. Once we begin to breathe more deeply and relax more fully into our “Pain Body,” it will lessen the intensity of our anxiety and eventually dissolve the pain and fear it holds. Be very patient and persistent in this pursuit.


One last thing, if we consistently felt the security and love we shared at the beginning of our relationships or in past ones, the necessary activation of our inner pain and fear for healing would be absent. If we want to heal this pain and fear and awaken to the Peace and Joy hidden in our consciousness, beneath these clouds of fear-based ego, it is somewhat naive and unfair for us to blame our current partners for playing their perfect activation and healing roles within our relationship dramas. On the other hand, it is just as naive to think that we will not experience this same Inner Peace, Joy and Love within all our relationships, after we gain the courage to face and dissolve these cloud-layers. These are the mind, body, emotion defenses and appearances of pain and fear that hide from us the Light, Peace, Joy and Love of our Spiritual Identity, buried like a treasure beneath them.

If you are interested in a more detailed article on this topic, please click onto the link below that will take you to an article I had published September 2010 in Jon Mundy’s “Miracle Magazine,” out of New York. It is “A Course In Miracles” based and titled, “A Better Way.”


http://www.peakrecovery.com/a%20better%20way.q.pdf


David Ott, M.Ed.
http://www.peakrecovery.com/

What Is Peak Recovery

Peak Recovery is not just a recovery process or program for individuals using destructive substances and activities to cope with life. It is the process that every human being on this planet is engaged in at a conscious or unconscious level. We all search for the RECOVERY of our peace and happiness, a sense of belonging and safety in a world filled with insecurity, fear and pain.


All of us feel frightened, lost, wounded and alone, to varying degrees and for varying periods of time as we journey through our uncertain life here. To free ourselves from our feelings of fear and separation, most of us search for peace, love, meaning and security within our relationships, careers and activities in the world, or escape through various forms of coping strategies. In time, each one of these pursuits will fail, disappoint and hurt us leaving us feeling empty and anxious once again.

Whatever security or happiness we find within the world is, by its changing nature, always uncertain and temporary, leaving us with underlying anxiety, depression and fear that drain our energy and joy. The good news is that suffering from the loss of peace and the disappointments we find in the world will eventually press us into the readiness to ask for "a better way." This readiness and request will then draw to us information like this and teachers who begin to guide our journey inward. This inward journey awakens us to our Eternal Identity, the Identity we forgot with the evolution of our left brain consciousness that allowed us to think, remember, dream, worry and plan in search of security from the future and past.

This was the "ORIGINAL MISTAKE" that led us away from the PRESENT into the dream within our minds of a past we could hold in our memory and a future we hoped to plan and control, both in a futile attempt to gain our security. How can we find security from a past or future that exists only within our mind, is not present and therefore, is not real? Lasting or REAL SECURITY, the peace, power joy and love of our Spiritual Identity, can only be accessed in the Here and Now of the PRESENT!

In this blog, I hope to share some ideas and cast some light on this Inner Journey that will awaken our forgotten Spiritual Identity, the peace, power joy and love within. To help guide my comments for this blog, I urge you to send me questions, comments and feedback. I am especially interested in your personal recovery journey. As we share our experiences we help ourselves and others find Inner Peace. "Thoughts strengthen when shared." ("A Course In Miracles") If you haven't already done so, you might check out my "Peak Recovery" web site

David Ott, M.Ed.
http://www.peakrecovery.com/