Stress Therapy

 

My son bought me a brilliant poster. It is called Stress Therapy and it has three circles on it. In the middle on the red section is written ‘Bang Head Here’ for Maximum stress and then on the white area for High Stress and on the blue area for Medium stress. I put it on the back of my door, and I can’t say I haven’t been tempted to use it, but so far so good! It makes me laugh when I see it!

Like most of you reading this, I’ve gone through many stressful occasions, I’ve been through marital separation, and lost my house through that, got it back,  been struggling to pay the mortgage, I’ve experienced unemployment, self employment, illness etc. etc .yes, .I’ve been there, done that, worn the t- shirt, yep !

And yes I too have had my dark days in the past when I just didn’t want to get out of bed and face all the hassles and dramas, and yes I too have had the odd suicidal thought, where the illusion that it would be just better to check out now, entered my head….And I just want to say to you reading this… it doesn’t have to be that way!

What I want to share with you is how I coped and how I am still coping, how you can keep the dark thoughts at bay, how you can become calm in the face of adversity, how you can perhaps even stop those low thoughts at the start before they spiral out of control and cause some form of depression. What I’m going to share with you is a tool box of techniques that I now use with my clients for Stress & Anxiety management and prevention.

So let’s begin, firstly let me explain .Stress is actually our reaction to events. When something happens that we don’t want to happen, we create resistance in our body and mind to it. Our body perceives it as a threat. This triggers a stress response in the body called  Fight or Flight. I like to think of it humorously as if there were a load of workmen and workwomen in our bodies having a tea break and then something happens and then it’s all systems go. Oxygen gets pumped from the brain; it goes into the heart and lungs, to help supply more blood to the muscles in our arms and legs so that we may flee if necessary. Then adrenalin and cortisol gets pumped in excessive quantities to help improve muscle function, so if we need to fight then we have the strength to do so. But most situations aren’t like that, we’re not in a fight or flight scenario, so what happens? We feel sick, our breathing becomes shallower; our heart rate speeds up, we can’t think straight, we may get weakness in the legs, nausea, stomach upsets, some people think they are going to die on the spot, they may even develop a panic attack and so on.

Now that’s a once off situation I’ve mentioned. If you are constantly stressed though, what happens? Well the cortisol and adrenalin are still being pumped into your body in excess, these are natural and necessary substances that the body produces but they become harmful over a period of time when we are stressed continuously. They lower our immune system. Now I’ve done a lot of research on causes of illness as I was developing a Wellness Programme for my clients, and I have cone to believe that the causes of all illness and cancers begin in our bodies when our immune system is weakened.

How do you boost your immune system? There are many things you can do, including improving diet, nutrition, exercise, releasing negative emotions and well…stop getting stressed out! ‘Oh yeah right’ I can hear you say, ‘How?’ Well as I mentioned earlier, stress is our response to things, it’s our reactions. Life is always going to keep happening to you, don’t think that you can reduce the stressful things coming at you, you won’t. You might mange to deal with one and then find another comes at ya, that’s life! What you can do is take on board a few of my suggestions, incorporate them into your daily routine and in a relatively short  time, you will find that you feel less stressed,  you will be better able to think more clearly, make better decisions, plan better and generally feel calmer and healthier over time. I even noticed that I started getting less and less colds etc. and that by tuning into what my body was trying to tell me, that even if the symptoms of a cold were starting, that by making time to rest and relax and nourish myself, that the colds wouldn’t happen. When we are stressed we feel that the world won’t go on without us, yet when we then become ill we find that is has to! Look after yourself! The world can wait!

Anxiety Breathing Technique

I use this everyday, whether the kids are killing each other, or I’m stuck in traffic, or the bank has overdrawn and I discover I’ve no money for food again, or I’m stuck in a long queue, or life is not giving me what I want etc…I use this technique religiously, I use it before I get up in the morning, before I go to sleep, throughout the day etc. and it works. I  had a car accident a few weeks back, a guy crashed into my car, I saw him coming, did my best to avoid the collision, but he hit me anyway. I got out of the car, calm, smiling and pleasant, could think very clearly etc. The witnesses I heard afterwards, all commented on how amazingly strong and calm I was.

Sit, stand, or lay down.  Initially close your eyes, but as you get good at this you will be able to do this with eyes open. Slowly breathe in, imagine that you are breathing in from the tips of your fingers all the way up your arms to your head and chest, approx two seconds at the start, as you practice you will be able to take longer breaths in. Then slowly exhale, imagine that you are pushing the breath out down through your legs, feet and out your toes, and that you are surrounding yourself with a feeling of calmness. About two seconds at the beginning and again as you practice, this can be longer until you actually feel calm. Do it a few times. Say to yourself, I am calm, I can handle anything. What this technique does, is to tell the workpeople in your body to take a tea break! It signals your brain to keep the oxygen where it is needed, helping you to think straight, to concentrate more, make better decisions etc, it stops the fight or flight reaction from triggering, and over time it improves your immune system and your health. You can use this technique for anyone having a panic attack also.

Affirmations / Self Hypnosis

I discovered the usefulness of affirmations a few years ago when I developed a stress related illness, through the use of them, and the other techniques I’m sharing, I got better. I discovered that they are a form of self hypnosis and I went on to train as a Hypnotherapist. I use these with my clients as they are very effective. Basically, we have a conscious mind, this is the one we worry and stress about things with, and this part of us can only focus on seven plus or minus two things at any time. Our Subconscious minds can focus on over 20,000 things at once and are responsible for our automatic breathing, digestion etc, but they are also responsible for creating our reality. So in relation to stress, if you begin by telling yourself that you are calm in the face of adversity, that you can handle anything as opposed to saying to yourself I can’t handle this, or I’m stressed out etc… then your mind will help it to become true for you. Of course if you’re in the height of it and trying to say you’re calm, that won’t work. Use the breathing technique and reinforce it with the words I am calm, then your Subconscious mind will be in alignment with your body and then you will see results. Our emotions play a huge part in all of this too, so practice feeling calm. Think about how you do want to be in future situations, and put mental pictures in your mind of yourself coping in the best way you can.

Attitude

Are you a victim or a victor? Are you better or bitter? Depending on the type of attitude you adopt to what is happening in your life you can be a sufferer or a survivor. I found that by adopting a strong survivor attitude that my mind suddenly started finding solutions for me. I started to think about what was the best way for me to cope, rather than feeling powerless and being picked on and having the attitude of a victim, poor me, life is happening to me and what can I do except complain, I changed all of this bit by bit, and saw that I could start happening to life instead, and although I couldn’t control everything, there were still a few things I could do to improve things, no matter how small, it all added up. Survivors cope, sufferers complain, one gets things done, one doesn’t, it’s your choice.

Mindfulness

I embraced the concept of Mindfulness and of being present in this moment now. Our conscious minds are always only focused on the past or the future. Both of these can create fear and uncertainty. We look at the past and fear it may happen again. We focus on the future and because we don’t know what will happen, we fear the worst. Because we don’t know what will happen, we don’t know what we will do to cope, so we have to make up the worst scenarios in our heads, this leads to worry and anxiety. Because if we actually knew what was going to happen, we could then decide on a plan of action, but we can’t  because we don’t know what will happen This would drive you nearly insane with the cycle of thoughts involved. Breaking the cycle takes a bit of time and practice. When you find yourself worrying, bring yourself back to this moment and become present in it. Are you alright now in this moment? Don’t think of the past or the future, are you alright now, just now.

As you are reading this you have a choice in this NOW moment to focus on what you actually do want to happen and you can claim back your mind from worries and fears by only focusing on the best possible outcomes from now on. Seeing that, no, you may not have the perfect life, but in this fraction of a moment you are ok. Mindfulness also means becoming aware of all you do have in your life, and practicing gratitude etc. It is powerfully life changing. I am constantly bringing myself back into the present moment, being present more often when eating, walking, breathing, talking with people etc. A few years ago, my mind used to be always racing onto the next thing to do, the next person to see etc, so that I was never really there, never really present for anyone or anything. I also found that my mind was constantly focused on worries or fears and this made me impatient and irritable if anyone tried to interrupt those thoughts, I was caught up in the cycle of it. I discovered that when you start focusing on best possible outcomes, your mind starts finding solutions for you. No more worries or fears! Stay present in the Now! As now is the only time we can ever change anything.

Perspective

‘We can’t solve problems with the same kind of thinking we used when we created them’ –Einstein and ‘If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got’ –Henry Ford. These are two of my favourite quotes. Perspective is everything. What I believe is leading some people into depression and suicide is a limited perspective, and this is a very broad statement, please everyone don’t take offence, I don’t mean this personally there are many different situations out there.

But what can happen is that we lose our jobs, our homes, our partner etc. and we’ve associated this person or thing with who we are. I know I initially felt like a failure when I separated, lost my home and job, my status was affected. I didn’t feel good enough and I thought that I was viewed as a lesser being to people who knew me. In this crazy society where your worth is viewed as your possessions by many, I had identified with those things as if they were actually me. I was too concerned with  what I thought others thought of me, I have since learned that it is more important to know what I think about myself than to even contemplate what others might be thinking, that no longer concerns me now, and I don’t give it any thought.

It has taken me a long time to see that I am not my job, I am not my home etc, so if I lose them, I still have a sense of self, of who I am without them. I won’t tell you that it is easy to arrive at this inner peace, it’s going to take time and work on yourself, but if you can find a sense of self that isn’t your job, home, possessions etc, it will be work well done. Why do you think some of the greatest spiritual leaders freed themselves from attachment to worldly goods? Because there is no permanent joy in those things, they can be taken from you. Happiness is actually found within yourself. If you seek for others to make you happy, what will you do when they are gone? If you are only happy when you have a job, money, possessions etc, what will you do when they are gone? This is just something for you to think about.

Thoughts

I started observing my thoughts and becoming more aware of them. What kind of things was I saying to myself? Was I being kind or critical, supportive or unsupportive? Sometimes the things we say to ourselves we wouldn’t dream of saying to another. I’ll ask you this, if you’re not for yourself then how do you expect others to be? I started being on my side for a change, I started saying nice things to myself, encouraging things. I read a great book called ‘You can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay. It helped me realize that I am not my thoughts, but that I can change the type of thoughts that I think at any time. So with my thoughts I could think the ones that made me feel good instead of thinking thoughts that made me feel bad, sad, depressed. With practice I was even able to change feelings I was having with my thoughts. If I was feeling low, I could check in with myself and see what I was feeling, and what kind of thoughts I was thinking at that time, and I would say to myself, ’Well Paula, are those thoughts making you feel good or bad ? And sometimes I would allow myself to have an hour of bad feelings and thoughts, and then I would say to myself, do you feel better now? And if I didn’t I’d say well that didn’t work, now try thinking better thoughts and feeling better feelings. And with practice this helped lift my moods.

Other things I did and am still doing are:

Daily Walk – Rain or shine I go for my walk, exercise gets the circulation going. Daytime walks are good as you get 90% of Vitamin D through sunlight on your skin, yes even if it’s cloudy.

Meditation – I do this often. Even when I am walking I am meditating, focusing on my breath, my feet touching the ground, or focusing on the birds, or the trees etc. it doesn’t always have to mean sitting on the floor sayingOM! I meditate briefly every evening, nothing fancy, about a quarter of an hour before I sleep I focus on my breath and think about all the things I am grateful for, I do the same before I get up in the morning. It sets me right for the day.

Smiling – Have you noticed how few people smile, and that if you do smile, everyone wants to know why? When I started smiling, I had a pain in my face, because I wasn’t used to it. Now it’s the other way around. Smiling actually releases serotonin and natural endorphins, these are feel good chemicals. Your mood actually lifts when you smile. It helps your blood pressure too. Try it!

Make time for yourself – no matter whether you’re working or not working, a busy mum or dad, a student or retired, you need to put aside some time for yourself, a bit of ‘ME’ time. A time when you won’t be disturbed, where you can read a book, listen to music, go for a walk, have a bath in peace etc. Life is just too short, so find some special moments for yourself regularly and you’ll find this lifts your spirits and helps you to recharge your batteries. We all need this.

Well I hope you find some of these suggestions helpful, if they aren’t you can paint three circles on your door, instructions at the beginning of this article! Smile!  comments and feedback are always welcomed.

How Fluoridated Water can Affect the Thyroid Gland

 

Back in April 2012, I was doing research for a Wellness Programme I was developing for my clients and had come across the importance of water, and how dehydration can cause palpitations etc. I decided to drink eight glasses of water a day. I am

Hypothyroid and have reduced my dose to just 50mcg a day having started off at 200mcg ten years ago. And I was in good health.

One week and 56 glasses of water later, I wasn’t well. I developed a dry itchy rash on my face, my skin was dry, and I had massive palpitations and fatigue. What had gone wrong? I had expected to be feeling on top of the world. It was at this point in my research I discovered Fluoride and how it adversely affects the Thyroid and its functioning.

Fluoride isn’t the innocent water additive that we’ve been lead to believe was necessary to purify our water and protect our teeth from tooth decay. No, Fluoride is Hydro Fluoro Silicic Acid, a by product of the Aluminum and Phosphates Industry, its actually industrial waste. It’s not permitted to dispose of it lawfully in oceans or rivers as it is listed as a grade 2 poison, yet somehow it has become acceptable to dispose of it in small seemingly harmless doses into our public water supplies.

There are many chemicals being added to our water, including Arsenic, Lead, Silicon, Cadmium, Aluminum Sulphate etc when  mixed they cause toxicity in our body. Do an internet search on the affects of arsenic in small doses on the body and see what you find. Harmless? I think not!

Fluoride is an enzyme poison. It displaces iodine as it is a halogen (chemically related) the uptake of iodine in the body is compromised, the iodine gets ejected by the fluoride. It is highly damaging to the Thyroid Gland. Fluorides are accumulative and build up steadily with ingestion from all sources, from the water you drink, from the shower or bath water your skin absorbs, from the air, from the pesticides on fruit and vegetables, from the foods, drinks or beverages like bottled waters that have used fluoridated water in the preparation, and from toothpaste and rinses. It’s absorbed by saliva.

Fluoride undermines the immune system and creates a distortion of protein structure. This causes the proteins to fail to recognise body proteins, and so instigate an attack on them, they perceive them as a threat. This creates an Autoimmune Disease and causes thyroid antibodies to be produced which cause Thyroiditis, Hashimoto’s Disease, and Graves Disease etc.

In the past Fluoride was given as a medication for Hyperthyroidism, in the form of pills, fluoride baths and as a glass of water. They discontinued this as it was proven to destroy the Thyroid Gland. The distressing thing for any of us suffering from this illness is that, what they were prescribing back then is the equivalent of what is in each glass of water we consume today. No wonder I wasn’t feeling well!

I don’t know what we can do about this except to raise awareness and convince our Governments of the error of their ways and hope that they will provide us with clean, safe, drinking water for the sake of our health and those of generations to come.

For more information check out these links

You can Sign the online petition here http://www.gopetition.com/online/10199.html

Fluoride Free Water Group http://www.fluoridefreewater.ie/

Or for more information contact www.fluoridealert.org

Freedom From Fluoride Group on face book  https://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/335951713136539/

 No Fluoride in NI Water on face book  https://www.facebook.com/groups/287362741350138/

 Declan Waugh’s report on Human Toxicity regarding Fluoride http://www.enviro.ie/latest_news.html

 Professional Perspectives on Water Fluoridation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88pfVo3bZLY

 How Fluoride can cause Hypothyroidism

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkJuWLMaoG0

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wake up to what the ‘F’ is in our water – Fluoride is a dirty word

 

Would any of us in our right minds willingly subject ourselves, or our friends or family to daily doses of arsenic, mercury, lead, aluminum or silicon?

I’m reckoning that there are a lot of ‘NO WAYS’ out there in response to my question.

So I have to ask you ‘Then why are you allowing yourselves to be subjected to it?’ Analysis from the Eastern Health Authority in Ireland found all of the above and more in our water. Oh wait a moment… let me introduce you to Fluoride properly. This is not a scare tactic; I merely want to raise awareness of something that we have become so carelessly complacent about.

Fluoride is not the natural, necessary, innocent water additive that we’ve been led to believe is good for our teeth. It’s actually a by- product of the hazardous waste industry (Aluminum and Phosphates) yes it’s industrial waste. It is not legally permitted to dispose of it into our oceans or rivers by International law, as the agent in it is Hydro Fluoro Silicic Acid (H2SiF6) it is actually listed as a poison. And yes even the synthetically manufactured products that some authorities purchase for addition to our water supplies still contain arsenic. Somehow though it has become widely acceptable to dispose of it into our drinking water mmmmm???

Now some of you are probably thinking ‘So what’ This issue has been debated for a long number of years now and we’re tired of it.  Well if so let me ask you another question. Are you sick and tired of being sick and tired? Because in all the years that our water has been fluoridated, there have been no proper health studies on the effects of prolonged exposure to this poison to actually prove it’s safe.

There have however been numerous studies which findings linked Fluoridation with increased causes of Cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, Dementia, Hypothyroidism, Kidney Disease, Arthritis, Bone Fractures, Neurological illnesses, IQ and learning issues in children, Dental and Skeletal Fluorosis etc. It has been proven to be an enzyme poison.  As if that wasn’t bad enough, Aluminum sulfate is also added to the water, and this creates a chemical reaction which allows the aluminum to cross the blood brain barrier and creates neurotoxicity in the brain.  Studies into the effects of prolonged exposure to arsenic even in small doses have also shown increased links with these illnesses. Our bodies perceive these chemicals as a threat, and the body reacts accordingly. Our cells can only either be in Growth or in Protection. When in protection they close off to all stimuli and basically our immune system stops functioning properly, hence this is where illness gets a hold. Search out Bruce Lipton’s Biology of Perception video on you tube which explains all about this.

The reason why exposure to Fluoride over a period of time leaves us susceptible to these illnesses and more, is that is has been discovered that Fluoride accumulates in our bodies and creates functional disturbances in blood plasma, but its highest accumulations are to be found in the pineal gland. This tiny gland which is found in the brain area directly behind the eyes is essential for producing the hormone Melatonin which not only affects the onset of puberty but it also protects our body from cell damage from free radicals. So Fluoride is actually undermining our body’s natural ability to keep us disease free. And yes in my research I discovered many things that can tip this natural balance, from diet, lifestyle, negative thought patterns and perceptions, stress, other chemicals in our food, and in personal products, unresolved emotional conflicts etc, but hey why add to it unnecessarily with our drinking water. Our bodies have over 70,000 cells which are made up of up to 80% water, and in order to function properly we need to drink an approximate of eight glasses of water every day, this number rises with exercise etc.

Now as I mentioned previously there have been no studies on the effects of taking this basic amount, let alone has it been taken into account what happens if people drink more of it, or how we are affected when we use it in our cooking, or the fact that it gets into our body when we shower or bathe, or swim in a pool, not to mention that the foodstuffs we eat may have used water containing Fluoride in the preparation or manufacturing. Pesticides also contain Fluoride and they are sprayed on fruit and vegetables. The beer we drink, the Irish bottled waters all contain Fluoride too, plus mouth rinses and toothpastes. These products contain enough fluoride to kill a child under nine years of age, and no they don’t have to eat them, as I mentioned the stuff gets ingested anyway through the saliva. And even though we don’t deliberately swallow the toothpaste or rinses, it actually seeps into the body through our Salvia. Under the tongue is a quick entry into the body for medication, for example, ask anyone who has had to take drops or had to put an aspirin there, the effects are quick.

I have also found some research regarding the effects of Aluminum on Alzheimer’s disease which I need to bring your awareness to as Aluminum Sulphate is also in our water. Aluminum toothpaste tubes actually leach aluminum into the toothpaste and while some tubes are now plastic, you need to be aware of this. Also Aluminum cookware leaches aluminium into foods and water. This is quoted from a report called ‘Fluoride in Drinking Water Increases Toxicity of Aluminum’ ‘Fluoridation will result in aluminum fluoride complexes which will enhance neurotoxicity or that fluoride itself will enhance uptake and synergise the toxicity of the aluminum’

It has also been discovered that using Fluoridated water in aluminum pots etc when boiling water actually and alarmingly leaches approx 200 parts per million of aluminum into the water in just 10 minutes. Prolonged boiling created 600 parts per million. No leaching was found when non fluoridated water was used. A point to note also, is that some kettles have aluminum elements in them.

Fluoridation in the water has also been linked with depression as it affects those parts of our brains. Declan Waugh has written a report titled ‘Human Toxicity, Environmental Impact and Legal Implications of Water Fluoridation’, in which he discusses the links with depression.  He presented his findings to Bandon Town Council on May 8^th 2012, and there was a unanimous vote to review Fluoridation. Declan’s report also successfully raised enough awareness in some American states recently, enough for them to stop Fluoridating the water until some proper safety studies have been carried out  It’s a pity our Taoiseach hasn’t read it yet, it was sent to him in Feb 2012. You can read Declan’s report yourself at the end of this article.

There is a warning on the toothpaste boxes not to swallow Fluoride, and that even a pea sized amount should be considered an emergency, luckily most children vomit automatically when they do swallow it. However the equivalent of that pea sized amount of Fluoride can be found approximately in every glass of water we digest. Although it could be more, how do we know exactly?

It’s time to wake up to the fact that not is all as it seems. Since the 1960’s here in Irelandwe have been programmed to believe that Fluoride in our water was a good thing to have. We were told it was good for our teeth and that it would prevent tooth decay. Studies have shown that there is no need to ingest Fluoride, as it works topically not systemically. Dr. William Hirzy, Vice President of the EPA Union says in relation to Fluoride ‘If you want to prevent sunburn you don’t drink suntan lotion, you put it on your skin, and so if you want to have the benefits of Fluoride and oral health, what you do is put it on the surface of the tooth and not drink it’   And this is perfectly logical is it not? There is no need to expose our delicate organs and tissues to this poison, we can simply use toothpaste or rinses, and they are readily available nowadays. Studies in countries with Fluoridation vs. those with none have shown very little difference in tooth decay, with both showing evidence of general trends of improvement. However in Fluoridated areas, there was a higher incidence of Dental Fluorosis plus those illnesses I mentioned. So that’s hardly a good reason to subject us to this daily concoction of chemicals now is it? We are grown ups. Can we not be trusted to be responsible for our own teeth? How can we allow this to continue to happen without our consent? It’s time to wake up folks!

I myself was oblivious to what Fluoride actually meant, as I constantly sought out products that contained it, feeling reassured, thinking I was doing the best for myself and my young family over the years. It was only quite recently as I was researching the causes of illness for a Wellness Programme I was developing, that I realized the importance of water for our body’s optimum health. Dehydration can cause joint pains, heart palpitations etc. So I myself being in fairly good health decided to have eight glasses daily, now I have a Brita filter but this doesn’t remove Fluoride. Within a week I had developed a rash on my face, and my skin had become very dry and itchy, and I wasn’t feeling the best. It was as I was wondering what had caused this that I came across the Fluoride information which I’m sharing with you now. I was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism about ten years ago; I’m on medication for it, which I have been reducing slowly over a period of time.

In my research I discovered that Fluoride can worsen existing conditions, as it was used in the past to regulate Hyperthyroidism. They discontinued using it as a medication as it was proved to actually destroy the Thyroid gland! The quantities of Fluoride that were dispensed are approximately equal to what we drink in every glass of water! No wonder I wasn’t feeling well! I’m planning to get a proper water filter in as soon as possible and at present I’m drinking non Irish bottled water, have changed my toothpastes and rinses to Fluoride and SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate) free ones. This is my attempt to reduce my consumption. What else can I do?

Despite the fact that 98% of European countries have rejected Fluoridation as being unsafe for health,Irelandcontinues to fluoridate its water. We have the highest levels inEurope. Irelands Fluoridation is 71% Great Brittan’s is 10% andNorthern Irelandis 0% Most of European counterparts likeGermany, France etc don’t fluoridate. But we think we know better do we? How long more are we going to allow it?

And if this isn’t enough to make you question this policy, I have it from Declan Waugh that the annual expenditure is in excess of 15 million euro, 4 million on the chemicals alone to put this unnecessary poison into our water.

Please contact your local TDs, join a local pressure group, sign a petition, do something for the sake of yourself, your family, your friends, your grandchildren, but please, please, stop being complacent. Let’s get our voices heard. We deserve to have ‘poison free’ drinking water. It’s bad enough that they want to charge for it, but are you going to pay for poison? I know I’m not.

Change doesn’t start with the other person; it starts with each one of us. While we are waiting in the hope of having clean water I recommend that you start reducing your Fluoride intake, not all toothpastes are required to list all their ingredients, but if you see a warning notice to seek help if swallowed then you will know it has Fluoride in it. Ask your local pharmacy and health stores for Fluoride free products. Drink non Irish bottled water. Don’t use aluminum cookware with Fluoridated water. Get a water filter that removes Fluoride, Brita ones don’t. Get a filter for your shower head or have less showers. Get a bath ball for the tap. Check out www.carahealth.ie.

You can Sign the online petition here http://www.gopetition.com/online/10199.html

http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/Put_a_STOP_to_Water_Fluoridation_in_the_Republic_of_Ireland/

Fluoride Free Water Group http://www.fluoridefreewater.ie/

Or for more information contact www.fluoridealert.org

Freedom From Fluoride Group on face book  https://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/335951713136539/

No Fluoride in NI Water on face book

https://www.facebook.com/groups/287362741350138/

Declan Waugh’s report on Human Toxicity regarding Fluoride http://www.enviro.ie/latest_news.html

And here are some video links you may like to watch on you tube, don’t just take my word for it, please have a look at the information available for yourself. Make up your own mind and don’t allow your government to think for you, they may not always be making decisions in the best interest of us ordinary people.

Professional Perspectives on Water Fluoridation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88pfVo3bZLY

The Fluoride Deception

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3y8uwtxrHo

Fluoride and the Pineal Gland

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSZQ3ixu7a4

How Fluoride can cause Hypothyroidism

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkJuWLMaoG0

A Different Perspective

Written by Paula O’Sullivan

You’re standing in the room of your life, and even though it’s in darkness, you can clearly see all the cracks, you can see all the things that are wrong, you can see the unauthenticity of others, you can see the falseness, the façades, the injustices, and you are tired, disillusioned and in despair, and as you sigh at the imperfectness of it all, you catch sight of a glimmer of light in the corner of your eye, and as you step to the side slightly, you notice that there is another side to this room that you hadn’t noticed before.

It’s so bright it almost blinds you, for you have been in a dark room for a long, long time. And as your eyes adjust, you see that you are in a perfectly delightful room, so well lit, that there are no shadows at all. Everything is perfect here. In this part of the room, everyone is authentic, they’re the real deal, they say what they mean and they mean what they say, they talk the talk and they walk the walk, and you are amazed, in this room, there is a wonderful feeling of contentment and happiness and bliss, you feel that you could almost stay here forever and enjoy and escape into this euphoric experience, and then you get a sneaking feeling that this isn’t real, and you remember the dark place that you were before, and somehow that still feels more real to you, and as you are thinking of stepping back to where you were before, something shiny catches your eye from another part of this room.

And as you step to the side slightly yet again you are amazed to see a whole wall covered in a very large mirror, and reflected in this very large mirror are the two parts of the room that you have already seen, but the view also reflects you, and your reflection seems huge and the two other parts seem very far away, and as you step nearer, your reflection looms in front of you, and your focus on your reflection becomes so clear that it is the only thing you can see. And you start thinking about the people in the dark part of the room, their falseness, their façades, their unauthenticity, then your thoughts switch to the people in the bright part of the room, how genuine they were, how loving and non judgemental they were, and you ask yourself, ‘Where do I fit in ? You say to yourself ‘I am neither of these two types; I am neither all good, nor all bad.’

And the two parts of the room fade out completely and you see yourself for what you are, you look deep inside and ask yourself questions, and they come hard and fast and you find it hard to come up with quick answers…’ Who am I?’ ‘Am I authentic?’ Do I talk my talk and walk my walk?’ ‘Am I real or a façade?’ ‘Who am I?’ ‘Am I judging others to avoid facing myself and the changes I have to make to better myself and my world?’ ‘Who am I?’ ‘Am I putting my life on hold, making excuses and refusing to participate in my world because of all the falseness I see?’ ‘Who am I?’ ‘Does my life have no meaning, simply because I haven’t given it some myself?’

And the questions keep coming, and you manage to answer some, and the rest play around in your mind, and you see that it doesn’t really matter who is in what room or what they represent, that the most important person in the room is you, and what you stand for, what you believe in, your authenticity, who you really are is what counts. Who you really are and how you are affecting your world, whether you are sharing your despair or your hope, and you see that it is possible to come at your world from any corner of this room, from any perspective you choose,  and you suddenly see everything in the mirror, the light part of the room, the dark part of the room, and you see you, and you see that it is all just a reflection, that what you are putting out, you are getting back, and when you look into the dark you see the shadows, when you look into the light, you see the brightness, but when you look at you, you see the truth, and you are amazed, and you catch sight of the last remaining  part of the room behind you, and you turn around and see a door opening, and you realise that it is all an illusion of your own making, that you can  focus on the bad, and that will be your experience, or you can focus on the good, and that will be your experience, or you can focus on you, and if you can be brutally honest with yourself, you can step out of the illusion…

….. And you  take a few steps forward, pause and look back for a moment with no regrets, and you walk through the doorway…… to reality !

 

Unconditionally Yours

Written by Paula O’Sullivan

Who am I?

When ‘Ego’ meets me, it does not ‘Get me’; it does not see where I am coming from. I am a creator of bridges not walls. I do not measure, I do not score points. There is no hidden scoreboard.  I seek to give, not for what I can receive back, but just because I can. I am your supportive friend, always wanting the best for you. I don’t do ‘Envy’, I have no need for that. Your success is my success. When you shine, I shine. Your joy is my joy. I do not lose when you have achieved your desires, it merely gives me hope that what is for me, is also on the way, and in the appropriate time it will arrive, and we can rejoice again my friend.

Who am I?

I have no need for expectations; you do not need to fit into any pre conceived notions of who you should be, in order to please me. I accept you as you are, because I love and accept myself firstly, in this now moment, you are good enough, and I am good enough, you are where you should be, and I am where I should be. I do not ‘Want’ anything from you, I have no hidden agenda. I have no motives. I do not seek to gain anything. I do not have a void to fill, I am whole and complete and perfect as I am, I seek only to add joy to all my interactions, I am the icing on your cake, you can live without me, but life is so much nicer with me. And yet as a giver, I allow myself to receive. Giving and receiving a natural flow of energy from divine to divine.

Who am I?

I cherish your freedom, I do not need to own you, or change you or make you more like I am. I celebrate our differences, enjoy our similarities, I see beliefs as an individual thing, neither side is right nor wrong, they just ‘Are’.

Who am I?

I don’t do ‘Petty’, and mind games are not for me. I am open and honest in all interactions, life is easier that way. I do not hold back. Moments are precious and fleeting. If I think you look nice I tell you. If I think you are amazing, I tell you. I give you my time. I know I have nothing to lose by helping you to feel good or helping you move forward towards your success. I do not torment myself endlessly with thoughts of what will people think if I say that, do that, or see myself as being foolish. If what I say or do will make you feel better, then I don’t think twice, I don’t hold back, if it won’t, then I won’t say it…. I won’t do it. Everything for the Greater Highest Good…my choices are easy.

Who am I?

I celebrate your freedom, your independence, your autonomy, your empowerment, I have no need to control you or keep you down, we are equal, I want you to walk beside me always. I want to witness your unfolding, your blossoming into the wonderful being that you are becoming, not because I want it to be, but because it is your time to blossom. I am the same with all, stranger, friend or foe. I am consistent and reliable and predictable with all and in all situations.

So who am I?

I am ‘Unconditional Love’, and I am ‘Unconditionally Yours’ any moment you choose me.

 

Amazing You

Written by Paula O’Sullivan

Has anyone told you recently how amazing you are? No? Has anyone told you lately how very beautiful you are? No? I can hear the grumbling, ‘No one ever tells me I am amazing, no one ever tells me I am beautiful, in fact I may as well not be here, I am invisible’. Some of you will of course be able to answer yes, but for those of you out there who had a definite’ No’ answer, this is for you!

What if I told you that there is someone in your life right now, who could tell you those things? I can hear your derisive laughter,’ This gal is crazy’, right? You’re thinking, ‘This gal is a few sandwiches short of a picnic!’

Well you’re of course free to believe what ever you want to believe, but before you go, can I ask you one more question? How would your life change if someone told you that you were amazing and beautiful regularly, if someone told you that you really count, that your participation mattered? How would you feel? Would things be different for you, would you be happier knowing that you were amazing and beautiful and that you were important in the scheme of things?

Would anything be possible? Would doors open where there were only walls previously? Would you spirit soar with joy instead of walking around in misery and discontent?

The ‘someone’ in your life who can tell you that you are amazing and beautiful is you.

Oh I know you’re thinking, who am I to think I’m amazing and beautiful isn’t that getting above myself here? I’ve always been told not to get above myself. The  voices of the past come crashing in and you can remember being told by everyone, the message was so clear, it was ok for others to tell you, but if you started to believe it, that wasn’t a good thing was it ? Now for a moment ask yourself, why is it not good to believe that you are amazing and beautiful? How does that serve you or others? It doesn’t! And why wait for others to recognise something, that you can recognise yourself? Once you start feeling, amazing, beautiful and that you count, others will start to notice it too. And even if they don’t you will feel really good regardless. So you’ll be less at the mercy of others, you won’t have to worry about people making you feel good or bad, as you’ll already know how amazing you are ! This puts a different perspective into our lives.

This isn’t about the ego, this isn’t about being arrogant, or feeling superior or anything like that. It’s about waking up each day and telling yourself that you are amazing, beautiful and that you count. It’s about thinking if these things are true, then how can you be amazing , beautiful and count, it’s about seeing that once you believe this about yourself, that you can add to the world you live in, in a very positive way.

So close your eyes for a moment, say ‘I am amazing, I am beautiful and I count’, now open your eyes and step forward, the world needs someone like you!

26/12/11

The Gift of You

Written by Paula O’ Sullivan

At the time of writing this article, it’s the Season of giving in some parts of the world. It’s also, I may add, a time of great worry and stress for many people, as they try to live up to the material expectations of their loved ones. This can lead to feelings of disempowerment, despair and helplessness, and my message for you is, that it doesn’t have to be that way. It is only that way because we have bought into the illusion of it all for far too many years. Don’t get me wrong, if you’re perfectly happy the way things are, then I wish you well, for the remainder of you though, I just wanted to share this message about the greatest gift you can ever give.

This greatest gift is free, but I’m not going to tell you that it’s worth nothing, it’s actually quite valuable. This gift can be given at any time of year, and it works best when you do this. This greatest gift is the ‘Gift of You. Now before you lose interest, you’ve probably heard something like this before, but this is my gift to you, so I hope you stay with me for just another moment or two.

This year I decided that I would give little gifts of me to those around me, now I’m not blowing my own trumpet, I just want to give you some ideas on how you can share your gift. I write articles to share positive messages and uplift the readers, besides from blogging, I print out a few and drop them into my local library, I write poetry and  had one about words of comfort for the grieving, which I sent a few copies of into a local funeral home. I’ve read poetry for the local over 60’s group and in our library; I set up a meet up group for people to make new friends. I also set up a skills exchange, so that people could barter, I have offered some Hypnotherapy sessions free in exchange for web design, holistic services, gardening work etc…I also paint, so some people are getting paintings this year. I’m recording some poetry and stories on Cd from my computer and giving them to friends and family. The other gifts I give are my time, my kindness, my smile, my support.

What ‘Gift of You’, can you give? Have you a good reading voice, perhaps you could give a few minutes to read stories or poetry to some children in hospital or to the elderly. Perhaps you have come across a nice poem or affirmation that you could share with someone, or put it into a frame and give to a local nursing home for example. I came across a very nice idea from a friend, who suggested making up a little booklet of vouchers offering things like grocery shopping, ironing, dog walking, childminding, gardening, diy, coffee etc, maybe you are good at some craft, flower arranging, wood work, metal work, photography, these are nice gifts to give . Maybe you could give your time to some local support group or set one up?

The ‘Gift of You’ not only comes from any talents you may have, but also from any hardships that you have survived and coped with. These are areas where you can help others, whether it is bereavement, illness, unemployment, redundancy, divorce, abuse, depression, etc..etc.. What have you learnt through your experience that could be a gift to others to help them cope, to help them get through, to help uplift and inspire them?

If you think about this for a while, you’ll see that you are abundant with things that you can give, and you will come to see that the greatest gift you can give is YOU!

Prevention is better than Cure

Written by Paula O’Sullivan

At the time of writing this, we’ve had some pretty heavy rain showers where I live. It was during one of the prolonged heavy deluges that I chanced to look out the window, and in dismay realized that the drain at the end of my driveway was blocked, causing a flood. I could see that the flood was spreading and was working its way down the street and was now outside a neighbours house two doors down.

Action was needed and even though I was warm and cosy indoors, I knew if I didn’t do something at that moment, that I would be causing a great inconvenience not only to myself but to others too, as the flood would continue to spread. So out came the wellington boots and the rain jacket, and armed with a garden fork and a spade I waded in. Within about ten minutes of loosening the debris, I cleared the blockage and all was well.

Now the reason I’m telling you this, is, that all through the summer, I had noticed that the shore was blocked, I could see that the leaves from the overhead trees had over time, turned into compost and had blocked the shore solidly. I passed it many times and said, I’ll do it another day. And every little rain shower would cause a little flood just outside my door, and still I didn’t act, until I was forced to take action.

This got me thinking about how many of us go through life like this. We notice something small going wrong with our car and we ignore it, hope it will go away, and then eventually the car breaks down, or we notice that things aren’t right in a relationship, and we ignore it and hope it’ll resolve itself, and it doesn’t and the relationship fall apart, or we notice that we are feeling tired lately, and we are getting colds, or headaches, or tummy trouble etc and we ignore it, hope it’ll get better and then our body protests, and we become ill. I have many clients who come to me to quit smoking after they’ve had a heart attack etc.

I’m asking myself, are we all addicted to drama or what? We notice these things, we keep telling ourselves I hope my car doesn’t break down, or my relationship break up, or my health doesn’t fail, or in my case my drain doesn’t flood the neighbourhood ! And yet we don’t think in terms of prevention do we? We wait until our backs are up against the wall and we can’t go any further and we are forced to face the situation.

What I mean in terms of prevention is this, in my case, check the drain regularly for debris,  get your car serviced, keep your body, mind, and spirit well, find a good balance between rest, exercise and nutrition, get  medical check ups, check in with your thoughts, are they making you feel good or bad ? Choose thoughts that make you feel good. Think in terms of being a survivor who copes, rather than a victim who gets picked on, if you believe life isn’t fair, then that’ll be your reality. I’ve been there I know this! Ask yourself, how best can I cope with what happens. Don’t put off doing something you’d love to do, this will bring your spirit into balance and help you feel good. Deal with stress before it deals with you! We get so caught up in the chaos of it all. If you’re getting tired, having headaches, frequent colds etc, your body is telling you to slow down, take it easy, find a balance before you trip over!

If something is not quite right in a relationship, communicate with EACH other! I know so many people who will spend hours with friends, telling them what is wrong with their relationships, yes male and female, but they won’t tell their partners, oh no, they have to mind read, they should already know this shouldn’t they ? NO, they don’t, many of us have to work on building our psychic abilities, and most of us can’t read minds! Tell them what you think and feel or forever drift apart!

I’ll leave you this quote. ‘To insure good health: Eat lightly, breathe deeply, live moderately, cultivate cheerfulness, and maintain an interest in life.” William Londen

Tapping into our Inner Power

Written by Paula O’Sullivan

Our power comes not from suppressing others but from uplifting them -Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche (Quote)

It is only the fear that we have something to lose that makes us try to suppress another person. Real power is the power of love. It is stronger than fear and has a much nicer effect. When we become aware of this inner power, we awaken to a new world, it begins with self love, not egoistical, arrogant, vain or selfish, simply put, just being kind to ourselves, saying nice things to ourselves, being supportive of ourselves…why?

Because if we don’t actually like ourselves, if we rise each morning and look critically at ourselves in the mirror and don’t like what we see, if we speak to ourselves in a way that we would be mortified if anyone could hear us, if we say things to ourselves that we would never dream of saying to our friends, I’m talking about the unkind things we say to ourselves, if we are doing this daily then we will find it difficult to sincerely uplift others, we may feel that we can’t actually even give a simple compliment to someone and if someone gives us one, we feel we don’t deserve it. Now we can’t give and we can’t receive. Are we happy ? Some of us are just unaware, drifting through life day by day, maybe have a drink or take to drugs or other forms of escapism to dull the pain, some lash out, unhappy and bitter. Some become numb, die inside.

Some of us become armed with expectations and special conditions we greet our world and the world must play by our rules and if it doesn’t we get hurt and the cycle of fear continues. So in our fear we start grabbing, looking out for number one, dog eat dog, and we start thinking if anyone is going to get suppressed well it ain’t going to be me ! So we put down another person and we feel good, or do we ? It’s a constant battle. This isn’t power, this is weakness.

Real power is love, loving yourself, accepting yourself, changing attitudes, perspectives if necessary, learning and growing, free of expectations, free of special conditions, allowing people to be themselves, not judging, not criticizing, yourself or others, learning to give not grab, seeing that there is abundance, not lack, only fear sees lack, seeing what you can do to help others, without expecting something back, fear tells us we’ve given too much, love tells us to give regardless of return. Start with yourself, see that you have a power within you that can help our world, see that we are one and the same, each human, equal, there is no class system in the graveyard and we’re all heading for the same destination, we do not have to suppress another to be powerful, there is a better way, there is nothing to lose, we do not have to listen and be ruled by fear. We do not have to listen to fear telling us that it’s not ok to be kind to ourselves, we can choose to listen to love, the power within, and we can choose in any moment to start working with each other not against, and we can choose to start uplifting not suppressing. If you’re not uplifting yourself are you suppressing yourself? If you are suppressing yourself, are you able to really, truly uplift others? Think about it!

Free from Fear

Written by Paula O’Sullivan

Looking back on my life so far, I can see that most of the important decisions I had made in the past were led by fear. Whether it was, relationships…I must get married… or I’ll be left on the shelf… I must have kids… or I may get too old… I must buy a house now… before prices go up…. I must put up with that behaviour… or I’ll be left on my own…I must not apply for that job or course… I may not be smart enough….my life was full of must and shoulds… and all for the wrong reasons…. fear of something is not a good basis to make decisions on… and looking back now… even though I can be grateful for the hard lessons fear has taught me… I can see that my life is very different now…. and I’m much happier and can make wiser choices and decisions, because I’m free of fear.

I’m sharing this with you now, just in case you are like me as I was then, maybe it’ll save you some unnecessary heartache, and yes I know we must all walk our own paths, but if my insights help you in any way then I’ll feel good inside, my effort has been worthwhile.

So how do we become free from fear? I mean it’s all around us, we are being bombarded with worse case scenarios everywhere we look, television, newspapers, radio, even most conversations overheard, contain fear, and it’s so easy to become overwhelmed in it all and to allow it to affect us in so many ways.

Well my understanding of fear is this: We picture something and then we picture ourselves not being able to cope, not being able to handle the situation, we see ourselves, weak and powerless and a victim…. as losers not winners…. and when we do this, fear grips us tightly and won’t let go !

To become free of fear we need to start putting pictures into our minds of ourselves coping, being strong, imagining the best possible outcomes, the best possible situations, and yes sometimes thinking ahead, and saying to ourselves, ‘well if this happens I will see myself coping in this or that way’, and putting strong pictures in our minds of being a great survivor, knowing that we will handle anything that happens. Very few decisions are actually life or death decisions. And while some things happen that make us feel uncomfortable, it’s usually not the end of the world, even though it may temporarily seem like that! If we take the time, we can reason most things out and take the phrase ‘wouldn’t it be awful if?’ out of our conversations and replace it with the phrase ‘wouldn’t it be brilliant if?’ instead. Because sometimes we are just not content enough that something has gone wrong, we have to develop that fear even more by saying to ourselves ‘ and what if this happens, and what if that happens too ?’ And we make the pictures more vivid in our minds and they become worse than the reality, and we find it more difficult to deal with, as these brighter pictures evoke stronger feelings of fear, which make it appear more real. And so putting the better solution pictures into your mind will work in a similar way over time only they will evoke powerful feelings of inner strength and courage which will make you feel really good., so I just wanted to make you aware that you have a choice of what pictures you can to play in your mind and how they can effect you.

I’m reminded of this quote “When I look back on all these worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which had never happened.” – Winston Churchill

If you can see yourself coping, if you can see yourself surviving in your minds eye, then you are already half way there, and you too can be free from fear!

16/10/11