Choosing Your Words Carefully may Improve Your Health and Wellbeing

Your words create your reality. The kind of words we use to describe our situations and our lives are the way that we perceive our lives to be. Our perception then is the reality. When you say things like something is a disaster or you are suffering from a disease, you are painting a clear picture for yourself and anyone listening that this is just the way it is. Can we, then, change our situations, or at the very least change our perception of a situation, by changing the way we speak about it? That is what positive affirmations are for. Research has shown that a positive outlook and attitude can improve a patient/s chances at overcoming serious medical conditions like cancer and chronic pain. It follows then that a positive mindset can help you overcome your negative beliefs about yourself and your life as well.

Saying that someone is a “pain in the neck” is a good example of using somehow meaningful language. Could saying that mean that literal pain in your neck could manifest? Is someone a “cancer” in your organization or family? By firing them or cutting off communication you could improve the quality of your home or work life, correct?

Choosing your words carefully is something that our mothers taught us as we grew. When you consider the powers of words in terms of doing what you say and saying what you do, you manifest the reality you live by your words and actions. Remember this as you make your way through each day and try to practice positive affirmations that will enrich your life and your soul.

Stop and think about the types of negative words you use to describe yourself on a daily basis. Do you say you “doubt you can”, “wish I could”, “don’t like that”, or are you just afraid? These are the words you can consciously work to replace in your vocabulary to improve your overall state of wellbeing and success. .Take the time to consciously reprogram your thoughts and words to eliminate the negative and replace it with the positive.

Positive words and affirmations are the types of thoughts you want to have floating through your mind and coming out of your mouth. In this way you reprogram your thought patterns and with it your whole life. We fill our lives with the images that we focus on. Focus on love and love will come to you; focus on the bad and you will feel bad, look bad, and your relationships will be bad. This is a simple fact of reality. To master it all you have to do is literally change your mind.

Start each day with positive affirmations such as “today I will be the best and most positive I can be”. Then as you go about your day, you can actually do it. Go out of your way to find the positive in every thought and situation even if you have to say that it was an “opportunity to learn” or a “challenge to be accomplished”. Live happily and speak about it in a positive way. What will at first seem like a tough prospect will soon be second nature to you. No more doom and gloom; only a positive outlook and a positive, happy, well balanced life will be ahead for you.

- Article by Natural News

For more information about C.J. Cantrell, or how Hypnosis can help you choose your words more carefully, please visit www.UseTheAdvantage.com

A Personal Journey of Spiritual Enlightenment

Sometimes I find myself thinking, with youthful enthusiasm and impatience, “I want spiritual enlightenment, and I want it now!” I liken it to some great accomplishment or place within me that I will some day be. But enlightenment isn’t a video game; It doesn’t lie in some magical place at the end of my journey. I have the theory, or knowledge, that it is the journey. It’s in each and every moment. When I find, even briefly at times, that place of stillness that can only be found in the moment, in that moment, I am enlightenment.

Even with all my theories and knowledge, of which I am so very grateful, I sometimes forget that it is the experience that makes it real and true for me. The answer can only be found in the question, and once found, seems to lose its importance. But I’m okay with that – most of the time – as I’ve found, and have been saying for years now, the more I learn the less I know. The depth of one’s soul is not in having the answers, but in knowing to ask the question.

One great question I remember asking myself years ago was, completely without judgment, in a place of childlike innocence and curiosity, was “What would possess someone to become a hypnotherapist?” What was most interesting about the way in which I asked this question was, (1) It was more a feeling than spoken intellectually with words, and (2) That I cared more about the path of one’s life that brought them to that place than the decision itself.

For me, I just decided one day. It wasn’t some long, thought-out process, but was more about the path of natural healing within the body (through herbs and nutrition), and the connection with energies that I had been exploring for a number of years. It was a natural evolution for me, just as incorporating nutrition and energy work into my practice of hypnosis and meditation seems for me now, even though there was more “conscious thought” put into the latter process.

I guess, no… I feel that I have always known this was the work I would be doing. However, I had to allow the process to evolve in its own time. As Sue Monk Kidd states in her book, When the Heart Waits

The fullness of one’s soul evolves slowly. We’re asked to go within to gestate the newness God is trying to form; we’re asked to collaborate with grace. That doesn’t mean that grace isn’t a gift. Nor does it mean that the deliberate process of waiting produces grace. But waiting does provide the time and space necessary for grace to happen. Spirit needs a container to pour itself into. Grace needs an arena in which to incarnate. Waiting can be such a place, if we allow it.

Law of Attraction: Self-Esteem and the Physical Reaction

An In Depth, Three-Hour Workshop
with C.J. Cantrell, Certified Hypnosis/Meditation Counselor

Hour 1 – We will be covering some of the latest scientific research on how the brain functions, the role of emotions, and quantum physics put in a way that everyone can understand. Discover the science behind atoms, why they vibrate according to the String Theory, and how this relates to circumstances and events you attract into your life.

Hour 2 - Learn other Universal Laws such as the Law of Intention, the Law of Balance and the Law of Allowance. Discuss how and where religion and spirituality converge and how to incorporate these principals into your personal belief system. This is a very interactive process where you will get a chance to experience true intention and balance, creating a permanent emotional memory to reflect on as you begin to incorporate this knowledge into your everyday life.

Hour 3 - Find out how your levels of self-esteem relate to the physical reality of your life. Discover how “one’s perception becomes one’s reality,” and how you can improve your life in every area, from relationships to finances in order to create a healthier, happier, and more balanced existence.

Date: Saturday, June 27, 2009
Time: 1:00pm – 4:00pm
Regular Price - $60/Person

Prepay* and attend for only $35/Person!

Hosted by the Pilates Core Center
176 Route 70 (at Jones Rd)
Medford, NJ 08055
609-654-5404

For more information call Advantage at 609-792-3056
or visit www.UseTheAdvantage.com

*$45 at the door. To receive prepay discount, please be sure to register and pay at least 24 hours in advance.

Where is your passion and energy being focused?

People can, and do, become physically addicted to their emotions, just as one would become addicted to heroin. How exactly does this occur? The same “receptor sites” on the cells that accept the neuro-peptides released by the brain when experiencing different emotional states are the one’s used to accept addictive substances. Once you become addicted to the “high” of stress, drama and fighting, you will be unconsciously looking for situations in your life to feed that addiction.

Have you heard of the String Theory? It states that the particles that make up atoms may not be the little “dots” that we once believed them to be. Instead, they are “strings” that vibrate at different frequencies. Just as when you place two pianos in a room, hit a specific note on one, the same note on the other piano will vibrate, this is how the atoms work. So when we are bombarding our bodies with specific neuro-peptides (made up of atoms, made up of vibrating strings) that give us the “high” we are looking for, we are actually physically changing the make-up of our bodies. These strings are then “vibrating” at a specific frequency, attracting people and situations into our lives to feed into that very addiction so our brain will again give us another dose of the “drug” the body is craving.

Ever find yourself experiencing the following:

• “Destructive emotional states.
• “Same situations over and over.
• “Inability to change.
• “Feeling helpless to create something new.
• “Deep cravings for certain emotional responses.
• “Voices [not literal] in the head saying “I want. Give me, give me!”
• “Saying you’ll never do something ever again, then 3 hours later, doing it.”

(above quote from the book, “What The Bleep Do We Know?!”)

Sounds like addiction to me. I myself have been working through my own emotional addictions since learning all of this. Paying attention to the people and situations that I attract into my life, and using them as a mirror to find what in my life I am doing/feeling to attract these things to me.

There was also a study in Washington DC a few years back on meditation. They got 4000 people together to meditate in the DC area over one summer, claiming that this will lower the violent crime rate by 25%. The local police, at first, stated that it would take two feet of snow that summer to lower the crime rate by that degree. However, by the end, the police dept. was the study’s biggest supporters because that summer the violent crime rate was lowered by 25%. Incidentally, after the study was over, and all those in the meditation study left, the crime rate went back up.

This goes to show that we are all connected on some way. So when many people are focusing their energy into something, be it positive or negative, others are influenced. Think about the state of the economy right now and how many people are focused on how “bad” it is. What are we, as a whole, attracting? This is why it’s important to pay attention to the people and situations you attract into your life. It may be affecting more than just you, and could have long-term effects on the world we leave behind for our children. If you believe in reincarnation, it’s also the world you may be coming back to as well in your next life. If that doesn’t fit into your personal belief system, just pretend it was a joke.

My workshop, the Law of Attraction: Self-Esteem & the Physical Reaction goes into even more detail. Please feel free to check out the “Events” section of my website, www.UseTheAdvantage.com to learn more about where and when the next workshop will be taking place. Feel free to also check out my Facebook Fan Page to learn more.

If you are a business owner who would like to schedule this workshop to be given in your location, please feel free to contact me at 609-792-3056.

Spirit Space – A Quest For Answers – Going Farther Down The Quantum Rabbit Hole

If you loved “The Secret” and “What The Bleep Do We Know” you’ll be excited to learn of the newest DVD that that will take you even further down the quantum Rabbit Hole in a quest for answers to age old questions. Discover remarkable possibilities as to what and how our consciousness works with the world around us. Listen to possibilities of what happens to our consciousness before and after death.

To purchase this DVD, or to learn more…
click the banner below to visit the official Spirit Space website.

A Simple Way to Write and Achieve Goals for the New Year

A new year is upon us and many people have set good intentions on improving their health and well-being. However, all too often, after only a few short days or weeks of excitement, these good intentions are forgotten and better health just gets added to a long to-do list that never gets done. So what is the key to achieving better health and well-being in this new year? Simply put: Having goals. Although this may not sound like new advice, it may be prudent to actually follow this advice to be more successful in health matters.

The Role of Hypnosis in Reducing Anxiety Before and After Surgery

A lot of research has been performed using hypnosis either as a stress reducer or as a pain reliever. There are countless studies about the benefits hypnosis has had in these areas. Studies have been performed on cancer patients, people with phantom limb pain, child birth, and dental procedures. Hypnosis has been shown to help reduce anxiety and pain associated with medical procedures. Hypnotherapy has also helped in preparing for a medical procedure and it has also helped the recovery process.

In 1997, a study was performed in Belgium to see whether stress reducing techniques or hypnosis would have a greater effect on relieving stress and pain before, during, and after a medical procedure. The study consisted of sixty patients undergoing plastic surgery using local anesthesia and intravenous sedation. The sixty participants were divided into the stress reducing techniques group and the hypnosis group.

During the medical procedure, both the stress reducing techniques and the hypnosis was performed by the anesthesiologist. Also in the room during the procedures was a psychologist. The psychologist observed patient behavior. Each patient was asked to rate their levels of anxiety, pain, and control before, during, and after their surgery. After the surgery they were also asked to rate their level of nausea.

The Usefulness of Hypnosis in Pediatric Patients

Hypnosis has been shown as being an increasingly beneficial treatment for helping children with medical illnesses. Studies have shown that children in particular are very suggestible and have a good chance of benefiting from hypnosis.

A study was performed in a pediatric pulmonary center from 1998-2000. During this 30 month time period, 303 patients received hypnotherapy for a variety of symptoms and illnesses. All patients were having pulmonary problems including persistent cough, asthma, shortness of breath, and chest pain.

Patients received hypnotherapy to help their pulmonary symptoms due to psychological issues, side effects of medication, and fear of treatment. Some patients received hypnosis even after medical treatment was administered, due to continuation of the symptoms…

Hypnosis Compared to Stress Reducing Strategy in Burn Patients

Any kind of burn, whether it is a first, second, or third degree burn, is painful. In addition to the pain felt from the burn, burn victims have to keep their wounds covered to help the healing process and prevent infection. Patients with severe burns have to go through frequent dressing changes to keep the burned area clean. This process is often very painful.

As you can imagine, being burned can cause a lot of anxiety and stress on the body, both physically and mentally. Anxiety comes from pain, fear of disfigurement, surgery, and the long healing process.

An article was published in the Journal of the International Society for Burn Injuries about a study performed in 2001. The study compared the role hypnosis played on badly burned victims to the role stress reducing strategies played in relieving pain related to dressing changes and anxiety.

Guided Meditation Workshop – December 5, 2008

Learning the Art of Meditation

Group Guided Meditation Workshop

Friday, December 5, 2008
6:30pm – 8:00pm

Hosted by Dragonfly Yoga & Pilates Core Center
Location: 176 Route 70, Medford, NJ 08055
Cost: $20/person

Just as when we were children, learning to ride a bike, or read and write, what seemed to come so easily to those around us was completely foreign to us. We had to learn each of these practices and over time, perfected it in our own, unique way. It’s unfortunate that in today’s society we are not taught as children to tap into this amazingly powerful gift that we were all born with, this gift that is stored in the minds of each and every one of us. Luckily, it’s never too late!