We are all funny souls... and I am in the funny souls business...

Many times I call my clients, friends and myself 'funny souls'. And this week it has been very much in my mind. Having a possible first client coming, but I am not sure if she will or not feel this is for her. Joining a Facebook group about mental health that is full of people self-harming, very depressed, abused, and in so much despair... and my dear friend... who is deteriorating physically and mentally in front of my eyes... 

Oh yes, this world is full of funny souls! Souls in pain and in deeply indebted troubles...
And I am no exception... But being a therapist I find myself doing self-therapy very often and there is no special day or time... It just comes! Uninvited but always welcomed in the end.

I am in the business of helping funny souls find themselves and find their way, but don't think for a second I do this because I know it all or have done it all! No! I do this because I know what knowing yourself means and realise that there is always another bit to discover. And you know what? This is the beauty of life, knowing that is always more to be known, looked at, discovered and experienced.

I know from experience! I have learnt the tools and that is why my awareness gives me the possibility to work things out by myself - being my own self therapist. I do that with my clients and my friends. I want them to learn those tools, to internalise the 'good enough mother' I can play in the room. And to internalise the good enough 'me' and take it with them... When they do that, they will be ready to leave and do it all by themselves.

I find it quite amusing to hear my clients say: 'I was doing this and then I head you saying... And I knew what to do...' 'I find myself thinking: what would Maria say or do?' They have the 'me' just like I have my inner supervisor and my inner self paying attention and helping me self discover...

I love being a funny soul with imperfections, faults, laughter, and amazing love for what I do and am and I love the fact that I am in the funny souls business in a world of funny souls...


http://www.knowingyourself.co.uk/

Let's accept Mental Heath as part of our life experience

Mental Health, and the stigma attached to it, is still something that amazes, shocks and annoys me.

On the one hand, we have people who don't want to be associated with mental health problems and on the other those who have been and are now somehow almost proud that they have a label.

I find our society a structure of extremes when in fact all we need, as with everything in life, is to find the middle ground. A balance. Not the 'all' or the 'nothing'; not the 8 or the 80. We need simply to be a '40-ish' for that is cool and comfortable and healthy.

It's ok to eat the cake - just don't eat 10 of them. It's ok to have a drink - just don't overdo it...
We don't need to be perfect! We just need to be good enough - whether as a friend, a partner or a parent! In anything in life, all we really need is to find that comfortable zone, where one just 'is'. With awareness of the self and with the consciousness of our choices and actions and instincts and behaviours.

But do we see it like that? No! Does anyone tell us that? No! Simple common sense is not used any longer. We grow up beating ourselves up over our own perspective on the expectations of others. But look at this closely! Perspective. Our own perspective. That does not mean it is the reality or the truth intended.

'Reality' is not a reality at all. It is simply our view, our unique perspective, our choice of understanding what is (or was). The mind plays games, creates illusions and is - I would go so as far as calling it - a liar. Yes, the mind is most of the time a 'liar'. OK, I said it! And what do we do? We spend hours and hours, days and days, years and years paying attention to what is going on in our minds.

The memories that may already be distorted, the thoughts that don't mean anything, the illusions of things that don't exist... Every time we wonder why someone looked at us, for example, what are we doing? We creating an illusion! We don't know why they are looking at us in that way. In fact, they might not even be looking at us at all! So whatever we create in our mind is our own creation! Therefore it is a 'lie'. It's not based in any fact or reason, except possibly our interpretation of some similar experience.

Where am I going with this? I simply want to make a point here that 'Mental Health' issues are real like colds are real and cancer is real. We all have them or have had some symptoms of them. It is normal. It is not strange or wrong! And it doesn't need, always, a label either.

Ok, maybe the label can help some doctor to know the type of cold virus they are dealing with so they find the right drug for it, or the type of cancer so we get the drugs that work for it. But these labels are for a specific purpose. We, as ordinary people, don't necessarily always need them. And I think labels can create the illusion in some cases that it is outside our control to get better (of course I know this is not all, and in some cases, the diagnose is extremely helpful). "I have a tumour! I can't do anything about it! Is not my fault or choice to have it. I need an external person to help me! To operate, to give me the drug to fix it!"

But I tell you that you have a choice. You have more control over it than you even know or understand.

That is where knowing ourselves come about. We need to know who we are and what we are about to have control over our choices. As long as we don't have the knowledge, understanding and consciousness of who and how we are, we will always blame - and expect others to take control for us.

This what I offer in my practice, a safe place for you to find and get to know who you are. You need to be ready for this and really want to do it. You will need to be truthful to yourself by being truthful to me. And with me, we will walk the walk of discovery, freedom, health, peace and fulfilment.

Find me, and more about what I offer, here: www.knowingyourself.co.uk

...more on knowing yourself and mental heath...

Knowledge comes with responsibility and many of us fear that. To be responsible can mean to grow up and some of our life experiences might have taught us that growing up is scary; it might even be 'wrong'. Adults do bad things, for example.

This is why the understanding of where we come from is important. Looking and understanding that our life experience (perceptions) made us into who we are. Now, at this moment, is our chance to decide: do I want to stay as I am, and where I am? Or do I want something else? Something more? The choice is ours!

We don't need to stay the in 'poor me' or the victim position. You, me, we can always change it. Really, the only thing stopping you is you! And of course that mind of yours! The illusion that, if you failed before, you will always fail. Or that if you have been told that you are a failure by your parents, it must be true (so you are going to keep it true).

As a child, we need to make our carers 'good' because we depend on them! So to do that we internalise the 'bad'. "That must be me, I must be bad, I must deserve that, it must be my fault that it happened... "

But my dears, it is not our fault! It was not your fault! It was theirs! And their carers before them... These are passed-on traumas. It takes someone in pain to inflict pain in another. Think about it. And it takes a lack of awareness and help to carry on doing it.

You don't want to carry on like them or become like them, so you need to choose to change. To become more aware, to ask for help. To get help! To take care of yourself; to love yourself like no one ever did! To be your own good enough parent! To look after that scary inner child inside you. To tell her: "It's OK, I'm here!"

Another important point in recovery is letting go of our need for justice! Our need to be told, "I'm sorry". How many of us are trapped in this? I know I was. By doing this we give so much power to the other person, persons, or situation - simply by having that hope. The hope that justice will be done; that they will admit their wrong-doing. Unfortunately, most likely we will never get it. So let go of that. And if we do end up getting it, see it as a bonus. Not something our lives is depending upon for moving on, for closure, for starting new things, to start living!  

I wish the government and society would place more value on simple things like this. The earlier society would help and support the children in stressing situations the more we would be preventing our own long term issues.

In the same way as the government, local councils, and some schools are addressing obesity or smoking - to prevent more ill people as adults in the future - so should they be creating more support for people from a young age. That is where it all starts and where whatever we learn, positive or negative, will be engraved. And shape who and what we will become.

The good news is it is never too late for you to work on yourself and learn more about this beautiful, unique and loveable human being that you are!

So don't fear and find the right help for you today!

If you wish to know more about me and what I do please see my website:
www.knowingyourself.co.uk

Sending Healing to your 2013!

Let me tell you a story - the story of how the most amazing event came to happen...

On Saturday 5th January 2013 at 20.13 I connected with over 300 people all over the world. Most felt the energy, lots felt relaxed, some became pain-free, some were helped to pass on, some found the motivation to do something, and some felt simply energised. Someone had a lifetime experience of the energy that sounded very close to a near-death experience. This person's spirit went and experienced what 'is' - what we are, where we come from... wow! Mind-blowing!

How wonderful is this? Together we connected and experienced the energy in the name of love and for the good of all.

How it happened was like this. It was the last day of the year... there I was, nothing much planned, nice family meal in, a film... go and walk to the park to see the fireworks around us...

That evening I got an interesting message from a friend in America: would I like to be visited by the Archangels? Gosh! What? Why not? I am open to anything! If nothing else I was now super curious... So I said yes.

The next day as usual I get up early no matter what. So as I am checking things on my Facebook page, I realise there is something called 'create an event'. Ummm, why not? Next, I felt that, yes, I should be creating an event! So I clicked it and thought: what for? Quickly the answers - almost like guidance - started flowing into my mind! Healing for 2013, what date? A 6... Why? I looked into the meaning of 6 and thought... Ok, this is interesting and powerful... So the date was set. And then all the rest just flowed.

"Six: The symbolism behind number Six is a legend. With Venus as its ruler, Six represents harmony, balance, sincerity, love, and truth. Six naturally reveals solutions for us in a calm, unfolding manner. We invoke the Six when we need delicate diplomacy when dealing with sensitive matters. The spiritual meaning of number Six also deals with enlightenment; specifically "lighting" our path in areas we require spiritual and mental balance. Sixes beckon us to administer compassion and consciously choose forgiveness in a situation."

I invited my friends, the ones I thought might be interested and within hours the number started growing and growing... I couldn't believe it. I had not thought of any numbers or anything - I had just followed instructions! (That is how it felt!)

I have done this before, following an instinct, and then wondering what exactly have I done. One of these times was with our beloved Tutty, our Persian white cat. One day a friend said to me that her sister-in-law needed to find a home for her cat because her daughter was becoming allergic to it. I didn't ask anything, I simply said "Yes!"  

Days after we arranged to go and pick her up... This beautiful white fluff... She was not friendly at all! And we had already two other cats... When she got home she was a scary thing! There was no way we could touch her or anything... And I remember looking at my partner and seeing in his eyes: 'what have you done?'

I wasn't sure but I knew she needed her space. By now I knew her story and it wasn't a nice one. She needed love and acceptance. And that is all I told my family to do.
I kept the cats apart for some time then let them find their ways and with her I simply let her be. Accepting her sleeping on the floor, meditating by the door (not joking!) and with time she became at ease. It's now three years next month that we have had her and she is the most loveable, adorable, friendly, trustworthy cat any human been would wish for. So I know about following instincts or better to listen to my higher self, to my guidance. And his time was no different: I knew I was doing the right thing, and as time went on realised this was going to be big and very, very special.

And it was! I can only say it was overwhelming and humbling to realise the number of people who added themselves on and who joined in this experience.

Over the few days between creating it and the Saturday, the energy started building up as soon as I started writing people's names down, something I felt I needed to do. People started feeling the connection and experiencing the energy available.

I know that of course, we were not necessarily the full 300. And that a lot of people joined but might not have made the intention to follow the ritual or connect with the energy. But It was amazing to realise that some people who did connect, and I didn't know, still felt it too.

So this was an exciting experience that I am glad I have created and been involved with and I am sure I will be creating more in the future!

I want to thank you all for becoming involved! May the Universe always provide you with all you need and lots of love, peace, health and wealth now and always! 

What about something for Valentine's? Bring love into your life!

xxx