Articles

Experiencing EMDR to Heal Trauma

In 1997, Peter Levine and Ann Frederick wrote a book called Waking the Tiger: Healing Trauma: The Innate Capacity to Transform Overwhelming Experiences. You may be surprised to hear it, but the authors affirm that “trauma has become so commonplace that most people don’t even recognize its presence.” Although most of us think about trauma in terms of combat situations or seeing someone being murdered on the street, nearly all people have had some kind of trauma. Whether you remember the original trauma or not, you still have the symptoms. Different people respond differently to situations, so one person can become traumatized by a specific instance while another is not. In my private practice clients present a variety of traumatic events such as the loss of a pet as a child, the loss of a job, the end of a relationship with a friend, divorce, date rape, physical or sexual abuse, the experience of war or the death of a loved one. When I interview the client I have them begin by listing 10 traumas. These can be little traumas and big traumas. Sometimes traumas overlap, with grief for instance. When one grief issue is cleared another may clear as well.

Some of the symptoms of trauma include hypervigilence (being “on guard” all the time), intrusive images or flashbacks of the incident, being hyperactive, having nightmares or night terrors, difficulty sleeping, inability to deal well with stress, mood swings, being over reactive which may include raging or having temper tantrums, and exaggerated emotional or startle responses.

Surrender and Discover Your Life Purpose

by Steffie Genevieve, MSW, LICSW, CDP

In my first article I introduced fate, destiny and discovering Divine purpose. Awakening to our Divine potential requires that we accept the challenge and see the challenge as an opportunity to expand our understanding of repeated patterns. Fated by these old patterns we become disempowered and lose the power to move into transcendence and to champion destiny. Examining the patterns in our lives through the symbolism of archetypes not only allows us to develop inner knowing prompting us to interact with the world differently, but it changes our view of destiny. It brings meaning to our lives so we can embrace it as a carefully designed plan.

In this writing I will be speaking to the process of discovering our Divine potential. When we embrace the archetypes as companions and allow them to guide us in managing our personal power, transcendence occurs. In a future article I will examine the unique attributes of the archetypes when placed in the wheel which reveals Divine wisdom.

Pros and Cons of Competition

Writers are often told to write what they know. Remember in school when you were told to write an essay and wondered, “what can I write about” and then if you had an inspirational teacher or adult around, they would get you talking about something, you would get excited and then take the talk to the paper and whoa, you had an essay.

Well, today I am going to write about the pros and cons of competition. Those of you who have been following my story for awhile know I spent the last three years with my nose to the grindstone completing my doctorate in Clinical Hypnotherapy.

A little side story here. I was excited to defend my doctorate over the internet with my advisor, Brian Walsh, who was incredible. and two other staff that were great as well, but whom I didn’t know. Having worked so hard getting my coursework done and then writing my dissertation, 12 Weeks to Self-Healing: Evolving through Chronic Pain, I was ready to act out a bit. I got dressed in the morning, put my make-up on, my earrings, a nice blouse and then sat at my computer with my plaid pajama bottoms on. It was a little eccentric I know, but I needed it to get me through to the end! And it worked! I did pass!

Fate, Destiny and Discovering Your Life’s Purpose

by Steffie Genevieve, MSW, LICSW, CDP

Have you ever wondered why a particular story line keeps playing out in your life? Do you find yourself in the same emotional patterns over and over again? Have you wondered why you are drawn to a particular personality type? Have others given you a nickname because of particular traits or behaviors they see in you? Do you have a gift or talent? Are you in a job that really suits you or not? Have you recognized your abilities but not been able to utilize them to their greatest potential?

These questions and others have perplexed us since we entered this existence. The stories, patterns, personalities, nicknames, and natural abilities are all part of what has been studied by great minds known as archetypes. They are patterns that are emulated and universally recognized. Jungian psychology referred to it as a collective inherited unconscious pattern that is present in individual psyches. Archetypal patterns are ever present and applied to our day to day existence. It is one way we organize and bring meaning to our lives. So how can archetypes provide the answers we seek?

Happy Spring!

As Domingo, my cairn-terrier mix and I were walking along the river yesterday; I saw my first buttercup of the year! It was one lone buttercup and my response was a child-like joy! I love Spring! Although the details are different for many of us, our spirituality and beliefs often teach Spring as a time of rebirth and new growth. Here is my 2010 Spring experience.

From my last newsletter you may remember I have been on a weeklong cleanse at Optimum Health Institute in Austin, Texas (www.optimumhealth.org). My friend Cheyenne had set this up for me and we were to meet there. She drove from Colorado (remember the White Eagle Village in the last newsletter) and I flew from Spokane. While flying I journaled in preparation to the experience. Check out my journal article in my blog The Essence of Who I Am. The experience was incredible. Healing happened on the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual level.

February is About Increasing Passion in Your Life!

What is passion? When you think of people you know, who would you say is passionate? How do you identify passion? How do you recognize it? What qualities describe passion? When I put this question out to others some of the responses I received were passion involves intense feelings, not all of them pleasant. Inspirational passion was described as Mother Earth and dance. One woman stated passion for her was being able to do things she was not able to do previously. One man responded with a memory of a trip to Nelson, British Columbia that was full of passion for him. Of course being a nation of romance many of us think of falling in love and sensuality.