Planting Conscious & Subconscious Change

"It's possible to change your mind in the blink of an eye."...Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

Just about all the members of the Workshop have disorderly eating issues. Some have weight issues, but not everyone. Katrina, for example, has a normal scale weight, as does Jack. One of the biggest misconceptions about disorderly eating is that it only has to do with those who are over-weight or who have a high body fat percentage. Simply not so. I've met up with thousands of disorderly or unhealthy eaters who look fit & trim on the outside, but inside is a different matter.

THE POWER OF AFFIRMATIONS

Affirmations give us the opportunity to enter & then experience maturity, including the facets of behaviors that accompany it. Thought-talk is very powerful. What you think is what you get. Earlier on you learned that every thought is a goal for the subconscious mind, so it stands to reason that if you plant positive thoughts, you are going to program your mind for positive outcomes.

Change is always a matter of choice. Awareness or knowledge is usually not enough to motivate change. You need more. As you walk through the workshop of the world you will hear people speaking about their problems, sometimes for years on end. These people are stuck. They have identified the octopus, but not the tentacles under the surface. In addition, they have not formulated what they want.....identification being only the first part of the change equation. These individuals have no motivational or action programs to propel them into the actual desire or change momentum. You might notice them beginning to change, but if the inner programs linked to persistence & consistency are missing from their tool belts, they will end up quitting at the first road-block opportunity.

They might even be "happy" to see the road-block, as they ahve been looking for some ecuse along the path to assist in their rationalization of not pushing forward. You will hear it in their language & see it in their expressions, both big & small. If you look closely you might see a secondary emotion underneath the presenting one. For example, in the heat of rationalization look for a glimmer in the eye, or a small "almost smile" sitting on the lips. You might have even felt this in one of your moments!

The higher your awareness, the easier it is to keep the path clear & open to choice. Keep in mind that both conscious & subconscious thought can lead you down the path of incredible success....if you so choose to play your cards this way. Affirmations, or positive self-talk help to keep the path clear, aiding in the heightening of awareness. These mini-mind programs can be utilized independently....right in the moment. For example, you may want to build motivation in a particular area of your life & so you will choose to work with affirmations designed for that specific goal or over-arching goal.

There are thousands of affirmations already written & ready to be planted. But it's not enough to simply read them or to have knowledge of them. That's like holding a packet of seeds in you hand, but doing nothing more. No matter how long you hold them, the flowers will never grow there. They have to be planted & then nurtured.

DISORDERLY EATING AFFIRMATIONS & IMAGERY

Here are a few examples that the group is working with today. These come from my program of Affirmations for Disorderly Eating. This is available through my website in both CD & mp3.

As you pick up the plants, please read the label & then notice the image that accompanies the words…. It is a living image…..just like a little movie….. demonstrating the active affirmation & showing you where to plant it in relation to your own perceived disorderly eating patterns….you will also notice that when you go to plant, you will also be removing weeds & tilling the soil…..yes, it is time for a complete fresh start….. nothing needs to stay the same…..although as I mentioned earlier, you do have some eating behaviors or patterns that ARE healthy, but perhaps you haven’t paid attention to them OR you haven’t honored them……..thereby allowing them to become helpful to you. But you are here now & so here’s the first plant that appears on your wagon….

I image all the good I wish to experience.

Pay attention to the words on the label & the accompanying image…..don’t rush. No need. Take a moment to be with this. This is a gift plant……….asking you to image all the good you wish to experience in your nutritional department. What do you want? What do you need? What do others have that you would like to have? Remember, you can have whatever you want……..you just need to ask in deep relaxed focus, just as you are doing now. Interactive self-hypnosis is just like a dream machine. Image it….sense it emotionally……..& it is yours. Forget the weeds…..they exit as the new plant arrive….. actually wanting to exit…..being tired of filling the space where a healthy plant belongs…..weeds leave easily….so go ahead now & “image all the good you wish to experience.” The planting is taking place right now….

Next…..The level of my health is ever increasing.

Pay attention to the words on the label of the plant & the living image. Pay attention to the details. How is your health increasing? What do you see here? In what areas is change taking place? Look around your nutritional life……keeping in mind that it is multi-faceted, so there is truly much to see. These images are “future-paced” meaning that your subconscious mind is planting these in the future & the future begins…….NOW. That’s how quick it is & so look again at the level of your health increasing. Are you alone? Are others with you? Listen to the positive chatter. Plant well done.

Next……..My successful living lies in my ability to put first things first.

Disorderly eating, including the behaviors & emotions that are involved with it are just what the descriptive word states….disorderly….messy……uncared for……left unattended…..and so, your successful living lies in your ability to put first things first. The image on this label is very important…. Pay attention & in fact, I’d like you to enter the image. Go ahead….look down at your feet & locate them in the middle of the disorder. You can walk around your disorder…..don’t hide…..look at it clearly…..notice that you are not the disorder…..the disorder is outside of yourself…..& since it’s outside, you can bring order to all of it….that is why I asked you to visit first hand. It’s like cleaning up a messy room…..and so it helps to be able to see what this area will look like when it is orderly…….go ahead & open the door over there on the right hand wall……..enter…..this is orderly eating……and includes everything that is necessary to have order in your eating…..now walk around this area…..paying close attention……enter your kitchen…..open the fridge……..each cupboard one by one……noticing the order……noticing the food choices……noticing the level of health indicated on each food…….the food label telling you the purpose of this particular food……what it is to do for your body…..everything here has a purpose…..notice how relaxed you are as if the foods were already doing their job inside of you……all of these foods enjoyable…..easy to prepare…..fun to prepare…..tasty & exciting…..to your mind & to your body……and now going into the food preparation area of this orderly eating sector….. noticing how easy the orderly you is finding the preparation……smiling, relaxing, effortless preparation……positive words here…..all healthy words in relation to preparation…..and now walking into the shopping area……list in hand….easy & effortless…..healthy foods entering the basket stating their purpose….everything having a purpose…..inner beauty for the body & for the mind….. orderly……and now into the self-scheduling area…. Noticing that you eat every 3.5 to 4 hours….. lots of healthy vegetables….fiber…..whole fruits….whole grains…..easy effortless planning for meals & snacks…..enjoying your orderliness in this & all areas……….& so now, returning to the disorderly area…..noticing that it has turned orderly in your absence & a note is being given to you by your orderly self-……I’ve learned to put first things first. I combat all areas of my life with this mantra……first things first…..second things second…..all in good order now.

Next….. I easily notice what is undone & complete it with ease & grace.

Look to the words & then to the active image….. there you are fully awake in all areas of your life & of course including your orderly eating area….. noticing that some things have been left undone & they actually wave to you…..requesting to be completed, as it feels so good to you & to the things to be completed…..finished……orderly. Go ahead inside the image now & step into your orderly Self as this part of you goes through the area like a special radar driven vacuum cleaner…..self-organizer…..straightening out anything & everything that waves in any sub-area of orderly eating….. perhaps even introducing you to new possibilities ….maybe things you never tried before or taking you up a notch….. this is a good moment to recognize the upper notches in this area of your living……making things better than before & climbing to new heights of achievement……perhaps in organization…..planning…..preparation……shopping…..so many notches & so many places to excel….. to become excellent…..not only for yourself & all of your body parts, but for others who learn from you…..be they children or adults…..remembering that you are always teaching by your actions & so this special affirmation opens you to the practice of excellence…..listen again…. I easily notice what is undone & complete it with ease & grace….. dancing through this ultra-important area of your life, not only for now, but for the youSELVES living up your path in your future.

The Ocotopus Revisited

"You may be surprised at what's bothering you or blocking your route to success.."....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

WONDERMENTS

When we become active in doing self-work, the subconscious mind often becomes very active, sending thoughts, questions or images up to consciousness OR visiting in the form of sleep-dream states. So, if you are following the Workshop, as well as working in your Journal, stay aware for important break-throughs, also known as Eurekas.

KATRINA'S OCTOPUS

Katrina, a member of the Workshop, has a bulimic octopus that is loaded with tentacles. Her bulimia has been around for decades, but the head of the octopus has been so frightening that Katrina never dared to swim underwater & to examine it further. For those who deal with eating disorders, addictions or other problematic behaviors or habits, there comes a time when enough is enough. Katrina has arrived at this time, having decided that she is tired of being frightened & overwhelmed. She truly wants to get it under control & so is actually eager to meet what she consideres the monster challenge. Katrina told the group, "I'm so exhaused from being out of control in my life & I'm beginning to sense the bulimia is the reason for the breakdown in other areas other areas of life, especially my financial issues & relationships, both personal & with myself."

Since beginning the Workshop, Katrina has been having some level of success with managing the bingeing & purging.

I don't know how come I have my breakdowns I think that the slips are to often. I only went 4 days this last time after two weeks before. Do others have this same pattern OR do their symptoms stop dead once the tools have been applied?

ELIZ: No, it's like learning to ride a bicycle. Each time you GET BACK ON, you are letting the subconscious mind or inner-child know that you are in charge. After awhile, you will be more able to stop falling EARLIER....like when the wheels wiggle OR when you feel slightly imbalanced. Carry on.........

I did some talking to my child this morning as I was walking and it was kind of strange what I heard my thoughts saying.

ELIZ: Ahhhhhh......she is now willing to tell you the underground secrets....the part of the octopus that is under water. She is trusting you.

Here's my child-self talking. I understand that the binging & purging are a deversion from reality & the problems of "your" every day life, as well as the experience that you think you can't face in your struggle. But now I want to tell you that there is more. I think it has something to do with losing weight, because everytime you quit you are able to lose weight, gain confidence & then what happens to you is that you feel uncomfortable.

ELIZ: A very astute inner child........truly wanting to help you.
What is it that you would be giving up if you lost weight?

Sometimes I think that I should not be thin because it makes my Mom jealous & then I feel uncomfortable. It's like she really won't love me & I already think that she doesn't.

ELIZ: This is a little child thought. "Mommy will only love me when.........." Mothers love unconditionally. If they don't, then the mother has the problem & you need to come to accept that this is the best she can do. It's like a form of mental unwellness. So, it's time to accept your mother for what she can or cannot do. You need to let go of her hand & to get on with improving you own self, for that is YOUR responsibility. Remember, you can only LOVE to the level that you LOVE yourself. So this is an area for improving yourself & be glad to have found it.

Also I think that I don't deserve to be thin because I don't think that I deserve ever to be where I want to be.

These thoughts/beliefs NEED self-correction. Pretend that the child appears in the form of a disorderly dog. You love the dog, but as the PACK LEADER or dog owner, you cannot allow the dog to be undisciplined. See yourself walking the dog on a leash. When the dog presents even a small idea of this, correct the dog by pulling the leash towards you...just a quick, little jerk on the lead. Rather like riding a horse..........SELF CORRECTION. Don't try to reason with the dog/horse/child. Simply CORRECT & do so immediately. This movement, be it real or in your mind, interrupts the negative hypnosis, leaving you ready to program for what you want. It's vital to disallow EVERY thought distortion, right in the moment.

I think that people are nice to me if I lack confidence to stick up for myself or if I seem in control of a situation.

ELIZ: CHILD THOUGHT - SELF-CORRECT. This is a totally inaccurate/distorted thought. This is manipulation & it's like allowing a dog to bite you OR a horse to kick you OR a person to abuse you. Keep in mind that you don't have to argue every point in life. Sometimes when we haven't spoken up or been assertive, others believe that they can utilize us as their scapegoats. So, pick the battles & feel assured that you don't have to go after each little, bitty one.

This doesn't mean that you are not sticking up for yourself. For example, sometimes my husband says something critical about me that I don't agree with. I just let it by-pass me, but understanding that he is in his own "child-self" & obviously is having a bad day. I don't need to wrestle if I don't want to. Just let it pass by.......like a cow paddy that someone throws.....just step to the side.

I think people know that they can relie on me and always turn to me if I am confident I sometimes feel like saying no then I will lose people and that is worse than being sad over being so fat.

ELIZ: If you say yes when you want to say no, then you are being a disingenuine person. This is the same as lying to others......not the way you want to be. You can learn to frame your "no" in a genuine way. For example, "I truly wish I could do that for you, but I can't." This is a moment of being genuine, true to yourself & to others. This is being a "good human being".....PRACTICE.

If I am thin I long for things I can never have if I am overweight I feel like I don't deserve anything. You know how uncomfortable I feel when I feel in control and worthy because even you don't think we are worthy.

ELIZ: SELF-CORRECT THE DOG/HORSE/CHILD. None of this has to do with your weight OR what you put in your body. Think of your body as a separate being,..........you are responsible for your body. Each time you abuse it, you say "no health" to it or punish it. Doesn't sound like the YOU that you are presenting to the rest of the world. Again this is disingenuine.......right now promise yourSELF that you will be a genuine or authenic you. Take off all disingenuine coats & sense the freedom of that. THIS is who you were born to be.

My other self doesn't know how to respond so I have just been reflecting on what to do next This is all so much I need something but I don't know what.

ELIZ: Well, when learning to ride a horse or a bicycle..........one needs to PRACTICE. One needs to build discipline in the specific area. Just because you are disciplined in one area of your life, doesn't mean that you are disciplined in the others.

I am an emotional mess.

ELIZ: SELF-CORRECT the above statement. It's negative self-talk & etching a negative goal. Pull the lead or the reins. You are in charge of what goes on in both your mind & body.

FROM THE AUTHOR

My goal, as the originator of Interactive Self-Hypnosis & the Workshop, is to show you how to become an exceptional strategist in your life, be it a battle or not. Here you will be empowered to take responsibility for your own health, your well-being & your level of performance. This Workshop is a unique road map leading you, the participant, into a world of optimum health, positive expectation & gently paced action....the true beginning of permanent lifestyle change.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

Ducks in a Row

"The past is past and now you are free to choose what you want.."....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

In order to stop or curtail any disorder or addiction, you need to get your ducks in a row. The disorder or addictions are the symptoms, and while they need to be understood in their own right, you now know that it is necessary to go below the surface to the root cause. This holds true for all addictions and disorders, including emotional or thought patterns that are acting as mind blocks to any success. The next few blogs will focus on this. Be sure to have your journal and be prepared to put aside some real quality time for yourSELF. This is not quick fix work. In fact, you will find yourself coming back to this area, time & time again. Patients and Workshop participants often ask me when "all of this" will be over. This always makes me smile, as that question is not foreign to me. Self-work is truly never finished, and hopefully you will come to know that as a good thing. So, it's important to find joy in the journey. Then you can stop wanting it to finish quickly.

You are already learning that it will be possible to change your lifestyle behaviors. The earlier Workshop entries set the early stage for breaking old patterns. You are now beginning to understand that patterns have many parts, or tentacles that all need attention. In the past yu may have thought of a pattern as being singular, such as disorderly eating, smoking or excessive alcohol intake, but these patterns each can have a hundred parts or more. The more awareness you build, the more parts you will find. Then you can decide, with the help of your subconscious mind, how you want to manage them.

As you learn to look and study the negative parts, you will locate some huge time wasters, many that tend to complicate other parts of your life. Your own memories can affirm this for you. Here's how. Think of how many times you thought about starting a program or discipline to re-order you life in some way. Now pile up those thoughts in the theater of your mind. How high is the pile? How many minutes, hours or days does this represent? These re-starts are not only time-wasters, but they tend to re-etch failure, thereby making a new pattern for your collection.

You already know tht these mind and body tools will also take you towards optimum performance if you work with them in a consistent way. It's one thing to have a tool, but quite another to know how and when to utilize it. It's just like purchasing a tool in a hardware store. You know why you bought it, but you still need to read the directions to become familiar with it. Most tools, like the ones you are given here, are multi-purpose and can be utilized in many areas of life.

One of the basic tools of this program is called Heightened Awareness. It involves becoming very aware of specific behaviors, their facets, the emotions that color them, as well as the connected body sensations. Remember that you cannot assess or change what you cannot see, nor what you are not willing to see. This is key. Many behaviors and emotional reactions are very ingrained. you may know them as part of your personality of "just the way you are." This is perfectly fine as long as they are not interfering with the quality of your life and health.

Unfortunately, for many of us, our behviors and emotions tend to do just that and more. They are infamous for robbing creativity and smashing possibilities for prosperity in all areas of life. You don't have to look far to know how true this is. It is easier to see this when looking at others, but self-awareness and healthy self-assessment will make looking into yourself much easier.

SELF-DISCLOSURE MIRROR

When looking into the "self-disclosure mirror" it is difficult to honestly see yourSELF and even more difficult when you don't know what to look for. This is where the power of personal assessment comes to help & guide you. As you work through the Workshop assessment, you will take each area to your own personal mirror, where your subconscious mind will assist you by showing you what you need to know & see. For some this may be a bit unnerving, but you will develop some tough skin, as well as the ability to forgive yourself, as well as to have compassion.

In the next blog Workshop we will begin inner exploration & detective work.

FROM THE AUTHOR

My goal, as the originator of Interactive Self-Hypnosis & the Workshop, is to show you how to become an exceptional strategist in your life, be it a battle or not. Here you will be empowered to take responsibility for your own health, your well-being & your level of performance. This Workshop is a unique road map leading you, the participant, into a world of optimum health, positive expectation & gently paced action....the true beginning of permanent lifestyle change.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

The Octopus Effect

"It doesn't take much to change, but it must be presented consistently."...Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

THE OCTOPUS EFFECT

While most of us can recognize & name our surface problems, it is usually a big challenge to hareness these & to manage them successfully. Claire, who is very representative of other people I work with, presents a good example of this phenomenon. She is aware of engaging in poor nutrition. It's easy for her to know that her weight is problematic, that she has fatigue & other stress-related symptoms. Her MD has told her that nothing is really wrong, but Claire knows from past memories, that something is not on the right track. It just isn't showing up on the laboratory tests.

She also bites her nails, has a tendency towards moderate to high alcohol weekends & intuitively knows that she is not working up to her potential. On the surface, one would think that these are simple things to change. Claire might be judged by some as being lazy & unfocused, suggesting she grow up & pull her act together. She might even think so herself, then end up punishing herself to abate the guilt & shame.

Making changes, such as Claire's, is easier said than done, but with the help of heightened awareness & interactive self-hypnosis, progress will be swifter, as well as easier.

Let's use the image of an octopus representing Claire's problem of disorderly eating or poor nutrition "by choice." It's not enough to see the head of the octopus sticking out of the sea. Claire must locate the tentacles that lie under the surface. The origins of some tentacles of poor nutrition are buried deep in the ocean of the subconscious mind. Although hidden from sight, they send up emotional messages that connect to current life experiences, making it difficult to solve this one particular issue. When parts of a problem are not identified, or come to awareness, it's often impossible to make a good plan for rehabilitation, nor to find ways to implement it.

Even when problems & it's parts are identified, there is still the matter of staying motivated, as well as persisting through daily obstacles. Programming the mind for lifestyle change takes consistent persistence!!

JOURNALING WORK

1. Go over the earlier Workshop sessions & highlight those areas that speak to you personally. This is your own subconscious mind telling you that this is important for you to be able to make changes. It's the beginning of heightened awareness. Each time you scan-read these areas, you will further etch them into your subconscious mind. Remember to relax deeply when doing Workshop exercises, or even just reading. Take some time out, slow your brain waves, dispelling any brain cloud that might be lingering. Invite quiet & stillness into your body. Imagine a dial that you can turn to the left that will take you deeper down into the chair in which you are resting. You might choose to clos your eyes gently & to tilt them up about twenty degrees, locating & admiring your mind screen. Open your eyes now & proceed with your own self-investigation.

2. Your mind screen is where you program your mind for what you want, as if you already had it. Some of us have a keen visual sense, visualizing with no difficulty. If you have difficulty, "simply think" in your normal way. The results will be the same. As the subconscious mind sees & senses what you truly want, the tentacles of the octopus will be revealed. The inner mind understands that these must be taken care of in order for you to have what you want. What you are accomplishing here is "moving a mind-block." It doesn't matter how deep down it is, nor how securely fastened it is to the ocean floor. Once it is identified in deep relax, it will surface for care.

FROM THE AUTHOR

My goal, as the originator of Interactive Self-Hypnosis & the Workshop, is to show you how to become an exceptional strategist in your life, be it a battle or not. Here you will be empowered to take responsibility for your own health, your well-being & your level of performance. This Workshop is a unique road map leading you, the participant, into a world of optimum health, positive expectation & gently paced action....the true beginning of permanent lifestyle change.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

Lifestyle Change Made Easy

"You are already programming your subconscious mind for change.".....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

We rarely pay attention when climbing steps, but things are different with these 4 steps. Not only will we pay attention as a Workshop group, but the steps will open to us personally, allowing us to see/sense where we need to focus, mature, change & grow into the handling of new knowledge.

Here are the 4 areas of focus for lifestyle change & opening the mind to heightened creativity.

Personal Assessment - Basics! While this step isn't named as one of the Workshop steps, consider it as the "over-arching goal or environment. Everything is accomplished under this umbrella.

You will be taking a good look at your subconscious mind knapsack, finding out what is there, as well as what is needed for where you want to go. This is always the first order of business when planning a self-development or rehabilitation program & usually the most ignored area. The past & present hold many clues & gifts for programming the subconscious mind for future health & success. These are your assets, also known as your power & resilience. Also do know that there is always room for improvement & advancement, even if things are looking quite acceptable. Remember, this is only your perception, few of us being able to imagine our own capabilities. As you work within the Workshop, you will walk into & around your own inner mind where your assets are located.

High Level Nutritional Awareness & Compliance - You know this as the first step. It is fundamental! Don't be surprised IF you don't like considering this, OR think that you don't need to consider it because you believe that you eat healthy, etc. Trust me on this one. I've rarely met an individual who doesn't need this step! Nutritional equipment must be in top order. Food stress is a major component of all addictions, stress-related disease, performance issues, thereby directing the running of the entrie mind & body. This Workshop, which is based on my books & CD/mp3 programs, provides spoonfuls of change....the easiest & best way to get where you want to go.

Mindfulness- Awareness & Focus - This step is all about ongoing mindbody communication & inner listening. Answering & responding to body cell phone messages on subtle levels is key to winning all battles. Most people pay no attention to their body & then wonder why they were shot down. Not listening to your body is like playing a radio with static. You are missing your most important communicator.

Thought & Emotion Managing - The third step is vital for living. Manage your emotions or they will manage you. Thoughts & emotions are connected to the production of stress chemicals & left unattended to, they can kill you. The level to which you learn to manage this duo, will decide your level of health & success in all areas of life. Think this third step isn't important? Thoughts can easily enter your mind, becoming goals without being checked at the gate. People stay busy spending their days in publishing negative mind sttes, not even noticing the effect on their body & performance. Here in the Workshop, you'll be fine-turning your own inner communication system.

Interactive Self-Hypnosis - The most unique step & one that is only practiced by 2% of the population, not because the tools are difficult, but simply because they are not. Unfortunately, few of us have been taught to work with our subconscious mind in this way. When we know how to work with our inner computer center, we can change direction in any moment, keeping us on the road of goal-achieving & high level creativity. These are assets that we all have in place, but few utilize. Right now, in this moment, you are part of that 2%.

My goal, as the originator of Interactive Self-Hypnosis & this Workshop, is to show you how to become an exceptional strategist in your life, be it a battle or not. Here you will be empowered to take responsibility for your own health, your well-being & your level of performance. This Workshop is a unique road map leading you, the participant, into a world of optimum health, positive expectation & gently paced action....the true beginning of permanent lifestyle change.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

Life University - The Four Steps

"The way out of trouble doesn't have to be difficult or complicated.".....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

As you work to examine your daily life through the lens of heightened awareness, you may be very shocked at what you find. You will come to find that you spend a great part of your time lost in automatic pilot programs, fired off by emotions that are often toxic to both mind & body. To make matters worse, you may find yourself unfamiliar with other minute subleties that can cause stress chemicals to produce, some of them subconscious or unconscious.

In order to turn things around, it takes a new way of looking at things, including your body sensations. Some areas that need looking into may appear small, even insignificant on the surface. Of course, these labels are personally attached. When I assess patients in my office or in the Workshop, they often answer my detective questions in an off-handed way, as if what I was asking them was somehow ridiculous & having nothing to do with their most presenting issue.

MEET MIKE...

When I met Mike he was about 350 pounds & had a body fat percentage that ran off the charts that I use for calculating. He had come to stop smoking, but only because he was very short of brfeath & that frighgtened him. He hadn't seen a physician in several years, as he didn't want to hear what he knew his doctor would say to him. There was also the embarrassment of being too big for the scale & he would have to hear the nurse say "those words". He was ashamed & felt guilty. All he wanted from the Workshop was to stop smoking.......period.

Unfortunately Mike knew very little about what he needed to get healthy. I began by measuring him, so I could figure his lean body mass & body fat percentage. I truly believe that if Mike wasn't such a nice guy, he would have bolted out the door. Instead, he listened to what I had to say, even though he didn't want to hear it. We all know what that's like.

Like most smokers, Mike had terrible eating habits & actuall wasn't eating sufficiently for his lean body mass. He was only eating one meal per day, feeling that was sufficient because he had "plenty of fat to burn." He was making a huge mistake & a good part of his smoking habit was connected to his food stress issues.

Mike tole me that he wasn't ready to manage his eating issues, preferring to just stop smoking, but I explained to him how these habits were linked, then went on to teach him what he needed to know. Next cam the 4 step plan that Mike placed on his "mind screen" with my help. Mike was now on his way, not only to stop smoking, but to burn fat, as well as changing other stressors in his life.

THE 4 STEPS

There are 4 steps to a healthy & successful lifestyle change plan. Here they are:

1. Nutritional Balance - Personal Body Needs
2. Mindfulness - Awareness - Focus
3. Thought - Emotion Managing
4. Positive Imagery Planting - Interactive Self-Hypnosis

We climb these steps each & every day, in fact many times a day. They are a credo to live by. Once they are planted subconsciously, they appear automatically, making change much easier. the more you learn to climb under a wide variety of circumstances, the better skilled you will become.

We actively work to climb & at the same time to build a new self-discipline mindstate called consistency. Those who become the most consistent win in all departments, for consistency finds it's way into may different areas of life, actually taking charge & firing off aspects of goals all by itself.

"Where do the steps lead?"

They lead to a healthy & consistent homeostasis or balanced body physiology that helps to manage addictions & other excesses, while inviting us to open & work within our very own inner creative mindSPACE.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

Stress as Teacher

"Sometimes our teachers come dressed in strange clothes."....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

STRESS AS A TEACHER

I'm glad Claire had a medical examination & I suggest tht each Workshop participant check in with their physician before making any lifestyle changes. I truly understand what it feels like to be told that you have nothing wrong, despite feeling so sick & tired. This is what happens when the body is complaining, but hasn't totally broken down as yet.....or at least, not enough for a disease to be present on laboratory tests or radiological studies. "

"If we were to use an image here....the door to the disease is over there & right now you are on the path going towards it. This is the pre-disease path." How close you are to the door, let's you know where you are in relation to the formal diagnosis." How do things look for you? Now, turn around & look away from the door of the disease. This is the way you will be walking from now on. On occasion, you might like to look back at the door, not only to guage your progress, but to motivate yourself."

The Workshop & Life University mp3 is helping you to open to what you need to know about YOU. Some of the things you need are already in your awake Knowledge-base or consciousness, but other things are suppressed or completly out of reach. As you work through the Workshop, you will begin to know more about yourSELF, your specific needs becoming clearer.

"Why is this so important? "

Well, you cannot change what you cannot see or sense. Now, on a positive note, sensing stress in the body or mind will give you an opportunity, not only to open or release, but to know what is underneath it, including areas that are not so obvious; things that are deeply embedded in your subconscious mind. That is why stress can be considered a very special teacher-of-sorts.

STRESS COATS & FOLLOWING JO'S PROGRESS

Even before we awaken in the morning, stress chemicals are being produced. Most of us are unaware of the amount of stress or body tension we hold. It's like putting on a stress-coat, not even recognizing the weight of it. As the hours pass, stress mounts. Most of us tend to release it with an unhealthy activity or excess, such as employing coffee, caffeine, smoking, sugaring or bingeing. The day continues in this unhalthy fashion, adding to the already present stress-related problems of the body departments, including cognitive functioning of the mind. Bedtime is the only healthy stress-release time, but unfortunately most do not have deep-relaxed, releasing dream-sleep, especially without taking a sleeping aid.

Once I was able to know Jo a bit better, I found other things along her path that were definely tripping her, as well as blocking her from her short & long term goals. When stressors, be they big or small are uncovered, it becomes easier to manage them. It was easy to identify Jo's abusive husband as a stress-source, as well as her new caerre, taking care of her children, even her pets. Her newly formed heightened awareness was going to tell more of the things we needed to know. There was also the matter of her past & lack of early skill building. Jo had a traumatic childhood, ever learning how to enhance her own self-worth, nor how to set limits & boundaries, or to be her own wise & loving inner counsel & support system.

A few years back, Jo's goals were very clear. The actions towards these were easily designed. However, her new goals tend to miss this clarity. Unclear goals, those without precise definition, cannot be well-directed by the subconscious mind. Her mind does hold everything she needs to achieve whatever it is, but in order to have this system working at top-notch speed & accuracy, she needs to release stress, as well as super-detal her goals in order to break out of her quagmire.

Everything Jo needs is located in her subconscious library. She has noticed glimmers of the gifts that await her, but her brain cloud is blocking her ability to contact her subconscious mind librarian. Unfortunately, all the librarian can seem to get through to Jo are the glimmers. Jo will have to work to disperse her bfrain cloud & then to enhance her inner communication system with her librarian.

Jo has many strengths, tremendous desire & drive, but these can also work against her. This is one area where she needs awareness & work. Like most of us, Jo has a tendency to procrastinate, especially when left alone, tending to wait until the pressure builds before mounting her march forward. She needs to identify her tendencies to go towards these old behavioral patterns. As she wakes up to her stress chemical production, she can request that her own subconscious mind release the stress, then utilize the released energy to push her hard onto her clearly defined goal path. If you have never tried imagery such as this, I suggest that you do. It can really be a jolting experience!

Once Jo uncovers her old patterns without guilt or shame, she will be in the desired position to adjust direction. I also suggest that she work on geting to know her inner motivational system, finding out what causes her drive & desire to spiral upwards, pushing her into action. She can also ask her subconscious mind to show her this, especially after recognizing & releasing stress, for this is the ideal time to hold court with the inner self. Now she will be able to spot those very specific inner mind programs that have made her successful in the past, so she can apply them to any areas where her old patterns have been holding her back, locked up in procrastination.


One of the areas we are working on in the Workshop is disease prevention, managing stress as as a helpful tool, aimed at disease turn-around. These very same tools or mindEXERCISES will take you towards Optimum Functioning, both in body & mind, the tools being healing & creative at the same time.


The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

Life University - Teachers & Students

"Your attitude is your personal radar system. What signals are you currently sending out? If you think that this moment doesn't matter.....think again."....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

I've mentioned before that we are teachers & students at the same time. Our most important lessons are learned from listening, as others share their life experiences, as they look for help from others. The "other", may or may not be the Workshop teacher. In fact, the "other" may be you.

CLAIRE'S STORY

I'm 38 years old & work in television production with a major network. I'm over-weight & extremely stressed out. I bite my nails & pull my hair when I'm nervous, which is most of the time. I've tried artificial nails, but I pick those off as well, so I spend quite a bit of energy hiding my hands, as they are a true embarrassment to me, especially in my profession. Why can't I stop this?

I know that I drink too much coffee, have a terrible diet & on weekends, I find myself drinking too much. I've thought about this & think it is because I'm trying to fit in all of my relaxation on the weekends, so anything goes. I do feel entitled because I don't have a minute to myself during the week. I am married, have two school-age children who are already over-extended in activities, making my life even worse because of the time constraints. But, what's a mom to do? I'm sure that I sound like every other working parent, making me feel guilty for even complaining.

Here's the frightening part. I truly don't feel well physically. I'm fatigued & have frequent headaches. I truly do not remember the last time I felt well. I've had a medical check-up & the MD told me that he can't find any real problems. I am not fine & not even near to fine. This frightens me even more than having a diagnosis of something. Is that strange or what? I went to counseling & found it useless because, despite everything, I'm a fairly happy & successful person. I'm just not well.

I don't know how to start or where to start. I'm like a "messy desk". I don't seem to have the time, nor the inclination to straighten it out because what's the point. People keep putting more stuff on top of it. I can't win. I'm truly frightened that I will die from this level of stress, yet I can't seem to motivate myself out of this. My MD offered medications & I turned them down. I truly don't think they will solve any of this. I see this as a project that I must do myself. I have many other aspects of myself to share, but I don't know what it is that you need to know from me. I jusst know that I'm ready to do what it takes.

JO'S STORY

I'm 46 years old & in many ways happier than I have ever been in my life, but on the other hand, frightened by what I'm now realizing is ahead of me. I believe the images that tell me that great things are in store for me, but then I'm immediately over-whelmed. It's the same feeling as standing at the edge of a diving board for the first time, curling my toes over the edge, while trying to muster the courage to jump.

I met Elizabeth a few years ago when I was thinking about stopping smoking. After some discussion about my life, lifestyle & circumstances, I recognized that stopping smoking was not a priority for me. The heavy baggage from my childhood, bad relationships, poor decisions & an abusive husband, needed more immediate attention. I had just started in real estate & was trying to build a business while dealing with a very difficult & jealous husband. As I worked with Elizabeth, I learned to get to know myself, where my personal power was located & how I could access it at any moment.

Two years later I'm minus the bully who was my husband. That was my first task, the one that I implemented quickly. I left in secret with my two children, my dog & four cats. I had been able to save enough moeny to rent a small place, but moved with nothing else. It was the scariest, but most freeing move I have ever made.

On the first night in my newly rented house, I sat on the sleeping bag I had set up in my bedroom & wrote down my goals for the coming year. I gave myself a year to buy a home of my own, purchase a computer system for my business & to buy a car for my daughter. Each of these seemed insurmountable to me at the time, but I had gained self-insight, as well as the strength & power of my own mind.

I practiced the tools that Elizabeth had given to me; heightened awareness & positive imagery. There were days I doubted it was taking me anywhere, but I continued, remembering what I had already achieved. The year I had given myself had almost concluded. I had accomplished NONE of my written goals. But then, within the last month, everything just fell into place & with seemingly no effort on my part, I accomplished all three of my goals.....with 5 days to spare.

This brings me to where I am now. As I said, I'm happier than I have ever been in my whole life. But now that I've accomplished this, I see so much more in front of me, more than I could have ever imagined or dreamed about. I know it is real & that it awaits me. This is what scares me. I need to know what frightenes me. Once I know this I can carry on towards a fantastic future. So here I am. Ready to take it on.

THE IMPORTANCE OF HOT DESIRE

Claire & Jo have a lot to offer to themselves & to others. Looking first to Claire, it seems to me that her body is burning out from not getting what it needs. I'm impressed that despite being so busy & fatigued at the same time, she is willing to go right ahead with this Workshop. This says MUCH about her, telling me that she will experience success IF HER DESIRE IS "GUT-FELT" which I believe it is. Sometimes we need to get truly sick & tired before we are willing to become seriously involved with our own rehabilitation & self-growth.

This is usually my first important assessment factor when meeting a new patient/student, either in my office or in a Workshop. I want to see & sense their level of "wanting" or desire. I want to sense if they want me to do the work OR if they are wanting to do the work themselves. In my experience, those who have HOT desire & truly want to do their own work, despite any & all obstcles, will be huge winners. Those who are not willing usually have very different outcomes. So it is important for everyone studying in the Workshop to assess themselves in their desire & willingness to do their own work & to do it consistently. There is no magic fix. It is like training for an Olympic Medal, only this is for winning your life back, as well as keeping you out of trouble, both medically & emotionally.

Most people who come to the Workshop are seeking help for very specific desires. Common ones include losing weight or to stop smoking or drinking. Others want to manage anxiety, panic attacks, or want to stop biting their nails or pulling their hair. Students want to do better on tests & to stop being fearful when giving presentations before their class. On occasion, someone senses a glimmer of their potential, but they can't seem to grasp it, so as to know it better. Jo was & still is a vivid example of someone who can see her possibilities.

When I first met Jo, she simply wanted to stop smoking. It was obvious that she was managing her stress in this way. Excesses are always about something else, Jo being no different from anyone else. We all have a system for managing stress, most of them being unhealthy. In our next Workshop we'll get into the Stress Connection. You might be surprised as to what happens when you open yours.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

Fresh Start

"If it seems like this will take forever, you are right."....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

INSIDE THE WORKSHOP

Getting to know each other is a very important part of the life educational process because we are all teachers & students at the same time. As such, we all learn from each other, as we teach each other. As I get to know the Workshop participants, this is what I hear oer & over again. "Oh, what I wouldn't give for a fresh start!"

Well, the good news is that "fresh starts" are available to us in each & every moment. While most of us don't need quite so many, do know that they are there, so there is no reason not to take advantage of these wonderful opportunities.

Here are some mini-mind programs, also known as "affirmations" to take you from wake-up, into new, virgin territory in the creative mind. When you read or say these Self growth statement, place an image in your thought process that represents the affirmation & then connect a true physical feeling to the image. This is how you mind-etch these. Once you complete the etch, your own mind will work to reinforce these new belief programs for you.

I am always free to choose to stop doing what I am doing.

I am always free to choose to break old habits & patterns.

I am always free to choose to change anything & everything.

I recognize & own the fact that I am the writer, producer & director of my life.

BEGINNING SELF-EXPLORATION

Let's just sit & focus for a moment here. We are usually in such a rush to get what we want, that we don't take the time to truly explore what's going on or blocking our way.

Since all we have to do is to know what we want & then plug into desire, why do we ignore this gigantic opportunity? Take a moment here & let that question settle in yur own subconscious mind. When you are ready, I'll give you some additional insights, but please don't rush your own personal work. In fact, from now on forward, you will become acutely aware of how often you are rushing, or chasing your tail. That, in itself, will be enlightening. As you begin to work with your own inner Self, you will find more answers coming to your own mind that will be very Self-specific.

Here are some things I've noticed. Perhaps you have noticed them as well.

Most of us have excuses living on our tongues & for those of us who are tired of the excuse-life, it is often difficult to decide what to do instead of what we are doing & then how to actually begin the new choice.

We think about starting tomorrow, but tomorrow comes & goes & we find ourselves in the same old place.

We might wake up with good intentions, but then "life interrupts us" & despite our intentions, we fall back into old emotional patterns, beliefs, activities, choices, as if these were the only place to go.

Before we know it, we're at the end of the day & still "window-shopping" in our mind, desiring things that we simply cannot grasp, or for some reason, cannot hold onto for long, if at all.

And so, we tend to live in the land of good intentions & excuses, spending incredible energy on depending ourselves, our positions of inactivity or perceived failure, then blaming others for steppin on our toes & our dreams. Most of this constitutes garbage.

Basically, we're all the same, having histories & baggage, desires & dreams. If you have joined this Workshop, you will be doing many things differently from now on. If you are just stopping in for a quick observation, I hope you decide to stay, because the Workshop will change your life. It has to.

Some of the things you will be changing will be obvious to you, but others not so obvious. You will be consciously aware of some changes, but others will simply happen, as if they had a life of their own. you will find yourself replacing old emotional patterns, beliefs, activities & choices. Much of this will be effortless. You will no longer just "window shop" in life. You will actively choose what you want & act in accordance to make it yours.

I ask you to work with the mp3's I've given you, a Journal & a 3 ring binder. You can download the lesson areas for your own personal use. remember that all of my material is copyrighted & so you cannot reproduce it. Go through each part,highlighting areas that speak out to you. This is communication from your own subconscious mind, who is attentive right along with you. I'll be showing you how to work with these parts utilizing a self-hypnotic tool called automatic writing. This will allow you to explore areas that interest you & your own inner mind coach. I'll also suggest CD/mp3 programs that can assist you in working quicker & at higher creative levels.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

mindSET Hats & Blocks to Creative Choice

"It's much easier to study & pick apart someone else, than oneSelf."....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

The desire to rehabilitate yourself can be very powerful & it can open doors to areas of creativity that were always there, but simply sleeping. Calls to rehabilitation can come from health concerns or an actual disease diagnosis as in the case of Deanna. Other times it can be a lack of focus, relationship problems, work issues, or a host of other areas. It can also be the final realization that what you are doing isn't working, so something has to change. You may not know what that thing is, perhaps leaving you with a feeling of frustration, despair or even fear. Do know that "something" is a big gift, even though it may be wrapped in that unapplealing or frightening gift wrap.

As the writer & deliverer of the spokenWORDS, it's important for me to remember that everyone in the Workshop came from a different direction, even if their reasons for coming appear to be the same, such as in an addiction. This is why it's so important for me to provide the words, metaphors, images & other mindWORK that will allow each individual to work independently, even though the words may be the same. Right now I'm appreciatingInteractive Self-Hypnosis because it works so well in rehabilitation.

Clarissa speaks out. "I'm overwhelmed with everything in my life & the idea that so many parts of me need to be fixed is causing physical sensations of panic."

Feeling & even being overwhelmed is a common fear that appears in this moment of awakening or pre-awakening. I'm noticing that the Workshop participants are not relaxed into their seats, looking rather like they are waiting for the opportunity to dart out of the room.

It's like each one has a large plate of pasta on their laps, the strands representing the areas of their lives, all tangled around each other. However, with pasta, no one procrastinates for long. One just digs in, usually not stopping until the plate is empty. However, when life is seen as one big plate full, it's not uncommon for the owner to freeze in fear, then to stay frozen in procrastination. It is this dangerous place that you will find a large percentage of our population. It's good to know that it is possible to break this dangerous behavior pattern & we will be doing that here.

Right now I tell the Workshop participants that they are the writers, directors & producers of their individual lives & now it's time to re-write the script.

LISTEN....

Relax into your chairs, as if they were gently holding you, like a gentle, warm parent of sorts. Snuggle down.

We all have a tendency to live on automatic pilot programs. Many of these mind programs do not reflect what we truly want, but yet most of us keep doing the same over & over. The Workshop is about breaking out of automatic pilot & then stopping to make an assessment. This is our beginning detective work.

Becoming aware, or breaking out of automatic pilot helps us to break the habit of compulsion, clearing the mind for reviewing, taking us to the area where we can choose what is best. From this position it is easier to motivate yourselves into the needed action plan for success. This can become a tall order, consideering all the areas in life that have need of rehabilitation. So, in order to accomplish this objective, you will need a very detailed program design or gestalt, formulated on living images of what you truly want to experience. You will also need an excellent action plan & most importantly, you will need a very special coach to consistently provide both inner & outer motivation.

Now, where do you find this?

Right here in the Workshop. This program is designed to provide all the tools you need for managing your life & taking it to higher planes. You are already learning these, but you are still at the beginning. Soon you will know how to wake up to small moments, to edit them & plant new directives "right in the moment."

When should you begin?

I suggest with your very next breath. I'd like you to recognize that you are on the merry-go-round of life where you are free to choose your own mindSET, just as if it were a hat sitting on your head. Take off any mindSET hat that isn't working to your benefit. Stay attentive for mindSET hats that keep you in a negative or victim frame of mind. Once you are awake with a new mindSET hat on your head, you are ready to move on to collecting the kinds of tools that you will need for daily work. This work will take you to a healthier you, both physically & emotionally. As you settle into this position, hat in place, you are ready to program your own subconscius mind for what you want. You are ready to go & get these things.

Most of you have been to the beginning goal-choice area of the Life University & perhaps have experimented with different goal facets or choices. Some of you needed help to move bigger blocks that were disallowing you from focusing on possibilities. Now, you are all ready to go back to that area. Always check your mindSET hats before working "forward." It's amazing how small, negative moodHATS can block your ability to see & sense creative possibilities.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

Brain Clouds Revealed - Part 2

"There is nothing easy about waking up & seeing with true clarity, but make no mistake for this is the road to maturity."....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

The Workshop participants are busy waking up, some faster than others. It's easy to know who is on the mature path & who is just peaking from behind the rocks, procrastinating about coming out, perhaps thinking it is much easier to stay in denial of what is true. Unfortunately, there is nowhere to hide. Sooner or later one has to come out & step into maturity. This happens in different ways. For some, it's a matter of slow progression, but for others it can be a more dramatic shift, either delivered by the Self, by others, or by circumstances.

Deanne has been jolted onto the path by her diagnosis of cancer of the breast. In the past she would come out, touch the path & then often retreat back, thinking that she had all the time in the world to truly engage herself in maturity. She came to find out that wasn't so & the rude awakening left her very shakey because her foundations weren't as strong as they could have been. In relation to firm foundations, there is no time to waste.

In my leadership position as RN, Educatior & writer of the spokenWORD, it is my job to help, not only Deanne, but the rest of the group as well. As writers & teachers, we get to use what we have in front of us.

A diagnosis of cancer can make or break a person. So can a pick slip. Deanne was in better shape than most people because she already knew about brain clouds & heightened awareness. Of course, the diagnosis hit her very heard, especially because she wasn't expecting it. She needed some time to adjust to her new reality, to get on track for what she needed to do. Once the surprise was over, she had a choice to make. Would she choose to keep the negative bfrain clloud, or would she be willing to work to dispel it? Her new life experiences would be tied to her choice.

She didn't have a large window of opportunity in which to make up her mind. The subconscious begins it's etching process very quickly. If she stayed behind the rock, procrastinating with staying the victim in the dark clouds, her mind would see this as her goal of choice, bringing more of the same to her, actually digging her deeper into the dark depression she located in the rock. A place to hide!! No, not really, for there is no place to hide. Better wake up to that.

Taking the positive route meant disallowing some of her grieving, even though she was entitled to it. Instead, she could push with consistency through all sorts of hurdles, into a positive & healing state, the actual pushing making her stronger & stronger. As we listen to Deanne, for her there was no choice. She would dispel the brain cloud & would return immediately to the mature path, this time wearing army boots. "For me, it is back to the same old drawing board, but with a brand new scenario & new boots."

Deanne will have to begin again with introspective, self-detective work, but I feel very sure that she will become her own expert in managing her diagnosis. In other words, she will become the CEO of both her mind & body, because as she does, both physical & emotional healing will take place.

One doesn't have to have an oncology diagnosis or a chronic disease state to understand Deanne's predicament of having the rug pulled out from under oneself. It happens every day with big rugs & small rugs. It could have to do with relationships, job security or falling off the nutritional path. One moment things are going well & then life turns on a dime. Ominous brain clouds can appear very quickly & so it's important to make the right decision very quickly, because windows of opportunity are usually very small when it comes to negotiating polluted clouds.

Your job is to make sure that your subconscious mind knows what you truly want & that you spend little to no time in getting back on your path to maturity.

MIND EXERCISE

Relax deeply into the moment. Go even deeper, utilizing techniques you learned earlier in the Workshop. When you are ready, tilt your closed eyes gently upwards, locating your mind screen. Where are you? Are you on or off the path of maturity? Are you behind a rock? Have you crawled into the depressed area? If so, notice that your Higher or Mature Self has gone to rescue you.....taking you by the hand & leading you back to where you belong. Sense the feeling of secuirty that is delivered by this aspect of your Self. Allow this to resonate in your body, as well as in your mind. If you would like to bring images of your Higher Power into play, please do so. Now, notice that you are walking forward, picking up small rocks that tend to trip......& placing them in rock gardens along your way.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

Brain Clouds

The Workshop participants are now working with minds that are open & flowing. Now is a good time for me to discuss high stress overloads & how to manage them.

ENTER BRAIN CLOUDS

Brain clouds are groups of negative mind programs that block communication with the subconscious mind library. You & you alone are responsible for producing stress chemicals in your body that form the brain clouds & you are also responsible for diminishing them.

Here in the Workshop you will be waking up to the many ways you produce these chemicals. The more awake you are, the more clolud material you will be able to see & sense. Each moment of self-awareness gives you the choice to diminish or release these. Most cloud material is diminished or released in small measures. Each time you become aware & choose to diminish a measure of cloud, you are actually re-programming your subconscious mind.

Stress chemicals, or clouds, are produced in many ways. Some are on automatic pilot & so we may not be conscious of the production, but the stress chemicals are there nevertheless & need to be released. If not, they are stored & can lead to all sorts of problems. Other stress producing moments are easier to find. for example, you place your body in food stress when you eat incorrectly for your specific & unique body & mind needs.

If you have a family medical history of diabetes or heart disease & you don't eat accordingly, your body will over-produce insulin & a host of other stress producing chemicals. This can also happen if you skip meals or don't eat sufficiently for your exercise level. When practicing inadequate nutrition, you rob your body of the nutrients needed for the many different departments that are required to function to keep you alive. This is very stressful on your body & can lead to the development of killer diseases, as well as interfere with your cognitive functioning. No one gets away free!

You also produce stress chemicals when you practice emotional imbalance or negative thought patterns. If you are not awake & aware to these, you many not think to release them & to bring your body back into homeostasis or balance. This is why it is important to practice meditative tools, even though you may not think to do so.

You also produce stress chemicals or brain clouds when you don't pay attention to your body communications, such as fatigue, that can appear in many different body departments. Your head may ache, or your shoulders & back may feel tired or stiff. Your eyes may need a bfreak, especially if you read a lot or sit in front of a computer. Your legs may report being stiff if you have been sitting for too long. Imagine for a moment that you are one of your body parts & no matter how you complain, your Self will not pay attention to you. In fact, your Self might anser your complaint of stress by actually adding more stress to your situatin, such as eating a chocolate bar, drinking caffeine or smoking a cigarette.

You produce brain cloud stress chemicals when you don't release stored stress during your day. If you produce & store enough stress, you can produce a biochemical disaster or a major brfain cloud. Over time, brain clouds can lead to many stress-related diseases & even death. So we now understand that brain clouds are caused by high level stress chemical production that interferes with all functions of the mind & body. In addition, brain clouds block the road to the goals you are chosen to try on in the Life University Workshop, thereby causing even more loss; the loss of what could be.

These ominous clouds keep you away from utilizing your powerful & creative subconscious library & impede healing in all departments, from body to emotional. Brain cloud composition is different for each of us. As we stay aware & explore different areas of our day, some of the components of the cloud can change, but usually clouds lean towards the negative or positive compositions that are dictgated by intact personality or behavioral patterns.

WORKING WITH DEANNE

I met Deanne in an earlier Workshop. She was 52 years old & had terrible brain clouds in most areas of her life. She had just been divorced & wasn't feeling complete in her work-life. The years that lead up to her divorce had drained her & being free of her husband was about all she was going to get. She was truly out of touch with what her body had been telling her over & over again for more years than she cared to remember.

"Elizabeth asked me to observe my cloud-states & I felt truly frightened as I grew increasingly away of what I had been bringing to my mind & body. My eating was OK, but not great. If you looked at me, you probably wouldn't have noticed, but my body did. I was highly stressed & little did I know that very soon I would be paying the Piper a big price for all of this. I worked on my self-develoment, utilizing Interacitve Self-Hypnosis & began to have more positive experiences in my life. I looked & felt better than I had in a very long time & even my work had taken some creative turns.

My 56th birthday was to be a great celebration. My friends gave me a surprise party & tickets to hawaii. My sons surprised me by flying in for the occasion. My doctor also surprised me & gave me a diangosis of breast cancer. So much for the party."

Deanne's brain cloud turned very toxic & needed to be cleared many times during her day. Her emotions were producing large quantities of stress chemicals that were going to interfere with her diagnosis & treatment, as well as the quality of her life. It would become very important for her to work closely with her support team, but the cloud-work could only be done by her.

In the next Workshop we'll follow Deanne through her re-centering work, taking her from her cancer diagnosis, back into living her life.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

Employing Resilience

"The power of reslience resides within each of us. Whether we choose to use it or not is something we must decide on our own..".....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

Claire is a member of the Workshop, but asked to see me privately about a personal matter that she doesn't want to share with the group. I ask her to come to my office at 9 in the morning, so we will have a full hour before the Workshop begins.

Claire arrives ten minutes late, smelling heavily of alcohol & nicotine. I now know her secret, but I still need her to tell me why she is here. It's her responsibility to come clean. I'm to assume nothing. I do know that she is in her 40's & is a health-care worker. It's important for me to remain open about this, because unless I do, she might close down. I work to stay free of judgment & my annoyance with her need to communicate with me in this very negative way.

Of course she must know that working in health-care & practicing alcoholism are incongruent, despite the fact that addictions of all sorts, including alcohol, are highly prevelent in the health-care workers.

Claire sits straight up in the recliner, then asking me for a blanket. The room temperature is perfectly fine, but her body & her mind are under the influence of alcohol. I hand her the blanket, noticing that it helps her to become a baby of sorts. It's the way she carefully wraps herself, then going into a modified fetal position. Once her centering ritual is accomplished, she begins her story.

I've come because of the Life University program. As I relaxed into the images, the Professor in my goal center told me to speak to you privately, because I need some addictional direction. I've been an alcoholic since I was a teen & have been to rehab several times, but the longest I've ever been sober is one month. I don't know why I can't stop. I do want to.

I'm happy to hear that Claire's own subconscious mind was fully engaged with the Life University mp3, bringing her into the open where she could request additional help. Through my interview I find out quite a bit more. The more I know, the easier it will be for me to design working metaphors for her.

Claire connects drinking with being free. Unfortunately it is just the opposite. The more one drinks, the heavier the bars on the jail cell. She's had two major losses in her life in the past year, those being her father & brother, both dying from cancer of the lung. I now understand why she came to the Workshop. She is driven by fear, but in Claire's case, the fear has brought forth her child-SELF & not her mature-SELF. This is unfortunate, but it doesn't mean that she can't be helped.

Claire is completely undisciplined in regard to her drinking. Other areas of her life are also in disarray, but I've located two areas that are fairly well defined in relation to discipline, one being her work, but only when she is sober. The other is in relation to her significant other who is not a practicing alcoholic. These areas of self-discipline will be used as hooks in order to build much needed discipline in her darker areas.

Like many addicts, Claire is totally submerged. Everything revolves around her drinking & now it has entered her working life. She drinks between client assignments & has even engaged in drinking with her clients. Because her drink of choice is wine, she has come decided to believe that this is fine. This is just one example of her level of denial.

I can't stop thinking about wanting to drink & wanting to smoke. The thoughts are making me crazy. How can I choose goals in areas of my life IF I can't clear my thoughts? I don't even know where to begin.

I tell Claire that she has already begun & so she doesn't have to worry about beginning. She is in process. This idea takes her by surprise & she laughs. "Well, that was easy." Since this idea has caught her attention in a positive way, I decide to milk it a bit further. I tell her that she didn't "just begin", but she is already on her journey to recovery.

I give her the suggestion to look back down the path, so she can see how far she has already traveled. Now, I have the opportunity to introduce her to a part of her resilience collection. I have many choices to build this metaphor, but I've decided on stones & rocks. Perhaps I'll throw in a boulder or two..... those representing the deaths of her father & brother. To date, she has seen these only in a negative light, but I want to utilize the fact that she "survived" these losses & built resilience that she can now utilize to manage her alcohol addiction.

Claire is deep into the images. Hot images or those connected to highly emotional experiences are very useful & can be transmuted into valuable assets. Since she doesn't have much going for her in the area of living discipline, it's going to be necessary to find strengths in her past. I've just met her & so I don't have much to go on, but I will engage her in this area of stone & rock collecting & see what she comes up with.

Once Claire has gathered some mental strength, we'll go back to the Life University & try on some goals. We will have moved from a failure mind-state, to one of higher self-esteem & personal power. Affirmations will also be useful here.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

Life University - Goal Setting

"The first step is often the most difficult, but it can be the most important step."....Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN,C.Ht

The Workshop group is working with my Life University Program. I've placed a link for a full session from this program below & it will be there for just a few more days. Listening will allow you to plant the very same programs that I'll be presenting to the Workshop participants.

PREPARATION INDUCTION

If you have downloaded & listened to the mp3, you know that we spend time preparing for entry to the Life University. After you become more accustomed to working in trance, you will be able to enter your subconscious mind library in 1/200th of a second. That's why building the deep relax skill is so important, as it allows for quick retreat from the circus of the world & entrance into the theater of the mind. Once there, you can work with whatever metaphors you choose. In this instance, we're working with the Life University.

GETTING GOAL SAVVY

The group is deeply relaxed & ready. Listen now...there is no doubt about it....the world is filled with choices & limitless possibilities for goal achievement in all areas of life. Most of us tend to live in the land of self-limitation & lack. Because we spend our day on auto-pilot, we rarely do more than mentally window shop & simply wish we could have this or that. In addition, the combination of stress chemical production & poor inner organization keeps us treading water instead of swimming forward....upstream. But now things are different....you are here & your professors will help you to move in the direction of high level goal performance....sense the feeling of knowing where you are about to go....connecting physiological/emotional feelings to images will propel you in the direction of what you want for you....please tune into the the positive expectation of these gifts that you are going to receive & enhance the level of personal & private excitement, for no one but you will be doing this in this exact way....for your very own mind is is accepting these suggestions in ways that only you can provide.....this is your own private genius.

Do know that achieving goals is not an accident or a matter of luck. It is a matter of knowing what you want, what to do & then doing those things in a consistent manner....& so the very first thing you will do will be to dissect a goal choice, because you cannot have everything, but kyou can have much more than you already have in your limited existence....

The first order of business is to choose goals in each area of your life. Notice that there are shelves of goals that would or bould be compatible for the different areas of your life. I've placed a model of your life here....the different areas are represented as gardens. Take your time & choose a few goals for each area.....they may be clear to you or not & that is just fine. Right now you are telling your own inner mind that you would like to have goals for EACH of these areas....Notice that you are choosing well....you have many choices & opportunities in all areas of your life.....practice engaging in limitless wishing....pretend you have a genie in a bottle who is willing to give you whatever you want. Now spend some time thinking about what you really want. Notice the goals are demonstrating themselves to you....making it easier for you to see & then select your choices. You can pause here if you like...

Whether you pause or not, your subconscious mind is listening well & will bring genie ideas to you in the days that follow this & the days that follow that. You mind is open now to these suggesstions & once this occurs, action will follow. This is ongoing work & your mind & genie know how to send communications to you. Listen for them for they will be forthcoming.

Perhaps in the past you were goal-less ....maybe spinning your wheels unproductively for most of your hours....Butg that was then & now is now & so it is time for you to bfreak that habit....let it go....Perhaps you are remembering times when you chose things that you truly didn't want, thereby setting the scene for failure before you gegan....You can now sense that old mindset floating away & focused choice coming towards you & entering.

Now let's have some fun....try some goals on for size....Locate the mind screen & place a possible goal in action. Notice that it enjoys demonstrating itself to you.....pay attention to the details. Now notice that steps have appeared on the side of the screen....go ahead & climb up.....enter the goal-action. How do you feel? Is this something you would like to own? Remember if you own a goal, you must care for it ....literally carry it around with you.....tend to it....love it. Is this something you truly desire or is it just a whim-goal?

Practice with several & then give your conscious self a time-out. Your subconscious mind will continue on with the work & serve you any break-through or EUREKA happenings.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG

mindART - Attending the Life University

"You can make something happen today. Good things can happen to you & for you right now. As you learn to break your big plan for success into small steps, you can take the first step right away. Your success is a matter of your expectations. Once these are accepted by your own inner mind, the plans are placed on the drawing board. You are the one who stretches your horizons & then designs the roadway.".......Elizabeth Bohorquez, RN, C.Ht

The Workshop group is working with my Life University Program. I've placed a link for a full session from this program below & it will be there for just a few more days. Listening will allow you to plant the very same programs that I'll be presenting to the Workshop participants.

This program takes the listener or practitioner of self-hypnosis to the powerful Life University. The listener has the opportunity to visit skill building areas that may need more structure in his/her own life including emotional management, thought management, goal building & action classes, life balance, health, work ethics & motivation, relationship building, spiritual enhancing & opening, future pacing & planting & much more.

This program will help you to self-assess, to find areas that may benefit from change & to actually plant the mind programs tht will allow you to do so. This is an ideal program for those who truly want to move on & to truly make those changes that will greatly impact life.

GETTING STARTED

Here we will be working with your Inner Professors or Mentors who exist in a special area of your creative mind. Here you get to choose some of your subjects.....just like in a real University setting....some of these include goal-choosing, management, motivation, the practical applications of persistence & perseverance, self-discipline, emotional & thought management to name a few. You will also be assigned to a self-care professor who will check out your current self-care program & grade you. After this you will be assigned to a self-care growth program, a very necessary part of succeeding in the Life University.

You'll be taking art appreciation & even geting your hands into clay & paint, exploring your own creativity & allowing it to flow. You'll be invited to extra-curricular activities wshere you will enjoy boosting your social skills, as well as practicing the art of listening. The library will give you the opportunity to work with authors & mentors from all walks of life, both present & past. you will be able to touch assets that perhaps have not been available to you in the past, but the past is past & now is now & the future is right up the road....closer than you think.

You will be assigned to specific professors who already know you & who will assist & guide you in the many different aras of life studies. This will all be accomplished through very special crfeative imagery. Your Professors will also function as a guidance team & with them, you will be inner-evaluating your special needs in relation to your goals in the many areas of your current life, as well as mapping out your future. This is known as inner strategic planning. You will be introduced to your time line where you will be able to future-pace, or plant those goals right onto your personal time line. here they will be fed & nurthured, even before they present themselves in your reality.

You will experience the meaning of being your own self-director, practicing maturity while availing yourself of the myriead of assets & opportunities that will avail themselves through the Life University, located in your very own subconscious mind. You will take your past, current & future life experiences to higher levels than before, perhaps higher than you ever thought possible, for this is the way of the creative mind & each & evedryone of us has these magnificent assets waiting to be accessed.

In the next part of the Workshop we will discuss your experiences with the first session.

The past issues of this blog can be found below. Other segments are stored in the following separate blog. For those of you who would like to practice Interactive Self-Hypnosis, there is always a complimentary mp3 sitting on my website. The program that is there presently is a full session called The Life University. This is part of a 2-CD/mp3 program for re-structuring goals & implementing them in all parts of life. I'm sure you will join others who have enjoyed working with this program. I'll be changing this in a few days, so you might want to take advantage of it while it is still posted. The next program will be on goal achievement.

mindART - FULL BLOG