Let Go and Get Over It...already

Were you aware that January is International Get Over It Month? That is significant, because so many people want to create something new (think New Years resolutions), when they have a hard time letting go of what was.

Several years ago, I attended a workshop in Los Angeles called Spiritually Speaking… Get Over It. It was lead by Doreene Hamilton Minister of Metaphysics and Spirituality, Healer, Spiritual Life Coach. She also has a book by the same name available for purchase with the exercises and processes. I remember asking myself "Is this really all we need to do, release the past and have the intention to move on?" It seems so simple, but profound. Lately, my clients have all been questioning their restlessness. There is a common thread of wanting more from life, even when it is yet unnamed. More peace, wholeness, joy.

At my Reiki Drumming introductory talk this past Thursday. It was called "Inspired Goalsetting with Reiki Drumming." The attendees had such lovely energy that the vibration of the class was very high. Lots of interesting shifts and insights were vocalized. Even my 13 year old son, who was my official assistant for the first time, said he went to a special place and felt renewed. The next morning, he said he had a dream that he felt alone and scared and hemmed in, and the Terminator reached out his hand and said "Come with me if you want to live." He reached out and took his hand, got an oozie and together they kicked some booty. I asked if it meant anything to him, but he didn't say. I saw in him, and the others, how important it is to let go of old outdated thoughts, history and ideas of what we think "should" be. Once we do so, we create a space for the new, wonderful dreams and goals we have to come into fruition.

Lots of old tapes and programming have come into my awareness lately, asking me if I want to let go and finally get over it. I have to say, I finally feel ready, worthy, willing and able to get past my past and move joyfully in the now and beyond.

Are your reaching for your potential in 2010?

Did you know that January is "National Reaching Your Potential" month?

Well, it is. Apparently, there were so few of us feel as though we had actually reached this elusive state of being, someone had to declare an entire month in order to celebrate those insighful (or lucky) few individuals or organizations, who accomplishing this mysterious feat. Our handy Amazon search turned up at least 67 books to assist me on my quest.

How do you know if you are, or are not, reaching your potential? How is the intangible realm of "potential" measured? Honestly, until a few years ago, I did not even feel I had the right to think I had potential. At the ripe old age of 30, I felt as if I awakened from a very deep (though not restful) sleep. Then I spent ten more years, remembering who I am.

Only in the last few years have I considered that perhaps there's even more to the story that I never even dreamed of. I've heard people say "too bad youth is wasted on the young." Finally, I get that quip. My full passion is budding, and I have to wonder if I am half way through my life. I feel a strength, reserve power and vision that I could never have handled gracefully in my 20's. But my 40's, that seems to be something else.

Years ago, I discovered meditation and visualization. Kelly Howell at Brain Sync has some great CD's to help remove blocks, fears and that helped opened my mind to feel worthy of thinking out of the box. Titles like, "Retrieve Your Destiny," "Faith," and "Fulfill Your Hearts Desire" have gently cracked opened the gates to helping me find my full Potential Self. And books like "The Dark Side of the Light Chaser" and "You Can heal Your Life" have helped me learn to love myself, and not just the shiney, sparkly perfect pieces either.

Teaching classes, writing a book, continuing my education, raising responsible (and joyful) young adults, tending a marriage and increasing my circle of close friends...all seem manageable, and in fact necessary. I now know my "potential" does not have a salary cap or a glass ceiling. Now, the really good stuff is appearing. Life is full of substance, rich and colorful, and my "potential" is finally showing itself. What about you ladies? Have you taken stock in yourself, daring to look sqarely at the potential of your gifts? Please, I'd love to hear about it.

Charlotte Reznick Ph.D on Imagery for Kids

Charlotte Reznick Ph.D on Imagery for Kids

Healing Kids and Teens through Visualization

Do you, or someone you know, have a young child or teen in the house? OMG, the love, stress and drama can be totally too much sometimes, right? I'm not great at teen-talk, but I try. As the mother of a tween and young teen, I appreciate all the positive tools I can get my hands on to help my kids acheive self-mastery.

Meditation and visualization have helped me move through some of the most challenging rough patches in my life, so why not my kids too? Join me, MiChelle Jeneen, host of the Spirit Refreshed show this Wednesday 1/20/10 at 12noon-1pm Pacific time. Call in live with questions to 646-478-5262 or join us in the show chat room.

My guest this week is the esteemed Charlotte Reznick, Phd. She is the author of "The Power of Your Child's Imagination: How to Transform Stress and Anxiety into Joy and Success." I have also used her CD's with my kids, namely Discovering Your Special Place andCreating a Magical Garden and Healing Pond." And on some level, it works!

"Dr. Charlotte Reznick has dedicated her life to helping children, adolescents, parents, and professionals. She is a nationally recognized child and educational Psychologist and Associate Clinical Professor of Psychology at UCLA, earning her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Southern California."

Dr. Reznick can be reached via her website, Imagery for Kids, and her products can be purchased on Amazon as well as via her website.

Coming out of the Shadows with Authenticity

As I checked my Google search this morning, I was pleasantly surprised to see an article in my hometown newspaper, The Cleveland Plain Dealer, discussing alternative and integrative care for various issues from depression to pain and fatigue to those seeking a deeper connection to self and others. Read the entire article HERE.

It's a rare cloudy, rainy day here in Southern California. I'm relishing sitting on the couch watching the Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan marathon on E. Heated blanket and laptop on my at the ready, it's delicious to just "be" for a change...with no thoughts of the "do" necessary later on today. Missing my dog Roxie, because we loved to take long walks together on days like this.

Instead, I've found myself reflecting more on me. Now that's sometimes a mystery...Meeeeee. We women often spend so much time perpetrating the dance of what we think we're supposed to be, we forget to take the time to cultivate whom we really are and want to be. When I think back on my formative years, in a little close-knit (and fairly close-minded) community in Northeastern Ohio, nobody would ever have dreamed to step outside the confines of the traditional. Catholic or Baptist, doing what everyone before us and around us was doing. A protective mask of "normal" was on every face.

Another reason I like Mary Ann Winkowski (the real Ghost Whisperer behind the show) so much. She's from the same town, same socio background and has managed to step out on faith that she has a gift to share with the world authentically. Coming out of the spiritual, life's-vocation, true-passion closet is a bit scary. In the end, it is so exciting that it's quickly becoming my greatest adventure of all.

Dr. Mehmet Oz Declares Reiki as His #1 Alternative Medicine Secret

Dr. Mehmet Oz Declares Reiki as His #1 Alternative Medicine Secret

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Farewell to a Ball of Unconditional Love

This week was at once liberating and extremely challenging at the same time. We put down our love, Roxie, on Saturday 1/2/10. During her life, from start to the very finish, she was the epitome of Unconditional Love.

My husband and I adopted Roxie from the Los Angeles County Animal Shelter December 2006. She was a calm, smallish dog who was unassuming and seemed to have given up on life. Upon reading the paperwork taped to the outside of her cold, cramped, concrete cell, we saw she was approximately 9 months old and had been returned 3 times by her adopting families. Only the last one left a hint as to why: "I can't afford to take care of this dog!" We questioned the caretaker who said she was on antibiotics for kennel cough, but otherwise is fine. We paid our $38 for her spaying, licensing and first round of immunizations.

The county gives you a voucher to get the first veterinary visit paid for. When the vet came back into the room after taking xrays due to an irregular heartbeat, I felt my own heart drop. Roxie had an enlarged heart, likely due to an unknown illness as a puppy, which required expensive treatment which would never cure her, only prolong her life some. His recommendation was immediate euthanizing.

Huh? Not this sweet, unassuming little ball of licks and love. She looked so longingly into my eyes that I abrasively thanked him for his expert opinion and told him we will give her a home, love and a great life for as long as she wanted to stay in her body. He cocked his head like a hound listening for a high-pitched whistle, shrugged his shoulders and wished me luck.

At this point, I chose to look at time as precious and to never tell my family of the "death sentence." I just said she had a few health challenges that require the best of care and we will love on her and enjoy her (as we should one another) for as long as God saw fit to keep us together. We had great adventures together as a family. We camped, hiked, went to the beach, took long walks at sunset and watched chick flicks together into the wee hours of the night. She was my friend, my girl, my spiritual partner and co-parent in so many ways. She touched the life of every person she ever met. And when she was done, she went to Heaven without a minute of regret...self-assured that she did the job she was sent here to do, now free to return to Heaven.

I've learned alot of great lessons from that Roxie Girl. I learned to savor every moment, to love without hesitation, to forgive without exception and to give and receive as much love as I possibly can. Rest in peace precious angel.