A Circular Life in the Time of Pandemic

I'm sitting here wondering how to write a blog about hope without sounding like I'm preaching, how to express empathy and make it meaningful, what to suggest you can do to make your life more enjoyable, upbeat, happy, and I'm drawing a blank. Our country has gone through months, years of great unhappiness. We have many different political opinions, religious preferences, and so on. Acts of nature are beyond our control. Hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, and mudslides where thousands and thousands of people are left dead or wounded, happen more frequently. California is on fire and running out of water. One percent of the citizens in this country hold over ninety percent of the wealth. The middle class has all but disappeared. Health care, including dental and vision, is becoming harder for individuals and families to afford. Even co-pays can be impossible to pay since the minimum wage comes nowhere close to parity for healthcare, medication, or dental work. Daycare costs have caused many families that would like to be a two-income family to become a one-income family even though the family could use two incomes to pay the bills and raise the kids. Many people go without the basic things...

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EARLY CHILDHOOD TRAUMA

This is an important video explaining what happens to developing brains that are traumatized, and gives us a better understanding of childhood trauma, and why talk therapy in adulthood and childhood, for as long as it takes to help the client heal, is the best course of treatment. Without healing, the damage creating unhealthy responses in children continues into adulthood, and can severely impact adult relationships. It's the story that needs to be told and heard with caring and empathy. .https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYyEEMlMMb0&feature=youtu.be

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RAPID ONSET HEARTACHE

How many of you in relationships have been perfectly happy, life is beautiful, as is your relationship? You just feel good Then, out of left field, your partner gets angry at you for something and having a conversation about it is out of the question because he’s either yelling about it or he’s withdrawn and being as cold as he can manage to be, making sure you know they are being cold. And as soon as the happens, no matter how happy you were minutes before then, your heart feels like someone is squeezing it with a strong fist, your anxiety level ratchets up, you’re suddenly miserable. You may choose to fight until both of you retreat to separate couches, solving nothing, or you may decide to lick your wounds in separate parts of the house. But didn’t you even look down at your chest and wonder how your heart can feel pain that quickly, and how that pain is just devastating. You might do what you know you have to do as far as your obligations, but the entire time you’re miserable. Then, after the blowup where both of you get it all out and some, not in a...

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WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU DON’T KNOW YOURSELF

Very often you look to others, your friends, family, coworkers to see how you’re doing. Are you good enough? Do you fit in? Are you going to continue to rise up whatever ladder you’re looking at, professional or personal? You’re born like a plant seeking the light. If the plant is placed in a dark corner it will twist itself to try to grow toward the light. If a person, from a very early age, realizes what gets them love and attention, they will repeat those attitudes, beliefs, what they say or do, to continue getting love from others. However, you were already born a person, and maybe your family of origin doesn’t understand that. Perhaps they believe it’s their job to turn you into a person, not to be curious about who you are and to guide you into adulthood and independence as yourself, who you were when you were born. You begin wearing a mask you believe is you. The problem is that you have to keep changing masks depending on the other people you’re around and what expectations they have of you. Since you haven’t internalized a solid sense of self that allows you to put on...

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Your Body and Your Mind Are Connected

We live in a  country where obesity is an epidemic. Every media outlet there is has been telling us for years that we are obese, eat the wrong food, overeat, drink too much alcohol. Once again, I offer my disclaimer; these are generalities. There are healthy people too. This blog isn't for you unless you want to learn how to up your game and get in even better shape. I'm referring to people who know they're overweight and in poor physical shape. Many of you have serious health issues. Your brain needs nutrition, exercise,  and fresh air for you to be able to navigate the psychological aspects of your life. If you don't feel well, don't have energy, feel sluggish, and exercise is a dirty word to you,  the rest of your life probably isn't going so well. Take a look at this website that offers many different options and ideas for getting and staying healthy. https://holistichealthwithholly.com/

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