And practices….what does THAT mean?

Because therapy is about repair or change or healing, it means that you will need to do something different to get a different outcome. Make sense?

Practices are some of the things you can do physically, intellectually, emotionally and spiritually to make your life different…this is life changing work – all aspects of your life will at some point come into the act. There are temporary fixes to some situations: where one part of a structure in a building is isolated from the rest; where you see problems and solutions right *there.* Likely, other problems will surface if the foundation was at all rocky. We are like that inside, too.

If what you need is a new car to get you to your work on time, you don’t want to do therapy; you want a car dealership. If what you are experiencing is that every time you get into a close relationship, it falls apart, then it is not the new person that will “fix” this for you; likely, it is that you could use some update in a core area of yourself. It may be that you find people in your life that are not trustworthy AND now may be the time to repair the whole matter of trust.

Practices are activities that you can begin now that will help you become awake in your life. 

Pick an area from among the four  (PIES) below. Then, choose something to do DAILY in that one area….keep some notes on why you picked that, and how it is for you to do (or forget todo)  that activity for a two week trial. If is easily fits into your life, pick another something to do. If it is a struggle, make some guesses about why  it is hard, keep notes, try for another two weeks. After a month, add another area from these four and keep going!

Physically,  are you taking care of your checkups, dental included? Do you get some movement each day, as you are able? Have you ever gone to  or viewed a video on yoga, or Tai Chi, or Qi Gong? Do you work out too much? How is your sleep schedule? Are you “sleep deprived?” Sleep deprivation varies by age. Sleep schedules are places many of us “dig in our heels” and say we cannot change. Are you eating well? Do you get enough water?

Intellectually, do you continue to learn? Do you regularly challenge your beliefs about important and unimportant matters? Loyalty can be a basis for sticking to something even when it is no longer working for your good.

Emotionally, can you have your emotions? Can you feel sad and cry? Can you feel anger and not lash out verbally or physically? Can you feel happy? Can you notice that you are uncomfortable with a your feelings and realize that they are only your feelings? Do you know when and why you go numb?

Spiritually, can you connect to something beyond/ outside of yourself?  Are you aware of the unseen in reality, not confined to the material world? Do you admit that you have control in only limited ways in your own life, and not at all in the lives of others? Are there ways in which you distract, deaden, tune out, numb? There are a wide array of these tricksters – too much  or too little work, sleep, food, sex, working out, anger, sadness, self-criticism, alcohol, weed, ‘srooms and so. If you are in love with one or more of these, consider breaking it off and not going steady….