Posts by Valerie Varan
The Paradigm Shift to Quantum Psychology
It is time for a sweeping revision, repair and restoration of the field of psychology. Stanislav Grof MD said it this way,
“We are not talking here about a minor patchwork…..but a major fundamental overhaul. The resulting conceptual cataclysm would be comparable in its nature and scope to the revolution that physicists had to face in the first three decades of the twentieth century when they had to move from Newtonian to quantum-relativistic physics. And, in a sense, it would represent a logical complement to the radical changes in understanding of the material world that have already happened in physics.”
In his article Revision and Re-Enchantment of Psychology: Legacy of Half a Century of Consciousness Research, The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 2012, Vol. 44, No. 2. Grof asserted that a materialistic view of the human psyche simply does not fit all of the data. He suggested that it was time for psychology to recognize that the brain does not produce consciousness because consciousness is already everywhere. Consciousness is primary and fundamental.
Energizing or De-energizing? A Different Way of Disciplining the Mind
A client of mine recently came in a bit deflated. As she described what she had been thinking about, I could tell her thoughts were all over the place, lost in her subconscious.
In western conventional psychology, it is routine for a practitioner to help a client become aware of self-defeating thought patterns, A little less common for them to help the client develop a positive thought discipline. As I introduced the concept of noticing how thoughts are attached to emotions, environments, bodily sensations, behavioral reactions, and how it can be useful to log the thoughts in a variety of ways, I noticed how overwhelming it was to her.
What we decided would be a constructive practice for her, was for her to take a piece of paper and divide it into two columns, ENERGIZING and DE-ENERGIZING. Any thought or thought pattern that was energizing or expanding, she could log in that column; any that she felt to be deflating or taking away from her energy she could log in the de-energizing column. The same with any environment, like somewhere indoors or in nature outdoors. The same with various people she finds herself to be around, or any activities she spends time doing. That way she could work on increasing awareness of all thoughts, activities, behaviors, environments, situations, and people who help her feel good in some degree, or those that lead her to feel constricted and in some degree not so good. Awareness of what it is that is connected to negative emotions or positive emotions, particularly the types of thoughts or thinking patterns, like all/nothing, can/can’t, always/never, success/failure.
Many of my clients have tried this exercise and found it to be very eye-opening. They begin to realize how much of their energy is tied up into thoughts and activities that don’t serve or resonate with them. And in what direction they would rather head. So I thought I would share this with you. Try it. See how you like it. I hope you do!
Letting Go
A client wanted to share with you the poem she wrote to herself about trust, and letting go…
Letting Go
Trusting in the Universe and myself.
Forgiveness.
Knowledge that I have done the best I can.
Being held lovingly in the moment.
Allowance.
Acceptance.
Peace.
Floating in the calm ocean.
Truth in the sky above me.
Truth in the water below me.
Love and appreciation for where I am NOW.
Love and appreciation for what has brought me to NOW.
YOU ARE ENOUGH!!!
Embracing freedom… Like a caged bird.
It takes courage to open your wings and fly on the wind.
And this is freedom.
It is a choice.
Choose courage.
Dissolve fear.
Recognize the limitlessness of love within yourself and the universe.
Open your wings.
Take flight.
And this is letting go.
TRUST.
by CH
Cultivating Self-Love
Recently a client of mine asked to share her journal entries, with me and you, so that others could benefit from knowing what it is like to gain new insights, and begin to act on them.
In this case she was struggling to love herself, for she was really good at intense and unconstructive self-talk, and at beating herself up for every little thing she judged herself for doing wrong. We were trying to help her move into more automatic constructive, rather than unconstructive, self-talk. One of the things we had worked on was helping her distinguish between discernment and judging.
Secret to Happiness: Power of “I Can”
Watch this amazing video of 17-year-old Sam. Sam has progeria, a disease which causes premature rapid aging. But he shares with us, why and how he leads a happy life. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36m1o-tM05g&feature=player_embedded His advice: allow negative feelings to flow through us when they do come up, and then re-focus the thoughts on what we can do; surround ourselves with those we want to be around and who support us and love us for who we are on the inside; and never miss a party!
Power of Love: Man and Lions in the African Wild
Wow…the power of unconditional fearless love! See this 15 minute video clip of a man (some call the lion whisperer) hugging and playing in the wild with African lions. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=MNCzSfv4hX8 His mission is to teach others about the value of lions and wild animals…..how each is important to the surrounding ecosystem. He tells us that each has a unique personality. And that their habitats are dwindling. They need our help to not become extinct.
The Unending Pursuit of Happiness
Why does happiness feel like such hard work? Why is it that as soon as we’ve achieved something that we thought would or should make us happy, we find that we’re still longing to feel happy?
Today as I found myself feeling sad, I felt inspired to add my voice to the dialogue on happiness.
The short answer to such questions is that happiness is a state we have the opportunity to create each and every moment. All moods are a reflection of the thought of the moment. Think a sad thought, and we’ll feel sad. Think an even more depressing thought, and we’ll feel depressed. Think a happy thought, and we’ll feel happy. For that moment.
When our moods are prolonged, it is a sign that we have a habit of thinking a certain way. For instance, when we struggle with depression or anxiety, it is a mirror back to us that we typically view the world with an eye on the past or future (respectively), and with an eye for what is lost or missing to us, or an eye toward how we may be harmed in some way.
I am sad right now because I’m thinking of how many of my family members have passed recently or are gravely ill. I plan on allowing myself to feel this sadness for a few moments, because it’s real, and it’s how I’m feeling about this situation.
But soon, I will switch to other thoughts, like about how the geese sound as they fly in formation over the nearby lake, how grateful I am that my family will be together for the holidays, and how soulful it feels to know I have a book coming out soon.
Happiness is not about an unending pursuit for greater success. It is about noticing the present moment, being authentic to who you are, and choosing to focus on what brings you joy.
Bankers Draining Municipal Budgets? Where is Conscious Capitalism?
My stomach sickens at the thought… http://www.nbcnews.com/business/damage-city-budgets-self-inflicted-help-wall-street-2D11603593?ocid=msnhp&pos=1 …of dozens of cities, and thousands of fellow Americans, who are struggling because Wall Street bankers duped them into financial derivative schemes that made the bankers much richer and the cities, and their residents, much much poorer. Their municipal budgets now continuously drained. Public projects significantly more costly. Fewer works being funded at all. And the domino effect…like sustained unemployment or even higher layoffs, less funding to fight crime or pay emergency workers, impaired ability to help abused children get out of violent homes, little money to repair pot holes and other storm damage…the list goes on. All due to unscrupulous, unprincipled bankers who readily deceive our ignorant public servants into signing bad financial contracts, where they ultimately agree to pay higher than market interest rates or fees well into the future. Like Oakland, California reportedly stuck paying Goldman Sachs until 2021, according to CNBC’s John W. Schoenan in his article (see link above) just released today.
This is just one example of individuals, and entire industries, creating needless suffering in the world. Imagine how much misery could be avoided if these people transformed their consciousness into a way of thinking and perceiving that was centered around love. All contracts would be win-win, instead of win-lose. This is the basis of the latest movement in what is being called conscious capitalism. Bankers would use their financial know-how to help cities fund projects for the common good in the least expensive manner possible. And they would be paid fairly for their expertise. Bankers would help citizens afford their own homes, not go bankrupt because of deceptive legal contracts where they end up paying 80% higher than the original price of the home. And not just bankers, and the banking financial industry.
In the November 2013 issue of Entrepreneur magazine, we learn of many innovative start-up companies who are ready to help transform our world, one need at a time. There is Crowdfunding, where new ideas , Homeboy Industries, Like chefs who are determined to bring high quality food to us quickly.
If each of us helped transform our own industry through our own example of conscious capitalism, we would indeed change this world.
How can you change the world?
The Melancholy of Discontent
Clinging to my bosom
lies a melancholy of discontent,
unsettled terrain
within this cavern body,
a malaise of disconnection.
Rumbling, grumbling, stirring, yearning.
There, upon scant introspection, a reticence interrupts,
and causes pause of closer contemplation.
Overtakes it, a gripping fear
that ripped apart,
my maternal existence as I’ve known.
Yet, too, a certainty dawns
within this dark and foggy cave,
that prolonged avoidance and desperate ignorance
can only guarantee my breaking.
So it is, I seek
a realization,
the source of this undoing,
this crumbling of my ground.
And there I find,
instead of death,
a birth
of rising fertile soil.
Firm and sure, this new terrain,
renewed life within my bosom springs,
a connection never felt before.
My heart, the door,
a void, no more.
Varan, Valerie. “The Melancholy of Discontent.” ValerieVaran.com. DependentMedia.com. 2014.
How Can You Believe in Wi-Fi, and Not Believe in its Source?
You can believe in Wi-Fi, that there are energy or radio waves flowing everywhere, that your thoughts can be translated into data, which in turn can be transmitted into these and many other energy signals, which can be sent and received by antennae, read using your phone or computer or television.
And yet, how is it that you cannot believe in Spirit? That very energy which is everywhere, as radio waves of information, but so much more than that, so many more frequencies than that?
Spirit is the very source of all energy signals. Spirit is the sum total of all energy signals.
Every hair on your body, every cell, every neuron, is designed as an antenna. You are a living antenna, an energy receiver and transmitter, for Spirit.
What are you transmitting right now? What would you like to be transmitting right now? As you become conscious of your transmissions, your energy signals, you become aware that you are participating in the totality of spiritual data flowing through the air waves, and through all matter, all that you can see and hear. Spirit flows through you, whether you are conscious of It or not. You can dim Its signal, muddy up its antennae hardware. Or, you can amplify Its signal, and join in conscious movement, radiating, with It, with Spirit.
Spirit is you, at its lowest and slowest frequencies. You are Spirit, in your highest and fastest frequencies.
Heaven is a great bandwidth of energy. Link up. Link in.