CATALYST NEWS

Eva Dahm, CPCC, MA

April, 2005

Dedicated to your growth and exploration.

STRESSED OUT?

Do you recall the old adage one person's junk is another person's treasure? The same thing applies to stress. Events that produce a sense of excitement and fun for one person (roller coaster ride) may create a perception of health robbing stress in another.

Deepak Chopra says stress is an interpretation of a psychological or physical threat in the environment.

A friend shared with me recently that he did not realize the degree of stress in his old corporate life until he was totally out of it and in a more independent position as a business owner. Now as he looks back, he understands the depth of the stress in his past life and what it did to his health.

I've just completed Wayne Dyer's new book "The Power of Intention", and he talks about numerous topics including stress. Dyer says there is no "stress" in the world. There are only our thoughts about the events and activities in the world. Bruce Lipton (author of "The Biology of Belief") would say we have a perception that we label "stress". The problem is that these perceptions as a result of our beliefs impact our bodies at a cellular level.

"When we think stressfully, we create reactions in the body, valuable messages or signals requesting our attention. These messages might reveal themselves as nausea, elevated blood pressure, stomach tension, indigestion, ulcers, headaches, increased heart rate, difficulty breathing, and a zillion other feelings-from minor discomfort to serious, life-threatening illness." says Dyer.

So the only way to know if you are stressed is to pay attention to your body and to observe your own behavior and sensations. There is no such thing as a panic or anxiety or stress that attacks us. We are reacting to an interpretation, and we control the belief and perception. In other words, we can change it.

When your body is in dis-ease the pattern has been around for some time. So the goal is to discover the pattern now and shift it before we get to the state of disease. When do you feel overwhelmed? What does your body feel (Sensations)? What is going on? What are your thoughts? BECOME AWARE. Notice what you can change to create another feeling rather than worry or upset.

MAKING A CHOICE

I was recently given the results of a cholesterol test that were slightly over 200. Of course, my doctor is unhappy and requesting a visit in 3 months. My perspective on cholesterol is totally different though. I believe it is a poor measure at best and in a few years we will be told that it doesn't really tell us as much as we thought. So rather than freaking out, I am calm. I am confident with some slight diet changes the next test will be lower. I made a choice not to take the traditional medical view of this one test but my own. (Disclaimer: I am not suggesting you ignore all medical tests.) Just ask what perception and attitude does the most to positively impact your health. Certainly high anxiety about everything that I eat does not help me feel better. (If you are interested in more perspective on modern medicine, see Bruce Lipton's book.)

Dyer believes stress is a result of a weakened connection with who we truly are-peaceful, joyful, loving spiritual beings. When we connect with our ego selves, we feel stressed. Beliefs that no longer work in our world can create feelings of worry or anxiety. Our basic beliefs are all formed by the time we are six years old. Most of these beliefs are direct downloads from our parents or families. So we never have a chance to consciously analyze these to see what we want to accept or reject. These beliefs are held in our cells and in our subconscious mind. They control how we act and react in the world.

BELIEFS PRODUCE STRESS

Dyer has a list of beliefs that can produce stress:

It's more important to be right than to be happy.

Winning is the only thing.

Your reputation is more important than your relationship with the Higher Power.

Success is measured in dollars and accumulations rather than feeling happy and content.

Being superior to others is more important than being kind to others.

I vividly recall the EST-like workshop I attended years ago when the right/wrong issue came up. I can't say I stopped doing the right/wrong game then and there. However, I am now aware when I stumble into the old habit and how the resulting feelings are usually negative not peaceful. Like A Course in Miracles says, "In my defenselessness, my safety lies."

So how many of these beliefs do you hold? What's the impact in your life? What other beliefs are getting in the way? Doing PSYCH-K with clients, we frequently balance basic belief statements like "I do my best and my best is good enough." (How many of us made conclusions as children that we weren't good enough?) "The Universe is a friendly place." (Another belief statement that frequently tests weak and can be balanced in 5-10 minutes.) All of these belief changes have a huge cellular impact in clients-literally rewiring their inner programming.

In The Art of Possibility, Rosamund and Benjamin Zander tell a story about short circuiting stress by quoting "Rule Number Six." "Don't take yourself so seriously." This is a great way to lighten the pressures.

THOUGHTS CREATE STRESS

It is our inner dialogue that creates our reactions and our stresses. I stand in grocery lines by strangers and guess who is waiting impatiently and thinking what else they could be accomplishing. This stream of thoughts (judgments) creates expectations that are not likely going to be met. And the energy of these negative thoughts creates negative feelings and stress. In fact, I frequently receive apologies for delays in lines, when I wasn't even concerned about the delay. I was relaxing and just being present to the cashier as a human being.

There are countless situations like this in our daily lives. Lines of cars, lines of people, delays due to this or that, Dyer suggests we recall "Rule Number Six" and "shift from pissed to blissed."

When you monitor thoughts and discover the negative talk. Stop and shift it by saying something that creates good feelings. The more you practice this one strategy, the happier you will be. Recently a friend totally changed a fearful experience into an almost pleasant one using this shifting of thought before the encounter. You can do the same thing very easily.

The other key to being able to shift to calm and peaceful thoughts is to meditate daily. Both Dyer and Chopra are solid proponents of this daily practice. After several years of daily morning meditation, I walk through the day with the sense of living on two levels at once-the daily requirements and happenings level and a more peaceful and centered "eye of the storm" place. This duality gives me a choice of where to come from when the unexpected "crisis" arises.

Set an intention for yourself: I want to feel good. I want to be joyful. I want to spend today in peace. Choose gratitude for your life. Choose to be in awe of nature. Be in control of your thoughts and emotions and stress will evaporate from your life. Begin to sit in the quiet and breathe for a few minutes every day. Dyer concludes, "You feel good not because the world is right, but your world is right because you feel good."

The Power of Intention, Wayne Dyer, 2005.

The Biology of Belief, Bruce Lipton, 2005.

Magical Body, Magical Mind, Deepak Chopra, 1990.

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