Anxiety relief

Anxiety is the body’s response to perceived threat or danger. During this reaction, certain hormones like adrenalin and cortisol are released, speeding the heart rate, slowing digestion, shunting blood flow to major muscle groups, and changing various other autonomic nervous functions, giving the body a burst of energy and strength. Originally named for its ability to enable us to physically fight or run away when faced with danger, it’s now activated in situations where neither response is appropriate, like in traffic or during a stressful day at work. When the perceived threat is gone, systems are designed to return to normal function via the relaxation response, but in our times of chronic stress, this often doesn’t happen enough, causing damage to the body and anxiety begins.

How can I get anxiety relief

I find one way that is really helpful is to keep in mind the old saying "whatever you resist, will persist" I like to think of it as just allowing and surrendering to the thoughts. Seeing the thoughts for exactly what they are, just your mind presenting options to you. It's not necessary to follow the thought and believe the thought. You can just notice it, observe it and then move on to another thought.

But the most helpful thing of all that I have come across is truth cards. So what are truth cards? In essence they are like an emotional survival kit. They are small in size (credit card holder size) therefore you carry them around with you wherever you go. Truth cards are written statements that are created to help you on a daily basis to re-assure your mind. A practical, accessible item that can help instantly in the moment. Designed to challenge unhelpful thinking patterns and replace these thoughts with helpful, truthful statements that are uplifting and supportive. They give you something constructive to hold on to when you’re going through a rough time, or help you focus your desires on what you want instead of what you don’t want.

It is important to read your truth cards at least 3 x per day so that you can slowly retrain your mind to work for you not against you. Keeping them with you as much as possible is the idea of this pack, to make them constantly accessible. In essence your truth cards are acting as your rational mind, when yours may be temporarily inactive.

Things to remember

1. I attract what I fear.

2. What I pay attention to grows bigger.

3. What I observe with a calm mind dissolves away.

4. The racing of my heart is only adrenaline; it will pass the more I embrace it.

Written by Nicole Martin

more info check out http://foranxietyrelief.weebly.com/index.html or head to www.anxietyreliefnz.wordpress.com

How to love yourself wholeheartedly

How to Love Yourself

By a wonderful teacher called Louise L. Hay

1. Stop all criticism. Criticism never changes a thing. Refuse to criticize yourself. Accept yourself exactly as you are. Everybody changes. When you criticize yourself, your changes are negative. When you approve of yourself, your changes are positive.
2. Stop scaring yourself. Stop terrorizing yourself with your thoughts. It's a dreadful way to live. Find a mental image that gives you pleasure, (mine is yellow roses) and immediately switch your scary thought to a pleasure thought.
3. Be gentle and kind and patient. Be gentle with yourself. Be kind to yourself. Be patient with yourself as you learn the new ways of thinking. Treat yourself as you would someone you really love.
4. Be kind to your mind. Self-hatred is only hating your own thoughts. Don't hate yourself for having the thoughts. Gently change the thoughts.
5. Praise yourself. Criticism breaks the inner spirit. Praise builds it up. Praise yourself as much as you can. Tell yourself how well you are doing with every little thing.
6. Support yourself. Find ways to support yourself. Reach out to friends and allow them to help you. It is being strong to ask for help when you need it.
7. Be loving to your negatives. Acknowledge that you created them to fulfil a need. Now you are finding new, positive ways to fulfil those needs. So, lovingly release the old negative patterns.
8. Take care of your body. Learn about nutrition. What kind of fuel does your body need to have optimum energy and vitality? Learn about exercise. What kind of exercise can you enjoy? Cherish and revere the temple you live in.
9. Mirror work. Look into your own eyes often. Express this growing sense of love you have for yourself. Forgive yourself looking into the mirror. Talk to your parents looking into the mirror. Forgive them, too. At least once a day look into the mirror and say: "I love you, I really love you!".
10. LOVE YOURSELF - DO IT NOW! Don't wait until you get well or lose the weight, or get the new job, or the new relationship.
    BEGIN NOW - Do the best you can.

Today's truth by Nicole

I think these are beautiful things to remember. Loving ourselves wholeheartedly isn't always easy..... from my experience and knowledge, I know it's the only way to heal (emotionally & physically). I am still working with this myself and this is a reminder to me as much as anyone else. I challenge you to say "I deeply and completely love and accept myself" for the next 7 days in front of a mirror & just see what happens.

Love, Nicole

What frightens and dismays you?

Truth Card for today - What really frightens and dismays us is not external events themselves, but the way in which we think about them. It is not things that disturb us, but our interpretation of their significance. Thanks again Epictetus for this wonderful quote.

If you would like to hear more little truth bytes come join my face book page https://www.facebook.com/pages/Truthcards-NZ/225655584127281 or check out www.truthcards.co.nz

Written today by Nicole Martin

Modern Day Serenity Prayer

Dear higher self

Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change

courage to change the things I can;

and wisdom to know the difference.

Other ways of creating peace & tranquility

• Doing the things we know bring us serenity as often as possible.
• Daily spiritual practices.
• Getting out of fear and staying out of fear.
• Living in the now.

By Nicole Martin

www.truthcards.co.nz

So serenity is not about living without, or in emptiness, but it is about living fully within all that life brings you, fully embracing all of your emotions and each situation as it appears, so that at the end of the day, you can joyfully accept that you are just are as you are, living in each moment.

Original Serenity Prayer

The Serenity Prayer

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at a time; Enjoying one moment at a time; Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; Trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His Will; That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him Forever in the next. Amen. --Reinhold Niebuhr

Overcoming Holy War

Today's Truth Card

The ability to bring our higher selves into this world, to overcome the Holy war within ourselves. This is self mastery.

By Nicole Martin

I was inspired by something Rumi said in one of his books.

For more truthbytes join our f/book page https://www.facebook.com/pages/Truthcards-NZ/225655584127281

Who is Rumi?

The general theme of Rumi's thought, like that of other mystic and Sufi poets of Persian literature, is essentially that of the concept of tawhīd – union with his beloved (the primal root) from which/whom he has been cut off and become aloof – and his longing and desire to restore it

The Masnavi weaves fables, scenes from everyday life, Qur’anic revelations and exegesis, and metaphysics into a vast and intricate tapestry.^{[citation needed]} In the East, it is said of him that he was "not a prophet — but surely, he has brought a scripture".

Rumi believed passionately in the use of music, poetry, and dance as a path for reaching God. For Rumi, music helped devotees to focus their whole being on the divine, and to do this so intensely that the soul was both destroyed and resurrected. It was from these ideas that the practice of "whirling" dervishes developed into a ritual form. His teachings became the base for the order of the Mawlawi which his son Sultan Walad organized. Rumi encouraged samāʿ, listening to music and turning or doing the sacred dance. In the Mevlevi tradition, samāʿ represents a mystical journey of spiritual ascent through mind and love to the Perfect One. In this journey, the seeker symbolically turns towards the truth, grows through love, abandons the ego, finds the truth, and arrives at the Perfect. The seeker then returns from this spiritual journey, with greater maturity, to love and to be of service to the whole of creation without discrimination with regard to beliefs, races, classes, and nations.

In other verses in the Masnavi, Rumi describes in detail the universal message of love:

Today's Truth

Happiness and freedom are achieved by disregarding things that lie beyond our control.

Thought was provoked after reading about Epictetus

Epictetus was a Greek-born slave of Rome in the first century. He became a great philosopher and teacher, and was eventually granted his freedom. Although he didn't write his teachings, which are based in Stoic philosophy, thankfully, others did.

Epictetus had a good handle on what we might today call Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. Here at Truthcards we predominantly use CBT in our cards. www.truthcards.co.nz

For more helpful truth bytes come join our face book page.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Truthcards-NZ/225655584127281

Helplessness

Today's Truth Card.

If you come to a place of total helplessness, don't resist just observe. You might find something that until now has been missing...

By Nicole Martin - inspired by Mooji