The Wisdom of Presence

Notice where anger exists, pain or hurt lingers underneath. To be aware of this implies we no longer completely identify with it. If impatience arises, if we focus on or get worked up, overwhelmed about the next series of things, we are lost in continuous doing. Stress is the sense of feeling lost between now and later. Its common to feel lost in this gap in time or space. This dysfunction is amplified by technology which conditions people to focus on the illusion of "then." If we get uncentred, we get lost in thinking which underlies doing. This means we are lost in thought. Many thoughts hijack our attention to deny, devalue, disregard, reduce the present moment to a means to an end. How often are we taught the present moment is an obstacle to overcome? This revelation is a stepping stone to being here now- transcendence.

Dream Analysis of the Week- Repeated Awakening

Dream: 

I dreamed my alarm went off, startled me. It quickly hit I had overslept, forgot to sit exams. The dates were circled in red on the calendar on a bulletin board hanging above my nearby desk. If that was not bad enough, I opened a letter that had been slide under my door. It said I had an another exam to write for a course I forget to drop.  My breathing went shallow, I began to sweat. So, I lay back down, closed my eyes, heard my beating heart, slowed my breathing. When I opened my eyes again, my bedroom furniture had moved. I also had a green plant. I was aware I had finished college years ago. I shook my head again, closed my eyes and then a real alarm woke me up. I was lying down again.

Insight:

To feel panic when you awaken from a dream; a sense of being desperately unprepared, stressed, scared and worried, invites that you meditate on the feelings.  Silence the mind and ‘stay’ present with the emotions that stand out. Let them guide you to the underlying and core issue.  Where else in your life might evoke feeling unprepared, stressed, desperate or scared?

As it happens, this might be about a life transition you are going through or change and growth in personal relationships. What is it, unrelated to dream exams, that you might feel unprepared for? It might be feelings of inadequacy or self-doubt about a new life chapter. It might be about experiencing a lack of life balance, too much pressure, a sense of overwhelming responsibilities or a reflection of an inner conflict.

Another view is this is a false awakening dream. Such false awakenings are viewed as a hybrid or overlap of timelines, states between sleep and wakefulness. Those who know false awakenings may also lucid dreams.

In a lucid dream, the dreamer realizes s/he is dreaming. This knowledge allows you to maintain some control over your surroundings and even change the course of the dream. If this was lucid, ths student might have consciously turned the alarm clcok back and decided to to go back in time to awaken in time to take the exams, reclaim control of the unfolding experience. Many lucid dreams commonly end in false awakenings. You might even “wake up” and start describing your dream to someone else before truly waking up.

A false awakening can become a lucid dream, especially if you begin to notice certain details that differ slightly from reality.  For example, your furniture might not be in the usual place, your lamp might not turn on, or you might open a book and find you can’t read any of the words.  Suspecting you aren’t actually awake might lead you to try manipulating the dream in some way or telling yourself to wake up. This is part of an empowerment process that redefines a different kind of awakening and reclaiming of power.

We offer detailed Dream Consultations on single and multiple dreams as well as an Astral,Lucid and Dream Yoga Course. 

5 Ways Dreamwork benefits Mental Health

For many, dreams represent unsolved mysteries. From ancient civilizations to modern times, dreams have been interpreted as messages from something beyond us, premonitions of things to come, or even symbolic of our deep fears and desires. Dream interpretation can offer new perspectives into the nature of the mind, obstacles that present but the credibility very much relates to what you decide. I can be helpful to  practice or explore dreamwork with a psychotherapist.  This said, dream analysis and interpretation can have huge benefits for your mental health. Explore five ways dreamwork benefits mental health:

1. Improved Self-Awareness

Dream analysis can help you gain a deeper insight into yourself and your emotions. When we dream, our subconscious mind speaks to us through symbols and metaphors. This is the language of soul. By exploring these symbols, giving them context in our own lives, theis helps us understand their possible meanings.  We can gain insights into our thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. This new self-awareness can help us identify and begin to address underlying issues that may be affecting our mental health.

2. Reduced Anxiety

Anxiety is a widespread mental health condition that impacts millions. Research has shown that dream analysis can help reduce anxiety symptoms by providing a safe space to explore and express emotions. Dreams can be a source of comfort, creativity, and inspiration. By brainstorming possible hidden messages, we can gain a sense of control over our life and reduce anxiety and worries.

3. Enhanced Creativity

Dreams can be a source of inspiration for artists, writers, and musicians. Many of the world's most famous works of art and literature have been inspired by dreams. By analyzing your dreams, you can tap into your subconscious mind and unlock your creativity. Dream analysis can help you identify recurring themes and symbols that may inspire your creative endeavours.

4. Improved Sleep Quality

Sleep is essential for our physical and mental health. Unfortunately, many people struggle with sleep disorders that can affect their quality of life. Dream analysis can help improve sleep quality by addressing underlying issues that may be causing sleep disturbances. By identifying and addressing these issues, you can enjoy a more restful and restorative sleep.

5. Increased Spiritual Awareness

Dreams have long been associated with spirituality and the afterlife. Many spiritual traditions view dreams as a way to communicate with the divine. By interpreting your dreams, you can gain a deeper understanding of your spiritual beliefs and practices. Dream analysis can help you identify spiritual themes and symbols that may be relevant to your life.

Dream analysis can have significant benefits for your mental health. By improving self-awareness, reducing anxiety, enhancing creativity, improving sleep quality, and increasing spiritual awareness, dream analysis can help you lead a more fulfilling and meaningful life.

Taking responsibility is not what you think

Notice at any given moment, to take responsibility for our lives, we must be vigilent of our actions. This implies we recognize if what we do is simply a means to an end, we are not present in what we do. If moving from point A to point B and only focused on the destintation, its easy to get impatient, stressed, imagine being somewhere else, be unfocused, not enjoy where we are. If the mindset is "I'd rather be (elsewhere)," then happiness is short-lived or even bypassed altogether. That's not responsible through the lens of the soul or expanded being.

Many people are taught that taking responsibility relates to self-care, "growing up", becoming financially independent, self-reliant. These traits have a place. Still, in many cases this involves developing a serious nature, forgetting spontaneity. The feeling of presence and awareness is widely overlooked.

In truth, taking responsibility for our life is about how we perform actions. If most of our actions and behaviours are a means to an end, then we feel heavy, drained, tired. We may work hard and get results, but we cannot enjoy it if mind is elsewhere. That implies living a life of low quality, unfulfilled, sad. We lack presence if we are always talking about the next moment which we think will somehow be better. If it prevents us from being here now, is it worth it?

High quality of life implies its not the quantity that determines the value of our life. What we own, how many people we advise, control or influence, how many subscribers or followers we have, none of that determines high quality of life. Quality time is quality attention with people, depth of conversation, soulful focus. Quality of life suggests we find blessings and joy in the moment.

Regardless of where we are and what is unfolding in our midst, when we can give our full attention to what we do and who we are with, this creates a 'high quality of life.' That is, when every action in our lives, large and small has a certain aliveness and presence, we savour it. It does not feel like a chore to do what we do. We do not feel resistance, impatience or irritation. At the perfect moment, it dawns negativity and dense vibration simply strengthen that false sense of self.

Ultimately, even if we continue to do what we have been doing, and our external conditions do not change right away, as we are mindful and begin to remove resistance patterns within us, that is the complaining, the negativity, irritation, the focus on depression about the past or anxiety of the future, life is completely transformed on the inside. On the outside, it may seem nothing has changed.  Yet inwardly, we know everything has.

Shift into Harmony

Notice awareness is the first step to making conscious change. To recognize the power of words as spell-casters, is to see possible blocks to manifestion and expansion of consciousness. Our words echo the frequency of our thoughts. The brain & energy systems cannot access the highest form of consciousness while we reiterate what we think doesn't exist, cannot have, do or be. This brings up the power of acting 'as if.' Retraining mind and initiating alchemical processes involves doing precisely what we fear to shatter our own myths. We must physically go through the process to reveal what is real and possible. Each instance we show ourselves what we are made of, we are creating new neural pathways, rewiring the brain and in turn, projecting and living new realities. Modern research shows the brain continues to create new neural pathways and alter existing ones to adapt to new experiences, learn new information, and create new memories. This is a kind of time travel. That is, we can revisit perceived experiences and alter the fear-based response to one of love, blessings and appreciation. Its like rewinding the mental tape to reshape how we view ourselves and the world in this moment. Understanding the Anxiety Cycle, and how avoidance causes anxiety to spiral out of control, unlocks the key to retraining the mind to reframe anxiety and rewire those neural pathways to feel safe and secure. Although varied psychedelics and DMT activate the pineal and allow one to experience mind-blowing effects of this ancient photoreceptor, the biochemical effects are only sustained by activating dormant systems and walking the path to self-mastery. Everything is about increasing resilence and shifting into harmony.