I Can Do It…it feels good to say that, doesn’t it? How often do we beat ourselves up thinking we can’t do things?
Tomorrow, I’m on my way to the I Can Do It conference in Las Vegas for the weekend. I have been looking forward to this because one of my favorite leaders in the healing & self improvement field, Louise Hay, is going to be speaking there. I met Louise in October and in all the times I’ve spoken to her since, she continues to be an inspiration to me. I’m excited to hear what she has to share on Saturday.
So my theme lately has been BELIEF.
The way I see it (and I don’t think I’m saying anything new here!), belief fires up the light of inspiration inside us. When we believe we can do anything, our body has no reason to go into fight or flight (stress) when we are thinking about some project or event.
When we believe we can do anything, we remove the fear that is really what keeps us from moving forward. Keeps us from following our dreams (remember the yeah, buts from my last post?). Lately, I’ve been thinking about belief because I have noticed that my energy was starting to get really low. I was starting to get those “bingey thoughts” that bordered on making my old habit of bulimia seem like a good way out.
I did yoga. I meditated. I did EFT. And somehow, this low energy (feelings of sadness and being burned out) stuck with me. When I finally took some time to get still and look at the content of my thoughts, I realized that my light of inspiration was gone. I has lost my belief. Several things happened to lead up to this, but the main thing was, I wasn’t sure what to believe anymore.
The fact that this was happening during spring, a time when the liver cleanses and our bodies try to release stuck emotions did not escape me. It was in fact, the perfect time for me to clean house inside and out.
Interestingly, the same thing was happening to a dear friend of mine who was diagnosed with a terminal illness. She had been doing so well for awhile and went through a similar series of events that led to a loss of belief. Right around this time, her health took a turn for the worse and she’s still deciding whether and what she can believe.
You see, both of us put our belief in techniques and while we cultivated self love, we forgot to make our light of inspiration come from OURSELVES. So when the s–t hit the fan, we lost our belief because we had put it outside ourselves.
Hmmm…I have to thank my friend for mirroring for me what was going on in my own life. Sometimes it’s easier to see it in someone else before we can see it in ourselves. So I’m finding myself climbing out of that dark hole — although I have to say that it didn’t get that dark and it didn’t last that long. The celebration here is that as we start to change our energy — and as we have the experience of inspiraiton and belief, it’s much easier to calibrate back to that place (or to another equally sweet place).
Except this time, I’m cultivating belief in myself. This requires me to build up a light of inspiration that stays aflame because of ME.
It doesn’t come from a guru, a technique or an event. This inspiration comes from me inspiring myself with my beliefs. In that way, it’s very empowering and no one can take that away from you.
Cleaning House Inside and Out
I’m starting by doing what Louise Hay suggests – an inventory of my beliefs. Seems basic, but I want to go back and uncover whether I have some old, limiting beliefs lurking in the back of my mind (I’m sure I do!).
Creating an inventory of beliefs:
- Write down all the things your parents said were wrong with you - about your body, money, love and relationships, creative talents. Look at these objectively, with no judgment. (This is not an exercise to fuel anger and upset at your parents, but just for you to realize where your beliefs came from). If we get stuck in blaming others, we give away our power. Louise tells us that it’s important for us to understand that our parents and others in our lives were doing the best they know how with the understanding, awareness and knowledge (I’ll add level fo consciousness!) that they had. This is your opportunity to empower yourself and your future, without letting people from your past drag you down.
- Write down the negative messages you heard as a child - from relatives, eachers, friends, authority figures, church/place of worship, etc. As you write them down, be aware of the feelings you have in your body.
- See yourself as a 3-year old child - now imagine saying all of those negative and limiting things to a 3-year old child. That’s what we often do to ourselves as we carry around these negative, limiting beliefs. Ask yourself if this list of limiting belief that you wrote corresponds in any way to the beliefs you have today.
Once we are aware of our beliefs, we can get down to business and decide which beliefs we want to carry around with us. And notice what happens when we clean our limiting beliefs out and allow positive, uplifting beliefs in.
Interestingly, as I’m doing this experiment, I’ve found that I started cleaning out my closets and clearing clutter from my house and office!
It’s been so refreshing. You know how it feels when you really clean up your space?
That’s how it feels to clean out that old clutter from my brain! And to celebrate a renewal of my energy, I’m going to the I Can Do It conference to hear from people whose messages I love. And to gather with friends who cultivate high energy and belief in their own lives.
And as I’m there, I will not be looking for gurus, people or things to believe in.
I will be observing that energy and looking inside, to coninue to grow my belief. The ultimate goal here is to believe in ME…to believe in myself so that an eternal light of inspiration is carried within.
It has been said that when one person heals, the world starts to heal just a bit more. My hope is that as each one of us starts to believe in ourselves, it opens the door of inner belief for all.
Wowsa! You go Heather!
Clean my head is what I often think of doing, even imagine literally opening my skull and rinsing all the negativity. I kinda forgot I had to think of all the bad beliefs to actually GET RID of them! Otherwise it would be denial, huh?
Really sad things went on in my life lately, testing my courage and consciousness, and now as life goes on, I give myself the right to be depressed and bingey. And it sucks big time. I’ve already cleaned the whole house and my space, now it’s time to clean my thoughts. Thanks for reminding me!
Can’t wait to see what impressions on I Can Do It! you’ll share with us!
Have a safe trip!
Comment by djuro — May 17, 2007 @ 4:53 pm
Hi Djuro, thank you for your enthusiastic words — they made me smile! I’m here in Las Vegas now and will be updating soon on what’s happening so far!
I am sorry to hear that sad things are happening to you right now. You know what, you are equal to anything that tests your courage and consciousness. You are. I know because when you decided to follow your dream, you just went after it and that takes so much courage.
I think once we reach a new level of consciousness, our bodies get used to that level, so anything less can feel pretty bad. The thing I’m realizing is that since our energy has habits, the low energy may come back at times, but we can just as easily swing back into the positive.
I’ve been using a combination of Louise Hay, Eckhart Tolle and Jerry & Esther Hicks to create a program for myself and it’s been amazing. It’s helping me remember to believe — and somehow, my positive energy is coming back stronger and with a more full understanding of what low energy, illness and addiction is all about.
So once we learn, life sends us a test to see if we’re really paying attention or just coasting. I know you are a strong, brave woman and I’m sending you love and light as you move through this rough spot.
With love,
Heather
Comment by Heather — May 17, 2007 @ 9:50 pm
Heather,
You always remind me of the power I have within myself. That I never need to resign myself to any given situation. That there is always a way to reclaim my own power.
Thanks, Heather. And I am so glad to read you have been using all your tools to do that for yourself!
with love,
Emily
Comment by Emily Jolie — May 20, 2007 @ 11:46 am