change therapy

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for this week’s frozen pea friday post – a post for and about cancer survivors, following the frozen pea friday movement – i’d like to point you to an interesting project by ms. frozen pea friday herself, susan reynolds.

susan is an artist, a mother, grandmother, prominent second life citizen, social media maven. and she has cancer.

my husband’s insurance covers cancer treatment - to a point.

while millions of americans are uninsured i’m lucky not to be among them. but copays and deductibles, transportation and complementary care not covered by insurance add up fast.

since my mixed media pieces have been published in national magazines and i’ve taught painting and helped artists use new media to show their stuff, now is the time for the art to help me.

these mixed media pieces are, in fact, “wearable art”. while you can, of course, mount them or otherwise display them at home, they’re also lovely pieces of jewellery - broches and pendants.

she calls the part of her blog that showcases this work “magpie”:

oooh shiny! handmade, handpainted papers, fibers, metallics, glass, beads and iridescence

in a twitter conversation, susan pointed out that she feels lucky that she can do something that’s not too strenuous and make some money at it – others may not be able to do this.

i have some personal investment in this – from experience i know how alternative healing can be very beneficial. i have derived great benefit from reiki, healing touch and TRAGER®. for example, when i had my gallbladder taken out and, in my crazy sensitivity to anything psychoactive, i was going bonkers with the after-effects of general anaesthesia, healing touch was one of the great boons in those days. and i’m using reiki right now to deal with this nasty cold that wants to take over my life. so i evangelized susan a bit. it looks like acupuncture is one of the things that helps susan.

and that’s what she needs money for – because those stupid insurance companies are totally happy to dish out tens of thousands for hyper-priced pharmaceuticals and sneer at giving a few bucks for well-documented complementary care unfortunately, the good insurance companies don’t have enough money to pay for it, either.

reading over the contents of my last blog entry on depression and self-reflection, a few thoughts came to mind.

the article was not written by someone who had done systematic research and observation of people dealing with depression. rather, the writer seems to have a certain view, and in order to support it, he cites a number of different researchers. of course, there is nothing wrong with that – people, including researchers, do it all the time. i’d just like to present a slightly different view here.

the first research cited is about mildly depressed college students who, after spending a few minutes thinking about mundane topics, report a better mood than their counterparts who spend a few minutes thinking about themselves.

i have no reason to doubt this research, and agree that there are times when distraction is the best thing to do in a depression. however, it would be unwise to conclude from this that depressed persons should not [Read more →]

welcome to the may 2008 edition of a buddhist carnival.

this time around, we got another really good selection of articles. i don’t want to throw too much information at you – that wouldn’t be very buddhist, would it? – so i’ll present the carnival in two parts again. part 2 will arrive some time before may 22.

just like last month, let’s start with a poem – actually, an excerpt of a poem – about … lunch with the dalai lama.

he reaches inside his robe and brings out
an old radio which he places on the table
as if it were the cafeteria’s main selection of the day.
as he shows me how to work the dials,
i feel like a child just beginning to walk
or a bird about to sing its first song.
as he works the dials, he looks toward me
to be sure i’m paying attention.

and more on art and buddhism. in an interview at fuzz, eden maxwell talks about the similarity between zen and art.

in zen, there are no lessons, tests, or lengthy discourses; the source of truth is grasped through intuition. art is the same. the source of all great art is intuition. you experience this when you suddenly, without planning, hear a magic lyric or melody inside your head.

on his own blog, eden reminds us of the difference between reality and talking about it.

as the japanese zen priest, shunryu suzuki-roshi, said: “when i raise the hand thus, there is zen. but when i assert that i have raised the hand, zen is no more there.”

this difference is an important concept in buddhism. another such concept is buddha-mind living in everything. nikhil gangoli muses about this here

one of the buddhism beliefs that i have found most useful is this saying attributed to the zen master bodhidharma:

“this very mind the buddha”

if we accept this as true then what are the implications of these buddhism beliefs to the way we live our lives?
simply this: be as polite respectful and reverent to the antics of the mind – the jumble of thoughts, emotions, feelings and complexes – as you would to the buddha himself.

this is something i often think about. it’s easy to look at a child playing and to say, “oh, look, buddha nature!” but what about more difficult people? what about george bush’s buddha nature?

moving on … yet more important buddhist concepts are compassion and equality (in fact, buddha-nature and equality are closely related)

focus on our equality. this is a practice i learned from the dalai lama. judgement and hatred stem primarily from “othering” individuals. we see them as so different from ourselves, so unequal, and so removed from us that it’s easy to not love them. instead, we can focus on our similarities. then we can grow in our kindness. we are all human beings. we all suffer. we all want the best for ourselves and our families. we all hurt. we all cry. we all laugh and smile. we all yearn for comfort and freedom. just because someone is different in some way, does not devalue their needs, innate beauty, and their inherent right to happiness.

so much for part 1. stay tuned for part 2! in the meantime, do you have an article you think we should see? go here to submit it.

(image by circusvoltaire)

(image by StevenM61)

and today, just for the fun of it, because good ol’ john chow sent me there, here is a look into the crystal ball. try it yourself!

18,170,695
how much money will you be worth?

recently, i discovered a new blog, and i immediately – what’s the word? – glommed on to it. beplayful.org, that’s the name, and it says it all. i was able to persuade david to write a post for change therapy. here it is:

i love being playful. being playful helps me to relax, to laugh with life, and to come up with new ideas. playfulness is at the heart of my creativity.

creativity and playfulness go hand in hand: when you are being truly creative, you are being playful; when you are being playful, your creativity and imagination can’t help but show themselves.

because of this link, i’ve found that being playful helps me discover my inner creativity.

here are some of the playful things that i like to do to bring out the creative me:

doodling
as a child i used to love drawing cartoons and treasure maps and random doodles. i’ve recently rediscovered this love of drawing, and i’ve found that doodling is a great way to bring out creative ideas or to let out any stress that is blocking my creativity.

mind maps
if you’re a visual thinker but doodling seems too abstract, you’re likely to find mind-mapping a great creativity-boosting tool. mind maps are brilliant for helping you to notice connections between ideas.

similar to mind maps, but more spontaneous, are rico clusters.

talking to myself
when i’m thinking out new ideas, i often find it helpful to verbalise them, giving them a physical presence.

conversation as an art form
if you’re not entirely comfortable with the idea of talking to yourself (i know i wasn’t until i realised just how much i do it anyway!), it can be equally helpful to share your ideas with others.

once you’ve found someone that you’re comfortable sharing ideas with, begin to see your conversation with them as a art form in itself. talking with others can be a playground of the imagination.

daydreaming
this is my favourite way of being playful, and the one that i find most difficult to do. living in a non-stop, 24/7 city it’s easy to feel guilty or bored when sitting down to do nothing. yet when i take the time to daydream is when my creative ideas flow best.

journalling
there’s something magical about writing down your thoughts, ideas, and parts of your life journey. equally special are the feelings and sounds as the ink of your pen glides, scratches and dries in your beautiful journal. isabella has written quite a few posts on this topic, for example a fun and crazy writing experiment.

go for a walk
or dance in the rain. or go peoplewatching, sitting with your coffee in a corner cafe.

breathing in the fresh air pumps oxygen to your brain, giving your thoughts an energy boost. breathing in the beauty of the world and of nature brings out the beauty of your inner world.

your thoughts
do playfulness and creativity really go together? what playful techniques do you use to boost your creativity?

did you enjoy this post? want to have more playfulness in your life? then visit beplayful.org or sign up for the beplayful RSS feed.

(image by kalleboo)

for this mothers day, some poems i’ve written over the years:

mother of the centre

mother of the centre,
black madonna,
spirals around herself –
invisible and solid
iridescent and opaque
invincible and weak
irresistible and stark
irreverent and pious –
and dances: she is a dervish queen!
the dust that swirls around her feet
adores her.

mother haiku

waking up again
she cries; it’s a cold, cold night.
her mother holds her.

moon mama

. moon mama
……… in the sea
… show her teeth
………..… wide grin
stars mirrored in those
……………….. wide ivory mama tusks

.. and when she burps
the fish laugh

(image by parag sankhe)

the written word – of course, bloggers like me, we love it. and it certainly has healing powers, in many ways: it educates, it helps us think, it can soothe, it can make our hearts soar.

but there are so many other ways. here is a delightful little music video by m. ward that one of my good stumbleupon friends, mrcclass, a special ed teacher from halifax, sent me the other day. enjoy it!

for today’s “frozen pea friday” post on cancer, and because it’s national mental health week, i’ve interviewed someone on how she deals with the emotional effects of cancer. here’s what she says:

• i have 100% permission to have all the meltdowns i need to have (i.e. anger, crying spells)
• have a relationship with a psychotherapist whom i see regularly; that helps me remind me of self-care, putting my family in perspective and making sure i get my meltdowns
• i have buddies. we’re in a group and i strongly request my buddies corner me four times a week and get me to focus on what i want. they do it and also get me to look at the guilt monsters because guilt is huge for me
• maintain sleep, exercise and a regular eating schedule
• i get help with sleep with sleep medication
• i schedule regular meals and make sure i eat them
• i manage anxiety by being really practical and taking things that i want seriously and making steps towards them if i can’t actually do them right
• i very rarely tell myself “absolutely not!” usually it’s, “yes” or “yes, later” or “probably, later”
• i let myself care about other people, even though right now it’s “me first time”

other info on the connection between mental health and cancer:

sexuality and cancer

this study suggests that people with mental health issues have a larger chance of getting certain types of cancer, and getting it at an earlier age

this site has a large section on the emotional effects of cancer. what i find most helpful about that is that it shows the many effects – seeing this in print, knowing that these feelings are normal and experienced by many can in itself be helpful.

yoga may help with breast cancer

(refracted pea image by fellow canadian ecstaticist, whose blog is here)

yesterday i had a wonderful conversation with dr. matthew b. james about the hawaiian spiritual system of huna. since this is national mental health week and the focus of this year’s mental health week is workplace mental health, i asked him about huna in the workplace.

what is huna?
first of all, what is huna? it appears that huna derives from an ancient art and science of healing and spiritual development. dr. james believes this ancient system to be as old as 35,000 years. it is said to be a part of the original teachings of the peoples of a place which no longer exists. what remains physically of that land are the mountain peaks of the island chain called hawaii. huna is a modern label for certain spiritual and/or energy practices in the islands prior to western influences.

the term huna, i am learning, seems to be connected to something called ho’omana. ho’o means to make. mana means life force, equivalent, for example, to ki. “taken together,” says dr. james, “the word ho’omana means empowerment”.

pono - standing in the light
another important concept appears to be pono. literally, pono means “just beneath the surface”. it also means something like a wonderful form of righteousness: “standing in your own light, you are congruent with who you are”.

the way i am starting to understand this is that ho’omana can be seen as the practice of empowerment – an action towards empowerment – whereas pono is the result of that action.

pono and negative emotions
“when a negative thing occurs, we put it put it in a black bag’”. this black bag absorbs energy – the light of pono – and then prevents a person’s energy from creating what they want.

i was happy to hear that dr. james was quick to point out that there is no need to vilify, deny or suppress so-called negative energies. negative emotions are sometimes really good barometers. the trick is to acknowledge them, do whatever is necessary, and then let them go. problems only arise when we hold on to these “negative” emotions.

when a person holds on to negative emotions, they are pushed out of balance. in ancient hawaiian terms, nothing can be done well unless all three parts of a person, the unihipili, uhane, and aumakua (roughly translated, the subconscious, the conscious, and the superconscious) are in alignment.

and if you hold on to anger for an extended period, it’s bad for your body.

someone who is pono (stands in the light, is empowered) does not hold on to anger. how does that play out in the workplace?

huna and pono in the workplace
first, if you truly dislike your job, quit it. you can’t survive on sitting around thinking happy thoughts all the time. being spiritual doesn’t throw out intelligent thinking. if something is harmful and you keep allowing it to happen, you don’t stand in the light.

and if the workplace is not horrible but has some problems?

here are some ideas.

forgiveness
we don’t make positive decisions when we stand in the negative. try to forgive the person and forgive yourself. this is part of the practice of ho’oponopono, which means literally (or as literally as any translation of hawaiian concepts can get) “to make things right”. it is also often translated as forgiveness.

change your language
in ancient hawaii there was no word for sorry. “’i’m sorry’ is blunt, and it ends the conversation. it encourages no interaction.” in hawaiian, one would say, “i humbly ask for your forgiveness. i forgive you, too.” this encourages interaction, and turns the exchange into a give and take: you receive, you give. energy or mana flows like an alternating current. we have to make a complete circuit. language follows energy; it acts like energy.

rethink how you communicate
once you change your language, your thinking changes. george naope, a hawaiian elder and master of chanting and hula, says, “think not that all wisdom is in your school”. often we think we know everything but all we know is how it works for us at this moment, not for someone else. george naope says, “i know you are masters, as well, and i respect that. this just happens to be the way i do it.” if you can’t recognize that, you set yourself up for confrontation. realize the other person may be there to teach you just as much as you want to teach them (or simply tell them what to do or think!).

management
dr. james has a masters in organizational management and does a lot of teaching in that area. the best way to manage is through team building. this closely mirrors ancient approaches to teaching. teachers/managers are not there to tell you what to do, they are there to increase the chance for success of the people they are managing through support, effective delegation and inspiration. most successful companies give their employees a lot of responsibilities.

good managers cultivate their employees’ pono – standing in their on light, accountable, empowered, productive. by empowering others they empower themselves and the organization. huna teaches that if you give someone responsibility, you have to give it to them 100%. you have to let them go through their learning curve.

expression
if something comes up, you just express it. and then together you come to a solution. however, first you must let the other person fully express what went wrong and not say anything until they have completely expressed themselves.

(go here for a glossary or some hawaiian terms and concepts)

(the interesting image of the lava tube is by timothy)

the image is by jackal, who says “i struggle with mental illness (borderline personality disorder) and i explore and express my world through photography and writing in which i believe there is no reality - only perception.”

today for my post on mental health, i’d like to share with you a letter i received a few days ago from a fellow canadian. while it is about the mental illness of addiction, i’d also like to think about it as a move towards mental wellness; wellness achieved by sharing our stories with others. here it is:

dear ms. mori

i am writing to you, as i have to many other ‘alcohol’ awareness/help organizations, regarding what i feel is a fairly unknown health problem. while everyone is painfully aware of society’s affair with drunk driving, i have only found one or two individuals, in the last few months, who have ever heard of this health problem and its cause. i’ll try to make it as brief as possible, however, please feel free to contact myself, should you require any further information what-so-ever.

to set the stage, the years preceding our health deterioration, we had both quit drinking for a year here and there, with no reactions at all, but went back to it, in order to keep some sanity in our previous/former bad marriages.

neither of us had ever heard of possible dreadful health effects, were warned only, of course, not to drink excessively for the obvious reasons, and then, not to drive! we both found it to be somewhat of a stress reliever though, as we were prone to worry.

both myself and my late husband were born to alcoholic mothers. they drank before, during and after pregnancy, but we were both born in good health. we picked up the nasty little drinking habit quite well, in our late teens. we were both well educated and held down good jobs with excellent income and work associates who, unfortunately, also loved to drink. never any illnesses or health problems, never a sick day off work, nor hospital visits. this all came to a devastating halt, for us both in our mid 40’s. it is called ‘grand-mal seizures’ (epilepsy).

there is no known cure!! prescription drugs are the only help. along with complete alcohol abstinence, permanently! the current drugs have pages and pages of horrific side effects and are costly. we both were forced to give up our occupations, which is unbelievably difficult to do when you have worked happily your entire life, not to mention being accustomed to a certain level of income.

seizures do not hit all drinkers, some not at all, some earlier, some later in life, with no rhyme or reason, similar to many health problems facing today’s society. i have a distant relative whose daughter was born with it, and, while her mom and dad have never consumed alcohol, suspicion is that her dad’s biological parents did. however, being adopted leaves the question unanswered.

your drivers license is suspended immediately when it hits, and not returned until you have made 6 full months, without an attack. however, it is like having a wretched poisonous snake, dwelling permanently inside of you, forever and ever, and ever! the medication professes to hold it down, so to speak, and yes, it does, however, it is always on your mind especially when your license to drive is returned and makes travelling costs to many doctor’s appointments slightly more affordable. there is a little journal book always here in our home, where it is noted, time and day the medication is taken, in dreaded fear of missing, then being served notice basically, by the python inside. he is very aware when he hasn’t received his breakfast or supper, call it his ‘tranquilizing medication’. consequently, you may or may not be served his wrath! i trust you get the picture.

i never ever leave the house without checking this precious little diary, always sitting in clear, plain view, as having a seizure while driving could cause horrendous dreadful consequences! this is not drunk driving, so to speak, but the aftermath of drinking for years and years, not to mention the worry of it causing a fall, splitting your skull open (again), or breaking bones.

a year before my spouse passed away, he had a seizure while in a large parking garage, negotiating two upward steps, and literally flew over 20 ft., landing and breaking his hip, resulting in surgery, then a year long recovery process. this is for someone who at 6 ft 4″ tall, in excellent physical condition. but he was lucky that time! not to mention a previously broken arm & ankle, from the same cause! never had he broken a single bone in his life!!

i am attempting to bring this to as many organizations attention, as possible, as well as our government leaders, hoping that it will eventually result in them ruling for all liquor containers to bear a large warning, and to raise the purchase prices as well! cigarette manufacturers have been forced to do both, while our government still makes plenty of money from them, so, they don’t lose out. but i can’t remember ever hearing of a terrible traffic accident or severe fall, caused by smoking !?!

this type of life with a minor affliction is difficult. again, it causes a great deal of stress. my beloved’s passing away a year ago this month was a direct result of bleeding internally from a perforated ulcer, and his reluctance to go into the hospital for treatment immediately, as he didn’t want me to be on my own, i suspect, in case of an attack. needless to say, i’m on my own now.

i trust you will pass this on to others. i have been replied to by some folks on the subject, they believing, seizures are only caused from alcohol withdrawal! well, not so, not so at all !! it’s like wondering if the tenant inside is dead, alive, pissed off with you, bored or maybe, just maybe, unusually content! (for now!)

sincerely yours, in the hopes of helping others,

sjg in canada

(image by melody)

this week is national mental health week in canada. like last year, i’ll dedicate all my posts this week to mental health. (in a way, all my posts are about mental health but this week we’ll just be a bit more explicit, ok?)

today a roundup of mental health events happening in and around vancouver this week.

movies and psychiatry - may 5th
the depiction of mental illness in film. a multi-media mental health awareness week event, presented by dr. harry karlinsky. a clinical professor at the university of british columbia, founding director of the award-winning frames of mind mental health film series and festival film critic for the canadian psychiatric association. dr. karlinsky will provide a historical overview of the depiction of mental health issues within the world of cinema. he will also explore how the practice of psychiatry can be influenced by concepts first introduced in popular movies. various film and video clips will be utilized throughout the forum to illustrate key points. date: may 5th, time: 7:00pm - 8:30pm, and location: douglas college, 700 royal avenue, new westminster room: 2201. enquiries: 604-523-1072.

***

improving your life-work balance - wednesday may 7, 7-9:30 pm.

organized by the canadian mental health association, vancouver/burnaby branch.

in this interactive workshop, we’ll discuss what life-work imbalance is, how it impacts your life, the different ways that you can improve your own life-work balance and spend more time doing what you love. you’ll leave the workshop with an action plan for improving your life-work balance.

admission is $10.00 at the door, cash only please.
location:
alan emmott building
6650 southoaks crescent
burnaby, bc

***

turning grief into action - dealing with teen suicide

when jude platzer’s 15-year-old son josh committed suicide in 1999, her future became clear.

the vancouver resident, overwhelmed with emotion, jumped into action and adopted an advocacy role to help raise awareness about teen suicide and prevent other families from going through what hers had.

this week, as part of national mental health week (may 5-11), platzer will speak at the canadian mental health association north and west vancouver branch’s health lecture series on wednesday, may 7 at john braithwaite community centre at 7 p.m. for more information, go here.

***

face value by the youth theatre action group
a play about teenagers dealing with mental health issues, addiction and prostitution. may 6th-8th at the roundhouse community centre. there are two matinee shows on may 7th and 8th at 1:15 p.m. evening shows are may 6th, 7th, 8th at 7:30 p.m. all shows will take place at the roundhouse community centre in vancouver. more info here.

***

public education series on addiction
at the pacific spirit community health centre on west 43rd. all are welcome to come to this free drop-in group. every friday from 9:30 to 11:30. this friday, may 9: chemicals and the body. more info here.

for a full list of events put on by the canadian mental health association in british columbia, go here.

yesterday was beltane, one of the two most important holidays in pagan traditions.just as hallowe’en marks the time when we slip into the darkness of winter, on beltane we celebrate opening the door to the joys and exuberance of summer.

i’d like to dedicate this beltane to all women with breast cancer.

i imagine an end to the wintery weariness that comes with chemotherapy, radiation and all the other medical procedures – and the blossoming of fresh energy, ebullient laughter, and renewed pleasures in your bodies.

let’s have a handfasting between your bodies and the flaming red, bursting energy of tulips, the sparkling green of the new grass, the elegant white of plum blossoms!

come, let’s hold hands and jump over the beltane fire together, leaving behind pain and the cold grip of fear!

beltane is about fertility. the fertility of sisterhood, holding each other, holding on to each other, holding each other up, growing in our circle much more than what we can create each one by ourselves.

(this is another frozen pea friday post, in support of the breast cancer recovery and work of susan reynolds and those she inspires to help end breast cancer. ***** image by stephie)

(image by luke carter)