Self Help

The Astonishing Power of Emotions: Let Your Feelings Be Your Guide

by Esther Hicks

Average Rating:

"I'm not a huge fan of "channeled" information and I'll tell you why; every single one of us is a Divine Channel. Whether we know this or not. Whether we accept this or not. Each one of us has the ability to tap into something greater, something higher, something deeper than we already are. Each one of us has the Power within our hearts, our minds, and our souls to transcend previous limitations and experience an even greater version of "reality". The only reason why most of us don't make that "leap" of faith - and that is exactly what it is, is because we identify more with the "i" of our being more than the "I" that is always and in all ways present and available to us. Call it what you will. Call it God, Spirit, Life...heck, call it Abraham, but people, it's Real and it's as Real as Real can get.

With all that being said, I found myself really resonating with Esther Hicks new book, The Astonishing Power of Feelings. Yes, she does channel a collective entity called "Abraham"...I see you rolling your eyes, but y'know what, it's good stuff. In fact, put the channeling aside and just allow yourself to fully "plunge" into this book.

Anybody who thinks that metaphysics/spirituality is just about "thinking positively" doesn't really know what they're talking about. Positive thinking only goes about as far as the next crisis in your life, which, according to my watch will happen in the next 2-24 hours. No, I'm not being negative...I'm not wishing bad things for you to experience...I just know how human beings operate. If we don't have a crisis in our lives, we'll make one up. Heck, I started early. I made one up as soon as I woke up this morning. But the only reason why it appears that we have more problems than opportunities is only because our focus is not tuned into what Abraham likes to call, "The Infinite Stream of Well-Being".

I like that metaphor. Makes me think of beautiful stream near a meadow. Flowing, flowing, flowing. Allowing nothing to get in its way. Which, is exactly what this stream of well-being does. It is always present. It is always available and yes, even you...yes, you...have tapped into it at one time or another in your life.

Have you ever had a day...or an hour...or even just a moment where it seemed as though everything was in flow? Well, that's because it was. Whether consciously or unconsciously you tapped into your greater "I" Self that I mentioned earlier. You were in alignment with Source Energy and Source Energy couldn't help but bring you wonderful things because that's the way you felt. But, if you were having a day where a black cloud was over your head, if everything you touched turned to poo poo, if no matter what you did or said was absolutely incorrect, then you were out of alignment with the stream of well-being.

Duh.

We can feel good no matter what. Read that again. WE CAN BE HAPPY NO MATTER WHAT. Yeah, your girlfriend may have left you for another woman, your cat may have the clap, and you may feel as though all of life is against you. But you have the power to rise up and transcend the limitations you are at the moment accepting, embracing, and embodying. Trust me, I've been there. I've been at bottom so many times, I thought I had a season pass. I've had life trample over me many times, I've had the wind sucked out of my lungs on numerous occasions, but guess what, I chose to get back up. I don't say these things to tell you how great I am because i am not great...but the "I AM" of me is great just like the "I AM" of you is great.

Read this book...devour this book...become this book...let your feelings be your guide. Yeah, this is a hokey saying that is uttered in every "Feel Good" movie around, but it's the Truth. And don't tell me that this Inner Work is too simple...try it for a month straight without resorting back to old thoughts, old feelings, and old behaviors. Changing our life is simple. It's the keeping it changed where we run into our challenges.

But anyway, people, be happy. Whether you buy this book or not, you always have more reasons to be happy than to be down.

Peace & Blessings,
john"

Publisher: Hay House | More reviews: amazon.com

Sacred Contracts: Awakening Your Divine Potential

by Caroline Myss

Average Rating:

"Sacred Contracts engages you in an extensive, self-exploring expedition to unearth the core ingredients of your unique, spiritual identity. Because there are so many assignments to do in the book and it is so detailed, I suggest you get the hardcover version rather than one of the audio versions. Of all the many books I have read about finding and following the dictates of your own true self, Sacred Contracts is by far the most unusual and detailed. The author calls upon major religious traditions, Eastern ideas about energy centers in the body, Jungian psychological archetypes, and astrology among other sources as context for seeing yourself as unique. Although few of these references are ones that I relate to very often, I was impressed by the way that they centered my focus by helping me see what life roles are not important in my life, as the contrast for seeing what is important. In my past experience with increasing self-understanding, the focus was on what was important. Cutting away the unimportant makes those important areas stand out much more clearly.This is a book that can help you learn for the rest of your life. Unlike many books that are aimed at helping you find "the answer" and then getting you off working with "the answer," Sacred Contracts is designed to help with new challenges and issues in the future . . . as well as the ones you have today. I found myself particularly enriched by reviewing the very long list of potential archetypes that are developed in the book. These are explained by stories of individuals, references to popular books and movies, and examples of how one archetype differs from other, similar ones. As a result, the archetypes and my own reactions to them came into much clearer focus in my mind. When I had read about these in Joseph Campbell's work, I often found them to be distant. Here, they are immediate. Sacred Contracts focuses on "what is our mission in life?" This includes both "where am I going?" and "who will go with me?" The answer is unique for each person to each of these questions. A sacred contract is "your overall relationship to your personal . . . and spiritual power." The contract is "a plan to help you develop your divine potential." This is to fulfill "an agreement your soul makes before you are born." As I read these concepts, I found them to be most closely identified in my mind with the beliefs of Buddhism as they relate to the reincarnated soul. The author takes care to show that Judaism, Christianity, and Islam also contain these points of view. The book contains a lot of material to help you absorb the context of these perspectives. In that sense, I felt a little like I was reading a condensed version of The Golden Bough. After you understand the archetypes and their manifestations, you are directed how to engage in an extensive mental dialogue with and write about the positive and negative forms of each important archetype for you. These will include the four universal ones (child, victim, compromised person, and saboteur) as well as your selection from dozens of others for the ones that seem most important to you (such as addict, angel, bully, gambler, Midas, poet, and thief). For example, you will ask, "Why did I choose this archetype?" "In what way do I feel the archetype serves my Contracts with other people?" The focus of all this remains on keeping "your attention on reaching your highest potential." To do this, you must "surrender to self." Most people will find the list of what to think about and the exercises to do to be a bit intimidating. I certainly did. The work is based on a successful seminar that the author has been developing over many years. So it is intended to take quite a bit of time to do and implement. I suggest that you find blocks of time of at least two hours in length to work on these assignments when you will not be disturbed. If you are single, you might go someplace where you can be alone but see the splendor of nature. If you live with your family, early morning or late at night would probably be the best time . . . while others are at rest. Naturally, if you like what you read here, you could also consider doing a seminar with the author. I'm assuming that that is much more expensive than working with this book on your own. Some people might find it helpful to find someone to do this with, so that you share your results with one another. This could help provide the discipline to keep working on discovering your sacred contracts.May you fulfill your highest purpose in ways that bring great joy and benefit to you and all whom you meet! God bless you."

Publisher: Three Rivers Press | More reviews: amazon.com

The Emotion Code

by Bradley B. Nelson

Average Rating:

"As complementary and alternative approaches to healing began to gain ground, many of us began to notice something strange.

Some conventional treatments that worked well in the past were often not as effective today. Conversely, treatments that once worked only occasionally started to become more stable.

Over the last three decades we have seen a lengthening list of new forms of successful physical and psychotherapy treatments are Thought Field Therapy, Emotional Freedom Technique, Quantum-Touch, The Reconnection, Tapas Acupressure Technique and Matrix Assessment Profile. Though there are some therapies that rely on novel technology, many of these new techniques seem to have been discoveries rather than new inventions.

Physicians and therapists have been pushing and prodding people for millennia. Their powers of observation were often astonishing. So it is unlikely that they would have failed to notice that touching someone here or applying intention there could be an effective form of therapy. Unless these techniques did not work in the past. The emergence of these new, and often very effective therapies, is one of the reasons for believing that the laws of healing are changing and evolving as we are changing and evolving as a species.

To this list of new therapies we now need to add "The Body Code" of which the Emotion Code is a part.

So what is it all about? Based on a his observations in practice, Brad Nelson has come to believe that much human suffering is due to negative emotional "energies" that have become "trapped" within us, most commonly around the heart, where they can create a "Heart-Wall" that may block our ability freely to give and receive love. Anyone who has done much body work has seen something similar. I once treated a woman with acupuncture. She had an exquisitely tender knot along the inner border of her shoulder blade. It felt like a small hard miniature person. It turned out to be the signature left by an abusive ex-husband. As she was treated, the knot vanished and with it many years of negative emotions flowed out of her. This is precisely the kind of thing that Brad has observed, but he has devised a series of simple steps that almost anyone can try to help themselves, as an adjunct, rather than a replacement for medical care.

Though there is a small amount of theory, this is essentially a self-help book for identifying and treating blocked emotions. And it is that second part: the "treating" that is unique. The main tools are muscle testing, magnets (even fridge magnets seem to work) and a willingness to listen to the answer that you body and mind might give you

Though the techniques described in this fascinating book have not yet been subjected to formal empirical study, I have four reasons for being excited about this new form of treatment.
First is that the theory makes perfectly good sense: it is entirely consistent with findings garnered in a number of fields of "energy medicine," often more accurately referred to as "information medicine."

Second, is that there is already an impressive number of people who have been helped by the technique.

Third, I saw the author and his wife using the technique on an individual and could easily see the flow of energy and the positive impact that it was having on the "patient."

Fourth is the author himself. I spent many years as a "quack buster," and I am pretty good at sniffing out the real from the, ahem, less so. Brad Nelson is smart, well educated and a poster child for integrity and compassion. He has discovered the things that he has because of his humility and willingness to listen to his patients and listen to the answers that they - and the Universe - were giving him.

Highly recommended.


Richard G. Petty, MD, author of Healing, Meaning and Purpose: The Magical Power of the Emerging Laws of Life"

Publisher: Wellness Unmasked Publishing | More reviews: amazon.com

The Law of Attraction, Plain and Simple: Create the Extraordinary Life That You Deserve

by Sonia Ricotti

Average Rating:

""The Law of Attraction is working at all times, regardless of your beliefs or your awareness of its presence. We are constantly attracting into our lives (whether deliberately or by default) what we are emitting into the universe." - From the book

From What the Bleep!? to The Secret, Jack Canfield to Abraham, teachings on the Law of Attraction now permeates our modern culture. Thanks to TV hosts like Oprah, Ellen DeGeneres, and Larry King, the Law of Attraction is receiving media attention like never before.

With the exception of authors like Michael Losier (Law of Attraction), it seems many teachers make the Law of Attraction more difficult (and outlandish) than it really is. Thankfully, Sonia Ricotti has written an accessible, sensible and practical guide to this universal law that works hand-in-hand with our soul contracts in her book The Law of Attraction Plain and Simple.

Living up to its name, The Law of Attraction Plain and Simple is a 125-page hardcover book simplifying concepts of negative energy, positive energy, allowing, and shifting thoughts to attract your "greatest life".

Take a page from Tony Robbins' decades-long approach, as well as Lynn Grabhorn and other teachers, Ricotti shares the eleven central steps to consciously activating the Law of Attraction including:

* Deciding what you want
* Removing meaning
* Forgiveness
* Gratitude

Written in language that even a grade school student could grasp, The Law of Attraction Plan and Simple is an excellent introduction to this oft-hyped concept, bringing it down to the ground while at the same time encouraging readers to reach for the stars.

I've used these principles in my own life and I KNOW they work, especially as you edit the meaning attached to events (and expectations), and go for a state of being/feeling rather than specific objects (although they may also be a part of your "greatest life"). I also love that Ricotti, a first time author, has the wisdom to emphasize the importance of personal VALUES in terms of the Law of Attraction.

The important idea of personal values influencing what we decide to attract, and what we determine we want to allow, is often overlooked in books on the LofA (except for Peggy McColl's books), but not in this one. In fact, Ricotti provides SIX pages of two-column lists offering a variety of core values to choose from.

For example, what I may value you may not and vice versa. I may value privacy and quietude while you may value community and teamwork. I may value risk-taking and creativity, while you value security and diligence. Thus, the Law of Attraction may be universal in how it's applied, but it's unique in manifestation based on ascertaining our values (so many don't even KNOW what they value!), making decisions, allowing, and our soul lessons (something not covered by Ricotti, but discussed in Transforming Fate into Destiny by Robert Ohotto).

If you or someone you know would like to discover what your core values are, as well as learn what this "law of attraction stuff" is all about, The Law of Attraction Plain and Simple by Sonia Ricotti is a fine first step to get you on your way to creating deliberately and designing your own best life.

(Note: to delve deeper into the truths shared by Ricotti, I recommend the two books Your Destiny Switch and 21 Distinction of Wealth, both by Peggy McColl. To know more about how pre-incarnation soul contracts factor into the Law of Attraction--including the LoA's limitations--read Transforming Fate into Destiny by Robert Ohotto.)

-- Janet Boyer, author of The Back in Time Tarot Book"

Publisher: Hampton Roads Pub Co | More reviews: amazon.com

Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How the Whole World Is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings

by Rob Brezsny

Average Rating:

"*****
I don't think I've ever come across a book anything like Pronoia before. It is large, chock full of information of the positive sort (as opposed to of the negative sort). This is because "pronoia" is the opposite of "paranoid" (when you think everyone is out to get you)---you think every is out to shower you with blessings! The book is written to celebrate pronoia is a variety of ways, all of which make you feel good.

The author, Rob Brezskny, writes in a lyrical, irreverant, wildly unconventional and beautiful style. I've never seen anyone else write like that---he is unique. The book sort of reminds me in a way of Ram Dass' "Be Here Now", a cult classic, and an amazing consciousness book of the time that is still in print today. I think that Pronoia will be as popular as that classic book.

Pronoia is an experience, not just a book. And you can GET the experience from just reading the book! It can be read linearly, or bit by bit from time to time, with equally good results. There are many interactive sections, provocative questions, exercises to try, ideas for journalling, etc. throughout the book. These interactive things aren't traditional exercises you'd find in a "normal" book, though. They are wild, wacky, and wonderful---just like the book!

The book is quite irreverent, yet it beautifully captures the God I worship in its pages---not the God of any one religion, but of all of us. He thinks up interesting new names for this supreme being like "the Divine Wow"...and you experience the love of this higher power throughout the book, not in ways you'd expect. There is much humor throughout too---it is a laugh-out loud kind of book.

If you are open, even just a little bit, to the experience that the whole world COULD be conspiring to shower you with love and blessing---or if you'd LIKE to be open to this possibility---then this is a book, and an experience for you. If you are a negative, pessimistic person, or if you are depressed, or if you are just searching for more meaning and happiness in your life---AND---you read this entire book, I will bet that you will be much more ready, if not entirely ready, to live your life quite differently in various ways.

Pronoia is a great value too---lots of book, lots of experience---for a really great price. If you're wondering if you should get it, the answer is yes! I know it looks odd and is different, but take the chance and you won't be sorry! I am buying 5 more copies to give to my closest friends...one of the best and most life-changing books I've read.
*****"

Publisher: Frog Books | More reviews: amazon.com

The Practicing Mind: Bringing Discipline and Focus Into Your Life

by Thomas M. Sterner

Average Rating:

"Although I have bought and read literally hundreds of self help books in all categories through Amazon, the Practicing Mind by Thomas M. Sterner is by far the 1st book that has compelled me to write my very first Amazon review.

Their are many things that make this book stand out. It is very short, with absolutely, no-fluff or fillings, with the result that every word and every phrase really counts. Sterner's tone is also very down to earth and easy to understand without the use of any pretentious words. The book also has a few very good illustrations and stories to clarify the concepts presented in the book.

But what I think makes the book really practical is Sterner's realization and revelation that the key to success in any area of life is to acquire self-discipline through non-judgmental concentrated practice. Now, I know that this doesn't sound at all like a very profound or new revelation. But if you have been searching through hundreds of self help books - like I have been for the last few years - for the one key ( or system) that would enable me to become successful in improving my spirituality, my role as husband and father, time-management, health and exercise, writing, entrepreneurship and my other personal areas of interest that are of value to me - than the Practicing Mind will be of great value to you.

The Practicing Mind - is not a panacea to cure it all - but for me it turned out to be an amazingly simple and effective system to help me to systematically and measurably improve all the areas of interest in my life.

I highly recommend the Practicing Mind to anyone that has been searching for the key - no matter if you are just starting out or you already own hundreds or even thousands of self-help books - to order this book and put it into practice

I also highly recommend you to get to also get the audio version - as over the years I have realized that the best way to internalize the paradigms like the one presented in this book - is to listen to them over and over again preferably on a daily basis. The audio CD is read by Mr. Sterner himself and the author has a very calm and pleasant voice that helps transmits his ideas perfectly in the audio book version of this book.

Get The Practicing Mind. It might be the last personal self-help book that you ever order....."

Publisher: Mountain Sage Publishing | More reviews: amazon.com

Not Manifesting? This Book is for You!

by Kathleen Mackenzie

Average Rating:

"This is a quick read and a great manual for manifesting. It is not the same old information. And I have read everything. If you are new to the Law or experienced but bumping into a seeming wall on something, this book is useful. The best part that I have never encountered before is that the author provides her email address at the end of the book offering assistance. I took a shot and emailed her. She replied right away and the advice she gave was fantastic. I have never experienced an author being that reachable, caring and involved. "

Publisher: Outskirts Press | More reviews: amazon.com

The Power of Your Subconscious Mind: Complete and Unabridged

by Joseph Murphy

Average Rating:

"I purchases this in both book and CD format for my husband. I have received so much from Joseph Murphy. Initially his style of writing did not appeal to me. Each page tells events in others lives and how these people applied the principles taught by him, allowing Infinite Intellegence to work in there lives. In time I adjusted to his style and have been able to apply these principles in my own life. Now I am collecting as many of his writings as I can. "

Publisher: Wilder Publications | More reviews: amazon.com

The Path to Love: Spiritual Strategies for Healing

by Deepak Chopra

Average Rating:

"Being unfamiliar with the writings of Deepak Chopra when I first got this book, I didn't think, judging by the size of it, that it would take me that long to read, or that I would have any trouble understanding some of the concepts that were presented to me. Boy, was I wrong. This book is so full of knowledge that you will have to read it a couple of times to get the full understanding of what the author is saying. Not that this is by any means a bad thing. I have been reading the Conversations with God series on and off for about five years now, and every time I read it I learn something new. It is quite similiar with this book. Like anything, though, you have to approach it with an open mind, otherwise the overall message of the book will be lost. Still, it provides many unique insights into what love actually is, how to attain bliss within a relationship, and several meditations that will help you achieve what the author is talking about at the present time. For instance, when talking about how the ego influences needs within a relationship, a meditation will be presented to you whose purpose is to try to chip away at the ego. Again, this book is full of information, and will probably keep you busy for a while. Learning these concepts takes a while, but once you get them, you will most likely see a change in your life, relationships, and viewpoint of what love actually is. I know I did."

Publisher: Three Rivers Press | More reviews: amazon.com

The Psychic Pathway: A Workbook for Reawakening the Voice of Your Soul

by Sonia Choquette

Average Rating:

"Mathematics and science naturally attract me, and I can study those subjects myself. All my adult life, I've realized that I could use more extended and honed perceptions, not only for my own good, but for the good of the people around me, too. Therefore, I've sought very hard to develop the meditational or spiritual or psychic side of life. Along the way, I've consumed many seminars and read many books. While I imagine that some of those books were written only to make money, I do not assert that as the truth (and I have not in the past, either). I can say, with certainty, that many of those books and seminars have been closed to me. By that, I mean that it was clear to me that the writer and perhaps many other students or readers "got it," even though it was abundantly clear (and frustrating) that I did not. It doesn't matter too much whether the material is based on someone's strong reality if we ourselves cannot have some share of the experience. I bought this book, and I have used it for a while now. My experience is that this book is open to me in a meaningful sense. I can do as it says, and I do actually have an improved experience. I wish I could get a better effect and get it more quickly, but the point is that with attention even a person like me actually gets some effect. I have read most of the book, but its main value is in working through the exercises, and I go slower than the schedule written in the book.Because the book works for me at least a little, I contacted Ms. Choquette and asked for a personal reading. She gave it to me. In preparation for the reading experience, I was hopeful in the sense that Ms. Choquette seemed to understand clearly that there is no real use in children's games. I don't care about lotto numbers or the identity of my "soul mate." While her concerns are clearly different than mine, my guess, at least, is that Ms. Choquette doesn't care much about lotto numbers, either. The reading she gave me was truly stunning. It is impossible for me to retain objective clarity and say whether or not the hints she gave me will turn to my practical advantage in future. Time will tell something about that. The "magic" of the reading was that she framed a complete and sophisticated understanding of my whole life and times that was so far outside my own imaginings that I would never have thought about it. Whether her version is to be understood metaphorically or in a historical sense (and I cannot really say), it was the reframing that was so stunning and which at least potentially carried very great insight.I tell you solemnly (Amen, Amen, I say unto you), Sonia Choquette is sincere and has honed a real and meaningful psychic perception far beyond any level that I had previously encountered in anyone. I found her reading difficult to listen to properly, and I have no doubt that it was difficult for her to give to me. I recommend her and her books as being undoubtedly real and potentially a doorway or gateway for anyone (even someone previously frustrated, as I have been) to this realm of extended perception. I would have given 5 stars if I had been able to do the exercises faster (not her fault). Publicly, I acknowledge and thank Sonia Choquette."

Publisher: Three Rivers Press | More reviews: amazon.com