The Buddha said: “You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.” (A thought worthy of daily repetition.) In my experience over 23 years practicing Lucid Heart Therapy & Life Coaching, I have found that everyone’s problems have their root in a lack of self love and the obstacle […]
Archive | Buddhism & Psychotherapy
Real But Not True: A Teaching from Tsoknyi Rinpoche
I just came from a weekend seminar at NalandaWest in Seattle with a wonderful Tibetan teacher, Tsoknyi Rinpoche, author of the new book, Open Heart, Open Mind. He has a down to earth, humorous way of presenting the teachings, filled with personal anecdotes. I find it most helpful to hear about the personal struggles of […]
Zen and the Art of Spiritual Bypassing: Rethinking a Western Culture of Discipline
In a Japanese legend, the great Dharma Chan(Zen) master Bodhidharma cut off his eyelids because he fell asleep in meditation. According to Chinese legend his main disciple Dazu Huikecut off his arm to convince Bodhidharma he was sincere and worthy to receive the teachings. In the 60’s many of us new Zen students of Shunryo […]
Everything That Distresses You is Irrelevant! Overcoming Victim Mentality
This is Part 4 of a series I’m calling, ‘Everything That Distresses You is Irrelevant.’ This series will be especially helpful for helping you to actually enjoy, and deal creatively with, the challenges that being around family can bring mentally, emotionally, and physically. You can also check out the other posts in this series: Part 1, Part 2, and Part […]
Everything That Distresses You is Irrelevant! The Origin of Fearful Thinking
This is the third installment of this series of posts: ‘Everything That Distresses You is Irrelevant.’ The 4 main issues that cause us needless distress are: Confusion about Desire vs. Attachment – Part 1 Limited Self-Concepts – Part 2 Not Recognizing the Nature and Origin of Fear-based Thinking – Part 3 Confusion about Cause and Effect, or Victim Mentality – […]
Everything That Distresses You is Irrelevant! Stop Limited Self Concepts from Making You Suffer
This is the 2nd post in a series I’m calling, ‘Everything That Distresses You is Irrelevant.’ In this series we’re examining the 4 main issues that could be causing you needless distress: Confusion about Desire vs. Attachment Limited Self Concepts Unrecognized Nature of Fear-based Thinking Confusion about Cause and Effect You can also take a […]
No More Self-Improvement – Guest Blog
I am happy to share this wonderful blog by Lisa Saubolle. Lisa Saubolle is creator of The Bodymind Journey, a heart centered approach to healing and self-discovery. She is a hypnotherapist and Certified TAT® (Tapas Acupressure Technique) Trainer, with a background in energy healing and body-centered methods. Her blog shares her personal experience and the […]
Are You Worried About What Other People Think?
If you want to make yourself miserable, here’s the quickest way to do it: get worried about what other people think of you. Just by turning our attention outside, we can begin to imagine that others are judging us harshly. In this way, we create a kind of prison in our own mind. We keep ourselves […]
Make Your Fear Bigger and Set Yourself Free
When you experience unpleasant and painful emotions, the typical reaction is to try to restrict them, stop them, or run away from those feelings. Let’s be honest, though — this doesn’t really work, does it? Surprisingly, one of the most effective ways to control a negative emotion (such as anger or fear) is to give up […]
The Power of A Blessing Surprises Me
I am going to tell you a powerful secret. I am about to give you a powerful all-purpose tool for taming your mind, your emotional states and your compulsions. I give it in various forms to all my clients. In fact, I had just given it to a client the day before I went to […]
