Tag: Health

 The amazing Kirk – the little boy who had a stroke after birth who myself and others have contributed funds to help heal – is making progress. Here’s a picture his mom sent me today. Kirk isn’t walking yet, but he’s moving, and that’s a start. I feel gratitude whenever I see any picture of my little friend Kirk. If you are celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday here in the states, or even if you’re not, pause and give thanks for your life. And for moments like this.

 I admit it: I don’t always feel great.

Yea, I’m surprised, too.

You’d think the author of such self-help books as The Attractor Factor and The Key, who stars in the inspiring movie The Secret, would have it together by now.

Sorry to disappoint you.

I still have my “moments.”

At least today they are only off moments where in the past they were bad days.

But if Boston can transform a prison into a luxury hotel called Liberty Hotel, then you and I can transform our mood.

So let me give you an early Christmas present by sharing ten self-help tips I do to shift my emotions which may help you, as well:

1. Pet a cat. I look into the eyes of my pets and I begin to feel more relaxed. They purr and my world changes. Ahhhhh…

2. Walk a dog. Just moving can make you feel better but having an excited dog tug at you to move you along faster is even better.

3. Play loud music. Nothing like hearing great music from Michelle Malone — or AC/DC or Stevie Ray Vaughan or Bruce Springsteen — playing at ear ringing levels to make me forget my woes. Dance to the music and unhappiness doesn’t stand a chance of surviving.

4. Make a decision. As I say in the movie The Secret, and in my books The Attractor Factor and The Key, setting an intention for how you want your day to go will realign you and your day. How do you want to feel? What do you want to achieve? Focus on that and you’ll begin to go toward it.

5. Help someone. Feeling unhappy is a selfish experience, so share it with someone you love. Just kidding. You can lift your own mood by looking for someone who is sad and comforting them. Listen to them. Buy them a cookie. Anything to take the focus off of you.

6. Feel grateful. Look around and find something, anything, to feel truly grateful to have. Gratitude is a powerful attractor of more to feel grateful for. Compared to people in the past and people in third world countries, you have it made.

7. Watch a movie. Movies shift your feelings and thoughts and can be a powerful way to improve your mood. Watch The Marx Brothers, The Three Stooges, etc. I liked the Bruce Willis movie 13 Blocks. Watch The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Watch Donny Deutsch’s The Big Idea. Watch cartoons. Whatever flips your switch.

8. Eat something. Yes, it’s comfort food when you reach for a meal when you aren’t really hungry and feel like crap, but food helps put you in the moment, shifts your serotonin levels, and makes your blood rush from your head to your stomach. Just don’t make this a habit.

9. Detach. Consider this a spiritual exercise and learn to detach from your thoughts, feelings and body. As I write in Zero Limits, you are the witness behind it all. Enjoy the show. Life is a play, my friend. It just seems real.

10. Smile. Look in the mirror and create a dozen different ways to smile. How would a kid do it? Go ahead. Be silly. No one is watching. You might start laughing at yourself and sooner or later, son of a gun, you’re really smiling.

Bonus Tip: Take action. Nothing beats simply diving into a project, preferably something you’ve been wanting to do anyway. Getting lost in the doing is a smart way to transcend your mood and get something productive done, as well. Forget avoiding. Start doing.

Finally, remember what comedian George Burns said —

“Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city.”

Well, are you happy now?

Ao Akua,

Joe
www.mrfire.com

PS – My Miracles Coaching program is accepting new applicants. Want a miracle or two? Want to feel happy and excited every day? See www.miraclescoaching.com Hey, no charge to go look.

Note: Photo by Lola Jones of www.lolajones.com 

Byron Katie teaches people “The Work.” It’s basically a simple questioning process. You take a statement that is bothering you and “work” on it.

For example, “My boss infuriates me” (which could be “My spouse infuriates me” or “My neighbors infuriate me” or “That blogger infuriates me”) could be the statement you focus on.

You now ask these questions:

“Is it true?”

“Can you absolutely know that it’s true?”

“How do you react when you believe that thought?”

“Who would you be without that thought?”

There’s a bonus technique to do after you answer those questions, too.

You take the original troublesome statement — “My boss infuriates me” — and turn it around, to its opposite: “My boss loves me.” (Correction: The turn around statement would be more personal, such as “I infuriate me.”)

Note how that feels.

This procedure is a powerful way for exploring what troubles you. There are many books and audios by and about Bryron. A good place to start is www.thework.com

While in Canada, I picked up a copy of her book, Question Your Thinking, Change the World. It’s a collection of quotes from Bryon. Here’s one:

“There’s no suffering in the world;

there’s only a story that would lead you to believe it.

There’s no suffering in the world that’s real.”

Chew on that.

Ao Akua,

Joe
www.mrfire.com

PS —  My Miracles Coaching program is currently accepting new applicants. See www.miraclescoaching.com

  Several weeks ago one of our cats, Tiger, was diagnosed with high blood sugar and diabetes.

The vet advised a second blood test to see if the condition would change.

We did the second test and discovered his condition had actually worsened.

The vet said Tiger would need insulin shots twice a day, else his health would worsen even more.

Shots?

Twice a day?

Tiger is nearly twenty years old. He’s a maine coon. I’ve had him since he was born feral and came knocking at my door when I lived in Houston.

In many ways, he’s my best friend, though he doesn’t say much (a good thing in a cat) and he rarely likes to be held (he’s a loner).

Still, we’re buds.

I didn’t relish the idea of him being sick, let alone us having to give him shots twice a day.

I’m pretty sure Tiger wouldn’t like the shot thing, either.

I asked Nerissa and the vet if they would give me two weeks to try to heal Tiger.

Neither liked the idea but both humored me. 

I then did three things that I hoped would make a difference in Tiger’s health:

1. I set an intention.

I stated that I wanted to find a fast way to normalize Tiger’s blood sugar level and heal him of diabetes. Nerissa joined me with this objective. A clear target can be very motivating. Two people focusing on it adds to the power to achieve it.

2. I searched for a remedy online.

I jumped online and searched for “Cure feline diabetes.” To my amazement there was a site dedicated to just that. I instantly ordered the special vitamins and started putting them in Tiger’s food. He never ate all of it as he didn’t like it, but I figured a little is better than none.*

3. I gave Tiger healing treatments.

Every day I would hold him, pet him, and consciously send healing thoughts and chi energy into him. I’m a student of Chi Kung/Qi Gong and know how to direct energy. As a metaphysician, I know about mind power treatments. As a practicioner of self-identity ho’oponopono, as described in my book Zero Limits, I know to keep cleaning on anything I see as a problem, whether in me or “out there.” I did all of this daily. Apparently Tiger liked these healing treatments because he started getting on my lap every day, something he would normally never do.

This two week experiment ended yesterday.

We had to take Tiger back to the vet for his third blood test.

Nerissa drove him over while I stayed home and kept cleaning on his health and my worries.

The vet took one look at Tiger and said, “He’s better.”

She noted he had gained weight and looks healthier.

She added, “Whatever you are doing, keep doing it.”

That was good news, of course, but we still needed to do the blood test to confirm that our intention came to be.

The results came in today.

Tiger is better!

The vet said his blood sugar dropped by half.

He dropped over two hundred points.

He’s still not completely out of danger, but she felt he could go without insulin shots as long as we maintained whatever we are doing and he continued to look healthy. 

Not bad, eh? 🙂

Please note how this healing method worked:

1. I declared an intention.

2. I took action.

3. I kept cleaning.

What’s impossible?

Maybe nothing.

Why not go for your wildest dreams?

Why not try the impossible?

Tiger says it’s worth a shot.

And he’s not talking about an insulin shot.

Ao Akua,

Joe
www.mrfire.com

PS — Miracles Coaching might be worth a look, too. You don’t have to heal cats in it and who knows what you might achieve?

* The special vitamins formula I found online and bought for Tiger is described at www.petremedy.com/cat/db/home.htm Since he didn’t eat a whole capsule every day, and did his best to eat around it, I can’t say that it helped normalize his blood sugar level yet. But we’re going to keep giving it to him, just in case it did or does help. The site selling the formula has dozens of powerful testimonials from cat owners who have seen miraculous healings. Tiger wants his picture on their site, too.

 A few years ago I flew out to San Diego and trained with famous bodybuilder Frank Zane.

Zane is a legendary old-school classic-physique weight-lifter. He’s super intelligent, too.

When I was in his home with him, between playing the guitar and harmonica for me, he asked about past times in my life where I was really fit.

There weren’t many. 

Okay, there was only one.

I told him about being a teenager and thinking I would someday be Heavyweight Boxing Champion of the World.

I was inspired by Floyd Patterson (who I met) and Jack Dempsey (who sent me an autographed picture) and James J. Corbett (way dead) and other boxing greats.

During those delusional but exciting teenage years I trained relentlessly and aggressively.

But I let the dream slide as I realized I was too short to be a heavyweight class boxer.

I could have been an overweight one, though.

Anyway, I didn’t like people punching me.

Frank Zane told me to put up a speed bag in my gym, which I was building at the time. He said it may help awaken the body memory of once being in pretty good physical condition, and it might help awaken my love for working out as a boxer.

I did, and I admired Frank for suggesting it. I like the speed bag, always did and still do, even though I rarely use it when I work-out these days.

But something happened on my recent trip to Ohio to visit family that Frank would probably approve of.

That’s where I met “Bob.”

My parents have a basement where my father has exercise equipment. He gets up every day at 4:15 am and works out. He’s been doing this his entire life, and today he’s 82 years old.

He’s in better shape than me, too.

Anyway, in the basement I ran into “Bob.”

“Bob” stands for “Body Opponent Bag.”

He’s a full-size male mannequin with an evil face. He’s thick so you can hit him or kick him, or even drive into him with your car, and he’s on a heavy base so he doesn’t fall down like one of those plastic clowns filled with air.

Bob doesn’t have any arms or legs, so he’s basically defenseless.

My kind of opponent.

I saw Bob and instantly started punching him.

I liked it.

All of my memories of being a boxer came rolling into my blood.

Suddenly I was a teenager again, whacking the life-like dummy as if I were Stallone in a Rocky movie, making it bounce around the concrete floor.

Uppercuts, left hooks, jabs and volcanic right hand wallops flew out of me.

I guess it’s true: You never totally forget what you once deeply embedded.

After I relieved my stress on Bob, I went upstairs and asked my Dad about him.

He showed me a catalog with Bob in it. Within minutes I was online and ordering a Bob of my own. He’s on his way here as I type this.

I’m excited about it, too.

The lesson here is that sometimes an activity from your youth might be the ticket to reawaken your passion.

I have no interest in being a boxer today, let alone a Heavyweight Boxing Champion. (I met George Foreman and I would never want to be in a ring with him. He’s a nice guy but he’s huge.)

But awakening a positive memory is a good thing.

I think Frank Zane would agree.

Ao Akua,

Joe
www.mrfire.com

PS — You can get a “Bob” of your very own from www.titleboxing.com Just go there and search for BOB. Bob never complains, no matter what you say or do to him. You can write on him, too. Or paint him. Or dress him up. Ah, the possibilities!