Neuroscience In The News On Feb 29

These are articles that I found of interest relating to news about Neuroscience.  In this issue, I have highlighted articles about all-nighters and negative consequences, some of the neuroscience myths that are debunked and a glowing red tool to help in brain mapping.

Please check out the article links below and feel free to comment with other information related to these subjects.  I enjoy learning as much as I can about the brain and passing this information on to everyone else that shares these passions.

This is for the week beginning February 29, 2016.

Please come back each week and hopefully I will have some more highlights.  Feel free to share with me ones that you have found and I may highlight those as well.

Feel free to check out the highlighted articles from February 22, 2016

All-Nighters Have Negative Consequences

Dr. Lydic explained that it was only recently that the great power of sleep to alter human physiology and biology was understood.

"You need sleep,” Lydic said. “Without sleep, you die.”

Sleep disorders, Lydic said, have high comorbidity with other diseases and disorders. He listed diabetes, stroke, anxiety, hypertension and other disorders as conditions whose likelihood increases with the presence of a sleep disorder.

Article Link:

• Study Proves All-Nighters Can Have Negative Consequences
• Dr. Ralph Lydic, University Of Tennessee

Four Neuromyths Debunked

Many “neuromyths” are rampant in our classrooms, and research suggests that people are often seduced by neuroscientific explanations, even if these are not accurate or even relevant. Research also shows that explanations accompanied by images of the brain also persuade people to believe in their validity, however random the illustration.

Article Link:

• Four Neuromyths That Are Still Prevalent In Schools - Debunked
• By Bradley Busch, Psychologist

Glowing Red Tool For Brain Mapping

University of Alberta chemists have built a molecule that will shed new light on brain disease research — red, flashing light, specifically.

Combining proteins from red-glowing coral and the sac-like sea squirt, PhD student Ahmed Abdelfattah constructed a new tool called FlicR1 for scientists to see messages move through brain tissue.

Article Link:

• Chemists Build Glowing Red Tool For Brain Mapping
• University Of Alberta, PhD Student - Ahmed Abdelfattah

A Peaceful Place To Refocus

Life has been quite challenging lately for me.  I've felt like all was slipping away from me and it was tough to hang on.  I really needed to step back and refocus.

Finally after trying to stay strong and keep going, I traveled to a peaceful place to refocus.  In this case, it is Pipestem State Park in West Virginia.  I've used this place in the past to help me make it through difficult times.

Years ago when I was first dealing with the abuse and torture I had been through in my life, I would come here on the holidays and escape a world that was painful.  This park is so beautiful and so peaceful.

It is a place that is magical to me and one that I can just escape and disconnect from everything.  It is secluded enough that I can step out of life and find that peace as I refocus.

Today, I hiked all over the place but then I just stopped and recognized the peaceful place I was in.  It was quiet and the peace was so inviting and invigorating.  It was a beautiful moment.

My hope for the trip is that I can refocus and find myself once again.  I want to reconnect with life, rather than wanting to hide in my little cave.

These challenging times are not easy, but hopefully when I leave, I will be more empowered to find my way through, rather then feeling like I was at the end of my rope.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2/6/16 by Don Shetterly

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Why We Go Through Difficult Moments

Why, we often ask.  We can't explain the difficult moments in life, but we sure can feel them.  I'm sure if anyone could answer the question of why do we go through difficult moments, they would be the wisest person on earth.

Sure, some come up with statements about why we go through difficult moments and sometimes those answers help.  Often though, those answers are like a temporary band-aid on a gushing wound.  I actually think that these type of answers can hurt more than they help.

Difficult moments are everywhere and they affect many people at different times in their life.  I could tell you that difficult moments help us grow and discover ourselves.  Others could tell you that it brings you closer to God.

The thing is that when you go through a difficult moment, the common thing we do is ask why?  We wonder why and by asking why, we are searching for the answers we need.

Asking why we go through difficult moments is how we begin to make sense of it.  It is how our mind begins to comprehend what is taking place.  Often, there are no answers at this point, but the question leads us to those answers.

Allow yourself to ask why we go through difficult moments.  Allow yourself to be in the midst of the rough times.  Don't feel like you have to boil your experience down into a 30 second sound bite that works for everyone but yourself.

I have often found that people want to help others and if they don't have the answers you need, they often make up something that they think helps.  It is their way of trying to get rid of their own discomfort, rather than allowing you to find what it is you need.

We are empowered when we search and discover the answers we need.  We are empowered when we go through the process to figure out how we deal with difficult moments.

Quick fixes only apply to the movies and unenlightened people.  The process is the phase where we grow and learn.  The process of finding our way through difficult moments is what makes us more human and compassionate in this world.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2/6/16 by Don Shetterly

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If You Feel Like Quitting

Today I heard something which made sense.  Do you ever feel like you're at the end of your rope?  Do you feel like you can't keep going?  I know at times lately, I've felt like enough is enough and I'm saying quits!

If  you feel like quitting, it means you're getting to the point where you are discovering what it is that is holding you back.  I'm paraphrasing now, but this makes perfect sense.

After all, its that point of surrender when you see what is before you.  Its that point of being at the end of the rope, when you begin looking for another way out.  It is that moment when you stop seeing the hole you have dug, and you begin working to dig yourself out.

I've been there more times than I care to remember.  At each moment, all seemed lost.  At each moment, I felt like I just could not keep going.  I felt like quitting. I felt like giving up.

I remember thinking to myself that I had a choice to make. The choice was somehow to find a way through this, or to give up and let myself remain in the form I was in. Of course I knew deep down that if I did not make a choice, that the choice would be made for me. Hope And Possibility Through Trauma by Don Shetterly

If I look back at those moments, I can see how things unfolded after I got to that point.  It was all the stuff I could not see in that moment, but once I got past it, all became clear.

Its easy to write these things, but it is much different to really understand this when  you're in the heat of the difficult moments.  I've been there once again recently and I'm trying to hold on to the fact, that I know I've been here before.  I know that this too shall pass.

So, if you feel like quitting or if you feel like you can take no more, look closely because you most likely have found what it is you need.  You're on the right track to finding your way through it.  You've come to that point where you are seeing things in a new light or a different light.

Trust that you will find your way through it.  Yes, it may hurt.  Yes, it may not be easy.  Just know that most likely there is a reason and whatever it is that you are learning from this difficult moment, it will be revealed to you when you're ready to see it.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2/6/16 by Don Shetterly

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The High And Mighty

Recently, I experienced something that was extremely hurtful and painful.  Someone that meant a lot to me and still does, got up on their high and mighty horse.  They fell off it as well, but hopefully they can find their way back up on a normal horse.

The thing is, I am one that tries to improve myself.  I work hard to push myself more than the day before.  Of course, I'm not always perfect either and in fact, I fail far more of the time then I get it right.  I don't stop.  I don't give up.

Now, I may struggle and I may squirm around during my days.  Things may appear that I have no clue what is going on or what I need to do.  In all reality, those are the moments, I'm beginning to formulate my thoughts and I don't hide all of this from anyone.

Some must not like to see that.  They get all high and mighty and proclaim they know all, see all, and are all wise.  They proclaim in passive aggressive ways that I know nothing and that I need to get on the ball.

It's sad really because if we as humans spent as much time working on ourselves as we did nitpicking other people, we would be some mighty awesome people.  We wouldn't be a judgmental high and mighty person, but one that was full of true love without judgment.

Most likely there is a lesson in here for me to learn and probably at some point down the road, things will look different then they do in the midst of the pain and hurt.  Stuff will happen and even those that we really care about will turn and become something we have never seen before in our experience with them.

So be it!  They can be high and mighty all they want, but at the end of the day, I've got to look out for myself and stay true to myself.  It isn't that I try to brush off things that maybe will help me as much as I can't sway to every whim someone has that thinks they know best for me.

There are times that I choose not to say things to others because I know it would only hurt them and serve no purpose.  It does not mean I don't listen.  It just means that I am trying to protect them and the cascade of effects that would surely fall like a row of dominoes.

All my life, there have been far too many that were high and mighty.  Much of it has focused around religion, but some of it comes in the new age world.  There are just so many  that try to fix everyone else instead of applying the same balm to their own life.

I know, its easier to point the fingers at other people, but just remember that when you point the finger at someone, you have three pointing back at you.  If you keep that in mind, it will greatly help not only your interactions with others, but the entire world.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2/5/16 by Don Shetterly

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Actions Speak Louder Than Words

We all know this, right?  At least, we should know it.  Churches preach it all the time.  Children are taught this from their parents.  After all, actions speak louder than words.

Unfortunately if you watch the media these days, you will see plenty of examples of people who must have missed this lesson in life.  Maybe they were fast asleep in church or just got tired of hearing it from their parents.

I'm really so sick of people these days who go out and proclaim one thing, but practice something else.  They tear down others and belittle what other people do, but yet they are no better.  They don't practice something most of us learned, actions speak louder than words.

Take for example the politician that proclaims how great of a Christian he is.  He makes sure everyone knows this and he thanks God in his rallies and performs his prayers.  Yet, when it comes down to tactics to win an election, he really forgets that his actions speak louder than words.

You could also take for example the child molester who prays to God and makes it a practice to make sure others know how great and good a person he is.  Yet, he continues time and time again to molest children, even while proclaiming his faith and holier than thou attitude.  Their actions speak louder than words.

Before you think I'm just harping on churches, it is more than that.  Consider the community leader who wants everyone to be treated fairly and equally, but when it comes to those gays in every day life, they are calling for them to be obliterated from the face of the earth.  Their actions speak louder than words.

What about the business leader who greedily charges more than they should for some life saving product and yet they think somehow they are better than the imbeciles living on this planet.  Maybe they will donate some extra money to make it look like they are a good person, but again, they forget that actions speak louder than words.

Its easy to point the finger at others and proclaim how bad they are and how they are ruining the fabric of our society.  It is easy to point the finger at others and tell them what they should do and how we are the supreme authority on any given subject.  It is easy to point the fingers and stand high on our own pedestal while we look down on those we see as lower than ourselves.

In my view, if you're looking down on others, you're trampling upon them.  You are enslaving them to your will and taking away their will.  You're forcing your own narrow minded beliefs and ways upon them as if to say, you are smarter than any God, person, place, or thing in the universe.

Maybe if we kept in mind that actions speak louder than words, we could really begin to look at our actions and then align our words.   As a result, maybe we could just begin to treat others as human, not as less then our ego inflated self.

Actions say so much more than our words.  Actions show our true intent and what is in our heart.  We can trick and dupe people with our words, but our actions tell the real story.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2/4/16 by Don Shetterly

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Neuroscience In The News On Feb 22

These are articles that I found of interest relating to news about Neuroscience.  In this issue, I have highlighted articles about human behavior and the brain, moral decision making, sleep and memory, and how mothers pass on a brain wired for depression.  Please check out the article links below and feel free to comment with other information related to these subjects.  I enjoy learning as much as I can about the brain and passing this information on to everyone else that shares these passions.

This is for the week beginning February 22, 2016.

Please come back each week and hopefully I will have some more highlights.  Feel free to share with me ones that you have found and I may highlight those as well.

Collapse Of Freud and Marx On Cognitive Science

Perhaps Wolfe’s most astute observation was cultural: how the collapse of Freud and Marx had pushed people into using the language of cognitive science for explanations of human behavior. He also noticed that the link between the actual science and the conclusions people drew from it were often tenuous, and his article foreshadowed an explosion of dubious media stories about brain centers for infidelity, neural circuits for political orientation, and chemical imbalances for mental illness.

Article Link:

• Neuroscience And The Premature Death Of The Soul
• By Vaughn Bell

Intention and Permissiability in Moral Decision Making

The ability to distinguish between the effects an agent intended versus those that were side-effects are critical in general for social cognition  and  in  particular  for  assigning  responsibility and assessing moral permissibility. Our goal here is to understand these processes in computational terms.

Article Link:

• Interference of Intention and Permissibility In Moral Decision Making
• Max Kleiman-Weiner, Tobias Gerstenberg, Sydney Levine, Joshua B. Tenebaum

Best To Sleep On It

The new discoveries, made by researchers from Bristol's Centre for Synaptic Plasticity, provide further evidence for the benefits of a good night's sleep. Patterns of brain activity that occur during the day are replayed at fast-forward speed during sleep.  Replay of brain activity during sleep is dependent on the emotional state of the person when they are learning.

Article Link:

• Best To Sleep On It:  Brain Activity Patterns During Sleep Consolidate Memory
• University Of Bristol Research Team

Mothers May Pass On Wired Brain For Depression

Mothers may pass on vulnerability to depression in much the same way they give their daughters green eyes or curly hair – girls might inherit a brain structure that’s predisposed to mood disorders, a small U.S. study suggests.  Previous behavioral health studies have pointed to a strong link between psychiatric problems in mothers and similar mood disorders in their daughters, Hoeft and colleagues note in The Journal of Neuroscience.

Article Link:

• Mothers May Pass Daughters A Brain Wired For Depression
• Dr. Fumiko Hoeft of the University Of California, San Francisco 

The Art Of Communication

In this day and age, electronic message rules the world.  If Facebook has their way, there will be no more need for telephones.  I'm sure Alexander Graham Bell would not have been able to comprehend this even in his day.

Unfortunately with the age of electronic messaging and Facebook and social media, humans are becoming a species that does not fully communicate with one another.  Our faces are buried in our phones with our thumbs typing incoherent symbols and abbreviations to one another.  We are becoming void of the art of communication.

Misunderstandings often happen because we don't know how to communicate.  Misunderstandings happen because sometimes we need to speak up.  Communication is difficult enough in the best of circumstances and trying at the worst of times.

Communication is about learning how to listen and speak up.  It is about learning how to get your thought across to another person without expecting that they should read your mind.  No one really knows what goes on in another person's mind, but yet we as a human species expect that all too often.

If we fail to try to learn how to better communicate, can we expect to be heard?  Can we expect someone to understand us if we expect them to read our mind?  If we don't practice and improve on the art of communication, how can we expect the world to understand what it is that we know?

I am always amazed that even when I think I'm stating something clearly, it can often get misinterpreted and misunderstood.  Even the simplest of statements in communication don't always get received by the recipient the way we think they do.

Hopefully the recipient speaks up and asks for clarification or we detect the deficiency of delivery.  This is one reason that the electronic messaging fails because we cannot see how the other person reacts to what we said.  The body language is not available for observation and it is a key in communication.

Let's be all that we can be as humans by working on communication.  Let's learn to find our flaws and then work to improve them.  Let's not just assume that everyone understands what we may not be saying even if we think we are saying it.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2/1/16 by Don Shetterly

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Sometimes We Just Need To Be Heard

We all know there is so much screaming and talking and ranting and raving these days.  In fact it gets a little old.  I'm beginning to wonder if we as a human civilization have lost our hearing.  It seems like we don't hear as well as we talk.

Sometimes in life, we just need to be heard.  Sometimes we just need for that other person to be there for us, not trying to fix us or change us or anything else.  They just need to be there so we feel like we are heard.

I see that with other people where sometimes the best thing you can do is be quiet and listen.  In fact, listening is so therapeutic that it can be one of the best healing moments in life for people.

We all want to talk and tell the world every thought we have.  We want to feel important and significant, but sometimes we just need to be heard.  Sometimes we also just need to listen to others and let them be heard.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/31/16 by Don Shetterly

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Struggling With Depression

Its another day, I tell myself.  I try to get up and accomplish something, but my body says, "no way, go back to bed!"  I struggle to push back, but my energy wanes.  My mind says, "go ahead and give it another shot," but I grow tired at the thought.

Depression is a life long companion.  It has robbed my life of so much.  Even as I have made great progress, it sometimes is all I can take.

It feels like a dark void with no end in sight.  It feels like a never-ending spiral sinking further and further into a deep dark hole.

Sometimes I can pull myself up more easily and sometimes I struggle to regain my footing.  Oh yes, depression is a life sucker.  Its a drain.

For now though, depression is fighting me hard.  It feels like it is winning at the moment.  I know, I've given it the power.  Now that I gave it the power, it is not wanting to relinquish control.

I wonder how much more will I need to take.  I wonder how much more must I face.  I wonder when I can one day say for certainty that depression is something I used to suffer from, not something that I still struggle with in my life.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/18/16 by Don Shetterly

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Group Think Says Bye Now

I feel right now like the moment you get off the plane and they say, "bye now".  After all, that seems to be what is happening at this time.  I went on a group event and I had people follow me on here.  Of course, then I went and disagreed with the prophet of this group and boy did I hear about it. 

The message these "enlightened" individuals sent to me was, don't you dare disagree with our prophet.  For if you do, you will be exiled.  We will drop you like yesterday's news and we will have nothing to do with you.

Keep in mind, I didn't get mean or nasty or anything like that.  I simply voiced my view of what was said in a very respectful manner.  Many thought I was the problem and that I was so wrong I didn't know anything. The group think was strong.

There was no taking it in stride and listening.  There was no tolerance.  There was no openness to what I said.  It was either their way or the highway.

It reminds me too much of a closed minded intolerant church I grew up in and a father that it was either his way or the highway.  I guess, there are these people in life, but what bugs me the most is how "enlightened" they portray themselves to be while being so intolerant. 

Its mighty dangerous when we practice group think and force people to believe our enlightened views or be banned to damnation.  In all honesty, it really is not anything that is enlightened, but of course you can't begin to tell these people that they may be a little misguided.

Regardless, all I can say back to them for now is bye now.  If they want to practice group think, then I guess that's their moment of enlightenment.  Guess what though?  I'll be staying as far away from them as I can because I have no desire to be part of group think that is this closed minded.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/27/16 by Don Shetterly

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Stop Telling Others What To Do

I guess I'm doing in this post exactly what I'm asking others not to do.  Is that hypocritical?  Maybe it is but it isn't intended this way.  There are far too many of people in this world that are telling others what to do and it needs to stop.

People really don't like others preaching at them and telling them everything wrong that others see in them.  Its human nature and even though some may say they like this, deep down they hold in the anger and resentment.  If you look closely, you will see it.

Its kind of like leading a horse to water and forcing them to drink.  More than likely you can try to force that horse to drink water all day long and it isn't going to get very far.  If you let the horse find the water, more than likely they will drink.

In this country especially (and the entire planet), we think that everyone cannot exist until we tell them exactly what it is that we think they should be doing.  We feel that it is our duty and obligation to make known to everyone we know, just how they should think, feel, respond or act.

We tell others that they should honor and believe like we do, or they are lost and going to hell.  We don't allow them to not believe like we do and we expect and demand that they do this.  Otherwise, how will we ever live our life if others are allowed to live their life in the way them deem appropriate?

I especially roll my eyes at the people who let you know that you should think this way or that way.  Really?  What if that doesn't line up with your own beliefs or your own insights?  Unfortunately it doesn't matter to most.  They still keep pushing their agenda and wait in the tall grass to pounce upon you with their agenda.

We need to stop telling others what to do.  We need to truly close our yaps and open our ears to listen.  We will offer so much more to other people if we are there for them with open ears, not with an agenda that we exclaim with our mouth.

If you're doing all the talking, then you're not listening.  If  you're constantly telling others you know what they should do or how they should think, you're not listening.

Stop telling others what to do and let them find the truth out for themselves if the truth you offer is so great.  Guide them to what you see, but don't interfere with what they see.  You will be much more helpful to them if you stop telling others what to do.

If you are constantly telling others what they should believe or think, you're not helping them find the truth and answers for their life.  

Now, I'm climbing down off my soapbox.  Next person, please!

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/24/16 by Don Shetterly

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Objective Truth In Science

This is a debate that has raged on for centuries and I'm sure what I write will barely move the meter much at all.  I come from a science background.  I've done research.  I have a degree in science, so if you discount what I'm saying, at least understand this much.

There are those that claim if it cannot be proved by science, discard it and dump it in the river.  They feel that it is either science that proves absolutely everything or nothing at all.  As soon as they make this clear, then go into their tirades against religion, alternative thoughts, and anything that doesn't agree with them.

Unfortunately even when the same people want to claim that belief has nothing to do with science, it is obvious that they don't realize that claim is nothing more then their own belief system.  Sure, they have some facts to back things up, but so do others that see the world through different eyes.  If you believe science has the answers, that is your belief system.  To fail to understand that is ignorance.

There are things that science cannot prove today as 100% fact or not 100% fact.  There are things in the past that science claimed was true, but were woefully ignorant and wrong.  Science is based upon theory that has facts to support it, but it does not account for everything we know or we think we know.

Even though religion thinks it has all the facts, it is woefully mistaken.  Religion uses belief based upon some (limited) facts of what really happened.  Through that belief, all truth is derived.  It is often at odds with science and I'm not here to give it validation or justification.

There are things we don't understand and in fact there is so much we don't understand.  Yet, we claim that science has all the answers.  Most of the time, I would agree but there are situations and circumstances that science is not able to prove that which we can see and experience.

Maybe science has not caught up to the time we are in.  Maybe science just doesn't know yet how to make sense of that which is before our eyes.  Does this mean science is not enough?  It may in the moment, but it could change in the future.  We don't need to shun science, but we need to put more effort into it, so that we can prove or disprove the unknowns.

To form such a rigid thought process of either religion or science having all the answers is ignorant at best.  To see the validity of both sides is to be an individual with a higher consciousness of thoughts.  You can't claim everyone that believes differently than you are wrong while claiming you don't have your own belief system called science.  You may be fooling yourself, but you're not fooling everyone.

Some latch on to what some say without question and gulp it down as if they have the ultimate set of facts and truth.  This is a recipe for missing what may be standing in front of their eyes.  I believe (it is my opinion) that in another 100 years or 1000 years, what we thought was ridiculousness now, may be a normally accepted truth based upon science.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/23/16 by Don Shetterly

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Should I Buy Unlimited Abundance Program

I get one question so often that I thought I would write about this.  Will the Unlimited Abundance Program work for me and should I buy it?  For each person, the answer will be different and I can't tell you what you should do.  This is something that you will need to decided for yourself.

However, I can share with you what it did for me and hopefully that will help you.  These are personal observations and changes and I'm trying to boil them down in an abbreviated form.

If you look at some of the links at the end of this blog post, you will see more of the journey that brought me to this point and my review of Unlimited Abundance.  I normally never push any products on anyone unless they are life changing to me and they have worked for me.  Yes, I am an affiliate for Mind Valley on this product, but I only joined up with them after I saw what it was doing for me.  What I state here is how it has impacted my life.  It is an honest review, not a cookie-cutter piece following a script.

5 ways Unlimited Abundance helped me

#1 - Reprogramming My Mind To Let Go

For most of my life I have hung on to so many things that I told myself were truths and yet they were big fat lies.  For instance, I have told myself, "I don't deserve abundance" or "I am not good enough for abundance".  It isn't easy to let go of these long held things that we tell to our self.    The program is helping me identify those blocks and then with Christie Marie Sheldon's system, it is helping me let go of them.

#2 - Helping Move Past Anger

I am realizing finally just how much anger I have held within my body for so many years.  Yes, the things that happened to me make me angry and it is right to feel all that.  However, the anger is eating me alive and preventing me from being all I can be and experiencing all that I can be.  The more I move through the anger and "Delete, Uncreate and Destory" all that is standing in my way of discovering myself, the more I am discovering it.

#3 - Blessings And Joy Everywhere

As I let go and I reprogram my mind, I'm seeing that everything around me is such joy and possibility.  I'm seeing what can be, not what is lacking.  I am seeing that the more I keep my heart and mind focused on joy and possibility, the more I am attracting a different set of events into my life.  Of course, I don't advocate acting a different way than you see things, but through the Unlimited Abundance Program, I am learning to sync up what I see with what I feel and it is more obvious how many blessings are in my life.

#4 - Taking Action

I can sit there all day long and do nothing, but still expect the world to unfold before me.  News flash - this doesn't get you very far.  It is what too many people do and I was one of those.  Christie Marie Sheldon in the Unlimited Abundance program talks about how we have to take massive action.  It is not enough to just set your intentions or make the statements.  You have to do something.  You have to take the steps.  I've seen this firsthand since I quit my job in August, when I took the leap of faith into massive action and it brought me to where I am now.  The more I take action, the more I begin to see doors open.  Doors have opened that I could not have imagined a few months ago.

#5 - Inspirational Stories

One of the things I've enjoyed about the Unlimited Abundance Live program is all the inspiring stories.  Sometimes it is easy to think that life won't change and you're stuck in this life you can't escape.  Seeing and reading the stories of what is happening for others propels me to moments that I too can do this.  It keeps me going.  It gives me courage and hope that where I am at right now, is not forced upon me.  It is my choice and I can make different choices for the days ahead.

Conclusion

There are so many other ways that this Unlimited Abundance Program is helping me and I've tried to detail my journey into the Unlimited Abundance Live program as I go.  If you check out My Abundance Journey, you will see how far I have come.  You will see my progress as I continue to move forward.

I know many people have asked me, "Should I buy the Unlimited Abundance Program?"  I can't make that call for  you, but I know it has greatly helped me.  I see it helping many others.  You need to make the decision for yourself, but if you need proof of what it does, study what I have written.

At first, I thought I was a little off my rocker for spending the money that I did on the Unlimited Abundance Live program, but let me tell you - I'M SO GLAD I DID!  It is really helping me especially since I quit my job.  It is keeping me focused and moving forward into the world I am now creating for myself.  As I look back at when I signed up for it, I'm happy that I did not let the price of it stop me.  I would have missed out on so much healing and growth for my life.

I started out with the Home Study Course and now I am currently enrolled in the Unlimited Abundance Live training group.  The LIVE experience only happens every now and then, but let me tell you it is awesome!

Further Reading

1)  My Abundance Journey  (on Somatosync.com)
2)  Blog Post on August 3, 2015 - Unlimited Abundance Live Event
3)  Does Christie Marie Sheldon Unlimited Abundance Program Work  (Mar 2, 2012)

Listen To The Free Webinar

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Blog Post And Images (c) 12/5/15 by Don Shetterly

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In The Arms Of Love

In The Arms Of Love

(c) 2016 Don Shetterly

In the arms of love, I feel safe.

In the arms of love, I feel appreciated.

For the arms of love are ever expanding.

In the arms of love, I feel wanted.

In the arms of love, I feel desired.

For the arms of love do welcome openly.

In the arms of love, I feel heard.

In the arms of love, I feel honored.

For the arms of love are ever listening.

In the arms of love, I'm special.

In the arms of love, you're special

For the arms of love, we are the one.

In the arms of love, I rejoice.

In the arms of love, I smile.

For the arms of love, we are beautiful.

A poem written for Valentines Day by Don Shetterly.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/27/16 by Don Shetterly

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On Valentines Day

 

On Valentines Day,,,,

 

How can you love yourself

without

judgements

and

strings

attached?

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2/2/16 by Don Shetterly

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Truth We Believe In

Far too many times, we come across all that makes up our truth we believe in.  Whether it is a product, cure, device, or belief system, we latch on and embrace things which may or may not add up.  Often times, it is just nearly impossible to tell on what is truth.

Truth is repeatable.  If it can't be repeatable, then something is not clearly understood or defined.  It is okay if we can't fully define truth at this point.  The search for truth is the promising part of all we know.

Often the fast talkers are the ones that convince us to spend many of our hard earned dollars on products that will solve all our problems.  They are very good at doing this, but in the end their words may be nothing more than a foundation built on quick sand.

I cannot tell you what truth is or what product, cure, device, or belief system is absolutely correct.  This is for each one of us to figure out.  Yes, some try to do this, but if you gulp down their kool-aid, you may wake up one day to realize you're drinking flavored sugar water.

In order to help bring this out for discussion, I wrote an article on Somatosync.com to help give some guidance for determining what is truth and what may not be 100% truth.

Go and check out the Somatosync site for the 15 Ways To Not Get Taken and see if you have any that you can add to this.  It is not that I have all the answers.

I'm just like everyone else, in that I'm trying to sort through everything that gets blasted into our conscious thought every day. The truth we believe in varies, but lets not allow it to become the only fact we understand.  Instead, let us use it to discover deeper truth for our life and humanity.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/26/16 by Don Shetterly

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Video On Mind And Body Syncing

This YouTube video is about Don Shetterly giving a recent seminar for Somatosync.  The title of this seminar is Syncing The Mind And Body.  It is about 32 minutes long.

The video is about finding ways to get the mind and body back in balance as we deal with stress.  This was given before the holidays and it touches on how the holiday stress affects all of us.  Regardless, stress is a silent stalker that can really keep us from syncing the mind and body.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 11/14/15 by Don Shetterly

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Crazy Is As Crazy Does

It seems like today, there are no sane people left in this world.  If there is, they are hiding.  The screaming and ranting and raving going on is really getting sickening.  Everything seems to be a victim moment or a point where everyone is afraid someone is coming after them.

I don't know these days, because I don't see the same thing as most people.  No, I don't watch the news constantly letting them scare the bejeebers out of me.  I don't gulp the koolaid of religion that tells me what I should believe and how I should believe it.  I really just try to see things in a more balanced way.

Of course though, the more crazy people get, the more crazy each person has to get.  No, I'm not referring to the "crazy people" out there.  I'm referring to each and every person that think there are little green martians hiding behind every tree, car, building and doorway.

Its sad really because by being crazy, everyone has to one up that.  If you do something that gets people's attention, then someone else says, I have to do more.  I have to be crazier.  Don't believe me?  Take a look at the Facebook news feed.  Take a look at the Twitter news feed.

If you still don't believe me, stand back a minute and look at how much of the news is dominated by the discussion of politics and who is right or wrong.  If you want to see crazy, stand back and drop your political beliefs for one minute so you can be objective.  You will see crazy!

At some point this world is going to spin out of control.  Hopefully we catch ourselves before it is too late.  At this point though, I'm not so confident we can.

After all, no one listens to one another.  Everyone has dug their own foxhole (thanks Frank Burns).  It is just one crazy act and statement and person and politician after another with no hopes of letting up!

However, I still hope that maybe crazy is as crazy does, won't be the norm one of these days.  Maybe we all will wake up and come to our senses?  I can dream can't I?

What if instead, we all sat down with someone else that we would otherwise oppose and chat for five or ten minutes.  Have the conversation be about anything but politics, guns, religion or our woes.

Maybe we could just have a chat with what we find good about our life and the world.  I know, it sounds like a crazy idea, but maybe this crazy idea could become the norm.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/18/16 by Don Shetterly

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Demise Of Facebook

At one time, I had some great friends on a platform called Xanga.  It was a great place to go and not feel pressured or inundated with things you didn't care to see or read.  Then Facebook showed up and everyone went there.  At first it was nice, but then it happened.  The demise of Facebook.

Facebook became this place where you saw everything people liked and loved and shared.  It replaced the email chain letters of stuff that could almost sound true, but no one checked out. It became the place where every "pretty" saying and every "pretty" picture was shared and re-shared and then shared again.

Facebook became the go to place for politics.  It was where all your friends needed to see every article and post and promote all things political.  The politicians loved it.  Most people hated it.  After all, the propagation of hatred from one person to another is more than one can often stomach in a day.

Then there was the messenger app that Facebook thought was so important.  In fact, they want to replace the telephone with it.  Sure, I want to stare at my phone all day waiting for a message to pop up and then in the most inefficient form of communication, type a reply with my thumbs!  Sure!  Sign me up!

Organizations pushing their agenda started using Facebook.  They forwarded on every picture known to man of something being abused or wronged.  They forwarded on their one and only belief as to what all should concern themselves with 100% of the time.

Petition after petition, recall after recall and cause after cause, Facebook forced people to be overwhelmed by all of it.  One could spend 24 hours a day with all of these "good" and "righteous" and "things you should do" but have very little to show for it at the end of the day.

Granted, there are good things about Facebook but all too often those good things turn into a saturation of an annoyance.  If something could be in moderation, it would be good.  If something didn't have to get propagated like there was no tomorrow coming, it would be lovely.

Of course, Facebook knew that if they showed you everything your friends liked and shared and subscribed to, that somehow this would be a good thing.  Unfortunately, it over-saturates what you see in a day that you barely want to read anything.  It is good for the bottom line wealth of what the Facebook founders make and so it isn't going to change anytime soon.

The stuff that I would love to see like things going on in a friend's life are hidden by their constant propagation of forwarded memes, pictures, sayings, political blips and ads.  How on earth can anyone possibly read most of that, let alone show a level of care.  If it was a way to keep in touch with friends about what is going on in their life, it would be great.  It is not.

So, for that reason, like others, I see the demise of Facebook at full steam.  I see little benefit to it and will miss my friends, because all too many of them have forgotten how to call or email.  I'm tired of wasting far too much of my day on this platform for little in return.  I don't wish to be a mind-numbed robot.  I'll leave that up to others to  be part of.

Facebook, if I'm making you sad, please just go post a happy thought, okay?

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/17/16 by Don Shetterly

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Rules To Heal

This is a pet peeve of mine.  There are far too many individuals and organizations out there that have far too many rules to heal.  They come up with certifications and then rules about those certifications.  After that, they layer and layer more rules and procedures.

Unfortunately the healing part of their work gets buried in mounds of politics and rules and ways to make money.  It gets shut outside the door with the originators being all high and mighty that they have all the answers.

At one time, I was going through a certification program which was quite expensive and very time consuming.  I like the basics of the work, but the politics and personal mindsets that you had to endure was astounding.  You had to do things the way they said or you were not "good enough".  They didn't have to walk the talk, but you sure did as you were going through the certification process.

I just saw another case where the individual seems to be far more interested in how much money he will get from someone taking the class again, then he is with how much people might be helped and healed.  Granted the individual has some great information on food and healing, but when you think that your schedule for certification is what matters, you've lost site of the higher truth.

Healing doesn't need rules and politics.  Healing doesn't need rules that are dictated to you by other humans with egos the size of the solar system.  Healing is more than rules that are nothing other than your beliefs.

Healing is something the entire planet needs.  We should be working together and advancing this, rather than sitting back and counting the dollar bills in our pockets.  Healing is more than control.  It is more than one person's timetable and view of what it should be.

I know, I'm preaching to the choir on this one, but it really is my pet peeve.  I see people suffering and to think that legally you cannot help them because you're not certified is beyond loony to me!  I know that's harsh, but it is reality and the cold hard truth.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/15/16 by Don Shetterly

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Traumatized by Cold Hands

I'm once again reminded of one of the reasons I no longer live in the northern half of the country.  It is too cold.  Well, it isn't so much the cold because I can take a little of it.  It is the cold hands.

Every since I can remember, my hands got cold.  It didn't matter if I had layers of clothes on and warm gloves, my hands were cold.  It didn't matter if I had the warmest mittens on, they got cold.  It could be 70 degrees in a room and my hands would be cold.

As far back as I can remember, I would get kicked, hit, and ridiculed, because my hands would get cold.  I couldn't help it.  They just did. 

Time and time again, I was told to shut up and grow up.  I was told not to cry.  Big boys don't cry is what I was told. I was so traumatized by it, that it still haunts me today. 

You would have thought allowing me to have 5 minutes to go inside and warm up would not have been asking for too much.  Apparently, it was.

Imagine your hands hurting from being cold or being so stiff they didn't want to move.  Imagine someone telling you that you were a cry baby or just complaining and whining.  Imagine being threatened with physical punishment and seeing that threat followed through.

Being traumatized by cold hands is not fun.  I do not enjoy the colder weather at all and for those that do, more power to you.  However, I didn't like to be made fun of and bullied by my father because my hands were naturally cold.

For me, I prefer the warmer weather.  Cold weather isn't my desire anymore and most of the time, it makes me want to hide and withdraw.  Most don't fully understand this, but it can be a very traumatizing moment for me.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/13/16 by Don Shetterly

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Writing Heals Trauma

Writing exercises are one of the ways that I have helped heal trauma that I've been through in my life.  In this blog post on Somatosync.com, I have shared a way that has been taught to me to help deal with stuck energy that is in our body from the trauma, abuse, or painful experiences.

There are undoubtedly many ways to help heal from trauma, but writing has helped me.  It can  be very powerful and effective.  Sometimes all we need is a little nudge to move beyond that which is holding us back.

Blog Post Article:  Writing Moves Stuck Energy Of Trauma

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/12/16 by Don Shetterly

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Supported In Difficult Moments

Even in the midst of trying difficulties, it is sometimes helpful to remember the simplest things.  Sitting out in the park on this cool day, I observed the birds playing near the water.  They were gliding across the water with ever so gentle and graceful movement.

As they were gliding across the water, their wings were outstretched and they hovered just a few inches above the little pond.  It was almost like the air was carrying them over the water.  It was like the air and the water were giving them what they needed.  They just needed to glide.

Today reminded me that even in those difficult moments, sometimes all we need to do is glide.  Sometimes we just need to be in that moment, letting the air and water and all sustenance around us carry us through.  Maybe we do not need to do anything else, other than feel supported.

Feeling supported in difficult moments is by far one of the best things that we can experience.  To have no support, leaves us helpless and alone.  To have support in difficult moments gives us strength to make it another day.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/12/16 by Don Shetterly

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Source Of Worry and Contentment

Being content is essential for finding your way forward in life.  When you worry, you disconnect yourself from the source.  Worry takes you out of the flow.  It lowers your energetic vibration and brings you down into the vibration level of lack and not having enough.

Do not only focus on worry in your life.  While it is important not to worry, you must heal yourself from the core.  Uncovering the source of worry will then allow you through consciousness to choose a different course of action in your life.  Going to the root of the issue, allows you to remove the power source.  It is when you do this, that your energetic vibration will increase.

Being content in life is a surrender into who you are as an individual.  It is allowing yourself to touch your own soul, rather than engaging your ego.  Your ego loves worry and misery, but your soul loves contentment and peace.  Your mind only engages that which you feed it.

It is all up to you to choose what you will do or the changes you will make in your life.  It becomes a journey within, discovering all of who you are, not what you have been in the past.  Being content gives you the option of seeing possibility in life and empowering greatness.

Allow possibility to build and flow from within your core existence.  As you connect within, so too will you find an unstoppable power for your life.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/19/13 by Don Shetterly

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Reflect To Find Truth

Reflect back upon your life.  If you will take note of where you were a year ago and where you are now, they are two different places.  You have traveled so far out of the depths of where you had fallen in life.  It is important to look back and see just how far you have come.

By looking back you will see that when you reached the depths of a low point in your life, you were able to find your path forward.  While it was no fun at the moment, you shed your previous ways and thoughts to find yourself.  You allowed yourself time to grow and travel through those difficult moments.

Have continued faith in yourself.  Believe in yourself.  Follow the desires of your heart as you have been doing.  For when you do this, your path will be illuminated and your eyes will open to a new level of consciousness.

We all chart the course of our day.  We all make ourselves sick with worry or triumphant with joy.  Sometimes even though we fail to see this, it does not mean it is any less true in our life.  Let us embrace the true desires of our heart because the more we do this, the more life will unfold in the way it needs to at any given moment.  It is truly up to each one of us.

Taking time to reflect back upon our life helps us find that moment of truth.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/10/12 by Don Shetterly

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Moments Of My Day

Sometimes the days of my life seem to flash by quickly.  It is almost like a high speed film.  At times, I don't know which end is going which way.  It just feels to me like there is no tomorrow.

Sometimes in life, it is hard to make sense of everything.  There are moments that are confusing.  There are moments that appear very clear, and then fade away.  At times, I get the feeling that I just can't see everything, but yet I am living each moment as if I am.

Some days I long for answers, but it seems life is so busy, there is no time to hear them.  I wonder and question just how I reconcile time and purpose together.  They almost seem like strange bedfellows.  Yet, it feels like the pieces of a puzzle that should go together.

Stopping to smell the roses of life is essential.  Even though I thought I did this, I may be skipping this moment all too often in my life.  Even a life that doesn't seem to flow well, still needs time to step away and rest.  Life still needs to recharge and unhitch from the stresses of life.

Starting my morning in daily meditation helps.  Yet, I sometimes think that what I write makes no difference.  It is like it is meaningless to me.

Even though it may not be filled with all the answers I need at that moment, a morning meditation time is my way of stopping and allowing myself to connect with all that I need.  It is the moment where I allow everything into my life without prejudice, fear, or the business of my day and with an open heart.  It marks the beginning of focusing my moments, rather then allowing them to just pass me by.

I'm grateful that I stop in this moment of the day.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/14/13 by Don Shetterly

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I Live My Life

Some of the things I see people do on social media makes me wonder in amazement.  I see posts where people feel that if they say "amen" or they like and share some religious post that this is what God wants and all will be good.

I see people sharing and posting stuff (or in some ways strutting their stuff) on social media as if to show just how great they are.  Maybe that is not their intent, but it sure comes across that way.  It feels fake.  It feels icky.

We show others who we are by not only our words, but by our actions.  A person that proclaims how much they love others, may be one that doesn't truly show that through their life and actions.  A person that proclaims how forgiving they are, may be one that harbors the most resentment and forgiveness of anyone out there.

We tend to portray to the world what we want the world to see, not necessarily what is in our hearts.  Sure, we can be convincing and we can shame others through our words that we are right, but that doesn't make it necessarily true.

All you have to do is watch what people share in a day on Facebook.  Are they balanced?  Are they one-sided?  Do they just do the same thing over and over, or is there depth to what they propagate and forward on.  How much do they interact with others in a personal way rather than just forwarding on every meme that shows up?

When it comes to religious stuff, I doubt very much that God is sitting up in the cloud recording who shared or liked a post or wrote AMEN.  I could really be wrong, but I don't recall reading in the Bible that thou must share and like and type amen.  I don't really think that matters too much in the scheme of things because it would seem that you would want to really make a difference.  It would seem that it would need to be more action oriented then grandstanding.

For me, I write a tremendous amount about my life.  I don't always share every side of detail of my life, but I share a great deal of it.  I try to open my life up to help others learn, rather than hide in silence.  I try to show a balance in a day.  Although I most likely fail at this just like everyone else.

I try to live my life with actions and what I do, not just with getting up on a pedestal and proclaiming how good I am, or how much love I have or that I am this or that.  I try to just do what I feel needs to be done and let those actions speak for me.  I try to stay true to my heart and my life, not a factitious facade.

There are far too many getting up and shouting every day and missing the mark.  There are far too many trying to portray one life to the world, but yet living a completely different life in private.  Isn't it time, we start being honest with ourselves, rather than being an advertisement for life?

In other words, we need to walk the talk!

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Blog Post And Images (c) 1/8/16 by Don Shetterly

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