Tag: Gratitude

A Journey with Sound: Andrea’s Story

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Tuning fork sound healing treatment with Andrea

How I discovered Sound Therapy

I’ve known Kalie for a number of years, and she is rather well versed on my chronic health conditions, which over the last four years have reached an entire new level in both impact on my life and the level of pain associated with them.

I suffer with deep infiltrating endometriosis, for which I have had eight surgeries. This disease unfortunately, is incurable. Also, I suffer with degeneration of the lower discs in my spin, which have prolapsed and degenerated past the point of reversal. Both have chronic pain associated with them. In the last four years, I have had to change my career and my entire approach to my life. Part of this approach is looking into alternative therapies to aid in my rehabilitation; to both my physical and emotional wellbeing.

Kalie approached me when she was beginning her training for sound healing, as she thought that I could really feel the benefits of it. I was indeed very eager to try something away from medication. Previously I have had reiki sessions with Kalie, which was a very profound experience. I was able to reach an entire different state of meditation and felt a great sense of calm. Visually it was an amazing experience, seeing different shapes and images of energy. All realigning in my body. Because of the success I had had with Kalie in the past, it was an easy decision to make to embark on Sound Healing.

I have also had many sessions of acupuncture, to aid in the pain reduction of my back. The effects of this however, had not been long lasting and not always successful. So I wanted something where the effects were greater and longer lasting.

Going into my first session, we decided on key areas to focus on which was threefold; pain reduction (mainly in my abdomen and back), improvement in my sleep (which was very sporadic) and to help clear my mind from my stresses and worries. Having these goals allowed us to tailor the treatment to what I was personally looking for.

My first session

I went into the first session with a complete open mind, open to all possibilities, I didn’t know what to expect at all. From the very first strike of the Tingsha (two small cymbals joined together), I was able to feel the vibrations and allowed them to flow through my body. I had a great sense of the sound vibrations travelling through parts of my body seamlessly. However, at points the flow was disrupted by the “blockages” in certain places. The first being my abdomen. I felt a distinctive push as the vibrations had to work to clear the blockage. This flow happened with the push three times, by the fourth, the flow was seamless. I knew then that this had the potential to work wonders!

I chose the tuning forks for my first session. I loved that I was completely immersed in the sound as they are held to your ears. I was able to go to such a deep level of meditation that I had never experienced before. It was incredibly intense. I was able to see the energy in this first session as a clear mist, entering my body and filling me with energy.

As the session wore on, I had a feeling of an internal set of eyelids closing. This was a great significance that showed that I had reached a much deeper sense of meditation and clearness of mind.

Every sound healing session left me feeling more at ease with myself. Much more aligned and in tune with myself. And with this came a greater sense of self-acceptance of who I am. This was a great turning point for me, being one who has always tried to change who she was for others. This was a very new feeling indeed.

As the sessions continued, and my mind was becoming clearer, this allowed for other things to enter. I used to be a writer and spend time being creative. However, with the concerns about ill health and other worries, this left little space or indeed time to focus on this. Since the beginning of the sessions I have been able to spend more time on me. Writing. I bought a new journal to symbolise the beginning of the new journey of me. And I have been writing in it ever since. It has been most refreshing.

My favourite instruments/sessions

I have a kindred sense towards the tuning forks as they were the first instruments that I tried and the one that showed me the way. I felt drawn to them in my first session, and have used them again since, each experience is uniquely different, which brings different results. But it is one I am always drawn to.

The drum, used on session three; was a very powerful instrument. The vibrations are stronger, and impact in a more powerful way. I would not choose this for the first session you experience, I think it is something to work up to, however, the results you get from this can be very strong indeed. Visually, this was a cleansing sessions. Seeing the clear blue sky and soaring above the clouds, also in a clear blue lagoon surrounded by beauty.

With the change to the second drum, visually everything became orange, warming and healing. Seeing the energy as a big orange glow, and I was drawing energy from this, rejuvenating myself. With the drums I experienced flashes of the situations during the week which had caused me stress and I could see them all melt away. This was symbolic of my mind clearing the away too. By session three, I was going under much quicker and reaching a stage of inner calm much easier than the previous two. This allowed for the healing to happen over a longer period of time.

What I have achieved through Sound Healing

My progress has been vast, in numerous areas. The biggest progress I have made has been with the reduction of my medication. I take numerous pills each day to manage my health conditions and I desperately wanted to reduce them down. As the sessions were making me more relaxed and my pain was lessened, I wanted to try to see if I could reduce anything. After the first session I reduced my OxyContin, by 10mg twice a day, then the third week, I dropped it by another 10mg. By the end of the sessions I had dropped my OxyContin down by a total of 60mg in one day. Which is a huge reduction of such medication. And I have been able to keep it that way ever since.

The effects of these sessions are long lasting and life changing. My sleep by the end of the treatment was improved. I had been able to get myself into a routine that was working, and since then I have been able to improve on this further. I am now happily sleeping for eight hours each night. I haven’t been able to do this since I was a child, it’s fantastic! The extra sleep itself is improving my motivation, my energy and focus and is improving my health.

Recommending Sound Therapy

This treatment is so versatile and able to help in vast areas of your life. There were weeks when I just needed to relax and recharge and I was able to obtain that, other weeks we would focus on certain ailments to aid healing in those areas. So it has shown me how this kind of treatment can be used for a general relaxation, or more specific use. It has been one of the best things I’ve done in my life, for my physical and emotional wellbeing. I was looking for something with longer lasting effects, and this is definitely it. As each session progresses the effects of it, last longer and longer.

Without this treatment I could not have reached the level of self-acceptance that I now have and I certainly would not have being in a place where my pain had been lessened enough to reduce my medication.

This truly has been a life changing process and I cannot express enough just how thankful for it I am.   Andrea

 

 

Let’s talk about depression

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girl-depression-sized

They call it the silent killer. They say it’s a process you must go through to come out of the other side. What puzzles me is that if so many of us are going through it, why is no one talking about it? I need to talk about it.

I’ve just emerged from the darkness, and hope never to return, but how can we control something that absolutely consumes us?

I of all people have the recipe for happiness, I teach people the tools, I understand how to live in the moment, how to just be. But sometimes life takes over, and we lose ourselves temporarily to a human experience, one that teaches us so much if we are prepared to take on board its lesson.

I have suffered with bouts of depression over the last few years, particularly in the last nine months, mainly due to health issues, periods of unemployment and other such life events. Periodically I lose my trust in the universe, but just as quickly it returns. I know that the good times are coming, I just need to be patient and wait. The universe loves making us wait.

Having discovered a spiritual pathway so early in life, I didn’t think it possible to ever feel so absent again. Once I learned the truth I knew that happiness existed in every moment, the secret was gratitude.

There was a time when I had much ‘less’ materially, in the way of: home, relationships, income, belongings. I distinctly remember having cold showers for at least two weeks, but giving thanks every morning just for clean water and the roof over my head, despite very difficult and basic living circumstances at the time.

What happened to that person? She was so connected, she worked with the universe, free from fear. She just was. Perhaps life got in the way.

I don’t even recognise the person I’ve been for the last couple of weeks. The only way to describe it, is like someone flipping a switch out of nowhere and turning off the power without notifying you. Suddenly feeling dead inside, you lose all passion, you are completely numb, even to the things that make you smile, regardless.

I’ve watched others go through it. I’ve stood by helplessly, relentlessly offering to help, why couldn’t they hear me? Now I understand. They were also numb – it was a process they needed to go through. At least they knew I was there, when they were ready to come back. Thankfully one of those people recently came back, just at my time of need.

The problem is, when we’re in the midst of darkness, we feel so alone, with no one to talk to. I’m learning that keeping things inside does you no good, if we do not work on our own self-healing it will only come back to haunt us. I have now acknowledged that I am so good at helping others, but not so good at helping myself – and that has to change.

I’ve learned that when you reach out you discover that we are more alike than we realise, and that friends do exist even if you haven’t spoken in some time. It’s important to be there for each other, we must be there for each other. Friendship is vital, like air and water, we must fight for it – even when we’ve lost our way, even when life becomes too ‘busy’.

We must also remember to take time for ourselves, time alone and time for silence. It’s such an important part of our personal development and the healing process. When you live with other people, particularly a long-term partner, it’s so easy to lose yourself, no matter how much you love that person.

I realise that I lost myself some time ago, I’m sure most people have experienced this. Rebuilding yourself is not an easy task, piece by piece, but the first stage is awareness, once we are aware we can start to make the necessary changes. I’m on a new journey of self-discovery now, pushing myself to try things that scare me. I don’t want to be scared anymore, I want to feel alive.

As I begin to remind myself of the way I used to be (before life took over), I reach for my gratitude list and I start writing a bucket list.

It’s time to take control of the fear and the sadness, the healing will come in time. Bear with it. Try to look at the positives rather than absorbing the negatives. There will always be positives. If you can’t find any, start with your loved ones, your animals, the roof over your head, food on the table. If you’re not happy in your job, change it. If you want to move abroad do it. If you don’t try you’ll never know, and wouldn’t you rather say you tried than spend a lifetime wondering?

Go for a walk in the park, watch a nice film, spend time with children or animals. Do something that makes you smile, push yourself to take that first step, and the next step won’t be so painful.

But never regret the darkness, it is our greatest teacher.

“There’s absolutely nothing wrong with hitting rock bottom, it’s a magical place to be. A place where we begin to connect with our true self, a place where we step outside of the ego, where we realise what we do and don’t want from life, the source of much creativity. A place where we align ourselves with purpose and gratitude. Through darkness comes light.” KJ x May 2016

A natural high

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Beautiful-clouds

When you think of getting high you tend to imagine a group of curious teenagers smoking joints in the park. I prefer the more natural approach.

At the risk of sounding like a complete fruit loop, which of course I can be at times, there is a way to achieve the same kind of high, all from connecting with the universe and understanding your true purpose.

The earth is currently going through a transitional period therefore we are all experiencing vast changes around us, some positive and some negative. Many people have been going through a hard time recently, including myself, but trust me everything will get better, I promise.

I’m not going to lie and pretend that I’m happy go lucky every minute of every day, but I do my best to stay positive as much as possible and keep spreading those waves of sunshine. After all, it feels so much better to be positive than negative, doesn’t it?

So what is a natural high? It’s the most amazing feeling you’ve ever encountered. It comes from a feeling of complete acceptance and gratitude, trusting and knowing that everything is just how it is meant to be, in this moment.

So how does one achieve this state of ecstasy? Excuse the pun. For me this feeling is usually triggered when I connect to spirit. Giving a message from a loved one that has passed truly is one of the most satisfying feelings you can experience, and I am blessed to be able to do so. I often attend my psychic development group feeling completely exhausted after a long day at work, not to mention the hour and a half journey home. But the minute someone says ‘yes, I can take that, I understood everything you just said’ I feel absolutely invigorated, on top of the world in fact.

So how do we regular folk achieve this natural high? I understand that the stresses of life make it hard to be positive and happy all the time, and if you’re still reading this then well done, you might just be ready to open your mind.

It all comes down to finding that inner peace and connecting with your higher self. Believe it or not, that nagging voice inside your head is not actually you. You are the silence behind the voice.

There are plenty of ways you can begin to enjoy pure happiness: I’ve outlined a few of these below to get you going.

Meditation – Forget all preconceived ideas you have of cross-legged hippies, mediation can be done however you feel comfortable. Sit up, lie down, meditate alone or in a group. Meditation is simply about finding that inner stillness. Close your eyes, relax and take slow deep breaths in and out. Be aware of your thoughts and let them go.

Gratitude – This is the very word I have tattooed on my arm. We spend so much time thinking about what we don’t have, try focussing on what you do have. Write a list of things you are grateful for, once you start you’ll be surprised about how much you have to be grateful for. I try to do this as often as possible.

Bond with nature – I’m not suggesting that you go hug a tree (not even I do that), but spending time in the great outdoors can do wonders for your state of mind. Find a quiet spot in the park or take a drive in the countryside, appreciate the beautiful sights that are all around us. And of course, If you do feel the urge to hug a tree, then be my guest.

Many clients that come to me are seeking more than just a reading, they’re looking for happiness. I am very pleased to be able to offer advice about life and to help them find that tiny bit of strength within. It’s very pleasing to see someone leave a reading feeling positive and uplifted during a very difficult period in their life.

If we each aim to inspire just one person, and that person inspires another, imagine the effect we can create.

Do whatever you can to feel connected to the universe, and once you find that natural high, never let it go…