The Call to Right Relationship (Pun Intended)

Happy Summer Solstice, IC Peeps! Hopefully you took advantage of every summery minute of the longest day of the year yesterday. I did, I went fishin'! Well, I was actually supporting from the shore while my beloved did a bit of catching and releasing.

While out there on the river banks, I got to thinking of relationships. Relationship seems to be the number one North Star a client brings into session: how to acquire the perfect one, how to get rid of a pesky one, how to be a better companion, spouse, parent, etc. Interestingly, as I began pondering this North Star, I had two wise counsels pop up, one was a story in the newspaper about five-time Olympic medalist, Bode Miller. The article sums up Bode's no-holds-barred skiing style applied to fatherhood and his desire to learn how to be the best parent possible. He's ga-ga over his little girl, Dacey. She's his North Star, beyond skiing, beyond metals, beyond anything. I believe Bode understands one of life's most important keys: prioritizing. In the age of twitter, facebook and over 40 texts a day on average (100+ for teens), a person is, um, let's say a bit distracted. This brings us to wise counsel number two...a graduation ceremony I just returned from, where retired Senator, Dean Florez, gave an address entitled, "Power Down and Power Up," expounding on the rapid rise in mobile phone use while engaged in face to face time with others. The numbers were astounding. I drove home pondering a second relationship key, building off priority: attentiveness. When I analyzed my own relationships, I recommitted to making my interactions with people my #1 priority and the sole focus of my undivided attention. This already includes volume off and fasting from my cell phone, affectionately named, "Smarty Pants," when I'm with others. I also take once a week, all day Saturday fasts, it's heavenly. So much so, that if I just happen to drop Smarty Pants in the toilet while texting, I might just go ahead and flush her down the drain! 

But, back to the call to right relationship (pun intended), my keys are: prioritizing and attentiveness. Let's hear yours. It's been a while since an IC challenge. I want to hear your keys, and in so doing, you'll be entered to win a free, gifted Skype session. Read the details of the IC challenge and let me know your secrets to right relations with loved ones (non-cellular please:).  

Resiliency of the Human Spirit

Sorry for the long silence, I just returned from an ACEP (Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology) conference and am officially back in full swing again. I learned gobs of information from top psychologists in the field of Energy Psychology from most recent research to the latest quantum energy techniques, but you know which talk had the greatest impact on me? Project Light: Rwanda. A woman by the name of Lori Leyden has taken meridian tapping into the trenches and is working with genocide survivors in Rwanda with incredible success. She shared the transformations she's witnessed, and we skyped with a young Rwandan Project Light ambassador who shared his experience with regaining hope and happiness and becoming a leader for resolution in his country. The most powerful part of the talk was when Lori described first arriving at the orphanage and upon hearing the young people's stories, realizing her own resources were terribly limited and an infusion of grace was needed. She introduced an acronym that was part of a formula that served her and the genocide survivors well: GLJW

Gratitude
Love
Joy
Wonder

What are you grateful for? We were asked this question and given 1 minute to generate a list. "How many of you have 36 items listed?" Lori asked. No one in our group of about fifty people raised their hands, the closest was 34. "The reason I chose this number," Lori explained, "Is because that's how many items one genocide survivor listed the first time I did this exercise."

What makes you feel loved? Or, what is it you love? Think on these things every single day and generate the feeling inside. What brings you joy? Do these things, acknowledge them and increase their existence. What are you in wonder about? Really contemplate this question, for me it brought awareness of everyday miracles I take for granted. What am I in wonder about? The resiliency of the human spirit. Most of us, perhaps due to good fortune, are barely scratching the surface of our capabilities. I give a big thank you to Lori Leyden, Project Light: Rwanda, the Project Light Ambassadors and all the good people that gently remind us of our incredible human potential.

Stomach Constellation

Active Time:  7-9am
Element: earth
Fundamental Principle: yang
Season: late summer

Stomach meridian is the last of the meridian series articles, with each of the twelve accessible through the "Meridian Pathways" link at the top of the blog. Stomach (ST) meridian is responsible for digestion and absorption. When ST meridian is balanced, trust in provision is the end result; when it's upset, excessive worry, gloom and fear may become obsessive in addition to antisocial tendencies. The physical disturbance of Stomach meridian may show up as gastric disturbances, toothaches, edema or sore throats.

The active time of ST meridian is between 7-9am. It's a yang meridian associated with the earth element. My favorite way to access ST meridian is by tapping ST-2 directly below the eye on the bony orbit. Stomach meridian is a long sucker, so if you wish to trace it in more detail, check out his You Tube video at time 7:58. Watching this video the entire way through is a great way to wrap up tracing the 12 major meridians. I hope you've enjoyed the meridian articles, and if you'd like a special meridian algorithm (recipe) constructed for your particular needs, please consider contacting me for a consultation.  

Large Intestine Constellation

Active Time:  5-7 am

Element: metal

Fundamental Principle: yang

Season: late summer

Our guts are a freak of nature! The small intestine is about 20 feet and large intestine is about 5 feet—“large” referring to width versus length. So, the Braveheart movie did not over exaggerate Mel Gibson's innards! As far as meridians go, the Large Intestine (LI) meridian is actually short by comparison to the other energy channels. It begins at the inside nail bed of each index finger (closest to thumb) and travels directly up the arm to the hinge of the elbow, over the bicep to reach the outside of the shoulder. Here it diverges into two branches, one that goes into the lungs, diaphragm and large intestine, and the other continuing up the neck, across the upper lip to end at the flare on the opposite side of the nose. LI rules elimination, deciding what is needed for nutrition and letting the rest go. Emotional indicators of a LI out of balance might include controlling qualities or difficulty letting go of something that no longer serves a purpose, even to the extreme of retaining what is known to be toxic. In its balanced state, LI rises to the occasion in challenging situations and helps us notice, digest and process the take-away lessons.  Physical disharmony is indicated by illnesses of the head, face and throat area, often showing up as toothaches, runny noses, yellow eyes, excessive thirst and sore throats. Pain in the shoulders, arms and index fingers as well as intestinal problems can be indicators of LI out of balance.

Large Intestine is a yang meridian, most active during the hours of 5-7am. It’s associated with the element of metal. When I include LI meridian in the tapping sequence, I like to access it at LI-1 or the inside nail bed of the index finger. It can also be easily found at the flare of the nose, or LI-20. These beginning and end points are practical points for targeting a sore throat, runny nose, or flu like symptoms like diarrhea or intestinal upset. Fall is the season tied to the element of metal, and it’s this time of year when the associated meridians are most vulnerable. It makes sense that autumn is often when cold and flu season kicks off.  May your next flu season be avoided with a preventative tapping boost to your Large Intestine meridian!

Lung Constellation

Lung Meridan
Anterior (Front)

Active Time:  3-5am

Element: metal

Fundamental Principle: yin

Season: autumn

Next up is Lung meridian. Lung meridian is extremely easy to access at the endpoint located at the base of the inside thumbnail (LU-11). In fact, you can tap or pressure this point as you’re reading this article to give your breathing a quick boost. The primary functions of Lung (LU) meridian is regulating and moving breath throughout the entire body. We can find ourselves unintentionally holding our breaths for a number of reasons, the causes I primarily see are due to pain, stress or trauma. A good way to work with LU meridian is to take a full breath and then rate it using a 0-10 scale, 0 being shallow to flat-lining (yikes) and 10 being full and uncompromised. From here, take full and easy breaths while tapping or pressuring the LU-11 point. If your breath catches, that’s OK, just keep breathing and tapping. After about six breaths, reassess the number. If it hasn’t improved significantly, proceed through the entire basic recipe of the meridian sequence or consider doing the Collarbone Breathing Technique (stay tuned for a future article on this treatment or contact me to learn more). Often when I’m working on a client, full breathing is the first thing I notice naturally return to the body. I like to call breath, “nature’s self-correcting mechanism.” Symptoms of imbalanced LU meridian can present as distension or a full sensation in the chest, asthma, allergies, coughing, restlessness, skin issues and fatigue. From an emotional perspective, LU upset can often show up as excessive grieving or extreme rigidity. When LU meridian is balanced a person is organized yet flexible, with heart-felt sensitivity toward others.

LU is a yin meridian associated with the element of metal and is most active during the hours of 3-5am. Tracing LU meridian is very easy and you can follow the diagram above, starting at the front of the shoulder and tracing down the medial side of the arm and off the outer thumb (LU-11).

Well, that’s it for today, IC peeps. Are you still tapping LU-11? How’s your breathing? May it flow with ease today J. 

Liver Constellation

Active Time:  1-3am

Element: wood

Fundamental Principle: yin

Season: spring

The liver is the largest organ in the body and has many functions. The major role of liver is to remove toxins and assure the flow of blood throughout the body. It also controls immune response as well as the sinews and is associated with the eyes. Where Gallbladder meridian is associated with looking outward, Liver Meridian is associated with looking inward. Deficiencies in LR meridian flow can lead to moodiness, depression and guilt, whereas an excess of liver energy can lead to excessive drama and anger, especially against oneself. Physical Liver (LR) meridian issues often appear as problems in the liver and genital systems. Symptoms may include dizziness, high blood pressure, hernias, distended lower abdomens in woman, nausea, allergies, incontinence and eye problems. This is also an effective meridian to treat if you have poor blood circulation, exacerbated by damp conditions.

Liver is a yin meridian, most active between the hours of 1-3am. It’s associated with the wood element. To trace the LR meridian start at the inside of your big toes and travel straight up the insides of the legs, flaring out at the hips, then back underneath the ribcage in line with the breasts.  In the tapping algorithms, I like to access the ends of this meridian at LR-14 which are directly below the nipples, typically where a women’s bra line might be (men, use your imagination:).  Often this point is avoided by practitioners of meridian tapping because of the sensitive location (close to the breasts), however, it’s a vital point, especially tied to women issues, and I include it in the basic recipe of tapping that I use with clients.  

Beware Lycanthropes--Fullest Moon in 15 Years!

I just got a call from a dear friend informing me the moon is 14% bigger and 30% brighter tonight! It hasn't been so full since 1997 and won't happen again until 2016. The best viewing is supposedly at 8:35pm PST as it's rising for the night. Waves will be more intense as will dreams. Before fading off to the otherworld, get out there and enjoy the illumination. Here's a poem to get your moon juices flowing....

Silent Remedy

©Karla Johnston, InnerConstellation.com

In moon’s fullness,
Silhouette wades along water’s edge,

Fills vial with water,
Adds powder to liquid.

Swirl, swirl, swirl.

Night reflections mingle inside, 

Illuminating a wizened face.

Threads of melody,

Escape toothless smile

Voice high, then low.

Ancient water song accompanies waves,
Lapping shore.