My journey
My Own Healing Journey
When I decided to take charge of my own healing, I had no idea where to start. I discovered writing is very therapeutic. It became my refuge, a place where I could connect with my inner world in an authentic way. Writing became my most trusted way of processing emotions I didn’t even know I harbored inside since childhood. I discovered shame, anger, fear, grief, and eventually, self-compassion.
With mindfulness, I learned to allow my pain to surface, if only for a brief time, then I could easily heal it with a variety of energy psychology techniques, including EFT, Ask and Recieve, HBLU, Emotion Code and Body Code.
My pain was a part of me and I was done running from it; it was time I faced it.
I learned to sense into my body, little by little, as the anxiety of reconnecting with my physical sensations was very powerful. But I realized the only way out was through—through the body—so in order to move the stuck emotions that had a tight grip over me for decades I had to allow and accept them, I had to feel the anger, the shame, the grief.
Slowly, I learned to give […]
Identify, Intervene and Reset.
As a life long seeker of good health and well being, I understand the profound impact that emotions can have on our well-being. We are inherently emotional beings, designed to express and process our feelings openly. However, many of us have learned to suppress and repress our emotions, particularly those considered “negative,” as a means of fitting in and gaining acceptance.
My personal journey mirrors the struggles experienced by countless individuals who have grown up in environments where emotional expression was discouraged or invalidated. In my childhood home, the prevailing belief was that children should be seen and not heard. This lack of emotional validation and support left me feeling invisible, ashamed, and alone. I internalized the message that certain emotions were unacceptable, leading me to bury my pain deep within myself.
The consequences of this emotional suppression became evident as I navigated adulthood and parenthood. Old wounds resurfaced, manifesting as existential pain, anxiety, and depression and eating issues. It was in this pivotal moment that I recognized the need to confront and heal the emotional residue that had accumulated within me over the years. I found true relief I had been searching for in HBLU.
Repression of emotions creates a toxic burden […]
Why can’t I stop thinking so much?
It can be challenging to stop thinking so much, especially if you tend to ruminate or worry excessively. However, there are a few strategies you can try to help calm your mind and reduce excessive thinking:
- Mindfulness practices: Mindfulness involves paying attention to the present moment without judgment. Mindfulness practices, such as meditation or deep breathing exercises, can help you become more aware of your thoughts and emotions, and can help you learn to observe them without getting caught up in them.
- Exercise: Physical activity, such as going for a walk or practicing yoga, can be a helpful way to reduce stress and clear your mind. Exercise releases endorphins, which can improve your mood and reduce anxiety.
- Engage in enjoyable activities: Doing activities you enjoy, such as listening to music or spending time with loved ones, can help distract your mind from excessive thinking and provide a positive outlet for your energy.
- Write down your thoughts: Writing down your thoughts and feelings can be a helpful way to process them and gain a sense of clarity. Try journaling for a few minutes each day to help release any pent-up emotions.
- Practice self-compassion: Be gentle and kind to yourself when you […]
How can I make spirituality part of my mental health?
Spirituality and mental health are closely interconnected and can have a significant impact on one another. Spirituality is a sense of connection to something greater than oneself, whether it be a higher power, nature, or the universe as a whole. For many people, spirituality provides a sense of purpose and meaning in life. It can be a tremendous source of comfort and strength during difficult times.
Research has shown that spirituality can have a positive impact on mental health. Studies have found that people who have a strong sense of spirituality are more resilient to stress and trauma, and may have lower rates of depression and anxiety. Spirituality can also provide a sense of community and social support. Social support is important for maintaining good mental health.
Spiritual practices such as meditation, prayer, daily gratitude, journalling, mindfulness-based practices and even spending time in nature, have been shown to have therapeutic benefits for people with mental health conditions. These practices can help to reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, improve sleep, and increase feelings of well-being and relaxation.
You can start your spiritual practice slowly and build on it day by day. In no time, you’ll notice you feel more connected and joyful.
Put an end to pessimism and stop overthinking
Put an End to Pessimism: 10 Strategies to Stop Negative Thinking
You envy your friends who always wear a smile on their faces and see the glass half full. If only you could be like them. Instead, your thoughts turn to everything that’s wrong with your life–the unfriendly neighbor, the boss with unrealistic expectations, the weather that never cooperates with your plans. While those perceptions may be true, negative thinking won’t help improve your circumstances or change your life for the better. Fortunately, you’re not doomed to a pessimistic mindset forever. These ten strategies will help put an end to the pattern of negativity so you can enjoy brighter, healthier, and happier days ahead.
Manage Your Pessimism Triggers
Take a moment to consider what causes your negative thoughts to surface. Is it someone trying to control your actions, a situation where you feel vulnerable, or the feeling that a threat is imminent? Any of these triggers can incite negative thinking and a cycle of pessimism. The good news is you can learn to manage those triggers by identifying them and adopting useful ways to cope, such as practicing acceptance and self-care or finding humor in the triggering event.
Get Mindful
Wandering thoughts can steer your […]
Tracey Cardello Featured On 94.3 The Shark, Helping Those With Anxiety
Want to hear more about dealing with anxiety and depression?
How do you know if you have COVID-19/Coronavirus phobias?
In this confusing, unprecedented time, people are suffering from COVID-19 phobias which are impairing their ability to be calm and make healthy decisions for themselves. These irrational phobias are made worse by a constant news cycle and social media influence. In HBLU or healing from the body level up, phobias are the most basic and foundational issues. They not only block energy fields but they stop us from doing the things we want to do by exaggerating the fear and shame associated with them.
“Phobias are irrational, exaggerated and extreme unconscious reactions to feelings, events, or experiences.”
Unlike normal fear, phobias serve no useful purpose. They are not protective or motivational. They simply prevent you from achieving a sense of internal harmony. Rather, they are a reflex that trips your central nervous system into a fight, flight or freeze reaction. In her recent webinar, Dr. Judith Swack identifies several COVID-19 phobias that can be treated with simple tapping techniques in just a few minutes.
The most common COVID-19 phobias include:
- Getting it and dying from it.
- Passing it to someone else and killing them.
- Being harmed by reckless, or evil people who are desperate for your money […]
You can reinvent yourself
You should always be growing. By knowing about seven-year cycles you can reinvent yourself and keep life fresh and interesting. The story that goes with this picture really happened. It is the picture of my graduation from the fire training academy. In 2012 I hit a wall. My work felt stale. I didn’t feel valued or appreciated. I was suffering from burnout. The more I struggled to make a living, the worse it got. The phone wasn’t ringing and I found myself looking for part-time work just to get by. I couldn’t figure out what was going wrong or how to change it. I felt like I needed to reset myself. Reinventing myself wasn’t exactly my goal but I couldn’t stand the stagnation any longer. My ego was bruised because the place I got so much of my self-esteem, my job, was collapsing around me.
On a beautiful spring day, I stopped into my local firehouse to learn about volunteering. I was fully aware of how ridiculous I must have appeared to the first man I spoke to. I probably would have dropped it right there if not for a connected friend who pushed the process along. Before I […]
The path to happiness
Lately, I’ve been thinking about what it means to be happy. What can I do to be happier? Does happiness play in mental health? What about physical health? People seem to use success and happiness interchangeably or one as a path to the other, but I think they are quite different in their own rights. What is the path to happiness?
The recent CDC report on suicides nationwide got me thinking about how we approach suicide prevention. This is a topic near and dear to my heart because I am a suicide loss survivor. The suicide rate has been rising despite educational and outreach efforts on the part of nonprofits, government agencies, and mental health practitioners. More people than ever are on at least one antidepressant while many are on two or more psychiatric medications. Access to care continues to be a challenge in low income and rural areas. Telehealth is positioning itself to address some of those people. Early death due to alcoholism is also on the rise.
People are trying to numb out of their lives
I started thinking about some other findings from the CDC report as well as some anecdotal information I gather from the client’s […]
What it means to do the work
My most recent experience in therapy has taught me the value of trusting myself. Rather than seeking gratification and responses from the external world, I learned the value of accessing wisdom from within. Through therapy, I have learned the intrinsic importance of meeting yourself where you are.
The truth about phobias
Phobias are more common than you think because many exist at the unconscious level. That means, by definition, you don’t know when you’re experiencing one. Phobias are unconscious. This can make people argue or deny that they actually have a phobia. But if you pursue this by granular questioning, you will find there is a hidden fear or shame underlying the problem.
Muscle testing allows you to get below the conscious level and find the unconscious fear or shame as well as the specific location in the body where the phobia resides. Once you find it and name it, you can easily heal it so that it no longer runs your emotions or behavior.
To learn more about how energy psychology can help you with phobias click here.
How do you know if therapy is working?
Before I learned about energy psychology, I had no real way to measure whether or not therapy was helping. Feelings change from day to day and are heavily affected by outside situations. Unwanted behaviors can be stopped, but compulsion often remains. Urges can cause quite a bit of emotional discomfort and distraction only goes so far. Improving your distress tolerance feels like a crappy way to live, long term.
I thought I would know therapy was helping me when I finally felt happy until a trusted therapist told me that the point of therapy was not to be happy. It was to have a greater understanding and develop a wider range of emotions. That answer felt like a huge disappointment that I’d spent years and thousands of dollars waiting for. Happiness was my goal, and I know it’s the goal of most people.
Much of therapy can feel like a pointless dead-end full of useless advice and not enough unless advice. As a therapist and a long term client, I was used to living in the grey area. Hoping that what I was doing in therapy would pay off eventually but not […]