ATH Podcast Archives

Appreciating the Awareness of Challenges – Episode 11

Appereciating the Awareness of Challenges - Episode 11

We enter the first core principle of Friendly Mind—an awareness of life’s most challenging feelings and situations. Friendly Mind subtlety grounds and benefits us by looking at this awareness in a neutral or positive light. This episode explores this principle, which is the underbelly of all the other Friendly Mind principles. If we don’t stay grounded with clarity of the specific challenges we face in our daily lives, we limit our capacity for fulfillment, inspiration, and personal evolution. Listen to this episode . . .

Why You Can’t Just “Think Positive” to Feel Better – Episode 10

This important episode highlights and contrasts Friendly Mind with other methods, identifying similarities yet making the valuable differences clear. Friendly Mind clarifies how affirmations, positive thinking, ‘fixing’ feelings, self-judgment, and the more conventional expression of “I’m fine” all fall short of true healing. They miss the critical element of responding as simultaneously as possible with awareness of life’s challenges and the value of guiding ourselves toward well-being and healing. These distinctions help us understand the subtlety of Friendly Mind. Listen to this episode . . .

Transforming Emotional and Spiritual Standards – Episode 9

We continue to explore impossible standards that impale our progress toward healing. Friendly Mind guides us to do and be all that is realistically possible while helping us to not be slaves to these pressures. With personal examples, we closely explore the myriad of ways we guilt and pressure ourselves to be different from who we are and can be in our own bodies. We push ourselves to get rid of our anxiety, depression, and fear or religion, spirituality, non-spiritual beliefs, or intelligence. However, Friendly Mind teaches us to come back again and again, doing and honoring our best efforts. Listen to this episode . . .

Overcoming Family Conditioning – Episode 8

Childhood experiences and culture teach many of us to strive for impossible, unrealistic, or unreachable standards. This episode explores the trap created by these standards and introduces how to free ourselves. Friendly Mind creates a realistic, present focus on supportive and realistic thoughts. We look closely at standards and expectations relating to family, friendship, work, love, sex, youthfulness, and success. This is the first episode to deal with unreachable standards by identifying a grounded, balanced focus on what is possible. Listen to this episode . . .

Friendly Mind: More Central than Feelings – Episode 7

With practice, Friendly Mind helps us identify with who we are becoming rather than with our feelings in a given moment or situation. Friendly Mind steers our focus and understanding toward our own wisdom, with it becoming clearer and clearer that Friendly Mind’s guidance and response is more important than what we feel. This Friendly Mind could be called wisdom, God’s guidance, or intuition. However, listening to and finding the best guidance, no matter what we call it, to deal with our greatest challenges is the most important step. Listen to this episode . . .

Responsive Wisdom – Episode 6

In the Friendly Mind, we learn the value and benefit to ourselves and others of focusing on our responses to challenging emotions and situations rather than trying to change the feelings themselves. Accepting these emotions feels counterintuitive at first. However, with encouragement and practiced dedication, we learn the importance of thoughts, especially those that help us accept our situations and feelings. Acceptance begins a process of learning to independently act from emotions without denial. Listen to this episode . . .

Healing Awareness – Episode 5

This fourth level of awareness is where the vast majority of healing takes place. This is awareness that heals. We are not only aware of our present challenging feelings and situations, but also we experience a genuine motivation to move toward healing and well-being. We see the challenging state(s) we are in and at the same time we care for ourselves enough to respond toward healing and well-being. This creates a sense of purpose and inspiration to be our best selves. Listen to this episode . . .

Life’s Challenges with Intention to Heal – Episode 4

Awareness with Intention to Heal - Part 1

The vast majority of healing takes place in the fourth level of awareness. This is awareness that heals. At this level, we are aware of our challenging feelings in the present, but we also experience a genuine motivation to move toward healing. We see and acknowledge our challenging state(s) while at the same time, we care for ourselves enough to respond with actions that take us toward healing and better well-being. This creates a sense of purpose and inspiration to be our best selves. Listen to this episode . . .

Stable Intellectual Awareness – Episode 3

This episode explores one of the most dangerous traps of what is often misconceived as awareness. It occurs when we can see and identify what we feel but believe that this alone will allow us to address and overcome the challenges associated with those feelings. Often, we hear in the psychological world, I am aware of my anger, jealousy, grief, and a wide array of other emotions, but true healing takes more than acknowledgement and recognition. Listen to this episode . . .

Fleeting Awareness – Episode 2

In Episode 2, we discuss accessing “Fleeting Awareness,” which allows us to glimpse into both our greatest challenges and our wisdom. As we work toward stabilizing this awareness, we have the chance to both face difficult challenges and access our own flashes of insight. This gives us the opportunity to bring a new consciousness to our responses and actions, opening us to greater healing, fulfillment, and inspiration. We invite you to tune into our ongoing series. Listen to this episode . . .