Q: What happens after we die? Is there really heaven and hell—or nothing?
A: Therapist Michael Newton and businessman Robert Monroe spent years studying this, the former by doing hypnotic regressions with his clients, and the latter by astral traveling to many dimensions using “hemi-synch” audio technologies that stimulate both sides of the brain. They agree that there are many dimensions on the other side. We tend to manifest strongly held beliefs and gravitate to an astral plane that fits our picture of the afterlife. Newton says it’s like a school on the other side and we tend to stay with our classmates through time. Each of us has guides to help us in both dimensions. See their books and www.near-death.com/newton.html and www.monroeinstitute.org/robert-monroe
Q: Stress is an ongoing problem. How can I enjoy life more?
A: I have posted lots of info about this on my blog: http://gaylekimball.wordpress.com/how-to-balance-body-mind-to-achieve-your-goals/#comment-31
Q: I have trouble grounding. My orientation is up, not down. Anything I can do?
A: Imagine sending your grounding cord down to the center of the earth through a field of lovely crystals. Also use Barbara Brennan’s tool of a hara line: Simply imagine a line coming from above the head through the midline of the body and down the grounding pipe. Make sure it’s straight and connected. That way you can keep your connection with the upper world as well as the lower world.
Q: My kids complain about homework and having to study. I’m tired of it; anything I can do?
A: Please read together an interview with Mashal, an illiterate Pakistani village girl, to appreciate our access to free quality education. It’s on my blog. After reading it, I was so moved I started a literacy project there, taught by a college student in Peshawar, helping him pay his tuition. Contact me if you’d like to be involved. Many of us read Three Cups of Tea, in which Greg Mortenson makes the case for education as the most effective path to social change in Pakistan and Afghanistan—and the world. Your kids will have more appreciation for their free education when they learn nearly a billion people entered this century unable to read a book or sign their names—like Mashal. Also, for fun, check out the new after-school arts programs at Café Culture. I’m teaching kids mind power and movement for school and sports success.
Q: I’m always struggling with my weight. Anything new I can do?
A: Ann reports to us how she was able to lose weight and deal with unhealthy food cravings: “Desperation and joining FAA (www.foodaddictsanonymous.org), one meeting a week. They give support for eliminating cravings for junk food through using a superhealthy food plan with plenty of food to eat. This is different from the scary restrictive punishing group I was attending.”
Q: I’m reading about additives, hormones, chemicals, and toxins in our food. How can I know what is healthy for my family?
A: Dr. Francesca Grifo (of the Union of Concerned Scientists) recommends buying from small, local, organic food producers and doing research—I found www.foodandwaterwatch.org. I asked Jeanette McNelis to report on her research on food safety:
Consumers need to start reading the ingredients on their purchases. Genetically engineered seeds (corn, soy, canola, cotton, etc.), owned by large pesticide companies, have made their way, unlabeled (except for Europe), into the majority of our food supply. Check out the following sources:
*The author of Seeds of Deception, Jeffrey Smith is the world’s leading consumer advocate. He gives us four suggestions: Buy organic/local. Look for non-GMO verified seals. Avoid risky ingredients (invisible GM ingredients such as fructose, dextrose, glucose, NutraSweet, Equal). Visit www.responsibletechnology.org—check out the GMO shopping guide there and at http://www.nongmoshoppingguide.com.
*John Robbins, award-winning author (Diet for a New America and Food Revolution), wrote an article worth reading: “Is Your Favorite Ice Cream Made with Artificial Hormones?” (visit www.johnrobbins.info).
*Check Dr. Mercola’s website for interesting articles on GMO food products and healthy living (www.mercola.com).
*www.organicconsumers.org also aims to educate the food consumer with many articles. Do your family a favor by knowing what you are eating and by making healthy choices.
Q: I’d like to move forward in my career, make some major changes, but I’m just plain scared I’ll fail. What can I do?
A: Instead of leaping over a creek you want to cross, imagine sturdy flat stepping-stones and stepping slowly from one to the other, stopping to look around with an artist’s eyes. That is, take baby steps one at a time with a clear picture of your goal. Think of fears of failure in your past, how you coped, and what you learned from your mistakes. You survived. Acknowledge your fear, but take small daily actions anyway, knowing that you will gain confidence with achieving results.
Q: I’m studying different religious philosophies. In the East they say life is suffering and the goal is to break the cycle of rebirth. The Bible says be in the world but not of it [1 John 2:15]. Does this place really suck?
A: Experiencing a human body is a joy and a blessing. We can learn and give much on this dense dimension, as if you were exercising on a machine where you set the resistance depending on how much challenge you want. The danger is getting addicted to gratification, be it romance, drugs, acquisitions, and so on. My aim is to appreciate my precious sojourn on this beautiful creation, to give back, and to evolve like all of nature.
Q: I’m stuck in being down, sad, and feeling not good enough. I’ve worked on this but can’t dig my way out of the hole I’m in. Any way out?
A: Sometimes it’s easy to stick with the familiar, even if it’s unpleasant. If you can’t muster the vision of a different you, the unconscious mind doesn’t know fact from fiction. Imagine a childhood in which you were an adored child. To create new images and “memories,” watch movies about healthy families. Let us know if you find any! All I can think of is the TV series The Cosby Show. Read about heroes, historic and fictional, and create a visual collage representing the new you. To help generate energy to change, exercise, eat live fresh food, and get counseling.
Q: I work with a woman who is considered the star and, while discussing a project, we had a disagreement. I am at a point where I doubt myself, thinking that I cannot work collaboratively. She gloats about herself and her skills so much that I feel incompetent.
A: If she needs to gloat, she must be very insecure. Find out about her childhood issues so you can put her neediness in perspective. She’s a good saleswoman of herself; observe how she convinces people she’s so competent. Also, the gloating must be obvious to others and not appealing to them. Are you imagining more star power than she actually has at work? Did you have siblings who (you thought) got more parental attention and did they compare your achievements at school and socially? This can be an opportunity to clean out unresolved childhood wounds that she’s stimulating.
Q: I’d like to leave my husband because we have no real connection or interests in common except our kids. But when he leaves for a while, I get anxious and jealous, afraid he’ll start another family with someone else.
A: It’s human to be jealous if an ex-partner gets involved with someone else. It feels as if you’re not valued. Lovers develop energy cords that bind them; it’s painful to remove them, so we often go back to the familiar and then break up again. Look back on past breakups and how you coped, how long it took to recover. Think about the kind of man you’d like as a partner. I’d look for a paid job so you have more independence and self-regard.