The wind in the leaves above reminded me of poems I’d read about mystical lands and climes,though where I was tonight was mystical in itself. Thoughts flooded my mind, tumbling over one another in an effort to grab my attention. I had concentrated my focus so intently on the present that I could scarcely remember I was supposed to be having dinner with Gideon and Marla. Time often appears to be relative, resembling situations in everyday life when whatever it is that you are doing is enjoyable and full of excitement. It seems to speed up or slow down, even to stand still while we immerse ourselves in the matters of the moment.

My mind returned to dinner, and then to my children, my home and my work, and I began to feel uneasy. Tomorrow would be a new day with new challenges, and here I was whiling away the hours with restaurants, bagpipes and trans-dimensional shifts. For all I knew, this was a dream, and everyone knows that strange things can happen in dreams. Perhaps there was no such thing as a trans-dimensional shift or no such place as a Restaurant at the Edge of Eternity. What was I doing here? I felt I must return to wherever I had come from or, at least, I must wake up from this dream.

Anxiety was beginning to overwhelm me when I suddenly remembered the remote control on my belt. I hurriedly got up, grasped it and stared at the buttons. “Press red,” Gideon had said, “if you want to stop or change the program.” And the white button was to call Marla. By this time, my palms were wet with perspiration. No longer could I hear the ocean nor see the moon above. My thoughts continued racing faster and faster.What had started out as a beautiful fantasy evening was fast becoming a horrible nightmare.

To read the rest of the story visit http://www.spiritual-simplicity.com

Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive disease has severe effects on the life of the sufferer as well as those people closest to them. The patients need almost everybody’s attention. They need it from their psychiatrist, physicians, close friends, and supportive networks.

There are approximately 2 million Americans who are diagnosed with bipolar disorder. But most of them are unaware that such condition is present. It is because it can trigger any time. In most cases, the symptoms started to manifest during adolescence or early adulthood. Fortunately, there is nothing to worry about because this brain disorder is treatable. You just need to recognize different symptoms to achieve proper diagnosis as well as treatment.

If you know someone who is suffering from a bipolar disease then you already know the effects in their daily lives. However, it does not necessarily mean that a person with bipolar disorder is always down and depressed. Their moods just have a tendency to alter from an extremely high to an extremely low status. This mood swings are very hard to recognize. Coping with such condition is also difficult since the patient is also affected physically.

Always expect for a worst scenario. Never forget that persistent highs and lows of moods in most patients can mean committing suicide in the end. It is because they think that it is their way to escape. If this is often the case, calling 911 is important. Do not think that you would waste their time if ever nothing happened. What matters most is that you have avoided any worst consequences.

Reoccurrences of the illness is possible thus it can affect a person throughout his or her life. Lifetime treatment is applicable through building and maintaining a strong support group. But the first step for achieving successful results in the future is to learn some basic tips on how to spot symptoms of a bipolar disorder.

1. It is very easy to determine manic episodes. The most distinguishing factor is euphoric mood and increased level of energy. These characteristics are easily noticed and very evident. It is obvious that a person first manifested a depressed mood for a longer period of time. Other signs include spending sprees, loss of concentration, and increased drive for sex.

2. Spotting depression can be quite easy but sometimes it can be misinterpreted as a bad day. An anxious or a sad mood over an extended duration of time is a very obvious sign of a depressed person. This is the first characteristic you must look for. Another is lack of interest on the things which was once enjoyed by the person, including sex or hobbies.

3. Mood swings associated with serious cases of bipolar disorder can later display psychosis symptoms including delusions and hallucinations. These are also easier to recognize. However, the sufferer may not be aware of it.

4. To spot a mixed state of a bipolar disorder, you should know that the sufferer is simultaneously experiencing both depression and mania. It can include sleep deficiency, agitation, and appetite changes. The patient having this kind of bipolar disorder can become very depressed, yet he or she still possesses a very high energy level.

5. The symptom that is considered to be the most horrifying is morbid thoughts. Most people ignore it subconsciously hoping that it will just soon vanish. Suspecting a patient who have morbid thoughts and contemplates suicide must be acted upon immediately. Call 911 if necessary to prevent worse consequences from happening.

Keep in mind that recognizing these symptoms correctly is important to reveal the real nature of a bipolar disease. Improper diagnosis can lead to prolong or lifetime suffering. The patients can seek advice from professionals when depression attacks them but sometimes they are not disclosing their manic behaviors. It is because they linked it with normalcy or happiness.

Recently, more and more people are getting the proper education regarding the distinguishing symptoms of a bipolar disorder because of the attentions given on its research and studies. Guidance is available through excellent resources such as reputable websites or local clinics which provide detailed information. Never forget that the debilitating nature of a bipolar disorder can be stopped to lead productive and healthy lives.

Gratitude. I’m sure you have heard of this word before and you probably know that it simply means a feeling of thankfulness and appreciation. Gratitude may be a mouthful to pronounce but the act of showing it is actually rather simple and effective to implement. Knowing the power and potential of showing gratitude and subsequently applying it accordingly can be the single most decisive factor in ensuring better degrees of success for yourself.

Let’s dwell a little on exactly what gratitude can do for you and subsequently your success. Gratitude instills a positive feeling in you and the people you show it to. It alters your perspective of negative feelings, thoughts or beliefs you may have of yourself or others by alerting these feelings, thoughts and beliefs to the things you are grateful for. Gratitude raises your awareness and focus and it can inspire you to achieve better for yourself and the people around you.

In fact, there are numerous other benefits of gratitude. Yet, many people still do not or refuse to shower themselves or the people around them with gratitude. Instead, they put themselves and others down by criticism and condemnation. To see if you fall under this category, take the next few seconds to ponder over the following questions:

1) What exactly are the obstacles that are holding you back from showing gratitude to yourself and to others?

2) How can you overcome these obstacles?

3) How can you unleash an onslaught of gratitude to yourself and to others?

The obstacles stated above are mainly negative thoughts, emotions and beliefs that you may possess that are probably not only hindering you from showing gratitude but they are most probably also hindering you from success. However, the chief aim of my article is to show you the importance of showing gratitude and how you can go about doing it. As such, I will not touch in depth about how to overcome these negative thoughts, emotions and beliefs. But if you would like to find out more, please refer to resource box below.

Now that you are clearer about the benefits of gratitude, let’s first talk about how you can start showing gratitude to yourself. To start doing this, you must first be appreciative of all your achievements – be it big or small – that you have experienced so far in your life. Ask yourself: when was the last time you actually rewarded yourself for those achievements? If you have constantly been doing so, then good for you and keep it up. If not, then it’s about time you start indulging or pampering yourself with some simple or extravagant (whichever is appropriate) rewards for all your past achievements and the future ones.

Next be appreciative of the things you have – your job, work place, house, wealth, family, food and surroundings. I know it can be rather impossible to directly show gratitude to these things but don’t fret. You can actually list down these things and write down thank you notes for each of them to express your gratitude. Keep referring to this list when you’re feeling sad or depressed and you can instantly feel a surge of happiness or positive emotions.

So far, I have covered on how you can show gratitude to yourself and the things around you. Now I will touch on how you can show gratitude to the people around you. There are many ways you can express your gratitude to the people around you but I will only list down the few I feel are important and simple to perform. You are however, free to find out or think of others of your own and implement them as you deem fit.

1) Instead of putting down, insulting and complaining about the people around or working under you, try complementing, praising and appreciating them for all they have done for your well-being and your achievements. By doing this, you gain their respect and trust and they are more likely to continually assist you to achieve better.

2) Make a thank you list of all the people you are grateful for and constantly refer to this list to give yourself a better and greater feeling.

3) Give a simple verbal thank you, note of appreciation or even a thank you e-mail to express your gratitude to the people who have assisted you in achievements.

4) Shower the people you are grateful for with small or big cards, gifts, presents or rewards to clearly show them how much you appreciate them.

5) Or simply provide the people around you with gifts that cannot be bought with cash like your valuable time, your sacrifice or something that is of utmost importance to you.

Gratitude. The word may be a little complex to pronounce but there is actually nothing complex about performing the act of showing gratitude. Always bear in mind that when you show gratitude to yourself, the things and the people around you, you will definitely hold the key to unlocking your personal growth and ultimately your success.

People that get angered easily may need some effective means to control themselves and may thus need to look for a proper anger management technique that will answer to their needs to control them in situations that often gets well out of hand. With people having serious instances of anger management requirements the good news is that a number of different techniques with regard to self help anger management are available to fight off this condition.

Counseling From Therapists – Among the many self help anger management techniques available is the one that requires taking counseling from therapists, and there are also very many books written on the subject to enable a person to utilize the knowledge gained by reading such literature on the subject and create their own self help anger management techniques that will work well for them.

There is also anger management courses which is a means very often used by people that wish to get more in-depth help from experts regarding controlling their anger, and it also affords those suffering from anger to interact with fellow sufferers and thus can gain valuable insights as to how self help will make them overcome such problems and so should incorporate such techniques in order to bring their anger under control. Self help also means the sufferer is able to avail of support as well as understanding from others, and in this regard family members are the persons the sufferer must need to turn to when requiring the necessary understanding and support and once given, also helps ensure that the situation is not further aggravated.

Also, anger management problems are not just confined to adults; but, can affect children as well and it is not uncommon for children that behave well to also be affected by anger that was not evident earlier. It is up to the parents to provide the child with proper guidance and should expend their energies to help in contributing to the child learning self help anger management techniques and so, overcome the behavioral problems.

It is also common for sufferers to find self help from other resources besides their parents, and taking to performing yoga as well as meditation is just one instance of how a self help anger management technique can help overcome the problem. Other methods for self help include reading up books as well as listening to audio books on the subject, and with a few more available alternatives, it is possible for the sufferer to find an ideal method of self help to help get rid of the problem of anger.

So, here’s the situation: We’re thinking about making some changes in life, and we’re wondering how to spot the perfect time to act. Perfect timing means perfect success, right?

Here’s a news flash. There are no perfect times. There are bad times, good times, even excellent times. But never a perfect time. For anything.

But that doesn’t mean we can go ahead willy-nilly without considering whether the circumstances add up to a good time or a bad time. We have to stick an elbow in the bath water and check the temperature before we proceed. Timing always counts.

So let’s consider how to read the times.

A good time is any time when things seem pretty normal, when words like “saga” don’t keep coming up. The kids’ report cards may not be all they could be. Losing the standard fifteen pounds might seem like an impassable mountain. In the larger world, employment is pretty stable. The stock market is hanging in there. All normal. When things are pretty normal at home and in the economy, it’s a good time to start new stuff.

Then there are the not-so-good times, when we need caution. Even when life’s a little lumpa-lumpa, though, we want to launch if we see a sweet spot. For example, there once was a day when the world sat lorn and unaware we all wanted to spend big money on a sugar-laden cup of coffee and call the waitress a Barista. Then along came Starbucks. Same thing with Federal Express. And so many others. Sweet spots beat lumpa-lumpa times.

Then there are the bad times. When life whacks us a good one, it may be time to rest and recoup rather than start something new.

When somebody we love dies, our lives look like a pile of rubble, and none of it makes sense. Divorce does that, too. There’s a gaping hole where our vital organs used to be.

After a major hit, it takes about a year for our brains to really function again. We may labor under the illusion we’re thinking clearly, but our brains are mush. It’s not a great time to make decisions.

Sometimes, though, we can’t take time to recover. Perhaps our livelihood gets yanked away, and we have to find a future as in right now. We have to act, ready or not.

Or we may see the sweet spot of our dreams. Those don’t come around every day, so, here too, we have to take action once we make sure it’s not a mirage. True sweet spots beat bad times.

Going it alone is always tricky, but going it alone in bad times is asking for trouble. We need to get other people to talk and think with..

Who can help?

Forget the negativity drippers. Negative words splash acid on our dreams. Even if it’s the uncle with money, we can’t afford their presence when we’re in a ditch.

And we don’t want untrustworthy people tromping into our lives. Who needs to end up as a tasty morsel of gossip?

We also shouldn’t engage with the clueless. However charming and sympathetic they may be, if they don’t know anything about what we’re trying to do, they can’t help.

We need trust and loyalty, plus an understanding of the situation and the possibilities. All this gold may not come for free. It often requires more than one person to get all we need, but a cheering squad gives us more oomph than a lone sis-boom-bah anyway.

So, here’s how it goes: We move with confidence in good times. We add a little caution in the lumpa-lumpa times. We lean hard on help to keep on keeping on in the bad times.

The most important thing at any time is to keep looking ahead. Maybe wounded, maybe soaring, but never giving up. Giving up is losing.

What Is Personal Development?

Personal development used to be a course taught at business and vocational schools around the United States.

It was long since held that self-improvement was an essential aspect of succeeding in a more and more competitive marketplace that left little room for those who would not be able to pull their own weight usually because of self image problems.

Personal growth was considered to be the antidote to the possibility of failure very often experienced by job changers, vocation changers, and those who might embark on a new career at a more advanced age than most of their competitors in the marketplace.

Personal development was said to be effective in combining an individual’s innate wish for success with a change in the person’s mode of viewing her – or himself and also the way the person is portraying her – or himself to others.

NLP – neuro-linguistic programming is one of the favored tools of the personal development movement. Since it offers a wide variety of tools and techniques, this application itself promises success simply because of its superior adaptability to the needs of the person seeking personal development.

For example, for those will simply performance anxiety problems, a large number of exercises will make an accomplished introvert out of a phobic introvert who is sent into stammering or excessive sweating bits at the prospect of speaking in front of a crowd.

For the person suffering from extreme anxiety the idea of meditation well within the framework of NLP will quite often yield amazing results.

While traditionalists might scoff at the idea of personal development simply because it is such a subjective exercise, it is noteworthy that many people sear by it and attribute their business success to lessons learned and exercises attempted during a personal development seminar.

Perhaps the most important aspect to remember when discussing personal development is the fact that it seeks to capitalize on a person’s good intentions.

These intentions may be the wish to succeed in business the innate need to be useful, or maybe just the wish to further the role of leadership a person has taken within a corporation or business.

The goal is to draw out the good intentions and turn them into marketable objectives which the client will be able to realize and develop further, so as to ensure that her or his confidence will grow enough to pursue the next level of professional development.

For those who are gifted with a go-get-it attitude, this need may be hard to understand, but suffice it to say that in a world where corporate success is hard won, and abilities have to be proven time and again, those who may suffer from a lack of self esteem have often found themselves relegated to the sidelines.

If this is you, it is also important to understand that you do not have to be on the sidelines, but that you have everything it takes to make it up the ladder of success!

Author Charles Williams: For more information on Motivation and Self Improvement visit: http://www.lsft.org