Seven can you point me to a message and/or a website where your art is displayed? I'd love to see it.
Introspection
JoinedPosts by Introspection
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17
Reducing Stress
by larc inon the lighter side of mental health issues, i was curious as to some good ideas you all had regarding the methods you use to reduce stress.
i will give two of my favorites and hope that several of you would provide one or two others and then come back in a day or two if others miss a favorite of yours.. .
two of my favorites are humor and music.
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5
Done out of love...
by Introspection ini wanted to say a few words about the whole theist vs. atheist kind of arguments here, and suggest another way of looking at it which may put things into perspective.. i think as ex-jws none of us want to see others fall into that same trap again, and depending on our perspective we'd want others to have the benefit of our experience.
honestly, i don't know if i fit under either category, but i do believe in "something beyond.
" all the same, i think often my atheist brothers (which is not to exclude those who are theists) and sisters say the things they do out of love.
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Introspection
I wanted to say a few words about the whole theist vs. atheist kind of arguments here, and suggest another way of looking at it which may put things into perspective.
I think as ex-JWs none of us want to see others fall into that same trap again, and depending on our perspective we'd want others to have the benefit of our experience. Honestly, I don't know if I fit under either category, but I do believe in "something beyond." All the same, I think often my atheist brothers (which is not to exclude those who are theists) and sisters say the things they do out of love. Granted it may not be with warm and fuzzy feelings, sometimes even the opposite, but I think their motive is for our welfare. For the believers I would say to not only look at that fact, but also your own reaction to it. Often the more scientific thinkers are only presenting their view in a matter of fact way to start with. Anyways, don't you agree that ultimately each person can only save themselves? I think too much talk in the way of form identification detracts from the spirit you're trying to embody..
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2
Models of self-disclosure (fixed)
by Introspection inhere's a little something i worked on while in my interpersonal psych class.. i guess it's fairly self explanatory, it's all about communication, what people know about you, what you know about yourself etc.
i thought the taiji diagram is a good way of illustrating the dynamic nature of the exchange tho.. incidentally, i remember a class mate blurting out johari's witnesses in class!
lol .
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Introspection
Goo the Johari window is really not a test, it's just a model that describes how we communicate with others. I like the old tai chi diagram because it better illustrates the constant give and take, and within the unknown we tend to have a "hidden" part of ourselves, yet the open part contains a blind spot where we don't see something about ourselves.
By the way, it's funny to note that the name "Johari" actually comes from the first names of the guys who came up with that model - Joe and Harry!!
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17
Reducing Stress
by larc inon the lighter side of mental health issues, i was curious as to some good ideas you all had regarding the methods you use to reduce stress.
i will give two of my favorites and hope that several of you would provide one or two others and then come back in a day or two if others miss a favorite of yours.. .
two of my favorites are humor and music.
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Introspection
Hi Larc, I have to say what I do to reduce stress is not take on too much in the first place. I have read Anatomy of an Illness by Cousins and I think it is a great place to start for those who are interested in the whole mind-body.
I think Wayne Dyer makes a good point about things you can and can't control. If you have control over it, you can do something about it. If you can't, there's no sense in worrying about it. That covers everything that can happen to you! I think integral to that is acceptance. You have to accept the fact that some things are beyond control and just let that go, but actually we don't want to feel helpless either regarding the things we can do something about.
I think one aspect of humor is being able to laugh at yourself. When you don't take yourself so seriously and can laugh along with others when you do something funny, then I think you've "got it."
Well to add to the list, I also use sleep. This may seem silly, but you need to get your rest! I mean sometimes we miss the basics like rest and nourishment, and I think that's first and foremost. Of course to balance that we do need physical activity as Neyank pointed out, and to that end I enjoy Tai Chi. I think this is a good excercise to connect the mind and body, as the forms and movement are very subtle. It could be considered a type of moving meditation. But of course, you can do something more active, any kind of sport can become a mind-body excercise, it just depends on how you go about it. I think taking that approach helps your performance too, and the key there is not to judge your performance, but focus on the process and just enjoy it. I think the thing is to really play it and not treat it as a job, again not taking it too seriously in a way..
What kind of physical activities do you guys enjoy?
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3
Alone and OK
by stephenw20 ini have heard.
so many people talk about being alone ...being freightened about it....that it is an evidence you dont like yourself.....or the company you are presented with........ any one have thoughts....... i will put a few lyrical ones down......... lonely stranger.
by eric clapton.
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Introspection
Uni, I can understand your concern on a practical level, it is common to feel the way you do. I think there's some truth to this idea that you don't like yourself, but I think maybe it's more common than we think, but we don't notice it normally. It doesn't matter if you like yourself or not if you never pay attention to yourself, if you have other people around you might be caught up in socializing. So, normally when "you" are happy you may not even notice that you don't like yourself, because you're too busy liking other people or how those people "make you feel." (it's really just liking the feeling you get, not so much liking yourself) True self-esteem doesn't come from outside sources, it is how YOU esteem yourself, therefore a suggestion that there is a possibility that you may not like yourself wouldn't effect you, unless you are in some way unsure of yourself in the first place.
Of course, this is where many of us are at as ex-JWs, but I really don't even like using that label. That only speaks to our past, and I think we are so much more than that or atleast can be if we allowed ourselves to move on. See, you might say that these things are nobody's fault, but there's a difference between things that happend to you and how you ARE now. It's true the past affects the future, but that isn't something you have to worry about, it already happend and continues to happen moment to moment. What you CAN do is change directions and your thinking in the present moment and choose to let it go and seek out positive people and fulfilling things in life.
I think sometimes our self-esteem may be low for a good reason, too. What I mean by that is our self concept may be shattered and from that we may feel pretty low. I know this has happend to me on more than one occassion, what some people might consider a shattering of the ego. Mind you, I don't think this is the ideal way to do things and it's certainly not for everyone, but I do know that I am a lot happier now and not much can bother me. The reason why this may be good is that it may be a false sense of self that was created during the years we were JWs, just as one example. I think when we cut through all the fictional stuff we create for ourselves, we find something that is much more valuable. Sometimes a bit of solitude is the perfect opportunity for this kind of self discovery.
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4
Fear and Ego (ET quotes)
by Introspection ini'm enjoying the book the power of now by eckhart tolle, and i expect there will be a number of quotes that i find worth posting.
i will use this thread for any future posts from this author.. by the way, the author does point out that he uses the word ego in a specific way here, so no doubt it isn't exactly what psychologists would consider ego.... fear seems to have many causes.
fear of loss, fear of failure, fear of being hurt, and so on, but ultimately all fear is the egos fear of death, of annihilation.
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Introspection
Interesting point about the time factor here. If anyone knows of some other commentary pointing to the present tense of the word let me know please..
Many misunderstandings and false beliefs about Christ will clear if you realize that there is no past or future in Christ. To say that Chris was or will be is a contradiction in terms. Jesus was. He was a man who lived two thousand years ago and realized divine presence, his true nature. And so he said: "Before Abraham was, I am." He did not say: "I already existed before Abraham was born." That would have meant that he was still within the dimension of time and form identity. The words I am used in a sentence that starts in the past tense indicate a radical shift, a discontinuity in the temporal dimension. It is a Zen-like statement of great profundity. Jesus attempted to convey directly, not through discursive thought, the meaning of presence, of self-realization. He had gone beyond the consciousness dimension governed by time, into the realm of the timeless. The dimension of eternity had come into this world. Eternity, of course, does not mean endless time, but no time. Thus, the man Jesus became Christ, a vehicle for pure consciousness. And what is God's self-definition in the Bible? Did God say "I have always been, and I always will be?" Of course not. That would have given reality to past and future. God said: "I AM THAT I AM." No time here, just presence.
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4
jws and the heart?
by claudia inhi does anyone know the reasoning behind jws allowed to have heart symbols?
i thought they had a pagan origin?
thanks in advance
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Introspection
Oh. Well JWs are separatists, so I guess anything blatantly religious like a cross or pentagram or something is out. It would also explain the holiday/birthday thing, since most people do celebrate those.
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jws and the heart?
by claudia inhi does anyone know the reasoning behind jws allowed to have heart symbols?
i thought they had a pagan origin?
thanks in advance
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Introspection
Could it be that there are simply too many things like that to keep track of? My understanding is ties are pagan too but they wear them..
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31
Do You Fear Death?
by think41self ini am very interested to know how all of you feel about the subject of death and the future.
do you fear death?
what do you think are the possibilities for the future?.
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Introspection
One other thought. The whole "wait for armageddon" thing puts your life on hold. What about living NOW? Likewise fear of death takes your attention from living now.
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31
Do You Fear Death?
by think41self ini am very interested to know how all of you feel about the subject of death and the future.
do you fear death?
what do you think are the possibilities for the future?.
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Introspection
We all know as JWs there was much emphasis on fear as a motivating factor. It seems to me that the goal of any spiritual teaching is to point to a larger sense of self, or atleast something beyond the self whereas the JWs for example focuses on preservation of the self or ego if you like.
This isn't even necessarily a religious thing. A scientist may look upon the universe with a sense of wonder and awe. The point is it's just not our personal survival, most people have loved ones they care about too. In that sense, living forever for personal salvation can be a selfish thing, factor the shunning thing into it and I think it paints a fairly clear picture of the ugliness of that type of thinking..