Break Through Blog http://break-through.org/site/weblog/index/ en vickie@break-through.org Copyright 2010 2010-09-02T22:11:50+00:00 Master Weight Worries http://www.break-through.org/index.php/weblog/master_weight_worries/ Feeling a little pudgy lately? Has the barrage of bad news caused a feeding frenzy that resulted in extra pounds? Listen to this free audio on the five steps to letting go of excess weight.  These steps are simple and have nothing to do with DIETING, STARVING, PILLS, OR SHAKE MIXES. Today’s the day to start taking care of your self NOW. Release those extra pounds.   Weight Loss These are the five steps that I used to release 49 pounds. This method helps me to stay on track with out deprivation.

Break the cycle of the on again - off again diet. Let go of that all or nothing mentality that created Kristie Alley’s weight gain.

]]> 2009-05-15T11:42:00+00:00 Five Most Harmful Words That Hinder Healing http://www.break-through.org/index.php/weblog/five_most_harmful_words_that_hinder_healing/ The words we use on a daily basis impact our self esteem. Many times we are using these words without awareness. Then all of a sudden we feel sad or shameful but can’t figure out why.  Our mind begins to rationalize our feelings sometimes creating deeper feelings of guilt or fear about the future. This results in behaviors that reinforce these feelings. Click on Five Words that Hinder Healing to receive the full report and start your healing process today. Divine Diva's, Family and Relationships, Health and Living, Stress Management, Weight Loss 2007-04-09T16:32:00+00:00 Mission of this Site http://www.break-through.org/index.php/weblog/mission_of_this_site/ I have eagerly anticipated the launch of this new site.  My vision is for this site to be educational, motivating, and inspiring. My wish is for everyone to experience their birthright to joy, happiness, and health. I hope that this site will encourage each person to recognize their promise, to become aware of their possibilities, and to experience peace and wonderment in their everyday life. News Guess what, that means you too!  Every one of us deserves to live everyday in a life full of fun, joy, laughter, and delight. 

In this web site I will share with you the practical, simple to use tools that has changed my life and the lives of many of my clients. I will share the bumps in the road, the insights, and the feelings of contentment (peace) that is achieved from overcoming what seemed to be overwhelming odds of releasing baggage, pain, and/or fear.

Also, I wish to express my gratitude to my clients.  I want to express my appreciation to them for becoming my teachers, as well as my clients. Thank you for sharing your life with me.

Vickie Griffith

]]> 2005-06-30T18:00:11+00:00 Our Story http://www.break-through.org/index.php/weblog/our_story/ We make choices based on what works for us at the time.  We are an amazingly resilient creation of God.  And, as you’ve heard time and again, God don’t make junk.  So let’s change the stories we tell ourselves and become the strong, powerful, and amazing person we really are. Health and Living What we tell ourselves becomes our story.  Every day.  Every story.  Every person.  If we tell ourselves that we are strong, powerful and that the world is our oyster, then that becomes our story.  If we tell ourselves that we’re a screw-up, that the universe hates us and that we’re just not good enough (whatever that means!), then that becomes our story.

Think of the people you admire and emulate.  Do you think they spend their spare time denigrating themselves or regretting their choices?  I’m guessing your answer is no, they do not.  So, why do you?

We make choices based on what works for us at the time.  We are an amazingly resilient creation of God.  And, as you’ve heard time and again, God don’t make junk.  So let’s change the stories we tell ourselves and become the strong, powerful, and amazing person we really are.

]]> 2010-09-02T21:11:50+00:00 Feelings http://www.break-through.org/index.php/weblog/feelings/ Feelings.  All the self-help gurus tell us to feel our feelings.  If we’ll just do that then we’ll stop overeating, we’ll stop smoking or gambling or shopping or whatever else we’re addicted to doing.  We’ll be able to live in the moment, connect with ourselves, our children and our friends.  We’ll be happy, rich, thin and successful. Health and Living Feelings.  All the self-help gurus tell us to feel our feelings.  If we’ll just do that then we’ll stop overeating, we’ll stop smoking or gambling or shopping or whatever else we’re addicted to doing.  We’ll be able to live in the moment, connect with ourselves, our children and our friends.  We’ll be happy, rich, thin and successful.

But what in the world does it mean to “feel our feelings”.  Is that even possible?  We can feel the soft fur of our dog, the grass under our bare feet and the pint of ice cream in our bellies.  But what about our emotions … our feelings?  How is it even possible to feel something that has no substance? Or could it be that our feelings are nothing but substance? 

In order to feel our feelings we convince ourselves that we have to name them.  Are we angry, sad, frightened, joyous, silly, frustrated, cranky, or what?  Yes.  The answer is yes.  We are all of those things and more.  They don’t have to have a name … a photo ID or address.  We don’t have to go hunting for them … they’ll find us.  Trust me.  Have you ever been watching TV and the main character does something silly or stupid and you find yourself crying?  And you don’t know why?  It’s a sitcom for goodness sakes … no crying allowed.  So we take a deep breathe and start the litany of self talk that shuts down our feelings.  Or maybe we go to the freezer for ice cream.  Or maybe we just turn off the TV.  Whatever we do, we don’t sit quietly and let those feelings bubble up.  Let ourselves cry or laugh or stomp our feet.  Feelings are knocking at our door and we’re just not answering it today. Sorry we’re closed.

“Just for today” is an old Alcoholics Anonymous expression.  It means that just for today I will do something that would be overwhelming if I had to do it for a lifetime.  So, just for today, and maybe just once today, take a moment to answer the door.  Your feelings are knocking.

http://www.break-through.org

]]> 2010-08-31T21:54:13+00:00 Story Telling http://www.break-through.org/index.php/weblog/story_telling/ A bright, starburst flash rolled over me and in that brief glimpse into sanity, I realized that my fantasy conversations were all about trying to inflate my own ego and make myself good enough.  Again, whatever good enough really means.  I was trying to manipulate a conversation that never took place so that I could feel good about myself and consequently make her understand why she was inadequate.  Maybe she would finally understand her erring ways in her relationship with others, namely me.  On the off chance that I would ever meet this person again, I was expecting our dance of shame and anger to change its steps based on a conversation that didn’t happen and in which she didn’t participate. Personal Today I had a conversation with someone I’ve not seen in years.  She was always someone who knew how to push my buttons and it irritated me that she could make me feel like I could never be good enough—whatever good enough was.  But, the conversation I had today was all my head.  A whole conversation complete with a “she said”, then “I said” tennis match of words.

It was like watching a soap opera.  The conversation had a plot and included outrageous tales and fantasy moments and incorporated judgment and consequences.  All of which never happened.  This was not the rehashing of a previous conversation … but a story made of whole cloth and imagination.

A bright, starburst flash rolled over me and in that brief glimpse into sanity, I realized that my fantasy conversations were all about trying to inflate my own ego and make myself good enough.  Again, whatever good enough really means.  I was trying to manipulate a conversation that never took place so that I could feel good about myself and consequently make her understand why she was inadequate.  Maybe she would finally understand her erring ways in her relationship with others, namely me.  On the off chance that I would ever meet this person again, I was expecting our dance of shame and anger to change its steps based on a conversation that didn’t happen and in which she didn’t participate.

Isn’t that one of the definitions of crazy?  So, in my bright flash of sanity, I decided to stop making up stories.  I decided clearly and with commitment that I would stop telling myself stories and having conversations that didn’t take place.  Ah, sanity.  Clearing my mind brought a brief moment of freedom and grace.  A deep breath, and then, WHAM, it started all over again.  I had to tell myself to STOP two more times, followed by my new mantra “Today I live in Joy” before my mind would actually stop its tennis match of made up stories.

My mind eventually became clear enough to find something productive to do.  Like write this story!!  It’s no wonder I used to be so tired at the end of each day … I was spending my energy and productivity making up worthless stories and conversations.  The feeling of being in charge of my thoughts, my actions and my stories is freeing and empowering.  You should try it!!

]]> 2010-08-24T20:05:33+00:00 University of Richmond: I Quit! Stop Smoking Now! October 20, 2010 http://www.break-through.org/index.php/weblog/university_of_richmond_i_quit_stop_smoking_now_october_20_2010/ The power to stop smoking is at your fingertips. Crush your cravings and extinguish your desire to smoke cigarettes with an amazingly simple process. Recent Speeches 2010-08-16T16:27:43+00:00 Worry … Why Wait? … Do it Now! http://www.break-through.org/index.php/weblog/worry_why_wait_do_it_now1/ Free Resources, Health and Living, Stress Management Let’s just suppose for a minute that next week you are going with a group of friends to help build a Habitat for Humanity home.  Your job will be to help hammer some of the framing together.  What would you tell me if I said that you should go ahead and hit your thumb now just in case it happens next week?  You’d laugh and tell me how silly I am, wouldn’t you?  But isn’t that what worry is all about … having your pain in advance?

Winston Churchill was once quoted as saying “When I look back on all the worries I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which never happened”.

How much time are you spending each day having your pain in advance?  Spending your precious time thinking up scenarios and how to handle them just in case, somehow maybe, it actually happened.  Taking time away from the things and people you love, fixating on something other than this one, brief, moment in time.

Don’t misunderstand me, it’s good to be prepared.  But for now, take a deep breath, focus on the moment and realize that nothing, I mean nothing, is worth hurting before you absolutely have to.  And, consider listening to my “Stop Wrestling with Worry” CD to reaffirm your ability to take worry off your plate of things to do.

 

]]> 2010-08-12T18:10:46+00:00 The Magical Moment of Forgiveness http://www.break-through.org/index.php/weblog/the_magical_moment_of_forgiveness/ Family and Relationships, Health and Living, Stress Management As we move through this journey we call life, we hear a lot about the power of forgiveness.  We should forgive those who do us wrong, not because they deserve it but because it hurts the person who holds the anger.  Sometimes we even hear about forgiving ourselves and how important that is to the state of our mental health.

But just for the moment, let’s focus on the power part of the “power of forgiveness”.  As we struggle to create the life we want—free from our issues such as weight, fears, smoking, abuse or trauma—we try to understand how we got here.

We got here because we found a way to cope.  We did what worked … think about the power of that … we did what WORKED.  We were strong and we were powerful.  And that’s a power we can harness to help us today. 

We were strong then, we are strong now.  The power of forgiveness—forgiving ourselves—translates to the power of strength and positive change.  Imagine the unimaginable and then harness the power of forgiveness and take that first step toward positive change.


Vickie Griffith
BreakThrough

]]> 2010-08-05T12:36:25+00:00 A New Definitaion of Success. http://www.break-through.org/index.php/weblog/a_new/ Success … what’s your definition of success?  Do you consider yourself successful?  Does it mean that you have a big house, 2 cars, and 2.5 children in prestigious schools?  Or does it mean that you have a great job, are well-respected in your field, make lots of money and have an awesome wardrobe with a nice selection of Manolo Blahniks?

Or, does it mean that everyday you do something you love … with people you care about … and at the end of each day you can look in the mirror and like the person you see there? 

Each of us has to define success for ourselves.  But our definition shouldn’t be based on how much money we make, the stuff we have in our houses or what we drive.  Instead defining success on how we feel, or what we do to make the world a better place for our friends and family is much more fulfilling.


BreakThrough.org

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