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    Wednesday, April 23, 2008

    Reality or Illusion?

    How does a person know if they’re living in reality, or in an illusion of their reality?

    Many people in today’s society live in a constant state of stress, fear and anxiety. In the United States, anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness affecting 40 million adults, age 18 and older, which represents approximately 18.1% of the US population. In Canada, anxiety disorders are the most common mental health problem reported by the Statistics Canada, Mental Health and Wellbeing community. A survey showed 3.2% of Canadians have social anxiety disorders. Canada’s youth, ages 15 to 24, 6.5% experienced severe anxiety disorders. The report also stated, that these were low estimates because several important anxiety disorders such as Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Obsessive- Compulsive Disorder, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Specific Phobia were not surveyed.

    A person with anxiety will live in a constant state of fear, feeling overwhelmed about today, and stressed over tomorrows outcome. A persons mind living with anxiety is in a constant state of chatter, for hours and hours each and every day. “Did I do that right? What will they think of me? I need to stop at the store and grab some groceries… Pickup the kids, stop at the cleaners, dinners at seven, get home shower & change, I’ll be five minutes late. What do they think I’m made of, I’m so stressed out with everything they want me to work on, and there aren’t enough hours in a day… I just need to get through this week and then I could breath again. I have to get it done this way--maybe I can prove myself, what if it’s wrong? How will I pay the bills next month?" The chatter is constant that goes on and on and on until the person finally falls asleep.

    Then there are some people that live in the past. Unlike but not uncommon for a person to experience both, a person living in the past rehashes memories, triggering emotions of guilt, sorrow, hurt, sadness, anything and everything that brings great pain that they want to relive over and over again. Some may ask why would anyone want to relive the past if it brings great pain? The reason is because reliving the past brings people happiness, a feeling of relief, albeit momentarily, but for that moment the person feels a sense of relief, even though the thought triggered a negative emotion that brought great pain.

    The feeling of relief the person experiences when they relive the past is the ego. Whenever the ego gets what it wants, in this case reliving the past, the ego gets relief that it over powered the Being and gained in strength. The person feels the relief and sensation and interprets the sensation to be the only way to get relief from the pain, so they continue to relive the past in order to feel the sensation of relief over and over again.

    What the person does not realize is, reliving the past is making the persons future very cloudy, because for this person NOW does not exist. This person is busy reliving the past to feel a sensation of relief, so they can get on with the future that is filled with even more fear.

    Reality for this person is an illusion. An illusion filled with emotions, triggered by thoughts of the past.

    Is your reality an illusion?

    Bruno LoGreco a successful Life Coach Toronto
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    Posted by Bruno LoGreco at 8:48 AM
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    5 comments:

    virtual nexus said...

    Good post and interesting statistics.
    Helpful insight too into what goes on when a person lives in the past.
    I guess living in any kind of fantasy world is tiring after a time.

    April 23, 2008 at 3:34 PM
    Bruno LoGreco said...

    It is very tiring, but only if you know you live in that world. I would love to get my hands on statistics about people living in sadness, hurt and guilt. If I ever do I will post them.

    Any bets?

    April 23, 2008 at 9:18 PM
    Bruno LoGreco said...

    Meaning any takers on guessing what the % might be for people living in guilt, sadness and hurt all the time.

    April 24, 2008 at 5:38 AM
    Anonymous said...

    Some people sense they experience perceived illusion or figments of imagination until awakening after death. If you don't believe in reincarnation or a succession of soul lives, then your view will likely differ. No right or wrong answer exists unless you judge and make it so.

    April 28, 2008 at 6:22 AM
    Bruno LoGreco said...

    It really is all about judgement, our perception on life.

    Thanks Liara!

    April 28, 2008 at 4:29 PM

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    Ten Powerful Self-Coaching Tips

    By Bruno LoGreco

    Are you living the life of creativity and happiness that you've always dreamed of, or are you allowing your fears or other outside factors to influence you?

    Following the path that your heart's desires requires courage and might require a shift in attitude. There are several methods you can use to act as your own life coach and start working toward the life you dream of.

    Ideas for self-improvement

    You don't need to change every aspect of your life at once in order to improve your attitude and outlook on life. Self-improvement can feel daunting if you try to change everything at once.

    A good way to embark on your journey of self-coaching is to make one change and see what kind of impact it has upon your life. The following tips are designed to help you improve your life and become your own life coach. Try out one of the following tips at a time to positively impact your attitude and daily life.

    1. Find some ‘you' time. Everyone needs time alone to meditate and recharge. You may think you don't have extra time in your day. Start with 10-20 minutes to use for meditation or silent reflection.

    2. Ask yourself what you truly want in life. Are you living your life according to your true dreams and desires? You may be unaware of your desires that lie hidden beneath your surface needs and wants, so take the time to find out.

    3. Write everything down. Even if your thought seems silly, write it down! You may be surprised by the inspiration and ideas you can come up with.

    4. Journal daily, but with a twist. Instead of just writing about today, try writing about yesterday.

    5. Keep track of the "happy moments." Each day has potential for many small moments that bring joy and happiness. If you don't make a special note of them, you may not even recognize the small joys in your day.

    6. Choose one task each night to complete the next day. This way, you have focus, and you accomplish at least one task. Tasking and taxing yourself with effort is important in reaching goals.

    7. Smile when you wake up. Smiling is contagious. By smiling you improve your mood and can potentially improve someone else's day as well.

    8. Give thanks each night. Gratitude will improve your outlook on life and help you see all the good and wonderful moments of your day.

    9. Try something new. A new experience fuels creativity and your enjoyment of the day.

    10. Create at least one memorable moment each day. Make each day unforgettable, even if in a small way!

    Taking the next step with a life coach

    Self-coaching tips are great ideas for helping you improve your life. However, you can take your life to the next level with a life coach and mentor. A professional life coach can help you set goals and help you move forward with your dreams. If you're looking for the right path toward happiness, a life coach can help you discover the path your heart truly desires.

    Want to learn more about self-improvement? Bruno LoGreco is a Life Coach Toronto and mentor. Visit BrunoLoGreco.com and find out how to unleash your potential for success and happiness.

    The Success Indicators on Your Life Path

    Many people seek out a particular goal in their life path and are content when they achieve it. The chance to broaden their horizons or learn new things within an existent structure is not as appealing to them as it is to some others. This is an issue that arises in many individuals because they mistakenly think they have achieved what they wanted to in their lives. The plethora of environmental noise around them begins to infringe upon their goals and forces them to lose sight of what they truly wanted.

    A good way to think of this problem is to envision a large square box. This is not just any box though. Rather, in this case, your box has been divided into three separate, but equally shaped rectangular boxes, all stacked on top of one another. Each of these rectangular boxes is a highly important expression of your life goals -- individual levels of success. Within each of these levels of success is an indicator that tells you how close you are to becoming successful in this area of your life.

    Every area of your life that you identify as a potential path for success can be further divided, containing the many different events and obstacles you will encounter as you strive to reach your goals. Think of each sector of your life as being divided even further, with three new sections within one of the three stacked boxes (sectors). Within each stacked box are three separate sections, divided by dotted lines that make up the life path you will follow. These dotted lines are not the same as the solid lines dividing the sectors -- they are a path that you have envisioned since childhood -- a series of goals and pathways to success that you want to follow.

    As young people, these life paths may not be fully formed. Or they might be crystal clear in our minds--long, straight life paths from the early days of college and adult living to the ultimate goal of success that you have always strived for. You can see exactly what you need to do to reach each success indicator and achieve what you have set out to accomplish. And you probably did just this. After all, your goals as a youth were to be successful in the same way that you saw thousands of others live their lives. You wanted to reach your success indicators and experience the measure of success by which you would measure you life for decades to come.

    However, nothing is ever as simple as we envision it during youth. There are countless factors that interfere with your ability to clearly see those success indicators and life paths to success. These factors, or "Environmental Noise," can be detrimental to even the most focused of individuals. Think of what would happen if you dumped the contents of downtown New York into your box and tried to maintain your focus on those goals. Would you even be able to see your life path anymore?

    Everyone must travel their life path with environmental noise inundating them from all sides. It begins to become cloudy. The dotted lines, our life paths, begin to look like the straight lines and the success indicators start to be confused with any number of different distractions.

    And then something will happen and you will realize that you are in fact nowhere near the original success indicators you set for yourself. Everything has changed and yet you are stuck in a way. You are deep within the center of the middle rectangular box and you have no idea which way to go or how to get back on track. The noise only grows louder and you grow dizzy trying to regain your focus.

    It is in this instant that you must clear the noise and return to the basic, almost instinctive mode of thought you experienced as a child. What did you want from life? Where did you want to go? What do you need to get to that point? What was my life path? All of these questions must be asked without the distractions of the world around you muddying up your thought process. When you can revert to a very simple perspective of the world and only spend time thinking of what you want from life, you can be that much more successful.

    You can succeed in life despite the environmental noise, cruising down your life paths and moving through your rectangles with ease, but oftentimes you need a helping hand to clear away the noise and look at life with fresh eyes. There is nothing wrong with asking for help to weed out these distractions and remove the clutter from your life sectors with a professional life coach.

    Is your life path inundated with environmental noise? Learn how you can lift the noise and begin reestablishing your success indicators today. Visit www.brunologreco.com a Life Coach Toronto today.

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    Top 10 Benefits to Journaling

    By Bruno Logreco

    There are countless reasons to maintaining a journal. The top ten benefits of journaling may differ from person to person. However, there seems to be general themes that are attractive in the collective unconscious. Many people are looking to daily entries of their personal experiences to reap some of the following rewards.

    Maintaining a journal is a natural way to exercise the brain. People who make regular entries are taking time to develop writing and communication skills that are very valuable in everyday interactions. This mental exercise also helps to allow your thoughts to flow freely.

    Creativity is a second benefit to consider. This is an important aspect of journaling. The right hemisphere of the brain is associated with visual, imaginative and intuitive facets of thought. When you take time to write, you free the right hemisphere. The ideal entry will be one that puts the inner editor on hold. Thoughts and ideas should flow freely and naturally.

    The uninhibited nature of this form of writing serves a third benefit of developing self awareness. People often create different faces to meet various circumstances. We tend to recreate in distinct situations including the work environment, the community and even when at home.

    The process of keeping a journal helps you recognize the various aspects of your unique personality. The growing self awareness is a powerful force that can lead to even greater benefits in the future. Gaining insight into the self is among the most important aspects to maintaining a journal.

    The fourth benefit is the ability to set priorities. Once you get a grasp on the thoughts and emotions that are filtered through your personal experience, you begin to gain control of them. The process eventually leads to a greater understanding of what is and what is not important.

    The ability to re-see the past is another great benefit of keeping a journal. The pages can be revisited with a fresh perspective. It can be very surprising how much your understanding of an event changes over a relatively short period of time. Some writers find great moments of epiphany when rethinking and rereading entries.

    Journaling is a fantastic problem-solving resource. The approach of using entries to come up with various solutions to troubles is a little different than approaches for self awareness and growth. Many people choose temporary brainstorming techniques that serve to give viable solutions to problems.

    The seventh benefit of journaling is variety. You can choose what kind of entries you want to make. Common choices include brainstorming sessions, automatic writing and reflective notes. Personal journal entries can be made upon inspiration, when you first wake or right before you fall asleep. Some choose to do a combination of these.

    Purging is the eighth benefit to this practice. Many people find it helpful to place negative thoughts and feelings down on paper. Once the negative energy is placed on the page, they are free to let it go. This practice also works well when dealing with anger towards another individual. Purge the negativity and work towards a constructive approach.

    The ability to communicate with others is another benefit of keeping a journal. Those who work with life coaches can find a wealth of resources for sessions. Journaling can help you tap into your fears and dreams, helping your coach gain insight through entries that you choose to share.

    The tenth benefit is improvement in your overall health. Journaling reduces stress. It provides time for you to meditate. The process helps to make the positive forces in your life surface and it helps to bring the harmful elements into light. The result of personal journaling is a new perspective on how you can take control of many aspects of your life.

    Want to learn how online journaling can help you reach goals and problem solve? Learn more about life coach Toronto at brunologreco.com and journaling at iijournal.

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