Stress Therapy Classics ~ How I KNOW the Woo Woo is True TRUE!
I have been using the same example for my clients to illustrate why the woo is true for YEARS and finally, in this episode I was put in the very scenario to test out all the woo! Many therapists stay away from woo altogether and I get it, but after all this time, I am using it as a resource for my clients. Why? Because I truly believe that the woo woo is actually true true and today, I will show you how to get it into your life so your life is way better.
In this episode we will: ~All about how getting pulled over changed everything. ~The Method of Manifesting anything: Clear intention+heightened emotion ~How your brain is wired up for the Manifestation Method ~Manifest Just What You Want Meditation
Quotes: “A clear intention of what you want – that’s the picture, with a heightened emotion is the manifestation method. This is the formula to get what you want.” —Cheri Augustine Flake, LCSW
“Your brain thinks that you are thinking about what you want! It looks around in your environment for more of what you’re thinking about…So, what do you want to see?” -Cheri Augustine Flake, LCSW
Interesting Mentions: Cindy Dollar Certified Iyengar Yoga Instructor (Cheri’s retreat yoga teacher!) Heartwood Retreat Center : location for Cheri’s Georgia Mountain Retreats
Ethereal Network of Shows Spotlight Podcast Sense of Soul Podcast with Shanna Vavra Website: https://www.mysenseofsoul.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/Senseofsoul1 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SenseofSoulSOS Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/SenseofSoulSOS TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@senseofsoulpodcast YouTube: https://youtube.com/@senseofsoulpodcast
Meditation Music by Sonic Yogi
Deep Sleep With Singing Bowls
Pythagorean Dream
Listen to Sonic Yogi on: Spotify Apple Music Amazon Music Watch Sonic Yogi’s Ted Talk
Interesting Mentions: Kashi Ashram in Atlanta Georgia Pema Chodron: This Lousy World Heartwood Retreat Center : location for Cheri’s Georgia Mountain Retreats Jekyll Island: Location for Cheri’s seaside retreat
The Host for this podcast: Cheri Augustine Flake, LCSW The Stress Therapist and Author
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A word from your host, Cheri Flake, LCSW: Feeling good after our Stress Therapy session? Awesome. Check out the show notes to connect with me, The Stress Therapist on social media or go to www.iLoveTherapy.com to find out about meditation classes & meditation and yoga retreats.
[00:00] Hey, beautiful people. What’s up? So this podcast is getting picked up by a new tv network. I know. Cool, right? I’m still gonna be here, but I’m taking off here just for a little bit so I can do a lot of recording and have an even better show for you. So today I’m gonna drop you with a stress therapy classic session. So relax and settle in and listen up, because you’re a stress therapy special edition. Classic session session is about to begin right now. Hey, beautiful people. I am practically tripping over myself to get to the little pink treehouse studios, and I don’t even have time to cool this thing off. And it’s in Atlanta, so it is hot outside. No one calls it hot, Lana, by the way, but it’s cooking in here. And I don’t even care because I’m so excited to tell you what happened. I got pulled over. I got pulled over. It finally happened. And if you’re one of my clients, you know what this means. You know that what I’ve been talking about for years. The opportunity finally came up for me to prove that the woo woo is true. True. It’s season six of stress therapy, secrets that this psychotherapist wants you to know. So relax and settle in and listen up, because your stress therapy session is about to begin right now. Hey, beautiful people. It’s time for some stress therapy. A podcast about how to meditate and get better at stress for people living in the real world. Finally, a place to park my 25 plus years of experience of working as a psychotherapist in the mental health field. And now your host, me, the stress therapist sherry flake. Okay, before we get into the thick of it, we’re gonna take a teensy, tiny break. Be right back. Hey, beautiful people. So I’m super excited today to talk to you about a real life situation that finally came to its fruition after I’ve been using it as an example for so many years to explain to my clients why the woo woo is so true. True. And it actually works for you, but you have to practice it. That’s why I say I love affirmations. I love affirmations. Why? Because they work. When do they work? When you actually practice them. You can listen all day long to the beautiful benefits of meditation. But the only people that are going to get the benefits of meditation are the people that meditate. Not the posers, not the people with the beautiful pictures on instagram of them by the beach and flowy outfits. You can take all the pictures you want. You can talk about meditation all day. You can pretend that sewing is your meditation or baking is your meditation or running is your meditation. None of those things are meditation. The only way you’re going to get the benefits of meditation is if you’re actually meditating. Same with using affirmations or manifesting your desires. I know I sound like a nut. I am a nut. Okay? I am a nut. The secret’s out. I’m nutty. I’m nutty. I’m definitely nutty. Screaming in my little pink treehouse studios at the top of my lungs, sweating my *** off because it’s so hot in Atlanta today. It’s a hot summer day, but I’m so excited to talk to you, and I couldn’t wait to get my little pink space all cooled off. And I’m just going to talk to you now because it finally happened. I got pulled over. This is the example that I use for all of my clients to understand the whoo who might not have been exposed to it. I wasn’t. I grew up in a house that was pretty high anxiety. There was a lot of yelling. People were always wondering if someone was mad. Everyone was really demanding of other people’s emotions. It’s kind of cool. If you ask someone in my family how they feel, they will just tell you, which is, like, way different than it is in the south, right? Like, people would just tell you. And it wasn’t always good news, right? So it’s a little high anxiety. I probably went into psych to heal myself, like many of us do. And I was slowly exposed to Wu. I worked for a psychiatrist for years that was very clinically and medically focused, and he was mentoring me in a way that was very concrete and very, you know, scientifically oriented and not with any woo at all. And that story is a trip if I ever write my memoir. I’ve been fired 14 times. I will definitely include that as part of my story. He turned out to be actually super nutty anyway. So many of us go into it to heal ourselves. And so I was open up to it. Maybe with hay house authors. I was exposed to Deepak Chopra and primordial meditation in the early two thousands. And when my said psychiatrist boss finally went to prison, long story, I was on my own to sort of go on my own little woo journey. And, I mean, I made it work for me. And I love my life because I have found that this is true. Joe Dispenza, you know, Louise Hay, even Cheryl Richardson, you know, author after author slowly opened me up to it. And then, of course, meditation opened. I could have never read about or found anywhere else. I really just needed to sit quietly and learn it. And slowly, I was exposed to the idea that you can create your destiny, that you can do this right. And even my husband, who’s a lawyer, and his hands are pink, and he’s a lot different than me. I mean, the guy is so laid back. If he was any more laid back, he’d be in a coma. And even this guy is way open to the idea that you can create your destiny and that whatever you want or what you’re thinking about is lurking in the ether and you can bring it to you. And sometimes when I am well, not even sometimes, like almost every single time, when I explain this to a client that is ready for it, that is sitting in my seat, I use the example of getting pulled over. And I was at the beach last week, and I was driving down there, and I was driving too fast, which is interesting because I’m not really a fast driver. My sister’s like, come on, let’s put the pedal to the metal. She thinks I drive so slow. But anyway, I was mistaken. I thought it was a 65. I was apparently going 70, which is still speeding. And I got pulled over here. It was. I’m 50 years old. I am 50, y’all. I can’t believe it. I feel like the girl on Saturday Night live, Molly Shannon. I am. I’m 50. I’m 50. And all the grad school, all the nutty jobs, all the woo. I mean, the secret, the hay house. I even went on an I can do it cruise with Wayne Dyer and a bunch of those guys. And I’m telling you, it all came together when I got pulled over. So I get pulled over, right? Apparently, I was going through a little Florida town that I didn’t know I was in. I get pulled over by a state trooper, which, as you may know, their reputation is, you know, to be a little bit more stern and wanting you to stick to the rules of the road. So I get pulled over by a state trooper, and this guy is all business. Now, I thought I was going five over, so I was confused why I got pulled over. I immediately thought one of my brake lights was out or there was something. You know, we had some beach chairs on top of the car and a couple of fishing rods on top of the car. I immediately thought, like, something was loose or moving around up there. I got the kids in the back, and they’re giggling and being totally disrespectful. As teenagers are, despite my warnings and my requests. And he walks up to the car, and he’s like. I mean, he is the epitome of stern. I mean, he is right out of a movie. He is not having it, right. He walks up. He’s angry. I was in a 35, okay? So I was going 70 in a 35 zone. That is major, major, major, huge speeding. And he says, did you know you were speeding? He tells me right off the bat, you know, you were going 70 and 35. And he’s got this big, huge contraption with him that I’ve never seen before. And I’m a little scared, right? I haven’t gotten pulled over. I can’t even remember the last time I got pulled over, although I can remember the last time I pulled over. I was in Decatur. I got pulled over by that motorcycle cop. My friends who live in Decatur would totally know the guy that I’m talking about. And he pulled me over, and my cat died that morning, and I told him as such, and he gave me a ticket. Anyway, okay. Anyway, that was before I knew about the woo. You know what I’m saying? That’s before I knew about the woo. And that is where I got the example of using the woo to your advantage. Okay, so back to present time. Last week, I’m in Florida. He tells me I’m going super fast. Then he takes this big, huge machine and puts it on my window. Okay. And tells me that my windows. He actually made me memorize this and repeat it back to him. So it was. My windows are supposed to be in Georgia. Now I’m flying. Flying. That’s so funny. Floridian slept. I’m driving in Florida, right? But my license is in Georgia. And I bought my car in Georgia. I have a 2018 Chevy Traverse. It’s amazing. And my license plate is also amazing. It says sherri, p h e r ap y, which some of my clients call me Sherpie. And he puts this big thing on my car. He tells me that my. And it’s a. It’s apparently a tinted window checker. He tells me that the lower the number, the higher the tint. And he tells me that the front side windows can only be up to 34%. Right. That means that the windows must allow 34% of the light in, and that in Florida, you can even have a darker tint because you must allow more than 28% of the light in, and that my tint is 14%. What? Okay, now, did I know that my windows were super tinted? Yeah. And I was always, like, feeling like a gangster. No one could see him, which was actually kind of nice. And he’s like, I bet sometimes you have to roll down the window at night to see if you can go. I’m like, hmm. Yes, I do. He’s like, this is super dangerous, and it’s a huge ticket, and he is not having it. He’s upset that I’m going so fast, and he is all business. He tells me about the tinting. He has me repeat it. He doesn’t want any nonsense. He’s very, very strict. And I am minding my p’s and Q’s, and he walks back to the car, presumably to write me multiple tickets, because he’s clearly not pleased. He is. His affect is angry, and his demeanor is stern, and he’s not pleased with me. And it makes a lot of sense. I’m breaking a bunch of laws now. Side note, when I bought my car, I bought it in Georgia, and I would assume that they would take care of that and not let me leave with a non regulation car. I mean, come on. But, you know, I did know they were pretty tinted, and I didn’t look into the laws in Georgia, and so I guess the responsibility lies with me now. I’m from Detroit, so I always thought that this rule was because police officers are reluctant to walk up to a car that’s super tinted if they can’t see what’s going on inside the vehicle, which I totally get. That seems scary enough to just have to pull people over in the first place. It sounds like a scary job. So I totally get where this guy is coming from, and I could tell when he was walking up that he was extremely apprehensive. I mean, who knows what I’m doing in there or who I am or what I got or what I’m, you know, packing heat or whatever. I get it. I totally get it. Especially in Florida. I won’t lie. I saw a bunch of guns while I was there that were not concealed. I even saw some guns when we went to go get all you can eat shrimp, man. So it’s a state that’s okay with you being armed, right? So I get where his apprehension comes from, and clearly, I am breaking the law. Let’s talk about that for a second. I am clearly breaking the law, and I am engaging in unsafe behavior, almost reckless driving. I would think a 70 mph in a 35 zone. I mean, that’s kind. That’s really fast. That’s twice the speed limit, man. Did I think that was the speed limit? No, but that doesn’t matter. It’s still reckless driving because it’s a danger to the community. And my windows are far too tinted. What else is going on in my car? I don’t know. Maybe you’re not allowed to have fishing rods on the top. What do I know? So he walks back to the squad car, and I was pretty concerned. I know that the state trooper heard my kids laughing and giggling and goofing off. I know that I admitted to and was breaking the law. I know that state troopers have a reputation of giving out tickets pretty freely, even for something like hanging from the rearview mirror. And I was pretty negative. And when he walked away, I immediately thought of the example that I use for my clients in harnessing the power of thought when you are getting pulled over. I definitely thought of it. But I gotta tell you, I’m gonna be totally honest with you. I was not feeling that. I was scared. I was nervous, and I was. I didn’t have my insurance card with me. I had to quickly look it up online. So I was, like, kind of shaky because I didn’t have the current card with me, and I didn’t know if that was going to be acceptable. And another ticket. And I was kind of negative, y’all. I was, like, kind of thinking this was not going well for me already, right? And he said, I’m going to go back to the car, and I’ll be back in a few minutes. And I was like, okay, he’s just going to write tickets, right? And it was kind of like the school acceptance letter, you know, like, if you get a big, huge letter in the mail, it’s probably a yes. And if it’s really thin and small, it’s probably a no, which is the same thing. I mean, if they’re gone for a while, they’re probably writing up a bunch of tickets. And if they’re only gone for 2 seconds, and maybe they’re going to give you a warning, this guy is gone forever. And I’m in a bad space for some reason. I can’t even muster up my own advice. So what is my advice? Let’s roll back to that. Okay, so let’s say that I have a client who doesn’t think that they have any control over their destiny using their thoughts. What I try to explain to them is, first, let’s talk about your downstairs brain. We’ve done a little bit of anatomy with your brain, and if you haven’t listened to those episodes, that’s fine. Just know this. The part of your brain that I’m going to be talking about right now is the part of your brain that is relatively primitive. It’s from 300,000 years ago. We’re not born with a MacBook 2023 brain, right? We have, like, dos. Remember dos? And then we have, like, Microsoft 2.0 or, like, I had a corona something. I can’t remember what that thing was called. Some kind of word processor, right? And it’s like, piles up and piles up and piles up and all of these. And then you finally get this 2023 MacBook, which is your prefrontal cortex, this beautiful human part of your brain that makes you human. We have reasoning and understanding, and you can make good decisions and pause and have compassion and all of that. And that’s not the part of your brain I’m talking about. I’m talking about the lizard brain, the reactive brain, the part of your brain that handles all of your functions without you having to think about them. Breathing, making white blood cells, things like that. And this part of your brain thinks in pictures, okay? And emotions. It doesn’t have language. That’s a limbic part. We’re talking about the. The downstairs part of your brain. This part of your brain thinks in pictures, so you can kind of think of it like this. A baby, just because they don’t have language doesn’t mean that they don’t think, right? Like, they think in pictures, and they might be crying in their crib and have a picture of their mommy and in their head and wanting their mommy, right? And so your brain. Brain also doesn’t think in negative pictures. So, like, you can’t be like, I don’t want to be alone. Like, that baby wouldn’t have a picture in their head of being alone in the crib with an x through it, right? Your brain doesn’t have x’s through it. It thinks you’re thinking about what you want, right? And it’s a physiological thing from Caveman times. You know, cavemen were not thinking about starving to death. They were thinking about seeing a wild boar, right? And this is why, when you’re pregnant, everybody seems pregnant. When you want a certain car, that car seems to be everywhere now, even though it probably was there just as often as before. But once you start thinking about it, your brain is wired up to think that’s what she wants. And then you start seeing it everywhere. So it’s sort of like how Facebook treats us now, right? We look for a Schwinn on Google, and then we see it all over Facebook. And Facebook somehow knows that we want to be buying a new bike or that we’re in the business of buying a new bike. Your brain is exactly like that. It is wired up to see things and notice things that you want. It thinks you’re thinking about what you want, not what you don’t want. This is imperative. This is why I say this all the time. That’s why it’s so important that you are thinking about what you want, not what you don’t want. Okay? And this has to do with your brain. You know, it’s taking in 400 billion bits per second, which is, you know, beyond our even understanding. That’s like the Super bowl. We can’t even get our heads around that. And your brain is only consciously or unconsciously letting you know about 2000 bits per second, which means you’re only getting one half of 1,000,000th of a percent of what’s going on around you. And all of this is to say that your brain figures out what 2000 bits to give you by monitoring what you are thinking about, assuming that’s what you want and showing it to you in your environment. Right now, one of the cool things about this part of our brain is it doesn’t have language, even though it has emotion and pictures. So we can talk about it and still trick it. So it’s really important that you’re thinking about what you want, not what you don’t want. Because that is what your brain is going to be showing you. It’s going to be validating you that that’s what exists in your world. That’s why positive thinkers tend to be positive, negative thinkers. Negative things are happening. I’m just saying it’s the chicken before the egg. Egg before the chicken. I’m just saying, what if it works? So if you’re doubting whatever I’m saying, it’s not going to work. Okay? But if you think of it like this, let’s say this is what I usually use as an example. Here comes the money shot. Ready? Let’s say that you get pulled over, all right? And maybe it’s by the guy from downtown Decatur on his motorcycle who has a really bad reputation of being a little unkind and giving out tickets willy nilly. Let’s just say that that’s true. I don’t know. And maybe he’s a little unsympathetic to the passing of a pet. Okay, I’m just throwing that in there. But let’s say that you get pulled over, all right? It is important that when he makes the walk back to the car, back to the squad car to check your record, to see if there’s one off for your arrest, to see if you got 20 tickets last week, to see, you know, if you’re just a reckless driver, if you’re a wanted murderer, whatever, while he walks back there, it’s important that even if you believe it to be true, if you’re a person. And I used to say this, and this used to be true for me. And I used to say this all the time when I was a teenager and when I was in college. Every time I get pulled over, I get a ticket. I used to say that. I mean, can you believe that? I mean, I used to say that. Me, positive me. I used to say that. And strangely, that was also true. Every time I got pulled over, I did get a ticket, okay? And you don’t want to be sending off some kind of vibe of your 400 billion bits that this police officer could pick up on, like, I don’t know if you have that going on in your head. Every time I get pulled over, I get a ticket. He might pick up on that. He could interpret it as, this woman reminds me of my mother in law, and I don’t like her, and so I’m gonna get her a date. I have no idea. I’m saying is there’s 400 billion bits you don’t know about. So it’s really important that you harness your 2000 bits as hard as you possibly can for that. Walk back to the squad car. And here is what you do. You can’t be thinking, no ticket, no ticket. No ticket, no ticket. Right? Because that would be. Draw a picture. It would be a picture of a ticket with an x through it. No, no, no, no. See, that doesn’t work. Then your brain thinks you’re thinking about a ticket. It doesn’t see the opposites. It doesn’t see the exits. It associates it with an emotion, not language and a picture. So instead, you need to be thinking, perfect driving record. Perfect driving record. Perfect driving record. Or warning, warning, warning, warning. Or imagine telling someone, I don’t know, maybe your podcast audience. I got off with a warning. It was amazing. I feel great. Muster up the emotion that you want matched up with the picture of what you want. Perfect driving record. Okay? Now, I also tend to use the example of when you’re getting your teeth checked. You know what I’m saying? You always have, like, the dental hygienist will say something like, well, I don’t know. Have the guy look at it. You can’t be thinking, no root canal. No root canal. No cavities. No cavities. Right? You need to think, perfectly healthy teeth. Perfectly healthy teeth. I’m just saying, what if it works? Okay? So this is what I always tell my clients, and I have said this for years, years and years. I bet you I’ve used that example hundreds of times, maybe thousands. I’m not kidding. I use it all the time because I turn myself around. I don’t get pulled over anymore. Now, my little mantra is, I drive around perfectly safely. Police officers are my friend, right? I have different affirmations now, but here I am in Florida, having broken a bunch of driving laws, and this guy’s walking back to the car, and lo and behold, I can’t get positive, man. It’s me, it’s me. It’s sherry D. It’s the stress therapist. And I’m super stressed. I’m like, oh, no. Oh, no. I have all these little stress therapy signs all over my car. And this guy’s about to go write me a bunch of tickets. Oh, my gosh, my kids are cutting up in the back. I’m telling them to knock it off. Andrew says, everybody sit here. Listen, we need to work really hard. He would never say juju, but to send out this, like, positive juju. Come on, everybody do it. Like, that’s all three do. He gets us in line. We do it. We actually do it. We’re sitting there, and I’m telling you, it’s still relatively difficult for me. I’m finding. I’m like, I don’t know, though, dude, that guy’s mad at me. He seemed really mad. And I am an expert at knowing when people are mad at me because of the household that I grew up in, right? I mean, I’m absolutely certain this guy is super mad at me. And still I’m trying to be like, okay, getting off on a warning. Getting off on a warning. And Andrew looks kind of doubtful, too. He’s telling the kids, come on, everybody do it. Everybody do it. Because I’m not just practicing this at work. I’m not just practicing this with my husband, my family. We are manifesters. We are positive thinkers. We teach our kids that your thoughts are in the ether and you can create what you want. What are your 2000 bits gonna be? And lo and behold, you’re not gonna believe it. He comes back. He’s. I mean, he’s gone for like, I’m not kidding you. Like, ten or twelve minutes. He is gone for a long time. He comes back and he looks softer. You know what I’m saying? He looks kinder. I mean, he just looked different, you know? And he walks up and he says something, something. This is your speeding ticket, you know, if you’re going, you know, 35 and a 70, it’s, I think he said $275 plus points or whatever, and whatever my insurance would have. And he says, and I’m going to give you a warning. I’m going to give you a gift on that. He said, so here, this is just a souvenir from having visited Florida. And he actually almost smiles. He doesn’t smile, but he almost smiles. And he hands me that piece of paper. And then I said to him, you are so sweet and kind. Thank you. And he said, what’s that like? He was not having it, okay? And I said, I am just very grateful. And he said, okay. So he gets me back in line. He goes back to the tinting thing. He makes me repeat what I’m supposed to be in Georgia, how it’s supposed to be in Florida, how it’s all wrong. He says, you have 30 days to fix your window tint or you have to pay this ticket. And he gives me a ticket for dollar 115 for darker tint than I am allowed in Florida and in Georgia. And then he says, now, as you’re going along, tell your husband, who wasn’t doing a very good job back there. And he’s like cracking a joke now he’s softening up even more. I could believe it. I couldn’t believe it. I could not believe it. I mean, you guys, I’m not exaggerating. I know I have a tendency to exaggerate. I’m telling you, this is the truth. You can even ask my man and my kids. And he says he wasn’t doing a very good job back there, but as you go along, you’re going to encounter little floridian cities, and it’s going to go 6555-4555-6555-4555-65 you see, it is going to go up and it’s going to go down. Gonna sneak up on you like it did, but you have to pay attention because it’s gonna be like this for the next 30, 40 miles or whatever. And then he says, have a lovely day. And he tips his hat and he leaves. And I’m just saying, what if it works? What if it works? What if it works? My whole thing is, listen to this. There’s this amphitheater in Atlanta. It’s absolutely awesome. You can go see the most amazing bands there. I love this place. It’s called Chastain. Amphitheater. And it is a wonderful place to see a band. I absolutely love it. The sound is. It’s amazing sound. You feel like you’re right up there with the band. It’s one of my favorite places to go see a concert. However, it is outdoors. And I am telling you, on days where there’s a concert at Chastain and there’s a 2% chance of rain, it rains 100% of the time. And it’s because there’s, you know, 8000 people or whatever who are thinking about rain, planning for rain, bringing raincoats, bringing umbrellas. And all of a sudden that 2%, I inevitably, I swear to God, unless it’s 0%, it always turns out to be 100%. And I’m so mad because I’m thinking, y’all, if you could just be thinking about beautiful clear skies, if we could just be thinking about moonlit evenings and beautiful starlit nights, we could get past this together. But my powers are just not big enough to be able to handle all of chastity amphitheater. Okay. I mean, I need some people to get on it with me. So even though I was struggling and it was really hard for me to keep that picture in my head and keep my emotion really positive, I had three other people in the car doing it with me. It was amazing, Zachary. Okay, so why did this happen on this day at this time, finally, after all these years? Is it because I’ve been manifesting it with constantly talking about it to every client and talk and seminar and retreat and podcasts that I’m working on? Maybe. However, get this, this is crazy. Guess what? The day before we left for vacation, which this was on the way to the beach, right? So the very day before all of this went down, the day before I got pulled over, I was driving my boy to the bus stop. We missed the bus. I mean, we literally watched it drive off. Such a bummer. So now we have to drive all the way to school, right? And it’s like, I don’t know, it’s like 20 minutes. It’s kind of far in the morning, right? So we’re driving, we’re late. We already missed the bus. I’m definitely going fast now. I am realizing here that I’m talking about driving fast kind of a lot when I don’t really think of myself as a speeder. May need to rethink that. Okay. I’m just going to shelf that for now. But I realize it. I see it. Okay. The inside is high. You don’t have to send me emails and stuff. I got it. But anyway, I was speeding again. I wasn’t speeding too fast. I was, you know, it’s a 45, I think, or 40. I think it’s 40. And I’m going 50, tops. Definitely not over 50 for sure. So, yes, I’m definitely speeding. And I’m going down this road, and I see a police officer. I see a police officer, and he goes to turn around behind me. I can see him in the rearview mirror. So I tell my boy, oh, my gosh, we’re getting pulled over, right? Because I’m the only one speeding past him. I’m the only one who’s in this big hurry. Well, maybe I’m not the only one in a hurry, but I’m clearly the only one who’s speeding. And I tell my boy, grab my insurance card out of the glove box, which, incidentally, was why I couldn’t find it the next day, right, teenagers. And get it ready. Cause I’m getting pulled over now in my head while this is going down, I’m looking in the rear view mirror. I have slowed down my vehicle. I’m, you know, seeing if he’s turning his lights on. He’s behind us. He’s following us. It’s not looking good. I’m actually visualizing, how am I going to get my car over to the right hand lane? I’m in the left hand lane currently. How can I safely pull over? Where is my insurance card? Can I direct my boy to find it in my glove box? Do I have the right purse? You know, because I switched purses when I pack, as people often do when they go on vacation. Where is my license currently? I’m going through all the things in my head. I’m visualizing pulling over, and he doesn’t turn his lights on. He doesn’t turn them on. Right. So we’re just driving, you know, under the speed limit with all the stuff ready to go, you know, and I got a plan. I didn’t want to get into the right hand lane because I didn’t want to look like I was evading a pullover, which I may or may not have had experience with when I was in high school. And I’m going along and going along and going along, and he’s not turning his lights on, and he’s just, like, driving behind us. And I’m still thinking for, like, an entire two, three, four minutes what it’s going to be like to get pulled over. And the next day, I get pulled over. Are you telling me that’s not related. Come on, it’s all related. It’s in the ether. I created it. What are you creating? What are you creating that you don’t want? What are you creating that you don’t want? What could you be creating that you don’t want? And this is the answer to what could you possibly create that you do want, right? The power is with you. You have the power. What do you want? And I’m telling you, you might think I’m a crazy nutrition, but I’ve news for you, I am a crazy nut because I am living my life with this woo woo. True, true. Allowing my thoughts to create my reality and moving them around and manipulating them to make my life how I want it to be. And I’m just telling you, I am so happy. I am so happy. Am I happy every single day? Nope. Do I have no problems? No. Okay. But I am happy in my marriage. Am I the perfect parent? Oh my God, no. I’m horrible. I make a thousand mistakes a day. Okay, but I mean, in general, this is working for me. It is working for my clients. And the only way that you don’t get the benefits of it is if you don’t do it. I want you to do it and try it and really bring it into a part of your life and make it a part of your everyday living. And I am telling you my little mantra, things have a way of working out perfectly for me. Things have a way of working out perfectly for me. Things have a way of working out perfectly for me. I am telling you, from concert tickets, to parking spots, to finding the right man, to getting my kids in the right school, to whatever. Finding the right little puppy that I’m going to pick up on Sunday. I got to show you guys a picture somehow. I’ll try to put it in the show notes, but whatever it is, you can create it. But not if you’re just talking about it. Not if you’re posing about it. You actually put it into practice. It works. And on my gravestone you can write. I don’t even care. You can write Sherry Oxyflake, she who wondered, what if it works? What if it does? What if it does work? So let’s work on it right now.
[32:57] In a sitting up position. Comfortable, relaxed. Allow your limbs to settle. Allow your shoulders and spine to settle in. Allow your belly to relax and your breath to come and go without you monitoring it or changing it. Alert, but with your eyes closed, take a quick inventory of your beautiful body and see where you might be hanging on a bit go ahead and take control of a breath and breathe into that space. Breathing out, just let it go. Allow yourself to just settle into a sitting position. That’s not strenuous. It’s natural. With your chin level to the ground. And first, empty your lungs. And then take a long, slow, deep breath in your nose. Then breathing out, let it all go out of your mouth. And again, breathe in deeply in your nose. Then let it all go out of your mouth. And take one more deep, relaxing, settling breath in your nose. And as you release that breath out of your mouth, just allow your body to fall into its sitting position in place. And just sort of notice where your breath is. Maybe it seems most prominent near your nostrils or your throat, maybe in your belly or your heart center. Just notice your breath coming and going without changing it, without making it a certain way, like we just did, with deep breaths. Just let it go. Let it go. And now bring your attention to the very top of your head. And just imagine all of the air and space that surrounds the top of your head. Imagine the space that the top of your head takes up in space. And then bring that awareness down to your right hand. And without moving your hand or any of the muscles or fingers or anything in your hand, just notice that space surrounds every finger. The palm, the back of your hand, your wrist. Just acknowledge that space that surrounds your hand. Now bring your attention to the space that your hand takes up in space. It’s taking up space. Just allow your attention to settle on that space. And now, without moving at all, bring your attention to the back of your left knee. And again, notice what’s pressed up against the back of your left knee. If your knee is folded, you know, it might be other skin or clothing up against it. You might be able able to feel the air upon it, just noticing the space surrounding your left knee. And now become aware of the space surrounding your body, as if there is an invisible suit of armor around you that perfectly fits your entire body. Imagine the space between your body, the suit and space. Just imagine the space all around your body. And now allow yourself to acknowledge the space that your beautiful body takes up in space. And now in your mind’s eye, something tangible, something material, something that you want in your life. Maybe it’s really easy to come up with. It’s a thing. It’s a certain kind of vehicle. It’s a luxurious vacation. It’s the perfect job. It’s a relationship that you want. I want you to bring yourself to this place now. I want you to own this thing or go to this country or participate in this experience. Allow yourself to feel exactly what it would feel like to have this thing, to be this person, to do this job, to go to this place, to live in this area and to have this relationship. Just pick one beautiful thing that you want, you truly, truly want, and stay with it. What does it feel like?
[40:01] What are you wearing? Who are you with? Where do you go?
[40:04] What kind of car do you drive? What kind of clothes do you wear?
[40:07] Are you any different? Are you alone or with someone?
[40:11] You might even have a different kind of coffee cup. How is your life different? What does your life look like when you have this thing or this experience or this triumph? Stay with it. Allow the feelings to bubble up in your beautiful heart.
[40:39] Like really, really stick with it.
[40:42] Rather than going to a place of.
[40:44] What it’s like to not have this.
[40:46] Thing, really be conscious of walking this truth right now. What does it feel like? Allow yourself to feel the joy or the anticipation or the excitement or the bliss or the peacefulness or calm or whatever it is. Bring yourself there now and stay with it. Be this thing. Have it, own it, imagine it, and with this clear intention and with this heightened emotion, stay with it and I’ll be back in a few minutes to guide you out. Take a moment to luxuriate in these amazing feelings that you have brought to yourself and imagining what you want coming to its fruition.
[48:04] And if you spaced out during the.
[48:06] Meditation, that’s fine, but right now, bring it back. Stay with it for a few moments more, experiencing the clear intention, what it is that you want. The manifestation method married with heightened emotion, bliss, peace, love, happiness, joy, calm, tranquility, whatever it is. Imagining what your life is like with this thing. Stick with it. Stay with it for just a few moments more, feeling what it feels like. Teach your body what it feels like to actually have this thing, to be this thing, to have this experience, to own this item. And then let it fall away from your awareness. Watch it fall away into the ether, knowing that every time you have those emotions again, your brain is reminded what to look for. Take a long, slow, deep breath in your nose, let it all go out of your mouth, and take another long, slow, deep breath in your nose, letting it all go out of your mouth. Last cleansing, awakening breath, knowing you’re different now in your nose.
[49:37] Out of your mouth.
[49:38] And when you’re ready, you can open your beautiful eyes.
[49:47] I so hope that you get something big, gigantic, wonderful, friendly, happy, meaningful, lovely thing out of this podcast and its message today. Because it is one of the cornerstones of my entire practice, of my way of life, of my way of parenting, of my way of thinking and living. And I want you to have it. I want you to have this. I want you to have this more than anything. It’s the whole reason that I’m doing the podcast. I want you to have this. A way that you can start, because it just seems so big sometimes, is just notice. Notice how you’re thinking. And when you see something in your head and that picture is not what you want, just. Just step on the brakes, slam on the brakes and change the thought to what you want. And at first, you might not believe it. You might not think it’s important. It might be hard to hang on to it. But I’m telling you, willpower is like a muscle. Changing your thoughts is like a muscle. The more you do it, the easier it becomes. And I’m telling you, it works. And if you don’t believe that it works right now, that’s fine, because you don’t have to believe it. You just keep practicing and keep practicing, and soon it’s just like drinking the kool aid, man. You start thinking it and thinking it and thinking it, and one day you will believe it. So don’t get wrapped up into that part. Just follow the direction. See the breaks in your head. Change the thought to what you want and start from there. And if you want to come on a retreat with me, I would love to have you. I have a beautiful retreat in August coming up. It’s over my birthday weekend. I have the lovely Cindy dollar joining us. She is an ayyongar yoga teacher. I mean, she’s also a pharmacist, but it’s like medical school. You have to go to school for, like, eight years to become an Ayengar yoga teacher. It doesn’t matter what surgeries you’ve had or injuries, or if you’ve been doing yoga every day, or if you’ve never done yoga. She is the best teacher. She’s gonna come with us on both these retreats. One is in August in the beautiful Jekyll island, where me and my assistant Shannon have already looked all over the island for the best places to meditate, the best places to do yoga. I mean, there are dolphins and picture opportunities you can’t even imagine. Go to ilovetherapy.com to sign up for that retreat. I got us a beautiful spot right on the beach. The sun rises are amazing. They are breathtaking. And you can come solo and see it as an opportunity to truly retreat. You can bring your family, you can bring your dog. But it’s a nice long weekend in the beautiful Jekyll island, which is right off the coast of Georgia. We also have one in the Georgia mountains, the Blue Ridge Mountains in October. It’s a little bit cooler up there. It’s lovely. There are saunas and hot tubs and beds outside. It’s amazing. There is a beautiful yoga studio there. And Cindy will be with us again to do the Ayangar yoga. And also we will be learning not only exactly what to do when you meditate, but how to keep it up and make it habitual. We even have a section where we have group hypnotherapy. To make meditation habitual again, go to ilovetherapy.com and save your spot there because these retreats are going to fill up and I want you to be with me. It’s going to be so fun and the food is phenomenal. Christina Law provides the personal chef services and she will also have thai massages on the side available to all the retreatants. So go to ilovetherapy.com and sign up there. Save your spot. I can’t wait to have you. And remember, perfect driving record, perfect driving record, perfect driving record. Perfectly healthy teeth, perfectly healthy teeth, amazing parking spots, free cups of coffee, an easy exam, a fun weekend. Start small, win big. I love you. Have a lovely, lovely day. Before I go, I want to tell you about another ethereal network of shows podcast that I think you’re going to love. Hello my soul seeking friends. It’s Shanna, the host of Sense of Soul podcast, enlightening conversations with like minded souls from around the world, sharing their journey of finding their light within, turning pain into purpose, and awakening to their true sense of soul. Now go grab your coffee, open your mind, heart and soul. It’s time to awaken. How y’all feeling after that stress therapy session? Good. Awesome. Check out the show notes to connect with me, the stress therapist on social media, hestress therapist on Instagram and stresstherapy on Twitter. You can always go to ilovetherapy.com to find out about meditation and yoga retreats and other offerings that I have there. If you live in Georgia and you’re ready to be one of my clients, go to my website to find out how you can sign up for a free face to face consultation with me. Me. At the very least, jump on my mailer so you don’t stress or miss one thing. Until next time, have a lovely, lovely day.
