Spirituality and Cancer

When diagnosed with cancer one can begin to loose faith. It can be difficult to believe that there is a higher power that loves us when we a struck with any serious illness. Yet it is our connection with our spiritual life that helps us through the illness and the treatments. It is our belief system that keeps us grounded and able to handle anything that comes our way.

Being angry and denouncing our beliefs is a natural response to any life threatening illness. Staying angry though isolates us and then we define ourselves as the illness that we have. When we get past the anger and forgive ourselves, we find that our spiritual connection is more than a connection between us and our higher power.

Immersing ourselves in our spiritual beliefs is more than a connection to a higher power. There is also the community of people that hold the same beliefs. When that community is there supporting us, we feel better about ourselves and our illness. It also helps us through all the treatments, it also has a positive effect on our healing. It doesn't matter whether the illness is cured, in remission, or the prognosis is that there is only a short time to live, our beliefs help us to have the state of mind of love and compassion. We are then better able to face what the disease brings us, and our loved ones have a support group that will help them through the disease as well.

Even if your beliefs change, there is still the advantage of a community. You may even find that your spirituality becomes stronger. Doctors will treat the body, your beliefs will calm the mind. Positive thoughts especially when there is an illness helps keep the disease from taking over your life. Being involved in your spiritual community takes the mind off the illness and the treatments.

Pain Management and Hypnotherapy

While the Marine Corps saying "Pain is weakness leaving the body" is fine for those that are training hard, it doesn't work for the rest of us. Pain does have a purpose, it lets us know when we have over exerted ourselves. Most of the time taking it easy will alleviate the pain, or maybe a pain medication is what we want.

When there is a new pain, or an increase in a chronic pain, please see a medical professional. Let them find the cause of the pain, and make their recommendations. Then when they have done everything they can do to relieve the pain and the cause of the pain, and there is still pain, do something different to manage the pain you have.

Our bodies are good at reducing the pain we feel on mild pain. Through the use of hypnosis the subconscious can stimulate that ability to reduce pain that is at a higher level. The subconscious is set to regulate the bodies functions, the heart rate, breathing, blood pressure, and other things that we don't think about. It keeps our bodies working while we are asleep and awake. It will stick to what is happening and has been happening. Hypnotherapy gives it something new to do.

While it would be tempting to completely reduce the pain to nothing, it does serve a purpose. The pain reminds us not to over exert ourselves. It does not need to be an incapacitating pain. With the pain at a lower level we are still reminded not to exert ourselves. With hypnotherapy to guide the subconscious to reduce the pain, and using self hypnosis is an effective way to manage pain without the side effects of pain medications.

Pain may be necessary during illness to keep us from causing ourselves more damage, yet it does not need to be extreme. Hypnotherapy is a very gentle way to manage the pain. Pain medication has it's place and still needs the supervision of a doctor to decrease it's use. Even though hypnotherapy is very effective, there may be times that the use of pain medications may be necessary. Integrating your health care gives you more choices, and with more choices comes empowerment.

What is Dream Yoga/IDL?

The previous three posts are examples of Dream Yoga/IDL interviews. There is a lot we can learn from our subconscious mind when we learn how it communicates with us. When we learn to listen to the small, quiet voice of our subconscious we then act in our own best interest and the best interest of those around us.

Our conscious and subconscious mind is like an ice burg. The part that is above the water is like the conscious mind, it's only ten percent of the whole. It's the ten percent that we think of as being in charge; it's the part that makes active decisions on what to do. The other ninety percent that is our subconscious, it's the part that regulates our bodies functions, walking, eating, everything that we do without thinking about it. Our subconscious also is where different aspects of ourselves are. These different aspects of ourselves see the life issues and other problems that we face every day differently than our conscious mind does.

Through the interview process we talk to a different aspect of ourselves that has insight on the life issue, problem, or physical symptom that we are experiencing. When we listen to what we have to say we gain strength, and are able to resolve issues that we thought we impossible. Our minds and bodies are wonderful at keeping us healthy both physically and mentally as long as we listen to them. Dream Yoga/IDL is a very interactive way to explore and listen to our own inner knowledge.

Palm Tree of Despair

I found the interview with the cancer I had very interesting, and freeing. Even though the concerns I had were in a way concerns of the cancer, they were seen from a different perspective. Giving me the freedom to be me.

1) What are three fundamental life issues that you are dealing with now in your life?

1)  Growing a business

2)  Being able to meet my own expectations I have set for myself

3)  Paying for my portion of the bills

2) The cancer or disease I have or had is…. 

A) Cervical Cancer

3) What feelings come up when you think about the cancer or disease?

A) Disappointment

4) If that feeling or feelings had a color, what color would it be?

A) Grey

5)  Imagine that color filling the space in front of you so that it has depth, height, width, and aliveness.  

Now watch that color swirl, congeal, and condense into a shape. Don’t make it take a shape, just watch it and say the first thing that you see or that comes to your mind: An animal? Object? Plant? What? 

A) Palm tree

Now remember how as a child you liked to pretend you were a teacher or a doctor?  It’s easy and fun for you to imagine that you are the _____ and answer some questions I ask, saying the first thing that comes to your mind.  If you wait too long to answer, that’s not the character answering - that’s YOU trying to figure out the right thing to say!

6) (Character,) would you please tell me what you look like and what you are doing?

A) I am tall and slender with a few palm fronds on the top, I’m swaying in the breeze

7) (Character,) What do you like most about yourself? What are your strengths?

A) I am tall and I move to the breeze

8) (Character,) What do you dislike most about yourself? Do you have weaknesses?  What are they?

A) That I am tall and very thin and I could be easily blown over if the wind was strong enough

9) (Character), you are in this person’s life experience, correct?  They created you, right?_____  (Character), what aspect of this person do you represent or most closely personify?

A)  Yes, yes, despair

10) (Character,) if you could be anywhere you wanted to be and take any form you desired, would you change?  If so, how?

A) no

(Continue, answering as the transformed object, if it chose to change.)

11) (Character), how would you score yourself 0-10, in confidence, compassion, wisdom, acceptance, peace of mind, and witnessing?  Why?

Confidence: 4, because I can be blown over

Compassion: 5, I know what it’s like to be swayed easily, yet it’s too easy to forget about taking care of my own needs

Wisdom: 10, I know what I know and I practice what I’ve learned through life

Acceptance: 7, there are parts of my self that I’m not proud of

Inner Peace: 3, There are times when I am very sad about where I’m at in life and what it is that I am doing

Witnessing: 2, I get involved with life to easily, I can’t seem to keep my nose out of other peoples business, and I’m not really helping at all

12) (Character,) if you scored tens in all six of these qualities, would you be different?  If so, how?

A) Yes, I would be stronger, and would be able to use my height as way of watching the world go by.

13) (Character How would ______’s life be different if  he/she naturally scored like you do in all six of these qualities all the time?

A) she wouldn’t be so worried about what goes on around her and what others think about what she says or does, those that approve will stick around, those that don’t like it will drop away, and she will be better for letting them drop away

14) (Character If you could live ______’s life for him/her, how would you live it differently?

A) I would be bolder and stronger, and fearless

15) (Character,) If you could live  ______’s waking life for him/her today, would you handle  ______'s three life issues differently?  If so, how?

A) They wouldn’t be issues because she wouldn’t be worrying about these things, she would know that life will support her

16) (Character,) What three life issues would you focus on if you were in charge of  ______'s life?

1) Writing for fun as well as for business, I wouldn’t worry about it but I would be mindful of them

2) Networking more because that is how she will meet the people that can help her the most

3)  Finding more places to run workshops and seminars

17) (Character,) In what life situations would it be most beneficial for ____ to imagine that  ______ is you and act as you would? 

A) When she gets fearful about what others think, and that writing is like giving birth, it can be painful yet it is beautiful  

18) (Character,) do you do drama?  If not, why not?

A) No, it’s not worth the trouble because it always blows up in your face

19) (Character,) What is your secret for staying out of drama?

A)  By taking a step back and looking at the person or situation from more than one side or angle, when you have a better perspective of a problem the answer becomes clearer even if that answer is to just stand back and do nothing

20) (Character,) Why do you think that you are in ______’s life? 

A) To remind her to stand tall for her ideas and convictions

21) (Character,) How is  ______ most likely to ignore what you are saying to them?

A) By thinking of herself as being small and unimportant, everyone is important and what they say and do is important

22) (Character,) What would you recommend that they do about that?

A) Take a deep breath, say I am Important and I do matter

23) (Dreamer,) What have you heard yourself say?

A) That I am important, that I do matter, and that what I say or do will get rid of the chaff and keep the wheat. I will keep the people that understand me and want my help

24) (Dreamer,) If this experience were a wake-up call from your soul, what do you think it would be saying to you?

A)  Quit sniveling, be strong and tall, and stand your ground

A White Dove to take worries and illness away

Using Integral Deep Listening techniques a disease or physical symptom can be interviewed to find out what that symptom has to say for itself. In this interview a basal cell carcinoma (skin cancer) went from a pink jelly bean to a white dove. The dove had a few things to say about healing the skin cancer.

Interviewing a Physical Symptom

What are three fundamental life issues that you are dealing with now in your life?

A) Health, making time for what I need to do, advertising my business

Choose any physical symptom.  How does it make you feel?

A) Cancer on chin, frustrated

If that feeling had a color, what color would it be?

A) Pink

 Imagine that color filling the space in front of you so that it has depth, height, width, and aliveness.  

Now watch that color swirl, congeal, and condense into a shape. Don’t make it take a shape, just watch it and say the first thing that you see or that comes to your mind: An animal? Object? Plant? What? 

A) Jelly bean

Now remember how as a child you liked to pretend you were a teacher or a doctor?  It’s easy and fun for you to imagine that you are the _____ and answer some questions I ask, saying the first thing that comes to your mind.  If you wait too long to answer, that’s not the character answering - that’s YOU trying to figure out the right thing to say!

Would you please tell me what you look like and what you are doing?

A) I’m a pink jelly bean, I’m small and just hanging out

What do you like most about yourself in this experience? What are your strengths?

A) That I’m small, that I’m always around

What do you dislike most about yourself? Do you have weaknesses?  What are they?

A) That I cause harm, that I don’t go away easily

 (Character), you are in this person’s dream or life experience, correct?  They created you, right?

A) Yes, yes

(Character), what aspect of this person do you represent or most closely personify?

A) Her grief

(Character,) if you could be anywhere you wanted to be and take any form you desired, would you change?  If so, how?

A) Yes, I would become a white dove

(Character), how would you score yourself 0-10, in

Confidence, A) 8, sometimes I can’t fly in the wind

Compassion, A) 7, sometimes I care more about myself than others

Wisdom, A) 3, I am still young, I’ve learned a lot and haven’t had the experiences in life to make them my own

 Acceptance, A) 7, I don’t always accept my short comings or that of the others (what do you mean by others?) people and illnesses

Peace of mind, A) 3, I think too much about what is going on around me

And witnessing?  (And why?)A) 4, I get caught up in what is going on around me

(Character,) if you scored tens in all six of these qualities, would you be different?  If so, how?

A) Yes, I would be able to fly away and take any illness with me, I wouldn’t hurt anyone anymore

How would this person’s life be different if he/she naturally scored high in all six of these qualities all the time?

A) She wouldn’t worry about anything, she wouldn’t have any serious illnesses, she would be happier, and she would do all that she truly wanted to do

If you could live this person’s waking life for him/her, how would you live it differently?

A) I would live without fear

If you could live this person’s waking life for him/her today, would you handle his/her three life issues differently?  If so, how?

A)yes, these life issues aren’t the ones she needs to think about, she will get what she needs including time to do what she wants to do

What three life issues would you focus on if you were in charge of his/her life?

A) letting her fears fly free, and letting them go where they will because they won’t return

In what life situations would it be most beneficial for this person to imagine that they are you and act as you would? 

A) Whenever she feels tied down with worry

Why do you think that you are in this person’s life experience (or dream)? 

A) Because she is worrying that her cancer isn’t healing even though she is doing what will heal the cancer sore

How is this person most likely to ignore what you are saying to them?

A) By forgetting that she has wings

(What can she do to remember to be like you?) To hang a bird in her room, carry a feather around with her

(Dreamer,) what have you heard yourself say?

A) That I need to stop worrying about healing, that I’m doing the right things to get better

(Dreamer,) if this experience were a wake-up call from your soul, what do you think it would be saying to you?

A) To keep doing what I’ve been doing

Integral Deep Listening Interview

What follows is an interview in Integral Deep Listening. It shows how our subconscious mind is sending messages to us, this is a great way to find out what it is trying to tell us. Not only can dreams be interviewed, also physical symptoms, and life issues themselves.

Interviewing a Dream

What are three fundamental life issues that you are dealing with now in your life?

1) Rejection

2) Graduation

3) Business

Tell me a dream you remember.  It can be an old one, a repetitive dream, a nightmare, or one that you sure you understand. 

A) My husband and I are shopping in Mexico. In a shop I find a wooden butterfly, it has iridescent, shiny colors. Unfortunately we can’t afford to buy it. A few years later we are at a gas station that is run by the son of the woman who had made the butterfly. The son has a beautiful blue, sparkly blanket that his mother had made. We go outside next to the gas station to take a picture of the blanket, the son, and me. His mother made the blanket for him to give to me if I ever found him; the son didn’t want to give it to me though. His father told him that is what his mother wanted. He gave the blanket to me.

Why do you think that you had this dream?

A) Not to wait to have the beautiful things in life.

If it were playing at a theater, what name would be on the marquee? 

A) Butterfly Dreams

These are the characters in the dream…

A) My husband, me, the wooden butterfly, the son, his father, the mother, the blanket, the gas station, camera

If one character had something especially important to tell you, which would it be?

A) The wooden butterfly

Now remember how as a child you liked to pretend you were a teacher or a doctor?  It’s easy and fun for you to imagine that you are the _____ and answer some questions I ask, saying the first thing that comes to your mind.  If you wait too long to answer, that’s not the character answering - that’s YOU trying to figure out the right thing to say!

 (Now proceed to interview the character using the steps of the Interviewing process, starting with the question, 

“Would you please tell me what you look like and what you are doing?

A) I am made of wooden slats that are beautifully painted with iridescent and shiny paints in a large variety of colors. Because I’m made of slats I can move quite easily.

What do you like most about yourself in this experience? What are your strengths?

A) That I can move easily and that I am very colorful. That I can move when I need to.

What do you dislike most about yourself? Do you have weaknesses?  What are they?

A) That she didn’t pick me up when she had the chance. No weaknesses.

(Character), what aspect of this person do you represent or most closely personify?

A) Her inner beauty and outer strength.

(Character), you are in this person’s dream or life experience, correct?  They created you, right?

A) Yes, yes

 (Character,) if you could be anywhere you wanted to be and take any form you desired, would you change?  If so, how?

A) no

(Continue, answering as the transformed object, if it chose to change.)

(Character), how would you score yourself 0-10, in

 Confidence, A) 10

Compassion, A) 10

Wisdom, A) 10

Acceptance, A) 10

 Peace of mind, A) 10

and witnessing? A) 10 

(And why?)

(Character,) if you scored tens in all six of these qualities, would you be different?  If so, how?

A) I have already scored 10 in all of them because I have been a part of hr from the beginning.

How would this person’s life be different if he/she naturally scored high in all six of these qualities all the time?

A) She would have more confidence in every part of her life. She would see her own beauty shining out for all to see.

If you could live this person’s waking life for him/her, how would you live it differently?

A) I wouldn’t be afraid to do anything/ I would be out there where everyone could see me.

If you could live this person’s waking life for him/her today, would you handle his/her three life issues differently?  If so, how?

A) Those would not be issues for me. Everyone who meets me would be able to see that I only want to be of service to them when they are ready for my help.

What three life issues would you focus on if you were in charge of his/her life?

A) Putting into practice what she has learned, becoming wiser because of it.

In what life situations would it be most beneficial for this person to imagine that they are you and act as you would? 

A) Whenever she is talking to people, whether in person, on the phone, or on the internet.

Why do you think that you are in this person’s life experience (or dream)? 

A) She has forgotten how beautiful she truly is.

How is this person most likely to ignore what you are saying to them?

A) Because she doesn’t see her own inner beauty

(Dreamer,) what have you heard yourself say?

A) That I am beautiful, that those who meet me will know that I want to be of service and will ask when they are ready, and to quit sweating the small stuff.

(Dreamer,) if this experience were a wake-up call from your soul, what do you think it would be saying to you?

A) To quite worrying about what life will bring me

Introduction

This is a quick introduction of who I am, what my business does, and why I started this business. There is quite a bit of information to be given, yet I will keep it short and expound upon it another time. More details later.

In 2001 I was diagnosed with cervical cancer. I went through surgery and radiation therapy. While I was going through all of the treatments, I had wanted something else other than the medicines that I was given for pain relief and nausea, sometimes the side effects were worse than what I was taking them for. I started meditating using guided imagery to gain some balance in my health care.

I wanted to do more to help others that are going through some of the same treatments that I had gone through. It took some time to find the right school that would give me the training I wanted. I found the Southwest Institute of Healing Arts. I am now a Certified Hypnotherapist, a Life Coach, a certificate of excellence in Integral Deep Listening, and Chinese Shamanism.

I use the tools and techniques that I have learned to help those that have been given a diagnosis of a serious illness and their caregiver to empower their health care and their lives. I help them with pain management, stress management, insomnia, healthy eating, simple exercises, and the emotional needs that come with any long term illness.

My name is Adrianne Snyder, I am a Certified Hypnotherapist, Life Coach. My business is her to empower your life and health care.