Marian Buck Murray

EFT and IFS for Sensitive, Creative People. Empower yourself self-compassion and deep understanding.

8 Ways to Find Focus Amidst Chaos

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Lately, I’ve had a hard time staying focused.  With the recent back-to-back hurricanes, fires out west, Mexican earthquakes, ongoing political unrest, global tragedies,  and racial disparity, I’ve found myself dipping more and more into my NY Times app, and social media, for continual updates.

There’s a lot going on in the world.  And, it’s September.  Time to get back to work and back into focus. 

If only it were that easy. 

No matter where you find the chaos, whether it’s in the outside world, inside your home, or within your mind, it can be hard to focus when chaos is all around you. 

I’m a sensitive person, and I often find it very difficult to tune out the chaos.  The sensitive part of me just loves to dive in to fix things.  (Or at least imagine fixing things.)

I have to be quite vigilant with myself, especially during times of chaos and transition, in order to stay on track and focused.  Here some of the techniques I use myself, and which I  share with my clients.

Meditate:  Meditation helps to discipline your mind.  As little as 5 minutes a day, consistently, will help you develop a sense of centered focus.  This is a place you can return to over and over again.  I start each day with either a 20-minute, or hour-long meditation. When I miss a day, I feel off center.  It’s that simple.

Schedule Your Media Visits – Turn off distracting notifications on your cell phone and computer and close your email reader.  Decide upon specific times to look at news, social media, and anything else that pulls you down the rabbit hole.  It’s amazing how easy it is to focus without all those continual electronic interruptions.

Try Focus@will  — I love this service.  Focus@will offers a variety of musical choices designed to help keep you on track.  I listen to it when I write, and when I’m in creation mode.  It really helps. (In fact, I’m listening right now.)  Click here for more info. 

Take breaks –  Take regular breaks to flush out your mind.  Even a 5 minute break can work wonders.  Use this time to take a walk, sit quietly, breathe, dance, stretch, sing, create, or meditate.  This will help you clear your mind from overwhelm, allowing it to focus much more easily.

Set Boundaries –  Set boundaries for yourself.  If you’re a sensitive person like I am, boundaries are absolutely crucial.  It can feel hard to create boundaries, especially if you’re sensitive, but it’s essential for finding focus.  Your boundaries might include: regularly scheduled alone-time, saying no to countless volunteer jobs, clearly communicating how you expect to be treated, and limiting your time around people who drain you.  Setting clear boundaries can be one of the most rejuvenating things you’ll ever do for yourself.

Try EFT Tapping – At the start of a session with some of my clients, we frequently do a round or two of tapping just to help focus the mind.   Tapping will help you clear the fog of an overactive mind, and bring you back into your body. If you’re familiar with the tapping points, tap a few rounds to release distractions, and help yourself feel grounded and centered before you work.  Here’s a diagram of the tapping points. To learn more about EFT Tapping, contact me.

Use Creative Visualization – Just the act of using your mind to visualize something will help bring you into focus.  If, for example, you’d like to focus on a project or task, first visualize it.  Visualize how you would like the experience to unfold.  See yourself as focused, and enjoying your work.  Do this visualization for 2-5 minutes.  Then, start your work.

Use Your Breath – Most times when we’re distracted, we’re actually dissociated, or in a mindless state. This is a perfect time to use deep breathing to help you come back into your body.  As you’re breathing, close your eyes, and watch your breath. Consciously send your breath to all parts of your body.  Allow your breath to bring you back to the present moment, where focus resides.

Let me know how these techniques work for you.  I’d love to know!

In Courage,

Marian

 

 

 

13 Tips to Release Anxiety

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So many people I know are dealing with anxiety right now.  I’m hearing about it from my clients.  From friends and family.  And from myself as well!

Anxiety is something I know a lot about.  It used to be my constant companion. 

But gradually, with the help of numerous mind-body techniques, I was able to let go, nearly completely, of all anxiety. What a miraculous relief!

Lately, though, anxiety has been cropping up for me again.  It could be the ever-changing political climate.  Could be the numerous disruptions and changes I’ve had to navigate during the last year. Could be a lot of things.

The problem is, I DON’T have time for anxiety!  Who does? 

Anxiety gets in the way of my work, my dreams, my creativity, my natural optimism, my happiness…my life!

Fortunately, I now have a wealth of tools to clear anxiety, almost immediately. So, unlike years ago, when anxiety was my constant companion, I can now easily release, relax, and let it go.  Feels so good!

Here are some of my favorite anxiety-busters: 

Deep Breathing – Deep breathing, from the abdomen, stimulates the vagus nerve.  When you stimulate the vagus nerve, you stimulate the relaxation response.

Meditation  –  Meditation allows you to drop into deeper brain frequencies and relaxation.  It is an effective way to observe your discomfort from a place of detachment. Connecting with your higher self, while observing anxiety, helps to diminish it.  Meditate in silence, or try a guided meditation.  If you’re new to meditation, start with 5-10 minutes and gradually increase the time.  For a huge variety of free meditations, check out the app: Insight Timer.

Self-Massage – Self-massage is a quick, powerful way to release pent-up anxiety and tension.  Give yourself a quick foot massage, a neck and shoulder massage, a hip massage, a lower back massage,  an arm and hand massage.  Massage wherever you can reach, wherever you feel tense.  It’s amazing how powerful just a few moments of self-massage can be!

Tulsi Tea –  Mmmm.  Tulsi tea is one of my favorites!  In fact, as I write this, I’m sipping a cup of Organic India’s Sweet Rose Tulsi.  Tulsi tea helps calm jitters, and balance cortisol, the major stress hormone.

Eat Green—Green veggies and green juices contain alkalizing minerals which help ground and calm the nervous system.  Find your favorite, easiest way of eating greens, and eat plenty of them.  Greens are absolutely essential, especially during times of stress.

Heart Breath –  The heart breath will help you drop out of an anxious mind, into the peace of your heart. To use the Heart Breath, first take 3-4 deep breaths, bringing your breath down into your abdomen.  Next, bring your breath up into your heart, and imagine that you are breathing in and out of your heart. Deeply, and slowly.  Breathe this way for 1-5 minutes (or more!)  Notice how it makes you feel.

EFT Tapping – Ahh, EFT Tapping.  Again, one of my favorites.  (no bias here!)  EFT Tapping helps balance and reduce the stress hormone cortisol.  It’s a very effective tool for releasing anxiety and panic.  The fastest way to use it is to use the fingertips of one hand to tap on the karate chop point of your other hand.  The karate chop point is the fleshy part of your hand between your pinky and your wrist.  Breathe deeply and slowly as you tap.  For more info about all of the tapping points, click here.  If you’d like to learn how to use EFT to relieve anxiety, contact me.

Affirmations – I’ve been using affirmations for a while now, and I LOVE them!  I’ve created a number of affirmations for a variety of my goals and desires.  So, when I’m feeling anxious or worried, I switch to a positive affirmation to counter my worry. Then, I repeat the affirmation over and over. The more I practice this technique, the more immediate the results.

Yoga – Yoga is a fabulous practice to release the tension, anxiety, and fear that gets tapped within the body.  If yoga is right for you, find the yoga practice that’s right for you.  If you can’t find a class near you, try an online program.  Gaia.com has a beautiful selection of yoga teachers and classes.

Gratitude List – Sometimes when we feel anxious, it’s because we feel we’re lacking something we need.  Cultivate a daily gratitude practice which helps you acknowledge all the good in your life.  This sense of gratitude will help you shift out of anxiety.

Creative Visualization — Similar to an affirmation, a positive visualization will help you feel more optimistic.  If you’re new to visualization, start with simple visions, within the realm of possibility.

First, decide what you’d like to see. What would improve your situation? Next, close your eyes, breathe deeply, and bring your vision to mind.  Allow the vision to appear in whatever way is best for you.  Don’t force it.  By allowing yourself to step into a new, better-feeling, possibility,  you’ll help yourself feel better, and you’ll show your subconscious mind what to create for you.

Brain Wave Entrainment:  Brainwave entrainment uses pulsing sounds, lights, or electromagnetic fields to stimulate the brain to fall into deeper, more peaceful, brainwave frequencies.  This is a very effective technique, and numerous products are available online, and as MP3 downloads.  Because these products are powerful, it’s important to purchase them from a trusted source, and to do your own research on the effects of brain wave entrainment.

Some of my favorite sources include: 

The Monoe Institute at:  https://www.monroeinstitute.org,

Jeffrey Gignac at:  https://jeffreygignac.com/,  

and Binaural Beats Meditation at: https://www.binauralbeatsmeditation.com.

Let go of Caffeine – Last, and certainly not least, let go of Caffeine!  Limit or omit it.  Caffeine stimulates the adrenal glands, and therefore your stress hormones.  If you need an energy boost, try a green drink, or a glass of water with lemon.

Life’s too precious to waste it on anxiety!

In Courage,

Marian

 

To Apply for a FREE 30-Minute Unleash Your Courage Call, click here.

What is Matrix Reimprinting?

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I love Matrix Reimprinting!  I love experiencing it as a client, and I LOVE sharing it with my clients.  My clients are amazed at the power of this work to help them quickly resolve long-standing triggers and beliefs.  They’re thrilled with the increased feelings of love, joy, creativity, courage, and support that are created during a Matrix Reimprinting session. 

Matrix Reimprinting adds a whole new dimension to EFT Tapping.  It’s a powerful, experiential process which uses both EFT Tapping and creative visualization to transform disempowering beliefs and feelings. It’s a safe and gentle process, where you connect with younger parts of yourself at the times when your limiting beliefs were originally created. 

Karl Dawson, creator of the Matrix Reimprinting Method, named our younger selves, our ECHOs — or, Energetic Consciousness Holograms. These ECHOs hold memories, emotions, and beliefs, formed during life’s traumatic and painful events. When gently approached with EFT Tapping, our ECHOs will give us the gems of information that empower us to transform our lives.

In a nutshell, here’s how it works: (This work is best done with a certified practitioner)

We start with a persistent feeling or belief. Using EFT Tapping to connect more deeply within, we allow this feeling to lead us back to an earlier, younger time, where we felt this same feeling and belief.  (The subconscious knows how to do this, it’s not something the head has to figure out.)

We connect with our younger self (ECHO), taking the role as our current self to talk to our younger self. We talk to the ECHO in order to find out how she/he is feeling and thinking.  We use EFT Tapping to help the ECHO feel better — allowing them to feel calmer and more relaxed.  (This really works.)

Next, we assist the ECHO in making choices and decisions to resolve their situation. This can include bringing in helpful resources such as people, characters, natural elements, angels, etc.  We assist the ECHO in creating a scene where he/she feels empowered, supported, and loved.   It is this process that enables the ECHO to let go of limiting, negative beliefs. (This part is simply awe-inspiring.)

Once the ECHO has attained the desired feelings and beliefs, we imprint the scene by using a special energetic process.  This allows for the new scene to be imprinted in the subconscious mind.  This process can be used to imprint desirable scenes in both the past and in the future.  (This enables us to envision our lives in completely new ways.)

In Matrix Reimprinting we do not attempt to deny factual events, rather we resolve the feelings and beliefs that have been left frozen in time. 

This powerful process enables us to cultivate desirable feelings such as love, success, creativity, compassion, forgiveness, courage, and power.  It allows us to replace negative beliefs with positive beliefs. These feelings and beliefs, along with the visual scenes, are imprinted into our subconscious, and into the matrix, making them accessible for continued self-empowerment.

I would love to talk to you about Matrix Reimprinting, and how it can help you resolve your limiting patterns and beliefs.

Contact me to learn more. 

Click here for more information.

Step into the Matrix.  You’ll be amazed at the wisdom and beauty you’ll find there!

In Courage,

Marian

 

 

Conquer Self Doubt

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Sylvia Plath once said, “The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.”

A lot of truth in that statement, for how can we create anything if we’re mired in self-doubt?

Self-doubt is the irritating low-vibration undercurrent that can grab ahold when you’re doing your work, or venturing into something new. It defeats us before we even start.  When given the power, self-doubt can weaken, diminish, and even attempt to extinguish our hearts desires.

What’s worse, is that most times, instead of questioning it, we believe it. We believe that we’re just not good enough, smart enough, powerful enough, diligent enough to do whatever it is our heart is longing for. 

The good news is, we CAN do something about it. We can do simple things that help us move into a place of confidence and trust.

Learning to  count on yourself is one of the most important things you’ll ever do.

Here are some suggestions:

Create a new habit which will benefit you in some way.  Start small.  For example, get up 20 minutes earlier. Meditate at the same each day. Drink water at regular intervals throughout the day. Schedule a specific time to go through your emails.  You get the drift.  Creating a new habit is about showing up for yourself with consistency. The more consistent you are with following through, the more trust and confidence you’ll have in yourself.

Expand your competence.  When we’re mired in self-doubt we’re often steeped in the belief that we’re incompetent in some way. For the areas in your life you’d like to improve, dive in a little deeper. Learn more, practice more, keep at it. Little by little your competence will grow. For areas where you’re already competent, dive even deeper. The more you grow your competence, the more confident and self-assured you’ll feel.  You’ll realize that it truly is within your power to make the changes you desire.

Ask for guidance. Confide in a trusted friend or mentor. Discuss what you’d like to achieve if it weren’t for your self-doubt. Gather honest input your strengths and weaknesses.  The more knowledge you have, the more power you’ll have to move yourself forward.  The more you practice reaching out for input, the freer and more confident you’ll feel in sharing your ideas.

Use your imagination to see what you want. When we’re swimming in self-doubt, we’re usually imagining exactly what we don’t want. Instead, use creative visualization to see yourself experiencing what you desire. Imagine how it feels, and what you are doing. Really get into the scene, and see it going well for you. Doing this will help you increase your sense of confidence.  It will also facilitate your creative process, and the flow of ideas.

Use EFT Tapping.  EFT Tapping can help clear negative feelings of self doubt, and it can also help you boost positive feelings of confidence. Walking around with a continual undercurrent of self-doubt will only serve to drag you down further. EFT Tapping is quick, powerful, and easy to learn.  Contact me to learn about using EFT Tapping to conquer self doubt.

In Courage,

Marian

To apply for a free 30-Minute Unleash Your Creative Genius Call, click here.