How To Feel Good When Mantras & Affirmations Don't Work

Repeating positive mantras throughout the day is a standard recommendation to feel happy and brighten your inner light. But can reciting the affirmations backfire? 

According to some researchers, it can, particularly for those with low-self esteem. Telling yourself, "I am beautiful," when you don't feel that way, can lead to thoughts about how it's just not true. The positive affirmation may actually result in unflattering thoughts about yourself, causing even more sadness — when all you ever wanted was to be happy.

When I was working to change my own mindset, I experienced this very phenomenon. I'd try to think about how lovable I was and then immediately — and grouchily — declare this positive mindset stuff silly.

Before I could truly believe these positive statements, I needed to change a few core behaviors and feelings about myself first.

Here are four ways to feel good about yourself, when positive mantras and affirmations don't work:

1. Practice gratitude.

Make a list of five things you're grateful for. Realizing the blessings already present in your life helps you realize you are worthy of them. Gratitude helps shift thought patterns away from the negative and onto the abundance that surrounds you. Thankfulness is the foundation of a positive mind.

My own life and mindset completely shifted about a year ago when I challenged myself to 30 days of gratitude. Before the challenge, mental lists of what I lacked consumed my mental energy and blinded me to untapped opportunities.

A mind tuned into abundance easily identifies new possibilities. For instance, I don't like where I live, but I am fortunate enough to freelance write full-time, which affords a flexible schedule. With gratitude for my flexible schedule, I began carving out time every day to post inspirational mini-blogs on Instagram and attend yoga teacher training — planting the seeds of a new career.

2. Accept yourself.

Believe that you are perfect just as you are. You don't need to change anything about yourself. Negativity and self-criticism feed off the idea that we are not enough. Believe that you are.

All my life I've been loner. For many years I resisted this, tried to change myself to fit in. But it turns out one of my greatest passions is thinking deeply about life and writing about those thoughts. You can't do that in a crowd.

Many times the things we don't like about ourselves are our greatest gifts. We don't like them because they make us stand out and appear different. But our differences are actually our superpowers.

Only when we accept ourselves for who we are, can we begin to leverage those superpowers and create the life we're meant to live. Once I accepted my preference for hanging out alone, I stopped feeling lonely and was able to fully devote myself to living my passion.

3. Meditate.

Negative beliefs about ourselves are often tied to painful emotions buried deep in the physical body. Meditation helps us clear these blocks, removing the trigger of self-doubt and sadness at the source.

Meditation brought me immense healing after a cancer diagnosis at 27. It wasn't my first dance with grief; my father and sister died a year apart from each other when I was an early teen. Everyone said I was strong in high school after my family died, but nobody said that after cancer. I felt like I was losing my mind.

But in that place of darkness, I learned to meditate, finally sat with a lifetime of accumulated sadness and turned it into light. It was only after fully feeling the pain that it left me for good. Positive thoughts effortlessly radiate from a light-filled body. Sometimes positive thinking has more to do with cleansing the energetic body than shifting thought patterns.

4. Cultivate compassion.

Everybody has rough days. Even if you’re not feeling beautiful or strong or smart at the present moment, that doesn’t mean you are fundamentally flawed. It just means you had a rough day. Be your own best friend. Cheer yourself on even when you’re feeling low. That's compassion in action.

I suffered from depression as a teenager, and was frequently sent to psychiatrists. I grew up thinking that I was deeply flawed. But through meditation and self-acceptance, I realized that just because I was having a tough time, doesn't mean there's something wrong with me.

Sadness is a signal to slow down and inquire within. I am peace and I am OK, even if I don't feel OK in this moment.

Photo Credit: Stocksy

Suzanne Heyn

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-18466/how-to-feel-good-when-mantras-affirmations-dont-work.html

5 Reasons You Need to Take More Risk

Risk is one of those things that’s hard to quantify. Think about it. What exactly does it mean when someone says, “Take more risk.”

I was confused by this as well, until I began to find myself in situations where I had a unique choice to make. It didn’t have to be jumping off a cliff in Mexico or pouring my entire life savings into launching a startup.

It was more a matter of whether to follow the safe, proven route that would prevent me from having to stand out if I failed, or following my instincts about what I felt would be effective and exciting.

Things like wearing neutral business clothes, using company issued marketing materials, and speaking in a communal, non-authoritative way, would be considered safe and even “good enough.” If I branched out with my wardrobe, developed my own presentations based on the observations I made my marketplace, and spoke about my ideas with authority, I would be taking the risk of failure and embarrassment.

Feeling the thrill of the risk, I chose the latter, and it paid off in big ways. It got me noticed by my peers, bosses, and clients, who began to view me as confident, intelligent, and a promising resource to do business with, so my success rate went up.

Since then, I’ve come to see that taking risk has a pattern of benefits that come with it.

1.Risk gets you noticed

Most people will take the easy route, because in general the population lacks self confidence, and taking risk forces you to put yourself out there. You’re not just following the program when it comes to risk. Instead, you’re saying to those around you, “Look at my ideas.”

Because it’s rare for people to take risk, when you do, you’ll get noticed. And when you’re noticed, you’ll be thought of when it comes to advancing at work, or when clients are deciding who to do business with.

2. Risk creates change

It’s easy to get stuck in a rut, and to mindlessly follow the habits you’ve been entrenched in for years. This is true for large organizations, small companies, and individual people alike. So if you want something to change, you’re going to have to do something different. Doing something different is uncomfortable and comes with a sense of the unknown. After all, you haven’t proven it’s effectiveness yet.

But taking this risk of lost time and unproven results, is the only way to create change, so it’s well worth the effort. Even if the initial plan isn’t effective, it will teach you more about what will and will not work, being productive in the end.

3. Risk makes you feel alive

There is a satisfaction to doing everything “right” and pleasing the world around you, but there’s also an undeniable thrill that comes from taking risk. The adrenaline that pumps through your body when you’re doing something in an entirely new way, is worth the risk on it’s own. In fact, I have found myself getting addicted to risk because of this feeling.

4. Risk creates a higher standard

When you begin taking risk and seeing the results it offers, a new standard begins to form in your mind. You are no longer satisfied with just enough, and know that in order to create something of excellence, you will need to go to the next level.

This kind of behavior pushes you or your company forward and sets a new standard. Soon, a new comfort zone is created where risk is the norm, and the rate at which you are working is higher than before.

5. Risk teaches you more about yourself

Because risk is usually an expression of your own ideas, it can teach you a lot about yourself. The more comfortable you are with exploring new abilities within yourself, the more aware you will become of just what lies inside you. And the more success you experience within those areas, the more confident you will become.

Are there downsides to risk? Sure. That’s why it’s called risk. You could put yourself out there in a big way, and fall flat on your face. But what if you don’t? The benefits are worth it. Evaluate where you are and think about where you want to be, and take the risks necessary to get there.

BY TARA SCHILLER

http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/5-reasons-need-take-risk/

Awakening to Life and Love After a Devastating Loss

“The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places.” ~Ernest Hemingway  

For years I cursed spring.

During that time my heart woke to the bitterness of life. In the harsh frost of winter my anguish and the season were one, a climate where I felt safe, cocooned in a blanket of grief, a camouflage that ensconced me from the world outside.

Like grief, winter brings the bitter cold to our life, and those withered months drenched in sorrow tasted natural.

In the time I lingered frozen in my shroud of despair, spring had arrived, with feathered creatures whistling joyous songs while the leaves danced up our driveway. The warmth of the sun was a charlatan, exasperating my pain while seducing me like a stranger to a foreign place.

Welcoming the signs of spring felt like a betrayal of my grief. For years I remained suspended, cursing the seasons, as if they had something to do with my anguish. Spring represented an unwanted gift, and this rebirth offended me. How could life continue when I stood so raw?

Marooned in a well of grief, I felt alone in a world surrounded by people, a place where I was unable to articulate the wound that clutched at my soul.

My attention oscillated with an assault of questions, an endless loop of uncertainty that blemished my heart.

Feeling guilty for being alive when he was gone, for waking each day, even the shame I felt running out of tears depleted me, until nothing but darkness remained. Each day another upheaval when I woke peacefully until the ambiguity dissipated and exposed me to the pain again.

Meeting with other bereaved families and sharing our lives brought the courage I needed to begin functioning again. Slowly a thaw occurred and the bitter cold that once surrounded my heart began to warm.

The heartache that previously consumed me now unfolded into a treasure of memories and the gifts they bring with the passage of time. Gratitude can nourish us when our heart feels empty. Though learning through loss is difficult, it remains powerful.

Embracing this enlightenment and the growth it provided filled me with love and compassion. Through years of grief, love, and self-examination, I began to find myself authentically whole again, and like the new buds of spring, my heart began to open.

Eventually spring’s return blossomed within me and I looked forward to the new beginnings it would bring—perhaps because of the cold, seemingly endless winter, or the accumulation of snow all around us?

But when I happened upon an old journal from twenty years ago, the place where all this grief began, the year our five-year old son died, the fog began to lift.

Finding a quiet room I sat down and began slowly turning the pages, revisiting the season of loss I had endured. Tenderly I stroked the pages acknowledging that despairing period of my life.

As I read, I recalled the brave woman I was, surviving the loss of my child, and I could not help but honor her and the battle she had forged to survive.

For days I continued reading the journal entries, discovering stories that swelled my heart and welled my eyes with tears. Yellowed pages filled with letters and poetry, notes and emotions bringing the words to life again, reminding me of how far I had come.

Entries I had written cursing the seasons stung at my vision, until suddenly aware of the anger I once held with spring, for it was not the season that hurt; the pain that gripped me was witnessing life moving on without me.

It took me years of unraveling to find myself again, and there are still days when I hear his sweet voice in the quiet of my day and know that he is still with me. Learning to step beyond the loss and share the love I had for my son in positive ways became one of my greatest blessings.

Gratefulness is plentiful when we look beyond ourselves and see the beauty that exists in life all around us.

Ryan’s story became a story of love, one of giving to others the way this small child gave to us. Caring for strangers with random acts of kindness began filling the emptiness that once consumed me.

The power connected to giving is immeasurable, and that influence sustained me. Beginning with small acts that kept me anonymous was the tipping point I needed to shift directions.

Paying at a drive through where I remained nameless energized me, and instead of the melancholy I had previously felt, a new kind of optimism emerged.

Solace can be found in that quiet place of grace when you release a kind deed into the universe and let the laws of nature embrace it.

Over twenty years later I was running a race on Ryan’s birthday and aspired to do something special.

Although I was unclear on how I would present it, I went prepared, picking up two $10 gift cards from a local store. This time I needed to step out of my anonymous comfort zone and be present.

After asking permission, I handed the two gift cards to two young siblings there to run the race. The delight alone was a gratification to witness, but this act gave more.

After sharing Ryan’s story, they all thanked me and I returned to my own daughter, both of us beaming.

Within a few minutes the children bashfully approached me, thanking me again and sharing how special they felt. Smiling, I looked up at their mom who stood watching with tears running down her face.

Allowing Ryan to live on in positive ways is a gift I have given away countless times without regret. Connecting ourselves with others makes the world a more loving place.

Although we try and live with a strategy in mind, planning how many children we want or the house we need, within all of this, there is no immunity from loss.

When we realize that material things are fleeting collections of wants and will not sustain us in tragedy, we begin to embrace the little moments of life.

Giving of ourselves is the most valuable offering we can present, shaping the world in a perfect light. A beautiful sunrise, a child’s laughter, even the smile we bring the elderly neighbor when we stop to visit will be the pause that will anchor us if our ship begins to sink.

Woman with raised arms image via Shutterstock

By Tina Zarlenga

http://tinybuddha.com/blog/awakening-to-life-and-love-after-a-devastating-loss/

What Is Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and How Can It Help You?

NLP is an extremely powerful concept used to enhance self development and move towards personal transformation.

 

NLP stands for Neuro-Linguistic Programming. Originally created by Richard Bandler and John Grinder in the 1970s.

 

The unconscious mind is a powerful part of you’ it’s where your thoughts, your behaviors, your thinking, your memories, your habits… your entire model of the world lives from this magical and mystical place! It has taken in every detail of everything you have ever seen, done, heard, smelt, tasted. Isn’t that amazing?

 

NLP therapy and coaching is extremely effective, because rather than just using questioning skills to get you talking about something, other techniques can be used to help you change your behavior and your thinking. This allows you to be released from the negative memories, thoughts or feelings that are holding you back from making progress.

 

There are many names for the techniques used in NLP, however, most of the time the therapist/coach will be creative in how they help you re-wire past detrimental thought patterns and behaviors and help you create new ones. A bit like a car MOT, but instead you are nourishing your mind and body.

==> http://tiny.cc/NLPsecret

 

A little breakdown of what the words mean:

 

Neuro: Each of us has established our own unique mental filtering system for processing the huge amounts of information being absorbed through our senses. All the information we receive on a daily basis through our senses is filtered through our personal conditioning sieve (beliefs, values, etc.). As a result, our perception of what we see, hear, taste or smell is transformed into a unique understanding and experience of the world. A bit like when you make a cake: you throw all the ingredients into a bowl, but how you’ve mixed the cake, the ingredients you put into it and the temperature you bake it at (and even the air it’s subjected to), will all affect how it tastes, looks and smells. No cake is ever exactly the same (well, not if you were to really look closely!). A bit like your own finger prints.

 

Linguistic: We then assign our personal and unique meaning to the information being received from the world around us. We form our second mental map by conveying language to the internal images, sounds and feelings, tastes and smells. As a result, this forms everyday conscious awareness. The information that we receive into our conscious and unconscious mind is then regurgitated back out through our language.

 

Notice when someone is describing a situation to you; the language they use may be very different to the way you’d describe the same situation. We delete, distort and exaggerate when we speak – most of the time without realizing it!

 

Programming: Behaviors, habits and attitudes are formed as a result of the information you take in throughout your life and the influence of those around you. Habits are created through repetition.

 

Your brain creates neural pathways when you do something repetitively such as a new health regime, eating habit, even down to the way you say something.

 

These neural pathways can either be to your advantage or detrimental, resulting in them having a negative impact on your life. The great thing about the mind is that everything you learn can be unlearned too!

 

This is a very light touch insight into programming. Without wanting to confuse you too much, we’ll leave it there!

 

Your mind and your body are connected, and your emotions will always communicate and reveal themselves through your body language and feelings. Sometimes, you are not even consciously aware of how you are expressing yourself. However, 90 percent of our communication is picked up and internalized through our body language. So, you could say something to someone linguistically, but your body language may be saying something completely different! Your body language is the window to the unconscious mind!

==> http://tiny.cc/NLPsecret

 

So, how can NLP help me?

• You find yourself living in, and thinking about the past.
• You constantly procrastinate when you need to complete a project or deadline.
• You feel depressed, sad, upset and you’re not sure why.
• You want your performance to improve at work so you can ask for more money.
• You keep failing at a new health regime, falling off the wagon after a week or month and feel frustrated at yourself.
• You’re stuck in a rut, situation or relationship and don’t know how to get out.
• You lack self confidence which prevents you from speaking up or taking action.
• You’re a sales person and want to get more sales.
• You want to improve mental and physical performance.
• You want to reveal the barriers that keep you locked in position, restraining you from freedom and independence.

These are just a few examples of how NLP can help you. NLP can be applied to pretty much anything where you want to improve how you do something, how you feel and how you think.

==> http://tiny.cc/NLPsecret

by Caroline Rushforth

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-6040/What-Is-NeuroLinguistic-Programming-NLP-and-How-Can-It-Help-You.html

Effective Home Remedies for Ear Infections

An ear infection is most often a bacterial or viral infection that affects the middle ear, the air-filled space behind the eardrum that contains the tiny vibrating bones of the ear. Children are more likely than adults to get ear infections.

Some causes and contributing factors that lead to ear infections are wax buildup, upper respiratory infections, food allergies, environmental allergies, fetal alcohol syndrome, genetics, nutritional deficiencies and internal injuries.

Before antibiotics, parents used home remedies to treat the pain of ear infections. Now, with current concern over antibiotic overuse, many of these remedies are again popular.

It is important to treat an ear infection to prevent complications, including damaging or rupturing the ear drum. Untreated ear infections can also lead to chronic recurrence and can even cause deafness! It is important to consult a doctor, especially if pus in coming out of the ear, but for immediate relief you can try some natural treatments.

Garlic has antimicrobial properties and natural pain relieving qualities, making it highly effective in the treatment of ear infections. There are a few ways to use garlic as a home treatment.

Make garlic oil by cooking two garlic cloves in two tablespoons of sesame oil or mustard oil until it turns blackish. Strain the solution. When it is bearably hot, use two to four drops of this oil in the infected ear as ear drops.

Alternatively, you can also boil two or three fresh garlic cloves in water for five minutes, then crush them and add some salt. Put the mixture in a clean cloth and place it against the affected ear.

Consuming two to three cloves of raw garlic daily also helps speed up the healing process.

Apple Cider Vinegar will help to get rid of the fungus that may be causing the ear infection.

Mix one part apple cider vinegar with an equal amount of water or alcohol. Soak a cotton ball in the solution.

Put the cotton ball in your ear like a plug and leave it for about five minutes.

Remove the cotton ball and lay down on your opposite side to drain the liquid from the ear. Use a hair dryer to dry your ear as much as possible.

If apple cider vinegar is not available, you can use white vinegar. If the cause of the ear infection is in the Eustachian tubes, try gargling with apple cider vinegar.

Salt is probably the most readily available home remedy.

Heat up one cup of salt on a microwave, pan, or double boiler for about three to five minutes.

Put the hot salt inside a thick cloth or sock. Seal the open end with a rubber band or tie a knot.

When it is bearably hot, lay down and put the cloth on the affected ear for 5 to 10 minutes.

Repeat this remedy daily as many times as needed. The heat generated from the sock will help draw out fluid from the ear and relieve swelling and pain.

Olive Oil can easily clear the obstruction.  One of the main causes of an ear infection is wax in the ear catching some fungal or bacterial growth leading to a blockage in the Eustachian tubes.

Warm some olive oil slightly. Put a few drops of the warm oil into the infected ear.

The oil will cause the wax to soften. Remove the infected wax with cotton-tipped swabs. Be careful not to put the swab too far in the ear or you might damage the eardrum.

Onion is a very common ingredient used in cooking. It has medicinal uses too, including for the treatment of an ear infection.

Chop one small onion, put it in a bowl and microwave it for one to two minutes. Allow it to cool and then strain out the onion juice. Put two to three drops of the juice in the infected ear, leave it for sometime and then turn your head to let it drain out of your ear.

You can also bake an onion for half an hour, cut it into halves and put one half in a thick cotton cloth. Place the cloth on the infected ear for five minutes. Wait for 10 minutes and then repeat the process.

Breast milk has natural antibodies that can help speed up the healing process of any kind of ear infection. It will alleviate swelling and discomfort and can get rid of an ear infection within one or two days. This remedy works for both children and adults.

Using a dropper, put a few drops of breast milk into the affected ear.

Repeat the process every few hours as needed.

Breast milk also can be used to treat eye infections, minor cuts and minor burns.

http://organichealth.co/effective-home-remedies-for-ear-infections/

16 Mantras For A Happy, Sustained Weight Loss (And Life)

Seven years ago, I set out on an adventure that radically transformed my life. I took the leap and started my weight loss journey. Over the course of less than a year, I managed to lose 150 pounds.

As anyone will tell you, a weight loss journey isn't exactly painless. It’s one of the most difficult things I’ve done. However, I learned many worthwhile lessons during that time in my life, and I carry them into maintaining 125 pounds of that weight loss these last six years.

I managed to put many of these lessons into short mantras, and use them as constant reminders and motivation when circumstances feel out of my control, when I face resistance and when I inevitably fail at something. They've empowered me empowered me to graduate from college after previously being a high-school dropout of 11 years, to train for marathons, to climb a mountain, to jump out of an airplane, to get remarried and and to transition from a comfortable government job to being my own boss.

At first glance, you’ll notice these mantras aren’t about eating or exercising. Instead, these mantras ought to conjure up a sense of curiosity, abundance, freedom, love, adventure, self-worth and joy — all things necessary for a full life.

Yes, of course you can lose weight without any of these mantras.! But a healthy, sustained weight loss only happens when the attitude and mindset have shifted to match these feelings and experiences.

So here are my 16 mantras, one for every waking hour of the day. Use them as needed.

1. I test the boundaries of my comfort zone and I experience euphoria as a side effect.

2. I don't hide my happiness away from others out of shame, guilt or the need to fit in.

3. I exhibit generosity in the actions I take because I know there's more than enough to go around, and I'm content to share and be a giver.

4. Confidence pushes me into unknown territory and humility carries me when I've stepped a little too far.

5. I have the resiliency to bounce back from every challenge.

6. I see the "shoulds" and "oughts" of life and say, "Yeah, maybe."

7. I trust my inner guidance to find meaning over the rules and release any guilt about not living up to someone else's expectations.

8. There's no authority holding me back from achieving my wildest dreams.

9. I own my life.

10. I embrace new opportunities.

11. I don't seek out perfection in anything; I embrace diversity instead.

12. I never place conditions on my happiness.

13. “Oh well” is a way of life.

14. People can wait.

15. I know the "rules" are a guide, not the song.

16. Today, I hit the jackpot. I will allow myself to feel like the biggest winner.

Do you have your own mantras that guide your day towards healthier choices?

Photo Credit: Shutterstock

by Naomi Teeter

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-18772/16-mantras-for-a-happy-sustained-weight-loss-and-life.html

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Want to take it one step further? Why not try hypnosis for effortless and permanent weight loss? ==> http://tiny.cc/SDweightloss

What is Lucid Dreaming?

http://tiny.cc/1LucidDreaming

Lucid dreaming is the ability to consciously observe and/or control your dreams.

It transforms your inner dream world into a living alternate reality - where everything you see, hear, feel, taste and even smell is as authentic as real life.

Lucidity occurs during altered states of consciousness when you realize you are dreaming - and your brain switches into waking mode inside the dream.

In normal dreams, your self awareness is shut down. That's why they often feel fuzzy and distant. But when lucid, the conscious brain wakes up during sleep.

This is a safe and natural state. It is not anything spooky or paranormal (in fact, out of body experiences are thought to be explained by the lucid dream state). With lucid dreams, you are always asleep in bed.

And if you want to, you can wake yourself up.

But who'd want to do that! When you become lucid, your senses become alive. You can explore the inner workings of your unconscious mind with total freedom.

Want to learn how to lucid dream in just 7 nights? ==>  http://tiny.cc/1LucidDreaming

Is Lucid Dreaming Scientifically Proven?

Tibetan Monks have used dream control for more than a thousand years, in the philosophy of dream yoga.

However, the modern term "lucid dreaming" was not created until the 1800s by the passionate dream researcher Marquis d'Hervey de Saint-Denys.

The concept of lucid dreams became popularized by Celia Green in the 1960s, who pointed out the scientific potential of self awareness in dreams. She was the first to make the link with both REM sleep and false awakenings.

The first scientific evidence of lucid dreaming was produced by the British parapsychologist Keith Hearne in 1975. He did it by catching the pre-determined conscious eye movements from a lucid dreaming volunteer.

A sequence of left-right ocular signals, recorded by Keith Hearne using a Grass polygraph.

Hearne's research slipped under the radar of the mainstream science journals, and it was Stephen LaBerge at Stanford University who became famous for replicating this experiment and formally publishing his findings.

A prolific lucid dreamer himself, LaBerge founded The Lucidity Institute in 1987 to explore the question: what is lucid dreaming? His mission is to research the nature and potential of consciousness in dreams... A riddle that may one day offer considerable advances in our understanding of the human mind.

Can Anyone Learn to Lucid Dream?

Yes, experts believe so. We all have dreams (whether we remember them or not) and so we all have the capacity to become conscious within them.

Children learn to lucid dream intuitively. And certain medications for degenerative conditions like Parkinson's Disease can cause lucid dreams. Age and cognitive ability appear not to factor into the equation.

Having a lucid dream is not actually that hard, once you tap into the right mechanism.

Research shows that everyone will have at least one lucid dream in their lives, just by accident. And to have lucid dreams on demand, all you have to do is get into the habit of recognizing the dreamstate.

There are many ways you can achieve this habitual recognition, such as:

• Meditation - to focus your mind on demand
• Visualization - to enter the lucid dream state from waking
• Reality checks - to produce spontaneous self awareness in dreams
• Dream herbs - to intensify and prolong your dreams
• Dream journaling - to cement dream memories in the waking world
• Mnemonic techniques - to produce spontanous lucidity in dreams

You can practice one or all of these methods during the waking day or just before you fall asleep in order to plant the seed of lucidity. It is up to your unconscious mind to trigger you during sleep.

The first moment of lucidity is the hardest - but this unconscious programming becomes easier over time.

In fact, one study found that committed students of lucid dreaming were able to have their first lucid dream, on average, between 3-21 days.

Your first taste of lucidity will provide all the motivation you'll need to continue your mental training. It is like nothing else you've ever experienced before.

What is Lucid Dreaming Good For?

At first, many people are drawn to lucid dreaming for escapism.

In your virtual reality dream world, you can realistically fly over cities, meet your favorite celebrity in the flesh, or become a ninja assassin. It is way more realistic than day dreaming or playing your favorite video game. It's like it's actually happening to you.

Although the novelty value hardly wears off, you'll soon discover lucid dreaming has many personal growth applications, too:

• Problem solving
• Increasing your creativity
• Facing your fears
• Improving your confidence
• Practicing new skills
• Developing your sense of self
• Exploring your unconscious mind

Lucid dreaming is a powerful psychological tool and an enriching conscious experience.

==> http://tiny.cc/1LucidDreaming

By Rebecca Turner 

http://www.world-of-lucid-dreaming.com/what-is-lucid-dreaming.html