When your partner does not care to find their inner bliss, what should you do? Keep reading to learn more. In general, It is often easier to explore your spirituality when you are single. When a person is single their time is their own. It seldom matters how much of your free time is taken for meditation, yoga classes, or retreats. Single people also have the freedom to decorate in any style they desire, and that includes objects which speak to their spiritual soul, like a Buddha figure or gemstones.
The single life is wonderful for many people. There is nothing wrong with being single and loving it, if that is the direction you have chosen for your life. For those who are not single though, negotiating time and energy for spiritual discovery can be a difficult thing, especially when your partner has no interest in finding or changing their own spiritual path. What should you do? Do you force your partner to learn with you? Do you give them gifts of books on what you are studying? Respect It is very important that you do not try to force your personal views and beliefs onto you partner. Do not berate them for their choices, or act superior because you have decided to explore a new avenue of belief and learning. Do not add spiritual objects to your home with a total disregard of your partners personal space. Your partner is on their own path, just as you are, and both of you have to focus on your own individual journeys. For most couples, this will be a difficult time. The transition in thinking, the emotions, and the excitement of learning can be overwhelming for the partner who is, for lack of a better term “left behind.” Find Balance The method for dealing with this period, is to work on finding balance. For the person who is exploring their spiritual path and the person who is not. If you learn something new that you want to share with your partner, do it lovingly and gently without forcing your beliefs onto them. Don't Do This You have just taken a class on Chakras. You are excited and want to share all that you have learned with your partner. In your excitement you buy a collection of gemstones which relate to the Chakras. You insist on giving your partner “their” stone. This is a gemstone that you have picked for them. You are certain it is theirs because you are convinced a certain Chakra point in them needs to be "fixed." You then thrust this stone into their hand, and insist that they have this “problem”. Without giving them a chance to speak you then describe in detail to them all of their “issues”. You then order them to carry the gemstone with them at all times. Do This Instead You have just taken a class on Chakras. You are excited and want to share all that you have learned with your partner. In your excitement you buy a collection of gemstones which relate to the Chakras. You really want to share what you have learned with your partner, but you recognize that they may not be receptive to what you have just learned. You love your partner very much and although you want to share your new knowledge right away, you decide to find a beautiful bowl to display your new gemstones in instead. By doing this, you know that your partner will see them at some point. You also know that if they are interested, they will ask you about them. If that happens, you will briefly explain what they are for, and will only elaborate IF and WHEN they ask. You also decide to leave your books from the class on your coffee table, so that you or anyone else can read them too. You know that just like water flowing down a river, it is best to let people find their own way, at their own pace. Feeling Left Out What about the partner on the receiving end of all this spiritual enlightenment? They may feel that they have a partner they do not recognize. They may begin to feel left out, alone or no longer compatible. One thing a partner can do is to try and offer support during this time of exploration. They should not make light of their partners choices. Work together to create a space that works for both of you through communication and compromise. Two people who are committed to each other can be on different paths, and sometimes those paths can overlap. Experience different views, share new discoveries with each other at a leisurely pace, and continue to be there for your partners as you journey together.
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Mind, Body and Spiritual health applies to our pets too. Continue reading to learn how you can help your pet find their own inner peace. They can dig up you lawn, eat your flowers, tear apart your new leather shoes, scratch a beloved piece of furniture, drop your precious china on the floor, and generally make messes and more work for you, but you love them anyway. Who is this creature? It’s none other than the family pet. Whether they have fur or feathers, scales or spikes, for many of us, our pets become part of our family. We tolerate their occasional disasters or early morning wake up calls because we receive a rare and precious gift back, the gift of unconditional love and acceptance.
Okay so it may be hard to tell if your pet fish or exotic lizard really loves you, but they do trust you to take care of them and they depend on you. An Ipsos Reid poll shows that 83% of Canadians consider their pet to be a family member with 4 in 10 believing that pets can be a good substitute for human companionship. So your pet is seen as a member of your family. You make sure it has all its basic needs met, now what? What about your pets Spiritual well being? Don’t worry, I am not going to say that should meditate with your cat or try to find your dogs inner puppy! For some people who want to try and do that, I say more power to you! What I want to offer you is something to try, that is a little more tangible and easier to do. I find that it is especially helpful for pets that can be held and touched comfortably. I have only used this technique on furry friends, but if you want to try it on your lizard or fish or other type of pet, please use appropriate cautions, and a gentle touch as always. I have found that a combination of Reiki and EFT has been beneficial for my pet. My pet is a super hyper, very talkative (when I say “talking” what I mean is meowing…a LOT!), 6 year old Tuxedo cat named Treun. I don’t think she has really ever stopped talking since the day she was born except when she sleeps! I have used Reiki, which is a form of Japanese energy healing, on my cat for years with great success to the tune, that she is calmer and seems happier afterwards. With any animal, knowing their temperament is important before you start any sort of energy work or healing modality. I know that my cat will let me do pretty much anything I want to her, but please dear reader, if you have a volatile pet, or are trying to help someone else’s pet, please proceed with caution or call upon an experienced professional such as myself. EFT or Emotional Freedom Technique is a form of acupressure, which is used to help with many emotional and physical issues. On pets, it can be used to help them to become calmer in general, and help them with anxiety, which is common in pets and often exhibited as separation anxiety when the owner leaves the home. It can also be used to ease physical pains such as arthritis in elderly pets. When working with animals, generally it is better to gently massage the required points instead of tapping as that could lead to irritation and/or pain. A recent example of how EFT and Reiki benefited my cat was that one particular day my cat Treun would not stop talking (again read this as meowing incessantly to the point where I could feel a migraine forming in my brain!), and followed me for every step I took, so much that I was tripping over her. I scooped her up and performed gentle EFT and then Reiki on her. She instantly became limp and relaxed and began to purr. After I was finished, and we could both think straight, she was much calmer for the rest of the day. The entire session with her lasted about 30 minutes as I incorporated both healing modalities on her, but because animals don’t like to stay in one spot it could take longer depending on your pet and how restless they are. Most animals will respond positively to both Reiki and EFT as they can sense that you are not there to harm them, and only want the best for them. |