No topic today. The blog is open for any and all rants, raves, questions, answers, universal wisdom or just plain lunacy.
Step right up, blog your comment and see what happens…
Blessings,
Susan
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Under the Influence
What comes to mind when you hear those words?
There are many images and thoughts that come up for me when I hear those words, but I am using them in the context of personal relationships, unresolved issues from the past, thinking, unhealthy behaviors, or things and situations that are keeping you from living free to be yourself. This connects back to the previously posted blog on identity and authenticity.
Living under the influence of other people can be anything from you living outside yourself trying to figure out how you need to act for other people to living in denial and as a false self. It is a painful way to live and has elements of old ways that you used to live in order to survive or get along in life during some “tough times”. Typically, people continue using these outmoded ways long after they need them.
For example, if you are hiding a secret from your past that you would be shamed of anyone finding out, this may be keeping you in fear. You are under the influence of that fear and so you pretend. Pretending doesn’t just stop with that one secret. You begin to pretend about other things or pretend it wasn’t as bad as it was or that it was worse than it was…all kinds of crazy thoughts start spinning around inside your head.
Another example might be that you have an angry reaction to someone over something little. What is that about? What influence are you under? Is it feelings of rejection? Is it some other feeling from something unresolved in the past?
Being under the influence of a person means that you are trying to act in the way you think they need you to act. Being under the influence of other people means that you are always trying to figure out what they need and you try to get that for them or solve their problem for them. Being under the influence of any substance (including food) means that you have to have that substance (in an unhealthy way) in order to feel good. Being under the influence of things means that you cannot live without your possessions or that you obsess about them. Being under the influence of religion means you turn everything into the spiritual realm. Being under the influence of exercise or work or anything else that is immoderate in your life is problematic.
In order to live in moderation and spontaneity, it is wise to check to see if you are out of balance and under anything that is influencing you too much. We all go through seasons where we might have to be out of balance (for example, studying during exam times or new parents meeting needs of little ones), but if it is a lifetime pattern of behavior, it will be impossible to be free to be you. Ask yourself if you are prone to be under the influence of anything in an unhealthy way.
Blessings,
Susan
There are many images and thoughts that come up for me when I hear those words, but I am using them in the context of personal relationships, unresolved issues from the past, thinking, unhealthy behaviors, or things and situations that are keeping you from living free to be yourself. This connects back to the previously posted blog on identity and authenticity.
Living under the influence of other people can be anything from you living outside yourself trying to figure out how you need to act for other people to living in denial and as a false self. It is a painful way to live and has elements of old ways that you used to live in order to survive or get along in life during some “tough times”. Typically, people continue using these outmoded ways long after they need them.
For example, if you are hiding a secret from your past that you would be shamed of anyone finding out, this may be keeping you in fear. You are under the influence of that fear and so you pretend. Pretending doesn’t just stop with that one secret. You begin to pretend about other things or pretend it wasn’t as bad as it was or that it was worse than it was…all kinds of crazy thoughts start spinning around inside your head.
Another example might be that you have an angry reaction to someone over something little. What is that about? What influence are you under? Is it feelings of rejection? Is it some other feeling from something unresolved in the past?
Being under the influence of a person means that you are trying to act in the way you think they need you to act. Being under the influence of other people means that you are always trying to figure out what they need and you try to get that for them or solve their problem for them. Being under the influence of any substance (including food) means that you have to have that substance (in an unhealthy way) in order to feel good. Being under the influence of things means that you cannot live without your possessions or that you obsess about them. Being under the influence of religion means you turn everything into the spiritual realm. Being under the influence of exercise or work or anything else that is immoderate in your life is problematic.
In order to live in moderation and spontaneity, it is wise to check to see if you are out of balance and under anything that is influencing you too much. We all go through seasons where we might have to be out of balance (for example, studying during exam times or new parents meeting needs of little ones), but if it is a lifetime pattern of behavior, it will be impossible to be free to be you. Ask yourself if you are prone to be under the influence of anything in an unhealthy way.
Blessings,
Susan
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