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Dr. Terrie Wurzbacher

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Stories, Stories and More Stories

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newspaper navy yard shooting The tragic Navy Yard shooting yesterday brought a few items up for me (that’s where I worked for 9 years before I retired):

  1. I think that people seem to have become immune (or maybe numb/anesthetized) to events like this and that bothers me.
    • It first struck me last week when the news sites had very very little coverage of 9/11. People where I work (on an Army base even) didn’t even bother to observe the moment of silence – not one single moment. That disgusted me.
    • Yesterday as I was driving home there was a talk show (another thing I normally pay no attention to fortunately) and the guy’s primary concern was whether the news folks in Texas should be talking more about the shooting or the fact that we finally got rain. That is really pathetic. He was not even concerned about all the flooding in Colorado. I know we are in the midst of a big drought here but come on – what are the important things in life?
    • Almost none of my Facebook friends even acknowledged the shooting. That made me wonder about my friends. It was all about running and internet business and food and whatever else they normally posted about. Nothing different. Funny that the runners were “all over” the Boston Marathon Bombing but this event seemed “unimportant” to everyone.
  2. I remembered why I don’t watch the news last night. It’s NOT news. It’s a bunch of opinions and slurs and stirring everyone up to be afraid.  Even the one good news story (the raising of the Concordia ship) was minimally covered sitting_on_news_text_reading_paper_400_clr_9470and they emphasized the cost and problems – not the fact that this is the first time this has been done and how it will help lead the way for other salvage operations. The news is supposed to report the facts. I suppose that if they did that, there would be no material for all the time they have to fill. Imagine if they had to fill a full 24 hours every single day with just facts! What a challenge that would be for them. Because I was stationed at the Navy Yard I am somewhat qualified to render an opinion about some of what they reported as “facts”.  These were not facts, they were misinterpretations, they were statements by people who were willing to go on the radio to say stupid, inciteful things just to get some acknowledgement. I remembered why I don’t watch the news.
  3. People all have their stories and they carry them around like a gunny sack of rocks.

If you just concentrated on the facts that occurred yesterday you would be able to make an informed opinion on what happened – if an opinion was/is even required. What are the facts? This man was formerly in the Navy; he worked as a subcontractor and had access to the Navy Yard as a subcontractor; He gained entry to this particular building carrying at least 1 weapon if not more; he opened fire and killed 12 people and wounded several others; he died during this event.

There are more facts but other than for the law enforcement investigators, what difference do they make to you or me? Ok, maybe we “need” to know if it was an act of terrorism and if so, are there others out there that could be planning other events. I’m not sure I “need” to know that as opposed to needing to know if they found out positively that there was other potential danger. Do I need to know about his background and about him working at a restaurant etc? Heck no. What import does that have for me? Not a bit. So why should I clutter up my mind and my thoughts and feelings with all the emotional reporting that is going on about this. These folks are not expressing sorrow and desire to help the families and other victims (those that were frightened at being shot at etc). They are trying to stir people up and get them going – this time it’s once more about gun control. It’s to perpetuate fear. I think people are good enough at creating and living their fears without the help of the media magnifying those fears. I also heard these same news people reporting that if the government shut down in October then in a couple of weeks the US wouldn’t be able to pay it’s bills and would be “broken”.  They snuck that in but you know that’s another fear generating story they are implanting in us.

story wiht baggageWhat stories are you carrying around? I talked about this last week or the week before.  Can you change your past (and even present) stories into “feel good” (or maybe even neutral) stories instead of the bad news stories we make them. Bad things happen but what we feel about them is what counts.  We can replay an event, see it as just a series of facts (without applying/feeling the emotions) and have it be a part of our past – without negative influence. What types of good things can you pull out of that experience once you extract the negative emotions? What have you learned? How has your life changed and how can you change it even more in a positive way.

I’m not discounting how we are affected by events and situations but it’s how we respond and later relive that has to be changed. If you don’t work at changing your feelings about those things, you will continue to be miserable and you will continue to attract more of the same.  We are not taught to “spin” our stories in a positive direction. We are just taught to tell them. Often we go into great detail so that we can tell an “interesting story”.  Consider not even telling your story. Allow it to dissipate in power. Or see if you can write it out or talk it out putting the positive spin on it. Start small and work your way up. It’s a new habit but one that will change your life!

All those that think I went on a rant are free to comment. You are right, it is a rant but there’s also an important metaphysical lesson here if you want to attract more good things in your life.

Terrie

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Friday The 13th – What’s In Your Belief System?

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custom_calendar_11443 It’s not even Halloween and we have a “Friday the 13th”! But fortunately it’s not also a full moon. I will tell you that the full moon does bring the “weird” out – after all those years in an Emergency Room, you can always tell when it’s a full moon by the activity in the ER. I”m sure most of you have experienced the same thing. But what about Friday the 13th (no matter what month it happens in)? What’s up with that? Interestingly, the superstition around it is found primarily since 1900. That’s not very old. But there are estimates according to Wikipedia (take that for what it’s worth) that between 17-21 MILLION people are affected by a fear of this day, making it the most feared day there fri 13th1is.

Are you affected by this and other superstitions? If so, why? When did you first become aware of any type of “issue” with Friday the 13th (or seeing black cats or walking under ladders or any other superstition we embrace)? The origin for you will be different than the origin of the person sitting next to you. Often it’s built on a story and we all know that children (and many adults) revel in stories. Often, older siblings like to torture the younger with horror stories. If told enough times and by the “right” people, then this story will become embedded in your subconscious and will become a belief. Remember  that a belief is just a thought you keep thinking over and over (Abraham-Hicks). Wouldn’t it be sad if you found out that this superstition you’ve had all these years, whether it’s about Friday the 13th or some other one, was instilled in you simply because someone kept telling you the same story over and over again?

The point is NOT to make you feel badly because you have some superstition but it’s to make you examine your beliefs closely and not be afraid to ask “where the heck did I get that idea from?” And then go deep within to see if it came from your parents, your siblings, looking_in_dug_hole_400_clr_6593 teachers, religious leaders, friends etc. You have to be willing to examine these things. But let’s say you do look closely but you can’t figure out where an idea/belief came from. Then what? Does that make it true? Not necessarily. It may mean that you just can’t remember who or what was responsible for you thinking that way. Sometimes it’s too painful to come up with the results. You then have to look at the belief and say to yourself “Do I want to continue believing that? Is that in my value system?” If so, great, just move on. If not, then we can start working on clearing the old believe and replacing it with the new belief. We have and will continue to talk more about how to do that in other posts.

But for now, try to look at today, Friday the 13th, as a great day and a day when nothing but GOOD LUCK prevails in your life. Declare everything good that happens no matter what it is! Try it and see what happens.

Terrie

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Success vs Skepticism

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did so If you’ve been following the Diana Nyad story (which you probably have if you’ve been reading the blog) you’ll know that now all the skeptics are out in full force. I’m short on time this morning but wanted to bring this up because often times people are afraid of success and I think that the ambush by skeptics is one of the reasons they are afraid. You put yourself out there, training (whether it’s for a sport or for anything in life), preparing and then competing and when you do achieve something great, people start to come after you – they may or may not allow you to have a moment of glory but then they start to dissect every little bit of what’s happened.

I think that Lance Armstrong has saddled us with having to put up with this behavior for a long time to come and I was an avid denier and supporter of his until the “Proof” came out and then I was crushed. So, who do we believe and when do we stop going after the “truth”. Well, I still prefer to believe that people are basically honest, good and forthright in their assertions based on their past behavior.

I realize that the areas that these “experts” are concerned about with Diana have valid points but I believe in her integrity and honesty until it’s been proven otherwise.

You have to know in your  heart whether you achieved what you said you did in an honest manner or not. Did you cut off a mile here or a mile there? Did you get someone to help you with a project you then said you did all by yourself (I remember when I was in high school I got a bad grade on a Latin project – I made a replica of the Coliseum – because the teacher said my father helped me and he did NOT)? Is what you said really what happened. That’s all you need to do in life. Tell the truth. Remember that it’s always easier to tell the truth repeatedly than to remember all the details of a lie you told.

You still have to step out there and try to achieve something great (your “Nyad”) and know in your heart that you did it and that other folks will come out of the woodwork like roaches to try to knock you down. So part of your training should be preparing yourself for this part of success and how you might handle the naysayers.

You know what? I know Diana swam a whole hell of a lot more than any other 64 year old so she’s still my hero even if they are upset because of how she put on the gear etc. That’s NOT all that this event was about. What bothers me most is that the skeptics may be deterring all the wonderful good that Diana did to inspire people of all ages to get off their butts and do something whether it’s physical or not – just do what you feel you need to do! There are always lessons for us to learn and there may be more here to come but hold on to what you know is right inside of you and you’ll be fine.

Have a great day!

Terrie

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Remembering 11 September 2001

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Remember September 11, New York CityI really didn’t do this on purpose but today being 11 September 2013 (12 years after that fateful day) is a perfect follow-on or continuation to our “what’s your story” series. That day was one of THE most eventful and significant days in American history (and probably in  World history too) at least since Pearl Harbor.  Yet I’m a bit disturbed. I’m writing this about 3 a.m. and looking at the various news services on the internet, IF they cover 9/11 at all, it’s buried and not prominent. This is bad in my opinion. It’s also a sign of the times. Since it happened 12 years ago and there has not been another event of its nature, people forget that it happened and also tend to sweep its significance under the table.  Why do we do that? I don’t know but it appears to be very difficult for people to remember what happened yesterday or last week, let alone 12 years ago.  I don’t really think it’s denial – that they hope that by ignoring it, the threat won’t be there or that it never really happened.  I think it’s just similar to that instant gratification syndrome we have. Unless it stays right in your face, you move on – there’s so much external stimuli now, that that kind of behavior is protective in a way. But please do not forget it. Take that moment of silence (it IS just a moment after all) at 8:46 a.m. Eastern time.

What’s your story surrounding September 11th? How do you remember it? It was a horrible day but it also has many positive spins and those are what we should focus on – it’s not sacrilegious to look for the positive. It’s a great way of remembering and celebrating. You can apply this to any aspect of your life and you could start today.

Where were you at 8:46 Eastern time on that day. I know exactly where I was and I know what happened and the thoughts that went through my mind. After we found out the story, my mind has created a montage of scenes, TV views, iStock_000004087071XSmallfeelings, thoughts, fears, etc surrounding that day. I think that Alan Jackson’s song “Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning” captures the lives of almost everyone in every possible scenario. But I didn’t let fear encompass me and paralyze me. It was tempting and perhaps the fear took over a bit that first night but after that, while stuck in Chicago trying to find a way to get out, I tried to focus on the good stories that were coming out of the event. I developed a closeness to people I never expected to. I began to cherish more aspects of my life than I had before.

I will tell you that the most significant and emotional part of the entire time was my running in the New York City Marathon 6 weeks after the attack. And if I had to pick one memory from the time I would pick that. I ran that entire 26.2 miles with my eyes filled with  tears. I will always remember the woman on the side of the road who offered us candy and told us she had been on the 84th floor of one of the towers. She was out there supporting us, New York, America and herself that day. She was making a positive story and changing her vibrations. Finishing that marathon was technically no big deal – I had done alot of marathons before that one but crossing the finish line  that day was significant for me and represented all that I stood for in my life and in my career. I accomplished a small feat that day and the United States had accomplished a much bigger feat by demonstrating its resilience in the weeks, months and years following that day.

You can continue to be horrified by an event or you can see what good came from it. I could write for days about the good that came from that day’s happenings but what I really want is for you to look at your own story about 9/11 and see if you can tell a different one. Go back and read yesterday’s post if need to see the benefits for changing your story. Try it today.

Terrie

 

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What Story Are You Telling?

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book_character_reading_400_clr_9091What? What the heck are you talking about Terrie? What do you mean by my “story”?

Everything we talk about is in story form in one fashion or another.

There are facts and there are stories that revolve around those facts. The stories vary from person to person. Look at so-called “eyewitness” accounts. They can differ dramatically. It’s all about interpretation. You’ve heard “perception is reality” I’m sure. Well that is true.

And there is a definite vibration surrounding your story. So why not tell the story the way you wanted it to be? “But that would be lying” you say. Not really. You can talk about facts without putting lower level vibrations (also known to some as “negative” vibrations) into them. Let’s take a recent example that I mentioned Sunday about not getting into the 100 mile endurance run I wanted to get into.

Facts:

  • I prepared really well:
    • I wrote in my gratitude journal that I got into this event
    • I had no other activities planned for that day until after the sign up time
    • I rebooted both of my computers and shut down everything that would use up resources
    • I was online on both computers on the right site so that I just had to click refresh
  • I clicked refresh repeatedly when the registration link did not show up
  • I repeated this action for 30 minutes, never getting a live registration link
  • I did not get into the event

Stories:

  1. It’s just not fair that I didn’t get in. I did everything right. It must be fixed so that only certain people get in. Why couldn’t I get in. It’s not fair. They don’t want people to participate unless they are specially chosen. I can’t do anything right. This must mean that all this Law of Attraction and gratitude stuff doesn’t really work. I’m so hurt, sad, disappointed, frustrated. I’m really mad I wasted my whole Saturday.
  2. I didn’t get in. There is a reason and it’s one I can’t see right now but I know that “everything always works out for me” and this will too. I had considered whether the dates of this event were too close to the more important 150 mile event I am going to do for MS so maybe this is the Universe’s way of confirming that. It also means I can find other events to run in. I just have to look and will find something even better for me.

See how the facts are pretty straight forward but the two stories are completely different? And there are multiple variations on the story that I could have written.

Which story do you want to tell? Practice changing your story. We’ll talk more about this later this week but right now it’s time for a run!

Terrie