PATIENCE CAN FREE US FROM EXPECTATIONS

There is wisdom in obtaining patience, it can bring a sense  of peace and freedom. Patience is a learned behavior, part of it is derived from the development of faith, the rest in grown through experience. Through faith and experience we learn to discipline our thoughts and emotions, freeing us from expectations. Patience is the acceptance of time and the understanding of its value.

Dean N Nixon
Seminar Director, Life Coach
TurningLeaf Wellness Center

PARENTING CAN BE THE MOST DIFFICULT JOB OF YOUR LIFE

The parent of a struggling child is the parent who needs support the most. Parenting is one of most difficult experience of our life, the challenges are innumerable, from health and illness to discipline and rebellion. Then mix in the fact that we are raising them in this current society and the pressure is almost insurmountable. There is a fear of judgment of others and comments from family and school. If we can take the time to help and build them up in their struggles, we will have increased their chances of helping their youth.

Dean N Nixon
Seminar Director, Life Coach
TurningLeaf Wellness Center

MORNING - A TIME FOR REFLECTION

Have you ever noticed how quiet it is in the early morning, that peaceful calm as the world still slumbers? It is as if there is some anticipation of the new day, yet there is no stress or anxiety, just an openness. Then of course there are those mornings we have woken to little or no sleep, driven by stress and anxiety, haunted by the visions of an undisciplined imagination. Morning is a time for meditation and reflection, it can serve as a marker for the day, setting up our focus, and helping us to set a course that will bring us to our desired destinations.

Dean N Nixon
Seminar Director, Life Coach
TurningLeaf Wellness Center

THE MIND / BODY CONNECTION and PAIN

Emotional pain can intensify physical pain. The body has a powerful way of telling us that there is something it is struggling with. Pain is a great way to get us to look at the part of the body that needs attention. Emotional pain can do the same thing. However when you introduce unhealthy emotional pain with physical pain the combination can be destructive and overwhelming. It is important to educate ourselves of the difference between the two and how they express themselves in our lives. Controlling the unhealthy emotional pain can and will help to make physical pain more manageable.

Dean N Nixon
Seminar Director, Life Coach
TurningLeaf Wellness Center

CREATING RELATIONSHIPS WITH KIDS

As parents we often forget that we have a small window of time to develop a relationship of trust with our kids. Trust for children is important in exploring the world around them. The feeling of safety helps in the development of healthy self concept and boundaries. Between the ages of 0 to 8/10 we are parents, from 8/10 on up we are nothing more than spectators, cheerleaders, coaches, mentors, etc. This is a critical time to be aware of our energy and the energy we use to teach and motivate. Children by nature rebel against fear and are repelled by it. However, they can be conditioned to respond to fear, using it as a way to define the boundaries and/or the lack of boundaries in their lives. Using fear based motivation with our Children can over time create a lack of trust, will eventually close the lines of communication and influence. We need to use the small window of time to create relationships with our kids.

Dean N Nixon
Seminar Director, Life Coach
TurningLeaf Wellness Center

MAKE TIME TO PLAY

I find as I am getting older, I am slowing down. I use to think that this would never happen to me yet, time has different ideas. This morning I watched my two youngest play legos together. I sat mesmerized by their imaginations and the playful process they went through. I was impressed at how there was no fighting, no contention, just a flow of creative ideas and cooperation. Finally I asked, "What ya doing?" The answer, "Building." So true, building their minds, their relationship, eye hand coordination, problem solving and so much more, all from playing. Coming back from vacation a few weeks back I realized the need for more play in my life. Today I saw the benefits of play and the value it holds in the further development of who I can become. So, now slowing down is not so adverse to me, it's now about playing more.

Dean N Nixon
Seminar Director, Life Coach
TurningLeaf Wellness Center

ALLOWING CHILDREN TO STRUGGLE WITH CONSEQUENCES

I have often been intrigued by how opposition creates balance. So many times, we heard about this concept of reverse psychology, when dealing with a stubborn child that is rebelling or being resistant. We may say the opposite of what we want in order to elicit the response that we want as a parent. We often have to go against what we think to be true. In order to gain what it is that we need the most from our children, often times letting go, and allowing our children to choose their path seems very frightening and out of control. More times than not, simply by giving them control they will choose the values that we have instilled within them. Even though our minds may be screaming to hang on as tight as we can, often times it's the letting go, which brings us the peace we seek in the relationship with our children. I am not referring to removing boundaries, rules or norms in the home, I am simply talking about allowing children to make their decisions and struggle with their consequences.

Dean N Nixon
Seminar Director, Life Coach
TurningLeaf Wellness Center

CONTROLLING OUR THOUGHTS

The most influential battle one can fight is the battle to control ones thoughts. When we think of battling our thoughts we think of a struggle of overwhelming effort with the potential of loss. The battle of the mind is not won with force, in fact it is not one at all, it is simply influenced through training. The warrior may train for battle, he my even fight other warriors to improve his skills. It is training that enables him to control his mind and be prepared for any, and all struggles, even if he never sees the battle field. Training our mind to focus in areas that provide answers and understanding will bring peace and hope.

Dean N Nixon
Seminar Director, Life Coach
TurningLeaf Wellness Center

WHAT LIMITS DO WE PUT ON OUR MIND?

The creativity of a child's mind is only limited by the perceived reality of the adult mind.

Dean N Nixon
Seminar Director, Life Coach
TurningLeaf Wellness Center

SEEING OUR TRIALS AS APART OF THE JOURNEY

Learning to bend with adversity rather than fight is a powerful way to take control of our lives. This week my family and I drove through yellowstone national park, I was impressed by some of the trees we saw on the way in from the east gate, they were all leaning east as though the canyon winds had been blowing hard for some time. This particular day was very windy as we were faced with a very strong head wind driving west. We soon crossed over the pass and found our way to Yellowstone Lake where the wind was whipping the lake in to big swells with two foot breakers. As the water churned from a bluish green to a muddy brown eating away at the shore line with its drift wood scattered beach, I was taken back to the trees, both under the same influence yet each responding differently. One was a swaying dance allowing each tree to live in unison with adversity and by doing so becoming stronger in its roots. The other, a destructive corrosive act displacing much of the life that had once clung to its sandy home, churning and thrashing in a different dance, one of inflicting will and ambivalence to its destruction. Before I had left my hot desert home in St. George for the cooler plains of Wyoming, I was speaking to one of my clients about this very principal, the more we fight adversity the more we prolong the storms that teach. When we learn bend and sway with the winds of adversity, we learn of our strengths thus becoming powerful. Just as the trees accepted the wind by leaning east, we can see the trials as apart of our journey and change how we see what is happening.

Dean N Nixon
Seminar Director, Life Coach
TurningLeaf Wellness Center