All Is Well: Heal Your Body With Medicine, Affirmations, and Intuition (28 page)

the school she attended was on the military base and had a simi-

lar strict philosophy, where memorization and other traditional

teaching methods were used. Tara was lost. She couldn’t concen-

trate and had trouble finishing her assignments on time. Con-

cerned about her academic performance, her parents took her to a

psychiatrist, who diagnosed ADHD and prescribed Ritalin.

Tara’s concentration improved a bit, but Ritalin could not fix

her primary problem—she just didn’t respond to a conventional

education. As soon as she became an adult, Tara decided to move

to New York City to focus her considerable creativity by attending

design school and getting a job in fashion. Almost immediately

she had problems fulfilling her academic requirements. Although

design came naturally to her, she had problems taking the re-

quired exams and finishing projects because of her incapacity to

organize and plan her projects. She found herself on academic

probation despite the fact that her instructors praised her designs

and her brilliant, creative mind. Lack of focus had derailed her in

school when she was younger and it was happening again.

157

All Is Well interior.indd 157

1/8/13 7:51 AM

A ll i s w e ll

Tara started by trying to reprogram her thoughts using an af-

firmation for ADHD (Life loves me. I love myself just the way I am.

I am free to create a joyous life that works for me. All is well in my

world). When she came to see us, we recommended that she also

use the affirmations for anxiety (I love and approve of myself and

I trust the process of life. I am safe) and hyperactivity (I am safe.

All pressure dissolves. I AM good enough).

Although she had gone to her physician and was considering

Ritalin again, she wanted to learn about all the options available

to help her learn. So the first thing we did was teach her how the

brain generally functions in people who have the ability to focus

and pay attention. Here’s what we told her: The right brain focuses

primarily on shapes, colors, emotion, and overall themes; the left

brain is more drawn to key into details, words, and logic. As hu-

mans there are also four ways we can pay attention:

• Focused attention: We can ignore distractions and

prioritize what to pay attention to first, next, and last.

• Divided attention: This allows us to spread our focus

among an array of things in our environment.

• Sustained attention: This state involves vigilance and

mental endurance.

• Emotional and intuitive attention: This style drives

our focus to elements in our lives where we or

someone near us is in distress, in love, or in some

other emotionally charged circumstance.

The way your brain is wired will make you more prone to one

type of attention style but this also changes with age. At age three

to four, emotional and intuitive attention runs our life, so we focus

on what we want, whether it’s a candy bar or a nap. As we get

older, other members of our attention network usually come on

board; we start to develop our capacity for focused, divided, sus-

tained, and emotional attention. For example, by the time most

of us get to high school, we have learned to divide our attention

between what the teacher is saying and what our “crush” is doing

158

All Is Well interior.indd 158

1/8/13 7:51 AM

Suddenly I See

at the same moment. We also may become better at blocking out

the distraction of music while we focus on our homework. I say

“most of us” because not everyone develops these abilities. But

this doesn’t mean they can’t learn to tap into any one of the atten-

tion styles that are within all of us. Each and every one of us has

strengths and weakness that can be addressed with instructional,

pharmaceutical, and nutritional support.

Tara went for a complete a neuropsychological assessment to

pinpoint her brain style for attention, learning, and memory. As

one would expect from an artist, Tara had good attention to three-

dimensional shapes and other right-brain elements but was easily

distracted when it came to left-brain details. She could get com-

pletely lost when she received written or verbal directions. In fact,

her left-brain developmental language deficit was diagnosed for

the first time as dyslexia.

When Tara’s neuropsychologist explained her true brain style,

she was elated! All of a sudden she realized why it was so difficult

for her to finish her reading assignments on time. She wasn’t stu-

pid. And the fact that her right brain “visuospatial” IQ scores were

superior or “off the charts high” indicated that her brain was born

to be an artist’s brain. She just needed to adapt her learning style

so she could do the required reading and pay attention to details

in class to finish her assignments.

Armed with a newfound confidence, Tara looked for a mentor;

she found a professor who was known to have dyslexia and ADD

but had somehow made it through the maze of training. Under his

wing, she learned a variety of compensatory techniques includ-

ing (1) the use of a color-coded calendar system to keep her on a

schedule; (2) the use of a loud timer that was set so that when she

started to get stuck on one detail, it would remind her that she

needed to move on to complete the assignment; and (3) the tool

of diagramming and flowcharting assignments so she could keep

her priorities and timing more on task.

Under her doctor’s guidance and support, she worked out a

system in which she took the stimulant Metadate, a drug similar

to Ritalin, at times when she was experiencing the most pressure,

and then took the less-powerful stimulant Wellbutrin at times

159

All Is Well interior.indd 159

1/8/13 7:51 AM

A ll i s w e ll

when she wasn’t under as much pressure. She even worked with

her doctor to spend some vacation months where she was, in fact,

drug free. However, we did recommend daily supplements of ace-

tyl-L-carnitine, DHA, and Gingko biloba to help her focus.

On the dietary front, we told Tara to keep her caffeine intake

to a minimum because this is also a stimulant, and it might com-

plicate her attention problem. And finally, we told her to carefully

assess her mind state after drinking alcohol or smoking marijuana.

In the end, Tara decided that she needed to stay away from these

substances because they made her mind muddled.

Using these tactics, Tara graduated from fashion school and

is making a living as a designer. She’s even sold her products to

several major department stores.

Eyes and Ears

People who have problems of the eyes and ears often have

trouble balancing logic and spiritual contemplation, prayer, and

mysticism. Neither extreme—being lost in the spiritual ethers or

fully immersed in earthly matters—is good. But when you’re in

the spiritual ethers much of the time, you can’t have your feet on

the ground enough to experience earthly matters such as pop cul-

ture, politics, or any other topic around which most people con-

nect. As a result you can often become withdrawn and isolated

from friends, lovers, or colleagues.

Disorders of the eyes and ears are caused by thought pat-

terns and behaviors that block your capacity to see and hear what

you are being shown or told. So it is important to change these

thoughts and behaviors. Louise lays out a number of affirmations

that will help address the fear and anxiety that are often asso-

ciated with eye and ear problems. For example, eye problems in

general are about not liking what you see in life. To combat this,

you can use the affirmation “I see with love and joy.” Nearsighted-

ness (myopia) has to do specifically with fear of the future and not

trusting what is ahead. If you are constantly worried about what

the future will bring, remind yourself to stay in the present with

160

All Is Well interior.indd 160

1/8/13 7:51 AM

Suddenly I See

the affirmation “I trust the process of life. I am safe.” Conversely,

farsightedness (hyperopia) is fear of the present. If you have trou-

ble seeing what is right in front of you, open your eyes with “I am

safe in the here and now. I see that clearly.” A disease of the eye

such as cataracts, a clouding of the lens of the eye, involves not

trusting life and seeing the future as dark and dismal. Try the new

thought pattern “Life is eternal and filled with joy. I look forward

to every moment. I am safe. Life loves me.” Glaucoma, a disease of

the optic nerve, involves a distorted perception of life caused by

a strong, long-standing hurt. Release the past hurt and start the

healing process with “I see with love and tenderness.” These are

some of the major ailments of the eye, but you can also refer to the

table on page 183 to find other eye-specific affirmations.

Ears represent our capacity to hear, so a loss or disruption of

ear health or ear function is about not being able to hear—or fully

open up your mind to—the outside world. Ear problems also are

associated with a lack of trust. A good general healing affirmation

is “I now learn to trust my higher self. I release all ideas that are

unlike the voice of love. I listen with love to my inner voice.” Deaf-

ness is related to isolation and stubbornness and what you don’t

want to hear. Open yourself up to new ideas with the affirmation

“I listen to the Divine and rejoice at all that I am able to hear. I am

one with all.” An earache is about not wanting to hear, combined

with anger and memories of turmoil such as parents arguing. Re-

lease the anger and chaos in your mind with “Harmony surrounds

me. I listen with love to the pleasant and the good. I am a center

for love.” Middle ear issues such as balance problems and dizziness

(vertigo) are caused by flighty or scattered thinking. If you often

feel distracted or confused, focus your mind with “I am deeply

centered and peaceful in life. It is safe for me to be alive and joy-

ous.” Tinnitus, or ringing in the ears, occurs in illnesses such as

Ménière’s disease; it is associated with stubbornness and a refusal

to listen to your inner voice. Remind yourself that you have all the

answers within you with the affirmation “I trust my Higher Self.

I listen with love to my inner voice. I release all that is unlike the

action of love.”

161

All Is Well interior.indd 161

1/8/13 7:51 AM

A ll i s w e ll

You’re making these changes in your behavior to bring your-

self into a balance between an earth-based way of living and a

spiritual life, and this will take conscious effort. So delight in the

world around you—the food, the nature, the people. Be tough;

you can do it. I’m not saying to drop the mystical realm altogether,

but do something that will give you an ability to relate to people

around you. Watch some TV. Pick up a best-selling novel. Listen to

the radio or a podcast. Get a little more familiar with the things

that are happening in the world today. How ’bout those Mets!

You must also avoid the urge to seclude yourself. Armed with

your new knowledge of the world, try talking to people. Take a

minute or two in the kitchen at work to relay your thoughts on the

latest episode of
Dancing with the Stars.
Really, try watching some

show that everyone is talking about: not to watch the show per se

but to be able to join in on the conversation and social festivities

the next day. You can even jump-start your interaction skills by

making small talk with a cashier at the grocery store—the weather

is always a good topic of conversation. How ’bout those Mets!!

Finally, try to do some activities that involve physical sensa-

tion. Get a massage, go to the gym, or go dancing. Any physical

activity will connect you to your body, grounding you here on

Earth, which will eventually connect you back to the divine.

From the Clinic Files: Eyes and Ears Case Study

Wanda, 44 years old, was one of the most sensitive people

we’d ever met, and also one of the most spiritual. By the time she

came to us, she had been having mystical visions for more than

a decade. Wanda had to wear glasses at a very early age. Through

her teen years, she struggled with weight problems, anxiety, and

irritability, so she withdrew into her books and became more and

more solitary. She graduated from high school and became a book-

keeper—the perfect job for someone who was hiding from life. But

after years of doing the same job, adding columns of numbers, she

began having trouble seeing and found herself making errors she

had never made before. She also started experiencing a glaring

162

All Is Well interior.indd 162

1/8/13 7:51 AM

Suddenly I See

light distortion as she was driving home from work at night. As-