| Hale Dwoskin, featured teacher in "The Secret" and author of the New York Times best seller "The Sedona Method," reveals how to avoid fear, anxiety and depression that can otherwise easily arise in people during the current economic recession.
Why Economic Recession Shouldn't Mean Emotional Depression It's now fairly apparent that the United States is in a recession. About 74 percent of Americans agreed to that statement back in March, while 36 percent believe it is somewhat likely that the United States' economy will slip into a full-fledged depression in the next two years (23 percent thought it was very likely that this would occur), according to a USA Today/Gallup poll. Understandably, 89 percent of those polled said they were worried either a great deal or a moderate amount about this possibility. Meanwhile, Americans are drowning in mounting financial worries that exist right now. A separate USA Today/Gallup poll found the following percentages of Americans were either very worried or moderately worried about the following:
- Having enough money for retirement: 64%
- Being able to maintain their standard of living: 56%
- Having enough money to pay monthly bills: 44%
- Being able to get a loan for a home, car, tuition or business: 35%
- Being able to make the minimum payments on credit cards: 25%
To put it mildly, many Americans are facing emotional turmoil due to the economic recession. But there is a way to be happy regardless of the situation going on with the economy, and it's called letting go.
The Indian Sage Paramahansa Yoganada asked this rhetorical question referring to the Great Depression of the '30s:
"During the Depression, were the birds depressed?"
"It is, of course, quite obvious they were not. Nor are they now," says Hale Dwoskin, CEO and director of training of Sedona Training Associates.
What can we learn from this wise and deceivingly simple question?
"We as human beings spend most of our time living in a mental world as opposed to the world that is actually here," Dwoskin says. "Fortunately, because the mental world is so tenuous it is very easy to disturb. The best way to deal with the current world situation is to recognize, honor and celebrate what is actually here now."
"If you look around you, no matter what your bank account says, at least in this moment, your circumstances probably have not changed," Dwoskin continues. "And if you're willing to stay open and respond appropriately to the times, they don't need to."
To put things into perspective, although finances are tight for much of the U.S. population, they are nothing compared to the Great Depression. For instance:
During the Great Depression the U.S. economy shrank for four consecutive years. Today the economy, though far from thriving, is still growing at nearly 3% a quarter.
In the 1930s unemployment rose above 20% for four years. Today, the unemployment rate is just over 6%.
The Dow lost 21 percent from October 2007, but that's still less than was lost in the first two days of the beginning of the Great Depression.
If that doesn't soothe some worries, the process of letting go that is the premise behind The Sedona Method will.
All too often, people listen to the "talk" that goes on in their heads, and often this talk is composed of negative, self-limiting beliefs like doubt, fear, and anxiety. Not only do these feelings dampen personal and business growth, but they make it nearly impossible to obtain peace of mind and send many people into an emotional depression.
The Sedona Method teaches how to quiet a tumultuous mind and instead be present in the world right now. Almost always, that world is not nearly as bad as people make it out to be, and, like the birds, people can discover how to be happy now, no matter what is happening with their financial situation.
Here Dwoskin explains a simple technique to get started:
"In this moment could you allow yourself to simply welcome whatever you're experiencing? The more you simply welcome what is, the less you'll be buffeted by either your internal or external world. Allow yourself to also let go of any other feelings you have from moment to moment.
"In addition to letting go, allow yourself to feel grateful for or appreciate the bounty or abundance that you already have, such as the family and friends in your life. The more you appreciate what you have, the happier you will be."
What people may already intuitively know, but not yet embrace, is that their happiness is not dependent on anything external. All happiness comes from within. Dwoskin points out that The Sedona Method is one method that people can use to find out how to get in touch with the warmth and joy that is inside them right now.
To soothe financial fears in this moment, people can take advantage of the no-cost Sedona Method Financial Stress Release, and pass it along to friends and family who also want to dissolve their financial stress for good.
Sedona Training Associates is an organization that teaches courses based on the emotional releasing techniques originated by Hale Dwoskin's mentor, Lester Levenson. Dwoskin is an international speaker and featured faculty member at Esalen and the Omega Institute. For over a quarter century, he has regularly been teaching The Sedona Method techniques to individuals and corporations throughout the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.
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2008 by AlternativeApproaches.com
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