I’m doing an experiment along with an online class I’m teaching and drastically reducing my exposure to media, especially social media. Face Plant has me too often glued to the computer, flipping through posts about things that may or may not interest me, mindlessly exploring the news, trying to avoid the horrific stuff and find more cute otters but its honestly like being stuck in bad traffic while my overloaded brain seems to be spinning off into so many directions I might explode.
It really does feel like I have some bizarre information sucking octopus in my head with extra tentacles when I do too much media, none of which serves to make me any smarter, but all of which makes me very tired and scattered, and emotionally disturbed because I don’t have enough space for all the reactions that are begging to be expressed from angst for the whole world to outrage about abandoned dogs to unbridled joy when I find stories about things that really count.
I know I’m privileged to even be able to say I can unplug. But it’s necessary to go as local as I can, dialing down the drama as I go. Separating out the unnecessary from the stuff of gratitude, feels really good. I can slow down and be right here for whatever needs my attention.
It’s like moving down a rickety ladder.
When I first unplug there’s an initial sense of hanging on to the rungs where I look up and see this never ending thing reaching up, up and away with all this commotion beckoning me to look, and below I can’t see the ground. “OMG what am I missing?? There’s not enough time for everything!’
Then there is a soft landing inside me like I just sat up with a mountain of pillows around me about to read a good book.
The frantic “ what’s going on out there?” turns into “I wonder what I might experience now?”
Then I notice the quiet, the room to think, to create, to contemplate. I am present now in this moment.
I actually get excited about the possibilities I could call down from the invisible realms. I am aware I have more room, more space, more concentrated power to be creative and aware.
And the fascinating thing is I find I have all the time in the world now.
As an experienced meditator I know the effects of the discipline of a quiet mind, but also find how spending too much time online on social media can rob me of my equilibrium.
However there is a balance. So far for the past two weeks I have spent no more than 30 minutes a day on the various chatter sites, sometimes less. The time I spend online otherwise is to learn, and when I do read news I am conscious of what kind.
So far I have slept better, feel more grounded, I am thinking more clearly, and I’m not as interested in snacking, and I am present, really present in my body, mind and spirit. And turns out I really needed to be.
This week our little Olli had two relapses – so difficult to watch as she loses control of her legs and seems to go temporarily blind. But because I felt more grounded I was able to be there, bounce back quicker from the fear and grief and better able to consciously see her as healthy, filled with Light and life force energy- even though we are powerless to change any of it. Our attitude is good.
So I’m wondering if you notice how things change when you take your eyes off of your computer/ phone and look up and into your world?
How much more do you get accomplished? Do you notice how time seems to just be more available?
Love to hear your story!
Hope your week is filled with joy and serenity!
Sending you so much support and affection!
UNIVERSAL ENERGIES VLOG
Yes I am doing that ,giving myself peace and realizing how much I love it.
You are so right about limiting the social media and news feeds. I have even gone to the extent of limiting whose posts I see on Facebook. Some friends are so negative and full of drama that it had to come to end.
Your reading for this week really hits home as I had an epiphany about baggage I have been lugging around since my husband passed away. Funny how a simple movie can bring something like that about. So yesterday I began “cleaning up”. And today here is your reading. Synchronicity. Thank you.
Research CBD’s. It works for kids with seizures , maybe it’ll work for Ollie.
I always always love your words and your heart. But this post was EXACTLY what I needed and right when I needed it!! (As I was just kicking myself for wasting my 30 min morning meditation time on social media instead!) Great example and reminder of the immesurably (thats a word, right?) superior benefits I get from connecting with source than connecting with the random opinions of 493 of my “closest friends”. Keep being our beacon CBR. Love you!!
love you right back !!
Very sorry to hear about Olli’s relapses…but she looked all fit and fluffy in the video!
Yes…unplug is the word! It’s amazing how much more I get done when I really only go online for limited amounts of time…I feel like I really am cleaning up every day since the year started!! Isn’t that a lighter feeling?!?!!
I am really enjoying your Wisdom of the Oracle Cards and the E-squared cards! My present issue is to stay grounded when a lot of drama is going on around me…and today I learned a new saying from the Wisdom of the Oracle cards: “Not my circus, not my monkeys.” (Never-ending story in the protection position). I find the e-squared cards very refreshing, too. Short, sweet and to the point…they are also good at cutting the drama out be it self-pity or when we try to imagine monsters lurking in the shadows and so procrastinate.
Thanks for developing these wonderful tools!
Hugs
you are so welcome xoxo
thanx for the tip.. its not legal where we live but Flax has it in it too so we will start adding that in their diet.
I am beginning to realize that mercury retrograde is telling us and giving us built in unplug time. Thank you mercury retrograde and thank you colette for learning the wisdom of gaia??
you are so welcome
Thanx for sharing I know Olli goes from perfect to all of a sudden relapse but we upped her medication and are taking her to her neurologist this Wednesday. I am so glad you got the purpose of the Oracle of E! you are right it’s a no drama no self pity deck for sure. We created it to be just that short and sweet and a sparkly push in the right direction! big love xooxo
Your newsletter expresses what I’ve sensed for myself as well as my ponderings for others in this world of ours. Whilst social media is a lovely thing, any of us can be enveloped in it and that 30 minutes can end up hours. I know, I’ve done it, time and again.
The indigenous peoples have been telling us for decades we need to slow down, come back and with social media, tv’s in almost every venue of restaurant, phones that can tap the world in a button, it seems even more necessary we take their wisdom and yours to heart. My creativity too has been broken up and limited significantly. I had wondered about others as well because of this. Thank you for answering some of my inner questions Dear Lady. Less will be definitely more from now on when it comes to social media.
Please know my prayers go out to you and Marc regarding the fur kids and especially little Ollie.
Blessings to you all. Ada
thanx Ada oxoxo I think your comment of creativity being broken up and limited hit home to me for sure. I have so many music projects that have gone incomplete because I can get hooked over in cyberspace!
I am finally truly learning how to let go, open up and carry on in life by listening to you. I have struggled 52 years to try and understand what you have taught me in the last short while, I can’t thank you enough. Thank God for your gift to others. I just love your little dogs, have three of my own, as well as my two grand dogs (LOL), and I live for all of them. Best to you.
Thank you Colette! I love and appreciate your readings – and it’s time for change. I love your dear puppies – they are so very precious! Blessings to you!
Collette,
I hope you don’t mind the suggestion, but do you know any alternative animal healers who do cranial-sacral work? Or, acupressure or acupuncture? I’ve done both on your baby dog’s types of issues and it’s miraculous to watch the symptoms haul out 🙂 .
-Melya
Such truth in the “unplugged” scenario. My work days can be soooooo loud and congested with screaming and tattling and interruptions and “pick me-pick me” — And then there were the 5 yrs where I worked a second job in retail so (thank the higher power that I had that job, but I thank the higher power that it is a segment in time that is a memory) —- a lesson learned years ago was to detatch from the outward disruptions. In the ” Moon Lodge” I allow absolutely nothing electronic but the juice flowing in the twinkle lights. When “detatch mode” strikes it may even choose to stop even outside music. There then becomes an inner tempo that floods the spirit of my soul. It allows room to hear the inner voices, to sense the inner movement, to deepen the understanding of breath to movement, and to know when the surging power you feel in a running on momentum—and that is where injury occurs. It even means that no phones-not chatty neighbors who don’t understand this need-So, for me, that detatchment provides a clearing on the path of enlightenment to brighten itself in the fog. To collect thoughts and stamina in order to face the crowded air waves with clarity. To aid in the choices one must make daily. To highten the value of the times you are involved with all the outsiders. They may not get it, but you know you do – and that makes you appreciate them for the beauty that all humans possess. They need not come from your perspective in order to have value – but your perspective allows you to see their value.
Blessings to you Colette, I’ve so enjoyed your daily cards,your weekly readings,and by the way this one speaks to me,,,,and your newsletters,,,I’ve enjoyed being connected in the past and will again ,but at this time I will heed your words,and enjoy what is really going around me,I have used social media to get connected with long lost friends,relatives in a time when my personnel life was needing an outlet and it has served its purpose,,,so for now I’m needing to get connected to my life and go forward,,,,,thankyou so much,,,so sorry to hear your little fur baby is having so many health issues,,,I wasn’t sure which one was sick,they all look sweet and interested in what their mom is doing,,?
OMG!!! Can you tell I didn’t proof read?? And this Gemini should know better with Merc in retro! Thoughts and prayers and candles of healing for Ollie?????????
I have been off of FaceBook for about 2 months and find that I am healthier, more grounded and overall happier. Yes, I miss seeing pictures of many loved ones and reading the often uplifting stories posted, but overall, it’s been such a relief. Your blog put into writing much of what I think/feel, but have not expressed. What led me to remove myself was being hacked four time in the last six months on FB. I finally decided the Universe was sending me a clear message and I was not paying attention. I may go back on at some time but it will be limited. Thank you for your always good insight. I enjoy your blogs and your classes.
Hi Colette,
Happy Monday! This is so true how much time most of us waste staring at the screen, whether it be tablets, phones, pc’s or tv’s. It’s overwhelming and so much rubbish! At the start of this new year I too decided to cut way back on all this nonsense and get back at all the creative things I love to do. I’ve finished 3 knitting projects, started a wee cardigan for a friends grand-daughter and the 2 quilts I started last year (or was it the year before?) are next on the list. It feels so rewarding to get things done!! Thanks so much for your wisdom, love and for sharing yourself with all of us.
Love & (((Hugs))) to You, Marc & the Fur Babies- Peg xo
thanx for sharing 😉 and everyone else too I missed
great idea we do have someone up here that does that and I will most def look into it. At the moment she is being treated by healer Althea Gray whose work is truly remarkable as well as her regular medicine
Yes indeed .. Lots of creative projects can end up undone ..
Luckily I have no cell phone .. We all seem to be easily drawn in by social media .. I went on a Kyle Cease bender the other day after your hayhouseradio radio show .. That was time well spent, no regrets there .. So I agree it is easy to let our time flitter away and not do creative projects .. Thanks once again for reminding us all to live our life .. Our full life .. Not only the cyber one ! .. I live far from friends, so my ego likes to make me think if I go online I will be with friends .. Hahaha .. That voice won’t like to hear no .. But it will .. I have some things in creation mode and completing them is one more step forward .. Blessings to all .. Xoxo .. Lisa
Sometimes “Silence is the best conversation”.
Sending love and healing to Ollie.
Those we have the strongest connection with, don’t always require
conversation.
Enough said.
Take Good Care.
XOXO Renee
great .. he is awesome yes?
I know how difficult it is when your precious little one is ill. My Maddie (an adorable white Cairn Terrier) suffered from seizures, and the last one she had was so debilitating that it was time for her to “go home.” Her love is still around us….about a month after she passed, she came by for a “visit!” My mom and I both heard her, as well as our chihuahua Bella. I pray that Olli recovers quickly and continues to have a long, healthy, happy life.
As for social media, I cannot believe how apropos your blog is this week! A few days before the new year, I decided to go on a self-imposed exile from Facebook. I notified everyone that I was taking a break. I just couldn’t take all of the unnecessary drama anymore. I was becoming obsessed, and with people I wasn’t even acquainted with! I’m telling you, this has been the best thing I’ve done for myself. I still go on to look in the morning, which is something I’m trying to stop doing all together. It’s wonderful to keep in touch with friends old and new, but it’s also wonderful to not be sucked in by all the yuckiness that’s out there. I feel lighter, and I like it. 🙂
I am in your online course Colette and also attended your Kripalu session last week. I feel like there is a huge shift taking place in me and I thank you for being part of the impetus to change. I feel that I am being pummeled with words when I scroll through facebook; the negative energy seems unbearable and overpowers the “cute otter” posts. I have two very good support groups which makes me hesitate to pull out but I really think that the benefits of doing so out weigh the support groups right now. For the time being anyway. Especially now when I’m trying to make significant changes in my life. Clarity will only come if I unclutter. My heart goes out to you with regards to Ollie.
Yes .. He is awesome .. Guess which voice I am going with ? ! .. I was reminded of many things listening to him .. I am grateful you found him and then brought him on your show .. Terrific indeed .. Videos worth the watch .. Teachings galore !
Unplugging for me isn’t easy as my companies are digital and have been since 1994…but I am certainly going to restrict my time out there on needless scrolling…Thank you for the reminder…Sending love and healing energy to Olli…its no fun experiencing your baby go through these health issues…Love and Light!
Colette, this is so timely for me! As I read your post, it was as if I was writing it. I have struggled over the past year with procrastinating on social media and “brain game” apps on my iPad. I get sucked into it and lose track of time, which then shortens the amount of time that I have to do what really matters! Facebook is like the refrigerator you keep opening when you are really not hungry but you look anyway, because your avoiding getting on with things during the day. Thank you for posting this. I feel like a have a “pal” in you and feel supported enough to unplug!
I really agree with your blog Colette, thanks so much for the confirmation – ingratitude. I have been feeling for a few months now as I move into my 50th year this month, getting off the social media sites, as just this morning felt to remove the business facebook page. The more I am on and post the less I feel I am balanced and the more I feel depleted.
Feeling the urge to move into a more local place of centering for a time of renewal. A sense of re-evaluation is in the air as I allow for a new flow of discovery of applying my gifts and abilities into a new sense of self-discovery. The videos are helpful and insightful – thank you for your gifts!
Love to connect as a fellow Canadian down the road. Be Well, INGratititude, Angela
big love to you!
thanx for sharing 😉
mine is too.. and its the scrolling mindlessly I am talking about 😉
stay with what works , dump was doesn’t 😉 oxoxo
thanx for sharing oxoxox
Very timely. Initially all the social media was a great thing. A constant stream of positive messages was just what I needed. Now I see it as a time vampire and I spend more time reading then doing. Thanks for the new perspective. I too have been feeling unsettled and hadn’t looked at this constant input as the source!
<3 thank-you – (((hugs))) ….still think of that dream I had of us years ago the night before I had that reading with you and wonder still the significance of what is to come or has past. Best wishes 🙂
Colette, I, too, have a sickie little dog….it is a matter of time as he is old and has issues. I totally understand the pain you must be experiencing with little Ollie. Your dogs are soo adorable. Please know that I will be thinking of you and your sweet babies during the blessings I will send today to those around me who need it. Also, re: social media…hooray! We are waking up to the bondage it is. Social media has it’s good side, of course….but it really has gotten out of hand. Here’s to Freedom!
:>) lovenhugs, Vivi
Well, obvious to me lately, as you have mentioned Colette, timing is in someone else’s hands.
Truth is I wish it was in mine about me. My essence was never selfish however a self-preservation
for some greater good. I attended parochial school where the classroom and church buildings were side by side.
The media, in a nutshell, including and excluding public comments teaches me who is the greater good.
I love the Internet; it has been my best buddy for information correct or incorrect but as with any good thing
Moderation is the key. When it is all I do like watching television (very happy to have had the time and opportunity)
it is too sedentary. Any media should be used as a tool not as a life yet being aware is vital though has those emotional
drawbacks you mention. Physically moving about is just the best cardio and being sedentary is deadly, eventually. Personally,
I am a bit trapped lately though if I had the means my health would be in a better state. Life is give and take so learning is
inevitable when open to it.
There was a time (tween, teen years) when nothing could keep me from being on the move but I had to learn
to be still to earn my intellectual degrees and it was stressful. I did not deal with the stress as best a human being
should so it can hurt but really shouldn’t when walking, jogging, or running is practiced along the way That’s when other
people get involved. When employed that is also a workout; it connects more, socializing not only in person hence supported
by the electronic medias.
It’s full circle. Can’t live with or without communication, in conclusion. A happy medium is the answer; the balance.
Balance Blessings
Light to All LIght’s
Amen Learning
P : )
L : )
J : )
G : )
This man is an amazing resource for dog care. He’s a veterinarian, but has taken a holistic approach. He has amazing resources on his website, and is great at responding to questions from his community of dog-lovers. If you want to explore further information, you should check out Dr. Peter Dobias – http://peterdobias.com – see his healing hangouts here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5V5f-b23Zw and his many articles on most all topics related to dog health. =)
Another amazing resource for holistic dog care – these homeopathic remedies are great. Health and happiness!
http://www.bachflower.com/rescue-remedy-pets-bach-flower/
fantastic
Wow! This blog is so synchronistic for me. for I decided about a month ago to cut back, too. I realized that I was wasting too much time on the internet and social media. It was like an addiction for me, and some days I feel like I am suffering from withdrawal, but I am determined. Now, I am very selective when I go on line, and only allow myself a certain amount of time, when I do. When I turn it off, I am done. It would be so easy to get sucked back in, just like any addiction. I know I can’t give in, not even once. The longer I go, the lighter I feel. Thank you, Colette, for letting me know I am not alone in what I am feeling.
Thank you kindly Colette… I can’t tell you how much I needed this. The universe always gives us the information in a timely way… always. For me this involved 3 of my electronic devices breaking or not functioning within 2 days of arriving at our restful vacation in Mexico a few days ago. I think the message was loud and clear LOL. Yes, thank you again for sweetly reminding me of the same. Blessing to you. ox
Colette,
It’s good to see that many people are trying to “unplug”, if not for good at least for a moment. As I have said before I really don’t think we realize how much stimuli is around us until we turn it off. If you don’t believe me if you live in an urban environment go away to a secluded location and you WILL notice what is missing, you won’t have to make an effort. Notice the “ringing” that you feel in your ears and throughout your body. This is the residual of all of the external stimuli that you are exposed to. Just like going to a concert or sporting event you notice that your ears are ringing and it takes maybe a day or two to recover from that; it will take time for your body to recover from the “ringing” that you experience on a daily basis and not notice. I’m not sure what this ringing is called but what is coming to me it should be called “stress”. It affects us all of the time; think of the many people with sleep disorders. When we sleep it is a time when the body is repairing itself and if we can’t get a good night’s sleep. All of the stimuli that we get even while we sleep can adversely affect our health.
There was a point in my life where I couldn’t go to sleep without a radio lightly playing in the background. It was on the local jazz station and it was all music except for the DJ and occasional station jingle or brief commercial. To me it was comforting; it was a reassurance that I was not alone when I felt alone. There was special relationship I had with that station; every time I would get ready for bed it was like getting ready to visit an old friend. There were certain songs that the DJ would play that when I heard them I knew it was time to relax, sleep, and recharge. There were a few times where it got a little strange (get ready for a “The Matrix” moment): I would be walking in a shopping mall or in my car and I would hear one of those songs. Upon hearing the song I felt lament, instead of being out and about I wished that I was back at home, preparing for bed, preparing to visit the old friend. This happened several times over a few weeks. It was only after this continued that a major epiphany came to me: I shouldn’t have wished that I was back in my bed, waiting to let go and let my body recharge; I WAS in my bed listening to this song on the radio! I don’t know where I was or where I thought I was when I was in my car or in the mall but it felt absolutely real. Was it an out of body experience? I really don’t know the answer to that. I do know that it was a comfort to me. I don’t know if I got all of the rest that I needed but it was comforting to me.
This station eventually went off of the air, life became more complex, and eventually there were other technologies that added to the ambient noise. Even though life was simpler back then the thing that I was looking for hasn’t changed: validation. I felt that I was not alone in trying to navigate this thing called life. While it was mostly music and not verbal messages I felt that the station was “speaking” to me; that was my validation, and that was my flaw. That is everyone’s flaw. As I have mentioned before “The Megaphone Effect” is that the amount of validation receives is directly proportional to the number of people that they can connect to. In that quest for validation the “signal to noise” ratio may be so small that you may have to bombard yourself with a lot of noise to get one nugget of validation is it really worth it? This is when we have to turn it all off; the validation comes from within and not from external sources. If we don’t validate ourselves then how can we expect someone else to do it?
That’s why I wanted to do my internal and external cleanse, to purge my body of internal and external toxins, to give my body a chance to repair itself. Now I will have to admit something: if you could get a degree in procrastination then I’d have several Ph.Ds. I’ve had some concerns about totally unplugging. What if I “miss something”? If I can’t totally unplug then what compromise should I make? This process shouldn’t be so stressful! I then remembered your quote that I have as my screensaver: “What is for you won’t go past you”. I realize that I can “unplug” as much as I want without missing anything. I do plan to listen to music in during my cleanse. In Pam Grout’s book “E-cubed” she mentions several song titles in order to “detox”; I plan to use those and a few more including “Shooting for the Moon” by Amy Holland, “Beautiful Day” by U2, “Shining Star” by Earth, Wind, and Fire, and others.
I also wanted to acknowledge everyone who has responded to my previous posts. I saw that some people have written responses to past posts and I’m just reading them. I discovered your archive search feature and was going over some of my past posts during this retrograde, wondering if I really said that. I honestly am not quite sure where some of the stuff I’ve written comes from. I don’t know (I don’t think) that it is automatic writing/typing but much of the stuff I write about applies to me just as much if not more as it applies to everyone else. I hope everyone will be able to detox and recharge during this retrograde and beyond!
Oh, how refreshing; finds me in the same place/attitude/need/truth/empowerment/rest/restore/contemplating/wonder/way out in the universe where there is God in space/wisdom/new creations!!!!! Thank you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hi Colette,
Thanks for limiting your social media. If I may be so bold as to say that I call it “fatal brainwashing”. It does not do a body or a mind good, and neither does main stream network news. Personally, I do not do any social media sites and I do not listen to the mass propaganda news. I use the internet as a library for studying, learning and expanding my knowledge base in the areas of astronomy, archeology, philosophy, sacred geometry and many other more interesting subjects. I make time for hiking and walking in nature, for sharing with my loving partner, for dreaming in stillness, for working out and practicing Qigong, for writing and sharing with a writer’s group, for me and my health and for guidance of spirits in meditation. To me these are far better uses of the time in my life. I am healthy, I sleep well, I think sharply, I have vitality, love is everything and I am happy in well-being. I do like receiving your newsletter/blog/vlog emails and appreciate you for the benefit and service you provide for the greater good. Speedy recovery to Olli and many blessings to you, your dogs (they are so cute) and all of yours. Thank you, Colette, for all your Sparkles!
thanx for sharing!
you are welcome!
thanx for posting Eric always a pleasure to see you here.
hugs!
I’ve been unplugging as well beginning a week ago. Facebook can bring an abundance of joy, yet in a split second can have me so very sad, usually when someone I admire posts some slander about another. And as you mentioned, animal abuse, human atrocities, and negativity. I can usually get myself out of the heaviness, but it’s made a dent.
There are some things my soul just NEEDS, like your Vlog, etc. But once I’m done with those, I’m done.
Here is what I’ve found for me; I’m lighter. I notice Spirit more readily. I’m much more positive. Much more relaxed, yet at the same time, much more productive…go figure!
I’m still laughingly referred to as a hoarder, (don’t throw that away, I can probably make something out of it…) but this past week, I’ve thrown ‘stuff’ away without MUCH regret. Cabinets, closest and drawers are being cleared. I’m either making space, or getting ready for new ‘stuff’, either is okay with me.
What I’ve found the most amazing is that I’m living the flow. Taking action, but not hell bent for what the results will look like.
If this can happen in just one week, I’m giddy to think of what the rest of my days might look like. Oh, the possibilities!
But for now, I’m good with what is. Loving it, in fact!
Thanks for your constant wisdom.
Know that I am send Ollie and ALL OF YOU lots of warm fuzzies!
Blessings!
Hi dear Colette,
I couldn’t agree more regarding the cutting back on the social media!! It definitely has its place but as Melanie in an above quote so aptly named it, it can indeed be a time vampire! And your sentiment hits home when you wrote, “What am I missing?” Geeezzzz… how did we get HERE? haha I don’t spend gobs of time there but more than is necessary. It’s kind of a pendulum swing I think. At some point I could see just cutting loose from all of it. Just be … in nature … with my animals … with good friends… and maybe some chocolate.:) Sending Olli waves of love and healing energy. Big hugs & blessings. Maureen
Dearest Colette,
Bullseye! Thanks Colette. I just need to decide how much I will unplug.
God’s grace to you and your dog. I have sent healing light to your precious. Thanks
for being such a generous teacher, Colette.
I forgot the name of the doctor when I wrote on the blog Monday.
Coincidentally I listened to a program on AM Coast to Coast w/ George Noory (Sunday) evening
who was interviewing Dr. Martin Blank the author of “Overwired” which addresses
the effects of the electromagnetic frequencies and how they can shift the
biological make-up of our cells. After listening to him for about an hour or so, it
made me rethink WHY??? I was spending time online. Certainly an education which
warns us ” USER BEWARE!!!! “
See how short term the memory can be. The book if called “Overpowered”.
Thank you for the love, care and thought of you put into holding these conversations, Colette, and thank you to All who contribute to them.
I need to hear, and feel nourished by what is being discussed here…the clearing-out, the unplugging (and being more firmly, consistently plugged into Spirit).
Much love and gratitude to all ♥
Thoughtful Collette,
Thanks for your validating “unplugged” blog. I have been working at striking a balance since last year; conscious and selective news and limited social media. They are like drugs, always calling me back?
Same days, I succumb . For the most part, though, it gets easier to just tell myself “no.”
Sending love to you and Ollie❤️❤️
The only thing that has gotten me through this past week is social media. The death of David Bowie hit me HARD. He was [and still is] my musical touchstone. His music is the soundtrack of my life. I even used music from “Labyrinth” to walk down the aisle when I got married in 87. Reading & seeing that other people are hurting as badly as I am is helping me cope with his loss. Your post last week touched me. I always live thinking “WWDBD?” [what would David Bowie do?]
Sorry to hear Olli is having trouble. She’s lucky to have two loving souls help her through her journey. My thoughts are with you all. Love & Hugs.
I read your email and it was confirmation to what I’ve been feeling. At the beginning of December, I decided to go on a sabbatical and one of the things I was leaving behind was l media–Face Plant, especially. Interesting enough, it is now near end of January, and I have no desire to re-engage with the virtual, digital social world where the heart and consciousness of man seem to be bleeding out. I now choose to read and engage only in materials and with individuals who bring peace, healing, love and the opportunity to think and feel (and that is think and feel good). It’s a blessing to know I’m not going kooky. Thank you Colette. You are an ascended teacher and healer I have welcomed into my life and openly receive what you bring. Blessings, blessings and more blessings in this new and amazing new year.
Hi Colette
My son challenged me to ‘ unplug’ or go totally screen less for a week. Haven’t done it yet, I suddenly realized how much I depend on my iPad, television, computer etc. And I come from the era of not growing up with this. He seems to think that my age, not having grown up with this, has led me to not knowing how to balance it. Funny thing is it has given me something to think about! Sorry to hear that you are going through challenges with your little Olie. I have just had to say goodbye to my beloved pet of 14 years. It’s hard to watch them when they are sick, big hugs to you all.
I am so right there! Lately, I have been totally exhausted, and much of it to do with a lack of sleep. I feel as if I can’t go to sleep and have been up until the sun comes up, then go to bed and may sleep 3 or 4 hours, only to be awake and tossing and turning or merely doing off and on until late afternoon. When trying to change that pattern, I often go without sleep at all in order to be so tired I won’t have any real choice…doesn’t work. I have been a very unpleasant person to be around. I don’t sleep and I don’t get anything done. Add to that, the extremely bizarre and disturbing dreams, and I have turned into a totally unhappy and unproductive person with even more health issues. And those health issues have resulted in more doctor visits with more tests to be run and more drugs prescribed I do NOT want to take! I am remembering all the reasons I stopped going to doctors years ago, and am about ready to put the quietus on them all again! I have found some I do not like at all and have ditched them right away and others I really liked and thought were gong to be helpful; But it seems, in the end, none of them know what to do but that old try this drug…try that drug……..and it turns into a non stop merry- go- round that has long since left my original reasons for going, in the first place, and branched off into so many directions, that I literally feel the need to just jump off and tuck and roll and run far, far away!
I have not gotten ANY work done on my books since around Thanksgiving. Then, it was the Christmas season and all that hoopla! I have realized all the time, how far I was drifting from getting any real work done. I finally had decided to just stop fighting it and go ahead and try to get into the spirit of the holidays and take, what might be, a much needed break. Maybe the universe was trying to tell me to back away for a while and come back, refreshed and with new perspective. But in all of this time, all I have done was manage to spend what very little time I have had to sleep, solving problems IN my sleep and getting angry about it IN my sleep and dreams, ultimately causing me to wake even more upset!
It is time to take back my control and try to just handle things MY way, in MY time, and IF I feel it needs handling at all. This, no doubt, is going to greatly upset my daughters, since they have been the ones encouraging me to go and find all these answers. I want answers, too, but have decided that most of the work to being back on the road to better health is going to mean more quiet time, more free time to relax and not have to be so “involved” with everyone else’s upsets around me ( I am an empath, after all) , and finding time to be with people other than just my kids. I know this is going to be difficult, as I live with one daughter and have another just a few blocks away, with the third a good 5 hour drive away. They have been life savers in so many ways for me, and I am more grateful for them than I can explain. But I need some outside contact….time with my friends, which won’t be easy with no vehicle of my own, presently, and both so far away. I have been on such an overload status for WAY too long,and it is literally killing me.
When I read what you said about the public media and all the drama, it hit home with me in so many ways. It is and can be a good things, especially, if it is the best/only way you have to keep up with most of your family and friends. However, so much of the time, it is just a reminder about how on the “outside” it makes me feel, too. It makes me feel even more helpless to help when they need it. I feel “disconnected”, and when I attempt to do, or am asked to do “what I do”, I have felt seriously inept….drained, due to my, physically, less than optimum conditions of late. As a result, I have been so seriously mentally drained and spent what has often felt as my only quiet time, trying to “work” things out in my sleep. This is mentally tiring, emotionally angering in so many cases, and puts me on a serious mental overload, as well as adding to and worsening the physical. I am severely out of balance, in every way, and I am painfully aware of that, but have yet to be able to find all the many “fixes” that involve more than myself, with my living conditions. Living with others, as I have NO choice about that, means making a lot of concessions that you wish you didn’t have to make, but don’t feel you have any right to complain about either, and all while realizing that so much of that is part of all that is making one so unhealthy in so many ways.
I have tried to explain a lot of my frustrations, but feel that most is not really understood and taken as just being a part of a “mood” I have been in and something they all just need to try to “live with” themselves. They think it is either due to my drugs or my frustration of being without a chance to come and go as I please or so many other issues, but never truly understanding what is going on. I just feel so alone in most of this and as if I am running an already lost marathon. I feel like I am running out of time to do so much I have left unfinished! I am still not sure where all the answers lie for me, but I am hoping I find, at least, a few soon, before my body gives up totally and my worst nightmare becomes my reality!
Thank you for listening and helping me to realize the opportunity to write this all out. I do know the value of therapeutic writing, and this had been one of those “letters to self!”
Sincerely,
Cathy Fuller
thank you so so much for sharing..
sorry for your loss . thanx so much for sharing!
I have read all the comments in response to your timely article and all I can think of is “aren’t you worn out reading them all and responding when you could?” May I suggest you take a break dear friend. Take some downtime away from the computer…..we would ALL understand, I’m sure, since over 60 comments shows how we all are affected filling our minds up with media etc.
Cuddle up with your husband and your precious fur-babies and RELAX….I understand if you choose not to answer this comment because I love you and want you to be happy. xxxxxxxxx
Cathy,
I enjoyed your letter; perhaps you know how I feel when I get on a roll when I’m writing. Being able to express your ideas in a forum such as this has been cathartic for me. I hope that you get out and meet with your friends. I feel that no matter how much technology we create, how much medicine is manufactured there will be nothing that will be created to replace human contact; a simple hug can cure a lot of things that ail us.
Due to enormous demands in past few months’, I just realized this morning that I had not received your newsletters since 9/2015 and hurried to insure that hopefully it due to wonderful career opportunities for you and not some problem. Your teams quick response was that they had been sent to me but not received and efforts are being made to remedy this. In interim, I went to your website and “caught up” on all , In summary, just let me say that it was a much needed afternoon of “soothing my soul” ! Thank you so much. Got goosebumps when listened to your 1/18 reading for the week and how accurately it described my week’s experience as I read it today! Also loved the video and the song you sang! Sought to find it in your shop ? As definitely would like to purchase in the future! Thanks so much for all your inspiration and for our “tribe” (I will seek to prevent any future ‘disconnect”,
I took months away from most of Face Plant (ha!) last year. I’m having another little break now. I love to keep in touch with friends, but my newsfeed can feel like a constant bombardment of doom with all the stuff that gets shared and it does overwhelm me. I am a sensitive soul. I am very careful how much news I expose myself to, but it’s hard to avoid it on social media.
I know my anxiety reduces when I’m not feeling bombarded. I have a workaround that enables me to use Face Plant for some volunteer stuff, animal healing and positive pages that uplift me, while avoiding all the stuff that has a negative impact and where I feel helpless to change things. It’s good to concentrate on the good I can actually do in the world.
Best wishes to Olli, I hope she’s doing as well as possible.
With gratitude.
I really liked your blog about unplugging. When I read it my jaw nearly dropped to the ground because I had been off social media for about a week and I had just wrote in my journal about how great it is to be “disconnected” so to speak. It wasn’t an intentional “disconnect” I had started to read your book Messages from Spirit and before I knew it a week went by! I couldn’t put the book down. So many other things to say about how reading your book has helped me. But I will stop here. Thank You! 🙂
Excessive reliance on digital devices.Edd.my name for the modern disorder.
Oh the silence of the morning, to hear the pace of nature as it greets the new day.
Redirecting to joy, reconnecting to the music in my heart, stepping outside to feel the air of the new dawn—
Wee gifts of the present ,stilling my soul, my soil of being…
Remembering how small is human in the Vast Scheme of Things…and,
Even though so small,
So influential is the Life of each little thought,
That I become more diligent tto a o shape and mold each one to be an enhancement to the beauty of creation,
To recognize how these thoughts sprout wings and fly hither and thither affecting those near and far, particularly those to whom we have a heart connection..
So,
In the Holy Silence, I sit, ~breathing~
Being the spy, ready to wrench that negative worrisome thought and remold it into a prayer–
To joy and firm faith in the power of love to lift the other into Divine Care and watch the miracles unfold..
LOVE NEVER FAILS.
what a beautiful post MIa… thank you for sharing