Understand the inherently peaceful presence of Awareness the art of Living in the NOW

Understand the inherently peaceful presence of Awareness the art of Living in the NOW, and see that this peace is not dependent upon the condition of the mind, body or world, just as a screen is not dependent on the quality of the words or images that appear on it.

The addicted brain is distinctly different from the nonaddicted brain, as manifested by changes in brain metabolic activity, receptor availability, gene expression, and responsiveness to environmental cues

There are many biological factors that are involved with the addicted brain. "The addicted brain is distinctly different from the nonaddicted brain, as manifested by changes in brain metabolic activity, receptor availability, gene expression, and responsiveness to environmental cues" (2) In the brain, there are many changes that take place when drugs enter a person's blood stream. The pathway in the brain that the drugs take is first to the ventral tegmentum to the nucleus accumbens, and the drugs also go to the limbic system and the orbitofrontal cortex, which is called the mesolimbic reward system. The activation of this reward system seems to be the common element in what hooks drug users on drugs (2).

Drugs seem to cause surges in dopamine neurotransmitters and other pleasure brain messengers. However, the brain quickly adapts and these circuits desensitize, which allows for withdrawal symptoms to occur (3). Drug addiction works on some of the same neurobiological mechanisms that aid in learning and memories (3). "This new view of dopamine as an aid to learning rather than a pleasure mediator may help explain why many addictive drugs, which unleash massive surges of the neurotransmitter in the brain, can drive continued use without producing pleasure-as when cocaine addicts continue to take hits long after the euphoric effects of the drug have worn off or when smokers smoke after cigarettes become distasteful." (4)

Since memory and pleasure zones are intertwined in the brain, many researchers have been using psychological approaches to stop drug use. Many rehabilitation centers have used classical conditioning to rehabilitate drug addicts. They combine exposure to drugs combined with cognitive scripts, like statements how drugs have destroyed a person's life or what can be accomplished without using drugs, according to DeLetis (5). By using classical conditioning, the drugs addicts pair the drugs with negative connotations and properties. "Adverse withdrawal symptoms can function as an instrumental negative reinforcer and can be linked to the opponent process theory of motivation." (6) However, drug addicts may relapse and start using again because of many environmental "cues", which are external forces that are associated with drug use in their lives. When the drugs addicts see these cues, their brain circuitry, especially the orbitofrontal cortex become hyperactive and causes these people to start craving drugs again (2). No matter how successful the rehabilitation treatment is, once those "cues" are around, the drug addicts remember how pleasurable the drugs felt and relapse into drug abuse again.

Through all of the research done about drug addiction and its affects on the brain, one can see how drug addiction is considered a brain disease. Drug addiction is a disabling disease and can ruin a person's life. By taking drugs, a person's brain becomes "rewired" to tolerate high amounts of dopamine neurotransmitters, but once those high amounts of dopamine cease to exist, the person experiences withdrawal symptoms. However, there are ways drug addicts can control their drug intake by using classical conditioning techniques, which allows them to associate drugs with negative attributes.

Bill Wilson is on record for having found a solution in 1960 for treating anxiety and depression using vitamin B-3 therapy and worked tirelessly for eleven years begging for its inclusion into A.A. recovery circles.

The Serotonin Support Group (SSG)

Is a mutual support group for people who suffer from low Serotonin levels,  wishing to participate in a support group that uses as one method a vitamin supplement as a method of replacement or addition to a diet to help the sufferer.The historical basis of this form of nutritional treatment was discovered and researched by Bill Wilson of Alcoholics Anonymous and it is to promote this Legacy to persons who suffer from low serotonin uptake and depression that the Group was formed.Bill Wilson wished to add a step to the 12 he had produced for AA. We struggle to make that possible and fulfill his promise. Without detracting from the message of recovery in the twelve steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. If alcoholics and addictive abusers of other drugs have specific chemical imbalances in the brain, and if these imbalances turn out to be reliable enough and measurable enough in sufficiently large numbers of human addicts, it is natural to wonder whether, eventually, science can find a way to correct them.

Some sort of neurotransmitter cocktail, maybe.

Or just possibly... a pill?

Bill Wilson is on record for having found a solution in 1960 for treating anxiety and depression using vitamin B-3 therapy and worked tirelessly for eleven years begging for its inclusion into A.A. recovery circles.  His desire was to help alcoholics stay recovered. This means he would have immediately brought this mineral replacement therapy that eliminates alcohol cravings forth without exception. Andrew W. Saul, includes Bill Wilson as an inductee of the Orthomolecular Medicine Hall of Fame at the Hotel Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, April 29, 2006 in his induction speech, “…To this day, selective history records A.A.’s 12-Step Program, but has forgotten, or deliberately purged, what Bill wanted to be A.A.’s 13th step – orthomolecular therapy with vitamin B3.”[Lee Brack1]  In February 2009, Orthomolecular Medicine’s founder, Abram Hoffer and Bill Wilson’s good friend, clarified to me over the phone, “..yes, Lee, he wanted to share this information as an added step and talked about it all the time because he felt so strongly about nutrition…”  Abram Hoffer passed away a few months later in May having lived healthy and happily for ninety one and a half years.

The results strongly suggest that the mechanism of depression after alcohol drinking may be related to serotonin.

We examined tryptophan and serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine) levels in the blood after consumption of alcohol. Forty-five minutes after drinking, whole blood serotonin concentration was significantly reduced, whereas no changes were observed in tryptophan level. The diurnal rhythm of 5-HT in subjects who the day before had drunk alcohol was quite different from the control group, but very similar to that of patients with depression. The results strongly suggest that the mechanism of depression after alcohol drinking may be related to serotonin.

 

The important thing with serotonin, is to keep it at steady levels.

The important thing with serotonin, is to keep it at steady levels. The medicines that raise the level of serotonin in the brain do so by slowing the reabsorbtion of serotonin. The alcohol increases the availible serotonin for a bit and then it drops off quickly, leaving the depressed person feeling worse, and they tend to not take the medicine correctly when they feel badly or are drunk. High serotonin levels do not mean somebody will feel happy or good, It makes it more likely that they won't feel realy bad.

Alcohol is literally a neurotoxin, it kills brain cells, it kills final bacteria in your gut, and it is essentially poison. It makes you stupid, it lowers your IQ level, and it is addicting as hell

We all know that we shouldn't let alcohol get the best of this, or go to our heads. Alcohol is literally a neurotoxin, it kills brain cells, it kills final bacteria in your gut, and it is essentially poison. It makes you stupid, it lowers your IQ level, and it is addicting as hell. Surely, we all know people who have trouble with alcoholism. It's a real problem in our country. These people need serious help, and the sooner we get them into a rehab the better, otherwise as they age their bodies wear out twice as fast, worried about health care costs? I am.

If you don't think that alcohol is a neurotoxin, or adversely affects your judgment, then perhaps you should talk to Senator Ted Kennedy about this. Oh yeah, you can't he died of a cancerous brain tumor. See the point? Senator Ted Kennedy had a problem with alcohol his entirely of life, not only did end up killing himself off early, his alcohol problem also killed someone else in his younger days.

I'm not sure why the media wants to prop up the false image behind Senator Kennedy, rather than using his life as an example of why alcoholism is so bad. He is the perfect example of why you shouldn't let your kids drink, and why you should get your alcoholic friends and family members off the bottle. I noted after Sen. Kennedy's death that no one from MADD Mothers Against Drunk Drivers stood up to make that point.

Apparently, it didn't seem politically correct to show how alcohol had ruined the Senator's life. But it went well beyond the man himself, as some of his legislation that he had put into place may one day cause the bankruptcy of the United States of America. It is only fair to tell the truth, and put everything into perspective. It is unwise and unfair to truth to cover over this little white lie in the name of Camelot. Alcoholism kills. Please consider all this.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/2857804

Alcohol idiosyncratic intoxication is an unusual condition that occurs when a small amount of alcohol produces intoxication that results in aggression, impaired consciousness, prolonged sleep, transient hallucinations, illusions, and delusions.

Alcohol-related psychosis spontaneously clears with discontinuation of alcohol use and may resume during repeated alcohol exposure. Although distinguishing alcohol-related psychosis from schizophrenia through clinical presentation often is difficult, it is generally accepted that alcohol-related psychosis remits with abstinence, unlike schizophrenia. If persistent psychosis develops, diagnostic confusion can result. Comorbid psychotic disorders, eg, schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder, may exist, resulting in the psychosis being attributed to the wrong etiology.

Some characteristics that may help differentiate alcohol-induce psychosis from schizophrenia, are that alcohol-induced psychosis shows a significantly lower educational level, later onset of psychosis, higher levels of depressive and anxiety symptoms, fewer negative and disorganized symptoms, better insight and judgment, and less functional impairment.^[1]

Alcohol idiosyncratic intoxication is an unusual condition that occurs when a small amount of alcohol produces intoxication that results in aggression, impaired consciousness, prolonged sleep, transient hallucinations, illusions, and delusions. These episodes occur rapidly, can last from only a few minutes to hours, and are followed by amnesia. Alcohol idiosyncratic intoxication often occurs in elderly persons and those with impaired impulse control.

Unlike alcoholism, alcohol-related psychosis lacks the in-depth research needed to understand its pathophysiology, demographics, characteristics, and treatment. This article will attempt to provide as much possible information for adequate knowledge of alcohol-related psychosis and the most up-to-date treatment.

The Role of Serotonin in Alcohol’s Effects on the Brain http://www.currentseparations.com/issues/18-1/cs18-1d.pdf

http://www.currentseparations.com/issues/18-1/cs18-1d.pdf

Serotonin is an important brain chemical that acts as a neurotransmitter

to communicate information among nerve cells. Serotonin’s actions have

been linked to alcohol’s effects on the brain and to alcohol abuse.

Alcoholics and experimental animals that consume large quantities of

alcohol show evidence of differences in brain serotonin levels compared

with nonalcoholics. Both short- and long-term alcohol exposures also

affect the serotonin receptors that convert the chemical signal produced

by serotonin into functional changes in the signal-receiving cell.

Drugs that act on these receptors alter alcohol consumption in both

humans and animals. Serotonin, along with other neurotransmitters,

also may contribute to alcohol’s intoxicating and rewarding effects,

and abnormalities in the brain’s serotonin system appear to play an

important role in the brain processes underlying alcohol abuse.

When alcohol is inputted into our brain, it induces many forms of typical behavior outputs such as impaired judgement, extreme emotion, and slowed behavior.

Alcohol and its effects

Sarah Kim

Does the brain control all forms of behavior? Is everything we do, say, think and feel a direct output from nothing but the brain? Is it justifiable to think of the brain as interconnected box within box with inputs and outputs? The focus of this paper is on the input alcohol and how the processes generate a certain type of behavior output. This focus of alcohol input and behavior output will demonstrate that indeed brain is and does equal all forms of behavior.

When alcohol is inputted into our brain, it induces many forms of typical behavior outputs such as impaired judgement, extreme emotion, and slowed behavior. Long-term effects include damage in cognitive behavior especially associated with the frontal lobes of the brain such as "slowed processing of information, difficulty in learning new material, deficits in abstraction and problem solving, and reduced visuospatial abilities." (1). The reason for this kind of damage in cognitive behavior can be explained the alcohols effect on the brain structure itself. Researchers have found that brains of alcoholics are smaller and have an increased number of brain tissue loss then the comparable nonalcoholic. Known as the premature aging hypothesis, alcohol is stated to "accelerate normal aging" and make the young alcoholics older then they really are. This kind of aging due to alcohol allows the younger non-alcoholics of the same age, faster and quicker in cognitive abilities. (1)

So what is the underlying mechanisms of this kind of output behavior? What goes on inside the boxes within boxes that cause actions such as slow cognitive output? These behavioral outputs can be explained from alcohol's effects on the humans' smallest box, the neuron. With alcohol, the neuron's and chemical messengers involved in signaling is depleted and interfered. Specific chemical messengers effected by alcohol are the neurotransmitter serotonin (5 HT), gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), and dopamine.

The role of neurotransmitters in the brain is to either stimulate or inhibit the flow of an impulse between neurons. The GABA is an example of a neurotransmitter that is used as an inhibitor, where the 5 HT and dopamine can have either function of stimulating or inhibiting impulse, depending on what area of the brain it is at. All three neurotransmitters are involved in influencing some type of behavior through their inhibition or stimulation. The 5 HT for example, is known to have the most diverse functions in influencing all kinds of behavior. The influence of behavior is caused by the binding of the serotonin to its receptor, which then stimulates small molecules to form within the cell, which then in turn act with other proteins to activate various cellular functions. These cellular functions result in either stimuli or inhibition and "through these mechanisms, serotinin can influence mood states, thinking patterns, emotion and motivation." (2). The 5 HT also "appear to involve control of appetite, sleep, memory and learning, temperature regulation, mood, behavior, cardiovascular function, muscle contraction, endocrine regulation, and depression." (2 ).

Although not as diverse as the 5 HT, the GABA and dopamine are also involved in influencing certain behaviors. Many GABA neurons for example, are found in the hippocampal formation, which is a part of brain that is important in memory and other cognitive functions. The dopamine, on the other hand is found in brain regions called the ventral tegmental area which is a region involved in producing pleasure and reward.

The input of alcohol into the brain on these three neurotransmitters produces much interference that result in certain output behavior. These interferences can involve either the individual neurotransmitter or the interactions of the neurotransmitters working together. One form of interference that alcohol causes on the 5 HT is by increasing its serotonin release in the nervous system. Studies have shown that after a single drink, there has been increase in concentrations of serotonin in the individual urine and blood. This 5 HT increase indicates that more 5 HT's were released at the serotonergic synapses, thus increasing 5 HT's influence on the output behavior such as emotion, mood and thinking.

In the similar way, alcohol also works to increase the activity and effectiveness of GABA. Since GABA is an inhibitory neurotransmitter, alcohol increases its ability to inhibit. "When alcohol is introduced into this system, its immediate (i.e. acute) effect is to add to (i.e.potentiate) the inhibition caused by the GABAconsequently, neurons receiving messages through GABA are even more inhibited by this transmitter than usual when alcohol is present in the brain." (3). And because GABA neurons are located not in one specific part of the brain, the presence of alcohol inhibits many activities within the brain, influencing behavioral output.

As stated before, the role of Dopamine in output behavior is associated with positive reinforcement. When alcohol is inputted inside the brain, it increases the Dopamine concentrations in reward centers of the brain. These increases of concentration induce the individual to think and behave as if drinking more is okay. This then "ultimately raises the 'set point' for alcohol intake, i.e., the amount it takes to make an alcoholic feel 'normal'" and explains high tolerance levels of frequent drinkers. (4).

Alcohol not only effects the neurotransmitters individually, but also influences the interactions of these three neurotransmitters when working together. For example, 5 HT may interact with neurons that secrete GABA. If alcohol is present, the alcohol influenced 5 HT may effect the actions of GABA neurons in areas involving behavioral output such as the hippocampal formation, where cognitive decisions are made. Similarity, alcohol influenced 5 HT works to stimulate more dopamine production and thus more extreme behavioral outputs.

The exact effect of alcohol's molecules on these neurotransmitters is still under study. The overall behavior output caused by an increase in activity of neurotransmitters is known to be caused by alcohol, but the exact methods of how it is done on a more molecular level is under research. A classmate of mine stated in a weekly forum that "every emotion [that] we feel and every thought [that] we have is due to what's happening inside our brain at the molecular level. [I believe that] the mind/brain/spirit/soul is all the same thingwe think the things we think, do the things we do, and feel the things we feel because of some reactions going on in our brains. And what are those 'reactions' exactly? I don't know." (5). There are many 'reactions' that occurs in our brain which produce behavior. Alcohol is one example of them.

A Short Poem of Daily Surrender

Author: 

 Bridget Robinson

“Commit your life to the Lord,
Trust in Him and He will act,
So that your justice breaks forth like the light
Your cause like the noon day sun”
- Psalm 37 1-4

Open your mouth O little wild bird, captivating wildflower,

for your most delightful fare

Are you willing to taste the WHOLE?

Willing to bear the stark nakedness,

darkness and silence of dormancy

and rest in the presence of Your sleeping Beloved passively against your deep surface,

be pillow for His Head?

If yes,

Then, lift your chin little bird

Reach forth your petals little flower,

amid your chill and hunger

to remain in silent longing

OR

As one and the same

be nourished and satisfied

as part of the WHOLE delightful fare

 

New Testament Scriptural and Theological Inspirations

Centering Prayer

Author: 

 Father Thomas Keating

Contemplative Prayer is not a technique, although it makes use of methods as starting points to awaken spiritual attentiveness. Contemplative Prayer is a gift of the Holy Spirit. A basic tenet of the Christian Contemplative Tradition is that this gift cannot be earned, but it is freely given by God. Centering Prayer is not that gift, or even a way to make Contemplative Prayer happen. Rather, it is a means of preparing to receive it by opening to God’s presence and action within. The following texts from the Gospel of John are a New Testament scriptural and theological inspiration for the practice of Centering Prayer and Contemplative Outreach.

The relationship in the Trinity between the Father and the Son

Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? I am not myself the Source of the words I speak to you: It is the Father who dwells in me doing his own work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father in me; or else accept the evidence of the deeds themselves. In very truth I tell you, whoever has faith in me will do what I am doing, indeed he will do greater things still because I am going to the Father. Anything you ask in my name I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. (John 14: 10)

The invitation to share in the Trinitarian relationships

I will not leave you alone; I am coming back to you. In a little while the world will see me no longer, but you will see me; because I live you too will live. When that day comes you will know that I am in my Father and you in me and I in you. (John 14: 18)

The presence and action of the Holy Spirit

I have told you these things while I am still with you; but the advocate, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name; will teach you everything and remind you of all that I have told you. (John 14: 18)

The necessity of union with Christ

I am the true vine and my Father is the gardener.... Dwell in me, as I in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself, but only if it remains united with the vine; no more can you bear fruit, unless you remain united with me... (John 15:1)

I am the Vine and you are the branches. Anyone who dwells in me, as I dwell in him, bears much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:4)

The movement of Union with Christ towards pure love

If you dwell in me, and my words dwell in you, ask whatever you want, and you shall have it. As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you.Dwell in my love. If you heed my commands, you will dwell in my love, as I have heeded my Father’s commands and dwell in his love. (John 15:7)

Christ’s prayer for the unity of all his followers

Protect them by the power of your name, the name you have given me, that they may be one as we are one. (John 17:12)

May they all be one in us; as you, Father are in me, and I in you, so also may they be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me. The glory which you gave me I have given to them, that they may be one, as we are one. I in them and you in me, may they be perfectly one. Then the world will know that you sent me, and that you loved them as you loved me. (John 17:20)

• Centering Prayer

If you're not willing to take a risk for something you really care about, you might as well be dead.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, I don't think you can measure life in terms of years. I think longevity doesn't necessarily have anything to do with happiness. I mean happiness comes from facing challenges and going out on a limb and taking risks. If you're not willing to take a risk for something you really care about, you might as well be dead.

Sponsors curse you have by definition lumbered yourself with a control freak.

 They may offer their number to you – that's up to them.

Again wait until you've got to know somebody before handing over this information.

You have the right to privacy.

If, having got a sponsor, you find that they are trying to control any aspect of

your life eg. relationships, medical treatment (including medication), therapy

(eg. counselling), finances, relationships (sexual or otherwise), employment,

dress code (No! We're not kidding here!), which meetings you attend, what

time you contact them etc then you have by definition lumbered yourself with

a control freak. This is not sponsorship. This is someone playing God! Again

… DON'T PANIC – unlumber yourself forthwith... and then it's back to the

drawing board! Don't blame yourself for the decision. Put it down to

experience and move on.

Spiritual enlightenment has been going on since the first life emerged on Earth

Spiritual enlightenment has been going on since the first life emerged on Earth, where all of us are in various stages of accomplishment. Successive generations of life forms, over all these eons have been increasing awareness, up to the present people of today. Our current structure of the brain and body gives us the capability to recognize our source as spirit and creator of ourselves. Then the next step for human beings is to become that spirit in the body. There is one more physical species of life form for human beings to become on Earth and it is happening now, we are growing bodies of light.

Growing numbers of people have had spiritual awakenings and it is difficult to find commonalities in the reports. The variety in reports is partly because spiritual awakening is not widely accepted as a real phenomenon and has not been studied by scientists. Another reason is that many of the symptoms are internally experienced due to changes in the nervous system. Because these symptoms are not experienced externally, there exists no language for it. Variation in testimonials is normal because each of us is an individual with unique experiences and what we observe and report will be heavily influenced from our past. Thus, reports across testimonials seem different even when we are describing the same phenomena. Finally, kundalini awakening is a continuous process with key stages. There is currently no clear definition about those stages, so all stories are lumped together in one basket, under the common name of kundalini awakening, even if they are miles apart. As more people share their accounts of kundalini awakening, we will increase our knowledge about the transformation and help each other get through it.

What is common to all who have spiritually awakened is they understand the truth that they are NOT the thinker. They encounter the higher-self as spirit; they meet their true self that is the life-force behind the body, behind the mind, behind everything. Many people that spiritually awaken believe they are enlightened, which then stalls their evolution to reach higher steps. This can happen because this phenomenon is not widely known and understood by society and there is a prevalent societal belief that enlightenment can happen instantaneously. Today this is changing, as more people are experiencing kundalini awakening symptoms. I hope my testimonial can motivate people to keep going so they can reach further stages.

The reality is that awareness rises gradually and it happens each time that we drop a part of our conditioning. After we spiritually awaken, we are no longer fully identified with our personality, so we have better ability to observe ourselves and be acutely present at times. Our personality is complex, was built over many years and is held together by our programmed responses to life events. We cannot let go of all our programming instantaneously, nor can we change the energy in our system in one fell swoop. It would be too much to take.

We can only relate and respond to that which we have knowledge of and changes in consciousness happen in steps. We cannot be aware of what is hidden, and what is hidden is our conditioning. Conditioning is hidden because it feels to be integral to ourselves. We cannot change something we cannot see. We change a part of ourselves when we have the desire to change and ask the proper questions to discover our hidden programmed influences. If we are happy how we are, then we will not change. It is normal we want to be comfortable with how we are for a while and we cannot instantly jump into the stream of constant change. When we are comfortable with the known, we feel secure and are building energy to be used later. However, we should not stay comfortable for too long.

To transform ourselves, we only need to practice letting go of the old habit of chattering, which is the cause of animation of the personality.

We are not enlightened because we are identified with our personality, where when animated fools us into thinking we are alive. Because this is the problem, it means there is only one way to remedy it. To transform ourselves, we only need to practice letting go of the old habit of chattering, which is the cause of animation of the personality. Each time we are quiet, our brain is rewired to be more efficient, a program is removed, we are partly healed, our energetic vibration raises and we are more aware. Each time we raise our vibration level, we have more energy at our disposal to heal things in our body, which needs more energy to accomplish. When programmed tracts are removed, neuron growth expands and branches out in that space with numerous connections which is what increases our vibration. As we continue in the transformation, deeper and older problems are corrected, even to the point of correcting the structural alignment of the skull and skeletal frame. The truth is only we can transform ourselves. Only we can stop ‘pretending as the personality’, nobody can stop us from doing that.

My message is the practice of compassion, love and kindness.

“My message is the practice of compassion, love and kindness. These things are very useful in our daily life, and also for the whole of human society these practices can be very important.” - Dalai Lama

Take a few minutes before you go to bed to reflect upon your day.

Think about the people you met and talked to, and how you treated each other. Think about your goal that you stated this morning, to act with compassion towards others. How well did you do? What could you do better? What did you learn from your experiences today? And if you have time, try one of the above practices and exercises.

When we encounter someone who mistreats us, instead of acting in anger, withdraw.

 Later, when you are calm and more detached, reflect on that person who mistreated you. Try to imagine the background of that person. Try to imagine what that person was taught as a child. Try to imagine the day or week that person was going through, and what kind of bad things had happened to that person. Try to imagine the mood and state of mind that person was in — the suffering that person must have been going through to mistreat you that way. And understand that their action was not about you, but about what they were going through. Now think some more about the suffering of that poor person, and see if you can imagine trying to stop the suffering of that person. And then reflect that if you mistreated someone, and they acted with kindness and compassion toward you, whether that would make you less likely to mistreat that person the next time, and more likely to be kind to that person. Once you have mastered this practice of reflection, try acting with compassion and understanding the next time a person treats you. Do it in little doses, until you are good at it. Practice makes perfect.

Imagine the suffering of someone you know or met recently.

 Imagine that you are that person, and are going through that suffering. Now imagine that another human being would like your suffering to end — perhaps your mother or another loved one. What would you like for that person to do to end your suffering? Now reverse roles: you are the person who desires for the other person’s suffering to end. Imagine that you do something to help ease the suffering, or end it completely. Once you get good at this stage, practice doing something small each day to help end the suffering of others, even in a tiny way. Even a smile, or a kind word, or doing an errand or chore, or just talking about a problem with another person. Practice doing something kind to help ease the suffering of others. When you are good at this, find a way to make it a daily practice, and eventually a throughout-the-day practice.

Open your heart to that human being and if you feel even a little that you’d want their suffering to end, reflect on that feeling.

Once you can empathize with another person, and understand his humanity and suffering, the next step is to want that person to be free from suffering. This is the heart of compassion — actually the definition of it. Try this exercise: Imagine the suffering of a human being you’ve met recently. Now imagine that you are the one going through that suffering. Reflect on how much you would like that suffering to end. Reflect on how happy you would be if another human being desired your suffering to end, and acted upon it. Open your heart to that human being and if you feel even a little that you’d want their suffering to end, reflect on that feeling. That’s the feeling that you want to develop. With constant practice, that feeling can be grown and nurtured.

Instead of recognizing the differences between yourself and others, try to recognize what you have in common.

At the root of it all, we are all human beings. We need food, and shelter, and love. We crave attention, and recognition, and affection, and above all, happiness. Reflect on these commonalities you have with every other human being, and ignore the differences. One of my favorite exercises comes from a great article from Ode Magazine — it’s a five-step exercise to try when you meet friends and strangers. Do it discreetly and try to do all the steps with the same person. With your attention geared to the other person, tell yourself:

1. Step 1: “Just like me, this person is seeking happiness in his/her life.”
2. Step 2: “Just like me, this person is trying to avoid suffering in his/her life.”
3. Step 3: “Just like me, this person has known sadness, loneliness and despair.”
4. Step 4: “Just like me, this person is seeking to fill his/her needs.”
5. Step 5: “Just like me, this person is learning about life.”

The first step in cultivating compassion is to develop empathy for your fellow human beings.

 Many of us believe that we have empathy, and on some level nearly all of us do. But many times we are centered on ourselves (I’m no exception) and we let our sense of empathy get rusty. Try this practice: Imagine that a loved one is suffering. Something terrible has happened to him or her. Now try to imagine the pain they are going through. Imagine the suffering in as much detail as possible. After doing this practice for a couple of weeks, you should try moving on to imagining the suffering of others you know, not just those who are close to you.

Greet each morning with a ritual.

 Try this one, suggest by the Dalai Lama: “Today I am fortunate to have woken up, I am alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others, to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings, I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others, I am going to benefit others as much as I can.” Then, when you’ve done this, try one of the practices below.

Why develop compassion in your life?

Well, there are scientific studies that suggest there are physical benefits to practicing compassion — people who practice it produce 100 percent more DHEA, which is a hormone that counteracts the aging process, and 23 percent less cortisol — the “stress hormone.”

But there are other benefits as well, and these are emotional and spiritual. The main benefit is that it helps you to be more happy, and brings others around you to be more happy. If we agree that it is a common aim of each of us to strive to be happy, then compassion is one of the main tools for achieving that happiness. It is therefore of utmost importance that we cultivate compassion in our lives and practice compassion every day.

 

Compassion differs from other forms of helpful or humane behavior in that its focus is primarily on the alleviation of suffering.

Compassion is an emotion that is a sense of shared suffering, most often combined with a desire to alleviate or reduce the suffering of another; to show special kindness to those who suffer. Compassion essentially arises through empathy, and is often characterized through actions, wherein a person acting with compassion will seek to aid those they feel compassionate for.

Compassionate acts are generally considered those which take into account the suffering of others and attempt to alleviate that suffering as if it were one’s own. In this sense, the various forms of the Golden Rule are clearly based on the concept of compassion.

 

The key to developing compassion in your life is to make it a daily practice.

Meditate upon it in the morning (you can do it while checking email), think about it when you interact with others, and reflect on it at night. In this way, it becomes a part of your life. Or as the Dalai Lama also said, “This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.”

 

detox from spiritual burnout:

1. Fast from doing things out of obligation. Feast on doing things out of love.

This is a big one for me. Sorta comes with the territory being the oldest child with a single parent upbringing. What little we do out of love outweighs the big things we might attempt without it.

“Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.” Romans 13:8

2. Unplug from saying “yes”, when I really should say “I’m sorry. I’m gonna have to pass. Thank you!” Smile. Breathe. Change the subject and talk about the weather.

“But let your statement be, `Yes, yes’ or `No, no’; anything beyond these is of evil.” Matthew 5:37

3. Opt to spend time with just a few friends over big group social activities.

Jesus was around crowds a lot, but He always made sure to spend time with a few of his peeps: Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. And don’t forget about Peter, John, and James.

“A man of {too many} friends {comes} to ruin, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Proverbs 18:24

4. Enjoy alone activities that feed your soul.

Whenever I take the time to be alone, it feels like a soothing breeze that blows through the house on a quiet day. Whether it’s reading, taking a nature walk or just sitting on a park bench with a cup of java, it’s all good.

God is the one “who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy”. 1 Timothy 6:17

5. Is this productive or fruitful activity? I choose fruitfulness.

Sure, I can do it, and the results might look great. But, what spiritual fruit would I be planting seeds for?

“I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit –fruit that will last.” John 15:16

6. Make loving Jesus the only priority.

This is my ultimate litmus test whenever I consider adding or taking something off my plate.

Does X help me love Jesus more or does it diminish my energy or desire to do so?

I don’t care how spiritual the wrapping an activity or endeavor might look. If it minimizes my love relationship with God, then it’s not for me.

“I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:14

The editors softened Step 7 of AA's renowned 12 Steps

After being hidden away for nearly 70 years and then auctioned twice, the original manuscript by AA co-founder Bill Wilson is about to become public for the first time next week, complete with edits by Wilson-picked commenters that reveal a profound debate in 1939 about how overtly to talk about God.

The group's decision to use "higher power" and "God of your understanding" instead of "God" or "Jesus Christ" and to adopt a more inclusive tone was enormously important in making the deeply spiritual text accessible to the non-religious and non-Christian, AA historians and treatment experts say.

The editors softened Step 7 of AA's renowned 12 Steps for example, by deleting a phrase that evoked church worship. "Humbly, on our knees, asked Him to remove our shortcomings - holding nothing back," became "Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings."

In the first chapter, a sentence that read "God has to work twenty-four hours a day in and through us, or we perish," was edited to replace "God" with "faith," and a question was added: "Who are we to say what God has to do?"

Wide range of addictions

In the years since the Big Book was first published, AA's 12-step program has been adopted by millions of people battling a wide range of addictions, from drugs to food to sex to e-mail. It has been embraced by the authorities in the Islamic republic of Iran and the former Soviet Union and retooled by groups ranging from Chabad (for Jews) to Rick Warren's Celebrate Recovery (for evangelical Christians).

"If it had been a Christian-based book, a religious book, it wouldn't have succeeded as it has," said Nick Motu, senior vice president of Hazelden Publishing, the world's largest purveyor of materials related to addiction. Hazelden is publishing the 4.5-pound, $65 manuscript, titled "The Book That Started It All" (the original was called, simply, "Alcoholics Anonymous").

But the crossed-out phrases and scribbles make clear that the words easily could have read differently. And the edits embody a debate that continues today: How should the role of spirituality and religion be handled in addiction treatment?

They also take readers back to an era when churches and society generally stigmatized alcohol addicts as immoral rather than ill. The AA movement's reframing of addiction as having a physical component (the "doctor's opinion" that opens the book calls it "a kind of allergy") was revolutionary, experts say.

"We didn't have any knowledge then about the brain. Today we know there is a neurological component, we know there are spiritual, psychological and environmental components," said Joseph Califano, founder of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University.

Califano said "virtually every rehabilitation program" in the country today includes a requirement to join an AA group. "The concept of the 'higher power' was important because it made the whole spiritual aspect available to Catholics, Jews, others," he said.

While the Big Book describes addiction in a way that was complex for the time, the 75-year-old movement has changed significantly as well. In addition to AA meetings,mainstream treatment today includes psychiatric treatment, group therapy, even nutrition. And despite objections from some secularists, experts generally believe that "there is a significant spiritual component for the overwhelming majority of people" coming out of addiction to alcohol and drugs, Califano said.

The question was - and is - in what way? The notes in the margins of the manuscript make clear there was disagreement, and even Wilson was torn.

A sometime stock speculator from Vermont who wrestled with depression as well as alcoholism, Wilson didn't attend church and had "the classic white flash experience" of a universal spirituality that gave him the strength to become sober, said Sid Farrar, Hazeldon's editorial director. Later in his life, he experimented briefly with LSD and parapsychology.

"Wilson was divided, too," on how to talk about God in the Big Book, Farrar said. "But it's not generally known that there was a debate about religion."

Analyzing the scribbles

Much remains unknown about how the manuscript was edited - and by whom. Hazelden said it hasn't had the resources to analyze the handwriting in the margins. Historians of AA and addiction treatment will not begin analyzing the scribbles and debating who wrote each one until the manuscript is published next week.

Motu said Wilson sent his original book to about 300 recovering addicts, religious leaders and doctors, among others, but some think the writing visible in the margins belonged to a small number of commenters.

The Big Book was first published in 1939, and the only things that have changed through four editions are the personal stories of recovery added to the end. The manuscript - which Hazelden says is the only one in existence - was stored for nearly 40 years in the New York home of Lois and Bill Wilson.

In the late 1970s, Lois Wilson gave the book as a gift to a friend in Montreal, who kept it private for decades. It was put up for auction in 2004 at Sotheby's, who sold it for $1.56 million. At the time, there was a flurry of criticism from historians who said it was a major document that should be available to scholars.

The buyer sold it a couple years later to a Houston man, who asked Hazelden to make it public.

As word is beginning to get out about the manuscript, some see fuel for the current fight about faith-based treatment and whether it's more effective.

Jack Cowley, a former prison warden who worked with AA for decades and now helps run faith-based prison programs, said the manuscript reflects "a cop-out" on Wilson's part, to make an inherently religious process "the least confrontational."

"The power is in the understanding of how Christ can apply these [steps]," Cowley said. "It's the scripture where the power is, it's not AA. . . . This is the same thing we're doing today. We're downplaying the faith issue to get more people."