by Kathleen O'Keefe-Kanavos | Apr 4, 2016 | Access Your Inner Guide, Uncategorized
Affirmation: “I will temporarily offer my shoulder but not my back.”
Finally! The hectic holidays are over. After indulging in some of the best parties of the year, why are you feeling so low and what can you do to get rid of the blues?
Don’t despair. You are not alone. Mild post–holiday depression and even cold seasonal depression can follow you into the heat of summer. But life is often more about perception than fact. And if you choose to view it as such, depression can become an asset in your life in the form of life-saving warning signs and inner spiritual guidance. Turn the-blues into motivation for change rather than a hindrance for life.
You’ve been focused on meeting the holiday needs of family and friends. It may be time to tune-into yourself. Speaking as a three-time breast cancer survivor, my severe bouts of depression taught me to be aware of my choices; take pills to alleviate and ignore it, or face it and figure out what my body, psyche and inner-guidance were telling me about my life. Occasionally, the choice was as simple and complicated as life and death.
According to research and studies done at the Mayo Clinic, the end of a holiday is often the beginning of depression. Just as we can physically crash after extensive sugar, we can feel down after a long party. The pendulum of life had swung far over into the extreme energy mode of multiple merry-making events like Halloween, followed by Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years and finally Easter. The turkey has been carved, the gifts put away and all the eggs found. Now, as the pendulum swings back into normal it can feel like a let-down rather than a relief.
This particular type of depression is also referred to as Seasonal Affective Disorder, aka SAD. According to Medicine Net the symptoms are similar to Post Vacation Depression. It is normal to have a few of the symptoms listed below. The challenge is when you suffer from many of them at the same time. It may be a sign that you are SAD.
Check the 9 symptoms below to see how SAD you may be. Do you have:
- unexplained
- cryin
- mood swings
- irritability
- trouble concentrating
- unexplained
- no
- insomnia,
- overeating and weight gain especially from
Now you know the symptoms. The causes of post-holiday depression may be:
- Unmet expectations
- Unrealistic New Year resolutions
- A return to loneliness after
- Guilt about holiday overindulgence
- Seasonal depression pattern
Depression is often a symptom, not an illness. Alleviating a symptom does not cure the disorder and this one is not something to ignore.
Research has consistently shown a strong link between suicide and depression. According to a Center for Disease Control study concerning suicide facts and Suicide Awareness Vices of Education, suicide is the second leading cause of death for 15 to 24 year olds. An estimated quarter million people each year become suicide survivors.
Our emotional discomfort can be so great we would rather considered death by our own hand as a means of escape rather than staying and facing our “ghosts.”
However, deciding to see what lessons can be learned from depression is often the first step toward a cure.
It is like pulling the knife from your heart and using it to cut through life’s Bull-sh#t.
As a three time cancer survivor, depression was a frequent companion. Looking back on those trying times now allows me to answer difficult questions previously avoided such as,
Our mind is incredibly powerful and will create or manifest situations to serve and save us.
My conclusion is depression and illness can be a way of forcing us to slow down and “look within” at memories (old baggage), events (past and present cycles), people (relationships), and life-style (habits) are not to our benefit. Without depression it may be easier to continue accepting whatever life is throwing our way—settling for less than what is needed and/or deserved.
Watch for part 2 of this article for solutions and tips on how to overcome post-holiday depression.
ABOUT THE HOST/AUTHOR: Kathleen (Kat) O’Keefe-Kanavos TV/Radio Host/Producer of Wicked Housewives On Cape Cod ™ believes your DREAMS can diagnose your life. She’s Host of the Kat Kanavos Show on New Earth International, Patheos blogger, Author/Lecturer of Award winning, International bestseller, Surviving Cancerland: Intuitive Aspects of Healing: which promotes patient advocacy & connecting with Inner-guidance through Dreams, Prayers & Meditations. Learn more @ www.AccessYourInnerGuide.com
(All pictures and quotes were used with permission from the guest or are owned by the author.)
by Kathleen O'Keefe-Kanavos | Mar 28, 2016 | Access Your Inner Guide, Uncategorized
You have sent me many dream questions and I’ve been waiting for a rainy day to answer them. Well, it’s raining. So, I’ve shut off my cell phone and hung the Do Not Disturb sign I “permanently borrowed” from a hotel room on my door. In order to answer them all, I’ve created a dream series because I believe that by reading the answers to the dreams of others we enrich our dream life. Each section in the series will focus on answering your dream questions.
Today, your wildest dream questions are my main priority.
Your Question- What are the most common dreams that people have?
I find that most dreams fall into these 7 categories, and these categories can overlap.
• Daydreams- when you are awake but no longer focused on a task. This can also happen during meditation, and prayer. Your mind begins to wander and ends up in an area filled with spiritual guides or a place full of information.
• Lucid dreams– you know you are dreaming while in the dream-state. What makes this dream so amazing is that you can learn to return to the lucid dream to control the outcome and change your life in a positive manner.
• Nightmares– who can forget that information? But our nightmares can be blessings in disguise. Nightmares are often a call to action that refuses to be ignored. It is easy to forget a sweet dream, but who can forget a frightening nightmare? The other purpose of a nightmare may be to awaken you at a strategic place in the dream that holds an answer to the crisis.
• Recurring- because you didn’t get it the first time or solve it yet. When you have the same dream over-and-over it is telling you to keep working on the meaning or the solution.
• Healing-emotional or physical information. A healing dream may contain a recipe for life or you may connect with your Spirit-guides or Guardian angels for life-saving information.
• Prophetic- comes true and can be validated by scientific tests or life events. Watch for the validation in your waking world. Validation is the key.
• Epic– like an entertaining storybook you pick up and continue while sleeping. The only thing missing is the popcorn. Enjoy!
Within those groups are many subgroups. An example would be precognitive dreams that are also in the subgroup of shamanic. Many dream groups can overlap. An example might be a lucid nightmare (meaning you are aware of the fact that you are dreaming) that is also precognitive (comes true with validations in the waking world) and is healing (causes positive emotional or physical change in you).
I hope this helps to answers your incredible dream question. Ask me anything in the comment box.
Join me next time for more on Your Wildest Dreams Revealed Series #8 for Your Recurrent Dreams.
ABOUT Dream Expert Kathleen (Kat) O’Keefe-Kanavos TV/Radio Host/Producer of Wicked Housewives On Cape Cod® believes your DREAMS can diagnose your life. Author/Lecturer of Award winning, International bestseller, Surviving Cancerland: Intuitive Aspects of Healing: which promotes patient advocacy & connecting with Inner-guidance through Dreams, Prayers & Meditations for success in Health, Wealth, & Love. Learn more @ www.AccessYourInnerGuide.com Download your free DREAM gift http://bit.ly/My-Free-Gift-to-You
(All pictures and quotes were used with permission from the guest or are owned by the author.)
by Kathleen O'Keefe-Kanavos | Mar 21, 2016 | Access Your Inner Guide, Uncategorized
You have sent me many dream questions and I’ve been waiting for a rainy day to answer them. Well, it’s raining. So, I’ve shut off my cell phone and hung the Do Not Disturb sign I “permanently borrowed” from a hotel room on my door. In order to answer them all, I’ve created a dream series because I believe that by reading the answers to the dreams of others we enrich our dream life. Each section in the series will focus on answering your dream questions.
Today, your wildest dream questions are my main priority.
Your Questions: What does it mean to dream of dead relatives? I dream of my grandparents, as well as ancestors who I never knew personally, many of whom died in the German Concentration Camps like Auschwitz or Dachau during World War II. Usually they pop up out of nowhere in my dream and try to talk, but I have difficulty understanding them, or I try to go up to them, but I can’t. Are they real? What does this mean?
Dreaming of your deceased loved ones can man a number of things. It can be:
• A visitation
• A memory
• An aspect of yourself
A Visitation is a lucid dream that is an actual dream-visit by a deceased loved one returning to:
• Share important information about an upcoming event in your life
• Reassure you that they are okay
• Introduce you to your extended family during times of crisis to remind you that you are never alone.
A Dream-memory of a loved one can:
• Give you grief-relief
• Help you work through your grief challenges in your dream so you can implement them in your waking-world.
• Be an emotional Healing Dream
A Dream-relative aspect of yourself may:
• Remind you of the personality you enjoyed or avoided in that relative
• Point out strengths or weakness (by comparison) you may have forgotten you possess that may help you through a current crisis
Our dreams are Sacred Doorways to the where we existed before we were born and will return again. That place is full of departed loved ones who wait for us.
Love is something that we can take with us and will bring us back.
Occasionally, especially during holidays filled with memories and love, the veil between the living and the dead becomes thin. Messengers and family use the Sacred Doorways of our dreams to come calling.
Not being able to hear them as them speak is part of the process of death. But, seeing them reminds us that they are only a dream away in an alternate dimension. Write down what you do see in your dream journal. Try to read their lips and you may be able to figure out their message. It could be as simple as, “We Love You!”
I hope this helps to answers your incredible dream questions. Ask me anything in the comment box.
Please join us next time on Your Wildest Dreams Revealed Series- # 7 The Seven Most Common Dreams.
ABOUT Dream Expert-Kathleen (Kat) O’Keefe-Kanavos TV/Radio Host/Producer of Wicked Housewives On Cape Cod® believes your DREAMS can diagnose your life. Author/Lecturer of Award winning, International bestseller, Surviving Cancerland: Intuitive Aspects of Healing: which promotes patient advocacy & connecting with Inner-guidance through Dreams, Prayers & Meditations for success in Health, Wealth, & Love. Learn more @ www.AccessYourInnerGuide.com & download your free DREAM gift Access Your Inner Guide
by Kathleen O'Keefe-Kanavos | Mar 14, 2016 | Access Your Inner Guide, Uncategorized
You have sent me many dream questions and I’ve been waiting for a rainy day to answer them. Well, it’s raining. So, I’ve shut off my cell phone and hung the Do Not Disturb sign on my door that I “permanently borrowed” from a hotel room. In order to answer them all, I’ve created a dream series because I believe that by reading the answers to the dreams of others we enrich our waking-life. Each section in the series will focus on answering your dream questions.
Today, your wildest dream questions are my main priority.
Your Questions: I have recurring dreams of meeting a celebrity I like and not being able to take a picture with them for various reasons and feeling pissed. What does this mean? People have dreams with celebrities in them all the time. Do celebrities have dreams with nobodies in them? Why do people have dreams to meet the celebrities in their life? I had a dream last night with Lady Gaga in my face painting pink freckles on it. The dream was annoying; I didn’t want her to do that. Does she have dreams painting on random people’s faces?
What great dreams and questions. Celebrities hold a special place in our hearts and minds, and that can manifest them in our dreams.
We often imagine celebrities as living the perfect life after overcoming the odds of climbing the ladder of success. They were discovered, considered worthy of stardom and their worth is now celebrated. They have ‘Handlers” in the form of agents, attorneys and accountants who look after them and take care of their every need. We may desire to be successful financially and emotionally like we imagine they are.
Society and the media has elevated celebrities and used them as the success measuring device for life.
We are bombarded with it on TV, the radio and movies. We may subconsciously want to be in their social circle, be loved and in demand like they are, and live their party life.
This deep desire can play out in your dreams.
Another aspect to dreaming of celebrates can only be explained by you answering these questions:
· What is it about that celebrity that is most like you or opposite of you?
· What aspect of their personality is reflected in your personality or lacking in your personality?
· What is it about them that you respect and feel could be helpful to you? Is it their strength, fortitude, sexiness, or attractiveness?
· Have they overcome obstacles that are now a part of your waking world?
A client once told me Lady Gaga and her friends marched into her living room, sat on her couch and waited for her to get dressed to come out and party with them. The client was going through breast cancer treatment and felt lonely and unattractive.
Look at the play on words; “sat in her living room and waited….”
After answering the questions above the dream message was clear to her.
• Be yourself,
• Overcome your obstacles,
• Connect with strong women who will wait for you to join them in life.
• Don’t worry about what others think of you,
• And remember- however you are, you were born this way.
Yes, I’m pretty sure Lady Gaga has dreams of non-celebrities and may even wish she were able to walk freely down the street unnoticed. And what’s more, Lady Gaga may dream of her favorite celebrities because everyone dreams their desires.
I hope this helps to answers your incredible dream questions. Ask me anything in the comment box.
Please join us next time on Your Wildest Dreams Revealed Series- #6 Dead Loved Ones and Holidays.
ABOUT Dream Expert-Kathleen (Kat) O’Keefe-Kanavos TV/Radio Host/Producer of Wicked Housewives On Cape Cod® believes your DREAMS can diagnose your life. Author/Lecturer of Award winning, International bestseller, Surviving Cancerland: Intuitive Aspects of Healing: which promotes patient advocacy & connecting with Inner-guidance through Dreams, Prayers & Meditations for success in Health, Wealth, & Love. Learn more @ www.AccessYourInnerGuide.com & download your free DREAM gift Access Your Inner Guide
by Kathleen O'Keefe-Kanavos | Mar 7, 2016 | Access Your Inner Guide, Uncategorized
You have sent me many dream questions and I’ve been waiting for a rainy day to answer them. Well, it’s raining. So, I’ve shut off my cell phone and hung the Do Not Disturb sign on my door that I “permanently borrowed” from a hotel room. In order to answer them all, I’ve created a dream series because I believe that by reading the answers to the dreams of others we enrich our waking-life. Each section in the series will focus on answering your dream questions.
Today, your wildest dream questions are my main priority.
Your Question: How do you tell dreams from reality? Are dreams less vivid?
Dreams can be as vivid as reality while you are in the dream state, and that is why one of the types of dream we can have is known as a Waking Dream.
Waking dreams fell like a dream joke. We think we have awakened, are preparing for work or school as we do during our daily routine, and then when the door to the bus or our car opens we see the driver is Harry Potter.
Ding-ding! You are still dreaming.
We wake up and want to pinch ourselves to be sure it’s was a dream and that now we really are awake, because a waking dream can consist of multiple doors. We are relieved when we think we just woke up from Harry Potter, only to find that as we walk out our front door we are now in Jurassic Park.
When do the dreams end and reality begin? “Am I stuck in my dream world FOREVER?” you might ask.
These waking dreams can be so ludicrous that we actually laugh ourselves wake. So how do we know when the dream has stopped morphing between tricky dream realities and our car is just a car?
Pain is awakened reality. Pain wakes us up. Also, true reality has validation.
However, you can also have a Precognitive Dream that is validated in reality, such as a medical report, or meeting the person in your dreams from three nights ago in a movie theatre when you sit beside them.
Dreams are magical.
A vivid Lucid Dream is part of your reality. Reality is grounded. An example would be not flying through the air with just our bodies when we are awake.
I hope this helps to answers your incredible dream question. Ask me anything.
Please join us next time on Your Wildest Dreams Revealed Series: #5 Celebrity Dreams.
ABOUT Dream Expert: Kathleen (Kat) O’Keefe-Kanavos TV/Radio Host/Producer of Wicked Housewives On Cape Cod® believes your DREAMS can diagnose your life. Author/Lecturer of Award winning, International bestseller, Surviving Cancerland: Intuitive Aspects of Healing: which promotes patient advocacy & connecting with Inner-guidance through Dreams, Prayers & Meditations for success in Health, Wealth, & Love. Learn more @ www.AccessYourInnerGuide.com & download your free DREAM gift http://bit.ly/My-Free-Gift-to-You
(All pictures and quotes were used with permission from the guest or are owned by the author.)
