To live a well balanced, rewarding life of our dreams by day and sleep restfully at night.
When life seems crazy all around you…
Published May 22, 2013 | 
Let’s face it, there are just times in our life when it gets and feels all crazy… deadlines at work, children acting up, scary storms knocking out towns (God bless you folks in Moore, Oklahoma)…
When the world is acting like it’s a full moon (whether it is or not), we have to develop certain sanity preserving skills such as:
1. The ability to distance ourselves from unhealthy situations and people.
2. not take anything personal.
3. to be able to just shrug, breathe, and say “f–k it”!
4. Remember
this too shall pass…
5. pray
6. Write
7. Take walks, go to yoga class, hop on your bike…
8. Connect with friends on Facebook
9. Have your sweetie hold you tight and cry if you need to…
10. Listen to Louis Armstrong’s What a Wonderful World
or John Lennon’s Imagine or Sarah Brightman & Andrea Bocelli – Time to Say Goodbye
And when all else fails and you just need to smile and laugh, watch The Baby Bachelor.
In peace,
Debra
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May you not take anything personally today…
Published May 15, 2013 | No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
Good morning,
May the sun shine for you,
when people or circumstances tempt you to question yourself,
may you look beyond them and not take anything personally today.
It took me a long time not to judge myself through someone else’s eyes. ~ Sally Field
In Peace,
Debra
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How can you not smile when these five things are happening…
Published April 24, 2013 | 
How can you not smile when…
1. The squirrels in your back patio knocked over the bird bath off it’s pedestal again.
2. The sun is shining,
3. the almost full moon too…
4. You think of all the good people in your life,
5. and you focus on all the good you have coming your way such as: a new career, a tax refund check, a vacation, a date with your spouse this coming weekend…
Cheers! (and smiles)..
Debra
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Posted in Depression, Happiness, Positive living, Self-empowerment | 
being happy, focus on good, smiles, smiling | 
2 CommentsA Memo to Monday Morning
Published April 22, 2013 | 
Monday morning,
you have arrived.
A blustery day (so far)…
I need to find a way
to turn you into something worthwhile.
Perhaps I will remember to:
smile,
be thankful for the little things,
and disassociate from people and experiences that
do not serve my happiness and well being.
Yeah, Monday morning…
As you turn to afternoon,
may you mellow a bit and treat me kindly
as I soon embark upon your trail this A.M.
In concert with you, Dear day,
I will find a way to
peace,
an armor to deflect the stress…
and eventually rest so that I may welcome in
Tuesday with promise.
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From panic to peace: the experience of being human
Published March 23, 2013 | 
I have recently experienced panic,
and empowerment.
Joy,
and deep sorrow.
Feeling victorious,
and then beaten down.
Inspired,
and stuck.
The human condition puts us through the ringer so to speak. We definitely have our peaks and valleys. When I am despairing and dying of thirst in the midst of death valley, I find it helpful to remember that:
1. This too shall pass.
2. Change is part of life.
3. I am strong.
4. My emotions are simply emotions. I don’t have to attach any more meaning to them than I would passing clouds in the sky above me.
As I write this, there is a storm brewing in North Florida. Thunder booms and the rain is coming down.
The thunder outside, like our anger with its temper and tantrums… will subside and go away in due time.
The rain, like our tears that flow and flood our anguished faces at times, will stop.
The sun will come out again. We will be centered and feel peace again.
And so it is.
In Peace,
Debra
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When we stop trusting… that is when we start losing sleep at night.
Published March 6, 2013 | 
Anxiety and insomnia come when we are afraid. We are afraid when we stop trusting.
When we stop trusting, we start losing sleep at night.
Examples of this are when we stop trusting:
1. our abilities on the job
2. our spouses
3. our kids
4. our country’s leadership
5. our media
6. God
Now, a healthy dose of skepticism is prudent, but when we stop having faith in the hull of our life, the rivets start coming out and things fall apart…
The result? Anxiety. Insomnia. A lack of confidence in ourselves, others, and life in general.
Here at The Warm Milk Journal we envision a wholeness: well balanced healthy people living the life of their dreams by day and sleeping restfully and peacefully by night.
Alas, to counteract all of this anxiety and lack of trust, we need to start trusting again. We need to regain and get solid with our faith,
with our power …
To do this we need to get straight and simply KNOW a few things…
Repeat and affirm…
1. I Am love
2. I Am loved
3. I Am safe
4. I am right where I need to be right now
5. Life works with me
6. I am doing my best and that is good enough
7. Other people are doing their best. I pray and bless them. We are all in this together…
8. All things pass…
9. A pendulum is at work all the time (if something is not to my liking, the pendulum will swing the other way in due time)
10. I am a gift and have so much to offer others.
In Peace,
Debra
To me faith means not worrying. ~ John Dewey
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Posted in Affirmations, Affirmations, anxiety, Depression, Getting a good night sleep, Happiness, insomnia, panic attack, Peace, Positive living, safety, security, Self-empowerment, Spirituality, worry | anxiety, faith, god, trust, worry | Leave a commentWhat should we do when we feel sad?
Published February 11, 2013 | 
We can be the happiest, most centered people on the planet- but life does happen. We are going to get sad from time to time.
Whether it is a stressful day at work, some bad news, or just too many days of cloud cover, we will feel sad.
The good news is the storm always passes. In the meantime, though, while feeling sad we can:
1. Accept the state we are in. If we are blue, that is okay. What we resists, persists, so go with it.
2. We can change our state by simply breathing, going outside, and getting some exercise.
3. We can seek the comfort of our friends, pets, and spouses.
4. We can watch a good movie that matches the state we are in so we can get out a good cry (Love Story comes to mind)…
5. Write in our journals.
6. Write some soulful poetry.
7. We are sad. We are human. Let’s embrace our humanity.
This too shall pass…
The storm clouds will part, the sun will come out again (when it is good and ready to).
In Peace,
Debra
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Blessing and releasing whatever is making us sad.
Published November 7, 2012 | 
Life is a cycle and operates on a pendulum. What goes one way, will come back the other way. What goes up, must come down.
From time to time, we are going to feel sad. It is part of the inevitable human experience.
When I find myself in a sad space, this is what helps me:
1. I spend some time by myself.
2. I take a walk by myself outdoors.
3. I cuddle with my cat.
4. I create: I write, I draw, I come up with new dance moves in my living room…
5. When I am ready to, I interact with my husband and daughter.
6. I think of things that were blessed today due to the sun shining, or a kind word expressed from a teacher or perhaps a stranger…
7. If the sun did not shine today, I think of how lovely it will be when the light returns.
Sadness is real and when it happens to us (and loved ones), it needs to be felt and acknowledged.
Breathe deep, sigh, have a cry… let it out!
Bless and embrace.
In time, there will be a comforting hand to hold,
a snuggly pet to cozy up to,
a funny movie to lure the latent laughter that is still there lurking within….
Friends, loved ones, and funny light moments are around the bend.
But for now, bless the sadness.
Be there, in it.
Then, when you are ready, you may release and let it go.
In Peace,
Debra
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Posted in Depression, Positive living, Self-empowerment | dealing with sadness, sadness | Leave a commentMaking this a Moan Free Monday
Published November 5, 2012 | 
For those of us who work Monday to Friday, Monday morning can be a stressful time. The weekend goes by all too quickly. The anxiety of starting a new work week can begin Sunday evening, even. When I let myself get in that state, I do not sleep very well Sunday night, nor do I begin my new week with the most positive state of mind.
Life is too short to have anxiety every Sunday night and to feel bad on Monday morning! If we only live for the weekends then we are wishing away five days of our week! That’s a lot of our life to regret or want to rush through (too much)!
So this Monday morning, I offer a few ideas on how to make this morning and every Monday morning a:
Moan Free Monday!
1. When you go to bed Sunday night, feel thankful for the rest and good times you had during the weekend. You are going to wake up refreshed and ready for the week ahead.
2. In your journal Sunday night (or Monday morning) write down a few things that you are looking forward to doing or accomplishing during the week.
3. Monday night and any night of the week in your journal write down anytime you helped somebody or received help or a kindness from someone else.
4. In your journal, write about what gives your life purpose. If it is your current job or career, wonderful! If it is not, think of something you appreciate about your present work situation and know that it is a stepping stone to something even better.
5. When that alarm clock goes off Monday morning, do not moan! (this is moan free Monday, remember). Instead, stretch, breathe, and when you get off your bed, concsiously step on the floor one foot at a time. When the first foot lands, think or say “thank” and when the next foot lands, think or say “you”! You made it through the night. You are alive and healthy. You have a new day of life.
Happy Moan Free Monday!
Debra
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You are not alone
Published October 29, 2012 | 
Confidently riding through many storms…
I know that strong winds, rough seas, and emotional turmoil
will pass.
I would like to send love and prayers to anyone in the path of Sandy,
to anyone who is losing their home,
to people looking for work,
to people who perhaps, feel a bit lost.
Faith is the bird that sings when the dawn is still dark. ~Rabindranath Tagore
You are not alone.
In Peace,
Debra
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Posted in anxiety, Depression, Love, panic attack, safety, security, worry | depression, love, prayers, supporitng each other | Leave a comment 
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