Self-empowerment
Articles to inspire bringing out the best in us, living the life of our dreams!
To live a well balanced, rewarding life of our dreams by day and sleep restfully at night.
What makes me confident in myself and in my life? Tonight’s journal writing prompt
Published April 15, 2013 | 
If we are confident in ourselves and the direction our lives are taking, we will sleep well at night, guaranteed!
Tonight’s journal writing question is simply this:
What makes me feel confident in myself and in my life?
Then, write away!
Let’s see, this is how I would answer this question tonight….
What makes me confident in myself and in my life:
1. Trying new things
2. Being excited about things
3. Doing something that I was afraid of (I did anyway despite the fear).
4. Sharing with others something I feel enthusiastic about.
5. Sharing with others my gifts and my passions.
6. Having the ability to embrace change
7. Continuing to work on myself and develop new skills
8. Knowing and having faith that God loves me and the universe works with me.
I will stop here, and permit you to start your writing.
Have fun!
In peace,
Debra
If you hear a voice within you say “you cannot paint,” then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced. ~Vincent Van Gogh
Related Posts:
An anxiety free life happens when we habitually do these five things.
Published April 10, 2013 | 
photo credit: Dreamstime
I believe an anxiety free life comes from these five things:
1. believing in yourself,
2. taking care of yourself,
3. having faith in God and the wisdom of your intuition,
4. pushing your edge, taking risks, and embracing change…
5. having love be your guiding compass!
That’s it. Simple. We can all do this.
Much love and peace to all of you tonight.
Debra
Related Posts:
Be a guest blogger here at The Warm Milk Journal!
Published April 1, 2013 | 
I would like to offer you an opportunity to submit a guest post for The Warm Milk Journal. Our readership continues to grow and is now getting over 11,000 visitors from around the world a month. We have hundreds of followers on our Facebook page and at this writing, 16,461 people following us on Twitter.
I will share and market your post as much as I would my own. If your post is published here, I expect you to do the same.
A few guidelines:
1. Familiarize yourself with our site first. Our content is a bit eclectic. We welcome anything that supports living a well balanced life by day and sleeping restfully at night. Most posts are pretty short in length.
2. Sample topics may include anything to do with: insomnia, anxiety, health and wellness, journal writing, what makes us happy, how to relax and overcome stress, spirituality, meditation, poetry, travel, bedroom design and decor, etc.
3. People I would like to hear from: any person who is challenged and has solutions for above topics, people from the health and wellness industry, medical providers such as: doctors, nurses, counselors, yoga instructors, massage therapists, chiropractors, etc., hospitality industry (hotel managers or B&B owners), travel industry, mattress companies, sleep aid products, feng shui experts, etc.
4. Note, it is fine that you have a product or service but please offer content of value to our readership. I will not publish anything that is strictly a marketing piece.
5. Your submission needs to be an original post (not published on your own site or anywhere else).
6. Interested? Please email me: Debratech@msn.com. Attach your article via an editable Word document. You may include a brief bio, link to your site, and a photo you would like me to use.
This blogging journey has been a tremendously rewarding one. There is nothing like feeling passionate about something and sharing it with others. I feel very blessed to be sharing this experience with you. I am excited to see what comes of this. We are never alone and we can always learn from each other. I think it will be wonderful for you to be able to share here at The Warm Milk Journal and for our readership to enjoy new content from different voices.
Happy Writing!
In Peace,
Debra 
Let’s share this adventure together! I look forward to hearing from you. Cheers!
Related Posts:
Posted in adventures, anxiety, Bedroom ideas, Blogging, creative writing, Getting a good night sleep, Guest blogging, guest blogging, insomnia, Products for a good night sleep, Products for Journal Writing, Self-empowerment, The Warm Milk Journal, Ways to relax, worry | 
guest blogging, guest posting, insomnia, products for a good night sleep | 
Leave a commentAdventures I will have (a fun, spirit lifting journal writing exercise).
Published March 24, 2013 | 
One way I like to use my journal is for times when I feel stressed, anxious, a little run down, or sad. This great exercise immediately lifts my spirits and galvanized my energy to something more cheerful and positive. There is nothing quite like the sweetness of anticipating adventures: big and small.
At the top of your entry, simply write: “I will have these adventures”. *Note, we are affirming these adventures as if they are going to happen (rather than saying “I would like to one day do..”
Then write away. What adventures are in store for you? I find if I write rather quickly, without thinking too hard or editing myself, my heart’s true desires will eventually come out on paper.
Ready to begin? As I often do, I will get my own list started and then you begin yours.
Let’s see…
I will have these adventures:
1. I will explore the charming city of Charleston, South Carolina with my husband. I will stroll the charming streets and tour the mansions and nearby plantations. I will also eat some great food and listen to jazz music.
2. I will take wine tours in the Napa Valley and Tuscany, Italy.
3. I will ride on the Orient Express.
4. I will read a juicy novel.
5. I will try a new recipe out this week.
6. I will go on a retreat! A retreat for writers, yoga enthusiasts, meditation, and one for couples.
7. I will visit Virginia
8. I will go on a class III river rafting trip in North Carolina
photo credit: sunsetfarms.com
This is a great exercise. I feel perkier and excited about my life. I will keep going in my private journal so that you may begin yours.
Have fun!
In Peace,
Debra
Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind. ~ Seneca
Related Posts:
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
Related Posts:
Four States of Mind Conducive to a Good Night Sleep
Published March 17, 2013 | 
I find being in these four states of mind are most conducive to a restful night of sleep:
1. Being confident: If you are confident in yourself you will be immune to sleep-robbing anxiety
2. Faith: knowing that God loves you and that you are on the right path… God, the universe, and life support you and are working with you. With faith, there is no mountain you can not move (including getting a good night sleep).
3. Feeling grounded and centered. Meditation and spending time outdoors will really help you get in this wonderful peaceful, neutral place where life events and circumstances can not uproot you.
4. Being love and loved. Love is really all there is. If were are not in a state of love, we are in a state of fear and we will not sleep as well. Simple, right?
In Peace,
Debra
I would like to dedicate this post to my sweet husband and life partner, John. John, you make the fourth state of mind, being loved and loving easy. I so appreciate your friendship, companionship, encouraging me to always be my best, and your just being there. I love you!
P.S. Thank you Fawn Weaver over at HappyWivesClub.com. I just love the idea of celebrating love and honoring our husbands and marriage. Love is truly the greatest gift there is.
Related Posts:
This evening, I Am these thirteen things…a wonderful journal writing exercise!
Published March 12, 2013 | 
Making declarations are very powerful and life affirming. They come from a place of confidence and strength.
Once in a while I love to write in my journal and simply declare:” I Am……” and just write and see what comes out naturally and with fortitude and excitement.
This evening I feel compelled to make such a journal entry. Care to join me?….
On this Tuesday evening, March 12, 2013:
1. I Am grateful to be home.
2. I Am a teacher.
3. I Am a writer.
4. I Am a lover of life.
5. I Am in love with my sweet husband.
6. I Am a great cook! I can smell the delicious herb baked chicken I prepared in the oven as I write this…
7. I Am a world traveler
8. I Am a student of the French language and wine…
9. I Am a book person
10. I Am creative
11. I Am free
12. I Am open
13. I Am loved.
So, that is my list for this moment.
Your turn, friends…
Have fun declaring who and what you are, right now. Own it. Cheers! 
Related Posts:
Posted in Benefits of Journal Writing, Journal Prompts, Journal Prompts, journal writing, lists, Positive living, Self-empowerment, Spirituality | being in the now, declaring and affirming yourself, I Am, journal writing, journal writing prompt, making declarations, powerful journal writing | Leave a commentGuilty Pleasures, Good Night Sleep?
Published March 11, 2013 | We all work hard. We owe it to ourselves to let loose a bit and pamper ourselves.
I truly believe that if we indulge ourselves regularly on things we enjoy we will be more productive workers, more attentive parents, more giving citizens, and more creative artists,writers, and entrepreneurs.
All of God’s children like their creature comforts and we like our guilty pleasures too… what do I mean by guilty pleasures?
You know… the things you really enjoy that perhaps you don’t want to confess to… but you really enjoy them and they are truly the icing on the cake of life…
Just for the fun of it, I thought it would be fun to share a few guilty pleasures that we enjoy. I can’t help but think that if we permit ourselves these pleasures, we are enjoying life more and sleeping better at night as a result.
As I frequently do, I will share a bit. Please feel free to comment and add your list here as well!
Let’s see…a few of my current guilty pleasures are:
1. high quality milk chocolate
2. high cotton thread sheets
3. really plush pillows
4. sitting outside on my back patio or nearby beach…
5. my afternoon Starbucks Venti Cappucinno (with an extra shot of espresso)…
6. playing Words with Friends late at night
7. a glass of wine in the early evening
8. petting and cuddling my cat, Mew, who is the softest most luxurious creature
9. going on adventures with my husband (even if it is discovering new things here in our hometown of Jacksonville, Florida).
10. the hot tub at my new LA Fitness club…
Your turn! Have fun… and sweet dreams tonight!
P.S. Don’t forget to write in and share a few of your guilty pleasures…!
Related Posts:
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
Related Posts:
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 commentI feel most alive when… this evening’s journal writing exercise.
Published March 5, 2013 | 
Good evening. It’s time to have a little time to write and focus on what is important, what really turns us on and brings us to life! If we focus on these things we will go to bed tonight eager and looking forward to the new day. Living our passions gives us purpose. There will be no room for boredom, depression, or anxiety… Ready?
In your journals, simply write: I feel most alive when… then write,write, write! Have fun.
Let’s see…
I feel most alive when…
1. I am writing.
2. I am riding my bike.
3. I am taking a walk outside.
4. I am gazing out at the ocean, my back patio garden, a beautiful night sky…
5. My husband smiles at me
6. I’ve just had a great yoga class, swim, or workout at the gym
7. I feel like I have put in a good day at work.
8. Going on a trip, or even planning for a trip. I love adventure!
9. Trying new things.
10. Dancing around and moving my body.
Your turn!
Related Posts:
Copyright © 2013 - The Warm Milk Journal. All Rights Reserved. 