Guidance for Living

The Importance of Self-Care

October 1, 2014 by SpiritMedium 2 Comments

In the midst of life’s chaos it is very important to take time out to take care of you. Even with a multitude of responsibilities on your shoulders, if you keep pushing you will not only burn yourself out, but also will block you from opportunities that could make your way easier. God knows that you can only accomplish so much in one day. The Creator does not want you to push yourself to the point of exhaustion and illness, but rather when these times of great pressure occur, you are encouraged to take a step back from the hustle and bustle and just breathe.

Driven by the Human Ego
The chaos that we experience is based on a drive by the ego to make us believe that certain earthly concerns are of the utmost importance. The human ego has a very subtle and determined way of pushing our consciousness away from the divine, as well as the light and love that is within each one of us. Awareness of when the ego is steering your actions, which is usually accompanied by a feeling of heavy pressure and a sense that your life is out of your control, can help you to recognize when it is time to take a step back and make time for self-care.

But There Is So Much to Do!
It may seem counterintuitive to set the mountain of responsibilities aside in order to take care of you, especially when you think about how that time can be used to take a significant chunk out of those tasks. But if you stop and really think about it, when are our responsibilities ever truly completed? When does the list of tasks ever end? There will always be mundane projects, responsibilities, and tasks to accomplish, because once you finish one, there are five more that have jumped in line right behind it. Interestingly, the tasks you do get done in a day are the ones you were supposed to accomplish, even if some are still big ones left on the list undone. The pressure to complete them is usually self-created. Ask yourself this when looking at your list: Will the world come to an end if I do this tomorrow instead of right this second? By the way, for those of you who are procrastinators, this is not a license to throw all responsibilities to the wind. At some point, you will need to step up and take care of those tasks, and if you take measured steps each day, you will find that your tasks are getting accomplished.

Step Back and Carve Out
It is recommended that you, especially in the midst of chaos, take the time to step back and carve out some time just for you. Tasks will always be there, but the sun rising up out of the mist on a lake will wait for no one. Hug your kids, play with your pets, schedule a massage or energy healing session, create beauty in the world…do whatever brings you happiness and makes your spirit sing a song of joy.

Carpe Diem – Seize the Day!
This day is yours to enjoy. When reviewing your life, it will not be the hours of completing an endless litany of tasks that you will remember and cherish, but rather the magical moments of connection with the people and animals in your life, the awareness of divine intervention in the realization of your dreams, the incredible beauty of nature that gives breath to your soul, and the supreme love and synchronization that you have with yourself and all of creation.

Reaping the Harvest of Self-Love
Embracing the concept of self-care is also about embracing self-love. Caring for yourself—mind, body, and spirit—is not only important, but also as essential as the air we breathe. It is a conscious choice that you can make that will provide more long-term soul benefits than any mundane task on your list. Giving yourself the gift of self-care today will reap a harvest of peace within your soul that will quiet the rush of pressing tasks, and allow you to move forward once again with renewed energy and purpose.

Divine Opportunities Delivered with Wings
The pause in the seemingly ceaseless actions will give your heavenly support team an opportunity to step into your situation and answer your prayers. Pushing with the will of ego has a tendency to block out the light, as well as divine guidance and assistance. Some of the most powerful moments in my life have come during the times that I let go of the steering wheel and took time out for self-care. It is because I left an opening for the divine to step in and help me. It is in this stillness and the release of self-imposed pressure that you, too, may experience some of the most amazing circumstances of your life.

Namaste!

With Light and Love,
Karen T. Hluchan

Spirit Medium, Motivational Speaker, Reiki Master, & Author of How Have You Loved?

www.HealingSpiritWithLove.com

Receiving Closure and Managing Grief Associated with the Loss of a Loved One

September 16, 2014 by SpiritMedium 2 Comments

Your loved ones in spirit and other members of your heavenly support team know when you are struggling to move through certain stages of the grief process. While grieving for the loss of loved one is healthy, becoming stuck in a certain stage of the grief process can be very detrimental to your life.

Four Stages of the Grieving Process
The four main stages of the grieving process, which I describe in detail in my book, How Have You Loved?, are outlined below:

Denial
Anger
Sadness
Acceptance

A person may fluctuate between the various stages before they reach the final stage of acceptance and peace with a loved one’s passing. Often, people spend a lot of time in the second and third stages of anger and sadness. The anger is usually directed at God for “taking them away” from you, and the great sadness is often for the physical loss of the person’s presence in your life. It is important to note that God does not punish us. He does not call your loved ones back home to heaven in retaliation for any of your actions, past or present. When a soul is called home, it is because it is the time that was agreed to prior to birth.

Agreements Prior to Birth
The time and the manner in which someone physically passes is determined before a person is born on earth. In heaven, we create soul contracts which outline the various lessons that we are going to learn on our spiritual journey on earth. Members of our soul groups, such as our immediate families, coworkers, extended family members, and more, work with us to create plans that will enable each of our souls to grow and reach their full potential.

Life Lessons
The lessons that are selected may require great sacrifices, such as leaving life on earth at an early age in order to help others to learn how to cope with the tragic loss of a loved one. Successfully working through the various stages of grief and learning to accept a person’s passing are two examples of the outcomes of lessons. There is help along the way, such as messages sent to you by your loved ones in spirit, people who enter your life to provide assistance, and books that offer knowledge that broadens your understanding that endings must occur in order for new beginnings to take place.

Answers with Perfect Timing
The relationships that you have with the people around you can offer you powerful resources for healing in ways that you have not even imagined. Our heavenly support teams support us and work through us on earth by placing people in our paths at the right time and the right place. Friends, loved ones, acquaintances, and even strangers may provide answers to our prayers with a perfectly timed call, visit, or meeting that gives us the information we need about our lives. Many times, these instances seem like amazing coincidences; however, there are no coincidences, but rather fantastic examples of coordinated efforts by our heavenly support teams to answer our prayers and requests.

Heavenly Support Teams Join Together
It is interesting to note that people who come to me for spirit medium readings have actually been prompted to do so by their heavenly support teams. Your loved ones in heaven contact the loved ones in heaven who are helping me with my work on earth. Together, they begin the collaboration process to facilitate our meeting with one another.

Your heavenly support team knows when and how you would benefit from direct communications from your loved ones in spirit and the angels, and they ensure that you receive information that prompts you to set up an appointment with a spirit medium. Usually the prompting is both internal and external. You may receive messages and signs that stir your curiosity about mediumship or a reading, and you may have seemingly coincidental experiences occur in which a friend suddenly starts talking about spirit communication, or you see or read something that piques your interest about heaven and receiving messages from the Other Side.

Additionally, your loved ones in spirit will chime in by placing signs in your path that remind you of them and to, hopefully, prompt you to seek out a spirit medium or knowledge that will help you to interpret the signs and messages they send you. To get your attention, your loved ones in spirit may send you signs in the form of objects or images that make you think of them, unusual electronic disturbances that alert you to their presence, music that touches your soul and answers your prayers, and scents piped into the air, such as their perfume or cigarette smoke. Your heavenly support team will also send you intuitive messages in their attempts to steer you toward a meeting with a particular spirit medium, book, or positive path for growth.

Free Will is a Beautiful Gift
What you do with your life lessons and the promptings you receive is your choice. You may choose to ignore the assistance that makes itself known in your life every day, or you can choose to open yourself to the growth and healing that is available. Your loved ones in heaven and your angels want to help you succeed, and they will do what they can to help you on your journey. When you choose to ignore lessons and assistance, you tend to make your journey on earth significantly more challenging for yourself. When you keep an open mind and embrace the mentality that life is a spiritual journey for the benefit of the soul, then you can learn how to live your life in a way that allows the greatest benefit while releasing self-imposed stress, grief, and sadness. The beauty of the gift of free will is that each one of us is given the power to control the choices we make that govern our lives.

You Can Take It With You!
Even though someone may be physically separated from you on earth, your relationship with that person, as well as the love you share, continues on. Your loved ones in spirit watch over you from heaven, they hear your thoughts about them, and feel the love that you send their way. In return, they continuously send you messages of love, healing, and guidance, as well signs that they are around.

Receiving Closure
Your loved ones in spirit know how you would benefit from receiving information that provides healing to your heart and your soul. When participating in a spirit medium reading, they will share with you their love, information about what they are doing in heaven, advice for you about your life, information that will help heal your heart and soul, and more. The peace and healing that comes from receiving direct messages from your loved ones in spirit through a spirit medium reading can provide comfort and closure to those who are grieving, as well as guidance and light for you and your loved ones on earth.

Namaste!

With Light and Love,
Karen T. Hluchan

Spirit Medium, Motivational Speaker, Reiki Master, & Author of How Have You Loved?

www.HealingSpiritWithLove.com

Reiki Energy Healing: Feel Your Best and Enhance Your Spiritual Journey

September 4, 2014 by SpiritMedium 2 Comments

All living beings are comprised of energy, including human beings. When we experience stress or are exposed to harmful or negative energies, it can have an effect on the energies that comprise our minds, bodies, and spirits. Most of the time, our systems are self-healing; however, when we are continually exposed to distressing or disruptive energies, our systems may struggle to right themselves. When we leave the issues unaddressed, it can lead to physical illness, mental distress, or blockages to spiritual development. Reiki Energy Healing naturally restores you to your optimum self through the utilization of the universal life force energies that come from our Creator.

Rediscovered in 1922 by Dr. Mikao Usui, a practicing Buddhist from Japan, and brought to the United States by Hawaiian-born Hawayo Takada, Reiki energy healing provides a way to help your system to heal itself by sending restorative energies to the areas that are negatively affected by extenuating circumstances and stress. Reiki practitioners channel the healing energies with love and the positive intention of restoring you to your optimum state of being.

As the recipient of a Reiki energy healing session, you will feel relaxed and rejuvenated as the reviving energy flows through the practitioner to you. Reiki can be applied for the removal of accumulated negative energies, as well as for preventative and maintenance purposes, the healing of minor ailments, and as an accompanying treatment to traditional medicinal practices for major conditions, such as arthritis, sinusitis, and cancer.

Reiki is soothing to the soul. It can be applied to uplift energy, improve effectiveness of medicine, and to maximize nutritional value of food and drink. Anyone can be taught how to utilize Reiki energy through formal workshops that teach the traditions and methods for transferring the energies to the self and others. In addition, Reiki can assist in the opening of your spiritual centers to make you more receptive to the messages and guidance from loved ones and the angels. Your personal spiritual journey can only be enhanced through this natural healing practice that you can access at any time throughout your life.

There are three levels of Reiki workshops. Each successive workshop provides increasing degrees of expertise, up to and including, the ability to be a formal practitioner and master teacher. Each level of Reiki includes a special attunement that increasingly opens up a student’s ability to skillfully channel more of the universal life force energy. Level 1 delves into the history and traditions of Reiki, and includes methodologies and symbology for self-healing and minor healing for others. Level 2 is for those interested in becoming a practitioner and/or setting up a formal practice and includes more advanced healing techniques. Level 3 is for those interested in becoming a Master, which is the highest level of Reiki and imbues the student with the ability to teach Reiki to others.

To learn more about Reiki energy healing sessions or workshops, visit the Reiki Energy Healing or the Workshops pages on my website: www.HealingSpiritWithLove.com.

Namaste!

With Light and Love,
Karen T. Hluchan

Spirit Medium, Motivational Speaker, Reiki Master, & Author of How Have You Loved?

www.HealingSpiritWithLove.com

When and How to Say No

August 21, 2014 by SpiritMedium Leave a Comment

Loving who you are and believing in yourself means that you value yourself enough to know when to say no to someone who wants to take advantage of your kindness or who wants you to do something you really do not want to do. People who were raised to always be polite or are looking for approval and acceptance from others can have a tendency to agree to certain actions that they do not want to participate in because they are afraid of being perceived as rude or they are afraid of being rejected.

It Starts with You
Love and respect comes from within you. You must respect and honor yourself and your feelings. If you do not, others will not respect and honor you either. The person or persons who do not respect your right to say no may not have your best interests at heart. If they continue to push you, they are most likely trying to force their own agenda onto you. Some people may have legitimate and honorable reasons for doing so; however, if there is something you do not want to do, then you should not do it.

Own Your Personal Power
It is also important to note that when you say no, you do not have to give reasons or excuses. This may be tough to do at first because societal conditioning regarding excessive politeness and strong desires to fit in or be liked may prompt you to want to give an excuse to garner approval. Excuses are like weak links in your self-esteem, they give someone more information that they can use as a way of breaking your resistance to their request or demand. Your reasons are your own, and you do not need to explain yourself to anyone. If someone continues to aggressively push you, you have the right to step away from the situation. Again, anyone who tries to push you that hard is most likely focusing on an agenda that will not benefit you, especially if they are asking you to compromise yourself or your values.

How are You Treating Others?
On the other side of this, if you are aggressively trying to convince someone to do something that they do not want to do, it would be best to respect their decision. It is possible to open up a dialog that could result in an equitable compromise; however, each person involved must be in agreement as to how to proceed. The solution should not overly tax one person’s resources over another’s, nor should you have to compromise your values or yourself in order to achieve an equitable agreement that supports all parties involved.

Healing Begins with Dialog
Saying no to someone just to be spiteful or taking actions against someone out of spite is another matter altogether. This type of behavior is vengeful and is based on a desire to hurt someone. If you find yourself doing this, you may want to take a close look at why you chose to respond in this manner. If someone has hurt you, answering their misinformed behavior by attempting to deliver pain will not bring about healing. It will only escalate the painful situation even more, and may bring about disastrous results for both parties. A healthier way to handle this situation would be to discuss with the person or persons involved the actions or behaviors that brought you pain. Give them a chance to explain why they acted the way they did. Sometimes, people are not aware that their actions hurt you. By talking about it, you are giving yourselves the opportunity to foster understanding and healing through open dialog.

What to Do if Conversation Is not Possible
If a conversation is not possible because the person refuses to listen or if it would put you in a position that threatens your safety, then it may be best for you to walk away from this relationship and forgive them for their actions. Forgiveness does not mean that you condone their actions. It means that you are unwilling to carry toxic feelings within your heart. By cleansing yourself of the negative feelings brought about by carrying grudges, you can free yourself of the emotional black cloud you have been attracting and invite more positive experiences in your life. Remember, like attracts like. If your thoughts are concentrated on negative experiences, you will most likely draw more of the same toward you. When your thoughts are more positive and based on forgiving people for the mistakes they have made, then you will most likely draw more loving and understanding relationships into your life.

Honor and Respect Multiplies
Honor yourself by making decisions that are in alignment with you and your values. When you give in and do things that you do not want to do, you are giving other people the power to take advantage of you. You can retain your power in a healthy and assertive way by standing up for yourself in a calm and self-assured manner. Aggressiveness, yelling, and strong-arming tactics create unhealthy relationship dynamics that often lead to negative consequences. You can be polite and tell people no at the same time. In fact, they may even respect you more for it because respect for yourself cultivates respect from others.

Ask for Help
If you need help believing in yourself, learning how to say no, or communicating from your heart when facing trying circumstances, you can always call on your heavenly support team to assist you. Ask them to lend you the spiritual strength you need to stand up for yourself in a positive way or to resolve the situation in a way that is for the good of all parties involved. Know that your loved ones in spirit, your angels, and your spirit guides want you to succeed on your spiritual journey on earth, and will send love, peace, and spiritual strength when you ask for it.

Namaste!

With Light and Love,
Karen T. Hluchan

Spirit Medium, Motivational Speaker, Reiki Master, & Author of How Have You Loved?

www.HealingSpiritWithLove.com

How to Have Your Prayers Answered in the Best Possible Way

August 3, 2014 by SpiritMedium 2 Comments

Each one of us has prayers and requests that we would love to have answered, whether it is for the improved health of a loved one or ourselves, for assistance with our finances, or for our relationships to improve. It can be frustrating and disheartening to see so many days, weeks, months, or even years go by without those prayers and requests being fulfilled. You may even experience uncertainty or loss of faith regarding whether your prayers and requests will be answered. I know this because I have experienced it myself. That is, until I realized that our prayers and requests are answered, just not always in the ways we think.

Life is the Accelerated Course for Soul Evolution
Every experience that we have on earth has its basis in life lessons that we selected before we were born. In heaven, there is little to no negativity. We learn lessons; however, here on earth, where we experience negativity as a result of the gift of the human ego, we opt to take the accelerated course in soul evolution. Before we are born, we work with our main soul groups in heaven to determine the lessons we will help each other learn. The details are unfurled throughout each day through an elaborate coordination of events that provides lessons and experiences for multiple people at once.

Our Prayers are in Accordance with Our Life Plans
When we make a request or say a prayer, it comes from the heart of our beings, and it is sent telepathically to our heavenly support teams. They examine our requests, which interestingly are already in alignment with the lessons we are to learn in this lifetime, and they determine how and when they can be incorporated into our lives. Sometimes, the events and conditions we ask for are not in our own best interest to receive, such as asking for a partner to return or a loved one to receive physical healing. It is not because your heavenly support team wants to deny you, it may be because the relationship you asked about has served its purpose in the evolution of your soul and it is time to move on to something better, or because the healing you requested is not part of the overall plan for the soul involved, or even you. It may be that you need to learn how to have faith in the overall scheme of life and the ways in which God and the angels answer your prayers. The healing that might be received instead is the gift of acceptance and inner peace, and a true relationship with God.

Simplistic View of a Complex Process
This is a very simplistic way to describe a complex process that involves an infinite number of minute decisions that affect the lives of millions of souls every day. I am writing about it to help you to understand that there is much more going on than meets the eye. God and our angels want the best for us and our loved ones at all times. They know what we need for the evolution of our souls, and when we make our requests, they do their best to fulfill them in the best way possible for everyone involved.

Let Go of the Need to Control Outcomes
When sending my requests and prayers, I have learned to put them out there and then let go of the need to control the outcomes. This is a challenging mindset to achieve at first, because the human ego is constantly trying to tell us that we need gratification now. You can learn how to override the ego’s voice in your head that is trying to push you into believing that you must have everything your way in this very moment. It takes practice to do this; however, the rewards include inner peace through the positive acceptance of circumstances, greater faith in your heavenly support team and the purpose of events that occur in your life, and leaving an opening for the universe to step in and deliver the answers to your requests and prayers in a way that may exceed your expectations.

Important Steps that You Can Take
Here are the steps that have helped me to release my need to control outcomes:

Learn to recognize the ego’s insistence by the anxiety it produces about the situation at hand.
Once recognized, the ego can then be consciously managed by replacing the racing thoughts and worry with more positive affirmations and concentration on living in the moment.
Add to that a belief and a knowing within your soul that everything will work out in the best way possible for you and everyone involved, whether it is in the way you imagine or not.
Be at peace with yourself and the situation, and allow yourself to be open and accepting of whatever the outcome may be. Even if that outcome is not exactly what you wanted, you are most likely going to be the recipient of something even better.
Keep your eyes open to the ways your prayers and requests are being answered. Put the pieces of the puzzle together and see how you really are receiving the answers to your prayers and requests.
If you try to manipulate the situation, you may be preventing your prayers and requests from being answered, and you may be causing yourself unnecessary misery.
Ask God and your angels to help you to release yourself from your concerns and worries. Give your concerns and worries to them with faith and trust that comes from knowing that they will handle the issues for you in the best way for all involved.
If there are action steps that you can take toward the realization of your prayers and requests, take them, as long as you are not trying to force a resolution.
If you are hitting major roadblocks when taking the action steps, it may be a sign that you are heading in a direction that may not ultimately bring you the best answers to your prayers and requests.
When you hit those major roadblocks, it may be a good time to pull back and reassess your involvement. Ask your heavenly support team for help with being at peace with your situation and wait for guidance.
1. Answers will come to you through repeated signs or messages that you perceive through your intuition, or via communications from your heavenly support team.
  1. These signs or messages may come to you through people with whom you are conversing, and they end up sharing information that provides the answers you were looking for, but did not know existed.
  2. They may also come through music you hear or physical clues you are given in the form of actual words on signs that appear before you. I love it when they provide answers on the license plates of cars, such as “HEALED,” or “LUV4U” (love for you).
  3. With your intuition, you may feel an urge to take a certain action. For instance, you may have this strong feeling to visit a certain location such as a favorite restaurant or park. While there, you may have part of your prayers or requests answered.
Take your mind off of your concerns and worries by taking part in a relaxing activity that brings you joy, whether it is a walk in the park, craft work or hobbies, or playing with your kids or pets.
Know in your heart that you are loved and that you are fully supported in your journey in life by your heavenly support team. They will send you signs periodically that they are around such as dropping feathers or coins in your path, sending butterflies as a reminder of the beauty of transformation, or other objects that remind you of the angels or loved ones in spirit.

Key Points to Remember about the Ego
As always, practice makes perfect when training yourself to replace old habits with newer, healthier ones. Keep in mind that the human ego is a challenge that we must contend with until our physical bodies expire and our spirits move on to our next destination. To keep everything in perspective, there are two very important factors to remember about the ego:

The negativity and fears produced by the ego are illusions that we are meant to learn how to manage in our lifetimes.
The spiritual strength of love is the most powerful energy in the universe, and it can be utilized in the form of self-love to manage the behavior and effects of the human ego.

Love is at the Heart of the Matter
Loving who you are is one of the best ways you can assure yourself of a happy life. Regardless of when, where, or how your prayers or requests are answered, when you love yourself, you are more likely to make decisions that are in alignment with you and your soul plan. You are also more likely to be at peace with yourself because you have learned to manage the persistent negative voice of the ego that is trying to tear you down with the illusionary fears, worries, doubts, and regrets it creates. Moreover, the closer and more loving the relationship you have with yourself, the closer and more loving your relationships grow with God and your heavenly support team.

Sending You My Love
Blessings to you, and may you find the peace within your heart to accept the love and answers to your prayers and requests in the best way possible for you and your loved ones.

Namaste!

With Light and Love,
Karen T. Hluchan

Spirit Medium, Motivational Speaker, Reiki Master, & Author of How Have You Loved?

www.HealingSpiritWithLove.com

Endings are New Beginnings in Disguise

June 24, 2014 by SpiritMedium Leave a Comment

Throughout our lives, we meet many people. Some of those people will become good friends, best friends, partners, or spouses. When we welcome people into our lives, it is with the hope that the relationships will be long-lasting and bring much happiness to our lives and to the lives of the people with whom we are involved. Sometimes, though, people grow apart and discover that they are no longer compatible, or we truly see someone for who they are and not who we wish them to be. At other times, relationships gradually fizzle away because one or both parties are not actively putting in the effort to maintain the connection. Whatever the reason or the cause, it is important to know that not all relationships are meant to last a lifetime, even if that is what we hoped for and prayed for in our lifetimes.

Prayers Answered
The endings can be sad; however, they can also open up our lives to new opportunities for happiness. God and the archangels hear our prayers, and they know what would ultimately bring us greater happiness in the long run. The ending of a relationship may be their way of making room in your life for someone or something better. The ending may be temporary, or it may be permanent. Either way, when the ending occurs, ask God and the archangels to help you deal with the change. If you need more faith to believe in the positive outcome of the situation, ask for it. If you need help healing your heart, ask for it. Be open to the assistance you receive. It may come in the form of a calmness in your heart caused by the gentle acceptance of the situation, or it may come in the form of a friend or family member who helps you through the challenging times

Trust the Path You Are On
To help yourself to heal and make the most of your experiences with a relationship that has ended or is in the process of ending, take a look at the relationship as a whole to see what you have learned from the experience. Express gratitude for the lessons learned and the love shared, express forgiveness to yourself and others, allow yourself time to heal, and then move forward with your life with the mindset of an adventurer. New experiences and people await discovery in your life’s journey, and by opening your heart and your mind, you give yourself the opportunity to embrace the changes that are a part of your soul’s evolution. Let go and let God steer the ship for a while. He is an excellent captain to have at the helm, especially when stormy seas are tossing you around. God will bring you safely into harbor, where you can explore the adventures that await you through the new people you meet and the situations you encounter.

Look Forward to New Beginnings
Remember, endings are new beginnings in disguise. In order to make room in your life for your prayers to be answered, sometimes it is necessary for one relationship or situation to end before another, more positive, experience can begin.

Namaste!

With Light and Love,
Karen T. Hluchan

Spirit Medium, Motivational Speaker, Reiki Master, & Author of How Have You Loved?

Guidance for Living

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