Wellness and Beyond

My Publications

2016

Love: A First Class Trip

The comfort of traveling in first class on an airplane has to do with service, food, the priority that passengers have in order to get it or out of the airplane. The first class passengers occupy a small section of a plane and only some people have the chance to enjoy this service, because of the cost and the amount of chairs available.

Whenever I have had the opportunity to stay at an airport, I have dreamt of the idea that the whole airplane is first class, so that every passenger is able to enjoy this experience.

We can compare the experience of a trip on first class with feeling and experiencing love. I would like that love were something that we all could enjoy beyond our relationships as couples.

Whenever I have the opportunity to work with someone’s dreams or pain, I always state the idea that love must be a priority in everyone’s life. I try to transmit the idea that love must be a commitment with us and our community. When we spread love, we find different ways in which the presence of God is manifested to us. This happens when our actions are guided by this feeling.

But what are the implications of traveling in this first class seat called love?

1. Stopping a toxic relationship.
2. Establishing a relationship which helps us nurture our spirit in the name of God.
3. Discovering in our own speech those words that come from a place of pain, so that we can paint transform them and paint them with the color of love.
4. Being faithful to the values that protect and empower our sense of humanity, since through them we can find a balance in the name of freedom and wellness.
5. Filtering bad feelings through compassion in order to be able to live without regrets.
6. Packing our baggage full of love every day, having into account that if use love to look at the others, this will be the feeling that we are sure to find on our trips.

Happy Saint Valentine’s Day! May this month be a trip full of endless love!

2015:

A Different Present

Christmas is here bringing a message of love and light to the whole world. This season touches and makes people happy. Many people remember and celebrate the presence of Jesus on Earth. God made man taught and left his example of love; this example is still remembered today, even 2015 years after his presence among us; today, his teachings nurture our spirit.

However, it is very difficult to reflect and pray; also, an invitation to silent contemplation is hard to be accomplished, since families and everyone are really busy preparing foods, feasts and presents. Thus, the distractions and daily compromises of this season keep people away from meditation.

For all of these reasons is important to chose a moment every day in order to make an action which allow us to be in touch with Jesus as a preparation fo his birthday.

You can identify those daily actions which allow you to express love through your smile, your peace or the kindness of your actions, that is, throughout all of the actions that gives a sense of relaxation to others. Surprise your family with a different attitude; embrace optimism, because the birth of Jesus is a message of joy and love that divided into two the history of humanity.

Make a list with those actions that bring peace to you. The idea is that you could practice these actions every day, so that you can be yourself an instrument of the very message of God.

Everyone asks for or dreams of different presents for Christmas: having a specific object, living some experience, seeing a person that you love, visiting your country, your family and friends.

I want to invite those women who dream of having a space for their personal growth every year. You can visit this website: www.circulosdebienestar.com so that you can learn about the different meetings where you can find silence and transformation. This could a present you can give to someone, a special gift for growth, an opportunity to live Jesus in their hearts while creating actions of light which allow to get rid of pain.

For some this is a season of memories and nostalgy: think about how you can find love in the message of Jesus. I hope this Christmas be an opportunity to choose uncommon presents; for example, a time to be alone, attending a group of prayer, or exercising, since this is a practice that benefits your physical, mental and spiritual health.

Taking care of us is taking care of the precious gift that God granted us, life. We are also honring the message of love that He gave us with his presence on Earth.

I want to wish a merry Christmas to our readers, to every business owner which, through their publicity, allow us to deliver El Informador to your homes. May this season bring a chance for giving a present of self-caring and the opportunity to create a society full of peace. My best wishes and blessings to you!

Celebrating the Life of People with Disability

The United Nations have proclaimed the 3rd of December as the International Day of People with Disability. Let us read some information from this organization:

World population: 7 billion people

More than one billion people have some kind of disability (one out of seven habitants).

More than 100 million of people with disability are children.

Children with disability have 4 times more chances to be victims of some type of violence.

80% of people with disability live in developing countries.

50% of people with disability have no access to social security.

153 countries have signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

If you or a family member has any condition of disability, you can contact in your country an organization that helps people with disabilities, so that you can ask for help. In the case of the inhabitants of South Carolina, it is possible to take into account on the South Carolina Vocational Rehabilitation Department; this department has offices in every county. The main objective of this department is to give assistance to every person of the state with a disability in order to give these people the opportunity to have a job in a competitive way. This department has these functions:

To evaluate a person in order to determine if he or she is electable to receive this help. In this case the department helps the person explore and search for a suitable job position.

To help the people to manage his/her disability through therapy, treatment, procedures and appropriate equipment to ease the person’s performance at work.

To offer the appropriate capacitation in order to improve the abilities of people through classes and job opportunities at the offices of the department; or in other places through educational agreements.

To help people search a job and support the person once he or she has found a job.

It is important that the owners of businesses and companies know about how the Vocational Rehabilitation Department can associate with them in order to give job opportunities to people with disabilities. This action can benefit their business in aspects such as:

• A pre-selection of qualified candidates in order to fulfill the business’ needs.
• To offer an appropriate training and monitoring after hiring.

Companies and businesses have the opportunity to receive some financial help, credits, and many incentives related to taxes when people with disabilities are hired by these places. For further information, please visit the website: www.scrv.net

Disability is an opportunity for human beings to re-invent themselves and the global community. Let us make inclusive actions on behalf of those with different abilities, since they are also part of life.

Thanks to the Readers

Readers are the reason and motivation of a writer. They take their time to make a reflection about the words they read. So that, each written word is used by the writer to establish a connection and a dialogue.

I want to thank to every reader. Those readers that the writer meets personally and those ones that the writer will never meet. Thanks to those who find words of light on a text, and transform those words into light or even a seed that can be planted inside. This seed will be spreaded further to others.

Thanksgiving is a special American holiday which is celebrated on the last Thursday of November. But this day is not a only a holiday for us to stop and celebrate, it is also a momento to give time to practice thankfulness, a particular value that makes our heart outstand. That is why my invitation on this date is for the readers to practice this value.

We can cultivate thankfulness every day, but this action requires our conscious attention in order to find those aspects which we should thank for. This practice stimulates the production of words about love; these words help our brain produce some special substances which improve our mood. Thankfulness allows happiness; it permits us to see the best of what we have learned. But it is very difficult to be thankful for those things that are unpleasant or painful, since our suffering generates complaints and resentment.

Thankfulness is a gift from our heart. This feeling transforms into words when we say a positive comment, when we write or say a poem or when we sing a song. This feeling is like a caress that we give to others and even to our own mind. When we criticize, we lose the harmony that we have when love is the one that leads our actions beyond reason.

I hope that our readers practice thankfulness as an option of life on this new Thanksgiving Day.

Today and always, I appreciate the opportunity that my readers give through their ideas and emails, but especially for their presence.

The Parents’ Role during an Emergency

“One of the tests of leadership is the ability to recognize a problem

before it becomes an emergency.”

Arnold Glasow

Due to Hurricane Joaquin and its effects on the East Coast of the U.S.A., there were floods which were a challenge to the creativity, patience and solidarity of the inhabitants of this zone.

As Arnold Glasow states on his quotation above, leadership must prevent problems from happening. Respect to this, the Caribbean area is always ready from June to November in order to cope with the hurricane season which happens every year.

This year, we could watch videos showing cities, neighborhoods, houses, commercial places and many other buildings and sites affected by floods due to the strong rain that occurred for 3 days. This affected and changed the rhythm and activities of the inhabitants of the area.

The leaders of the private and official organizations took decisions in order to protect the integrity of the citizens. Also, parents, as leaders of their families, play an important role at the very moment of dealing with an emergency.

Parents are a model because of their actions and behavior when an emergency happens. This type of situations make people think and react in a fast way. However, this behavior depends on the experience and on mental stability of people, since anxiety and fears may take control of the situation. This might affect the way as we make decisions.

These are some observations that you could have into account when facing an emergency:

1. Balance the time that you will use to watch the news for information about the situation and the time that you and your family will use to do activities such as playing board games, cooking, working on a project or making plans for the future.
2. Avoid showing your kids images which could result traumatic.
3. Planning an evacuation before the emergency happens is a good idea. Thus, you could receive help from friends, relatives or neighbors.
4. Monitor you house and neighborhood frequently in order to make decisions based on the security conditions.
5. Keep at hand the phone numbers and websites where you can get information from your county in order to get information about shelter and procedures. When the state of emergency is declared by the president, it allows the citizens to use the resources provided by FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency. This is the agency which you and your family can count on when the state of emergency is declared.
6. Find out about your options to protect your properties. For instance, the city of Charleston provided its parking facilities for the residents to keep their cars safe.
7. Always keep near your important documents, such as birth certificates, passports, social security cards, checkbooks and any other. Keep these documents in a weatherproof container or at least in a drawer, folder or bag which you can take with you if an evacuation occurs
8. Keep the battery of your cell phones fully charged. It is also a good idea to have spare batteries and keep them charged too. This will be useful if a blackout occurs and it is important for you to keep in touch with your relatives.
9. Follow the directions given by the government, such as evacuations and curfews, since these decisions are taken to protect your life and integrity.
10. Have into account that probably and emergency call could not be answered due to the high amount of calls during these situations. So that, be aware of the directions that you receive.
11. Practice any relaxation or spiritual activity which allows you to feel better. Praying, meditating, writing or taking a bathtub are good options.

If a month has passed after a catastrophe or another type of emergency and you or any member of your family continues to experience some trouble to sleep, eat or do any daily activity, and also dream of constant nightmares, it will be necessary to see a doctor or a mental health professional in order to be evaluated for post-traumatic stress. This is a condition which appears when people experience and overwhelming situation that affects the mind.

Life brings challenges every day, so that keeping our mind and spirit strong is a good option for us to successfully cope with any crisis or emergency in a safe way. Thus, we will be able to use our confidence and protect our families. These actions will last forever on our children’s mind, since they will be the leaders of a community in the future, but especially they will leaders full of love and light for their own families.

Getting Rid of Anger

“Anger and intolerance are the enemies of correct understanding”.

Mahatma Gandhi 

Fall is here with colors of transition. It brings the opportunity for us to let go what is dry, spoiled or past.

Such as the trees lose their leaves during this season, humans experiment feelings about keeping or repeating, but some of these feelings should be out of our life.

So that, we must think about our inner life in order to be in sync with Nature, since there are people who must get rid if some feelings, one of those is anger.

Anger is a feeling which is generated as a trigger; according to some research by Dr. Kashdan, 66.3% of the causes of anger is other people. This has to do with the interaction or even when we do not see others. Anger is a feeling which generates a reaction to something that produces dislike or rejection. But anger is also an experience; in this case, such experience will depend on the way that we connect to our past experiences or to our fear of the future. This process generates a set of behaviors which may cause conflicts or an energy which originates change.

But also anger may bring a new state of consciousness to us, since in brings a strong message when we stop in order to listen and remove the actions of destruction. But it is necessary that we get in touch with the intention to re-direct our strength in order to be able to get out of destruction.

We may lose control because of anger. This implies the intervention of the authorities in order to deal with out behavior.

Then, what could be your intention to get rid of anger?

The strength of anger can be transformed into actions that involve the action of love instead of actions which deal with hurting or harming. 

"Anger is never without a reason, but seldom with a good one."

Benjamin Franklin.

Finding the origin of anger is a conscious exercise which leads our heart towards the bridges of a healthy living. Getting rid of anger, such as the tree gets rid of dry leaves, is an action which makes room in our life to make new relations and experiences, since it allows us to fly.

2014:

May, Mental Health Awareness Month

Mental health is the ability to regulate our emotions, our thoughts and our behavior. This will be reflected in the interaction with ourselves, our family and our society

The variations in our sleeping habits, our energy, the food that we usually eat and our mood, can warn us about some kind of mental condition. Also you should be aware about if the weather or the seasons make you change your daily performance. If you notice any change like those mentioned above, and if they keep for more than two weeks, please go to your doctor, or in the U.S.A. call 1-877-726-4727, using your postal area code the operators will find for you a near place for evaluation and treatment.

You can also find information about this topic on the website www.mentalhealth.go. According to the Mental Health Department of South Carolina, there is today almost one person affected by some kind of mental disease in every American family. Also, this agency says that ethnic minorities and poverty are also factors that may lead to this type of disease.

Hispanic young people are the most vulnerable population to suffer from these diseases among all other racial minorities of this country. Our compromise as a community must be help and support every person with some kind of mental disease. We must motivate these people to look for help or we must provide them care or attention. These actions are some of those that we can offer to someone who is under professional treatment.

If you suspect that that someone is considering to commit suicide as a permanent solution for a temporary problem or due to his/her mental condition, call 911 and ask for help, or get in touch with the Suicide Prevention Lifeline in the U.S.A., dial 1800-273-8255..

At the SAMHSA website you can find publications about different mental conditions and their symptoms. In this month, ask yourself about what you are doing for your own mental health. What are the things that help you take care of your mind? How do you cultivate your thoughts and self-caring in order to do activities that allow you to have a regulated behavior? Keep in mind that mental condition can be originated because of genetic conditions, a bad balance of your brain chemistry, or because of a behavior that have been learnt or developed from abuse, negligence or even from your very personal or family history.

“There is health in peacefulness, and also abundance in us. Forgive yourself, accept yourself, recognize and love yourself. Remember that you have to live with yourself for the eternity”, words by Facundo Cabral, an Argetinean songwriter and singer.

Mother: A Being Who Gives Growth

“A mother has something of God of a lot of an Angel”

José Fernández Del Cacho (Spanish Priest and Poet)

In the very own words of this Spanish poet and priest, we can read one the many definitions that we can find about a mother. Mothers are full of unconditional love, such as the love that God feels and gives, and some of the protection that is associated to angels.

Mother has been the source of inspiration for musicians and artists, since they have been able to catch her presence in every action that she does, full of love and her very essence.

But today it is so difficult to find a way to honor mothers when we cope with so many responsibilities. So, what can we do to give priority to this exceptional being?

You can declare a month of the year to celebrate.

You can state one or two questions that allow you to deepen into the essence of this special person, beyond the exclusive ideal of being a mother. If for the reason of distance or death, she is no longer close to you, you may find out information about her from your older siblings or relatives in order to enrich your own life from her life and experience.

Ask some advices from other mothers.

Make a list of 12 mothers that you admire and, for each month of the year, get in touch to every one of them. You may call or write them, or contact them personally. The idea is to nurture your own spirit from the words of love from that special person.

If you are a mother, take some minutes on this Mother’s Day to identify those moments when you have being a healing presence for your kids. Identify those actions, words, examples, sights or even the tone of your voice, every single aspect of your daily life which allows you to make yourself and your kids happy.

Mother’s Day celebration is more than a simple act of recognition; it is an eternal moment in time that we can use to rescue words in order to honor those women who can feel love for another being, even before he or she is born. A mother is a special being whose actions can be a source of compassion.

If you are a mother, and to every mother in your family, I wish you can enjoy the daily opportunity to be by the side of the special beings that your children and grandchildren are; on this day let us honor the miracle that these special beings who generate life.

Women and Salary: an Opportunity for Negotiation

April is National Financial Literacy Month in the United States. It is important to show some elements for women to have into account about the negotiation of their salaries.

Since women earn 77 cents for each dollar that men earn, it is important to know that this statistics are quite different when we refer to Hispanic women; in this case the relation is 53 cents for each dollar, according to the report by the American Association of University Women (AAUW).

The statistics result to be useful in order to give us the opportunity to be aware about these phenomena, so that we can find a solution to them. That is why, as a woman, you must have into account these aspects:

Investigate about some mediation techniques before accepting a new job or before negotiating a salary (with or without promotion), so that you can be able to use them in a context where you deploy your self-regulation; in this way, you will able to créate a healthy projection of yourself during the negotiation.

Identify the needs of the organization that is hiring you; the idea is that you could offer your abilities and experience to them; thus, you can establish a point of communication between your desired salary and what you can offer through your work.

Create real expectations through your proposals; in this way, you can keep your ethics and productivity levels constant, beyond what the results of the negotiation of your salary could be.

Practice your proposal before you present it; search for suggestions from experienced people so that you can enrich the presentation of your ideas and proposal.

Contact the congressmen of your area who represent and promote fair salaries for women. Besides, you can help young women to be aware about the deep difference of salaries between men and women in the United States.

Remember to collect information to sustain your work proposal in an objective way; you can use reports, statistics, projects or any other element which can be useful to you.

It is expected that the difference between salaries finishes by the year 2058, today you have the opportunity to act and advocate for better salary conditions; let us dedicate some time to identify what is being done in Washington D.C., a place where women earn 90 cents for each dollar that men earn.

The difference between salaries is much more than talking about statistics, it is rather a topic of dignity if we have into account the fact that today the incomes in 4 out of every 10 homes are provided by women who are the head of their families.

Creating social balance for women respect to their salaries is a compromise of all our society in order to develop wellness.

Jesus Christ: A Life of Unconditional Love

The life of Jesus can be focused from different angles: as a source of inspiration (a human being, the Son of God or a spiritual guide). Jesus can be seen in a different way from the particular point of view of every religion or even from the perspective of those who do not believe in God or do not practice any religion. But, beyond religious practices which join or separate people, there are many stories of love, which have been traditionally told over and over again throughout history. In the end, the spirits of many people have been nurtured by them.

A member of the Company of Mary Sisters said once that the real day to celebrate Love and Friendship should be on a Good Friday; she told about the love of Jesus for all of us and how, in the name of that love, he died for us. What an inclusive concept of love for the others results to be this action of Jesus. His sacrifice is an action without exceptions; we can perceive how he loved humanity from his own human perspective, no matter if the others were his followers or not, or whether if they believed or not in him or in his father, God.

The practice of unconditional love is something that elevates our spirit and allows human beings to detach from their own human condition, which have to do with the labels of criticism and prejudice. That is why, at every time that we criticize others, we miss a chance to love each other.

The action of loving goes beyond external considerations; for instance, love for the things that we have cultivated in our inner world, results to be a lesson of knowledge, since unconditional love is a kind of love which goes beyond the conditions of the mind. Unconditional love can be understood as loving the others beyond what you are.

No matter if you celebrate Lent or the holy days on the Catholic calendar or if you celebrate Easter, my invitation is to make a personal reflection about the life of Jesus Christ, since this is an opportunity to find a being who showed and gave his unconditional love through his capability to help other people; a person who created, through his practice of love, the possibility for many people to come together; a man who used this possibility to create abundance for everyone in the form of fish and bread, a man who transformed water into wine and taught a message which tells about the capacity to transform through love. Jesus helped a handicapped man to walk and through this miracle he taught others to believe and to love.

May these days be the opportunity to open new spaces to behold Jesus, a life that can stimulate every one of us to have a spirit of unconditional love; also the message of Jesus can help us give light on every daily action of us, on every word, on every prayer, now that we listen to his words, almost 2014 years after his birth.

This article is dedicated to Jesus and to everyone who has allowed me to experience unconditional love through his lifestyle, which has left prints in my life. I ask God to permit me to continue offering this elixir to others on every day of my life.

Spring (A Season to Watch and Breathe)

In the Latin language, the word for Spring is related to two words which stand for “first” and “green”, respectively. This season starts on March 20th and ends on June 20th. Spring is also known as the season of love; this time of the year has to do with color, rebirth and is a reaffirmation that love is still growing inside everything despite the cold winter.

Watching and breathing can be two activities that you can do daily during this spring time. If you do so, you will witness not only the transformation that occurs in Nature with the help from the sun, but also because these two activities allow us to predict which abilities will be developed by kids during their lifetime; this is confirmed by the research on emotional intelligence by psychologist Daniel Goleman.

Such researches are so specific that, according to the level of concentration and focusing which children can develop, we will be able to predict how successful they will be in the future in aspects such as their performance at work, health problems, financial habits, or even how much money they will earn at the age of 30, in relation to their cognitive control. So, if we open a space for breathing exercises and counting, we will help develop the ability to stay calmed and alert.

Spring gives us the opportunity to go back and discover what is being born and growing all around. We must open our eyes to every sensation and to the diversity of textures, plants, and flowers which we can see in Nature. In this way, we will be able to incorporate a specific time and frequency to our breathing, which will help us develop a conscious state of what exists inside or outside, including the existence of others; this ability will permit us to gain empathy in order to obtain compassion.