Month: June 2017

You Deserve Love and Positive Energy        

/ Tricia Barker, Author of Angels in the OR / 9 Comments

 silenceisn'tempty Too often, mental programs from our past tell us that we are not worthy of being loved fully.  We are not even aware of how much shame, anger, disappointment, and sadness we carry in relation to our choices, our pasts, our bodies, and the overall state of our lives.

The smallest exchange from many years ago can negatively shift how we think about ourselves.  We can hold on to a slight or wound which eventually settles into our bones in a permanent way.  However, the person involved who hurt or offended us may have meant very little by their words or actions and possibly may not have considered the effect on us at all.  These people might not be aware of their emotional abuse or they may have such deep insecurities of their own and not know how to behave rationally.

Most of our damaging mental programs began in childhood, but these settings can be adjusted with some attention and love. Our own wisdom and guidance can guide us to greater levels of awareness and awakening if we only give ourselves the gift of uninterrupted time and space.  It takes patience to look inside and pay attention to the intuition and wisdom working its way into our lives.

The more painful the situation, the more heroic the journey is when you go inward for healing instead of acting destructively outwardly.

Living in a culture that financially stretches most of us, a culture that pays little attention and offers so little hope of transformation to those who are traumatized and deeply suffering, is challenging and depressing.  Certainly, we need a loving connection to others through community, but beyond connection to others, we also need to know that that we each possess the ability to clear out the stress and pain in our own lives.  Negativity can accumulate quickly in our minds and systems, and deep love and care for your own well-being can be like a large waterfall of positive, clearing energy.

Have you ever observed someone close to you come home after a trying day at work?  Their tough day is over, yet this person simmers and stews in the energy and irritations of their day.  They do not realize that they are free and can drop that burden.  All the negativity of the day can be washed away without alcohol, overeating, binge watching television, etc.

Certainly, good habits like spending time in nature, exercising, and eating healthy foods can help reset your energy, but an intent to manifest a more positive state is crucial. Going within and opening yourself to a more positive state of being can reset everything.  Gravitating to messages of healing can also help you.

Perhaps, one of the keys to staying young is staying teachable and realizing that we all have much to learn through spiritual development and energetic changes.

Nothing screeches of old age more than the couch potato who knows it all and “it all is going to hell.”  Bullshit….everything is about to change miraculously.  Everything is about to become much more fun and entertaining—that is the mind of the child and the mind of someone who can manifest change and enjoyment from even simple moments in life.

Stress and pain can be washed away with the intent to become someone different.  We can choose what we desire from the world energetically and become that frequency.  If you want to feel love, send love to your heart, your mind, and every cell of your body. Don’t laugh this idea.  Try doing this in the middle of a moment of anxiety or pain, and see how you can transform yourself.  If you can’t love yourself in this way, how can anyone else offer you this love?

If you want to feel freedom, go stand in an open field and face down your fears like they are wild bulls running at you, and you have the power to stop them with one of your fingers.  You have the power to dance out of the way of the danger in your mind.  You can transform the tigers of your nightmares into sweet kittens.  If you want to let go of your anger, write a short story and kill your tormentors off or imagine them old with dementia. They’ll get there.  Imagine you are the one serving them dinner, and they don’t even know who you are.  Have compassion or simply be done with them.  Whatever the case, let go of the negativity!

Walk into the light of all that you want.  Stress can be washed away by realizing that a part of us is always renewable.  Of course, we have our genetic predispositions and our current circumstances, but we also have a powerhouse of unused potential.  We have a connection to guides and galaxies of possibility.

The simplest of moments can shift your life, and the energy you put into your efforts will eventually transform your life.  You are worthy of love, not disregard.  You are worthy of positive connections, not draining ones. You are worthy of your own love, so start there and look to the stars and heavens for blessings.

So few people look upward and wait for the answers.  Be one of the ones who is open and receptive.  Your dreams aren’t going to instantly materialize just from sitting in your backyard and looking at the moon, but that moment might reset your energy and allow you to start working toward what you want with a more positive version of yourself—a version that is open to vast amounts of goodness, love, and mercy every remaining day of your life.

Self-Love and Healing

/ Tricia Barker, Author of Angels in the OR / 3 Comments

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The journey of life is a beautiful and strange one, filled with joy and loss.  The trick might be to see these moments as simply part of the whole of our existence.   A focus on our spiritual purpose balances out these experiences.

Self-Love: I’ve recently started blogging for The Relationship Blogger.  In this post, I talk about how one of the lessons from my NDE was how to become more of my best friend through the journey of this life no matter what I survived.

Without self-love, there is manipulation and drama in relationships.   However, self-love grants us peace that no grasping at satisfaction will ever bring.  That feeling of being o.k. as you are is priceless.

Healing: The manuscript that I recently completed has a small portion which talks about learning to parent the wounded inner child inside of me.  Wounds can’t be wished away or pushed aside; they will continue to crop up and get triggered if you don’t actively work to release and heal them.  My strongest desire for young people is that they work on family of origin wounds and release these patterns early in life before these patterns get played out in various ways.

It would be amazing to see larger groups of college students open to the potential of energetic healing, as well as traditional forms of healing through churches, counseling, programs of recovery, mentorship programs, and success/inspirational workshops. Relationships are vital and important to everyone, and some college classes like sociology and psychology offer helpful information to students about healing and transformation.  However, healing sometimes comes from having a loving focus on oneself and an intent to heal.   Every human being is different and the modalities for healing are numerous–everything from nutritional therapy, functional medicine, sound healing, energetic healing, etc.

After my NDE, I am particularly sensitive to energy.  I’m a fan and connoisseur of energy work. Because of this, I’ve decided to share the names of those whose work I have tried and deeply benefited from. I recently had an amazing session with Tara Rose .  I’ve worked with shamans and had affirming, healing sessions.  However, something about this session with Tara blew me away.  I’m always looking for ways to bring more of the divine light into my life, and her session encouraged and greatly facilitated that experience.  The healing work focused on a major wound in my life, and I still feel certain energetic changes many days later.  If you try a session with her, I would love it if you let her know that I recommended you.

May each of you love and take great care of your inner child.  I know mine better now that I have ever known her.  Get to know yours, and be playful about the process.  One of the lessons from my NDE was to remind people to be like a little child.  Find a way to deeply enjoy life and be in the moment.

My inner child dances under the stars. She sends her wishes to the moon when it is full, and watches those wishes magically descend into her life. She has unexpected, divine messages and intellectual breakthroughs. She finds peace and healing in the embrace of nature. She is amused by creative, fun moments, and powerful, intuitive realizations. She feels the love and healing energy of angels and archangels all around her. The part of this inner child that is in touch with the light will never die.  

The part of you that is in touch with the light will also never die.  There is healing in remembering this truth.

As Tara Rose reminds us on her website,  a true healer shows us our own capacity to heal and transform our lives, and love is always the greatest transformer.  I wish everyone much healing and happiness no matter where your journey might be leading you.

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Awakening Without Seeking It

/ Tricia Barker, Author of Angels in the OR / 4 Comments

What is unique about a near-death experience is that this awakening often happens to people who were not seeking it.

A near-death experiencer may or may not have interest in spirituality before the event, yet they frequently return with a profound sense that consciousness continues beyond death and that reality is far larger than materialistic views.

For me, the experience was life changing. In a matter of moments, my understanding of life expanded beyond anything I had imagined possible.

Returning to ordinary life was both beautiful and challenging. Part of me was grateful to be alive and eager to continue my education. Another part of me could never forget what I had witnessed. I was obsessed and read countless books about spirituality while recovering from my accident. When I returned to college, I did not have the same interests or insecurities. I had so much more gratitude and a feeling of being connected to everyone and everything.

One of the strongest impressions I carried back was the importance of love. That sounds simple until we attempt to practice it. It is easy to love people who agree with us or treat us well. It is much harder to respond with wisdom, compassion, and healthy boundaries when faced with fear, anger, or aggression.

Love is not passivity. Sometimes love means protecting the vulnerable. Sometimes it means preventing harm. Sometimes it means holding a vision of healing for those who have been wounded. Love is both an action and a state of being.

I am not suggesting that near-death experiencers return as enlightened beings. We come back with personalities, emotional wounds, and challenges just like everyone else. Yet, many experiencers do return with a deep awareness that there is more to life than achievement, accumulation, or survival.

The moment I left my body, I knew that consciousness continued beyond physical death. I encountered a reality that felt more vivid and more “real” than ordinary life. Through direct experience, I understood that we are connected to something far greater than our individual identities.

No matter what happened afterward, I could never unknow that.

From that perspective, many of the things that consume us here appeared far less important. The struggles, fears, and disappointments that seemed so significant in life faded into the background. What remained was love, kindness, mercy, and connection.

Photo by James Wheeler on Pexels.com

Many experiencers report similar aftereffects. They often become less fearful of death, more compassionate toward others, and more sensitive to the world around them. Yet they must still learn how to integrate these insights into ordinary human life.

One aspect of my experience felt similar to what many spiritual traditions describe as enlightenment or non-dual awareness. As my consciousness expanded, my sense of separation dissolved. I felt connected to other people, to nature, and to the divine in a way that is difficult to describe with words.

However, returning to routines and systems naturally pulled me back into individuality. Bills still needed to be paid. Relationships still required attention. Old wounds and patterns still surfaced. Yet the memory of that deeper connection remained.

The challenge became learning how to carry some of that awareness into everyday life.

Awakening is not a permanent state. It is a practice of remembering. It is choosing compassion over judgment, gratitude over resentment, and presence over distraction. It is remembering that beneath our fears and differences, we are far more connected than we realize.

The question then becomes: How do we live in a world that is often fearful, divided, and reactive without becoming fearful, divided, and reactive ourselves?

Part of the answer is learning when to detach and when to engage. We step back from the noise at times, but we engage passionately and lovingly far more often. We do our best to extend goodwill to every human being, even when it feels difficult. Most of us start with the easy ones: our families, friends, neighbors, coworkers, and the people we encounter each day.

We are striving to have minds that are less focused on greed, hatred, and fear while living in a world where these forces constantly compete for our attention. This is not easy work. When we fall into anger, resentment, or judgment, the answer is not self-condemnation. We meet those parts of ourselves with compassion. We heal them so that we can better support the healing of others.

Over time, we become less attached to every passing emotion. Feelings still arise, but they move through us more quickly. We learn to observe them without building a home inside them.

Gratitude also becomes an important practice. After my accident, gratitude came naturally. I was grateful for every breath, every painful step, and every bite of food. Simply being alive felt miraculous. This does not mean ignoring injustice or pretending everything is fine. I’ve never advocated spiritual bypass. What I have advocated is being happy. We don’t have to allow and ignore harmful behavior but we can grow in our reactions and ease our triggers to achieve more healthy detachment from the brokenness in others. This allows us to demonstrate spiritual and emotional maturity.

In the presence of God during my near-death experience, there was no sense of “I’m right and you’re wrong.” There was only love, understanding, and a profound recognition of our shared humanity.

That memory continues to guide me. However, like everyone else, I get frustrated, hurt, and discouraged. But the experience gave me a reference point for what is possible. It showed me that beneath the noise of everyday life, there is a deeper reality rooted in love and connection.

Many spiritual traditions teach that awakening is our true nature. Near-death experiences often provide a direct glimpse of that possibility. The work afterward is learning how to embody those insights while living an ordinary human life.

My memoir, Angels in the OR: What Dying Taught Me about Healing, Survival, and Transformation, explores the near-death experience that transformed my understanding of life, healing, and consciousness. More importantly, it explores what happened afterward. The experience itself lasted only a short time, but integrating it into everyday life has been a lifelong journey.