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Cultivating The Soul’s Expression
- Dr. Katherine T. Kelly
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In today’s episode of “Healing From With” host Sheryl Glick author of Life Is No Coincidence-The Life And Afterlife Connection and her soon to be released book The Living Spirit-Answers to Healing and Infinite Love welcomes Dr. Katherine T. Kelly, a licensed practicing psychologist and author of Soul Health—Aligning with Spirit For Radiant Living. Katherine’s previous work in medical setting as well as ownership of a holistic health center specializing in a multitude of alternative energy healing modalities encourages “Wholeness” through the needs and unification of mind, body and spirit.
In recognizing a stellar truth described and validated by guests on this show from all walks of life and professions, business, the arts, the medical profession and metaphysical scientists, healers and intuitive, we find that, “We are more than our physical life or body and to be whole, healthy and vibrant, we must address the needs and intelligence of our inner Being or Soul. Katherine and Sheryl feel that our experience as a human being is more than just surviving the challenges of daily living: it is thriving and evolving as conscious citizens. To manifest or create our best life it is a great advantage to embrace our life plan or destiny by first determining what is important to us in regard to our work, family, and relationship goals. In honoring our inner intuition or sense of integrity we can create a peaceful, joyful, productive life experience.
Unfortunately, according to Dr. Kelly’s look at traditional medical practices the nature of medical care has taken a turn towards each practitioner focusing on specific areas of health, moving us farther away from an integrated or holistic approach to caring for people. Katherine and Sheryl share ideas that were known by ancient scientists, philosophers such as Plato Socrates and others who stated that a physical life is the search for the soul to remember its true life force and oneness to Universal Energy and higher consciousness. In separating the dual nature of our Being we have created dysfunction, disease and a fear based society built on limitation, division and loss, rather than the true assessment of our human potential as creators and a force for evolution and human growth. Most methods of healing today target only one aspect of the human condition, while only treating symptoms not the origin of a given problem. As Katherine states, “ What is lacking in those methods is the understanding that our Soul drives each aspect of health and that the methods to heal are completely unique to that individual.” True multi-dimensional healing as you may discover is only possible by reconnecting the mind, body and soul, and acknowledging the spiritual or energetic nature of our being.
Taking a look at the beautiful cover of Dr. Kelly’s book you may see the ancient archetype…The Tree, as the model of the aspects for creating a balanced life in harmony with one’s soul. Each branch addresses a fundamental part of our lives: financial, recreational, sexual, environmental, intellectual, occupational, social interpersonal, psychological, spiritual, and physical. Dr. Kelly originally discovered “The National Wellness Institutes Model of Wellness Plan” which included 6 components of health. These included: Physical, Psychological, Social, Environmental, Intellectual and Spiritual. When balanced this leads a person to their highest potential and feeling well. Later on Katherine realized certain key components were missing and added 3 more: Financial, Interpersonal and Sexual Health. The final branch or tenth branch of the plan represented on the cover of the book that Katherine discovered as her own health began to fail was Recreational Health(Fun and Leisure)
The Tree of Life has long been the symbol in science, philosophy, religion, mythology and various spiritual contexts to illustrate unity and connection among all living things. Your tree is your life, and your journey or path, and will differ from everyone else. A major reason for many people’s dissatisfaction with their life may be attributed to a lack of awareness or concern for their soul or inner life. The soul in actuality is our greatest ally and the hub of every action, behavior, thought, emotion, ache or pain and the soul houses an infinite wisdom about what we want and need for optimal vitality…Every symptom or discomfort alerts us something is amiss. We need to realign to our natural state which is one of unimpeded growth..therefore we need to balance our lives in such a way that there are no blockages or obstructions. Katherine writes that despite the fact that doctor patient relationship research indicates that 90 percent of those seeking medical care would like their provider to integrate a spiritual component in their healing, this vital element remains virtually unaddressed.
In her description of the soul Katherine wrote most appropriately…”Suffice it to day that the word soul in this book refers to our innermost essence or sense of Knowing. It is the nucleus of all that we are—the core of our existence. It is the pinpoint of light within us that tells us something is wrong or right, whether we listen to the message or not. It is the gut instinct that tells us whether we are doing something that is helpful or damaging to our own way or another’s well-being, whether or not we choose to act accordingly. It is also the tie that binds us to each other and every soul…one that creates our Universal community. Simply put, the soul is the key not only to our survival but to our evolution as well.To know your soul is to know your true health—regardless of the state of the body alone. As Ray Charles said, What is a soul? It’s like electricity—we don’t really know what it is, but it’s a force that can light a room.”
With the evolution of the human intellect has come a dimming of our inner knowledge—a dismissal of our soul. Our quest for cognitive intelligence has disconnected us from our most vital ally. If we could reconnect our mind with our soul and actually listened to it, we would have a new awareness of both intellect and soul to guide us. We would become conscious beings living in a state of consciousness…being aware of something within ourselves. joy with your choices. Radical Consciousness is a term that discribes going directly to the meaning of something within. In the case of health if we rely on our own or another person’s intellect, or take information from the outside and apply it without assessing whether it feels right for us, the outcome will usually have short-term positive effects. Faithful trust in yourself or this soul intelligence will guide you to health and optimum contentment or joy with your choices.
Conscious living or being in a state of awareness of some inner guidance or soul wisdom is complex. It takes a certain amount of work, effort and desire to realize a deep awareness of how the body, mind and soul function for “whole” health. Furthermore conscious living leads to true health which is to know your soul as only you can. Discontent comes from our uneasiness from doing certain things that don’t feel right to us or from social mores and responsibilites that tell us something is not right for us.
There are 3 ways we may know we are accessing our soul wisdom rather than relying on thoughts alone. They include: 1, If there is any emotion involved whether fear or excitement the answer is it is not soul based as there is no emotion in our soul response—emotion is only an aspect of the human condition. The soul however, provides what is..not the what if’s which are a product of mind, ego or thought. 2. If your response feels like a gut reaction rather than a worrisome thought it is soul based. Our truth lies in the gut or solar plexis area. Our gut reactions tell us we have found our inner wisdom—the inner sanctum of our soul. 3. If it takes more than a few seconds to receive an answer, it is not soul based. Soul based responses are generally instantaneous offering much clarity.
Cicero said, “Diseases of the soul are far more numerous than those of the body.” However our soul’s house—the human body—is the primary gauge of our soul’s afflictions. When we are stressed or distressed we develop physical symptoms that coincide with those emotions. When we are lonely, our heart aches. When our finances dwindle our waistlines may grow or dwindle depending on the situation. If our social supports fail our visits to the doctor may increase, when we lose a job we may gain an ulcer. If we lack inner peace we may develop symptoms of stress. No matter what branch of the tree of soul health is affected, the body often reacts. Hippocrates spoke of the connection between mental phenomena and physiological order..Plato spoke of physical exercise as a way to develop the mind, with his ideal being the harmonious perfection of body, mind, and psyche..Joseph Pilates wrote about the balance of the mind and body in 1937 which began the Modern Wellness Movement…yet it took until 1976 for The Model Of Health plan incorporating all aspects of our physical emotional and spirtitual being to be seen as the way to “Wholeness.”
In a quote given by Zachary Bercovitz, “Some patients I see are actually draining into their bodies the diseased thoughts of their minds or the minds of those around them. In relation to this Chinese Medicine which has existed for over 2,000 years is based on the harmonious interacton of internal entities that regulate overall function. Practitioners of Chinese medicine place little attention on anatomical structures and focus instead on identifying the source of the inner disharmony that causes physical illness…Modern day energy healers medical intuiitves such as Carolyn Myss, Louise Hay and Sheryl directly relate physical illness to emotional and physical concerns. Practitioners who utilize intuitive abilites help their clients to make connections to events, people and past traumas helping them move past these restrictive memories to create more positive choices and new behaviors that bring joy peace and love. The truth is our body talks to us in a language that comes directly from the soul. Our soul’s potential is infinite evolution and wants to help us create a healthy and vibrant physical environment that is good for both the body and soul. Health problems may be seen in two ways. The first is we may become ill because we are not listening to the clues and needs of our soul. The second is we contract an unexpected illness which can set the stage for growth in a new direction. Our conscious response to either scenario is the key to our ability to evolve beyond the situation.
Rumi gives a quote that shows us how we may become a student of the soul. The quote is, “ When you do things from your soul you feel a river moving in you, a joy. When action comes from another section…the feeling disappears. There are only two core emotions that humans experience: love and fear. All others are simply variations on one or the other. Love is a soul based emotion returning us to our natural state of being. All sense of joy compassion, peacefulness, generosity, unconditonality, gratitude, ease, hope, empathy and all positively charged emotions are love based..or soul based.
When moving away from the state of love and the peacefulness of the soul, we “react” instead of reflecting and responding proactively. Anxiety arises and we often react with anger, sadness, resentment, frustration, worry, irritation and so on which are all responses of the human condition. Fear is the voice of the soul urging us to learn from our troubles and find the path back to peace. To become a student of the soul means to embrace our feelings and emotions to know them as key elements for growth and heed the voice of the soul.
George Bernard Shaw is quoted in Katherine’s book “Soul Health” and wrote “We are all dependent on one another, every soul of us on earth. Since humans are meant to be with people no matter how independent we think we are relationships have a direct impact on our soul health. It is thought that 90 percent of people go for therapy because of relationship issues. The people we spend time with affect us at our soul level. We all look for connections from others that make us feel comfortable yet it is this quest for completeness from others and not from ourselves that fuels our discontent and undermines our soul health. Our relationships either affirm or diminish our soul health. People seem to carry an energy or light within them, and this light can be bright or dim, positive or negative, depending on the health of their soul. Spending time with people who are life affirming tends to leave you feeling positive and joyful: time with people who are diminished leave you feeling negative, depleted and drained. It is not uncommon for those with damaged or a darker presence to be drawn to those who are healthier though this can cause a parasitic relationship in which the darker energy draws upon the light of the other to survive. In contrast relationships between the life-affirmers are very healthy and mutually beneficial…not dramatic, but simple and easy.
Katherine discribes self-esteem and integrity and suggests integrity is living life from the inside out, following what feels right in terms of your inner truth and soul needs instead of satisfying others which is often impossible. Low self-esteem comes from living life by comparing oneself to others and believing the outside world dictates their success or failure. Integrity is sometimes hard to maintain in relationships. If one person has low self-esteem their insecurity may affect the others ability to maintain and follow their own integrity especially if the stronger one feels sorry for the one who is insecure. The person with intact self-esteem may dismiss the voice of the soul out of pity and that is damaging for both and the relationship. REMEMBER each person is responsible for their own self-esteem and integrity.
A quote that Katherine shares embodies what all energy practitioners, healers and spiritual seekers know…”It is within our personal power to find peace, joy and love regardless of the challenges that may come our way.” She mentions Paul Kurtz who writes, “The meaning of life is not to be discovered only after death in some hidden mysterious realm: on the contrary, it can be found by eating the succulent fruit of The Tree of Life and by living in the here and now as fully and creately as we can.
