Stepping Off Life's Sad Merry-Go-Round:
Metaphorically Speaking
Patricia Topp

Whether therapist or layperson, if the following quotes resonate with you, then Stepping Off Life’s Sad Merry-Go-Round: METAPHORICALLY SPEAKING is the book for you:

“If at some point in life, we begin to operate from a self-concept which allows us to care about ourselves rather than about whether or not we are getting things “right” (according to others), we start to become sensitive to the feeling signals which tell us when something is right for ourselves. This self-caring promotes the courage to risk facing the truth, encouraging us to take responsibility for our own lives, leading us to the readiness to change.”

“In the process of building a new self-image, we may come to realize that we perceive the world, not the way it is, but the way we are. Since the way we are is negotiable, our world can be shaped any way we wish it to be.”

“Accepting the concept that we become what we think about, allows miracles to happen. As we are always constructing and reconstructing our world in our minds, I wonder what would happen, if instead of reacting against those things we do not want, we chose to act as if totally believing that we could experience what it is like to be open to accepting miracles?”

The positive, proactive metaphors in METAPHORICALLY SPEAKING address the underlying problems of clients. The clients’ “presenting problems,” such as smoking, overweight, or relationship issues are seen as surface symptoms, and so are not addressed directly.

Therapists will find that using these metaphors allows them to gain an unconscious competence in the techniques of Ericksonian hypnosis.

PREVIEW OF A HYPNOTIC METAPHOR

Our lives have sometimes been likened to the turning of a wheel which---makes progress only as the top of the wheel turning down---contacts the rough reality of the road and then---in still moving forward---returns again to the top and---sometimes we become mired in memories of those down turning times---maybe telling ourselves over and over something about that.

In attempting to form meanings about our feelings we create images which evoke certain emotions and---sometimes memories of experiences of fear or---of inadequacy and the consequent rejection---of the down-turns of the wheel---and it seems that the mere expectation that past negative scenes could recur---in some disguised manner---gives them the power of self-fulfilling prophecies
and---we can manifest those fears which recreated memory images recall and---cause within ourselves chronic discomforts and diseases---for some part of our minds has mastered an ability to---manifest these blocks to the moving energy in our bodies---as distortions into the physical of those negative emotions---echoes from long ago scenes.

There are subtle conscious and unconscious---links between our language and---how we feel---voice and thoughts through emotions telling our bodies how to react---body telling mind of its level of discomfort or harmony---and though some of us are super aware of the thought voice which generates our sense of reality---others only become aware when it becomes intrusive like at times when we---want to go to sleep or meditate---go into trance---for our minds communicate continuously---sometimes in the languages of thoughts and images conveying---negative messages---creating feeling memories of the past---leading to stress or illness---yet there is a powerful truth hidden here---for if the mind has the power to create disease and discomfort---even unconsciously--- then mind has the power to heal.

And it is reassuring to know that a part of the function of our higher self is to let us know when things are not working---a sort of well-intentioned part that knows when we are doing something which---is not in our best interest---or when we are wanting to do something and yet---are not progressing in that direction---a part of self which knows absolutely how to---keep those lines of innercommunication open---so that when a down-turn of the wheel of life is attempting to convey to us useful information to be utilized in establishing a new relationship with ourselves---there is trust in realizing our higher consciousness knows that---we can make the necessary changes and---when those changes need to be made to enable us to---continue moving us toward a whole, new level of balance and wholeness.

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Stepping Off Life's Sad Merry-Go-Round: Metaphorically Speaking
The electronic version of the book is available at http://www.authorhouse.com for $4.95. Search for author (Topp), title (Stepping Off), a category suggestion is needed (Health-Mind and Body) in the ordering information wherever it appears.

The paperback version is available at the same web address, or from Author House at 1-800-839-8640 for $14.14, or at virtually any bookstore for about one third more.