Researchers from Indiana University in Bloomington conducted an investigation on the powers of spiritual healing practices to heal disease.

The study involved investigating two charismatic Christian groups one from Africa and one from South America.

The researchers measured the hearing and vision of impaired people both before and after they received proximal intercessory prayer. The team concluded that this significantly improved the condition of many of after they had received a prayer.

Two participants with impaired hearing found that after the prayers they were able to detect sound by 50 decibels and three people with vision impairment at 20/400 or worse improved to 20/80 or better. Another women who has almost no vision was able to make out a persons hand afterward as well as being able to count their fingers and read 20/125 line on a vision chart.

Candy Gunther Brown, an associate professor in the Department of Religious Studies at IU and author of the study believes the reason for this could be related to people believing that a particular religious or spiritual practice healed them. ”They are much more likely to become adherent. This phenomenon, more than any other, accounts for the growth of these Christian subgroups globally,” she explained.

Read the full story here

This month there were numerous searches conducted and listed below are the five most popular keywords searched for.

27% of searches were for ‘Career’
24% of searches were for ‘Confidence/ Self-belief’
18% of searches were for ‘Work/ Life balance’
7% of searches were for ‘Spirituality’
5% of searches were for ‘Relationships’

If you would like information about any of the areas listed above then this can be found on multiple areas of the site. To find out how hypnotherapy can help in specific areas simply visit the Life Coaching Areas section. Additional information can also be found in the News section, refine your topic by using the search tool in the corner of the page. Alternatively if you are searching for a Life Coach who specialises in a specific area then type in your postcode to the search box featured on the homepage and this will then generate a list of professionals in your area. You can then refine your search using the Life Coaching Area tool.

For those who haven’t seen it, the film is set in year 2154 on Pandora, a planet that’s native Na’vi race are far more noble, spiritual and pure than we could ever hope to be. Perhaps that is why the films fans have found it so difficult to return to the reality that is our own world.

Recently, internet chat forums on film’s fan sites have imploded with viewers reporting feelings of depression after seeing the film. One chat room in particular had to be closed after posts reached more then 1,000. According to The Times, one chat room had a thread named “Ways to cope with the depression of the dream of Pandora being intangible”, in which fans displayed repulsion at the reality of life on earth after witnessing the beauty of Pandora.

A typical post reads, “After I watched Avatar for the first time, I truly felt depressed that I was awake in this world again.” Another reads, “It’s so hard, I can’t force myself to think that it’s just a movie, and to get over it, and that living like the Na’vi will never happen”. While one, on the website, Naviblue.com, simply says: “I want to go to Pandora because life here sux, with no sense of companionship, and because mankind has destroyed our planet.”

On the same website, one fan claims that, “I even contemplated suicide, thinking that if I do it I will be rebirthed in a world similar to Pandora, and that everything will be the same as in Avatar.”

Of course the immersing 3D technology will contribute to the viewers experience of watching the film. New film technologies mean that cinema is far more absorbing than ever before, giving the outside world a lot to live up too.
Dr Gordon Claridge, a professor of abnormal psychology in the Department of Experimental Psychology at the University of Oxford. Claridge, says that he believes that Avatar’s use of 3-D, and its approximation of reality, is the key. “The closer a movie gets to reality, the more it has the ability to move you,” he says. “If something is written fiction you need to use your imagination to visualise it. But if it’s 3-D, and very realistic, it can become difficult to distinguish from reality in that moment.”

Of course this is not the case for everyone and is certainly not a reason to miss this film. Actually, perhaps the fact this film makes people think about how our world could be a better place, is all the more reason to get in the popcorn and drinks and enjoy this thought provoking piece of cinema.

Most people unknowingly seem to associate de-cluttering their ‘junk’ with de-cluttering their lives, somehow thinking that if they throw out grannies porcelain it will be a huge overbearing weight lifted from their shoulders and now the shackles of the tea set have been broken they will be able to shed a stone before the kettles even boiled. This sadly, is not the case. YouGov, in collaboration with the self storage company SafeStore, have come up with a list of the top 10 items people regret throwing away, ranging from photographs and school books, to old games consoles and childhood musical instruments.

Of course many people now keep things for hope they might accrue some value or have resurgence in popularity (like that of retro games consoles and comic books among other things). But most regret comes from a connection between the owner and the object. Mark Jones, director of the Victoria & Albert Museum, in London, says there is a magic about the connections that objects provide. “They have an ability to trigger and bring alive memories in a way that documents can’t. It’s the difference between a wedding photograph and the wedding dress itself.”

A huge problem with keeping everything, is of course storage. Personal space is important so we need to decide between the need to have a clean mantlepiece and the possibility we could be clutching on to a future antique. Jon Ramsay, of the Association of Professional Declutterers and Organisers (Apdo), suggests that you identify what is important to you, and hold on to it at almost all costs. Ask yourself why it is important that you keep hold of that particular object because after all, one mans junk is another mans treasure.

Read the full story here.

Tis the season to be jolly, or sadly more often than not stressed. The last minute shopping, preparing all the food, visiting estranged family members, there is an endless list of things that seem to bring grief instead of cheer resulting in a range of health problems from physical to mental. Below are a few tips brought to us from allaboutyou in a bid to help us all from turning into the resident Scrooge.

Take a walk. Winter months mean longer nights and shorter days. With us spending most of our time in the dark its no wonder we see people skulking around looking miserable. Seasonal effective disorder is affecting more and more people each year and the best thing you can do to avoid things getting that far is to soak up some daylight and have a good exercise. The great outdoors has been proven to boost mood and self esteem so don your woollies and wellies and take a nice relaxing winter stroll.

Herbal and flower remedies are great for calming. If you are feeling the last minute Christmas rush getting under your skin then try Bach flower remedy for Impatiens. As the name suggests its great for agitation and impatience. The Bach centre also recommends Beech remedy for tense family reunions. Other herbal remedies will also work wonder. The age old camomile tea will ease away stress and bloating like a dream.

Good news, Turkey actually boosts spirits so don’t feel guilty about stuffing yourself silly with it! “It’s a good source of the amino acid tryptophan,” says Lisa Miles, a senior nutrition scientist at the British Nutrition Foundation. “This can be converted by the body into the feel-good neurotransmitter serotonin, known to elevate mood.

Finally, make sure you don’t try and take responsibility for everything on your own. It is a time when family come together and help each other out, there will be a great family atmosphere if you all come together to do things. Write a list of tasks to do and set everyone different jobs, this way the whole family will feel involved. Also remember that although Christmas is about family, you are also entitled to have some ‘me’ time so make sure you schedule some in.

Once a week share some inspirational readings with your family. Try to choose something that your child isn’t already learning about through the curriculum as this way you will hold their interest. Don’t stick to one theme; for instance, alternate reading about how to behave one week with material about compassion the next and humanity the week after that.

Give each member of the family some drawing and painting materials and get them to each have fun drawing a place that makes them feel calm, happy and relaxed. Then discuss these sanctuaries together and look at what elements can be borrowed from your own home, for instance, an apple tree or the smell of freshly baked bread. Once you’ve done this then make time to implement some of these things. Bake some bread as a family or plant a new tree in the garden.

Plan your family holiday around a spiritual theme. For example if compassion is an attribute you would like you children to pursue then plan a holiday where you can spend time as a family helping people. Volunteering holidays are becoming an increasingly popular way to spend family holidays and are a good way to show your children what it mean to be compassionate. Check out www.idealist.org/kt/familyvolunteer.html for more information on this concept.

Read more on this story here.

Many people are in a job that they have no passion for, and have often given up hope of every having their dream job, and some have perhaps not even explored what their dream job might be.

However, discovering this can help turn lives around, and there a few easy steps to do this. Lists are an excellent way of highlighting issues, both positive and negative, and a pro con list for different areas of life, such as work, home, relationships, work well. Using a scale of 1 to ten to rate areas of live is also an effective way of prioritising which areas are most in need of change.

Reviewing and updating the lists is also essential, perhaps setting weekly goals or tasks to achieve.

A life coach will of course help with this, and provide motivation and encouragement to make changes.

Read the article here…

Europe-based ski company Pollen Brooks has combined ski-ing and life coaching lessons. The idea is that such a sport takes you out of your comfort zone, pushing fear levels, and this can then be applied to other areas of life, encouraging the client to take risks and set goals to achieve.

As the lesson progresses, the client is encouraged to improve their ski-ing technique, and discuss their problems whilst on their way back on the mountain.

Damien Churton , the life coach, said: “The point is, it’s not about some correct method. It’s about what is helpful. Sure, there are technical things you’re getting wrong on the slopes, but your goal isn’t to be the next Franz Klammer, so they simply don’t matter. Same with your life. It’s about being yourself, not conforming to a standard.”

Read about the unusual lesson here…

It compares the concept to life coaching of having a tutor at a young age, one that helps with a specific academic subject, or perhaps a sport. This is then applied to more ‘grown up’ issues later in life, such as relationships, family and career.

The article also discusses how the coach should not use their own life experiences, but offer a non-judgemental, honest point of view. they should draw out their positive in their client and implement change.

Life coaching holidays are also highlighted as an excellent way to help kick start change.

Read the article here…

After many years of accumulating ‘stuff’, Dave Bruno decided to have a mass cull, and reduce his possessions to just 100 items, and live off them for a year, without buying anything new, or if he does he has to get rid of something he already has.

A life coach in the area, Cheryl Miller, highlights the positive effect this could have on mental health, and how decluttering your home can declutter your mind. Recycling and re-using can bring far more satisfaction than constantly buying new things.

For those not quite ready to take the plunge, there is the concept of the self-explanatory ‘Buy Nothing Day’, which in American coincides with the biggest shopping day of the year.

Read the article…