Natural Weight Loss Resources

Dear Friends,

It seems a lot of us don’t feel like we are good enough.  We don’t feel worthy of receiving good things in life.  Why not?

Think back to our childhood.  Were our parents supportive of us?  Did they praise us when we accomplished something important to us?  Did they let us know it was safe to make mistakes and that was the only way to learn and get better at things?

Was it safe to be us and just be kids?  Or did it feel like we had to act, think or believe a certain way to be accepted? Were we allowed to be children and not worry about living up to someone else’s standards of acceptable behavior?

If any of us answered yes to all of these questions, then we must realize how unique our childhood was.  Most of us are lucky to answer yes to 1 or 2 of these, because we grew up with parents who were struggling with their own issues and were doing the best they could.

If our childhood was especially difficult, we may at first want to challenge the statement that our parents did their best.  The truth is most parents do want the best for their children, and their intentions are good.  They love us in their own way, but their current skill set to deal with life is limited.

 If we can forgive our parents or anyone else who negatively impacted us and take responsibility for our emotions and life results up to this point, we’ll find greater peace. 

Notice, when I say forgive, I don’t mean condone what someone did to us.  I just mean to release them so the resentment no longer eats away at us.  Ever heard the saying:  “Resentment is like drinking poison and hoping the other person dies.”

Emotional freedom technique (EFT) can help us clear away limiting beliefs so we can discover our hidden power and potential.

Peace & Blessings,

Angie Monko, 314-422-6520

PS:  If you’re really serious about doing something different about your weight and body image issues, see the attached qualifying form. http://www.harmonyharbor.com/qual.html

PSS:  Do you have friends and family that are also interested in creating their own destinies of joy and freedom?  Send them to www.harmonyharbor.com.

Dear Friends,

Sometimes it is so difficult to make peace with my body.  I focus on excess fat, stretch marks from where I had my baby on my stomach and lower back, skin discoloration, and on and on.  I can get very paranoid that since I’ve turned 40 years old that staying fit will only get harder and I will get more wrinkles and age.  I’m glad that I don’t focus on these negatives every day, because I think I would be miserable and insane.

I truly think that if we are  serious about releasing excess weight, giving up the reliance on excess food for comfort and giving up the need for chaos and drama that we must make peace with our bodies exactly as they are.  So how do we see beyond our current physical results to who we want to become when reality stares us in the face every day?

When negative thoughts surface about how “ugly and disgusting” we are, we must refuse to listen.  We can say, “Cancel-Cancel” to the thought and then say to oursleves or out loud, “I love and honor the inherent wisdom of my body and the subconscious reasons it has for holding on to this weight.  I’m not just my body or my stories.  I am so much more than this!”  

I really like how that sounds and have been saying it.  We can personalize it and say who we are, like I might say that I’m a marvelous coach and a loving wife and mother.  We can focus on what we do well.  

I have a friend who is morbidly obese with a large amount of fat around her abdomen and elsewhere.  She has tried every diet approach imaginable and is eating very healthily, but the excess weight is stubborn.  It has started to come off recently.  She gave up the need to frequently weigh herself, and she has sent love to every cell of her body and said something like the above. 

She began with a body image of -15 on a 0 to 10 scale–seriously, it was a very low image.  Even though she hasn’t lost enough weight to satisfy herself and she has over 100 pounds to go, by sending her overweight body love instead of criticism, she has more energy and feels inspired.  And just after three months of doing this, she has a body image of 5 or 6.  This is tremendous! 

I know that she will eventually get to a normal weight as she raises her vibration.  By accepting herself, she wasn’t settling for her current results, but she was, in essence, saying, “If I never lose one pound, I love and accept you anyway.”  I am so proud of her!  There is much relief to be found in this approach. I hope you’ll try it!

Love & Blessings,

Angie Monko, 314-422-6520

PS:  If you’re really serious about doing something different about your weight and body image issues, see the attached qualifying form. http://www.harmonyharbor.com/qual.html

PSS:  Do you have friends and family that are also interested in creating their own destinies of joy and freedom?  Send them to www.harmonyharbor.com.

Hello Dear Friends,

Do you doubt yourself at times?  Maybe you’re confused as to how to eat since there are so many people trying to tell you how and what to eat.  What is right for you?  Perhaps you’re at a crossroads in your career and/or in a relationship and don’t know what to do.  I think learning to trust ourselves is vitally important. 

Sure, workshops and books are tremendously important to the extent that I apply what I learn.  But what if I am resistant because of a self-saboteur residing within my pysche that tells me I’m not adequate and competent enough to make good decisions?  I also think that we have to learn to trust ourselves to have enough courage and inspiration to practice what we learn.

Try this simple technique that will help strengthen your right brain, your creative side, your intuition.  I was told that if you do this technique daily, you will become phychic within weeks, even if you don’t have a “pyschic bone in your body.”  When I say pyschic, I mean you will develop your ability to trust your intuition and know things without understanding how you can know such things.  You’ll be better able to identify trends in others and in yourself that may or may not be serving you.   It also helps to balance the left and right sides of the brain.

Using your dominant handwriting hand, write a question that you’d like clarity on.  Then switch the pen to your non-dominant hand.  Hold it there for a few seconds.  Then write out the answer, calling on your connection to Source, your Higher Self for guidance.  You don’t even have to do that last part, but I do. 

You might be amazed at the wisdom that comes from the right side of the brain.   Again, you have to have the courage to look within and not be afraid of what you may find.  It’s okay.  Don’t worry.  Your Higher Self is trying to lead you to answers that are for your highest good and that will lead you to joy and peace and love and abundance–our true natures. 

Love & Blessings,

Angie Monko

314-422-6520

PS:  If you’re really serious about doing something different about your weight and body image issues, see the attached qualifying form. http://www.harmonyharbor.com/qual.html

PSS:  Do you have friends and family that are also interested in creating their own destinies of joy and freedom?  Send them to www.harmonyharbor.com.

The Center for Human Potential

Open House

Saturday, March 20th, 2010

Facilitated by: Angie Monko: Owner, Harmony Harbor

David Ketcherside: Owner, Media Box & Awaken St. Louis

You are invited to join us for a wonderful time of networking, fellowship and discussion with regards to helpingSt. Louis become a healthier and more loving place to live.  We are looking for anyone who helps individuals break through resistance to an amazing new potential on the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual planes.

1. Are you looking for a way to expand your practice and client base?
2. Are you interested in renting space that offers retail space to promote your products, an organic deli, workshop classrooms, a meditation room, aerobics and yoga facilities, etc.?
3. Are you interested in networking with other dynamic, like-minded individuals who share a common vision?
4. If you currently have your own established location, would you be interested in learning ways to collaborate and expand your business into a wider geographical area?
5. Are you interested in becoming part of an on-line community called Awaken St. Louis? 

^{Time:   5:00 – 5:30pm Meet & Greet}

                ^{5:30 – 6:00 pm Sharing of the Vision by David & Angie}

                ^{6:00 – 7:00 pm Questions & Answers, Complete an Interest Survey}

^{Location: Cheryl’s Herbs, 7159 Manchester Road, St. Louis, MO 63143}

^{To RSVP: Call Angie Monko – 314-422-6520}

Hello Friends,

To learn the mechanics of Meridian Tapping, go to my website, www.harmonyharbor.comand click on icon on the left called EFT  Weight Loss Program. 

Being overweight and eating excess food (or restricting food) is really not about the food.   Please take a few minutes to honestly answer the following questions.

1)      How long have you been over- or under-eating?

2)      Who else in your family is overweight or severely restricts his/her food?

3)      What happened the last time you reached your goal weight? (any specific event)?

4)      What emotions are you trying to tranquilize or avoid with food by being stuffed or restricting?

5)      What loss/emptiness are you trying to fill with extra food (or lack of)?

6)      What would you focus on if you didn’t obsess about food anymore?

7)      How would you spend your time if you didn’t eat compulsively anymore?

8)      What is the downside of losing weight (or gaining if that is what you need)?

9)      What is the upside of remaining overweight (or very thin)?

10)  I would rather have this pain than to ____________________.

11)  I have to  _____________ in order to _______________ (be perfect in order to be loved), (have money in order to feel safe), (be independent and not rely on others in order to be okay), etc.

Our eating issues are related to various emotional themes, and until we can clear certain blocks, we will not be able to have emotional freedom around food.  For example, if I took away your favorite food forever, how would you feel:  deprived, abandoned, lost, lonely/empty, anxious, guilty, afraid or angry? Perhaps you’d feel a multitude of these emotions.

You can tap on the various energy meridian tapping points.  The idea is that all negative emotions are created by a disruption in the body’s energy system.  You start by reciting a setup phrase that normally ends with “I deeply and completely love and accept myself anyway:”

“Even though I feel deeply deprived…and I’m insatiable, I deeply and completely love and accept myself anyway.” 

“Even though I feel hurt about being abandoned…”

“Even though I’m profoundly afraid of…..”

“Even though I can’t stop feeling angry…”

Tapping helps to clear out disrupted energy.  By getting to the route cause or core issues of why you eat, and then tapping on it, you begin to move the body’s “stuck” energy.  After successfully tapping, when you think of things that might trigger you emotionally like childhood issues, traumas, phobias, fears, etc., you won’t respond in the same ineffective manner.  You will gain a new perspective on your core issue.  This seems miraculous, but this is how it works.  It often works where nothing else does because you get to the reason you feel deprived or abandoned or angry….and then you heal that part of you. 

This is how I begin the process with someone who is ready to begin the healing process.  Just ask yourself if you’ve had enough pain and are ready to move forward.  How would it feel to be rid of emotions and body image issues that have held you back your entire life? It’s pretty empowering compared to how I lived my own life for about 33 years.

Peace & Blessings,

Angie Monko, 314-422-6520

PS:  If you’re really serious about doing something different about your weight and body image issues, see the attached qualifying form. http://www.harmonyharbor.com/qual.html

 PSS:  Do you have friends and family that are also interested in creating their own destinies of joy and freedom?  Send them to www.harmonyharbor.com.

Hello Friends,

Before we can release the physical excess weight, we must change our insides first.  Sometimes figuring out how to release weight or reliance on food/body image issues can feel like an FBI investigation.  It helps to keep things simple. 

Louise Hay describes the probable emotional cause for Overweight as:  Fear, need for protection.  Running away from feelings.  Insecurity, self-rejection.  Seeking fulfillment.  Her suggested new thought pattern:  I am at peace with my own feelings.  I am safe where I am.  I create my own security.  I love and approve of myself.

Now if you’re like me, when you first read the emotional cause, your conscious mind may want to rebel and declare these things untrue.  I’m only asking you to be open-minded on this and invite answers to come to you.  If you think you have a problem figured out (I just like to eat;  My family history shows a long line of obesity; My emotions have nothing to do with being fat; etc.), then you won’t ask the right questions.

Most of us overeat (or undereat) because we are trying to run away from anxiety, in the form of any and all negative feelings.   Sometimes it is hard to make the leap from the cause (how we currently feel, which can be frustrated, angry, lonely, bored, restricted, etc.) to the affirmation that Louise suggests.  You don’t have to go from “I’ll never lose weight” to “I am a slender, sexy woman!” in your mind.  In fact, if you do this, your conscious mind will reject it.  So your goal is to go toward a thought pattern that brings you slight, not drastic, relief.

Is it more believable to go from “I’ve always been overweight no matter what I’ve tried and always will be” to “Up until now I’ve always been overweight and struggled with accepting and loving myself, but I am surprising myself by being more calm and relaxed and accepting myself where I’m at.  I have no choice about my current results; they are what they are.  I can change my feelings about them and in so doing, my results are improving.  I’m changing on the inside first.” 

Or what about these statements?

“Even though I hate myself and my body, maybe I can give myself a break this very moment.  Maybe I can ust lighten up and think of 5 things I am grateful for.”

“Even though I see no way out of this fat dilemma and it’s depressing, I’m sorry for all of my self-rejection.   I am doing the best I can.”   

Just start where you’re at.  The only way to change outward appearance is to change inward belief.  Go for the next believable thought that brings relief, even if the relief is slight.  Put your action on finding better-feeling thoughts instead of expending too much energy on actions, like strict diets or restriction and deprivation.  You will sabotage your efforts if you don’t have subconscious buy-in that it is safe for you to release the weight.  You have to ease into and gradually stretch the comfort zone of your subconscious beliefs.  Don’t shock them into resistance.

Peace & Blessings,

Angie Monko, 314-422-6520

Hello Friends,

Do you feel stuck in something?  Maybe it’s your job, your marriage, money problems, relationships, etc.  While sitting in a metaphysical class last night, I learned about a little twist on an already-known concept–love my way out of my perceived traps or prisons, which can feel like hell. 

My reverand first told me this about my job.  In addition to owning my own business, Harmony Harbor, I work full-time.  At one time, I was pretty resentful that I “had” to put so much time into my job and just wanted to be free of it, so that I could focus all of my energy into building my business.  So she told me to love my way out of it, very good advice. 

When I have become the person I need to be to handle the nuances of an entrepreneurial lifesytle, without the safety net of a job, I will know it’s time to leave.  This requires an ability to handle others’ rejections with ease, to stay in a feeling-good state despite external circumstances so that I can continue to create freely, to put first things first and remain focused, to trust that money comes from where it needs to come from (Universal Source or God) and not get too worried about it, and ultimately, to love, trust, honor, accept and forgive myself on a momentary basis.

So what qualities must I have to be this person?  I must embody Trust, Love, Joy, Peace, Abundance, Focus, Giving, Receiving, Compassion, Harmony & Humility.  There are others, but these are the main ones that come to mind. 

So how do I become these qualities and free myself from the chains of addictive, negative thoughts?  I can use my passion, writing, to love my way out of it.  This one woman’s passion was dancing, and so when she needed to let go of some old way of thinking, she danced a grieving song.  Next, she danced a celebratory song and invited the new way of thinking into her life.

I can write, just like I’m doing now, and grieve my old way of being; it is a grief process, regardless of whether what I’m giving up on the surface appears good or bad.   Any change that we initiate in our lives requires a grieving period.  Just know that, expect that and have a means of dealing with it.  Next I can write empowering words to myself, ushering in a new way of being.  I can lift myself up with my words, instead of tearing myself down. 

Making myself vulnerable to you and “airing out my emotions” is truly healing and transformational.  Plus, I hope it helps you to better understand yourself so that you can muster the courage to take the next baby step toward the life of your dreams. 

Use your passion to un-glue yourself from your current state of consciousness entrapment, whatever you are resisting.  By sending love to any endeavor, you loosen the grip of resistance.  You free yourself.  

Peace & Blessings,

Angie Monko, 314-422-6520

Hello there,

I woke up at 1am this morning with an awareness of why my step-daughter, Chelsea, 15 years old, triggers me so much.  And no, it’s not because she’s 15 and that says it all.  I realize I’m the source of the conflict, not her.  Now I’m not blaming myself in a real negative way or cutting myself down for saying I’m the source of the conflict. 

I realize that she only triggers me when she’s moody.  Mood swings (including my own) really annoy me.  By the time we are 7 years old, we have all of the programming in place to tell us who we will be as adults.   While growing up, my Dad’s moods were volatile.  I never knew what to expect in my day-to-day life.  I was nervous much of the time because I didn’t know if he’d be in a bad, abusive mood or if he’d actually be even-keeled.  Mostly, he ignored us and terrorized our Mom (I have a brother two years older than me). 

Maybe I’m ready to heal this part of me because as I write this, I can FEEL how as a little girl I must have felt back then.  Terrified and powerless to help my Mom….anxious and nervous and wanting to hide in a corner.  This anxiety still runs through me today, but as it surfaces and I’m ready to remember it, I can tap on it (which I just did).  Already I feel more calm. 

When we are small and begin recording in our subconscious every single thing that happens to us, we consciously forget about it as adults.  We know the problem is still there, however, because current events ”trigger” the energetic memory.  

For me, I was able to finally see that it was Chelsea’s mood swings that really bothered me.  I owned them and took them to heart.  I saw them as rejection of me.  So then I asked myself right before bed time, “What does this feeling remind me of?”  I awoke at 1am with the answer–mood swings came to mind, and then it all came together.

Mood swings started with my Dad.  Then I was destined to repeat the same scenario, only with different players, until I learned my lesson.  I married someone who had peaks and valleys of emotions; it was like being on a roller-coaster ride.  I decided to get off the ride when I was about 28 years old and got divorced.  I was beginning to shift inside, but not completely.

I remarried someone who is stable emotionally (on most days–ha ha).  I have two daughters, one by birth (Maddie-13), and one my marriage (Chelsea-15).  I feel the least peace when either they or my husband experience mood swings.  I’m even guarded against a lot of joy.  It doesn’t feel safe because at any moment, someone can snatch it away. 

I almost want to recoil when someone gets loud and boisterous and happy because part of me feels it’s fake.  It’s not stable or safe.  Now I understand why I’ve been afraid of my joy.  This boisterous expression of joy is as uncomfortable to me as unbridled anger and hostility.  They are both extremes. 

I created this fear of extremes as a little girl, and now I choose to be free of it.  I can tap on, “Up until now, I have been terrified of extreme displays of joy or anger, but I can see it’s getting easier and easier every day to remain detached and calm as others and myself experience mood swings.  This is a part of life that is as natural as breathing, and I choose to be okay with it.  And so it is!” 

Peace & Blessings,

Angie Monko, 314-422-6520

Dear Fellow Seekers,

As I was growing up in my middle class home, around folks who loved yard sales (note:  I’m not knocking yard sales), I was busy creating a scarcity consciousness.  My Mom would tell me that money doesn’t grow on trees when I’d plead for more Barbie doll clothes and accessories from Toy Chest.

It’s more than this though.  Somehow I assigned the meaning that I wasn’t good enough when my Dad was absent.  Because I didn’t like my Dad back then, I was full of anger and blame.  I began to live from a fear mode, wondering when he’d hurt my Mom next.  I believe that is when I constructed the 10-inch-thick metal wall around my heart.  I am STILL afraid to express joy and splendor, wondering when the next drama will unfold, when the next bomb will drop.

So my belief in scarcity is centered around this personal truth, “I am not enough.  I am not creative enough to make enough money to support myself and my family’s needs and dreams outside of my corporate job.”

With the help of some amazing people in my life, they are showing just how much this is an illusion. I am finally allowing myself to discover the REAL ME.  My job is not my source of income (reason fails me by declaring this as fact because I can see it in black and white in my bank account).  God is my source of income and revenue. 

I haven’t completely surrendered to this belief, yet….  I am saying affirmations to move me in this direction, and now I am hopeful that one day I will completely believe this in my heart and not in just my head.  I am also beginning to realize it’s okay to be abundant.  I think many of us grew up with the belief that rich people are greedy and un-spiritual.

Money is simply energy.  It helps me to think of circulating money rather than spending it.  Circulation implies it will come back to me, and this is a Universal law.  Spending it implies there is a limited amount of it.

I’ve done some meridian tapping on the following phrase (see harmonyharbor.com to learn more about tapping and how to use it clear blocked energy):  “Even though I’m living in this illusion that I’m not enough, I’ve decided to expand my awareness and live in the fullness of the present moment.  I’ve decided to release the need for reason and remember who I truly am.  I’ve decided to trust my God Within and reclaim my joy!  I’ve decided that God is my Source of unlimited supply of time, money and love, and I have unlimited possibilities to create prosperity! Thank you, God, and so it is!”

Peace & Blessings,

Angie Monko

314-422-6520

There is a vitality,
a life force, an energy,
a quickening that is translated through you into action,
and because there is only one of you in all of time,
this expression is unique.

And if you block it,
it will never exist through any other medium
and it will be lost.
The world will not have it.

It is not your business to determine how good it is
nor how valuable
nor how it compares with other expressions.
It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly,
to keep the channel open.

You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work.
You have to keep yourself open and aware
to the urges that motivate you.
Keep the channel open.

No artist is pleased.
There is no satisfaction whatever at any time.
There is only a queer divine dissatisfaction,
a blessed unrest
that keeps us marching
and makes us more alive than the others.

Martha Graham