Negative energy and Positive forces

[katip]

"It is important to understand how the energy around you needs to breathe. Breathing is the flow of prana into the physical body from your subtle body and out to the work you are doing. The more concentrated the work, the more energy is able to flow freely. Negative energy directed toward you will be eliminated by your positive force, but not without your paying the price of your energy being lessened. This is why you need to avoid negative thinking and negative interchanges."
http://home.bellsouth.net/p/s/community.dll?ep=87&subpageid=185211&ck=

Since it's the New Year, I've been doing a little bit of much needed self reflection. That quote above is taken from a larger article about friendships (something I've been dealing with) but I found that paragraph the most interesting. I know it's a New Agey perspective, but I feel like it explains exactly how I've been feeling. I've had a lot of negative attitudes directed towards me about my decisions and life changes.

I think it's very possible that my "positive force" energy has been lessened continuously over the past months and that recently I've crashed from the amount of effort it's taking to keep my positive energy - if I even have any left!

Anyone think this is a bunch of hooey? or actually probable?

[capella]

I don't know about "energies" around you per se, but I think it's always good to keep the positive influences in your life and dump the negative. Who wants a naysayer around all the time??

[wordsmith]

Even if you don't buy into New Age-y philosophical viewpoints, there is sound research in the fields of physical and mental health that clearly shows that attitude affect wellness. Depressed people have shoddy immune sytems. Chroncially angry, agitated people have physicaly manifestations of stress. Happy, positive people are, in terms of general wellness, healthier than unhappy, negative people. Can you be bright and cheery and still keel over of an aneurysm or get cancer? Uh, sure. Mutating cells, etc. don't really care about your mood. But talking in terms of general wellness, happiness and health (both physical and mental) go hand in hand.

[ledzeppelinfan1]

Recently I've been dumping a lot of people out of my life and have found it to be very empowering...

these people were ex's or almost lovers that wanted to still be friends...I wasn't interested so I gave them the old "heave ho".

[wordsmith]

See, and I haaaaate axing people from my life. It's very traumatic for me. But, I don't have major negative vibe people in it, though, or it might feel differently.

[katip]

See, and I haaaaate axing people from my life. It's very traumatic for me. But, I don't have major negative vibe people in it, though, or it might feel differently.

I also dislike it.

It seems like it more or less just happens, even with some who aren't negative. Instead, there just isn't room in my life or in their's and the friendship phases out.

Recently, though, I realized that I've been holding onto a handful of friendships that end up making me worry, feel anxious and just not comfortable. I realized this, decided to let go and stop trying to keep these friendships up, and now will (try to) not worry about pleasing these people or wasting time on them. It'll be hard with one as she's my roommate... Even before all of this I felt better going into work than going to my apartment. Walking up the stairs is (and was) accompanied by a silent chant, "I hope she's not home, I hope she's not home..." Awful, I know. :redface:

[cater-cousin]

Chroncially angry, agitated people have physicaly manifestations of stress. Happy, positive people are, in terms of general wellness, healthier than unhappy, negative people. Can you be bright and cheery and still keel over of an aneurysm or get cancer? Uh, sure. Mutating cells, etc. don't really care about your mood. But talking in terms of general wellness, happiness and health (both physical and mental) go hand in hand.
Thats true wordsmith !
But the point is the other person who is chronically angry and agitated induce certain amount of stress in us. I think the best way to prevent this is knowing the fact that we are not here to change that "person" which releives us from lot of stress. If someone acts in a way that disagrees with you, you might keep reminding yourself that they are free to behave however they want.

[Ederratic]

I don't buy into the new age interpretation of that idea but I fully believe it matters. Negativity is very destructive and I try to avoid people who are stuck in that state of mind. I'm not the most positive person in the world but it creates so much unnecessary worry that I try to avoid that way of thinking if I can. It's not easy though.

Burning bridges is one thing I no longer agree with. I've cut ties with a lot of people in my past and most of those connections will never be forged again. If they're toxic, push 'em away for a while until they figure out how shitty they're acting, then bring them back.

[Jedi of Zen]

I don't buy into the new age interpretation of that idea but I fully believe it matters. Negativity is very destructive...

I don't know about "energies" around you per se, but I think it's always good to keep the positive influences in your life and dump the negative. Who wants a naysayer around all the time??


Do you guys feel that what you're saying differs from the underlying message of the original quote?

[katip]

Burning bridges is one thing I no longer agree with. If they're toxic, push 'em away for a while until they figure out how shitty they're acting, then bring them back.

Why bring them back if they don't change though? People rarely do (at least from my experiences). I'm not talking about burning bridges exactly... more so slowly loosing touch but still being friendly when you do see each other. (That also reminds me why I'm no longer friends with that person if I was starting to have any doubts.) Of course, people CAN and DO change. That's why burning bridges with anyone is a bad idea.

(My roommate is back after being gone for 10 days or so - yea, same person who's upset that I'm "never around" - and what was I welcomed with? A long message on the fridge about cleaning the bathroom and whose turn it is, if it was cleaned recently, and oh, "go buy this and that." I want to scream: RELAX! I'm realizing that she just has major issues with control and uncertainty and just can't let things BE and happen as they happen... It's really wearing...)

[Cole]

I do energy work, so yes, I believe in it.

Reiki, kundalini yoga, and just taking deep breaths are good ways to restore your energy.

Feel free to PM me if you want more info.

[katip]

Thanks! Just did.

[diabla]

[QUOTE=ledzeppelinfan1]Recently I've been dumping a lot of people out of my life and have found it to be very empowering...


What about the people you can't dump out of your life? My supervisor at my grad school internship gets great pleasure in pointing out all my flaws, but she has little to offer in the way of improving on them (silly me, I thought learning was the point of grad school). I can't walk away from the internship without having to do an extra year of school. But all of her criticism and negativity has been draining my energy sources.

[stonemonkey]

What about the people you can't dump out of your life? My supervisor at my grad school internship gets great pleasure in pointing out all my flaws, but she has little to offer in the way of improving on them (silly me, I thought learning was the point of grad school). I can't walk away from the internship without having to do an extra year of school. But all of her criticism and negativity has been draining my energy sources.

I guess you could get back at her just by doing well. Don't take it personally. The worst thing you can do is get emotional about it. If you must feel something, feel angry, and then channel that anger into doing well.

Despite the propaganda, very little of academia is associated with learning. Most of it is the politics of funding and 'playing the game' to get ahead in the world.

This whole thing of looking at the world in terms of 'positive and negative' seems way too simplistic and artificial to me. Give me a healthy dose of realism anytime.

[WeirdBrake]

[QUOTE=ledzeppelinfan1]Recently I've been dumping a lot of people out of my life and have found it to be very empowering...


What about the people you can't dump out of your life? My supervisor at my grad school internship gets great pleasure in pointing out all my flaws, but she has little to offer in the way of improving on them (silly me, I thought learning was the point of grad school). I can't walk away from the internship without having to do an extra year of school. But all of her criticism and negativity has been draining my energy sources.

I believe in tolerating BS on a strictly as-needed basis. Example: I have to pass the bar exam to be a lawyer, so I have no choice but to do what's necessary to pass, even though that test is a complete load of crap. However, I had these two law school buddies a few years ago, and gradually I realized they were both big tools who didn't value my friendship sufficiently and who had little actual respect for me. So I cut them both out of my life. No fuss, no regrets. I just stopped hanging out with them with no explanation and ignored their calls to hang out until they got the hint. My attitude was, "I don't need to put up with that crap! Life's too short. Goodbye, see ya later, good riddance."

So yeah, sometimes with school or work, you have to tolerate stuff if it's necessary for your long-term goals, and there's no way around it. But with other areas of your life-- like social relationships-- you really don't have to put up with it. Eliminate the non-essential BS. :)

Despite the propaganda, very little of academia is associated with learning.

Tell me about it! Law school and the bar exam are both about memorizing as many rules as you can and then vomiting them back on tests in the way they want. Every law professor and lawyer knows it's a bunch of academic nonsense that has nothing to do with the legal field.

[wordsmith]

What about the people you can't dump out of your life? My supervisor at my grad school internship gets great pleasure in pointing out all my flaws, but she has little to offer in the way of improving on them (silly me, I thought learning was the point of grad school). I can't walk away from the internship without having to do an extra year of school. But all of her criticism and negativity has been draining my energy sources.

The teacher who supervised my student teaching (my degree's version of an internship) was easily the most negative person I've ever dealt with, and probably the consistently worst stretch of time I've ever experienced in my life was the result, so I understand. Nothing but harsh criticism, never a shred of positive feedback, hostility instead of help...I, too, questioned the educational value of having nothing but potshots taken at me and no real direction or guidance for improvement given. And I also couldn't just quit, though I never wanted to walk away from something so much in my life. But you're right, it was probably the most emotionally draining time of my life. I did write the department after I graduated from the program, explaining and detailing my opinion on why she should never again be allowed to supervise in that capacity ever again, and that made me feel better.