August 2006

In this issue:
1. Welcome
2. Stress and Resilience
3. An Evolutionary Perspective
4. Evolutionary Solutions
5. Announcements

1. Welcome
Welcome. We all face adversity. At this point in time, we remember Hurricane Katrina and the tragic events of 9-11. They affect us all. Yet, in the midst of these adversities, there has been new life and a deep resilience of the human spirit.

The external disasters that shake us do not need to bring us down. Instead, they can make us unwilling to give up. This resolve gives birth to new solutions. In this e-newsletter, we will take a broad approach to the adversity in our lives, and explore how it can help us to grow.

2. Hurricane Survivors Find Resolve
Terrible catastrophes do not necessarily lead to depression and despair. In a new study on the survivors of Hurricane Katrina and its impact on depression and suicide, researchers did not find an increase in suicide. Indeed, only one percent of the troubled survivors in the New Orleans area thought or planned suicide, as compared to 8 percent before Hurricane Katrina.

In fact, Harvard researchers found evidence of post-traumatic growth. More than 95% of the individuals surveyed professed more faith in their ability to rebuild their lives, now that the disaster made it necessary to do so, and 70% reported they had more inner strength.

This capacity to grow from catastrophe may be an ancient survival process that has helped us to evolve. At first, we experience loss. But once our negative emotions have subsided, we can choose to look at what we have and the strengths that exist within ourselves and within our communities. This gives us an opportunity to rethink release old patterns, and begin to grow anew. Later, we are able to look back at the situation, and determine what has been accomplished and gained.

3. An Evolutionary Perspective
I find an evolutionary perspective to be most helpful in terms of understanding the deeper meaning of these types of events. In the short term, adversity seems to lead to unhappiness and despair, but, in terms of a broader evolutionary perspective, it is a stimulus for change.

Indeed, the well-known evolutionary writer Barbara Marx Hubbard, argues that problems precede quantum leaps. She argues that change does not occur just step by step. Instead, significant change occurs in leaps when whole new systems emerge. For example, once there was no life, then life appeared. These leaps are preceded by crises.

She calls these crises "evolutionary drivers." They are vital stimulants that trigger astounding "design innovations" that bring forth new capacities. From an evolutionary perspective, problems and crises are "necessary to overcome the inertia of the status quo and fulfill the primary tendency in evolution toward greater complexity, consciousness, and freedom."

She further argues that all leaps move towards greater wholeness. For example, we no longer can think of Planet Earth just in terms of different countries. The planet now is integrating in to one complete system.

The new system that prevails is the one that best allows beneficial cooperation. It is the system in which the self-interest of the separate parts is served better through cooperation rather than separation. Therefore, approaches that promote conscious choice for the benefit of the whole will bring more positive outcomes, as opposed to approaches that leave things to chance or to self-centered gain.

Barbara Marx Hubbard believes that we are currently undergoing a quantum leap. She says: "The power we have inherited to radically affect the material world will either destroy us or evolve us. We cannot continue even one more generation of over populating, polluting, being at war and using weapons of mass destruction." We are at the threshold of a major step in evolution or devolution."

4. Revolutionary Breakthroughs, Evolutionary Solutions
In the last e-newsletter, I shared with you a new approach to stress, the Attractor Field Technique. We looked at how it was a revolutionary breakthrough in that it allows us to perceive stress as our creation and under our control, rather than a force that is outside of ourselves. It is evolutionary in that it helps us see our common humanity by overcoming the judgments that keep us separate.

AFT is embedded in a much larger Map of Consciousness developed by David Hawkins in his landmark work "Power vs. Force." This map places conscious thought on a scale from lower levels such as shame and guilt to higher levels that include love, peace, and joy. Such a map is helpful for understanding how the different levels of consciousness relate to a larger whole.

The AFT technique is unique in that it releases the energetic blocks at the lower levels of consciousness. That release increases spiritual flow and positive energy. It can be integrated with other existing approaches, thereby increasing their effectiveness.

For example, I routinely use AFT with Positive Psychology. In the process of using one's virtues and strengths, individuals often get into situations that cause stress, and, hence, the patterns at their lower levels of consciousness need to be cleared. I also use AFT in relation to work so as to replace co-dependent patterns with more autonomous spiritual energy. I have found this technique to work for individuals, couples, families, and even small groups. In group situations, one person's work can have a positive influence on others.

There is no question in my mind but that AFT is a powerful technique that has emerged to help us to evolve in a positive way. It gives us the power of conscious choice, and it is holistic, integrative, and inclusive. It promotes cooperation, which paves the way for new solutions.

Would you like to learn more about AFT? Dr. Ebert will be coming to Saint Louis on September 23-24 for a two-day introductory workshop. If you want a healthier, more fulfilling life, this is a workshop you will not want to miss.

Warm Regards,
Dr. Alice

Dr. Ebert’s website: www.the-tree-of-life.com. Barbara Marx Hubbard's website: www.evolve.org.

5. Announcements
Come join us for "A New Look, New Life: Beyond 9-11. In this workshop, you will have an opportunity to resolve any remaining trauma, and learn a new approach to better handle adversity. It will be held at my office, on 9-11-2006, from 7:00 - 9:00 PM. Email me for a flyer or phone me at 314-729-2855.

Dr. Ebert will be presenting a two-day workshop, "A New Look at Stress: Introduction to the Attractor Field Technique" on September 23 and 24, 9-5 PM. This will be held in St. Louis at my office location at "The Gathering Place. Email me for a flyer or phone me at 314-729-2855.

Copyright 2006 Alice Vlietstra. All rights reserved.

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Alice Vlietstra, Ph.D.
12131 Dorsett Road, Ste. 220
Maryland Heights, MO 63043
314-729-2855
alice@successfulrelating.com