In the past twelve months I have come across a number of people who have become victims of a system that was set up with the best of intentions but which has in some cases gone horribly wrong. Imagine a woman who seeks and gets an AVO (perhaps for good reason) but then travels from Sydney to the Central Coast to harrass her husband into breaking it. She sits in the back of his truck, takes his tools out of the truck and steals his work mobile phone. He cannot touch her or restrain her. He can do nothing but stand and watch because she has an AVO against him. If he touches her he is looking at prison. What is the alternative? This story is one of many that are similar. The AVO used as a weapon. Women absolutely need the protection of the legal system but I wonder if it needs a bit a re-vamp to get it working properly again?
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People are increasingly turning to self-help books, Amazon's list of the top 20 UK bestsellers suggests.
Five of the top-selling books are self-help related, with hypnotist Paul McKenna's I Can Make You Thin the most popular at number four.
It comes after there was a 38% increases in sales in the genre during 2004, the online retailer said.
But doctors warned while the books can be helpful, people should seek advice if they have health concerns.
Amazon predicts the number of sales will continue to grow after GPs in Devon unveiled a scheme to prescribe patients with depression self-help books instead of pills.
Rising sales
Amazon books editor Fiona Buckland said: "It seems that many people are turning to these books as trusted companions to help them in 2005.
"We have noticed sales rising by over a third in the past year, which suggests that more people are actively seeking to better their lives through literature."
She said during 2003 spiritual healing and advice books were the most popular, whereas last year the public turned towards practical help books.
It comes after there was a 38% increases in sales in the genre during 2004, the online retailer said.
But doctors warned while the books can be helpful, people should seek advice if they have health concerns.
Amazon predicts the number of sales will continue to grow after GPs in Devon unveiled a scheme to prescribe patients with depression self-help books instead of pills.
Rising sales
Amazon books editor Fiona Buckland said: "It seems that many people are turning to these books as trusted companions to help them in 2005.
"We have noticed sales rising by over a third in the past year, which suggests that more people are actively seeking to better their lives through literature."
She said during 2003 spiritual healing and advice books were the most popular, whereas last year the public turned towards practical help books.
Dr Graham Archard, vice-chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: "Self-help books certainly have valuable a place in society.
"Indeed, without self treatment and prevention the NHS would not be able to cope with patient demand.
"However, if people have serious concerns about their health they should make an appointment to see their GP."
And Glasgow psychologist Dr Jim White, a spokesman for the British Psychological Society, added: "Self-help books can be really helpful but it does depend who has written it.
"Some should be seen as just a bit of fun, whereas others can make a real difference.
"Another problem is that the books are often not easy to understand, they are written for Guardian readers, and problems are often more common as you go further down the social scale."
Also in the top 20 were The Mind Gym: Wake Your Mind Up, What You Wear Can Change Your Life by TV fashion gurus Trinny and Susannah, the GI Diet Book by Rick Gallop, Gillian McKeith's You Are What You Eat and Embracing Change by Tony Buzan.
"Indeed, without self treatment and prevention the NHS would not be able to cope with patient demand.
"However, if people have serious concerns about their health they should make an appointment to see their GP."
And Glasgow psychologist Dr Jim White, a spokesman for the British Psychological Society, added: "Self-help books can be really helpful but it does depend who has written it.
"Some should be seen as just a bit of fun, whereas others can make a real difference.
"Another problem is that the books are often not easy to understand, they are written for Guardian readers, and problems are often more common as you go further down the social scale."
Also in the top 20 were The Mind Gym: Wake Your Mind Up, What You Wear Can Change Your Life by TV fashion gurus Trinny and Susannah, the GI Diet Book by Rick Gallop, Gillian McKeith's You Are What You Eat and Embracing Change by Tony Buzan.
by bbc
Yavapai County Sheriff Steve Waugh said Saturday that his detectives were focusing on the self-help expert and his staff as they try to determine if criminal negligence played a role in the tragic deaths at the Angel Valley Retreat Center in Sedona, Ariz., on Oct. 9.
The town is a desert vacation spot two hours north of Phoenix that is popular with those seeking meditation and spiritual health.
Waugh said Ray refused to speak with authorities and has since left the state.
"We will continue this investigation down every road that is possible to find out if there is culpability on anybody relative to the deaths of these individuals," Waugh said. He said it could be three to four weeks before they knew if criminal charges would be filed.
Ray's recent postings on his Twitter account said he was "shocked and saddened" by the tragedy.
"My deep heartfelt condolences to family and friends of those who lost their lives," he wrote. "I am spending the weekend in prayer and meditation for all involved in this difficult time; and I ask you to join me in doing the same."
Ray claims to help people achieve both spiritual and financial wealth. "The real key to creating the life of your dreams is achieving true Harmonic Wealth®," he says on his Web site, trademark included.
The self-styled success guru says people are ready for his wisdom if "You simply (and deeply) want to make more money and become more successful" and "want to double, triple, even multiply by ten the size of your business."
It's not clear what type of financial wizardry was being taught inside the 415-square-foot homemade sweat lodge when a 38-year-old female surfer and a 40-year-old father of three dropped dead.
Ray's company, James Ray International, is based in Carlsbad, Calif. Ray's publicist, Howard Bragman, expressed condolences in a statement Friday but declined to speak about the deaths. Bragman didn't return a call for additional comment Saturday.
The Angel Valley Retreat Center is owned by Michael and Amayra Hamilton, who rented it to Ray for a five-day "Spiritual Warrior" retreat that promised to "absolutely change your life."
On Saturday, Amayra Hamilton said Ray has held the event at the resort for seven years, and there never have been any problems.
Hamilton said the resort remains closed to the public. The sweat lodge has been dismantled and a ceremony was conducted for those affected by Thursday's incident.
"The whole situation is very traumatizing for everybody," she said.
The people at Ray's retreat, whose ages ranged from 30 to the 60s, paid between $9,000 and $10,000 to attend.
Ray and his staff constructed the temporary sweat lodge with a wood frame and covered it with layers of tarps and blankets, Waugh said. The sweat lodge — a structure commonly used by American Indian tribes to cleanse the body and prepare for hunts, ceremonies and other events — was 53 inches high at the center and about 30 inches high around the outer edges.
Between 55 and 65 people were crowded into the 415-square-foot space during a two-hour period that included various spiritual exercises led by Ray, Waugh said. Every 15 minutes, a flap was raised to allow more volcanic rocks the size of cantaloupes to be brought inside.
Authorities said participants were highly encouraged but not forced to remain in the sweat lodge for the entire time.
Joseph Bruchac, author of "The Native American Sweat Lodge: History and Legends," called the number of participants in the lodge "appalling."
"If you put people in a restrictive, airtight structure, you are going to use up all oxygen," he said by phone Saturday from his home in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. "And if you're doing a sweat, you're going to use it up that much faster."
American Indian sweat lodges typically hold about 12 people and are covered with blankets made of natural materials, such as cotton or wool, and the air flow isn't restricted, he said.
"I don't see how the person running that lodge could have been aware of the health and well-being of that many people," he said.
The participants had fasted for 36 hours as part of a personal and spiritual quest in the wilderness, then ate a breakfast buffet Thursday morning. After various seminars, they entered the sweat lodge lightly dressed at 3 p.m.
Two hours later, a woman dialed 911 to say that two people, whom Waugh identified as 38-year old New Yorker Kirby Brown and 40-year-old James Shore of Milwaukee, did not have a pulse and weren't breathing.
According to a family spokesperson, Brown was an avid surfer and hiker who was "in top shape," before the mysterious sweat lodge death.
A nurse hired by Ray was directing rescue efforts including CPR when emergency crews arrived, Waugh said. Shore and Brown were pronounced dead when they arrived at a hospital.
Sheriff's Lt. David Rhodes said authorities were checking whether there was a lag time between the first signs of medical distress and the emergency call.
Autopsies on Brown and Shore were conducted Friday, but the results weren't disclosed pending additional tests. Authorities have ruled out carbon monoxide poising as the cause.
Matt Collins, who knew Shore since seventh grade, described his friend as a wonderful husband and father whose life revolved around his three kids. "Everybody who got to know him absolutely loved him," Collins told The Associated Press.
Brown, a graduate of the State University of New York at Geneseo, had two sisters who recently got married, two new nephews and a focus on "making the world more beautiful for someone, not only with her art but with her heart," family spokesman Tom McFeeley said. Although the family is saddened by her death, he said Brown created a roadmap by which others should live.
"She was the least selfish, kindest person I knew," he said.
McFeeley said Brown had attended similar retreats, although he wasn't certain whether any were hosted by Ray. He said Brown, who grew up in Brooklyn and Westtown and spent time in Mexico, saw the outing as a chance to continue on a positive path in life.
by Neil Katz
SEDONA, Ariz. — James Arthur Ray led a group of more than 50 followers into a cramped, sauna-like sweat lodge in Arizona last week by convincing them that his words would lead them to spiritual and financial wealth.
But Ray's self-help empire was thrown into turmoil when two of his followers died after collapsing in the makeshift sweat lodge near Sedona and 19 others were hospitalized. A homicide investigation that followed has cast a critical spotlight on Ray's company.
Critics are citing the sweat lodge tragedy as evidence that Ray is a charlatan who is not to be trusted. A relative of one victim accused Ray of exhibiting a "godlike complex" during the event that he said recklessly abandoned the safety of participants. Dedicated followers say they fully trust Ray to lead them through exercises that greatly improve their lives.
Shawna Bowen, once a James Ray fanatic who was among those who tended to the ill, has had a change of heart since the deaths.
"I could not imagine people looking to him after he made such egregious errors with human life," she said. "I don't think he has the right to be leading others right now. I think he needs to take a good look at where his ego, where his power trip got in the way"
Ray wept openly during his first public appearance after the deaths. During a free recruiting seminar for his program Tuesday in Los Angeles, he broke down in tears, the confident pitchman momentarily gone.
"This is the most difficult time I've ever faced," Ray told a crowd of about 200 at a hotel in Marina del Rey. "I don't know how to deal with it really."
Ray has become a self-help superstar by packaging his charismatic personality and selling wealth. Those who first attend his free seminars hear a motivational mantra that promises that they can achieve what he calls "Harmonic Wealth" — on a financial, mental, physical spiritual level.
But his technique is not just motivational speaking. It's a combination of new age spiritualism, American Indian ritual, astrology and numerology. The sweat lodge experience was intended to be an almost religious awakening for the participants.
Ray uses free seminars to recruit people to his expensive seminars, starting with $4,000 three-day "Quantum Leap" workshops and moving on to the weeklong $5,300 "Practical Mysticism" events and the $9,000-plus "Spiritual Warrior" retreats like the one that led to the sweat lodge tragedy.
About 50 people attended the retreat near Sedona, the center of the new-age movement where practitioners draw energy from the surrounding Red Rocks and various vortexes to heal others.
Sweat lodges, commonly used by American Indian tribes, also can be part of the healing process. Stones are heated up outside a lodge, brought inside and placed in a pail-sized hole. The door is closed, and water is poured on the stones, producing heat aimed at releasing toxins in the body.
The ceremonies have been part of Ray's "Spiritual Warrior" retreats for years.
Few details of what actually transpired during the two hours participants were inside the 415-square foot sweat lodge have emerged. Sheriff's deputies in Arizona's Yavapai County are investigating whether Ray or his staff may have been criminally negligent. No charges have been filed.
The Rev. Meredith Ann Murray, spent three hours in a sweat lodge led by Ray in 2007 that she said was done safely and helped her conquer claustrophobia.
"You're warned about all the possible things that might happen, how to take care of yourself, how to listen to your body," said the 56-year-old real estate agent from Bellingham, Wash. "I've done some amazing things I never thought I could do."
But in 2005, during a previous "Spiritual Warrior" retreat at the same resort, a man had to be taken to the hospital after falling unconscious during a sweat lodge ceremony.
Ray, 51, grew up as the son of a Tulsa preacher. Bored with college, he says he pursued a career as a telemarketer and began leading training classes for his employer, AT&T. He began honing his self-help business in the early 1990s.
In a 2008 profile in Fortune magazine, Ray said 5,500 people paid for his seminars in 2007. His books also are major sales drivers, and he told the magazine his revenues went from $1 million in 2005 to an estimated $10 million in 2006.
He soared in popularity after appearing in the 2006's Rhonda Byrne documentary "The Secret," and he later was a guest on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" and "Larry King Live" to promote it. His 2008 book "Harmonic Wealth" made the New York Times bestseller list.
Whether Ray manages to maintain his success in the wake of the deaths depends in part on his supporters, and how long the tragedy dogs him as he goes from city to city recruiting paying customers for his wealth creation/spiritual harmony philosophy.
Critics point to the Sedona events as yet more evidence that Ray is a huckster, who, like other motivational speakers, present their philosophies as a magic bullet to all of life's problems.
"It's honing in on peoples' needs, their hopes and desires, telling them what they want to hear," said Rick Ross, founder of a virtual library of information on controversial groups and movements. "That's how any good con man makes his mark."
Linda Jackson of Brentwood, Calif., already is looking forward to an event Ray has scheduled in the San Francisco Bay area later this year. The 59-year-old says Ray has a rare gift that coupled with charisma, power and a "walk the talk" attitude only helps mankind.
Only God knows whether the recent tragedy will help or hurt Ray, she said. "Maybe it was necessary because he has to be cautious about something."
Ray has no plans to slow down, said his spokesman, Howard Bragman. He'll continue conducting seminars and be a leader, educator and mentor to the thousands who seek his help.
"One of his messages is about dealing with adversity," he said. "He's very clear and his team is very clear that we're going to continue his important work."
About 50 people attended the retreat near Sedona, the center of the new-age movement where practitioners draw energy from the surrounding Red Rocks and various vortexes to heal others.
Sweat lodges, commonly used by American Indian tribes, also can be part of the healing process. Stones are heated up outside a lodge, brought inside and placed in a pail-sized hole. The door is closed, and water is poured on the stones, producing heat aimed at releasing toxins in the body.
The ceremonies have been part of Ray's "Spiritual Warrior" retreats for years.
Few details of what actually transpired during the two hours participants were inside the 415-square foot sweat lodge have emerged. Sheriff's deputies in Arizona's Yavapai County are investigating whether Ray or his staff may have been criminally negligent. No charges have been filed.
The Rev. Meredith Ann Murray, spent three hours in a sweat lodge led by Ray in 2007 that she said was done safely and helped her conquer claustrophobia.
"You're warned about all the possible things that might happen, how to take care of yourself, how to listen to your body," said the 56-year-old real estate agent from Bellingham, Wash. "I've done some amazing things I never thought I could do."
But in 2005, during a previous "Spiritual Warrior" retreat at the same resort, a man had to be taken to the hospital after falling unconscious during a sweat lodge ceremony.
Ray, 51, grew up as the son of a Tulsa preacher. Bored with college, he says he pursued a career as a telemarketer and began leading training classes for his employer, AT&T. He began honing his self-help business in the early 1990s.
In a 2008 profile in Fortune magazine, Ray said 5,500 people paid for his seminars in 2007. His books also are major sales drivers, and he told the magazine his revenues went from $1 million in 2005 to an estimated $10 million in 2006.
He soared in popularity after appearing in the 2006's Rhonda Byrne documentary "The Secret," and he later was a guest on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" and "Larry King Live" to promote it. His 2008 book "Harmonic Wealth" made the New York Times bestseller list.
Whether Ray manages to maintain his success in the wake of the deaths depends in part on his supporters, and how long the tragedy dogs him as he goes from city to city recruiting paying customers for his wealth creation/spiritual harmony philosophy.
Critics point to the Sedona events as yet more evidence that Ray is a huckster, who, like other motivational speakers, present their philosophies as a magic bullet to all of life's problems.
"It's honing in on peoples' needs, their hopes and desires, telling them what they want to hear," said Rick Ross, founder of a virtual library of information on controversial groups and movements. "That's how any good con man makes his mark."
Linda Jackson of Brentwood, Calif., already is looking forward to an event Ray has scheduled in the San Francisco Bay area later this year. The 59-year-old says Ray has a rare gift that coupled with charisma, power and a "walk the talk" attitude only helps mankind.
Only God knows whether the recent tragedy will help or hurt Ray, she said. "Maybe it was necessary because he has to be cautious about something."
Ray has no plans to slow down, said his spokesman, Howard Bragman. He'll continue conducting seminars and be a leader, educator and mentor to the thousands who seek his help.
"One of his messages is about dealing with adversity," he said. "He's very clear and his team is very clear that we're going to continue his important work."
by James Arthur
While previous studies have shown that the average adolescent is exposed to well over 200 alcohol ads on television each year, this is the first to demonstrate an association between ad placement and teen cable TV viewership. Cable TV attracts about 95 percent of all nationally televised alcohol ads.
The study will be published in the October issue of the American Journal of Public Health and is currently available online by subscription.
"Alcohol advertisers have pledged to avoid audiences made up of more than 30 percent underage viewers — such as children’s programming," said David H. Jernigan, director of the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth and an associate professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "However, many other shows have adolescent appeal. This research suggests that ads are aimed at groups that include a disproportionate number of teens and that the alcohol industry’s voluntary self-monitoring is not working to reduce adolescent exposure to ads."
Using advertising industry data from Nielsen Media Research, researchers examined all 600,000 national cable alcohol ads shown from 2001 through 2006 to audiences with less than 30 percent of viewers between the ages of 12 and 20. Among the findings:
* Audiences with a higher percentage of youth between the ages of 12 and 20 were exposed to a higher frequency of alcohol ads, even after accounting for other factors that might explain ad placement decisions.
* Each 1-percentage-point increase in adolescent viewership was associated with a 7-percent increase in beer ads, a 15-percent increase in spirits ads and a 22-percent increase in ads for low-alcohol refreshers/alcopops — flavored alcoholic beverages that taste similar to juice or soda.
* In contrast, wine ads decreased by 8 percent with each 1-percentage-point increase in adolescent viewership; this finding suggests that alcohol advertisers can, in fact, successfully avoid adolescent audiences.
"This study did not examine whether alcohol advertisers are intentionally overexposing adolescents," said lead study author Dr. Paul J. Chung, assistant professor of pediatrics at Mattel Children’s Hospital UCLA and a senior natural scientist at the RAND Corp. "The alcohol industry has consistently denied actively targeting teens, and our study isn’t designed to test that claim. However, the ultimate effect of their advertising strategies, intentional or not, appears to be greater exposure than might be expected if adults were the sole targets of ads."
For years, alcohol has been the substance of abuse most commonly used by teens in the United States, and the public health consequences of underage drinking are considerable. Numerous studies and national statistics report that adolescents are involved in a significant proportion of the injuries, violence and crime that stem from binge drinking and other forms of alcohol abuse. Moreover, studies have shown that starting to drink as an adolescent has been linked with much greater risks of lifelong problem drinking.
Multiple studies suggest that alcohol ads can have substantial influence on underage drinking attitudes and behaviors.
"It’s difficult to document experimentally," said Chung, who also directs the UCLA–RAND Center for Adolescent Health Promotion. "But there’s not too much doubt that advertising and marketing affect the behavior of both children and adults. Common sense tells us that if it didn’t work, companies probably wouldn’t be spending so much money on it. So, it’s a lot harder for parents, teachers and clinicians to successfully encourage kids to delay drinking when so many things they’re seeing — on television, on billboards, on movie screens, on the Internet — are telling them otherwise."
by fredjoiners
How are things with you today?
I've got another quick message about beating depression for you,
please read this and use it because it can change your life...
How does depression do such a great job of wrecking your life?
What is the worst thing that it does to you?
It stops you from taking action.
Action is the most important factor in moving your life forward.
No action means you cannot take opportunities. Inaction also
makes you confused and unhappy. It allows others to take the
advantage and you allow this to happen. Inaction can be the
result of fear or stress but really inaction is
depression's partner.
So if you want to overcome depression you need only to take
action.
Now depression is a clever thing, it is not stupid, it is your
brain working against itself. Depression works to stop you taking
action. It crushes your ability to make decisions by confusing
you, stressing you, making you angry and sad and then it makes
you tired and takes away your motivation.
What can you do to help yourself:
1. relax and listen to calm music
2. read some inspiring quotes
3. watch a comedy on tv
4. smile
Do something! Anything! But start to take action. Don't accept
depression. A positive step in the right direction means a step
away from depression.
I have suffered from depression as bad as it gets and I know the
choice is either give in or take action to move forward. The
first step is always the most difficult...
I have found a great program that will help you, I recommend it
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Have a look at this now:
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Until next week,
take care,
Karl Perera
author of "Self Esteem Secrets"
It has been the topic for my clients all day - no matter who they are or why they see me. Over and over I've been asked what I thought of the embarrassing "Hey Hey" moment. No easy or simple answer from me on this one! There is so many principles involved.
Firstly, it was of course stupidly insensitive. It was of course racist and just plain dumb. But as most people have pointed out, we australians do not have the same history of "black face" singers. We see it just as an impression, not as a cultural statement. We haven't had years of struggle against that particular stereo type. We are racist in that we aren't aware of the implications.
We also are much better at being irreverent than other groups of people. Give us a sacred cow and we love to have a go at it. An important national characteristic.
Thirdly, Australians should not have to conform to American sensitivities - God knows they have no cultural sensitivity of their own. They plunder the world with out care about the cultures they stand on. But we would be very offended if an american show had a skit with white americans dressed up as Aboriginal Australians, complete with paint and a stupid dance. We need to think about how that would feel and how insensed we would be.
There endeth opinion
I've been seeing a client for a long time. He came to me from probation and parole after many years as a career criminal. He has (of course) a history of very serious sexual abuse at the hands of priests while in care. He took drugs for years, did break and enters and ocaisionally armed robberies. Over the past ten months he has attended counselling, often riding a push bike for many kilometers. He has started to find himself, attending TAFE, making "straight" friends, and looking for God. He found a part time job and started to walk on the beach.
Then a week ago police called. They informed him they needed to talk about DNA found at an old break and enter recently matched to him. His response? A serious and very near fatal suicide attempt. He called me from ICU.
I dont know what will happen to him. I dont know if the law will pursue him. I hope that with a little support, a bit of flexibility he'll get through and continue with the therapy that seems to be helping... even just a little.
Here's my top recommendation for this month! Affirmations work!
Posted by
Doncrack
Monday, October 5, 2009
Goals are so important to your success and if you'd like a quick and easy way to ensure that you stay focused on your goals there's one solution I know works...
Affirmations.
Click the banner above you'll see just how this amazing affirmations program works and exactly how it can help you change your life.
I've tried it out myself and loved it.
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