January 2013

January column

Ask the LifeQuake Doctor

Whew! We made it into 2013. The world didn’t end but there certainly has been much upheaval. Climate disasters, devastating school massacres, and a continuing unstable economy has most people around the world feeling fear about what will unfold in 2013.

So here is my suggestion. Every time you hear something grim on the news, take a moment and surround that crisis or challenge with a pink bubble of unconditional love. Then do this with every problem you have. Sending love is a powerful tool to assist in the transformation of our planet.

Dear Dr. Toni:

I have been reading your column for several years and enjoy it very much. My husband died of cancer a year ago. I have been living in the same city for 15 years but am feeling a pull to move to a new city in Mexico where there is an artist community. I am an artist, too. I am scared to uproot myself alone in my 60’s. I have the means to do it, just not the guts.

What is the best way to figure out if this is the right decision? And I am also concerned about timing. How does one know when the right time is to make a move?

A faithful reader

Dear Reader:

There are a number of ways to make relocation decisions. I myself have relocated 4 times in my adult life. One way is to work with an astrologer who can look at your chart and the charts of places you want to relocate to in order to determine if the city of inquiry is best for what you want. For example, if you want to emphasize your career, you might choose a city that would enhance those possibilities. If you wanted to emphasize partnership or marriage, it may be a different location. An astrological reading can also give you information on good times to move versus other times.

Another approach to this is to set an intention before going to sleep to get intuitive information from the dreamtime. Do this over and over again until you get an answer but write down any dreams you have in the morning. If you write your dreams down it will stimulate more dream recall. When we are asleep, we leave the reality of linear time and are able to travel so to speak to the future that already exists in a parallel universe. I have received many messages in my dreams that did not come to pass until at least 6 months later.

It has been documented that people have been given premonitions about future events like earthquakes, plane crashes, and people dying before they happened. Keeping a record of your dreams will strengthen your intuition.

The third way of accessing wisdom for major life decisions like relocation is to meditate. For most people in the West, learning to quiet the mind takes time and discipline and is the slowest means of developing one’s intuition. Never the less, it has many other benefits such as stress management and enhancing mental focus so I am always an advocate for developing a meditation practice.

Trust where the energy is taking you and if you are having trouble with trust, work with a coach who knows how to clear emotional blockages that are preventing you from hearing the truth for yourself.

Dear Dr. Toni:

Since you are a dream expert, what does it mean when you keep dreaming that you’ve gone back to school. I have no plans of going back to school so I just wondered what the message is.

A reluctant student

Dear Reader:

If we look at this as a metaphor, I would ask you to reflect on what school symbolizes to you. What was the emotional tone of the dream? Were you happy or anxious about being back in school? What level of education was it? Grammar school, college, or graduate school?

I would say that you are being called to either get more traditional education or you are in a new spiritual initiation. Pay attention to these dreams to see if they change at all. Does the emotional tone of the dream change as well. Before you go to sleep, ask a question of your unconscious to answer you in your dreams.

Then notice in your waking life if there is a new level of consciousness showing up in your thoughts. Pay attention to your thoughts by being a witness to them.

Working with a therapist who is trained in dream analysis can also support a time of great transition.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Dr. Toni Galardi is a licensed Jungian based psychotherapist, dream analyst,  astrologer, and career coach. She can be reached at 310-890-6832 for personal consult or if you would like a question answered, write her at DrToni@LIfeQuake.net.