How to Choose Love When You Just Want to Slap Somebody

This Book is for You! I know you picked up this book because you thought it would be good for your spouse, your sister, the whiny guy at work - everyone in your life who’s currently spouting anger, screaming with frustration and threatening to lash out. Guess what? It’s for you. Really. No kidding. And I know because I was in the same place. I was perpetually upset and angry at life. Yep. That was me, complaining about everything and everybody in the privacy of my own mind. The company I worked for was clueless, the neighbors were too nosey, my then husband seemed possessed, the weather sucked and don’t get me started on the government! And I was my own worst critic. I was overweight, overworked and overwhelmed, and I easily made a list of all my faults, seemingly content to spiral further into my own hell. I believed I was a lousy wife, a bad mom and just too stupid to keep my body healthy. I felt like I was a useless human being who was living a life of pain, drowning in constant sadness. I had all the makings of a crappy life but a potentially catchy country music song. Too bad I can’t sing. At the time, I believed that my complaining was a way to relieve stress. Sort of an “explode or implode” method I suppose, which was an utter failure. I eventually began to understand that the more I complained to myself or others, the worse I felt. Instead of relieving my stress, the sense of doom only grew greater. It’s this time in my life that I refer to as my “psycho mom” period. Don’t believe me? Ask my kids. I realize now that I must have spent hours every day - literally thousands upon thousands of thoughts - reviewing my life circumstances and judging them as horrible, bad, bleak eventually thinking I was condemned to a sad life for no good reason I could fathom. I was really good at hiding this though. I went to church, prayed, read self-help books, watched Oprah, went to a therapist and took vitamins. If I thought it would help, I did it, took it, read it or watched it. While I would have temporary reprieves, nothing seemed to help long term. I just kept driving myself into deep depression and potentially serious health issues. Then I had a remarkable breakthrough. I could change my life…I could change my life anytime I chose to. What? No restraints were keeping me on this path of certain destruction except those created in my own mind. I could change everything with the power of my mind. Thus began my journey of self-discovery, which allowed me to collect the tools and techniques I use in my life and my coaching practice today. Some of my favorite tools came back to me and became my lifeline to love as I struggled with my dad’s long health decline. They enabled me to choose love when life seemed to hand me harsh circumstances. I found that choosing love always allowed me to handle any situation better. This was my story but it could easily be yours. Our specific situations may be different, but you know what it feels like to be frustrated, upset and angry. You probably remember feeling situations in your life that were out of control. Love changes your perspective and your life experience. I encourage you to read this book with an open mind and consider each principle and technique as presented. I’ve included examples of how my clients, students and friends have used them, so you can easily see how the methods were employed in typical daily situations. These techniques work if you use them consistently. Can these techniques really take you from deep frustration to a place of peace and happiness? Yes. Is it magic? More a like miracle. The miracle of love.