Dear Dr Toni:

Dear Hopeless:

First, let’s stop calling you hopeless. How about Grace? For starters. Yes, an addiction can be a source of grace. It pushes us to seek healing and it humbles us to move beyond traditional problem solving through our mind into the mysteries of the heart. What is it that your heart longs for, Grace? You didn’t mention your work. Are you connected to your calling, your life purpose? What things do you do daily that bring you joy? Food represents more than just nurturing ourselves because we aren’t nurturing ourselves in other ways. No, it goes beyond that. It represents our connection to our soul, each other, and the world at large. How do you take food in, Grace?

I highly recommend setting an intention in the morning before you get out of bed to have a sacred relationship with food that day. Declare an intention that everything that goes into your mouth is connecting with the cells in your body in such a way that it nourishes your body and soul simultaneously so that even if you eat junk food, your body can assimilate it without toxicity. I know this is a way out concept. However, so much of compulsive eating is driven by guilt. If you change the intention of whatever you eat into a thought form of love, it takes away the pattern of self punishment through food. If you think about it, by blessing everything you eat with the intention of love, how the drive to feed the soul is expressed will change over time.

While you’re at it, begin looking at what other blessings you want in your life and envision them as already here. For example, imagine having a career that feels meaningful to you, an intimate relationship with both yourself and a partner, livng in a home you love, with a community of friends that are mutually supportive. Then surround your morning vision with golden light and joy. This can be done in about 7 minutes total. Happy Thanks – Giving Grace!

Dear Dr. Toni:

Dear Barbara:

It certainly sounds like you are being led to your destiny, but the lethargy may be coming from two sources. Perhaps your body is telling you that you need a little more time to rest before embarking on a big move. Secondly, you mention purging. That can be a drudge job when done alone. Enlist the help of a friend or temp you hire to begin getting rid of everything you will not need after this move. Give yourself at least a week to do this. See how you feel at the end of the week. Break this move down into small steps with a timeline. I also would not recommend committing to work that involves any heavy labor in this spiritual community. The pain may have stopped while you were there in March due to your comfort in the new environment but if you ended up in profuse bleeding a month after you returned, you may have overdone it. Listen to your body. If you are still having health issues, let it direct you toward what will serve you ultimately, communicate with those in charge, and the community will get served at the highest level. May your journey into your next life be effortless!