345 thoughts on “Appreciating Myself”

1. How awesome to have such a marker in your body of feeling lovely ‘I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.’ that you did not want to react because you would feel how this would offset the relationship with yourself you had built. Pretty cool ✨

   1. Hi Vicky
      I wrote the blog about 6 years ago and things have changed a lot since then. It is no longer about me and my relationship with myself, but about my relationship with the all. Reacting means I am no longer available to respond to whatever is needed and also that I contribute to the harm in the world. I choose not to react!

      1. Hi Nicola,
         I know I saw the date of the blog and it is very awesome to hear just how much more has changed for you since then. I was appreciating what you shared in your blog as currently there is so much reaction in the world, so it is lovely to hear when someone loves themselves so much that it would be detrimental to the body to react … a great reflection to all ❤️

2. Just imagine how different the world would be if we felt so much love in our bodies that we didn’t want to disturb the feeling by reacting to other people or life events.

3. “I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.” A beautiful reminder to not allow the tensions outside us to take us away from the stillness within.

4. ‘I paused for a moment to appreciate myself’ how nourishing feels having moments like that, to really appreciate and confirm by myself how precious I am. Thank you Nicola

5. Exactly – why abandon the amazingness that we feel, especially for something that we are not interested to have for ourselves? That makes no sense at all. And appreciating our amazingness has a snowball effect on itself.

   1. It’s crazy ins’t it, abandon our amazingness to get something we don’t really need and makes our body racy, tense or hard. Today I realized about how different runs our mind from our body. The messages in both were very different. Responding to the message from my body and honouring it made me feel expanded, gentle and connected me with a simplicity that I could not find outside of me, so the choice was clear 🙂

6. ‘I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.’ How beautifull and how inspiring ❤️

7. What a great understanding of how we can get caught in a loving way that deepens and then opens the door to deliver more of the same.

8. My life has transformed beyond words can describe since meeting the Benhayon family and others who attend Universal Medicine courses. I have rediscovered joy in the simplest of tasks, my chores are no longer a dread and my home is beautiful and tidy because of the quality I have remembered. I love my life, I love the people in my life and I love the values and understandings that I am constantly developing as a result of my interactions with everybody around me. Thank you Serge Benhayon, thank you Natalie and Simone Benhayon. Thank you Miranda Benhayon for your beautiful voice that lights up my car every time I drive and the student body who are here time and time again ready and willing to truly look at how they live every single moment of the day and refine it to bring truth, love and joy to this planet and thank me, for choosing to be a part of this, for being honest, open and willing to learn.

9. Oh the tests we are sent!! Awesome how much you have changed, the plus is we all benefit because of the ripple effect it has. Very cool ✨

10. Appreciation can change lives, and something that was said at a Universal Medicine presentation has stuck with me, and it went something like this – If you have a problem with someone, then you’re not appreciating them enough. Appreciating someone certainly changes the way we see that person and then realise the problem isn’t with them.

    1. I remember this sharing, very beautiful, and I have put it into practise on a number of occasions.

11. Brilliant Nicola. What came to me by reading your experience is that in every moment we have a choice to be made. Holding and deeply appreciating us, or react and escape from the tension of going against our natural flow. It’s up to us.

    1. Appreciating ourselves and others is a very delightful way to be.

12. No reason to react, no reason to get emotional but appreciate – that would do for a good living guideline for us all, and the world would be immediately a far more harmonious place.

13. I love those moments when I realise how much I’ve changed because of a situation. I find it very nurturing to look back and take stock of where I am now, how many things have changed within me, and appreciate it all. Sometimes we can be so busy working on ourselves and being in life we don’t stop to ‘smell the roses’ as they say, to just be, and take stock of it all, and enjoy where we are now.

    1. Thanks for sharing this Melinda because it makes me stop and appreciate the loving choices that I’m making in my life too, which feels a very solid foundation to moving on in this way.

14. It’s great to read this again and get a reminder of what it means to appreciate otherwise we make life harder on ourselves unnecessarily so.

    1. I agree, it is never necessary to make things hard or complicated 🙂

       1. Or perhaps it is if you particularly enjoy or want things to be hard and complicated. Sometimes people like that as it gives them identity and stimulation and they can impress.

15. There is such simplicity in this: we don’t have to try ‘not to be’ or ‘not to feel’ a strong emotional reaction after a time, because as we connect more to what we’re actually feeling, we get to the point where we feel that it is a choice and not just ‘who we are’ or ‘how I am’. We don’t have to be owned by our emotions.

    1. It is like there is always the choice of listening to the harmonious silence or clattering noise – which do you prefer?

16. I really love the appreciation you have for yourself, Nicola. Everyone seems to get pulled into reaction so easily these days, it’s almost like it’s expected and if we don’t people think there’s something wrong with you. I love how appreciation counters so much of the negative thoughts and behaviours that are not true.

    1. It is true I am amazing and the more I appreciate myself the more I appreciate everyone else so get the joy of their amazingness too.

17. When things try to push our buttons and we are able to stay with ourselves that is something to truly deeply appreciate and especially appreciate how far we have come.

    1. Yes, and there is such a freedom in not being a slave to button pushers as there are many about. In fact if someone has a go at pushing buttons and they are inactive that energy bounces back at them and their buttons go off!

       1. Just to add to that it actually gives the other person an opportunity for them too to heal their buttons!

    2. Yes this is so true, and when we do notice this and then appreciate it, it brings a deeper confirmation to the body.

18. To get to the place, where have did Nicola, when something goes ‘wrong’ you don’t respond with a meltdown, is such a liberating place to be. It is wonderfully free of the need to rant, rave and blame someone else, or maybe yourself, and as you found it is full of appreciation for oneself and a new and simple way of being.

    1. And we stay feeling wonderful, ‘I know how unpleasant emotional reactions feel in my body and am not interested in them anymore’.

19. A great example of how you were able to maintain your quality throughout without even a sniff of frustration or expectation. When we have clarity in our movements we take the unexpected in our stride.

    1. Must be ground hog day as happened again today. I have been trying to book flights all morning with the airline website not working. Whilst outwardly I have not reacted I have to admit after about 8 attempts and the fact that I have not managed yet, a sniff of frustration is lurking in the background!

20. Frustration nearly always guarantees to create problems, so I now try to leave plenty of space to book tickets, or book anything on a computer or over a phone just in case there are any gremlins in the works and if there are I am prepared for them.

21. Appreciating how our choices make us feel is an effortless way of changing behaviours. However appreciating how we feel is a behaviour in it’s own right and stopping to register how we feel can help us accept and appreciate how we feel.

22. This is a great example Nicola that the quality and intent of how we approach anything can definitely determine the outcome.

23. It is lovely to bring in the appreciation when we find ourselves about to be self critical or start to feel down on ourselves…I am finding appreciation to be a great strengthener and support for myself and I feel the spaciousness returning to my body.

    1. Appreciation helps lift us up, whereas critique keeps us down and lacking any get-up-and-go to change things.

       1. Appreciation is a wonderful tool that supports us to strengthen our foundation.

24. Actually this is not a small step but a huge liberating transformational leap!

25. Yes, there comes a point when love and truth is more important than anything else.

26. Yes, love is the most powerful healer. It is the same with everything, when I was younger I used to try and lose weight by controlling my diet and it never worked and I got into that yo-yo thing – up and down. Once I changed my diet through awareness and simply because it felt so much better to eat food that supported my body and it allowed me to be much more clear for others too it was all very simple. I quickly lost weight, reached my healthy weight and have stayed there now for over 12 years – never felt better!

    1. Love is the best diet ever and heals on all levels.

27. It’s awesome that things outside of us can help us in our evolutionary journey here on earth, things that may seem trivial and things that seemingly just happen but I think everything happens for a reason for us to learn from or not. And you certainly took the opportunity to learn from the potentially going-nuts-on-the-computer moment.

28. Its quite amazing when we feel we are less affected by the events that happen in life and in the world around us. Resulting in us being able to truly observe life. Being able to observe something that we would have normally been caught up in and thrown sideways by is quite extraordinary and definitely worthwhile stopping and appreciating.

    1. Yes observation and reaction are closely linked. The more you observe the less you react and the more you react the less you can observe. Once you have experienced the power and freedom of observation the bondage of reactions becomes even more ghastly.

29. It sure seems like the way the flight booking went so smoothy the second time was confirmation of how when we do not react to things that are actually out of our control, it can bring a harmony to events around us. Also, it never changes what actually occurred when we get all emotional and upset as a result of something that does not go our way, only our body suffers from such reactions (as I am slowly learning).

    1. Also so called wrong things might not be so wrong at all as there is always a learning or reason things happen. For example we arrived at Heathrow airport yesterday and we were given the wrong place to wait for a bus to take us to the hire car. After a short while we figured that out and found the correct place. I wondered at the time why did that go wrong as it was the second thing on the journey which is unusual for me. When we arrived at the counter to pick up the car we told them so other people are not provided with the “wrong” place to wait and they gave us a free upgrade in compensation for our inconvenience – great result and much better car.

30. Appreciating oneself is a beautiful act, particularly when what we are appreciating is not just an action (with all that this means in terms of how different we do things), but also when we appreciate how different do we feel in the body; how different do we feel and connect that which we do to how we move in life.

31. There is so much to be appreciated about who we are, rather than what we do.

32. This is a great inspiration for me, thanks, Nicola. When something doesn’t run smoothly, I am usually rather quick to judge it is not the right thing to do, or not the right time and move onto something else – but as you here share, the ‘how’ is definitely worth considering and reimprinting too.

    1. Yes it is always beneficial to discern (read) every situation. Sometimes things don’t go smoothly because they are very much the right thing to do and there is interference and sometimes as you say because they are not.

33. A great blog Nicola, reminding me to not allow anything to disturb the gorgeous feeling I have when I am in connection to my inner being, keep it simple, take myself for a walk when there is a situation, and appreciate me being me.

34. Nothing can be as lovely or more enjoyable as appreciating ourselves for being our self, this is so true. And when we do so life becomes a joy to behold no matter what comes our way.

35. I love the simplicity with which you show that there is an alternative to the emotional drama of life that is far more pleasure and rewarding – the choice to stay connected with oneself.

    1. The benefits of simplicity and staying connected are so numerous that they are almost dramatic in themselves by way of contrast to the disharmony of emotions and complexity!

36. We choose to indulge in emotions and the consequence is drama and chaos. We choose love and the consequence is love.

    1. Sometimes when we choose love we can be faced with drama, chaos and all that is not love from outside, but that never needs to stop us being and living the love that we are and have chosen.

37. You are absolutely right Nicola, there is nothing greater than being who we are, this is true freedom. And the power of appreciation cannot be underestimated as this is what confirms everything that is true about us and our movements in honor of who we are.

38. Two big lessons ‘for the price of one’ here Nicola, thank you. Learning to not react – and hence create a lot of unnecessary drama – followed by a second course of appreciation. A life-changing 300 words if ever there were any.

39. ‘I have no desire to eat sugar because when I do I get all racy and that feels so horrible and noisy in my body.’ I have noticed this with people I work with, when there are tricky things to deal with, sweets and chocolate bars seem to be the thing they go to for some sort of reprieve from their anxiousness, and actually what happens, is they get speedier and more demanding and less easy to negotiate with. My challenge is to not react to this, but to keep centred and connect more deeply with my inner core that is steady and can be a rock at times like this.

    1. Another reason people eat sweet things is to get an energy hit or to stimulate themselves because emotions such as anxiety are quite exhausting – of course the “medication” (sugar) they take only makes it worse.

       1. Yes, thank you Nicola, this shows what a vicious circle it is and reaching for sugar or sweet things can so easily become an addiction.

40. It is always important to remember that no matter what happens in life it does not change who we are

    1. Beautifully said Joshua and a powerful reminder of the fact that our essence, our Soul is ever-present and ever-ready to shine in truth through any situation through our living day.

41. Yes and probably also the blood pressure of the person at the other end of the phone – they must get assaulted all the time by frustrated people!

42. Beautiful Nicola, there is so much to appreciate that we miss when we choose to react and complicate our lives. It does feel awful in the body as it is not truly natural for us.

43. What you describe here is huge. We are so used to being focused on the next thing and the next that we are constantly ahead of ourselves and on the go to catch up. What you show here is that a simple stop and focusing on ourselves, how we move, how we touch things. In other words feeling our body brings us into the dimension of now and whatever needs to be done gets done but is not the all.

    1. ha ha, very true – I do have a tendency to be ahead of myself – maybe I should read my own blog again 😉

       1. You are a ball of delight Nicola.

    2. Reading this conversation thread has reminded me that there is something else that’s ahead, that is more dimensions of ourselves we can deepen into, and this is something constantly being offered and communicated to us. I have to wonder if my mental focus on what’s ahead in terms of temporarily tasks is just a diversion away from the true evolutionary next step!

44. Nicola, its very gorgeous how you took moment to appreciate yourself, I also never used to appreciate myself, this has changed now and the appreciation I have for myself feels very building and gives me a foundation where I now feel confident in myself and who I am.

45. I had to laugh at this because for years I would react to connecting to my online banking and hated using it, but then reading this I can appreciate that that very rarely happens these days. Love the getting up and re-starting the procedure.

    1. I love that Julie. I also keep having the experience where suddenly something that used to be a huge issue simply no longer exists – I can hardly even remember what the problem was 🙂

    2. Yes, that is a great tip, ‘Love the getting up and re-starting the procedure.’

46. This morning during an Esoteric Yoga session there was so much appreciation in how I can easily feel settled and content within myself when compared to 3/4 years ago. The more I settle in and accept how amazing I am the less tempting it becomes to react or act as if I am not amazing.

47. Such a simple tool, to get up and get out of the movement that one was in to then be able to start afresh, instead of staying stuck and exhausting oneself in emotional drama that does not change the situation at hand one bit.

    1. Yes even changing our posture at the desk can make a huge difference. Any conscious movement supports. A short walk is also fantastic even if just a few steps.

       1. Yes, it doesn’t take much and it is the little things that make a big difference.

       2. Little simple things can be so supportive, ‘ Any conscious movement supports. A short walk is also fantastic even if just a few steps.’

48. Having moments appreciating how far we have come are invaluable. For me these moments deeply consolidate where I am at and prevents taking my life for granted.

    1. People are naturally appreciating themselves on the thread which is gorgeous to read.

49. I can see and feel that so much has changed for me over the years, but not always do I stop and appreciated myself for the choices made, such a simple and beautiful blog Nicola appreciating the gorgeous you, reminding me there is so much on offer to appreciate.

50. This blog keeps popping up all the time…..and today I so appreciated that, having at first thought to find another and then stopping to ask what is this showing me I realised how dismissive I can be. I realised that this dismissiveness is also in my relationship to myself and I have been berating myself instead of appreciating myself. There is so much to appreciate and when I start it just grows and I feel the space opening up inside and all around me.

    1. There is no limit as to how much there is to appreciate 🙂

    2. As I read through the comments I am being impulsed to bring in more appreciation.

51. This is the key, appreciation that takes you more into you. It’s not for anything else other than the way it feels and how it then supports you to move through the world. I think this is a great example in the article of how we can choose to either go into life or pause and make another choice that then supports us to walk around in a different way. It would seem that most things currently in the world are attempting to push us another way and yet when you hold yourself, meaning hold how you truly feel, the world is then also pulled to align to that. We are the centre of things more than we currently care to know.

    1. That is so true, it does seem as if most things are attempting to push or even nudge us another way, but as you say when we hold true a whole other space opens up!

       1. Yes and the “push or even nudge” seems deliberate, like something knows that if we truly settle then all would be lost. We have built a life around things that don’t truly support us and so when we are purely in physical life then we are taken by what it offers. Life like this becomes almost single dimensional and yet that’s not how we truly are and so it’s a restriction or a contraction of this trueness. Appreciation, true appreciation breaks open the physical dimension of life and allows us to see further and bring more space into our life.

52. It is very easy to let appreciation of self slip by, to be able to see the giant patch of things that aren’t right yet, to be able to focus on the failings we all have. But what if the path to changing those failings was to appreciate the being within, the loveliness each of us is in any moment, and from there all can change.

    1. I wonder why it is easy to let appreciation slip by when there is so much to appreciate. Maybe because we love the identification of having issues and problems and even make them up so we can solve them.

       1. ha ha working hard to try and stop complication is like trying really hard not to try 😉

53. ‘I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.’ Brilliant, Nicola, that’s it exactly. There comes a point in one’s mastery of life and self where reactions such as frustration feel awful and pointless. What a great place to get to.

54. Appreciation is the antithesis of the internal self bashing that many of us live with. It offers a new loving way of being with ourselves that forms the foundation for a life well lived.

55. CL OH

    I love the simplicity here, no drama or complication just getting on with what needs to be done in a loving way. When we appreciate ourselves we cannot be disturbed by what is happening around us…true empowerment.

56. Nicola just sharing this moment adds to the many other moments in our day to day to test us to either react or respond and what you presented is the loving choice you made. A beautiful share and a great testimony that appreciating ourselves during these moments leaves us appreciating the many other moments we take for granted or are unseen or forgotten.

57. ‘How lovely it is to enjoy being me – what could be better?!’ Yes, I agree!

    Talking of computers I had a lesson where there was a lot to do and going on at work and the computer went crazy – mouse jumping everywhere, typing a letter caused unseen prompt boxes to appear that made no sense etc. I checked in with where I was at and knew it was my state of being that was causing this – this was no IT glitch here . Instead of reacting as I would in the past, I took myself to the toilet for a quiet moment and said an absolute no to the energies that I was entertaining in my body – stress, irritation etc. I choose to feel my loveliness on the inside and breathed. A few minutes later and I emerged super cool, having chosen I would accept whatever was being asked of me and all that was going on around. The computer went back to working normally. I am so not under estimating the effects the quality we are in has on those around us and beyond.

    1. ha ha I so relate to that – best IT tip ever to go to the loo and let go!

58. There was a time, and on occasions still do, but stop myself a lot faster these days where I would get frustrated with the internet especially when trying to order something and I am in a but of a hurry, it was almost guaranteed to fail at some point and I would blame the internet. Knowing that it is me that has loss the connection and not the internet has not always been easy to accept, but the more I stay with me the more obvious it becomes that it is me that is affecting the process.

59. Interesting to come across this blog this morning because I spent yesterday booking flights online and had many problems in the process but I saw it through to the end. There was a time when I reacted and thought I had been scammed and might have fallen prey to someone using my account to rob me of money, this idea was introduced by a travel agent whom I had called up for help and an idea that I elaborated and ran with. Thankfully this was not the case and all was sorted with some very friendly exchanges from this company and also some interesting conversation with my nephew who I also called on for assistance. It was my commitment to the process that had me moving from location to location to find a printer, good internet connection and face to face help that completed this task successfully.

    1. Well done Elaine and in the vein of appreciating, no coincidence that you ran into or maybe this blog ran into you following your experience as a confirmation and further opportunity to appreciate – gotta love the magic of God 🙂

60. Appreciation of ourselves and each other is a delicious ingredient to add to our diet.

61. It blows me away at the simplicity and power when we move our bodies in appreciation of our beingness, it not only dispels any emotional charge we might be in but also seeds forth the next moment inline with our evolution.

    1. Yes appreciating our beingness as we move brings an inner joy that ripples out and invites others to share in the same.

62. I had a very very busy day at work because of shortage of staff and yes my body feels tired but during the day there were moments I truly appreciated myself, my consistency to stay with myself just doing what needed to be done. I also did not get annoyed by some unexpected tasks at the end of my shift. So yes I feel tired but there is also a loveliness in myself that I would not have felt if I would have gone in reaction about the situation at work today.

    1. Yes that is very lovely. I have to admit I had a big day today too and went into a little reaction but I didn’t react to my reaction and came out of it quickly – there is always so much to appreciate!

63. Thank you Nicola, you have inspired me to take more moments to feel, enjoy and appreciate me.

    1. We are all so awesome we must have to work really hard not to appreciate ourselves 😉

64. Isn’t it amazing how powerful appreciation is in our lives, it allows us the space to not react to situations and instead choose to honour and stay in connection with ourselves no matter what is thrown our way.

    1. Yes Anna, appreciation helps us understand how precious we are, which in turn leads to greater self care.

65. A beautiful reflection of life. When a situation does not work out, we are offered the possibility to do it again and it is up to us how we walk into it and how we do it makes a tremendous difference. If we walk in reaction most probably it will not work again, but if we do it in appreciation the outcomes and the process is going to be different.

    1. It always works out even when it appears it does not work out!

66. ‘I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.’ Although I react so much less than I used to there are situations that I am still finding very challenging and ‘try my patience’ I love this statement and feel that it will inspire me in those times. I have written it out to put in my folder so that when I open my papers it is there supporting me. Thank you Nicola.

    1. Thank you Elaine. I am often blown away by the power of love versus the ineffectual nature of force. For example many years ago I used to try to not eat things that would make me fat and I was stuck on that yo-yo dieting nightmare. When the day came that I started making loving choices about what to eat so as to support myself, the weight just fell off. Trying not to react usually makes me react even more but choosing to stay connected to my gorgeousness rather than enjoining in some other emotion is rather yummy and on the occasions that I do react I don’t take it seriously or stay in that.

67. I have found patience to be a great thing, and when things try our patience it is only interference that is getting in the way, and the best thing to do is to observe it and not to react to it.

68. When appreciation becomes your normal, self-critic, judgment on others and abusive behaviours like eating and drinking foods that harm the body, become very abnormal.

    1. I appreciate your comment – it made me laugh because it is so true 🙂

       1. Yes it’s true Nicola & Rachael, and not only is it not the norm to be self-appreciative, everything in our culture actively discourages it. We have so many expressions that are instantly jumped to when we even hint at promoting our own self-glory in any way… ‘blowing your own whistle’ – as though someone else should do it for you or, ‘getting too big for your boots’ and ‘getting big headed’ – as though there’s a limit to how much you can love and appreciate yourself! It is a cultural tide we are turning here!

       2. Absolutely Jenny ~ time to release our tsunami of appreciation and awesomeness. A whole orchestra of whistles and whilst at it we can blow our trumpets and harmonicas too.

69. The amount of enjoyment we have in life comes simply from the level of love we have for ourselves. While the outside world can stimulate and excite us, it can never make up for a true and loving connection within. This is the only thing that sustains, the stimulation is just momentary.

70. A simple but powerful example of what it means to truly heal Nicola. Your self-appreciation is clearly felt, as is the appreciation you so clearly have for all around you. In a world where self-critique and self-condemnation is the norm for most women, you offer a delightfully refreshing way for women.

71. It is very telling when a line like “Appreciating myself is something quite new for me” is so relatable. I know that teaching myself to take stock instead of just running past things, is a work in progress. Thanks for sharing your moment of appreciation with us, it supports me to take note of when I do similar things.

    1. Thanks Sarah, I wrote that over 4 years ago and appreciating myself and others has become very normal for me now. In fact now it is so normal it is really weird to observe how often our previous normal becomes so un-normal once we have a new normal. I know you and how super awesome you are so I can’t imagine there could be many moments when there wouldn’t be an opportunity for you to appreciate yourself 😉

    2. ‘Appreciating myself is something quite new for me’ too… I can understand the logic of appreciation, but actually integrating it into my day still feels somewhat elusive to me. But I do agree Sarah, tangible examples like the one Nicola shared can definitely help us see it more in our own days.

72. Our greatest moments lived, are those lived in connection to our Soul, to who we are. Very beautiful to feel the appreciation of your loving choices Nicola and that we get more and more of who you are. A blessing for us all.

73. “I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me” – this is a great line, Nicola. Many of us live our life in reaction. We think it is our right to be emotional and reactive because there’s always something/someone out there who makes us feel that way. What I get from your sharing is that by appreciating ourselves we get to feel more of our true essence and our want to be ourselves gets stronger, and we leave less and less space for emotion or reaction to enter.

    1. Yes great point Fumiyo. The more we are full of love (which contains zero emotions) the less space there is for anything that is not of that quality 🙂

74. Moving our body is a great way to introduce a different kind of energy into what’s been going on with and around us.

75. This is a beautiful example of how life works. When something does not work we have the option of keep trying under the slogan of ‘I shall prevail’ or ‘I will beat you’ or to try again coming from a different place in the understanding that this is showing something to you and your movements. It is not about ‘it’. It is about you.

    1. Yes the issue seems to be with the ‘I’ itself, when we move in a way that is not in consideration of the whole.

76. I have proven there is nothing better than being me. Thanks to the Benhayon’s also and Universal Medicine that was the first thing I clocked – I am a Son of God and I had a separated human spirit that was a lesser state of being causing dis-harmony. This explained the mess I was in and why I was the way I was in and out of a state of depression. This mental illness shifted immediately once I knew the real me.

77. Yesterday, a journey that can take three and a quarter hours, although four to four and a half in the middle of the day is usual, took six and a quarter. There was torrential rain in parts and several breakdowns and accidents. It meant I was late for an appointment and could not do the work I had intended, I had a headache and an aching right foot with cramping later that night. On top of that I had woken the morning of the intended journey with the thought that It would be better to go the next day, that everything would work out well if I did. This was followed by a doubt and a memory of my plan and ‘all I had to do’, I let myself feel the pressure and drive of creation and I succumbed to it. Previously I would berate myself for my choices at least somewhere a long the line but the acceptance of everything this time around is amazing. Reading this blog lets me see how acknowledging this acceptance and appreciating it is confirming to me how amazing I am and what inner settlement and stillness there is in my body and what a difference this makes even when I have over-ridden my inner knowing in the first place.

78. A timely read this morning- to go to appreciation instead of going to the struggle.

79. I was on my computer filling out an online application and I felt my body tense up because one part of the process was not working. I thought of this blog and I thought of what you shared Nicola and decided to not react. The tension in my body dissipated as I connected to my movements and my awareness. Appreciating myself more and more feels very supportive and joyful.

80. Self-appreciation allows us to connect to the magnificence within and understand the key part we play in the divine plan of our return to soul, we don’t see issues as complications but always as opportunities to be more.

    1. Beautifully expressed Francisco. I notice currently almost everything in life is not set up to support us to connect to our soul and teach us self-appreciation. But the great thing is no matter what is happening around us, we always have the choice to not react and to stay connected to our soul. Our soul is always calling us to reconnect and patiently waiting for us to say yes to this connection.

81. Isn’t is crazy that we have to relearn to be ourselves. It shows how valuable and important it is to let our children unfold rather than indoctrinate them with all that we think is good for them.

82. I know I react to things so easily and this gets in the way of the flow of the day. For me, my practice is to keep feeling and attempt to not get caught in the reactions themselves, and keep developing the understanding towards myself and those around me. In my reactions I skip the step of feeling what is needed, and hence the situation can get out of hand and I waste so much time and energy in what follows.

    1. Beautifully said Henrietta – this seems to be a forever learning and development for me too 🙂

83. Great reflection Nicola. It’s not often something you would consider in these instances but appreciating yourself is perhaps the most powerful response to difficult situations than could be imagined. It supports in so many ways including not going into reaction and allowing greater space for observation

    1. Thank you Joshua – I just had something very difficult happen today and was a bit upset and then got emailed your comment which was exactly what I needed to read!

84. In a split second for any given scenario we can choose to react emotionally or, choose to appreciate that there is something here to either learn and understand or just plain appreciate.

85. Nicola, it is indeed a very powerful moment when we have the awareness to make a choice on how we will react or respond to a situation. It is like we can be puppets in life, and to have the ability even momentarily, to step back and see this for what it is, allows us the space to understand what is happening and sometimes the why it is happening too – and hence the freedom to handle the situation differently. Thank you for this reminder that I don’t need to blow a fuse when the computer plays up, that I can have a breather and enjoy my day none the less!

    1. I agree Henrietta it is good to remember we always have a choice 🙂

86. What a lovely blog – I just came across it and discovered it was written by me over 4 years ago ha ha. It is all still true and never ending, the joy of being me keeps on expanding as does the appreciation of myself, the Benhayons who constantly inspire me and everyone else. Today I am travelling in Myanmar and I have so much appreciation of my super gorgeous tour guide and driver and they can feel that and it gives us all a lot of joy, connection and expansion.

    1. Beautiful Nicola, I have just enjoyed your blog again after not reading it for some time… your self-appreciation is absolutely infectious and it is no surprise your tour guide is enjoying him or her-self. It cracks people open, we are so used to being met with indifference, critique, grumpiness or at best reserved friendliness.

87. Yes, appreciation supports you to feel connected in and with your body, which then seems to make it impossible to move into a reaction. It also supports you to be in the observation of something rather than absorb, take on or change the way about yourself.

88. That moment when we do choose something that supports us or we don’t slip into an old behaviour, needs to be noticed and really felt. Often these moments pass us by, then the new life doesn’t have a solid foundation to build upon. Whereas when we appreciate, it is like a flower that just keeps opening up and getting more full in its beauty.

89. Gorgeous Nicola. The change you describe here is an absolute miracle and very much worth appreciating.

90. Appreciation is a key part of The Way of The Livingness (http://www.unimedliving.com/the-way-of-the-livingnes) and I have a found a key benefit of living that way is the steadiness in which you can live your life. It provides a strong foundation in which you can stand upon, and from this foundation it can be easier to choose to respond to life and its events than react. And the more you appreciate that you have responded than reacted, the stronger the foundation. Simple and beautiful stuff – as your blog shows us!

91. “…I was not interested in reacting” – When you get to that stage in your life you know that the work you’ve done with yourself has paid off well. Being in reaction will be the demise of our society. We don’t speak about it too often because I don’t really think that people know how to not be in reaction and emotional about things. The teachings that are presented by Universal Medicine however gives you the simple tools to detach from the world of emotions and reactions. It wont be gone forever of course but it’ll allow you to feel that there is a life beyond the emotional way of life where you can observe what is going on and respond when it’s needed. And if there are emotional patterns they can be felt and be let go of. Quite a healthy way of going about life. And your sharing is but a simple testimony of that Nicola.

92. I love the simplicity shared here Nicole, knowing we have a choice to respond instead of react is an absolute game changer – and a powerful choice that supports our bodies.

93. I can still get frustrated and react when things like what you’ve described happen Nicola. What is great to observe is how I am with myself in the day that leads to an angry reaction or where I simple get on with things and don’t react.

94. Love what you shared Nicola, appreciation is so powerful, joyful and healing. I am just starting to get a handle on it after a lifetime of denigration, it feels so freeing just to be me and as you say “what could be better.”

95. Appreciation – love it, learning more about it and the effects it has on me and my body every day. It is quite extraordinary really… To feel appreciation for oneself, deeply, is invigorating and nourishing. And I am getting pretty good at it!

96. I have those moments too, when you try to do something and it just doesn’t flow, but you come back a little later and it’s done in 10 minutes – no pause, no hesitation. It’s always because I have arrived at the first point, and my body is not ready for whatever I need to do, so I’ve made choices that have compromised my quality, my steps after that to regain my quality mean that the second attempt is plain sailing.

97. “I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.” The short-term of hit of pleasure of a sugary bun, or some other form of ‘treat’, is nothing to feeling the joy of being me.

98. Great sharing Nicola. What a relief and a blessing to our precious body when we can stay steady in the face of a potentially frustrating situation . . . and then to be able to appreciate that is the icing on the cake.

99. Awesome Nicola… and how wonderful for the people you live with! I too react less… and it is quite revealing when I now see others react, especially with devices not working, and how their reactions affect everyone and of course themselves so much more clearly. When we don’t react it also diminishes the need to blame anyone or anything.

100. Gorgeous Nicola, understanding we have a choice in every moment to react or to remain with ourselves is monumental. When the relationship you have with yourself is so lovely as you describe, it is little wonder you choose to stay with it.

101. Thank you Nicola, I can feel the appreciation I also have for myself and for others when we stay steady and purposefully yet lovingly get on with what needs to be done.

102. If every force has an opposite equal, when something does not work out as ‘it should’ we have to work on us just to make sure that we will no longer be the cause of what disturbs us (further).

103. Appreciating ourselves is key. I have found when I react to things or to people this means I am disconnected from myself. Often I feel a deep sadness afterwards, simply understanding I am feeling this way because of feeling the sadness of choosing to disconnect from myself in the first place, helps me eliminates any blame on others. Your beautiful example Nicole, shows how choosing to stay connected to ourselves we are less likely to react and by appreciating ourselves supports us to stay connected. The power of appreciation is amazing, it is so worth practising.

104. We give so much credence, focus and effort to what we do that for most being with our bodies and the quality we feel in our bodies may not even be on our list of considerations in life. But as I am learning to make the quality of my inner environment no.1 it is as you’ve shared Nicola, so much grander than any emotion or food or task we could ever do but in fact makes what we do so much richer.

105. There is nothing quite like enjoying being ourselves… super simple, no trying to be something else, and in fact the world gets something unique, whole and gorgeous.

     1. I agree Simonwilliams8, when we choose to show the world who we are by staying connected to our essence, everyone and everything receives a blessing, through our deep connection we are certainly very powerful, expansive and emanating love effortlessly.

106. Appreciating ourselves is the best medicine on the planet and there is no such thing as an overdose when it comes to appreciation.

     1. Haha Tamara, so true, one cannot overdose on appreciation!

107. So amazing how the same situation can be either a beautiful confirmation of your relationship of appreciation with yourself or a very frustrating affair. Not much of a choice when given the presence to pause and feel the difference. Love it Nicola.

108. “I know how unpleasant emotional reactions feel in my body and am not interested in them anymore, so they happen less and less.” Yes when we stop feeding these reactions the less they happen, I too am more aware of these emotions and therefore I walk away from them and change my movement to then return and with this there is no space for reaction. These are moments of appreciation to knowing our awareness can support us to change our movements to not get caught into reactions.

109. This is a great little blog. Very appropriate for me today as I am choosing to be more with myself and to appreciate the steadiness I have built and to take it to another level.

110. Enjoying being you is an essential part of life! There should be lessons on this in school… we definitely don’t appreciate just how awesomely lovely we are enough.

111. Appreciation is the key to all our woes. If we deeply appreciate ourselves we know and see more of our grandness than our petty stuff.

112. I totally agree Nicole “How lovely it is to enjoy being me – what could be better?” I have finally discovered that being me, and appreciating all that I am, is definitely the most wonderful discovery of my life; my very own pot of gold!

113. There are many times when I have found my computer playing games with me – incredibly frustrating if I let it be – but you know I have a choice to be frustrated by it or not. Taking a walk and coming back – making a new imprint with how I sit down and approach the task at hand has a great effect on the outcome and means I don’t indulge the behaviour and emotions that feel so horrible in my body.

114. I can so relate to this. Since I have stopped eating sugar I am far less reactive, I wouldn’t have put the two things together but there is a clear link for me. It is what inspires me to see what else there is to discover sugar-free.

115. I have noticed that if I am hoping for a certain outcome in a situation, I can come across as being quite harsh, which comes from the fear that things may not pan out as I hope. I’m really appreciating that instead, I’m choosing to stay with myself and accept that things will be the way they are meant to be for my own evolution and not to have any expectations or demands. It’s so beautiful to experience how events unfold allowing the space for others to be who they are rather than reacting to feeling ‘imposed’ upon.

116. Yesterday I found myself being very challenged by a situation that clearly exposed a strong pattern I have. I’ve been working on it but it’s still there. I received a gift of some beautiful earrings and I chose to wear them straight away. A few hours later I noticed that one of them was missing, I was devastated and started retracing my steps around the crowded city, a fruitless task. I was so disappointed in myself for being so careless, I was both upset and annoyed. It wasn’t pleasant to feel the mixed emotions in my body and I was aware that the person who gave me the gift didn’t react at all, rather they suggested we return to the gallery where they were bought and see if a replacement earring could be made. In appreciating their very loving and supportive suggestion, I realised that there wasn’t anything that I could have done differently and maybe this was just a great lesson for me to let go of the control I have. To surrender and choose not react when things don’t go as planned. I lost an earring not an arm, and I was at risk of losing myself in the drama. It was an awesome lesson.

117. I really appreciated reading your blog this morning, Nicola. How beautiful that you allowed the space to appreciate the changes you’ve chosen to make in your life, to feel how present you are with yourself and, particularly, how you didn’t react in what was potentially an immensely frustrating situation. As soon as we react to something, we’re gone as we’ve chosen to leave our glorious selves to become part of the drama. To stand back and see the situation for what it is, energetically, allows us to stay present which is so confirming and honouring of who we truly are.

118. ‘I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.’ And in that way you are no longer ruled by what the outside world is bringing to you, you observe and make a choice that it is not worth it to react and treasure your loveliness inside. Love it Nicola

119. A testimony with regards to how much we love and look after ourselves (or not) has an momentum on how we either respond or (react) to life.

120. “I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me. I know how unpleasant emotional reactions feel in my body and am not interested in them anymore, so they happen less and less. ” Love this Nicola. It is our choice to indulge in emotions that take us away from our gloriousness. Great reminder to acknowledge the value of appreciation.

121. Appreciation is very powerfull, it gives us back the space we loose when going out of it, in appreciation we know the worth of our quality, frustration is worth much less, and makes us feel contracted in the body.

122. A beautiful reminder to appreciate how far we have come… and the difference we have made to our life and how we approach it now through choices that are deeply supportive rather than reactive.

123. These moments happen to us all the life. Life is full of them simply because life is never perfect and there are always lessons to learn, deeper understandings to be made and more love to be embraced. Our foundation of observation as you have shown here instead of one of reaction is super important and can serve us greatly on many many levels.

124. It’s a simple sharing but an important one as it is all these moments in life that we have a choice how to be with and the more consistent we can choose to not react the more we are able to deal with life.

125. ‘Equally, I have no desire to eat sugar because when I do I get all racy and that feels so horrible and noisy in my body.’ I agree Nicola – the word ‘noisy’ is such a apt word to describe the inner turmoil and chaos that sugar causes the body. I’ve been very addicted to sugar ever since I can remember and I’m just starting to notice the mental noise that comes with eating it. Now that I’m more aware and know the sound of stillness, the noise is even more noticeable and somewhat alarming.

126. Everything is there for us to evolve – even a loss of internet connection or a website crash, it’s all occurring in loving support of us stopping and reconnecting to a quality within before we carry on and express that quality to the world. And what do we do when things like that happen? Get stressed, emotional and wallow. It’s wonderful to read your simple experience Nicola to remind us that the stop moments and appreciation are much more healing to the body, and any situation, than a panic attack!

127. Last week I misplaced my phone and only realised I didn’t have it when my train was about to reach the platform. Previously I would have gone into judgment, blame, self criticism, made a huge deal of it and gone into a lot of stress. Once I had accepted that misplacing my phone was simply a reflection that I hadn’t quite been myself that day and wasn’t in my normal rhythm, I continued on my journey knowing everything would be OK. Once I got to my destination, a receptionist allowed me to use her phone to call work… My phone was exactly where I recalled I’d left it and was put away safely for me until the following day. This experience allowed me an opportunity to really appreciate the difference in my response to situations which has come about through the many changes I have made in recent years as a result of the inspiring teachings of Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine.

128. ‘How lovely it is to enjoy being me – what could be better?!’ A timely read for me Nicola. Appreciating myself not only when things get tricky but always. I’m facing a very tricky situation at work today, and a moment to stop and appreciate myself is well needed.

129. It is pure gorgeous to feel held by our own love. So much better than anything sweet could ever be and far more rewarding than anything else could ever be. The more I keep building a way of appreciating and confirming myself, the more I feel held by this love

130. I so enjoyed reading your sharing with us Nicola. Isn’t it fantastic when we finally start to listen to our bodies and not go into reaction when presented situations could so easily sway us to do otherwise. But through making more self-loving choices how many things naturally change within and around us then appreciation is never far away.

131. From reading your blog again Nicola reminded me to appreciate myself in this way too. It is amazing to take notice of how far we have evolved and appreciate even the small subtle changes we’ve made. Everything matters regardless of how small a step we take towards evolving it is always worth appreciating and confirming ourselves.

132. What a great simple blog! Yes, those little moments reveal how far we have come, and time spent with the deliciousness of the self is far better than ranting at the computer! There is certainly a lot to appreciate from our dedication to ourselves.

133. I love it. You do not do something simply because it feels horrible in your body. It is a fantastic way to look at our choices and behaviour and we can see for what we are willing to betray our own loveliness.

134. Love it Elizabeth, challenging situations do indeed present us with the opportunity to grow, and also see how far we have already developed. I know for me, how I deal with many challenging or difficult situations now is with a much greater ease and far less emotion than I would have in the past. Definitely worth taking a moment or two to appreciate that deep steadiness that I now know so well!

135. Thank you Nicola. You remind me how easy and lovely it is to live with appreciation.

     1. It certainly is Leonne, the more we appreciate the easier it is to deepen our appreciation towards ourselves and others.

136. Even appreciating the ‘little things’ in life has a huge impact that the the perception of anything being ‘little’ gravely dismissing if not purposefully ignores. Everything is engery and if we can only access one of two at any one time then we get either the all (love) or everything the all is not (prana). Coming back to this blog confirms that appreciating what we already have that is loving in our lives is the best healer from moments where we have chosen to believe we are less in some way.

137. Appreciation of yourself opens you up to appreciate others and to be aware of the beauty all around you whereas a lack of appreciation in yourself leads you the other way.

138. “How lovely it is to enjoy being me – what could be better?!” I agree Nicola – it’s lovely to be able to feel my real self in every moment and enjoy me, being unsullied by sugar, caffeine, etc., etc.

139. Awesome appreciation Nicola. To choose to stay connected to yourself show a great level of awareness, steadiness and strength.

140. That’s beautiful Nicola. I used to be in emotional reaction a lot and emotional drama, with all the trappings. Now when I witness someone else living like that it feels so foreign and strange and I appreciate how far I have come. The emotional way is something we learned from those around us, it was something that got attention and it was a way of avoiding responsibility for what was happening. Equally we can learn another way and I am also grateful to the Benhayons for solidly living this other way.

141. Thank you Nicole for your simple yet powerful message, to deeply appreciate ourselves is an honouring of who we truly are and allows us to love and appreciate everyone around us as well. Appreciation is a gift that continually keeps on giving.

142. Once we see everything is a learning then no matter if the situation is annoying or not we can gain an understanding there is something to clock.

143. Thank you Nicola, I loved your blog on appreciation, especially these simple words “I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me. How lovely it is to enjoy being me – what could be better?!”

144. Learning to appreciate being me and ‘How lovely it is to enjoy being me – what could be better?!’ …. Beautiful Nicola.

145. How beautiful and key to what you share: choosing to reconnect at moments you would normally give the ‘reaction’ the go. I recognize this. Recently I could feel that after one big reaction I chose to have more followed.. I discovered that if I let this reaction (which is most of the time frustration or fury) one time have a go, the next time a situation is presented, where I get the choice of love or to resist love and go into reaction, -I would go easier in reaction. But how come, I asked myself, why? I would have often let myself get away with going into reaction -in order to not feel the hurt that was underneath.
     What I felt is very important is the moment I feel a reaction in myself.. I stop.. and make sure I allow space feeling my body before acting- as most of the time I would strongly sense my choice: do I stay with myself or go out of it -this is simply a commitment, discipline and choice to then stay with myself. So that I do not let my head get away with this while my body has to cope with the end result -most of the time in these cases; devastation and exhaustion. Time to stop.

146. To come to a place in life when you are able to stop and feel before responding to a situation, and not going into a full blown emotional reaction, is a most liberating place to be. There are never any “accidents”, just moments that offer us an opportunity to stop, observe and learn, and from there to make our next choice; so much less exhausting than forever living in reaction to what life seems to throw at us: definitely something to endlessly appreciate.

147. ‘I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.’ This is gorgeous. Thank you for such a simple and inspiring blog. I feel too my own loveliness and why would I let something take me away from this?

     1. Yes Elaine, that was a lovely line for me to read as well. I have wrapped my head around how food/drink etc.. can take you away from yourself (make you bloated, racy, tired etc…) but it’s a new one for me that emotions can do the same (and are used in the same way). We always have a choice as Nicola so clearly shows here – we can react or we can accept and review what choices have lead you to this point. I am less and less reactive which is awesome but see that I can work on my reviewing part 🙂 a loving work in progress.

        1. Well that line stood out for me again today as I went to highlight that one and then saw this comment from January. When we appreciate ourselves, we want to stay with ourselves and when we dont, we move away and then we miss ourselves the most.

        2. Sarah, that is so true – “When we appreciate ourselves, we want to stay with ourselves and when we don’t, we move away and then we miss ourselves the most.” – a beautifully simple encapsulation of the importance of appreciation!

148. I love this blog for how simple it is and yet the appreciation of ourselves and our choices I would say is an even greater healer than anything else. The confirming of loving choices, that we can feel and we do act on those feelings regardless of how the world has boxed or valued them as ‘small, big, important, not important etc is massive beyond current comprehension.

149. I recently realised I have no desire to sweeten my life with sweet things to eat as the consequences to my state of mind and being is just too great. It’s quite amazing to feel the balance finally shift and my self-honouring become at pole position for what takes precedence over what.

150. “I know how unpleasant emotional reactions feel in my body and am not interested in them anymore” What a beautiful claiming Nicola. I could feel the absolute simplicity, but also how claimed this is. Emotional reactions in the body really do feel awful. It really is about having that awareness as you have shared and bringing in the appreciation, this is such a big part in not allowing the emotions to take hold. I really loved your blog and example of an everyday task, being on the computer, it not going to plan, but how you turned it around.

151. Appreciation is an art worth studying and deepening everyday. It seems the flowers of appreciation never die – not even when our physical body drops from us.

     1. Thank you for this gorgeous comment felixschumacher8 – I’ve noticed how easily some people appreciate everything and voice it, I still struggle with the voicing part and am working on it, I agree it is a worthy study.

     2. Beautifully said Felix ” the flowers of appreciation never die– not even when our physical body drops from us.” I feel the importance of living in the constant appreciation on a daily basis is the key for life.

     3. Beautiful reminder Felix to master the art of appreciation by developing it in our everyday life. The more we appreciate the more our life becomes joyful, fun and loving.

152. Yes taking a moment when things don’t go as planned really does open up many more possibilities to truly appreciate how awesome we are and I feel a lot more flow to life is created too without so many reactions flying around.

     1. I agree Kelly. Reactions only makes us more frustrated and it makes us become contracted. Everything flows and expands when we allow ourselves to feel, stay open and connected.

153. I too have found that I am pausing more before going into reaction. I can feel something inside of me waving a red flag, letting me know that after the instant relief of getting angry or whatever, comes the reality of having to deal with what is left over in my body from my choices. If I make a loving choice – fantastic, no problems and I can appreciate that. But if I go the opposite way it sometimes this takes days to clear and re-balance myself. Knowing all this is helping me make much wiser choices these days.

     1. Yes I can totally relate to this Helen. If I haven’t been making loving choices leading up to situations where things don’t go to plan I am more likely to react. But by building a constancy with more and more loving choices I seem to have less reactions. The key is to stay connected and loving as much as possible so we are solid and gentle when tricky situations come up for us to deal with.

154. Going into those reactions and stresses that can cause far more damage and harm than at the time we care to admit, is not worth it when we allow ourselves to feel what that does to us. To stop and say no to going off into those tantrums is huge because when I do stop, much more clarity comes into the subject. The perception that reaction and stress is the only way, or that we are trapped in such a cycle is simply not true! We can address anything life throws at us without making it a big drama.

     1. Great point Leigh choosing to go into drama only feeds it. To stop what we usually do and redirect how we would approach tricky situations and stay connected to ourselves is key. Connection brings clarity and more love for sure.

        1. So true Chan, connection not only brings clarity and a whole lot more love, but when we interact with others from a place of connection, we share that quality – and that love – with them also.

155. Thank you Nicola, indeed there is so much to appreciate about ourselves and not just take things for granted, as the more we develop a solid relationship with ourselves and our own appreciation those behaviours we go to when things get hairy will be easier to deal with and things from the past.

156. Beautiful Brendan, even just contemplating that brings it into the realms of possibility.It feels amazing.

157. Simply beautiful Nicole, your choices to not react and to stay with yourself are great moments we can deeply appreciate how far we have come. I especially like the way you said you no longer like to be emotional, as you don’t like the feeling in your body – that is huge, and shows you are deepening the love for yourself and the ripple effect of your loving choices truly supports everyone around you as well.

158. I am appreciating more and more how amazing I feel without stimulants and how calm and more real. It is such a blessing to feel this although I think I would still have a little rant, but these days I can so feel where that takes me and you’re right Nicola, it is so much more lovely to let go of that drama and stay with the loveliness of me.

159. A simple yet very powerful message. It takes a little practice but once I started to not engage in reactions, it not only kept me connected but allowed the other person to do the same, if they choose.

160. I have been there done that with the airline ticket in the past and made that dog sound Grrrrrr when you have to start over again. Now it something does not flow I pause and reflect why whatever is not flowing. I find if I walk away and do something else when I come back it will flow or it doesn’t really need to be done. I don’t believe in my entire life before Universal Medicine I have ever appreciated myself ,it was an alien phrase. I have spent all those years wearing the different hats of who I was expected to be in an attempt to be appreciated form out side of me. Now, you last line says it all ‘How lovely it is to enjoy being me – what could be better?! ‘

161. Thank you Nicola and Amina, I agree, what a great way for us to evolve by stopping and taking note of the space we have created and re-imprinting it with love.

162. Life lived in this non-reactive way is – for me – the only way. So much of life asks us and expects us to become frustrated, or aggressive or emotional or excited about it, causing emotions to run our bodies and when that happens to me, I feel sick, seriously nauseous.

163. This is a powerful lesson that we could all learn much from because when we do react in situations like the one you have described it actually makes it worse not better and we miss out from truly listening to what the message might be that it is sharing with us.

164. I liked the example of the computer and I admire how you handled the situation, its a really good way to handle all situations that dont go your way.

165. Coming back to this blog I feel there is so much to appreciate about my life and how far I have come. That mindset of constantly going and ‘moving on’ simply doesn’t work. Pausing for a moment to appreciate how far I have come then moving on that new platform as opposed to the old ‘me’ I may have hung onto for far too long, feels much more supportive.

166. I love this, its in the small things that we can get lost so easily but when we choose to be with ourselves we can appreciate ourself for who we are, not reacting to what is happening to us.

167. Appreciating and confirming the gorgeousness we ALREADY are is essential to creating a solid foundation of self-love within our own bodies.

168. Nicola thank you for sharing, and for the beautiful reminder that in every moment I have a choice to bring appreciation of who I am and this allows me to break the old pattern of going into reaction and feeling anxiousness in my body. And yes it feels awesome just being more of me.

169. Reading this blog this morning is no coincidence. My computer is playing up. I have two choices to either get agitated with frustration or keep in my gentleness and be patient and wait a moment before trying again. Like you share Nicole to have ‘a pause’ not loosing my connection to myself – hey presto!!! computer connection restored! Appreciation changes my whole way of how I respond to life. Lovely sharing Nicole thank you.

170. “I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me”. It’s rather inspirational to hear you talk Nicola of such a practical example whereby you’re choosing to stay with your beauty, rather than get sucked-down into a self-induced spiral. Thank you.

171. Appreciation of myself is fairly new to my life and the more I practice honouring myself and whats great about me the easier it becomes, I then appreciate my family and friends everything in my life.
     Rather than being self critical and judging myself which is very destructive, appreciation builds a foundation of love.

172. Absolutely inspiring Nicola what a loving thing it is when we choose to not react to a situation or other people, you are reminding me that we always have a choice. The choice is to live in a self caring loving way or not, as when we don’t reactions become part of the choice to live in a disconnected, disregarding way.

173. Thank you Nicola, its so great to, take a pause, and simply accept a situation for what it is, even greater, is to appreciate it for what it offers, more appreciation if we so choose. And, I so agree with your comment Anne, every moment offers us growth, appreciation is the fertiliser.

174. A very simple and revealing sharing, Nicola. Reaction is something that comes up for me periodically usually embedded in frustration. Instead of reacting I am going to appreciate the moment and what it is offering as I am realising that nothing happens by chance – always a reason and this can be an opportunity for me to move forward.

175. I love the gentle pause you took Nicola by going to the kitchen and get yourself a glass of water, that is the power we have and you brought it to the next point by appreciating your choice and confirmed the loveliness that you are, thank you for sharing Nicola.

176. It just goes to show us that everything we do and everything that is presented to us is a choice.

     1. And the choice that no matter what is happening around or to us we always have the option to stop and start again.

177. It is important to honour and appreciate the changes in ourselves. I’m aware of the changes but perhaps don’t take the time to truly appreciate them – so thank you for the loving reminder.

178. Thanks Nicola for your amazing blog. I know this situation very well – something doesn’t work and it is so easy to react. And you described beautifully – there is a another way. Appreciation is the key. A topic I still have to work on as well.

179. Appreciation certainly puts things into its true context and allows you the grace to start again. This is a great example of how to do just that – great blog Nicola.

180. That’s so great: To feel joy in myself, that I don’t want to react, because it would take me out of this beautiful feeling of being with me. Such a simple and yet profound approach to life. It shows the importance of building a rhythm that supports me being in joy with me – hence: appreciating myself!

     1. Absolutely Felix establishing a way of living feeling steady in ourselves is key to deepening our understanding and appreciation of situations. I find when I get too caught up in the rat race of everything I need to do moments of understanding and appreciation become less frequent.

181. Nicola, this simple daily life blog is very inspiring. I can relate to going into a reaction if something like that would happen, but how very honouring to not fall for the “emotion game” and it also feels so powerful to not hand yourself over to the emotions and stay in your grandness. Very inspiring.

182. Introducing the concept of self-appreciation has been a big one for me and I now have fun rather than frustration when something does not run as smoothly as I expect it to. I stop, look at how I have been living and appreciate that I have been given the opportunity to be more gentle with myself. The presentations of Universal Medicine have opened my understanding to the fun in appreciating myself and all my body and all that happens is showing me.

     1. That’s a great way to approach moments Mary, with fun, not frustration. I hadn’t really connected the dots that appreciation is like the antidote to frustration, but feeling this now, it will most certainly make reactions much less likely, a calm, gentle responses very usual and normal.

183. I love reading your blog Nicola. Going into reaction when things don’t go smoothly is something I can totally relate to. I have done this many times and I still do it occasionally. I have now grasped how harmful my reactions can be to myself and others, to know this and then allow myself to choose to react is a huge disregard for everyone. The responsibility is mine to choose to stay connect to myself and to let go of things having to be a certain way.

184. ‘I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.’ What a beautiful confirmation of you Nicola and thank you for sharing.

185. Thank-you Nicole I would like to express my appreciation for you for writing this. It was so lovely to read I could feel the grace in your appreciation of self. And an inspiring example that there is always a choice to either stay connected to feeling that loveliness or go into an emotional reaction.

186. I like how you decided to pause, to take a little break after the whole booking didn’t go through, and then started over again. It is so easy to go into reaction, if we allow it to, as there are many incidents during the day that could be a reason to react. It is as you say much lovelier, indeed it is super lovely not to react and to stay with oneself and to take it from there.

187. I love that in the awareness you have developed of how emotions and reactions feel in your body, you can now choose to no longer allow them to take you away from how lovely you feel just being you, hold onto you and then deeply appreciate how amazing both this and yourself are… Gorgeous.

188. Thank you Nicola for your beautiful sharing – inspiring to read how our choices really keep us connected or take us further away from ourselves.

189. What a gorgerous reminder that we have a choice to react or response and to appreciate all ourselves.

190. Your words here Nicola: “I know how unpleasant emotional reactions feel in my body and am not interested in them anymore, so they happen less and less” – the choice to just say no based on how something feels is completely sensible and worthy of much appreciation. Your post is so simple and notably inspiring, thank you.

191. I am beginning to feel how self-appreciation needs to become a rhythm in ones life. A loving rhythm that continually reminds you of your beauty, building strong foundations to keep building on.

192. Nicola, a wise woman just spoke to me about self-appreciation and the beauty in taking moments just for that. That was beautiful to feel the moment you had of appreciation, what a worthy thing to appreciate, choosing the the gorgeous you rather than walking away from you by eating sugar or getting emotionally tied up in problem.

193. How easy it can be to ‘solve a problem’, no fuss no complications, just simple non reactive choices.

194. I can’t think of anything better than being fully myself, the longer the better; the deeper the sweeter, I become.

     1. Oliver I love what you have written, the longer the better, the deeper the sweeter I become. It’s a beautiful way to describe your connection to yourself.

195. Nicola this feels lovely, showing what a beautiful foundation you have built that supports you to stay with you even in trying circumstances. This shows me we can all choose this to be our way and invest more in ourselves then in a reaction, what a beautiful way to live.

196. Nicola, what an awesome way to be. Super different to the norm and what you see and hear on a day to day basis.

197. I can relate to your experience Nicola and have felt the difference of reacting to situations and at other times, being more reflective to feel what is happening on a deeper level. I completely agree, reactions of any description whether it’s what I say or eat , can make me feel very low in myself and my body. I am inspired by your choice to feel a deeper appreciation of yourself instead. I am going to make a point of noticing my more subtle reactions to situations and be more observing of what unfolds for me. This is a great way to expand and be more loving in a simple and genuine way,

198. Gorgeous Nicola. Appreciation confirms the self-loving choices that we have made.

     1. Appreciation = strengthening within. Self confirming is better than any other form of confirmation.

199. Thanks for sharing your experience. I’m sure I would have reacted in such a situation, but I can now see how appreciation can help in everyday situations.

200. I have been working on appreciating myself more for a while, a daily exercise. This morning I realised that I can allow myself more to just be me, appreciate myself for being me, stop ‘trying’ to appreciate myself more (for that still feels linked to things outside of me, ideals I may still hold on to) and start allowing myself more to be (me) and appreciate the quality and love that I am.

     1. Hi Katinka I completely agree – feels weird to “work” on appreciating ourselves. If we are all as awesome as we are and we not appreciating that, then we must already be working on NOT appreciating ourselves – so the question is what do we get out of not appreciating ourselves and why do we do it!

        1. Awesome observation Nicola and so true. Sometimes it can feel very comfortable and safe to stay in the un-appreciation of ourselves, it is so very familiar, like a pair of worn out slippers that we are reluctant to throw away and insist on wearing even though we have a brand new pair just waiting for us to step into.

        2. Great point Nicola, could it be that we have become very comfortable playing small in order to not feel the extent and powerful beauty of our beingness?

        3. This is interesting Nicola. Could it be because we are afraid of claiming how powerful we are, so we’ve tricked ourselves in thinking it’s easier to deny our power than it is to live it?

        4. Yes, we certainly succeed in comfortably playing small and denying our power as you have all shared by refusing to appreciate ourselves. We also succeed in exhausting ourselves, making our bodies sick and delaying the inevitable moment when we will reconnect to our true glory and can no longer continue to deny it. How very unfunny that we work so hard to avoid the love, truth and glory we seek and long for and yet already are and have always been??!!

201. What a lovely reminder. Confirming myself and my choices by appreciation – I shall take this into my day today. Thank you, Nicola.

202. Thanks Nicola for how simply you expressed that. Normally I too would have ranted and raved but next time I’m sure I will think of you and give myself a minute to appreciate me.

203. Lovely Tweet 🙂
     I was just like you not very familiar with self appreciation. But the more I work with it, the better it feels! Thanks for inspiring again!

204. This is so beautiful- I know these situations where I confirm myself by not reacting, which is a huge step, because over my whole life it has been easier to react instead of taking responsibility. I like how you bring in the appreciation, always something I can work on.

     1. Appreciating myself is something I used to find fairly difficult. I had it in my head that appreciating myself was like being full of myself, but I realised that this way of thinking was actually very harmful. I now understand how important it is and how it is incredible to fully appreciate myself, who I am and how amazing I am. When I appreciate myself fully nothing can cause me to wobble or react and I feel completely solid and super powerful.

205. Wow Nicola what a great reflection you are for me!!!! In this situation you described in your amazing blog I would react like hell!!!! So thank you so much to let me feel how it would feel if I would choose to not react – very very beautiful.

206. What you have written here Nicola is so simple yet so powerful
     Your words of wisdom are greatly appreciated, as are you.
     “I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me”
     I loved reading this sentence over and over!!

207. Well said Nicola – there is nothing better than enjoying the divine loveliness that we are within. A beautiful claiming of you and your gorgeous essence – thank you for sharing you.

208. I loved what you have expressed Nicola – especially your words ‘I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.’. This sentence feels to me like just the thing I needed to hear right now to use as a ‘guidepost’ for me as I go through my day. Thank you!

209. Great little blog Nicola, loving the appreciation you have for yourself – all the little things add up. Thank you for sharing.

210. Very inspiring Nicola, choose to not react because it takes you away from yourself, it is beautiful when you are so connected that that is the only thing that is there to choose.

211. Beautiful Nicola, Lovely to read. A great way at looking at appreciating yourself from the angle of loving how you feel and not wanting to effect that. Like a ripple free lake,

212. ‘How lovely it is to enjoy being me – what could be better?!’ the perfect antidote to frustration. Thank you for sharing Nicola.

213. Great to read this again today. Thank you so much for sharing.

214. Nicola such a gorgeously simple example of choice. Love It ! It is great to also be able to appreciate the fact that we can get ourselves to such a point where we are actually able to make a choice. I have spent a long time being so swept up in whatever emotion I was feeling that I was unable to choose anything that did not contain the emotion.

215. In that appreciation we need nothing – no reaction, ranting, needing to be right or seek a reward or treat that may not actually be so sweet for the body after it’s left our tastebuds. Thank you Nicola for the reminder that appreciation of oneself is a great form of medicine.

     1. I agree leighmatson, appreciation for self is a great form of medicine, as it allows us to accept ourselves for the love that we are.

216. The noise of sugar is deafening from within – it’s like you can’t even function, let alone have a sense of remembering what you need to do.

217. This is gorgeous. So simple, so clear. “How lovely it is to enjoy being me – what could be better?!”

218. Fantastic Nicola. Appreciating myself is something new to me too, but you know what I love it!

219. Gorgeous Nicola. Appreciation of myself is something I am finding deepening a lot of late, assisting so many things to make sense in my life, and also, so much that may have triggered me in some way previously, to not have any effect… In all honesty, I feel at the mere ‘tip’ of what true appreciation and loving the depth of gloriousness that is me is all about – and it feels beautiful.
     Perfect then, to read your blog today. Thank-you for such a gorgeous sharing.

220. I agree nothing is better than being ourselves.

221. Hihi, I had excactly the same thing yesterday with booking flights and there was half a second where I could feel the frustration coming up, but then I let it go and just gracefully started again, and again…until it worked.

222. Nicola ,so short sweet and simple x

223. That is awesome. That would feel so much better then getting angry and mad at a computer and a situation you don’t have control over. It’s awesome the change in so many people since they have met the Benhayon Family and been inspired by the way they live.

224. How simple.Changing food, choosing to not react and appreciating yourself-every moment of the day- is the normal. Thank you, Nicola.

225. Great to read your blog, Nicola and to appreciate how I react less and less nowadays. And also appreciate how I can now feel how awful it feels in my body when I do react.

226. Connecting to and appreciating oneself as an antidote to frustration and reaction – I love it, and have also found it to be true. This confirms for me (again) a gem that was shared by Serge Benhayon over the weekend at a healing workshop, that the best way to not be affected by that which is happening around us or coming towards us is to remain open and loving, to be surrendered so we can keep feeling the loveliness of ourselves and therefore know how to RESPOND instead of react. Thank you for sharing Nicola.

227. Awesome sharing, Nicola, of the little things that have a huge impact on us if we let them become bigger than they are. Great reminder of how we can be taken out so easily.

     1. Yes, Rachel, it is the little things that make such a big difference. In the past it didn’t make any sense to me that these little things matter but over time I am seeing that the little things are almost everything – if you work on these, everything else becomes a lot easier, something I learned from Serge Benhayon.

228. What a great blog Nicola, I love how you say that you are not interested in emotional reaction anymore and neither am I. It just makes life so much more fun when I don’t do things that make me feel yuck in my body – like the emotional reactions would do.

229. It is really great when I don’t need to react any more to something that upset me in the past. It seems like a process of awareness – every time I am in that (frustrating or upsetting) situation I slowly have more awareness, making it easier to react less and less and one day I have full understanding and stop reacting. A lovely process.

230. Just before going to bed I am reading your ‘Appreciating myself’ Nicola. What a great confirmation of my day with taking the time to appreciate me in everything what this day has presented for me. Thank you, I did not had a temperamental website today but I will certainly recall this blog when it happens.

231. Beautiful Nicola!The story of temperamental web sites sounds familiar. It is always fascinating how we interact with them and how you read the situation. At times, my gallbladder gets triggered: stubbornness comes up (as I enter in a sort of competition with it as if I were silently saying ‘you will not beat me baby’; other times frustration comes to me so the nervous system kicks in). Either one are real drainers. Other times I exercise my acceptance that perhaps it was all about complication, renounce and move on with no problem. Other times, I am simply still and very present in my body and do not allow any ounce of disturbance come to me. As you say, things tend to smooth out when this is the case.

232. Thanks Nicola for a timely reminder as I still find myself reacting in some situations. Choosing to take a moment to truly appreciate me rather than to react, would be far more empowering.

233. Ha, this is great. I find that my reactions to situations like these are all the more stronger when I have not stayed open to all that is going on for me. I may be not dealing with things at work, or at home, and then bang, I find I cannot handle a situation as simple as the one you have shared. Great reminder about the power of how the simplicity of breath can keep us connected to what is true. Thank you.

234. I can relate to having booking problems on the internet and I also would have become very frustrated in the past but like you these reactions are calming down and becoming less. It is good to appreciate when things have changed – thank you for sharing.

235. Rereading this great blog I have been reminded to appreciate not just myself but the opportunities to be more aware and responsible for my choices. Thanks for the reminder Nicola!

236. I love how you were “not interested in reacting” what a great choice you made to not let something outside of you control how you felt. I have had snippets of living that way and it really is an amazing way to be.

     1. I agree Stephen, loosing interest in reacting to what is going on around us, is an empowering way to live.

237. Love it Nicola. What’s funny is when you said about loosing the entire booking and all the information you had just entered, my whole body tensed and its like I was frustrated for you! There is obviously something for me to learn here haha (could patience be the key) 😉

238. I also sometimes experience loosing information that I have entered on line. In the past I would react and allow myself to become stressed. Now when I loose data, I leave my PC and take myself for a walk, into the garden or what ever I feel is appropriate at the time to feel and celebrate my lovelyness. When I return to re-enter what I was working on, it completes easily and effortlessly. Thanks for sharing, Nicola.

239. Such a beautiful, simple yet powerful blog showing us how truly appreciating ourselves literally works wonders.

240. I like the description of raciness being “noisy” in your body. If I am to appreciate how far I have come in that regard, I can see how in the past with glitches and hiccups like that, I would allow emotion to come in and frustration to rule much more regularly than it does today. Thanks for sharing, Nicola.

241. How inspiring to read that you appreciate yourself too much to allow yourself to react to a computer glitch. For me I find that whether I react to something like that ‘going wrong’ depends on how I have been with myself leading up to that point. The more I focus on appreciating myself the less likely it is that I will react to outside factors.

242. The part in this blog that really stood out for me was ”I realised that I felt so lovely in myself that I was not interested in reacting, because that would take me away from me.”
     Rather than giving all my focus and attention to the assumed negatives in my life I have started to appreciate the fact that all that focus can be flipped on it’s head so to speak. There is nothing better than being with me and the more I am with me the less the negativity enters and the more I feel that reactions are not me.

     1. Leigh, that line really stood out for me also. Giving yourself a moment to ask at the point of choice, do I really want to leave the gorgeousness of me?

     2. So true leighoflight. When we react emotionally to anything we can get all caught up in the drama of the situation and this definitely disconnects us and takes us away from ourselves. On the flip side when we stay steady and connected to ourselves regardless of or even in spite of what is happening to us and around us we remain anchored and solid and can weather any storm or drama.

243. This is lovley, thank you Nicola for sharing. A very timely reminder for me. I loved how you expressed about how emotional reactions feel in your body and it made me reflect on how yuk it feels for me when I get into a reaction. Why would I want to do that to myself? I shall remember your powerfull quote “I know how unpleasant emotional reactions feel in my body and am not interested in them anymore”. Inspirational.

244. That’s beautiful Nicola. I’m on the computer all the time and those kinds of technical issues occasionally happen. Coincidentally (not) to really test where I’m at in that moment, they seem to happen when I’m particularly busy. Interestingly when I’ve got myself into a ‘push’ to make it work or ‘fix it’ I’ve lost myself and felt frustration enter but when I’ve accepted it, stayed with myself and let go of trying to make or force it to work it just resolves itself and works with no undue wasted energy. Thank you for sharing the lovely way with which you graciously and lovingly dealt with a technical issue.

245. This is a beautiful story Nicola, I can learn a lot from this. Choice is so powerful.

246. Thanks for sharing how not letting the computer’s hijinks unsettle you and get you all het up and emotional led to you to appreciating yourself more, Nicola. Lovely!

247. Agree Nicola, reactions do feel awful in the body. I notice when I get into a reaction with the kids for example my loveliness flies away. I am becoming more and more accustomed to having loveliness as the norm, indulging reactions are less and less possible for me. It’s taken me several decades to work out that reacting doesn’t actually solve or address anything… but so great to now have that awareness and be working a new way.

     I am inspired by reading this, to further develop this area of my life. I book airfares often, so there’s my next chance :). Thank you for writing this Nicola

     1. Felicity, your line about indulging in reaction feels spot on. That line has given me a little wake up call. I quite often react to my kids and take myself away from my stillness. Time to bring it back to my awareness. Thanks Felicity.

248. That is a lovely anecdote Nicola. Yesterday I felt the same apreciation for myself, and my new choices and how different I am and how I will never do the harmful things I used to do to myself ever again. It has been so easy to habitually denegrate and beat myself up in the past and it truly does feel so amazing to have stopped that to a humungous degree and to stop for a minute and give myself a hug of appreciation. Appreciation is a new thing for me so thank you for sharing your blog with me, it gives me permission to keep on expanding and acknowledging and appreciating me.

249. Hi Nicola, it is quite exquisite to feel this way about ones self and thanks to the Benhayon’s there is a huge group of people, across the world, who now also feel this way about themselves on a daily basis. This is truly amazing, it may even be inconceivable to some who have not personally had the joy of truly experiencing themselves. Thanks Nicola.

250. So Awesome Nicola.

251. What a lovely story to start the day with. Thank you Nicola. I will remember it next time the internet sends me back to the homepage!

252. Nicola, beautiful reflection of the simplicity of being yourself. No fireworks or rah rah, just a quiet appreciation of the loveliness of you. Thank you.

     1. I agree – the ability not to react. Sigh. A great ability to work on for me.

        1. I love it christophschnelle! It is one for me to work on also.

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