Claiming Your Self-Esteem: A Guide Out of Codependency, Addiction, and Other Useless Habits

The book was listed in the proper condition. this was a great purchase for the price

This is an excellent book. Just reading the first few pages was an eye opener. Ms. Bell is very insightful. Would recommend anyone read this book.

For use with clients in Chemical dependancy treatment

Fast shipping . Good read .

I have no idea why I bought this...suggestions from my psych maybe?The book was a slow reader and not helpful

We have access within us to the same creative power that created the universe. It is our privilege and responsibility to choose how to use that power in accord with our ideals. The choices we make, far more than any circumstances we encounter, create the life we live and have profound impact upon others.Pretty heady stuff. Enough to make you feel both proud of your inherited endowments and sober at your responsibilities. Yet this message is at the heart of the Edgar Cayce readings, as well as the core of humanity's spirituality. It is also the basis of self-esteem.When the California state legislature created the Task Force on Self-Esteem it paid official recognition to the fundamental importance of this personal attribute. It declared self-esteem to be the psychological equivalent of clean air and water. It defined it as "the appreciation of one's own worth and importance and having the character to be accountable to oneself and to act responsibly toward others." After years of study, the task force concluded that the absence of self-esteem is the root cause of violence, drug-addiction, greed crimes, and many of the other social ills plaguing society. On the other hand, it also concluded that every person needs to respect the value of their creative inner resources and that it is a necessary part of human experience to nourish the spiritual dimension of our being. Not a luxury, but a necessary ingredient to healthy living as a responsible, contributing member of society, self-esteem finally found its place in the sun with the report of the California task force.It is also easy to recognize in the task force's conception of self-esteem Edgar Cayce's vision of the human as a spiritual being. Who could have anticipated that a legislative body, by honoring such an ordinary aspect of human existence as self-esteem, would thrust the ideas expressed in the Cayce readings smack into the news media. Nevertheless, it's happening. A particularly fine self-help book, for example, one of the best on the subject of self-esteem to pass across my desk, is so remarkably similar in its main points to the major lessons in the Cayce readings that it could easily be an A.R.E. publication. It is living proof that in many ways the Cayce philosophy has become mainstream. The book is Claiming Your Self-Esteem: A Guide out of Codependency, Addiction, and Other Useless Habits (Celestial Arts). The author, psychotherapist Carolyn Ball, presents the issue of self-esteem affirmatively:"Each person is unique and special. All of us have our own gifts to give as we pass through life on this planet. When we are in touch with ourselves--who we are, what we feel, what we need, what we love and enjoy--then that special gift can be expressed. When life is full of 'have-tos' and 'shoulds' and trying to measure up to external standards, it is impossible to be in touch with ourselves or that inner gift. They become obscured by the busy-ness of trying to be different from how we are. But, by honoring ourselves exactly as we are, the bad with the good, that inner gift is brought back to the forefront and is allowed expression. The net effect is the same whether our perspective is from a psychological framework and is called self-esteem, or from a spiritual framework and is called Higher Self, Higher Power, or the God Within."In referring to the 12-step tradition, which contributes to the author's approach, she points out that it is no accident that the single greatest mental health movement in the country, a self-help organization with no financial backing or professional practitioners, is spiritual at its core. Spirituality is the core of self-esteem. Spirituality is living the recognition that there is within us a power higher or greater than our ego-selves. Given this foundation to self-esteem, here is the essence of Ball's teaching, which she presents in a plain manner, combining the realistic, empathic approach of the counselor with the vision of the spiritual teacher.Realize first that your thoughts will create your reality. What you believe is important. The place to begin, therefore, is to change what you believe about yourself. It is important to learn to know oneself, to discover what subconscious beliefs and attitudes are undermining your sense of self-worth, what demands you make upon yourself, conditions you place upon granting yourself respect. Make a commitment to replace negative thinking with positive thoughts."Man is a creature of habit," she writes, "unless he applies his will, and chooses to live by the power of his choices rather than the force of habit." How do we go about making these changes? By self-acceptance. It's a hard lesson to learn that self-acceptance is the beginning of change. To develop this kind of acceptance she advocates learning two skills: meditation and listening.Meditation is good for developing the accepting attitude, "It's OK," which gives one the patience to gentle encourage growth rather than to force change. It also is good for tapping into the Higher Self and the reality of love as a creative energy, which will be a major force for change within the context of self-acceptance.Listening to one's inner self and one's Higher Self helps us in self-knowledge. It also provides the basis for establishing more fulfilling relations with others. It is deep within us, not at the tips of our noses and elbows, that we are the most profoundly connected with one another. Respecting your own feelings, even when others don't, is a good measure of self-esteem. This ability also allows you to listen to and respect another person's feelings even when yours are different. Carolyn argues that from the higher self we become a channel for love, first for oneself and then for others as oneself. The Great Commandment requires, therefore, that self-esteem be the basis of the worth of a person

I find myself constantly recommending this book everywhere. "Claiming Your Self-Esteem" has definitely changed my life.Before I read this book, I was a very codependent person. What drove me to buy this book was a petty argument with my coworker. Additionally, I had been driving my boyfriend crazy with my constant self-doubt and dependence on him, bringing people down with my negativity, and scaring friends away with sudden overreactions to trivial things.Within two months of starting to read this book, I start to grow into a more loving person: truly understanding, much calmer, and finally with self-love.What makes this book work is that it not only says what you need to do and points out the benefits of loving yourself, it also teaches you HOW to do love yourself.This book has taught me how to how to confront and fix my old problems (that I used to always run away from), quiet the internal negative dialogue (that constantly plagued my mind for most of my life), how to meditate and listen to my body's cues, and (probably the most important) how to forgive myself and love myself unconditionally.As a result, I've also learned how to get along better with others, and I am much more aware of people's behavior because I understand my own behavior.I have been reading this book for only 5 months, but I feel like I have grown so much since then. Thank you, Carolyn Ball, for writing.

What I enjoyed most about this book, were the practical steps it outlines to help those who are ready to take charge of their self esteem, do so.Many subjects are detailed, including codependency, and addiction.The author was clear, concise, and made it easy to understand that addictions are just another way to mask low self esteem.What I enjoyed was the gentle, but firm way the author made it abundantly clear, that a persons level of self esteem, truly is within their control, IF they choose to take control over the way they think.Thoughts are simply patterns that have been conditioned into our subconscious. And the really wonderful thing about that is, that we ultimately have control over the way we think, IF we practice thinking better thoughts...In the end, its up to the individual to learn all they can about the way he/she thinks, so to uncover any negative programming that is getting in the way of loving themselves.I recommend this book...Namaste...