Potions & Prayers

For the Authentically Lovable You

Kat’s Blog

EARLY INTERVENTION FOR TRAUMA AND VULNERABILITY TO CO-OCCURRING ADDICTION & ILLNESS IN YOUNG PEOPLE

Statement of the Problem

According to the National Child Traumatic Stress network, a person will begin using drugs and alcohol after experiencing a trauma up to 76% of the time. Furthermore, up to 59% of young people with PTSD subsequently develop substance abuse problems; and an even stronger among young girls (Lamya Khoury, 2010).

As a child of an alcoholic, I was riddled with symptoms of post-traumatic stress as witness to my father’s emotional and physical abuse towards my three older siblings. Regardless of my emotional and spiritual growth, unpleasant childhood flashbacks, anger, and resentment towards my father existed. As a result, I continued to relive my childhood by choosing co-dependent, delusional, addictive relationships detrimental to the quality of my life.

It wasn’t until I wrote my memoir, “What You Feel is Real,” when I became aware of emotional-etheric toxins releasing from my body. Upon completion of this memoir, the deep pain in my heart subsided and I no longer suffered from bouts of depression. From this point on, I was aware there had to be more advanced methods for healing and wellness beyond traditional talk therapy, 12-step meetings or taking antidepressants. Therefore, it is for this very reason, I have taken my work into the field of Energy Medicine for the relief of post-traumatic stress for early intervention in young people vulnerable to co-occurring addiction and illness.

Causes for Trauma and Vulnerability to Co-Occurring Addiction & Illness

According to the Mayo Clinic (Mayo Clinic, 2018), the most common contributing factors leading up to the development of PTSD include: combat exposure, childhood physical abuse, sexual violence, physical assault, being threatened with a weapon, and an accident. Other traumatic events leading to PTSD, such as fire, natural disaster, mugging, robbery, plane crash, torture, kidnapping, life-threatening medical diagnosis, terrorist attack, and other extreme or life- threatening events. The Mayo Clinic further reports that having PTSD may also increase your risk of other mental health problems such as: depression and anxiety, issues with drugs or alcohol use, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts and actions (Mayo Clinic, 2018).

In addition to coping with post-trauma, it is my observation that when young people go through rapid mental and physical growth and hormonal changes the fear of not knowing who they are rises up and feels as if the ground has been pulled out beneath them. As a result, such fears can lead to panic attacks and depression. When these changes are coupled with adverse childhood experiences, a journey through puberty is far more intense than what an average young person expects to manage. Furthermore, studies consistently show that the accumulation of adverse childhood experiences increases the risk of poor adult health (Mariette J. Charltlier, 2010).

I also have noticed a great number of young people suffering from PTSD who are highly sensitive and intuitively gifted. In other words, PTSD in the body has developed high-alert survival-tactics and traits especially among those who come from abusive family environments similar to living in a war-zone atmosphere. In our society, the highly sensitive, intuitively gifted are rarely validated, nurtured, or educated to know what to do with their gifts, therefore, this group has a tendency to believe there is something terribly wrong with them; they don’t fit in; they are different; or they feel as if they are not enough.

Another observation related to trauma with vulnerability to co-occurring addiction/illness in young people is social media and the undue emotional stress it can cause at a public level, not to mention, the medium is highly addictive, in and of itself. More often than not, social scenes created on Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat force young people to conform or be bullied based lies and falsehoods causing trauma at a low level of public shame and embarrassment from being ridiculed or scoffed at, therefore adding on even more layers of vulnerability to co- occurring addiction/illness.

Another huge factor causing trauma in young people is divorce. When asked if they ever experienced trauma, most young people never mention divorce as a traumatic event until it is pointed out. Divorce is devastating and causes financial and emotional instability for entire family units. For the children, they suffer from fears of abandonment, shame and excessive worrying about parents.

Embracing Change Through Crisis for a Higher Purpose

Recently, I was asked by the National Coach Academy for an interview about my journey as an energy medicine expert and coaching professional.  I’m happy to share this story with you because it’s a good example of embracing change through crisis.  Whether it was going through a divorce, a parent passing, losing a job, or children struggling, each step of the way, my journey seemed to be guided and directed for a higher-purpose.

I share these thoughts because during the coronavirus pandemic it is a time when your intuition is at an all time high.  It is an important time to be aware of it and to embrace whatever you’ve been yearning to do next in your life.

I can list a zillion changes I’m welcoming in my life as a result of this crisis while staying at home.  First, I have time to write this blog.  Second, I shifted both The Dove House, A Center for Healing & Wellness, and Potions & Prayer, Inspired Apothecary Goods, to online businesses.  It has been my goal to shift to online for a good year.

To support you on your healing journey, here are a few self-care activities you can do for free in the comfort of your home:

* Take a Free Energy Assessment Quiz to understand the health and wellbeing of your energy centers.

*  Sign-up for a Free 15-Minute Energy Therapy Consultation to understand how to take back your power to heal.

Sending you good thoughts,

Kathleen Riley McCarthy,

Certified in Integrative Holistic Health

How It Started

The Inspiration

He said, “Let’s call it ‘Potions’. She said, Let’s add the word ‘Prayers’. So together, the husband and wife team created Potions & Prayers for inspired apothecary goods and the authentically lovable you.

Kathleen Riley McCarthy, Energy Medicine Practitioner and Co-Founder, takes Potions & Prayers to a whole new level by applying her knowledge to create a variety of products based on the body’s energy system of healing and wellness.

The Products 

Our inspired apothecary goods are hand-mixed in small batches using only natural ingredients infused with healing herbs and pure essential oil blends.  Every product is then carefully labeled with special healing prayers, meditations, and intentions to further support an energy system of healing and wellness. The products include soy-based candles, body butter creams, chakra cleanse bars, herbal care creams, stress relief balms, lotion bars, lotion candles, balancing mists, and floral water sprays.

The Art 

The authentic-self mascot, posing on every Potions & Prayers product label, is an art deco oil rendering Kathleen reproduced in her twenties. She believes the painting’s uncanny relevance adds to the meaning behind Potions & Prayers as a brand that celebrates the healing journey of authenticity. Kathleen offers free energy assessments for customers to find out where their energy system is blocked and what products are best for them. Kathleen also offers individual and group work sessions for clients to learn how to release toxic emotional and spiritual energies.  She believes, “We all have emotional or spiritual anatomy that can benefit from this work to allow your true self to flourish.”

The Cause

At Potions & Prayers, a portion of our proceeds go directly to The Dove House.org, a 501(c)(3) Wellness Center, in support of Early Intervention for Trauma and
Vulnerability to Co-Occurring Addiction & Illness in Young People. Many of the written prayers on Potions & Prayers product labels come from trauma survivors at The Dove House.

You Can Learn to Heal Yourself

By learning to access your vital energy system, you are actually tapping into your body’s natural healing abilities.  The various energy centers, also known as the chakra system, regulate and control many aspects of who you are.  They include your emotions, your self-esteem, your capacity to love, to effectively communicate or focus your mind.

From the day you were conceived in your mother’s womb, you experienced wonderful and not-so-wonderful life situations that shaped your health, vitality and well-being. With proper knowledge and understanding of how to care for your energy centers, you are more likely to optimize your health and wellness.

Here’s a simple explanation of how the energy system works when you are exposed to negativity:

When negative energy enters your body, toxic residue forms. If the residue goes unresolved or un-dissolved, layer-upon-layer of negative toxic energies build up.  Consequently, these negative energies go deeper into muscle tissues, nerves, bones and liquids in your body. Your body’s vital energy flow becomes restricted or even blocked. As a result, you may become physically unhealthy or act out in ways that aren’t really you.

With energy awareness, you learn how to manage your vital energy centers.  You’re able to unblock and naturally redirect your energy in positive ways. Negative patterns dissolve more easily. New pathways open for healthy energy to flow.  You’re in a high level wellness zone.

As you enhance your vital energy system, your capacity to restore and maintain the health of your vital organs such as the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys come back even stronger .

You actually notice that you have more energy and enjoying life to its fullest.  You’re free.  Free to be who you really are – the authentically lovable you.

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Knowing What’s True

“I am comfortable in my own skin when I am authentic and I deeply love and accept myself, and the Universe deeply loves and accepts me unconditionally.”

Knowing What’s True

Getting to know who you really are takes a lot of hard work and honesty. You must be willing to commit to the reality of what you know to be true for you. Others will try to sway you to conform to their desires. Say, “Good for you. I am happy that works well for you. Thank you, but this is what I know to be best for me.”   Be true. Be you.