Category Archives: Hope

Black and Blue Hoarder In Recovery (Part 1)

Wednesday, 1 January 2014. I’d gotten up just before 9:00am, and for the past hour and an half I’d enjoyed some relaxing surfing (online, not on the water). Now it was 10:31am, and I started debating about whether or not … Continue reading

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Before Black and Blue Man: The Six Visits (Part 3)

Part 1 Part 2 Five more weeks of appointments went by. Wherever possible, I booked each week’s appointment for Friday afternoons as a good way to end the working week. At the time I often walked home across the Sydney … Continue reading

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Before Black and Blue Man: The Six Visits (Part 2)

Part 1 The day arrived for my first appointment with the psychologist. I left my office at mid-afternoon and walked from North Sydney down to nearby Milsons Point, with the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Luna Park nearby. I arrived at … Continue reading

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Before Black and Blue Man: The Six Visits (Part 1)

Early 2006. I was working for another Canberra-based account, and once again travel was required – which at first was exciting. To my mild disappointment, however, it turned out that I would only going down there for one day – … Continue reading

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International Black and Blue Man (Part 1)

For a long time, overseas travel was something I never contemplated. There were three main reasons why. One reason was lack of interest. Visiting other countries did have some appeal, but not that much – and for a long time, … Continue reading

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Before Black and Blue Man: The Turning Point (Part 5)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 The last weeks of December 2002 Shortly after I completed The Turning Point, my work manager was in town (he was based interstate). He scheduled one-on-one meetings with myself and my colleagues … Continue reading

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Before Black and Blue Man: The Turning Point (Part 4)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 The week passed and The Turning Point continued. Every class we meditated. Alas, I didn’t quite return to the bliss of that wonderful first session, but I still enjoyed meditation and resolved to keep … Continue reading

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Before Black and Blue Man: The Turning Point (Part 3)

Part 1 Part 2 There were about 20 people in our Turning Point class, ranging from teens to elderly. That first evening, our counselors told us what lay ahead for the coming week. After that, we did our first activity … Continue reading

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Before Black and Blue Man: The Turning Point (Part 2)

Part 1 September 2002. I had spent all day at home, both relaxing but also trying to make up my mind about whether or not to do something that night. That something was attending an information session about the next … Continue reading

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Before Black and Blue Man: The Turning Point (Part 1)

January 2002. One afternoon, my three work colleagues and I were taking a break at a café near our office. My colleague Mary asked our colleague John about a course he’d recently completed that, among other things, had taught him … Continue reading

Posted in Action, Anger, Hope, Inspiration, Life Challenges, Life Strategies, Pain | 2 Comments