Our Thoughts Have Power

This Blog Post is Dedicated to David Byrd. He is a transformational coach who has, without knowing, taught me more about believing in myself than any one person ever has. I have been diagnosed with stage 3c breast cancer and endured the loss of all that I thought was what defined a woman, my breasts, my hair, my uterus, and eventually, my smile. I was living in a very dark, depressing world. I thought about cancer and that I would die and leave my husband and children.

Anytime I ached or felt pain, I immediately thought it was cancer.  I tried everything to get those thoughts away but with no success. The year after I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I also had my uterus removed. Two years later, I woke one night to an inexpressible pain in my head. When I drove to The Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, I was rushed into the ICU, where I stayed for three weeks and endured three lengthy surgeries. It was decided that a tumor had formed in my inner ear and became infected, and gangrene was killing the nerve that controls the right side of my face. Hearing a doctor tell me I would never smile again and that I needed to get used to the new Monya was devastating. I wanted to die and didn’t think I could go on looking like I did. We found the most fantastic trauma surgeon who gave me hope. I have experienced and survived forty-eight surgeries.

I met David Byrd at a convention where he was training those in attendance about vision and doing more than just dreaming but how to make those dreams come to life. I wanted to learn everything he knew about the subconscious part of our brain. I remember sitting in the front row in Virginia as he spoke, and I wanted to suck up everything he would teach. I was busy taking notes when he asked us to write a letter to ourselves for 5 years ahead. He explained there would be no limits on money or time. He wanted us to write what our perfect life would look like. I couldn’t write anything because I believed I would die within five years. I wrote David a letter telling him how I felt, and I continued to be at every training he offered for the next 6 years. I decided one day to get serious about writing that letter to myself. It went something like this:

Eric and I are retired. We woke up this morning anxiously waiting for all our children and grandchildren to arrive. The sun is peeking up over the mountains. Looking out the window, I see wildflowers, beautiful pine trees, and a clear sky. The warmth of the sun feels good on my face.  We brewed up a nice cup of hot chocolate and held hands as we walked out to the covered wrap-around porch of our beautiful cozy cabin in the woods. I am sitting in the wicker chair wrapped in a blanket, talking to my sweet husband about gratitude. My heart was filled with love as I thought of each one of my children and how blessed we were to have them in our lives. As the family’s caravan arrives, we greet each one with a hug and an “I Love You.”

Thinking about all our family has been through together brings tears to my eyes. We have learned how to forgive, trust, and love unconditionally. I am blessed with a husband who has cared for and watched me through sickness and health. We pray together and have learned nothing in life is as important as family. Recker takes my hand and pulls me into the kitchen, and it’s time for pancakes and homemade buttermilk syrup, fresh squeezed orange juice, and bacon that fills the cabin with its welcoming smell. After breakfast, we take all the grandchildren fishing on the lake. Eric teaches them like he taught our children how to catch and clean the fish they caught. For me, life is perfect I now know I don’t have to be perfect it’s more important to be present in each moment of my life.

I will forever be grateful to David Byrd for helping me believe in miracles. He taught me how to win the head game by telling myself I can have the life I want and need. Does this mean I am not going to die? No, dying is a part of life. But I chose that day I would be grateful for every day I wake up, and I would try to be the best Monya I can be. I no longer believe we are defined by the car we drive, the home we live in, the amount of money we make, or the way we look physically. When I make mistakes, instead of getting down on myself, I ask for forgiveness and give forgiveness when needed. Living in this manner has helped me to live in the light and radiate love to others.

Through my studies, I’ve come to learn our subconscious mind is in control of almost everyone

• On average, we think approximately 70,000 thoughts per day.
• 5% of what we think is conscious, which is 20-30 neurons per second.
• 95% of our thoughts are stored in the Sub-Conscious, which equals 20-40 million neurons per second.
• Approximately 90% of our thoughts are repetitive-we are thinking about the same things we thought about yesterday.
• The conscious mind is our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of which we are AWARE.
• Subconscious thoughts are the things that are running around in the background of our thoughts. When I discovered this critical information, I was able to be more aware of my thoughts, and I was able to control them. It helped me sleep better and be more present in my conversations and interactions with others. I’m a visual person, and if you are also looking at this chart, I was more surprised seeing this graph than hearing the statistics.

Our brain is so much more powerful than we give it credit for. When we have the tools in our backpack we can change these numbers, I continue to feed my brain with positivity, and it has helped me be a better person.

Be Present, Not Perfect
Monya Williams