Andrea uses her one talent for communication in several different ways to offer deeper understanding of the Authentic Self to every audience with which she works. Author of Restoring My Soul: A Workbook for Finding and Living the Authentic Self (2007) and of The Law of Attraction: The Soul's Answer to Why It Isn't Working and How It Can coming out in the fall of 2011 by O Books. She is a trainer and speaker for corporations and the public on topics such as Stress Management, Conflict Resolution, Leadership--particularly Authentic Leadership, Personality Types and Teams, Effective Communication and other such topics.
Andrea has 30 years experience in the mental health field, 20 of those years in upper management, including the past 13 in which she has run a thriving private psychotherapy practice. She has over 24 years experience as a professional trainer and speaker, and 24 years experience as a professional writer.
She is also the host of the highly successful radio show called Autheintic Lving on which she has interviewed many of the world's most prolific, profound and bestselling authors, including such giants as GAry Zukav, Neale Donald Walsch, Joan Borysenko, Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Dr. Judith Orloff, Caroline Myss, Byron Katie, Dan Millman, Dr. Christiane Northrup and many more. You can listen to her radio show at http://www.voiceamerica.com/voiceamerica/vshow.aspx?sid=1304.
See Andrea's Blogs on Psychology Today Magazine online at: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/traversing-the-inner-terrain.
Have you ever said, "I don't like that about me"? Who is the "I," and who is the "me"? And which one should you believe?
The problem is that we do not know the answers to these questions. In fact, very often when someone asks how we feel or think about something, we simply don't know.
The reason this problem exists is because we have the capacity to identify with things, people, situations, traumas, feelings or thoughts that are not authentic. In fact most of us do. As infants we are all looking for mirrors for we want to know who we are. And we tend to use that fantastic ability for identification to look to our environment and identify with it. Even in the most functional homes it is very rare for us to truly be encouraged to authenticate the Self. Most adults fear that if they encourage us to be true to the Self, we will become evil monsters. And the reason for this is that most of us believe that at our core we are really evil and that we must work really hard to overcome that tremendous handicap.
Interestingly enough, however, is the fact that those who actually do get in touch with the Authentic Self find it to be the center of peace, a guide to the highest and most fulfilling life possible for that particular person.
The problem with our finding this center is that we've convinced ourselves over the centuries that it is impossible to know the Self, that it is, at best, an arcane journey that only the mystics of the world would even want to take. But this lie only keeps us from our peace and denies us fulfillment.
Not only is it possible to find the Authentic Self, but finding it and beginning to live our of its essence is the only truth of our existence. But if we try to remove all of our masks and costumes by sheer will power, we will resist our own efforts, unless we are fully grounded in the Authentic Self. We don't want to strip off our masks and costumes--we believe that they keep us safe. But if, instead of saying "no" to the masks and costumes, we say "yes" to the Authentic Self, then when it is time we will simply let go of the masks and costumes as unnecessary encumbrances.
Would you like to know more? Visit Andrea at www.andreamathewslpc.com, or read her Psychology Today blog at http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/traversing-the-inner-terrain or listen to Authentic Living with Andrea Mathews on Voice America, the 7th Wave Network, every Wednesday at 1 p.m. PST, 4 p.m. EST.