For most of us the need for security and safety is paramount and needs to be fulfilled at some level. This means in order to feel safe we expect to be in a permanent relationship, a permanent job, have enough money and so on. We expect our lives in general to function in well laid out patterns. This permanence is our security.

Unfortunately the universe has different ideas and they are throwing a spanner or two in the works for most of us who expect to lead our lives by the old paradigm..So, what does am I talking about here?

Let us take a look at the big picture to gain a better understanding of what is going on in our internal world: The macro picture shows that the energies in the universe are speeding up. This process is also being referred to as a form of ascension process in which we all partake as we shift to a higher level of consciousness. This shift affects everyone and holds its own challenges regarding mental stability and security.

It requires that we learn to harness the faster energies and find ways of coping with the swift changes which are taking place. The rather erratic weather patterns, volatile stock market conditions, political instability are signs of these strong and volatile energetic forces, just to mention a couple to give you an idea of what we are talking about.

This situation is very likely to continue for a while until the universal energies have settled to the new level. The year 2012 has been muted as the end point in this cycle.

So, whilst this might sound rather scary to a lot of you, particularly if this is the first time you have heard about "the shift", we can use the fast changing energies to our advantage and further our own personal development in the process.

When we evolve to higher levels of consciousness we are also challenged to broaden our view of ourselves and our view of the universe. This process opens up opportunities for us to see inside ourselves and observe mental patterns from a new, higher vantage point. This higher vantage point, or our evolving higher level of consciousness lets us see the deeper levels of our thinking, hitherto hidden from the conscious mind.

The internal thought processes which are surfacing in this way are often negative and depressing. Do not worry about this though, because you can change anything, once you are aware of it..

Granted you will need a little practice here, but it is well worth the effort. When you begin to see how your mind is reacting to situations you will soon find that a lot of what is going in here is literally utter rubbish and has no relevance to your present situation whatsoever.

Let's take an example: Maybe a news event on the other side of the world upset you and you start feeling anxious and somewhat insecure. You worry how the bad news might affect you personally. When you ask yourself the question whether your reaction is at all justified the answer is probably "no".

So why is a news item on the other side of the world affecting you? After all the odds are that your life is going to continue just as it was, without any adverse repercussions on you, other then those you might be projecting in your mind. Social conditioning is the short answer. You are reacting to your belief system which has been made up even before you were born. Your belief system, or your personal map of reality, is a mix of your parents' beliefs and those of your peers, the media and education. In fact the level of your education directly reflects the level of your conditioning.

Therefore when you react to anything in your life in the old unconscious way you are probably reacting to someone else's belief system and not your own. In fact you probably have never checked your beliefs to find out whether they really are your own personal truths, so to speak..

I urge you to start consciously becoming aware of your thoughts. It is well worth the trouble . Not only will increased awareness help you in the volatile times we are experiencing energetically, but it will help you control your life and have harmony and balance simply by choosing what you think.

There are a number of techniques you can easily learn that will be tremendously helpful to you. The best techniques are simple processes based on Energy Psychology which do not take very long to implement.

It is entirely possible to create major cognitive and behaviour shifts within a few minutes.