Thank you all for joining us as we explore realms of personal freedom, health and healing. Although Mitchell would like to answer all the questions he receives, the volume of mail allows only a few, which are of general interest, to be published here. Anyone who submits a question can be assured of their privacy.

Q: How should one handle fear?

Mitchell: There is nothing more common to the human experience than fear. I've heard fear defined as a state of excitement, but without the breath. The best way that I know how to handle fear is the following: First, we must tell the truth to ourselves that we are afraid. Most of us spend a great deal of time trying not to be afraid, denying our experiences or trying to shut down while our body is shouting at us that we are afraid. As long as we are avoiding the truth, how is it that "the truth can set us free"? As with all things to do with healing, our genuineness is truly the key to our freedom. Secondly, the way I deal with my fear is to actually invite it because the energy that is tied up in the fear I am feeling is the very energy that is needed for my own liberation or healing. It is the same for everyone. I am not speaking about the type of fear that is momentary — such as being startled or stepping out in front of a car — I am speaking of fear that holds us prisoner. Once you invite the fear to come forward, it is important to make sure that you truly want what is on the other side of the fear. Because the energy you release might be a very large energy. It could have been accumulating for years and years without being reincorporated into your energetic system. If this is the case, it can be very valuable to have support systems in place to hold ground and assist your process. If you become stuck in exploring these energies, tools such as breath work or counseling might be helpful, too.

Q: Do you believe we lose or give away our energy to outside forces?

Mitchell: This is a very intricate question. The bottom line for me is that there is nothing to lose. However, until we realize this (and ultimately live in that realization), we have the experience of losing energy. There is a sense that we are losing energy to something outside of ourselves, when in fact the external "force" is triggering something within us, and from that we begin to leak. An important component of healing is to learn where we have leaks, be these psychological, emotional, physical or psychic. Once we locate the leak, we can address what is required of us to heal that aspect of ourselves. I feel it is very important to relinquish the idea that we lose energy to anything that is outside of ourselves. Though I know our human experience makes it seem very real, I am coming more and more to the conclusion that there is really only inside, not outside. Or perhaps it is one and the same. If you experience losing energy, that can be a valuable opportunity to see where it is that you feel disempowered. When you recognize this, be alert, begin to bring your awareness to the situation and make a commitment for it to change — in other words, change your story.

Q: Can you explain the concept of “changing your story”?

Mitchell: I know of no more powerful and transformative element that we all have at our disposal than changing our life story in order to experience life in new ways. It involves “trying on” new behaviors, practicing them and bringing them into our body until they become our own. This is what is meant by the concept that form follows thought — our lives flow in the direction of our attention. We define our own limits and possibilities in the way we choose to relate to the Mystery of Life. Most of our life story comes from the small stories about what we as humans "think" we understand, from outdated belief systems and from other people’s stories of reality that we have been convinced of, but these might not be serving our lives. This is why we get restless or dissatisfied. I also feel that most of us do not really have access to the “cosmic story” — a story that encompasses the powerful changes that are occurring throughout all cultures, social institutions, religions and technologies. In addition, many people have embraced new-age philosophies that claim to have discovered a path to the workings of the Mystery but that deliver only a new dogma with another set of someone else's rules or stories for us to follow. The exciting thing for me is that we are living in a time when we get to create the cosmic story as it is unfolding. What this means is that we are active participants in the great Mystery and should be comfortable in the ongoing role as the gardener of the fertile ground of the unknown future. We all can play a pivotal role in creating our own personal future and the future of the world as we awaken to this understanding and these principles. This is the most exciting and empowering time to be alive because we can be a part of creating a new story.

Q: When we want to change our story, should we begin by healing our original story? Or can we just start a new story?

Mitchell: The answer to that question is very individual. For some people, reconnecting with the original story, through exploring feelings or literally retelling the story, can be very important in a healing process. For others, simply beginning to create a new story is the most appropriate way to heal. I have found it important to be aware of what holds me or keeps me from being free, and once I see what the story is about, it allows me to choose which path is most appropriate for creating a new story. It isn’t that you change the original story. This process of healing and creating your new story often requires that you acknowledge the original story, see its value and create a ritual of completion, or severance, with the old story. In attempting to deny or bypass the original story, we do not gather and use the power that has been captured, or stuck, there. When Jesus went to fast in the desert, he struggled greatly with the old stories. His healing process was a recognition and a release of those stories, and as that power was freed up, he was then able to create new stories in his life.

Q: I am trying to mend my energy leaks through an acceptance of my Being as perfect. In doing this, I see that it's my thinking that leads me to stories which create fear. Then I hate my thinking because it produces such stories. How can I stop this?

Mitchell: The first approach I would use is to stop trying to prevent the thinking, to stop trying to change the story and to stop trying to do anything about it. This might sound paradoxical, and it is. We have to first allow ourselves the freedom to be what we are, even if what we are is what we wish we weren’t. You will be astounded at the space that opens up once you give yourself permission in your mind, and especially in your heart, to be whatever you happen to be. Inward compassion creates more space to gently begin to change your story at a pace proportional to the space that opens. Work on it five minutes at a time if you have to; this is no race. If you attempt to change your story faster than you create space for yourself, you’ll exhaust yourself. If you become discouraged, it’s very hard to do anything. Therefore, I encourage you to cut yourself a little more slack, watch a few really good comedies, or even laugh more at the absurdities of our minds’ workings and noise. This not only helps to build perspective, but also creates pleasant experiences and opportunities for change to drop in and surprise you when you least expect it!

Q: Mitchell, how do you conjure up the energy to be what you physically want to be when all of your energy is gone?

Mitchell: The most fundamental realization is that the energy has no association with a “person” per se. In other words, energy is everywhere at all times. Here is the challenge: how can we be everywhere at the same time? First, it is helpful if we pay respect to the totality of ourselves as human — energy being . Secondly, by nourishing ourselves with that which supports our full participation with the energy of the universe, like the connection we feel after meditation, we establish easy access to the Source. Also, when we pay attention to our lifestyles, nutrition and diet, thought processes, breathing, exercising, meditating and a whole host of other energy-modulating practices, we maintain our relationship with energy, and it feeds us. If you feel that all your energy is gone, it is probably wise for you not only to examine your lifestyle, but also to seek counsel from qualified practitioners. They can assist you in fully participating with the energy of life — emotionally, mentally, spiritually and physically.

Q: Do we receive energy from pets — for instance, when we stroke them?

Mitchell: Absolutely. There is an exchange of energy with our pets, whether we’re stroking them or just hanging out with them. There is an exchange of life energy with all beings that we interact with. It is absolutely to our benefit to interact with pets and exchange life energy. Let’s not limit it to animals. We exchange energy with rocks, trees, the wind, water and everything else in life. This is why, to me, it is so vitally important that we respect all life forms as well as each other. The way we treat all life forms will directly affect what happens to us in life. We cannot treat any form of life disrespectfully and expect life to treat us respectfully.

Q: Is the healing energy you access the same as chi in qigong?

Mitchell: The bottom line is that life energy is the same, no matter what it is called. All the different systems of inner development and healing have created and articulated methods to develop and/or activate this life force energy. The difference in my work is that I do not teach people how to direct energy; rather, I show them how to let energy direct them. In doing this, our small human understanding does not tell life what to do but invites the entirety of life’s intelligence to heal and guide. I have the greatest respect for qigong and other similar systems, and I encourage people to learn these systems. At the same time, I also feel it is vitally important to understand that the energy does not heal. It is life that heals, and the energy is simply one expression of life. This is a very important distinction.

Q: Where in the body do we store most of our energy? Is there one particular spot?

Mitchell: To me, the point is not to store energy in the body. The point is — let the energy be the body, so that it is always moving, flowing, rejuvenating the entirety of your experience, moment by moment. If you have energy stored in the body, then in a sense you are backed up and not really in the full life current — energy should be always moving through, which is a much more enlightening experience. The way to help yourself be in that life current is to move your body every day. Systems such as yoga, tai chi and qigong are all ways of helping that energy flow. What one comes to realize is that we do not have an energy body; rather, we are an energy body in the ocean of Life.

Q: Do you think moving — for instance, dancing — helps release stuck, or trapped, energy?