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Freeze-Framer Shows That We
See Things Not As They Are, But As We Are
By Cathy
Anderson
Recently,
The Freeze-Framer system consists of
a computer with an attached finger-tip sensor and several software programs. Users are encouraged to generate and
strengthen feelings of love and gratitude within themselves. The sensor detects corresponding physical
changes and translates the results either to a chart or to a game. One game is to cause a balloon to lift
off. In others,
generating feelings of love and gratitude causes color to be added to a
black-and-white nature scene, and a rainbow to be drawn.
Beginning users observed that
playing with the system often made them feel less peaceful, rather than more! They felt frustrated and ashamed that they
couldn't create enough peace in their hearts to lift the balloon. Concentration on the desired result seemed to
chase it away. One person noted that if
he stopped thinking about the game and started reading the manual, up the
balloon would go.
John said that self-acceptance of
where one is at the present moment is the key to success. "If you're really okay with the balloon
not moving, the balloon will move!"
This view of the challenge is both more difficult and more
intriguing. Americans tend to believe
that enough smarts and elbow grease will guarantee success--but that is not the
case with this deceptively simple "game." Developers of the Freeze-Framer have figured
out how to show us that our desire and will to see things other than as they
are can hinder us.
Developing a Personal Practice
The Freeze-Framer system is not a
practice in itself, but simply a tool one can use to observe oneself in any personal
practice that teaches self-awareness, acceptance and compassion. One of the system's greatest advantages is
that it shows when one is feeling stress.
Recognizing that one is feeling stress is the first step to helping
oneself move away from stress.
One example of a personal practice
is the Heart Lock-In Technique:
1. Shift your attention to the
area around your heart.
2. Breathe gently in and out as
if you are breathing in through the heart and out through the solar plexus
(2" above the navel).
3. Activate a genuine
appreciation for someone or something in your life.
4. Make a sincere effort to
sustain feelings of appreciation, care or love while radiating them to yourself
and others.
5. When you catch your mind
wandering, gently focus your breathing back through the heart and solar plexus
and reconnect with feelings of care and appreciation.
All Ages Can Benefit
Older adults may have more concerns
about success or failure with the Freeze-Framer simply because it is on a
computer. (In agreement, one user
mentioned her "hate-hate" relationship with her home PC.) They may also be more likely to view the charting
of heart "coherence" as a kind of electrocardiogram, which it is not.
Generally, says John, people who did
not grow up with computers approach the challenges of the Freeze-Framer
primarily with their "head" intelligence, while younger people are
more comfortable engaging their heart and gut intelligence as well as their
heads. For many of them, computing is as
natural as breathing. However, anyone can
benefit from use of the Freeze-Framer if they do not view the program as a
judge or as a competitor to beat.
Willingness to Change
Willingness to change is a final key
to success with the Freeze-Framer. Users
who keep trying to apply techniques that haven't worked before are doomed to
unhappiness. Those who combine a
willingness to explore with openness to new ways of thinking and being, will,
with regular practice, see impressive changes.
More Information
For more information, visit