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Forgive me Lord, it’s been nearly two weeks since I wrote my last interim self-coaching report.

Yesterday, I tried writing down some concrete goals, with steps to achieve them. I forgot all about what I’d said in my last self-coaching post, and had no idea where to begin.

In the meantime, this morning I had a dream. It was a dream about bears. Lots of bears.

Dreams as problem-solvers

I’ve always believed that dreams provide messages from our subconscious that can be helpful with whatever we’re struggling with in our conscious lives. And scientists will back me up on this; many an inventor has received the answer to a particularly sticky problem through dream symbolism.

La-Z-Boys: NOT for lazy boys!

One scientist, I’m told, (I forget which one? Anyone?) deliberately fell asleep in an easy chair with a pen in hand, pad on his lap, knowing that if he was stuck at some point, he would wake up, brilliant solution emerging along with his waking consciousness. If he wrote it down quickly, while in that in-between state of sleep and wakefulness, he would be able to capture the solution before he was fully awake. Not wanting to miss out on any of my  own self-coaching clues, I decided to look up Bear in a couple of reference books.

Bear with me…

In Jamie Sams’ and David Carson’s book, Medicine Cards, The Discovery of Power Through the Ways of Animals, Bear signifies introspection. Now, I can just hear the grumblings of the skeptics and conventional thinkers out there. I’m inviting you to hang onto your hats and come along for the ride, just for fun – you never know!

According to the authors, the power of Bear resides in the West on the medicine wheel of life, a First Nations description of the stages of life we all pass through, including the compass points of North, South, East and West.

“It is said that our goals reside in the West also” we are told by these authors.  “To accomplish the goals and dreams that we carry, the art of introspection is necessary.”

I got goosebumps when I read this.

Looking a little closer at the dream to get a little closer to my dreams…

In my dream this morning, I was running through a building with glass walls and many glass doors, and there were bears running after me, everywhere, coming through doors.

The building was a School/University. I was sitting in a class about music, and really enjoying it. I was thinking I was in the wrong class. In my dream, I was preoccupied with whether or not I was in the right class, and as the class kept changing, I had several teachers, whom I enjoyed and didn’t enjoy in turn.

I was struck when I read in the Medicine Cards book:

“It is in the Dream Lodge that our ancestors sit in Council and advise us regarding alternate pathways that lead to our goals. This is the power of Bear.”

This  reference so closely associated with my dream images, I was encouraged to look up Bear in a second book, called Animal Speak, by Ted Andrews.

Andrews refers to the Bear as symbolizing, “awakening the power of the unconscious.”  Believing dreams provide wisdom and guidance from our unconscious mind, I have always panned my dreams for nuggets of gold, and the wisdom of dreams has more than once enriched my life.

ADHDers and bears: sharing more than occasional grumpiness!

But there are even more associations between the dream of Bear, and an ADHDer. Andrews says that Bear reminds us to walk the path of silence, “calming the internal chatter.” And if someone with ADHD doesn’t have to do that, I don’t know who does!

Andrews reminds us that Bears go through periods where they are reclusive, hibernating in caves.  Many ADHDers too, move from periods of high productivity, to quiet, “down times,” when they recharge their batteries until their creative juices flow again.

Similarly, a mother bear will give birth during heavy sleep, emerging with the Cubs in the spring.

According to Andrews, if Bear is your totem,

“During these times [of introspection], you will be able to go within yourself and even give birth to two or three ideas or projects.”

Just two or three?!  We ADHDers know keeping it to only two or three is a feat in itself. Thus the beauty of coaching: I’m called upon to choose one – and only one – goal to work on (but I am applying my goal of better organization to a number of discreet writing projects, with a step-by-step game plan for each one on a daily, weekly, and monthly schedule).

I’m taking this dream personally…

It surprised me to learn that Bear is also associated with the Goddess Diana, Goddess of the Moon. My birth name is Diana. She is also known as Artemis, the Archer. So, hell, if I can’t set goals and hit my targets, who can?! I take this as a positive sign.

…and you should, too, if you’re a hyperactive ADHDer!

Andrews describes both adult bears and young cubs as playful.  We’ve already talked about our spontaneous joy in a previous blog post, and many of you wrote in to tell me about your fun-loving, playful spirit.

As “excessive climbing of trees,” is one of the diagnostics for ADHD children, it should come as no surprise when Andrews writes:

“Anyone with a bear totem should keep the cub in themselves alive and occasionally climb trees – if only to get a clear perspective.”

Done! Yes, at age 51, I still climb trees. And I know some of you do, too!

Sams and Carson conclude,

“In choosing Bear, the power of knowing has invited you to enter the silence and become acquainted with the Dream Lodge, so that your goals may become concrete realities.”

Woh!

An invitation

I would invite YOU to consider Bear as your totem as you travel along the path of self-coaching and goal-setting with me. May we be rewarded with honey to add to the sweetness of our lives!

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    Last reviewed: 1 Sep 2010