<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	>

<channel>
	<title>Ramblings of a MadWoman &#187; Taunted &amp; Tortured</title>
	<atom:link href="http://madwomanramblings.com/category/taunted-and-tortured/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://madwomanramblings.com</link>
	<description></description>
	<lastBuildDate>Thu, 29 Mar 2012 23:58:27 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<generator>http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1</generator>
	<language>en</language>
	<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
	<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
			<item>
		<title>Self Doubt</title>
		<link>http://madwomanramblings.com/2012/02/29/self-doubt/</link>
		<comments>http://madwomanramblings.com/2012/02/29/self-doubt/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 29 Feb 2012 02:19:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Taunted & Tortured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://madwomanramblings.com/?p=320</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Self doubt continues to creep inReleasing the icy tentacles of trepidationMomentarily …They grip my heartAware …I breathe &#38; countKnowing the moment will passAnd I can choose Yes chooseTo feel Another feelingChoose to think A different thought!
It takes persistenceAnd practiceBut I choose to retrain my brainTo modify associationsDefault patternsThat plunge me into darknessEvery timeMy mind trips [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<div mce_tmp="1">Self doubt continues to creep in<br />Releasing the icy tentacles of trepidation<br />Momentarily …<br />They grip my heart<br />Aware …<br />I breathe &amp; count<br />Knowing the moment will pass<br />And I can choose <br />Yes choose<br />To feel <br />Another feeling<br />Choose to think <br />A different thought!</div>
<div mce_tmp="1">It takes persistence<br />And practice<br />But I choose to retrain my brain<br />To modify associations<br />Default patterns<br />That plunge me into darkness<br />Every time<br />My mind trips the switch<br />I flick it back<br />Like ABC …<br />Aware <br />Breath<br />Choose<br />I don’t care <br />How many times a day<br />I will continue to do so<br />Until such time <br />That it is permanently hardwired</div>
<div mce_tmp="1">&nbsp;</div>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://madwomanramblings.com/2012/02/29/self-doubt/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Stunted</title>
		<link>http://madwomanramblings.com/2010/12/08/stunted/</link>
		<comments>http://madwomanramblings.com/2010/12/08/stunted/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 07 Dec 2010 19:42:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Taunted & Tortured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://madwomanramblings.com/?p=286</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Bitten nails
Nibbled &#38; gnawed
Never stepping
Over the edge
No growth allowed
Ripped off
In the prime of life
Never knowing
Their full potential
Stunted!
They can do no harm
To another
Only painful
To me
]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Bitten nails<br />
Nibbled &amp; gnawed<br />
Never stepping<br />
Over the edge<br />
No growth allowed<br />
Ripped off<br />
In the prime of life<br />
Never knowing<br />
Their full potential<br />
Stunted!<br />
They can do no harm<br />
To another<br />
Only painful<br />
To me</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://madwomanramblings.com/2010/12/08/stunted/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Rampant Imagination</title>
		<link>http://madwomanramblings.com/2010/05/07/rampant-imagination/</link>
		<comments>http://madwomanramblings.com/2010/05/07/rampant-imagination/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 07 May 2010 06:30:02 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Taunted & Tortured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://madwomanramblings.com/?p=246</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Vivid imagination
Is natural to us all
As serious, purposeful, intellectual adults
We tend to shut this side down
Unbeknown to us
Our imagination lives on
Often running rampant
But not in the form we expect
Visions, dreams, opportunities etc
But in the form of anxieties &#38; fears
We think the worst
Worry ourselves silly
The virtual illusion
Grows &#38; grows
If left unthwarted
It can take over our minds
Running [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Vivid imagination<br />
Is natural to us all<br />
As serious, purposeful, intellectual adults<br />
We tend to shut this side down<br />
Unbeknown to us<br />
Our imagination lives on<br />
Often running rampant<br />
But not in the form we expect<br />
Visions, dreams, opportunities etc<br />
But in the form of anxieties &amp; fears<br />
We think the worst<br />
Worry ourselves silly<br />
The virtual illusion<br />
Grows &amp; grows<br />
If left unthwarted<br />
It can take over our minds<br />
Running us this way &amp; that</p>
<p>Our imagination<br />
Can also present its self<br />
As idealisms, perfection &amp; fantasy<br />
Again we invest<br />
Significant time &amp; effort<br />
So much so &#8230;<br />
They become our reality<br />
Our benchmark<br />
So when we look at our lives<br />
Our day to day<br />
Doesn’t stack up<br />
We fall short of our idealism<br />
As we start to feel sad &amp; blue<br />
The gap widens<br />
Spiralling us down<br />
If left unquestioned<br />
We become depressed<br />
Longing for what is not!<br />
Never was &amp; never will be!<br />
The time &amp; effort<br />
We have invested<br />
In creating this form of reality<br />
The time &amp; effort<br />
We have spent<br />
Collecting evidence<br />
So we can continue<br />
To believe this reality<br />
Works in favour of our egos<br />
We refuse to believe there<br />
Could be a straight forward solution<br />
How would we feel about ourselves<br />
If the truth be known<br />
That our own misery<br />
Was created by us<br />
It takes a lot of guts<br />
To see this<br />
It takes a lot of nerve<br />
To own this<br />
It takes strength<br />
To embrace this responsibility<br />
Cause when we do<br />
We are compelled<br />
To move ourselves forward &amp; thru<br />
Yes &#8230; we must take responsibility<br />
For that too<br />
And yes &#8230; we do survive<br />
Stronger than before<br />
(Thanks ONJ)<br />
We all have capability to do this<br />
You just need to choose to<br />
The rest will come</p>
<p>You don’t have to do it alone<br />
It takes courage to move down this path<br />
So you don’t have to be brave<br />
And go solo<br />
Find a wing man or woman<br />
There are so many people<br />
Who want to help<br />
There are so many people<br />
Who understand<br />
You just need to want to help &amp; understand you<br />
Cause that is the starting point<br />
All else will fall into place.<br />
So go ahead<br />
Ask for help today.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://madwomanramblings.com/2010/05/07/rampant-imagination/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Swirling Emotions</title>
		<link>http://madwomanramblings.com/2010/03/15/swirling-emotions/</link>
		<comments>http://madwomanramblings.com/2010/03/15/swirling-emotions/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Mar 2010 04:28:07 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Taunted & Tortured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://madwomanramblings.com/?p=238</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It’s been a while
Since I’ve wandered this space
A gush of emotion
Welling up inside
Flooding my being
Swirling emotions
Cascading
Through me
Around me
They all
Surround me
I lose my bearings
Am I up?
Am I down?
I can’t really see
What’s all around me
Not sure
If I feel
Sad
Mad
Or bad
No matter
They are only temporary dwellings
A stop over
On my way through!
]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>It’s been a while<br />
Since I’ve wandered this space<br />
A gush of emotion<br />
Welling up inside<br />
Flooding my being</p>
<p>Swirling emotions<br />
Cascading<br />
Through me<br />
Around me<br />
They all<br />
Surround me</p>
<p>I lose my bearings<br />
Am I up?<br />
Am I down?<br />
I can’t really see<br />
What’s all around me</p>
<p>Not sure<br />
If I feel<br />
Sad<br />
Mad<br />
Or bad</p>
<p>No matter<br />
They are only temporary dwellings<br />
A stop over<br />
On my way through!</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://madwomanramblings.com/2010/03/15/swirling-emotions/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Lost Souls</title>
		<link>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/12/10/lost-souls/</link>
		<comments>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/12/10/lost-souls/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 10 Dec 2009 03:45:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Taunted & Tortured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://madwomanramblings.com/?p=215</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Lost souls
Never found
Eternally searching
Taunted
Tortured
Their lives
They take
Wanting release
Seeking redemption
Never to be found
Outside of them
When will they see
Deep within thee
Lies the answer
The solution &#8230;
Their own beauty
Feeling cursed
They cannot see
Awake I say
You are blind no more
For within you
Lives a light so bright
More beautiful than the divine
Do not extinguish
In your haste
Instead
Seek the light of another
To help you shine
Alone
Or together
It [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Lost souls<br />
Never found<br />
Eternally searching<br />
Taunted<br />
Tortured<br />
Their lives<br />
They take<br />
Wanting release<br />
Seeking redemption<br />
Never to be found<br />
Outside of them</p>
<p>When will they see<br />
Deep within thee<br />
Lies the answer<br />
The solution &#8230;<br />
Their own beauty<br />
Feeling cursed<br />
They cannot see</p>
<p>Awake I say<br />
You are blind no more<br />
For within you<br />
Lives a light so bright<br />
More beautiful than the divine<br />
Do not extinguish<br />
In your haste<br />
Instead<br />
Seek the light of another<br />
To help you shine<br />
Alone<br />
Or together<br />
It does not matter<br />
For love<br />
Need not be seen<br />
It needs &#8230;<br />
Only to be felt!</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/12/10/lost-souls/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Stepping Outside the Shadow</title>
		<link>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/10/stepping-outside-the-shadow/</link>
		<comments>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/10/stepping-outside-the-shadow/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 10 Aug 2009 07:01:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Taunted & Tortured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://madwomanramblings.com/?p=109</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Sometimes we feel so alone with our struggles
Even though we are surrounded by people who dearly love us!
Lost souls within the crowd!
Disconnected from our own love
We are unable to experience true unconditional love
Barren, heartless, empty &#38; numb
It’s a dark old place that we know all to well!
At times I don’t feel like it’s the real [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Sometimes we feel so alone with our struggles<br />
Even though we are surrounded by people who dearly love us!<br />
Lost souls within the crowd!<br />
Disconnected from our own love<br />
We are unable to experience true unconditional love<br />
Barren, heartless, empty &amp; numb<br />
It’s a dark old place that we know all to well!</p>
<p>At times I don’t feel like it’s the real me<br />
As though I am another being<br />
Totally unaware of the power I have at my finger tips<br />
Someone who persists in torturing themselves<br />
Rather than simply flicking the switch &amp; changing states!</p>
<p>Why do we continue to allow ourselves to suffer?<br />
Why is this our preferred choice?<br />
Do we know no better?<br />
Or do we believe this is our lot in life?<br />
One we cannot change!</p>
<p>Have we been completely brain washed by religious ideals?<br />
No longer relevant to our modernized lives<br />
Will we continue to perish in doom &amp; gloom?<br />
Branded as sinners<br />
Living a life long term of penance!</p>
<p>How sad that mankind continues to live in darkness<br />
Not wanting to step outside the shadow of the almighty being<br />
And claim the power that is theirs alone to share!</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/10/stepping-outside-the-shadow/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>A New Life Is Born</title>
		<link>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/10/a-new-life-is-born/</link>
		<comments>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/10/a-new-life-is-born/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 10 Aug 2009 06:38:26 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Taunted & Tortured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://madwomanramblings.com/?p=104</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A barrage of thoughts
Bombards my brain
Peace &#38; harmony
Erodes before my eyes
The niggling voice within
Raises its ugly head
Who are you to dream so big?
What makes you so special?
Why should I have luck?
Life wasn’t meant to be easy!
For many a week I have soldiered on
Struggling with a tirade of emotions &#38; thoughts
Wondering why it has to be [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>A barrage of thoughts<br />
Bombards my brain<br />
Peace &amp; harmony<br />
Erodes before my eyes<br />
The niggling voice within<br />
Raises its ugly head</p>
<p>Who are you to dream so big?<br />
What makes you so special?<br />
Why should I have luck?<br />
Life wasn’t meant to be easy!</p>
<p>For many a week I have soldiered on<br />
Struggling with a tirade of emotions &amp; thoughts<br />
Wondering why it has to be such a battle!<br />
So much effort for so little return<br />
Why do I make it so?</p>
<p>More ducking &amp; diving as I search my soul<br />
To understand my true life’s purpose<br />
To focus the gifts I have<br />
To realise the potential within</p>
<p>Like a caged animal<br />
It paces<br />
It’s restless<br />
It’s relentless<br />
It pounds the bounds of my heart</p>
<p>Free me please free me<br />
Such urgency like never before<br />
A sense of life or death<br />
Be free … wild abandonment<br />
As humanly possible<br />
There is no tomorrow<br />
If you continue as before!</p>
<p>The way is clear<br />
You know what you must do<br />
To break the bonds<br />
That tie you down</p>
<p>A sense of longing &amp; trepidation co-exits<br />
Tightness &amp; lightness<br />
Knowing what’s ahead<br />
Determination is what fuels me now<br />
It gives me the courage<br />
To breakthrough when its time</p>
<p>The rewards are boundless<br />
Pure joy awaits me<br />
Teasing me forward<br />
Propelling me<br />
To a place unknown</p>
<p>My baptism of fire<br />
My phoenix rising<br />
My crucible<br />
It all awaits<br />
And with it …<br />
New life is born!</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/10/a-new-life-is-born/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Gnarly &amp; Narky</title>
		<link>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/06/gnarly-narky/</link>
		<comments>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/06/gnarly-narky/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 06 Aug 2009 06:28:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Taunted & Tortured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://madwomanramblings.com/?p=82</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Not feeling very happy with myself today
Full of self hate &#38; pity
The dark side wells deep within me
Wanting to spit fire and venom at anyone near me
Grievous bodily harm to anyone who even looks my way!
Attack … attack
Pick … pick … pick
Nasty ugly barbs bubble below the surface
Hidden behind a mild disdain for life in [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Not feeling very happy with myself today<br />
Full of self hate &amp; pity<br />
The dark side wells deep within me<br />
Wanting to spit fire and venom at anyone near me<br />
Grievous bodily harm to anyone who even looks my way!<br />
Attack … attack<br />
Pick … pick … pick</p>
<p>Nasty ugly barbs bubble below the surface<br />
Hidden behind a mild disdain for life in general<br />
Not wanting to be helped<br />
I sit stewing and simmering like a warm winter’s casserole</p>
<p>Yes … I too stick &amp; burn<br />
And sometimes it takes great effort<br />
To clean the remnants<br />
Hardened black ugly goo<br />
That tends to resist the toughest of scourers<br />
In fact …<br />
That’s what I feel like<br />
A scourer …<br />
Rough and abrasive<br />
And if you scrub too hard<br />
You end up gnarly &amp; out of shape<br />
Caught up with ugly scraps<br />
From the many feeding frenzies of the day!!</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/06/gnarly-narky/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Empty Vessel</title>
		<link>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/06/empty-vessel/</link>
		<comments>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/06/empty-vessel/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 06 Aug 2009 06:24:44 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Taunted & Tortured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://madwomanramblings.com/?p=80</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Unfeeling
Devoid of all emotion
Robotic in my action
Serious in my look
Striving
Driving
I’m living my life
Successfully
So I think!
I do the right things
I have all the symbols of success
Yet I am an empty vessel
Devoid of feeling
Disconnected
I act in spite of my emotions
Poker faced
No one knows what’s bubbling beneath the surface
A cauldron of discontent!
]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Unfeeling<br />
Devoid of all emotion<br />
Robotic in my action<br />
Serious in my look<br />
Striving<br />
Driving<br />
I’m living my life<br />
Successfully<br />
So I think!<br />
I do the right things<br />
I have all the symbols of success<br />
Yet I am an empty vessel<br />
Devoid of feeling<br />
Disconnected<br />
I act in spite of my emotions<br />
Poker faced<br />
No one knows what’s bubbling beneath the surface<br />
A cauldron of discontent!</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/06/empty-vessel/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Battle Weary</title>
		<link>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/06/battle-weary/</link>
		<comments>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/06/battle-weary/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 06 Aug 2009 06:01:04 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Taunted & Tortured]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://madwomanramblings.com/?p=64</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Silent aggression invades me
Poisoning my head
Torturing my emotions
My body bears the signs of battle …
… hardened mouth
… blaring eyes
… snarling lips
… nostrils flaring
… shoulders up around my ears
Every part of me tight &#38; weary
Eyes cast down
Hiding the turmoil within
Too ugly for the eyes of loved ones
I become reclusive or
Put on a brave face
I plod thru [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Silent aggression invades me<br />
Poisoning my head<br />
Torturing my emotions<br />
My body bears the signs of battle …<br />
… hardened mouth<br />
… blaring eyes<br />
… snarling lips<br />
… nostrils flaring<br />
… shoulders up around my ears<br />
Every part of me tight &amp; weary<br />
Eyes cast down<br />
Hiding the turmoil within<br />
Too ugly for the eyes of loved ones<br />
I become reclusive or<br />
Put on a brave face<br />
I plod thru the day<br />
Hoping … willing … wanting<br />
Tomorrow to be different<br />
But will it?<br />
Only I hold the key to freedom!<br />
Will I choose to stay a victim of my own misery?<br />
Yes … I know better<br />
But instead I choose the road of self torture!<br />
Why?<br />
I have no idea!<br />
But I know inside I do<br />
I am kidding myself!<br />
So what stops me from admitting or acknowledging?<br />
Why do I choose to make it more difficult for myself?<br />
As though I am trying to create my own failures<br />
So I can rise successfully from the battle?<br />
My achievement all that greater<br />
Or perhaps I am addicted to drama<br />
Or do I just want to create a story for myself!!!<br />
One of toil, pain &amp; gain<br />
Or perhaps I am just programmed for pain!!!<br />
Either way … I do it well<br />
The self torture … that is<br />
I feel like I have done a masters degree<br />
Graduated with honors<br />
A skill for life<br />
God no!!!!!<br />
If only I put the same amount of energy &amp; effort<br />
Into moving forward as I did with staying stuck!!!<br />
I’d be light years ahead!!!<br />
Instead I am like a cauldron of oil<br />
Smoldering &amp; smoking<br />
Waiting for the slightest opportunity<br />
Where I can boil to a crisp<br />
Rendering myself tainted &amp; unusable<br />
It’s as though I want to spoil my own goods<br />
Thwarting all opportunities!<br />
And you know what?<br />
I cannot help myself<br />
I stew &amp; simmer automatically<br />
As though I am pre programmed<br />
Perhaps I am!!!<br />
Why do I hold myself back?<br />
Resisting the success I deserve?<br />
Why do I diminish my own self worth?<br />
I am worthy &amp; deserving<br />
Regardless of what any priest says!!!<br />
“Lord I am not worthy &amp; deserving …<br />
But only say the words &amp; I shall be healed”<br />
I feel cursed!<br />
Who has the right<br />
Divine or mortal<br />
To determine my worthiness<br />
Or what I deserve<br />
That power comes from within<br />
No wonder millions walk this earth believing they are victims<br />
They believe the power is outside of them!!<br />
If only they knew!!!</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://madwomanramblings.com/2009/08/06/battle-weary/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
	</channel>
</rss>

