A Mental Workout

The mental workout can be compared to the physical workout in the sense that in order to sculpt the body one must exercise the body so if one wishes to sculpt the mind one must exercise the mind.  An example of a mental workout is meditation.  Elliot S. Dacher, M.D. describes two exercises in his book Integral Health: The Path to Human Flourishing.  The first is a meditation on loving-kindness.  The second is a meditation on the subtle mind.  Loving-kindness allows us to heal ourselves and open our hearts to others.  The subtle mind helps us to reach witnessing, calm-abiding and unity consciousness which allow us to reach different levels of our minds.

These mental workouts should be included into our everyday lives in order to fully receive the benefits.  Just as in the physical workout, if we are to stop practicing our abilities may diminish.

 Dacher, E. M.D. (2006). Integral Health: The Path to Human Flourishing. Basic Health Publications Inc. Laguna Beach, CA

Guided Meditation: Take 3

I enjoyed participating in the Loving-Kindness meditation from Dacher’s, Integral Health.  I think because I am still a beginner with meditation I still have a bit of trouble with my mind wandering.  I try not to get too frustrated because I know that this is normal with beginners.  I try to just observe the thought and let it pass, refocusing on the meditation. 

The other part of this exercise I had a bit of trouble with was when we are supposed to breath in another’s pain while breathing out the loving kindness.  I find it hard to focus on the pain on the in breath and then so quickly switch to focusing on the loving kindness on the out breath.  Perhaps I am putting too much emphasis on trying to really visualize the emotions and need to be a bit more general.

Along with this I did feel like I was taking on too much of the negative energy and not necessarily feeling like it was being cleared by the loving-kindness.  My fix for this was to stop focusing on the pain and suffering for a moment and imagine the loving-kindness enveloping the pain and suffering of others.  This did help.

Overall, I do think it is beneficial.  I think any time you can send positive energy into the universe it is beneficial to you and to the universe.  I would recommend that everyone try meditation.  It can be refreshing and grounding as long as you start with patience and compassion towards yourself, otherwise it can just be frustrating.  .

Guided Meditation: Take 2

During the relaxation exercise, The Crime of the Centruy (click here), that was assigned this week, I felt relaxed at first but towards the end I actually felt a little anxious.  I receive Reiki treatments and have a bit of background with the chakras so I was able to connect with each energy paths as he described them.  I do feel a bit out of balance right now so I'm wondering if that is what brought up my anxiety towards the end. 

I've enjoyed the meditations both weeks.  I am grateful for all moments of peace and healing.  I did enjoy the first weeks better. 

A Self Assessment of Personal Well-Being:Physical, Spiritual and Psychological

1.        Based on your reflections, and on a scale of 1 to 10 (ten being optimal wellbeing), where do you rate your A-physical wellbeing, B-spiritual well-being, C-psychological well-being? Why?

A – I would rate my physical wellbeing at a 6 right now.  I was recently diagnosed with Lymes Disease.  Since then I’ve been having good days and bad but certainly haven’t been at 100% in at least 3 weeks.  I’m a massage therapist so my physical activity level with that is pretty high (limited since the Lymes) but I know I could do some more activity.  I used to go to yoga once a week and would love to become involved with that again.

B – My spiritual well-being, I would place at an 8 or 9.  In the past few years I have started doing some reading on Buddhism and have really connected with a lot of the thoughts.  It has set me on a path that allowed me to change some negative thought patterns.  By saying I am at an 8 or 9 I think it’s important to say that I don’t think I am near perfection or close to a finish line but merely that I am on the right path.  I don’t think anyone is ever finished growing; once certain goals are achieved new ones will be discovered.  I am excited about continuing on that path and seeing what else I can discover about myself and the world. 

C – I would rate my psychological well-being at a 7.  In the past I have suffered from depression and still currently suffer from situational anxiety.  As I stated before my discovery of Buddhism has allowed me to shift my thinking and given me tools in how to deal with depression if it tries to creep back in.  I still have some work to do with my anxiety but I am blessed to have a wonderful therapist who helps me explore the reasons for my anxiety when it acts up.  I think being aware, mindful and willing to explore my emotions has allowed me to heal and move further along on my path. 

2.        Develop a goal for yourself in each area (physical, spiritual, psychological).

A – My goal for physical well-being would be to get back into a yoga routine when I get a handle on the Lymes Disease.  (This will also help with my spiritual and psychological well-being as well!)

B – My goal for spiritual well-being would be to get more involved in the Buddhist culture.  Maybe look for a local meditation center.

C – My goal for psychological well-being is to start building my self-esteem by discouraging negative thoughts about myself and increasing positive thoughts.

3.        What activities or exercise can you implement in your life to assist in moving toward each goal?

A – YOGA!

B – Do reading to further my studies and also research on what local resources are available. 

C – Become more mindful of my thoughts and when a negative one comes up try to combat it with an honest positive thought about myself.  Remind myself that people worth having in my life will see the good things in me and those that can’t see the good aren’t worth having in my life. 

A look into guided meditation

I've done a few guided meditations before and I actually really enjoy them.  I've dabbled in meditation here and there and find if I am consistent with the practice it is very beneficial.  Unfortunately, I'm not very good at being consistent.  After visiting the Journey On Relaxation link (click here), I felt centered and relaxed.  My experience followed along with the guide pretty well.  I even took it a step further and had the blood flow through my legs as well!  I felt a bit unbalanced and couldn't leave my legs out!!  Since I have become a massage therapist I have become more in tune with my body than I was before.  I'm not sure that I would have been as receptive to a guided meditation before than.  I think the mind is a powerful tool and I am enjoying getting to know mine better each day!

Welcome

Welcome to my very first blog!

My name is Jillian.  First, I am a mother of a beautiful little girl.  She is 100% toddler and testing me in every way possible!  It's so fun watching her learn, explore and experience the world.  I am a licensed massage therapist, I practice reflexology and I am a health and wellness student at Kaplan University.  This blog is about creating wellness and if life has taught me anything it is that wellness is a choice.  We may not get to choose everything that life hands us but we do get to choose how we handle what life has given us.  It's not always easy but most of the time if you look into the chaos you can find a simple solution.