Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Exercises I Find the Most Beneficial For Me
The two exercises I find to be the most beneficial are: Visualization and The Subtle Mind. The visualization exercise was a great way for me to re-experience times in my past when I have felt the most connected, whole and peaceful. Just visualizing being outdoors in the sunshine on a hike is enough to put me in a more relaxed and peaceful state. I have been trying to do this even when I am driving in traffic or waiting in a long line to minimize my stress and "forget" where I am for a few minutes.
The Subtle Mind practice is something I try to do right when I wake up or sometimes before bed. I just have to be careful I am not too sleepy before bedtime while doing it, or I tend to fall asleep! This is a wonderful practice that clears my mind of mental chatter and makes me feel more relaxed and peaceful too. I do find that some days are harder than others to slow the chatter in my mind, but for the most part I am pretty successful with it.
Both of these exercises are ones I try to accomplish on a daily basis even if it is just for 5 or 10 minutes at a time.
The Subtle Mind practice is something I try to do right when I wake up or sometimes before bed. I just have to be careful I am not too sleepy before bedtime while doing it, or I tend to fall asleep! This is a wonderful practice that clears my mind of mental chatter and makes me feel more relaxed and peaceful too. I do find that some days are harder than others to slow the chatter in my mind, but for the most part I am pretty successful with it.
Both of these exercises are ones I try to accomplish on a daily basis even if it is just for 5 or 10 minutes at a time.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Unit 7 Guided Exercise
Hello everyone,
I found the guided exercise "Meeting Aesclepius", to be relaxing, but it was actually harder for me to follow than the other practices I have done. The visualization part was easy for me, but for some reason, I was not able to stay focused as usual.
Meditation has most definately fostered an increase in my spiritual wellness over the last several weeks through my use of the subtle mind and loving kindness practices, I have noticed a difference in myself; a calm and almost more sure of myself for some reason. Even though I only meditate for 10 to 15 minutes per day, it has made the world of difference for me.
Mindfullness is another practice I try to use each day whenever possible. It is a lot harder than it sounds for sure. Anytime I catch my mind getting ahead of the moment, I try to remind myself that this is the only moment that counts and being fully in the present moment is all that matters. This has also made a big difference in my psychological and spiritual health.
Have a good night!
I found the guided exercise "Meeting Aesclepius", to be relaxing, but it was actually harder for me to follow than the other practices I have done. The visualization part was easy for me, but for some reason, I was not able to stay focused as usual.
Meditation has most definately fostered an increase in my spiritual wellness over the last several weeks through my use of the subtle mind and loving kindness practices, I have noticed a difference in myself; a calm and almost more sure of myself for some reason. Even though I only meditate for 10 to 15 minutes per day, it has made the world of difference for me.
Mindfullness is another practice I try to use each day whenever possible. It is a lot harder than it sounds for sure. Anytime I catch my mind getting ahead of the moment, I try to remind myself that this is the only moment that counts and being fully in the present moment is all that matters. This has also made a big difference in my psychological and spiritual health.
Have a good night!
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Universal Loving Kindness and Personal Assessment
Hi everyone!
After performing the Universal Loving Kindness Practice, I thought about where I needed to develop more according to my own personal assessment. There were many areas of course; but the one that really stood out to me was the Worldly aspect of my life. I really want to find ways to reach out to others in my own community, especially, and in ways that I have not done so before. I feel as if I have been neglecting this area by only being involved in my own immediate family's needs and not reaching out beyond this point. In order to foster greater wellness in this area, I hope to volunteer more time to my daughter's school and perhaps start to volunteer my time at our local women' shelter which is just down the street from our home. There are so many ways to develop this area in my life and I feel as if just thinking about reaching out and feeling more connected to my own community has created a new change inside of me. It is definately a start! Have a great night everyone:)
After performing the Universal Loving Kindness Practice, I thought about where I needed to develop more according to my own personal assessment. There were many areas of course; but the one that really stood out to me was the Worldly aspect of my life. I really want to find ways to reach out to others in my own community, especially, and in ways that I have not done so before. I feel as if I have been neglecting this area by only being involved in my own immediate family's needs and not reaching out beyond this point. In order to foster greater wellness in this area, I hope to volunteer more time to my daughter's school and perhaps start to volunteer my time at our local women' shelter which is just down the street from our home. There are so many ways to develop this area in my life and I feel as if just thinking about reaching out and feeling more connected to my own community has created a new change inside of me. It is definately a start! Have a great night everyone:)
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Monday, February 7, 2011
Subtle Mind Exercise Versus Loving Kindness Exercise
Hi everyone!
Using the Subtle Mind exercise was very relaxing for me as was the Loving Kindness Exercise, only the main difference was that the Subtle Mind exercise was more focused on breathing and stillness of my mind. The Loving Kindness exercise is wonderful in that the focus is on gratitude and love for others which is so powerful because the more I project this love outward, the more kindness and love I feel in my own heart.
The Subtle Mind is also great because it forces your mind to slow down the unnecessary activity and be more at peace. I actually fell asleep doing this one a few nights ago; therefore I was very much at peace! I think I will try this practice in the morning next time to avoid sleepiness.
I believe having spiritual wellness is very crucial to physical health, being the more inner peace and happiness we experience, the more we are relaxed and stress-free we are; we all know the harmful effects of stress, so anything to diminish stress is very important physically and mentally.
Have a great evening!!
Using the Subtle Mind exercise was very relaxing for me as was the Loving Kindness Exercise, only the main difference was that the Subtle Mind exercise was more focused on breathing and stillness of my mind. The Loving Kindness exercise is wonderful in that the focus is on gratitude and love for others which is so powerful because the more I project this love outward, the more kindness and love I feel in my own heart.
The Subtle Mind is also great because it forces your mind to slow down the unnecessary activity and be more at peace. I actually fell asleep doing this one a few nights ago; therefore I was very much at peace! I think I will try this practice in the morning next time to avoid sleepiness.
I believe having spiritual wellness is very crucial to physical health, being the more inner peace and happiness we experience, the more we are relaxed and stress-free we are; we all know the harmful effects of stress, so anything to diminish stress is very important physically and mentally.
Have a great evening!!
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
"The Crime of The Century" Activity
"The Crime of The Century" relaxation activity was exactly that for me; very relaxing! I enjoyed the visualization of the different colors in relation to different areas of the body in conjuction with deep breathing. I find any type of deep breathing exercises really relax me no matter what. At the end I was almost able to fall asleep! Have a great night:)
Reflection Time!
I just enjoyed the most sweet tasting orange for a snack! While this may seem silly, something about eating an orange is so pleasurable to me. Maybe it is because all of the work involved in peeling it, it sort of makes you slow down and actually enjoy it. It had the most wonderful, sweet smell while I was peeling it and it reminds me of a sunny summer day for some reason, which is my favorite season. Plus, it is a healthy food which makes it even better. Anyway, not to bore anyone, I just wanted to share my orange experience!
If I were to reflect on my physical health on a scale of 1 to 10, I would give myself a 9. I love to eat as healthy as possible; I pretty much try to stay away from anything that comes in a box from the pantry or anything processed. I love fresh fruits and veggies. I also really enjoy running at least five days per week and I always try to do at least 4 miles each session. The more I run, the more fantastic I feel! I do not have any serious illnesses or such so I consider myself in pretty good working order. I will give my score a 10 when I can complete a marathon! LOL No really, my goal this year is to complete a half-marathon. This would make me really excited. Maybe next year I will shoot for the 26.2.
If I were to grade myself on my spiritual health right now, I would give myself a 7. I am definately trying to become stronger in this aspect of my life right now. Until recently, I thought that as long as my physical health and emotional health were in good shape, I would be complete; yet I have learned that something was still missing. I have always believed in God, and I even pray from time to time, but lately I am finding even more peace by following the ideas of buddhism. I am now trying to practice "being in the moment" more as well as allowing more time for self-reflection, self-love and gratitude for all of the important "things" in my life. I try to give more time and effort for those people in my life who are special and meaningful to me. I hope in time I will be better and better in this area. I just started meditation practice each day and so far it has really been a positive experience for me. My goal this year is to begin yoga classes. Not so much for the physical rewards but mostly for the spiritual aspect of it.
I would probably give myself an 8 as a score for my psychological health. I feel like I have a pretty good head on my shoulders and don't get me wrong, I do have sad moments from time to time, but usually I have a pretty good grip on my emotions overall. I like to blame "my time of the month" for any crazy days I may have and my hubby knows to "be careful" around me on those days which are few and far between. Hey, I am entitled to be crazy once in awhile without any reason! I would like to be less of softy when it comes to sad stories or even sad commercials; any commercial or movie that is remotely sad makes me tear up and my husband loves to laugh at me for it. Any sad story involving children or animals breaks me down, and I need to toughen up a little in this department for sure. My goal this year is to not be such a "baby". This is going to be a hard one!
Have a great evening everyone! Beth
If I were to reflect on my physical health on a scale of 1 to 10, I would give myself a 9. I love to eat as healthy as possible; I pretty much try to stay away from anything that comes in a box from the pantry or anything processed. I love fresh fruits and veggies. I also really enjoy running at least five days per week and I always try to do at least 4 miles each session. The more I run, the more fantastic I feel! I do not have any serious illnesses or such so I consider myself in pretty good working order. I will give my score a 10 when I can complete a marathon! LOL No really, my goal this year is to complete a half-marathon. This would make me really excited. Maybe next year I will shoot for the 26.2.
If I were to grade myself on my spiritual health right now, I would give myself a 7. I am definately trying to become stronger in this aspect of my life right now. Until recently, I thought that as long as my physical health and emotional health were in good shape, I would be complete; yet I have learned that something was still missing. I have always believed in God, and I even pray from time to time, but lately I am finding even more peace by following the ideas of buddhism. I am now trying to practice "being in the moment" more as well as allowing more time for self-reflection, self-love and gratitude for all of the important "things" in my life. I try to give more time and effort for those people in my life who are special and meaningful to me. I hope in time I will be better and better in this area. I just started meditation practice each day and so far it has really been a positive experience for me. My goal this year is to begin yoga classes. Not so much for the physical rewards but mostly for the spiritual aspect of it.
I would probably give myself an 8 as a score for my psychological health. I feel like I have a pretty good head on my shoulders and don't get me wrong, I do have sad moments from time to time, but usually I have a pretty good grip on my emotions overall. I like to blame "my time of the month" for any crazy days I may have and my hubby knows to "be careful" around me on those days which are few and far between. Hey, I am entitled to be crazy once in awhile without any reason! I would like to be less of softy when it comes to sad stories or even sad commercials; any commercial or movie that is remotely sad makes me tear up and my husband loves to laugh at me for it. Any sad story involving children or animals breaks me down, and I need to toughen up a little in this department for sure. My goal this year is to not be such a "baby". This is going to be a hard one!
Have a great evening everyone! Beth
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Relaxation Exercise
I just completed the relaxation exercise and it is pretty amazing to me how our mind can suggest something such as directing blood to a certain body part and it actually feels warmer and heavier! This is just another way in which I believe just how powerful our minds can be. The speaker's voice was so relaxing and I like how relaxed yet revitalized I felt after this exercise was over. I will be using this again in the near future!
Relaxation and Peace!
This is my very first time posting a blog so please bear with me and I hope I do not bore anyone! I do want share just how much I have enjoyed a new sense of relaxation and better sleep these last few weeks since starting basic meditation exercises in the late-afternoons while my kids are asleep. I haven't slept better in years and I really feel a general calmness lately that I haven't experienced before. My only regret is not having started this earlier. Today was also that much more wonderful because the sun actually came out for the entire day, which it hasn't done in over a week here. Being outside in the sunshine is something I love to do, and any chance I get, the kids and I go outside to play. My spirits are even higher today with this glorious sunshine!
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