I personally felt like I got more relaxation and clear minded following the Subtle Mind exercise. With the Loving Kindness exercise my thoughts kept having to shift from myself, to others, friends and strangers alike. So, I did not really feel like mind really had the opportunity to settle. I loved the experience of thinking of others in the context of taking in others problems, but not really taking them on by letting them dissolve.
With the subtle mind exercise I was able to just completely let go, set my mind free, relax to a point that I felt like I could even go past the witnessing mind for a little bit. The one thought I had to consider was that I did go over time on my lunch break. As it came closer to stop I felt more distracted to the point that I could not regain that level of deep relaxation that I had felt before hand.
There are many connections to physical wellness through spiritual wellness. One major one for any religion is prayer, including contemplative prayer. That comes in the form of yoga, meditation. I pray better in a journaling sense. I have often felt that I do better with the written word than conveying my thoughts by voicing them aloud. Journaling is not always prayer time for me. Sometimes it is just a great release. Singing to me is a way of honoring my faith, especially when done in the church choir. Forgiveness is another important aspect of spiritual health. People always told me growing up that I forgave to easily. Nowadays it may not come as easily, especially when things happen repeatedly. During times when it has been more difficult I notice how overly stressed I become and how it affects all areas of my life, personal and professional. Being able to release it through counseling and communication with the one who wronged me has allowed me to return to return to a more healthful existence.
Unit 5
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed this exercise better then the first. The structure and the background seems to click within my brain. I have been able to spend some time with it and have been more relaxed over the weekend. Lets see if I can start to make this work during the week. K
Janet,
ReplyDeleteI also had an easier time with this exericse than the last. I hope that the next one is as refreshing as this week. I am still learning how to completely let go and let myself relax all the way to point of nothingness. I have never tried this types of exercises before this course, but I feel that I will continue to use them and hopefully someday soon feel the full effect of their power. I have a hard time clearing my mind of all the things I have going on that day. I hope it gets easier. Keep up the good work.
Stephanie
Hi Janet,
ReplyDeleteThere seems to be a consensus on the ease of this exercise, as compared to the loving-kindness exercise. It is quite different from other guided relaxation exercises I've done before. I think that I held on to that stake too tightly, which hindered my ability to experience true relaxation, but then I noticed that I also didn't grasp on to my "mental chatter". The breathing and the sounds of the waves had sent away those invading thoughts. I know that with much practice, I will truly understand what it is to have a silent and still mind.
I like your examples of the connection between the mind, body and spirit..especially praying and singing. I was part of a community choir for 10 years, and though we were not affiliated with a church (just a bunch of university students who wanted to break away from the university chorale), many of the pieces we performed were religious. I love the feeling of catharsis when we would perform pieces such as "O Magnum Mysterium" or "Ave Maria" close to perfection. These pieces helped me feel closer to God, thus promoting a sense of peacefulness within. Although I wish to experience it again, I certainly don't have the time to commit to another choir.
The subtle mind has a way to just make you forget about everything and release all the stress you were feeling. It may be my opinion, but by reading your post, I don’t think I am far off. It is too bad that you got distracted so you couldn’t regain the deep relaxation, but just know you can return there any time by just listening to the exercise again.
ReplyDeleteMy spiritual wellness has lacked lately. It has been a rough couple of weeks so I have neglected my own spiritual well-being. I have read a couple posts and they too have used journaling as a way to gain relief over stress. I was always journaling up until four years ago. I feel my journal is private and a safe place to spill all the bad out of my body no matter what it may be. I stopped journaling when my privacy was invaded by someone who had no right to read it. I want to be safe in my release so I have started thinking I need to get back to journaling, but use technology to my advantage. I can password protect my journal now. Do you feel the same way about your journal? Would you be upset if someone read your personal thoughts on life and stressful situations without your permission just to use the information against you?
Hi Janet,
ReplyDeleteI was able to connect more to the subtle mind exercise myself. It gave me the feeling of releasing stress and letting go of the things that bothered me during that day.The loving kindness exercise was more of a scattered way of thinking. Although I did understand the concept it was somewhat harder to change thoughts from one thing to the next. As it got closer to the end I found myself losing focus. As for you growing up forgiving people easily, I think that was good of you for being that way. I am the same way. I can't hold hard feeling towards someone too long. I'll never forget but I can forgive. Life is too short and I believe that it is for our health to let go and more on to positive thinking.
Lori
I agree that the universal loving kindness exercise was a good way of helping people without absorbing their problems. I like sending the positive vibes out to the universe because it helps me connect to everyone and everything, plus I believe that we get back just as much as we send so by opening my heart I also receive positive vibes in. I've always been told that I forgive too easily as well, but I don't think it's a negative trait. By forgiving, you're letting go of the emotional attachment of a situation, however, if you're walking away from a situation because you don't want conflict and not because you truly forgive, that can cause stress and strain.
ReplyDelete