My Two Favorite...

If I had to choose just two practices that I have learned, they would have to be Loving-Kindness and meditation. The Loving-Kindness practice taught me how to be more patient, kind, and less judgmental. It has helped me in tempering the occasional quick attitude.  I have found many ways to implement this practice on a daily basis. One of my biggest complaints about others I interact with usually happens on the road. There are so many inconsiderate people around me and they don’t know how to drive, that was my typical attitude before beginning the practice. I have geared my energy the other way. Instead of the negativity, I just imagine them as myself and they are just trying to get home to their families just as I am, and think about how bad their day could have been. Maybe they got let go from work, maybe they received bad news from home. I have even begun re-routing my path home to avoid the stress, and see others in a more positive way. As people continue to challenge me, I will find ways to turn it into a positive and challenge my minds to find more creative ways to cope.

Meditation has been incredibly helpful; it helps to quiet my mind and spirit at the end of the day. It has given me the time I need to cleanse the worries of the day, become relaxed enough to sleep through the night, and wake up feeling refreshed in the morning. By adding another session in the morning and eventually during the busy day, I can find that stress is so low, it is not readily apparent. I can learn new meditation practices to ensure a well-rounded program. It can help me continue to flourish in my journey to health, happiness, and wholeness.

Warm Regards,

Jenn

Meeting Aesclepius

I spent about four days this week on meditative practice. I have come along, but not as far as I would have hoped. I feel as though I have gained mindfulness through the experience, and am less apt to react in certain situations. It can still be difficult to quiet the mind, especially after coming off of vacation and getting back to work. It has given me strength to foster stress relief in other ways, which was one of my goals initially. Taking the time to continue my meditative practice will only be beneficial to me, and as long as I make the time to spend in my mind daily, my mindfulness can only continue to grow.

“One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself”. This statement relates to the experience of a situation, not the knowledge. One can learn about something but not truly teach it until they themselves have been a part of it. This can apply to those in the health profession of integral health as having a full understanding of the subject will allow one to assist others. I know I have a difficult time relating to something enough to teach it if I have not been on the journey. By continuing to make psychological and spiritual growth a priority in my life, I will be better able to provide the client with tools they need as well as how to use them. Fitting it into the schedule will be my challenge.

Warm Regards,
Jenn

Loving Kindness and an Integral Assessment: A Personal Side

We were instructed to perform two exercises. One in Loving-Kindness, where we were to repeat four mantras for ten minutes. The other exercise consisted of our personal Integral Assessment, where we are to assess our levels of the four quadrant model and where we can better ourselves in a specific one. This is taken from Elliot Dacher's Integral Health: The Path to Human Flourishing (2006), p. 93 & 115.

The Loving Kindness exercise, repeating of mantras, was difficult at first. I am still hard at work trying to calm my busy mind, so to repeat the same four phrases was very difficult. After about five minutes, I was able to calm my mind enough to repeat them, and within 10 minutes I could say them with spirit. I understand more now how I need to focus on my quick, negative temperament, as well as judgment of others. Some of the focus can be placed on finding ways to help others in this area, instead of being quick to think they do not wish to help themselves as a way of laziness. Maybe they have personal roadblocks they need help getting through, and I need to work on patience to assist them.

I believe in the integral assessment I struggle with the worldly aspect. I have seen so many people playing the victim, being ignorant, or raising their children to be entitled (by always giving their children everything, and not making them be responsible which helps them understand the importance of what they are receiving). Much of this is judgmental, I am sure, but some of it I have seen first-hand. I have chosen to not have children because of the world issues we have created. I always hear that we should leave our children with a great planet (ie, recycle), but we should also think about leaving great children to the planet. I have many people tell me I need to have children to understand and be able to make that impact I wish to see, but I think I can begin with my nieces and nephews. I could volunteer at a local club for youth and make an impact on children who understand the meaning of “valuables”.

I want to make a disclosure statement, as I know some of the things I have written here may be offensive. By no means do I see all children and parents as bad, wrong, disrespectful, etc. It is not my intention to upset anyone, and I see many parents doing a wonderful job in the raising of their children. Also being in the military is another very big reason for not having children, as I would not be able to handle being away from them for so long!

Warm Regards,
Jenn

Mental Fitness Presentation

Mental Fitness Presentation

The Connection Between The Spiritual Wellness to Mental and Physical Wellness

Spiritual wellness is based on the final stage of biological flourishing (Dacher, 2006, p. 84). This is a subtle but stable development of the mind and body through practice and only attainable when one reaches a higher level of consciousness (Dacher, 2006, p. 84).  It is about becoming one with all that is, and when we move from the fixation on our anatomy to the subtler understanding of our biology, we break through the sense of the solid and separate self (Dacher, 2006, p. 86).  An ease and lightness enter our life and cleanse our mind and body which can prevent mental distress and leads to health, happiness, and wholeness (Dacher, 2006, p. 86).

I was raised in the Catholic church, and taught that there is one God.  Although I did not understand it much as a child, the understanding I have now in my spiritual beliefs carry me through my day, as I believe that God has a reason for all that he gives us. I try to see the good in negative situations, and my spirit is typically positive. The older I get, the stronger this becomes. While interacting with others, I try to ensure positive affirmations to their spirits as well, not religiously, but to the thought that all of us have a purpose in life and it is up to us to find it (even with a little help from others).

References:

Dacher, E. S. (2006). Integral Health: The Path to Human Flourishing. Laguna Beach: Basic Health Publications.

A Comparison of Exercise: Loving Kindness and The Subtle Mind

The loving-kindness exercise was primarily centered on feelings towards others, the suffering of a loved one, and the suffering of strangers.  It concentrated on breathing as a center of personal focus, but the breath was to clear the mind and shuffle away self-centeredness. The subtle mind exercise focused primarily on breathing and the inner-most part of one’s mind, more self-centered than not. Although both exercises concentrated on breathing technique and the awareness of love and genuine concern, they were like two sides of a coin. The first exercise concentrated on loving outside of the mind, the second one, inside.

The benefit of this is that is allows one to appreciate others for what they are before they turn inward to their own personal devotion; however, depending on the person it can allow them to assume others are more important than themselves, which can lead to low self-esteem. You need to learn how to love and care for yourself before you do for others. The older I get the more I understand this connection, and have been able to see how it is self-confidence rather than ego.