- Review the exercises and practice sessions you have completed in this course. (Loving Kindness, Subtle mind, Visualization, meditation etc.) Choose two practices that you have determined to be most beneficial. How can you implement these practices in your personal life to foster “mental fitness”? Provide specific examples
My first favorite is the subtle Mind meditation exercise. Improving psychospiritual development is the objective. Using our breath as a focal point to our consciousness we are striving for a witnessing-mind and eventually calm-abiding. Using this practice I’m able to consciously redirect my random thoughts back to my breathing. Focusing has become easier which ultimately makes it easier to slow the turnover rate of those random thoughts. Implementing mental focusing exercises benefit in many ways but I use it in the gym with the most success. Starting a weight lifting set focusing on the lift and breath assures I get the best workout.
The easiest exercise for me was the creative visualization. Picturing a perfect moment and using all our senses to relive the moment is the outcome. The point of the exercise is extending our wholeness, happiness, and vitality. We are able to sustain or prolong these emotions hopefully making a pattern in our life of experiencing fullness. Practicing happiness seems like a silly thing to do but what a great way to reduce stress. An example of implementing would be me lying in bed trying to fall asleep. Using my conscious mind I could start day dreaming before I fall asleep, ending up dreaming happy dreams.
Read and engage in the visualization exercise found on p.145, 146. Describe the exercise and your experience. How can you apply this exercise in your personal life?
Health, happiness, and wholeness…. The creative visualization exercise started out with a moment of great happiness. I chose to visualize a Caribbean Cruise that my wife and I took for our fifth anniversary. One of our shore excursions, we snorkeled over a reef filled with hundreds of colorful fish. I can picture it as it was yesterday and I can almost feel how warm the water was. Next for the exercise I was to go to a time of wholeness. I pictured a triathlon I competed in about two years ago in Florida. The weather was perfect, the crowd was huge, and the competitors were all super friendly. The Gulf of Mexico was 76 degrees and the air was 80. My body and health were perfect. I can sense the smell of the ocean, the sound of the crowd, and my intensity. Next I was to go to a time of exuberant vitality. I just stuck with my race. Between my two visualizations, both had plenty of water and sunshine to keep anyone happy. The exercise then asks what obscures this feeling of well-being? To be honest, when the weather is perfect and I’m not working, I can feel this sense of wholeness and happiness.
The story of the fisherman going down to the water every morning and one morning he found a bag of rocks which turned out to be diamonds. I know many people that have wonderful experiences but claim life sucks. To embrace each moment of happiness and take the good from everything we can extend our happiness and wholeness. Long story short, don’t throw all those diamonds into the ocean.
References:
Dacher, E. (2006). Integral Health: The Path to Human Flourishing. Laguna Beach, CA.
Basic Health Publications, Inc.
Hi Monte,
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned happiness a couple of times in your post and the story of the diamonds and the fisherman (loved this story) and it is an issue these days. People tend to focus on anything negative in their life or the badness in the moment in general and forget to see the happiness all around them. Could be anything that is good, like nature, the fact they're breathing (lol), just look for one good thing, instead all their energy goes into the bad that is going on.
I have noticed that no matter what mood you're in there is an easy exercise for everyone to try and notice the way your feelings change- just smile- simple as that just plaster a smile on your face and pay attention to the feeling it gives you. Whether you feel like an idiot because no one knows why you're smiling or whatever, it will make you feel better. I think we all need to forget being an adult and act like a kid again, silly, we don't have to be so serious all the time because we miss out on plain old fun. :)
I so agree with Char that too many people are too negative these days! I think a lot of that comes just from being stressed out. I know a lot of people who just plain do not know how to relax, and people who you hate to even say "what's going on with you" or "how are you" because you will get a whole list of everything that has gone wrong the last few days! I also think it has to do with being constantly in pursuit of something and thinking that happiness will come when this or that is attained. I have a sign in my hallway that says "Sometime in our pursuit of happiness it is good to pause and just BE happy." How true!
ReplyDeleteYou are an inspiring individual and I am sure promoting happiness in those around you. I think you are right on with focusing on the breath. It really does help to slow the racing thoughts of our minds. During your visualization exercise you focused on excellent memories. I remembered my honey moon; I am not a good swimmer and was scared to death snorkeling, however, as soon as I looked into the water a complete calmness came over me. It was one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen. I am going to use this memory too. Remembering moments of happiness and complete wholeness does bring back the actual sensations. Learning to hold on to this could be a wonderful asset to our lives. I am a nurse and encourage my cardiac patients and those suffering from stress and overwhelming feelings breathing exercise and visualization techniques.
ReplyDeleteHigh 5 Monte! The two most ADD prone students in this class have finally seemed to conquer the exercises presented through the units...lol. It's funny how when it comes to the breathing and the happiness portions of the exercises, it all comes full circle for me...right back to fitness. The gym is my outlet and my mini sanctuary. Practicing the breathing and happiness techniques while working out have really helped me out a great deal....great post!
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