This mental fitness exercise was very interesting and much easier for me to do than last week's Loving-Kindness exercise. I didn't get frustrated by my lack of control of my thoughts. I acknowledged my thoughts and let them pass. I had to "bring myself back" several times, but as the exercise went on my focus and control got better. It was interesting to be witnessing my thoughts instead of being attached to them. This is what made it so much easier to let the thoughts go; I wasn't attached to them. This is an exercise that I can see myself continuing to do. I struggle with an ever-wondering mind and often am so overwhelmed by the amount of mental chatter that I cannot accomplish anything and I don't sleep.
Spiritual, mental and physical wellness are all interconnected. As I have talked about before, this can be seen in my life with my weight "issues". Its a vicious cycle: I felt a spiritual darkness and was very depressed and anxious, this triggered my mind to find comfort and happiness outside of myself. I responded to this with food and material possessions. I would eat food that wasn't good for me and feel guilty, then get more depressed, or buy something that I couldn't afford or didn't need, and regret it, and so on and so forth. The cycle must be stopped! By focusing on healing the spiritual darkness within myself, I no longer felt the need to comfort myself with things and food. Without that, there was much less guilt and stress. By being able to control my actions I felt more in control of my thoughts. I felt more fulfilled spiritually, made better choices for myself physically, and my thoughts were much more positive. These three aspects are what makes us human; there is no separating them. Finding a way to balance the mind, body and spirit will lead to a healthy, flourishing life!
Haddie
Hi Haddie,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading you post have so many things in common! I also found this particular reflection much easier than the previous one; it was easier to follow because it was all focus on me, and my breathing. The Loving Kindness reflection was a tough one I just could not concentrate on that one. The thought process is a tough one, I too for the first time ever experienced witnessing my mind instead of analyzing every single thought over and over. It is amazing how much chattering we have going on, and then we wonder why we are stressed right? I agree on your comment about focusing on healing the spiritual darkness of ourselves, if we can accomplish just that one thing we can transform our lives.
Claudia B.
Haddie,
ReplyDeleteI found it interesting you mentioned sleep. I have never been one to have issues falling asleep and mind has always been running around 80 mph. Only very rarely does my mind not shut down as soon as my head hits the pillow. I have had 2 times in the past month where sleep did not come easy for me. I felt more stress from those 2 times then letting my mind carry on at crazy speeds. I had to let go and meditate in order to find sleep. I bring this up because like all of the meditations thus far I fell asleep. I am just wondering if others have an on off switch?
I know the feeling about consuming foods that are not good for and the guilt that comes along with it. I hate the feeling. I try to and I am starting to get slightly better at controlling those impulses. I am hoping to have better control over myself before I get too much older. At times this feels (meditation) more like work then actual work. I hope you can get to your transformation quickly as well. Good Luck,
Smiles
Kristie S.