This week's meditation was unpleasant for me. I had some difficulty radiating loving-kindness. Maybe it was because it was a little unfocused. Because I have trouble focusing and letting my mind rest, guided meditation is good to keep me on track and relax at the same time. This one was a little too general and I found myself wandering. Also, when I was focusing on breathing in suffering, I actually started to feel heavy and uncomfortable. I was trying to let it dissolve and breathe out love, but I did not feel any release. I breathed through the whole exercise, and I am willing to try again. I would also like to try something similar on my own to see if it will go better without the guidance.
This reminds me of the importance of a mental workout. Just like with a body workout, some attempts feel painful, uncomfortable, or just not right. The key is to stay consistent in order to progress and not be discouraged when an exercise does not go well. Research supports the ability to strengthen mental agility, so we know we are not stuck at a certain level. I will continue to practice more consistently, trying to take quiet moments at different times of day and under different circumstances to see what is most successful.
Monday, August 27, 2012
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Holistic Inventory
My assessment of my own well-being on a scale of 1-10:
Physical well-being: 9
Spiritual well-being: 6
Psychological well-being: 7
My physical well-being is in a good place. I felt like I had finally find a comfortable yet challenging point in my fitness before my pregnancy. My weight was healthy and my nutrition and exercise was on track. I feel that I am still in very good health, although my body is different due to the baby. Having never been pregnant before I cannot say exactly how I "should" feel, but so far (6 months in) I feel normal most days, have remained active and added minimal extra foods to my diet. I definitely allow some extra calories that I would not normally have, but I am fine with that.
Spiritually I have been torn. I am Catholic and have been active in the Church for most of my life until recently. I am still spiritually committed to Christianity and I pray as regularly as I have in the past. However the political climate of the Church and of religion in our country has discouraged me from attending Mass for the past several months. The teachings of Jesus are ideal for me. The teachings of the Church are not always. The conflict is that I still want a community and want to actively participate in my faith. I would like to find a new way to do that.
Psychologically, again, I have been affected by my pregnancy. I consider myself mentally strong, although I do fall victim to stress easily. New circumstances and responsibilities in my life regarding my family take up much of my thoughts and I can easily become anxious about the future. I have been trying to manage those feelings and not let them overwhelm me. I look forward to practicing meditation more regularly to accomplish this.
Our guided meditations from class have been helpful. Once I am used to following suggestion, I hope to reach that level of concentration and relaxation on my own as well as through guidance.
Physical well-being: 9
Spiritual well-being: 6
Psychological well-being: 7
My physical well-being is in a good place. I felt like I had finally find a comfortable yet challenging point in my fitness before my pregnancy. My weight was healthy and my nutrition and exercise was on track. I feel that I am still in very good health, although my body is different due to the baby. Having never been pregnant before I cannot say exactly how I "should" feel, but so far (6 months in) I feel normal most days, have remained active and added minimal extra foods to my diet. I definitely allow some extra calories that I would not normally have, but I am fine with that.
Spiritually I have been torn. I am Catholic and have been active in the Church for most of my life until recently. I am still spiritually committed to Christianity and I pray as regularly as I have in the past. However the political climate of the Church and of religion in our country has discouraged me from attending Mass for the past several months. The teachings of Jesus are ideal for me. The teachings of the Church are not always. The conflict is that I still want a community and want to actively participate in my faith. I would like to find a new way to do that.
Psychologically, again, I have been affected by my pregnancy. I consider myself mentally strong, although I do fall victim to stress easily. New circumstances and responsibilities in my life regarding my family take up much of my thoughts and I can easily become anxious about the future. I have been trying to manage those feelings and not let them overwhelm me. I look forward to practicing meditation more regularly to accomplish this.
Our guided meditations from class have been helpful. Once I am used to following suggestion, I hope to reach that level of concentration and relaxation on my own as well as through guidance.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Guided Relaxation
This week's guided relaxation was interesting. I've done these before, and I always find them easier than trying to relax on my own. I get distracted easily, so listening and following direction is much easier for me than practicing the self-discipline of focusing in silence. I definitely felt the difference in blood flow from my core to my arms and hands. I have actually tried this practice on a few occasions before to try to relieve tension or pain in parts of my body, and it tends to work. It is strong support that our minds affect our bodies. And it gives me a strong sense of control over my wellness. It's important for me to feel that now, because I am pregnant, and that can make me feel very out of control physically. This relaxation technique might make a big difference for the last part of my pregnancy. That's good news!
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Hello!
Hi, HW420! This is my first blog post in Cognitions and Affects, a title I chose because it is the psychological way of saying, "Thoughts and Feelings." Thanks for reading!
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