So.........What's Next?

This quarter is coming to a close but this does not mean my life or growing or learning is coming to a close. Seven weeks ago I assessed my psychological, physical, and spiritual well-being. At the time I gave myself a 8, 8.5, and 8, respectively. At this point I feel that I have stayed the same on the physical and psychological levels but improved on the spiritual level to a 8.5. I feel the exercises from this quarter have really helped me explore my spiritual well-being and improve somewhat. I also feel that I well on my way to achieving the goals I set forth. I am continuing to train for the half-marathon, I have cut down on body fat, I have stayed active on all the things I wanted to do. I am also in progress of reaching my psychological and spiritual goals as well. I have made it a point to tell people thank you or just compliment them randomly. It has been hard but each time I do it, it gets easier and easier. Each day I review my goals and ask myself if I am working on them or if I have been ignoring them. So far am on track. I seem to be putting a lot of time in to working on my spiritual well-being and I have noticed that this is making it easier to achieve my goals in other areas. Overall this has been one of the most rewarding classes I have ever taken. It is not often that you get to take a class that promotes your own health and well-being, especially as a nurse. The only part I found difficult this quarter was taking part in the Loving Kindness exercise. At first I was very uncomfortable with the exercise but I like with the end result is suppose to be. That is why I have been trying to do that particular exercise at least once a week. The more I learn to love myself, all of myself, the more I will be able to give my family, my patients, friends, etc.

This has been a wonderful class and I have truly enjoyed getting to meet everyone through discussion and blogging. I wish everyone peace, love, laughter, happiness, and wellness in all they do. Prof, thank you so much for such a truly rewarding learning experience.

Integral Health: A Personal Map for Physical, Psychological, and Spiritual Growth

                    Integral Health: A Personal Map for Physical, Psychological, and Spiritual Growth

“ The competent physician, before he attempts to give medicine to the patient, makes himself acquainted not only with the disease, but also with the habits and constitution of the sick man” – Cicero

               The healthcare professional is more than just a healer of the sick. They are the role models, liaisons, dispersers of information, and vital to communication with the public. Their responsibility transcends the Hippocratic Oath or the Nightingale Pledge. Western medicine has taught us to view the patient on separate levels rather than all aspects, psychological, spiritual, and physical, as one. In doing so, it has also caused the healthcare professional to become removed from the patient and through this process the healthcare professional has also become detached from their own inner being contributing to the further decline of the patient-provider relationship. It is important for the healthcare professional to exhibit a healthy balance of their own inner makings so as to provide the most optimal care for their patients. Healthcare providers that demonstrate a high level of psychological, spiritual, and physical functioning are able to lead productive, creative lives that provides  positive examples for the patients and the communities of which they serve.

              Personally and as a healthcare professional I know that I need to continue to grow on all levels. To think that I have reached a definitive level in my inner growth would only be an injustice to myself and the patients that I serve as a nurse. In order to develop a holistic level of wellness I must focus on growth on each level, psychologically, spiritually, and physically. Each aspect is deeply intertwined. Improving in one area should promote growth and enrichment in the other levels. As I learn and incorporate mindful practices that enrich my psychological and spiritual levels, I will also benefit on a physical level. In having a clear, peaceful mind I will alleviate the emotional and psychological issues that can manifest as physical symptoms. Developing a holistic level of wellness will enable me to achieve all of my goals on a personal and a professional level.

Assessment

               Periodically it is beneficial to take a time out and assess yourself. This allows you to see if you have made progress in goals that you have set for yourself or to get a baseline idea of where you currently stand in regards to setting new goals or just for a personal evaluation. Our health is one of those components of our lives that should have a periodic assessment but this should also encompass the psychological and spiritual aspects.

               If using a scale of 0 to 10 I would rate my physical well-being as an 8.5, my psychological well-being as an 8, and my spiritual well-being as an 8.5. I don’t think that I will ever reach a10 because I feel there will always be room for learning, growth, and improvement. In order to assess myself in these three areas I first sat down with the list of goals I gave myself at the beginning of this year. In some areas I stayed the same and in other areas I met the goal and exceeded the goal. For example, about a month ago I was asked to rate myself from a psychological, spiritual, and physical standpoint. I gave myself an 8 for the spiritual component at that time. Now, I feel that I have improved because I have incorporated several practices that enhance my spiritual aspect and in doing so I feel that I have begun to develop a higher awareness of this aspect. I assessed my psychological well-being by going over my stress journal. I started keeping a stress journal about two years ago so that I could pinpoint exactly what was causing me to feel so overwhelmed. I could be more diligent about making entries but the entries I do have provide a baseline of where I was at two years ago and show my progression over the last two years. As I read over the entries I realized that I have continued to make progress with stress management, so much that I can say I only experience feeling overwhelmed or ‘stressed’ every couple of months now. I assessed my physical well-being by re-evaluating progression, if any, in areas that were identified as being troublesome. My knee has been giving me trouble over the last few months and is most likely the result of overuse, degenerative changes, and exacerbation of a previous injury. The other health issue is related to a dental injury I sustained while on a recent deployment. Overall, I know that I have excellent health and the two issues that I am having are easily fixable.

Goal Development

               My mother was, to me, the wisest person I have ever known. She always had a witty quip or wise saying she had picked up from reading or from her childhood to incorporate in teaching me lessons about life. One of her favorite sayings was, “A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step”.  She always stressed that you have to have goals in life or otherwise you will go nowhere and nowhere fast. But she also stressed that you have to start small and work your way through things in order to achieve them and understand their value. Here are my current goals.

Physical Goals- Physically, I would like to run a half-marathon and lose an additional 2% body fat.

Psychological Goals- Psychologically, I would like to continue to work on my issues with saying, “no” when I am put in the position of accepting too much responsibility.

Spiritual Goals- Spiritually, my goals are to develop a deeper sense of ‘Loving Kindness’ and ‘Calm-abiding”. Studying these topics mad me aware of how unaware I was to their existence and their benefits.

Practices For Personal Health

               We have learned from Dr. Candice Pert that, “The mind is the body, the body is the mind” (Dacher, 2006, p. 18).  The things that we are able to accomplish externally are a direct reflection of our inner capacity be it great or small. With that said we must also acknowledge that we cannot stimulate growth on any level unless we implement strategies to make that growth happen.

               In order to work towards achieving my physical goals I will need to re-evaluate and re-assess the plan I currently have in place for this goal which is cutting down body fat and to run a half marathon. Each month I will continue to monitor my nutrition and diet and body measurements. I will also need to test my run times and how I physically feel before, during, and after the run and adjust my workout routine and nutrition so that I maintain a desired level of fitness. Visualization is also another tool I have used and will continue to use for my fitness goals.  Every time before a workout I visualize myself running, with perfect form, in perfect rhythm, without distraction, and focused. This helps throughout my workout; if I can see it in my head; I know I can make it happen for real.

              Achieving my psychological goal will start by first evaluating how much I feel this interferes with my life and health. Learning to say “no” has been an ongoing issue but over the last few years it is something that I have worked on very hard. Determining how bad I feel the issue is will help guide my strategies from improvement and growth in this area. At this point it would be beneficial to re-examine the types of boundaries I have in place. It is possible that I have let some of these boundaries slip and that could be the cause of feeling pressure again. The next thing I would implement is reviewing my positive affirmations. Since guilt is the biggest issue I struggle with in saying “no” it is important for me to acknowledge the emotion but not allow myself to succumb to the emotion or allow the emotion to define me as a person. Positive affirmations would enhance having a positive mindset.

             Spiritual growth paves the way for an inner awakening and higher level of consciousness. My spiritual goals will be achieved by continuing to use the Subtle Mind and Loving Kindness exercises while incorporating meditation, seeking new exercises that build upon the Subtle Mind and Loving Kindness exercises, changing negative thoughts, and most importantly understanding that I am not just a physical body with a spirit, but a spirit with a physical body. I have a very close friend who says that the latter mentioned is the most important for achieving your spiritual goals. In order to implement these practices in my life, it is important for me to take advantage of any alone, quiet time I can get. I have time early in the morning, on my way to and from work, right before my step-daughter gets home from school, and that quiet time right before drifting off to sleep. After all, meditation does not have to take place for hours at a time to be effective; 15 minutes a day is a good start.

Commitment

             We have all started a program or made a vow with whole hearted intent to follow through with our plans, but more often than not, we find ourselves back at square one, wondering why no progress has been made or why following through with the commitment was so hard. As previously mentioned, personal reassessment is a powerful tool that can be used to track progress. Six months from now I will sit down, take a time out and reflect on where I stand physically, psychologically, and spiritually. Journaling is an excellent way to keep track of baseline assessments, periodic assessments, accomplished goals, thoughts, feelings, and emotions. It is something that can be kept for months or even years and for me this has been the best tool in tracking my personal progress on many levels.                                         

             Regardless of our profession, holistic wellness is the responsibility of each and every one of us. Development of a positive inner being will shine through to the world around us and foster the environment we are meant to live and thrive within. We cannot develop and grow on one level without affecting the other; this is what drives us along the path to integral health and healing. We learn that to find that perfect balance we cannot just take care of our physical needs. We must also take care of the needs of our hearts, minds, and of the spirit.

                                                                                                      

References

Dacher, E. S. (2006). The subtle mind. In Integral health, the path to human flourishing (pp. 71-78). Retrieved from http://books.google.com/ebooks/reader?id=gn3iNymUVKwC&printsec-frontcover&hl=en&output=reader

Revisiting Mindfulness

Over the last few weeks I have been introduced to several types of exercises that promote spiritual and mental fitness. Of these, I have found the 'Loving Kindness' and 'Subtle Mind' exercises to be the most beneficial at this time.

As I mentioned in a previous blog posting, it has taken me a long time to learn to 'love' myself. What I learned the most from this exercise is that you can't fully love another until you fully love and accept yourself. For many years I have truly believed that I loved others and was giving everything of myself but this exercise made me realize you have to in essence be love to give love otherwise you are just going through the motions. I know that I have made a great deal of progress in this area but there are still parts of me that fill with doubt and judgment and I would like to come to a point that I love and accept myself NO MATTER WHAT. I also want to be able to love my partner and my step-daughter with everything that I have and that they deserve; by learning to love myself unconditionally I will also be able to give them infinite, unconditional love as well. During the day when I am faced with obstacles that cause me to fill with doubt or that sense that I just don't measure up, I stop and take a mental time out, reassure myself that I am worthy, and no matter the outcome, I am still worthy of love.

I also found the 'Subtle Mind' exercise extremely beneficial. I work in a career field that demands not only physical fitness but mental and emotional fitness as well. As a nurse, I am expected to be compassionate, caring, tentative to peoples needs, and intuitive. At the end of the day my mind is often running a thousand miles a minute in several different directions. On my drive home I may thinking of all the homework I have to do plus daily chores like dinner and laundry all the while still feeling an emotional connection to a patient that may have made an exceptional impression. The 'Subtle Mind' exercise was an excellent exercise in teaching me an efficient way to calm my mind. Although I have extremely busy days I can incorporate this exercise in the moments that I don't have to interact with others like when I am getting ready for work before everyone gets up, on my drive in to work or home from work, or in those moments before I go to sleep.

Meeting Aesclepius and A Walk in Anothers Shoes

Meeting Aesclepius

I'm not quite sure that I got to meet him the first two times I attempted this exercise, as once I again I fell fast asleep, but I think by the third time I at least got a glimpse. I was able to relate to the feeling of the mind feeling like a waterfall and by the end of the exercise I can honestly say that my mind was more like a still pond. There are times when I am focusing on my breathing that I actually feel and even visualize my breath coming in and out of my body. When I first started during these exercise this focus actually made me a little nervous but now I have found a rhythm like when I am on a distance run. The person that comes to mind when doing this exercise is a very close friend of mind named Joanna. There is a radiance about her that even when you aren't around her you can feel her prescence, warmth, and love. While doing this exercise I focused on her strength and some of the latest words of wisdom she gave me. A great sense of peace, calmness, and warmth filled me and the things that have troubled me lately just seem to disappear and find their own answer. This meditation exercise was extremely relaxing and insightful; I have not slept that sound and peaceful in several months. I even awoke the next morning feeling fresh and ready to start the day even though I knew my obstacle was still there. In the end it helped me figure out an alternative to the issue while at the same time enabling a sense of self empowerment.

The meditation exercises over the last few weeks have been very insightful to my own spiritual health. I have learned to disconnect the connotation or religion and spirituality. I am not saying that I do not believe in a higher power I just don't find solace and peace in organized religion; in fact the whole thing stresses me out. I grew up in a black Southern Baptist family where my dad was the minister of our church. I always felt that people were sitting there passing judgement; judgement on what people were wearing, judgement on peoples choices, judgement on someone being ill, nothing but judgement. I don't feel that this is what 'God' has intended for anyone. I never felt comfortable enough to bare my soul in church for fear of this judgement. I love the space that I am in now; I accept me regardless of what anyone else thinks; I can bare all aspects of being before my God and to myself and there is no judgement. The more I meditate the more I feel connected to my core values, to God, to nature, and the world. I hope that as I continue this journey people will see this change in me and hopefully I can share it with them as well.

The Walk

"One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself". What more can really be said about this statement? It is about as cliche as you can get....I'm not trying to sound snooty or indifferent it's just that this concept is taught ad nausem but few actually follow it. We see it everyday from parents that tell there children not to smoke when they do, leaders that expect their subordinates to follow the rules when they don't, etc. When you think about it why would you want to follow someone who has no experience in what they are trying to teach or enforce. It kind of goes back to the saying of the blind leading the blind. It is far easy to have respect and take to heart the words of someone who has lived or experienced something when they are offering their wisdom. Although this concept can become frustrating to those who feel that there are far too many hypocrites in this world it does negate the fact that we should make a concerted effort to embrace it in our personal and professional lives. Often times I have patients that come in with an injury or illness and they will ask, "Have you been through this yourself" or "Have you treated anyone with this before". The look of relief and trust that comes over their faces when I am able to relate to them through my experiences is priceless. Not too long ago I had a teenager that came through my clinic and she had just lost her mother. At first she said, "Why should I bother talking to you, you wouldn't understand". Then I think she saw the look on my face because she recanted by saying, "Maybe you do". I was able to relate my experience of losing both of my parents when I was a teenager. As a health care professional I do feel a sense of obligation to maintain my psychological, physical, and spiritual health. For my own conscience I could not look my patients in the face or teach a class if I didn't feel I was at least attempting to maintain these levels of my life. I believe that you really have to practice what you preach. The process to implementing psychological and spiritual growth at first seems tedious but when you step back and actually look at all the learning possibilities it really isn't that hard. Each day I learn something from everyone around me, my co-workers, my patients, my partner, my step-daughter, etc. Taking as little as 5 minutes a day to just reflect and find quiet and peace will slowly start to take its course in your life. With school and work my quiet time is in the shower in the morning. No one is up, not even the dogs. I can stand there in a nice hot shower, focus on the water cleansing my body on the outside and inside and just be.

Learning to Love.....Even More

So here I am again being asked to dig deeper into the world of love. The first thing without a doubt is learning to love one's self then at this point will you be able to take it a step further and show this love to others.

Universal Loving Kindness Exercise

This exercise came at a very much needed time. I recently had a falling out with a friend over what seems to me and others as a very trivial issue. However, this friend refuses to speak to me, look at me, or even acknowledge my prescence when in the same room. It has been a couple of months now and I think what bothers me the most is that I really don't feel a sense of loss over the end of the friendship; I almost just feel relief. However, I am not and have not been angry at this person and can honestly say that I only want the best for her. While practicing the Universal Loving Kindness exercise I realized that I do love her as a person and it is ok to still feel that for her even though she does not want to be a friend any longer. It feels good parting in this way because I know and feel that whatever positive energy inside me will eventually spill over and infect her too. In essence, this exercise inspired a sense of hope for reconciliation.

The Integral Assessment

This process serves as a type of guideline or manual. It causes you to bring your attention to the here and now, the future, provides relevancy, and forces you to maintain your psychospiritual awareness. The most important part of this exercise is a sense of relevancy. Sometimes when we begin a journey in personal enlightenment we become stagnant in one area, neglect others, and do not bring attention to those that need it when the time arises. As mentioned in the previous exercise I lost a friend recently. This affects me mentally and emotionally and not so much physically. The integral assessment helps guide me to direct my efforts and attention to those aspect that need the most nuturing at this time. I can foster growth in this area by working on developing the witnessing mind and progressing to a calm-abiding. Finding peace and quiet on a regular basis will be a step in the right direction.

Mental Fitness: Live Long, Live Strong, Live Well- UNIT 5 Project

}Objectives 

 

Demonstrate and discuss the importance of mental fitness and its implications on physical wellness

}Review supporting evidence that mental fitness is key to overall wellness

}Explore some exercises that can help in practicing mental fitness

 

 Mental Fitness: Live Long, Live Strong, Live Well

Ancient practitioners in Ayurvedic and Chinese cultures recognized the connection of the human mind and body within itself and its connection to the cycles and rhythms of nature. Their practices sought to bring harmony, peace, stillness, balance, and wholeness of the mind and body through conscious breathing, meditation, healing touch, and gentle movement exercises. Somewhere in the evolution of medicine the mind-body connection was replaced with the practice of treating the mind separately from the body. Now, after years of research and experimentation the Western world of medicine is beginning to embrace the concept of the mind-body connection and in doing so creates a paradigm shift in the promotion of wellness. 

 

Importance of Mental Fitness:  

Physical and Biological Benefits

◦Positive thinking leads to positive actions

◦Increased motivation and energy to stay physically active which leads to multiple health benefits

–Decrease obesity

–Decrease chance of heart disease and diabetes

–Decrease and reduce severity of depression

–Increase power of immune system

–Decrease chronic pain

–Decrease in probability of disease

–Increases overall brain function 

 

}Psychological Benefits

◦Reduces mental stress

◦Builds confidence

◦Builds self-assurance

◦Replaces negative emotions like anger, hate, rage, fear, despair, helplessness, anxiety, and depression

◦Helps create positive self-image 

 

}Spiritual Benefits

◦Development of positive emotions like happiness, calmness, peace, love, forgiveness

◦Acknowledgment of purpose and place in the world

◦Ultimately, the development of a higher consciousness

 

Validating the Importance of Mental Fitness

Dr. Candace Pert and the Discovery of the Neuropeptide

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“The mind is the body, the body is the mind” (Dacher,2006)

•

•

•In 1970 Dr. Pert discovered that the body produces special messenger proteins called neuropeptides. Her research further concluded that these messengers communicated messages from the brain to the various systems of the body and that we could in fact control these messages by the way we think.

•This work was groundbreaking in showing that there is a direct link between our mental and physical levels.

Dr. Robert Ader and Classical Conditioning of the Immune Response

}In 1974 Dr. Ader conducted an experiment to prove his belief  “that there is a link between what we think (our state of mind) and our health and our ability to heal ourselves.

}In this study he fed mice Saccharin laced water and injected them with the drug Cytoxan which induces an upset stomach and weakens the immune system.

}After conditioning them, the mice were fed the Saccharin laced water without the Cytoxan and still became ill

}One of the first experiments to illustrated an interdependence of the nervous system and the immune system

Dr. Randolph Byrd and Intercessory Prayer

}

}Between August 1982 and May 1983, 393 patients at San Francisco’s General Hospital Coronary Care Unit participated in a study to research the benefits of intercessory prayer.

}The patients were randomly placed in two groups: a control group that did not receive prayer and the Intercessory Prayer group. The patients, staff, doctors, nor Dr. Byrd had knowledge of which patients were assigned to which group.

}The results

◦Patients that received prayer spent less time in the ICU, required less pain medication, and had overall less complications than their counterparts that received no known prayer

 

TIME TO WORK IT OUT

We have now reviewed some of the research that supports cultivating a strong level of mental fitness.

Let us gear up and put it into practice! 

 

MENTAL WORKOUT: THE SUBTLE MIND

“Peaceful breathing pattern leads to a peaceful mind”(Dacher, 2006)

}

}

}

}Begin by focusing on your breath

}Let your breathing become easy and rhythmic focusing on either the inhalation or the exhalation; let this me your focal point

}As you still the breath you still the mind

}As your mind wanders, do not give attention to the distraction, but instead bring your attention back to your breathing

}As you do this you are begin to witness your thoughts and emotions rather than acting on them

}Repeat this several times finding the quiet and stillness of your mind

}As you are able to maintain this stillness as you witness instead of acting you develop into a state of calm-abiding

}Now that you are able to be unaffected by your thoughts and emotions you will find yourself gradually transitioning from a state of calmness and mental stillness to a consciousness of unity

}You are able to visualize and feel the interconnectedness of your mind, body, and soul with the world around you 

 

MENTAL WORKOUT: LOVING KINDNESS

}In a restful, comfortable state bring to mind someone that you love; allow the feeling of love to expand within your heart

}Reflect and allow yourself to fully experience this feeling; become comfortable with the feeling

}Now turn these feelings on yourself; embrace each feeling and emotion, do not judge; just let them be; allow yourself to let love fill those negative emotions

}As you let go of the negative, take the feeling of love and allow yourself to go deeper into the psyche; take love and kindness into the stillness, peace, and gentleness

}Allow this love you are showing yourself to spill over; embrace it from the inside to the outside, allow all of your loving kindness to be a witness of peace, harmony, and balance

 

As we gain mental fitness all other aspects of our lives fall into place, overlap each other and create a place of perpetual health and wellness across the life span

 

References

Dacher, E.S. (2006). Integral health: the path to human flourishing.[eGoogleReader]. Retrieved from: http://books.google.com/ebooks?id=gn3iNymUVKwC&printsec=frontcover&output=reader

Posner, G.P. (1990). God in the CCU?. Retrieved from http://www.gposner.com/Byrd_study.html

Quinlan, J. (n.d). Psychoneuroimmunology. Retrieved from http://www.nfnlp.com/psychoneuroimmunology_quinlan.htm#history

Robert Ader. (n.d). In Psychology Wiki. Retrieved February 5, 2011 from http://psychology.wikia.com/wiki/Robert_Ader

 

The Subtle Mind

The Subtle Mind exercise and the Loving Kindness exercise both allowed me to find a place of stillness and quietness. However, the Subtle Mind exercise had me so still that I fell asleep. Not sure that was suppose to happen LOL. The Loving Kindness required more mental action and less witnessing, at least for me. I didn't get frustrated with the exercises at all and I even found myself driving into work doing them. I like the Loving Kindness exercise because it challenges me to embrace the parts of myself I do not like and it challenges me to show love to those that quite frankly get on my last nerve. However, I did find that I was even less irritated than I usually am at the end of the day. I am typically a pretty easy going person but these exercises brought me to a whole new level of relaxation and I have really enjoyed it.

There is no doubt that I can see and most importantly feel the connection of the spiritual, mental, and physical levels. But the thing I notice the most is you can't improve one without improving the other. Since starting this class I find myself looking deeper and deeper at myself. At first I wasn't sure I like it but now I am coming to understand that these are the negative emotions I have allowed my inner self to be slave to far too long. Even relationships that I did not think could get better have significantly improved over the last couple of months. I have been able to share many of these concepts with strangers and patients in my clinic. I find that the more I embrace the loving kindness towards myself and find stillness at the end of the day I am growing in ways that I never thought possible, simply because I never thought =).

Loving Kindness and the Concept of the Mental Workout

This exercise was truly a blessing. A large part of my vision for this year is to find that peace and serenity which exists beneath my surface and cultivate it. Participating in this exercise made me realize that I do not always extend love to myself on a deeper level. I may show 'love' to myself by taking care of my physical body but I don't think I have ever taken the time to show 'love' to the inner me. I am not saying that I hate myself or anything like that but I realized that I do not acknowledge the emotion of 'love' in relation to my inner most being. I know I feel happiness and contentedness within but love never crossed my mind. I know that I love others around me but does this mean I am not giving them all the love that I really can? I have always held the belief that you have to learn to love yourself before you can love others, I guess I didn't really think about the spiritual self so much.

If I had the opportunity to share this with others I would do so as much as possible. In fact I might just start with my partner. Who knows where our relationship could go if we both learned more about this profound level of love and kindness.We have a beautiful relationship that is based on love, trust, and respect, but everything has room for improvement, right? We have often commented that maybe we really are soul mates, but discovering more about our inner selves may help us realize how deep our connection really goes.


The concept of the mental workout supercedes brain teasers and Mensa puzzles. A mental workout is developing the ability to process the negativity of our environment and either turn it into something positive or flushing it away and not allowing its negativity to become a part of our being. It is not something that we can find a manual for or a website giving us step by step demonstration. It requires a personal decision and choice to stay focused on what is going to bring about 'authentic health, happiness, and wholeness'. It is about developing all of the levels of our inner being, psychological, emotional, and spiritual, and finding our connectedness to the world and people around us. Putting all of this into practice is a life long journey that will never be perfect, but we can begin by taking the time to find stillness and quietness that will enable us to begin the filtering process. We can begin by showing love and kindness in place of anger and revenge. Step by step, little by little we can begin to respond to different situations in different ways. In doing so, we are cultivating that inner being without even realizing it; by the time you sit down and reflect upon past events you will begin to see that subtle changes also change the subtle mind.

Overall Well Being

Well here I am again on my blog, still feeling very nervous that I am going to miss something LOL....well anyway here goes.......


On scale of 1 to 10 I would rate my physical well-being as an 8.5, my spiritual well-being an 8, and my psychological well-being as an 8 as well. I give myself an 8.5 on my physical well being because I am currently battling some minor issues with my knee (a.k.a AGE) and some dental issues. I recently returned from a deployment in December. About 2 weeks before I was to come home I got my front tooth knocked out by a cargo strap. I never thought at 31 I would be singing "All I Want for Christmas is my Two Front Teeth", but so I was.............other than that I am a very healthy person. I give my self an 8 for my spiritual and psychological well being because let's face it,  no matter how hard you try you cannot be happy all the time and no one is perfect. Stresses from work, friends, and just day to day can mount and cause you to feel less than optimal from time to time. However, I do feel that I have adapted some good stress management techniques and employ them on a regular basis and I often take the time just to relax, breath, and gather myself.


I wrote about doing a vision board workshop in my last blog. Well my vision board is not just that but it also provides goals for me on the physical, spiritual, and psychological level. I have pictures of snowboarding, snowshoeing, and running a marathon to remind me that I want to stay active.I have also set a personal goal to complete a half-marathon this year. Other images include pictures that embody peace and serenity to remind me to take the time to appreciate stillness, beauty, and quietness. In this I have set a goal to tell someone each day that I admire or is a friend what I find beautiful in them. It can be as simple as saying, "I am glad you are my friend because you have always been there". I have always struggled with my feelings and telling people how I feel because I have felt in the past that it will cause them to go away....which I learned by not telling them, it can also make them go away. Doing this helps me to break free of psychological issues I have had since childhood and as cliche as it may sound, sets my soul free.

I too would love to complete the relaxation exercise but I am not able to find the link either. Maybe this will have to be an addendum later.

Google Reader

I chose to use Google Reader, but I'm still not sure if I am doing this correctly....I am in quite the stage of confusion with this LOL

Relections

"Once a task has once begun, never leave it till it's done, be the labor great or small, do it well or not at all"--My Mom

Those words are so engrained in me that I can almost hear her voice saying them even though she is no longer with me. If I am so blessed to live a long life I want to be able to say that I did my best to finish the things I started and that I gave it my all. This is the legacy I want my family and friends to remember me by. I feel I have come to a point in my life that putting forth effort and energy into things I cannot change no longer dictate who I am. I guess I have finally learned to filter things....finally.

I went to a workshop this past weekend that I have attended before and really enjoyed. The workshop is called "Visioning the New Year". It is not a traditional workshop where you sit and listen and then participate....the entire workshop is interactive. It incorporates meditation, relaxation, and basic collage making skills. The purpose is to create a vision board. On it you can place pictures of places you want to go, cut outs of key phrases, things you want to accomplish, etc.....then you take it home, place it somewhere you can see it often and focus on visioning those positive things that you want out of life. I realized as I worked with my partner and my step-daughter, that I must be one of the most blessed people on the planet. I have found unconditional love, support, and most importantly I KNOW that I deserve the best life has to offer.

For it only being January and feeling THIS good, I can only wait to see what 2011 is really going to bring!

Welcome!

Hello everyone!


Welcome to my blog. I have NEVER done this before and I keep feeling like I am missing something. I looked forward to sharing ideas and learning from each and everyone of you this quarter!