Meditation to Calm the Chaotic Mind

As I've stated many times before, I've come to the realization that stress can make you sick. I truly believe that stress eats away at your insides like a cancer. If it is left to fester, it will eventually manifest itself in to some form of physical sickness whether it be an autoimmune disorder, heart or blood pressure problem, digestive issue or any other form of common illness that affects so many people today.

On my latest endeavor, I have stumbled upon a new favorite pastime: meditation.

This is what I've learned about meditation: Many people meditate. Some without even knowing they're doing it. There are many forms of meditation. There are people who meditate in accordance with their religion, there are those that do it to enhance their spirituality and there are those that do it for their own personal reflection. I wanted to try it to see if it would help work on my stress levels.

Everyone has stress. No matter how hard we try to make our lives less stressful, there are things that happen in life that are just beyond our control. I've come to realize that it's not how much stress you have in your life but how you deal with it that's important.

Now I could jump on the most popular bandwagon and choose a vice such as smoking or drinking to help release anxiety. Or, I could inhale a carton of Breyers Vanilla Bean Ice Cream with a side of double chocolate brownies. Instead, I've decided that I want to live a healthy life and really find relief from stress instead of just delaying it as the above options have always done for me. (Or add to it in some cases.)

So, I started researching meditation and decided to try my hand at it. I found a few tutorials online & decided it couldn't be that hard. Or could it?

At first I sat there trying to concentrate on my breathing as I read was the most popular route for beginners. I got nowhere. I really just sat there concentrating. I never drifted off in to nothingness. I never had any self reflection. So, I read on and decided that I was going to just assume the traditional meditation pose, put on some lovely meditation music I found on Youtube, and I got comfortable on my living room floor. I made sure there were no distractions and I decided my goal was just to sit there and relax. I closed my eyes and imagined a sort of warm glowing light shining on me starting at the top of my head, then down my face & eventually over my entire body. As the light moved over my skin I made it a point to relax all of the muscles it touched. By the time it was at my toes I realized that I was extremely relaxed. I just sat there in my comfortable position while maintaining good posture. I didn't force any thoughts out. If they floated in to my head I ignored them & they kind of floated back out. I felt more relaxed than I have in a very long time. I was completely conscious though & was aware of everything around me. It was just a state of relaxation for me. Maybe it wasn't even meditating.  All I know is that I slept great that night. I felt relaxed all over. Even my muscles and movements seemed more fluid than usual. If I got on a scale and weighed 10 pounds less than I did prior to the session I wouldn't really have been that surprised because I was so relaxed I actually felt lighter.

That was it. I was hooked. I've tried to meditate every day or every other day since. Even if it's not true meditation, it's a moment for me to unwind, relax, and take a few moments out of my day to just "chill out".
I love stress relievers and relaxation techniques that are as simple as this. They don't cost any money. You can do them anywhere and for me, they're effective. I'm going to continue my research on this because I am enjoying this practice so much. As I learn more, I'll share more.
Until next time my faithful reader, be well!

I Feel Like Dancing!

There are icicles hanging from my house that are as big me. As the snow continues to fall my anxiety continues to rise. Where I live it has snowed every week since Christmas. That's a LOT of snow. I have always been an active person. I want to go out for a walk or take my daughter to the park but everything is frozen & it's absolutely frigid out there. What's a girl to do? Turn on some tunes!

My daughter & I were moving from room to room trying to find something to do. I dug out a pile of unlabeled CDs & decided to pop them in the stereo to see what they contained. The first CD I came across was a mix of 70s songs that had great beats. First on the list: Black Betty by Ram Jam. I put the volume up & my little peanut started dancing all around the room. I couldn't help but join in. I forgot how much fun dancing is! After we went through that CD I stuck another in the player & off we went. We danced & danced & by the end of all our craziness we were both pooped.

I thought about it for the rest of the evening. I couldn't help it. I felt great! Better than I have in a while. I slept like a baby that night, as did she.


So, after much thought I figured I'd compile a list for myself for later reference.

Here's a list of why I love to dance:
1.) I can pretty much do it anywhere.
2.) I don't have to be good at it. In fact, the worse I am the more fun it is to watch.
3.) It's a great workout when I can't get out.
4.) It's a huge stress reliever.
5.) It's just plain fun!
6.) It's something I can do with my daughter.
7.) In my mind I'm the coolest person in the world when I dance. (I'm sure anyone watching would disagree but that's the beauty of dancing alone in your own home.) 

I haven't stopped dancing since that day. Have you ever tried dancing when you're upset about something?
I was really stressed about a few things; money, upcoming dental work I was scheduled for, trying to find a job, etc. I am making a strong effort to not let stress control my life anymore so... I started dancing. I was home alone & decided to just put the stereo on high & let loose. I'm talking full on crazy lady with flailing arms & all. I'm sure anyone watching would think I was having some sort of seizure. In the famous words of my BFF I say "Fine by me!" I couldn't care any less.
See reason #7 above and move on.
I'm gonna check out now & try to get some rest. There's snow in the forecast for tomorrow again & I feel like dancing!

Stress and the toll it takes on your health

This is a very hot topic for me..
I strongly believe that stress plays a HUGE role in affecting peoples health.
Stress is like a cancer. If left untreated it can fester and grow exponentially. Not only can it make you miserable, it also affects everyone around you.
I'd like to share my personal story with this old foe.

Shortly after high school I noticed during periods of high stress I would get awful stomach aches. They increased in severity as my fear of these stomach attacks grew. It was a vicious cycle that I continued to live in for years. It was only after I endured countless invasive medical tests that I discovered the main trigger for these attacks was stress. (I also feel that caffeine made these attacks worse for reasons I'll discuss in a later post.)
Once I discovered the culprit to these attacks I worked on trying to relieve my stress in any way I could. The best solution I could come up with was a good old fashioned run. Exercising helped me... a lot.

Fast forward a few years & you'll find me back in the stress boat. Due to college, work, crazy every day life hassles, etc I started to slack on the exercise. I suddenly found myself having panic attacks. For no reason at all I was completely stricken with fear. It happened anywhere & everywhere. The only place I was safe was at home. I thought I was losing my mind. I was mortified to tell anyone except my husband & my best friend. (Note to self... Always treat these two people very well because they have a lot of dirt on you...) Again, I worked through my stress by confiding in my support team (hubby & bff) and getting my butt back on that treadmill.

Jump ahead another year or so and again without warning that ugly stress monster reared its ugly head. This time, I was having OCD symptoms. I was always questioning everything I did. I was afraid to leave the house because I wasn't sure if I locked the door. Or I'd check to make sure I didn't leave the oven on. Or maybe it was possible that I didn't blow out the candle from the night before. It was awful. If I could imagine a terrible scenario then I was sure it was possible. So I'd check & recheck to make sure it never came to be.
Even if it meant driving myself absolutely insane. I don't know how many times I would show up at work & run to my BFF in tears because I was afraid that I didn't unplug the hair dryer or turn off the lights before I left the house. Luckily I have a very strong friend & a very understanding husband who always helped me through my insecurities.

Take one more leap with me on this time travel expedition to a time where again, life happens & stress invades a content mind. On an unexpected visit with my dentist I found out the tooth that was suddenly causing me a lot of pain was cracked. No big deal, I thought. I must have just bit in to something really hard that I don't remember. Not too long after that I realized I was getting headaches and my jaw was sore when I woke in the morning. The next thing I knew I was back in the dentist chair having a different tooth pulled because this one too was cracked & beyond repair. Have you guessed yet what's going on? You got it! I'd been clenching my teeth when I sleep. I don't grind them, I just clench my jaw. The pressure I was putting on my teeth was enormous & I wasn't even awake to know what was going on. My poor mouth! Stress was causing me to break my own teeth! This was it! I'd had enough.

I was determined to take control of the stress in my life & not let it control me.

This is something that I am still working on. I am confident that exercise is an enormous help. I am also confident that this is something I can change. I am trying to research other avenues that I can pursue while maintaining my busy lifestyle.
I believe that it's imperative to have a great support system. Surround yourself with those that love you and most importantly those that are positive influences in your life. You don't need someone feeding you negative energy. It only fuels the stress fire. Who needs that? I know I don't.
It's also great to find an outlet. Find a hobby. You don't have to be good at it. It just has to be something you enjoy. For me, it's writing. I enjoy putting my ideas down on paper. In fact I had a pretty stressful week topped off by a stressful evening & so I decided to sit down & write about it. Now here I am. Thank you to you, my reader, for joining my support team.

As I continue to post, you'll see that I LOVE to talk about stress relievers. I'll list any that I try & I hope that readers will contribute some of their ideas as well. For now, I'll sign off & head in to bed for a much needed night of rest which is yet another topic I'd like to discuss further at a later date. Until then; be well, be loved, be you...