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Mindfulness - Meditation


10 years ago 0 22 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Sorry it took me so long to get back to this but I just want to say thank you. This has helped me a bit and I've also been trying other forms of mindfulness. 
11 years ago 0 3 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hi Robyn!  
 
I sincerely hope this helps you to feel more relaxed, try it for 10 minutes or so...and don't worry if it doesn't help! Everyone is different 
 
According to the book, there are four stages to the, I guess, "meditation technique".
 
1. The first is called "Settling" and is basically, sitting somewhere comfortable. The book suggests sitting on the floor and using cushions, but I just stay sat on my bed with my legs crossed. You can sit on a chair, but hold your posture instead of leaning back on the chair.
 
2.  The second stage is "Bringing Awareness To The Body". It's sort of a body scan, which should only take a minute or two,  where you focus your attention on the sensations of touch, pressure and contact that your body is making with the floor or chair. Such as where specifically the sensation is occurring and how it feels. 
 
3. Third is "Focusing On The Sensations Of Breathing". This one means being aware of the change in physical sensations as you breathe in and out. For example, how your abdomen moves as your inhale and exhale, or the sensation of your breath in your nostrils (how it's warm as it exits, and slightly cooler as you inhale).
 
I don't know if you're familiar with "Box Breathing" from the relaxation techniques in the help section of this site - but the book essentially says to do the same thing: Breath in - hold for a second - breathe out - hold for a second, and repeat. I found that this happened anyway due to the fact that I was paying attention to my breathing and the physical sensation of pressure from my bed underneath me. This stage doesn't require that anything change within you, just simply allow yourself to experience breathing, and basically just focus on it.
 
4. Now, the final stage is "Working With The Mind When It Wanders". Your mind will wander - it's inevitable. I had only been doing this exercise for a minute before my mind wandered onto why I'd been so wound up to try it in the first place. It's okay for your mind to wander, or for you to start daydreaming or making plans etc., and there's no need to get frustrated over it. When you become aware that your attention has shifted away from your breathing,  firstly, congratulate yourself for becoming aware of the attention shift, and perhaps make a mental note of where your mind wandered to, such as "worrying", "thinking", or "daydreaming", and gently shift your attention back to your breathing and the physical sensations of doing so.
 
"As best you can, bring a quality of kindness to your awareness, perhaps seeing the repeated wanderings of the mind as opportunities to cultivate greater patience, understanding and acceptance within yourself, and some compassion towards your experience".
 
Try for 10 minutes, or less, or even longer if you find it beneficial.
 
Good Luck, let me know how it goes!
 
xxxx 
11 years ago 0 22 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Slou33, I would really appreciate if you could post it. Maybe this well help me have a good night's sleep!
11 years ago 0 3 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
I would also like to recommend this book  I've had it for about 4 years but never had the patience to read it. I gave the meditation page a browse a couple of days ago and practised it for about 10 minutes and I slept peacefully for the first time in weeks and woke up the next morning feeling somehow more free. 
 
Seriously, give it a go! If anyone wants, I'll post the outline of how to do the meditation so you can see if it's helpful for you  
12 years ago 0 11210 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Thanks for sharing Eleveno! Sounds very helpful.
 
 
Ashley, Health Educator
12 years ago 0 619 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Today I would like to recommend a book if someone would like to try mindfulness meditation on their own:
 
"The Mindful way through depression: Freeing your self from chronic unhappiness" by J. Mark G. Williams, John D. Teasdale, Zindel V. Segal PhD and Jon Kabat-Zinn
 
This book comes with a CD with guided meditation practices and presents a plan for a period of 8 weeks to put mindfulness meditation in practice.
 
What I enjoyed most about this book was that some of the authors have a background in CBT and the book was created blending CBT techniques with mindfulness meditation which is called mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT)
 
Cons: It is necessary to arrange some time to put meditation in practice, but as in CBT it is necessary some work to get the results.
12 years ago 0 619 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
This Saturday I had my first class of mindfulness meditation. If there is one word which defines this practice is awareness, being present in the moment and paying attention to the senses with a close attention to the breath. We did sitting meditation, walking meditation and talked about our experiences with meditation.
 
I think mindfulness meditation as other types of meditation or relaxation (including yoga, tai chi, etc.) are good ways to improve our mood. The disadvantage is that it is necessary to arrange some time to do the activities and practice regularly in order to get the benefits.
12 years ago 0 223 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Before my depression, I was a practicing Buddhist for a number of years and had a strong, regular meditation practice. That was the most contented time of my life, and I feel the space that meditation (mindfulness-based and otherwise) gave me was a big part of that. I won't bore you all with why I 'lapsed', but I did. Since my depression seriously kicked in some 3 or 4 years ago, I have tried meditating several times as therapy, and in an attempt to recapture my former equanimity. On each occasion the lack of control of my thoughts and the ugly stuff that has risen to the surface of a partially-stilled mind has been quite distressing, and has had the opposite result to the intended one.
 
So, I would certainly agree with eleveno that anyone with more than mild depression should proceed with caution in this area. Meditation brings you face to face with yourself, and that is not necessarily a positive or calming experience when combined with the distortions and obsessions of serious depression.
 
I speak solely from my experience here, of course ...
 
12 years ago 0 619 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hi Glen. I practice yoga for 1 year now I discovered that yoga is a practice of mindfulness meditation. For what I have been reading, and in my experience, this type of meditation is more efficient in mild cases of depression. That's why in moderate to severe cases we find difficult to control our thoughts even with meditation or relaxation.
 
A good use for this type of meditation could be to prevent relapses and when the worse symptoms of depression are treated.
 
P.S. I checked Jon Kabat-Zinn and it seems he is an authority in mindfulness meditation with some books and videos published.
12 years ago 0 12 logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo logo 0
Hi Eleveno,
 
There are a few Youtube videos by Jon Kabat-Zinn that you might want to check out.  I too am intrigued by this type of meditation, which you can do even while walking and letting thoughts just enter and leave your mind.  I haven't been very good at it because my negative thoughts seem to take over, but I hope to get better with practice.  Good Luck.
 
...glen.

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