Totally Meditation, Author at Totally Meditation

Grounding Meditation

This visualization meditation can help release tension and anxiety. It just requires the ability to focus and imagine.

There are lots of variations of grounding meditations and practices. I will cover other versions in future posts because “grounding” is so beneficial it’s worth further exploration; also different versions appeal to different people.

The Meditation

Sit on the floor if it is comfortable for you, otherwise sit upright in a comfortable chair with your feet flat on the ground and hands open loosely on your lap.
Close your eyes, and take several good long deep breaths
- As you breath in imagine you are breathing in calmness
- As you breath out imagine you are releasing stress
- Breath in calm
- Breath out stress and allow any tense muscles to relax
Now imagine there is a cord of your own energy that starts at about your tailbone that travels all the way down to the center of the earth. Imagine it having a downward flow. See if you can sense or feel this energy. Stay with this for a couple of minutes and don’t worry if you don’t actually sense the energy. You do not have to feel it in order to benefit from this exercise.
Now shift your attention to allowing frustration, anger and other emotions to flow from your body down this “grounding cord” (this is the part I enjoy). If you have been around people during the day who made you angry … you know who I mean, the ones who felt like they were invading your personal space, this is the time to let go of their negative energy. By releasing those negative emotions and letting them flow into the earth you are taking control of your own personal space. You don’t need to carry around emotions other people dumped on you! Don’t worry “mother earth” can handle it 😉
As you release this negative energy sense your emotions becoming more balanced.
Take a minute to enjoy the feeling of calm before opening your eyes. Paying attention to positive emotions helps to make them more real.

Allow at least 5 minutes for this meditation. If you are feeling very agitated and angry you may want to give this a few minutes longer to allow your body the time to adjust and relax.

What is the take away from this? A grounding meditation in essence helps you regain your own emotional balance.

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Exercise Your Meditation

Why not turn part of your exercise routine into a mediation practice? Think of it, multitasking that is HEALTHY and ENJOYABLE, stress releasing instead of stressful!

When I was on the treadmill, stationary bike or rowing machine at the gym I would often daydream, a pleasant enough way to make the time go faster, but after I got into practicing meditation I would switch back and forth between daydreaming and a breathing meditation. I found when I focussed on my breathing for part of the work out, the exercise seemed a little less exhausting, and I felt a bit calmer afterwards even though I worked as hard.

I’ve since found out that deep breathing helps to oxygenate muscles during exercise which is beneficial for reducing physical stress. Couple that with focussed breathing and you have a recipe for stress reduction.

This is how I went about it. (If you are new to exercise check with your doctor to make sure this exercise meditation is appropriate for you.)

Preparation

Choose an exercise that is simple, repetitive and does NOT require your full attention. I would not want you to injure yourself by focussing on your breath when you should be focussing on your interaction with the equipment!
As you exercise find a pace that works for you. Breath in deeply, filling your belly and your lungs. Most people just fill their lungs, but you will have more stamina and be less likely to end up panting if you breath deeply.
If you are working on a machine like a rowing machine, breath out at the point of exertion (in this case it would be as you pull handles away from the machine). Breathing out at that point seems to bring more strength to the movement, as well as making it easier to take a deep breath in during the easy part of the exercise (as the handles returns to the machine).
Adapt your breath to accommodate the speed you are working at. For example if you are walking very quickly on a tread mill breathing out with every step you could cause you to hyperventilate, instead you would breath in fully over several steps and breath out over several steps. Adapt your breathing pattern to suit your work out.

Now for the meditative part

Once you have found your exercise and breathing rhythms, bring your focus to your breathing, paying attention to details like the temperature of the air, how it feels as you breath in, and the sound it makes as you exhale. Let your thinking mind take a break while you pay attention to the sensations and action of breathing.
Notice if you are carrying any extra tension in your body, (neck and shoulders for example).
As you breath in, imagine your breath is carrying extra oxygen to any tense areas of your body. As you breath out imagine you are breathing out that tension. Continue this for a few breaths, you may be surprised to find the tension really does ease up.

After your work out

Make sure to stretch the muscles you have just used. As you do this, once again practice deep breathing. This time as you breath in, imagine the oxygen flowing into your tired muscles helping them to recover. If you hold the stretch for a few extra seconds you may find that you can relax into the stretch a bit further as you breath out. Never push it.

If you would like to read more about effective breathing during exercise (sans the meditation part) sparkpeople has a great section about proper techniques.

To your health!

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T’ai Chi As Meditation

I write about T’ai Chi as a meditation because the slow, gentle “forms” are like a moving meditation. You gain physical strength and balance through the series of concise rhythmic movements, while at the same time you are focussing your full attention (mindful meditation) on each individual movement.

With the careful concentration and slow actions involved in this martial art you are not likely to end up with injuries. My aunt started going to tai chi classes when she was about 85! Now, don’t let that fool you into thinking that it is going to be too easy, because much like yoga, the more you practice and learn, the more challenging it can be. There are many dvds available for learning tai chi at home. This one T’ai Chi Beginning Practice – has clear verbal and visual instructions. I would suggest attending classes in person if you can. Taking classes can be extremely beneficial because a teacher can often spot incorrect movements and help you correct them before they become a habit.

I’ve only attended a couple of drop in sessions of Tai Chi so I had to enlist the help of Google to find good information for you. This article called Essential Tai Chi Principles by Dr Paul Lam and Nancy Kaye outlines the basic principals that anyone considering learning Tai Chi should know. The same website has a whole series of useful articles about Tai Chi.

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Choosing A Meditation Teacher

There are so many types of meditation to choose from that it is pretty safe to say there is no ONE right way to meditate. It is a matter of choosing a type of meditation and a teacher that is right for you!

In this post I talk about some ways to recognize if a teacher is appropriate for you. In future posts I will give a small overview of some common types of meditation.

Things to look for when choosing a meditation teacher

A schedule of classes so you can see if what they offer is appropriate for you, both time wise and content wise. The language they use may be unfamiliar to you, but the teacher should be able to give you a rough idea of what skills you will take away from the classes.
- Meditation “drop in” sessions often don’t have a pre-determined lesson schedule and are usually more flexible without a set curriculum. I have been to drop in sessions that were wonderful and some that were not. Try a session or two to see what you think of them or ask what you can expect from them.
Are you expected to do homework? Good! The more you practice the easier it becomes.
Do they ask you what you want to get from the classes?
- They may be making sure you are a good fit for the class. Not all teachers ask this and that’s OK, but if a teacher pre-screens participants it can mean they are making sure the class is right for you.
- Some teachers tailor the way they deliver their information to more closely match what the majority of the students want.
Many mediation practices have their roots in different religions or spiritual practices. Are you comfortable with having some spirituality mixed in with your meditations? If you are, it will give you a lot more options to choose from.
What do the classes cost? Where I am the cost ranges from free classes sponsored by non-profit organizations (Most of the free ones I’ve seen come from a religious or spiritual background. Some expect students to do things like help set up the room or clean up after class.), up to about 150.00 per class for private lessons. Prices depend largely on factors like –
- How much competition there is where you live. Generally, if there are a lot of teachers to choose from you may find more inexpensive classes.
- The teacher’s experience as a teacher. Paying a bit more for a someone who has a lot of experience can be worth it because they likely have developed teaching methods that enhances a student’s ability to learn more quickly, or to go into deep meditation more easily.
- Do the classes take place in the teacher’s their own home? Less expense for them can mean less cost to you.
- The price usually goes up if they have hand outs for you like printed materials or guided meditation CDs.

Things to avoid

Guarantees that you will become fully “enlightened” by taking the classes.
- Everyone progresses at their own speed and there are no guarantees.
- What a teacher can guarantee is that she/he will teach you how to develop specific skills. How well you develop those skills is up to you.
- Enlightened can mean anything. Personally I take it to mean someone who has attained a high degree of ability in meditation practices and has emotionally and spiritually evolved beyond the norm. Some teachers attach a meaning to that word that is specific to their practice. If someone is promising you enlightenment but you think you would like to learn with them anyways, ask them what THEY mean by that word. If the answer satisfies you go for it, but if the explanation leaves you with doubts you may want to find a different teacher.
I consider it to be a red flag if after a couple of classes the teacher expects you to start “giving unselfishly” either financially or of your time. A healthier approach is if the teacher tells you BEFORE you start the classes exactly what their expectations are of you.
I avoid teachers who insist that there is only true path. They may be perfectly well meaning, but I prefer teachers who have the capacity to see the value in what other have to offer. There are lots of choices out there. It is a matter of picking one that you works for you!

To Your Health 🙂

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Art As Meditation

Long before I started meditating I would get lost in making art. I realize now that creating art has a similar effect on me as mindfulness meditation does and it might for you too.

Making Art as a Meditation

I used to pop a sketch pad, couple of pencils and an eraser into a bag and head for a park that was within walking distance. When I got there I would doodle whatever was in front of me (grass, trees etc.) or draw random lines to see what they looked like. I seldom kept what I drew and it didn’t matter because what valuable was that for a few minutes everything I felt was wrong with the world just disappeared. Better yet, when I stopped drawing I often had gained enough “distance” from my problems that they didn’t seem so huge.

Prepare Ahead of Time

Plan your tools and destination ahead of time so when the creative urge hits you can just grab your stuff and go.

Put ALL your usual supplies in one box. In that box put a bag that has the bare ESSENTIALS you need for your creations. This will become your grab + go art supply kit.

Pen/pencil and paper grab + go kit
- A sketchpad, or several sheets of paper and a clipboard (so you have a solid surface to draw on).
- 1 very soft (for dark lines) pencil or charcoal.
- 1 hard pencil (for light sharp lines).
- You could include a small selection of coloured pencils if you have them.
- A pen.
- An eraser.

Watercolour grab + go kit
- A small watercolour pallet. If you don’t have a pallet, use an old muffin pan or pie plate, something just big enough to mix colours in. Include a cover of some sort to keep dust and bugs out.
- 3 tubes of watercolour in the primary colours (one each of yellow, red and blue). If you are just experimenting and want to save money, use a child’s watercolour box. You know the kind, they are inexpensive and usually have around 10 colour disks and a single brush.
- No more than 3 brushes. Watercolour brushes should have soft bristles. (Brushes used for oil painting are too hard and can rip through wet paper).
- A small container for cleaning brushes. If you don’t know if there will be a water supply where you are going make sure to grab a small bottle of water too.
- An absorbent rag.
- Watercolour paper. A watercolour sketchpad that is sealed on all 4 edges is expensive but it’s great because you can paint right on the pad without preparing the paper first. If you want to save money buy an inexpensive watercolour pad from a large office supply or art supply store and “stretch”one or two sheets of paper ahead of time to put in your grab + go kit. Regular paper pills and ripples too much, so make sure you use paper that says it can take watercolour. Click here for instructions on how to “stretch” paper.

Find a good place.
- Ahead of time decide on at least one good place you can go to do your artwork. It can be anywhere. In your home it could be a back yard, a porch, maybe the basement. Perhaps the only interruption free place you can think of is your own bedroom, that’s just fine. The important thing is to be able play without interruption because it allows you to “get lost in” the process of drawing or painting.

Try This Art Escape For Yourself

Grab your art kit and head to the spot you decided on.
When you get there take a minute or two to put out your art supplies and get comfortable.
If you are on a strict timeline take some sort of timer with you, so you can forget about time and just enjoy the creative process.
Remind yourself it does NOT have to look like anything! What ends up on the paper does not matter, it’s not like you have to show it to anyone 🙂 . This is about letting yourself become so involved with what you are doing that it becomes your complete focus for a few minutes.
People are attracted to different aspects of artwork and here are two of several different approaches you could take for your art escape.
- Lines + Contours – Draw a line you like and then another line in relation to the first line, and so on. The lines can be dark or light, long or short, wavy or straight, just play with lines. If a line reminds you of something you can choose to draw what it is, or continue playing with random lines. We are talking about doodling in the best sense of the word.
- Colours – pick one and lay down a random spot or splash or block of it on the paper. Add another colour, (or mix two together and see what you get). Just play with the colours, making choices by what feels right to you.
When you feel you have played long enough stop.
Take a minute to look at what is on the paper. Does anything come to mind? (If I was in a bad mood the lines would start out very dark and jagged but usually transitioned into more flowing drawing before I quit. Just notice if anything comes up for you.
If you don’t like what you drew throw it out, if you like it keep it.
There are lots of different ways you can us art as a meditation. I might come back to this topic in the future it was fun writing about it.

Experiment and Enjoy!

To your health!

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Labyrinth Meditation

The difference between a maze and a labyrinth is that a maze has several paths and directions like a big puzzle, and a labyrinth is a single path that leads to the center. Large labyrinths can be very complex but if you look at them from the top down you will see there is a single path that eventually reaches the middle (as you see in the photos)

If you are lucky enough to live in an area that has a labyrinth close by, try a walking a labyrinth meditation. (The Labyrinth Society www.labyrinthsociety.org has a link to a labyrinth locator at http://labyrinthlocator.com)

This kind of meditation is great for people who find sitting meditations difficult because they fall asleep or get too restless.

Both of these meditations use one of the senses as a point of focus. Choose the one that best suits you. Or, experiment with using your sense of smell or touch as your focus.

Meditation using your sense of hearing
Walk at a relaxed pace.

As you walk, pay attention to everything you hear, without judgment. Imagine that the sound of birds twittering is no better than a lawn mower, just different. It is only a matter of perception that makes one sound seem better than another. Remind yourself to just listen and NOT judge what you hear.

As you walk, breath deeply and allow your shoulders to relax downward. If you sense any muscle tension take a few deep breaths as you walk. Focus on sensing that the air you breath is helping your muscles to relax.

If the sounds seem to be too distracting try switching your focus to one of the other senses for a few steps and notice how the sound seems to diminish as you change your focus. Either stay with your new focus as you complete your walking meditation or switch back to your sense of hearing.

Meditation using your sense of sight
As you walk at a comfortable pace, place your attention on what you see.

Really notice the colour, shape and texture of objects. Notice also your reaction to what you see. Do you have a physical reaction to what you see? For example a beautiful flower may elicit a deep inhale of satisfaction or the sight of a slug may give you a little shiver.

Rather than passing judgement on what you see, try to be impartial. Remind yourself you are just seeing, not judging. When thoughts and words come into your mind release them, bringing your focus back to just seeing the world around you.

According to Wikipedia.org – the cultural meaning of labyrinths

Prehistoric labyrinths are believed to have served as traps for malevolent spirits or as defined paths for ritual dances. In medieval times, the labyrinth symbolized a hard path to God with a clearly defined center (God) and one entrance (birth).

Labyrinths can be thought of as symbolic forms of pilgrimage; people can walk the path, ascending toward salvation or enlightenment. Many people could not afford to travel to holy sites and lands, so labyrinths and prayer substituted for such travel. Later, the religious significance of labyrinths faded, and they served primarily for entertainment, though recently their spiritual aspect has seen a resurgence.

Many newly made labyrinths exist today, in churches and parks. Labyrinths are used by modern mystics to help achieve a contemplative state. Walking among the turnings, one loses track of direction and of the outside world, and thus quiets the mind. The Labyrinth Society[34] provides a locator for modern labyrinths all over the world.

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How to recognize if you are a grouch

A while ago I talked about keeping other people’s negative energy at bay through meditation. Well today I want to talk about how to recognize when YOU are being the grouch!

Classic clues that you maybe acting like a grouch

Do the people around you seem like they are being too darned cheerful?
When people are being too darned cheerful, do you feel you have to “bring them back to reality” by letting them know about some of the bad stuff going on?
Do you tend to watch a lot of news? (I will explain this later)
Do you find people are always trying to tell you that the glass really is half full, not half empty?
Does noise seem to stress you out more than it stresses other people out?
Do you hear yourself (practice actually listening to the words you use) saying “Yeah, but” when people mention something they think is fun to you?
Is your first response when you are considering a new opinion usually to think about all the things that might be wrong with it?

If you answered yes to more than one two of these read on! (This is by no means an exhaustive list, but you get the idea.)

Three De-grouchifying tactics

If you only have the occasional bout of grouchiness, the tactics below can help you appear to be less grouchy and more importantly FEEL less grouchy 🙂 (If feeling grouchy has become a way of life you might want to work on developing longer term coping mechanisms.)

When people are being too darned cheerful tell yourself “I hope it is contagious, I would like to catch some of that”. By being open to temporarily changing your outlook you can share few minutes of good cheer. Even a couple of minutes of good cheer can lighten the mood for a whole day.
Don’t watch so much news! It paints a horrific picture of the world because drama entices people to watch the newscast. It also sells newspapers.
- Have you ever noticed that when the news does report something positive it is usually prefaced with something dreadful? Even good news stories have to have an element of “drama”.
- Every picture of disaster stays in your memory, creating ongoing negative emotional impact every time something reminds you of that picture. Each of those photos have a little negative charge because we are social creatures and usually feel empathy for people in distress.
- If a total news fast seems too drastic try setting aside one day a week when you do not watch or read any news. That is a 14% improvement right there.
HUMOUR! When I realize that I’m are feeling and acting grouchy I often resort to humour. Laughter is one of my favorite tools. This is a topic I will write about again because it I find it is so useful for dealing with stress, in the meantime here is one technique I use when I realize that I am overreacting.
- Exaggerate how bad the situation could have been (to yourself not out loud), I mean REALLY exaggerate it, to the point that it is goofy. Say for example you put your coffee cup down on some important papers and it left a bit of a ring.
- Visualize that cup was full of coffee and it tipped over making the papers unreadable, and it fell on the floor splashing coffee all over the carpet and you, AND it bounced up and splattered across the furniture in the room! OH NO! it scared the dog and now you have another smellier mess to clean up, AND your mother in law choose to drop in unannounced right now.
- NOW, take a deep breath and say to yourself “I guess I can handle a little ring on the paper”
- The idea is that by exaggerating it to the point of craziness it will either trigger a smile at how silly it is or, it will trigger a feeling of relief. Either way it is better than what you were feeling 🙂

To your health!

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Interrupt Negative Thinking

I recently read a book by Dr Daniel G Amen called Change your Brain Change your Life.

One of the concepts I loved from this book is the idea of killing ants, not the little critters that love attending your picnics but Automatic Negative Thoughts or ants for short.

Sometimes people get stuck in negative thought patterns. The more the negative thoughts come up, the harder it becomes to think positively because the neural pathways in our brains actually become rewired to allow easier negative thinking!

The good news is that the reverse is also true, the more we practice positive thinking the better our brains become at recognizing the good things around us and reacting positively.

Dr Amen has a really great section in his book about recognizing “ants” and squashing them, but today I am talking about becoming a bit more APT (Automatic Positive Thinking) in your life.

This deceptively simple practice means you interrupt negative thoughts and replacing them with positive ones. Practice is the key, the more you practice the easier it becomes.

Automatic Positive Thinking

When you feel bad because _________ (fill in the blank with whatever is happening, for example everyone around you seems to be grouchy, or the kids didn’t do the vacuuming, whatever is “bugging” you)

Ask your self is that thought ABSOLUTELY true? For example, is EVERYONE grouchy, or can you think of one person that was not grouchy? This helps you to gain a bit of objectivity as it questions the validity of the negative thought.
Find SOMETHING positive about the situation, it doesn’t matter how small or big, or even silly for that matter. For example, you know that if you remind your kid he/she will do the vacuuming. So you could tell yourself “I’m glad I only have to remind him about the vacuuming and I don’t have to do it myself.”

Now this is where the mini meditation comes in

Find one small positive thing to focus on and spend just a minute or two appreciating it. Honestly, that is all there is to it. Say for example it’s raining and you are waiting impatiently in your car for your spouse to get back from a quick trip into the grocery store. Take that time to notice (and choose to enjoy) the sound of the rain on the roof, the way it cascades down the windshield, the clean fresh smell in the air. Imagine that everything about it is good and any time a negative thought pops up tell yourself “Right now I am just enjoying this.”

An example of interrupting automatic negative thinking –

When my father was in the hospital. I was wrapped up in pain, grief and anxiety but as I walked out of the hospital I noticed how beautiful the frost on the ground was with the street lights glinting off it. I heard myself thinking “What is wrong with you? being happy about something like that when your father is dying?!” A classic case of stinking thinking!

Thankfully, I realized that I needed a break from the the pain so I focused on the beauty of the frost for a few minutes. That small break, it couldn’t have been more than 3 minutes, removed me from the negative spiral I was in and helped me to regain emotional balance for a few hours.

To your health!
Connie

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Boundary Meditation – Dealing with Angry People

It is amazing how quickly being around an angry person can make me angry. When I see an angry person headed my way I have to take a deep breath and remind myself to be objective. I don’t have to react with anger just because they are angry.

I try to imagine their words are like a present hidden in garbage. By listening objectively I can unwrap the useful information and discard the garbage 😉

This helps me be more objective so I can recognize the useful information hiding in what they are saying. For example if a friend tells me “You know what drives me nuts about you?” I know it is time to take a deep breath and listen calmly.

Afterwards I find a quiet place do a visualization meditation. Here is one I find useful for helping me release emotions I have taken on from other people –

Sit down, close your eyes put your feet flat on the ground and your hands open in your lap. Take a couple of nice deep breaths and …

Imagine a column of pure clean energy runs from your tailbone to the top our your head. This is your own energy, pure clean and unadulterated. Spend a moment to enjoy the this quiet space, release thoughts as they come up.

Now imagine light is radiating outward from this column of energy, filling up your whole body and then the space around you (to about a 18″ outside of your body). Sense tension dropping away from you as you fill up this space with your own light.

Spend as long as you need to, sensing your energy filling you and surrounding you, releasing negative emotions, and any thoughts that come up.

As you fill yourself up with your own energy notice yourself becoming calmer as everything else drops away. Your own energy becomes so bright there is no room for other people’s emotions.

Once you have practiced this a few times it will become easier to release emotions you have taken on from other people.

This is just one meditation for handling angry people. It is a topic that I am sure to come back to again.

To your Health!
Connie

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7th Chakra (Crown) Meditation

The seventh chakra is referred to as the crown chakra because of it’s location at the top of the head. The colour associated with it is either gold or clear white light. It is associated with the ability to understand complete concepts. It is also associated with connection to source, or God.

Here is a short meditation (anywhere from about 5 minutes and up) that can aid the flow of energy in this chakra.

Sit upright in a comfortable chair, feet flat on the floor and hands open on your lap.

Close your eyes and breath in deeply, imagining your breath reaching every part of your body. As you breath out feel any tension in your body melting away.

For the next 2 – 3 minutes breath in clean, pure colourless energy. As you breath deeply and fully, sense this energy is allowing you to release all energy that does not serve you, all thoughts that do not connect you to your higher good. As you exhale, know you are releasing tension and confusion.

Spend a few breaths (maybe 2-3 minutes) sensing what is going on in your body and your mind. As thoughts come up, let them go and refocus on the act of breathing. Allow yourself to release any anxiety you have about others. This is all about you, no one else.

When you feel are finished, stand, stretch and take a moment to appreciate your ability to know what is right for you.

Totally Meditation

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