meditation

Any tips :) #Sleep #Tips #help #Comment #Wellbeing #MentalHealth #Support #Mindfulness #Meditation

I’m usually lucky 🍀 and sleep 😴 quite well but after a cold an hyper focus on my breathing 😮‍💨from a stuffy nose thankfully I’m over my cold now. But I still have that body protective thing I was doing where I was so focused on my breathing it’s a silly dumb anxiety thing but it’s like you forget to breathe and instead of doing it automatically you are doing it short ish sometimes focusing on the breath is said to calm you down in meditations spiritually but for me it’s the opposite. Any tips for getting to sleep, I’m trying to listen to calming music and affirmations but it’s not working as well as it usually would. I’m like half resting but conscious and if I sleep deeply like REM sleep it’s very little. Please help :( I feel so dumb and annoyed at myself. Sometimes even during the day I have that thing too like checking with myself with my breathing 😮‍💨 and it’s becoming an annoying new habit I just want to function normally and stop the silliness which I didn’t have this annoying thing until recently. It’s like yes my body is trying to protect me in its own way with anxiety but I don’t need this. #Anxiety #Breathing #dumb #Silly #Anxiety #shame #barriers #struggles #advice #themighty #MentalHealth #Anxiety #Depression #Support #help #Listener #Selfcompassion #feelingdumb #feelingsilly #Selfacceptance #confused #bodysymptoms #sensations #Hyperfocus #Meditation #tired #Insomnia

I like to share some things that helped me and perhaps that can help you too. I struggled with emotions, anxiety, anger etc in the past.

When I am angry before bedtime, I cannot sleep and for the whole night, it's as if I am holding a ball of fire. Later on, I learnt mindfulness meditation to cope with emotions and meditation is wonderful for calmness, and there is this method of meditation for body scan that helps me fall asleep easier. There are times where I can't sleep much the whole night but meditation helps to sort of put the mind at rest so even though I was aware that I didn't sleep much, I was not cranky and I feel ok. Energy level is also ok and not too tired out.

Meditation also teaches me to observe my anger, sadness and emotions instead of being overwhelmed by it, and that emotions, like thoughts, comes and goes and we should be kinder to ourselves.

I used to think that meditation is for religion but its great for mental health. You can try "calm" or "smiling mind" app for a start.

The other method I use is Reiki, also great for calmness and rest and I also use some reiki visualizations when I am on the train and I can get anxious but the visualizations helps me calm down. Hope these methods may also help you.#Anxiety #Reiki #Meditation #MentalHealth

This year, I chose to stay home over the holidays. I didn’t choose to stay home because I don’t love my family or because I didn’t want to see them. I chose to stay home for the sake of honoring my emotions.

As someone who struggles with mental health issues, being around multiple people at once can have a tremendous effect on me—and not a positive one. My family is aware of my conditions, but they don’t always know how to respond to my emotions, let alone understand why I feel the way I do. So before large gatherings, I tend to become anxious, panicky, and overwhelmed.

This year, I’d already been feeling an increase in my anxiety before the party even began, and that was the only indicator I needed to make my decision. Some guilt arose while I was in the process of deciding to stay home, but I knew I would only benefit in the long run.

Here are the three key things I told myself to help curb the guilt I experienced as a result of choosing to stay home rather than participate in holiday celebrations with my family.

I don’t owe anybody anything.

I can’t take the reactions of others personally.

I need to trust my gut.

Whenever i had overwhelming emotion i meditate. #PTSD #Meditation #Trauma #Guilt #MentalHealth

Ugh! its morning again??!!

As someone with OCD and GAD there are many mornings I wake up afraid to get out of bed. My brain starts its "what if" generator specifically curated for the day - if I'm working its "what if I don't do a good enough job today," if there is a doctor's appointment its "what if I'm late" - even visiting the hair salon can be a stressor, "what if I don't like the cut and have to tell my stylist..." Hooray for Anxiety!!!

And as soon as the "what ifs" start so do the heart palpitations and the sweating, etc. etc. etc...

Needless to say I have never been a huge fan of mornings but like everyone else I have to get out of bed (sometimes more sloth-like than human) and start the day. I needed to find a coping tool to make this process a little easier for me.

I have used a form of meditation for many years but it wasn't until 2019 that I became a regular practitioner. Now every morning when the "what ifs" start and my body responds with its "fight or flight" business, I have a method to quiet both body and mind. My morning meditation is simple and requires little time. However, the beauty of this mental practice as I have learned after further research is that meditation is limited only by your own creativity and personal preferences. One can incorporate words, music and even nature sounds to name a few variations.

Getting back to my personal morning mediation - its basic but effective for me. All it involves is breathing, counting and focus. I start slowly counting to 100 - taking two deep breaths for each number and focusing only on the inhalation and exhalation of breath. Sounds easy right- not so fast... As anyone with a brain can tell you sometimes the hardest thing to do is maintaining focus on one concept. Every time my mind wanders off my breath - I focus it back on the process of inhaling and exhaling. And I guarantee your mind will wander and wander and you will have to refocus many times in just one session.

But at the end of this simple daily exercise, I find that I am calmer, my body's nervous system a little quieter and it is easier to embrace the day at hand.

The beauty of meditation is that it takes only minutes to learn but a lifetime to master. As a daily practitioner you learn that it is neither a race nor a contest to be won - simply a mental exercise to continue practicing daily. And as a daily practitioner you are rewarded with a calmer, more peaceful demeanor.

If you are interested in learning more about mediation I have listed several good books and apps below - which can be used by beginner to long-time practitioner alike...

Several books to read:

Wherever You Go There You Are - Jon Kabat-Zinn

Meditation is Not What You Think - Jon Kabat- Zinn

Two apps to explore

Calm

Headspace

I wish you peace on your future meditation journey...

#OCD #Anxiety #panic #GAD #Meditation