Breath, Consciousness and Staying Healthy

I have been studying about consciousness a lot lately. Anita Pathik Law from The Power of Our Way had a GREAT Community Call in Program on "Raising Consciousness and Taking Responsibility for Your Own Shift" last week and through it I met many others that were very thought provoking. Shifting into Consciousness used to sound so foreign to me.... but all it is simply is being in the moment. Being aware of what your mind is telling you and what your self-talk is saying. Being aware of the world around you and not moving through it mindlessly. Meditation or concentrating on your breath is one of the easiest ways to initiate this. Through the call in program there were many wise ways people used to bring them back to consciousness and relax their own minds from tools like gardening and dance to prayer or gratitude and many more.

Being given all this wonderful information lately has been very helpful as the holidays, feet of snow, child illnesses and heavy work load have been overwhelming me a bit. My good friend Alissa forwarded me the following video this morning -- she always seems to know when I need something even though she is far away from me in Miami! A GREAT way to start a Monday and exactly what I needed to bring me back to awareness. I've told Alissa several times that she is my guardian angel and once again she has proven it! She introduced me to my husband 13 years ago and she introduced me to The Secret which led to my healing. Thank you Alissa -- I am more grateful for you than I'll ever be able to say and miss you terribly! The following is a video of Prem Rawat/Maharaji talking about the importance of breath.

Through Anita Pathik Law's call in program I met someone who truly resonated with me when I heard her speak. Her name is Dr. Charlene Proctor and her website is The Goddess Network. She mentioned and has studied under Sai Maa of Humanity in Unity who is inspirational when it comes to centering, awareness and enlightenment. Following is a video where she speaks of how she sees enlightenment.

It is amazing for me to see the growth I have had during the last year and also amazing how far I have yet to go! ; ) Life is a journey and if you are bored, angry or experience a lot of negative emotions frequently you are definitely not living it consciously. When you begin to listen to yourself and quiet your mind you can start to see what you truly desire to be happy. You can set goals, make time for yourself and be aware of what is going on around you instead of being on auto-pilot. Everyone needs time to breathe and think about where there mind is in order to grow. If you are not controlling your thoughts than who is? Are you going through the day reacting as you have been programmed to do or are you living consciously?

I still have my moments that I am not proud of. Anger, frustration, worry and feeling overwhelmed sometimes can hit me hard. I am getting better of being aware when these emotions come up and naming them, acknowledging them and questioning why they are there and what to do with them. Negative emotions can be GREAT for noticing what you DON'T want but usually there is no benefit to staying in that space for too long. Negative emotions cause stress and stress leads to illness and un-wellness. I am trying my best when I do experience these emotions to breathe, work through what I am feeling and use my self-talk to turn things around. I love to get out and go for a walk when the weather and someone watching my kids permits but my fastest way to center is to be in quiet, breathe slowly and deeply and think CONSTRUCTIVELY instead of DESTRUCTIVELY. Other ways I turn my mood around and return to consciousness include putting on a song that I HAVE to dance to, calling a good friend, watching an inspiring video (like above), reading a great article or putting on Deepak Chopra's audio "Soul of Healing Meditations". My friend and fellow blogger Greg Butler at Holistic Personal Development has a lot of GREAT articles on consciousness that I highly recommend.

During this time of year it is easy to get off track and to have emotions get the better of you. It doesn't mean it has to be permanent and you don't have to let them control you or ruin your day. Take notice of them and figure out WHY they are there and what you can do to change them. Take the time to breathe, be conscious and recenter and you will feel better and be much more likely to STAY healthy during the end of the year rather than letting stress wear you down and make you ill.

Victim of My Own Mind

I haven't written more this week because I have been ill. It is the first time I have been "sick" since I healed myself of chronic pain. I have all the symptoms back I used to have daily which is flu-like (aches, dizziness, nauseousness, loss of appetite, general lack of energy). It has been a real "wake-up" call to me.

While better for the last 10 months I have been putting enormous amounts of pressure on myself to "make up for lost time" and to be the superwoman I always have striven to be. I have wanted to succeed in all areas of my life and have been putting an enormous amount of pressure on myself to do it all NOW. I have been slacking on meditation and some of the tools I used that helped me the most due to "no time". What could be more important than time for my mind to clear and focus?

I read Steve Pavlina's latest post and that was another wake-up. He has been ill as well and has been using the time to assess. I will do that as well. This is obviously a call from my body for help and I intend to listen. I will reapply my methods adopted the first time I healed myself and make more of a conscious effort to keep those practices daily in my life. I will attempt to "let myself off the hook" of all my to-do's and concentrate on my top 3.

Even when you think you have it all figured out there are times needed to reassess. I was not stopping to listen to my mind because I was too bogged down in the day to day challenges life has been throwing at me -- and my body reacted to get my attention. I have faced some serious challenges in my personal life this week and have not taken the mental time to figure out ways I can deal with them constructively and what I can learn from them. Instead I have felt sad, preoccupied, a bit lost and disconnected. I will take this weekend to relax, think, meditate and look forward to coming back to my blog next week with peace and determination and I will try and leave the perfectionism behind! : )

"Meditation can Help to Heal Pain or to Just Relax"

I did not originally try meditating to heal pain. My first attempts at meditation were simply to relax and get some quiet time. Being a mom with 2 young children somehow doesn't allow for that much! I have tried meditation several times in my life before making in an integral part OF my life. I am someone who has a thousand thoughts scurrying around in my head at all times or as people who meditate call it, "Yes, I have a MONKEY MIND"! When I set my intention to heal myself I began reading a lot of books on The Law of Attraction. Meditation was mentioned in almost every one. If your mind is running from topic to topic without concentrating on any ONE thing -- how can you expect your subconscious to know what is truly important to you? If you cannot take 10 minutes out of your day to quiet your mind and relax how will your body have the time to rejuvenate and appreciate living instead of just running from task to task? Finding time to meditate during the summer with both children home with me has not been easy but it is essential. Those days I allowed myself to "skip" I know my husband and children felt the difference as well as me. My son has been known to say to me "mommy, why don't you go take some quiet time?" I always answer with a resounding, "Yes, thank you -- I will do that".

Tons of people have wondered if they could use meditation to heal pain. Research now is saying it is extremely helpful in lowering stress levels that lead to tons of illnesses. My mind/body guru is Deepak Chopra. In this under 2 minute clip he explains what meditation physically DOES to the body. "Deepak Chopra on Meditation"

Some people hear the word meditation and immediately say "I can't do that" or "Isn't that what Buddhists do? I'm not Buddhist!" Wiki-How offers a simple start up meditation on their site: http://www.wikihow.com/Meditate

The Mayo Clinic says this about meditation:

"Meditation: Take a stress-reduction break wherever you are"

Meditation can wipe away the day's stress, giving you a clean slate. You can practice meditation anywhere — at home, on the bus, at work or wherever you are. See how.

Meditation has been practiced for thousands of years. Originally, it was meant to help people deepen their understanding of the sacred and mystical forces of life. These days, many people turn to meditation for relaxation and stress reduction. Meditation produces a deep state of relaxation and a tranquil mind. Meditation can give you a sense of calm, peace and emotional stability. And these effects don't end when your meditation session ends. Meditation can have lasting effects on your emotional and physical well-being. To read more of what they have to say and offer on meditation please visit their site: www.mayoclinic.com

There are tons of free materials online to download. Written scripts on meditation, some guided meditation audios and lots of stories on how meditation has changed people's lives. It takes some practice in the beginning but it is well worth it. My favorite guided meditation is by Deepak Chopra and I listen to it a few times a week and it ALWAYS works wonders.

To find out what other tools I used to heal myself of chronic pain and illness please find out more about my ebook or visit my site: http://www.thankfulformyhealing.com