Meditate to Rehabilitate

I consider mediation a form of rehabilitation for every aspect of human suffering – painful emotions, an overactive mind, seemingly dire circumstances, an ailing body or a dampened Spirit.  

When I first began to meditate I would fall asleep, a lot!  

My husband started to call it sleep-i-tation. But sometimes that’s what the body needs:)  I was a mom of three small kids and I was tired. So it made sense that I would fall asleep if I took a moment of stillness. Other than giving me more sleep, meditation has transformed my life.

When I decided to “wake up”,  that's when things really started to change.  

WHAT CHANGED?

• Meditation enhances my way of existing so that I can move through a busy or sometimes upsetting day with a heightened awareness, clarity, and access to calmness. Have you ever seen the movie “The Matrix?” In the movie the characters experience life in slow motion at times.  With a daily devotion to stillness, instead of a FAST FORWARD  button I now have access to a pause button.  And I don't need to meditate for long periods of time to find this pause.
• Because of the pause, I’ve uncovered an ability to respond to the circumstances of the day without getting overwhelmed by them.  Well sometimes I get overwhelmed, but I can manage the overwhelm more easily. Life is always going to throw drama and undesirable circumstances your way, that’s never going to change.  Daily stillness can help manage those dramatics and help you regain your balance in the midst of turmoil.
• A physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual component exists in each meditation you do and this transmutes into positive changes and awareness in all these areas. Emotionally, I have become more aware of my ego-defences and I can avoid the mini-dramas more easily. They still happen but I don’t engage as often or even feel the desire to do so.  
• It allows me to see my way clear when situations get complicated.   It affords me the ability to move out of  little irritabilities more quickly.
• When practising on a regular basis, meditation helps me become the observer so that I become more aware of my behaviour patterns and can often circumvent emotional triggers. 
• It quiets my mind chatter and connects me to my creative Self.
• Ultimately, it helps me connect to my Spirit and reminds me I am not my roles, my past, or my fears. 

“And the day came when the risk it took to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. ”  – Anais Nin

 

ACTION:

Get started meditating today by doing these three simple things:

1. Set aside a short amount of time to begin meditating.  If you chose 5 minutes, cut it in half it to 2.5 minutes. This way your mind will be much less resistant to follow through as you begin your practice.

2. Pick a time that makes it easy to get started. When you first wake up, just before sleep, or lunch time? Again, preempt resistance.

3. Now, get comfortable, sit up straight, hips and shoulders aligned, gently close your eyes, and breathe in for a count of 4 and out for a count of 4.  Let your breath be your focus. Do this for the set amount of time you chose and then halved.  If your mind gets active (and it likely will) just notice, and return to your breath. 

Congratulations, you're on your way to your daily practice, and rehabilitating your mind, body, emotions, and Spirit.

Stay Conscious and Take Excellent Care of Your SELF!

Veronica