What works for me...

Aesclepius meditation has proven to be my most effective method of exercise for relaxing my busy mind. I have tried many different forms of mental workout as well as relaxation presented from my class as well as from doing general research and finding what works best for me and when it comes down to it I seem to be a simple meditation type of mind. I love to be able to focus on my inner breathing and to clear my thoughts and feelings and even though some issues are still left to be dealt with after I have finished meditating I still bring a clear mind to the table with a clear focus and have a better attitude as well as general mental state to take on whatever it may be at that time including what sometimes feels like the world!

Mental health is such a crucial area to focus on and we must all find what works best for us in our own lives. Suggestions and tips from others are always welcome with open arms and a warm heart, and I am willing to try almost anything, but at the end of the day it is important to do what works best for our inner minds which for me is simple meditation.  

A Touching Experience...

This week I completed the meeting Aesclepius meditation experience. I chose a person who is very close to my heart and someone I have been morning the loss of. I found this experience touching and meaningful in a very warming way. I found myself smile at times and when I was done I was in tears, but not in a bad way, but in the way that Ryan and I have been brought so close so many times lately. Last night I gathered with a group of family and friends in order to celebrate Ryan’s 28^th birthday and let him know that all of us here on earth are still missing him, loving him and thinking of him. We lit 28 fire lanterns and sent them off to the heavens as our message of love and thoughts, it was truly touching in every since. Today doing this meditation experience he was the first person that came into my vision and I felt that this experience was just one more step of closeness between us.

"One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" (p.477), in life there are so many experiences and as a nurse there are situations that I am going to enter into with my patients that I have not personal gone myself before. This does not mean that I will not have an understanding or that I cannot help that person through these times. I thank the Lord have not had brain cancer or liver cancer or many other diseases or conditions, but that does not mean I cannot give strength to those who I am caring for with the illness it just simply means that my personal experience of the situation will be different. I will never tell someone that I understand when it is a situation I have never experienced myself and most times I won’t even if it is an experience I have experienced myself as each experience is unique to that individual. My obligation to my patients is to care for them the best I possibly can and to push them to achieve their optimal health, and through them I also grow. Many times no matter how much I feel I have given to a patient I feel I have grown even more from meeting them and the strength and wisdom that they obtain. I can assist them with spiritual growth by encouraging them to discuss their thoughts and feelings and to use their personal religious beliefs as strength; there are so many ways as a nurse that we can help others as well as ourselves. 

Trying to slow a busy mind...

Describe the exercise and assessment process. What did you discover about yourself?

                I personally discovered that my mind is very busy currently and I have a hard time pausing to try to think of what all is in my mind when I am busy thinking about all of the things that I have on my list to do. Unless I am in the state of relaxation and pulling myself out from my busy day and homework I struggle to really focus on what exactly needs to be “fixed” or improved.

What area have you chosen to be a focus of growth and development? Why?

Psychospiritual is the area that I chose to focus on. This is an area that I feel comfortable with, but also feel has not been as well kept up as others in my life and could use the most work.

What are some specific exercises or activities that you can implement to foster greater wellness in this area?

                I do a lot of clearing my mind and refocusing on my morals and beliefs, and focusing on doing what is morally and ethically correct. I also attempt to focus on stress management and not letting negative occurrences affect my mood and how I react and correspond with others around me. Talking to others around me with the same or similar beliefs also encourages a positive psychospiritual state. 

Loving Kindness Vs. Subtle Mind exercise...

Compare and contrast the Loving Kindness exercise and the Subtle mind exercise. Explain your experience including the benefits, frustrations etc.

                The difference between the two exercises is that in the loving-kindness exercise you are shifting your thoughts and refocusing your mind and in the subtle mind exercise you are doing a whole body relaxation with focus on your breathing. With the subtle mind exercise you are supposed to be “taming a busy mind” but I found after doing it all of the things I had been thinking about previously were all still there. I didn’t feel like it was as mindfully relaxing as the loving-kindness, but that it was just simply a nice time to relax.

                In order for this experience to achieve what I feel it is meant to do I would have to do both exercises doing the loving-kindness exercise first. I also felt that just simply focusing on my breathing was not the best method and I would rather do a full body meditation. I found myself getting bored and losing focus in the subtle mind exercise.

Discuss the connection of the spiritual wellness to mental and physical wellness. Explain how the connection is manifested in your personal life.

                As we all know our spiritual wellness is one aspect of our mental and physical wellness that must be addressed in order to have optimal health. Personally I am addressing this aspect of my life and I understand the importance of this aspect of life, but feel that there remains room for growth and development which I intend on pursuing. 

Mental Workout

Describe your experience. Did you find it beneficial? Difficult? Why or why not? Would you recommend this to others? Why or why not?

                I found this experience relaxing, but much like meditation. Personally I found this experience to be beneficial and I found it to be actually very simple and not difficult at all. It gives a since of calmness and refocuses your mind to a happier and healthier place rather than the chaos of the day. It brings your focus back to ground and encourages you to let go of the negative to focus on the healthy and happiness, to release the tension of negativity. When I did this experience I chose a calm environment and used headphones and really put myself into a place where I felt this could be most beneficial and I feel that worked best. You are able to walk away from this experience with a since of calmness and with your mind at piece. I also enjoyed the calm music of the ocean in the back.

What is the concept of "mental workout"? What does the research indicate are the proven benefits of a mental workout? How can you implement mental workouts to foster your psychological health?

                The concept of “mental workout” is the idea of not just clearing our mind, but training our minds to release tension and anxiety and focus on positive and encouraging thoughts. There are proven benefits of mental workout. Mental training has proven to increase clarity and has shown long term as well as short term benefits. In order to implement mental workout in our own lives for out psychological health we must make time daily in order to refocus our minds and to focus on our mental workout, time to heal our minds.