Category: Mindfulness / Wellness

Okay, I’m mixing my metaphors now, between yoga and meditation. And some of you probably think “what’s the difference? it is all new-agey stuff anyway.”

From both the Book of Joy (see recent post) and Start Here (recent post), the practice of compassion can be linked to a brief meditative exercise. One starts with thinking of oneself, and then gradually broadening the horizon. So, to start, sit quietly, and thinking of a close friend:

May you   … be free of suffering
… be happy
… be healthy
… live in peace and joy.

This should be relatively easy to do. Each step from here gets progressively harder, if you are being honest with yourself. Next, think of your self and make the same statements:

May I         … be free of suffering
… be happy
… be healthy
… live in peace and joy.

Even more difficult. Think of someone you only know casually; perhaps someone at work. Or harder yet, someone you know and with whom you have a tough time getting along. Same statements.

Finally, think of ALL beings, and make the same statement.

Work up to it. Don’t strain yourself. I would argue that even a brief 5 minute exercise working through these statements can: stretch your brain, generate some internal observations, and surely will alter your world view just a little. It did for me.

Remember: those coming on the journey: 3 minutes of meditation every day! I’m holding both of us accountable to this important habit! (and perhaps fold that into today’s 5 minutes).

CMIO’s take? Who knew that there is a step-by-step exercise for compassion? And that it benefits ME at least as much as it does others?

Our trip to Shambhala mountain center would not have been complete without some strenuous hiking up above the retreat. It sits on 600 acres of land in the foothills and is pretty spectacular. Allen Ginsburg’s remains are buried here. And hiking the perimeter trail is a wonderful 10 mile traverse, of which we did a couple miles.

Funny story: we timed our hike to leave us plenty of time to be back for our next yoga session, but as we enjoyed ourselves so much, we realized we were going to be late. We hurried back down the mountain (whooping and jumping down the sloping trails as we went). However, as we came back into the retreat area, we jogged as quietly as we could past a stately, older retreat participant, garnering us a quick glare. Nothing like RUSHING BACK to be in time for restorative yoga.

So, coming on the journey with me? I’m going to stay with a 3 minute meditation, eyes closed, with just the simple goal of spending 3 minutes in a comfortable pose, and focusing on breath. Then to watch the inevitable stream of thoughts floating by, observing each one as a puffy cloud, letting it just drift by without diving into it, and returning to my breath.

CMIO’s take? My favorite (mis)quoted line from Herbie the Love Bug: “Rushing is a cracked bowl, which knows no rice.”

So our family recently went to the Shambhala mountain retreat, and I participated in my first restorative yoga session with a terrific instructor. Ninety minutes of stretching, moving my body in ways it is not used to, in an idyllic mountain setting, with great views out the window. What’s not to like?

We end of course with “savasana.” Sure, whatever. It turns out that complete relaxation pose is a HUGE temptation to fall asleep. When it works, and you completely relax, empty your mind (without falling asleep), it is apparently amazing (so I’m told).

Why Savasana is the hardest yoga pose.

Funny story: within a minute or two of starting on Savasana, I feel my finger being pinched by my teenaged daughter lying to my left. “Dad! You were SNORING! So embarrassing.”

This happened several times in a row in the last 10 minutes. “Dad! Snoring!” “I wasn’t!” (glare). Interestingly, I think the last time my finger was pinched, I actually heard someone snoring as I came back to awareness. It might have been me. Is that even possible to hear yourself snore?

Anyway, this is harder than it looks. Meaning Savasana, and not the teenager snarkiness.

So, coming on the journey with me? I’m going to stay with a 3 minute meditation, eyes closed, with just the simple goal of spending 3 minutes in a comfortable pose, and focusing on breath. Then to watch the inevitable stream of thoughts floating by, observing each one as a puffy cloud, letting it just drift by without diving into it, and returning to my breath.

CMIO’s take? Sure. I wasn’t snoring.

I’ve heard that meditation is essentially “Bicep Curls for the Mind.” Just like you would train your body in whatever discipline: martial arts, or boxing, a sport, yoga, lifting weights, you can also train your mind for more focus, discipline, productivity.

Creating a habit of meditation of noticing and being present, not only reaps immediate benefits of feeling calmer, more focused, but in the long run generates happiness and joy.

So, coming on the journey with me? I’m going to stay with a 3 minute meditation, eyes closed, with just the simple goal of spending 3 minutes in a comfortable pose, and focusing on breath. Then to watch the inevitable stream of thoughts floating by, observing each one as a puffy cloud, letting it just drift by without diving into it, and returning to my breath.

CMIO’s take? Wow, I’m feeling a bit new-age-y just now. Time to burn some incense and start my New Age Spotify playlist. Watch out.

So I was asked to lead a short meditation in a workshop I was helping to conduct. We’re doing some work on Personal Resilience in our organization. I also gave a similar talk to some pharmacy residents, and decided to incorporate a brief guided meditation exercise (WITH ME AS GUIDE?!?!).

So, I did my best. I cultivated my “indoor voice” quiet-but-not-too-quiet, developed a script: “If you’re comfortable, sit with your feet flat on the floor; then if you’re comfortable, close your eyes; then think of your hands resting on your lap; then think of a string and balloon attached to the top of your head, gently straightening your neck and making your head feel light; then think of a heavy warm blanket around your shoulders, allowing them to relax downward.”

Of course, the feedback after the session from some polite participants: “Nice” and “Relaxing” and “It helped me clear my head.” My favorite, though was:

“Well, it felt much longer than 3 minutes and was kind of boring.”

Thanks!

Remember: those coming on the journey with me: 3 minutes of meditation every day! I’m holding both of us accountable to this important habit!

CMIO’s take? Meditation practice can actually help with statements I would have previously taken personally. Observe the statement, note it, put it aside, return to your breath. See?

Monkey Mind! A term particularly apt, at least for me, as I navel-gaze into my own brain (hmm, mixed metaphors also seem to be a personal problem). Sitting quietly in a chair paying attention to breath CANNOT BE THIS HARD, but my analytical internal left-brain monkey is active all the time.

I mentioned my new-found meditation habit to a colleague who tells me “I did T.M. (transcendental meditation) for 20 years. During my hippie days…” (there has GOT to be a story there).

I also mentioned this to a patient of mine, who suffers from severe anxiety, as a possible solution, and that I’m starting to meditate myself, but am having some difficulty. He smiles, says that he does this every morning for 30 minutes, and that it helps him a great deal with his anxiety symptoms. What we don’t know about our patients…

And then, he amazes me by reassuring ME! “Don’t worry, doctor, keep focusing on your breath. You’ll get it.”

Wow.

So, coming on the journey with me? I’m going to stay with a 3 minute meditation, eyes closed, with just the simple goal of spending 3 minutes in a comfortable pose, and focusing on breath. Then to watch the inevitable stream of thoughts floating by, observing each one as a puffy cloud, letting it just drift by without diving into it, and returning to my breath.

CMIO’s take? Sometimes advice comes from the most unexpected places. Be ready to accept it!