According to Dacher (2006) for the benefits of the mental workout to be felt it requires an hour a day. Also like any other training activity if we slack off we loose the conditioning benefits. In this case for contemplative practice for loving- kindness and subtle mind. The loving-kindness concept is breathing exercise to start with yourself and slowing increase the circle to include others, strangers, all living things. The subtle mind is an exercise to control the thoughts of the mind so it can be stilled an focused to calm-abiding.
These exercising would be good after work to calm my busy mind to get it refocused so it is not so overwhelmed. Remembering things I need to do at work, and clashing with things I have to do for home and school.
The reality is I really don't have an hour to sit and do mental workouts. I enjoyed the track thought , mostly the sound of the water, I actually jumped each time her voice came through to speak about the exercise.
Dacher, E. (2006). Integral health: The path to human flourishing. Laguna Beach, CA: Basic Health Publications, Inc.
First of all, you seem to be a very busy individual and really don't have time for yourself. With work, school, and whatever else you have in your life, how do you find time for yourself? With that said, I can only hope you do allow some time to yourself because you really need it. Besides that, I too found the water hitting the shores in the background in the Loving Kindness exercise very calming yet I tend to tense up when I hear the voice coming in and out. I really didn't particularly like this exercise compared to the others we've tried but I believe it is not meant to cause relaxation but work the mind. Well, I wish you good luck and hope you do take time for yourself because although you may have a busy life, you can never be too busy to care for yourself. Good Luck.
ReplyDeleteA couple of years ago I would have said the same thing, "I don't have time to relax." Then I realized that I was allowing any "me" time and that can lead to many things including a weakened immune system and a other health issues. "Me" time is great and I don't have a chance for it until after work at about 1130 every night but I enjoy it. My "me" time is when I run in the morning and the small amount of time that I spend reading the news and headlines on the computer before I start homework every night. I agree with Diana and I have learned just how helpful time for me can be. The assignment did have a difficult voice to listen to but I tried it again with a cup of tea next to me and found myself able to relax more and stay calmer when the voice started back in. Good luck and please find some time for you!
ReplyDeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to let you know that you did a great job on the unit 4 Blog and I really enjoyed reading your thoughts on the importance of mental workouts. I also agree with you that in order to keep the mind in a healthy state it needs to exercise on an everyday basis. I feel like when I don't use my mind it is just wasting away its potential. I try and just do relaxation exercises and mental imagery/visualization to keep my mind occupied and working sometime throughout the day. Is there any exercises that you enjoy that help keep your mind at a healthy level? I really enjoyed your blog and I hope you keep up the great work for the rest of the term.
I too find it hard to get an hour in the day to do these exercise, but I can always find a 15 minute slot during the day. As with all exercise it is a learned thing. We have to do it everyday and start off with shorter times and then we will ultimateley find the hour that we thought we did not have.I would have to say that if the sound of the ocean was not in the background, I do not think that I would have been able to get as much out of the exercise.
ReplyDeleteDiana,
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear that you did not get the benefits of the exercise. You have got to find some time for yourself physically and mentally. If you do not take care of yourself, you will not be able to take care of others. It can affect you with stress, depression, and many other illnesses. Start out with even 15 minutes, it is better than nothing. God bless and good luck