…an attempt to meditate begins

I have written a few posts about the 21-day meditation challenge offered by The Chopra Center.  It is a great way to begin a routine to practice slowing down the fast-paced mind and remembering what is important to you.  This challenge spans for 21-days and takes approximately 20 minutes per day.

So how does it work?  Well, I have added the link to the website at the end of this post.  The link will send you to the registration page where you can provide your e-mail address, or sign-up via Facebook.  Then each day, The Chopra Center will send you a special guided meditation to listen to when you take a break from your busy life.

Go ahead and give it a try!  Think about it; the worst that can happen is NOT RECEIVING 21 free, guided meditations.  But if you are still uncertain about finding time to devote to this challenge or whether meditation is for you, just sign-up to receive the e-mails and decide later.

Here is the link and enjoy the challenge.     ~Christine

…I encourage this 21-Day Meditation Challenge

I have been an advocate for the 21-day meditation challenge that is provided by The Chopra Center. On March 11, a special challenge will be offered with special guest, Oprah Winfrey.  I am incredibly excited to take part in this meditation, and I encourage all readers to try this out.  When you click here to read my previous posts about this fabulous meditation challenge, you will learn how little time it takes to clear your mind.  Just a small amount of time dedicated to yourself will help make the rest of your 16 hours in your day better.

Please click on this link to join!

~Christine

…I use other modalities for healing

Although I am a Reiki Master and have realized this energy healing technique suits me, I am also open to trying different techniques.  One such technique and healing modalities is called meditation.

Last week was the beginning of the 21-day meditation challenge offered through the Chopra Center.  I have introduced previous 21-day meditation challenges on my older posts.  But tonight, I was reminded that I needed to create a new post inviting readers to register for this challenge.  Although the meditation challenge is currently underway, I believe you still can register to begin your own challenge even if you didn’t start during the official Day 1.

The current meditation focuses on love and the heart.  And so far, I feel the positive effects more than I have before.  Register for this challenge, it only takes 15-20 minutes a day.

~Christine

…owning takes a different perspective

During the 21-Day Meditation Challenge offered by The Chopra Center, there was one specific meditation that impacted my thinking.  It was a meditation where I focused on my ideas of “owning”.  The main question that I “lightly” thought about during the meditation was, “what do I own?”  The answers could be tangible and intangible objects; materials, emotions, characteristics, responsibilities, roles, etcetera.

I focused on the material objects because the physical objects are easiest for me to describe.  In my head, I went from room to room in my house and visualized looking at all of my belongings.  As I was visualizing this, another question was, “why do I own these items, and do those items still serve that purpose for me?”

As I ended this meditation, I had more respect and appreciation for myself, my hard work (which has helped me pay for the items), and each item.

Today, I will be going through each room in my house and gathering all those items that are not serving their purpose for me anymore.  What a great way to Spring clean my house and my soul.

~Christine

…I Am a “Witness” to My Life

Photo from nasa.gov

I came across the concept of “Witnessing” when I completed the Summer 2011 Meditation Challenge through the Chopra Center.  I found this activity beneficial for me.  It helped me decompress and slowed my mind before I went to sleep at night.

The concept:  Imagine that you are another life being from different planet.  You don’t know what a human routine looks like, what actions are acceptable, what is not acceptable.  You cannot hear what others say, nor can you feel emotions or be empathetic.  You can just watch the actions of others.  If you were this other life being and were watching yourself in your daily activities, what would you see?

The activity:  Take 5 – 10 minutes in your day- but I prefer right before I go to sleep.  Pretend you are watching a movie of your day with the mute volume on.  Begin seeing yourself awake, go through your day until you see yourself in the middle of this “witness” activity.  Lastly, be sure you watch your day in fast forward.  (Fast forward will give you a quick shot of your day, so you don’t spend time re-living the emotions connected to the actions)…Remember, you don’t feel emotions as another life being, you can just watch.

The result:  Your mind will begin compartmentalizing and storing this information into your mind.  You will be able to accept and let go of the encounters that you had during your day.  Lastly, (my favorite) you can evaluate your day to see if you spent your time outside of work doing the most important priorities in your life.

For example, after “witnessing” I ask myself, “Did I watch myself spend my non-work time balanced between my loved ones, myself, and a few chores?  Or did I spend too much time on one and not enough time on another?  Knowing the answer to this, I become aware of whether I like how I’m spending my time and change my life if I don’t like what I see.  Try it.  Although your day may be filled with monotonous routine, it will help you realize that your day is filled with productivity and should be filled with things you cherish most.

~Christine

…I am learning to meditate

I want to invite all of you to take the 21-day Meditation Challenge from the Chopra Center.  I registered for my first one last Summer 2011 because I wanted to learn how to meditate.  I have attempted to meditate a few handful of times, but was not sure if I was properly meditating.  It was not a routine in my life, either.  I felt that meditation took a lot of time from my already-busy day.  But when I received an email for this challenge, I thought that it would be a great guide for me.  It was a great guide.

Each day during my lunch break, I sat in my car and listened to the recorded email I received by my smartphone.  Most sessions took an average of 10-20 minutes; this left me with time to prep myself for the second half of my work day and eat my lunch.  What I learned, too, was that the “ohms” commonly connected with meditation is a great focusing tool.  On a daily basis, my mind races around the To-Do lists I have to complete, even while meditating.  But when I sing or hum “ohm” a few times, my mind thinks about making the noise and NOT my lists.

Give it a Try!  I found myself excited about receiving these emails for 21-days.  I hope you do, too.

~Christine

…I too experience stress

My work week was only four days long, but that meant that there was more work to do with less days to do it in.   Moreover, a project that was recently discovered and took somewhat high priority needed to be finished.  This meant that I came in early, worked more hours, and without lunch.  I did this not because my employer made me, but because that is the type of worker I am.  I am Vata dosha ( http://www.chopra.com/ayurveda), which means that I like to be busy and work on projects for hours on end without stopping.  And although this type of work is great because it is prompt with quality and perfection, it means that I become imbalanced because I skip lunches, drink too much coffee, do not drink enough water, and do not take breaks.  I am aware of this imbalance all the while I work, so I don’t hit the extreme—although to some, this is their extreme.

The stress that my body experienced I did to myself, but fortunately I am a Reiki Master.  I came home Friday night knowing that I wanted to relax- watch a movie, dress in comfy clothes; but first…..give myself Reiki.

Temporal lobes position - Image from smithcenter.org

Occipital lobe position - Image from smithcenter.org

For quick treatments, I focus on three main hand positions; head, heart, and solar plexus.  For this quick session, my head was going round and round with work, so 3/4 of the time was focused on several positions on my head.  Both my left and right hands were placed in position 1, above my eyes, but after a few minutes the busyness did not lessen.

So I moved my hands to position 2, above my temporal lobes (temples).  (See pictures for placement.)  At this position, I felt so much pressure release from my head, and it felt like my body was sinking into the couch I was lying on.

After the pressure became less, I moved my hands to cover my ears; then lastly, position 3, over my occipital lobe (base of the skull.)  (See pictures for placement.)

I didn’t have enough time to give myself a full treatment, but even 20 minutes of Reiki left me feeling floaty and light.  I felt more relaxed than a movie, glass of wine, or massage would have given me.  Look into finding a way to give yourself Reiki.  ~Thank you, Reiki, Sally & Mikao Usui