Beyond Medication Community Group
In this group we will be looking at alternative or supplementary methods of dealing with every day stressors and anxiety. This is for people who do not want to feel as though they do not want to be tied to the medicine cabinet. We will be using such techniques as mindfulness, meditation, grounding, guided imagery, Yoga and other behavioral and self-discipline techniques...
Mindfulness and meditation have long been the two key components in my looking for and finding stability in my life. What I will attempt to do here is explain what mindfulness is, what benefits I've seen it have in my life and share a simple mindfulness meditation to get people started.
The Simplest definition for mindfulness is: a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment.
To achieve to mental state of awareness that we seek in mindfulness it takes a lot of what will often seem silly, foolish, repetitive and even a waste of time practices, but once you have achieved the ability
to stay present in the moment and remain where you are in that moment, then you will be able to use mindfulness in dealing with anxiety, fears, and the stressors of everyday life.
As you learn to become aware of yourself and what's going on not only around you but within you, hopefully mindfulness will become a tool that you can use to recognize the onset of both depressive and manic changes as the begin to happen in your life and be able to contact your Dr., mental health provider and/or use some of the other skills that you have learned here at this group or other places in life to prevent major episodes.
Here is a simple mindfulness meditation to get you started.
A Sitting Meditation:
You will need to find a quiet, out of the way place were you are not likely to be disturbed or distracted for about 15 or 20 minutes, it's best if you can find a place away from pets, kids, partners, cell phones and house phones (trust me, our own thoughts will be distracting enough). You will also need to find a comfortable chair (straight backed is best) or cushion to sit on the floor.
Once you have found your space, now you are ready to begin. Sit on your chair with both feet flat on the floor or on your cushion with your legs crossed gently in front of you, place both hands comfortably in your lap and close your eyes. Now take a deep breath and on the exhale push all thoughts of the day, what you done, what you have to do, or what ever else is concerning you away, empty your mind. Your only focus for the next 15 or 20 minutes is going to be concentrating on how your body feels sitting there or on your breath.
As you are sitting there, from time to time you will be distracted by sounds, sensations and random thoughts of anything from pains you might have, to things you done through out the day, to anything your mind can come up with, this is perfectly normal. Simply recognize the thought without judgement and push it aside and go back to concentrating on sitting or you breath, you will have to do this many times during the exercise. Remember: acknowledge and let them go. No judgement!!!
After the 15 or 20 minutes is up, open your eyes. How do you feel, were you able to stay present? What did you learn?
If your not able to do this for the entire time, it's OK. It takes practice!!!! This is about learning to be mindful, if we did it naturally their would be no need to practice.
Congratulation you have just gotten through your first mindfulness Exercise.
The Simplest definition for mindfulness is: a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment.
To achieve to mental state of awareness that we seek in mindfulness it takes a lot of what will often seem silly, foolish, repetitive and even a waste of time practices, but once you have achieved the ability
to stay present in the moment and remain where you are in that moment, then you will be able to use mindfulness in dealing with anxiety, fears, and the stressors of everyday life.
As you learn to become aware of yourself and what's going on not only around you but within you, hopefully mindfulness will become a tool that you can use to recognize the onset of both depressive and manic changes as the begin to happen in your life and be able to contact your Dr., mental health provider and/or use some of the other skills that you have learned here at this group or other places in life to prevent major episodes.
Here is a simple mindfulness meditation to get you started.
A Sitting Meditation:
You will need to find a quiet, out of the way place were you are not likely to be disturbed or distracted for about 15 or 20 minutes, it's best if you can find a place away from pets, kids, partners, cell phones and house phones (trust me, our own thoughts will be distracting enough). You will also need to find a comfortable chair (straight backed is best) or cushion to sit on the floor.
Once you have found your space, now you are ready to begin. Sit on your chair with both feet flat on the floor or on your cushion with your legs crossed gently in front of you, place both hands comfortably in your lap and close your eyes. Now take a deep breath and on the exhale push all thoughts of the day, what you done, what you have to do, or what ever else is concerning you away, empty your mind. Your only focus for the next 15 or 20 minutes is going to be concentrating on how your body feels sitting there or on your breath.
As you are sitting there, from time to time you will be distracted by sounds, sensations and random thoughts of anything from pains you might have, to things you done through out the day, to anything your mind can come up with, this is perfectly normal. Simply recognize the thought without judgement and push it aside and go back to concentrating on sitting or you breath, you will have to do this many times during the exercise. Remember: acknowledge and let them go. No judgement!!!
After the 15 or 20 minutes is up, open your eyes. How do you feel, were you able to stay present? What did you learn?
If your not able to do this for the entire time, it's OK. It takes practice!!!! This is about learning to be mindful, if we did it naturally their would be no need to practice.
Congratulation you have just gotten through your first mindfulness Exercise.
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Ever since I stopped doing therapy because of insurance, I've been feeling that old tense and irritable sense of anxiety and stress. I hate that. I was making so many strides and changes during therapy, my therapist would acknowledge all of my progress and accomplishments, and I miss that reassurance. Today I thought about it, and I made those changes! She would always tell me that I chose to...
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I think I understand the walking meditation. Swimming is easy because the breathing is there.
Nice. thanks.