[nativehealer]

First of all, how many of you have pets, especially cats? When you cuddled your pet last, how many of you fell asleep listening to your cat purr? For those of you that answered yes, then you have lapsed into a meditative state.
To obtain a meditative state, find a quiet room in which there is no outside noise and in which you will not be disturbed. Sit or lay on the floor any way you wish. Start clearing your mind of all your thoughts. If you wish, have a radio with you on the lowest volume that you can hear. Tune the radio so its in between stations for the white noise or static. The white noise will help you clear your mind. As your mind clears you will feel your body relaxing. This will take practice. The first 2 or 3 attempts may have no results. Don't let this stop you, the more you practice the better you will become and the easier it will be. After your mind is clear and your body relaxed, start opening yourself up. Stray thoughts will come to you. While keeping your mind clear, pay attention to what the stray thoughts are showing you. Some of you may want to set up a time frame to bring yourself back. 15 minutes to half an hour is good for starts. Use something soothing like the chimes of a grandfather clock. Don't use an alarm clock, it can be too blaring. After each meditation you can write down what went on. This will help give you focus for the next time you meditate.

Native

[sirI]

Originally Posted by nativehealer

First of all, how many of you have pets, especially cats? When you cuddled your pet last, how many of you fell asleep listening to your cat purr? For those of you that answered yes, then you have lapsed into a meditative state.
To obtain a meditative state, find a quiet room in which there is no outside noise and in which you will not be disturbed. Sit or lay on the floor any way you wish. Start clearing your mind of all your thoughts. If you wish, have a radio with you on the lowest volume that you can hear. Tune the radio so its in between stations for the white noise or static. The white noise will help you clear your mind. As your mind clears you will feel your body relaxing. This will take practice. The first 2 or 3 attempts may have no results. Don't let this stop you, the more you practice the better you will become and the easier it will be. After your mind is clear and your body relaxed, start opening yourself up. Stray thoughts will come to you. While keeping your mind clear, pay attention to what the stray thoughts are showing you. Some of you may want to set up a time frame to bring yourself back. 15 minutes to half an hour is good for starts. Use something soothing like the chimes of a grandfather clock. Don't use an alarm clock, it can be too blaring. After each meditation you can write down what went on. This will help give you focus for the next time you meditate.

Native

Thank you for this, Native.

I utilize relaxation techniques each night prior to going to bed. I also use the white noise. I've become so accustomed to this that I must travel with my one and only source that works for me.

I hope others will give input on their techniques and maybe give some excellent ideas on how to properly relax, relieve stress and open the mind.

Thank you.

[nightingale]

I am not meaning to change the subject, with a comment about relaxation and sleeping. I very much value the art of meditation but have not made the time to do so for too long. Nativehealer, your recommendations are inspiring, thank you.

I often switch from day shifts to night shifts in my many travels as an Agency Nurse. I am about to embark on a regular "day" schedule and have found going to bed at an early time, rather difficult. I have used, and have actually purchased some more, books on tape to listen to when I go to bed. I am hoping this will entice me to rest and close my eyes to drift off to sleep at an earlier time then "I" would like to. I have also enjoyed warm milk with cinnamon in the past for a relaxing drink.

[TamIam]

I love to meditate. It's my favorite thing to do! I have practiced for 14 years, doing Sahaj Marg (Raja Yoga). More info on this can be found at www.srcm.org.

As for relaxation techniques, I have been a psych RN for years, and find that asking the pt to listen to his/her breathing is very effective. With some guided imagry, the in/out of respiration can be likened to the in/out of waves on the beach. Now, that's peaceful! The mind can be so tormenting for some people. I encourage them to re-focus on their respiration whenever their thoughts intrude. I can't tell you the times a client would come to me the next morning, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, saying, "Wow! That really helped!" And it's free. And they can take it home w/o a perscription. Can't beat it.

I'd be interested to hear what's worked for others.

[grinnurse]

I just purchased a John Edwards book on CD about unleashing your psychic powers and the first of the 6 cds is teaching meditation. It gives you excercises to use and practice with at first until you know how to do it. The first thing that it focuses on is controlled breathing. At first you breathe in for 6 seconds hold and blow out for 6 seconds. You do it that way for about 4 times and then he has you start breathing in focusing on positive energy by visualizing the + and then - when exhaling. I must say the first night that I did this it was really hard to focus b/c even though I thought I had no distractions, the sound of the fan and other noises outside kept me from reaching that relaxed state. Yesterday I bought a cheap handheld cd player and did it again last night and boy did that work.

All I could do was focus on his voice. I was able to really visualize the + and - . Then he has you tighten and release all your different "chakras". That is all that I can remember. Now this morning I am trying to figure out did I reach that state of relaxation for a few seconds or did I doze off b/c all of a sudden it was like I came back "to" and it was the sound of his voice. Any clues?

[nativehealer]

Originally Posted by grinnurse

All I could do was focus on his voice. I was able to really visualize the + and - . Then he has you tighten and release all your different "chakras". That is all that I can remember. Now this morning I am trying to figure out did I reach that state of relaxation for a few seconds or did I doze off b/c all of a sudden it was like I came back "to" and it was the sound of his voice. Any clues?

Grinnurse, the answer to both your questions is yes. When a person reaches a state of deep relaxation it is very similar to what is perceived as sleep. So in a way, you did fall asleep. There has been times I have meditated and people thought I was sleeping even though I could hear them. What is sleep, and what is meditative state of relaxment? That is a very fine line.

[grinnurse]

Originally Posted by nativehealer

Grinnurse, the answer to both your questions is yes. When a person reaches a state of deep relaxation it is very similar to what is perceived as sleep. So in a way, you did fall asleep. There has been times I have meditated and people thought I was sleeping even though I could hear them. What is sleep, and what is meditative state of relaxment? That is a very fine line.

Thank you so much for being my personal guide to meditation. I have always wondered if this would be something that I could really do and if I would know I had reached it. John Edwards said that ( he is the only experience that I have with this so he is the only one I can refer to at this point so forgive me for continueing to bring up his name) if you reached a state of "nothingness" as he referred to it, that you had indeed reached that state but he also stated that sometimes people do fall asleep during that too so that's why I was checking.

I have always felt like there was something more that has been missing in my life and I have always been what I would say a bit more "intuative (sp)" with what is going on around me. Even from a young age I have been of the thought that this is just a "pit stop" in life and there are other things that you will do after this life and I feel like I am at a point in my life where I am ready to explore that but don't really know where to begin. I want to be the spiritual person that I have always thought that I have been.

Have you found that meditation has helped with your spirituality? The reason that I ask this is b/c several times in my life I have felt like I have been being "guided" in a certain direction and my ultimate goal with this is to be able to tap into that place to lead a more spiritual life and find the purpose to my life beyond my everyday existence. Am I beginning in the right direction and are there any other suggestions that you can offer? Do you keep a journal of things that come from your meditation? Do you meditate every night?

Thanks so much for the insight into this subject.

[nativehealer]

Originally Posted by grinnurse

Have you found that meditation has helped with your spirituality? The reason that I ask this is b/c several times in my life I have felt like I have been being "guided" in a certain direction and my ultimate goal with this is to be able to tap into that place to lead a more spiritual life and find the purpose to my life beyond my everyday existence. Am I beginning in the right direction and are there any other suggestions that you can offer? Do you keep a journal of things that come from your meditation? Do you meditate every night?

Thanks so much for the insight into this subject.

Grinnurse, you will find that meditating will help you both spiritualy and physically. What is the "right direction" for you, only you will know. It seems to me that you are on your way. Just be true to yourself and what you believe in, and you will know your path, and the spirits will guide you where you need to go. As for a journal, my Spiritual Teacher whats me to remember all that I have learned, not write them down, that is the way he learned. I do jot some things down, but not on a regular bases. I believe a journal would be a big help. As for meditating every night, no, I meditate whenever I feel the need, or the calling.

Native

[Palmo]

Hi,
as a Buddhist I meditate on a daily basis...and there are so many ways to meditate...some for better than others...depending on the person...
I use my practice before I get out of the car, as well as when I wake up and prior to going to sleep.

[Palmo]

As a Buddhist I meditate several different ways...some that take alot of practice for a hyper active person such as myself
However, one way I recommend for anyone no matter what religion they practice is to purchase one of those nature CDs with the music and animals, esp. birds...
Lovely way to relax during the day...for others it may help with sleep at night.
I, of course, use malas (beads) with my practice and they also help me to focus during meditation.