MANTRA MEDITATION FOR STRESS REDUCTION AND GOOD HEALTH - Birmingham Community Education

MANTRA MEDITATION FOR STRESS REDUCTION AND GOOD HEALTH - Birmingham Community Education

New Blog!!!

Hi there... for the past 18 months I have been blogging every few months on Holistic Health and Lifestyles. I am really excited to let you know that I have combined my blog and website to a new page and I would LOVE for you to check it out at www.pathwaypartner.com/blog. This link will take you directly to my new blog. If you want to check out my new website that tells you all about the services I offer (yoga, meditation, holistic nutrition consulting and postpartum doula services) then check out this link www.pathwaypartner.com.

Thanks so much for you support and I hope you'll keep reading at my new blog and website!

Namaste,

Jasmin

Just Breathe

A lot has been talked about lately regarding breathing. Actually, it's been talked about for thousands of years, but just now people are paying attention. Breath work (or as it's referred to in the practice of yoga - pranayama) has been something that many societies have been practicing consciously for centuries. What doctors and scientists are just now learning is that you can do a lot with your breath.

Without getting into too much detail, your breath can control your nervous system - calming it or revving it up, depending on the breath work you're practicing. If you've ever taken a yoga class, almost always your guide (or teacher) will start you off in the class by connecting with your breath this helps to center you and and calms you down. In a high energy yoga class such as Kundilini, your teacher will lead you with "Breath of Fire" which is a high energy breath and can generate heat within you - thus allowing you to be ready for a higher energy practice.

Using breath work in your everyday life is a recommendation that many in the medical field are finally making to their patients. Often times a more integrative doctor will ask someone to learn how to meditate or focus on their breath before they recommend any medications for some of their patients who have mild anxiety, whereas just a few years ago, a script would have been the answer.

Breathing seems so easy and natural, and it is. When we first come into this world, we breathe just fine - inhales inflating the belly and exhales compressing it. But as we age and let little things pile up on us, we become more anxious, more stressed and we are too busy to breathe. We actually hold our breath! We end up breathing these short, shallow breaths which can impair our body's functionality. We don't get the proper amount of oxygen into our bodies and thus we are not properly oxygenating our brains or vital organs. Many feel this is why we end up with disease or memory loss.

Take a moment right now to notice your breath - place one hand on the lower belly - feel if it's expanding as you inhale and compressing as you exhale. Place the other hand on your heart. Do you feel the rise and fall of your chest. Work on this breathing technique every day until you can notice the belly rise on the inhale and compress on the exhale. Take a few minutes a day to center yourself and to help calm down your nervous system. Take a few minutes to just breathe.

Finding Balance in Your Life

We are all overworked... over committed and overwhelmed. How did we let this happen? Maybe it's time to take a step back and try to create a little balance in your life.

For starters... you may want to consider a daily yoga & meditation practice. You don't have to spend an hour a day, but if you could schedule just 15 minutes a day of each, you'll find you are much more able to cope with a lot of the other day-to-day events in your life.

Learn how to say "NO". We are so afraid to disappoint people in our lives, yet we do not hesitate to dishonor ourselves. If you continue to over commit yourself, you may end up getting resentful to others or worse yet, you could end up making yourself ill from not taking enough time to just "be". It takes so much pressure off of you when you can be honest with yourself and others and just say no when you need to.

In that same vein, we often get involved in activities or commitments that we end up losing interest in. Sometimes these activities become a daily part of our life and we don't even consider dropping them from our lives. Consider how much time you are wasting by continuing these activities and what you could be doing with that time if you just stopped doing the things you are no longer enjoying!

Try making a daily list of things that need to get done. At the end of the day, notice which items may not have been crossed off your list. You may discover that you overwhelm yourself by placing so much importance on items that really aren't that important. Also, if you stray from the list of "must do" and add in some fun things, you'll feel like you are living your life instead of going through the grind.

Keeping your body & mind active is also very important. Fitting in a daily exercise routine will keep your body fit and increase your energy level. To keep your mind more active and fit, consider keeping a daily journal and read every day. You may even consider taking a class on a subject that is of interest to you. Research shows that our brains never stop developing and that there is so much brain mass that is untapped. And although the brain is not a muscle, it still needs to be exercised in order for it to stay healthy.

One more important thing to do to help bring more balance to your life is to spend quality time with family and friends. So much research shows that not only will this improve the quality of your life, but also help to lengthen your life. Being with those special people not only helps to keep us happy, relationships also help us to not feel lonely. Research has shown that loneliness will lead to a cognitive decline. So the next time you're invited out - take the time to do that for yourself.

Keeping your life in balance takes a little effort, but once you get into the groove... it will help you to be happier and healthier.

Happy New Year! Now resolve to not set resolutions!

Another New Year is upon us! As you reflect on the year past, how do you feel? Do you feel good about the resolutions you made or do you feel like you made all sorts of resolutions that you didn’t keep? Do you feel like the year past was the best year ever or do you feel like you should of or could have done better? We put so much pressure on ourselves each year when we make those heat of the moment resolutions. Instead we should shift our thought pattern and set intentions of what changes we want in our lives and start taking the steps to attract these changes.

So for instance... If you want a partner who nurtures you, set an intention to nurture yourself. If you want to be more successful at your business, set an intention to help others grow their business. If you want to be more healthy, set an intention to make healthier lifestyle changes and to eat better meals and then provide these same changes to your friends and family. If you want to be more organized, set the intention that as you reduce the clutter in your life, you are making room for what you want in your life.

If you want more positive things in your life, you need to let go of the negative. Sit back and think about the changes or additions you would like to make in your life and then set the intention to bring about these changes or additions. It really is an easy process and it is such a big step in your own personal and spiritual growth.

Affirmation for today...

Mind your mind... remember that thoughts become words, words become actions and your actions become your character... so mind your mind, where it all begins.

Affirmation for today...

You are a bright and shining light. You are able to attract what you want in your life - just keep that shining light within you.

Giving Thanks

We get so caught up in what we are doing or what we need to do or what we didn't do, that we can forget to be thankful for what we have in our lives. We sometimes confuse our wants for our needs. I need an iPad... I need a new dress for the party. Are these really needs? Could we get along with the computer we already have? Could we repurpose a dress from our closet to wear to this one night event? I was on the GAAD and went an entire year without buying clothes. That's when I realized how much stuff was in my closet that I never wore and quite frankly didn't even know I owned!

Sometimes we want, desire or crave things in our lives and that's OK. It's good to want, desire and crave. That's what keeps us going, something to look forward to, something to strive for. Craving can be an important feeling for us to have in our lives. I think, however, its more important to realize what you already have and to be thankful for that! We should take a step back and look and the differences between our wants and our needs and realize that what we have, may be enough for us.

Joni Mitchell says "don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got 'till it's gone?" And how true is that? When we whine and moan about what we don't have, it's really just taking away from what we do have. Most of us have a nice, clean and safe home to live in. Most of us have food on the table and clean clothing to wear each day. Isn't this what we should reflect on, be grateful for and give thanks for?

It's nice that we reflect each year at this time and think of all that we have to be thankful for, but wouldn't it be better for us, for our families for the universe if we stopped and made that reflection on a daily basis? Giving thanks everyday for what we have is part of our growing process.

I hope at this time of the year and for the entire year each and every one of you is able to look inside yourself and realize all that you have to be thankful for and take the opportunity each and every day to be thankful. I wish you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving.

Blessings...

Fall Back (into your routine)

This is a wonderful time of year here in Michigan. You can feel the fall weather rushing into our lives. And although we may still have a day or two where it's hotter than we want it to be, the sun is lower, the days are shorter and fall is in the air.

Fall is when the kids go back to school and we can get on with our lives. In a way, it's almost like the start of a new year for us. As we send our kids back to school and get our own routine back in order, I ask that you evaluate what you have going on in your life and what you'd like to do to improve it. Perhaps you've been meaning to get back into your exercise routine or your daily yoga and meditation practice. I invite you to challenge yourself to do these things. Not only will it make you a happier and healthier person, but it will have a positive effect on the people around you because of this.

Each morning when you wake up, sneak in a few Sun Salutations, sneak in a 2 - 5 minute silent meditation and set your intention for the day and continue to recite it in your head throughout the day. In the evening before you go to sleep, slip in a couple of Cat Cows to relax your body and have a "Coffee Meditation" where you just sit back and reflect on your day. Don't dwell on the negative things that happened or on what you didn't accomplish, instead praise yourself for all the wonderful things that happened in your day listing at least 3 of them. Continue this regimen each day until it becomes a part of your daily routine. Perhaps you'll find yourself waking up a little earlier so you can fit in a few more asanas and add a couple more minutes to your meditation each day.

As the fall weather comes into full force, you'll realize how much you missed your routine and how easy it is to fall back into it.

Namaste

Releasing what no longer serves you

It's difficult sometimes to let go of things. Whether it's a relationship, personal possessions, etc., it can be very difficult. We sometimes can't let go of things because we're afraid of the change it may bring on. What we forget about is that holding on to things that no longer serve us does not allow the wonderful changes that are waiting to come into our lives. These are changes that we need - opportunities that are only able to come upon us when we let go of things. For every old thing we let go of, we are allowing a new opportunity into our life.

Try sitting quietly with no disturbances. Close your eyes and be comfortable. Take a deep inhalation and visualize new fresh opportunities coming into your life. On each exhalation, visualize all the old, stagnant items you're holding onto leaving your body. Continue this breath work as you continue with the next visualization exercise.

Visualize the things in your life that you're holding on to that no longer serve you. Watch each of these items go into a large balloon that you are holding onto. Watch each item go into the balloon. Watch the balloon expand as it fills up with all these items. Once you've filled the balloon as much as you want to, tie it so all these items stay inside the balloon. Now let the balloon go.... watch it float away with all the items you put inside of it. Come back to your breath, deep inhalations and exhalations as you bring your awareness back to yourself sitting in your comfortable spot.

Practice this anytime you feel like you need to release what no longer serves you. Do not be afraid of change, welcome the new opportunities change will bring into your life.

Namaste

Happy Birthday Honey!

Today is my husband's birthday. He's 48! Finally... catching up to me. Almost 20 years ago I met him at a public radio, outdoor music festival where I bravely walked up to him and asked him for his name and phone number. Of course he thought I was high and I thought he gave me a fake name because he rattled off some Italian long-ass name that I just figured was fake. Turns out, I was not high, just assertive and he did not give me a fake name, he is actually Italian!

I never imagined that on that day, the day I wasn't even going to go to the festival and then at the very last minute decided to go - who ever thought I would have met the man that 20 years later I would be sharing reading glasses with. We've had such a wonderful time (and some not so great times) over the past 20 years and I wouldn't trade one minute away.

Of course it's really about his birthday and I am happy to say he is outside right now in the 50 degree, misty, already drenched ground golfing with one of his best friends, so I know he's in his glory and doing what he loves most.

Happy Birthday Honey - and I hope you have many, many more!

Love, Lies and too much Power!

I am trying not to get too caught up in another one of the "beautiful people" problems going on right now, yes, I am talking about Maria and Arnold. It's hard not to though. I was watching The Cobert Report last night, and Stephen too was trying not to get caught up in the whole story and of course he ended up succumbing to the gossip - mostly because it's too hard to believe that Maria didn't know ANYTHING!!! Like Arnold was having an affair with a household staffer and Maria didn't know. Or Arnold had a "love child" with this women over 10 years ago and still... Maria didn't know!!!

I have to wonder if sometimes these wives look the other way for their own self worth. I mean if they are looking the other way to save the family or save the career of themselves or their spouse, isn't that a problem in and of itself? Isn't the long term effect of this whole story going to effect so many people? The "love child" himself, Arnold and Maria's own kids, the family of the "love child", etc., etc., etc.

Bigger question is WHY? Why do these men feel so compelled to cheat on their wives? Do they need that many outlets? Are they bored with the women they are married to? Are they that insecure? According to LiveScience, power and corruption go together. They say that men in power have feelings of invincibility and a "no one can touch me" attitude. They also have more opportunities to step out of line. "Power has been and will forever be entangled with corruption for various reasons" said Daniel Kruger, a social and evolutionary psychologist at the University of Michigan's School of Public Health. However, the general public think men in power need to have higher morals, do the right thing and set good examples. Yet these men in power think of themselves as invincible and will take great risks that could cause huge consequences. That's because they value the immediate rewards and don't really think they'll get caught or think of the "down the road" consequences. Kruger also explains that after a while of behaving this way, one's immoral behavior can become routine and one will stop thinking about their behavior consciously.

So back to Maria and Arnold. I can't even process how she must feel, especially if she really did just come to find this out in the last few months as they claim. Can you imagine being married to someone for 25 years and finding out that not only did they cheat on you but by the way, they had a "love child" that has been a part of your home for the past 10 years! I am not sure how she'll ever be able to trust any one - especially a man in a relationship, again.

Buying Organic Foods

There is lots of talk about organic food and maybe your're on the fence about buying organic or not. If you are, please see this list of "The Dirty Dozen" and also the "The Clean Fifteen". If you aren't ready to commit to organic 100% - at least buy the items from the dirty dozen from an organic source whenever you can. The items on "The Clean Fifteen" list, are OK to purchase conventionally.

I have been talking to my students all last month about this list and wanted to share it with everyone...

The Dirty Dozen: These fruits and vegetables tend to be high in pesticide residue when grown conventionally. Buy them from an organic source whenever you can.

• celery
• peaches
• strawberries
• apples
• blueberries
• nectarines
• sweet bell peppers
• spinach, kale, collard greens
• cherries
• potatoes
• imported grapes
• lettuce

The Clean 15: When grown conventionally, these items remain low in pesticide residue. There are fewer advantages to buying them from an organic source.

• onions
• avocado
• sweet corn
• pineapple
• mango
• sweet peas
• asparagus
• kiwi fruit
• cabbage
• eggplant
• cantaloupe
• watermelon
• grapefruit
• sweet potato
• sweet onion

Being Present

When we are walking around in our every day life, the average person uses about 2% of their conscious mind. You heard me correctly... 2%. That means that normally, we're walking around on auto-pilot, not really being present at all. Couple that with the fact that the average person has about 50,000 + thoughts per day and it's no wonder you forget to stop somewhere on the way home from work. You're on auto-pilot! You're not even driving your car, your subconscious is. Now that's really scary.

So what do we do about this? How can we learn to stay more present... in the moment? Well, we do this through meditation or deep relaxation. There are many, many different ways to meditate. It's a lot easier to do then one might think. Yet the benefits one reaps from a daily practice is stunning (see link to 108 Reasons to meditate).

I practice (and teach) a mantra mediation. I use my mantra that was assigned to me by my Guide in 1975 to keep me present. When my mind wanders I bring myself back to present by reciting my mantra silently to myself. I am a very firm believer in meditation and the mantra meditation especially, but even sitting quietly for a few minutes a day is very beneficial.

Meditation is a process and it's effects are cumulative so the longer you've been meditating, the more results you will have from it. Meditation will help the mind to slow down its rapid series of thoughts and feelings and replace that mental activity with inner awareness and attention. Therefore, while meditating, it's not as though your thinking or analyzing different situations, it's not as though you're having an internal conversation. Meditation is simply a quiet, effortless, one-pointed focus of attention and awareness. *

There are other ways for one to practice mindfulness. Try one of these the next time you have a little time to spare. When you're washing the dishes, opt out from using the dishwasher. Use your hands, soap and a sponge and really pay attention to each little detail of how you wash, rinse and dry the dishes. How the soap forms on your sponge, how the bubbles spill off the item as you're rinsing it. How the dishes might squeak when you're drying them. Do the same thing when you're folding clothes. Fold each item with care and much thought. Notice how you fold short sleeved T-shirts compared to long sleeved ones, etc. This may sound silly and boring, but if you are able to practice some mindful exercises each day, it'll help you to use more than 2% of your conscious mind.

I hope you're able to find a way to bring yourself to a more present state of mind. Whether it's through meditation, deep relaxation or practicing mindfulness every day, or a combination of the three.

Namaste and be well...

*Some are thoughts from Swami Rama in his book "Meditation and Its Practice". You can find this book at my store on my website at www.pathwaypartner.com/doula

You can also check out my website to find a mantra meditation class that I am teaching in the Metro-Detroit area.

Link to 108 reasons to meditate.

http://caeyc.org/main/caeyc/proposals/pdfs/Bridgesmeditate.pdf

Our Detroit State of Mind: A Plea to Ellen

Good Bye Jack...

Below is a blog I posted in April 2010 on Jack LaLanne. He passed away earlier this month at the age of 96. What an awesome life and inspiration. He brought so much insight (so long ago) to the exercise and fitness community. Here's some wonderful advice from Jack.

FRIDAY, APRIL 16, 2010

Old Ideas are Good Ideas

Are any of you old enough to remember Jack LaLanne? My mother watched him and exercised with him in the morning when I was growing up. That was many, many decades ago.

He is the "Godfather of Fitness". He really helped to empower women (see the video in the link) and is still impacting people's lives today with his juicers, etc.

http://hubpages.com/hub/Jack-LaLanne-The-Godfather-of-Fitness

Mr. LaLanne had a list of "10 Things To Do To Have a Happier and Healthier Life". Guess what? These 10 things are being "discovered" by people today! He's been telling people about this list for decades and people are just now discovering the power of these 10 things.... crazy.

Well - here is what Jack recommends.....

1) Exercise

2) Good Nutrition

3) Positive Thinking

4) Good Habits

5) Good Grooming

6) Smile (to everyone)

7) Watch your posture

8) Help Others

9) Relax (as in meditate....)

10) Have Faith

So, if you're looking to have a happier, healthier life, you may want to look at some of these "old ideas" that people are just now discovering!

Namaste and be well....

New Year... New Yoga

I love practicing yoga. Each practice I have - I try to treat it as though it is the first practice I have ever had. I close my eyes as much as possible and visualize my body in the asanas while I focus on my breath. Each Downward Facing Dog is my first. Each Warrior I or Warrior II is my first. Each Sun Salutation is my first. By doing this, I allow myself to come into each practice without any expectations. If I start my day feeling like I am ready to kick butt, then get to practice and feel my knee isn't quite right or my arms are tired, or I am just more out-of-it than I thought, I like that I had no expectations on myself and I can just surrender to my practice and let it be the way it is.

I think this is a very important way for us to approach not only our yoga practice, but also our meditation practice. I teach this to all my students of both that when we just surrender ourselves to whatever our practice is, without expectations, we will have a much calmer and more peaceful practice, which is why we are taking the time to do this in the first place.

Keep the momentum of the New Year, but honor your body and treat each practice as New!

never give up...

never give up on a loved one.

now matter how hard it seems,

no matter how bad it gets.

don't give up.

this is someone you love

and maybe all you have left is their shell...

but you must honor that loved one

and treasure that shell.

have no guilt

i too have acted poorly.

all the anger and meanness comes on so fast.

of course you react poorly.

now i know none of this is directed to me personally,

but on the onset, the beginning, with no preparation...

it's gut wrenching. it's terrible.

do not feel guilty for acting poorly,

just stop.

don't take it personally...

don't take anything personally.

this has become my new mantra.

having a loved one with dementia makes me realize,

this is my new mantra for life.