Unit 4 Mental Workout

When asked to think of a person the first people I thought of were my best friend Juanita who lives where I live in Washington and also my friend Jessica who lives in California that I have not gotten to see for a few years now. Both I adore wholeheartedly and value their true friendship. I thought it was very cool and surprising that the guided meditation said to turn those feelings of love and kindness of those loved ones towards oneself, I really enjoyed that. I found this guided meditation to be a lot easier than the other ones of this class and ones I have done for other classes. I think maybe that is because I caught up on cleaning, sleep, and relaxation. I don't think I really understand how I am supposed to just observe my thoughts and feelings but not think or feel them, this might be why I have such a hard time with exclusive and inclusive meditation... When told to give oneself to the higher state of mind I visualized me being 2 people much like in the movie What the Bleed Do We Know. The person I thought of that is suffering is my grandmother, she has a heart of gold and is a wonderful person but she suffers from chronic stress and anxiety that causes chronic physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual problems for her. I also visualized blowing away the metaphoric black cloud surrounding my grandmother with every exhale breath. For the circle of strangers I visualized my coworkers, because I work with a very large number of employees many of which I only briefly know. I think it is important to include them because how they think and feel affects me as well because we all work together. After a while the sound of waves started to make me very sleepy even though I slept for 11 hours today! I would recommend this guided meditation to others because it is beneficial, it is very relaxing, and it has you think not only about yourself but those around you. The concept of a mental workout is to workout your brain much like you do the body with exercise and conditioning except instead of physically your are doing it mentally and emotionally. This is important because what we think and feel affects our body physically as well as sets us up for thought process patterns that affect our well-being on all levels. Mental training focuses on a person becoming an observer of their own life, as well as calmness, peace, tranquility, and stillness, which paves the way for health and happiness. Mental training such as meditation, visualization, guided imagery, and breathing technique are proven to be beneficial mental exercises because they decrease negative thoughts, emotions, and physical effects such as high heart rate, blood pressure, and increases memory function. I use self affirmation statements, I use active meditation while I exercise, I use aromatherapy, and when I am stressed I ask myself what am I really afraid of or what is really making me angry.