Unit 9

Health and wellness professionals have an obligation to develop themselves psychologically, spiritually and physically so that they may care for themselves and others in the same holistic way. “When we bring a matured inner life to our work, we also bring calm, care and delight. These qualities are accompanied by a sweet loving-kindness that goes out to everyone we meet. We emanate a healing presence” (Dacher pg 101). In my personal practice I need to develop on every level. The acts are in place, but I need to ensure that I am listening completely and actively, slowing down and focusing on my own mind and inner self, meditating and visualizing the kind of care I want to give as well as what I want for my own quality of living. The quest for flourishing is continuous for me.

Assessment

            Spiritually, I score myself a 7/10. I have found throughout this course that I have much to do in the way of focusing my energy and calming my mind. The tools provided through this learning experience are truly beneficial and I am looking forward to a slower time in my life where I can devote more time to the actual practice. I do feel that I know where I stand spiritually; what speaks to me and what I want to send out into the world. I want to practice the act of loving-kindness for this reason. Physically, I score myself a 7/10. I need to spend more time working on my physical self. Time restraints and work/family demands makes it hard to spend as much time as I need to on my physical self. I have made a conscious effort to set aside time to work on my physical self and I know there will be more in the future. The physical self is truly connected to the mental and spiritual self; all need exercising. Psychologically, I score myself an 8/10. I feel grounded and happy with my place in this world. I have a great support system at home and at work. I feel a sense of duty and accomplishment in my life. I rate myself an 8 because there is always room for growth and I do need to manage my time and stress ratio more closely.

Goal Development

            It is difficult to choose one specific goal for myself physically, spiritually and psychologically; however it is most beneficial to start with one goal and then choose another after attaining the first. Physically I am choosing to set a goal of competing in a sprint triathlon in the spring or early summer of next year. Psychologically, the goal of better patience with myself and others is goal number one. Spiritually I would like to start going to yoga again and also meditating at least once a week.

Practices for Personal Health

            To better help achieve my goals in all three areas there must be a plan. Strategies for implementing growth in each area include commitment and practice. Physically, my strategy is to plan the times I will go to the gym or go for a run early in the week and then stick to my plan. Deciding how my time will be mapped out before each day is upon me will help to keep me on track physically. Secondly, I will take the stairs whenever possible. Taking the stairs is an easy way to incorporate physical exercise into my day to day living. Psychologically I will practice counting in my mind to 15 before replying in a situation where I feel stressed. Practicing my breathing and quieting my mind is another way to increase my level of patience and improve the way I feel and make others feel in times of stress. I am going to commit to practicing meditation and visualization once a week to improve my well-being spiritually. I feel that all of these things are interconnected and one facet feeds the other. The end result will be finding myself living a more fulfilling life and making a more positive impact through my role as a mother, a wife and a nurse.

Commitment

            Over the next 6 months I am going to try to journal to keep track of my progress. I used to write a lot when I was younger and I think it could be a helpful tool now. To monitor myself physically I will perform each task involved in a sprint triathlon and time them individually, at the end of six months I will repeat. Once I achieve goals on a smaller level I will set new goals to keep myself moving forward. One possible way to maintain this lifestyle long term is to teach the ideas to others. Living a more whole and happy life can only spread to those around you, the feelings and benefits never ending, circular in motion.

 

 

 

 

 

Unit 8

In the beginning of this course I admit I did not really think I would find much use for the exercises. I quickly learned that I do and that it is much easier to integrate into my life than I thought. The two types of exercises I think are my favorite are visualization and meditation. The practice of visualizing moments of happiness and wholeness like we did this week was really easy and I enjoyed it. It was a way to have a quick pick me up and a reminder of just what is important in this life. Meditation is also a practice I plan on using more often. The biggest thing I have learned through this course is that even a small moment dedicated to focusing and clearing your mind can have a great impact on the way you feel and behave. Lately when I have found myself getting frustrated or stressed I try to stop and think of how to change my mind and refocus myself. In time I think this will get even easier!

Unit 7

In the meeting Aesclepius practice this week I really worked on focusing on the energy exchange between the vision of the chosen "wise one" and my inner self. I think this was my favorite exercise so far. Maybe it is because I chose someone I hold so dear to me and have always tried to emulate (my dad who has passed). This exercise was a great reminder of what qualities are important to me and just what kind of individual I want to be and am at my core. The exercise itself seemed a lot loess involved and had less steps; this helped me to stay on track and focus.

Describe the saying: "One cannot lead another where one has not gone himself" (p.477).

I believe this saying refers to the fact that the health care professional (in this case) cannot teach and instill in the patient the path to wellness and wholeness without them taking this journey themselves. I think it is important to try our best to practice what we preach; I know I need to pay more attention to this myself, especially when it comes to the lessons I try to teach my children. In both the world of parenting and in my role as a nurse, I will be best received if they see me walking the walk so to speak.

Unit 6

The loving-kindness practice this week was a nice mantra to repeat to myself and focus on. It did bring some feelings of peace, purpose and focus. My mind strayed and 10 minutes was too long for me, I will try starting with maybe 5 minutes :)

After performing the assessment on myself which had me look closely at the areas of my life that need attention and what I can aim for I found my mind settling on the idea of calmness and patience. I need to find myself calming in the face of stress.  I need to address the calm in my mind at home, with  a big list of things I want to accomplish for my kids and household I need to be patient and calm and focus on one thing at a time! Being more calm and patient will help me to see clearly what I need to change and what is going well. I want to try to slow down and enjoy my children while they are still little!

Unit 5 The Subtle Mind

This unit's exercise the subtle mind, was challenging to me and will definitely take practice. I was doing pretty well with the quieting of the mind and focusing on my breathing. I don't feel that I attained the high level of unity consciousness by the end. I was getting distracted by other thoughts and physical feelings surrounding me. I can see that this is tandem with the practice of loving-kindness will ultimately help me to free and still my mind.

In my own life the connection between mental and spiritual wellness along with physical wellness are connected. When I am worn down and haven't had time to pay attention to either one I feel drained more quickly and have shorter patience. The practice of quieting my mind and also exercising my physical body help me to feel recharged and I truly think better able to cope and involve myself in the daily stresses of life. I want to be a present mother, wife and nurse. In order to be present, I need to be healthy all around!

Unit 4

This unit's practice of loving kindness was beneficial to me. I think I need more practice with it to truly experience it wholly. I liked the idea of focusing on love and kindness towards myself and others. When the part came up about thinking of someone who is suffering and how I can help, focusing on it; I thought of when my own father was dying of cancer and living in my home. We cared for him together as a family and it was difficult emotionally, although I would not have had it any other way. I thought how this would have been a helpful practice for me at that time. I would recommend this to others, I think on whatever level you can use this idea of loving kindness it can only help you.

The mental workout is what it is to practice with yourself daily, using your mind for spiritual growth. An hour  day seems like a stretch (for me at least). If I can find 15 mins a day to workout my mind and practice these meditations I believe I will notice results.

Unit 3

On a scale of 1-10 regarding my level of wellness in my physical life, my spiritual life and my psychological life I give myself a 7,7,8. It is strange to try to place a numerical value on these areas of self, but I think it is interesting and worthwhile to pay attention to where I am and where I want to be. Physically, I have room for improvement. I had my third child 8 months ago and although I workout at the gym 2-3 times a week and am on my feet for 12 hour shifts in the ER, I have room for improving my physical self through a stricter diet and more water! Spiritually, I feel like I have a pretty good grasp on what moves me and what I believe in. I have room to grow spiritually as well and think I could spend more time tuning in and centering myself through activities like meditation and reflection. I also think writing would be a beneficial exercise. Psychologically I feel like I am doing pretty well. My job is taxing and stressful, I sometimes feel anxious, I think that is due to the amount of stress I have in my life. Finding ways to have an outlet on a regular basis doing things like exercise, reflective writing and meditation again would be beneficial. I am finding that all of these areas are intertwined and one helps out the other.

The exercise this week "The Crime of the Century" I liked much more than last week's exercise. I really liked the use of color in the meditation. I found it much more relaxing and easier to fully engage. I think this is an exercise I would use again.

Unit 2 Relax!

Hello all, this is my first experience with blog use. I'll give it a try! After listening to this unit's relaxation journey exercise I was reminded how important it is to simply sit, still yourself mind nd body and attempt to relax. Just breathe and be. The journey recording itself became a bit too wordy and scientific for me, but I enjoyed the general idea behind it and the way I was reminded that I am in control of my physical body. I can control the way I deal with stress. It is important to take time for simply myself. I am a busy full-time working ER nurse, a mother to three amazing boys and a wife. It is easy to lose sight of treating myself to a few moments of mediation and relaxation. This weeks course work and reading was interesting. I am going to try to align my mind and body for better health! I work out at the gym and my job is very physical (both mind and body), but I need to try to incorporate better relaxation, mediation into my routine.