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Healthy Living Begins with Peace of Mind by Ian Ramsay
The caption on the cereal box read, "Healthy living starts with healthy eating". I thought to myself, "No it doesn't. It begins with healthy lifestyle like getting enough sleep, managing stress, exercising ..." Then I realized that that's not quite right either. Healthy living actually begins with healthy thoughts and they can only occur when you feel peace of mind.
Let's step back a bit and look at some unhealthy, (but common), thoughts.
- I use my intellect to keep my emotions under control
- I view the world through my own projections, justify my positions and make others wrong
- I have no idea about who I am. I'm so tied up in regretting the past and fearing the future that I don't have any energy left to figure out who I am and what I want to create for myself now.
Here are some healthy thoughts that create peace of mind.
- Knowing ourselves is the first step toward feeling good inside. We do not feel good when we are out of touch with our needs, feelings and life's purpose. If we don't feel good by natural means
there are plenty of addictions that we can adopt to make us feel good by unnatural means. The only way to develop a permanent state of self esteem is to discover who we truly are.
- An integrity breach occurs when we do something that separates us from the wholeness of ourselves and others. The first place to look for integrity breaches is to check out how we lie to ourselves in order to conceal feelings that we don't want to accept consciously. If you have an emotion within you and you seal it away, you start trying to manage other people's versions of it. When you get in touch with the cause of your projection and communicate it at the deepest level, it inspires others to speak from that deeper level as well.
- Identifying our life's purpose and manifesting it. All of us define ourselves by our moments of choice. Do we make choices based on who we were in the past or who we want to create ourselves to be based on a positive present and a future that we consciously choose. When you express what needs to be expressed within you, you will be happy and fulfilled. If you don't, you won't.
- Letting go of any attempt to control things we have no control over. Our thoughts and feelings are outside of our control. Here's an example. Let's say that I'd really like to lose weight. When I stop focusing attention on my obsession with my weight, I can use my energy to focus on what I put in my mouth and whether I choose to be active today. If you're stuffing yourself with dead foods that make you fat, nervous and tired, you might want to examine your commitment to killing yourself.
- Locating and naming feelings. We learn to mentally tune out what we are feeling for approval, control, even survival. Many choose to abandon the world of how they feel inside for the world of how they appear to others from the outside. We lack training in how to be present with feelings. The fundamental presencing technique is to invite the person to put his/her attention on a feeling or sensation as it is experienced in the body. This is inarguable and by placing attention on something inarguable you get into contact with the truth. Give a simple description of the feeling or sensation. There is no analysis of it. You do not explain it, analyze it or judge it. Only describe it.
Creating Peace of Mind with Meditation
Set aside five to ten minutes when you cannot be disturbed when you first begin a meditation practice. . Sit comfortably on a chair or cross-legged on the floor. Rest your hands on your lap, close your eyes and bring your attention to your breath. Inhale deeply and release the breath. Release any muscle tightness in your body in your neck, jaws and shoulders. Release any tension in your mind. Give yourself permission to become present. Return your attention to your breathing. Observe how each in-breath fills your body with energy and how each out-breath releases toxins and clears your mind.
At this point you may notice a steady stream of thoughts flashing by as your mind flies in all directions at once. This is the clutter of consciousness that arises through imagining that our thoughts are more substantive than they actually are. You may begin to feel restless or anxious or become aware of discomfort or pain in your body. Your background voice may begin to start a commentary on something that happened to you earlier in the day.
It may not be very peaceful when you start a practice but you are meditating. The goal of meditating is not to suspend thoughts. The goal is to allow thoughts to come and go without drawing you into their drama. The more you practice this, the less you will be affected and the more present you will become to your essence.
To learn more about how to connect to your essence see course descriptions for Awakening Mindfulness and Healing Meditation.
Link to Course Descriptions
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