Unit 8

The practices that I think I would be able to work into my life are loving kindness and meditation.

At work when I am having a stressful day, or when people are making me mad I have been trying to take a step back and practice loving kindness. I close my eyes and think about what I love and what makes me happy. It works for a little while, sometimes. Other times I am beyond the point of help and can not take my mind off the negative.

Other practices like meditation and yoga are positive ways to help the mind and body, which is something I definitely need to do. I definately see the value in these exercises and aim to work meditation into my life. I doubt I will ever find my way unity consciousness or even to the subtle mind step, but I guess trying to get there is more then half the battle.

Unit 7

My mind is always full of thoughts. I have been trying to use some of the techniques that we learned in this class in my daily life, every night when trying to fall asleep I concentrate on my breath and really try to push the thoughts out of my mind.

Unfortunately, I think I am using these techniques when I am already so far stressed out that they are not helping and I can not push the thoughts out of my mind.

I think that this CD is silly. The man really takes away from the exercise. By the time the lady starts talking I have already lost focus. A more relaxing calmer voice is needed for the exercise.

I agree that as health and wellness professionals we have to embrace the ideas and concepts of wellness and health. To me this means keeping current on concepts and ideas within the practice.

Universal Loving Kindness

Close your eyes, take a deep breath, relax and rest for ten minutes. When you are ready repeat the following:

May all individuals gain freedom from suffering
May all individuals find sustained health, happiness and wholeness
May I assist all individuals in gaining freedom from suffering
May I assist all individuals in finding health, happiness and wholeness

These are all admirable ideas and something that I assume most people want to see. At first when reading the exercise I thought it was hoakie, repeating these concepts to myself. After thinking about it and doing the practice I think that as someone who does not spend too much time in the day thinking about helping others (as a result of a lack of time) that it is nice to remind oneself every once and a while that there are others out there that need help. Reminding myself that I can help is something that puts me at ease.

2010 American Heart Association Heart Walk

Hi everyone.

Below is a link for my page on the American Heart Association 2010 Heart Walk Fund-raising website. I am starting a walking program at my company which concludes at this 3 mile walk the first weekend in May. If anyone cares to donate to the AHA, please take a look at this website and consider making a donation through my site, you can pay by credit cards and no donation is too small.

I am trying to collect as much as possible myself, so that the employees can participate in the event without the burden of fund-raising.

I assume that as future health professionals everyone would be more then willing to donate to a great cause like the American Heart Association. JK…

Follow This Link

I do recommend all current and future health professionals check out the AHA website, startwalkingnow.org. It is an interactive site that is completely free which allows people to log their exercise and nutrition.

Unit 5 Project

Well I could not figure out how to attach my presentation in power point, but here is the outline version of my project.


Integral Health
The Mind-Body-Spirit Connection
Brittany Sproul

Agenda

• Mental Fitness
• Research to support the connection
• Where to start
• Exercises to develop a mind-body-spirit connection
• References

Mental Fitness

• A term to define the process of working out the mind
• This exercises develops
• Clarity of mind
• Awareness of the body
• A link between the functions of the mind and the body and spirit

Fredrick Luskin

• Fredrick Luskin was a Clinical Science Research Associate at Stanford University School of Medicine
• Study
• The study asked people to participate who had a burden on their minds. They were asked and helped to forgive the ones that had caused this burden.
• Results
• A decrease in physical symptoms of stress such as stomach issues, headaches, general stress. Attitude and mindset of participants improved (Schlits, Amorok and Micozzi, 2005)

Antoine Lutz

• Study
• Compare brain waves of contemplative scholars with a control group when asked to develop a compassionate mental state
• Results
• Scholar’s brain waves showed increased and more synchronized gamma waves, which suggests higher order of mental integration

Dr. Dean Ornish

• Medical Doctor treating people with heart disorders
• Study
• Aimed to show that people who exercised, implemented various wellness techniques and spiritual techniques improved at a greater rate then those who only relied on modern medicine
• Results
• Significant health improvements in those who utilized wellness
• Decline and even death in those with only modern medical techniques (Schlits, Amorok and Micozzi, 2005)

Connecting the Mind-Body and Spirit

• Techniques
  
• Loving Kindness Exercises
• Subtle Mind Exercise

Loving Kindness

• The exercise takes the focus off ourselves and puts it on others
• Technique
• Begin with short 5-15 minute sessions each day-preferably around the same time everyday
• Bring your mind to something or someone close to you
• Allow the loving feelings of this topic to take over the mind
• Slowly, turn these thoughts towards yourself-beginning with the sensations both pleasant and unpleasant
• Give all thoughts equal care and allow them to come and go through your mind
• Once the thoughts are gone embrace the stillness of the mind
• Welcome this stillness into your life (Dacher, 2006)

• Results
• A feeling of peace and a step closer to self awareness and harmony

Subtle Mind

• Three step approach helping a person develop towards psychospiritual flourishing
• Techniques
• Close your eyes take 10 deep breaths focusing on either the movement of the chest up and down or the passing of air in and our of the nostrals
• Continue with the breaths focusing on the movements of the body
• Allow any thoughts feelings or sensations to pass in and our of the mind
• Results
• A closer connection of the mind and the functions of the body
• A step closer to the unity of consciousness (Dacher, 2006)

Summary

• There is a connection between the mind-body and spirit
• The results of this connection have been proved through the studies of Luskin, Lutz and Ornish
• Techniques to developing a connection in yourself include- loving kindness and subtle mind

References
Dacher, E.S., (2006). Integral health the path to human flourishing. Basic Health Publications. Laguna Beach, CA.
Schlitz, M., Amorok, T., and Micozzi, M.S. (2005) Consciousness & Healing: Integral Approaches to Mind-Body Medicine. Elsevier Churchill Livingston Publications. St. Louis, MI.

Subtle Mind Exercise

This exercise is a lot better then the one last week. Or at least the exercise on the CD is a lot better. I have been practicing yoga for some time and feel that this exercise reflects a lot of what one initially learns in yoga. Learning how to pay attention to your breath is quite an interesting practice. We take our breath for granted. I find that when forced to pay attention to it, the result is that I feel relaxed. Just the routine of the in an out, putting the full attention of the mind on something that we normally pay no attention to is a way to realize how valuable our breaths are.

I regards to my spiritual wellness as related to my mental and physical wellness, I truly feel I am ahead of the curve. My parents instilled in me the idea of listening to your body for answers, being content with my best and that honesty with others and oneself is all that matters. I think if one is able to honestly say that they follow these ideas and participate in them, they will find a connection very easily between mind, body and spirituality.

Loving Kindness

While I believe in the concepts of loving kindness and agree completely with the concept, I think that we are limiting the possibilities of the topic by associating it with a god or religion. There is much more to spirituality then a belief in a higher power. And I think that the exercise and CD is leading a participate to have to focus on an outside source rather then looking at aspects of ones everyday life that can be used as inspiration. I think that this a poor song choice as it takes away from the my ability to focus on the exercise. I can barely even hear the women guiding me through the exercise.

A mental work out is an exercise the one does to focus their energies on themselves. To develop a connection with their inner mind, working through the various stages of the psychospiritual flourishing stages.

Some of my classmates talk about their connection to religion and the association of this concept with that. But I am glad to see that I am not the only one that was turned off by the CD.