Monday Meditations Part 5: Hindrance Meditation
May 25, 2009 by dr. lam · 2 Comments
Many of our meditative thoughts drift to our concerns and our fears. We cannot stay centered very well because we tend to start to let our worries consume us and we are propelled back to our daily anxieties. This exercise allows us to see what our hindrances are and confront them in a meditative and non-judgmental way. As we start this exercise like all meditations so far, we begin with a grounding in our breath. We focus on the nature and quality of our breathing before we proceed. As our mind naturally begins to drift toward a hindrance or an encumbrance in our life, we center that thought into our mind and allow it to float in front of us. We relinquish our judgment of that thought and let the fear and anxiety that typically surrounds it go and we replace those emotions with love, peace, and acceptance. As further hindrances enter our mind and our spirit we continue to allow those thoughts to mature and to float but we withhold negative ruminations and prejudices about our perceived hindrance. We allow us to see ourselves overcoming our hindrance and allowing us to go beyond the limitations of this hindrance. We allow ourselves to move forward without perturbation or restriction. We begin to see the hindrance no longer as a hindrance but just as, i.e., just let it be. When we have “overcome” or accepted these hindrances, we return back to our centered breathing and end with a focus on the breath. Here is a video guide to help you with this exercise. Wishing you and your family a blessed Memorial Day weekend. Namaste.
Monday Meditations Part 4: Walking Meditation
May 18, 2009 by dr. lam · 5 Comments
Many of us Type A/high-strung individuals cannot meditate sitting still. Our bodies become agitated and our minds begin to wander easily. We need movement and stimulation to keep us centered. This exercise allows our bodies to flow so that our mind can remain centered. We permit our mind to focus on the activity of walking so that we have a grounding and a focus for our thoughts.
Start with either bare feet or stockinged/socked feet so that you can feel the ground under you. Plan a path where you will be walking either in nature or indoors. Even if the path is relatively short, you can traverse this distance and redouble on your tracks without a problem. Just plan your path out in advance so that you don’t need to worry about where you will be going.
As you begin the exercise, remember to start with the fundamental of your breath. Focus on the rhythm of your breathing and allowing yourself to breathe more quickly or more slowly depending on your body’s needs. As you breathe, enjoy the rich breath that is giving you nourishment and life. Then start to focus on your legs and toes as you walk over the terrain and enjoy the feeling of the ground under your feet and the related sensations. As you walk, enjoy the feeling of walking. If your mind wanders, bring it back to the focus of walking and the feeling of the air against your face if you are outside and the sounds around you or if you are inside just stay centered on your breathing and walking. As you conclude the exercise, return your thoughts back to your breathing and finish with your breath meditation.
Here is a video guide to help you with this meditation. Namaste.
Monday Meditations Part 3: Mindfulness Meditation
May 11, 2009 by dr. lam · 10 Comments
Oftentimes when we meditate, we become distracted with our daily concerns. We lose the Power of Now and begin to let our mind drift to the concerns of the day that distract our inner peace. We try to pull our mind back to the fundamental of our breathing but we fail. This exercise allows our mind to travel and to enjoy the travel that our mind takes.
We begin with the fundamental exercise, which is our breathing, enjoying and focusing on the rise and fall of our breath and the natural cadence that our breath takes. From there, as our mind travels, we do not constrain it but let it be. Wherever our mind goes, we allow it to “daydream” and when we arrive at a thought, we don’t judge the thought or deny the thought, we just allow. We label the thought as “thinking” and we allow the thought to exist without force or implication. If our mind goes elsewhere, we allow the thought to blossom. If it is a negative thought, we do not label it as such but we allow it to be just there floating in front of us and around us. We allow the thought to just be withholding fear, anxiety, or judgment. We accept the thought as being part of us, our nature, our being. We then close the exercise with a return to our breathing, focusing again on each in-breath (inhalation) and each out-breath (exhalation) before we return to our world.
The following video is a guided tour to help you stay on a budgeted time of under 10 minutes and to help you stay on track during this exercise for those who can have the luxury of playing the video in their quiet place of meditation. Namaste.
Also, I just started a new Facebook group that is non-profit (don’t worry no donations), non-sectarian (no religious affiliation), non-political and that is dedicated to promoting love and peace to everyone in the world. I would greatly appreciate it if you joined the group and then invited ALL of your friends to join. Let’s start a revolution! Spread the word! Here is the link to the page.
Monday Meditations Part 2: Hatha Yoga
May 4, 2009 by dr. lam · 4 Comments
Hatha yoga is a discipline that focuses on the movement of the mind rather than the body. As most of you know, I started doing yoga several times a week about 3 months ago, and it is one of the best things that I could do for my body and mind. Hatha yoga focuses on using your mind to relax and control your body. It is also known as the “body scan” technique since you use your mind to wash over each part of your body one at a time. It is a powerful exercise and one of my favorites if not my favorite.
When I encounter nervous patients, I use this exercise as the middle of 3 as I need to. I start with the breathing exercise and call it quits there if that is sufficient to get someone relaxed. If not, I move onward to the body scan to help them relax each part of their body going from one muscle group to another. I then work with them on a visualization exercise if they need it. I think some of you remember the beach visualization exercise I did. I actually helped another patient of mine who was a professional ballet dancer in youth return to her days of glory on stage through this exercise. Okay, that is another meditation so let’s return to our hatha yoga exercise.
With this meditation, you can either stay seated or you can be fully recumbent (just don’t fall asleep!). If you are in a cool place, make sure that you have blankets or whatever you need to make sure you stay comfortable and warm during the meditation. The video I shot will help guide you in this exercise but for those who cannot watch the video or choose not to do so, let me summarize what I would like you to do.
First, calm your breathing and focus again on the primal breath. Allow yourself a minute or two to just focus on the breath and your breathing, naming each breath as it goes in and out. Then center your mind on each of the following body parts. Begin on your forehead and allow yourself to sweep your mind back and forth over each body part and allow yourself to start to relax your muscle and let go of the tension. Repeat that same exercise as you move from your forehead to your nose, left cheek, right cheek, jaw (let your jaw go lax), neck, spine, right shoulder, right arm, right fingers, left shoulder, left arm, left fingers, chest muscles, abdomen, pelvis, right thigh, right leg, right toes, left thigh, left leg, and then left toes. Bring your focus back to your breathing as you finish your meditation.
Namaste.
Safety Series Part 2 of 4: Child Safety 2 (The Internet)
April 29, 2009 by dr. lam · 2 Comments
To conclude our two part series on child safety and as part of our larger series on safety, let’s focus on sex offenders’ #1 avenue of approaching your children now, the Internet. As everyone knows, the Internet is one of the most amazing resources out there (as I am using its technology to spread this message to you right now), but it is also one of the most potentially lethal ones in the wrong hands. I would like to thank Tony Pompa who attended the weekend EO event and who shared with me his tricks to helping keep his children safe. He said that he switched his children’s computer access over to Macintoshes because of the unparalleled filters and controls that he could use to protect his children.
Let me publish the Texas Center for the Missing’s Internet safety tips for parents that I think are really good:
1. Establish rules for Internet use including what sites can your child visit, who can they talk to, how long are they allowed online, clearly defining when and where they can use a computer, and keep these house rules posted near the computer.
2. Keep the computer in a common room (not the child’s bedroom).
3. Discuss the importance of telling you and or a trusted adult if anything ever makes your child or teen feel scared, uncomfortable, or confused while online.
4. Communicate: prepare yourself beforehand; talk openly with your kids and teens; keep cool and be cool so that they confide in you; warn your children about the risks of myspace.com and other social networking sites.
5. Be informed: learn how to set parental controls; know how to check history files (if the history is clear, that is a red flag); use the Internet to identify predators and warn your children: www.nsopr.gov.
6. Limit your child’s use of instant messaging. Excessive IM’ing can be dangerous.
7. Consider safeguarding options: blocking/filtering/rating. Visit www.thetexascenter.org/internetsafety.asp. Create an email/user name that indicates you are law enforcement and have that “persona” be accepted as a friend on your child’s MySpace or Facebook page.
8. Report suspicious persons or websites: notify law enforcement; use cybertipline at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (1-800-843-5678 or www.cybertipline.com)
9. Know with whom your children chat online.
10. Check your children’s email address for appropriateness.
11. Don’t post your child’s email address in ANY directory.
12. Always read a web site’s privacy policy: don’t unsubscribe to unwanted email; don’t sign up for free things.
13. Don’t forward email to everyone in your address book.
14. Talk to your children about what personal information is and why it should never be given out.
15. Make sure children only exchange email with people they know and let them use chat areas you supervise.
16. Make sure you are aware of any other places your child may be using the Internet such as a friend’s house, school, or the library.
17. Show your children how to turn off the monitor (but not the computer) when something or someone makes them feel scared, uncomfortable, or confused and REPORT!
Another disturbing trend is something I heard of for the first time “sexting”. This refers to when an individual uses text messaging to deliver a nude photograph of himself/herself that despite whatever privacy that individual thinks he or she is using can trigger an arrest on the receiver’s end if the sender is underage. For more in-depth information on Internet Safety Programs, check out presentations based on the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s NetSmartz Program at www.netsmartz.com.