I loved this exercise. It is without a doubt my favorite from this course. Over the years I have borrowed from here and there various religious and spiritual ideas that appealed to me and have incorporated them into my own practices. I would have to describe my own spiritual beliefs as "eclectic". I have always seen the variety available as a potluck and have picked up what I like or what is useful to me. I have been doing an exercise like this for several years - borrowed from a pagan/Wiccan friend. My conception of "Asciepius" is a female figure that I call Mother. She is ageless and can be the age I need her to be depending on what I am seeking (maiden-mother-crone). She appears as a young woman when I need inspiration, energy or enthusiasm for life; as a mother figure when I need comfort or nurturing; and as an old woman when I am seeking tough answers or wisdom. She is all the aspects of myself as a woman. I came away from this exercise with just what I needed concerning a situation which has caused me some worry in the past few month. The answer for me was to stay in today, I'll always get what I need when I need it if I do the footwork and my motives are honorable.
My meditative practices this week included The Subtle Mind exercise from Chpt 7 of Dacher's book - I did this one afternoon that I had to myself before my family got home. I also stole a few quiet moments to just let my mind rest during the week at my desk at work, waiting in the car and just before work. I found these very helpful to reduce stress and re-center myself during my day. I will continue to use the exercise above but try to do it more regularly rather than just occasionally when I am disturbed or feeling lost.
I think as a health and wellness professional I do have an obligation or responsibility to my clients to practice what I preach. We cannot teach what we don't know and just reading about these things isn't enough. We have to actually experience them for ourselves in order to pass them on, answer questions and serve as a guide. It would be like trying to describe chocolate cake without ever tasting it. I think our clients know when we don't belief our own words enough to follow them and they will not believe them either. I can implement psychological and spiritual growth in my personal life by practicing some of the meditative and mindfulness techniques from this course, by continuing to learn and develop as a person and by honestly seeking guidance from my higher power.
I hope everyone else enjoyed this week's audio track as much as I did! I can't believe we are almost through Unit 7!
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Hey Kelly!
ReplyDeleteWell, I have to agree - I actually got something positive from this week's exercise! I was really disappointed the last couple weeks in the CD!
I too was able to gain some resolution with a long standing issue I have - I need a lot more "exercises" though to totally resolve it. It's one of "those"!
I think even if we gain just a little something that's positive in any of these practices, we are better for having achieved that!
Good luck in your progress forward and hope your week is peaceful!
Take care,
Michelle :)
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ReplyDeleteHello Kelly,
ReplyDeleteYour answer was excellent. Stay in today. Isn’t that awesome? Trying to deal with too much can definitely give us unnecessary suffering. And we always get what we need if we plan skillfully and our intentions are respectable. I like the way you view your spiritual beliefs as choosing from various sources. I feel it is very important for people to pick and choose what works for them.
To stay normal in this world, we must continue the practices on a daily basis. I am glad that you were able to steal a few quiet moments to let your mind rest during the week at your job. Can you imagine doing it as a habit to alleviate unnecessary suffering? Your desk at work, and waiting in the car… I like all of those moments you had, and especially just before work. That indeed is very helpful and does reduce stress. I will be adding a technique at work for the adolescents to help them with their day, it will benefit me also. I have also set up my mindful meditation power point for them to view.
As health and wellness professionals we do have an obligation to our clients to practice what we preach. I love it. “It would be like trying to describe chocolate cake without ever tasting it.” Ha...ha… That is a perfect way to say it. I have the same opinion about implementing psychological and spiritual growth in my personal life by practicing meditative techniques and to continue seeking direction from the Ultimate.
Thank you I did enjoy this week's audio track considering audio 3. You can't believe we are almost through Unit 7, and I can’t believe they are calling me to sign up for next term. This is an awesome class!!
I have to agree that this is the best exercise out of the ones on the CD. It was very helpful. I am glad that you were able to get what you needed from this exercise. It seems like most people found it very beneficial.
ReplyDeleteYou make a good point about how clients can tell when professionals do not follow their own advice. This would only instill doubt in clients and they would not take the health and wellness professional seriously.
Kelly,
ReplyDeleteI am so happy that this exercise worked for you! I absolutely love the visualization exercises as well. Although my visualization was not as detailed as yours, I think that focusing the mind on one specific event can greatly take the tension off of what we were worried about. I really like your idea of a "motherly" figure, however, who can give us energy, nurturing, or wisdom depending on what we need. When it comes to those tough decisions that ultimately are up to us, I think that focusing on this "motherly" figure will come in handy! I think I will try this exercise next time I need some inner advice! Thanks for the tip!
Aimee Fairbanks