Meditate -- Who, Me?
by Kathi Remsen, LMT, NCMTB

 

"Road rage" and "desk rage" are examples of chronic stress pushed past the breaking point.

I often suggest meditation to my clients as a way to reduce the tension built up in their bodies by chronic stress. As you may guess, I sometimes meet resistance to this suggestion. The resistance has more to do with the public image of meditation than unwillingness to work toward self-health.

When I say "meditation" most people imagine someone wrapped in a sheet, sitting on a cushion in a position akin to a square knot, contemplating their navel. Just the thought makes them wince in empathetic pain. "My knees won't bend like that," they cry. "I can't sit like that!"

And I say, You don't have to! The point of meditation is not to become a contortionist ­- the point is to become more aware of yourself. You can meditate in a chair. Ancient Taoists used to meditate lying down (the feat is to not fall asleep!).

More important in meditation than position is the breath. We focus on the breath as it flows in and out of the body. The breath rules the body.

As a massage therapist, one of the first body functions I check as I'm working with a client is their breathing. The way a client breathes tells me much about their state of stress -- often more than the client even knows. Shallow chest breathing is a sure sign of chronic stress because shallow chest breathing causes chronic stress!

Chest breathing is based on a common misconception: everyone knows you breathe with your lungs, and your lungs are in your chest. So it stands to reason that if you're breathing your chest should move. The deeper you breath, the more your chest moves, right?

Wrong!

Your breath originates in your abdomen, not your chest. The next opportunity you get, watch a small child breathe. You'll see the child's abdomen moving more than his chest.

Why? Because the abdomen works as the bellows that drives the air into and out of the lungs. To inhale, the abdomen moves outward and the diaphragm (located at the bottom of the ribcage) drops down, creating a pressure differential in the lungs, which draws air into them. To exhale, just the reverse happens. The abdomen contracts, pushing the diaphragm upward, which presses the air out of the lungs. During this whole breath the only work the chest did was to allow the expansion and contraction of the lungs!

Now how does shallow chest breathing cause chronic stress? For that answer we need to take a look at your nervous system.

The autonomic nervous system is divided into two parts that are polar opposites: the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system. There are really only two key things you really need to know about these two systems.

First, how do these systems function in your body? The sympathetic nervous system is responsible for what we call "fight or flight" mode. When there is a huge sabertooth tiger charging you, your body enters "fight or flight" mode and you either run faster than Michael Johnson or make a meal of that tiger. The parasympathetic nervous system does just the opposite ­- after you've outrun the sabertooth tiger, the parasympathetic nervous system puts the brakes on and begins the repairs on the pulled muscle in your leg.

Second, what does this have to do with your breathing? Everything. When you are breathing in short, shallow breaths, you are giving your body a signal that there is a tiger about to make a meal of you. Your body, therefore, goes into "fight or flight" mode. If that tiger is just your boss or a deadline or even a first date…you can't run! But your body wants to. It's prime to jump. You hold it back and it calms down a little. But you keep giving it the signal to run with your breathing, so it goes right back into "fight or flight" and turns into a vicious cycle called chronic stress. "Road rage" and "desk rage" are examples of chronic stress pushed past the breaking point.

There is a remedy to this awful mess -- it's the parasympathetic nervous system to the rescue! How? Take deep, slow breaths from your abdomen and exhale all the stress. This signals the parasympathetic nervous system that it's time for a nap on the beach, time to put out the "Do not disturb" sign.

This is the power of meditation over stress. Meditation helps you focus on correct breathing and allows you to release the stress you've built up over time. No, it doesn't happen instantly, although you will feel a difference the first time. But with practice, even standing in line becomes a vacation rather than an aggravation.

Kathi Remsen is a certified meditation and Qi Gong instructor teaching at the YMCA. She is also a licensed, nationally certified massage therapist in private practice in Anchorage. Call 332-4992.

Beginning Meditation
by Kathi Remsen

Your breath rules your body.

Perhaps you already know some of the many benefits that meditation can bring: reducing stress and chronic tension, relaxing the body, refreshing the mind, and so on. Perhaps you are interested in trying meditation, but just don't know how to begin. In this column, I'll be walking you through a variety of simple meditations that you can do almost anywhere, anytime. The meditation we'll cover this issue is an easy beginning meditation. But before we start, it's important to address two major points that will make a huge difference in your meditation experience.

The key to any form of meditation is correct breathing.

Your breath rules your body. Put one hand on your chest and one hand on your abdomen and take a deep breath. Where do you feel the movement in your body? Most adults in today's society feel movement in their chest. Because most of us are only using the tops of our lungs to breathe, chest breathing is restrictive and shallow. This type of shallow breathing induces anxiety and stress in the body.

To feel the correct, natural mode of breathing, put both thumbs on top of your navel and cross your hands on your abdomen. Expand your abdomen outward. Feel it move under your hands (well, maybe not in those tight clothes -- so, loosen up). Now, contract your abdominal muscles. Did you notice that when you pushed out your abdomen, your lungs filled with air all on their own? And when your abdomen contracted you automatically exhaled? Your abdominal muscles and your diaphragm are the bellows that drive your breath. Abdominal breathing allows air to fill the whole lung not just the top. Just as shallow chest breathing induces anxiety and stress, deep abdominal breathing induces calm and relaxation.

Correct posture encourages correct breathing.

Take a moment to try an experiment. Sit in a chair. Go ahead, slouch over like most people do when they're reading a book or working at the computer. Take a deep abdominal breath. Hard to get a nice deep breath? Now, imagine there is a string attached to the top of your head. Picture someone pulling that string straight up until your spine is aligned with your head. Your shoulders are relaxed and your arms remain at your side. You body feels like a suit on a hanger. Now take another deep abdominal breath and feel the difference. There is more room for your breath, isn't there? When doing seated meditation it is important to keep your posture erect and open to allow correct breathing.

The Meditation.

Find a quiet place, preferably where you won t be interrupted. If you want, light a candle, incense or put on some low, soothing music. Sit comfortably erect on a cushion or chair and place your hands on your abdomen. You may close your eyes or keep them open. Take a deep, slow breath. Breathe through your nose only. Feel your abdomen expand as you inhale and contract as you exhale.

Take several deep, slow breaths. With each breath feel the air flowing past your nostrils and into your body. Imagine there is a feather in one of your nostrils. You don't want the feather to go into your nose as you inhale or get dislodged from your nose as you exhale. Listen to your breath as it passes into and out of your nose. Can you quiet your breath?

Watch, listen and feel your breath. You are now in a meditation. What you do at this point depends on what you wish to heal. The paths are infinite.

Kathi Remsen is a massage therapist, Medical Qigong Practitioner and meditation instructor in private practice in Anchorage. For more information or private sessions, call her at Wellness Unlimited 332-4992.

Three Centered Meditation
by Cynthia McMullen

 

Being centered is being aware of the things going on around you and experiencing them without being consumed by them, without letting them affect your calmness.

What does meditation mean to you? I posed this question to a few people who don't meditate and received this basic idea:

Sit in a motionless position with your legs crossed. Relax your body and close your eyes. Hopefully, you think about Nothing, but if you do think about Something it should be positive, not about paying bills or problems with the kids. Sometimes you can use candles and incense, but it's not necessary. Sometimes you chant to put yourself into a trance. Try not to fall asleep.

Those that do meditate answered the question differently. Here are some of their reasons for meditating:

Deep calmness, serenity, and to experience true peace. Personal insights, answers and spiritual bliss. Becoming aware of my body and what it tells me. Exploring the sensations and manipulation of energy flow. Being centered.

The following meditation is designed for the purpose of centering yourself. By daily practicing such a ritual, centering becomes a natural response to the external environment of everyday life. Being centered is being aware of the things going on around you and experiencing them without being consumed by them, without letting them affect your calmness. The importance of a meditation method is the feeling you get when you're doing it and the sense you carry with you when you're finished.

In this meditation, there are three Centers, similar to chakras, which are both a physical and imagined space within the body. They represent the body, spirit, and mind. Here is the Three Centered Meditation, a beautiful way to spend 15 to 20 minutes in a spiritual bliss that you deserve each day!

To Begin

	Begin by sitting quietly and undisturbed. Sit in a chair or on the floor, however you are most comfortable.
	Become aware of your breathing. Listen to the sound and feel of breathing. Be aware of the movement of breath in your body.
	Become aware of your body. Do you feel any tension or discomfort? If so, release it by gently directing the breath to that area. Imagine the tension soften and melt away down into the earth.
	Close your eyes and breathe slowly, softly, fully and evenly through the nose.

 

Step One: Filling the Centers

Prepare to bring energy to each Center (listed below). Filling each center with energy, allowing it to become open and flowing. Imagine energy riding with the breath: breathing in strong, pure, healing energy light; breathing out, softly releasing energy light to cleanse the Centers. Do this for 8 to 12 slow, even breaths for each Center.

First, imagine breathing deeply to the Center of Personal Power and Inner Strength: the Body. This center is located just beneath the navel and fills the lower abdomen.

Second, imagine breathing to the Center of Love and Compassion: the Spirit or Soul. This center is located at the middle of the chest.

Third, imagine breathing to the Center of Higher Knowledge and Spirituality: the Mind. This center is located at the third eye, the point on the forehead between the eyebrows.

Step Two: Connecting the Centers

Prepare to connect the Three Centers to realize the oneness, the non-separateness of our body-spirit-mind, our Being. Do this for 8 to 12 slow, even breaths.

As you breathe, imagine a line, or channel, of energy moving upwards from the lower center, passing into and through the heart center, and continuing up to meet the third eye center, connecting the three centers. Feel this channel of energy going up through the middle of your body.

Step Three: Harmonizing the Centers

Prepare to harmonize the Three Centers, letting the energy you've accumulated in them flow through every inch of your body, even into the energetic field surrounding us. Do this for 32 slow, even breaths.

Breathe deeply to the lower center. Inhale, feeling warm energy accumulate into a sphere of light, completely filling the lower abdomen. Exhale and imagine the energy emanating and expanding from this center, filling your entire body from the head to the toes, even going through the pores of your skin to mingle in the energetic field extending about 12 inches outside your body in all directions: front, back, top, bottom, and sides.

Closing

To close the meditation, quietly bring yourself back to external awareness by rubbing your palms together, creating energy heat. Place your hands over your eyes and absorb the energy into yourself through your eyes. Gently massage your face and head. Take a moment to notice how you feel. Remember this; it is the feeling you will be able to recall during the day whenever you need it.

Cynthia McMullen is a licensed massage therapist and owner of Touch of Tao, Ancient Arts of Serenity & Healing. She teaches Tai Chi through the Alaska Club, East. For more information, call 279-0135.

A Meditation On Perspective
by Kathi Remsen

Take a step back - The ocean is broad and the sky is vast.

Albert Einstein knew what he was talking about. Everything is relative. Oh, sure, that zit feels like Vesuvius just before your big date. But compared to the huge boil on cousin Gary's neck, it's just a minor irritation. It's all in perspective.

Artists use perspective all the time to trick your eyes into believing a flat object has depth. My favorite definition of perspective is from the American Heritage Dictionary: "Subjective evaluation of relative significance: point of view." In other words, given a choice between your zit and Gary's boil, your zit doesn't look as bad as you first thought. Getting the right perspective is half way to solving the problem. This makes perspective a powerful stress-management tool!

This month's meditation is an exercise in perspective. To prepare your meditation space, adjust the lighting, put on some music and perhaps light some incense. Sit comfortably erect on your chair or cushion. Check your posture. Are your shoulders relaxed and down? Is your spine aligned? Your tongue should be at the roof of your mouth just behind your front teeth. Cross your hands on your abdomen and feel it move as you gently inhale and exhale.

Bring your attention to the earth below you. As you continue breathing slowly and gently, move your hands out to your sides, palms down. Imagine the energy of the earth connecting with you through your hands and feet or spine. Rest in that connection for eight breaths. With each breath, the connection with earth becomes stronger.

Now bring your attention to heaven above as you maintain your gentle breathing. Turn your hands palm up and imagine the energy of heaven connecting with you through your hands and the top of your head. Rest in that connection for eight breaths. With each breath, the connection with heaven becomes stronger.

Next, return your hands to your abdomen. Place your hands so the tips of the thumbs meet at your navel and then cross your hands on your abdomen below the navel. (Females should cross right over left, males cross left over right.) Feel your abdomen moving softly as you breathe. This is the place where heaven and earth energies meet and merge within you. For eight breaths, imagine the merging energies swirling within you as you breathe.

Now, in your imagination, create a box on the floor in front of you big enough to put your problems into. Give them plenty of room and pile them all into the box. Next, imagine your meditation space. It's as if you are outside yourself watching a show. See, there you are with your problem box. Imagine looking at your whole house with you and the box still inside. Move out further and further, as if you're in a balloon drifting higher and higher. Imagine you can look down and see your neighborhood, then your city, state, and country. Now you're high enough to see the world - then the universe and all the other planets. And now the galaxy; now, all the other galaxies. How far can you go? How much of infinity can you imagine? Isn't it beautiful?

Look down again. Can you see the earth from where you are? Can you see that box? How do you feel about what you put in the box? Can you see the answers from way up here? Spend as much time working on your problems from the edge of the universe as you want. When you feel ready to return, put them back into the box with the answers you discovered and imagine you are floating back down to the earth and your room.

As you return to yourself, bring your attention back to your abdomen and your breathing. Move your hands, palms down, out to your sides and bring them up in a circle over your head as you inhale gathering earth energy. Continue the circle back down to your navel as you exhale, bringing the energy into yourself. Repeat this movement three times to close the meditation.

Kathi Remsen is a massage therapist and Medical Qigong Practitioner in private practice in Anchorage. For more information or private sessions, call her at Wellness Unlimited 332-4992.

Karma Cleansing Meditation
by Jude White Bear

I've recently discovered a powerful technique in Gary Smith's Karma Cleansing, Energy Blockage (Implant) Removal, and Consciousness Expanding Guided Meditation. It's an audiotape meditation that allows cleansing and healing of the physical and subtle bodies.

This wondrous holistic meditation cuts karmic ties to the past, removes energy blockages ("implants") from the brain at the cellular level, and helps to heal certain health problems while expanding one's consciousness. It also creates expansions of consciousness to remove fear from the nervous system. This allows the elimination of deep-rooted anger that may be stored inside of you. Wow, what an incredible tool!

What is Karma?

The term “karma” refers to the consequences of experiences that one gains through the actions of one’s life. Karma can be good or bad. “Good” karma may come from being helpful to another, but only if that helpfulness comes from the heart, not from a desire for monetary gain or recognition. Just the same, there are various levels of “bad” karma, from harming others verbally or physically to the taking of another’s life.

Karma might be summed up as: "In Life, there are no rewards or punishments; there are only consequences." Karma is not the retribution of an angry God, but merely a process to help guide us on our spiritual path back to Mother/Father/Creator God of All That Is.

My Experience

The first time I did Gary's meditation, I was in bliss. Indeed, I was so clear and centered that I sensed one might only need do this meditation once to be fully cleansed. I later discovered that while this might be the case for some "saintly" being, I'm a little less far along on the road to saintliness! Still, my first experience with the meditation was so powerful and downright amazing that I didn't think that I needed do it again very soon. The instructor from whom I received the tape, however, mentioned that it's good to use the tape once a week or so.

Apparently, there are layers that get peeled away as we are ready to let them go. Also, we sometimes reconnect recently released ties to our past negative experiences. For those reasons, it is wise to keep using the meditation for some time, although certainly experiences will vary from individual to individual.

My own experience revealed to me that I had been drifting off to sleep at a key place in the meditation. Although I've been using the tape occasionally over the past six months, I only recently decided to use it regularly several times a week to see what benefits could be had. As I'm recovering from a long-term chronic illness, I felt that this meditation would help in the healing process.

I used the tape every other day for a week, then left town to visit my mother, where I've been using it nearly daily. Imagine my surprise when I realized that I had been drifting off to sleep at a certain crucial point for the last six months. I didn't even know that part of the meditation was there until this week!

I see now that I might not have been ready to experience the whole meditation before. Interestingly, while I'm visiting my mom, here it is. All the reminders of my childhood "stuff" and a mother-daughter relationship that has been and still is a slight challenge to me are changing in deeply poignant ways. I feel truly clearer, lighter, and even healthier. Many of the old "buttons" that my mother could occasionally push are switched to the off position. In fact, their power source has been cut off. This has led to an incredible shift of feeling.

How Does It Work?

Gary explains that his guided meditation allows cleansing and healing to take place in the physical body and subtle energy fields by cutting karmic ties to past events and removing energy blockages (or "implants"). This allows a rebirth into a new expanded level of consciousness and an unfoldment of latent talents and abilities.

Karmic ties connect us to the consequences and responsibilities of past actions, as well as the emotional charges contained in the memories of those past events. With the help of beings of higher consciousness, many others and I have experienced the expanded consciousness and freedom from old emotional "junk" that occurs through the use of this meditation.

Love Meditation by Gary Smith Find a comfortable, relatively quiet place to meditate. Sit comfortably and breathe deeply and evenly until you reach a relaxed state of mind. Take the cares of life and stresses of the day and place them beside you. For the next 9 to 18 minutes, let everything go and focus just on your self. Love yourself enough to take this amount of time out for your own spiritual growth and expansions of consciousness. When relaxed, use one of the ancient prayers or your own personal prayer to begin the meditation. After saying the prayer, feel the Unconditional Love state of consciousness surround and fill your whole physical body. Now, visualize a pinkish purple cloud of light surrounding you. This pinkish purple cloud of light is the physical manifestation into our visible light spectrum of Unconditional Love. As you breathe in, your body fills with Unconditional Love. As you breathe out, you breathe out any discord or stresses of life that are stored within you. You breathe in Unconditional Love and breathe out the toxins of past unpleasant incidents. (Optional Healing -- As you breathe in, focus portions of the cloud of pinkish purple light on any area of your body that feels in need. Allow this cloud of Unconditional Love to heal any discomforts in your physical body.) When your breathing returns to normal, revisualize the cloud of pinkish purple light. This time, begin to repeat subvocally the word "Love". Repeating the word Love creates a mantra meditation. This mantra repetition of "Love, Love, Love, Love...." allows a person's personal spiritual energy fields to expand outward with God's Unconditional Love. This infusion increases the size and brilliance of your personal spiritual energy fields. When you become aware that your consciousness has drifted off to some thought, easily say to yourself regarding the thought, "We will address that later, but for now it is time for meditation." Then gently return to repeating the word "Love, Love, Love, Love...." and allow the other thought to dissipate. You can repeat the Love Mantra using the above meditation for nine to eighteen minutes, or even 27 minutes and longer. When you decide to come out of the meditation, come out slowly. If you return to this dimensional reality too quickly, disorientation can occur. This disorientation can be experienced in many ways, from a sense of "spinning," a feeling of excess "spaciness," or even a headache. So, take your time coming out of multidimensional meditations. If any discomfort occurs, put your attention on that area of the body and visualize a cloud of pinkish purple light over the affected area until the discomfort leaves. Gary Smith notes that with the Sacred Merkaba Techniques people have the opportunity to ascend within 5 years. Other prayers and articles by Gary Smith can be found at www.Merkaba.org

Jude White-Bear will be offering free the guided Karma Cleansing Meditation to groups in Anchorage and the Valley. She can be reached at 566-3400 or WB@animalpsychicteam.com.