Mindfulness - Steps that may help you heal

As per my previous posts you may have noted that things have been a bit stressful for me of late. 

Trying to recover from the damage left from my heart attack has been a long and tough ride. 

One of the most frustrating outcomes has been the side effects of the medication that I now take to allow my heart to heal from the trauma. The side effects have varied from muscle cramps, nose bleeds and lack of energy, to mind crushing depression and anxiety. 

I have found the depression to be the hardest foe to slay, more so then other then the physical limitations. 

Depression is described as:  A mental health disorder characterised by persistently depressed mood or loss of interest in activities, causing significant impairment in daily life. 

That pretty much details my current point of mental health at the moment. I wouldn't say that I have broken my mental health completely but it has certainly suffered a bad sprain.

I have been working on being more mindful over the last few weeks and thought maybe people would benefit from me taking the time to document what has helped me to be more centered and reconnect with my life a bit more.

An exercise in removing stress from your mind. 

 • Basically you first need to bring yourself into this moment and be present in it, it can be hard as your brain is wired to start trying to see multiple steps ahead, it can help to make sure that you are sitting (or standing if your on the go) and maintaining proper posture. This helps to open your body (so your not hunched over) and also should alleviate pressure points so that your not distracted by the ouchies.

 • Now just breath and take some time to ask yourself what is going on in my life at the moment, not your whole life, just this moment in time. Be mindful in this moment of whatever happens in your mind, take note and identify any thoughts that pop into you head and then leave them behind, now just imagine that your moving away from them. some people find visualising them being closed behind doors, as they are just distractions or even picturing themselves filing them away in draws. I like to think of them as things written in sand and have a wave come  up onto the shore and wash it away.

• Now just remember to keep your breathing steady whilst you are visualising this process. 

•  You'll likely become more aware of your surroundings during this exercise, do much the same as the above, and just acknowledge these sensations and move past them.

Few things to note with this kind of exercise and in life in general, is that: 

•  painful events, memories and sensations can happen when you at least expect it, when this happens, just be mindful and in the moment and don’t let your brain get caught up in the tidal wave that it is trying to create.

 • indentify and give names to those thing that your mind brings to the surface. for example if you are working through your breathing and you are sensing anger or frustration, call a spade a spade and label those emotions and close them behind that door. You will find that this will help to slow the amount and intensity of these thoughts. if done enough

 • More importantly, you will begin to identify yourself as an objective observer or witness rather than a person who is disturbed by these thoughts and feelings. This requires practise but can then be used when ever you are stressed.