Yoga Archives - Mindful Happiness

October 13, 2019 By Admin

“i Rest” Yoga Nidra Practice (Richard Miller, Ph.D.)

All regular meditation and yoga practices are capable of bringing us closer to our true self and our relationships in the world. A by-product is deep relaxation and equanimity. Richard Miller, Ph.D. (Clinical Psychologist, yogic scholar, spiritual teacher), has created a yoga nidra practice that promises to return us to our authentic self and provide deep, relaxation and inner peace in the process. The iRest method is based on long-term practice and research. Yoga nidra is a pathway to improved health, awareness, and inner healing. It has been effective in problems related to stress, anxiety, sleep, trauma, and physical pain. I suggest it may be equally effective in all psychological pain. In neuroscience theory yoga nidra may reset your central nervous system, improve coping capacity, and open doorways to spiritual development. In the following yoga nidra meditation I have integrated my own yoga nidra practices with the iRest method presented by Dr. Miller. Let’s begin!

Place your body in a comfortable positions sitting, lying down, or standing. Enjoy silence in the pause. Close your eyes if ok.
Allow your body to settle down and simply notice your full awareness. Notice silence in the pause.
Open up your senses without evaluation, and notice delicately your body contact with parts of the world beyond the body boundary. Pause.
Be open to noting the contact experience, and prepare to go inward inside your body. Notice as we pause in silence.
Gently notice without evaluation the sensations you feel as we move up and down the body. Quickly at first. Up and then down!
Starting with your toes, simply notice sensations; then move up slowly all the way to your hips, noticing sensations as you move your intentional kinesthetic awareness. Be with the silence in the pause.
Continue your inner, private body scan moving from the hips all the way up your chest and to the top of your head. Silence!
Just notice sensations and continue to be aware without judging.
Now move slowly from the head back down your back to the hips. Notice the quality of the silence in the pause.
Again, with intentional attention without thinking move down from the hips all the way back to the toes. Remain silent inside.
Now ever so gently notice your intentional in and out breaths. Breathe deeper, slower. Notice.
Notice and allow the sensations of breath passing into your nostrils, down the throat, into the chest and lungs. Notice the rise of the belly on the in-breath. Do all this without thinking – only noticing the sensations your feel. Enjoy this silent pause. Let go.
Now notice the out-breath and follow the same sensation track as your exhale. Notice! Remain silent inside and outside.
At this point in our process, bring attention gently to an area of the body where you feel discomfort, pain, or suffering.
Simply allow and welcome this sensation as if it were simply sensations – like those you just experienced. Pause in silence.
Blend the earlier pleasant sensations with this uncomfortable sensations. Notice! Settle deeply into the silent pause.
In your effort to accept all sensations, notice the discomfort and note if it is stronger at its center or at the periphery. Where?
Focus more attention where there is less discomfort. Go deep into the silence here.
Does your unpleasant sensation have a color? Focus on the color. Now focus on an opposite color or your favorite color. Notice.
Let go of reactions to the discomfort on each and every exhalation, and especially in the gaps/spaces between breaths and awarenesses. Be with the silence now.
Continue to let go in the longer silence here.
Does the sensation have a character texture? Is it dense or loose? Heavy or light? Sharp or dull? Go to where there is less discomfort. Be in your inner most silence now.
Radically accept all your bodily sensations – the pleasant along with the unpleasant. It is only sensation; it is your reaction to it that causes you problems. We wish to flee discomfort and hold onto pleasure. Just be with what is! Just be in silence now.
Allow your body to remain aware, accept, integrate all the forms of sensation you are experiencing.
Examine your control by bringing focus to the pleasant sensations, now to the unpleasant sensations. Accept them all as simply sensations without evaluating. This may be challenging. Find some peace in the silence.
Now allow your senses to open up and notice what you feel, hear, see, taste, smell. etc.
Use the power of your inner spirit to help you improve this moment of perfect being. Empower spirit! Sit in silence now.
When you feel ready slowly bring yourself to a full alert state. If your eyes have been closed, gently open them.
Now just rest!!!!! Enjoy the silence. I will cue you when we are ready to end yoga nidra.

Anthony R. Quintiliani, PhD., LADC

From the Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, Vermont and the Home of The Monkton Sangha

Author of Mindful Happiness

New Edition of Mindful Happiness in Production…Coming soon!

June 19, 2019 By Admin

Chronic Pain and Doing Body Scanning

Although doing body scans cannot fully relieve your pain, it may help you manage it better. If your pain is serious and chronic you need to work with a qualified pain management professional, who will use both psychological and medical interventions. Note that a recent issue of Consumer Reports reviewed research and suggested that addictive pain medications and surgery should be the last options for most people. I have modified and integrated body scan instructions presented by Jon Kabat-Zinn and Thich Nhat Hanh. I have also added my own body scan style and process. Kabat-Zinn noted that body scan meditations may be the most effective mindfulness meditation practice for management of physical pain. I would add that it may also help with psychological or emotional pain as well. For best results practice the body scan for 45 minutes every day. Strong practice brings better outcomes. Here are the instructions.

While lying flat on your back on a soft surface, place your body in a comfortable outstretched position. Now just rest and breath gently.
Close your eyes and get a “feel” for how your body is being experienced at this time.
With your eyes still closed take a few long, deep, slow breaths and notice how the lower belly (hara) rises and falls on the in-breath and the out-breath. Notice the feel of interoception in your body.
If your mind loses focus, gently bring attention back to the body.
If you experience pain while doing this scan, go slow and easy as you accept it and breathe through it. If you experience too much pain, stop the body scan and seek professional advice.
Bring complete attention to your feet, and as you focus and breathe allow your body to feel as if it is sinking a bit into the surface below you. Allow the surface to support your body and your mind.
Pay strong attention to your right foot, and slowly move attention from the foot to the ankle, lower leg, knee, thigh, hip and into lower belly. Allow time at pass (4-5 minutes at each location) before moving to the next body area in this sequence.
Now move attention from the lower belly up to the chest and the to front of the neck. Rest a while as you pay close attention to the emotional energies in the front of the neck. Notice.
With deliberate action move your attention to the chin, lower lip, upper lip, nose, ridge of the nose, eye brows, third eye area, over forehead and all the way up to the top, center of the head. Again, spend 4-5 minutes at each area. Once at the top of the head, rest there for a few moments. Notice.
From the top of the head, allow attention to drift to the lower back neck, and down the backbone slowly – bone by bone. Stop at the base of the back. Be sure you are still breathing deeply, slowly.
Move your attention to your left hip, and slowly move attention down the lower body – from the left hip to the thigh, knee, lower leg, ankle and down to the left foot and toes. Rest there for a while. Breathe fully. Relax. Notice.
Now return your attention to the top, center of your head. Notice the “feel” there again.
Allow the movement of attention and interoceptive perception to slowly slide over the sides of your head and face – next to your eyes, the ears, down your cheeks, stopping at the sides of your neck. Rest there for a moment. Notice. Be sure to allow 4-5 minutes at each area before moving on to the next area. Energize your attention and prepare to use it in new ways.
Notice how it feels when you move attention out to the shoulder tips, then slowly down the upper arms, to your elbows and lower arms. Stop and notice how you feel when you reach your wrists.
Use your imagination to bring full attention to both hands and follow the sensations of awareness all the way out to your finger tips. Rest for a moment. Continue to breathe deeply and slowly.
Once you feel the attentional energies in your fingers, place both hands over your heart area and rest. Remain in this position for at least five minutes, breathing deeply and slowly with both hands resting on your heart area. If attention wanders, gently bring it back to your heart area.
In this position very gently and slowly rock your body side to side. Notice what you notice!
To extend the time of your body scan, you may begin again in reverse direction. This time starting at the top, center of your head and slowly moving attention and sensation down your body all the way to your feet and toes.
For your ending, simply breath slowly and deeply and rest fully. Rest in Yoga Nidra if you know how to do so. Simply be with your body and breath.
Before rising, move your body slowly side to side and sit first. Be sure your legs hold you as you rise from the floor ever so slowly.

For more information refer to Harvard Medical School (2019). Pain Relief Without Drugs or Surgery: Natural and Integrative Ways to Reduce Your Suffering and Take Control of Your Life. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Medical School Special Health Report. See also various instructions on body scans by Jon Kabat-Zinn and Thich Nhat Hanh. You may appreciate his instructions on mouth yoga as part of this practice.

Anthony R. Quintiliani, PhD., LADC

From the Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, Vermont and the Home of The Monkton Sangha

Author of Mindful Happiness

New Edition of Mindful Happiness in Production…Coming soon!

June 15, 2019 By Admin

In-Depth Means to Discover and Be Your True Self

Henry David Thoreau reminded us that it is not what you look at, but it is what you see that matters. How do you SEE yourself? John Muir reminded us that the sun shines in us as well as in our souls. Do you find “the healing light” in your soul? The following “thinkers” have provided some interested self-search methods for us to consider; try some of these to find your own true self and be grateful.

Arvni Nan Futuronsky, Thomas Moore, and Christopher Germer – According to these people, finding the true center of the true self requires a mindfully deep questing processes, which may include regular silent meditation and inner self-contemplation. Being stuck in past struggles, painful experiences, and general suffering block not only finding our true self but also it’s healing capacities. Likewise being stuck in anxiety, fear, depression, loneliness, trauma, addictions (including “I-Smartphone” addiction), self-doubt, and non-stop critical thinking – all harm our true self and keep us in cyclical patterns of suffering and despair. Samsara is dominant here. These are very serious problems, and they are not overcome without considerable personal effort. However, locating and “seeing” the good of your true self will enable you to grow and be happier. Confirm and affirm yourself! Use your self-leadership to experience pure self-compassion and maintain a mindfully oriented mind. Find your strengths and pleasures in art, literature, poetry, nature, metaphors, myth, random movements, and facial expressions of pleasure. Spend more personal and silent time in nature. Study, experience, and appreciate these many resources of the self. With regular practice improved habits of mind-body realities will occur in both self-narratives and behavioral ways. You must practice regularly. Trade some “worry time” for beneficial practice time.

J. Belmont in Embrace Your Greatness.. recommends that you unconditionally and radically accept yourself as being “good enough” (D.W. Winnicott). It is not a problem to have human imperfections; our race if loaded with imperfections – it is normal. Our highly competitive and sometimes violent society, however, entrains us to focus on negatives in life. Even our brain is designed to emphasize negatives; the human Limbic System is designed for survival, thus our focus on negatives may be part of our genetic heritage to survive. To improve regularly practice letting go of your inner critical voices – your own inner voice as well as critical, projected voices from others. Do not respond to typical, habitual, conditioned “shoulds.” Emphasize and take advantage of your own possible post-traumatic growth. Seek it in yourself and it will be there. Pay very close attention to your personal strengths, and take the time to list them and read them periodically. Meditate, practice yoga, and remain mindful daily.

Other Things to Do

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy – If you know this approach, use it’s diffusion and distancing techniques often. Clarification here is beyond the scope of this post. Google it, or look up information available on this blog site.
Kundalini Yoga – Certain easy and energetic practices of taking in and pushing out may be helpful . The approach using your arms to take into the body something you want and saying “YES” with louder and louder force might help you. Likewise, using your arms to push out something you do not want and saying “NO” (with louder force) in the process can be helpful. Teaching you this is beyond the scope of this post. Google it.
Likewise using Loving Kindness Meditation and Yoga Nidra processes are often helpful to us humans. Once again, it is not the focus of this blog post to teach you these practices. Google them, or look them up elsewhere in this blog site. Practice! Practice! Practice!

For more information you may wish to refer to Belmont, J. (2019). Embrace Your Greatness…Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications.

Anthony R. Quintiliani, PhD., LADC

From the Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, Vermont and the Home of The Monkton Sangha

Author of Mindful Happiness

New Edition of Mindful Happiness in Production…Coming soon!

May 31, 2019 By Admin

More on Yoga Nidra

Yoga nidra is sometimes called yoga sleep or yoga relaxation. It is a very powerful mindfulness technique that allows one to relax the body and limbic brain area, while holding mental control for deeper relaxation and projective practices without falling asleep. For some it may be like lucid dreaming, but a state that remains focused on the physical, energetic, and psychic body. In mindfulness terms, this is a state of deep relaxed awareness. Advanced practices use projective techniques outside the body. One asset of this practice is that it allows us to retain cognitive awareness as the body and brain waves shift into more subtle states. Once we are in the subtle energy field, the body-mind may be altered with relative ease. The ancient practice helps practitioners to improve physical conditions, injuries, energy homeostasis, and to awaken dormant energies.

Ideally this practice is done in a laying down position, so the body can conserve energy. Laying on your back is called savasana, the course pose – being very still like a corpse. The use of blankets and cushions may improve comfort. It may also be done in a comfortable sitting position. During practice it is important not to move the body in any way; this is a goal even if uncomfortable sensations arise. Our job is to observe the movement of inner energies without physical or mental reactions, thus allowing a more expansive meditation experience.

Stages of Yoga Nidra

In the first stage of practice, we engage in a progressive body scan to relax and harmonize the physical body. This allows gross or non-subtle energy to move out of the body so the physical body is completely relaxed. We may feel the tension leaving our mind and body. This alone may enable one to experience waves of deep relaxation and peace of mind. However, this first stage is simply preparation for other yoga nidra techniques. If practice time is extended, sometimes people experience a drop in body temperature.

In the second stage, the practitioner will be guided into other subtle energy experiences. These may include sensory awareness and manipulation, chakra awareness, visualizations, awakening energy techniques, and projective experiences. In the more advanced yoga nidra techniques, it is important that the teacher possesses ample experience in doing these practices. A good reason for this is that while being in deeper energetic systems of the body, a person’s stored tensions, memories, and perhaps karma may be released. Participant safety is a priority, so the teacher must observe closely to notice signs the practice is going beyond the practitioner’s capacity.

Yoga nidra is a powerful body-based technique that may improve access to subtle energy as well as cognitive and physical functioning. It can be a very powerful, healing meditation.

Anthony R. Quintiliani, PhD., LADC & Brian Tobin

From the Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, Vermont and the Home of The Monkton Sangha

Author of Mindful Happiness

New Edition of Mindful Happiness in Production…Coming soon!

February 4, 2017 By Admin

Using Mindful Movement as Part of Practice

Mindful Movement as Part of Practice

Mindful movement is an accepted part of regular practice. Such practices as walking meditation, more vigorous yoga asanas, qi gong, and tail chi are all part of this respected mindfulness tradition. Here I will introduce you to a very simple pre-meditation movement sequence. Hope you practice it very soon.

Stand in horse posture, with your body erect, back straight, and your feet shoulders’ width apart. Just remain still and quiet for a moment. Be soft in your muscles.
Fold your hands together with fingers interlocking, and raise your arms up over your head. Stand quietly for a moment.
Begin to breathe in and out at a slower, deeper rate. SMILE!
As you breathe in bend your body so your arms/folded hands sway to the right – stretch a bit; then breathe out and bring your arms/folded hands to center again over your head.
Breathing in again, bend to the left as above – stretch a bit; breathing out come to center again.
Repeat this breathing movement in to the right, out center, in to the left, out center for ten times. Remember to continue smiling.
After ten times, slowly bring your arms to your sides, and allow your body to sway gently in any direction you wish.
Now stop swaying, and be in full awareness with your still, quiet body and mind.
Notice your current state of mind-body being.

For more information refer to Bradley, C. Try this movement practice before you meditation. www.mindful.org/mindful-moveent-practice…Retrieved January 10, 2017. This post is a modified version of the noted instructions.

Anthony R. Quintiliani, PhD., LADC

From the Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, Vermont

Author of Mindful Happiness