1.Describe your experience. Did you
find it beneficial? Difficult? Why or why not? Would you recommend this to
others? Why or why not?
Once again, I tried to approach this
unit’s relaxation exercise with the same open-mindedness that I have in the
last few units. I found that the audio was quite relaxing and it really helped
me to escape my thoughts and explore the messages that were being conveyed. I
relied on thoughts of my son for my calming source as he is the one area of my
life that always brings me peace and happiness. The thoughts of him truly made
me feel happy, peaceful and relaxed in a way that I hadn’t considered before.
Perhaps there is something to these guided relaxation exercises! I would
probably recommend this exercise to my wife as I feel that the same techniques
would be helpful for her in dealing with her anxiety and depression. Im not
thinking that I could sell the notion of listening to these files to the guys
at the firehouse though. I think they’d make me sleep on the apparatus floor
from now on! Lol
2.What is the concept of
"mental workout"? What does the research indicate are the proven
benefits of a mental workout? How can you implement mental workouts to foster
your psychological health?
The concept of the mental workout that Dacher
refers to is based on the idea that we must make efforts to expand our minds
and explore the techniques which lead to flourishing daily. By practicing these
techniques regularly, you begin to train the mind to think in ways that are
healthy and healing. I feel that reframing my thoughts to be more positive in
nature and allowing my mind to explore the healthy approaches to flourishing as
Dacher describes will begin to help me to mitigate my stress and overcome many
of the negative thoughts which sometimes prevent me from truly ever finding
happiness. In that way I feel that the mental workout will truly benefit my
psychological health.
Dacher,
E.S. (2006). Integral health: The path to human flourishing. Laguna Beach, CA:
Basic Health Publications, Inc.
Leo, it's really nice of you to consider your wife for this exercise. As you stated in your post these exercises are not for everyone and I personally fall asleep during these exercises. I don't feel that I get any other benefit from them but, as Prof Mark responded to me, he stated that even if sleep is the result of these exercises they can still be useful to someone so that they can get much needed rest. So, don't get discouraged from sharing with your peers.
ReplyDeleteI finally understood the Lusk study, after reading some other versions, and I've experienced my mind working better with the excessive use it's gotten over the last couple years with school. I'm getting into the zone faster also. The other day I was driving and zoned out and then freaked out! I don't know if that's a good idea! Anyway, those buddies at the firehouse probably meditate in their own way and they're afraid to tell you also. Maybe you could use a word like "stillness" or "mind chatter" and see if they respond. ha!
ReplyDelete