Unit 10 WHERE DID THE TIME GO

This class gave my whole life a different outlook.  Physically I am a mess but somehow I lost 10 more pounds and I’m feeling a lot better. The doctor even told me my blood pressure has been consistently at a good level.  I was a 3 in the beginning and about a 5 now.  Spiritually I’m working on my relationship with God.  It’s a tough road for me because I have trouble just letting go and following.  Psychologically I’m was a 5 and now I’m about a 7.  I’m able to listen to other people and do things their way.  I’m still resistant to it but I’m trying.  I’m becoming happy in my own skin and I’ haven’t been able to say that for a long time.  Massages are the key to my stress relief and the fact that I try not to let meaningless things get under my skin.  Take every situation one by one and release the stress as fast as it comes.  The greatest show of change is when other people notice it in you.  I still haven’t found time to go to the gym and I’m having trouble with this part but I can’t find the time.  Looking more closely at situations I have found ways to release the symptoms of stress before it becomes full blown.  The hardest part of this class was trying to pass it after I got so far behind because of work.  I’ve tried to keep my spirits up and continue with the class but I’m not sure I succeeded. But the class became amazing and I learned so much about myself and how change is within your grasp if you take the time to do it.

My Past and Future

1. Introduction
Professionals
• Psychologically- Professionals need to be competent to assess and react to different situations.  They must keep their personal lives out of the equation.  If they are mentally prepared they will be able to listen to the client and help them with these issues.  A professional that has knowledge and compassion will make his/her client more comfortable and easier to work with.
• Spiritually- Spiritually grounded people have a calmness and confidence that surrounds them.  They offer many options to treatment other than that of mainstream society.  Professionals are also able to lead others to discover their own purpose and identity.  A qualified person can help you transform yourself from who you are to who you want to be, in this was you’ll see old things in a new way.
• Physically- People often equate physical appearance with how proficient people are at their profession.  No one would want to go to an overweight personal trainer or nutritionist because they don’t portray what they teach.  Like the saying, “a picture is worth a thousand words.”-author unknown.
Myself
Personally I need growth in all three areas.
• Psychologically- I need to gain more confidence in myself and not worry about how other people view me or how I lead my life.  It’s a tough crutch to bear.
• Spiritually- Spiritually I’m a work in progress.  I was in the dark before taking on this degree in health and wellness.  Every day I become more aware and open to my spirituality.  I’m actually starting to enjoy life again.  There is a light at the end of my tunnel for the first time in a very long time.  I started going to church and it was an amazing experience.  I’m truly blessed by the people in my life now.
• Physically- Physically I need major improvement.  I have a gym membership that I don’t make time for and nutritionally, I eat whatever is easiest to make.  I just feel there is not enough time in my data to fulfill my nutritional and fitness needs.  I’m losing weight not because I’m trying to, but because I don’t eat enough or correctly.
2. Assessment.
• Psychologically I’m about a 5.  I need the regain the confidence in life and love that I’ve lost over the last few years.
• Spiritually I’m about a 6.  I’m currently on the path to success.  I have to remain open and have the clarity to not only imagine my future but to bring down the walls and embrace it.
• Physically I’m a 4.  I have all the excuses in the book. But in reality I have a 4 hour window in the morning to improve myself exponentially nutritionally and physically if only I could get out of bed, get dressed and into the car.
3. Goal development
• Psychologically- I need to have more belief in myself and my abilities.   I have to stop trying to be the person I think other people want me to be and just be myself.
• Spiritually- I need to reconnect with God.
• Physically- get in the best shape I can in all aspects of my life.
4. Practices for personal health
• Psychological
1. Let my story go- Stop living in the past, just let the past go. I don’t want to hold on to things that won’t allow me to move forward with my life.  I’ve already lived that way and I wasn’t good the first time so why hold on to it.
2. Meditation- I need to bring peace back to my mind and body.  I need to release the stress that life brings to me on a daily basis.
• Spiritual
1. Loving kindness- it will allow me to be at peace no matter what situation I encounter.  It provides me with a calmness that I’ve never experienced before.  I’m finding the strength to be compassionate in a difficult situation.
2. Practicing restraint- I don’t want to give in to sudden urges and do things out of impulse. I want to participate in something greater that fulfilling my ego’s desires.
• Physical
1. Fitness- I really need to get to the gym.  I need to follow the plan that has already been set up for me and as cliché as it may sound I have to “just do it” for myself.
2. Nutrition- I have to stick to the meal plan.  Meals should be planned out so that I don’t deviate and eat meals that are not benefitting me.
5. Commitment
Commitment is the hardest part of the whole process.  I know how I’m feeling right now, at this moment in time, I’m currently not the man I envisioned myself to be at this point in my life.  I could have never written about my feelings let alone allow someone to read about them.  I wasn’t open at all spiritually and I didn’t care about anything at all.  I’m a work in progress.  I feel change happening in all aspects of my life and I’m very happy on the path that I’m travelling spiritually and psychologically.  I’m on the path to success, not only have I experienced it, but my friends and family have noticed the change in me.  Loving kindness has changed my perspective on life.  It has humbled and calmed me.
The hardest part to change for me is my fitness and nutrition levels.  I know that when I get these two aspects of my life under control, all the other aspects of my life will be enhanced.   I’m going to make the choice for a healthier lifestyle and to do that I’m going to have to do a major overhaul on my refrigerator and my cupboards.  Consulting a dietician may be something to consider too.

Its all beneficial

2 MOST BENEFICIAL PRACTICES FOR ME.

 

  When I read about Loving Kindness I was captivated.  In the past, I always flew off the handle at any sign of change or anything really that didn’t appeal to me.  My mind had never been calm at any time in the last 20 years before I started this class.  I have people coming up to me at work and telling me that I am a different person than I was before. (Before being in the summer of 2013).  There wasn’t any balance or harmony in my life, I was a giant ball of stress.  After doing some reading on loving kindness, which is like a savior to me,  I have found a way to start loving myself again, finding happiness from within, allowing others to be who they are without me judging them.  I was a Jerk in every sense of the word.  Your opinion didn’t matter to me because usually you were wrong anyway.  Now I know I’m secure with myself and pushing people away to cope isn’t the best way.  Compassion and caring are the way I live my life today, people still say I’m too nice but its fine.  After you learn to accept yourself for who you are all the pieces come together and the puzzle starts to make sense. 

Meditation.

I think meditation will be really beneficial to me when I find the time to start doing it.  I need to find a peaceful spot within myself to heal spiritually, to release the stress of the day and rejuvenate myself for the rest of the night. Hopefully it will help me sleep since I haven’t had a good night’s sleep without taking a pill in the last 15 years.  There has to be a happy medium somewhere and I don’t mean the ones that see dead people.

  When I can use these two practices together I will experience a wholeness that I have never had before.  It will be a rebirth of sorts for me.  To be able to love and be loved, to care about and be cared for, and most of all to love myself.

Does the mind ever rest? mine never does

1.     A. Physical well-being- I’m probably a 3.  I don’t eat right or exercise.  I’m constantly on the run and I get home very late from work.  So I eat a lot of fast food, it’s currently my only alternative.  I know I could prepare my food ahead of time but there isn’t enough time in my day.

 

2.     A. I’m starting a new exercise program.  I’m in the process of trying to make a meal plan for myself so that I take the everyday thinking out of what I’m going to eat that day.  I would like to stop eating as much red meat (I love it) but when I have to have it I will buy organic or a leaner meat such as bison or buffalo.

 

3.     A. I’m going to use treadmills, elliptical and weight machines to lose weight and improve my physical well-being.

 

1.     B. Spiritual well-being- I’m probably an 8 in this area.  I believe in a higher power (GOD) but I’m not into organized religion.  I believe there are powers around us at all times which help to guide us in everyday life.

 

2.     B. As I become more healthy physically my spiritual health will increase

 

3.     B. I will use aromatherapy and music to keep my mind, body and spirit in tune.  I must be more in tune to my inner self and look for signs of good things to come and stay optimistic.

 

1.     C. Psychologically I’m about a 5.  I have a lot of stress at work since I moved into a supervisory role.  I’m currently separated from my wife and don’t know where that situation is going.  I have two puppies in my home that have a ton of energy.  And trying to get my school work done amongst all this chaos.

2.     C.  Increased physical activity will lessen my overall stress and allow me to be calmer and not let stress rule who I am.

3.     C.  I think I need massage and meditation so that I can tune out the world and let my mind just relax.

I listened to the crime of the century.  The voice and the background music was very soothing but I found that my mind roamed when the speaker went on long tangents about a topic.  I one point I did go to sleep but I think that is just cause I’m tired.  When I was done with the track I was