Om

Ha! I first wrote "Ohm" and then had to remind myself that that meant something else entirely! I've been interested in meditation since early in the seventies. I'm not sure how I heard about it, although I will say I have several cousins who are slightly older than I and I learned about a lot of things from them. Anyway, I've tried with varying degrees of success to meditate throughout those many years. During the times I've done best at it, I always mess it up with "I'm doing it! My mind is clear!" But even though that pops into my mind as soon as I empty it, Nonetheless, I'm sure the practice does me some good. Just sitting with the intention of being quiet and still is a good way to take a few minutes out of the rush of the day. One thing I had never tried before was guided meditation.

I downloaded a few of these on podcasts (I'm not sure about the syntax there; these words are outside my normal language use), and I'm finding them especially helpful during this healing time when my mind is having trouble focusing. As you may have guessed from my mood a few days ago, I got away from it for a while. I noticed it really did make a difference in my daily attitude and my long-term outlook, and the guided meditations are anywhere from two to thirty minutes. (I'm sure there are longer ones, but those times seem to be the general range.) I like to start my day with a vitality-themed ten minute meditation, and at some point during the day I do an overcoming pain one, which is really good not only in the moment but also later, as it includes tips and imagery to access when pain strikes or when it seems to be overwhelming.

The guided meditations are among the coping devices I'm determined to stick with as I recover. Sometimes I think I have a better handle on things than I really do, so I slack up on doing what can help because I don't think I need it. My recent few days of edginess and annoyance could have been prevented -- or at least kept from getting so bad -- if I'd kept up with my meditations (and other helps). From here on out, they'll be a regular part of my day.