Meditation is Self-Care: 3 Ways to Improve Your Meditation Practice
Meditation is one of the best ways I know to deepen your intuition, reduce medical and psychiatric symptoms, and quiet your anxieties,
Three props to improve your meditation practice:
Create a quiet, soothing meditation area. This is, for me, basic.
A bell or chime to open your meditation session is important.
Take a few deep breaths and clear your mind.
Using a timer to let you know that your session is coming to an end is helpful. This timer can a quiet tone or beads which you hold in your hands.
Through the years, I’ve posted meditation articles on this blog. (Find them in the search section).
I’ve also recommended several books:
My favorites are three meditation books written by Larry Moen. They are:
Meditations for Awakening
Meditations for Transformation
Meditations for Healing
Today, in this article, I share a new meditation which I’m calling “A Perfect Place”. In this meditation, you create your own perfect place.
Begin with a few deep breaths to clear your mind.
Wait a moment and then imagine yourself in a perfect place, designed just for you. Look around and ask yourself:
What is around you? Are you inside or outside?
Do you see buildings, mountains, roadways, lakes, streams?
Or, do you see a room with a chair waiting for you? Do you see a meeting hall?
What is the weather like outside? Is it snowing, raining, Or is the sun shining?
Do you see people? Are they beside you? Are they smiling or looking away?
Who are these people? How many are they? What are they doing? Is someone coming over to join you?
Are there any animals? Are they pets? Are they wild animals? How are you connected to them?
What are you doing now? Are you walking along a path? Are you sitting on a bench? Are you in a seat in a theater? Are you alone or with others – humans or animals?
Is this place familiar to you? Do you feel you have ever been here before? Is this space somewhere you have visited in the past? Have you dreamed about it?
How do you feel in this space?
What are you wearing?
Sit for a few moments and let yourself become adjusted to your surroundings. Breathe in the perfect air. Enjoy this perfect place.
You may want to make some notes – or draw a quick sketch even.
Now, check in with yourself – your thoughts, your feelings. What is happening with your inner self?
Now, take one long, last look around. This is your place. It will always be yours. You know that you may return here any time you want.
After a short time, you know it is time to return to your space before your meditation.
You can return to this meditation whenever you want.
Now, take another deep breath and return. Open your eyes gently and slowly and gently move and stretch.
Thank you for participating in this meditation. If it is appropriate, please share it with friends and family. Forward it to your preferred social media network.
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Thank you for reading this article. Thanks for sharing this article.
Thurman Greco
3 Ways Self-Care Helps + 5 Things to Ease Your Toxic Overload
Self-care is part of my daily life. Practicing self-care develops personal happiness. It honors a balance between personal life and career.
Self-care offers things that are important in daily life. But, that’s not all. Self-care activities diminish burnout, stress, and fatigue.
Occasionally, I review my physical, mental, and spiritual toxicity to boost my self-care agenda. Actually, a toxicity review is good for everyone, whether or not self-care is the issue.
To pamper myself, I’ll declare a detox week.
Your body continually self-cleans. But, sometimes this process needs a focus and boost because of the hordes of chemicals confronting the liver, lungs, kidneys, fat cells, intestines, bloodstream, and skin.
Toxins come in many forms: too much sugar, caffeine, and processed foods.
They also invade us through pesticides in the produce we eat, formaldehyde in carpets and cosmetics, plastics, and paper products.
I’ll start off a detox week with a water flush, drinking filtered water to cleanse my tissues. (I normally drink filtered water but, with a detox week, I’ll add a variety of waters which I get at the health food store. I also drink some of the Saratoga Springs Waters.) And, I’ll alternate my water with herbal teas to support my liver, lymphatic system, bowels, urinary tract and skin.
DRINK 8 GLASSES OF WATER
DRINK 2 CUPS OF HERBAL TEA
For a fresh-air treat, I go to my local garden center and buy a new plant to help detox my home. I love ferns. Truthfully, I love any plant that I can grow. I started growing houseplants during the pandemic. I definitely don’t have a green thumb but I’ve managed to collect plants which are surviving in my home. The oxygen they produce is important.
GET A PLANT FOR FRESH AIR
My detox week includes a daily cleansing walk, a short 20-30 minute walk I take in my neighborhood to breathe fresh air and enjoy my community.
TAKE A 20-MINUTE WALK
Finally, I include breathing properly to dispel toxins and wastes. When I celebrate a detox week, I set aside time each day to practice deep, slow, rhythmic breathing. This clears my mind, lifts my energy, and boosts my mood.
TAKE 10 CLEANSING BREATHS
SCHEDULE A WEEKLY REIKI OR REFLEXOLOGY SESSION
Reiki and Reflexology work well with a detox week. Include one session for the week or, if time permits, include a daily session.
Thank you for reading this article. Please share it with your friends and family. Forward it to your favorite social media network.
Find out more about Thurman Greco at www.thurmangreco.com. You can purchase Thurman’s books in both ebook and paperbook form. ENJOY!
So far, “A Healer’s Handbook” has gone out to readers in over 30 countries.
Explore more about self-care in “Let’s Live with Thurman Greco” YOUTUBE productions.
SARATOGA SPRINGS STATE PARK
PS – Because I live in the Hudson Valley of New York, I’m close enough to Saratoga Springs to benefit from the many mineral springs located throughout the Saratoga State Park. If you ever get the chance to visit this area, just north of Albany, be sure to visit a few of the springs. Maps are available as well as descriptions of the waters found at each one.
Tours of the springs are scheduled regularly. Join in the fun if you are in the area!
www.parks.ny.gov
