The Meditation Thing
Doug Smith
NHL - 1st Round Pick - Los Angeles Kings, Award-Winning Author, Broadcast Show Host. Thank-you to the Kings, Sabres Oilers, Canucks and Penguins
Your subconscious mind controls 95% of you and it has only 3 priorities. Meeting Basic Needs, Clarity of Thought, and Helping Other People.
Meditation cultivates Clarity of Thought
With my neck shattered, I made the decision right away. To stay awake for a surgery that doctors put people to sleep for. I have to find a way to deal with the physical pain. (See photo)
Once I prepared myself mentally the doctor would make a tiny incision and drill 4 self-tapping screws 3mm into my skull, one at a time, creating equal pressure around the skull for the halo to be fastened. After the Halo is in place, the supporting body armor gets connected by metal rods to the halo.
For 3 months.
Then it would be 72 hours in ICU traction and in agony. So much agony from the broken neck that my maximum dose of morphine did not help the pain. Relaxing the body after Neurological Trauma is phenomenally hard.
Childhood Meditation
My meditation experience started as a teenager with Transcendental Meditation (TM). WHY?
At 12 years old, I was diagnosed with ADHD and my Mom and Dad were advised to put me on Pharmaceutical medication. My mother and father decided to start me on meditation... not medication. I remember the initial classes were hard but the eventual calming impact saved my life more than once.
The Science and technology to measure the mind is making the benefits of meditation clearer and clearer and now we can see a day when meditation will be known as a competitive advantage, and healing tool at the same time. We are all seeing it at corporate conferences worldwide.
Rest, Awareness, Focus, and Emotional Control are just a few examples of what you get with meditation.
The value is this:
Without rest, awareness, focus, and emotional control, your life, or your business is a mess. Yes, or No?
Today, when people talk to me about healing the body and mind, I simply help them to change the order to the mind and then the body and get them going on their minds.
"The mind leads the body and the mind heals the Body" Dr. Herbert Benson
Herbert Benson was an American medical doctor, cardiologist, and founder of the Mind/Body Medical Institute at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and professor of mind/body medicine at Harvard Medical School.
The Meditation "Thing"
Many scientific studies show meditation improves brain function. Contemplative neuroscience is now a hot field of study. Meditation is a technique to focus your mind so that your thoughts are not jumping around. This focusing technique trains the mind to think clearly (again ... THINKING CLEARLY is the second priority of the subconscious mind).
Although attitudes are changing, people in Western culture generally perceive meditation negatively. As contemplative neuroscience continues to show the benefits of meditation, people will inevitably flock to it.
You can find many styles of meditation, divided into three general types: mindfulness meditation, focused meditation, and meditation in motion. All three yield benefits. ?
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Mindfulness Meditation
In 2010, the American Psychological Association put out a special issue on mindfulness meditation in their scientific journal Emotion. In recent years, scientists have undertaken considerable work using fMRI techniques on mindfulness meditation. This type of meditation has a direct effect on the prefrontal cortex and the amygdala. These are two areas of the brain that emotional trauma seriously impacts.
In mindfulness training, you are taught not to evaluate your thoughts but simply to observe them. If an emotion comes forward, you are simply to acknowledge it. For example, if anger comes forward, think “I am feeling angry” rather than identify with the anger and think “I am an angry person.”
This idea that you are to observe your thoughts and emotions is somewhat foreign to traditional Western thought. Buddhist monks have done this kind of meditation for centuries. When tested with fMRI techniques, monks with many years of meditating showed a highly developed prefrontal cortex. They also were superior at recognizing someone in distress compared to an untrained Western person.
One type of mindfulness meditation is a body scan. You start either sitting comfortably or lying on your back and then focusing on your toes. It is not easy because your mind will wander. When your mind loses focus, simply acknowledge the new thought or feeling and move back to the toes. Gradually, move up and stop at each body part until you finish at the top of the head.
Focused Meditation
Focused meditation involves voluntarily honing in on one specific item. It can be an object, a word, a short prayer, or your breath. Zen, Transcendental Meditation (TM), and the Benson Henry protocol discussed in Chapter 7 are examples of this style. The Maharishi Foundation reports over 600 scientific studies at 250 universities validating the health benefits of TM. The intent of focused meditation is that the mind will not be distracted by other thoughts.
Meditation in Motion
Meditation can involve concentration on movement such as Tai Chi. Tai Chi is a martial art developed in China both for self-defense training and for health benefits. The movements are performed slowly with an emphasis on control and precision. Dr. Chenchen Wang of Tufts University reviewed 40 studies of Tai Chi and found that Tai Chi improved psychological well-being and reduced stress.
If you haven’t done so yet, I encourage you to try these techniques, either by yourself or with a group. This will help you keep your brain healthy and enhance your ability to think clearly.
Summary
Awareness of your mind should be a part of any goal you set or purpose you embark on. Never forget, the subconscious mind holds important information, so listen to your intuition. The feelings and emotions coming from your subconscious mind are sometimes ignored when they could be carefully understood.
Wishing you a great day!
I hope this helps you or someone you know and here is a special gift for you. Awareness Meditation
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Neuro Change Practioner specializing in hyperhidrosis transformation
1 年Your story is fascinating and I feel you had immense courage in preparation for and during your surgery. I love your sharing of mindfulness and meditation.
Founder and Transformational Performance Coach
1 年Godbless! Powerful story but a necessary part of your journey! These are the experiences that allow us to truly tap into who we are… not the sports we play or the titles we wear. Thank you for sharing!!????
Harnessing the Power of the Subconscious Mind
1 年Amazing story with amazing insights gained. Although I didn't have the catalyst of a traumatic injury like yourself, meditation has personally helped me to evolve into a much better human. Thank you for sharing your story and encouraging others to try it themselves.
Will Direct To Funding For Specific Projects
1 年The fractured neck and treatment time for this type of injury makes survival also a question. To know that a choice to remain awake over and above human pain tolerance. The morphine administered would not beat the pain. A tremendous means to apply teen meditation into a scale applied to the preparation for surgery and halo application. Enough is enough but we seem to find a way.