Latest / Transformational Meditation Podcast / Love Your Love Muscle: When Mindfulness Leads to Darkness

Transcript

Love Your Love Muscle: When Mindfulness Leads to Darkness · Transformational Meditation Podcast

• 0:27
  Hello everyone.
• 0:28
  Welcome back to another episode of Love, your Love Muscle,
• 0:31
  presented by you, by me Sep, the founder
• 0:33
  of the Transformational Meditation Group.
• 0:35
  And as you know, transformational meditation group does
• 0:38
  everything when it comes to heart focus, meditation,
• 0:41
  heart focus, living, uh, mindfulness, uh,
• 0:45
  stress reduction, self-regulation techniques,
• 0:48
  everything you want to use these techniques for,
• 0:50
  to improve your life in the lives of others.
• 0:52
  Then you are welcome to join us anytime, uh,
• 0:56
  whenever you can for these episodes of the podcast.
• 0:59
  And of course, you have a Paton site, a website full
• 1:02
  of knowledge.
• 1:04
  And, uh, of course, the recordings of these sessions,
• 1:07
  courses and self-regulation, manifestation, mindfulness,
• 1:12
  meditation, heart focus, living, everything you want
• 1:16
  to know about living from the heart,
• 1:18
  becoming a more whole person.
• 1:21
  You can, uh, you can learn about here.
• 1:24
  So, yeah, today I want
• 1:28
  to talk about the negative aspects of mindfulness
• 1:30
  and meditation, especially, uh,
• 1:33
  because, uh, us meditation teachers
• 1:37
  and self-regulation experts, we always say that
• 1:41
  it's the ultimate tool does everything.
• 1:43
  But there's also a downside to mindfulness
• 1:45
  and meditation, especially meditation
• 1:47
  and deeper meditation when you go further into it.
• 1:51
  Um, I've experienced those as, uh, side effects myself,
• 1:56
  the negative sides of meditation, of course.
• 1:59
  Uh, that's also why I became, uh, one
• 2:01
  of the reasons why I became a meditation teacher to, uh,
• 2:05
  guide people, uh, in a better way so they don't have
• 2:09
  to experience the negative effects, uh, from meditation
• 2:14
  and also to if they occur, to cope with them in a, in a,
• 2:19
  you know, uh, a good way.
• 2:21
  So, well, what has happened to me with meditation, uh,
• 2:25
  far away back many years ago when I started, uh, I did
• 2:29
  what everybody else did, I guess,
• 2:31
  and it is doing things on their own.
• 2:34
  And, uh, I went too far and ended up getting depressed
• 2:39
  because I got to, uh, got
• 2:41
  so many insights about the world we live in about myself,
• 2:45
  that, uh, a lot of negative aspects
• 2:48
  of our worlds, the world we live in, the society we live in,
• 2:53
  they came up and I couldn't find any solutions to them.
• 2:58
  There was nothing I could do about them.
• 3:01
  And, uh, it was not about only about everything
• 3:05
  that happened, uh, in the world, but also around me.
• 3:10
  Uh, what happens around us in a small space around us
• 3:14
  with colleagues and friends
• 3:15
  and family also happens on a broader aspect in the world.
• 3:20
  And, uh, all those negative things that got to me.
• 3:22
  And I got quite depressed, uh, but also used meditation
• 3:26
  and mindfulness to get out of that again, to get past
• 3:29
  that wall as I would like to call it.
• 3:31
  So, uh, today I wanna
• 3:35
  just say that if you are a beginner meditator, uh,
• 3:41
  or wanting to dive into mindfulness
• 3:44
  and meditation, be sure
• 3:46
  to find a teacher guides even better,
• 3:49
  join a group and meditation group.
• 3:52
  Uh, I have meditation groups every month
• 3:55
  where we do deep meditation on the guidance,
• 3:58
  and we talk about these things as well.
• 4:01
  So, yeah, it's important, uh, to learn how to meditate
• 4:06
  and not just start by yourself or stop going to groups
• 4:11
  and then go further by yourself, uh,
• 4:14
  when you're not ready yet.
• 4:15
  That's what happened to me. So, yeah.
• 4:19
  Okay, well, today I want, uh, I'm, it's,
• 4:22
  I'm in nature again, as you can see.
• 4:24
  And, uh, it's, as you could hear in the
• 4:26
  background, there's a lot of wind.
• 4:27
  So I found a place, uh, behind, in,
• 4:30
  behind the trees in the forest, uh,
• 4:33
  where the wind doesn't catch onto the microphone that much.
• 4:36
  Uh, on the other hand, there's not a good view
• 4:39
  of the landscape here,
• 4:41
  but I will find something you can take a look at, uh,
• 4:43
  and focus on while we do our session.
• 4:46
  So today's session is gentle self-care.
• 4:50
  Uh, yeah, be gentle with yourself. So let's get started.
• 4:54
  Shelby, I'll turn the camera around.
• 4:57
  And again, everything will be in, um, in, uh, in 3D
• 5:02
  for those that have 3D glasses, uh, you can download
• 5:05
  that 3D session from
• 5:08
  our page website if you are a Paton member.
• 5:10
  Anyway, I hope you will enjoy the session
• 5:13
  and I'll talk to you afterwards.
• 5:15
  Good luck. Okay, well just sit, settle down
• 5:20
  and take a nice seat, maybe lay down if you can.
• 5:25
  And, uh, what you're seeing is actually some world,
• 5:27
  two World War II remains, uh, some bunker stuff,
• 5:33
  uh, in the middle of the forest here.
• 5:36
  Uh, but at least it keeps us, uh, in the shade of the wind.
• 5:39
  Uh, and I guess with all these things here as well,
• 5:43
  if you are watching the 3D version, the spatial version
• 5:46
  of this session, uh, you might have a better depth.
• 5:52
  Uh, you see more clearly things and can focus better
• 5:56
  and feel more emerged here.
• 5:59
  Uh, yeah, maybe if you're lucky,
• 6:01
  we even see a deer go by, who knows?
• 6:04
  Um, having the camera pointed on, uh, a little pass there.
• 6:09
  And if it's not a deer, that might be people coming by.
• 6:12
  We'll see. But anyway, we are here for
• 6:16
  gentle kindness session.
• 6:19
  Be kindness with ourselves.
• 6:21
  Be gentle with ourselves, uh, during this session.
• 6:25
  If things come up in a negative that scare you,
• 6:31
  that startle you,
• 6:34
  uh, be kind to yourself.
• 6:36
  Set the intention now that you be gentle. Be the observer.
• 6:40
  And just allow things to come up to the surface.
• 6:44
  Just allow thoughts to come up.
• 6:48
  Okay,
• 6:52
  beautiful.
• 6:53
  Now let's get started.
• 6:56
  Taking a nice deep inhale through your nose,
• 7:01
  exhale through your mouth,
• 7:06
  lower your shoulders, loosen your jaw, settle down,
• 7:08
  feeling more centered every time you breathe.
• 7:13
  Take another nice deep inhale through your nose.
• 7:15
  Fill those lungs with air and out through your mouth.
• 7:20
  Ah, you can sigh and settle down even more.
• 7:25
  Loosen your jaw, relax your muscles,
• 7:29
  but feel that support still of the chair, the cushion,
• 7:35
  whatever you are sitting or laying on.
• 7:41
  And let's adjust our breathing.
• 7:48
  Let's adjust the pace to a slower pace.
• 7:51
  A five second inhale, five second exhale.
• 7:55
  And at the same time, breathe deeper,
• 8:00
  Much deeper, breathing, deeper
• 8:02
  and slower than you usually would do.
• 8:11
  This is just to calm the nervous system down,
• 8:16
  to tell that it's in a safe place.
• 8:26
  Nice, calm, deep breaths.
• 8:40
  And now focus on your heart space.
• 8:47
  Become more aware of your heart.
• 8:52
  And if you want, you can put your hand on your chest right
• 8:54
  there where your heart is.
• 9:05
  And imagine now that you are breathing through your heart
• 9:13
  that the air is flowing in and out of your chest area.
• 9:45
  If you haven't closed your eyes that yet,
• 9:47
  you might want to do that now.
• 9:49
  I, But you can also stare
• 9:54
  at the environment in front of you
• 10:00
  if you're watching the video, the forest
• 10:04
  environment we are in right now.
• 10:23
  And as you breathe through your heart,
• 10:28
  set the intention to be kind with yourself,
• 10:38
  to be gentle and
• 10:42
  don't judge yourself.
• 10:45
  If the coming minutes raise feelings and emotions
• 10:50
  and thoughts that are not beneficial for you,
• 10:56
  it might be negative, that might startle you.
• 11:01
  It's okay. We can accept those
• 11:05
  things as for what they are, thoughts, emotions, feelings,
• 11:19
  and those feelings are meant for us
• 11:24
  to focus on, not as
• 11:29
  in a way to participate with it
• 11:31
  or engage with it, just to get the information from it.
• 11:42
  So let's say a thought comes up that
• 11:45
  makes you feel startled, then it's just
• 11:50
  that what it is, it's a thought about something
• 11:56
  that made you feel startled.
• 12:01
  So the next minutes be the observer, the kind observer
• 12:04
  of your life, the gentle observer of your life.
• 12:08
  No judgment,
• 12:13
  just observe.
• 12:15
  So open up your heart
• 12:17
  and fill it with loving kindness for yourself and others.
• 12:22
  And just be for a moment in your life,
• 12:25
  present in your life right now.
• 12:29
  No judgment. Just be, be that human being,
• 12:34
  that wonderful human being that you are no matter what.
• 12:43
  No matter the choices you've
• 12:44
  made, no matter what you've done.
• 12:54
  Just be just be.
• 12:59
  I'm going to be quiet for a few minutes
• 13:02
  and let you be yourself.
• 13:04
  Let you observe yourself and be kind to yourself.
• 15:36
  Wonderful. Now, if you notice your mind has wandered off,
• 15:39
  your thoughts are all over the place, then
• 15:42
  don't judge yourself again.
• 15:44
  Don't get frustrated.
• 15:47
  Uh, um, that's normal.
• 15:51
  That's the way it is.
• 15:54
  And you can always go back to your breath, to your heart
• 15:57
  and just continue where you're left off.
• 16:00
  You will notice that after practicing for a couple
• 16:05
  of months, you'll be more focused.
• 16:09
  You can stay in focus better,
• 16:12
  and uh, your meditations will get better and deeper
• 16:16
  and you'll learn more about yourself as well.
• 16:21
  So please breathe normally again,
• 16:26
  become more aware of your surroundings.
• 16:28
  The sounds surround you, wiggle
• 16:33
  with your fingers and toes,
• 16:36
  and when you are ready, you can open your eyes.
• 16:39
  If you had them closed. Welcome back. Welcome back.
• 16:48
  So welcome back everyone.
• 16:50
  I just noticed I forgot to put the camera mode on spatial,
• 16:55
  so this time you won't have a spatial session.
• 16:58
  I'm sorry about that. Um, I don't know.
• 17:02
  Better luck next time.
• 17:03
  I guess maybe we come back here
• 17:04
  because it's quite nice here.
• 17:06
  It's quite cozy. And uh, though we are
• 17:10
  closer to some buildings, it seems here at a core now
• 17:13
  and then, uh, we're not that far away from civilization.
• 17:18
  Uh, but still, uh, yeah, I hope you enjoyed this session.
• 17:23
  And, uh, like I said, um, it's important to know that
• 17:28
  there are downsides to meditation and mindfulness.
• 17:31
  It's not a pill, it's a tool you can use,
• 17:34
  but you have to use it in the right way.
• 17:37
  And just acknowledging already that, uh,
• 17:42
  it isn't perfect, that it has its side effects,
• 17:46
  downsides, uh, just acknowledging that
• 17:49
  and knowing what those downsides are is already part
• 17:53
  of the process of understanding meditation
• 17:56
  and mindfulness better and understanding yourself better.
• 17:59
  Because then any negative things don't come as a surprise.
• 18:04
  And as meditation teaches teach you how to deal with those
• 18:09
  unwanted surprises to say it in that way.
• 18:12
  So, yeah. Um, anyway, I hope you enjoyed this session.
• 18:18
  Uh, if you are wondering, where are the interviews,
• 18:20
  where are your talks with Aaron, for example?
• 18:23
  Uh, they will be coming back.
• 18:25
  Uh, I am in contact with two other people, uh,
• 18:29
  that might want to join
• 18:30
  and just have a casual conversation about
• 18:34
  hard focused living, about the things they do.
• 18:37
  'cause they always invite, uh, people
• 18:39
  that work in the same field as I do that.
• 18:42
  So you can hear from different folks, uh,
• 18:47
  more or less the same things.
• 18:48
  So you don't think that I established just saying it,
• 18:52
  but you can also listen to other people's experience that do
• 18:56
  with this, uh, deal with the same things as, uh, as we deal
• 18:59
  with on a daily basis.
• 19:01
  So, yeah, uh, again, I hope you enjoyed this session.
• 19:06
  Be safe. Take care, and I hope to see you back in two weeks.
• 19:09
  Namaste, everyone.