A friend of mine posted on Facebook: A healthy lifestyle is not just about what you eat, it is also what you consume emotionally, mentally and spiritually.
As sufferers of MC, this is something that we all know on a deep level. But I, for one, could do with a reminder from time to time (I just wish that the reminders did not come with intense pain and D!).
Ingestion and a Healthy Lifestyle
Moderators: Rosie, Stanz, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
Ingestion and a Healthy Lifestyle
Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace; the soul that knows it not, knows no release from little things. - Amelia Earhart
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Gabes-Apg
- Emperor Penguin
- Posts: 8332
- Joined: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:12 pm
- Location: Hunter Valley NSW Australia
Reminders are great.
they are like a hug of reassurance that we are not the only ones on this journey....
I read this today in a Pema Chodron book - Living Beautifully with uncertainty and change;
"Looking deeper, we could say that the real cause of suffering is not being able to tolerate uncertainty - and thinking that it's perfectly sane, perfectly normal, to deny the fundamental groundlessness of being human."
It is a huge process to review and reconsider 30, 40, 50 years of beliefs and systems. MC World is a bit like Alice in Wonderland where where everything is strange, different, every changing, making us challenge alot of what we thought was 'normal'
Thanks for the 'hug reminder' megamoxie
they are like a hug of reassurance that we are not the only ones on this journey....
I read this today in a Pema Chodron book - Living Beautifully with uncertainty and change;
"Looking deeper, we could say that the real cause of suffering is not being able to tolerate uncertainty - and thinking that it's perfectly sane, perfectly normal, to deny the fundamental groundlessness of being human."
It is a huge process to review and reconsider 30, 40, 50 years of beliefs and systems. MC World is a bit like Alice in Wonderland where where everything is strange, different, every changing, making us challenge alot of what we thought was 'normal'
Thanks for the 'hug reminder' megamoxie
Gabes Ryan
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
Thank you, Gabes.
I really enjoy Pema Chodron. I recently downloaded a "Standing Body Scan" meditation that she leads and I have found that if I do this first and then do a guided meditation, it calms my mind and makes it much easier for me to stay in the present moment.
You are right, it is a huge process to review and reconsider our entrenched beliefs; and it is very much like Alice in Wonderland. I wouldn't obey the "eat me" and "drink me" labels now, though! At least not unless they had a full ingredients list.
I've never been one to feel comforted knowing that others are also hurting, but I'm finding that it does help to know that we are not alone with this disease. Thank you for being a fellow traveler on this path, and for offering wise words of encouragement.
Meg
I really enjoy Pema Chodron. I recently downloaded a "Standing Body Scan" meditation that she leads and I have found that if I do this first and then do a guided meditation, it calms my mind and makes it much easier for me to stay in the present moment.
You are right, it is a huge process to review and reconsider our entrenched beliefs; and it is very much like Alice in Wonderland. I wouldn't obey the "eat me" and "drink me" labels now, though! At least not unless they had a full ingredients list.
I've never been one to feel comforted knowing that others are also hurting, but I'm finding that it does help to know that we are not alone with this disease. Thank you for being a fellow traveler on this path, and for offering wise words of encouragement.
Meg
Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace; the soul that knows it not, knows no release from little things. - Amelia Earhart
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Gabes-Apg
- Emperor Penguin
- Posts: 8332
- Joined: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:12 pm
- Location: Hunter Valley NSW Australia
Meg
came across this web site today, some very good ponderings from Pema Chodron
came across this web site today, some very good ponderings from Pema Chodron
On a very basic level all beings think that they should be happy. When life becomes difficult or painful, we feel that something has gone wrong. This wouldn’t be a big problem except for the fact that when we feel something’s gone wrong, we’re willing to do anything to feel OK again. Even start a fight.
According to the Buddhist teachings, difficulty is inevitable in human life. For one thing, we cannot escape the reality of death. But there are also the realities of aging, of illness, of not getting what we want, and of getting what we don’t want. These kinds of difficulties are facts of life. Even if you were the Buddha himself, if you were a fully enlightened person, you would experience death, illness, aging, and sorrow at losing what you love. All of these things would happen to you. If you got burned or cut, it would hurt.
http://www.lionsroar.com/turn-your-thin ... side-down/As long as we’re caught up in always looking for certainty and happiness, rather than honoring the taste and smell and quality of exactly what is happening, as long as we’re always running away from discomfort, we’re going to be caught in a cycle of unhappiness and disappointment, and we will feel weaker and weaker. This way of seeing helps us to develop inner strength.
Gabes Ryan
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
"Anything that contradicts experience and logic should be abandoned"
Dalai Lama
Good Morning!
I am enjoying all of these wise ponderings!
One of my favorite Buddhist tenets: Certainly life is painful much of the time, but we don't have to SUFFER. We suffer only because of our preconceived expectations about how life should be, not how it really is. We let our minds constantly ruminate about the past (Why did I do that?, I wish I had, etc.) and the future (unknown, scary, etc.). When, actually, life only happens minute to minute and nothing else really matters. That's what mindfulness is - living in the minute. So easy to say and so hard to do! LOL!
Namaste,
Polly
P.S. Meg, I'm giggling about labelling the ingredients for "eat me", drink me".
I am enjoying all of these wise ponderings!
One of my favorite Buddhist tenets: Certainly life is painful much of the time, but we don't have to SUFFER. We suffer only because of our preconceived expectations about how life should be, not how it really is. We let our minds constantly ruminate about the past (Why did I do that?, I wish I had, etc.) and the future (unknown, scary, etc.). When, actually, life only happens minute to minute and nothing else really matters. That's what mindfulness is - living in the minute. So easy to say and so hard to do! LOL!
Namaste,
Polly
P.S. Meg, I'm giggling about labelling the ingredients for "eat me", drink me".
Blessed are they who can laugh at themselves, for they shall never cease to be amused.
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Or as Thich Nat Hanh says
“Take the time to eat an orange in mindfulness. If you eat an orange in forgetfulness, caught in your anxiety and sorrow, the orange is not really there. But if you bring your mind and body together to produce true presence, you can see that the orange is a miracle. Peel the orange. Smell the fruit. See the orange blossoms in the orange, and the rain and the sun that have gone through the orange blossoms. The orange tree that has taken several months to bring this wonder to you. Put a section in your mouth, close your mouth mindfully, and with mindfulness feel the juice coming out of the orange.”
Mindfulness viewed in this way is not just a stress reduction technique but an attitude we bring to all aspects of life. Everything is a lesson and even the bad stuff can give you the opportunity to practice mindfulness. I am currently reading a book entitled "Transforming Adversity into Joy and Courage". As Polly says, easy to say but harder to do. I find even the effort to look at life this way helps.
Jean
“Take the time to eat an orange in mindfulness. If you eat an orange in forgetfulness, caught in your anxiety and sorrow, the orange is not really there. But if you bring your mind and body together to produce true presence, you can see that the orange is a miracle. Peel the orange. Smell the fruit. See the orange blossoms in the orange, and the rain and the sun that have gone through the orange blossoms. The orange tree that has taken several months to bring this wonder to you. Put a section in your mouth, close your mouth mindfully, and with mindfulness feel the juice coming out of the orange.”
Mindfulness viewed in this way is not just a stress reduction technique but an attitude we bring to all aspects of life. Everything is a lesson and even the bad stuff can give you the opportunity to practice mindfulness. I am currently reading a book entitled "Transforming Adversity into Joy and Courage". As Polly says, easy to say but harder to do. I find even the effort to look at life this way helps.
Jean
Thank you Jean for this quote. How beautiful! And thanks to everyone else for the continued reminders!JFR wrote:Or as Thich Nat Hanh says
“Take the time to eat an orange in mindfulness. If you eat an orange in forgetfulness, caught in your anxiety and sorrow, the orange is not really there. But if you bring your mind and body together to produce true presence, you can see that the orange is a miracle. Peel the orange. Smell the fruit. See the orange blossoms in the orange, and the rain and the sun that have gone through the orange blossoms. The orange tree that has taken several months to bring this wonder to you. Put a section in your mouth, close your mouth mindfully, and with mindfulness feel the juice coming out of the orange.”
Mindfulness viewed in this way is not just a stress reduction technique but an attitude we bring to all aspects of life. Everything is a lesson and even the bad stuff can give you the opportunity to practice mindfulness. I am currently reading a book entitled "Transforming Adversity into Joy and Courage". As Polly says, easy to say but harder to do. I find even the effort to look at life this way helps.
Jean
Our attitudes and expectations really can cause us more suffering or more joy -- fortunately, it is up to us and we can retrain ourselves. I would love to find a remedy for the way I hound myself about the past... I've done lots of stupid things, and plenty of things I would not dream of doing now. I just wish that I found it easier to let it all go.
Mindful eating is amazing and powerful... and so much more satisfying. There really is incredible wonder to be found in "small" things. The grace of everyday miracles is a huge gift.
I, too, find that it is worth the effort and attempt to retrain my mind and refocus my attitude. I may not be able to control the events that occur, but I can control my reaction to them, and this helps me to feel calm, which is good for my gut.
I love the idea of Transforming Adversity into Joy and Courage. I shall put that on my wish list. I have been enjoying A Blessing in Disguise.
Mindful eating is amazing and powerful... and so much more satisfying. There really is incredible wonder to be found in "small" things. The grace of everyday miracles is a huge gift.
I, too, find that it is worth the effort and attempt to retrain my mind and refocus my attitude. I may not be able to control the events that occur, but I can control my reaction to them, and this helps me to feel calm, which is good for my gut.
I love the idea of Transforming Adversity into Joy and Courage. I shall put that on my wish list. I have been enjoying A Blessing in Disguise.
Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace; the soul that knows it not, knows no release from little things. - Amelia Earhart
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Sheila
- Rockhopper Penguin
- Posts: 1150
- Joined: Wed May 18, 2011 5:10 am
- Location: Palm Beach Gardens, Fl
I'm very much enjoying this discussion. Twelve years ago after my first husband died, I was very angry. I started listening to tapes by the Dalai Lama, Pema Chodron and finally attended a sanga in an attempt to quiet my mind and find some peace. During this time someone gave me this article about attitude by Charles Swindoll.
"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude to me is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than success, than what people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company, a church.....a home.
The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play the one string we have, and that is our attitude.
I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it."
Finding peace in my life, despite illnesses and deaths, is possible now because my attitude has changed. It has taken me my whole life to get to this place. Human beings can be very slow learners.
Sheila W
"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude to me is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than success, than what people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company, a church.....a home.
The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past. We cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play the one string we have, and that is our attitude.
I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it."
Finding peace in my life, despite illnesses and deaths, is possible now because my attitude has changed. It has taken me my whole life to get to this place. Human beings can be very slow learners.
Sheila W
To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.
A person who never made a mistake never tried something new. Einstein
A person who never made a mistake never tried something new. Einstein
It's so true, Sheila. Attitude affects so many things... and most of the time, I prefer to be an optimist. I say "most" because there are some times when you just have to vent about the bad stuff and get it out of your system. Attitude becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy - if you complain all the time, you will only notice the bad things that happen to you; if you have a positive attitude, you will notice the positive things and they will lift you up. You have control over your attitude.
Besides practicing mindfulness, another tool I have found useful is keeping a gratitude journal, and writing down three things for which I am grateful, each day (I admit I do not always write, but I am always glad when I do). They can be small things, and often they are. It trains me to look for the positive and have the attitude of gratitude.
Besides practicing mindfulness, another tool I have found useful is keeping a gratitude journal, and writing down three things for which I am grateful, each day (I admit I do not always write, but I am always glad when I do). They can be small things, and often they are. It trains me to look for the positive and have the attitude of gratitude.
Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace; the soul that knows it not, knows no release from little things. - Amelia Earhart
Our church encourages 'mite boxes', ours is actually a piggy bank on the bar where we eat our meals. Each morning we each state something we are thankful for and put a coin in the piggy. Twice each year the 'mites' are collected and sent to the United Thank Offering. It really amazed me how much difference it makes to start the day with thankfulness.megamoxie wrote: Besides practicing mindfulness, another tool I have found useful is keeping a gratitude journal, and writing down three things for which I am grateful, each day (I admit I do not always write, but I am always glad when I do). They can be small things, and often they are. It trains me to look for the positive and have the attitude of gratitude.
Theresa
MC and UC 2014
in remission since June 1, 2014
We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. ~Jim Rohn
MC and UC 2014
in remission since June 1, 2014
We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. ~Jim Rohn
I think Kari posted this originally. It's the Dalai LLama's morning prayer:
“Every day, think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others; to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others. I am going to benefit others as much as I can.”
Only the reference to "enlightenment" is specifically Buddhist. I try to remember to say this every morning, even on mornings like today when the dog is breathing heavily in my ears to get up and feed him and my muscles are achy and I really don't want to leave my warm bed for the cold morning air. It does help to remember to be grateful for just being alive.
Jean
“Every day, think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others; to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others. I am going to benefit others as much as I can.”
Only the reference to "enlightenment" is specifically Buddhist. I try to remember to say this every morning, even on mornings like today when the dog is breathing heavily in my ears to get up and feed him and my muscles are achy and I really don't want to leave my warm bed for the cold morning air. It does help to remember to be grateful for just being alive.
Jean
Theresa- absolutely, it is a great start to the day.
Jean- Love this! I think it is possible to interpret "enlightenment" in a context that is compatible with other religions (personally, I believe there is a lot of overlap among religions and we have more in common than many followers allow for). For example, it could be "spiritual improvement".
Every day that I wake up and get out of bed on my own power is a good day. On a cold morning, I can appreciate the warmth of woolly socks, flannel shirts, long johns, cozy sweaters/jumpers, hats, mittens... and the warm bed that I can perhaps return to once the pet is fed (and walked, if necessary). A hot cup of cider or herbal tea tastes so much better on a chilly morning. For the things that I don't particularly want to do, I feel so much better when I have done them than when they are hanging over my head. And it is preferable (though often difficult) to do them with gladness of heart and lightness of being.
There's a Buddhist saying that I'll probably get slightly wrong but it goes something like: "Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water."
Jean- Love this! I think it is possible to interpret "enlightenment" in a context that is compatible with other religions (personally, I believe there is a lot of overlap among religions and we have more in common than many followers allow for). For example, it could be "spiritual improvement".
Every day that I wake up and get out of bed on my own power is a good day. On a cold morning, I can appreciate the warmth of woolly socks, flannel shirts, long johns, cozy sweaters/jumpers, hats, mittens... and the warm bed that I can perhaps return to once the pet is fed (and walked, if necessary). A hot cup of cider or herbal tea tastes so much better on a chilly morning. For the things that I don't particularly want to do, I feel so much better when I have done them than when they are hanging over my head. And it is preferable (though often difficult) to do them with gladness of heart and lightness of being.
There's a Buddhist saying that I'll probably get slightly wrong but it goes something like: "Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water."
Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace; the soul that knows it not, knows no release from little things. - Amelia Earhart
"For the things that I don't particularly want to do, I feel so much better when I have done them than when they are hanging over my head."
So true! I heard a saying recently that went something like this: The most exhausting task is the one that is yet to be started. LOL!
Polly
So true! I heard a saying recently that went something like this: The most exhausting task is the one that is yet to be started. LOL!
Polly
Blessed are they who can laugh at themselves, for they shall never cease to be amused.