Not everyone looks forward to Christmas festivities. Do you wish you could stay cool, calm, and relaxed, at anytime, not just at Christmas? Then this special calming technique can be your perfect gift to your self that keeps giving all year long, especially right now, and during the school holidays.
Christmas can be a joy and can also be a nightmare. Old family animosities flare up, especially with alcohol blocking the front brain’s ability to control impulsive behaviour. Normally polite or considerate behaviour can give way to outbursts and thoughtless comments as the day progresses and alcohol consumption increases.
It can also be time of missing a family member who has passed during the year or a reminder of other traumatic events.
So it pays to have a few coping skills under your belt.
Your expectations of disaster or disappointment or grief can prime you to be in that emotional state long before the celebrations begin. Your thoughts beforehand can add energy to, and so create, the very outcome you dread and are trying to avoid.
If you think it will be stressful, then it will be so. If you think it will be peaceful and fun, then it will be so. Because whatever you decide beforehand that it will be, for you, it will, and you can more easily stay in that state, no matter what others are saying or doing. You are in charge of your feelings by being in charge of your thoughts and the energy pattern those thoughts create.
One of the surest ways to set your self up for a good day is to take 5 minutes out for a special personal activity. Now I know you are super busy right now, but let me assure you, I’ll tell you exactly how to use that 5 minutes so your day works better for you. Spending 5 minutes will save you hours of stress and tension.
Take 5 minutes to do a special mini meditation. Doing this mini meditation for even 5 minutes a day will create a network in your brain that goes with a relaxed and peaceful state, one that you can access during the day with just a breath and a thought. It’s easy.
How can you do this?
I can’t keep my mind still for even a minute, you say.
There’s too much to do right now.
It’s just too hard for me. Or not.
Many Westerns are not used to being still and quiet without thoughts demanding attention and a drive to action. TV is a distraction that often dulls the mind into a non-thinking state, which is not the same as being relaxed and calm. It’s often an avoidance tactic.
Let me show you how to create a habit of calm and relaxation. You can program your brain to create a new and healthy habit. Doing this on a daily basis for 5 minutes creates a brain program, which you can readily access when you need it, when stress begins to rise or when the pressure is on.
Do this mini meditation:
– sit in a quiet room or space, or push your chair away from your work desk
– lengthen your spine and sit slightly forward on to your sitting bones
– relax your hands in your lap, feet on the floor
– take a deep breath in … and breathe out as you gently close your eyes
– breathe in again … and out … as you allow your body to gently relax
– imaging your favourite flower, with multiple petals, a rose, a lotus, a daisy
– now imagine this flower as a bud, the petals curled tightly
– breathe in, and as you breathe out, imagine one petal gently loosen and unfurl
– breathe in, and as you breathe out, imagine the next petal gently unfurl
– continue to breathe in and out … unfurling your flower bud … petal… by… petal
– when your flower is fully open and all the petals beautifully arranged according to natures design, enjoy its beauty
– enjoy its perfection … its form … its shape … its colour … its texture … its perfume perhaps … its health and vitality
– imagine or see the aura extending out from the living fully opened flower
– imagine the flower aura expand with every out breath as you watch
– and progressively the aura extends to include you in its energy field
– breathe within that bubble like energy field created by your flower
– become aware of just how serene, and peaceful it is within the energy bubble
– enjoy the calm as you breathe in … and out
– if there is a particular situation in which you want to feel this calm, imagine the energy bubble enveloping and permeating the situation, the place, the people, the conversations, the activities, so they too induce calm in you as you watch, calm and peace
– do this for at least three full breaths
When you are ready to go back into your every day world, begin to move your body, become aware of the surface you are sitting on, of the surface your feet are in contact with, the feel of your hands, and wriggle them a little, move your head, and shoulders, and arms, and feet, and gently open your eyes.
Be aware of the calm state of your mind and body. This is the state you take into your activities and that you projected forward into your particular situation. A breath and a vision of your flower fully open will refresh your calm state at any time, so you can stay calm, anytime, not just at Christmas.
Let me know how that goes for you.
Cheers
Anna
PS Merry Christmas