Mental Workout and Psycho-spiritual Flourishing...

   Hello to all who may be reading my blog, I hope this finds you well and healthy!! This week in my Health and Wellness class we were asked to blog about our experience with the Loving Kindness exercise, as well as answer a few questions regarding mental fitness and mental workouts.

     So with most of the exercises I have had great experiences, not the case with exercise. I found the person speaking to be rather annoying. The prompts/instructions were more distracting rather than calming or focused. I found the idea of thinking of a loved one’s suffering to be ever so slightly disturbing. I work in healthcare in a hospital setting and I see suffering on a regular basis, so thinking about the suffering of a person close to my heart was not peasant. I appreciate and do my best to alleviate the suffering of others so I felt that part of the exercise was not beneficial. I guess this whole exercise felt forced. Having said all that I am very open minded and I am willing to give this exercise another try on another day, maybe I will be more receptive.

     The concept of mental working out is the limitless ability to develop the qualities of the mind. Unlike physical exercise the body has limits the mind however, does not.  There is no limit to learning, compassion, biological and spiritual health and healing. The research indicates that training our mind can foster a healthier inner life. The research tells us that our physical and emotional lives are not fixed, “our capacity for health is flexible, dynamic, and expansive.” (Dacher, 2006)

     In order to foster my psychological health I can train my mind daily. I can use mental fitness exercises to calm my mind, to find forgiveness, compassion, and gratefulness.

Reference

Dacher, E. S. (2006). Integral Health: The Path to Human Flourishing. Basic Health Publications.