Is Anyone Meditating?

I as wondering if anyone is meditation to reduce WD SXs, and if so, how is it going?

 

I used to be an experienced, daily practitioner of zazen, but after too many surgeries and too many drugs, it is gone from my life.  A month ago I tried to meditate, but felt too sick to even sit still for a minute.

 

I've been listening to positive self-help type stuff on YouTube, and a recurring theme is you need to train your mind to be still.  If you can meditate for 15 minutes EVERY DAY, you will develop better control over your mind and some of its automatic negative thoughts.  Just sit and practice keeping the mind empty.  Don't worry if you don't have any success at first; as with anything it takes time.

 

This also relates to some recent threads on here (a good one by SvenHoak, I think) about how much of WD is us doing it to ourselves.  I certainly don't believe for a minute that WD is completely psychosomatic, but I do think we can use our minds in better ways to make WD more comfortable.

 

There is a good vid on YouTube by a cardiologist, who talks about this.  He teaches the beginning of simple breath/mindfullness control, AND he makes some good comments about where alleopathic medicine is today, with its over-emphasis on drugs & side-effects.  Have a listen to him.  The Indian accent is a little hard, but it is well worth it.

 

 

 

 

I have been in the black hole of despair for over two weeks, so a couple of days ago I made myself sit down and meditate for 15 minutes.  I've just had a couple of better days.  Maybe co-incidence?  But maybe not.  I'm going to keep up with it.

 

Let me know how you make out.

 

Lee

Yes. I do Mindful Meditation as per Jeffrey Brantley MDs book "calming the anxious mind" (available Amazon). It is a meditation that focuses outside the mind, teaches how to deal with issues as they pop into the mind so that they slowly fade away, encourages the brain to rewire and the hippocampus to be restored, and can be used in any situation.

 

I'd say for me it is very beneficial, especially for anxiety, panic attacks, and dealing with unresolved psychological issues. It was recommended to me by my pdoc and my psychologist, so I felt that it must be creditable. Apparently it has managed to restore even Vietnam vets to happier lives even decades after their initial trauma. Quite remarkable really.

I tried reading Mindful Meditation but at this point I just don't have the attention span and cognitive ability to really get into what he's talking about.

 

I did go to the Amazon mp3 store and search for "anxiety relief" and came upon a download that's just 99 cents! It's an hour long. I don't remember the name of the person who put it out, but Binaural is in the title. If you search Amazon's mp3 store and type in "anxiety relief," you'll find it easily. It's an hour-plus CD with very calm music and subliminal messages. I put it on my iPod and it really helps me relax, especially at bedtime. I've yet to listen to the whole thing, because I fall asleep before it's over.

 

As for outright meditation, my anxiety is just so high right now that I can't find a quiet place in my mind to center myself. I just get frustrated, so I listen to "anxiety relief" instead and it helps me find my center and the music blocks out the "ringing" of the anxiety in my brain.

 

When my anxiety is too high to sit, I do walking Mindful Meditation, which involves pacing and focusing on each footstep. Sometimes I can't sit still or can't focus. I also use guided Mindful Meditation downloads off of iTunes for when I am too scattered to do it on my own.

Hi there,

 

Pre-benzo, I was a huge meditator.  Jon Kabit-Zin is inspirational to me. 

 

Since I began my taper about a month ago, all I can do is try to refocus on my breath, when and if I catch my dwelling thoughts   I've tried walking meditation again, something I practiced often, now it only causes me despair and anxiety as I hyper-focus on how much anxiety it causes me.  Good grief. I hope this anxiety will dissipate after my CNS settles.  Meditation has been extremely helpful before withdrawal and helped greatly before this w/d on coping with anxiety and depression.  It takes a few weeks before I noticed improvement in symptoms so patience is key...

 

In fact, I received some comforting words from my DBT therapist yesterday about this issue.  He has tons of experience with benzo-withdrawalers and meditation.  He asked me to lift my judgement re: difficulties with meditation.  He reported that among his many clients under the grips of benzo withdrawal, have the same complaints.  His advise:  lift judgement about my inability to meditate and do what works for me to alleviate symptoms.

 

I was relieved and hope this gets easier as the slow taper continues.

 

Any thoughts out there?

 

Thanks, WILLDOIT

Meditation? Yes. But I am not very good at it and I don't practice enough. But it's therapeutic value is obvious and of great help in as and life as a whole.

Not meditation per say but I did start Thi Chi when  I was about 6 months off. Its a great distraction and you can just follow along, I go 5 days a weak and you can practice at home.  It's also nice to be in be classroom  environment where you can interact with people.

I routinely do something like it for 30 minutes a day

Yup! Every day for at least an hour. I've been doing it for years and haven't had any trouble with it during this withdrawal so I'm very thankful! I also use YouTube whenI feel like listening to a guided one. Try typing "guided meditation" then add words that you need..like relaxation/positive etc etc

 

Hang in there! As you know, practice of meditation makes it easier so keep doing it daily and  you'll get back to where you were before the surgeries :>

 

Pece

Sarah Hope

I try to do some guided meditation daily. I think it helps and its a good distraction. Still some days are hard.

 

I think I'll enjoy more when I don't have symptoms bothering me all the time