From Amanda's very early writing (1990s to early 2000s), shared as it was originally written.
Wellness part 4 - mental
While preparing for this article, it dawned on me that the simplest way to achieve mental wellness was to balance stillness and stimulation. We live in a society bombarded with stimulation; whether it's from TV (although some would question the level of stimulation from TV!), computers, work, meetings, politics, high speed travel, movies, videos, the fast pace of all aspects of life, the speed of information discovery or just our own minds.
And of course we all need some degree of stimulation or we would be plants! But we rarely need the level at which we function every day. In fact, not only do we not need it but it is potentially harmful. And often useless! Worry is focusing on things we don't want to have happen! That's not very intelligent!
Why do so many of us ignore precious moments of wonderful sunshine and gentle breezes or the company of loved ones as they are happening and replace them with nagging doubts, anxiety or just plain fear about things which are unlikely to happen anyway? If you have developed a habit (because that's all it is) of forgetting the pleasant present to focus on an unpleasant possible future (or even worse , the past!) , try this technique. Mindfulness. It's simple, cheap and easy. The trick is remembering to practice it!
Mindfulness is when stay aware of what is happening to us, our feelings or what we notice around us at every moment. It helps us stay focused on the present - and God forbid , even enjoy the moment! It means keeping our absolute attention on what we are doing at any moment.
Or you could try an even more simple technique - try it before you scoff because it really works! Put a loose rubber band around your wrist and every time you notice yourself worrying about something, pull the rubber band out as far as you can and let it go! Yes, this will hurt. That's the point. You brain is not stupid and learns quickly. If every time you have a negative or worrying thought you snap the old wrist with pain, you will soon stop having those anxiety causing old thoughts! Your wrist may bleed a little but the results are worth it! This gets rid of worry but it's still a good idea to practice mindfulness.
Stilling the busyness of our mind is what most people need for mental wellness today. There are many ways to do this and in my opinion one of the best is to meditate.
Meditation is just a word that means training your mind to think of only one thing at a time. This is a remarkably simple sounding task and extraordinarily difficult for most people to do. It can be done either with a relaxation tape, or by sitting quietly and repeating a single word like 'calm' or one or white or soften (or any word you want) ; or focusing on your breath in and out; or learning TM (transcendental meditation) if you have a cool $1000.00 to spare (it's outrageously expensive but effective); or daydreaming; or mountain climbing; or sitting in the garden and focusing on nature until you feel better. Make sure you do this for 20 minutes every day - even better if you do it twice a day for the same time.
The benefits are extraordinary. Much more energy and vitality; high quality sleep; improved creativity; less stress; more productivity; enhanced performance; improved health and a boosted immune system; improved communication and relationships and on and on the benefits go! It's better than sleeping because our brain waves fall deeper during meditation than sleep and this deeply relaxes our mind and our bodies self repair.
So there's a lot to be said for stillness of the mind.
But what about those whose brains have been too still for too long? Or a suddenly retired brain! They need stimulation! Mental exercise is just as critical as physical exercise! Of course. So whip out there and learn something new! Learning is fertiliser and nutrition and water and food for our brain - it loves learning! Anything. Go study a new language, the piano, carpentry, art appreciation, literature, cooking, massage, gardening, reflexology or cars or boats, how to play chess, bridge - anything you think you might like. And if you don't like it, try something different! You'll never run out of things to learn!
Of course brains that have suffered too much of the same stimulation (subtle words for WORK) desperately need to have stillness AND a different form of stimulation. That's where hobbies, sport or learning new skills comes in. Go to the library and read voraciously. Play on the Net and see what you can find. Do volunteer work. Build something. Write novels. Laugh . Go to acting classes. Do something you've always wanted to experience. Get your thrills from new skills!! (I know it's bad but I just had to use it!! I made it up - all by myself!)
Above all, have fun. That's what a wellness mind and life is all about. Balancing stillness and stimulation and the types of stimulation - and savouring every moment!
