Importance of Mindset-Techniques

Lenny,
I have shared this with friends before, give it a try and do it your way, there is no wrong way. :)

SIMPLE MEDITATION

This meditation process is good to induce relaxation response. Plan to make meditation a regular part of your daily routine. Set aside 10 to 20 minutes each day at the same time, if possible. Before breakfast is a good time.

Choose a quiet spot where you will not be disturbed by other people or by the telephone.

Sit quietly in a comfortable position.

Eliminate distractions and interruptions during the period you'll be meditating.

Commit yourself to a specific length of time and try to stick to it.

Pick a focus word or short phrase that's firmly rooted in your personal belief system. A non-religious person might choose a neutral word like one, peace, or love. Others might use the opening words of a favorite prayer from their religion such as 'Hail Mary full of Grace', "I surrender all to you", "Hallelujah", "Om", etc.

Close your eyes. This makes it easy to concentrate.

Relax your muscles sequentially from head to feet. This helps to break the connection between stressful thoughts and a tense body.

Starting with your forehead, become aware of tension as you breathe in. Let go of any obvious tension as you breathe out. Go through the rest of your body in this way, proceeding down through your eyes, jaws, neck, shoulders, arms, hands, chest, upper back, middle back and midriff, lower back, belly, pelvis, buttocks, thighs, calves, and feet.

Breathe slowly and naturally, repeating your focus word or phrase silently as you exhale.

Assume a passive attitude. Don't worry about how well you're doing. When other thoughts come to mind, simply say, "Oh, well," and gently return to the repetition.

Continue for 10 to 20 minutes. You may open your eyes to check the time, but do not use an alarm. After you finish: Sit quietly for a minute or so, at first with your eyes closed and later with your eyes open. Do not stand for one or two minutes.

Plan for a session once or twice a day.

Hope it gives you a place to start.  Take care and keep posting.
Kitt

Hehe, I like to meditate over a stiff vodka tonic....

but all joking aside, maybe you could get into a leisure sport/hobbie, rather than just working out? For me, when I play poker, play golf, and now i'm in an adult softball league....well, all of those things help me feel good about myself, like pursuing any hobby. If you are depressed things you normally enjoy, won't seem as appealing, but if you push thru the desire to sit around, you may find those kind of things more rewarding than you might expect...

Lenny,

You might also want to consider Tai Chi. It's not physically demanding and has some meditative properties involved in the movements. Yoga is also very good, but much more challenging physically. After my last flare-up, I haven't had the energy to resume yoga, but would like to try it again soon. Good luck to you and I hope you're feeling better both physically and mentally/spiritually soon. Know that you're not alone in this regard also. We all go through our ups and downs.

Lenny, is there any chance that you may be depressed? Has your appetite changed? Are you having trouble sleeping? Are you waking very early in the morning?

Your plans to try meditation and tai chi are admirable. I think that anything that eases your stress and gets you out with other people can help your mental health. Good luck to you. I hope it helps, and that you have a lot of fun.

However, if it doesn't work; if you still find that you're feeling lost and lacking motivation, will you please come back here and talk to us about it, and think about going to see a doctor? We can do a lot ourselves to boost our mental health, but sometimes we do need medical intervention if we're going to improve.

Good luck, and have fun,

I.

I've just started B12 injections and added iron supplements (I'm anemic, have no iron in reserves and low B12). It's made a huge difference mentally and I feel as though I could run a marathon.

Lenny,

I know exactly how you feel! about six weeks after tapering off of prednisone I have relapsed (I've been flaring for a little over two weeks now). Before my flare I was eating right, exercising regularly, and seriously thought my life had some purpose and order. I was planning on racing this season and staying healthy. Then, I relapsed. I guess I got so frustrated I started eating things I wouldn't dare touch before (things I know may possibly exacerbate my flare), stopped exercising, and just became a couch potatoe. What I have kind of done to kick start myself back into health is to go to a gentle/restorative or bliss yoga class. It is very relaxing, meditative, and it is always the same time twice a week. When I don't want to go I force myself to go and afterwards I'm glad I went. I'm slowly getting better with the foods I'm eating and want to stay positive, but feel overwhelmed at times. I guess I've just been reminded that I have to let go of control and actually believe that things will get better. But trust me, I know how it feels to think everything is back to normal and you really believe for once since getting this disease you'll be able to live a normal life and then BAM...a flare happens. Just try and keep your head up and keep in touch, it sounds like we could use eachother at this time in both of our lives! Take Care!

-Emma

Sounds great! Take Care =)