I need Help/ meditation techniques for Anxiety

[The Willow Sword]

I sometimes suffer anxiety attacks,,why i get these i will not say(so as not to reveal too much about my person life here) sometimes it is physical and other times it has to deal with certain issues in my life.

what i would like to learn or to be taught is if anyone here has any suggestions on how to deal with Anxiety through meditation techniques.

please if anyone can help me i would really appreciate it. i do not normally post things like this,,i am not perfect nor do i claim to be an expert or master of anything. i do know things,,but sometimes knowing isnt enough.



PEACE,,TWS

[TaiChiBob]

Greetings..

As the situation unfolds, focus on your breath and take longer inhalations combined with shorter exhalations ("sleep breathing").. it signals the body and its systems to relax and slow down.. it works..

Be well..

[The Willow Sword]

so the "shorter" exhalation would be something like a relaxed exhale moving faster than a controlled and long inhale?

i want to be clear on that. Thankyou Bob

PEACE,,TWS

[TaiChiBob]

Greetings..

Yes, like the breathing when you sleep.. it is a primal signal that the body is winding down.. not unlike a "heavy sigh" where we use that pattern to dispel worry or tension..

Be well..

[The Willow Sword]

Thank you for clarifying that.

Peace,,TWS

[attention]

If you are really serious about meditation, one of the best techniques is vipassana, or "mindfulness". This technique involves watching your thoughts, sensations, and emotions as they arise. It is very effective but takes consistent practice over a period of time. It is also very thorough. It is not for everyone as it involves directly confronting experiences rather than escaping or trying to change them.

For a beginner, one of the best books I have come across for this is "Mindfulness in Plain English" by Bhante G. It is free on-line at realization.org here:
http://www.realization.org/page/namedoc0/mipe/mipe_0.htm
Eventually, one would have to seek a teacher or group at some point, but this book can be very good for a long time.

[TaiChiBob]

Greeting..

attention: As a brief description, your post leaves out some important points.. as a "watcher", one must take care not to attach themselves to the arising thoughts.. one of my mentors suggests "noticing your blossoming thoughts in an off-hand way", as if they had no value.. careful attention is necessary here not to engage the tendency for "mind chatter" as you discuss your thoughts with yourself.. an odd concept in itself, i mean we already know what we're going to say.. In noticing your thoughts in an off-hand way, it allows you to disipate them or ignore them without attachment..

Although this may, in the long run, assist TWS with an anxiety situation.. i sense that the need is more immediate.. as i don't know the trigger for such reactions i feel unqualified to suggest a specific course for root-cause adjustment.. there are other very effective meditation techniques that may be more suitable for TWS's situation...

Be well..

[The Willow Sword]

i understand the technique of confronting the thoughts or the anxiety,,,however i feel that at this stage i need to be able to quell the feelings of anxiety,,which yes are a result of my thoughts or it could be physical,,low blood sugar,,,,too yin or something to that effect.

right now what i am seeking is more along the lines of what Bob is suggesting,,but i am not discounting what "attention" is putting forth and iw ill certainly look at the link provided.

and thanks again for the advice and input.

Peace,,TWS

[imperialtaichi]

Hello Willow Sword,

There is a meditative technique called "Hang Mo Gang Xin" which can be translated as "defeating the demon and re-settle the heart". Sorry it is a bit hard to describe in a message, but it is worth doing some research on. From what I know, some of the inner Cheng Man Ching Tai Chi circle know the technique, and that may be a starting point for you.

Also, you can massage the Shen Men acupuncture point at the wrist on the Heart channel with a metallic object (eg a pen, silver ideally), which tends to calm the heart, and the Yin Tang (between the eyebrows) to help calm the spirit. It is almost as good as using a needle but MUCH safer (don't ever use a needle on these points unless you have adequate training!!!). Again, check with an acupuncture chart for the exact location.

Cheers,
John

[Becca]

Originally posted by TaiChiBob
Greetings..

Yes, like the breathing when you sleep.. it is a primal signal that the body is winding down.. not unlike a "heavy sigh" where we use that pattern to dispel worry or tension..

Be well..
I second TCBob on this one. Once you get good at it, it will become instinctual. Your subconsois (sp?) mind will do this automatically any time your adrenilin starts to rise. You still get the bennifits of the added energy, but you mind will be clear enough to use it productively, and not let the primative mind take over, as it usually would in this situation.

One thing I did notice that was left out is the pause at the bottom of the breathing patern. When you let out your breath, let it come out naturally. this will leave you with a small amount still in your lungs. Don not try to force this out in any way. Just let it sit there untill you are naturally compelled to inhale again. I have a wonderful book on this at home. I'll look up the name and auther today and post it for you tomarrow.

[attention]

I've been taught that the body is a very complicated, finely balanced organism, and that to alter the intake of the breath can be quite dangerous unless done in a very specific way under the appropriate supervision of some one who knows the organism quite well.

Personally, I've found that relaxation follows attentiveness, and with relaxation the breath changes quite naturally, without any attempt to intentionally control it.

[Becca]

You don't take a deep breath of fresh air in the morning, or try to stifle a yaun now and then? This is also deliberatly changing your natural breathing. The technique being discribed is nothing more than re-setting your mind and calming your emotional reaction to stress by assumming the sleep pattern naturally found durring sleep. Nothing dangerous about that...

[The Willow Sword]

I have a wonderful book on this at home. I'll look up the name and auther today and post it for you tomarrow.


Thanks Becca. will look for your post.


PEACE,,,TWS

[SPJ]

Reconnection.

We may have worries and stresses from daily life. Overtime, they accumulated. We may also start to have fears about things we have no control, unpredictable or just unknown.

Anxiety is from setting expectations and worrying about the expectations not met.

Meditation all starts from calming the mind and quieting the heart.

Mind is reasoning, rationalizing and analysis.

Heart is emotions and feelings.

Before going into any of reasonings or feelings about anything.

Just first start over. Clear your mind first by sensing the breathing, heartbeat, the wind or sounds around you. You connect your mind to your body (Ren) and the environments aroud you (Tian and Di).

No memories. Try to merge your mind into the wind, the water, the air, the earth. We are from them. We are made out of them. The energy from the Sun. All lives based on that.

What was the problem?

What was the worry?

What was the expectation?

What was the stress?

Not able to solve a problem, or is it really a problem?

Everything will come all in due time. We may not rush the time or 4 seasons of the year. We may not hurry day into nite.

Everything will come all in due course or right conditions. A ingredient is missing, we may not make the soup or cake right.

What is the rush in time?

What is missing in the conditions or factors?

What is the expectation in time and conditions?

When things happen, things will happen.

What is the worry?

What is the stress?

What is the anxiety?

[Becca]

Originally posted by The Willow Sword
Thanks Becca. will look for your post.


PEACE,,,TWS

It's Six Seconds to True Calm by Robert Simon Siegel.

Exerpt: "Six Seconds to True calm's simple enlightened technique enables anyone to transform stress into dynamic wellness. Learn hoe to quickly:

> Relax your body without drugs, by employing your muscle release levers.

>Clear your mind of distressing thoughts and experience expanded awareness, by using sensory perseption.

> Calm your emotions and become more objective by turning on your parasympathetic calming mechanism.

>Access and stimulate your life energy, by discovering your "little sun", the source of your personal life force."


Over all, a very nice little book. It doesn't take much effort to see the strong TCM influences that went into it's making.:p It is very easy to follow, and unlike many self-help books, it does not bog you down or drag on for 300 more pages than it needs to.:)

[The Willow Sword]

everyones input is helping. bobs breathing technique and i have looked at the link that "attention" posted(i have seen that book before) and i will look at the book you posted Becca.

I have been in Nova Scotia for 2 months now,,i am in a relationship with a woman here and she is going to be returning with me to Austin in a few days. Well my anxiety has a little bit to do with that. the other reasons are physical,,there has been nothing for me to really do here in Dartmouth,,no gym to go work out at so i have been trying to do stuff in the apartment here. PLUS it is excrutiatingly cold here so i find it difficult to go out and do things(there was a major snow storm here a couple of weeks ago and so it is difficult to actually go to a park as the snow is up to my waist there. anyway i return to Austin here in a few days. so i am looking forward to getting back to the gym and a warmer climate. and also i am going to go visit taichi people and get some formulas from master paul huang to get my body back on track.

anyway thanks alot for everyones help.

PEACE,,TWS

[GOLDEN ARMOR]

Is it possible for chi gong to cause anxiety/fast heart beat?

I have read that this can be a side effect from chi gong, but what about just one session of chi gong?

I have also read that anxiety is from too much energy stuck in the body?

Is this a energy imbalance or blocked channel?

how is this corrected, will acupuncture fix this problem?

some help will be appreciated.

thanks
GA

[Becca]

Originally posted by GOLDEN ARMOR
Is it possible for chi gong to cause anxiety/fast heart beat?
yes, if you are net lead properly by a knowledgable instructor.
I have read that this can be a side effect from chi gong, but what about just one session of chi gong?
same as above
I have also read that anxiety is from too much energy stuck in the body?
usually, but can also be caused by a depletion, such as in an illness or overtraining, or by a chemical imbalance
Is this a energy imbalance or blocked channel?
can be both
how is this corrected, will acupuncture fix this problem?
some say yes, some say no. I say give it a try, all you have to loose is a bit of ignorance. :)
some help will be appreciated.

thanks
GA

[GOLDEN ARMOR]

What if you were taught by a trained chi gong instructor?

It happened the first lesson, the whole time i was fine & feeling great by the end of the lesson. Then we went to finish off & do some movements to relax & store the chi in the dantien. I crouched down to one side of my leg to bring the chi up & i felt my heart click & start racing. We finished the moves & i tryed to take a few deep breaths but didn't help. So i told my teacher & he said sit down & take deep breaths then checked my pulse which i think was normal. he then pointed his two fingers at my chest & i felt my heart click back to normal. I was fine after that for 2 weeks then it happened again while i was at home sitting down watching tv. After that i stopped training but didn't feel right for a few months. In that time i went to dr's, specialists but they couldn't find a problem & said it was probably anxiety. But i have never had anything like this my whole life, i've been into sports & martial arts before & nothing like this happened. I was thinking it must have been from the chi gong but wasn't sure. I just didn't feel right inside, it felt like i had a blockage in my chest area. After about 3 months i started training again & started feeling better.
The instructor is legit my friends been training with him for years, so i wasn't sure if it was the chi gong that caused this.
Can anyone explain what happened? & if the chi gong caused this? how to fix the problem? any info?

thanx

[TaiChiBob]

Greetings..

It is quite possible that you had a blockage or existing Qi condition that had been simmering for some time.. in that case, even one good session can set Qi in motion or release stagnate Qi such that several physical manifestations could emerge quickly.. wisdom suggests that you seek a a good TCM or accupuncturist and have a diagnosis.. not all QiGong practitioners are qualified to diagnose or treat specific medical or energy conditions.. some of us on these forums could advise you in various ways.. some of which could have adverse effects.. my usual recommendations are simple breath patterns that only offer symptomatic relief until a qualified health consultant can more appropriately treat the actual condition.. use caution when heeding advice by others, especially when there is no direct diagnosis..

Be well..

[7 star Method]

Tai Chi Bob has some good advice.
It sounds that you have large amounts of Chi and Heat collecting in your center. You need to change your life, getting help from accupuncturist's, TCM doctors and Chi Kung teachers will only fix the problem temporarly. You need an over haul. Change your life - less meat, less spice, less caffein and less stress - more meditations (sitting, moving, and standing), do not practice building meditation or Chi Kung, rather practice calming meditation, focus on the breath not the center, this is where your blockage is. Slowly you will dissolve your problem.

LF



Greetings..

It is quite possible that you had a blockage or existing Qi condition that had been simmering for some time.. in that case, even one good session can set Qi in motion or release stagnate Qi such that several physical manifestations could emerge quickly.. wisdom suggests that you seek a a good TCM or accupuncturist and have a diagnosis.. not all QiGong practitioners are qualified to diagnose or treat specific medical or energy conditions.. some of us on these forums could advise you in various ways.. some of which could have adverse effects.. my usual recommendations are simple breath patterns that only offer symptomatic relief until a qualified health consultant can more appropriately treat the actual condition.. use caution when heeding advice by others, especially when there is no direct diagnosis..

Be well..

[semimoto]

If you are really serious about meditation, one of the best techniques is vipassana, or "mindfulness". This technique involves watching your thoughts, sensations, and emotions as they arise. It is very effective but takes consistent practice over a period of time. It is also very thorough. It is not for everyone as it involves directly confronting experiences rather than escaping or trying to change them.

For a beginner, one of the best books I have come across for this is "Mindfulness in Plain English" by Bhante G. It is free on-line at realization.org here:
http://www.realization.org/page/namedoc0/mipe/mipe_0.htm
Eventually, one would have to seek a teacher or group at some point, but this book can be very good for a long time. thanks for the link, great book.

[shixingrui]

Amitoufo Willow Sword,

I wrote an article called "Breath in Zuo Chan". It is based on specific breathing exercises that can help you to calm the body and the nerves and enter a state of deep meditation that can increase your qi flow and help to heal. It helps your qi enter the organs and the meridians and flow freely. It will help you a great deal if you try. If you email me I will send you the information or you can go to www.aboutshaolin.com and read it. It is based on techniques that I have learned here in China. shixingrui@yahoo.com
Peace

[tree beard]

in my opinion...

it seems that you paid little attention to the suggestion that required discipline. and TCB is encouraging a quicker fix. nothing against TCB, but he does not strike me as a very anxious person. so as a fellow anxiety sufferor; might i suggest maybe leaning more towards the more disciplined technique. where as, you may find that the dedication and complete thought required in more difficult techniques could be just the thing to successfully occupy your mind from whatever anxieties you suffer.

[TaiChiBob]

Greetings..

tree beard: What i suggest is operating from a position of understanding/knowledge.. (SunTzu).. if there are underlying health issues i would not wish to advise something that could cause further harm.. visit a TCM/Holistic practitioner, then, by all means get into the disciplines if there is no harm.. i favor discipline as a control measure for anxiety, i simply hope to assure the safety of advice given without proper evaluation... (and, there are certain legal issues, as well)...

Be well...

[Happeh]

"Anxiety is from setting expectations and worrying about the expectations not met."


I think this is only partially correct. Anxiety will be caused by physical health problems.



Basically, the human body is meant to be aligned in a particular way. Then energy is flowing around the body like cars on a freeway. If the body becomes damaged or misaligned in some way, the pathways become crimped or blocked. It is like an accident on the freeway. The cars get all jammed up and start honking their horns and bumping each other.

This has nothing to do with mental ideas. The body is damaged. Then when a person gets in a situation that causes mental stress, that excess energy does not flow around the body the way it should. It gets blocked in the heart area causing the racing heart.

The reason doctors say it is mental is because people go to them and say "I was thinking of stressful things". So the Doctor says "It is because you are thinking". That is wrong. If the Doctor fixed the crimped and blocked pathways within your body, then when you think stressful ideas, you are OK. The extra energy is no problem because you are open and it can flow where it needs to.

Sometimes it is natural to feel anxiety also. If a "tight" person has energy put on them, they will get anxious, alarmed, frightened and maybe paranoid. This is because the energy is inside of the body and it is........like pushing your finger in a small hole. Your finger does not fit so it has to push hard and then the hole gets bigger against it's will. That energy is getting inside of you and pushing hard to make you more open against the will of the small passageways inside of you.

If you are a very tight person, or misaligned in some way, then when the Chi Gong instructor put energy on you to open you up, it got stuck in there somewhere and caused the problems. Chi Gong is powerful stuff. I think it is important to examine a person and ask personal questions of them before you can be certain that they can take the stress of putting energy on them.

It all depends on how you think. Do you believe in Boot Camp? In Boot Camp they take civilians and throw them into brutal training to make them strong. The recruits get hurt, go mental, and eventually come out strong. If you think that is OK, then jumping into Chi Gong and having someone pour the energy on you is OK to. You will be sick and mental and have problems but in the end you will be stronger. Or you will go nuts, get sick and die like some of the recruits do. How lucky do you feel? ;)

[The Willow Sword]

I dont think my Pm's got to you. I went to the shaolin site and registered there and i still was unable to access that article you wrote. It says that i have to be a level 5 Member to read the articles. So uhhh,,could ya help me out here. like float the article to me in some other way? Please? Pretty Please?

Peace,,TWS

[spiraler]

hey,

how is it going? ive read your comment on anxiety and how youre wondering how meditation can help? well, from my experience and imsure you know that a good workout,(pushups,situps,stances,)will have you feeling pretty relaxed afterwards right? if you are familiar with stance training you can switch between horsestance,right bowand arrow, and left bow and arrow,reverse bow and arrow(left and right)im sure you can find more info on stance training if you google it.
for med. you can try sitting in a relaxed position, closing your eyes, and picturing something simple, like the number one, you can visualize it, mentally repeat it to yourself. as you do this be aware of the energy of your surroundings, and as you do, let it bring you deeper and deeper into concentration. hope it helped.

[shixingrui]

Willow Sword,

I did get the Pm today. I am sorry I dont always have enough time to get to emails and forums on a daily basis. I took care of the level issue later today you should be level 5 to read the article Breath in Zuo Chan. You will need to log out and then back in and you should be okay.

The article details a method used for a long time in breathing techniques and some of the effects of the meditation method. If you have any questions after reading let me know and I will try to answer questions you have pertaining to the method and practice.

Peace on your path.
amitoufo