Month: August 2013

The night sky (Saturday Mellow)

beautiful video and song...both

Community Mental Health in Times of Crisis

By Faith Rhyne Often, for service users, in many ways the mental health system is simply an inaccessible insult, with scant appointments, callous and fatigued providers, and treatments that seem to cause more problems than they solve. While many have been helped by various individuals within the mental health system, people who went above and beyond their role as “staff” and approached their work with a genuine commitment to humanity; the mental health system has tragically failed a great many more, often in ways resulting in desperation, diminished potential, alienation and, all too frequently, untimely and avoidable death, often by suicide. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

Meditate while moving — gardening, cooking, walking, etc…

Sometimes our suffering and agitation is so great that we cannot sit to meditate or even hold the body still. Then, trainings in movement such as walking meditation and yoga, or mindful practices of preparing food and gardening can be used to help settle the mind... Such practices help to ground a fragmented mind in the body. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

the voices in my head

eleanor Longden on stage the voices in my headthe voices in my head

She did it! And now it's available for viewing! She learned to listen to her voices and now asks anyone (who might end up in the mental health system) not "what is wrong with you" but WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU? Yes, what happened to you?

We can be AWARE. We can wake-up. We can heal ourselves and our psyches.

Why is it assumed that people need remain unaware of their physiological experience? This is exactly what meditation can attend to. It's called "mindfulness" for a reason. It's entirely possible to become aware of our bodies, minds and psyches. The fact that many of us are asleep does not mean we cannot wake up!

This sort of knee-jerk conclusion that determines we are helpless in the face of all our physiology strips people of their inheritance. We can be AWARE. We can wake-up. We can heal ourselves. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

To those still in the depth of the dark night of protracted psych drug withdrawal syndrome (or other chronic illness illness)

A long time friend/reader who is still in the worst ugly phase of protracted withdrawal sent me a note the other day. In it he was talking about how he could not come to terms with everything he'd lost. He cannot stop grieving. He feels cheated. He had been an athlete and competent parent and a successful professional in his field. He was prescribed a benzodiazepine for a first time incident with acute anxiety (had no history of prior psychiatric issues or treatment). He took said benzo for only 2 months and he was one of the not unheard of number of folks who react as if they've been on meds for decades, like me, when he discontinued it. He's been ill for 5 years now and is unable to work, parent in a meaningful way or exercise. I understand his sense of loss. It is nothing short of completely devastating. I still struggle with not being able to do many things people generally take for granted as well. I still am learning what I shared with him. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

Jun Po Roshi – Zen Master and Provocateur

from the interview:

When the Absolute looks at ordinary reality, Gods and Goddesses, bliss and energy, all the wonderful illusions you have disintegrate. You’re just not interested in it anymore. Eating a grapefruit, standing in the sunshine, are far more interesting. You’ve discovered the Divine Being, and you’re it. Not your ego, not separate-from or looking-at, but here. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

Trauma as a foundational factor in that which is labeled mental illness

This post is not just about children even though the article that is excerpted below is. It's about just about anyone who has been labeled with a psychiatric diagnosis. Children grow up and become adults. When they acquire a psychiatric label it's often for the same reason children get them: trauma. Without appropriate care and integration trauma changes both our bodies and minds for many years and sometimes for our entire lives. Right now the mental health system knows virtually nothing about how to care for people who have been traumatized and in fact often traumatizes them further. It's changing now however. Slowly it's becoming more widely recognized and embraced. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

You can start your meditation practice in baby steps

You can start your meditation practice in baby steps, like suggested in this short video.

A short mindfulness practice: … [click on title for the rest of the post]

To be or not to be on psych meds

to be or not to be on psych drugs

 to be or not to be on psych meds -- Everyone has a reason that makes sense in the context of their life experience for the positions that they hold. It’s possible to come to terms with our experience in such a way that we no longer feel the need to force others to our point of view. Sometimes contradictory "truths" are simultaneously valid. Living in a diverse community requires being able to hold ideas that we do not agree with with respect for paths we've not traveled. Our planet is now a diverse community and we need to deal with it.

1

Being alive means we get traumatized

I like to say that if we are not suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, we are suffering from pre-traumatic stress disorder. There is no way to be alive without being conscious of the potential for disaster. One way or another, death (and its cousins: old age, illness, accidents, separation and loss) hangs over all of us. Nobody is immune. Our world is unstable and unpredictable, and operates, to a great degree and despite incredible scientific advancement, outside our ability to control it. … [click on title for the rest of the post]

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