GRAPE AND PILLAGE!

(Huge Update Post)

Bike Ride

Oh the fun of freedom on three wheels.. Like the ladybug? That's my bell. Today I went on a long (long for me) bike ride by the Ottawa river. I want to get as much bike time as possible before the damnable snow puts a stop to my peddalry. Then I want snowshoes, so I can get wicked photos of beasts at their most winterized. Fluffy. This photo was taken halfway thru my ride.

Weight Loss progress

Yay I lost two pounds this week! Right now I'm doing behavioral conditioning to get me in touch with my non-pill-induced appetite. Harder than it sounds. Although I think this will be The Way to losing weight permanently. I can see myself doing this method every single day of my life and not getting tired of it.. Most diets are a huge pain in the ass.. but this isn't a diet. It's like you're using a computer and you don't know about a core utility program.. like specialized alarms.. this diet-changing method teaches you about the appetite alarm in your stomach... the one which many people (including myself) have learned to ignore. Now I actually FEEL hungry, and can tell the difference between psychological and physical hunger. Huge diff. So now, instead of relying on writing down all calories and all foods - this neat little notification program tells me when to start and stop eating to maintain a proper weight. Nifty. Some people are born knowing where this program is, of course.

Grape and Pill-age

Speaking of pills, I am having a party this weekend with some close friends - and of course I had to run out of painkillers. I have the hardcore twice-a-day controlled release pills, but not the "I NEED RELIEF NOW" pills. I have to stay away from alcohol, my normal method of replacing painkillers.. so basically I'm trying to use my TENS machine more and trying to meditate (I practice Raja Yoga routine, because one fuck up and I'm in big trouble. Emergency clinics don't prescribe Em-Strength painkillers. They prescribe crap like Codeine sometimes, low dose and high itch factor, just like straight Morphine. meditation) as much as possible. I'm paying more attention to my regular HathaOooh but I still like Morphine. Codeine metabolises into Morphine, but for some reason, it doesn't really tickle my fancy. Hurts my tummy more than Morphine. I'm on different pills that I'd rather not broadcast. They are the freedom givers. They free up some RAM for me, which is taken up by randomized pain-to-psyche distraction. A very temporary defrag.. but worth it.

People and Pain

Certain people lower pain... just by talking to them or being around them (etc). Mainly my Mom, my 2 close girlfriends, and a new Manfriend of mine is really quite good at it! - but one cannot rely on others... for a few good reasons... A) they can die B) they can decide they don't want you in their life C) they might get sick of being around you.. hehehe. I don't see my girlfriends as often as I'd like.. and my platonic guy friends.. wink wink.. come on guys, take me out!!!

Doggy and Pain

Of course Gordon helps a lot. Just looking at him and being around him makes me swoon with puppy love!! I groom him, train him, and play with him every day... and in my pain database, which I enter data in daily to track pain and other issues, I refer to my time with him as "PT" - puppy therapy.

Database and Research - Almost reaching the year mark!!

Yup, I have a database for my ails. Right now it's just a shitty spreadsheet, but I'm working on making a better database. I've had it for almost a year, so soon I will be able to work with the data and do something constructive with it. I've already tracked some very important patterns, which I will submit to various research organizations for Fibro, Endo, and CFS. New data, I think, as I am usually up to date on the latest published research in those fields. You can't rely on doctors to help you, Fibrofolks, Endofolks, and CFSfolks.. nope. Get researching, get reading.. I know it's hard at times, but it's worth it. BTW, I also like to make graphs.. hehehe pie charts, bar charts.. 3D even.. of course this takes me a shit load of time since I'm foggy in the head. I'll publish some here when I'm done sending it to the proper research institutes.

Electro-Goodness

My TENS machine was finally approved to be covered by the red-tape-beauties at Essential Health Services!! I was paying 51$ a month for the other one.. Hard decisions had to be made in my budget to incorporate this expense. Now I can go back to massages, and daily vitamins. Frigg, vitamins and supplements seem to be rising in price. I have a 1/2 cup of pills to take each day, including vitamins, painkillers, other supplements, etc. Isn't that funky? For the past two months I've cut on the vitamins and other supplements, so it comes to a 1/4 cup... but I've been feelings like crapola in certain areas. Some of the supplements I take: Spirulina, Multivitamin, extra Chromium, extra B vitamins, MSM, Omega 3-6-9, extra Calcium, etc. Why the extra? Well two main reasons 1) some of the pills I take eat essential nutrients 2) some experts call for more than the norm in terms of nutrients.

So that's the update. I have lots more to say.. but some of it is private and will only be shared with the proper females in my life!! And other stuff is still to come. I'm doing well, getting better inch by inch, am more happy than usual, and that's that! :) Thanks for reading this huge update ;)

Chakra Meditation #1 - Positive Pathways of the Brain

I'm a Yogini, that means I am a female who practices Yoga with some amount of devotion. I love Yoga with all my heart, and I love meditation with as much gusto. Chakras, in my experience, are an amazing way to meditate.

Chakra meditation has been responsible for helping me through the hardest pain and the hardest heartache. Of course family had more to do with both, but on a smaller scale, Chakra meditation has been a big help.

So what does one do whilst Chakra meditation?

Well you focus on one or a combination of 7 "energy centers" in the body. I take it metaphorically and with imagination, but some believe that these are funnels of energy placed in specific locations on the body - and are responsible for bodily functions, balance, emotional balance, spiritual function, etc. For me, I keep an open mind, but don't label. I focus on the images and properties of each or a combination of Chakras, in order to help my mind focus on something complex, archetypal, and above all - it is a regular and familiar object or set of objects to meditate on. Meditating on something new each day is ok, but it doesn't offer the same depth as meditating on something over and over again - and seeing, feeling, experiencing different levels each time you meditate.

This kind of meditation, in my opinion, helps the brain build firm and lasting synaptic pathways - pathways to calm, to centered thinking, to clearer thought processes; on the flip side, meditating on something that creates a frazzled feeling (like when people master violent video games or martial training without proper discipline), creates negative connections.

In Buddhism and Yoga, making more positive, calming, and centering pathways is called "right thinking" and "right action" etc. The core tenets of both philosophical religions is to create as many positive and harmless pathways as possible, in order to minimize superfluous and harmful negative thinking and actions. This positivity training directly effects neurotransmitter levels, immune system functions, sleep, emotional states, weight loss, memory, bodily balance, and more. Even before modern neuroscience, these philosophical religions knew that better health came from better positivity.

Positivity isn't possible in all situations, but the aim of the game is to get as many positive pathways as possible.

Back to Chakras. How can they help again? Well, focusing on them has a kind of subliminal effect - as if you truly and deeply focus on the properties of each, you'll find a quick and simple route to hypnotic self improvement.

Let's take the Root Chakra, pictured right (click on pic for source). When I meditate on this, I focus on its primary property - it is the Chakra of being grounded, centered, down to Earth. When I am feeling too unfocused and head-stuck-in-the-clouds, I focus on this Chakra. I focus on the Earth and the force of gravity, the stable geometry of squares and cubes, I focus on stability. Thinking of all these concepts creates the feeling of stability and groundedness, and unlike the other Chakras, this particular one will put you into Alpha brainwaves much faster.. as you tend to think of calming things more potently. If you don't like the thought of meditating on Chakras, then all you need do to replicate a Root Chakra meditation is think of the properties of stability. You can do a geometric meditation if you like.

This is another introduction, I hope to continue this series as time passes. Now I must get dressed and go out for a stroll in the social world. Namasté!