When we
were children, almost of us had a healthy nervous system, we had clear and
fresh outlook and good sleep. Somewhere down the line as we grew up, many of us
have developed anxiety and are not getting good and deep sleep. This due to
various external and internal factors which have caused an imbalance in
our nervous system and caused various
issues like insomnia, anxiety, depression, and many other related issues. This
blog attempts to give simple and natural
solutions to bring back the balance in the nervous system.
Knowledge of the mind
The mind keeps running between the past
and the future. When it is in the Past, mostly we experience
Regret and Sadness. If something (which we perceive as) Bad/Negative
has happened we regret that it happened and feel sad for it. If something good
has happened we regret that the good event is finished and we crave for more
of it to happen again.
If Mind runs to the Future, we experience
Fear and Anxiety. This is because deep down the Mind knows the future is
uncertain and it craves certainty. There are many things which can happen
in the future which we cannot plan for and this naturally causes fear and
anxiety for a person with intelligence...
If we just become aware of this normal
tendency of the mind to swing between past and future, we can then accept this tendency of the mind and not fight
with regret or fear when they rise. Fighting
with emotions makes them stronger, Accepting regret or fear as a normal human
emotion is a powerful technique to come out of the same.
If we
can keep the mind in the present moment and just Be where we are fully , we can be find a deep inner peace which comes
from deep within and is not dependent on any person, event or situation. Given
below are some simple techniques to keep the mind more in the present and get
access to the inner peace which is our natural state
Breathing
Practices
To get the mind to stay in the
present moment and slow down its swing from the past and future, ancient Indian
breathing practices called Pranayam really help.
There is a deep connection
between the breath and the mind. As we have all experiences, whenever we get
angry our breath becomes faster or when we become sad our exhalations becomes
shallow and slow. Similarly if we change the rhythms or patterns of the breath,
we ourselves can experience an instant change in our mindset.
You can learn a effective and
simple breathing technique called Bhastrika at the below link. ( if you have
high blood pressure or heart issues you need not to do this technique)
If you would like to join a much
more comprehensive and effective
breathing system package you can learn The SKY ( Sudarshan kriya yoga) practice of
the Art of Living foundation. It has really helped me and millions of people
across the world and us taught in 165
countries. You can get more information about the same in this link
Meditation
Meditation
is the easiest, simplest and most effective techniques to come out of host of
mental and physical problems. It leads to a deep and relaxing state of rest which
has a deep healing effect on the body, mind and emotions. It is scientifically
validated technique which has helped millions of people across the world
irrespective of race, religion or color. You can read more about the benifits
of meditation in this article
12 benefits of doing Meditation
You can
do the above bhastrika pranayam followed by the below guided meditation
Guided Meditation for Relaxation
Impact
of Food
The Food
we eat and how we eat it has a
tremendous impact on our nervous system. If we eat light and easy to digest
food and eat it properly, i.e chewing it properly, taking our own time , we can
have very good digestion. Improper digestion leads to build up of toxins in the
body which leads to many health related issues including anxiety and sleep
disorders.
In this
regard vegan or vegetarian food is very suitable to the body and if we bring
down or even stop our meat consumption, we ourselves will notice the impact on
our body and mind within a week’s time. Body will feel lighter and mind will be
fresher. Pls read my blog of my journey from eating Meat towards a vegetarian
diet in this link.
The Story of my Transition from Meat eating diet to Vegetarian
Secondly
we should keep a minimum gap of 2 hours to 2 ½ hours between our dinner and
going to sleep. This means if our normal bedtime is 10.30 pm, we should finish
our dinner by 8pm. This gap will ensure that our dinner will be digested by the
time we go to sleep and our nervous system will be ready for sleep.
Electronic
Gadgets
Its
better if we limit our screen time as the blue light emitted Phone, TV or
Tablet screen has a high stimulating effect on our brain. One effective technique
is to reduce the brightness of the screen as well as install apps like twilight
app which reduced the blue light emitted by the screen . It is also a good idea
to stop using electronic gadgets one hour before we go to sleep and do gentle
relaxing activities like reading a book, going for a walk, talking to a friend
or listening to soothing music.
Bed time routine
1.Warm
water bath -Just before going to bed a
warm water bath has a soothing effect on the body and mind and helps us get a
good sleep
2. Gentle
exercise – Some gentle , slow stretches playing some soothing instrumental
music also really helps the body and mind to cool down
3. Bed
time Music/Meditation – You can play some gentle soothing music at bedtime. The
Yoga Nidra or Ancient Indian Guided meditation for sleep also is very effective
in helping us get a good sleep. The link for the same is below.
Yoga Nidra - Guided meditation for Relaxed Sleep
