Episode 10: C-PTSD and Meditation - Calm in a Stormy Sea

Out of My Mind in Costa Rica-Living with CPTSD

Episode 10

C-PTSD and Meditation

A Foundation to Build Upon

January 7, 2021

Today I want to talk with you about meditation and share some of my experiences with meditation. Yeah, I know, almost everyone I mention meditation to says, “Yeah, I tried that, I couldn’t keep my mind focused.” or “I couldn’t stop thinking, so I quit.”

Newbies think they were failing when in actuality, they were just scratching the surface of what meditation is. First of all, meditation is an action, not an outcome. It is the action of non-action. I know that sounds paradoxical, but it is true.

There is no right way to meditate and there is no right amount of time or number of times per day standards. Meditation is a contract you enter into with yourself. It is a commitment to spending a small part of your busy day doing nothing and being present.

There are thousands of books, videos and podcasts that will instruct you on what Daniel and Michelle Levey call the Fine Art of Relaxation, Concentration and Meditation. They wrote it all down in their book by the same name. Their book is my favorite because it gets to the point and gets you meditating right away. Here’s a link to Goodreads for more information about this book.

The Fine Art of Relaxation, Concentration, and Meditation

Do you want to know more about meditation? Where it comes from? What traditions have developed? or simply How to meditate? You might want to start with Wikipedia. There you will find a boat load of information spanning a wide range of meditation styles and traditions from throughout history.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meditation

Because I dive pretty deep into a trigger event from last Sunday, I thought it would be a good idea to toss out a website that supports getting up close and personal with your trigger process. The more you know about your triggers, the better you will be at resolving the event. Here is an article in Psychology Today by Marcia Reynolds, PsyD. She is the author of two leadership books, The Discomfort Zone and Wander Woman. Check her article out below.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/wander-woman/201507/5-steps-managing-your-emotional-triggers