Unit 10

I rated myself a 5 in all areas in unit 3 and I would have to say I still believe that in myself.  First off, I always feel that there is room for improvement.  Second, my knowledge in those areas has improved, but the way I practice them has not improved enough for me to go up in the scale.  I have been so busy learning new techniques of meditation and dealing with myself and others that I have not payed enough attention in practicing those methods.  I will begin to try these methods and log how I am doing though in the future.  We cannot change overnight and should not expect to do so.  Like they say, "Rome was not built in a day."  This statement is very true.

Unit 9

Unit 8

The first thing I enjoyed in this class would be the meditation exercises.  The first exercise was the one that opened my mind up to the thought and practice of meditation.  The music and the man's voice were incredible.  They relaxed me and I felt safe.  The other exercises that we did were not as beneficial for me.  I did not enjoy the woman's voice or the pauses that were placed into the exercise.  I really found my mind wandering to others things during the breaks.  I can really use these exercises in my life when I become anxious or even stressed.  I have a problem with anxiety and I have been using these techniques learned in this class to help with this.
The second part of this class I enjoyed was loving kindness.  I feel we all can learn from this.  I now step back and look at how my behavior relates to others around me.  My actions and words can effect many things besides myself.  I have also noticed others actions and words and how they carry themselves when they are having a bad day.  You can really be effected by negativity in a way I had never thought about.  I have began to teach my family and friends of how our emotions can effect others even though you feel you are hiding them.  This has worked in my relationship with my finace and with my son.

Unit 7

I again did not care for the exercise that we need to complete for this week.  I have read other blogs in regards to this week and actually feel that same way.  Just as I was beginning to really visualize the silence would be over and the moment would pass.  I tried to go back and do the exercise again and pause the CD before going on but it was not working that way either.  I am not saying that the pause needs to be longer, but the exercise just did not work for me the way it was set up. 

Unit 6

I did not find that the exercise on universal loving kindness worked.  First, I did not know what the exercise was trying to accomplish.  Second, I did not know what I was doing at first. 
I completed the exercise on the integral assessment.  I found that I need to improve my communication skills with loved one's.  I have a tendency to keep things from them that may stress them and deal with these situations on my own.  This actually increases my stress load and becomes a problem within myself and my relationship with my loves one's.  It affects my relationship because I become very short with my anger and attitude and patience.  I learned that when I share my stressload with others I feel better and the situations are taken care of faster and with ease.