“No, I can’t rest or relax.  What is going to happen with my work performance, my income, and my productivity?”

Many people may feel uncomfortable, frightened or annoyed with words like “Rest, relax, slow down, wait, pause or stop”. Especially those who have a strong need for productivity, competition, achievement, appreciation or survival. When they hear those words, they may interpret them in different ways, it depends on their experience and attitude. Some may think those words describe laziness, weakness, and dullness, etc.

Do you ever feel tense because of too many tasks waiting ahead?

Do you feel tense and stressed by the work you are doing?

Do you ever feel anxious about facing problems or difficulty?

Do you remember, at what time do you get fresh energy to make a new start?

Where does your fresh energy come from?

What helps you to have a clear mind to better solve problems in your daily life ?

Most of my clients say that they get creative or new ideas when they are relaxed or calm. Taking time to slow down, rest, relax and let go doesn’t mean taking time from being productive but rather it supports and increases your achievement — if you know how to do it.

*This research confirms why we need downtime.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/mental-downtime/

It is true and possible that many times when you start to rest, you may start thinking about the past or the future automatically. Then your brain is just busy like a traffic jam. In this article, I will introduce several ways to rest and free your mind by shifting your attention from thinking to feeling and sensing instead. Certainly, it is not easy to stop thinking but you actually can train your mind if you want to.  

The benefits of rest and relaxation.

1. Develop your concentration. 
2. Strengthen your parasympathetic nervous system (decreased heart rate and high blood pressure, improved digestion, increased production of saliva and mucus, increased urine secretion and relaxed bronchial muscles) 
3. Clear the mind so you experience peace and calm.
4. Become more open and aware of everything happening around you.
5. Become more open and aware of everything happening inside you.
6. Have better sensitivity and experience the world as it is.
7. Be less judgemental and less stressed.
8. Make better decisions and actions.
9. Improve skills to cope with problems and difficulty.
10. Become more creative. 
11. Get more productive.
12. Experience joy, love, and compassion for self and others. 
13. Have a healthy life.

What is a good time for you to pause, break, rest or slow down? 

• During the busy periods of your day.
• When you are busy with projects and you can’t focus. 
• When you are experiencing intense feelings.
• When you are facing mental and physical discomfort.
• Anytime that you need or want to.

You can remind yourself to take a break by setting an alarm or a bell on your phone.

Several techniques for resting. 

You can do all of the practices below whether sitting, standing or lying on your back. Allow yourself to stay in a stable and comfortable with eyes closed. If you feel sleepy, you can open your eyes but look down.

• At a busy time during the day.

1.Stop- Breaths and Feel (Check-in 2 mins)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFH0dI9xoGc&t=35s

1.1  Whatever you’re doing and wherever you are, especially during your busy time, stop.

            1.2  Take a deep breath, then slowly breathe out.

1.3  Survey your body. Notice body sensations and alignment. 

1.4  Ask yourself, what are my feelings right now? 

1.5  Check in with your thoughts, what’s going on in my mind?

1.6  If you are holding on to some part of your body, gently adjust or let go.

1.7  Bring back attention to your breaths (normal breaths) until they slow down slowly, finally.

2.Pause for 20 breaths (3 mins)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WO333D88vk&t=1s

2.1 Stop your activity, then bring your attention to your breaths. (You can do the check-in practice above.)

2.2 Breath normally or, if you want to take a deep breath, try not to push too much.

2.3 Count your breaths from 1-10. (One breath means breath-in and breathe-out.) 

2.4 Train your mind to focus on the sensation of one breath at a time.

2.5 After ten breaths, repeat. Count backwards from 9-0.

2.6 Then let go of your counting, just feel the rhythm and sensation of your breathing. 

2.7 Observe the sensations of your whole body, then maintain your focus and sense of peace for a while. 

3.Rest in deep awareness (4mins)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CHAKraA61I&t=51s

3.1  Stop your activity, then bring your attention to your breaths. (You can do the check-in practice above.)

3.2  Rest quietly, noticing what you are doing, in which position, where?

3.3  Feel the sensation of your breaths and your body.

3.4  If you feel your breath is shallow and your body needs more air, try to breathe nice and deeply for a few breaths. Then let go of controlling, just follow normal breaths.

3.5  Notice your thoughts, let them pass by.

3.6  Open up to any sensation; sound, light, smell, body sensations, thoughts, feelings, anything that shows up.

3.7 Keep maintaining your intention to notice and be aware of everything that is happening inside and outside and let everything pass by without doing anything.

Continue to sense things as they are for as long as you want.

For all of these techniques, use your breath as a home base. Whenever you can, bring your attention back home. 

• During a break or at the beginning or end of your day. (If you have time from 6 -10 mins)

1.Mindfulness meditation practice (6 mins)

You can listen to this audio to guide your practice. https://studio.youtube.com/video/iYifQsti1Ts/edit

2.Deep relaxation (10 mins) 

You can listen to this audio to guide your practice https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vapaUxd7-k0&t=320s

3.Progressive Muscle Relaxation after physical exercise (8 mins)

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJP_DUTe0Tc&t=12s

4. Body Scan Meditation (9 mins)  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOiZb9FE3g4&t=135s

• After physical exercise like running, hiking, cardio or yoga practice, etc. (4 min. You can sit in a comfortable and stable position or lie down.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CHAKraA61I&t=102s

After your practice, spend some time noticing your feelings again, then be thankful and grateful for yourself and finally, ask yourself “What is important in my life?”, “Do I take time to take care of those things?”

I would like to invite you to take the time to allow yourself to practice. The more you practice, the more your brain develops a new skill, you will be able to use this skill (ability to stay with body sensation). Then you can apply it into whatever physical exercises or resting time effectively, then you will get a huge benefit mentally and physically, and it automatically improves your whole quality of life. 

Author: Kessuda Boonngamanong

Mindfulness, Yoga and Enneagram instructor. Certified MBSR (Mindfulness- Based Stress Reduction) teacher and Enneagram Professional Teacher and Coach, teaching Mindfulness and Yoga for more than 20 years. She is also certified as a Relationship, Spiritual Coach, Emotional Management and Family Life Coach. 

Author of “Yoga Awareness” book and founder of Yosuda: Awakening Space  

How to Gain Body Awareness and Discover Body Wisdom. (part 2)
How to Practice Body Awareness.

Kessuda Boongamanong
—–
You don’t need to do any physical exercise to have this skill.  Your body is with you all the time. So you can pay attention to it at any time. Your body is your image.

The main principle of body awareness training is the ability to keep your body in a stable (balanced) and comfortable state, even when you are experiencing soreness or pain. You can adjust and gently relax any areas of tension. You can also train the mind to relax under that stressful state.

Learn about the benefits of body awareness (Link to the first article)

Here are some tips.
1.Standing – let the weight of your body fall in the middle between your feet. If you are not sure, check your balance by rocking to the right side, then comparing the pressure on the soles of the feet. Then rock to the left, feeling the pressure on the feet. Then return back to the center of your body, noticing when the weight is centered. This way you may feel your spine straighten.
– If your spine is not straight, simply adjust it. Straightening your spine helps your balance.
– Opening your chest also helps your upper back and shoulders stay straight. Simply relax your shoulders. Adjust your neck into a position that feel normal. Look straight ahead.
– If you have to stand for a long period of time, resting one leg can be done as long as you keep your spine straight. Don’t bend your waist and don’t let your body stay in the same position too long.

2.Walking – keep your spine straight, allow your hands to move freely beside your body, open your chest and relax your shoulders. With each step, make sure that the foot that goes first is firmly laid down before taking the next step.

3.Sitting – maintain a straight spine and relax your shoulders. It would be helpful If you can find something to support your lower back like a cushion or pillow. Let the soles of your feet rest gently on the floor. Make sure that you can feel your full body weight on the tailbone.
-For someone who has to sit all day long, keep reminding yourself to change to other postures from time to time. If you can, always make your body balanced, stable, and comfortable and keep relaxing your spine, shoulders, and neck.

4.Lying down – be aware of your back, make sure you don’t let any part of your spine be tense, especially the shoulders. Savasana or dying posture is a great position to prepare the body for relaxation.
-If you are dealing with high or low blood pressure, heart disease, vertigo or any symptom that can affect the ability to balance the nervous system then use care when getting up. To prevent dizziness or a heart attack, turn to lie on the right side first, then lift your head and support it by bending your right arm vertically and resting your head in your hand for five breaths. Then slowly and gradually raise your body to allow the pressure and blood flow to adjust to your movements.

5.Lifting and reaching out – always be careful when bending your back, straightening up or twisting your body to reach out for things. If you have to lift something heavy, bend your knees instead of your spine. Use the power from your belly for lifting. Be careful of your back, shoulders, and neck when reaching for anything that’s far away from your body. An awareness of your body’s current level of flexibility is helpful. Avoid accidents and injury by using a piece of equipment to assist with lifting or try to adjust the body rather than force your movement.

6.Whenever you adjust your body posture or relax tightened muscles, include breathing deeply. Be sure to expand your diaphragm and let your chest move up when you breathe in, hold your breath for a count of 3-5, then gently breath out until your abdomen sinks completely, relaxing your whole body.

7.To reduce body tension in a particular area, take a deep breath, expand your diaphragm and chest up, hold your breath for a count of 3-5, then make a long exhale, gently relaxing your breath, relaxing your body, especially the area of tension. Repeat this sequence 5-10 times until you feel calm and peaceful.

8.Adjust and change any behavior or postures that may cause negative emotions in yourself or those around you. For instance:
-A person who is overconfident, who doesn’t like to listen to others, may speak loudly or harshly and may often stand with their closed hands on their hips. This body language may frighten people around them. If you become aware of using this body language yourself, change your tone of voice, adjust your standing position and let your arms relax near your body.
-A person who lacks self-confidence often hunches their shoulders, closes their chest, speaks in a low voice, and does not make eye contact. When standing, they might hold their arms in front of their body with hands clasped at the groin. They may speak quickly, without interruption. If you notice these behaviors in yourself, stand with a straight back, open your chest and practice eye contact from time to time.

9. Whenever emotions arise — whether positive or negative — like cheerfulness, excitement, gratitude, peace, relaxation, stress, sadness, frustration, anger, fear, anxiety, etc., pay attention fully to body sensations and body movement. Make a note and practice staying with that feeling. If there is discomfort or pain in your body, rest and relax into it. Then adjust your body to healthy movement and behavior. ( Learn more from this article “Dealing with Discomfort”, https://www.yosuda.com/blog/2019/04/03/dealing-with-discomfort-the-short-course/..)

Body awareness practice is a great way of taking care of yourself. It helps you believe that you are the master of your health. You will have more freedom from unpleasant or undesirable states of mind or situations and a healthy lifestyle will unfold for you.

Make a commitment to a healthy you by finding a skillful Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction teacher who is also experienced in a holistic way of body practice like Yoga, Tai-chi, etc. to help you learn to develop body awareness.

I offer one on one and group practice customized for you.

Author:  Kessuda Boonngamanong

“Highly-skilled and experienced in practicing mindfulness and body awareness for more than 20 years. Author of “Yoga Awareness”.                                 

 Life Coach, Mindfulness, MBSR ( Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction), Yoga and Enneagram instructor.

Certified MBSR and Enneagram Professional Coach, teaching Mindfulness and Yoga for more than 20 years.

Designer of a Mindfulness program for an International Mindfulness Recovery Center in Thailand and the founder of Yosuda: Awakening Space.

How to Gain Body Awareness and Discover Body Wisdom.

Know your Body, the Door to Knowing your Mind.

By Kessuda Boonngamanong

The body is the home for your soul, your heart and your mind. It is your friend, your teacher, and your own child.

Our body is intelligent. It is the key to unlocking the secrets of our state of mind, feelings and body reactions.

Body actions and sensations come from the attitude that you have toward your body. Positive thinking leads to positive emotions. On the other hand, negative emotions come from negative thoughts. Both the mind and body are well connected.

Working out doesn’t necessarily mean you are aware of your body. I often hear my clients who practice yoga, body movement or exercises like running or walking say that during their moving, they usually think about something, anything. They may be lost in their thinking, daydreaming or just spacing out. Because of this, they are not able to tell which part of their body is lighter or tighter. When there is some pain or injury, they can’t tell what they have done with their bodies or what has caused their pain. This was my own experience in the past. It took me years to fully achieve and understand the body awareness that now guides me to healthy actions for myself.

If you are practicing yoga, pilates, or dance or if you are a physical trainer, yoga teacher, or anyone who spends time training the body, one of the great skills you need to have is body awareness. It provides you with a deep understanding that thoughts, emotions, and body sensations are all interconnected.

What does it mean to have body awareness?

1.Ability to pay attention to your posture and body movement, whatever you are doing.

2.Ability to pay attention to body alignment, balance, and stability.

3.Ability to pay attention to sensations:

-breathing sensation. Whether you control your breaths, a general awareness of your breathing.

-sensations like feeling tense, light, warm, cold, hurt, heavy, intense, sore, relieved, dizzy, etc.

4.Awareness of your postures, body expressions or body language in each moment. For example, frowning, arms akimbo, bending, hunching over, leaning, hands clenched, chin down, loud voice, quiet voice, trembling voice, walking speed, etc.

5.An understanding that your body reactions are influenced by different factors such as smell, sound, touch, food, weather, and mood. For example, when you are sad or upset, your eyes tend to drop down, your chin drops down, you may have short breaths, fatigue, tightness in your chest, lower voice, slower walking, etc.

6.Ability to take care and make adjustments. If your posture or movement creates a negative effect, you can adjust or change your body, emotions, thoughts, diet, etc. for a positive outcome. For example, I noticed during the wintertime when I walked out of my house, my shoulders and my neck automatically hunched. At the end of the day, I felt the tension in my shoulders. I opened my chest and neck and stretched my shoulders. Now, I keep my neck and shoulders as warm as I can.

Body awareness isn’t just noticing or recognizing the body, it also includes the ability to realize and understand the nature of the body’s relationship with mind, emotion, and environment. And finally, it includes having a commitment to change and to take care of yourself and your relationships with others.

The benefits of body awareness

1.Having the skill to adjust and balance your body allows various operations in the body to work normally and efficiently, such as the circulatory system, skeletal system, respiratory system, digestive system, nervous system, etc.

2.You will recognize when you are becoming stressed. Your joints may be contracted or move out of their normal positions, tense shoulders, clenched hands or teeth, frowning, tightening the jaw, contracting the abdomen, etc. You will be able to relax. This will have a positive effect on the body in the long run.

3.Your appearance and demeanor will give you a positive self-image and create a good impression with others.

4.You will be more aware of the relationship between body actions and emotions. For instance, when you are worried or afraid, you tend to hunch or contract your abdomen.

5.Similarly, your awareness of the thoughts that affect emotions, sensations and body actions will be improved.

6.The chance of accidents and injuries will be reduced.

7.You will develop the skill to notice the capacity and limitations of your body and mind.

8.You will be able to help your body recover from injury faster. When you know which part of your body needs special treatment or which posture is good for your body, you will be more careful in your movement.

9.You will have confidence that your body gives you the power you need to take care of the important things in your life.

10.You will develop a sensitivity to the body language of others.

11.Your self-love, self-confidence, and independence will increase.

Having well-developed body awareness skills is the path to a healthy lifestyle. I encourage you to take the effort to practice and learn. In my next article, I will share some tips.

For the best outcomes in cultivating full body awareness, find a skillful Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) teacher who is also experienced in a holistic way of body practice like Yoga, Tai-chi, etc. I offer one on one and group practice customized for you.

Continue to the next article (Link)
“How to Practice Body Awareness”

Author: Kessuda Boonngamanong
Highly-skilled and experienced in practicing mindfulness and body awareness for more than 20 years. Author of “Yoga Awareness”.

Life Coach, Mindfulness, MBSR ( Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction), Yoga and Enneagram instructor.
Certified MBSR and Enneagram Professional Coach, teaching Mindfulness and Yoga for more than 20 years.
Designer of a Mindfulness program for an International Mindfulness Recovery Center in Thailand and the founder of Yosuda: Awakening Space.

Be kind and thankful for negative emotions.

By Kessuda Boonngamanong……..

What is your relationship with the thoughts and feelings that you dislike?

When you have negative emotions — for instance, disappointment, anger, frustration, anxiety, sadness, shame or fear — how do you think or feel about that? 

Have you ever judged, fought or tried to run away from them? Have you ever felt anxious or stressed from having negative thoughts and feelings? How often does it end up with unhealthy actions that come from fear or anger that hurt you or the ones you care about?

Emotions and body sensations are a part of the human experience. We all tend to like and accept positive experiences. That is totally acceptable and there is nothing wrong with that. We tend to fight and avoid negative experiences. That is acceptable and there is nothing wrong with that. But what would it be like if you could use negative emotions as a way to help you discover your values and needs and take care of them in a healthy way?

Good news, you can get a lot of benefit from negative thoughts and emotions! Negative thoughts tell you about your beliefs. Negative emotions tell you about your needs. You can learn to understand yourself better by paying attention to them. Then you will be able to find a way to take care of yourself.

Painful, stressful and negative emotions always come from the way we cope with negative body sensations, thoughts, and actions.

Every day we notice that the number of people around us who are suffering from stress and anxiety is increasing. Not only adults but also our children face these situations. If you or people around you are experiencing stress and anxiety for any reason, and you don’t want to depend on medication all the time, here are some tips that you can use to deal with, prevent and reduce stress. 

How to cope with negative thoughts?

1. Pay attention to the thoughts that judge what you think, feel, and do. What kind of thoughts are they? 
2. Allow those thoughts to show up. How often do they show up?
3. When they show up, watch them arising, appearing and disappearing. Pay attention to what is happening with your emotions and body sensations. What actions do you take based on your feelings?
4. Investigate them: How does that thought look? Is it true? You may check the reality by asking someone you trust or who knows you well. You can check in with that person: are they thinking and feeling the way you expected?  Either way, you can learn from thoughts of dislike or judging. They tell you about your core beliefs. Your core beliefs are what you think about yourself and others.
5. Ask yourself: was that thought or belief useful? Does it hold me back from what I want to do and what is important for me?

How to cope with negative emotions?

1. Slow down and pay attention to your emotions. What are these emotions? 
2. How do they affect my body? How does my body feel? 
   1. Accept that negative emotions are a part of your moment.
3. Give yourself time to feel the sensations fully, to merge your with those sensations, see them arise then dissolve.
4. Negative emotions are telling us about our needs. We are humans, we have human needs.    

Positive emotions = needs are fulfilled 

         Negative emotions = needs unfulfilled 

Giving yourself time to discover and investigate your needs is important. Do not fight, judge, avoid or ignore them.

6. Be kind to yourself by finding a way to take care of your

needs. 

7. Take action in a way that will take care of your values

and needs. If your needs are related to others in your life, allow yourself to share what you need with them and make an honest and kind request. 

When we are mindful with our thoughts, it allows us to know emotional feelings and body feelings. When we allow and accept negative feelings, it helps us to cope and understand them better. Mindfulness practice is about accepting and being aware of whatever arises in our body, not judging it or fighting with it. 

The more you practice, the more you will be able to develop loving-kindness or compassion for yourself and others. When you understand your feelings and needs better, then you will be able to understand other people’s feelings and needs better too.

If dealing with negative emotions in your daily life seems difficult and complicated, I would be happy to guide you through the practices. You can schedule a session with me. If you are in the area, you are welcome to meet me in person. If you can’t come, an online session is also an option. 

For more information about my work: www.yosuda.com, 

Email: Yosudabliss@gmail.com

www.yosuda.com

The circle of life has a rhythm – trees drop their leaves and must wait to put forth new buds in spring. Some animals slough to replenish new skin and become stronger. Our body feels lighter and refreshed through our nourishment and digestive systems. We are very much alive when we are able to breathe in, and breathe out.Our body is like a home. We can bring new things to our house if we have enough space.

Space is a necessity for life. Consider the respiratory system, which is a necessity for life.. Oxygen metabolizes nutrients into energy and is a kind of nourishment for our cells. With short and shallow breathing, our body will receive less oxygen, reduce our ability to remove carbon dioxide and will produce too much lactic acid. This makes our body weak and has less ability for restoration and recovery. All of these conditions may lead to poor health. For example, people who are near death usually have shorter than normal out breaths (This phenomenon is beautifully referenced in the book ” Tuesday with Morris “ by Mitch Albom)

For normal breathing we receive 500 cubic centimeters of air. Practicing deep and long breathing, we will receive more air sent into our lungs by 6,000 cubic centimeters. When we breathe in our body receives 21 % oxygen. Oxygen rids the body of toxins such as carbon dioxide. Breathing out naturally, we will still have 2,400 cubic centimeters of air in our lungs. But if we can exhale fully, there will only be about 1,100 cubic centimeters of air left.

For this reason, the longer we breathe out, the more our body can get rid of waste airs and the more space our lungs will have to receive oxygen.

In my yoga practice and teaching we always practice “pranayama”, or breathing exercise, to develop the ability of breathing out longer than breathing in.

(If you are Interested in learning to practice these techniques, please contact me:yosudabliss@gmail.com )

In addition to benefiting the body, long breathing, works directly with the emotions and nervous systems. If you can get the Parasympathetic nervous system working, your body will become more relaxed. It improves blood circulation, muscles release and relax,and the digestive system works better. It reduces tension, anxiety and worry. Daily, practice will develop concentration, motivation, self awareness, consciousness, sensitive soul, more strength, more awareness of strong negative emotions. This can lead to peacefulness.

This breathing technique is a part of the art of living. For filing your life with good energy, we can clear space by letting go and releasing. We can release our attachment to our beliefs, thinking and emotions. We can let go of the past, which brings us negative emotions that affect our health. Non-attachment to our knowledge brings us to new learning while habitual actions lead to relationship problems and sickness.

We need to clean up things in our house or office that are not useful or that we never use to create an oasis. We will spend less time looking after them. It will help us have more time for activity that improves our life.

Life means change, circulation and transition.

We are always breathing in and breathing out.

Every day we pass through the night into morning.

Our time in this world is limited.

How will you decide to live your life?

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/letting-go-our-breath-art-life-kessuda-boonngamanong?trk=prof-post

I often hear people share about challenges in their mindfulness practice. Challenges tend to fall into these categories:

Time limit

Traveling

No structure

Traffic

Distractions

Actually, I see these as opportunities. I don’t see them as obstacles to mindfulness practice, rather as supports.

Mindfulness means the ability to:

1. Observe or witness whatever arises in our mind and body and what is going on around us.

2. Pay attention on purpose and stay with our experience, whether that is the breath, a particular emotion, or something as simple as eating.

3. Stay in the present moment. We are aware of what arises in the moment. It is OK to think about the past and the future but when we do so, we do it mindfully and try to come back to now.

4. Recognize all of the above without judgment. If we judge, we simply notice it and let it go. We see things as they are.

Mindfulness, then, is an activity we can practice all day long. Our ability to be aware of our mind and body can make it happens with us all the time unless we are sleeping. We just need to be aware and awake by training our mind to come back in any particular action or non-action. With training, we can notice that our mind is becoming distracted and that we simply need to bring it back to the body again and again. Without regard to what we are doing at the moment, it is the best way to live in the present.

We can do not only formal practice like sitting meditation, 20 breaths, body scan, counting the breaths, etc. but informal practice like paying attention to what we are doing and bringing the mind to follow body movement and sensations such as watching, listening, eating, tasting, touching and so forth.

So, the more challenges we encounter in life, if we are not aware, the more stress we have because our mind tends to focus on the future and possible negative results. But if we are mindful, we can turn each challenge into an opportunity. We can let such situations support us in slowing down our life to bring us back to our practice.

Yesterday, I was riding in Uber with two others and the car had to pass through a very narrow street to take some of us back home. The right side of the street was full of parked cars. The other people in the car all complained about how the road was so narrow. The driver had to slow down to walking speed. I looked up and said, “Wow!” and the driver said that it was challenging and crazy. The woman who lived on that road agreed. She said, “It’s interesting. I’ve never seen any cars here lose their mirrors.”

It occurred to me that, just like the driver in the narrow street, when we are faced with physical difficulty — perhaps we have only one leg or back pain — we are forced to slow down. Rather than see this as a limitation, we can see it as beneficial. We are given a natural opportunity to be mindful.

I shared my insight with the people in the car and they agreed. The woman who lived on the street said, “Yes, it is interesting … I totally agree.”

Interview with Oratai Chafu, the storyteller of the book

Today is the Gift of Life: experiences with cancer and care of the dying.

How did your learning experience start?

I had lung cancer for 3 years. When I was 32 years old I tried all kinds of treatment, including chemotherapy. I was very scared. Whenever someone would propose some type of treatment I would try it out. All kinds of expensive medicine and healing stones. I consulted monks and healers, tried all kinds of sacred therapies. And I had to see a psychiatrist as well, because I was scared and depressed. I didn’t want to be so helpless and powerless. I wanted to kill myself. I couldn’t sleep. The psychiatrist gave me medication that made me sleep. I had a hard time waking up. If I did wake up, I would feel as if I was drunk. I couldn’t remember anything anymore; I walked like a crazy person. After a while the medication didn’t work anymore, so the doctor had to give me more. I slept even more after that, and the people who were close to me told me I should quit.

What did you learn from mindfulness Yoga practice?​

A lot of people told me about the benefits of yoga practice. I thought it was a challenge so I tried it out. In the beginning I was really forcing myself. I had seen Kruu (teacher) Kess ( Kessuda Boonngamanong) practicing on TV and tried some of the postures. Then she came to live in Chiang Rai, she often came to a vegetarian restaurant I went to and that’s how we got in contact. I heard she started teaching at the hospital so I enlisted for a course. I didn’t like it, it was so slow. Yoga seemed so boring to me. And there was a corpse posture! I didn’t like it at all. Kruu Kess suggested that I take private sessions. After practicing regularly for a while and working on my inner growth for 2 – 3 years, I clearly noticed that I was changing. As to my body, I learned that I had to go slower. I didn’t like to do anything slowly. She had to slow me down whenever I got up quickly and wondered when it was going to be finished. She taught me to listen to my body. She guided me to observe which parts of the body hurt, are tense or relaxed. She helped me to stay with it then move attention to the breaths and the areas of the body which were comfortable as well. She taught me about balance: don’t do too much, don’t do too little. I always did too much and I did it too fast, this had become my habit.

What did you learn from mindfulness Yoga practice?

A lot of people think that l had a long time learning with Kruu Kess. That you have to perform all the postures perfectly, that you have to become flexible like a cat. This is not true. My body was not ready for severe or extreme movements. She taught me in a way that was suitable for my body. She did not require that every pose should be perfect or beautiful, because this is not the true core of Yoga practice. Yoga is about learning to be happy, to accept reality and to work with it in a relaxed way. Kruu Kess stresses relaxation of mind and body a lot. She teaches to be mindful of our body movements and the breathing. It helped me a lot with my sleeping problems, I could notice that quite quickly. My body was relaxed; I was able to control my anger.

What I learned from Yoga is to see the reality of life more clearly. Using the tip of my nose as a reference, I learned to observe, to notice and to acknowledge my feelings. Before I would get very irritated with these words. I did not understand why I had to observe my feelings. I didn’t notice much because everything had to go quickly. Often we think that ‘slow’ is something negative, that it means slothful and lethargic, or ineffective. That is why we don’t see the beauty of life. Mindfulness yoga brings us back to the present. Through observing and noticing we cultivate acceptance. My mental and physical health improved a lot when I practiced Yoga. My doctor told me my lung had gotten a lot better. The tumor did not spread anymore, because my mind had gotten so much better.

What did you learn from Enneagram self-awareness?

I learned a lot about myself. This might seem very ordinary. I thought I knew myself already but I was only fooling myself. I only knew the surface, I didn’t really understand myself. If we know and understand ourselves, we will understand others as well. Before I always went my own way; I wasn’t afraid of anyone. I had to be strong, but in the end I just became harsh and rigid. I didn’t know how to be gentle and calm in life, and this is what caused the disease. I never used the words ‘thank you’ or ‘I’m sorry’. And whenever I became angry people had to stay out of my way. Kruu Kess helped me to know my personality, and she advised me to dig deep into myself. Nobody can harm us if we don’t harm ourselves. We are our worst enemy. I was blinded by my strong emotions, my rigid thoughts, my own reality… But as I started to understand myself I started to understand others as well and I started to accept that all of us are different.

How does Kruu Kess combine Yoga and Enneagram work with you?

Enneagram enables relationship issues and us to learn something about ourselves and the other people, to be aware of our habits, worldview, fixation, emotional issue and actions that cause physical and mental. Yoga on the other hand helps us to slow down, concentrate on our feelings and sensations without responding to them immediately. I could more easily observe and identify my feelings and actions. Whenever there was a problem, I would discuss this with Kruu Kess, we would share about our experiences and problems and we would work with them to find a way out. She made me keep a journal to write down everything I observed about myself, my feelings and thoughts and actions, every single day. I had to make notes about whatever made me angry or suffer. I learned to do everything a lot slower. Just observe without having to act on it and judging. Also in my everyday life: whenever I got angry my body would tell me, there would always be some symptoms.

Before I learned with her I had a lot of nightmares about bad memories from my youth and childhood: many conflicts and fights. Often I couldn’t sleep at all. These problems disappeared after I started learning Yoga and enneagram. Sometimes I would encounter problems on days that I really felt bad. At moments like that I had to breathe in and out very deeply several times before reacting. I had to practice mindfulness every single moment. I had to learn to do some work with my hands, like painting or knitting. Journaling helped me a lot to gain clarity about myself, and gradually I got rid of my old habits. I learned to listen to my body and observe my mind every single moment of the day.

Both Yoga and enneagram helped me develop my potential and abilities. I could set myself free from my own limitations, which made my life a lot more pleasant and calm. I don’t practice with Kruu Kess anymore, because she tells me there’s nothing more for me to learn. Now I have to practice in real life on my own. I can start helping other people, but I cannot forget to look after myself. I can never be careless.

Whenever I meet Kruu Kess I have to thank her. She opened the door to my inner self. She taught me how to live happily, how to lead a worthy life. Sometimes we don’t get the chance to talk, because she’s too busy, but I know she will always hug me.

Is it because of cancer that led you to deal with your issues better?

The people around me say I’m not like a sick person, I’m always smiling. It took some time for me to change. Before I was afraid to let people know I was sick. I didn’t want them to pity me. I felt that sick people are weak people.

Now I accept other people’s help more easily. I accept my sickness, I accept myself, and I accept others a lot more than before. I can understand and look after my mind and emotions a lot better now; I can let go of depressive thoughts or feelings of hopelessness.

Cancer does not have to be the end of my life. It’s the start of a new life. This is a sign, a sound I have to listen to. A sound that tells me I have to change my life. It cannot be a coincidence.

I am very grateful for my life. I’m very grateful for this gift in times I was really sick. I thank Kruu Kess, the first person in my life who hugged me. She gave me so much good energy; she showed me all my weak points.

It’s a lot easier for me now to be happy. The small things in life make me feel good: a smile to a stranger, explaining the way to tourists, listening to people who wish to share about their difficulties.

What is the main idea has helped you deal with cancer from more than 7 years now?

We ourselves are the best doctors. If our mind is good and pure, we can heal our own diseases. Before we can become a good doctor we need to understand ourselves. We need to have belief and faith in ourselves. We have to be able to let go and give meaning to our lives.

Because of all these changes every new day is a wonderful present to me. I can help others who have cancer or other severe illnesses. Even the people who I feel are my enemies; I can be compassionate and help them. I can teach them not to suffer because of their disease, I can teach them to find bliss again.

Whether or not we are happy depends on our own perception. We have to learn that sickness and death are not our enemies. Illnesses can be a gift in our lives. They can be a signal that tells us we have to evaluate and change our lives. Illnesses can lead to a better perception, we don’t have to fear them, and we don’t have to fear death. All of this can make us wonder how we have to lead our lives so that our last days will be beautiful days.

Nothing and nobody can design our inner world except our own thoughts and actions.

Thoughts influence and affect our emotions and body feelings. So how can we see and understand our thoughts clearly? Reading a book or listening to someone speak may help us understand at some level but to really know, make change and be aware of one’s thoughts result when you practice mindfulness (Sati, sanskrit term). Mindful practice is the most efficient tool to provide awareness and consciousness. We have the ability to see through our thoughts deeply, find the truth of life and be free from suffering throughout our body and mind.

One of my clients in a recovery center had been suffering from grief since he was a youth. He tried many ways to solve this issue by practicing different kinds of meditations but none of them helped. I worked with him and introduced him to a different style called the “Hand Moving (Open Eyes) Meditation.” This mindfulness practice includes hand and body awareness that brings the person back to the present moment. By incorporating this practice, he is finally free from his grief and is now experiencing a joyful life.

Recently at my workshop about mindfulness yoga and living, one of the participants who has been practicing yoga for more than 20 years experienced tranquility and equanimity – then had tears of happiness during her first experience with the hands moving meditation. She felt so relaxed and peaceful just from the very simple movement from this practice.

I can tell many other stories of people who have benefitted from this unique mindfulness practice style, simple but powerful. It is the root of any kind of mindfulness practice.

Luangpor Teean (CE 1911-1988) was one of the most remarkable teachers of Buddhist practice to appear in Asia in modern times. His teaching was very direct and from his own experience, intensely personal and original. He was the monk who created this teaching technique, and who taught me in 1986-1987 before he passed away. This was the original influence for my working style in teaching both yoga and mindfulness and it also inspired my book title, “Mindfulness Yoga” in 1999.

I myself was able to pass through my most difficult period thanks to this moving hands mindfulness technique. More than 10 years ago, I experienced burnout and depression. I didn’t take care of myself well enough, worked too much and did not eat or sleep enough. My ability to be aware of myself was reduced. My body was very weak. During that time, I still tried to do yoga and meditation practice but it didn’t work, as my body lacked energy and focus. My weight went down and my body systems such as digestive and nervous system, were out of balance. I was not aware of my thoughts or control my emotions and body function. I had no motivation in life, didn’t want to do anything or to be anyone. Then, I stopped working. One of my close friends, who is a medical doctor ordered me sleeping pills. I finally surrendered to it.

When I was able to get some sleep, my body system worked better, I could eat more and could practice a gentle yoga and meditation. My ability to pay attention slowly came back. I knew what was needed to help my body and mind back to normal. At that time, my body was still tired and my mind still blue, depressed and not clear enough. Sometimes during the day I would experience a pattern of negative thoughts like there is nothing interesting in my life, my dreams are all fulfilled, there is no reason to live anymore. These thoughts made me sad then suddenly I would feel as if insects were crawling in my stomach and then there would be a sinking sensation, muscle weakness, short and shallow breathing, and finally a weary body.

I promised myself I had to be free from this situation and sleeping pills, as I prefer to avoid or reduce medication when possible.

Meanwhile, the mindfulness technique which I practiced with Luangpor Teean 20 year ago came back to be a part of my daily life again. I set up my new routine and simple activities to support any moment of open eyes meditation and mindfulness practice.

The key of this practice is to train our mind to stay in the moment by paying attention, which is called “watching” or “seeing” then “know” through body movement or stillness, for example we know when we shake our head, blink our eye, smile, move hand, fingers, etc., We aware of our heartbeat, the wind touches our skin, and we know it. Luangpor Teean liked to say “Just know it”. We don’t make up any story. See as it is, hear as it is, feel as it is, and smell as it is. We will train our mind to get used to “knowing but not doing”, non-judgment mind.

When mind and body stay together, to be one, then we will get an experience of empty mind(Sunyata). When we keep continued focus with this moment, it increases the state of meditative consciousness (Samadhi) and finally, we will understand the true nature of reality, (Panna, wisdom) which in Buddhism means seeing that in reality all phenomena are incomplete, impermanent, and not self . Our thinking and feelings are impermanent, we don’t own any of it. It doesn’t matter whether it is happiness or suffering, both are impermanence and suchness.

I had been practice this intensive mindfulness all day in any activities, whenever my mind wandered I brought it back. One month passed, my body began to feel stable and strong. Also my mind felt more relaxed and refreshed. I used a relaxation technique before sleep. Mindfulness practice was the way to take care of my mind; having good and enough food, exercise, healthy actions and living in the right environment was the way to take care of my body. I slowly decreased sleeping pills in the second month and finally stopped. Another tool I used to help my sleeping was to practice going to sleep with the ability to let go of everything.. I finally had a deep sleep, my body came back to normal, felt strong, balanced and flexible and my mind was stable, with clear thoughts, focus and gratitude for life. My creativity came back. I was living fully in the moment and I once again recognised that life is fleeting.

This suffering (Dukka) experience had given me new life and freedom. I’m so thankful for it. It confirmed for me the power of connection between mind and body. I discovered how to let go of self and surrender to life, and to be more gentle and compassionate with my self and others. It also confirmed that real happiness or joy don’t come from things, no one can give them to us. This understanding can only come direct experience.

I started my therapy work and resumed training for using different styles of meditation and mindfulness techniques for people with different needs such as mental problems like stress, depression and other emotional issues. The hand moving one is the most urgent and simple technique; I can use it anytime and use it as a core with the other techniques. This is also one of the reasons why I decided to accept work setting up the International Mindfulness Recovery Center in Thailand. Mindfulness can help people pass though difficulty; it is like an urgent medicine and vaccine for personal well being and flourishing. Those who are suffering will be able to be free from it, free from using drugs, abusing substances or any pills.

Nowadays, seven years have passed by and many people from all over the world have passed though the mindfulness program at this community, and they have a better quality of life. Even though my life has moved past this community, I still am continuing to live life with Sati (Mindful) practice and I keep on sharing.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/we-design-our-world-kessuda-boonngamanong?trk=prof-post