Recommendations on ways to rest with little to no cognitive activity?

[jesse's mom]

Those are beautiful @Sundancer!

 

[Rufous McKinney]

Sharing that we can also: "think": movement.

In my case, I was trained many decades ago in Tai Chi and know a very detailed routine of about 1700 moves. I spent four years learning this, back in college when my Brain worked. I did not continue the practice the way I should have (regret). So I have found that: I can close my eyes and do all the moves in my head, and my body feels better afterwards, almost like I actually did it all. I've done it on planes, stuck in a seat. Its pretty interesting.

A series of dance moves or a series of yoga postures: try it.

 

[YippeeKi YOW !!]

Tai Chi

I have a much simpler routine of about 35 moves, not counting repetitions, and I've missed doing it, but lack the focus to make myself go thru it in my mind. It just leaves frustrated and miserable, as I'm forced to go back to square one over and over and over til I'm screaming in frustration.

 

[Rufous McKinney]

I have a much simpler routine of about 35 moves

Even that can helpful. I sometimes just don't worry about the routine. I am setting a goal to do a TINY BIT more of that. Just a TINY BIT. Sometimes I only just repeated the first set of maneuvers.

It is interesting to me that I learned this from the daughter of a Master. Its taught any endless witnessing it and through alot of mental practice. So she was teaching a wheel chair bound person how to do just the simple upper body manuevers. So even those are helpful, even if you cannot walk.

My knees can't do it so I "levitate" at knee turns, and modify it for myself. Given self permission to be self.

 

[Rufous McKinney]

Mindfulness meditation can actually be not resting if a person is holding focus to try to watch what their mind is doing. Letting thoughts freely flow without dwelling on them at all or "thinking" is more restful.

for me, any chant, or focus on the breath, once I"m past getting things going, will take energy. So I just try to let the river of thoughts, flow past, in that unattached to them way. At some point if I"m lucky, alpha wavy type moments can set in which are very fun but rather rare. Noticing the subtle differences in thought qualities, while wiped out, is a Special Skill we have. Again: we get the chance to do some of that noticing, that others, rushing about, will miss.

Tag, your it!

 

[Sundancer]

I did not do that 'think that you move thing', although I was aware of it. But I did sometimes go back in my memories, in exceptionally bad times that is. It started out like just thinking back on things of my childhood. And then all of a sudden I sort of "fell in my memories" like, I was not thinking about it, they just happened, as if I was really walking around, seeing things and then thinking, yes... one of the pegs on my children's coat-rack was broken, or seeing the way things looked that I had totally forgotten about.

It was real strange, very nice and helped me come through the worst nights.
I think I sort of dissociated from my body, but different then that word normally means.

 

[YippeeKi YOW !!]

I think I sort of dissociated from my body, but different then that word normally means.

@Sundancer
More like an out-of-body experience?? Happens to a lucky few who meditate really well ....

 

[jesse's mom]

This reminds me of when I got mono and I was still in chorus in school. The choir teacher would not let me even go to class and listen. She told me not to even listen to music on the radio or record player. She said that all of this would still put pressure on my vocal chords and my nodules would take longer to heal.

I just remembered that. Humm makes me think.

by the way, the nodules never did really heal.. I guess the music is my head is enough. I'll take it.

 

[Rufous McKinney]

She told me not to even listen to music

Gee, she was very thoughtful! I used to have a very beautiful voice, sang in the church choir. Now I am asked to appreciate the voices of others, so I will do that, instead.

In this overheated brain: there is a song going, almost constantly. Its like a musical OCD.

Remember the little room with all those gals, being phone operators, plugging the wires in so we can connect: this illness feels like the gals all went on lunch break. I know the info is in there. I get glimpses of it. Retrieval: suffering in fog.
Maybe the gals got lost, in a foggy corridor, and didn't come back to work! Or some Neptunian tsunami drifted in, and carried them out to sea. I do hope they come back soon.

 

[Sundancer]

@Sundancer
More like an out-of-body experience?? Happens to a lucky few who meditate really well ....

well, I have been meditating before I fell ill, but nothing exceptional, a 20 minutes on my bum daily. During my period of bed-bound I went ' through the motions' for hours on end, was the only way to come through it.

Now housebound and sometimes I berate myself for not getting back to my daily sitting. Body is up to it now I think, and could do it laying down too. But I have something like" it's gonna remind me of those horrible nights" I do not want it.

on the other hand, without it it would have gone totally off my rocker during that time.

well, maybe I will start it up again.

 

[daveu]

@daveu
This is a day filled with helpful hints.

Wow! I had always wondered how people did multiquotes… Thanks @YippeeKi YOW !!

 

[daveu]

Mindfulness meditation can actually be not resting if a person is holding focus to try to watch what their mind is doing. Letting thoughts freely flow without dwelling on them at all or "thinking" is more restful.

Anyway, figure out how much "aggressive rest" you want to do in a day and how much just "rest" you want to do in a day.. experiement and work out how much rest you do best with. Try to get some quality rest time each day (eyes shut, no noise) even if it's only a 20min session of it. Sometimes the best rest we can have is a sleep! If it does not negatively affect your ability to sleep at night, an afternoon nap can be great.

Thanks for your reply @taniaaust1.

Hmm, that is a really interesting point about free-flowing thoughts being more restful. I haven't experimented with that, but the mindfulness meditation I do practice does say to make sure the focus is on the breath. I shall gently experiment with both kinds.

But that is a great point about aggressive rest versus just rest. I am just really learning about the difference between the two but it is good to be making a start.

 

[Rufous McKinney]

But I have something like" it's gonna remind me of those horrible nights" I do not want it.

I would recommend revising how you meditate by just creating a different condition, maybe add some new rituals before, or do it in a different location or chair...in other words: you would want to reframe it, change the energy, so that it becomes a new thing you do thats less going to remind of before.

KInda just a game in your head. And we often just need to rest, without sub-assignments.

 

[Sundancer]

I would recommend revising how you meditate by just creating a different condition, maybe add some new rituals before, or do it in a different location or chair...in other words: you would want to reframe it, change the energy, so that it becomes a new thing you do thats less going to remind of before.

KInda just a game in your head. And we often just need to rest, without sub-assignments.

yes, that maybe helpful, thank you