Until very recently, I didn’t realize there were different types of meditation. I love my subscription to Headspace but I didn’t realize that their guided meditations are only one type of the many varieties to try!
I don’t know very much about any of these but I’m looking forward to learning more. Each comes with its own guidelines and its own goals. So much opportunity for meditation!
Have you practiced more than one type of meditation? Which one is your favorite? We’d love to hear your experiences!
Cancer Knowledge Network (CKN) has partnered with Dr. Linda Carlson and her research team at the University of Calgary and the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, in a ground-breaking new study measuring the effects of Mindfulness Meditation and Tai Chi/Qigong on the quality of life for cancer survivors.
The MATCH Study is being offered both in Calgary and Toronto over the next 3 years and is now recruiting cancer survivors!
I’ve been told again and again that meditation is great. I’ve attended a talk by the wonderfully gifted founder of True North Treks where he explained exactly how accessible meditation is and how awesome its health benefits are. I even downloaded this app a few months ago. Then I moved to a new place where I knew almost no one and tried my best to help my family adjust to a new part of the country and a new way of life. Carving out a few minutes of each day to be mindful and meditate seemed easy enough but I never actually acted on it.
I finally decided that I needed to make a new and positive change. I realized that I was almost always tense in this new place. I stayed at home more often than not because staying there with my two pups felt most familiar. Even at my new home, I felt anxious, distracted, and searching for even more distraction. So far, I hadn’t been able to just sit and feel calm and relaxed in my new environment. Something needed to shift. Small hiccups in my day would produce tears. One small unwanted change in the flow of my day and my entire sense of personal stability would be derailed.
My first 10 days of meditating were life changing… 10 minutes of calm and focus and breathing makes a world of difference in my day. Then I moved onto the next 10, and the next.
Simple enough right! Start with 10 minutes, for 10 days. Then you can use your free subscription to move onto the other great, guided meditation sessions Headspace provides.
We are all out of subscriptions! Thank you to everyone who signed up!
Are you a young adult cancer survivor or caregiver? Interested in meditation but having trouble sticking to it? Interested in meditation and not sure where to start? Loving guided meditation and looking for more?
If any of these describe you, we can help!
Lacuna Loft has partnered with Headspace through their Get Some/ Give Some program! As a program participant of Lacuna Loft, we are happy to offer you a free, year long subscription to their guided mindful meditation from your computer or smartphone!
How do you get your free subscription? Fill out the form below and within a few days we’ll email you the code to get started! This code is exclusively for Lacuna Loft. I don’t know about you all, but I am eager to get started!
We are all out of subscriptions! Thank you to everyone who signed up!
Are you a young adult cancer survivor or caregiver? Interested in meditation but having trouble sticking to it? Interested in meditation and not sure where to start? Loving guided meditation and looking for more?
More info on the wonderfulness that is Headspace…
Headspace provides a course of guided mindful meditation via your smartphone or computer, starting with bite-sized 10 minutes sessions. A new study published by The Journal of Medical Internet Research ranked Headspace as the top mindfulness app. Just 10 day’s practice has been shown to have wide-ranging benefits, from improving sleep and relationships to reducing anxiety and stress. See ‘How it Works’ animation for a little intro, our online Science ebook for a summary of the potential benefits, and Andy Puddicombe’s Ted Talk.
We have 3.5 million users now and subscriptions cost $155/year. To help fulfill our mission of improving the health and happiness of the world, our Get Some / Give Some program donates free subscriptions to nonprofit partners for use by their staff, volunteers, and people they support.
Enjoy! Let us know how you like your free guided meditation from Headspace!
Andrea and G have a lovely history together. Go here to learn more about them, and to read the first three posts in their first segment of The Fork In The Fight series. Look forward to reading Part 2: Navy Bean Root Vegetable Stew and Part 3: Introduction to Ayurveda later this week!
The Fork in the Fight: recipes for restoring our souls and thriving in the face of cancer
Part 1: Recipes for Calm & Creativity
This is the first post in the second segment of the Fork In The Fight series. In this three-part segment, we will be sharing a recipe for the soul in finding retreat in creativity, a recipe for the body with a delicious navy bean stew, and a recipe for the mind as Andrea introduces the world of Ayurveda. Stay tuned!
Andrea’s California retreat.
Solitude & Retreating – Andrea
Over the past month, emerging from the wilderness of ocean waves in Big Sur for a retreat with Scott Blossom, and hours in front of books, family or movie classics, I’ve found that turning inward, away from the social engagements beginning to brew, has been a very sound choice. Even with my partner and husband away for one month on his own sabbatical of sorts, with solitude and quiet setting in around the clock, longing for even more has not been uncommon for me. I have canceled a few appointments, and gotten to bed early. A few nights I have also stayed up late watching a new favorite television indulgence, sipping wine and writing. These, too, have been a practice of healing. There are many ways to wander inward. Cooking, Meditation, like the practice we shared in Breathing Into Self-Awareness And Ease, Yoga, and writing are my top four. What are yours? Not sure, but want to try something creative and different? We encourage you this month to fight for some YOU time. Take a stab at something creative. Find stillness in the gentle movements of your hand while painting, drawing, or writing.
Stillness & Creativity – G
Boy, do we all know that life can be messy and unexpected, and sometimes just completely overwhelming! There can be moments when it all seems too much or we lose sight of reality. It has taken mistakes (loads) and time (a lot) to teach myself to breathe, to be gentle, to seek happiness in all moments, and most importantly, to act positively and decisively when I feel stress creeping in. I learned much of this along my cancer journey, but I continue to turn to use these newfound superpowers everyday and you can easily master them, too. The most helpful of them all has been meditation (followed closely by x-ray vision).
I am a creative person and a voracious reader. During treatment I didn’t always have the energy to think creatively or concentrate on reading but I still yearned for those outlets. This is how I stumbled upon “doodle meditation.”
After finding an interesting audiobook or podcast, I’d grab a pen and paper. As I sat listening to these stories, I would begin to doodle. I never had anything in particular planned, but I always started with a single point and drew outwards from it, balancing a squiggle here, with a squiggle there. I made a point not to concentrate on my drawing, but rather to let my hand and mind doodle freely as I listened. I would feel more relaxed after even a few minutes of this, and my buzzing and whirring anxieties would be calmed.
Whenever I find myself stressed or too caught in a moment, I start up doodle meditation. It’s the easiest thing in the world and absolutely everyone can do it.
How to Doodle-tate:
Find a great audiobook, podcast, or music. If you are looking for a book that can’t help but make you excited to be alive, try “Born to Run” by Christopher McDougall.
Next, take out a piece of paper and pen. I like to use felt tip pens but any pen and paper will do.
Starting with a single point, draw a shape in the middle. Any shape!
From there, draw what comes naturally. An arrow pointing left or a small spiral twisting right? Or three polka dots under a zigzag?
Perhaps most important to this whole process, don’t stop to think about what your doodle looks like or what should come next. Practice freeing up your mind and just letting the pen move.
Keep doodling for as long as you like!
Doodle meditations are a simple and fun way to take a break and I hope that you find joy in them! If it seems too unstructured to start with, I recently came across Zentangle and would absolutely recommend them. While my doodles weave randomly, Zentangles are “artistic meditation” that use patterning beautifully. On LacunaLoft, Mallory recently posted about coloring for stress and shared a gorgeous free coloring and creativity guide, too!
Andrea tried the doodle-tate exercise and loved it. Isn’t her drawing whimsical?
We would LOVE to see what you create so if you try doodle meditation and want to share your creations, please comment and we will reach out to you. We may even feature your doodles in our next series!
With love and gratitude,
Andrea and G
Put A Fork In It! Send us your comments, suggestions and food-fighting ways to support a healing life.
I’ve always loved singing… when I was a kid I would sing along to songs on the radio, even if I didn’t know them. I would listen to the words, and anticipate what was coming based on the line or even just the first sounds of the word. Okay, often it was a jumbly mess, but I loved it!
When I was in school and going to church regularly, I loved the singing of the worship. I loved to get lost in my voice. I always loved musicals and would come home from school and sing and dance around the house (with no one home, of course)!
Voice has resonance for me. I like to feel the vibration of sound in my throat, in my body. I like music and have worked with the muscles of my voice for a long time without knowing that I was refining them. Naturally, when I met mantras in my yoga training, we hit it off.
Well, actually, at first I thought the Sanskrit words were uncomfortable and strange and I didn’t know what I was saying. Meaning is important to me. But as I gained understanding, the unknown language with deep layers of meaning stuck with me. As I would chant/sing with my words on paper or with my eyes closed and feeling through my 108 bead mala, I found peace. Trust. A prayer in another form. One layer is the words and their meanings. Another the melody repeating over and over. Another in the vibration as it resonates in my body. Another is the history of the mantra and that I’m connection to unknown amounts of others who have said this prayer before. On great days, I feel unbelievably content and complete after reciting mantras (and who couldn’t use a little more of that?).
I’m working on practicing these types of formal Sanskrit mantras more in my life (check out this mantra for obstacles). AND, I also have mantras that are informal (and don’t require singing!). These are sayings or phrases that ring deeply true to me. Mottos. Inspiration. Soul stuff. I write them on my chalk board. I breathe in and out thinking or saying them to myself. I write them on cards to others and post them on my social media. They come from ancient mystics, favorite books, comedians, friends, anything! Here are a few that I’ve been chewing on lately. If one rings true for you, grab it and keep it somewhere great – on a mirror, on your phone background, or just tucked into your heart.
Welcome to the third post in a series on meditation techniques and lessons. You can read the first post here and the second post here. Meditation can be a powerful tool to help calm your mind and anxieties. We hope you enjoy!
I have found that often I need something to get my thoughts to begin slowing down to enter into meditation. After my alarm goes off on my phone in the morning, I’ve probably already noticed some new emails to read, thought about what food I want to prep for the day and looked at my schedule. Even if I aim to meditate first thing in the morning, sometimes there are a lot of buzzing thoughts already filling my mind. Here are some entry points that I’ve played with to quiet my mind and help guide me to stillness:
1. Walking Meditation – This is exactly how it sounds. Walk around (inside or outside) but very slowly. Pay attention as your heel and then ball of your foot and then toes grab the ground. Feel the back of your foot as it lifts off when you move forward. See if you can notice each sensation in your body as you walk. Where do you put your weight? What pace do you want to be at? Find yourself completely absorbed in your movement.
2. “I Am Enough” Meditation – With each inhale breathed, “I am,” and with each exhale, “Enough.” As thoughts come to my head about what I want to do or be or things I wish I could change… I remind myself that as I am, I am enough. And on the way, I learn all the areas of my life that I think need more. My health, my physical appearance, my accomplishments, my relationships, my career… And I begin to remind each area that I am enough already. Seeds of new stories…
3. Follow your Ears – When you close your eyes, let your attention follow the sounds around you. Focus on the loudest sound – the birds chirping, a train going by, the sound of the heater, anything. It may change during your time sitting for meditation but let yourself completely go into that sound. Notice that we attach meanings to sounds (birds, train, heater). What can you notice beyond their meanings about the quality and feel of each sound?
4. Levels of Awareness – As you sit down with your eyes closed, begin by hearing and feeling the room around you. Notice the temperature, the sounds, the spaciousness. Slowly draw your attention then to what is near you, what you can feel. What is the surface you are sitting on like? What do your clothes feel like on your skin? Finally, bring your attention inward. Notice your breath, your heart beat. Can you feel your digestion at work or any muscles responding to how you are sitting? After you’ve observed all these things fully, maybe you will enter into stillness to observe your mind.
5. Focused Gaze – Sit with your eyes open and an object in front of you. You could sit very close to a wall (like Zen), light a candle, or look at an image of a mandala (or any drawing!). With your eyes, discover the details of the object. A wall might really challenge your sense of observation! With a candle, see the edges of the flame move and the colors change within the flame. With a mandala, let your attention trace the edges of the lines around the circle.
What tools have you played with to start meditation? What have you learned from them? Did these 5 tips for meditation help get you started? Have you tried meditation as a young adult cancer survivor or caregiver?
Welcome to the second post in a series on meditation techniques and lessons. You can read the first post here. Meditation can be a powerful tool to help calm your mind and anxieties. We hope you enjoy!
“So, hmm…”
My first meditation teacher gave me this entry into meditation. I still use it regularly now. After finding a comfortable seat and taking some big, full breaths to feel my body, I’m ready to enter into my mind. Sometimes this is the last place I want to be. It can be full of noise, loud with instant daily replays and to-do lists. Especially if there is anything I can be planning. My mind likes to put on the hats of “planner”, “organizer”, and “perfecter”. Dangerous trio.
So, as I enter my mind through my breath, I start with the mantra of “So, hmm”. (Sounds like so hum)
With each inhale, I think “so” and with each exhale, “hmm”.
Like in a conversation with someone (or yourself), when you need a pause to think, or just a pause of silence. So, hmm… I wonder… I can’t even say the phrase without offering my mind a moment to pause. And that is exactly how to use this phrase as you sit with your eyes closed and pay attention to your breath.
Inhale. (So…)
Exhale. (Hmm…)
Space.
I like to set a timer and then just follow this so hum meditation mantra, this phrase, through the rise and fall of my breath for the whole time. Sometimes the phrase will slip away. Sometimes I find myself jumping down a rabbit hole of other thoughts. Whoops! I just realize I’ve taken a detour and get back to the So Hmm. Other times I find that the rhythm of my breath and these words overcoming my thoughts bring me to the complete stillness of meditation. The pause to wonder becomes large and empty and I can be with myself, just as myself (none of those roles listed above). And there is this moment of peace, bliss, contentment.
And then I realize that I’m distracted by thinking “OH! This is IT!” and I’ve lost it! So I begin back with the So Hmm…
The words, our breath, this back and forth from thought to stillness – are all linked in a cycle. We go forth, we come back. Maybe a little different, maybe a little changed. Maybe with clarity that will offer up rewards as we take it into our day or our night.
What roles does your mind like to play? What have you used to help you meditate? Have you tried the so hum meditation mantra?
P.S. For the philosophical roots of this mantra, check out this article on Yoga Journal!
This is the first post of a series on meditation techniques and lessons.
“Can we turn within ourselves to study and understand, perhaps even control, the mind?” – the Introduction to The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
I have had a meditation practice for the last year. I’ve never quite been able to be the everyday type of discipline person in many areas of my life. I can say that everyday I brush my teeth at least once… and sometimes that is about all that feels constant. But even as I’m inconsistent on a daily basis, there is a steady relationship that has grown over the last year as I’ve created some time to be quiet with myself. I have learned how my mind works – what I put effort into, how I avoid stillness, how much I daydream or replay life. These insights have allowed me to see my mind doing what it does – all day long! – and learn to add space, breath, and choice to what I do, say, and be.
As I begin, I like to find a quiet place to sit. I have to put my dog in another room. I have to make sure no one is going to need any answers or favors from me for the set time. I set my timer on my phone (for 5-20 minutes) and then my phone on airplane mode so I’m not constantly concerned I’m going to be late to whatever is next… and I won’t be tempted by buzzing texts. Some people like having quiet spa-like music on in the background.
Finding a comfortable seat isn’t always easy, either. I find that sitting is most comfortable after I’ve done some stretching or yoga to move my hips and seat muscles and maybe open up my back so I’m able to sit tall comfortably. In yoga (and other traditions), we take care of the body for the ultimate purpose of getting into our mind and Self. So I take care of my body in preparation to spend some time with myself. And then I grab a blanket to sit on, a pillow or support under my sitz bones, and I settle in to a comfortable seat and close my eyes.
Breathe in. Breathe out. Long, deep, and full inhales and exhales through my nose. I start with my breath. The physical experience of sitting and breathing. How do I feel today? What am I able to observe about my body? I start in this tangible layer of my experience. Then, after I settle in there, I take a look inside. What thoughts am I having? Can I invite them to come back later and then exhale them out one at a time?
“The restraint of the modifications of the mind-stuff is Yoga” – YogaSutra 1.2
This practice of letting the stuff of our mind go is hard work! Some days the quiet comes easily, others it is quite an effort to keep slowing myself down. We aim for having minds that are clear and calm, like a beautiful lake, that can reflect clearly what is going on in ourselves and in our lives all the time. This is a powerful tool!
And… as I calm my mind lake, I learn a lot about myself right now. I learn that I avoid stillness and quiet with myself by becoming a planner of my day. Are there times when I am uncomfortable with the stillness needed in a conversation that I jump to planning instead of being present? I learn that I replay what happened in my day again and shame myself for what I said wrong. I learn that I wishfully daydream about how much I’ll get done once I’m done meditating! Both of these experiences are like realizing that I’m watching a movie – that I made up!
Meditation for cancer survivors or caregivers is a powerful calming technique when so much feels out of our control.
What do you learn about how you respond to stillness and quiet? What do you avoid about being with yourself? Who are you being towards yourself? And no judgment!
Next post: techniques to continue clearing our thoughts!
