We got our neice a medical bag with a stethoscope, ice pack, and wound care gear. Craig makes an excellent patient!

If you have been following Craig’s (my husband of 25 years) story you know that he was able to get his Low Density Lipoprotein levels from 148 (high) to 117 (almost normal) after 4 months of raw and vegan eating.  But his Blood Pressure remained high.  Often it was 150/90 which is Stage 1 Hypertension.

Don’t be fooled by the “Stage 1” part of Hypertension.  There are only 2 stages.  150/90 is not good. 110/70 to 120/80 is normal.

We weren’t sure where to go with the meditation at first.  I guess the concept of meditation doesn’t feel weird to me.  Just sit and breathe and let your body slip into Alpha state.  But to do it with somebody who wants guidance or a method hadn’t occurred to me.  Also during this time many of my clients have been asking me pointed questions about meditation, how to do it, and where to go for resources.  There are tons of resources for learning how to meditate.  Here in Northwest Arkansas there are classes all over the place.  Classes are a great way to experience many different types of meditation to find one that works for you.

I looked into Transcendental Meditation and the Silva Method of meditation.  They are both expensive but well reviewed and researched methods.  I did not take the TM course, because as a starving nursing student it does not fit into the budget.  But a long time ago a friend of mine gifted me some Silva Method recordings and they are fabulous, especially if you need a step by step method to feel like you are doing it right.

Turns out Craig was okay without a method and it works pretty amazing whether you pay somebody $1000 to learn or not.  You can see his results after just 14 days of meditating once a day for 15 minutes.

He went from 150/90 to 108/70 in 2 weeks.  Yes I know my method for recording is not daily.  But it was finals at Nursing School and I did the best I could.  The numbers speak for themselves.  You just can’t make that up.

One of the questions people always ask me is, “Is he exercising?”  Yes Craig rides his bicycle from Fayetteville to Bentonville and back (60 miles round trip) once or twice a week, and all over Fayetteville recreationally the rest of the week.

Another that I always hear is, “I can’t get my mind to stop so that I can meditate. I never feel like I’m doing it right.”  I always hear that there is no right way and no wrong way to meditate.  That being said there are times when I don’t “get there.”  Usually when that happens it’s because of interruptions.  I get a little irritated but I have to forgive myself.  I think this might be key to people who criticize themselves so much they can’t let go and sink in.  Forgiveness and practice are the key.  Show up to your practice every day.

One of the things that Craig and I have learned about our meditation practice is that it is not a good idea to wake up from a dead sleep and start meditating.  That might have been a no brainer, but at the time it seemed like it might be a more efficient use of our time.  NOT.

We also discovered that we prefer 15 minutes to 10.  Ten minutes is okay, but we just barely sink in and start floating before the timer is going off.

I aspire to meditate 3 times a day for 15 minutes each time.  Morning, noon, and night seems like a good recipe.  I’ll keep you posted about how it is going for Craig.  It’s scary coming into your 40s and staring those numbers in the face.

Do you have methods you use for keeping your blood pressure down?  What types of meditation do you practice?

Wendy Finn is the mother of 4 boys, owner of I.M. Spa, a Raw Food Enthusiast and educator, a world traveler in pursuit of superior massage education, a Master Massage Therapist of 20 plus years, a gardener, and a nursing student.  She’s passionate about touching people and sharing health.  Schedule an appointment for a massage  479-251-7422