I was fed up with my self diagnosed mild anxiety, which came to the surface after a natural disaster we were involved in several years ago. It seemed to be triggered by large dogs. With three defenseless little souls in my care I would get very concerned that if a dog decided to attack us I could barely pick one of my large babies up -- there's no way I could save all three of them! Given that I had never been attacked by a dog I knew rationally that the likelihood of this eventuating was very low. So I went to see a psychologist who was sugar and spice and all things nice. She looked at me with her big blue eyes as though I was some sort of victim. I am no victim lady! She gave me no real help but needed me to book three weekly sessions with her where I would no doubt get to look at her big blue eyes and wonder if there was anything going on behind them. I got the distinct impression that she had far less life experience than me so how on earth would she be able to understand what I was talking about? Sitting and listening to me was not helping my situation. I can talk to friends and family about it for free! Needless to say I wasn't going to see her again.
I had heard that meditation could help with anxiety and was introduced to Isha Kriya during Dr. Wayne W. Dyer's lectures in Melbourne last year just days before he transitioned. We did a 20-minute meditation each day of the lecture. It was pretty amazing.
I downloaded the Isha Kriya app and tried to do the meditation in my hotel room. I was on my own and Sadhguru's deep voice saying "I am not my body -- I am not even my mind" was quite an unusual sound for me and alone in that hotel room with the lights off and my eyes closed -- it was freaking me out. I got scared, turned off the app and turned on the lights.
I tried it again at home where I felt safe and I found Sadhguru's voice to be smooth and calming. I started doing the practice in the mornings and evenings whilst sitting up in bed. It's only 20 minutes at each end of the day. I am a mother of three young kids and have a business to run so I'm just as busy as everyone else. The Isha Kriya iPhone app made it easier for me because with the head phones in if one of my kids walks into the room they know I am meditating and they leave me alone. I found in the past when I tried to meditate without the earphones and app it was much easier to get distracted by interruptions and noise in the house so I gave up.
Within a very short space of time without me even noticing -- my anxiety had completely dissolved. I felt almost like I was in a bubble and nothing could ruffle my feathers. I saw another psychologist and told her the story. She was very positive about the meditation and didn't think I needed any regular visits. Every time I stop meditating for a few days I feel a bit out of sorts so I know the daily practice is really good for my wellbeing. When I am doing the practice is sets me up for the whole day, makes me feel great and has improved my sleep and energy levels. Meditating was a free and easy fix for my mild anxiety and definitely increased my quality of life.