Unit 10: Reflections on the course

I have made progress towards my goals. Initially, my goals were to maintain a healthy weight, maintain an intimate relationship with God, and maintain a calm disposition in spite of my emotions in stressful situations by possessing an assertive behavior. I have accomplished my goals with evidence of some improvement.


I implemented the activities of walking on a tread mill, yoga, and instead of aerobics, I’ve been lifting weights to keep me interested in exercising. The aerobics was getting to be a bit redundant and boring, so I modified the activity with free weights to keep working towards my goals. I pray regularly and attend bible studies. I was able to engage in more in depth praying due to the course, so I have a deeper intimacy in my relationship with God. To keep my thoughts organized, I have kept a journal to reflect on my emotions and it has helped me to understand my feelings a lot more.

In summary, my mental work outs I’ve participated in through out the course had varied results. On some days, I was able to concentrate more and be able to hold my attention to that inner calm and tapped into that third eye aspect of wisdom briefly. On other days, I was too frustrated and self absorbed in my personal problems to be attentive to that inner calm and ended up more focused on my breathing. The loving kindness practice was more difficult to sustain focus and still seems like an advanced activity for a more experienced meditator in the beginning. However, after some practice with the subtle mind activity, I may be able to incorporate the loving kindness practice into my schedule as the subtle mind practice feels more natural to me later on. The rewards I got from these activities were great! I can be more of an observer to my emotions, be more proactive in conflicts, and be calmer in stressful situations. As a result, I am able to listen to others now with an open mind and heart. I am more sensitive to other people’s feelings and I have a greater understanding of what my patients are going through when they relay their experiences to me. The course has expanded my perception to the needs of others and I am able to manage my stress better as well. The loving kindness practice was difficult at first, but as my needs change, I’m sure I will be able to incorporate it into my schedule once I take a vacation to visit a retreat center and seek additional help from experienced teachers.