Meditation for Anxiety in PMDD...& Why You Don't Need It!
What if I told you that you don't need to meditate or do a mindfulness exercise to practice mindfulness?
-
What if I also told you that it is an act of mindfulness to:
kindly acknowledge how much things suck right now
recognize your needs
and choose to move forward by giving yourself what you need right now
That's what I talk about in this episode.
I also share how I haven't been practicing mindfulness the same way I'm used to, since struggling through autistic burnout (which also gets much worse, for me, in the luteal phase).
Oh...and I also guide you through a meditation for PMDD anxiety at the end.
In case you do feel up for a guided meditation. -
Title: Meditation for Anxiety in PMDD...& Why You Don't Need It!
Episode number: 27
Date: 12.06.24
Solo / meditation episode: Diane is the only speaker
EXCERPT (00:00)
Okay, this is something that's, that I'm confronting in my life right now, but let's see what I can do with it instead of completely resisting and fighting against it.
Let's see how I can work with this and take care of myself and support myself through this to the best of my ability.
And isn't that mindfulness? I would argue that it is.
INTRO (00:00:43)
If you want to learn how you can live better with PMDD, this podcast was created for you. This is Mindfulness for PMDD with Diane. I'm Diane, and I'm a registered dietitian and lactation consultant. I'm also a mom, a PMDD warrior, and a trauma-informed mindfulness teacher. And this is where I discuss topics related to PMDD through the lens of mindfulness and meditation, and where I share all about how mindfulness has gotten me to a place of greater peace and acceptance with my PMDD.
I also chat with people who have helped and inspired me along the way, so they can share their wisdom with you too. So let's get started.
EMAIL LIST NOTE (00:01:35)
Hey, PMDD friend. If you want to be the first to know when a new episode is coming out, head to the show notes to join the Mindfulness for PMDD email list. I'll send you a heads up when I've scheduled a new episode to be published.
I'll also give you sneak peeks at topics I'm working on and guests that I've booked. And maybe you can even submit your requests and suggestions for upcoming episodes. Get on the list in the show notes below this episode.
WHEN MEDITATION FEELS TOO HARD TO REACH (00:02:00)
Hi, this episode today is a meditation, but it's my second episode in a row where I'm publishing a meditation, and I was reflecting on that and I just want to share some of my reflections with you.
So the reason I'm posting two meditations in a row is that I was looking back at my episodes to make sure they were balanced, because I tend to publish expert interviews, mindfulness exercises, and me talking about PMDD, my experiences with PMDD, as well as looking at PMDD from a mindfulness angle and how we can use mindfulness ideas to support ourselves through our PMDD journey.
I also recently published a couple of episodes about my own journey in discovering that I'm autistic. So in this process of looking back, I realized I didn't have as many meditations posted as I would like. So last week I published one, this week, today, I'm giving you one as well.
And I thought about, okay, why is that? And I realized that I didn't have so many meditations posted up because I have been in a period, a season of really struggling and struggling in a more, like, acute way.
I'm very much still going through autistic burnout. Autistic burnout, for anyone who isn't familiar with that term, is a state of extreme physical and mental and cognitive exhaustion brought on by the stressors and sensory stimulations and sensory overload issues that you're experiencing, kind of, like, exceeding and outpacing your capacity so that you're just done. You're done.
And it can look different from person to person, and it can also last a different amount of time from person to person. It can last weeks, it can last months, it can last years.
And how do you get out of it? You get out of it by resting and by seeing how much you can really go back and make adjustments in your life to address those stressors and those sensory overload issues that, kind of, brought on that burnout in the first place. So my point is, I'm in an acute season of life, of struggle right now.
And so what happens sometimes, not just to me, but to many of us, is that when we're really in the thick of it, it can be much more difficult to either continue on or start on a path of using mindfulness and meditation and learning about mindfulness and meditation and incorporating it into our daily living. It's just so much, it can be so much harder to access when we're really acutely struggling and just, kind of, trying to get through, just make it through a day.
And so that's where I've been for now. It's been months. And my, my very first — my very first mindfulness teacher, she used to call it falling off the Zen train, and it's how she would describe when she was maybe not doing quite as much meditations and mindfulness as she would, or maybe not doing it in the ways that she was used to.
And I loved that. I loved when she would share that she had fallen off the Zen train. Why? Because it made me feel, like, normal, and that I shouldn't feel ashamed of falling off the Zen train.
Her name is Nikki Wilson, by the way. Nikki Wilson would say that she'd fallen off the Zen train. And so what I want to share that I learned from Nikki is that this is completely normal and completely okay.
It makes perfect sense. It happens to all of us. Mindfulness is something that we're always working on. It's, it's a journey. Can we find a better word for journey? I'm going to work on that. Like, I make myself exhausted just hearing that word as I'm saying it.
But yeah, it's not something we just achieve and then, like, we're done and we've mastered mindfulness. It's something that we're, we're going through and we're working on all the time. And so it's okay if you fall off the Zen train.
But then, you know, as I was thinking that I thought, well, actually, I could be much more compassionate with myself and take a broader view of mindfulness and realize that, well, even though I'm not practicing the way I previously would or previously might, actually, I still go outside and say to myself, you know what, instead of listening to a podcast or an audio book or making a phone call, let's just go for a walk and see if, you know, see if I can take in my environment and see if I can pay attention to my senses.
And what do I see? And what do I feel? I feel the ground under, you know, the soles of my shoes. I feel the warmth of the sun. I feel the cool of the breeze. I smell, you know, cut grass, 'cause someone's, like, mowing over there, whatever it is. That's mindfulness.
Or realizing that I'm getting really stirred up and keyed up and I'm getting really anxious and, like, my thoughts are running everywhere and I feel like I want to, like, climb out of my skin, and I feel like my mind and my body are, like, racing way ahead of me and I can't get ahold of myself.
And I actually am able to notice that and take a time out and, like, step away or take a few deep breaths or step outside and, like, literally put my bare feet on some grass. Or, you know, something like that. That's mindfulness, right?
I could even zoom out further and take an even broader view of mindfulness and realize, well, wait, also the fact that I have been just trying to acknowledge what I'm going through and kind of take some time to rest, to say yes to the things I want to say yes to, to say no to things I don't want to do, to prioritize sleep and drinking water and eating the things that make my body feel good. Isn't that mindfulness too?
Mindfulness is bringing our awareness to our present moment experience and accepting what we find with kindness and without judgment. That's it.
So, if you're struggling with PMDD, if you've just discovered you're autistic and now you're, like, reflecting back on your whole life, if you're going through a period of burnout of any sort, and you're going, okay, okay, this is something that's, that I'm confronting in my life right now, but let's see what I can do with it instead of completely resisting and fighting against it.
Let's see how I can work with this and take care of myself and support myself through this to the best of my ability. And isn't that mindfulness? I would argue that it is.
Okay. So now that I've said all that, I'm going to share with you this meditation that I had recorded previously for a different usage. And then I realized that it was a lovely meditation and I wanted to share it here on the podcast.
It's a meditation. So I'm, I'm going to guide you through something, and I'm going to, you know, offer that you do it sitting down and see if you can feel your feet on the ground. You can take it or you can leave it. Take only what serves you and leave the rest behind.
Mindfulness is just bringing our awareness to our present moment experience and seeing if we can just accept what we find there with kindness and without judgment. So you don't have to do it through meditation. I'm offering you a meditation, but you don't have to do mindfulness through a meditation.
And that's what I'm going to share today. Okay. I'm gonna stop rambling on. If you have any thoughts about that, or if you have any thoughts about the meditation, please feel free to get in contact with me.
You can do that through the show notes or find me on Instagram. Okay, folks. Love you. Take care of yourselves. Bye bye.
SAFETY NOTE / DISCLAIMER (00:13:09)
The following is a mindfulness exercise or meditation, so if you're driving or otherwise distracted, I invite you to save it for a time when you can find yourself a moment of comfortable stillness and practice safely. If now's that time, let's get started.
MINDFULNESS MOMENT: THE STEADY ANCHOR (00:13:28)
I call this mindful moment, the steady anchor. And I really like this one for when I'm starting to get that anxious, buzzing feeling throughout my body during the luteal phase, or when I'm feeling overwhelmed and like sitting still for a longer meditation is perhaps something I just don't have the capacity for in that moment.
So this one really helps me to feel grounded. I find it soothing, and like it helps me to get out of my head and rejoin the present moment, especially if I was starting to feel a bit dissociated. So I invite you to join me in this mindful moment now.
Wherever you are, I invite you to find a comfortable seat.
You could also choose to do this one standing, if you prefer.
Taking a cleansing breath inward, and a long slow breath outward, if that feels safe and comfortable for you.
And if you're joining in the breaths, continue to take conscious breaths here, seeing if you can feel the movement of the body as the body breathes.
A rising sensation as you breathe in,
and a falling sensation as you breathe out.
And if this feels challenging, you might choose to add some words.
Even just, I'm breathing in, I'm breathing out.
Or you can shift your focus to a single object in your surroundings.
And with your next out breath, I invite you to gently close down your eyes and allow the breath to return to a natural rhythm.
Now, see if you can bring the focus of your awareness to the weight of your body pressing down on the surface beneath you.
You can choose whether that is the feeling of your body resting on the surface you are sitting on, or lying on, or the feeling of your feet on the floor or the ground.
So choosing your anchor, see if you can tune into that sense of connection.
This anchor is going to be ever present. It doesn't change.
So it doesn't matter how many thoughts come and go, and it doesn't matter how strong any emotions are.
The moment we realize we're getting caught up in our thoughts and feelings, we can come back to that sensation.
That feeling of being grounded, of that connection to our anchor.
It's as though we're able to step out from the fullness of the mind and just be present in the body.
And if you get distracted by another sensation in the body or another [thought?], rather than pushing it away, I invite you to try gently noticing it, and then inviting your awareness back to that sensation of being grounded, to your anchor, to the surface beneath you or your feet on the floor.
And if you get distracted by a thought or a feeling, see if you can just note, I'm thinking about blank, or I'm feeling X,
and then letting it go, return to your anchor, coming back to the sensation of that surface beneath you.
Not pushing sensations or thoughts away, but allowing thoughts and feelings to arise.
And the moment we realize we're getting caught up in them, trying to just notice them and coming back to that feeling of being grounded.
Being present, no longer caught up in the noisiness of our mind.
I'll give you another moment to practice that, if you wish.
Feeling everything begin to just slow down a little bit.
And beginning to bring your awareness back into the room, as and when you're ready, I invite you to begin wiggling your fingers and toes, and gently open your eyes.
Well done for taking this mindful moment for yourself today. And thank you so much for joining me in this space.
OUTRO (00:20:35)
Thank you so much for listening. If you liked the show, please subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. For links to everything mentioned in this episode, you can check out the show notes and you can find me, Diane DeJesus, on Instagram @mindfulnessforpmdd. Now, I invite you to pause, take a breath, and look around.
