Life is full of all kinds of pain: physical, mental, emotional. Perhaps you are getting ready for surgery, mending a broken heart or trying to limit your pain medication.  Perhaps your pain is coupled with depression or maybe you just want to feel better. Today we will discuss how meditation can help ease the pain. And in the meantime add oodles of additional benefits to your life. Link to NPR Article  

Alexa Z Show

Isn't Life a Pain? Meditation as a Bit of Medication.

As we seek to build our resilience you can use this short five-minute guided meditation as your anchor to the present, safe, moment.

EP 36 Five- Minute Meditation - Safe Place

Feeling out of sorts, a bit wonky? This pandemic has left a lot of us with a desire to make a change but hesitation or procrastination is affecting our ability to flourish. Let's see how you can move forward in life and make changes a bit more easily. You don't need to change your whole life right now, start small and see big things unfold. We are lacking resilience and it is time to pump it up and find out mojo!

Epiode 35: Where Did Your Mojo Go? Finding Resilience

This episode of The Alexa Z Show provides listeners with a Guided Meditation experience called Yoga Nidra. The intention of this meditation is to provide a feeling of peace. Alexa discusses how this 20-minute meditation done once, or better yet, a few times a week, can be just the thing we need during the pandemic to soothe our souls and calm our nervous system.

EP34: Guided Meditation Experience - I am Peace

SUMMARY This episode of The Alexa Z Show discusses her "list" that causes a whole range of negative emotions within her, and the analogy of riding a horse to go the direction that you want to go. She talks about taking 5 minutes of calm to control your emotions and avoid negative thoughts from taking over. This short time, every single day, is all you need to overcome your own list of negativity. QUOTES 05:45 "I want you to get away from all the emotions that are connected to that crappy list I just gave you. The emotions of fear and anxiety and grief and sorrow and, I'm getting all the bad ones, exhaustion, confusion, depression." 06:57 "I had that thought and then I had this feeling and then that reaction happened. Normal, that's the way we think it goes. It's the exact opposite. Your emotions arrive first and your thoughts come later." 08:00 "Do you want to be right or do you want to win?" 09:53 "Take 5 minutes for yourself and realize, scientifically, that you are using that mindful time to calm, make that nerve, make everything that's going up to your brain slow down." 11:23 "You want to guide that horse. You want to guide yourself in the direction that you want to go. You want to not be reactive. You want to build your own path" ------------------------------ HIGHLIGHTS 02:59 Acknowledging your list of negativity 07:23 Control your feelings to control your thoughts 09:36 Using 5 minutes to calm your vagus nerve Resources : www.alexazshow.com

EP33: Why You Should Get Back on the Meditation Horse and Stay on It.

SUMMARY This episode of The Alexa Z Show discusses the relationship of courageous decisions and meditation. Alexa begins by acknowledging the rapid changes everyone is dealing with and how to show up with the clearest mind to take action. She also shares her own thoughts about selfishness and giving up and her determination to make the best decisions that affect herself, her business, and all the people whose lives she touches. Alexa also discusses how the stillness of meditation provides the clarity you need to make sincere and courageous decisions. QUOTES 00:43 "Any change can be scary. But with the help of a clear head and an open heart, meditation can help you unlock the courage to do just about anything." 02:08 "If you're not healthy, clear, and in touch with your inner self, then the quality of your actions is definitely going to suffer." 03:13 "Quality is never an accident. It is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction, and skillful execution. It represents the wise choice of many alternatives." - WillIam A. Foster 06:43 "If you can take explicit action, or at least hope your action is explicit, then whatever the consequences are—good, bad, or indifferent—you can deal with it." 08:01 "You sit and be quiet. The insight will be more insightful and that piece of your body that you are giving restful time and peace, it will give you also that clear, peaceful mind and the courage to make sincere, clear, and intelligent decisions."  HIGHLIGHTS 01:34 Dealing with change & showing up the best you can be  05:38 Doing what's best for you & the dealing with the guilt that comes with it  07:06 Taking care of yourself first ------------------------------ RESOURCES https://www.alexazmeditates.com/podcast

EP:32 Making Courageous Decisions and Feeling Strong About it

In this episode, I will shed some light on how meditation can help us stop latching on to stories in our minds that limit our abilities and, ultimately, our success. Are you going back to work, are you still quarantined, are you ready for your kids to get out of zoom class and start living a healthy life? But are you scared? We know the immediate future is far from normal, but with a daily dose of peaceful gumption, you can do it.  Hold tight, and let's figure this out, ok? Hey there, Alexa Z here, and I am back to work. Not only teaching meditation, but my spa is open, and I am massaging and meditating my way out of a pothole—a big pothole. This hole is big enough that I can barely see daylight, and it smells a bit like I have been in it too long. This pothole holds some miserable stories. Stories like: I may go broke, trying to get the business up and running. I am working my ass off and will continue to lose money until we go bankrupt. I have injuries that I am ignoring, so I will probably need spinal fusion soon. My employees won't come back. My husband is going to start to hate me because all I do is work. I spend the rest of my life working a job I am not sure I have passion for anymore. Now here is the truth. There is financial distress and hard work ahead, and I need to stay healthy and avoid injury. That is about the extent of the truth in those stories. The rest is made up of exaggerated, bullshit excuses for why I might fail or why my life sucks. What are your stories? I am sorry to say this, but we all have stories filled with sorrow, despair, illness, and sadly even death. So how is that working for you? I love hearing people's stories, and I love that I can help people through using meditation to sort stuff out, get out of the head and into the heart, blah blah blah. But, I must tell you the truth, I was beginning to get tired of people's stories. I hear young and old people cry and moan over how hard their lives are now that they have to go back to work in this awful life where we have to wear a mask and all I can think is "holy crap you have never experienced hardship have you?" You have a job, and you can perform it? Lucky you. I want to say, "shut the hell up and stop complaining you entitled, lazy little shit." And this is where I said to myself ENOUGH. You don't mean any of that, that is not you, you feel for these people, and you want to help, but you can't even get out of your way because I have become a little selfish shit. Meditation - calm down, observe your thoughts, let them pass, do not latch on to them. 75,000 thoughts, most mundane, and the ones in the pothole are NOT the ones I want to spend time with. So why do I latch onto them? Because it's easy. It takes no effort to be carried away by a distraction. It just happens to be a shitty distraction. Lately, my personal practice has surrounded thoughts and letting go, and right now, that is so hard! But every morning I do it like a soldier on a mission. Sit, let go of thoughts, be aware of them, don't get hung up on how many are floating by, and don't get angry they negative thoughts. Just permit yourself for even 5 minutes to let go and hang out. Be with yourself and watch them float by like clouds. By letting go, you gain freedom, and this freedom can last the whole day—the freedom to guide your body mind and spirit to the right place. This place in your mind is one of peace, productivity, and positivity. Use your mind to choose where you put your attention and energy. Start small, find the courage to let yourself start over every day like it was a new day because it is a new day, and if you aren't present for it, then it is just another day gone lost not found. If you are meditating, don't stop, actually do a  bit more. If you haven't started, what is stopping you? You know this is a meditation motivation podcast, so I know you want to learn. If you are stuck, go to my website at www.alexazmeditates.com and click on a free consult. No strings attached, I do like to help.

EP31 Stop Latching on to that Useless Story You Created and Get Back to Life

In today's episode, I am going to address a topic that might make you feel a bit uncomfortable. I like to call it, "Well, what the heck am I going to do now?" There is no way around it, life is going to look different soon, and like me, you may be rethinking life a bit. If you are working, maybe it doesn't feel right; if you are not working, perhaps you don't want to go back to the job you were in, or you want the way you live your daily life to look a bit different. How does meditation help you dig through all of this muck? There are many ways, and without meditation, I may be sitting here crying instead of plotting about how I can thrive and not just survive.  No meditation won't solve all of your problems, but it may help a lot more than you think. Hey there, Alexa Z here. It's been a while since I sat down to write a podcast. One month and a few weeks to be not exact, and I was not happy about the break. Truthfully, I was pissed at myself because I vowed for one year not to miss a week, and well, crap happened. My husband told me I should stop being so hard on myself.  My Coach told me not to write until it was in me to write. Well here we are and it feels great! On March 16th my Spa closed due to COVID, my twenty employees were temporarily laid off and blah blah blah, life changed. The worst part is that at this moment I have NO idea what comes next. I know that we will reopen one day, but I don't know what day or even if clients will come back, but I can't just give up, right? Well, I guess I could, but according to my inner compass, that is not an option. The inner compass, you ask? You know that part of you deep inside that knows the answer to just about everything. But you thought you just heard me say that I have no idea what will happen, so how can my inner self know the answer. Well, the quieter I become, the more it speaks to me. I have responsibilities to my family, my creditors, and my employees, I can't just rollover. But I can start imagining, without fear, but with a more playful attitude. What could change? Big things, little things, something I can control in a world that appears to be taking away all of my control? Did you ever hear a friend say, "just put it out to the universe, the answer will come." I am here to say that it is a total bunch of BS unless you give the universe a bit of help. Don't be lazy, keep moving, drink from the fire hose of life, and see what new flavor may be in store for you. Or perhaps George Bernard Shaw put it more eloquently,  "A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent doing nothing." What have you learned during this quarantine? Or what have you learned by deciding not to learn? The easiest way to describe something is through a story, and mine is the one I know best, so maybe you can relate. I started thinking about another career, yup, because CPA, Massage Therapist, Spa Owner, Meditation Teacher wasn't quite enough right now. I was a bit forced since once we reopen, my paycheck will probably stay in the uncashed pile for quite a while. However, that wasn't really why. The real reason was I had the time to think about what I was missing in life, and I was shocked to find that I missed using my old brain. The part of my mind that used to crunch numbers and keep finances all nice and tidy for people. Now, wait, this isn't all about work and money; it's about how you want to spend your time. PS - I am writing this from Maine, where my husband and I now realize that we want to grow old someday. See personal stuff for me, too, not all biz. But that will be another episode! Take a moment and close your eyes, take a long, slow inhale, and a slow complete exhale. Do it two more times. Now breathe normally and bring to mind an experience or better yet a feeling that made you feel great, or perhaps made you say ah-ha, I forgot how good that felt. Once the world is back to the new normal, will these experiences/feelings end? Maybe, that is up to you. Back to my story, which yes, is connected to work, but it is relating to my ah-ha. Once we were mandated to close, I had to apply for disaster relief loans, grants, and anything else I could find, even before I understood it all. You can't let the grass grow under your feet in times like this. Get the money fast before it is gone. Then get it and wonder what to do with it, possibly give it back. The funniest thing was, I found myself enjoying applying for them. I enjoyed reading all the rules that changed every day, and it didn't even make me mad. I found the whole process quite fascinating. I loved explaining it to other small businesses. Then I would go back to the reality that I was filling them out for MY business that after 17 years might fail, and then I would cry a lot. Come on; this isn't all rainbows and unicorns. How to stop crying and forge ahead with a clear mind and an open heart? Meditation. It balances our emotional and logical brains, our body, and our soul. If you can take away reaction and replace it with action, great things can happen. Oh, the other essential thing I learned is that I love working from home. I was born to work alone or at least with just a small group. Over the years, my circle has gone from hundreds to dozens, to a bunch to a handful, and I handful is my happy place. I learned that I love, love, love teaching meditation, but not so much about its business side.  Sadly things cost money; this podcast costs money; my teaching platforms cost thousands; I have to charge money. I will never stop teaching, but I have to figure out not to make teaching meditation part of my career path. Meditation is as essential as food and water; I don't' want to start hating it because I have to talk about it more than practice it! I know there are people out there who know what I am talking about. Hmmm, will work for food and shelter? I digress. What about meditation, you ask? It brings out courage. Sitting in stillness, listening to your inner wisdom is better than Netflix and Ben and Jerry's.  Courage is hard to find, but we must. Now, does that mean I have it all figured out? Far from it. But I am getting closer. I learned so much, not just a new industry; I learned what I like. I learned what jazzes me even when others might find it boring, trite, weird, who cares! Now instead of fearing what comes next, I am excited to take all my spaghetti and start throwing it against the wall. And when the tears or fears may yet arise, because you know they will, you find courage in asking for help, a hug or maybe just some Ben and Jerry's. It's all going to be ok. One day at a time, one step at a time, one breath at a time. Now please take some time. I am NOT saying get a Ph.D. or become a concert pianist; I am just saying open your heart and mind and dig deep. You are already amazing, but I am sure that underneath all that fantastic stuff is even another layer of amazing. Be the best version of yourself. Don't stop trying. Get more sleep Drink more water Turn the TV off and find a book Tell your kids you love them, again Have a date night with someone you love (or better yet yourself) Take a bath (unless you're quarantine dirty then go with a long shower)  Know that life will continue even if the tennis and swim club is closed. Eat all the leftovers in the fridge. Throw nothing away! Be Present Meditate Don't know how? Well, golly, there's the thing you should learn. The best time to learn to meditate is in the middle of a crisis, and I think we found one.

EP 30 Stop Surviving and Start Thriving – A Meditator’s look into what you might have missed in the middle of this COVID Pandemic

We live in a society where social media is steering our subconscious. Driving us towards what we think we should be doing, and often that has nothing to do with what we want to be doing. Everyone on Instagram is playing at the beach because the thermometer has barely hit 65 (although it's only the beginning of March, and it should be snowing. You think, oh my god, I better get outside and enjoy this magnificent weather because, well, it may never come again. But in reality, you had a hectic week, you are exhausted, and you were looking forward to a fireplace and a book. So, turn up the air-conditioning, light a fire and get your darn book. Last I checked, you are in charge of your life. In this episode, I am going to shed some light on the art and glory of saying no. Why does this have anything to do with meditation, you ask? Well, thanks for asking because it has heaps to do with it. And the answer comes from deep inside the most incredible work of art, which is you. However, this beautiful place seems to get often smothered underneath perhaps: lack of confidence, a desire to please, a fear of being judged, a need to be appreciated, a "Fear of Missing Out" (FOMO).  By the end of this brief episode, you are going to want to run out the door and say no to everything that does not fit the blueprint of the life you want to create. And this my friend creates, JOMO. The "Joy of Missing Out." ___________________________________ Hey there, Alexa Z here, and thank you for saying yes to listening to this podcast when you easily could have said no. And since it was easy, I ask that that you quickly hit subscribe to this to keep me going. Then at that time, a podcast drops; you will know about it and can easily say yes or no to listening! It's all up to you. No guilt! How many times have you said yes to something and then lamented over why you said yes? So much so that you find yourself making up lies to get out of whatever you answered yes to and then living with the guilt of the lie. And 99% of the time, no one would care if you said no.  Just as fears are something we learn, saying yes to everything can become a learned habit. We are programmed starting from when we are very young that NO is an inappropriate or rude answer. Eat your broccoli, NO, share your toys, NO. It just isn't the right answer. But saying yes to things when you wanted to say no can cause so much angst. Why bother? Think of a time you said yes instead of no and asked yourself why? Then ask it a few more times. For example, my friends want to go to a concert in NYC, and I said yes, but I wish I said no.  Why? Because I don't have enough money. But you really don't want them to know that. Why? Because I don't make as much money as they do. I don't want to be judged regarding my career choice. Why? Because I love my career, but they don't understand? Why? Because I feel like they will judge me. Why? Because all my life I have been judged, my mother always said I wasn't good enough.  Do you see where I am going with this? There are things deep inside us that keep us from listening to what sometimes can be a straightforward question. My executive coach taught me this "Yum or Yuck?" Sometimes it is that easy, and here is where meditation can help.  Here is a true story:  Wanting to be more vulnerable. Talk about the guy who didn't want to go on the golf trip. Meditation made him feel, clear, confident, and nonreactive, and he said NO and was so happy.  What about people who have restricted diets or maybe are on a diet?  Did you ever hear the comedian John Mulaney do the bit on canceling plans? It goes something like this: "It's so much easier not to do things than to do things. It's 100% easier not to do things and so much fun not to do things, especially when you were supposed to do them.  In terms of instant relief canceling plans is like heroin - instant joy.  Kids don't like that - they say awwwwww we didn't do anything all day.  Did you ever as an adult what they did over the weekend, and they said they didn't do anything, and their face lights up!" Although funny, this is pretty spot on. But it's hard. Meditation and mindfulness give us space to build our inner voice, our inner courage because it helps us be more comfortable being ourselves. For example, in a self-inquiry meditation, we ask ourselves a question such as "who am I" and be comfortable just sitting with the question without even answering it." We are building courage through listening to our inner wisdom and intuition.  There is nothing more satisfying then saying exactly what we want to say without question and without worrying about the outcome.  The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz Be impeccable with your word. Don't take anything personally. Don't make assumptions. Always do your best. If you haven't read it or you haven't read it in years, please do!    My personal meditation addition goes like this: Be impeccable with your word. Be true to yourself; you are worth it. Don't take anything personally. Do not judge or be judged Don't make assumptions. Be mindful that we are all humans with our own stories. Own yours, but don't makeup someone else's.  Always do your best. Start with this one, and the rest will follow. Use mindful actions to remind yourself always to do your best.   Use your daily practice to nourish yourself and be the very best you can be. A truthful, courageous and confident human. Homework: Say no once and see how it feels.  Yum or Yuck? Give it a try.  Slow down before you speak, listen to your inner wisdom.  Ask yourself why you are saying yes and then ask again and maybe a third or fourth time. With all the craziness in the world, especially now with the Corona Virus, remember to take time to care for yourself. Meditation helps increase your immune system and calm the nervous system.  If you haven't started, why not join my next group of Tators in the class beginning on April 19th. And it's all done online, so no need to worry about infection. It's going to be fun, easy, and useful.  Join me next week for another week of March Un-madness Peace out tators

EP29 Learn to Mindfully Say No and Turn FOMO into JOMO

A show for those who want to meditate or maybe tried, loved it one day, hated it the next or maybe forgot why the heck they were supposed to do it anyway. Join me for real-life discussions on meditation and living a mindful life. This podcast is about real, modern-day living where even without rainbows and unicorns, your life can still be spectacular. Listen in and start each week feeling less stressed, focused, empowered, grateful and ready to take on the world in your own peaceful way!

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Alexa Z Show

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