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cmarchione
USA
5 Posts |
 Posted - Oct 06 2009 : 7:27:40 PM
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Hello,
I have been doing asana practice for over a year and just recently started deep meditation after reading AYP and the supplement books. When I start to meditate, I am fine however about 3 minutes into it I get head pain that increases in intensity. I do as the book instructs to back-off and rest. Most times it will dissipate but sometimes I cannot resume for the pain is too much. I have been able to go to almost 10 minutes but it is so uncomfortable. I added 5 minutes of deep spinal pranayama today before meditation and that did not help...I had the head pain all day :(
I assume I have some serious blockages ( I did have encephalitus last year) but my question is am I doing more damage if I continue past the 3- 5 minute mark? I've been doing twice a day meditation for 2 weeks now and am afraid I'm doing something I should not be doing since the head pain lingers so long. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!!!! |
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Tibetan_Ice
Canada
758 Posts |
Posted - Oct 06 2009 : 8:36:34 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by cmarchione
I've been doing twice a day meditation for 2 weeks now and am afraid I'm doing something I should not be doing since the head pain lingers so long. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!!!!
Hi cmarchione :)
Welcome to the forum.
When you meditate, do you stretch the mantra out over the timespan of say 5 or 6 seconds (or longer) as in "AAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAMMMMMMMMMMM"? Or do you simply think the mantra in about 1/2 a second and then release it?
TI |
Edited by - Tibetan_Ice on Oct 06 2009 8:57:06 PM |
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cmarchione
USA
5 Posts |
Posted - Oct 06 2009 : 9:02:39 PM
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Hi Tibetan_Ice and thank you for the welcome!
:)
I stretch 'I AM' out about 3-4 seconds. And I notice that the pain is more intense when I am on the "AAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYEEEEEEEE" part of the mantra.
I forgot to add that I do take shavasana (rest) for 10 minutes after each meditation session. |
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Yonatan
Israel
849 Posts |
Posted - Oct 06 2009 : 9:16:43 PM
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Hi 
Is there something you are "fighting" off while thinking the mantra? like thoughts or sensations? That is one thing that could lead to headaches.
If not, then it is probably purification.. I think the best thing I could say is that when the headache begins during meditation then it may be time to end it. after a while the purification may end and you'd be able to increase the time.
Love |
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Tibetan_Ice
Canada
758 Posts |
Posted - Oct 06 2009 : 11:21:30 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by cmarchione
Hi Tibetan_Ice and thank you for the welcome!
:)
I stretch 'I AM' out about 3-4 seconds. And I notice that the pain is more intense when I am on the "AAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYEEEEEEEE" part of the mantra.
I forgot to add that I do take shavasana (rest) for 10 minutes after each meditation session.
Hi cmarchione,
I'm sure others here will have good advice. :)
The one piece of advice that should be mentioned is to always consult your doctor when afflicted with some persistent distress. Have you had a checkup recently? How is your blood pressure? Are you still on medication?
In my opinion, and this is just my opinion, you may be pumping too much prana into your head too soon. Backing off completely may be good advice as is "then just do 2 minutes of meditation" and see. You might also try putting your tongue on the roof of your mouth to help drain the buildup of prana from your head (if that is the problem).
Or, or you could try performing short little repetitions of the mantra and see what happens. Think the mantra and then release it. Don't stretch it out. Think "I am", short and sweet, let it go and then relax. Do it again. etc..
I believe (from self observation) that stretching out the mantra pumps a lot prana/chi into the head. Actually, where you place your awareness, prana/chi follows. So, if the short easy mantra repetitions still cause headaches, I would back off completely and try some other meditation like sensing the inner body.
According to Eckhart Tolle, placing awareness or consciousness into the body (as opposed to the mind) not only helps still the mind but is supposed to help cure any ailment and bolster your immune system. I believe it is an excellent practice, but that is my opinion and it may differ from others on this forum. :)
Best of luck. I will pray for you. :)
TI |
Edited by - Tibetan_Ice on Oct 07 2009 02:31:26 AM |
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cmarchione
USA
5 Posts |
Posted - Oct 06 2009 : 11:40:20 PM
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Hi :)
I do not believe I am fighting anything. The mantra comes very easy to me and I feel very calm. When the head pain begins obviously my thought goes to the pain but I quickly return to the mantra.
I thought it may be blockages trying to shake loose due to the illness I had last year but wasn't sure how long I should try to work through the pain after backing off.
I will try your suggestion and stop my meditation once the pain begins. I guess the phrase "no pain no gain" does not apply in this situation. 
Thank you and peaceful journeys,
Carol |
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cmarchione
USA
5 Posts |
Posted - Oct 07 2009 : 05:09:38 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by Tibetan_Ice
The one piece of advice that should be mentioned is to always consult your doctor when afflicted with some persistent distress. Have you had a checkup recently? How is your blood pressure? Are you still on medication?
I have been to a neurologist many times over the first 6 months of this year. Everything life-threatening has been ruled out and my blood pressure is on the low side. Thankfully, I am not on any medication.
I will also try "I AM" short and sweet...see how that goes.
Thank you for your wonderful reponse and prayers
Peaceful journeys,
Carol |
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Shanti
USA
4854 Posts |
Posted - Oct 07 2009 : 07:32:22 AM
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Welcome Cmarchione.
Sounds like you have a lot of purification going on.
Yogani has talked about a new kind of mantra meditation he is designing for sensitive meditators. Maybe you'd like to drop him a line?
http://www.aypsite.org/forum/topic....D=6471#58026
quote:
Originally posted by yogani
There is some research going on behind the scenes that might offer some help for those who are sensitive in deep meditation. I will send you an email with some suggestions. It is still tentative, so I am reluctant to lay it out in public just yet. As soon as we are sure we have something, it will be.
Others who are sensitive in deep meditation, feel free to note it here or drop me a line. We are looking for more testers.
All the best!
The guru is in you.
Wish you all the best. |
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Etherfish
USA
3615 Posts |
Posted - Oct 07 2009 : 08:01:03 AM
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| You might want to try various asanas or stretching exercises before meditation. I've been finding emotional blockages in my shoulders and upper back that are released by doing back bends. |
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Christi
United Kingdom
4514 Posts |
Posted - Oct 07 2009 : 10:43:53 AM
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Hi Cmarchione,
The classic advice given in AYP is that if you are experiencing discomfort either during or between practices, then cut back on the time that you are doing the practices for. In this case if you are comfortable with 2 or 3 minutes of meditation, then I would stick with that. Some people find that adding some light Spinal Breathing before meditation can smoothe things out, but if it doesn't help then I would leave it for now.
If you find that you need to cut back further, then that is O.K. Once you are able to find your stable level over time, you can then gradually increase the time of Deep Meditation up to 20 minutes, and look to adding in Spinal Breathing.
Christi |
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cmarchione
USA
5 Posts |
Posted - Oct 07 2009 : 9:35:36 PM
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This is such a wonderful community! Thank you everyone for your very helpful suggestions!
Carol |
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kaserdar
91 Posts |
Posted - Oct 08 2009 : 05:37:38 AM
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Yes Tibetan_Ice is right, sometimes during meditation our awareness is placed in our head unintentionally. Because we think like the process is going on in there or mantra is there etc.
I too experience sometimes headache or head pressure. As yogani says no body part should be involved with our awareness. So for me instead of cutting meditation time off, letting go body feelings and being with the mantra sound was better approach. |
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Topic |
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Head Pain during and after Meditation
