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I honestly think one of the reasons so many people wake feeling sluggish and tired in the morning is because of the toxic thoughts they go to bed with the night before.

Negative Thoughts Make It Hard To Get A Good Night's Sleep

Lets face it, it's pretty hard to get away from the economic crisis and life's daily crisis' but going to bed thinking about it, isn't actually helping you deal with it any better. Infact, it just intensifies your thoughts. And if your thoughts weren't so positive to begin with, continually thinking about them as you drift off to sleep, will just make your zzz's a lot harder to enjoy.

Daydreaming Makes You Feel Good Day AND Night

It's simple science. Go to bed 'daydreaming' on things that make you feel good, and you will wake feeling more rested in the morning.

Simple Meditation For A Good Night's Sleep

1. Upon placing your head on the pillow each night, simply choose one thought that brings warmth to your heart. It could be remembering something great in your day, your year or lifetime, something you observed or read about that touched your heart, or something you would love to create in your life.
2. Just allow your thoughts and feelings to turn to this one enjoyable thought, and then slowly and deeply, breath in that image.
3. Keep breathing in and out, while turning your attention to your positive image and when you are ready, you will quite naturally relax and drift off to sleep.

Sweet Dreams this month everyone. :)

We're only a month in to the year, and I have already witnessed the amazing benefits that daily meditation brings to my family, clients, friends and community.

The thing is, when you meditate, you radiate that energy to everyone around you. The positive vibes you get from meditating, whether it's to reduce stress, feel more energised, chill out, practice gratitude, or create your life dreams, are enormous. The impact you have on others when you meditate is immeasurable and incredible.

I did a test on this throughout January. On the rare days I didn't meditate, every single person in my household was more stressed and less tolerant. Yet every single time I walked out of my meditation space feeling more at peace and centred, the mood shift of the family was quite extraordinary. I even did simple two minute 'belly breaths', taking time out if my hubby and I were 'sweating over the small stuff'. Whenever I came out of my meditation space, my hubby looked and acted like he had been in that meditation room with me.

Infact, my two toddlers have now asked to join me each day when I meditate. I was blown away to watch them, sitting quietly with me in my gratitude meditation (my kids never stop talking usually!). Infact, I was even further blown away, when my three year old daughter led my two year old son, through a meditation she created on the spot.

So here it is... this is the first meditation ritual my beautiful daughter Bellina has cooked up and I am so proud to share it with you. Try it and see how it feels and turns out for you.

And please, do share it with the rest of your family and community, whether it is literally or simply sitting in your own silent meditation and sending the good vibes their way.

Big Wish Meditation

by Bellina Biffone(c) (3 years of age)

1. Close your eyes.

2. Take deep breaths in and out.

3. Look to the light (imagine a white light before your closed eyes). Just look at the light.

4. Now make a wish. Make a really big wish.

5. Can you see the stars? Imagine you can see the stars making your wish come true.

6. Put your hands like this (she motions us to put our hands in a prayer position).

7. Now say thankyou.

Remember readers, when you meditate the world meditates with you. When you feel chilled, you help others feel chilled, when you're happier, others are happier, when you're feeling hopeful, others are more hopeful. Try meditating at home, work, and anywhere you are in your day, you'll be amazed at the instant positive vibes that you send and get sent your way.

1. Turn your attention to your breath. No need to change it, just let your belly and chest rise and fall in their own natural way (you'll notice your breath starts to relax more simply by giving it some attention).
2. When ready, close your eyes and continue to focus on the rise and fall of your breath.
3. Imagine yourself now on a gorgeous Island holiday anywhere in the world. Imagine you can see the beautiful water glistening before your (closed) eyes.
4. Now imagine you are on lying on a huge sunbed in the water, safely floating and relaxing. Imagine your finger tips gently touching and splashing in the water.
5. Imagine the gorgeous sun radiating and shining down on you, warming and nourishing you from the inside out.
6. Hold that image and feeling for as long as you like. As needed, breath in and out, or simply observe the rise and fall of your breath during the meditation.
7. Open eyes and repeat as needed.

For the first time in years I can feel myself enjoying the joyful atmosphere in the lead-up to Christmas. What?#@! Yes, it's true...I'm usually caught up in the end of year madness: spending, planning, stressing. So, what's so different about this year? Apart from the fact I've been dreaming about my first real Christmas time-out in years, the fact is I've chosen to focus on just one day at a time, rather than being caught up in the race to the finish line.

It doesn't mean I haven't been shopping and planning. It's just that while I've been planning I've been totally present and while I've been shopping, I've totally present and focused on shopping for that gift. I've found myself really enjoying it, rather than just seeing it as one of the 100 items to tick on my to-do list.

CHRISTMAS PAST

Take a moment to think about your past Christmas holiday experiences. My memories are mostly a huge BLUR. Fun, yes, but a major marathon race to the Christmas day finish line, when I seem to fall into a tired, belly-filled heap and then recover on the lounge in front of the Boxing Day test.

They say 'time flies when you're having fun.' The truth is: 'time flies when you're racing to the finish line.'

CHRISTMAS CHALLENGE

So, I'm laying down a challenge for anyone who'd like to do it differently this year - to savour every day and every moment of the holidays. It'll take a bit of practice but now's the perfect time to start.

Imagine you have your own remote control and are able to slow and pause your busy mind, even just for a few seconds. You can pick and choose your favourite Christmas moments and use your 'remote control' to practice bringing presence into your life. (Trust me, once you've tried this a few times, you'll realise it's the best gift you can give yourself and your family).

A simple way to understand what you're trying to do with practicing presence is that it's the absolute opposite of multi-tasking. Instead of thinking or doing several things at once, you find a single task or focus. 

3 SIMPLE STEPS

Choose an activity you regularly do, (ie. making a tea or coffee, having a shower, driving). For the next week, each time you do this activity, take these three steps to stay fully focused and present:

1. MIND - Make a conscious choice to focus ONLY on this task.

2. BODY - Use your senses to focus your attention fully. Watch, listen, taste, feel, smell. (Engage as many senses as you can to 'absorb' what's happening).

3. SPIRIT - 'Swim in it!' Immerse yourself fully ONLY in the moment. Let any distracting thoughts just drift away from your mind.

Notice how your mind and body start to relax and let go of any tensions/ thoughts...

Practice this exercise as often as you can in the lead-up to Christmas. Each time you feel overwhelmed or stressed, choose one thing to focus on and in just 3 steps - FOCUS, SENSE, SWIM - you'll calm yourself in minutes.

Want to sample Lyndal's 5 minute Sanity Saver meditation track?

Click here to chill out NOW

Click here to buy Lyndal's Chill Pill CD

Click here to chill out NOW

Have you ever seen a stressed out fisherman? Fishing has to be one of the most relaxing, meditative, calming activities, you can do to de-stress and chill out.

Today is the first day of Spring (Down Under) and the sun has truly come out today to remind us there is infact light at the end of the incredibly cold winter we have just had.

Spring is the time for coming out of hibernation and opening up to all the possibilities that lay before you. It's a time to plant new seeds of hope, dreams, and great times ahead.

It's actually the perfect time to Meditate on Your Dreams. Here's how ...

1) Choose a place outside in the warm sunshine or somewhere indoors that is light and overlooks water or nature. (My Kitchen view is exquisite. Every time I look out to the sea from my kitchen I open up to all the possibilities and adventures before me).

2) On a blank page in your notebook, write at the top of the page My Spring Dreams and date the page.

2) Take a moment to breath in the warm sunshine of Spring.

3) Close your eyes and imagine you are truly coming alive and jumping out of your skin and into Spring.

4) Imagine all the things you would love to do, be and experience in the year ahead. Consider areas such as Home Life, Career, Relationships, Family, Wealth & Abundance, Knowledge, Health, etc.

5) Just allow yourself to truly take in all that you would love from now until next Spring.

6) When you feel ready, open your eyes and write down what you saw, felt, experienced and imagined for your Spring Dreams.

7) Now place your notes in a special spot at home or in your wallet and get on with cooking up and savouring those dreams that lay before you.

Happy Dreaming everyone :)

It's interesting that the first and last thing that happens in anyone's life, no matter what goes on in between, is the Breath. Yet somewhere in our life journey, through all the stress, achieving and busyness, we forget the simple, beautiful, incredible gift of our breath.

Ingrid Bacci Ph.D talks about this in her book The Art of Effortless Living. (This really is a wonderful read, do check it out!) One of the meditation exercises in the book talks about focussing on the rise and fall of your breath. Not altering it in anyway, just simply breathing and observing, breathing and observing, and so on. What Dr Bacci suggests is through the simple exercise of doing nothing else other than observing your breath, you can not only feel better inside, but you can also influence people around you to feel better about you too.

This incredibly simple, yet profoundly powerful meditation exercise, can help you whenever you are feeling anxious, stressed, overwhelmed, and exhausted in your daily lives.

To simply focus on your breath and be reminded what an incredible gift it is, is a powerful way to shift your focus anywhere, anytime. Try it and receive the benefits right now.

When I was first introduced to meditation 15 years ago, the facilitator shared one important fact that got me hooked on meditation for life. '20 minutes of meditation is equivalent to about 2 hours sleep'.

While it's been a love, hate and now all embracing journey to daily meditation, I can honestly say that meditation has been my one saving grace in any situation in my life.

As a mother of two, I have used short daily meditation rituals of 10-15 minutes to help me create more energy in my day for a 'power nap'. As a producer working really long hours pre parenthood, meditation helped keep my mind focussed to deliver the end result required. And as a Life Mentor, meditation and visualisation has become a beautiful, organic and natural way to direct people to their dreams.

Imagine what a 10-20 minute meditation could bring to your life each day? Don't just take my word for it. Try it and decide for yourself.