Head in the clouds

[Maddie]

From time to time I tend to sort of get lost in my own little fantasy world in my head. I am trying to figure out what causes this, and what I should work on to lessen this. I am thinking either or both the upper dan tien and / or the heart. I suspect the upper dan tien because that is where your brain and perception are located, so perhaps if it is over active one may live up there there and not come down to earth.

The reason I suspect the heart is not only is it related to the mind, but also its problem area is over excitement. Since daily life can seem a little dull to some of the fantasies that we can dream up, or see in movies, I was wondering if its the hearts way of feeding itself with the over excitement it craves when its not in a state of balance.

These are just some thoughts, and I would be interested if anyone else had some insight, or even better experience dealing with this.

[Sloppy Zhang]

What's wrong with having your head in the clouds? As long as your feet are on the ground

[Maddie]

cause I'm wasting a lot of time when I need to get things done

[RiverSnake]

Meditation, it improves your focus. Meditate everywhere you go. Learning to live in the moment is one of the most fulfilling tricks i have ever discovered.

 

Enjoy.

[Sloppy Zhang]

I'm going to say something pretty radical here. Now it's not to say that things like focusing on getting work done and all is not a good thing, because it is. Leading a stable life can lead to a really content, full, pretty pleasant feeling. But since everyone's going to tell you that anyway, I'm going to suggest something a bit more.... out there....

 

 

Has it ever occurred to you that maybe the things you are doing, the things that "fantasy" "distracts" you from, are not really the best things you should be doing?

 

I say this because when you really get into something, time flies. You aren't looking for excuses to take breaks. Sometimes you forget to eat or sleep. And it's not even really a conscious decision. Sometimes you'll, say, make a sandwich, but then get re-absorbed in whatever it is you were doing, and then before you know it three hours have gone by and you've still got an uneaten sandwich on the counter! You are just really absorbed in the activity. The stuff that gets produced as a result of that activity are really high quality.

 

Now, there are ways that you can train/make yourself have this kind of focus for other things. But I'm suggesting that maybe you ALREADY know what it is you should be doing and how you should be spending your time, but you're trying to fit somewhere else.

 

B.K. Frantzis has a pretty good blog here. He's recently made a few posts titled "for the love of the game or ego?" He raises some interesting questions. He also relates a story that he's told a bit, about how, when he was younger, around 19, people would be amazed that he was doing 6 hours of really slow, really exacting qigong exercises. He says that he didn't ever set out to do a 6 hour practice. Rather, it was just minute by minute, second by second, that he kept making tiny micro changes, completely absorbed in the process, and before he knew it, 6 hours went by.

 

Maybe you should try to find that.

[Maddie]

I'm going to say something pretty radical here. Now it's not to say that things like focusing on getting work done and all is not a good thing, because it is. Leading a stable life can lead to a really content, full, pretty pleasant feeling. But since everyone's going to tell you that anyway, I'm going to suggest something a bit more.... out there....

 

 

Has it ever occurred to you that maybe the things you are doing, the things that "fantasy" "distracts" you from, are not really the best things you should be doing?

 

I say this because when you really get into something, time flies. You aren't looking for excuses to take breaks. Sometimes you forget to eat or sleep. And it's not even really a conscious decision. Sometimes you'll, say, make a sandwich, but then get re-absorbed in whatever it is you were doing, and then before you know it three hours have gone by and you've still got an uneaten sandwich on the counter! You are just really absorbed in the activity. The stuff that gets produced as a result of that activity are really high quality.

 

Now, there are ways that you can train/make yourself have this kind of focus for other things. But I'm suggesting that maybe you ALREADY know what it is you should be doing and how you should be spending your time, but you're trying to fit somewhere else.

 

B.K. Frantzis has a pretty good blog here. He's recently made a few posts titled "for the love of the game or ego?" He raises some interesting questions. He also relates a story that he's told a bit, about how, when he was younger, around 19, people would be amazed that he was doing 6 hours of really slow, really exacting qigong exercises. He says that he didn't ever set out to do a 6 hour practice. Rather, it was just minute by minute, second by second, that he kept making tiny micro changes, completely absorbed in the process, and before he knew it, 6 hours went by.

 

Maybe you should try to find that.

 

I appreciate your answer Sloppy, but after some more work on this topic, I believe that this is a Spleen issues, since when the spleen is out of wack there is a lot of obsessive thinking that really goes no where, which describes what I am/was going through. It did not feel good to me, so I saw it more as an imbalance.

[Gerard]

May I ask: what's your Western astrological sign?

[Apech]

For a long time I used to reject daydreaming or idle musing because I am interested in things that work and have some effect. I thought that daydreaming was just a waste of time - lacked energy and even sapped energy from me.

 

However the more meditation I did over the years I realized that when I daydream my mind is telling me something. Sometimes it is telling me things that I otherwise could not access. I realized that there is energy involved although in a different phase from what I prefer. Provided there is no indulgence in daydreaming ... that is as long as you don't prefer it to the extent that you become completely abstracted from things that matter ... then it can be a helpful thing. It is part of the rich terrain of the mind which we can explore.

[SeriesOfTubes]

sounds like it could be related to the Ultradian Rhythms, they are worth respecting, meditators know this intuitively I think.

 

this is a really good interview that gets Rossi's research across in a really accessible way:

 

http://www.ernestrossi.com/interviews/ultradia.htm

 

"In the typical 8 hour workday most people can expect to experience 4 or 5 peak periods when they are at their best in making decisions, planning and doing whatever they have to do. It therefore makes no sense for employers to try to get people to be busy every minute of the work day. The idea is to work smarter, not harder. Taking a 20 minute break every couple of hours or so allowing the mindbody to catch up with itself and create the ideas and energy that is needed to optimize the next work period.

 

Meetings should not last more than 90 min at most. After that everyone is tired and more prone to making errors and getting irritated with each other. Everyone needs to learn to recognize and respect their own personal rhythms of peak performance and need for healing rest and recovery" (Rossi, 2002).

[Maddie]

For a long time I used to reject daydreaming or idle musing because I am interested in things that work and have some effect. I thought that daydreaming was just a waste of time - lacked energy and even sapped energy from me.

 

However the more meditation I did over the years I realized that when I daydream my mind is telling me something. Sometimes it is telling me things that I otherwise could not access. I realized that there is energy involved although in a different phase from what I prefer. Provided there is no indulgence in daydreaming ... that is as long as you don't prefer it to the extent that you become completely abstracted from things that matter ... then it can be a helpful thing. It is part of the rich terrain of the mind which we can explore.

 

 

My western sign is scorpio, my chinese is tiger...

 

You know this is interesting cause I was sort of pondering this in the back of my head, like what if these annoying thoughts n such are my bodies way of trying to get my attention about something that I need to know. In the past when I have stopped just trying to get rid of such thoughts, and actually try to decipher the reason I am having them, it often leads me to a blockage somewhere and then I get to work on that blockage and then poof problem solved.

[LBDaoist]

what if these annoying thoughts n such are my bodies way of trying to get my attention about something that I need to know. In the past when I have stopped just trying to get rid of such thoughts, and actually try to decipher the reason I am having them, it often leads me to a blockage somewhere and then I get to work on that blockage and then poof problem solved.

 

I think you are heading toward the right path here. From what I've read of your various posts, I will make a suggestion.

 

You are avoiding something. You are pouring yourself into energy work and practices and meditation as a way of distracting yourself from something that you do not want to face. A part of you already knows what needs to be done, but you feel trapped. So you are trying to work with the situation. You are trying to become okay with being trapped.

 

Like Zhang said... I'm going to suggest something radical.

 

There isn't anything wrong with you. You're just in a bad situation that you are trying to cope with.

 

Try this... ask yourself, "What would happen if I don't stop (whatever you're worried about)." When you get an answer to that, follow up with, "So what? What would happen if that happens?"

 

The trick is not to quiet your mind. The trick is to focus it, acknowledge what it is focused on, accept it and then act on it. Once you do that enough, you will find you do not need to act anymore. Then the mind becomes quiet.

[Maddie]

I think you are heading toward the right path here. From what I've read of your various posts, I will make a suggestion.

 

You are avoiding something. You are pouring yourself into energy work and practices and meditation as a way of distracting yourself from something that you do not want to face. A part of you already knows what needs to be done, but you feel trapped. So you are trying to work with the situation. You are trying to become okay with being trapped.

 

Like Zhang said... I'm going to suggest something radical.

 

There isn't anything wrong with you. You're just in a bad situation that you are trying to cope with.

 

Try this... ask yourself, "What would happen if I don't stop (whatever you're worried about)." When you get an answer to that, follow up with, "So what? What would happen if that happens?"

 

The trick is not to quiet your mind. The trick is to focus it, acknowledge what it is focused on, accept it and then act on it. Once you do that enough, you will find you do not need to act anymore. Then the mind becomes quiet.

 

hmmmm interesting.... I'll try that approach

[LBDaoist]

hmmmm interesting.... I'll try that approach

 

Good luck.

 

I re-read and realized I left out an important part. You have to keep going. You have to keep asking yourself, "What would happen if..." after every answer you get. Accept the answer you get. Try something along the lines of, "I am okay with X happening, now what if X happens..." You have to really be okay with it. If you aren't, pause and figure out what about it you aren't okay with. That pausing to reflect will often start the cycle over again.

 

Just keep going down the mental path. Let your brain exhaust itself with "what if's". Get to the end of the what if road. The end of the road is what is really bugging you. Every step between the present state of mind and that end of the road are simply excuses that your mind has created... separate problems it has come up with to distract itself from what it can't/won't deal with.

[goonis38]

Hi there,

Just a thought but moving is very stressful and a lot of work... But it is also rewarding... You could just be resting your mind...

Wasn't it you and me that talked about this before, and you where saying you where in the park checking out a frog like forever? Rather it was or not. I think as long as it isn't causing you to many problems. I think day dreaming is good... But I am a day dreamer also. But when it's time to get things done I do... So just depends on the amount of this you are talking about...

You feel a lose of control over your situation right now, you will settle in. And San Antonio is awesome...

Take care Mel

[Maddie]

I have been trying this approach to ask myself why I feel the way I do as opposed to trying to make myself feel how I think I should. One thing I have noticed so far is that I want to be close to people but not close to people at the exact same time.... I don't get it.

[Maddie]

After doing some research into this problem a little more since originally posting, and this seems to be kind of like obessive compulsive disorder sometimes, which is why its so unpleseant, having thoughts that you do not like pushing themselves into your mind. I think this is likely a blockage in the upper dan tien.

 

http://www.kheper.net/topics/chakras/Mouth_of_God.htm

 

Malfunctioning: You may suffer from illusions [Chia, p.216] and fantasies, and perhaps mental unbalance [Colton, The Third Music] and schizophrenia

 

I feel that the malfunctioning category best describes the unwanted thoughts and fantasies.

[LBDaoist]

After doing some research into this problem a little more since originally posting, and this seems to be kind of like obessive compulsive disorder sometimes, which is why its so unpleseant, having thoughts that you do not like pushing themselves into your mind. I think this is likely a blockage in the upper dan tien.

 

http://www.kheper.ne...outh_of_God.htm

 

Malfunctioning: You may suffer from illusions [Chia, p.216] and fantasies, and perhaps mental unbalance [Colton, The Third Music] and schizophrenia

 

I feel that the malfunctioning category best describes the unwanted thoughts and fantasies.

 

You might consider that perhaps the thoughts have lead to the blockage and not the other way around.

[Maddie]

You might consider that perhaps the thoughts have lead to the blockage and not the other way around.

 

I suppose that could be the case, but then again I could say why have I had these thoughts in the first place if there was not already a blockage in place. I have found that listening to my intuition has lead me right in the past about these type of things, and my intution tells me that the blockage is causing the thoughts rather than vice versa.

 

*Edit: I forgot to mention that I am beginning to realize that along with other issues, it would seem now that upper dan tien issues have been quite problematic for me for quite a long time with out me realizing that they were upper dan tien issues. It seems that so much focus is put on the upper dan tien / third eye as a way of obtianing powers, and the like, but I feel that what is often ignored is the day to day problems that blockages in this area can cause if not removed.

Edited November 16, 2010 by dmattwads