E031 Laurie Flanagan Benefits from Meditation
Let’s Be Well Together Podcast - Episode 31
Date: August 30, 2022
Participants: John Webster, Sammy Damaren, Cameron Earnshaw and Sheila Webster
Guest: Laureen (Laurie) Flanagan
Start times and Segment Segments:
[0:00:44] What’s On Your Mind: Sammy had an amazing trip to India, where she did volunteer work. It included an awe-inspiring view of Mount Everest, after ascending in the Himilayas while picking up trash left by climbers.
[0:11:36] Expanding Minds Interview: [Physical and Spiritual Wellness] Laurie Flanagan felt an affinity to mediation her whole life. She started a meditation practice in 2017 after physical, mental and emotional exhaustion led to a breaking point. Even though she’s a very positive person, her “brain went black” with only negative thoughts. She started using breathing exercises, then went on to read Deepak Chopra. She started using his work, leading to her mediation practice. Laurie talks about what she does and how meditation helps her.
Link to Laureen [Laurie] Flanagan’s children’s book, illustrated by her son Jacob Damaren: Where Do Dreams Come From?
[0:27:48] Adventures of the Starving Artist: Cameron describes the “nose trick” to help raise the soft palate, which creates resonate space to make notes sound round and warm.
[0:31:21] Move That Body: John gets on his soapbox again, this time to talk about why “Move That Body” is at the very heart of the message we’re trying to share on this podcast.
[037:36] Running Popup: John talks about an insightful quote by Albert Camus: “You will never be happy if you continue to search for what happiness consists of. You will never live your life if you are looking for the meaning of life.”
[0:41:06] Flipside of the Coin: Sheila and John reminisce about a few memories, just before they celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary.
Quotes and Take-Aways:
Sammy – [On seeing Mount Everest for the first time] To this day it was the most picture-perfect thing I’ve ever seen, to the point at which I thought, “I’m pretty sure this is a backdrop. I’m pretty sure this can’t be real.” It was a really nice moment. You hike up this whole mountain and you’re feeling terrible – I was feeling terrible – then you see the end result and it makes it all worth it. Everyone was quiet and we just stared at the view.
Laurie – I spend about 20 minutes meditating in a very quiet calm place, in front of my window. I try to bring my mind and my being grounded together in the moment that I’m in: being aware of how I’m sitting, where I’m sitting; feeling the floor underneath me; feeling the air that’s touching my skin; breathing in through the nose; feeling the muscles around the eyes, the ears, the throat; and from there just focusing on the breath, the letting the mind go.
Laurie – When I’m under a lot of anxiety and stress my brain feels really tight, like a muscle cramp. When I’m meditating, slowly as I let my mind go, I can feel my mind open up and relax. Then it feels like there’s space in my mind.
Laurie – The biggest advantage to teaching children meditation is emotional regulation, so that they can learn to handle their emotions.
John – Move That Body is at the heart of the message we’re sharing in the podcast. If you take nothing else from our show, please hear that getting physical – moving that body – it’s a real key to overall wellness. I can’t overstate that. It’s essential.
John – Improving my physical wellness changed my life for the better, dramatically and in unexpected ways. Physical fitness unlocked understandings that were buried. I believe that’s because humans are designed to be physical.
John - Socrates said, “To know the good is to do the good.” In other words, people will do the right thing as soon as they recognize it’s the right thing to do. Aristotle disagreed. He argued that people need to build good habits to improve their willpower because doing the right thing can be difficult. Without willpower, you might not do the right thing even though you know it’s the right thing to do.
John – Everything fell into place for me when I connected with my physical self. We talk about different categories of wellness and trade-offs we make between them. Whichever trade-offs I make, I commit to eat nutritious food in moderation, exercise and stay in touch with my physical nature.
Bulletin Board Quote brought to you by Sammy: Here you go! Throw you in!
Guest Information: Laureen Rose Flanagan, who we know as Laurie, is a high school teacher of the arts and religion. For over 30 years. She’s a dancer, grandmother and mother. She is an avid Yoga practitioner. She has a passion for writing and aspires to enrich, inspire and encourage the imagination of children through the art of story teller. In her work, storytelling is a major component of all her creations and teachings.
Laurie can be found on Instagram: @authorlrflanagan
Laureen Flanagan’s children’s book, illustrated by her son Jacob Damaren: Where Do Dreams Come From?
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Thanks for joining us,
(-(-_(-_-)_-)-) Your wellness check-in team
John, Sammy, Cameron, Sheila and Julie