
This insanity reached further when things broke in my house. The septic system needed to be pumped and $300 had to be found quickly. A tire blew and another $100 was placed on the credit card. The other day my insurance company sent me a notice that my insurance premium hadn't been paid. This is directly connected with my mortgage company and shouldn't be happening. I had to call immediately! It was one minute to 5:00 PM. Nonetheless, I had to get through! How could I get on with my night if I didn't connect to take care of this in the present moment? I got through to the secretary, who forwarded me to my agent, who I'm sure left in that last minute.
But there was the ability to leave a recording. I had to leave a message! I spoke of my disappointment as to why this bill wouldn't have been paid in a timely manner. I couldn't understand why they would send me a bill notice that they clearly were supposed to pay. As I'm doing so, I'm frantically looking through my mortgage app to find out when that bill was paid from their end. AHHH HAH! It was paid 10 days prior. I made sure I left that in the message making note of their incompetence.
I thought I left a decent message that explained my dilemma.
In the morning I received a message from my agent, "Valerie I got your message last night and since you sounded so frantic, I wanted to call you FIRST before I returned any of my other calls. It is now 8:05 AM, and I'm letting you know that bill has been paid. It must have crossed in the mail with our billing department."
Frantic? Did I sound frantic? I must have. Why else would he have mentioned that?
I don't want to sound frantic. I used to sound concerned. Lately, frantic has been used more often.
I have been dabbling with apps these last few months trying to redirect my mind. There was a day when I could easily calm my central nervous system. Now, it seems to get the best of me. There has to be a way to re insulate my wiring. It seems my wires are fraying with little direction. When wires fray, anxiety kicks in, and sleep is lost.
About a month ago I found Headspace. I immediately fell in love with the animated figures. They were unique and talked to my heart and mind. I tried other apps that boasted delightful nature scenes but fell short of motivation and direction. Headspace offered that. I downloaded the app. It was free to start.
For the first 10 days I watched one minute videos and completed a three minute meditation daily. I felt a difference. There was a sense of calm blanketing me while I slept in the afternoon again. I woke up calmer and refreshed from the day at work. I also noticed I didn't feel those initial triggers that mounted all day long while dealing with a special needs community. I was tapping into peace again and with little time and effort.
I don't get sold easily, but I did with Headspace. I am usually a scavenger for all free downloads I can apply to my life. This was different. I wanted to delve into their library to see what else I could connect with to enhance more of this peace. It's been a long time since I've held hands with this friend and I wanted more. So I bought into the year subscription. It was reasonable, but most of all it was resonating a sense of well-being that I apparently lost upon the way.
It’s hard to talk about Headspace without talking about Andy Puddicombe. So let’s start there. In his early twenties, Andy cut his Sports Science degree short to become a Buddhist monk. For over 10 years, his meditation training took him across the world to Nepal, India, Burma, Thailand, Australia and Russia. Eventually, he was ordained at a Tibetan monastery in the Indian Himalayas.
After completing his monastic commitment, Andy returned to the UK with the huge-yet-simple goal of teaching meditation and mindfulness to as many people as possible. To demystify the mystical, Andy set up a meditation consultancy and began working with politicians, athletes (that sports science background finally came in handy), and business leaders.
That’s when Andy met Rich Pierson, who needed help dealing with the stress of the advertising world. Before long, Andy and Rich were skill-swapping meditation for business advice. That’s when Headspace was born.
Headspace was officially launched in 2010 as an events company, but attendees wanted to take what they learned home with them. Andy, Rich, and a small team decided to make Andy’s techniques available online so more people could experience the benefits of meditation anytime, anywhere. And that blossomed into the Headspace you see today: guided meditations, animations, articles and videos, all in the distinct Headspace style.
Headspace has one mission: to improve the health and happiness of the world. And with millions of users in more than 190 countries, we’re well on our way. Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, we also have offices in San Francisco and London.
You can try Headspace for yourself and learn the essentials of meditation and mindfulness with our free Basics course. If you enjoy it, then it’s time to subscribe. Once you do, you’ll have bite-sized minis for when you’re short on time, exercises to add extra mindfulness to your day, and hundreds of meditations on everything from stress to sleep.
I receive no royalties from Headspace. I am so impressed with the overall detail in the site that I want to share it with my community. Most of all, if I can make your life easier and a bit calmer than I've done my duty as your blogger. Try it to today. Download it for free, no credit card required, and see if you can gain a sense of semblance once again.