Hi Doctor Taylor,

Having read your excellent and important book, My Stroke of Insight, I suspect that enlightenment is more often an accident than the result of meditation. However, I have been surprised to find how simple it is to create the peace and joy of meditation.

You wrote on page 171 that, "The secret to hooking into any of these peaceful states is the willingness to stop the cognitive loops of thought, worry, and any ideas that distract from the here and now."

Thich Nhat Hanh, the Zen teacher and author, wrote:

Breathing in, I calm body and mind.
Breathing out, I smile.
Dwelling in the present moment,
I know this is the only moment.

Smiling probably stops thinking by inhibiting the left hemisphere, and creates peace and joy by engaging endorphins and dopamine. Thus, it can easily become a delightful way of life in the present moment. And it's not fattening.

Thank you,

Burnett

I have had ME/CFS for over 25 years with many brain dysfunctions. Recently, I was told I needed training for brain retraining for brain injury. What does this mean and also do you accept brain donations from other disorders, ie my situation. I was a Director of Nursing and within a few days went from what seemed like the flu to bedridden and inability to make a complete sentence, spell, concentrate, comprehend and talking in a very backward way. I have had excellent care and symptoms come and go at their own pace. I was on disability and now on SS, since I am 67. Also, severe exhaustion, pain, and many other symptoms, especially neurological. Your book was amazing and a blessing!!!! THANK YOU!!

lSLqUC %3Ca href="http://llwvfdbaedsr.com/"%3Ellwvfdbaedsr%3C/a%3E, [url=http://dxnabavcwboa.com/]dxnabavcwboa[/url], [link=http://fydycobitbvl.com/]fydycobitbvl[/link], http://qaebniykfatg.com/

qltmvt %3Ca href="http://vixffzvhioub.com/"%3Evixffzvhioub%3C/a%3E, [url=http://vubezwxhtqlp.com/]vubezwxhtqlp[/url], [link=http://crdwiagwrbzv.com/]crdwiagwrbzv[/link], http://uxpevvtatewe.com/

Y2kNCC %3Ca href="http://rimjafjruyin.com/"%3Erimjafjruyin%3C/a%3E, [url=http://omsibpmhukrb.com/]omsibpmhukrb[/url], [link=http://hdggggafahhx.com/]hdggggafahhx[/link], http://vsypufcpmbaq.com/

I no longer reside in Indiana but I was born there and grew up most of my childhood there. I wanted to just say hi and let you know I am reading your book. I really appreciate you sharing this. I have not finished this book yet but am now at Chapter 15. I find it very interesting and I am so happy you have recovered so well. I am wondering what your thoughts are on Gamma Knife and the success of it when craniotomy is not an option due to AVM proximity in Corona Radiata area? Resection without permanent deficits deemed impossible / improbable from many top drs in field. Near broca's area- I noticed you work in Proton Beam therapy which I know is another method used.

Thank you Jill your valuable input to the world based on your personal experiemce. I am a psychiatrist and use mindfulness and loving kindness based work with my patients which help help to endure suffering. I like yout experiences of being with silence and seeing the body as fluid etc by moving to the right side of the brain. However the total experience of perhaps one pointedness with inner peace you have described as Nirvana is not correct. Nirvana is a different state altogether which any person can aspire to by truly pratising mindfulness meditation and insight meditation acccording to buddhist philosophy. What you have described is more like a state of 'Jhana' with an experience of inner peace and happiness.

I Like Dr. Jill and I wish that Dr. Jill had not use the term "NIRVANA" since She probably did not have adequate Training in Buddhism ("Nirvana/ Nibbana" is a Buddhist term). It could be misleading. It is like a Buddhist meditator trying to explain his/her experience in neuroscience terms without any proper medical training.

Anyway, I respect Dr. Jill a lot.

Regards, Jason.

I am a yogi who follows the teachings of Tantric Shaivism - the art of consciousness being aware of itself through the physical human form. There are many techniques that cultivate awareness, through manipulation of energy, on various levels of being (asana, pranayama, meditation, etc). The physical and underlying esoteric bodies are vehicles for consciousness to experience itself. We can guide conscious energy to manipulate this experience, as seems to have happened spontaniously in you, so that you can share the "technical" means by how this works physically, from a non-esoteric perspective.

Dr Douglas Brooks and the Siddha Yogis are the leaders of these teachings in America. "Left brain" and "right brain" are only symbols for how consciousness functions through the body to recognise its' various aspects - the drawing in and the expanding outwards (spanda) of "energy". Its very easy to become wrapped up in the mundanity of what appears to be just a physically functioning thing (brain). We are moving towards a state of unity consciousness - balance. It seems you are a key-player in this process. I hope you will be able to bring your "right-brain" knowledge together with their "left-brain" knowledge to come to an understanding of balanced-being that will enlighten the world.

I work 50 hours a week as a nanny, go to university part time at night school, try to find the time to work out, and try to find the time for family and friends. In this world one can easily lose who they are. To keep myself grounded, I remind myself of the gift of life. How lucky i am to wake up every morning, and have my loved ones around me. I stop and watch the sunset, I go to the lake. I go for walks in the early morning so I am coming home as the sun is rising.I cherish every moment I have with my nephews and the little ones I work with. I voluntered for Hospice of Peel, which was one of the most rewarding experinces of my life. Being their for someone during this stage in their life is an experience I am grateful I was able to experience. If we don't take a few moments every day and appreciate all the gifts we are blessed with, then we will loose ourself in this ratrace that so many people have fell victim to.

ZcC69y %3Ca href="http://uoltjqkakngt.com/"%3Euoltjqkakngt%3C/a%3E, [url=http://ppntzdxcagln.com/]ppntzdxcagln[/url], [link=http://njkiqgjrurcx.com/]njkiqgjrurcx[/link], http://nvnyvcwhzulw.com/

Hello Jill, Congratulations and peace to you for all that you have accomplished. I have been working to restore natural speech patterns to a student who had a massive brain stem stroke about 15 years ago. When he came to me, he couldn't arrange his own voice lesson or say his own name. He had tried many years of traditional speech therapy to no success and stopped the therapy. One of the last therapists suggested working with a voice teacher. I teach a marginalized approach based on speech patterns, aero-dynamic physics and basic acoustics. In two years we have established clear and understandable speech, restored a falsetto, and a range of more than two octaves. He can make the aspirate "h" and glottal strokes. His brain and musculature have learned how to re-address the goals of balanced phonation by aiming at an acoustic goal which teaches the working musculature to compensate for the paralyzed musculature. His body actually straightens when he makes vocal sounds. After leaving a prep-school were I taught choir for 14 years, I was looking into the field of speech therapy, I shared my success with this student with a successful speech therapist in town she seemed to doubt the validity of my claims, and asked if I began by having him scoped. I think, after spending the last 30 years teaching voice and directing choirs (all successfully), that there is a more profound calling emerging. I am ordering your book, and hoping to speak with someone who believes that there is alway a better way. May we will talk soon. Blessings

Dewin

We use a combination of practices on a regular basis -- almost everyday. Essentially any practices that stimulate and/or calm the five sensory organs(eyes, ears, nose, tongue, skin), exercise, relax and cleanse the five organs of action (hands, feet, anus, genital organs, tongue/vocal cords), and exercises for the multiple forms of intelligence (see Howard Gardner's model: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_multiple_intelligences) help us stay balanced. Here are a few examples:

* Free-flowing verses, poetry to open the doors to the mind and heart - see: http://www.facebook.com/hemmady?ref=profile

* Dance: ecstatic, moving meditation, any kind of movement and postures - Yoga, Tai Chi

* Stillness, Silence, mindfulness, body awareness

* Walks, hikes in the woods: watching life in all forms, greens, flow of water, feel the wind blowing

* Watching the sky at any time of the day to open the mind, broaden our horizons: watching clouds, the sun, stars, the phases of the moon, shades and colors, rainbows

* Singing, chanting, making sounds as in nature, listening to the sounds of nature and of life, listening to heart beats, and sounds from within our bodies

* Massage: with oils, flower essences, soft touch, deep tissue, reflexology, craniosacral, chiropractic work

* Tastes: at each meal eating organic, less cooked or uncooked vegetables, fruits, herbs with all different tastes, as guided by the body -- sweet, bitter, sour, salty, spicy hot

* Sharing hugs, eye gazing in silence, watching a flame, sweat lodges

* Internal Cleansing with diets, fasts, therapeutic use of purgatives, massage, use of herbs and essential oils

-shankar Hemmady

I like to try and avoid clinical terminology as it can really put the right brain to sleep.
Poetry, and art are very helpful at that. I particularly love to watch a child or a full grown artist draw or paint. That really quiets my left side down and makes me forget I'm an individual. I melt into the background.
I was a very big swimmer when I was young. 2 hours of practice every night, being immersed in water, left alone to one's physical self, even with a whole team in your lane, can really help one get high up there in outer space.
I've been doing yoga for about 3 years. Pranayama to be exact. Listenning to breath from head to toe. Sometimes hard to do on my own. Especially after a day of constant left brain chatter.
Tarot can help one step to the right as well. Projecting on to the pretty pictures of a game of tarot cards, trying to intuit the future about a certain situation. Slowly realizing that one can actually predict 75% of anything, just because our right brain has "done the math" before the left brain has.


But I have to say, that the most helpful way of stepping to the right I have found, is refraining from speaking, writing or reading, for several days straight and isolating oneself in a ceative process such as painting. It can be dongerous though because disconnecting oneself has it's downsides, and even a few days can change someone if they do it unknowingly and without supervision. Some people just aren't ready to tune in to what they don't know they know...

It has taken me several years to be able to "step to the right" effectively and for any length of time. I've read your book, all of Eckhart Tolle's books, Marianne Williamson, Wayne Dyer, A Course in Miracles, etc. I think I was trying to "teach" my left hemisphere what it needed to know in order to feel safe at releasing me to step over.

Only during the past week have I been able to maintain the serenity during very difficult and stressful times at work. I'm a technology director in charge of a large network so problems are intense and they are ever-present.

I have never been able to "stop the chatter on the left" in order to go to sleep. It took hours to relax enough to drift off. I purchased books on CD of the authors I listed above and listen to them now in my bed as I try to sleep. And it has worked. I focus on something other than the reels of chatter. It's soothing. The information has seemed to help me "train" the left to trust in the integrity of my right side.

In the mornings on the way to work, I listen to music (like Jim Brickman)...pure instrumentals and release the chatter. If it scrolls past, I consciously dismiss it and return to the NOW. I have found that I forget less, I stumble/trip less, I can maintain serenity during the day, my decisions have been more insightful, and my body (I have lupus) is responding beautifully.

THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING YOURSELF TO BE USED OF CONSCIOUSNESS IN THIS MANNER!! You are a light-bearer...:)

I have watched your video twice and compared your experience to what I choose to do daily if not many times in a day. Although it is not a daily occurrence to experience the level of peace and joy that you did when you had your stroke I have been there and did so and do so by choosing to let go of the past and the future to focus on the right now. I do this by admitting I am powerless over what happened before and over what is going to happen in the future and admit that my creator is in control and I definitely am not. We call this steps 1-3 in recovery. I admit I am powerless and I do not have control, admit that God does and that God cares for me and has a plan for my life and then give God control by letting go. Immediately I can relax and receive unconditional love and acceptance for who I am and I no longer need to control another person and or a situation. I can then think clearly because the noise of the past and worry for the future is gone and I can choose to face what I can and should with courage and release those things I do not have control over. It is a matter of trust. I either do or do not trust that my creator exists, is in total control and cares for me and will make a way for me no matter what. Your video moved me and confirmed to me that the human brain is too magnificent to have come about by chance.

Blessings :)

Jill, I want to say that your story is a gift to me, and to the world. Much gratitude to you for sharing. I have a problem that I am curious if you might have an insight or resource that could help me.

I have evolved over time to be a life coach, writer, artist..My passion is in helping people to access their right brain's gifts, and for those who are very right brained, helping them to develop the left brain skills to function well in this world. My philosophy is: The right brain's job is to show us our passions and purpose and spiritful consciousness, the left brain's job is to bring these into this world. You can see why I am enthralled with your story.

I got to this place in my life as a result of using creative actions (pottery and painting) to heal after the deaths of people close to me. Turns out that the creative process gave me amazing access to my soul!

I have a severe reaction to fluorescent lights. This, too has evolved over time, from being 'sensitive' to instantly becoming physically ill. It is a mystery to doctors whom I've seen. The symptoms are similar to migraines, but go away once out of the lights. Currently classed more as an 'allergy.' I have often pondered the fact that the more I am involved in developing my right brain, the more I react badly to fluorescent lights - but I do not have any background in science to support that 'possibility.'

I may be way off based here, but I am curious if you have thoughts or resources that could help me. Is there any chance that these two things.. my being more creative and my severe reaction to fluorescent lights.. could be related?

Thank you for listening. And to express my gratitude to you in another way: You rock, Jill!

Janet

RNrdN3 %3Ca href="http://atsfdkgssdor.com/"%3Eatsfdkgssdor%3C/a%3E, [url=http://jsifjolnmree.com/]jsifjolnmree[/url], [link=http://ghjsathmnxpf.com/]ghjsathmnxpf[/link], http://hbkpvewrbbrn.com/

Hemi-sync products developed by the Monroe Institute are specifically created for balancing left and right brain activity through sound. I have only started experimenting with a few of the CD's, but I know people who believe they have benefited from the Institute's programs. Research publications are posted on the Monroe Institute website http://www.monroeinstitute.org

Thank you very much to Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor for her inspiring book which I thoroughly enjojed and through which I gained many insights.

About 20 years ago I came across a meditation technique called Sahaja Yoga which completely changed my perception of reality and of myself. I have since been practicing regularly twice a day using the technique allowing me to live my day to day life in a more balanced way and enjoy the benefits on the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual levels.

It happened one Sunday morning through my wife who had been practicing Sahaja Yoga for some time. The technique is based on the awakening of the latent residual spiritual power which we all have in the Sacrum bone at the base of the spine, known as Kundalini in the ancient tradition of Yoga. When awakened it rises through the spinal cord passing through variuos energy centres (chakras)to reach the fontanel bone area on the top of the head where it unites with the all pervading power of Divine love. I felt this experience as a gush of energy similar to a cool breeze flowing from the top of my head and entered into a state of complete thoughtlessness and well-being which lasted all day. I felt completely carefree and joyfull and nothing in the world could disturb me.

After that I started meditating regulary and would often find myself in a state of complete mental silence, devoid of any activity on both the left and right hemispheres of the brain with my attention drawn to the centre of the brain corresponding to the limbic area, activated by the Kundalini. In that state I would experience the oneness of everything as descibed by Dr. Taylor, accompanied by a feeling of unconditional love for all. I would find myself totally absorbed in the experience of the present, completly aware yet without any thoughts or reactions.

Then another incredible thing happened. I started perceiving my subtle energy sytem within directly on my central nervous system. In meditation I would feel any blocks or unbalances in my chakras (energy centres in corrispondence of nerve plexesus)and nadis (channels corrisponding to the sympathatic nervous system) and over time I learned how to correct these unbalances through the action of the power of the Kundalini.

I hope this technique may be of use to you as it has been to me.