Do you ever have that experience where you get to the end of a day, a week or a month and wonder… what actually happened? It’s like the whole thing went by in a blur. Your body was there, but your mind was somewhere else. Your mind is so overactive you can’t seem to slow down or stop the thoughts.
In today’s podcast episode we are going to hear from Dr. Manuela Rodrigues who is general dentist, meditation teacher, and retreat host. You will learn:
- The consequences of letting your overactive thinking mind run your life
- How to change your relationship with your thoughts
- Simple mindfulness practices that can improve the quality of your everyday life
I’m so excited for you to learn about the transformative power of meditation.
Use the audio player above to listen, or tune in on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
From Dental Work to Founding Retreats.
Dr. Manuela Rodrigues was a general dentist. She used to be overworked, working six days a week and allotting her only free day to prepare reports and cases. This made her an overthinker, constantly worrying about the things that are not in her control. She was so out of focus that she didn’t remember how she spent her whole year. She was all over the place but still feels like something is lacking. Due to her poor self-esteem and fears, she used to try to appear perfect outside with her appearance and constantly worried about what people would think. Following her surgery and realizing the physical distress this was causing her, she came to the conclusion that something had to change. She started cutting back on her workload and enrolled in a 4-week mindfulness course, but the results were just temporary. So, she started studying mindfulness more deeply and became a mindfulness-based stress reduction teacher. After ceasing her clinical services in 2018, she launched Ancora Retreat and a program for mindful dentistry.
5-day Silent Retreat
Even after doing the 8-week mindfulness retreat by stress reduction course or reading a book about mindfulness and meditation. She still found the 5-day silent retreat to be very significant for her since it provided her the opportunity to be in her thoughts. Owning her thoughts allowed her to realize that her thoughts didn’t have to control her. She discovered that sometimes it’s difficult for us to let this go because of our strong relationship and our attachment to our thoughts. But she did, and it set her free.
“You are not your thoughts. You don’t have to be RULED by your thoughts.”
Dr. Manuela Rodrigues
Benefits of Mindfulness and Meditation Retreat
One of the things that Dr. Manuela gained was a sense of freedom, being free from her “should’ve” and “had to”, and realizing that she always has a choice. Mindfulness and meditation also improve her mental health, as she doesn’t have to depend on her mind alone, now she has her body and other senses to rely on. She is now calmer and kinder to herself, which gives her a sense of belonging and the satisfaction of being herself. This healed and boosted her confidence, and started to make a deeper connection with the world and her surroundings.
Alma Ser Mindfulness and Meditation Course
In our society now, where we have so much stimulation, so many things to do, and so many places to be, which gives us chronic stress, Dr. Manuela emphasized that it’s important to have a moment where you can connect with yourself. The Mindfulness and Meditation course allows the participant to regain their natural balanced state and helps to open awareness. Because our mind is out of control most of the time and we don’t even realize it, this is the course that trains the mind to focus and concentrate. But, in order to go deeper in your meditation practice, you have to go through an obstacle, and one of the obstacles is your thoughts.
It’s important that you have the support that knows how to deal with these obstacles. In the Alma Ser retreat, you are guided in a way to be able to connect with that part of yourself, which you can take into your daily life. If you have the tools to know how to ground yourself, disconnect from being on autopilot and shift to aware mode. This will reflect on the choices you make and your life.
Dr. Manuela hoped that after the retreat, everyone who joined and participated would feel well-rested, relaxed, and connected to themselves. This means that you will live your life in a more authentic and aligned way that serves you better.
