Goodbye Worries

I love Roberta's approach to calming your mind. She has you create a special room where there are no worries. I know this sounds hokey, but it works.This CD has five sections:1. Introduction to Goodbye Worries2. Hypnosis/Relaxing Meditation (21:56)3. Barrier Meditation Training (7:26)4. Relaxation Training Meditation (12:04)5. Breath and Music Meditation (15:06).Why I enjoy this CD:* Roberta's voice is very soothing. It almost doesn't matter what she is saying since just listening to her voice is enough to relax you.* The music is also soothing and can really relax you.* The imagery Roberta uses. I love getting lost in the image of a beautiful place, with grass and flowers. I love the image of a special room where you can feel safe and free from worries. Roberta urges you to return to this room as often as you like. This is comforting.* The focus is on imagery and relaxing. I guess you could call this meditation, but I know I have trouble thinking that I am going to sit still and meditate. When I do this, my mind immediately starts racing. With this CD, all I do is focus on the imagery and breathing and I can relax and my mind doesn't wander.There are a few things to note with this CD, which is why I only gave it four stars. The few things to note are:* At many places in the CD, the music seems too loud and it drowns out Roberta's soft voice. If I turn up the volume to hear Roberta's voice, the music is too loud.* I had trouble with the barrier meditation, probably because I missed some the instructions due to the loud music. This meditation seems out of place with the other meditations, since it's not about relaxing.This is a good CD to help you relax and sleep better.

I bought this right after my father was moved to hospice. I listened to it every night for weeks. The theory is that you have to listen to this type of "tape" for 14(?) to 21 nights for it to take hold. Well, it started working within a couple of nights for me. When I got to my parents' home, I shared it with my mother. She has been listening to it ever since. It has helped both of us through a horribly stressful time.What I like:1. I like her voice. I eliminated a bunch of similar options because of their voices. You really have to listen to the samples to decide if the voice is going to work for you.2. I like the visualization. The guided meditation is to a grassy field with a pretty garden. In the distance across a stream is a beautiful house (you can use whatever image for the building you want). You walk to the bridge crossing the stream, but a big trunk is blocking the way. Then you realize you are carrying a backpack full of your worries. You throw your worries into the trunk. The trunk floats away. You cross the bridge and enter the building. By then I'm sound asleep.3. There are a couple more tracks after that, basic relaxation, that I have rarely heard. Only once have I gone through all the tracks. I always skip the intro track after first time I listened to the tape.This meditation is helping my mother through a terrible time with no happy ending. If you like the sound of Roberta Shapiro's voice, then I cannot recommend this highly enough. I would give it ten stars, five from me and five from my mother.

After struggling for months with anxiety and the ensuing lack of sleep, a tie-dye-wearing, granola-eating, hippie friend of mine suggested I try meditation. I shrugged off the idea as I was a total skeptic but when I literally could barely function due to exhaustion, I looked through the offerings here and purchased this collection. Even while listening to the introduction I had my doubts that meditation would work for me, but out of sheer desperation I resolved to stay focused and give it my best effort. To my utter amazement...it worked! I felt peaceful, I felt totally relaxed and most importantly, I was able to get some quality sleep. You can't know how difficult life can be without sufficient sleep until you experience it yourself and when you are able to get the rest your body and mind require, it is such an incredible relief. I do not even go into my bedroom without my ipod in hand. Why would I? Ms. Shapiro meditations work for me and I no longer toss and turn, my mind running a mile a minute, until the sun comes up. While meditation may not work for everyone, you won't know unless you try it. But trying it means first, being receptive to the concept and second, participating in the process. I also think you have to find the right meditation "guide" for you. As this is the only one I've tried I can't make comparisons, but Ms. Shapiro's soothing voice and phrasing work for me. I only wish she could follow me around throughout the day to "talk me down" when I get stressed out! So try it, you might like it. And if it works? You'll love it!