Sneezing, images and headache when meditating

DustyInTheMix

When I am meditating it takes a really long time for my mind to quit down. But, most times before I become very relaxed I sneeze which throws of my focus. Sometimes I manage to suppress the sneeze and when I do I see images, mostly of animals. I also get a headache at the very front of my head. Has anyone else experienced this?

TiaP

Suppressing a sneeze would probably create a headache if you're building up pressure in the sinuses. I'd just sneeze, sneezes feel great in my experience, much better than a headache anyway! perhaps just move your attention to the sneeze and fully experience it in all its sensations. Then move back to whatever you were focusing on before, e.g. the breath.

To prevent take a hayfever pill before you meditate maybe?

DustyInTheMix

I have never thought of actually focusing my attention on the sneeze. I usually ignore it and start again. I might try that next. It just kinda frustrates me having to start again so I usually try (and fail) to suppress it.

TiaP

Speaking from my limited meditation experience, my sessions have usually improved significantly when I've stopped trying to ignore things. I guess igoring or suppressing is a form of aversion so rarely helpful (or skillful?). My dog often starts barking his head off midway through meditating which used to drive me nuts! Now I just pay close attention to the sensations that arise when he does it, like the jolt of surprise, the tingly feeling that lingers for a while (and even the feeling of annoyance that often still appears - I kind of examine what it feels like without getting caught up in the emotion of it). Enjoy sneezing, it usually feels quite satisfying, much better than the dog barking

person

For us living in the west its common for us to be caught up in the head. The headache may be caused by focusing too much on the physical head. Try to pay more attention to physical sensations in the body and the feeling of gravity on your body. Doing that can help bring your focus away from the head so much.

Fenix

@Dustyinthemix when you realize that your about to sneeze experience the sneeze totally since it is inevitable. right up to the itch and inhalation and threw the exhalation.

what I noticed is that when you tried to experience it then it didnt happen

aura

Has anything like this ever happened to me? Oh yes, but of course, all the time! It doesn't have anything whatsoever to do with meditation.... it has everything to do with rugs and floors! Meditate anywhere and everywhere and you'll eventually become extremely knowledgeable about floors.

In the old days with tatami flooring, no problem.... unless you had a leaky roof and insufficient airflow in the building which created a big moisture problem.... with mold growing in/under the tatami and wood! Uh oh...
Sitting on tatami with mold spores in it and breathing in those mold spores, can give you a splitting migraine headache severe enough to leave your eyes crossing and your stomach doubled over, losing its lunch, and your worried doctors assessing you for possible high blood pressure, stroke, and/or heart attack!
From nothing but mold? Yes, absolutely from mold!

The classic meditation hall used to have the classic polished wooden floor with the classic flat cushions.... absolutely gorgeous.... and no problems!
If there was any problem with the cushion, such as it had somehow gotten damp and there was mold growing on/in it, it would be easy to spot and recycle that cushion to the garden compost. Buckwheat hull and cotton cloth, rotted, make good compost.

But you're not sitting in a classic meditation hall here, are you?
You are perhaps sitting on a concrete floor with dampness issues....
covered with foam padding with potential associated dampness issues....
glued down to that concrete flooring with carpet adhesive with serious outgassing and toxicity issues....
covered with a rug composed of an assortment of "undisclosed recycled fiber" glued together and sealed with yet more toxic adhesives, fire, bug, mold, and stain retardants.

So instead of sitting on wood, buckwheat hulls, and cotton....you are perhaps sitting in outgassing toluene, benzene, formaldehyde, ethyl benzene, styrene, acetone, and a whole lot of more exotic chemicals, some of which are on the EPA's list of extremely hazardous substances, including p-Dichlorobenzene, a known carcinogen, and others which produce fetal abnormalities in test animals and have been known to cause hallucinations, nerve damage and respiratory illness in humans.
All this stuff is irritating to the nervous system.
Irritated nervous systems do not ever settle down.

In addition to the above you also see images of animals?....
Perhaps that cat that rolled around on that carpet some years ago, leaving a residue of cat fur and dander buried deep in its fibers that you are potentially allergic to?

Take a serious look at that floor you're sitting on...

zombiegirl

@aura that was a great post with some very good points.

@DustyInTheMix also, a headache in the front of the forehead is indicative of a sinus headache. other points might be in the cheekbones or at the bridge of the nose.

this website has some helpful acupressure points for relieving sinus pressure:
http://www.acupressure.com/articles/colds_and_flu.htm

when i feel sinus symptoms, i do a combination of acupressure (especially the points on the face) and sinus massage. sinus massage is pretty much applying pressure wherever you feel tension and running your fingers away from the area. on the forehead, start with your fingers in the center and draw them away toward your hairline, down your cheeks, wherever feels good really. i also draw my fingers from the bridge of the nose and down the cheeks. sometimes i'll run them from my cheeks down to my chin. these actions usually cause my sinuses to drain if i'm having a problem with them.

but of course, you should make an attempt to fix the problem that is causing your sinus issues in the first place. perhaps an air purifier might help.

DustyInTheMix

Now that I think about it I do feel the headache all the time it is just when I am meditating that I feel it more (if that makes sense) maybe I should see my doctor about them.

@aura Interesting I usually meditate on my bed (it's he only quit place in my house) so maybe it's the fibres and dust on my blankets?

DharmaField

Dear DustyintheMix,

Good meditation is paying attention to what is happening in the moment. Your body is telling you something, pay attention to it. You probably have an allergic sinus condition. This knowledge is a gift of the practice and an opportunity to heal. The images of animals may also be a clue, but they may just be associations from the past.

Good advice from the others, notice how they pay attention to so many aspects of body and mind - that is the 8 fold path in action!

May you be blessed with good health.

aura

Now that I think about it I do feel the headache all the time it is just when I am meditating that I feel it more (if that makes sense) maybe I should see my doctor about them.
@aura Interesting I usually meditate on my bed (it's he only quit place in my house) so maybe it's the fibres and dust on my blankets?

If you feel the headache all the time while in a given location, you will need to take a serious look at the air quality and potential allergy issues of that location. Backdrafting or leaking gas stoves, water heaters, and heating systems, seeping carbon monoxide from an attached garage or a neighbor's fireplace or barbecue, outgassing from finishers, adhesives, particle board, carpets, and/or too much carbon dioxide from insufficient fresh air are all possibilities. Most toxic gasses, including carbon dioxide, sink in air... so their concentrations are much heavier around you when you're lying in bed in a room than when you're standing up in that same room.
As for the bed itself....
Mattresses need to be vacuumed periodically because they collect a lot of dust,
but in addition to that, they can have dampness from a cold window or wall producing mold issues. Decomposing foam padding in mattresses and foam pillows is particularly full of toxic volatile compounds. Feather pillows and duvets are an extremely common allergen, as well as anything that has been dry cleaned.

If you feel the headache all the time irregardless of your location, you need to take a look at the possibility of hydration, blood sugar, food allergy, eyestrain, blood pressure, tension/alignment, and inflammation issues. Your doctor might not be able to identify potential air quality issues with your environment by looking you over, but your doctor will definitely be able to confirm or eliminate all those other distinct possibilities for you in short order.
May your meditation and life be headache free!

Jeffrey

I had a problem with blinking awhile back and there was not much I could do about it. Eventually I just tried to relax into what was.

SherabDorje

If you meditate on your bed you should have problems with getting to sleep and sleeping too. The fibers and dust on your blankets should bother you just as much then as while you're meditating, if not more since you're closer to them while you're sleeping.