Compassion and Our Family of Origin...

(Here is something from one of our participants who wanted to remain anonymous. What do you think?)

I had a little dilemma and thought well this was perfect for the compassion club. My focus this year is my family and as of late a little issue with my Mom. She has enormous trouble sleeping, and has ever since I can remember. She does take many medications that are supposed to help but I also think prevent her also from being able to. (So many meds-hard to know what is going on) Anyhow, she complains about it quite a bit. She mentioned to me the fact that she could not turn her thoughts off at night. Which sounds familiar on occassions for me so we got together to discuss breathing and some meditation. I suggested to her to do what I did when I started and then gave her 2 techniques for breathing along with a Andrew Weil tape. What was interesting about it was that she w as par tailly open to the information but kept insisting that she had tried some of it and "how do you let go of thoughts?" Hmmmm,
Well, I tried my best, but one of my family of origin issues is the fact that I am the baby. I tend to be the one that everyone turns to for an empathetic ear but not for action. It very seldom in the past and the very recent past arises that I am knowledgable enough at something to give advice. She tends to dismiss most of what I say, saying that she has tried it all and she just doesn't sleep well (we have had that conversation so many times I cannot count!) Both David and I made the observation that this is a self fullfilling prophecy for her.

So my dilemma is that it is slightly frustrating, I am fine if all that is required of me is to listen but to be drawn in and then dismissed is challenging for me and also how to help if at all?