SELF HELP
Mindfulness
Have
you ever noticed that while sitting in class you find yourself in an
argument with your roommate about something that has been bothering you
about them. Your heart starts beating more rapidly, your muscles tense,
your breathing quickens, perhaps you’re even feeling angry, only to
realize that your roommate is not even in the room – the conversation
has taken place in your own mind. Afterwards, you can’t even recall the
main points from the lecture.
Or
perhaps you failed to study as much as you would have liked for a test and
the rest of the day you find yourself ensnared in a self-condemning
dialogue. The test is over and you are stuck in an unproductive state
keeping you from dealing effectively with what is actually happening.
The truth is that most of us live our
lives absorbed in our thoughts about what might happen or what has already
happened, missing the moment to moment experience of the life that is
unfolding before us. This
habit not only decreases our effectiveness but it also robs us of the full
experience of our lives happening here in the present, which is the only
time we get to live or act. Due to this habit, we may miss more than our
class notes, we may be distracted during valuable time with our families,
thinking of other things while with a lover, or off in thought in the
midst of a delightful Spring day.
Of
course it is important to take time to plan and reflect, but this works
much better when conducted through the clarity of conscious choice, and
not habitual, unproductive, discursive thinking.
Mindfulness
is about cultivating full awareness of the present moment so that we can
better manage stress and develop states of clarity and relaxed alertness.
Some common misconceptions about mindfulness meditation is that it is
about making your mind blank, feeling a specific way, or running away from
problems. Mindfulness is
about waking up to the fullness of your life and changing your
relationship to your problems, your fears, your physical or emotional
pain, so that these things don’t wind up controlling you and dictating
the quality of your life. Mindfulness is not an idea, it’s a practice
and a lifestyle cultivated by making a commitment to it over time.
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