In his book “Coming to our Senses, Healing Ourselves and the World Through Mindfulness”, Jon Kabat-Zin says “Mindfulness is the final common pathway of what makes us human, our capacity for awareness and for self-knowing. Mindfulness is cultivated by paying attention.” Simply put, the more we are willing to pay attention to our bodies and our minds, the more quickly we can create change. It sounds simple, but the catch is to pay attention and not get caught up in what comes into our awareness! Mindfulness is a practice and a skill, and like all skills, takes time and attention.
An example of using mindfulness might be noticing when we feel hungry. We can take stock of where we feel hunger pangs and remember that this is our body’s way of notifying us that it is time to eat. If we choose not to pay attention, we will continue to feel hungry and then notice that we are getting cranky. We can notice how “cranky” feels and again, choose to let it go. Our hunger will continue to notify our body that it is time to eat. We are cranky, and we may now place our crankiness on the first person who crosses our path. This may now create a confrontation of sorts! Our awareness of how we feel step by step is our key to change. If we ate as soon as we noticed our hunger, a confrontation with another may have been avoided. If we use mindfulness around this example, our job is simply to notice and not judge. Perhaps this lesson will teach us to eat when we are hungry!
Throughout our day, we have countless opportunities to notice the ways our body sends us signals about how we feel. As we turn onto the freeway and a car cuts us off, we may notice a surge of energy that we equate with anger rush through us. We could simply acknowledge that we are angry about being “cut off” and let it go. Many of us at this point may begin adding our beliefs about how “these kinds of things always happen to us” and drag it out throughout a portion of our day. Again, awareness is our key, and remembering that we can choose how and when to let a negative experience go. Our practice is simply to notice how our body feels, where we feel it, and how our emotions are then affected, all without judgement.
As you are reading this, perhaps you are noticing that, indeed, this is not an easy practice! However, it is a valuable one that can change and transform your life. Patience and consistency will grow your ability to “witness” and be mindful. If this is a practice that feels interesting to you, I invite you to come in for a session and we will continue to broaden your awareness and your mindfulness.
