I found so many pages telling how I can change my life if only I join and give them money. If I watch these videos I'll be all better, they promise. Now, having said that, I did find some information quite useful and much to be, in my bizarre mind anyway, common sense. But I figured I would share anyway.
Have you noticed how fast things go these days? When is the last time you sat with a friend or family member and had a personal conversation with out distraction? For that matter, when is the last time you sat for 2 minutes and did nothing. Absolutely nothing. It's not as easy as it sounds.
When we move at the high rate of speed we have been trained to by todays society, we do a couple different things. We forget the small things. We forget to enjoy the now. And, possibly the most important of all, we to a ton of damage to our bodies. High levels of stress, bad food, lack of quiet or quality time. How many children are being raised by someone other than the parents because they are so busy trying to pay for all the crap they have that they can't afford?
I've recently noticed this is my life. I spend so much time focused on the future and trying to figure out what I'm going to do and how I'm going to do it that I completely miss what is going on around me in the moment. If you day all the burned out hippie BS and scam crap out, it boils down to something very simple. Pay attention. Notice what's around you. There really is something to that old saying about stopping and smelling the roses.
Another thing to think about. For every action there exists and opposite and equal reaction. If you are having a bad day, how does that affect those around you. And then those they are around. If you're running through the store because you're in a hurry, how does that affect your stress level, what you choose to purchase and how you treat those around you.
Perhaps it's a form of karma. You get back what you put out. If you go through life living for the future and ignoring the now, your future may not be all that pleasant. You may suddenly wake up one day having a panic attack that doesn't stop. You may suddenly realize that your life, to that point, has been an utter and complete mess. Then you realize that while in the rapid, or perhaps rabid pursuit of the carrot you have neglected your body and your mind to the point where all that carrot is doing is leading you into an early grave.
Do you live your life? Or is every day a fight for survival? It's a personal choice. Life is a series of learned habits. If you want to change your life, change your habits. But first, you must become mindful of them. You can't change what you aren't aware of.
Below is an article I stole from ladies home journal online:
10 Tips for Mindful Living
Bring the benefits of meditation to your daily life.
Practicing Mindfulness
Practice mindfulness in all of your day's activities.
The benefits of meditation
-- awareness and a feeling of calm -- can be achieved by engaging in
what's called "mindfulness." Mindfulness can help us develop patience,
trust in ourselves and others, and openness. Here are 10 ways to
practice mindful living throughout your day:
1. With your child. "While bathing your child, notice whether you're thinking of other things or rushing the ritual. See if you can 'show up' for this experience," suggests Katherine Bonus, founder of the Center for Mindfulness at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics. "If you allow stress or distractions to impact the way you touch and talk to your child, you may be fueling a very different and unintentional experience for yourself and your child."
The payoff: A safer, more satisfying experience; creating a special memory for you both.
2. With a friend, spouse, or coworker. When you find
yourself wanting to prematurely end a conversation, examine what it is
about the exchange that is causing you to want to move on. Are you
anxious to find a "better," more exciting conversation partner? Are you
thinking about something else? Instead, make an effort to fully listen
and then react honestly to what the other person is saying.
The payoff: Becoming a better listener, knowing yourself, and building patience.
3. With a stranger. Become aware of the judgments you
automatically form on a flimsy basis. "For example, if the person you
encounter is attractive to you, do you immediately start to assign
positive attributes to him and create a mental storyline about him?"
asks Bonus. The opposite can be true, as well, when you meet someone
you're not attracted to. Try to be aware of your reactions.
The payoff: A less judgmental mindset. If you suspend
opinions before you get to know someone, you're open to the opportunity
of seeing that person for who he or she really is.
4. During exercise. Note when your breathing becomes labored, when your temperature rises, and when fatigue or pain sets in.
The payoff: The more tuned in you are to physical cues
when placing extra demands on your body, the more familiar you'll become
with your body's limits; knowing your physical boundaries can help you
respect them and, if you want, gently push them.
5. At work. For one minute each hour, stop everything you're doing and focus only on your breath.
The payoff: Not only are you giving your mind a chance to
take a break (just as you'd give your body a rest after hiking for an
hour), but you return to your work refreshed. "Letting go of a stressful
situation and allowing yourself to just 'be' for a moment can bring
about a new perspective and give rise to a solution," says Dan Howard,
Spiritual Awareness Coordinator at Canyon Ranch, a resort located in
Lenox, Massachusetts. "It's like trying to remember someone's name, only
to remember it later when we're not thinking about it."
While Eating, During Leisure Time, and More
6. While eating.
Many of us eat unconsciously, shoveling food into our mouths, rarely
tasting much beyond the first bite. Instead, eat slowly, tasting each
bite, thinking about how the food got to the table, and appreciating how
it fuels your body.
The payoff: The more aware you are about how and what you
eat, the healthier your food choices become and the more relaxing
mealtime will be.
7. During your leisure time. Connect with the timeless
rhythms of nature. "Gardening, biking through the park, hiking -- all
these things put you in harmony with the natural environment," says
Sally Helgesen, author of Thriving in 24/7: Six Strategies for Taming the New World of Work (Free Press, 2001).
The payoff: The goal of mindfulness is to be fully
present; it's easier to achieve this state when you're in a natural
setting. To boot, being outdoors takes you away from the ticking of the
clock, and the ringing of the telephone (turn your cell phone off!) --
the distractions of modern life that fragment our attention. And the
serenity of nature can help you tap into your inner serenity.
8. When you experience a negative emotion or physical pain. When
we feel physical or emotional pain, the instinct is to rid ourselves of
it as quickly as possible, whether it's by taking aspirin for a
headache or suppressing anger. However, true mindfulness doesn't
discriminate -- you want to be aware and accepting of the "bad" stuff as
well as the "good" stuff. The next time you feel sick or upset, allow
yourself to fully feel it and accept it as your present mental or
physical state.
The payoff: It's easier to work through something you're
paying attention to rather than ignoring. In addition, the more
comfortable you become with a sense of fear, for example, the less
anxiety you'll have when it surfaces the next time.
9. While watching television. Many of us view shows
mindlessly. Check your physical and emotional response as you watch:
Does a news report make you anxious? Does a loud commercial make you
cringe? Do you tend to watch TV only when you're tired or depressed?
The payoff: The more aware you are of your responses to
television and how you "use" it, the more conscious you can be in
choosing to watch programs that are relaxing and gratifying.
10. Anytime. "Practice the 'philosophy of slow,'" suggests
Helgesen. For example, when cooking, choose a recipe that takes longer
to prepare, like a stew.
The payoff: Doing something slowly diminishes your stress
level, builds patience, helps us appreciate things that don't offer
"immediate gratification," and often produces better, more satisfying
results.
Being present in each moment feels counterintuitive -- we are so
conditioned to review our past and plan our future. But as mindfulness
expert Jon Kabat-Zinn writes, "If you want the future to be different,
the only place that you can stand and work with it is here and now." In
other words, bringing awareness to this moment will positively affect
the next one.
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