You can learn how to practice mindfulness meditation and develop your own home practice. Mindfulness is about learning how to stay in the present moment. Mindfulness is awareness of the present moment, without clinging to it when it’s pleasant, without turning away when it’s unpleasant, and without wanting it to be other than it is.
Breathe in. Let it go. Bring your awareness to the present moment.
How to Meditate
Learning how to practice mindfulness typically begins with formal meditation practice, as in sitting meditation, and informal practice, by incorporating it into your everyday life. Sitting meditation is like your training ground for bringing mindfulness into your everyday life, so it’s best if you can start there. If you’re not familiar with meditation, be sure to start with my post on “How to Meditate.” You may also be interested in my post on “What is Mindfulness?“
As you engage with your formal meditation practice, you’ll gradually start to see clearly the habitual ways of thinking and reacting that cause suffering. When you see yourself clearly, you have the freedom to change. As you begin to recognize these patterns in your formal practice, start to bring awareness to when and how they arise in your everyday. Because whatever is happening during your formal meditation practice is a direct reflection of what happens in your everyday life. If you struggle with sitting still or boredom in your practice, you likely struggle with these experiences in everyday life.
Mindfulness is
Mindfulness is about learning to meet whatever arises with an attitude of non-judgment, curiosity, and kindness. The way to bring the practice into your everyday life is to simply practice meeting whatever arises in your everyday experience with this same attitude. It’s easier to get the hang of it in everyday life if you’re practicing this regularly in your formal meditation practice.
You may start to notice how much time you spend in the past or future and not in the present. You get into the shower, and you’re thinking about what you have to do today, having an imaginary conversation with your boss that may or may not ever happen, thinking about how tired you feel, and worrying over what’s for dinner. Does all of this busy mind chatter decrease your stress or increase it? Why not practice being present for as many moments of your life as you can?
So when you’re in the shower, practice being present in the shower. When you notice your mind wandering, bring it back to the experience of showering. Notice the feel of the warm water on your face, the smell of the soap or shampoo, the feel of your hands washing your hair.
Present Moment
Being in the present moment doesn’t mean you never plan for the future. But it does mean you don’t spend so much time worrying about the future. Planning is a present moment activity when it’s done intentionally. Worry is not.
Start with being present in the shower or while drinking your morning tea or coffee, and notice what happens. Hopefully I’ve helped you have a better sense of how to practice mindfulness. Let me know how it goes!
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