October 17 - Quiet Your Mind

"Overthinking will destroy your mood. Breathe and let it go."

I have written before about how living mindfully is sometimes a struggle for me. I have a very busy mind that seems to go constantly. I analyze things (often over analyze), plan ahead, and am barraged by my own thoughts. As an example, I want to lose weight. I've probably read the pros and cons of 90% of the diets out there...and there are a lot of diets to choose from. Working with my counselor, she suggested I quit thinking (something she said she rarely tells her clients) and "let it go and just do". My instructions were that when thinking about having a snack, instead of thinking about how many calories, which is the healthier choice, should I avoid dairy, etc., she suggested to stop - and breathe. Square breathing...(breathe in to the count of four, hold for the count of four, exhale for the count of four, rest for the count of four)... was her recommendation. And guess what? It seems to be working!

A good analogy that I read in an article here, said that when you focus on your thinking, your mind is like an electric fan with thoughts blowing everywhere. When you focus on your breathing  however, thoughts can come and go like clouds across a sky. “You can look at them, realize they are just thoughts, and let them go,” says Victor Davich, author 8-Minute Meditation: Quiet Your Mind, Change Your Life. I found that I was thinking so much about which diet or eating plan was the best, my thoughts were constantly on food. Now I just breathe until my  thoughts are quieted.

This technique could apply to other things that get my mind over thinking. With information at our finger tips now, it is easy to bombard our self, putting our thoughts in constant motion. So again - as been the theme of this blog - stop and be in the moment! Just breathe!

Days 299 - 316

October 1 - Flow

"Grow with your inner flow."

I have been listening to an audio book entitled "The Craving Mind". It has been very interesting to me as the essence of the book is about overcoming addictions and bad habits by being mindful. I have previously posted about mindful eating and some strategies to help with that. For me, this has been an ongoing struggle.

There is a section in the book about flow, which is essentially "being in the zone". We all have experienced flow. When you are so involved in something you look up from what you are doing and wonder where the time has gone, that is flow. Flow, like many things, if taken to far can also be addictive. For example, if someone continually puts them self into a harmful situation because of thrill or rush. Many other elements of flow are similar to meditation, which is a great mindfulness technique. According to the author of "The Craving Mind", the aspects of meditation that are similar to flow are "Concentration focused and grounded in the present moment. Subjective experience of a continuously unfolding 'present' moment. Intrinsic reward."

Practicing mindfulness helps to generate flow experiences directly.Here’s what you experience when you’re in a state of flow:

• You feel at one with the world. 
• You let go of your worries and problems. 
• You’re completely focused.
• You feel very satisfied with what you’re doing. 
• You’re happy, although you don’t really notice it at the time because you’re so engrossed in whatever you’re doing. 

By knowing when you’ve been in flow, you can encourage more opportunities to experience it in the future.

What activities do you engage in where you experience flow? (Examples - reading, exercising, drawing, playing an instrument, etc.) .

Days 288 - 298