Making the journey to a more mindful life

So – December is here and I don’t know about you, but most people I talk to say “Where did 2022 go?”

Life tends to slip away from us, one day at a time.  We juggle 100 things, constantly thinking of the next engagement or task on the ‘to-do’ list, finding it hard to take a breath. Is that really the way to live?  And how do I SLOW LIFE DOWN?  Well, we may have an answer.

Remember when you were a child?  The long summer holidays seemed to yawn on forever.  I remember following the march of a single ant make its way through the grass in the back yard.  Savouring a piece of watermelon, sticky chin on the beach.  Watching the clouds float through the sky and making out animals.  And the long hot days went on and on.  What happened?  Is it true that, as we get older, time goes faster?  Well yes and no!

When we are super busy, and our minds are burdened with multiple responsibilities, time does seem to go faster.  Because we don’t pause to notice what is happening in the moment (welcome mindfulness!). Children tend to be masters of mindfulness.  They are able to just to sit and experience.  It’s not until we begin to gather more and more responsibilities that we lose this natural ability.

Mindfulness has its roots in Buddhist meditation, and has grown in popularity across the western world since the 1970-80s. Studies have also demonstrated how practicing mindfulness has so many benefits on our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing, as well as increasing our sense of immersion in an experience, and therefore, the feeling that the days stretch on.

When you make time each day to reflect and observe with open curiosity, you elevate your consciousness. When operating at a higher level of consciousness, you also begin to realise just how interconnected everything is and express greater compassion for yourself and others. As the Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hanh, noted: “When we enter the present moment deeply, our regrets and sorrows disappear, and we discover life with all its wonders.” The ordinary suddenly becomes divine as you see your world through new eyes.

Silence and stillness

The gateway to wisdom it seems, is silence and stillness. It is time well spent as it opens the pathway to your personal evolution and growth. When you are still, you are able to listen – to your mind, to your heart, to your body and to the world that is around you.

I invite you to take a moment right now to sample the depth of connection to yourself and the world around you that can be experienced when you concentrate your energy on the present moment.

Give this a try and simply notice what you notice:

1. Close your eyes and connect with the rise and fall of your breath. See if you can gently lengthen each breath as you follow it all the way in -and then all the way out again.
2. As you begin to feel yourself entering a more relaxed state, bring your attention to the sounds around you as you connect with each in turn.
3. From this place of awareness, bring your attention to each part of your body, noticing the sensations you feel as you scan upwards from your toes to the top of your head.
4. Bathe yourself in this moment for as long as you need before slowly opening your eyes and moving forward in your day with greater intent, presence and connection.

Too busy for mindfulness, did you say?  And when you DO stop,  do you feel impatient and fidgety?  Difficult to just do ‘nothing’?  Whenever a Psychologist hears that, we know you need mindfulness more than ever!

You don’t have to carve out huge chunks of time to prioritise mindful moments throughout our day to manage our energy better. You can always find time for small pauses, even for 60 seconds at a time.

Practising mindfulness isn’t exclusively reserved for the activities of breath work and meditation. It’s also about walking, and eating, and drinking, and touching.  It’s a mindset.  By cultivating this important skill of mindfulness, it can become more than just a practice for you; it can become a way of living.

A way of enriching your life experience, deepening your connection and ~ slowing down time.