Does Mindfulness Help with Relationships?

“Mindfulness is giving me the tools to look at life through other people’s eyes.” Many mindfulness practitioners note that their practice helps improve their relationships: “Mindfulness helps me take a step back, and breathe.” “I’m less impatient with my kids.” “I’m less irritable.” “There’s much less anger.” “My wife tells me I’m less of anContinue reading “Does Mindfulness Help with Relationships?”

How Do I Work with Anger?

Anger is a common human emotion, like sadness, happiness, disgust, and fear. Anger has a few different flavors. On one end of the spectrum, there’s fiery rage and seething anger. On the other end of the spectrum, there’s frustration and impatience, which are more subtle forms of anger. Anger has negative effects on both intrapersonalContinue reading “How Do I Work with Anger?”

How Do I Get a Good Feeling During Mindfulness Meditation?

There’s nothing wrong with wanting good feelings. There’s nothing wrong with not wanting bad feelings. It’s very human! Most of us come to something like mindfulness meditation because we want to feel more calm, relaxed, and compassionate. We want more of those good feelings! We might also want to feel less of those bad feelingsContinue reading “How Do I Get a Good Feeling During Mindfulness Meditation?”

What is the Present?

In mindfulness practice, we are always talking about paying attention to the present moment, being in the present, and returning to the present. The present moment is such a central component of mindfulness practice. But what is the present, really? The present is simply what is happening right now. It is what you are doingContinue reading “What is the Present?”

What If I’m Too Busy To Practice Mindfulness?

When we’re too busy to practice mindfulness, that’s when we need it the most. Living in the 21st century, many of us lead busy lives. Between work and family, sometimes we find that we are simply too busy and unable to find the time to practice mindfulness. Perhaps we put it off and say we’llContinue reading “What If I’m Too Busy To Practice Mindfulness?”

How Can Mindfulness Help with Healing?

Healing happens in this moment. Healing does not happen yesterday, nor does it happen next week. It only happens in this moment. Therefore, if we want to engage in healing and participate in healing, we have to meet it where it lives – in this moment.    No matter how chaotic or hopeless our lifeContinue reading “How Can Mindfulness Help with Healing?”

Am I Doing Mindfulness Correctly?

Mindfulness is just paying attention to this moment. There is no right or wrong way to do that. Just like eating, each person has their own way of eating and there is no right or wrong way to eat. That said, most people would agree that no matter how you eat, certainly conditions need toContinue reading “Am I Doing Mindfulness Correctly?”

How Does Mindfulness Work?

Mindfulness works on a number of levels: On a physiological level, mindfulness practice activates the relaxation response: Your heart rate drops, breathing slows down, blood pressure drops, and you feel calmer and more relaxed. In other words, this is activation of the parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the “rest and digest response.” OnContinue reading “How Does Mindfulness Work?”

How Do I Focus My Attention?

Mindfulness is attention training. Although we might look serene and still on the outside, what we are doing on the inside is actually a very active process and endeavor. During mindfulness meditation, we are actively working with our attention, managing our attention, and redirecting our attention. Attention is like a flashlight. Where we point theContinue reading “How Do I Focus My Attention?”

How Do I Calm Down My Wandering Mind?

Being distracted and unfocused during meditation is very common. Having a wandering mind during meditation is very common. It doesn’t mean that you are doing it wrong, or that you are “not cut out for mindfulness meditation.” It’s OK that many thoughts come up and distract us during meditation. The mindfulness technique is to noticeContinue reading “How Do I Calm Down My Wandering Mind?”