How to Implement Mindfulness Meditation
Mindfulness meditation isn't as transcendental or as New Age as it might sound. In fact, it's really just a lengthy phrase to mean something that you might already be doing without realizing it. In essence, mindfulness meditation is taking the time to think about what is going on at the moment and to be aware of the things that you are experiencing. Why is this important?
A lot of times, people practice avoidance. If you get fired from work, you have an argument with your significant other, or have someone back into your car then your first reaction might be to rent a movie, veg out on the sofa, and possibly eat chocolate or something equally unhealthy. Although all of these have a time and place, if there is an on-going issue, none of them help solve the problem at hand.
On the other hand, when you use mindfulness meditation, you take the time to really let the anger, frustration, disappointment, hurt, or even elation wash over you and then you go from there. It's about letting these feelings have a time and place in your body, dealing with them, and then moving on.
There are several reasons why this can be beneficial to you. For one thing, it can help you if you have anxiety. While it's not completely giving in to the anxiety, it is a way for your body to accept that it is happening and then understanding that that it doesn't have a practical reason to be there.
So how can you do it? It does take practice, as well as some control. If you find that your mind starts to wander, then it's important to try to gain control of your feelings and thoughts and to focus on your breathing. Sometimes, focusing on your breathing is not just a way of controlling your body, but a way of controlling your mind as well. In fact, controlling your breathing can be a way of diverting the attention away from the physical responses that your body is having to stress.
Some people even go so far as to practice this when it comes to over-eating. For example, if they have a tendency to eat too much pasta, then instead of just looking at their plate as a bunch of noodles and sauce, they pay particular attention to the taste, color and texture. By not completely shutting off their minds to what they are doing, and instead actually focusing their attention on the food at hand, they sometimes find that it's easier to stop when they are full.