| > | | | | return to being mindfully aware of the core emotions. |
| | | | However, mindfulness is |
| Mindfulness has attracted considerable attention | | | | multi-dimensional. It is not simply learning to be more |
| throughout the healing professions and it has become | | | | aware, but of continuing from basic awareness to a |
| an essential tool for treating anxiety and depression. | | | | relationship of complete presence, in which you look |
| Essentially mindfulness helps us establish a conscious | | | | and listen with a clear, still mind. The second dimension |
| relationship with our inner emotions in which we are not | | | | of mindfulness is about how you relate to the core |
| reactive, but fully present. Mindfulness Therapy has | | | | emotion, or any other experience that you are |
| developed this approach to a fine art. | | | | observing. Mindfulness is like a spotlight and illuminates |
| Mindfulness is a form of conscious awareness in | | | | the emotion and directs your attention to the emotion |
| which we are fully aware of experience as it is | | | | and stops it being distracted away from the emotion. |
| unfolding. This may not seem different to our usual | | | | Now, we need to continue to shine the light on the |
| understanding of awareness, so in order to better | | | | emotion and begin the process of mindful-investigation. |
| understand mindful-awareness we need to first | | | | Mindfulness allows us to build a relationship with our |
| examine common awareness. When we encounter | | | | inner emotional complexes that is spacious, |
| an experience, which could be external, such as a | | | | non-threatening and safe. We are so used to reacting, |
| sight, sound, or touch, or internal, such a thoughts, | | | | that we never actually spend any quality time with our |
| memory or emotion, the mind tends to react to the | | | | emotions. It is like the busy friend who never seems to |
| experience according to past conditioning. When we | | | | have time to have coffee with you. Sorry, can't |
| look at a tree, we don’t just see the tree as it is, | | | | stop now. Catch you later. This is what we do with |
| but see a composite of the objective reality of the | | | | our emotional suffering all the time; we don’t |
| tree combined with our subjective reality, our internal | | | | take the time to simply be present with our inner pain, |
| representation of the tree. We see the products of | | | | and it is hardly surprising that the pain persists. |
| our subjective reactions to the tree, and often this | | | | Mindfulness is all about making time to be with your |
| dominates our perception and awareness so much | | | | emotion, literally sitting with it as you would with a |
| that we see very little of the truth of what is in front of | | | | friend, and listening. Hence the second dimension of |
| us. | | | | mindfulness is RELATIONSHIP and PRESENCE. We |
| We can describe consciousness as a continuum | | | | all know how important it is to be fully present with |
| between the totally objective truth at one end and the | | | | your spouse or friend when they are suffering. They |
| completely subjective reactivity at the other. Many of | | | | need your presence more than advice or words. |
| us reside more on the subjective side than the | | | | The third dimension of mindfulness |
| objective side and our experience is dominated by | | | | emerges quite naturally after you have established |
| subjective habitual reactivity that has the effect of | | | | mindful-presence and this is INVESTIGATION. When |
| blinding us to reality. | | | | we investigate an emotion like anxiety or depression |
| Mindfulness is the conscious | | | | with mindfulness, it responds by differentiating into |
| attempt to correct this imbalance and minimize | | | | more subtle feelings, memories and inner imagery. We |
| subjective habitual reactivity and shift consciousness | | | | simply see more, and this is very important, because it |
| towards objective perception. Hence mindfulness is | | | | is in the details of what we see that transformation |
| often described as the direct awareness or bare | | | | becomes a possibility. Just like a car that won't start, |
| attention to present experience. It is non-reactive | | | | the best response is to open the hood and look inside |
| awareness that allows us to completely experience | | | | the engine. Solutions present themselves. If you see a |
| any object of consciousness. One of the favorite | | | | loose wire, the solution is simple; but you had to look |
| terms that I use to describe mindfulness to clients is | | | | inside first or you would never have discovered the |
| presence. Mindfulness teaches us to be fully present | | | | solution. We tend to stay stuck at the superficial |
| for our experience as it is, rather than thinking about | | | | outward appearance of our emotions; we take our |
| what we are experiencing, analyzing our experience, | | | | anxiety or depression to be solid entities, when in fact |
| or reacting with attraction or aversion to what we are | | | | they are never solid and never what they first appear |
| experiencing. | | | | to be. An emotion is a construct, like a fortress, and |
| Mindfulness is a hallmark of the | | | | mindfulness is the process of taking apart the bricks |
| Buddha’s teachings and he considered | | | | and mortar. When you begin to disassemble the |
| mindfulness as the necessary foundation for inner | | | | emotion, then the solutions begin to present |
| transformation, as well as the purification of the actions | | | | themselves quite spontaneously. |
| of body, speech and mind as outlined in the Noble | | | | Hence, there is a fourth dimension |
| Eightfold Path. A person cannot perfect morality, | | | | to mindfulness, a TRANSFORMATIONAL domain. First |
| compassion or right action, without first developing | | | | we learn not to react; then we learn to be present. |
| mindfulness, because mindfulness is the vehicle for | | | | When we are present, we begin to discover the inner |
| seeing the reality and truth of things as they are, rather | | | | structure of the emotion, and this paves the way for |
| than distorted by our prejudices and beliefs. In relation | | | | transformation. Actually, each of these preliminary |
| to the mind, the Buddha made it very clear that if you | | | | dimensions of mindfulness is transformational; |
| want to transform inner emotional suffering, you must | | | | overcoming reactivity and learning to relate to inner |
| open your mind’s eye and look inside to see | | | | pain is the hallmark of successful psychotherapy. |
| what’s there. Reactivity and thinking take you | | | | However, making the inner structure of our depression |
| away from this primary and direct perception, because | | | | conscious will directly lead to the transformation at the |
| when you react, you experience the reaction, not the | | | | core level. The psyche has a remarkable ability to heal |
| original object. When you think about your anxiety or | | | | itself if given the freedom to change and this freedom |
| trauma, you are experiencing thinking about the object, | | | | is provided by mindfulness. We all have an innate inner |
| which is not the same as the original emotion. | | | | wisdom-intelligence, called satipanna in Buddhism, which |
| Reactivity takes you away from being present and | | | | directs change from instability to stability; from discord |
| this is actually a subtle form of suppression, and when | | | | to harmony; from suffering to well-being. This natural |
| the mind remains ignorant through suppression of any | | | | intelligence is just like the wisdom of the body, called |
| kind, it is prevented from changing. | | | | homeostasis, which continually makes adjustments to |
| The first requirement for | | | | maintain health. The psyche is also guided by |
| transforming anxiety is to allow yourself to observe it | | | | psychological homeostasis towards well-being and |
| fully, to be completely present and aware of the | | | | happiness. When mindfulness is established, we create |
| emotion. Without this effort to overcome | | | | the ideal conditions of inner freedom in which this |
| unawareness, nothing can change. In fact, the | | | | natural intelligence will direct the process of inner |
| unawareness is an essential factor that creates the | | | | transformation. |
| anxiety in the first place. This is particularly the case | | | | Many of my clients discover the |
| for depression, where there is a complex | | | | intuitive resolution to their depression, anxiety and |
| superstructure of negative reactive thinking around the | | | | post-traumatic stress through learning to listen inside |
| core emotion or trauma. Therefore, the first | | | | with mindfulness and allow the psyche to heal itself. |
| characteristic or dimension of the mental factor called | | | | The mechanism for this innate transformation |
| mindfulness is the active watchful component, called | | | | frequently involves experiential imagery, which will have |
| RECOGNITION or VILGILANCE. We train ourselves to | | | | to be the subject of another article. You can also read |
| recognize each and every movement of reactivity in | | | | more about this on my website. |
| the mind so that we can stop its proliferation and | | | | |