Mindfulness
Mindfulness comes under so many categories but is extremely valuable for overall health.
How can you be “maximumly mindful” for positive thinking?
Here is my thoughtful (pun intended) list: –
Live in the present
We are all familiar with the benefit of living in the present. This is the usual “positive thinking” advice. A phrase I love goes something like this: “live in the present, as it literally is a present – a gift.”
The past has created our wisdom, but we do not live there. Let the past go, as we can’t change it.
Only positively forecast/pre-pave the future by creating what you want – today. The future doesn’t exist yet.
Don’t assume the worst will happen, attempt to see a positive outcome or solution.
Awareness of the Breath
When we are stressed or anxious we can breathe in a way that doesn’t benefit a calm and well-functioning body. We tend to breathe from the upper part of the chest, which can be shallow, and a bit faster.
Become aware of the breath and breathe in at a slower rate, with an even slower outward breath. Breathe from the lower core of your body. It is good to follow a count with the timing of breath, such as 4 seconds inward and 6 seconds outward, but this also depends on your lung volume.
There are many videos on breathing for calm, which are easily found on You Tube.
Be mindful of your food
It is useful to be mindful of the selection of your food, but also to be so mindful when you are actually eating it. Taste every item whilst chewing, enjoying every flavour and texture. It makes eating a new and pleasant adventure. So many people gather that favourite pudding and gobble it down without actually savouring the flavour! The healthiest food can be enjoyed when you consciously or deliberately taste the flavours. It is also said that when we eat steadily, our digestive system really appreciates it. Paul McKenna states that when we eat nice and slowly, there is also a possibility of weight loss. Our body doesn’t recognise that it is full until a few minutes later, so why not take advantage of this health benefit, by eating mindfully – steadily and enjoyably!
Be mindful of your lifestyle
To plan a healthy routine that becomes a good lifestyle, we are mindful of our daily actions. To ensure we are mindful of how much we exercise, drink, eat, sleep – we are mindfully taking diligent care of ourselves. Being mindful of any unhealthy habits and replacing them with good ones, is a healthy outlook.
Mindful of your words
I write a lot about the awareness of thought and word. Words, whether inwardly thought or outwardly spoken, are so powerful. So much so that it’s the difference between self-love and self-hate; happiness and depression; peace and war; health and illness.
There is a process of recognising negative thought and stopping it. I believe it is important to recognise the reason for a negative thought and work on it, but then to heal it and replace it with the positive outcome. We do need the negatives to understand the positives, but it is important to dwell on the positives.
I have a favourite method of changing negative thought patterns. This is by keeping an awareness of negative thoughts and then finding a comforting thought that diminishes the negativity. We all think differently however, so one person’s comforting thought will be different from another’s.
I can give you a strong example: If a relationship folded and couldn’t be rectified, then with all negative aspects I would tell myself that I don’t actually need that person; In fact, “attachment” isn’t healthy. If you love someone, then you’ll respect that they need to “go.” This is a lesson, so that if I do decide to go into another relationship, I have recognised what works and what doesn’t work for me, to make it a better situation – for me! Time heals, but in the meantime I can get to know myself again, doing the things I personally enjoy; letting go and moving forward, knowing that I am the one who makes the right decisions for me.
Some people would prefer the “his/her loss” or “his/her gain” way of thinking which can be a nice simplification.
The truth is, people cannot hear your thoughts, so you can choose the way of thinking that you know comforts you!
Just the awareness of your thoughts is powerful enough, so long as you feed the positives more than the negatives. Thoughts and words are food for the mind, as they are stored in our subconscious. It’s the difference between a healthy or unhealthy mind – trust me – your thoughts do impact your mind, body, and energy! I am living evidence.
Meditate!
Meditation brings calm, clarity – and even more awareness. There are so many benefits!
Meditation is a strong time for mindfulness, despite the opportunity we are giving our physical mind to “switch off.”
Be Mindful of your choices
We make thousands of choices daily, even down to how we put our socks on, or how we cross the road! If we make a mistake, we can forgive ourselves, as we’ve had such amazing results for millions of other decisions! If we are aware of the many choices we make, we can change habits, create new versions of ourselves!
So, Mindfulness – what do you think? Literally! 🙂
Is there anything you would like to add? Feel free to comment.