Start here to explore the practices of mindfulness and compassion.
See also Articles and Research for background on what mindfulness is and how it works.
On this day after the big American presidential election many of us feel unsettled. It strikes me as an example of a bigger challenge we are always facing: everything is actually uncertain. It's just we often manifest a false sense of certainty. And there are ways that we can be pretty certain about things, but never completely certain. Uncertainty is always here.
I recorded this meditation during the Wednesday Midday Mindfulness Meditation to explore sitting with uncertainty. I hope you find it helpful.
-Tim Burnett, Mindfulness Northwest Executive Director
In this meditation you'll explore anchoring on the sensations of contact between the body and what you're sitting on; on the sounds in the environmental; and then explore (in a fresh way) the old standby of the breath.
The anchoring meditation is inspired by the work of David Treleven, author of Trauma-Sensitive Mindfulness.
David's work has demonstrated that we need a wider array of options for grounding and centering ourselves in mindful awareness.
Back story: often we focus on the breath which isn't the best choice for everyone, or might not be the best choice at a given time. Mindfulness requires discernment and flexibility along with the willingness to deeply explore and persist as we go along.
An 8-minute practice to check in mindfully led by Executive Director Tim Burnett.
Join Senior Teacher Karen Schwisow in a meditation on driving.
The three minute breathing space is a brief practice and can be used when we find our thoughts or mood spiralling in a negative direction. The first thing we do with this practice because we want to come into the present moment quickly is to take a very definite posture, then begin to check in with sensations in the body and mind and gather your attention. The Breathing Space practice is a wonderful exploration of the process of how we're attending to the present moment.
Step 1: Becoming aware
Deliberately adopt an erect and dignified posture, whether sitting or standing. If possible, close your eyes. Then, bring your awareness to your inner experience and acknowledge it, asking: what is my experience right now?
Step 2: gathering and focusing attention
Now, redirecting the attention to a narrow ‘spotlight’ on the physical sensations of the breath, move in close to the physical sensations of the breath in the abdomen . . . expanding as the breath comes in . . . and falling back as the breath goes out. Follow the breath all the way in and all the way out. Use each breath as an opportunity to anchor yourself into the present. And if the mind wanders, gently escort the attention back to the breath.
Step 3: expanding attention
Now, expand the field of awareness around the breathing so that it includes a sense of the body as a whole, your posture and facial expression, as if the whole body was breathing. If you become aware of any sensations of discomfort, tension, feel free to bring your focus of attention right in to the intensity by imagining that the breath could move into and around the sensations. In this, you are helping to explore the sensations, befriending them, rather than trying to change them in any way. If they stop pulling for your attention, return to sitting, aware of the whole body, moment by moment.
Feeling alarmed? Getting reactive? Try STOPing. This brief practice may help your drop below the story line into your lived experience and increase your chances of feeling the space between stimulus and response. At the least it may prevent you from doing of staying something you'll regret!
A wonderfully simple but very effective way to create that mindful pause.
Before entering a room simply: pause, feel your two feet on the floor, and take one mindful breath. Then continue into the room.
Before entering a room simply:
pause, feel your two feet on the floor, and take one mindful breath.
Then continue into the room.
This is especially relevant before entering a room in which you will be called upon to be fully present and awake to what's going on. This practice was designed to support doctors in their interactions with patients. The doctors were encouraged to do the Two Feet and a Breath practice before entered exam rooms. Preliminary evidence suggests this can lead to a great improvement in the patient-doctor conversation.
Read a New York Times op-ed describing this work with doctors here.
Download a PDF describing this practice and also serving as an attractive reminder to do it.
Mindfulness training generally reduces rumination and worry by helping us see our thoughts and emotions with a little more space, and by providing us with tools such as breath and body awareness to work with our attention.
And yet we also do carry difficult internal issues. We do face serious life challenges. While resting more in the present moment helps, we also need tools to face our challenges.
It’s helpful to include practices that embrace the difficulty of life and turn towards the challenges we face (and too often worry, fret, and ruminate over).
The practice of RAIN one of these practices. The acronym R.A.I.N. can remind us of a wise way to meet difficult situations with mindfulness and kindness towards ourselves and others.
R Recognize what is happening. See it more deeply. Feel it for what it is. What is the challenge your facing? Recognize.
A Allow and Accept. What is, is. We can shed some of our resistance and aversion and allow and accept the challenge to be a part of our lives? Allow and Accept.
I Investigate your inner experience. Deeping more deeply still. What are the feelings behind the feelings? How does this challenge manifest in the body? Drop into the spaciousness of mindfulness practice and Investigate.
N Non-identification. Don’t let this difficulty define you. All humans have challenges. All humans make mistakes. Bad things happen. Consider that this challenge might not be your fault, while it is still your responsibility to find a way to meet it wisely. It’s just a challenge, it isn’t the all of you. And consider that, just like you, many other people face a similar challenge to yours. Everything is workable. Non-identification.
RAIN directly de-conditions the habitual ways in which we resist our moment-to-moment experience and turn away from our challenges. It doesn’t matter whether you resist “what is” by lashing out in anger, by having a drink, or by getting immersed in obsessive thinking. Our attempts to control the life within and around us actually cuts us off from ours hearts and from this living world. RAIN begins to undo these unconscious patterns as soon as we take the first step.
by Tim Burnett
As you contemplate putting together your own ongoing mindfulness practice, you might consider these three building blocks: (1) formal practice on your own, (2) group formal practice, and (3) informal practice.
Group Practice: You can experience group meditation in our mindfulness classes and there are meditation groups meeting regularly in the Northwest - see our Community page for some suggestions. You may find that your formal and informal practice are aided by joining one of these groups. You might also be able to join together with friends and form a simple practice group of your own also.
Check out this list of levels of practice to see what’s best for you:
Platinum: daily formal practice 20 or more minutes, and informal practice, and weekly group practice.
Gold: daily formal practice of 5-15 minutes, and informal practice.
Silver: daily formal practice for a few minutes, and some informal practice.
A real step forward: informal practice as often as possible.
We who teach mindfulness value formal and informal practice. We see how the one supports the other. But we know that many of us don’t feel we have the time for formal practice. It is true that the combination of a demanding work schedule and family life can leave very little time to devote to yourself. But you may have a habitual way of thinking is preventing you from practicing, a mindset that “there’s no time for me.” We invite you to explore this mindfully. Even a few minutes of formal practice daily can be very helpful. You might especially look at transitions between major activities (work and home, say) and whether your downtime activities are truly nourishing.
The beauty of informal practice is that it takes no extra time. Only remembering to pay attention to whatever’s happening in and around you. Many former participants in our courses report that informal practice, even without formal practice, gives them a helpful opportunity to pause and come back to the present moment again and again. Informal practice alone is A Real Step Forward.
For some suggestions on keeping up the formal practice at home see the essay “Maintaining a Daily Practice” on the website.
Wishing you well as you come up with what works for you, and reminding you that we change over time. Just be open, and who knows what the future will offer you?
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