FE: It’s not all in your head

Do not ruin today with mourning tomorrow.”
― Catherynne M. Valente, The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making

Mindfulness…begins and ends in the body, not in the mind. 

Mindfulness is a practice that could always do with a little bit of motivation. Due to our busy schedules and technology-driven frantic lifestyle, we may not be devoting as much time to mindfulness as we’d like. Whether it is mindfulness meditation, mindful eating, mindful walking, or any other activity you love doing mindfully, it’s often difficult to take some time off when we are too distracted by demands of daily life.
Luckily, there is a lot of mindfulness wisdom out there that can provide you with the push you need to dedicate a few minutes of your day to mindfulness.

Try this 3-minute body scan to connect to your body.
When we think about mindfulness and meditation (with capital Ms), we can get hung up on thinking about our thoughts: mindfulness means we’re going to do something about what’s happening in our heads. It’s as if these bodies we have are just inconvenient sacks for our brains to lug around.
But meditation begins and ends in the body. It involves taking the time to pay attention to where we are and what’s going on, and that starts with being aware of our body. That very act can be calming, since our body has internal rhythms that naturally help us relax if we give it a chance. Here’s a three-minute body scan from Diana Winston.
Try it: Connect With Your Body with a 3-minute Body Scan
The body scan can be performed while lying down, sitting, or in other postures. The steps below are a guided meditation designed to be done while sitting.
1) Begin by bringing your attention into your body. You can close your eyes if that’s comfortable for you. You can notice your body seated wherever you’re seated, feeling the weight of your body on the chair, on the floor.
2) Take a few deep breaths. And as you take a deep breath, bring in more oxygen enlivening the body. And as you exhale, have a sense of relaxing more deeply.
3) You can notice your body: Your feet on the floor, notice the sensations of your feet touching the floor. The weight and pressure, vibration, heat. You can notice your legs against the chair, pressure, pulsing, heaviness, lightness. Notice your back against the chair. Bring your attention into your stomach area. If your stomach is tense or tight, let it soften. Take a breath. Notice your hands. Are your hands tense or tight? See if you can allow them to soften. Notice your arms. Feel any sensation in your arms. Let your shoulders be soft. Notice your neck and throat.
5) Let them be soft. Relax. Soften your jaw. Let your face and facial muscles be soft. Then notice your whole body present. Take one more breath.
6) Be aware of your whole body as best you can. Take a breath. And then when you’re ready, you can open your eyes.


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Akasha Lin
Akasha Garnier for #TheWishwall
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