Depth Through Mindfulness

It’s already April, and at Experience Writing that means it’s time for NaPoWriMo (National /Global Poetry Writing Month) and the A-Z Challenge. Continuing this year’s theme, I’m writing about the A to Z of Depth.

“Mindfulness is the awareness that arises from paying attention on purpose in the present moment and non-judgmentally.” ~ Jon Kabat-Zinn

Mindfulness is the practice of staying in the present moment. Paying attention to the present moment without judgements from the past or fears of the future, with only acceptance of what is.

There are many ways to practice mindfulness. Here is a list from The Mayo Clinic where they say that clinical trials have shown that mindfulness meditation can help with stress, anxiety, pain, depression, insomnia, high blood pressure, and can improve attention, decrease job burnout, improve sleep, and improve diabetes control:

• Pay attention. Take the time to experience your environment with all of your senses — touch, sound, sight, smell and taste. For example, when you eat a favorite food, take the time to smell, taste and truly enjoy it. I have a Conscious Eating kit with affirmation and meditation cards that I keep on the table to remind me not to be distracted and stay present during meals.
• Live in the moment. Try to intentionally bring an open, accepting and discerning attention to everything you do. Find joy in simple pleasures. Research indicates observing nature outdoors is especially beneficial.
• Accept yourself. Treat yourself the way you would treat a good friend. Practice self-care, paying attention to your needs in the moment.
• Focus on your breathing. The meditative practice is learning to stay with the breath. There are many breathing techniques for relaxation and calm such as: belly breathing, box breathing, and pursed lip breathing. Here’s an article from healthline 10 Breathing Exercises to Try When You’re Feeling Stressed that explains the how-to’s of these different breathing exercises.

You can also try more structured mindfulness exercises, such as:

• Body scan meditation. Lie on your back with your legs extended and arms at your sides, palms facing up. Focus your attention slowly and deliberately on each part of your body, in order, from toe to head or head to toe. Be aware of any sensations, emotions or thoughts associated with each part of your body. Jon Kabat-Zinn guides a body scan meditation in his Masterclass.
• Sitting meditation. Sit comfortably with your back straight, feet flat on the floor and hands in your lap. Breathing through your nose, focus on your breath moving in and out of your body. If physical sensations or thoughts interrupt your meditation, note the experience and then return your focus to your breath. The Calm Ease meditation below is a sitting meditation.
• Walking meditation. Find a quiet place 10 to 20 feet in length, and begin to walk slowly. Focus on the experience of walking, being aware of the sensations of standing and the subtle movements that keep your balance. When you reach the end of your path, turn and continue walking, maintaining awareness of your sensations. There is a guided walking meditation in Sharon Salzberg and Joseph Goldstein’s Insight Meditation.

Meditation

I’ve tried many different guided meditations over the years. I stuck with Sharon Salzberg and Joseph Goldstein’s Insight Meditation for a while. I tried to make a daily practice of Mandhu Bazaz Wangu’s Meditations for Mindful Writers. And I took Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Mindfulness and Meditation Masterclass.

Though all of these guided meditations have their merits, they didn’t work for me. They guide too much. The moment I feel that I’ve quieted my body and mind, their voices interrupt me and disturb my peace.

Recently, a friend recommended that I try Thich Nhat Hanh’s “Calm Ease.” I love it! He speaks just enough to keep me focused and he makes me smile every time.

Thich Nhat Hanh was a Zen Master who was exhiled from Viet Nam for his peace work during the war, and for refusing to take a side. He found a home in France and founded Plum Village, a mindfulness practice center.

If you would like to explore further, here are books by each of the people I’ve mentioned _{(amazon associate links)}:

The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh

Unblock Your Creative Flow by Madhu Bazaz Wangu

Real Happiness by Sharon Salzberg

Wherever You Go, There You Are by Jon Kabat-Zinn

Mindful Writing

I found some articles about writing meditation, but they were about freewriting and morning pages from The Artist’s Way as writing meditation. But then I found this article from Psychology Today “Struggling with Meditation? Mindful Writing Might Work.” Unlike morning pages where I write three pages in my journal of anything that comes to mind until I fill three pages, his mindful writing was listing his physical sensations along with his specific thoughts in the present moment. I think I might try this. It’s different and might be a good way to start my writing day.

I found a book called Mindful Writing (2017) by Brian Jackson. In it he says that writers get better when they are mindful of getting better. He says we are mindful when we think about our thinking. He equates mindfulness to metacognition and says, “You improve as a writer when you plan, practice, revise, and reflect—mindfully.”

If you like worksheets like I do, there’s a Mindful Writing Activity at Inherent Peace you can download.

Today’s Poem

This poem was inspired by today’s prompts at NaPoWriMo, Writer’s Digest’s April Poem a Day (PAD) Challenge, and the multi-dimensional prompt for Sculpting a Poem from dVerse Poets Pub.

Thank you so much for coming by and reading my post. Any thoughts or questions about Mindfulness? Come back tomorrow for more depth exploration and poetry.