Week #1: Time to Get Mindful!

Welcome to Week #1 my friends. During this very unsettling -- arguably, scary -- time, there is no better occasion to explore the benefits of mindfulness. It's very easy to get caught up in our heads - in our fears about what MAY or MAY NOT happen in the future. The sad reality is, all that time we spend in our heads we aren't appreciating our loved ones, our life, the very moments we are afraid of losing. So welcome to my blog. Welcome to the Now, and welcome to Week #1 of the rest of your life. . .

Let's get's started!

All of the exercises this week are intended to wrest control of the mind from autopilot mode and to begin cultivating the ability to focus attention on the present moment.  

EXERCISE #1:  The Raisin Meditation

This meditation is a practice in bringing your full attention and awareness to the present moment. Specifically, it is intended to bring conscious awareness to something we normally do on autopilot — eating. It is worth noting that mindful eating has proven to translate to weight loss!

Set aside 5-10 minutes when you can perform this experiment without any distractions. You will only need a few raisins (or other dried fruit) and a pen and paper if you want to record your thoughts and reactions to your experience.

While you only need to perform this experiment once this week, you will redeem more benefits if you repeat it. You can enhance the benefits of repeating the experiment if you introduce a different food each time. For example, you may substitute for the raisin another dried fruit, a piece of chocolate, or various types of nuts.

Let’s begin!

Step #1, Holding

Take one of the raisins and hold it in the palm of our hand, or between your fingers. Focus on it. Approach it like you’ve never seen it before. Can you feel its weight? Does it cast a shadow?

Step #2, Seeing

Again, try to view the raisin as if you’ve never seen one before. Notice the shape, the ridges, the hollows. Let your eyes explore every part of it.

Step #3, Touching

Turn the raisin over in your palm and explore its texture. Now switch hands. How does it feel in your non-dominant hand?

Step #4, Smelling

Hold it beneath your nose and take in its aromas with each inhale. Let it lift your awareness.

Step #5, Placing

Slowly bring the raisin to your lips, and gently place it into your mouth. Notice what your tongue does to receive it. Without chewing, simply explore the sensations of having it on your tongue. Roll it around your mouth. Do you start to salivate in anticipation of biting into it? Stay in this phase for 30 seconds or more.

Step #6, Chewing

When you are ready, very consciously bite into the raisin and notice the effects in your mouth. Notice the taste it releases and the texture as your teeth bites through the skin. Chew slowly for several seconds without swallowing. Notice what is happening in your mouth.

Step #7, Swallowing

See if you can detect the first intention to swallow as it arises in your mind. Experience it with full awareness before you actually swallow. Notice what the tongue does to prepare for swallowing. See if you can follow the sensations of swallowing the raisin. Consciously try to follow it as it moves down toward your stomach. Notice what the tongue does after you swallow.

Step #8, After effects

Now spend a few moments registering the aftermath of eating the raisin. Is there an aftertaste? What does the absence of the raisin feel like?

Williams and Penman write in their book that one attendee of their mindfulness course said that she tasted this one raisin more than she had ever tasted the 20 or more she would stuff into our mouth without thinking.

Imagine how conscious awareness could amplify other experiences in life, and your life as a whole! Well, that is the whole idea!

EXERCISE #2:  Mindful Awareness of Routine Daily Activity

Choose one of the following activities and whenever you are doing it this week, give it your total focus and attention. No autopilot. No zoning out. No thinking about other things.

• Brushing your teeth

• Walking from one room into another at home or at work

• Drinking

• Taking out the garbage

• Loading the washing machine or dryer

• Showering

For example:  When you are showering, pay attention to the sensations of the water on your body, the temperature, the water pressure. Feel the lather in your hands when you wash your body and scrub your hair. Smell the soap. Notice the movements of your hands and your body as you wash. If you choose to use this time to reflect on something else, do so consciously, with intention.

EXERCISE #3:  Meditation, “Mindfulness of the Body and Breath”

http://bit.ly/rodalemindfulness

Follow track #1 at   Do this meditation two times a day. If you don’t have the ability to listen to this track which is a guided meditation, the basic premise is this:

• Lie flat on your back with your arms laid out to your sides, palms facing up. Or, sit comfortably in a chair with both feet flat on the floor and your spine straight so that your posture supports your intent to be awake and aware. Close your eyes or just lower your gaze. First, notice all points of contact of your body with the floor and/or the chair. When you are ready, bring your attention to your feet and notice any sensations that arise. Move from the soles of your feet to your toes to your heels. Now expand the focus of your attention to include your ankles and then your lower legs. Notice how the sensations arise and dissolve in awareness. If you don’t notice any sensations, just register a blank. Expand your awareness to include your upper legs, then your buttocks, and your pelvis, then the lower back and the abdomen, then the entire torso, then the left arm, then the right arm, then the neck and the face and the head until you are holding the entire body in awareness. There is no need to control anything, just allow the sensations to be just as you find them. Then bring your awareness back to the center of your body and feel the rise and fall of your breath. For the full duration of each in and out breath, be fully alive to the sensations of breathing. If you find your mind wandering, just  take notice of where it has gone and bring your focus back to your breath.

Most importantly, remember that your breath is ALWAYS there to anchor you, still your mind,, and bring you back to the present moment.

EXERCISE #4:  Habit Releaser, Changing Chairs

For the duration of week one, notice where you usually sit at home, at the office, or at your café or bar, and choose a different chair. Williams and Penman say that the comfort of the sameness allows the autopilot to thrive. Choosing a different seat forces your mind into a higher level of awareness, making you more focused on the sights, smells, and sounds around you.