Feeling stressed? About to rip into someone? Why not try this little mindfulness trick!
When your feeling stressed, stop, and question yourself. What exactly is bothering you? Maybe you’re expecting something bad to happen, maybe an argument is just around the corner, maybe you’re just worried about something. Try to understand what the issue is, and make a note of everything you find.
Now, see if you can directly work with these mind-irritants. Could you:
- Make a phone call that’s on your mind?
- Take an aspirin for any pain?
- Apologize to whomever you were fighting with?
- Write things down on a to do list?
- Go for a walk in the park to ease your stress?
Try to get things off your mind. If there’s nothing you can do right now, tell yourself that and let that knowledge give you comfort.
This little mindfulness trick is a way of training yourself to be fully present with what is happening right now. Through the sheer power of awareness, we come to accept life as it is, not as we would like it to be.
Now, slowly shrug your shoulders and open your eyes. Take a deep breath, smile, and take on the next task in your life.
Even if you do this 1 time for every 10 stressful moments in your life, you will quickly realize that is has a profoundly positive impact on your existence. Learn how to use the breath for ultimate mindfulness.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Accepting life as it is and not as we would like it to be seems to be a challenge for many people. Learning and practicing radical acceptance actually puts people more in control of their thought process, feelings associated with their thoughts and ability to choose effective behaviors in response to stressors.
Thank you for sharing this valuable information.
I completely agree Michael; very well put. Thank you for taking time to comment. Have a wonderful day.
Before mindfulness the old me faced with yet another disappointment from a certain close family member would have gotten angry and screamed a lot. The other day when something really bad happened I dealt with it much better without the anger and shouting at this,person and I put that down to mindfulness and am quite pleased with how I dealt with the situation.