Eight Ideas for a Mindfulness Reboot to Protect Our Mental Health.
The year is still new, and my desire for a mindfulness reboot is stirring my soul.
My life feels stale, stagnant. More than this, actually, my days have been laced with anxiety and depression. I crawl under the covers at night, thankful for a stretch of time that feels like a reprieve from the anxiety that accompanies my waking hours. And then there’s this numbing sense of apathy that dusts my emotional landscape. I don’t like any of it.
These new feelings frighten me. I feel like the proverbial fish out of water. This isn’t my “normal” state of being. I’m an optimist, a glass-half-full person. I have no trouble seeing the good in people and finding the blessings within the challenges. I am acutely aware that my life is one of privilege and security. My needs are met.
So why have I been feeling like my mental health is compromised?
Is it because of the life changes that have come about through living my days within the framework of a global virus that won’t go away?
Is it because the rhythm of my life of travel and teaching has been put on an indefinite hold?
Perhaps it’s the testiness that has surfaced within my relationship with my beloved. We’re homebound together and, you know what they say: Absence makes the heart grow fonder, but familiarity breeds contempt.
Whatever the catalyst for my current mental state, I’m ready for a reboot. I want to get out of bed each day with feelings of joyful anticipation for what the day might bring. I’m done with apathy and depression. I’m ready to put my sense of anxiety and doom behind me, ready to begin again.
I want to be fully present to my life. I want to live mindfully.
I’m ready to toss out the expectations and preconceived notions that limit my experience. I want to be curious instead of judgmental. I want to have access to a world of possibility. I want to approach mindfulness with a beginner’s mind.
I’m going to start by asking questions like a curious child would. What is this, why is it this way, how does this work? With innocent questioning, I’ll learn more about the things I believe I’m already an expert in.
As I open my mind to inquiry, I’ll focus on these eight ideas for living a more mindful life.
Perhaps you’d like to join me.
1. Live life to the fullest — one moment at a time.
I don’t believe any of us are very good at living in the present moment. We tend to anchor ourselves to the past through worry, or feel anxious about what might happen in the future. Mindfulness happens one moment at a time. Let’s try to sit with each moment, like a beginner. Being present to each moment helps us become more present to the greater breadth of our lives.
2. Let go of being an expert. It enables you to keep learning.
Whether it’s a job we’re very good at, or a relationship in which we repeat the same old patterns of behavior, let’s look at things with beginner’s eyes. Approaching our lives with the belief that we are an expert can cause us to miss opportunities. Why not let go of that expert mindset and approach each situation with the curiosity of a child.
3. Release yourself from common sense and become creative.
There are so many little ruts we fall into because we’re approaching our lives from a common-sense perspective. We do things the way we do them because that’s what has always been done. Why not step out onto the creativity ledge and take a chance at a brand-new approach to that stale old problem?
4. Immerse yourself in your actions and ignore those who judge you.
No matter what we’re doing, someone is going to be watching and judging us. A beginner has no time to worry about those who judge. They are so immersed in the experience of learning, there’s no time for being afraid of what others might think. Free yourself. Ignore those who would judge you.
5. Utilize your native wisdom and experience.
Life experience is a great teacher. Intuition and native wisdom are there in abundance if you free yourself from the expert mind and allow yourself to be a beginner. Use your own innate wisdom to guide you.
6. Develop a spirit of inquiry. Focus on questions, not on answers.
We’ve all had that “know-it-all” person in our lives — the one who has all the answers and never questions anything. Don’t be that person. Instead, develop a spirit of inquiry. Question everything like a beginner. That’s how you’ll learn the most.
7. Celebrate falling down as well as getting up; it’s all part of learning.
As we move through life, we learn — about our environment, about people, about ourselves. We take one step forward and two steps back. We teeter and we fall down, then we get back up. See what you can learn from your falls and your recoveries. Celebrate it all.
8. Shake off “shoulds” and own your life.
I’ll bet you’ve been living your life within a framework of all those things you “should” be doing. Society, our family, our culture all put expectations within our definition of what kind of person we “should” be. Maybe we don’t fit in that mold. Start coloring outside the lines. Shake it up and shake off all the “shoulds”. Experiment. Find out who you are — then own it.
I hope you’ll join me in observing these lessons in mindfulness. Let’s embrace a beginner’s mind, and get out of our rut, so we can reboot, start anew, and have some fun!!
