Five things to remember if you struggle to stay in the moment
You should meditate, breathe deeply, embrace the moment. Sounds familiar? You probably read and hear a lot about the benefits of being in the moment and how we should all use this time of social distancing to connect with ourselves.
Well, this is all good advice. There has never been a better time to be in the present moment than now. Worldwide changes that happened because of the pandemic were so rapid that shook us to the core. There is no way of telling what the future is bringing and we are aware of that fact, now perhaps more than ever.
The fact that being in the moment is useful doesn’t mean it comes naturally to everyone. We now have apps for everything, YouTube, and all the content, but sometimes, 5 minutes of guided meditation just doesn’t cut it. Being with yourself requires you to dig deep and with so many things happening it can be quite hard.
If you are a person who stays in the moment than you can stop reading, but if you struggle with it, here are a few things to remember.
Being in the moment doesn’t always translate to being at ease. Being in the moment brings us closer to ourselves, our feelings, needs, and wants, but what many left out is that, even though being in the moment is important, it does not always translate to being at ease. Being in the moment is all about facing everything that a moment brings, including our feelings, sensations, and thoughts. That can be terrifying. Our reality is full of contradictions, uncertainty, ups, and downs, and all the changes affect us. If you feel overwhelmed with everything that is happening, then staying in the moment and breathing deeply can be even more challenging than usual.
Figuring how you feel may seem like mission impossible. If there’s no simple answer to how you feel, then don’t try to find one. Instead of focusing on figuring out exactly what you feel, allow yourself just to feel whatever is present at that moment. Experiencing a vortex of emotions can be frustrating, but the only way to get to your emotions is through feeling them. After all, being happy, sad, and anxious at the same time means only that you’re human.
Grief can show when you don’t expect it. The world has changed and with it, our life as we know it. We have missed travels, birthday parties, anniversaries, but we also lost our ”normal” daily routine. Even though the present moment offers a lot, we are not getting back the future we planned for. Things you’re grieving for might seem strange, but that doesn’t make our feelings less important. If sadness is most present in you, then allow yourself to grieve.
Practice doesn’t make it perfect, but it makes it easier. Breathing deeply is a skill. Being in the moment is a skill. Like every skill, it requires practice. You cannot force yourself to connect to yourself, but you can be consistent in showing up for yourself.
The more you allow yourself to be with joy, the more you’ll feel it. We all know what things make us feel good, but how much do we really take time to enjoy them? Being in the present doesn’t always come with a feeling of joy, but when it does, then be present with joy.
In the end, the most important thing is to be kind to yourself. Being in the moment is an active process, and it‘s not always straightforward as it seems. We cannot choose how to feel, but we can choose to be with our feelings. So wherever you are and, whatever you’re experiencing, be gentle with yourself.
