Are you present?
Are you being pulled in so many directions that you can’t keep up? Are you becoming overwhelmed by meetings, phone calls, emails, and kids requests? I’ve found one of the best gifts I can give myself is slowing down.
I know you say “how in the world can I do that with my hectic life?”. Truthfully, you can’t afford not too! In today’s busy world, many of us neglect taking the time to connect to ourselves. We are connected to the world through our phones, internet and/or tv. When we neglect self-connection, we feel overwhelmed, unfulfilled, lack of passion or enthusiasm, low energy, impatience , and even illness. It also affects our ability to experience joy, love, intimacy and purpose in our lives. Of course none of us would do this to ourselves on purpose but we are doing this to ourselves by default.
The good news is we can find tremendous relief by choosing to live mindfully.
Meditation is one practice that is instrumental in keeping me present and connected to my self. I have been meditating almost daily for many years now and the benefits are amazing! I’m more self-aware, I’m able to manage stress better, I have better focus and the quality of my sleep has improved drastically. Connecting with nature through waking, hiking, running, and gardening are also tools I use to live mindfully.
By no means am I telling you that you will have less things on your to do list but I am telling you that your feelings about these things will shift. By living mindfully you will focus and be present for what you are doing in the moment, which in turn, relieves the overwhelming feelings and reduces stress. You will also find more connection and satisfaction for the task at hand. This shift usually leads to improved relationships with yourself and others, increased productivity, more creativity, and joy.
Whether it’s deep breathing, yoga, journaling or anything else you think of, I encourage you to find the techniques that resonate with you and try on mindful living for 30 days and evaluate how your life has shifted.
