Post by Admin on Mar 9, 2018 13:21:24 GMT -5
We have posted about 'Mrs Mindfulness' before. She is a yoga and mindfulness teacher in Australia who ran what I believe was the first world-wide, web-based mindfulness conference in October 2015. (We refer to it elsewhere here and have recordings of all the sessions if anyone wants info). She posts things from time to time which I find very authentic, meaningful and helpful for folks pursuing a mindful path. Following a rough year (3 deaths and end of a long-term relationship) she penned this message to her followers. It includes also a special meditation (audio) on this subject. Was going to quote excerpts with a link, but decided to share her entire letter:
Dear friends,
Everyone has moments of pain and distress.
We all have the tendency to struggle in those difficult moments. When the demands of our lives stretch us to our limits, when we feel the searing grief of a loss or we are overcome with anxiety, depression or hopelessness – and we struggle or fight against our difficult emotions, it’s like drowning in quicksand. We only add more suffering to an already difficult moment.
There is another, more gentle, courageous and skilful way to meet our moments of pain, and it’s powerful.
In the past two years I’ve had to learn this lesson again and again. I’ve experienced a lot of difficulty and loss including three deaths and the ending of my 18 year relationship. There have been moments that I have been literally brought to my knees with the pain.
Fortunately, I had the power of mindfulness and self-compassion on my side. Each time I was hit with another wave of pain, fear or confusion I did one simple practice (often many times a day!). It’s called the self-compassion break. (I’ve recorded a version of it for you here, mrsmindfulness.com/mindful-self-compassion/)
This practice will help soothe you in your hardest moments and nourish you like warm sunshine on a cold day. Rather than shutting down, struggling or numbing out when we are hurting, self-compassion offers us a way to develop courage, kindness and awareness in the middle of it all.
Through this kind of mindful self-compassion we can open up and connect instead of building walls around our hearts, we learn what our hardship may have to teach us (in my case, how to be more compassionate towards others suffering and how to be deeply humbled) and we can rise to the occasion of our humanity with more grace.
I’ve written you a guide to the practice here as well as recorded the meditation for you to download and have with you whenever you need it most : )
Wishing you ease and peace, Melli
(Detailed article with 4-steps advice plus the above:Citation link HERE)
Dear friends,
Everyone has moments of pain and distress.
We all have the tendency to struggle in those difficult moments. When the demands of our lives stretch us to our limits, when we feel the searing grief of a loss or we are overcome with anxiety, depression or hopelessness – and we struggle or fight against our difficult emotions, it’s like drowning in quicksand. We only add more suffering to an already difficult moment.
There is another, more gentle, courageous and skilful way to meet our moments of pain, and it’s powerful.
In the past two years I’ve had to learn this lesson again and again. I’ve experienced a lot of difficulty and loss including three deaths and the ending of my 18 year relationship. There have been moments that I have been literally brought to my knees with the pain.
Fortunately, I had the power of mindfulness and self-compassion on my side. Each time I was hit with another wave of pain, fear or confusion I did one simple practice (often many times a day!). It’s called the self-compassion break. (I’ve recorded a version of it for you here, mrsmindfulness.com/mindful-self-compassion/)
This practice will help soothe you in your hardest moments and nourish you like warm sunshine on a cold day. Rather than shutting down, struggling or numbing out when we are hurting, self-compassion offers us a way to develop courage, kindness and awareness in the middle of it all.
Through this kind of mindful self-compassion we can open up and connect instead of building walls around our hearts, we learn what our hardship may have to teach us (in my case, how to be more compassionate towards others suffering and how to be deeply humbled) and we can rise to the occasion of our humanity with more grace.
I’ve written you a guide to the practice here as well as recorded the meditation for you to download and have with you whenever you need it most : )
Wishing you ease and peace, Melli
(Detailed article with 4-steps advice plus the above:Citation link HERE)