Timeless Truths for Modern Mindfulness by Arnie Kozak

Author:Arnie Kozak [Kozak, Arnie]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, azw3
ISBN: 9781510728035
Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing
Published: 2017-12-12T00:00:00+00:00

Meditation: Working with Your Stress Cues

When I sit for meditation and get distracted, I tend to crack my neck and back. Sometimes, this results in a beneficial release, while at other times, it exacerbates muscle tension. This distracted movement is compulsive. It is done automatically without consciousness. Without intention, it’s bound to be harmful sooner or later. Another stress cue is clenching my jaw. This usually doesn’t happen during meditation, but when I am moving about during my day. I might notice the discomfort of the jaw tightening before I can catch myself in the act of thinking, removed from the present.

Get into your meditation seat. Start this practice by recollecting where you are holding the stress in your body as you move about in the world. Remember what happens when you encounter a tense situation. Think back to past instances of situations that you dread and want to avoid, or that make you uncomfortable. See if these reside in any particular place in your body or are accompanied by any particular behaviors like cracking your joints, clenching your jaw, or other indicators of increased tension. If it is a behavior, try to stop doing it. If it is something like a knot in the pit of your stomach, focus your attention and explore the energy of that knot or whatever that sensation is—headache, tense shoulders, butterflies. Rather than seeing these signatures as nuisances, look at them as your early detection system for when the mind is compelled by stories. Use their information to return to the present.

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