Do you overthink? Well here is a way to navigate outside of the forest of your thoughts and into the daylight of your soul.
Image by Enrique Meseguer
Thinking is something we all do and it’s part of being human just like breathing. We can’t stop our thoughts but we can choose to let them float on by like the clouds in the sky.
How do we do this?
We start by becoming conscious of our thoughts and begin to observe them. Instead of staying unconscious and at the mercy of our thinking minds, we are now the observer and can see them for what they are, just thoughts with no power. They only have power when we choose to give them power.
Why do you think the world of meditation and being in the now has become so popular for improving our mental health?
Meditation stills the mind and gets you to focus on something else like your breath or body moving you away from all the noise of your thinking mind. Your thoughts may still be present but they don’t have the hold over you when you shift your focus off them directly.
The same is true for being present or in the now, as the author, Eckhart Tolle has been teaching for many years. He suffered from severe depression until he awakened from his thoughts and saw his depression for what it was, a series of negative thoughts that were separate from him. With this breakthrough, he had the power to detach from them and from then onward chose to think differently. This process changed his life and he has now become a successful teacher on how to live in the now.
Check out his book, The Power of Now, and learn for yourself the beauty of being present and still, it could change your life forever.
There are so many benefits to taking time out from thinking. Your mind is like a computer and it needs to shut down to recharge and rejuvenate. We have so much stimuli today that it can be hard to switch off. You may not even realise it but as you watch social media scrolling through many topics at a time you are stimulating your mind and creating thoughts in your head continuously. The next time you go onto your favourite social media platform make a conscious effort to catch your thoughts and you’ll soon hear all the think, think, thinking going on up top in your head. Just like blowing bubbles in the air, all those thoughts will be popping everywhere. Is it any wonder that many of us burn out at the end of a busy day?
Here are some things you could add to your day to give your mind a bit of relaxation.
- Go for a walk and use your senses to become present in your surroundings. Hear what you hear, see what you see, and feel the air on your skin. Let yourself become fully immersed in your environment. It will be liberating and not just a mundane walk lost in your head.
- At your next meal time again use all of your senses to take in the taste, smell, and textures of the food. Eat it slowly and with conscious awareness and see how much better it tastes or not as the case may be. 🙂
- Play an instrument, even if you can’t play pick something up and use again all your senses to feel the strings/keys or drumsticks (whatever you choose to play) and hear the sound with such alertness that your thoughts can’t get a look in.
I am sure with these ideas you can now come up with some of your own. Just remember to use those magnificent five senses to bring forth a multi-dimensional experience of the now, all for the benefit of a calm and conscious mind.
When you become aware of your thinking, you become aware of your true self, and the more you do this the more you become a pilot directing the creation of your own beautiful life.
Have a wonderfully conscious day!
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Thanks for reading in deep appreciation.