Mindfulness Is The Key To All Healing

This session highlights how mindfulness is at the core of almost all healing practices, therapeutic modalities, and spiritual processes. Perhaps by different names and with different ways in, most processes help us to become aware, accept, and act, thus leading us towards healing.

Transcript

Question. Why am I convinced that mindfulness is the key to healing? From my perspective, I've studied a variety of spiritual traditions. I'm doing a Master of Counselling where we look at a collection of different psychological theories of counselling, Of techniques to self-healing, And just in general life. And to me, It seems like from all of these different perspectives, Mindfulness is at the core. It's at the core of a lot of scientific practices, Psychological interventions, And also spiritual traditions and practices. They might use a different word to describe that process, But to me, You know, That's just a finger pointing to the moon. It's all the same thing. I say all that to say this, That people are using mindfulness without even realizing it, Or by a different name. So there's sort of some evidence-based response there, But more deeply and more personally, Mindfulness to me seems to be almost the antidote to most every, I guess, Pathology you could have. If you're feeling anxious, Right, What's happening? Sensations are happening in the body. Your mind is predicting danger about the future, So we're not present, Right? We're not like in this moment right now. Now, If there is danger, You're not really anxious. You're responding to the environment, Right? You're responding to something that is happening and acting appropriately, Right? It's a response that works. You're in the moment. There's a dangerous thing. Your body gets you ready to act and you, You know, Fight, Flight, Freeze. You respond appropriately. But anxiety is us doing that process in response to a safe environment, Right? This moment itself is safe, But our mind and our body doesn't believe it. We're lost in this thing and it overwhelms us. What's the antidote to that? Back to the present moment, Our mind capturing our mind where it is, Back to the present moment, Because the present moment is safe. There's stuff happening in the body. You know, The body keeps the score from a trauma-based perspective. Okay, Fair enough. That is happening in the body now. How do we help someone that is having symptomology, Flashbacks, Triggers, All of these things? You ground them in the present moment. Again and again, They're lost in the past. This thing happened. Bring it back to the present moment. This moment is safe, Right? I am here now. Our mind wanders, I bring it back. Our mind wanders, I bring it back. With depression, Same thing. We are in a state of overwhelm. Our mind gets lost. We're constricted. Perhaps thoughts of the past or perhaps just overwhelming feelings in the moment. Bring it back to the breath. Bring it back to a point of focus. Bring it back here. I would apply that to most every condition, Anxiety, Depression, Trauma, But any other condition you like. Bring it back, Bring it back, Bring it back. Then if I apply that beyond to every other spiritual tradition, The search for meaning, Most everything it feels like, If we are aware of where our mind is and we can see that. If we're seeing something that isn't real, Everything that isn't in this moment isn't happening now. We're not saying not to go into the thoughts of the future or the past, But rather that we can see if those thoughts are helping us to be functional in the present moment. We become mindful. It's like, Huh, Okay, I was ruminating there. I was playing out a thought in my mind or maybe I was arguing something with a person. Have you ever had those arguments in your mind with a person? But then you check into the fact that that person isn't even here. The argument isn't happening. You're arguing with a fictional representation of that person in your mind. None of that's happening and yet you're getting this emotional response. You're playing into that space. Emotions are very egotistical and narcissistic and you're finding yourself overwhelmed. What's the counteraction to that? Mindful focus. Grief. You have a loss and we all face loss in this life. I'm not saying we need to stop the feelings of grief. You need to go through it, But it can become quite impactful. Well, How can we gently bring ourselves back to the now? We slowly become aware of what's happening, Where our mind has wandered. We feel it go through the grieving process and become back. I guess in every way, Whatever is arising, If our mind is lost, If our mind is distracted, If our mind is gone, It's gone. Become aware and bring it back. That's on the responsiveness to negative internal states. But what if we want to grow? What if we want to transform? What if we want to become something more? How can we transform? How can we follow our dreams? How can we take that next step, Change or transform into something more beyond us? Unless we are aware of our mind is at any one state. Let's become aware of the thought patterns and the thinking behaviors and the ruts we're in. How can we do that if we're not mindful for the way that our mind is wandering? We look at the idea of attachment theory, How your parents or how you were treated as a kid impacts how you see relationships in the world in the future. The conditioning early on impacts your conditioning and how you respond to the world later on. Are you willing to risk things? Are you willing to trust, Connect? A whole bunch of stuff that is necessary for growth. With mindfulness, You can see those patterns playing out and you can choose to make a difference, Therefore change your life. I guess that's a long rambling answer as to why I think that mindfulness is the key to healing. We need to know where our mind is, Gain some control over it and from there we can act. Otherwise, We are at the whims of this untamed animal that takes control of our body, So to speak. If you find yourself saying, Doing or being and you're not aware of it and then you're like, Oh, You're checking. It's like, Oh my God, I realize I'm on my phone now. I realize I'm consuming a substance, Eating chocolate, Whatever it is, Like addictions. How can you stop that? You need to be aware first and then that awareness helps you to take different actions. You'll see the craving coming, Bring it back to the moment, Help you ride through it. You feel the component parts and even physical pain. Obviously, Physical pain, You need to do the physical body response. Whatever sort of surgeries or interventions cast on the broken arm, Whatever, But dealing with the pain, Physical pain itself, You can get lost in the second arrow, The implications of being physically injured, What it means for you, The pain that will come, All of these things that aren't happening yet. You're in pain? Okay, This is what is happening right now. All of those other things, The implications of the future pain, The surgeries that the stuff that's going to happen that will be impactful isn't happening now. All that's happening now is the feelings and even deeper, You can deconstruct those feelings and the act of paying attention to the pain itself mindfully can help reduce the pain. Just observe what is arising in the moment, Get curious about it.