Mindfulness is the practice of becoming conscious in everything we do, in our thoughts, feelings, behaviors, habits and patterns. When we become more mindful of how we are operating mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually, we start to figure out what we need to change in order to be successful in our recovery. Meditation is one of the greatest tools we have to help us practice mindfulness. Meditating helps us to calm our minds so we can be more present, conscious and aware of everything going on within us and around us. The more we practice meditation, the more we strengthen our mindfulness and awareness. We become more conscious of all the ways in which we are either helping or hurting ourselves. For those of us living with addiction, we tend not to be conscious of all the ways in which we cause ourselves pain. We self-sabotage, and this often comes from our subconscious programming dictating how we feel about ourselves and steering us in the direction of self-destruction. Pay attention to the thoughts you think and how they make you feel. Start to notice your emotional responses to things, and the triggers you react most strongly to. Start to be mindful of your daily habits, behavioral patterns and life cycles. You may want to enlist the help of a therapist or spiritual guide. Really dig deep to reflect as thoroughly as you can. Try using journaling to help you with your self-exploration. By becoming more mindful of how we operate in our thoughts, feelings and behaviors, we can start to make better choices for ourselves. We can start to shed the things that contribute to and worsen our addictions, and choose the ones that support our healing and positive growth. Is your self-talk hurtful and disparaging? Do you make yourself feel bad or insecure with the thoughts you choose? Do you allow things and people around you to dictate your emotions? Do you react strongly to other people? How do you process your feelings? Are you able to express and communicate them? Are you able to understand them clearly yourself? Do you find yourself wanting to avoid, escape or distract yourself from your difficult emotions? Exploring these questions allows us to grow in our mindfulness, so that we can learn ourselves on a deeper, more intimate level. The more we are able to connect with ourselves with mindfulness, the more we can learn what we need to change about ourselves in order to heal.
The various kinds of therapy we offer as part of our treatment programs can help you develop mindfulness and other skills to use in your recovery. Call 1-888-986-7848 for more information.
