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Coping
strategies can vary among each of us. I write and advocate as a way of coping. I
am open to learning anything that will help me avoid the pitfalls of negative
thinking and one of those is to live in the moment, to be mindful.
FOCUS
When
things seem out of perspective, I realize the importance of focusing, living in
the moment, being aware of my surroundings, and giving my body the loving care
it needs. Mindfulness is a learned ability to live in the moment without
judgment or fret over intruding thoughts. It’s about visualizing details without
becoming emotionally involved. For instance, to breathe mindfully is to use all
my senses, the sound and feel of air traveling over passageways, the smell of my
surroundings, and I can see the crisp air of fall because of my breath. I
realize the beauty of a flower is the sum of its minute detail, aspects that
can only be captured by getting close. If I am lucky, I will catch a honeybee sipping
on its sweet nectar. I would never get that snapshot if I let fear of being
stung overcome my desire to capture the moment.
___________________________________________________________________________
Mindfulness
is about being fully awake in our lives.
It
is about perceiving the exquisite vividness of each moment.
~Jon Kabat-Zinn,
Molecular Biologist, University Teacher, Writer, and Physician
___________________________________________________________________________
It takes practice, but we can learn to be mindful of our pain without judging it. After all, it is our body crying out for attention, love, and caring, not ridicule and disturbing dialogue or worry. Denying the reality of it or catastrophizing it will only make it worse. So, why not use pain as a teaching tool for focused redirection creating an environment that helps us live fully.
WATCH
OUT, CHANGE AHEAD
Mindfulness
reduces stress, anxiety, and depression, and promotes relaxation. This is extremely
important to those of us living with chronic pain because we unconsciously assume
postures and hold muscles in an effort to guard against pain. Only when we become
aware can we train ourselves not to react to it emotionally. Over time, we recognize
the powerful energy mindfulness has in our lives and change happens. Will
mindfulness make the disease that causes our pain go away? No, but it certainly
changes our perception in the moment.
BEING MINDFUL
From
our book, Broken Body, Wounded Spirit: Balancing the See-Saw of Chronic Pain, Summer Devotions edition©:
·
Take
a couple of deep breaths.
·
Focus
on the colors, shapes, smells.
·
Identify
and release thought projects.
·
Appreciate
that your mind is clear.
·
Fill
it up with the present moment.
·
Enjoy
being present
___________________________________________________________________________
Living
mindfully promotes awareness, acceptance,
lenience
with self and others, and tolerance of change.
___________________________________________________________________________
Here is a guided mindfulness exercise from Integrative Therapies for Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and Myofascial Pain© :
Get
as comfortable as possible in a place where you can keep distractions at bay
for about 20 minutes.
1.
Begin
by doing a body check for discomfort, numbness, weakness, or pain. Without
judgment, color each area with a hue that reflects the disease you feel. I
(Jeff ) use orange for aches, blue for numbness, grey for weakness, and red for
acute pain. If you are aware that a disease will occur if you move, or don’t
move, add it in as if it were already present. Whatever system of ouchies and colors
you pick will work just fine.
2.
Begin
breathing as deeply as practical and keep the body map in your mind’s eye.
Accept this map as “where we start”.
3.
With
every breath note the intensity of the colors fading a bit. Note how some
colors fade quickly, some more slowly, some completely, others less so. Which
might change and in what way? Focus on the colors and how they shift. As your
mind wanders off task, bring it back gently to breathing and observing.
4.
When
you sense the fading has reached its peak, begin visualizing warm, gentle rain
that blurs the colors beautifully like a soft watercolor painting. Enjoy what
you have created; residual pain is always interesting.
5.
Close
by affirming your intention to observe and learn from these sensations
There
are many good books and many stress reduction programs available on mindfulness
and meditation; I have a repertoire of them. One of my favorites is Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of
Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness by Jon Kabat-Zinn. In
my meditation playlist, I have guided meditation and mindfulness exercises by
Deepak Chopra and music like Meditation Movement from Charles Lam, which encourages
me to get up and rock out some T’ai Chi, another favorite coping mechanism of
mine.
Additional
reading:
Making
the Best of AFFIRMATIONS by The Pained Ink Slayer
Pained
Ink Slayer Series: Avoiding
Lockdown
In healing,
Celeste Cooper, RN / Author, Freelancer, Advocate
Think adversity?-See opportunity!
“Listen closely; I hear
the sweet sound of existence.”
~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~ • ~
Learn more about
Celeste’s books here. Subscribe
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All blogs and comments are based on the author's opinions and are
not meant to replace medical advice.
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