Here at Foundations Counseling we educate people & organizations about the numerous health benefits of Mindfulness. Living life more mindfully is, if practiced regularly, clinically proven to help strengthen mental, physical, emotional, social, occupational health.
The health benefits of Mindfulness are great and it costs nothing to get started – just a deep Mindful Breath and some present moment awareness – so what are the barriers or challenges to practicing Mindfulness regularly?
Tiny Buddha proposes the following 7 obstacles to Mindfulness & how to over come them :
- On going effort. Mindfulness takes a lot of work, but the good news is that the longer you practice, the easier it gets, and the more joyful your life becomes.
- Distractions. They are there to help you grow and to realize who you truly are.
- Slow progress. Progress may seem excruciatingly slow. There will be times when you attach to things and situations that you want, which will make it difficult to be fully in the present moment. It’s impossible to be mindful when you’re dwelling on the past or obsessing about the future. Once I release the attachment and focus on being grateful for what I have in the moment, my life seems to shift, and progress seems to happen naturally.
- Commitment. Like with any worthwhile journey, you will feel like giving up and throwing in the towel multiple times. When you realize that the challenging times are there to help you grow, you will automatically feel more peaceful and relaxed.
- Goals. Having goals is fantastic, essential even, but when you become overly attached to them, difficulties arise.
- Life is a journey. It is in the journey that we learn, grow, and become better. When you’re practicing mindfulness, remember that there is nowhere to arrive at. If you focus on what is going on right now, the rest take care of itself.
- The here & now of life isn’t always great. Even the most enlightened masters on earth have to deal with difficult situations and chaotic thoughts. The difference is they have learned to accept the moment for what it is. When you do this, you become the guardian of your inner space, which is the only way to feel good inside and find peace of mind, right now.
In addition to those barriers, I often also hear time being listed as a challenge to practicing Mindfulness regularly. It is up to us as human beings to make the best of this thing called life, so we must take personal responsibility for our commitment to regular care of all facets of our health & happiness.
Yes there are going to to be days, sometimes weeks in life where you can’t do as much meditating, exercising, self-developing & self-caring as you view as ideal – but one small thing every day is always better than doing nothing. There are many ways you can incorporate Mindfulness into your daily life – so let’s get started! Do what you can, where you can & build from there.
Live Mindfully & Prosper all!