For many of us, the way we engage with our mind is unhelpful and makes us feel crazy, confused, indecisive, worried, and overwhelmed.  What makes this even more challenging is that often we are not even aware that this is happening.  We may be aware that we are “up in our heads,” and have some awareness that this isn’t helping our situation, but we don’t know what to do about it.  We often feel broken or feel that we lack the skills to do anything differently.  We may ask ourselves questions like, “Why am I like this?” 

 

We often believe that if we can just figure out why this is happening, that we can figure out what we need to do differently, but this usually invites us deeper into the mental realm – researching, gathering information and opinions.  We end up looking outside of ourselves for the answers when what would be more helpful, would be to connect with ourselves and explore the answers that lay within.  Or at least, balance all of the external input and information with a personal connection and sense of what we are feeling and what feels true for us.

 

An additional component of the problem is that these mental patterns are often paired with a belief that our body is not a safe place, and that the experiences that happen within our body are uncomfortable, unpredictable and scary.  Heart palpitations, constricted breathing, shooting pains, nausea and digestive issues, and dizziness can all be scary, and so we have learned to avoid connecting with our body, and by default have spent too much time engaging with the mind. We have developed an overreliance and overutilization of the mind and a complementary under reliance and under utilization of our connection with our body, our breath, our senses and our movements.

 

Instead of using the mind to try to figure out what needs to be done, there is an invitation to focus your attention back to connecting with yourself – to your body, your breath, and to your senses so you can feel what is happening, and can understand what you are needing and what, if any, action needs to be taken.

 

The mind is a wonderful, useful tool when you are calm and regulated, and are intentionally using it to align your values and your actions.  When the mind is not helping us, then it is better to shift your attention away from the mind and back to the body, the breath and the senses. Get out of your mind, and come to your senses!