Monkey Mind, Anxiety and Meditation
I think everyone already knows what a "monkey mind" is? If you're not sure, you can jump to this link: What is a monkey mind?
We are each estimated to have around 50,000 different thoughts every single day. That is a lot of thinking! And most of those thoughts are not about what's happening right now, but about what happened yesterday or you are afraid might happen tomorrow. We often struggle to live fully in the present moment because our internal dialogue takes over our mind. And something that really has the potential to take over our mind and our internal dialogue - and pretty loudly! - is fear. (or anxiety, dread, apprehension, worry, call it what you will.)
Besides being exhausting, fear and anxiety has physical consequences too. Not to go into too much detail now, but the amygdala and hypocampus are two areas of brain that are triggered in a stress or fear situation. It triggers our fight or flight response (sympathetic nervous system) and our system is flooded with hormones such as norephinephrine and cortisol. This physical response is useful because it gets us ready to deal with the threat which is present, increasing our heart rate, more blood to the muscles, more air to the lungs, etc. All those good things. The body is now fully in survival mode. Ideally, when the threat is gone, this response system shuts down, and the body goes back to normal. However, with anxiety, this response system doesn’t shut down. It just keeps looping, being fed and fuelled by anxious thoughts, and when the mind is constantly assaulted by cortisol and other hormones, and by negative thoughts, fears, and doubts, the result is mental fatigue, exhaustion, stress related symptoms and triggering of auto-immune diseases.
To stop this looping of your mind, to relax your body and mind, and to stop those monkeys from chattering, we must move from the fight or flight nervous system (sympathetic nervous system) to the rest and digest nervous system (parasympathetic nervous system). The most effective way of doing this, the most long-term solution for finding inner peace and quietening the mind is through relaxation practices and meditation.
1.) Know that you can do it!
First of all we start by understanding that it is actually possible to control your anxious monkey mind. We are not our minds. The mind is our servant. The techniques are simple. Note that I didn't say 'easy'. I said 'simple' :)
2.) Sit down to calm down.
We have to calm the body in order to calm the mind. It may sound a bit obvious, but if you are busy, running around, your metabolism is running at speed and therefore your mind will also be active and quick. So first we sit down. And then we begin to breathe. Sit and focus on the breath.
3.) Steady the breath to steady the mind
It all starts with the breath. Take a deep breath. Literally. In through the nose, sigh out through the mouth. A few deep breaths to calm the system down and push it into "reset". You are then more likely to be able to address your thoughts with a clear and level head.
4.) Use the breath as a focal point We can use the breath in two ways: as the object of focus during meditation. We keep our mindful attention only on the breath, and by keeping our attention on the breath, we bypass our random thoughts.
5.) Control the breath - Pranayama
And we can use Pranayama (yoga breath) as a method of controlling the breath in specific ways to produce physical and mental qualities. There are various yogic breath methods for calming our mind and nervous system.
6.) Practice Mindfulness
Practicing Mindfulness means living in the present. Being fully attentive only to what's happening right here and now. When we are anxious, we will notice our thoughts are often negative and usually either in the past or the future. When we sit in mindfulness meditation, we will equally recognise that nothing outside the breath, outside the sitting here and now, is real. Only the present is real. The rest is our mind travelling back and forth to memory or recollection (past) or imagination (future). In Mindfulness training, we don’t allow the mind to travel back or forth. We keep it in the present.
There are a few specific things that are useful to know about mindfulness.
Firstly, passing thoughts or a busy mind are normal and can't be chased away by willpower. Fighting thoughts or 'trying to empty the mind' is not possible and you will find it counter-productive. Instead, notice your thoughts, acknowledge them, and tell yourself that you choose to focus on the breath instead, and perhaps come back to those thoughts later.
Secondly, mindfulness meditation is a simple technique, but simple doesn't mean easy. You have to be patient and put in the effort of practice. Patiently and gently create your intention to sit. To keep the attention on the breath, to remain present in the here and now, at this moment. You need to cultivate this patience. Cultivate a kindness to yourself and cultivate kindness, patience and compassion for your busy mind.
Compassion and loving kindness is at the heart of mindfulness.
Happy sitting!
_/\_
