#54 Staying with discomfort?

     As you've no doubt already discovered, mindfulness holds many surprises. Perhaps the fundamental paradox is that mindfulness practice involves intentionally APPROACHING and STAYING WITH challenging situations, thoughts and feelings. This very same principle is also employed by psychologists to help people deal with phobias eg fear of flying. Directly facing and letting go of fears is essential if one is to directly face and best deal with reality.
     We're conditioned to interpret pain to mean physical injury, that disability or even death is imminent. Our society is so averse to pain, that we even try to avoid discomfort. But the fact is, avoidance does not work. Only directly facing and letting go of our fears works.

     “Meditation is not for the faint-hearted, nor for those who routinely avoid the whispered longings of their own hearts. It is for individuals interested in the adventure and challenges of self-exploration and transformation, for those who wish to taste and explore new ways of knowing and new ways of being - not someone else's, but one's own moment-to-moment experience.”                               Jon Kabat-Zinn & Saki Santorelli

     “Living never wore one out so much as the effort not to live.”                  Anais Nin

Photo: Andre Gallant   http://www.andregallant.com/