Living in the here and now, what does that mean in concrete terms? We often experience and analyse life from our head. And that is exactly where it often 'goes wrong' in my opinion.
For me, living in the here and now means being present in the moment in a very conscious way. In your body, in your surroundings, but also in the conversation you are having with the person opposite you. In this blog I will explain how we become distracted and give you a effective exercise To come back to the now.
For we are often preoccupied with our past or with the future, which makes us feel worrying about things we can no longer change. Or about things that have not happened at all. In short, we forget to live.
But how do you do that, live in the moment? Of course, I don't have all the answers either, but what I have come to understand more and more recently is that our body is much bigger than our mind.
Healthy relationship between body and mind
This means that we should listen to our bodies much more often, instead of always listening to our thoughts, to those little voices. In proportion, our mind is much smaller than our entire body. Not to mention how much of our brain we (can) use.
It's strange that we are so preoccupied with our thoughts. On the other hand, it is not, if you look at the society we live in. With the constant flow of distractions that we have in front of us at the push of a button. The continuous flight towards something else. Something other than the most 'simple' but oh so powerful, namely ourselves!
Exercise 20 minutes: living here and now
Therefore, I give you a nice and accessible exercise. What works well for me is to sit still at least twice a day for 20 minutes, nothing else.
20 minutes, that's nothing if you think about it. Just try it out, in the morning before you leave and in the afternoon when you come back home, before you start your routine.
Sit comfortablyOn the couch, bed or chair and close your eyes. You do not need to do anything else. Just let the thoughts that come to you come. Try to no opinion to hang from. Just watch, they will go away on their own.
Focus on your breathing and follow your breath if you can. Let any emotions run free. It is the tensions that now have room to leave your body. Just let everything happen. What is is.
Still think 20 minutes is too long? Start with 5 minutes and build up to 10 and then 15 minutes. Take small steps and try to persevere.
And, how did it go? I am very curious about your experiences if you have tried the exercise at home. So feel free to share them if you feel the need to do so below or to me personally via email vraag@thanhhelpt.nl. I like to listen!
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