#themiracleforest

Extract from The Miracle Forest's post The Breathing Pattern of Calm

#unlearningHarmfulMindHabits #mindHabits #anxiety #Thoughts #suffering #mindfulness #meditation #zenwords #theMiracleForest I used to be anxious most of the time. There was a time when I couldn't do much because the thoughts in my head controlled everything I did—because I believed them. These thoughts were always the same. Over and over they played in my head, and again and again I listened to them. Until one day, when I learned about mindfulness and realized that I have another choice. I am not a victim and I don't have to suffer. I can stand behind my thoughts as a witness and not act out of fear.  — The Miracle Forest

3.Empty your mind. Our minds are filled with thoughts when we are anxious, so much so that we can't think straight. No one needs all that clutter in their heads. It feels like you need to keep on thinking, but you don't. Let your mind empty. Refusing to stop thinking is part of the reason we are anxious. The problem is our thoughts. So when we let our minds empty, the problem will disappear. Sometimes, when I'm feeling anxious, I just repeat "empty your mind," "empty your mind" in my head over and over so no other thought can get in there. Soon enough, the anxious feeling fades, and I know that the problem was just in my mind.

#thePresent #dareToBeInTheMoment #letThoughtsGo #thoughts #focusOnThePresent #mindfulness #meditation #zenwords #theMiracleForest It takes effort to settle into the moment and dare to be in it. Let's take right now, for example. If you stop and look at this moment, what do you see in it? Without preconceptions or judgments, what does this moment hold? For a short while, it is easy to come back to the present and let our unnecessary thoughts go. It takes a bit more effort to be like that all the time. It's probably not even possible to be like that all the time, we are humans after all. But we can always practice catching ourselves when our minds wander and focus our attention on what is real in the present moment.
— The Miracle Forest

4.You’re Worthy. This advice feels incongruous, doesn't it? It's actually not. The feeling of anxiety can often stem from a place of low self-worth. When we feel like we can't deal with certain situations and are a burden to others, it's no wonder we become anxious. But the truth is that we all have the same right to walk on this Earth. You can go wherever you want to go, and you can feel however you're feeling. No one needs to hide. So, like the Buddha said: 'Come out from behind the clouds, and let yourself shine.'

#anxiety #fear #relaxing #thoughts #mindfulness #meditation #zenwords #theMiracleForest 1.You’re fine. Feeling anxious is basically the opposite of feeling fine. But we are fine. What we fear will not happen, What we fear, actually cannot happen. The whole point of anxiety is to make you believe that you are not fine when you actually are. You are fine. So let yourself believe that. Soon enough, the feeling will fade as well. I even made a guided meditation based on this reminder, so if it's hard for you to believe it yourself, you can believe me.

2.Relax. When we feel anxious, we have this almost uncontrollable urge to do something. In order to gain back control, we have to resist this urge. By resisting it, we send the signal to our bodies that everything is not, in fact, crumbling around us, but all is well. Yes, relaxing is, again, the opposite of being anxious. But what helps with this is knowing that we were never in control anyway. What will happen, will happen. So why not relax? I'd rather relax, whatever might come. Nothing's as bad as we picture it in our minds anyway. And nothing can be worse than anxiety. So let's choose to relax. Even while feeling anxious.

#lettingGo #anxiety #peace #serenity #kindness #compassion #simplicity #mindfulness #meditation #zenwords #theMiracleForest For me, letting go turned my life around. It guided me from a life of panic and anxiety to a life of peace and serenity. Now that I’ve let go of all the things I worried over so desperately, I have so much more space in my life to concentrate my attention on the things that really matter, like kindness, compassion and simplicity. — The Miracle Forest