21 Too-Real Cartoons About The Struggle To Practice Mindfulness (2024)

FAQs

Why do people struggle with mindfulness? ›

Many people grow frustrated with mindfulness because they are still focusing on expectations, rather than simply seeing how things really are.

Studies suggest that mindfulness practices may help people manage stress, cope better with serious illness and reduce anxiety and depression. Many people who practice mindfulness report an increased ability to relax, a greater enthusiasm for life and improved self-esteem.

You're trying to do it alone. Our brains are wired to think, worry, remember, predict, plan, and regret. Mindfulness asks us to swim against the tide of these mental habits. We need support in this practice, with books, lectures, classes, and conversations with like-minded friends.

Mindfulness is not about being calm or any particular way

This highlights our human tendency to want pleasant experiences and to push away what is unpleasant or average.

Certain mental health problems increase the risk of adverse effects from mindfulness. “If you have post-traumatic stress disorder, there is a certain chance that you may find meditation too difficult to do, as you may be re-experiencing traumatic memories,” Ruths says.

One of the most common reasons people don't meditate is that they believe they don't have time for it. Many of us lead busy lives—with work, family and social obligations taking up most of our time. However, even a few minutes of meditation each day can have a significant impact on our mental and physical health.

One of the most difficult things about mindfulness practice is finding the time to get into the habit of doing it. Like all daily habits, such as brushing your teeth, you will have had to learn how to get into it. Plan a time when you can reasonably fit it in to your daily schedule.

Among the most serious and common side effects reported were: Dysregulated arousal (energy problems; disrupted sleep/wake cycles) Anxiety. Signs of dissociation.

Potentially adverse effects of mindfulness

A cross-sectional study on the effects of intensive and long-term meditation reported that over 60% of individuals had at least one negative effect, which varied from increased anxiety to depression and full-blown psychosis.

Any time your mind is distracted and not fully engaged in what you are doing is defined as lack of mindfulness. Some examples: Talking with someone on the phone while attempting to get other things done. Talking on the phone and thinking of other things, saying uh huh uh huh but not really listening.

What hinders mindfulness? ›

Sleepiness. Restlessness. Difficulty finding a time and place to practice mindfulness. Being too busy.

How Mindfulness Calms Anxious Feelings. Mindfulness helps you learn to stay with difficult feelings without analyzing, suppressing, or encouraging them. When you allow yourself to feel and acknowledge your worries, irritations, painful memories, and other difficult thoughts and emotions, this often helps them dissipate ...

The opposite of mindfulness, or the far enemy of mindfulness, is emotional reactivity–getting hijacked by our emotions, such as anger, fear or despair, and losing sight of the other person. When we see a person being treated unjustly and anger starts coursing through our bodies, it's easy to get hooked by it.

The five basic obstacles to mindfulness are: (1) desire, (2) aversion, (3) sleepiness, (4) restlessness, and (5) doubt. We all experience these sensations at different points during the day, week, or month. Experiencing these common obstacles to mindfulness does not mean that you are “bad” at being mindful.

Key points. Mindfulness has potential downsides that are often ignored. For some people, mindfulness practices could increase the stress response, negative emotions, dissociation, and even inhibit sleep. As with any intervention, before we recommend mindfulness we must understand its potential risks.

Restlessness

The mind may rebel a bit when learning how “to be.” You might catch it running through a million to-do lists and try and count the minutes until the end of the practice. This is all completely natural. Solution: It's important to recognize that restlessness and boredom are just sensations like any other.

One of the most difficult things about mindfulness practice is finding the time to get into the habit of doing it. Like all daily habits, such as brushing your teeth, you will have had to learn how to get into it. Plan a time when you can reasonably fit it in to your daily schedule. Find whatever works for you.