Mindfulness Meditation: An Introduction {part 1 of 6}

Listen: “Morning Has Broken” by Yusuf/Cat Stevens 

Most of my life I have begun my day with a morning devotion. I started a devotional practice while I was in high school which included prayers, scripture reading, occasional journaling, and meditation. My meditation practice was focused on deep reflection and memorization of my favorite scripture passages. I memorized thousands of scripture passages through the years including whole chapters of the Bible, select paragraphs and verses, and the Sermon on the Mount.

At the end of 2018 I went to rehab in Georgia to detox off of Xanax and alcohol which I had used every night for two years due to a thirty-year struggle with insomnia. While in rehab I was exposed to a therapy model called Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) which has a mindfulness meditation component. I learned about the neuroscience of the brain, the science of addiction, and the science behind mindfulness meditation.

After I got out of rehab, I decided to pursue mindfulness meditation and incorporate the practice into my morning devotions. I found a meditation group and started practicing with the group. In 2023 I enrolled in a two-year mindfulness meditation teacher certification program (MMTCP) led by Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach.

There are many forms of meditation practice. What do we mean by mindfulness meditation?

What is meditation? Meditation involves training, directing, and focusing our attention in a deliberate way. It is the human capacity to open to perspectives larger than our ordinary consciousness or our small sense of separate self.

What is mindfulness? Mindfulness is a non-judgmental, caring attention to the here and now. Traditional components of mindfulness (Pali/Sanskrit traditions) include two wings: (1) Receptive—a spacious, kind, non-judging awareness of the present; and (2) Active—an appropriate response to the present situation rooted in lovingkindness.

Reactivity. The most ancient part of the human brain is called the amygdala. It’s the fight, flight, freeze part of the brain. Our amygdala wants to help us survive so it records experiences which could potentially kill us at a deep emotional level. Once an experience is embedded in the deep memory, our amygdala scans the horizon of our experiences looking for similar threats. Our amygdala is hypersensitive, and it can easily detect threats which do not exist.

Daniel Goleman coined the term “amygdala hijack” in his work on emotional intelligence. An amygdala hijack is “an immediate, overwhelming emotional response out of proportion to the stimulus because it has triggered a more significant emotional memory and threat from our past experiences.”

Most people struggle at times with a “racing brain” or “monkey mind.” My insomnia is rooted in my anxiety disorder which causes my brain to race with thoughts which I can’t turn off at night. Most people live their lives in reactivity due to this human phenomenon. Even mild forms of a “racing brain” result in disconnecting our bodies from our brains and make it extremely difficult to live into the present moment. Our brains are always regretting something from our past (a past behavior or conversation) or fearing something in the future. I have a strong planning brain which is goal oriented. My “to-do” lists which are connected to my future goals are on hyperdrive for fear I forget something or fail to foresee potential threats and opportunities.

Another uncomfortable intrusion is a harsh inner-critic. I know people who are extremely loving to other people, but they have a harsh inner critic of themselves (shame). We humans can be ten times harder on ourselves than we would be towards other people. All of this reactivity can cause a sense of foreboding joy even when things are going well. Our amygdala is always scanning the horizon looking for potential threats.

This constant reactivity in the brain (to ourselves, our circumstances, and other people) can cause us to search for ways to calm ourselves of the stress it creates. Resisting, suppressing, numbing, and disassociating become regular habits which we incorporate into our lives to survive the stress we feel.

Benefits. Victor Frankl, a holocaust survivor, said: “Between the stimulus and the response there is a space, and in that space is your power and your freedom.” The science of mindfulness meditation reveals that the practice helps calm the mind, open the heart, and expand the space between stimulus and response. Mindfulness practice supports healing from anxiety, insomnia, ADHD, and PTSD, and fosters self-compassion, wisdom, and lovingkindness.

Four foundations. Mindfulness practice focuses on four foundations: (1) mindfulness of body; (2) mindfulness of feelings; (3) mindfulness of thoughts; and (4) mindfulness of experiences, relationships, and life processes. Its practices are found within all the great faith traditions, especially among the mystic and contemplative practitioners. It’s one of the cornerstones of the recovery tradition (Step Eleven): “Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God….”

Poet T. S. Eliot wrote: “The end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.”

Shalom

©realfredherron, 2024