If you find that it is uncomfortable to be still, that is a sign that you need to do it. If you feel anxious when you are alone without entertainment, with only the thoughts in your head to pay attention to, then you need fewer distractions.
Our lives are full of noise. We are constantly flooded with new images and sounds. New technology has made it possible to go an entire day being entertained. We listen to our iPods while waiting for the subway. We play games on our phones while waiting in the doctor's office. We watch movies during travel and daily commutes. We check our email while waiting in line at the coffee shop. We even watch television while we eat. This lifestyle of constant entertainment creates patterns of over-stimulation in the nervous system. Our minds become like monkeys, always jumping from one thing to the next. I think this was in the title of a recently published book, but the Buddha taught this long ago. If we find ourselves by chance in a quiet moment without entertainment, we suddenly feel like something is missing. The longer we go without distraction, the more uncomfortable we can become, until a feeling of real anxiety develops.
The inability to sit still, listening to nothing but your own mind and observing what is around you, is a sign that you are creating stress patterns inside your body. These patterns lead to anxiety, insomnia, digestive illnesses, and internal inflammation.
You don't need to "learn how to meditate" to begin breaking free of the stress created by constant entertainment. Start by taking just 5 minutes each day to be where you are. Put down your phone and look around you. Hear the sounds of your environment. Listen to the thoughts that arise in your mind and don't stuff them down. If 5 minutes feels too long at first, start with 1 minute.
Be patient with yourself. Little by little, with daily practice, you will notice yourself handling the daily stressors of modern life in a more grounded manner. Little by little, you will come to enjoy being still and quiet.
Our lives are full of noise. We are constantly flooded with new images and sounds. New technology has made it possible to go an entire day being entertained. We listen to our iPods while waiting for the subway. We play games on our phones while waiting in the doctor's office. We watch movies during travel and daily commutes. We check our email while waiting in line at the coffee shop. We even watch television while we eat. This lifestyle of constant entertainment creates patterns of over-stimulation in the nervous system. Our minds become like monkeys, always jumping from one thing to the next. I think this was in the title of a recently published book, but the Buddha taught this long ago. If we find ourselves by chance in a quiet moment without entertainment, we suddenly feel like something is missing. The longer we go without distraction, the more uncomfortable we can become, until a feeling of real anxiety develops.
The inability to sit still, listening to nothing but your own mind and observing what is around you, is a sign that you are creating stress patterns inside your body. These patterns lead to anxiety, insomnia, digestive illnesses, and internal inflammation.
You don't need to "learn how to meditate" to begin breaking free of the stress created by constant entertainment. Start by taking just 5 minutes each day to be where you are. Put down your phone and look around you. Hear the sounds of your environment. Listen to the thoughts that arise in your mind and don't stuff them down. If 5 minutes feels too long at first, start with 1 minute.
Be patient with yourself. Little by little, with daily practice, you will notice yourself handling the daily stressors of modern life in a more grounded manner. Little by little, you will come to enjoy being still and quiet.