The alternative to meditation is of course mindfulness. The term mindfulness is far cry from what it actually means. I say this because what we are trying to achieve here is the opposite. The person who suffers from anxiety has a mind full of negativity. Many people who hear the word meditation normally conjure up a person sat in a field cross legged, eyes closed & in a trance uttering the words “Peace man”. This is in fact not too far from the truth but it takes much practice to find that level of clarity but a few minutes of time by yourself without a care in the world is often sufficient for mortal people to accept…………………..
There are other forms of clarity but none which are as easy & as equally fulfilling as mindfulness. With this we give everything we do thought & feeling. What i mean here is, even washing your hands can be beautiful, feeling the water running through your hands & the sensations of the towel on your face is practicing mindfulness. You can of course perform this task whilst worrying about what bills need paying or what problems you will encounter at work. Do not get me wrong, it may sound like, all you are doing is delaying the inevitable, but whats important here is the journey & not the destination. I have spent most of my adult life worrying about the outcome of every potential problem that i have ever faced. When i look back at these i realise , most of them never turned out the way i thought they would. There was always a sense of dread & humiliation but now that negativity is not part of my arsenal, it now belongs in my past. I am not articulate or clever but i do have experience in the field of life. For anyone who has suffered anxiety in their lifetime can agree that it does in fact shorten your lifespan as you are forever trying to rush through everything. I have found clarity in doing very little & thinking even less. A famous quote from my beloved sister was, ” After all these years I can finally drop the frying pan that i have been beating myself over the head with.”
There is hope & its not too far away.