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Meditation is a practice in awareness and focus. The goal is to become more aware of your own thoughts and emotions, and by doing so, wield more conscious contr
by outlace 11y ago
Meditation is a practice in awareness and focus. The goal is to become more aware of your own thoughts and emotions, and by doing so, wield more conscious control over them. Feeling less stressed and all the other benefits associated with meditation are merely by-products of having more awareness. Having more awareness is not mutually exclusive with having a racing mind. Simply be aware that your mind is racing, and by so doing, you are more capable of quieting the mind when necessary or desired.
- cpncrunch 11y agoYou can also achieve control over thoughts and emotions without using meditation at all, simply by having an understanding of the detrimental effects of negative emotions on your physical and mental health, and stopping yourself when you identify a situation where you have an emotional response. (I think this is similar to what CBT attempts to do). In my experience of dealing with depression/anxiety/burnout, having lots of thoughts and ideas isn't the problem. The problem is negative emotional reactions, excessive responsibilities (which itself likely boils down to a negative emotional response), and not feeling in control. In fact having a racing mind can be helpful in dealing with stress in some ways, by engaging in flow activities.
- plonh 11y agoUltimately, there are certain patterns of thought that are both instinctive and harmful. (For example, ranting about a problem without solving it.) Becoming aware of when you in one of those patterns , via meditation or CBT or listening to your life partners, can help you think in a more helpful way.