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I have ADD. I find Mindfulness to be extremely helpful in getting my mind focused for work. I find it extremely helpful in regulating emotions, especially duri
by taheca 9y ago
I have ADD. I find Mindfulness to be extremely helpful in getting my mind focused for work.
I find it extremely helpful in regulating emotions, especially during times of heightened stress (i.e having small children freaking out on you, and acting appropriately).
Whether you hate the word or not, mindfulness, meditation, zen, don't discount the activity.
There is zero downside to becoming more self aware.
- Graziano_M 9y agoBesides the time that could perhaps be better spent on doing something productive.
- tehramz 9y agoTrying to improve yourself isn't productive? This is one of the silliest comments I've read on HN.
- astrodust 9y agoIt's HN. People here think sleep is a waste of time and eating is a nuisance to be remedied by chugging nutrient paste.
- namlem 9y agoI doubt there are many things with a better ROI than sitting still and simply observing your mind for a while.
- chillacy 9y agoTo quote the article: > [Mindfulness is] about much more than living in the moment. Mindfulness, in the most deeply Buddhist sense of the term, is about an exhaustive, careful, and calm examination of the contents of human experience, an examination that can radically alter your interpretation of that experience. > It begins with one of the more striking claims made by Buddhism—that enlightenment and liberation from suffering are inextricably intertwined. We suffer—and make others suffer—because we don’t see the world, including ourselves, clearly.
- orthoganol 9y agoI think you're exactly right, it's a form of stress management primarily. What bothers me is when meditators act like they've seen the matrix. Like they go on a Vipassana retreat and then talk about how changed they are and do a 180 with their career or something else major in their life. It feels about equivalent to the 'enduring truths' you might receive on an acid trip.
- PeanutCurry 9y agoHow much of it would you define as meditation in the traditional sense? I've got ADHD(is it just ADD now? I know one got lumped into the other) too and I do a lot of introspection but it tends to be during intermittent times in my day like when I'm wandering around for lunch or going for a jog/walk. I can't really do the iconic sit down and cross my legs thing, I get antsy. But when I'm on the move but not trying to keep myself mentally oriented it's pretty easy to zone out and think about my life and how it might relate to the way I've been feeling at the time.
- jwdunne 9y agoI think ADD is now just ADHD. ADHD without hyperactivity is called ADHD predominantly inattentive. As for meditation, there's a lot of value in practicing sitting still without fidgeting, by focusing on one thing and, most importantly, bringing the attention back when the mind wanders. This builds up strength in typical problem areas such as racing thoughts, impulsiveness, restlessness. The only thing that's difficult is remembering to do it and building a habit. It doesn't help there and that's one thing that is a big problem for me, perhaps you and many others with ADHD! The mindfulness prescription for ADHD is a great book :)
- PeanutCurry 9y agoI'll check the book out! Admittedly I do have trouble with remembering to practice my mindfulness exercises semi-often but it's from the reverse end of the spectrum. I was lucky enough to get diagnosed when I was young so I've been able to realiably maintain my prescription (I've heard adults who get diagnosed have trouble getting prescriptions in helpful doses) medication which is a great help but can cause me to tunnel vision tasks that don't require that level of attention if I'm not careful to monitor if I'm working productively.
- jwdunne 9y agoIt's still something I struggle with. I remember medication now but still forget about once a week. Too many close calls. Meditation is worse because it requires a good handful of time. Knocking back some tabs takes no time at all.