Is Your Mindfulness Practice a Help or Hindrance? How to Tell

Are you using mindfulness and meditation correctly? How do you know? 

After over 25 years of practicing mindfulness and meditation, I have started to really ask myself if I am using meditation and mindfulness in a self-care or self-destructive way. 

Am I using meditation and mindfulness: 

❎ As a crutch?

❎ As a way to be smaller?

❎ As a way to accept the status quo?

❎ As a way to have an easier life with less challenges?

❎ As a way to escape the hard work of living up to my full potential?

❎ As a way to avoid growth?

❎ As a way to take the path of least resistance? 

If you answer yes to any of those questions, you may benefit from this little 1 minute practice. 

I have a feeling that in some eras and hard seasons of my life, I may have used abused meditation and mindfulness. 

Reflection is hard, and reflecting in a public forum is even harder, but it’s part of my growth mindset. Know better, Do better.

I may have used meditation and mindfulness:

❎ to accept what was instead of getting off my rear end and being strong enough to be a change agent. 

❎ to numb my feelings

❎ silence my voice

❎ to shrink myself to fit other’s expectations of me or to avoid conflict and wave-making. 

Now, I know I can be aware of these red flag signs, and I can use meditation and mindfulness for all the right reasons:

✅ To empower myself

✅ To be seen

✅ To gain clarity

✅ To manage pain, physical or emotional

✅ To be aware of my impact on others

✅ To be aware of how I feel so I can check my own bias and nonconstructive thinking

✅ To push myself to grow in new areas

✅ To set healthy boundaries

✅ To harness the power of my voice, of my talents, of my abilities

✅ To slow down and realize life is more than work and being serious. The power of play cannot be underestimated.

✅ To handle the tough stuff in life. When things aren’t going to change and you have to live with it and get through it.

✅ To pray and practice gratitude.

✅ To take a moment to reset my brain for better resilience, coping, immunity, breathing, strength, mood, the list goes on…

What other areas do you think mindfulness and meditation helps you? Please feel free to leave a comment below!

Watch this Quick 6 Minute Video

The video* below is a quick 1 minute practice about what mindfulness IS. 
It is preceded by a 5’ explanation of what mindfulness and meditation IS NOT. 

Here is a resource to get you started on your mindfulness practice:

Fighting COVID-19 Fear with Mindful Self-Care

Yoga is highly recommended to tackle anxiety, stress, depression, and to improve immunity, resilience, coping, and yes, lung strength too! All these benefits make yoga the perfect antidote to COVID-19 anxiety.

The good news is you don’t even have to do the yoga postures, you can just practice the breathwork and mindfulness to reap the benefits of better sleep, digestion, immunity, and decreased stress. This makes the practice accessible anywhere – no yoga mat needed.

With love and support,

About the Author

Ginger is a passionate, unapologetic advocate of improving access to healthcare, a mother to 3 sons, & a 20+ year veteran in Integrative & Lifestyle Medicine in women’s health physical therapy & athletic training. She is the author of Medical Therapeutic Yoga, founder of Living Well Institute, owner of EudeMOMIa Integrative PT & Lifestyle Medicine, and most recently uprooted to Greensboro, NC with her family after 21 years of beach living, where they and their rescue pup Scout are wildly joyous about their new hometown.

*This short practice was part of a much longer 1 hour practice in my Motivation Monday Series – a guided practice in Medical Therapeutic Yoga. Want more? The 7 week series and it’s 6 week sister series ARE NOW AVAILABLE at 50% off for ONE WEEK! Visit the link in the bio or https://learn.integrativelifestylemed.com/ – Use CODE take50livewell