return to one’s body

in his novel resident of dublin, James Joyce wrote of Mr. Duffy: “He lived some distance from the body.” Like Duffy, many of us don’t live fully in our bodies. Why should you do this?

There are many norms that tell us that athletic Courage, beauty, youth, and perfect health are what make us okay. So we create stories about what our bodies should look like, but there’s often a sense that we have limitations and that our bodies are letting us down. . They aren’t as athletic, lean, youthful or sexy as they should be. We all have a little fear of getting sick or getting old. Or maybe even fear.

But our bodies can do a lot for us. Think about this. During an average lifespan, humans take about 500 million breaths, extracting life-giving oxygen from the air and distributing it through an incredibly complex vascular system to all of the body’s more than 25 trillion cells. Masu. .

You don’t have to forget to breathe. It is managed by a network deep in the brainstem neural Activities that work together to control breathing rhythm. This tells your abdominal muscles and diaphragm to move as you inhale and exhale. These muscles are powerful because our large brains require large amounts of oxygenated blood. I hope you didn’t know this. Your body especially needs a lot of oxygen, so take a deep breath every 5 or so breaths. I sigh.

Our breathing is connected to almost everything in our bodies, including our activation level, pupil dilation, and all of our senses. Our breathing is also closely connected to all our emotions. This has two major implications. Our breathing tells us how we are doing. And intentionally changing your breathing is part of changing your state of mind and body.

Our bodies contain a wealth of information, a deep source of information about our health and well-being. Our hearts beat approximately 3 billion times, pumping blood filled with essential nutrients into our arteries and veins. Our complex immune system relentlessly seeks out and neutralizes pathogens.

Thanks to your brain, you have extraordinary learning abilities. During development, the fetal brain grows at an astonishing rate of approximately 250,000 neurons per minute. pregnancy. Babies, toddlers, and children accumulate incredible amounts of new information and use that information to develop abilities such as balancing, walking, using language, and forming relationships. .

Our minds process an immense amount of input throughout our lives, supported by a three-pound organ called the human brain. Our adult brains are made up of billions of neurons that send and receive information through the nervous system at the same speed as a Formula 1 car (approximately 360km/h) and an estimated 100 trillion neurons. It’s done through interconnections.

Stop and think about your body and mind doing all of this. So why would you want to return to your own body? Because the truth is, your body is already doing something crazy. If you pay Note There’s a lot you can learn by listening to your body, really tuning in, and getting intimate with it. Your body can be your touchstone, teacher, sanctuary, home, and friend.

Mindfulness It’s not about a perfect state of body or mind that goes beyond real life. It’s about becoming more fully human, and that involves inhabiting your body, being aware of its rhythms and signals, and finding ways to respond mindfully rather than reactively. It’s about developing a relationship with your body that is rooted in kindness and respect.

Right now, your heart is beating, your lungs are breathing, and your brain is processing countless signals at an alarming rate. Your body has supported you through every moment of your life, through the highs and lows, the ordinary and the extraordinary. It’s your constant companion.

So why not go home?

You don’t need any special equipment or hours of free time to get started. Just stop and take a deep breath. Notice how your chest rises and falls and how the air feels as it passes through your nostrils. Feel your feet on the ground. Ask yourself, “How is my body feeling right now?” You don’t need to change anything. Just bring awareness to your body that is imbued with kindness and care.

When you start paying attention to your body, you might be surprised at what you learn. You may notice how the tension in your shoulders reflects. stress How your breath quickens when you notice events throughout the day or when your mood increases. I’m worried. You may also discover moments of peace and comfort that you never noticed before.

Below, Mohammed, a man with two young children and chronic back pain, describes his early experiences with mindfulness practices.

My mind immediately thought of all the ways I could make my life better. That means a part-time job, more money, more pain, more help with the kids, more help around the house, better gym equipment, and my sports team winning tournaments. It’s been ten years! When I realized that my mind was creating this “what if” feeling and came back to this moment, my back was fine, throbbing a little but tolerably, and the rest of my body actually didn’t feel right. It was good.

Even with all the noise going on in my head about everything I had to do, I was able to rest in the movement of breathing in and out and feel safe. My thoughts were just part of the background of this moment, the heartbeat in my back, the feeling of my feet planted firmly on the ground, my chest rising and falling with my breathing, and the steady pulsation of my heart. . slow.

Here he again goes further in his journey.

I learned that I can become aware of back pain and approach unpleasant sensations. When you do this, they often change, sometimes becoming tighter or more spread out. When you pay attention, the sensations come to the forefront and can feel intense.

When we start thinking about pain, things tend to take a turn for the worse. I have to live with this situation for so long, and I don’t know if I can do it, but it’s too much. ”

try to get away from those words pain, especially chronic pain. This means that you can see sensations as something you can handle and ask yourself, “What do I need right now?”

Zooming out also allows you to keep your whole body conscious. When my whole body is illuminated by floodlights, the unpleasant sensations sit alongside thoughts and feelings about normally functioning parts of my body and other things in my life other than the unpleasant sensations. Masu.

I am not my pain. That’s very important. I’ve met people with chronic pain in rehab facilities and I get it, but that’s not a good place to be.

Returning to your body is a lifelong practice. It helps you overcome challenges such as pain, aging, illness, and stress more effectively. resilience. it deepens your relationship anchoring It looks at you in the present moment and creates space for connection and empathy. And perhaps most importantly, you can live life more fully, savoring the richness of each moment.

Your body is always here, waiting for you. Ready to start your journey home?

This post is an excerpt from my book. Mindfulness for life (Guilford Publishing, 2024).