What awareness do we need in order to manage mental health?
The skill of being aware of our own awareness is a game-changer. This is mindfulness
Not getting in the way of our awareness and new levels of self-awareness that may emerge, not interfering with its process, meaning, or presence opens doors to a new way of being. Simply sitting with it, inviting ‘awareness’ to return, exploring, and witnessing our ‘awareness’ cultivates the ability to separate away from the internal dialogue the mind presents in respectful ways by not staying embroiled in what the mind’s job does
Mental health, mental illness, and mental wellbeing are subjects that people still avoid talking about today. The pandemic has presented an opportunity to hop off the hamster wheel of life. Many people were instantly removed from their hamster wheel as the pandemic changed lives in an instant. The hamster wheel in Mindful terms is referred to as ‘Living life of autopilot’.
During this time of COVID chaos, only now do many people have no choice but to ‘dare’ think and or talk about; mental health, mental illness, and mental wellbeing.
How do we face the reality of presenting our mental health both to ourselves and others? Awareness of what is going on in the mind, being able to witness this rather than continuing to be lost in thinking, is the beginning of the end of not living life on autopilot. Cultivating this state brings about improved levels of self-awareness, healing, new ways of being, and other life possibilities start to emerge
When we consider the mind to be a separate component of the self, the possibilities are endless.
Awareness is key to all facets of life. Being ‘driven’ is good for your career, yet can inhibit the understanding and acceptance of self when the focus is based on career (external success). At some point in life, an internal shift takes place for many people. The feeling of not being satisfied with our internal world (life) no matter how successful we are can be sat with for as long as ‘how long is a piece of string’ or until we either hit rock bottom, desire better ways of being or presented with a catastrophic life-changing experience which can bring us to the present moment. (The latter was my experience). The value of the gift of awareness internally and externally, the results it can bring depends on how much attention we pay to the ‘shift’ and the investment we make in the awareness of the shift itself. Here we begin freeing ourselves from the ties that bind us to keep living in ‘outgrown life’. Attempting to remain in a life we have outgrown can have catastrophic results to our future self
Before any change can take place, a requirement of becoming ‘aware’ that an internal shift has emerged requires the adaptation of becoming familiar, getting comfortable with our internal awareness, and witnessing this rather than quickly burying the combination of feelings and emotions that present themselves in what can be a flashing moment in time. Shifts can present so quickly, and the mind even quicker to respond all too readily packs the shift back up we can wonder ‘what was that?’ yet the human condition is such that our bodies never forget the glimmer (shift) that presented itself. When these moments are not invested in and cultivated, simmer it will. When left unmanaged there is no doubt it will re-emerge and depending on how long the shift has been left to ruminate all by itself will depend on how it eventually shows up. A mental or physical expression is how ignored shifts show up. By this I mean at worst ignored shifts can appear by way of mental breakdowns or manifest in physical disease
In part, people dare or choose not to talk about our own mental health depending on how we have each moved through our own lives coupled together with how we may have subliminally shaped our vocabulary based on learned behaviour, from those who helped raise us
Consider how the internal programming may still be anchored to how we have been raised and what affect this has on how we express ourselves both internally (how we speak to ourselves) and how we express our self in the outer world then consider what effect this plays out in your own life
Ask yourself – ‘How do I show up in my life?’
Sit in a quiet space and ask yourself this question, it may be the question has to be repeated several times, the magic is in the time one gives in waiting for the answer. No matter how long it takes, the answer will come, gifting self the experience of this process may be the kindest thing you can ever gift yourself
When this is achieved, give yourself permission to ask yourself ‘How do I want to show up’
I was raised in a household where the expression of emotions was limited. Anything other than demonstrating positive emotions was reduced, shut down, limited in the ability to express, discuss, or met with fear and at worst frustrated anger. The understanding from my early years was both my parents had experienced living through wartime. They were not doing anything wrong, they simply expressed themselves and trained their children in the only way they knew which negated their own freedom of expression due to their own life experiences. In turn, this limited freedom of expression within the family. Whilst this is sad, believe me, at any age, this can be overcome with a combination of the right support, methodologies, and investment of time and self-care.
Whilst traveling through my own life, one stage became catastrophic yet blessed with a life-threatening illness 14 years ago, that I transformed into an opportunity which served up a broadness of different perspectives for my life and how I truly wanted to live. By ‘live’ I am referring to the life we live internally, the voice in our heads, the feelings that live in the body, and how emotions are expressed in real ways that eventuate in better understanding of self, awareness of both our inner and outer world. My life on the outside appeared perfect to many. Waking to sunshine every day, managing my very successful business, living beachside, enhanced with beautiful friendships which still enhance my life today. However, it was the practice of mindfulness I found to be the game-changer. This natural peaceful practice in which I live is life-enhancing in so many ways, I teach it to many so they too can improve their lives in ways they desire by cultivating a life that is not lived on auto-pilot, greater levels of self-awareness which reframes the inner world and provides profound confidence to show up to the outer world with exactly who you are with little or no conflict. Here lies the magic of reclaiming and improving mental health, cultivating life on your own terms, and freedom from what the mind tells us.
If you would like to engage in these possibilities, click here to view my upcoming mindfulness courses.
If you would like a clarity call to explore if this is for you, do click the button below and let us have a no-obligation chat. I look forward to our first conversation.