A sting of anticipation pulsed deep into my chest while the piercing pressure of the unknown danced in flashes throughout my skull. It was a flow of sensations that were at once unforgiving, unmistakable, and undeniable. With a single inhale, I had suddenly become aware of the anxiety lingering in my body over an upcoming decision.

I was deep in a guided meditation when the instructor told us to think about something in the future. As a particular decision—and its potential repercussions—flashed in my mind, he asked us to do a body scan from our toes to our head to see what we noticed. The pain in my chest, similar to unruly tension from heartburn, had been unnoticeable earlier. Now that I was paying attention on purpose, it became impossible to ignore. As I scanned further, I noticed tightness in my skull that felt comparable to the sinus pressure that arises on a blooming spring day. The discomfort surprised me. I knew that I was emotionally uneasy about the decision ahead of me, but I didn’t realize that it was affecting my body.

As I sat with this realization, the instructor then guided us to focus on bringing our breath to any part of the body that was bothering us. I took a couple of deep breaths focusing on my chest and then a couple more focusing on the pressure in my head. With each slow and deliberate exhale, I imagined the pressure leaving my body as I reassured myself that no matter what the future holds, I’ll be okay. I can’t say that the pain completely went away, but this is why it’s called a practice. One of the objectives is to become aware of the things that lay dormant yet are as much a part of our existence as our very breath.

Your mindset, emotions, and body all work together in not so mysterious ways.

Our body, mind, soul, and emotions are connected as one. They react off of one another. In the physical sense, the most powerful tool is your thoughts. Your thoughts and emotions are like a compass directing you to what needs attention and signaling your body to respond. Your body stores these directions and creates habitual responses. Of course, it’s always possible to reroute and create new patterns.

“Neuroscience research shows that the only way we can change the way we feel is by becoming aware of our inner experience and learning to befriend what is going inside ourselves.” ― Bessel A. van der Kolk, The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma

“Mindfulness increases activation of the medial prefrontal cortex and decreases activation of structures like the amygdala that trigger our emotional responses. This increases our control over the emotional brain.”― Bessel A. van der Kolk, he Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma

Awareness of Thoughts, Feelings, and Your Body

In mindfulness, the goal is to be present, but it is also to be aware. Just like in the body scan, you practice becoming an observer so that your thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations don’t merely belong to you but are rather something you are experiencing. It gives you an opportunity to notice something going on within you and think, “that’s interesting, I wonder what this is” rather than immediately defining yourself by the sensation. It is a way of validating and acknowledging feelings—whether physical or emotional—and allowing space for them to exist without grasping onto them as absolute truths to act on.

This idea of compassionate non-attachment gives you the space to observe, adjust, and move forward—all critical components of healing. It is the practice of getting to know yourself on deeper and deeper levels that allow for heightened awareness, discipline, and I might even add control.  For example, instead of putting your emotion in the driver’s seat, you can create a slower response time so that you become aware of what you’re feeling and then you can choose your response. Sometimes, as we have seen, emotions and thoughts become physical sensations. Everything works together, so why fight yourself?

“Instead of resisting any emotion, the best way to dispel it is to enter it fully, embrace it and see through your resistance.” – Deepak Chopra

Mindful Mind-Body Connection in Action

“Pain doesn’t tell you when you ought to stop. Pain is the little voice in your head that tries to hold you back because it knows if you continue you will change.” – Kobe Bryant

“We cannot selectively numb emotions, when we numb the painful emotions, we also numb the positive emotions.” ― Brené Brown, The Gifts of Imperfection

Oftentimes, we either ignore negative feelings or let them run us over. And it doesn’t always have to be a big emotion. For example, think of how you typically act in a traffic jam. If you’re like most people, you get agitated and lose patience. What if you could recognize and redirect the feeling of being stressed before it turns into something like a headache?

The same thing goes for athletes. The reality is whether in the game of the sport or in the game of life, we all have adjustments we can make. Just like you practice your sport and train your body, you can also spend time training yourself to get quiet and still.

The benefits are:

• You’ll learn to really hear yourself.
• You’ll understand yourself better.
• You’ll begin to recognize your triggers and your habitual reactions.
• You’ll learn to be resilient with awareness.
• You’ll learn how to focus more.
• You’ll be able to return to your inner stillness regardless of the environment.

How could you not perform better with those skills? The practice is a lifelong journey. The more consistently you practice and apply what you learn, the better results you’ll see.

As for the decision about my future that had my chest and skull feeling sharp, tense pain? Well, I still haven’t quite made my decision yet, but what I learned is that while I’m always going to have choices to make, I don’t have to absorb that into my body. I can continue to learn to relax into it by letting go of what I can’t control (i.e., the outcome) and trusting that everything will be okay. The more connected I am—mind, body, and soul—the clearer the choice will become. And in that clarity, there is great freedom.

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