The Power of Growth
It’s hard not to think about growth during Spring. I see green returning to deciduous trees and vibrant multi-colored flowers popping up on every corner. Squirrels, birds, and bunnies dart under bushes. Optimism permeates the air as temperatures increase and layers are shed.
The growth that we see around us during this time of year comes from rest and resetting, from changes that we don’t notice until they appear on the surface — changes occurring at a cellular level or below the ground.
Growth of a new practice, like mindfulness, requires a similar process. We may not notice changes in our bodies or thought patterns immediately. And we may also need to start with the basics, at the roots, before we can truly grow.
My mindfulness practice increased my awareness of my mental health while improving my ability to respond to daily stressors. But I also found that I had to dive into the roots of my anxiety and depression to make the process the most successful: if I can change my emotions, I can change my behavior. Reframing my own default responses in this way, along with my mindfulness practice, allows me to find the space to choose how I react. I notice and reframe my default thought patterns because I better understand why my mind follows a particular path first. Getting to this space has taken therapy, patience, and practice.
Instead of automatically spiraling and judging myself when I stub my toe on a dog toy while walking to the bathroom in the middle of the night, I instead notice the physical pain separately from my mental reaction. I don’t jump into the rabbit hole of blaming myself or my dog, wondering how long the pain will last, worrying about falling back asleep now that I’m more awake, or the many things I “should” have done to avoid the experience. I can instead pause and choose to breathe through the temporary pain before continuing to the bathroom.
This is also a valuable skill with friends, family, or coworkers.
It’s very easy to assume intent or place expectations on others and jump into a different rabbit hole of interpretation.
Mindfulness practices help us recognize that rabbit hole before we dive in. Maybe we are triggered by micromanagement (or our interpretation of micromanagement), maybe we are triggered by a particular phrase or communication style, maybe we’re just overwhelmed and in a reactive head space. When we slow down and find space before responding, we can recognize and regulate our emotions to choose our behavior.
Mindfulness teaches us awareness, presence, and release of judgment. As discussed in the third article of this series, mindfulness practices change our brains – our “roots”. We can continue to grow this change through self-exploration with open awareness by journaling, therapy, and speaking with those we trust.
Just like any growth process, change takes time and will likely require periods of resetting and rest. But each spring, you’ll find a new bloom and grow a little more.
About the Author: Elyssa Dixon is a mindfulness and meditation coach, and founder of fleeceandforests LLC. She worked as a civil engineer in consulting for about eight years before shifting her career. Click here to learn more about her.