“Mindless” in the Shower
Well, my first ever blog post is going to be about why I need to be mindful and the kinds of things that happen when I’m not.
This is embarrassing to admit, but I took a shower this morning and I don’t remember anything about it. Well, actually I do remember turning on the water and stepping in. That’s it. While I showered on auto-pilot, my mind was somewhere else. And very busy! I rehearsed asking the man who was mowing my lawn not to chop off my clematis. I worried about one of my children. I anticipated my afternoon of practicing qigong with a new group of people. I planned how I could do an errand on my way to do another errand. I remembered I was supposed to call a client. And on and on, my thoughts like a jack rabbit on speed. I was even thinking about the talk I just heard by the Vietnamese Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hanh, on the importance of mindfulness in the present moment! Ooops.
My next moment of awareness was when I was dry and dressed, standing in front of the mirror and combing my very slimy hair. It was slimy because I had forgotten to rinse out the conditioner. (It’s hard to remember things when I’m unconscious!) This was a gentle, benign reminder that it was time to slow down, take some relaxed deep breaths, and become aware of where I was, how I was feeling, and what I was doing in the present moment. And I did.
For people with ADD or ADHD, bringing our awareness back to the present moment is a constant challenge. But if we can learn to do it as often as possible, gently and without judgment, it can help us in so many ways. Reduced stress, more conscious choices, and remembering our intentions are just a few. We can set up systems that will remind us to consciously breathe and become aware of our bodies, hearts, and minds. I have three stickers on my computer that say, “Breathe.” In a future post, I’ll talk about mindfulness triggers.
Can any readers out there relate to what I did in the shower? At least it was only slimy hair. Are there times when you realize later how unaware you’ve been? What happened? You can click above on Leave a Comment.
boy can i relate. i am amazed sometimes that i walk out of the house fully clothed. anything you can do to help me pay attention and focus would be great. good luck with your new blog.
Hi Mimi -
So that is what it means to be mindful! I never really understood what “mindfullness” was until reading your post. Your description of the shower experience really makes it clear and I realized, “wow, I am hardly EVER mindful!” My mind is rarely there with my body..it is usually off somewhere else; planning what I am going to do next or thinking about what happened that day. I have read several times that mindfulness practice is good for ADDers but I never knew how to do it. I also feel afraid that if I was mindful, I wouldn’t get anything done! It’s like I have to be frantic to accomplish things. Do you have any suggestions about how to be mindful? (Or even how to remember to do it?)
Hello,
Thanks for your comment. If you’re feeling frantic, you may not be aware of how the stress of constantly planning and doing might be affecting you. So even if you’re getting lots done, you’re probably moving in fast forward auto-pilot. One thing that helps is to stop (only for a few seconds, don’t worry!) take 3 slow deep breaths and bring your attention to how you are feeling in that moment in your body, mind, and heart. It will give you that pause to be more conscious about what you really want to do next. Thanks for reading and come back and visit again!
That’s funny. You could put a note on the inside of your front door hanging over the doorknob with a list of clothes you need to have on before you walk out of the house!