This exercise is very useful for developing your mindfulness skills. (You can find it recorded on my MP3 The Reality Slap, which can be purchased from www.thehappinesstrap.com.) Before commencing, decide how long you are going to spend on this practice — twenty to thirty minutes is ideal, but you can do it for as long as you wish. (It’s generally a good idea to use a timer of some sort.)
Find a quiet place, where you are free from any distractions such as pets, children and phone calls, and get yourself into a comfortable position, ideally sitting up in a chair or on a cushion. (Lying down is okay, but it’s very easy to fall asleep!) If you are sitting, then straighten your back and let your shoulders drop. Then close your eyes or fix them on a spot.
For the next five or six breaths focus on emptying your lungs; push all the air out of your lungs and completely empty them. Pause for a second, then allow them to fill by themselves, from the bottom up.
After five or six of these breaths, allow your breathing to find its own natural pace and rhythm; there is no need to control it.
Your challenge for the rest of the exercise is to keep your attention on the breath; to observe it as if you are a curious child who has never encountered breathing before. As the air flows in and out of you, notice the different sensations you feel in your body.
Notice what happens in your nostrils.
Notice what happens in your shoulders.
Notice what happens in your chest.
Notice what happens in your abdomen.
With openness and curiosity, track the movement of your breath as it flows through your body; follow the trail of sensations in your nose, shoulders, chest and abdomen.
As you do this, let your mind chatter away like a radio in the background: don’t try to silence it, you’ll only make it louder. Simply let your mind chatter away and keep your attention on the breath.
From time to time, your mind will hook you with a thought and pull you out of the exercise. This is normal and natural — and it will keep happening. (Indeed, you’re doing well if you last even ten seconds before it happens!)
Once you realise you’ve been hooked, gently acknowledge it. Silently say to yourself, ‘Hooked’, or gently nod your head and refocus on your breath.
This ‘hooking’ will happen again and again and again, and each time you unhook yourself and return your attention to the breath, you are building your ability to focus. So if your mind hooks you one thousand times, then one thousand times you return to the breath.
As the exercise continues, the feelings and sensations in your body will change: you may notice pleasant ones, such as relaxation, calmness and peace, or uncomfortable ones, such as backache, frustration or anxiety. The aim is to allow your feelings to be as they are, regardless of whether they are painful or pleasant. Remember, this is not a relaxation technique. You are not trying to relax. It’s quite all right if you feel stressed, anxious, bored or impatient. Your aim is simply to allow your feelings to be as they are, without a struggle. So if a difficult feeling is present, silently name it: say to yourself, ‘Here’s boredom’ or ‘Here’s frustration’ or ‘Here’s anxiety’. Let it be and keep your attention on the breath.
Continue in this way — observing the breath, acknowledging uncomfortable feelings, unhooking yourself from thoughts — until you reach the end of your allotted time. Then have a good stretch, engage with the world around you, and congratulate yourself on taking the time to practise this valuable life skill.