To continue with our focus for change in the new year I thought we explore mindfulness and addiction. Addictions are our attempts to get away from the unsettling emotions that arise within us. While deal with discomfort when we can have a drink, or take a smoke or take a pill. Very quickly some of our discomfort goes away at least temporarily, while it might not hurt at the moment there is always a repercussion latter whether to our health, employment, finances, relationships or self esteem. Mindfulness offers us tools with which we can relate with our discomfort differently. So if an uncomfortable feeling like a craving, or anxiety arises, rather than automatically reaching out to a vice to make it disappear we learn to pause and stay with our discomfort even lean in and observe it with presence and compassion. We can say okay, I see you anxiety, or fear or anger and I will try and hold space for this agitation or craving and observe it until it passes. I'll bravely stay rather than run and if we do slip rather than falling into abandoned we can forgive ourselves for having that wondering and not making it a big deal. When it comes to addictions what's most important is what we say to ourselves when we descend into temptations or worse yet relapse, we must remind ourselves that we are human and the road to recovery is sure to challenge us. We offer ourselves patience and kindness and slowly we learn to resist our cravings. As Pema Chodron said when we scratch the wound and give into our addictions we do not allow the wound to heal so instead of running we want to get familiar with the experience of our unsettled emotions, we get to know them this way we tenderly acknowledge what's happening in our minds and bodies and rather than reacting to our discomfort in a habitual way we can choose how we want to respond. #dealingwithaddiction #overcomingaddictions #anxiety #dealingwithanxiety #howtodealwithanxiety #highperformancehabits #livingyourdream #dreamaudaciously #calmmeditation #dailycalm #dailycalmquote #anewyou #anewversionofyou #newyear #setyourintentions #serendipity #naturalproducts #healthylivingdaily #livinghealthyandfit #myweightlosejourney #resolution # https://www.instagram.com/p/B7Ha2-0JTuB/?igshid=4o1t0ar6yk3r