

Dealing with obstacles
The focus on the body makes it clearer how much is “chatter” in our head and how that determines our reaction to everyday events.
The goal of the training is to live more consciously and to be more in the “now”. However, you will probably already found out during practice that there is a strong tendency to judge everything we experience.
Thoughts such as: “am I doing it right?”, “I’m always thinking about other things”, “I’m bored”, I can’t relax”, “why am I feeling this”, can come up frequently. These thoughts can lead to a chain of thoughts. These thoughts hinder you from being “aware of the moment.” By focusing your attention on what you experience in your body, for example, you can increase this “awareness of the moment”.
In addition, this “being aware of the moment” offers the opportunity not to go along with all kinds of stimuli from within, such as worrying thoughts. The body scan offers us the opportunity to practice with this.
Tips for the body scan:
1.It’s a matter of just doing it! Even though you fall asleep, you can’t concentrate, you keep thinking about other things, you don’t feel anything in a certain part of your body, these are your experiences of that moment and it’s about being aware of them.
2. When you notice that your mind is wandering, bring your attention back to the body scan in a friendly and calm way.
3. It is not an exercise in which you can succeed or fail. The only skill that is required is the discipline to practice regularly. Do this with an open and curious attitude.
4. Try not to have expectations about what the body scan will bring you. Compare it to a seed that you have just planned and where you can actually exert little influence on the growth process. You can only create the right conditions, such as rest and frequent exercise.
5. See if you manage to approach each experience with an accepting attitude. When you try to get rid of or avoid unpleasant thoughts, feelings or physical sensations, it only distracts you from focusing your attention on the different body parts. Accept that these things are just there at that moment.


Breathing
Breathing is life. The breath is always there and everywhere and does not need conscious control.
Breathing is also often a reflection of how we feel. For example, it can be short and fast when we are anxious or tense or full when we are happy. We can use breathing as a tool to bring stability to our mind and body. At any time of the day, you can choose to focus on your breathing, because the breathing is always there.
During the day we are only sporadically aware of our breathing. She’s just there without us paying attention to it.
So one of the first things we’re going to do is use our breathing to train more awareness and attention.
We do this by observing the breath, experiencing it, where we do not have to control it. Just letting the breath be as it is at that moment.
Through practice, we become more aware of our breathing. This can help us better deal with pain, anger, sadness, or stress. During this training we will often think about this.
Breaking habits
Mindfulness works on two levels. First of all, you have the meditation exercises. However, mindfulness also encourages you to break with some unconscious thinking habits and ways of doing things that prevent you from living life to the fullest. Many judgmental and self-critical thoughts come from our usual ways of thinking and doing things. By breaking some of your daily habits, you will eventually become more aware and attentive.
You may be surprised at how much more happiness you can achieve with very small changes in your way of life.
Breaking habits is not difficult. For example, it means that you do not sit in the same chair. Turn off the TV for a while. Take a different route home. Or plant a seed and see how it grows. If you cycle, pay very conscious attention to what you hear. Or consciously and full attention to eat something.


The right setting while practicing
Don’t judge
We tend to judge everything. This is often done through an automatic process. However, this prevents us from living in the here and now. There’s no point in trying to stop the judging. You can only bring your attention to it, recognize it, and then maybe let go.
Patience
Changes often take time. An investment is required from you that may not immediately yield something. This requires patience. Endlessly starting over. Mindfulness is endlessly starting over. Every time you are distracted by something, you try to bring the attention back in a friendly way. It can help to experience each meditation as if it were your first time doing it.
Trust
Learn to trust your own perception. This teaches you to listen to yourself better.
Don’t strive
Don’t try to pursue a goal. Meditating takes you out of do-mode and teaches us to be with what’s there. If you secretly notice that you still have a goal, e.g. I want to feel better, more relaxed, calmer etc. then realize that you are meditating from the do mode at that moment. See if you can start over and really let go of any expectation.
Open attitude
This moment is completely new. So in that sense it does not matter whether you have a lot or little meditation experience. You haven’t lived this moment yet. So open up and be curious about your experience of the moment.
Acceptance
Acceptance is about seeing things as they really are. Often we actually want things to be different or better. Or we try to deny things because we don’t like them.

We are working so hard to change something or to resist something that we get caught up in it. All kinds of thoughts and emotions can then take over. When we accept a situation as it is at that moment, this gives you the opportunity to better attune to a situation and then also come up with a more appropriate action.
Session 2


Release
Sometimes we experience sensations or have feelings that are so pleasant that we do everything we can to hold on to them. On the other hand, we can also get caught up in unpleasant thoughts, sensations or feelings because we only focus our attention on them. In both cases, there is no question of letting go. The mindfulness is an invitation to not cling to anything. This is a conscious decision to let go.

Compassion, gentleness and gentleness
Show compassion to yourself and others. During the meditations you can practice this by not blaming yourself if you are distracted. Also, be kind to yourself if you feel anger, sadness, or fear. Accept that these feelings are there and realize that you can start developing kindness and compassion every time.
I am my own best friend!

Mindfulness is about observing without criticizing, and about having compassion for yourself. When gloom or stress sets in, you can learn not to take it personally. Seeing this come and go. It gives you the opportunity to intercept negative thought patterns in time, so that you are less sucked into a downward spiral.

Exercises for next week at session 2

1.Practice the body scan for 5 days.
2.Fill in the “enjoyable events calendar”. one event per day is enough. As soon as possible after you noticed, try to write down as precisely as possible what your thoughts were, what you felt, and what physical sensations you experienced. It doesn’t have to be something big. Think, for example, of a bird that you heard whistling. Or the sun shining. Something sweet that your roommate did or said. Someone who was friendly in the store.
3. Again, choose a routine activity that you will perform with attention. Try choosing a different activity than the week before. Examples are: washing the dishes, shopping, taking out garbage, reading to children or eating. The list is endless, but it’s just about being aware of what you’re doing as you do it.

Exercise 2
Be aware of a pleasant event while it is taking place. Use the following questions to first bring your attention to the details of the experience. Then write it down.
What was your experience? Were you aware of the pleasant event while it was taking place?
E.g. hearing a bird singing on the way home after work yes
What bodily sensations Did you have during the event?
What kind of feelings and Did you have any thoughts at the time of the experience? What thoughts do you have as you write this down?
My head felt clear, I smiled. My body relaxed Cheerful, how wonderful, beautiful that bird sings, it is wonderful outside It was small, but I’m glad I noticed

We have now reached the end of week 2. You have read the texts, done the assignments, listened to the audio files daily and thought about yourself in this way. Now briefly summarize what you have learned from this session.
1. What do you take away from this session
2. what are you going to do next week
3. What will this bring you?
