Exploring Wellness for Body, Mind and Self: Staying in the Moment - The Senses
From Anne Meneghetti, MD, 4/22/2009 9:03:39 AM
Does the news of the day take you away from the present moment? One of my friends – a smart, level-headed, professional woman in a stable marriage - responds to the daily financial news with vivid imaginings of her future. She envisions that quite soon, she will become a blind homeless woman forced to wander the streets of a crime-ridden neighborhood, alone and hungry. Others keep looking back in time, regretting personal and financial decisions they made, calculating the effects on their balance sheet.
Meanwhile, the golden present comes and goes. The present moment is our one chance to experience current reality and our only opportunity for active choice. The ability to stay in the moment can facilitate learning from the past and planning the future in a conscious, active way. So how can we bring the mind back from the brink of past musings and future imaginings, to experience this moment?
The five senses are one of the most immediate ways to reconnect with current reality. They are the very doors of perception to the world around us. We all have moments of awareness when we realize our minds have been wandering here and there. Choose one of those moments to bring yourself back to your senses:
SOUND. Take note of each individual sound around you. Some are constant, like the low hums and whirs of machinery. Others are intermittent, like a passing vehicle, chirping bird, or barking dog. Accept the entire sound landscape as a whole, as if you were listening to a symphony.
SIGHT. Look with fresh eyes at your immediate surroundings. Without judging, scan the details of color, form, and the way that light falls on individual objects. As if it were a painting or movie, see the entire picture before you as a single image.
TOUCH. What do you feel against your skin? Without moving, notice the air temperature, the feeling of your clothes, the texture of the chair or floor. Consider the posture and position of your body. Are there any internal sensations? Accept the entire collection of sensations as a whole.
While smell and taste may not be immediately convenient to explore, these other three senses can often provide a direct path to the very real present moment.
Wishing you peace of mind,
Dr. Anne
This information is purely educational and does not replace a physician's advice that may be unique to each individual. For all medical concerns, please see a physician to establish a diagnosis and explore proven treatments.
