Introduction to Mindfulness - Dean Amory

eathing and keep ourselves firmly grounded in the present
moment.
- Emotions are impermanent, they do pass. By surrounding the
emotion with mindful awareness, the emotion loses much of its
power and energy. When it passes back into our subconscious, it
will not be as strong. It has taken a “bath of mindfulness” and
next time it comes up it will be a little weaker.
- We have survived emotions before, and each time we do, we
grow strong. Each time we experience them and survive, we also
grow in our confidence to look after the part of our mind that is
capable of feeling intense pain.
- We are afraid of the elements in our unconscious that feel intense
fear, despair, anger etc. We are so afraid that we set up blocks
within our mind so that these feelings won’t arise. We do this
without being aware that we are doing it. Every time we sense
these feelings might arise, we get busy. We keep our minds
occupied so as not to feel whatever we have locked into “mental
basements”. And we fill our conscious “living rooms” with as
much distraction as possible. But of course hidden pain and hurt
feelings do arise despite our best efforts to suppress them. In our
dreams and sometimes in our waking lives, we are made aware of
strong emotions that we carry within us.
- Repression of feelings also sets up a situation of bad circulation
between our conscious and our deeper minds. We suffer
symptoms, sometimes they are physical, other times repression of
our feelings can lead to symptoms of mental illness. The solution
is to open the door of our mental basement and allow them arise.
But we need to be able to look after them when they do. And this
is why we practice mindfulness and build up our capacity to
surround and transform painful emotions that are present in us.
- The energy of mindfulness is strengthened by practicing with
others and by deepening our understanding of how our mind
works. In psychotherapy, we practitioners can bring mindful
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