Okay, so mindfulness is now officially all the rage--the fact that New York Times blogger Judith Warner could have the audacity to poke fun of it is proof of that. Referring to one of her mindful friends, Warner writes "I was beginning to wonder what body snatcher had taken my cranky friend away and left this kindly, calm, pod person in her place." Her main point is not to discredit mindfulness, which she herself partakes in, but to inquire into the effects on friends and families--the innocent bystanders. "For the truth is" she concludes "however admirable mindfulness may be, however much peace, grounding, stability and self-acceptance it can bring, as an experience to be shared, it's stultifyingly boring."
Okay, perhaps she overstates the case a bit, but thank God someone has had the temerity to at least question whether mindfulness is the cure for all that is wrong in our hyperkinetic lifestyle. Given our proclivity towards multitasking, and glorification of productivity (which seems to be measured by how many emails one digests and shuffles from folder to folder), what could possibly be wrong with mindfulness? Well, nothing is wrong, but when I see the word "mindfulness" tacked onto every workshop flyer I get in the mail, or in half the new book titles about therapy, it makes me a bit skeptical on whether all these new "experts" have done more than take a few weekend workshops on this topic before attempting to capitalize on this craze. Seriously, every week I get advertisements for Mindfulness and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Mindfulness and EMDR, Mindfulness and Neurobiology (another other hot topic), Mindfulness and Attachment Theory. Frankly it's all a bit mind-numbing!
I know just a bit about mindfulness really, I've been to a couple workshops, I've made a half-hearted attempt at meditating a few times, and it's just not something that interests me. Yes, I know it's hard, very hard, and my experience of finding it frustrating and unrewarding at first is almost universal, and that many hard-core devotees would cite this as proof that I really need to stick with it. Thanks, but no thanks. I'd prefer to play tennis, paint, take a bike ride, or take a nap--preferably the latter.
I'm really not trying to be flip, or to denigrate a few thousand year old practice that has been embraced by millions. As a psychotherapist I see great value to any methodology which helps people get more in touch with their inner world, and achieve some sense of peace or well-being. What makes my hair stand on end is being force-fed the way, whatever way that is. I truly think therapy can be helpful to many people--but I try to keep mindful myself that 99.9% of humanity throughout the ages has managed to traverse the trials of existence without partaking in the 50 minute hour. And although I have certainly suggested to friends and acquaintances that therapy might be helpful in certain situation they are facing, I really do not believe it is the only solution to their woes, and I try to be careful not to push this agenda.
So when I hear colleagues suggest that so-and-so should really start a "sitting practice" or take a breath and be mindful, I immediately feel resistant. Maybe my reaction is proof that I would benefit from mindfulness training. Yes, that and eating more spinach and omega-3 fatty acids, and doing crossword puzzles to stop my neurons from degenerating, and wearing long pants tucked into my socks when I go hiking to prevent ticks from finding their way to my tasty calves. Ahhhh...there I go again with my ranting and sarcasm....but wait, I must not judge myself...just notice my own reactions....take a breath...let those thoughts float away. Hmmm, I feel better already. Maybe there's something to this mindfulness after all.
