Enlightened Living

Mindfulness practice in everyday life.

Michael J. Formica, MS, MA, EdM is a psychotherapist, social scientist, and educator in Westport CT. He is an Initiate in the Shankya Yoga lineage. See full bio

September 14, 2009

Mindfulness and Skillful Means in the Face of the Economic Crisis

It's not getting better any time soon. Gas prices are rising steadily, there 16 million unemployed, the stock market is struggling to get out of its summer slumber, new housing starts are flat and, while credit markets remain paralyzed, existing home sales are reading a false positive only because of the foreclosure market. So, what are we to do? Well, enjoy it, of course...

September 10, 2009

The Seed of Compassion

There is a story about a woman who came to the Buddha with her dead child in her arms. Knowing that the Buddha had the power to restore the child, she asked him to do so... The Buddha chose the Middle Way.

September 9, 2009

Emotional Dysregulation, Pseudo-Borderline Behavior and the Original Wound

In the first article of this suite, we considered how we often choose a relational system because, in part, that relationship activates a memory map that leads back to an Original Wound, or because we are attempting to revisit, re-shape or fix a relationship associated with that wound. These habit patterns left unexamined and without revision because of a failure to recognize the source of the choice, can lead us to emotional states that range from passive resignation to pathological mourning. Read More

August 28, 2009

The Core of Mindfulness: Moving from Reactivity to Response

When Jon Kabat-Zinn, through his work as UMass Hospital some 20 years ago, introduced the language of applied dharma and mindfulness practice, people latched on to his ideas with fervor. As with so many Western misappropriations of Eastern ideas, -- yoga, kung fu, meditation, feng shui, wabi sabi, etc. -- that fervor caused the language to be misinterpreted and misapplied, while a great deal of Kabat-Zinn's intention became lost in translation. So, what is "applied dharma" exactly? What, for that matter, is this "mindfulness" that everyone talks about, and how do you do it? Read More

August 26, 2009

The Process Underlying Healing the Original Wound (PRSD, Pt. 1A)

Questions posed by a reader regarding the first post on this topic prompt some clarification on object relationship and how unconscious choices affect the authenticity of repeated relationships. S/he also brings up the notion of the transactional and, by association, reciprocal nature of the object relationship that underlies social relationship. Interesting stuff. Read More

August 25, 2009

The Art of Becoming: Perfect Courage and Self-Creation

In a conversation on fearlessness, Joseph Campbell remarked that a blade of grass, cut down over and over, is a wonderful metaphor for the notion of perfect courage. The blade of grass, despite unswerving adversity, never gives up.

August 14, 2009

Attempting to Heal the Original Wound (PRSD, Pt.1)

Very often, when choosing a relationship, we do so because either that relationship activates a memory map that leads back to an Original Wound, or because we are attempting to fix, or, at the very least re-shape, a relationship associated with that wound. Just as often, those relationships tend not to work out, and the break in the relationship leads us to an experience that can range anywhere from passive resignation to pathological mourning.

August 12, 2009

With Medication More Prevalent, Talk Therapy Trends Downward

A recent survey paper published in the August issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry shows a marked decline in office visits for psychotherapy, as well as a significant decline in psychotherapeutic services provided by psychiatrists. The proliferation of psychoactive medications for lesser mood dysfunction has been immensely helpful as a therapeutic intervention, but is the quick fix an obstacle to true healing?

August 4, 2009

How Faith in People Can Interfere with Social Judgment

Yogi Bhajan tells the story of the turtle, the alligator and the two friends who need to cross a river. It is an allegory about trusting what you intuitively know to be true, despite appearances, assurances and perceptions to the contrary. If you know a thief to be a thief, then s/he is undoubtedly always a thief or, more to the point, people are nothing if not consistent. Read More

July 9, 2009

The Courage to Be Imperfect

Someone once said that there are two kinds of people in the world - those who are right... And nowhere are we more inclined to want to be right than with regard to ourselves. In fact, more often than not, we want to be perfect. What this striving for perfection often leads to is a kind of social paralysis. Read More

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Spirituality means something different to everyone. For some, it's a personal lord, for others a feeling in the wind. Research shows that even skeptics can't stifle the sense something greater. Humans can't help but ask big questions, even if there's no one there to answer them.

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