How to Stay Present in a World of Stress

One of the biggest challenges we face in being able to manage stress is being able to stay present with our self.  Many in the spiritual community tell us how we could eliminate most stress if we only just stay present with each and every moment.

Do they tell you how to do that while all these life responsibilities whirl around you?

You have all these bills, family and work responsibilities.  Is this how your days look?

In your daily activities much of your interactions with others is about reviewing the past.   You are asked to have plans for almost everything going on in your life, so you also get caught in future thoughts.   If you are focusing on the past or the future as you go about your daily activities, you are not being present.  This is one of the largest contributions to stress in your life.

Mostly as you go about your day, you must either solve problems or set clear goals and action plans for a successful future.

Think about what also happens when you get home from work.  You have so many responsibilities in order to have your life work out.  How many call or demand your help or participation in their past or future?   This all keeps you in stress mode and makes it more challenging to unwind and get a good night’s sleep.

Believe it or not it you can be present while participating on past and future driven activities.

Just hang in there with me and I will show you a way to practice presence as you go about your daily activities, even when reviewing what went wrong for taking corrective actions and making future goals and plans.  It isn’t about what activity you are doing, but how you do it.

Let’s start with what is being present

Being present is being conscious of who you are and what you are doing in each Now moment.  Here is the key. Instead of being on auto pilot, try being aware of exactly what you are doing, right here, right now even if you are reviewing the past or planning for the future.  Try also being aware of who you truly are in the existing moment, a spiritual being experiencing the physical.

What are you thinking when you are doing?  You have lots of thoughts running through your head each moment. When you allow your mind to run on auto pilot, you are not conscious of what thoughts are going on in your mind.  You could be doing some activity, yet your mind could be day dreaming of something totally different.  If your thoughts are focused completely on what your body is doing, you are being present.

Now as you examine the thoughts running through your mind, what thoughts are you saying about you?  If the thoughts are limitless ones of your possibilities or require no conditions be met before you can feel good about whom you are (not better than or less than another), then you are present with who you truly are.  You are being present with your higher mind, the Divine that lives inside you.

Being present is about being more conscious.

No matter what you are doing in the moment, start becoming aware of how you physically feel in your body.  How does it feel to move different parts of your body as you move about.  If eating take time to chew and experience the fullness of the taste of the food. Maybe you may want to smell the food before putting it in your mouth.  How does it feel to hold things in your hands?  Notice the texture of things. You are being present with your physical body.

Maybe you hear something that causes you to feel uncomfortable, i.e. anger, sadness or hurt.  Feel where that resides in your body, stop naming it and observe it.  Accept the feeling fully and completely accept you for having that feeling.  Observe the feeling until it passes from you.  Now forgive what needs forgiven and feel gratitude for the resolving and healing of that feeling.  That is how to be present with your emotions.

Also you may want to notice what your thoughts are saying about who you think you are.  If they are berating thoughts or thoughts that elevate you in comparison to another, they are not true of you and are lies coming from you comparative mind.  Connect with your higher mind by telling yourself the truth. Your behaviors do not make who you truly are.  You are made in the Divine image and are experiencing the physical to learn more about who you are.  As you practice being conscious of your true nature, you will make less mistakes with your behaviors and feel better about you.  That is how you are present by indentifying with your higher mind.

 

You can still be present using your comparative mind, yet not identifying with it.

It helps first to understand the difference between using your comparative mind and identifying with it.

Your comparative mind is a tool given for you to experience physical reality.  You use it to collect data about what the physical world experience is.  You also use it to reason out logic of cause and effect.  You need your comparative mind to be physical.  When you use it with these purposes, you are being present with the tool and consciously present.

If you allow your comparative mind to make better than or less than comparisons of who others are to feel good about who you think you are, you are not using the tool as intended, you are identifying with your comparative mind.  Better than or less than comparisons of others have a purpose of either fixing a past or forcing a different future.  Comparisons to evaluate who you think you are keeps you identifying with your comparative mind, not using it as the tool intended.

Your higher mind is conscious of being a spiritual person experiencing the physical.  They know that you are eternal and that the Divine supplies all.  So there is really nothing to fear or worry about.  When you let go of judging yourself and others, you are identifying with your higher mind.

When you are conscious and hearing inspirations from your higher mind, you are being present.  More importantly, you have brought the Divine presence into your physical life.

Here is how you stay present and with your higher mind when you see a behavior of another that you don’t agree with.

Use your comparative mind to evaluate if their behavior is one you can value or not.  Judge the behavior, not the person.  People act on their level of consciousness, not on who they are.  When you can let go of labeling people and start valuing their behaviors or not, you immediately connect with your higher mind.

If you find your comparative mind running judgments about another and stopping you from forgiving them because they act on their level of consciousness, then know it is lying to you. Tell yourself the truth and forgive them, not their behavior.  People behave evilly, yet they are not evil.  They too are made in the image of the Divine.  When you are able to consciously make decisions like this, you are being present.

Remember that we move back and forth from our comparative mind to our higher mind.

As you go about your daily activities understand that you can decide to become conscious and connect with your higher mind.  Ask for inspiration for what would be good, right and true action.  Then quiet yourself and listen.  It may come in a thought or maybe someone says something to you.  You will know because it will feel good and right.

Now use your comparative mind to take that inspired action.  It may be to say something to another or say nothing at all.  You may have to think through some logic and the inspired action will give you the questions to consider for your logic evaluation.

Now as you go about your activities feel your body.

Begin with a few chosen activities during your day. Then add more and more until your whole day is experienced with presence.  Then one day you will notice and experience feeling Divine presence within you as you goes about your day.  You may even want to meditate at the start of each day bringing Divine presence within you.

Meditation

I made a meditation to help you practice and stay present.

Welcome to Miracle Grids meditation to stay present.

Listen with ear listening devices for the best experience.  Sit up straight and follow along.

Watch this lovely place in nature now and listen to the soothing uplifting music.

Take in a nice gentle deep breath.

Blow it out.

Take in another deep breath.

Blow that breath out.

Begin relaxing yourself. Start with your feet.

Now move that relaxing feeling up your calves and into your knees.

Move it into your thighs.

Let that relaxing feeling in your lower back and tummy.

Now find that relaxation moving into your upper back and chest.

Feel your hands and arms relaxing.

Notice your shoulders and neck. Relax them.

Move your head from side to side and let that relaxing feeling fill your head.

Notice your eyes and mouth are relaxing now.

You are now in a deep state of complete relaxation.

Still yourself and quiet your mind.

Open your heart now.

Feel your gentle heart beating love and life throughout you.

Now open yourself  upward and outward.

Now further out, up into space and further out now out into the Universe.

Feel a deep connection now with all that is, Divine creation.

Ask the Divine to show you what their presence feels like for you that is unique to you.

Wait and experience what you experience.

Now say these words along with me.

Every day, in every way,

more and more,

I allow myself to be present.

Every day, in every way,

more and more,

I stop identifying with my comparative mind.

Every day, in every way,

more and more,

I start identifying with my higher mind.

Every day, in every way,

more and more,

I am conscious.

Every day, in every way,

more and more,

I allow myself to be conscious of Divine presence within me.

Every day, in every way,

more and more,

I am feeling Divine presence.

Every day, in every way,

more and more,

I am expressing the Divine with their presence.

Take some time and feel thankful for this new state of being.

Feel it in your body now and observe it.

Just be.

Any time you bring yourself to quietness, your higher mind will help you with what you need when you need it.

Slowly bring your awareness back to the room you are in.

Now to the place you are sitting.

You are back now.

You are safely in your comfortable place.

You are filled with the Divine presence that dwells within you.

Honor that your physical body is a holy temple for expression of Divine creation.

Do you want to relax and feel good about yourself?  The Miracle Grids Shop also sells video meditations that guide you on journeys of peace, renewal, happiness and healing.  Check them out here.

By Susan Suehr

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