Daily Mindfulness Check-In July 27, 2022

@amiablePeace

It was a different experience eating with my right hand, (I am left-handed), I had to concentrate on using utensils with a hand that didn't have that advantage to begin with. However, with some practice I managed to become profecient enough to eat. Eating in silence gave me the opportunity to gage my expectations and discover some new sensations I was never aware of before. Eating my food became an adventure I wasn't attentive to before. It was somewhat overwhelming what I was tasting, feeling, and smelling. It was a positive event. I have always thought of those who grow, collect, clean, package, and sell to us our foodstuffs. The number of people involved in bringing our food to our table is immeasurable. And I am thankful for all of them.

xandia ❤️



@amiablePeace77 I have tried mindful eating....but I can't because of my overeating mindlessly....😞😞😞😞😞 Do you think I should try again?

@amiablePeace77

Heya Peace!! Hope you are doing well❤

I have always appreciated your wonderful posts. And this one is amazing too. I have never heard this concept of mindful eating before. It's great❤

I will look forward to it for sure. The tips sounds really good. Moreover, it would be helpful to realize the value of food. Sometimes, we just take it for granted. But there is so much hard work of different people behind it. And mindful eating can help us to be grateful for the food. Thanks❤🌼

It’s surprising how weird it feels to do things with the opposite hand! I often try using it for other things like writing.

@amiablePeace77

I had tried this activity few time in past. When i did first time, To be honest it was not easy for me. Definitely it made me totally involved in my eating without thinking about here and there.

Usually i take eating as automatic action of routine task. So this activity made me aware what i am eating . How much i am eating.. smell. .taste . Everything. I try once in week for one meal i take.

@amiablePeace77

Actually I can only eat in silence. I don’t like to talk when eating and I just focus on my food. And I eat very slow. People at the table are already at the desert I am still eating. 😀

@amiablePeace77

Hi Ami thank you again for this good check-in!

Hmmm I can not tell you when the last time I ate mindfully. I mean just noticing the texture or smell-the spices etc. I have not eaten dinner yet and it's already past 630pm here. So I plan not to have tv on but to just eat dinner.

Thank you for this reminder

@amiablePeace77

“I am seated here
Alone
A thousand miles away
From everybody
But if I have myself
And my sanity
I’ve got nothing else to lose”
― Michael Bassey Johnson, Song of a Nature Lover

Had a couple of very down moments this morning, but sorrow turned to discontent, and discontent turned to some kind of serenity. I am trying to stop thinking of crying as some negative thing. I learned that when you cry, your tears release and expel toxins. Real tears do this, it's not the same if you cut an onion and your eyes get watery. Real tears release real toxicity. That is not a negative thing. I feel better now after crying a bit and confronting a few unprocessed emotions. Something in me wants to resist these new healthy habits I want to form. So, when I was resisting the feelings, getting worked up, and thinking about how hard work could potentially be, I used the STOP method, and it worked.

I have a hard time making myself eat breakfast, so this was a good exercise. I am doing a lot better at the moment, but still, a bit scattered emotionally. The food tasted very rich, the textures were crisp, and my mind wandered a lot. I ate standing up, in silence. I want to repeat this exercise for a few days, particularly at breakfast, if not try to develop this habit at every meal. Being alone offers the opportunity to do whatever I want with my free time, and I want to make the most of this.

I am still tasting what I ate and bringing my mind back to that sense of taste. It was a little rushed, so next time I'd like to slow down and appreciate it more. Plan it ahead of time. I did remember this morning to try the Healthy Minds app, and start today with the quote I shared at the start of this message. I hope this mindfulness check-in isn't a bummer to anyone who reads this, but the struggle is real, and as much as I've accomplished recently I have a lot of healing left to do. Trauma bonding and the separation and alone-ness after can be difficult. But every time I get over the urge to resist healthy practices, and take that next baby step forward, I feel better, at least a little bit.

I am thinking about the potatoes, and the chicken (I had leftovers for breakfast), and the people who produced it. I have been in a chicken factory, and to be honest, I prefer to be pescatarian, but I'm off that diet for the moment due to budget issues. I guess this is all the more reason to appreciate the animal that is nourishing my body, giving me the ability to work and feel okay while working, and helping me to live and have protein. The people who work in those conditions have it very rough. I think of the families they feed with their difficult jobs. When I worked in such a factory, there was a large sign that said "What are we doing this for?" It was a constant reminder that no matter how hard it got, I had my daughter to get back to.

See, this is (maybe) a good reflection, but I hope next time my thoughts are all more like "mmmm, so delicious!" lol. But, if I'm being totally candid, this not eating thing can be a real problem for me. In that sense, it was a wild success, and I even liked the taste. Usually, when I feel like this, I don't eat and nothing tastes good or seems to have little taste. So even if it wasn't as grounded of an experiment as I aimed for, I know next time it will be more centered, more focused, and less distracted by thoughts of sorrow and discontent. The food did taste good, I did eat a healthy breakfast, and I did feel better after this. Significantly.

Apologies for the long check-in, and thank you for sharing this.

@amiablePeace77

Ha Ami I tried this again lol. Omg I was eating sketti with my right hand and trying to focus on the spices and the looooong noodles. ummm lets just say I needed more napkins then I normally use.

Being mindful may seem like it would take a toll, but it is only because we are use to our routines.

However, using a different hand to eat or taking a moment in between bites is great. Many are scrolling while they eat, or forget the sensation of getting to eat. This was so great and so exciting to experience. Thanks for this.