How to Be Less Impulsive

Hi, welcome back to your Daily Mindfulness. In today's session, we're going to talk about how to be less impulsive. So lately I've been using a technique that's been helpful for reducing cravings, improving patience, making me a better listener and regrounding me in moments where I feel a strong, emotional charge and a build up of energy in my body that makes me want to react quickly. There are a lot of ways we can experience this buildup of energy. It could be something like a craving for a cigarette or a dessert, and just a feeling of, of that energy, that build up in the body.

And it's like, I want that thing in order to be satiated, satisfied. It could also be a buildup of, of sexual energy, lust, and just feeling like I need this person. It could also be impatience in a conversation with someone and they're, they're taking a while to get to the point. And you're just feeling this buildup of energy, like get to the point already. And there's buildup of energy and emotion that is not always a bad thing.

Sometimes it's good to express it and, and use it to, uh, to make a change or to take an action. But there are also a lot of times where it's just a habitual reaction that would be best to, to manage internally or to not respond to in the moment. And so I've been using a helpful strategy that you're already familiar with, but it has a slight twist. And this is to take a deep breath into that urge or impulse, the buildup of energy. And then on an exhale feel as though that energy is getting dispersed throughout the whole body.

You know, down the legs, through my arms, to the top of the head, the torso. So that instead of it being all localized in one place, like the hands, trying to reach for a dessert, it's more spread out which makes it less intense. And that making it less intense is sort of like the difference between holding a single 30 pound weight in one hand, which would feel really heavy, uh, versus spreading those 30 pounds out around the entire body. Maybe a backpack, heavy clothes, heavy shoes, jacket, something like that. We still feel the weight, but it's more spread out so it's less intense.

We're better able to hold it. And so when we, we breathe in and out way, it disperses the intensity of the energy and it's a simple technique, but I found it to be really useful for urges and impulses. And I often feel more powerful in a good way after I do it as if I have this extra energy, uh, to use in a more useful, intentional way. So try it out next time, you feel an urge. Breathe deeply into that urge, imagine breathing into it, and you could even use imagery.

So you breathe in, you imagine breathing into it. And then on the exhale feel and imagine it being spread out and grounded into the rest of your body, even grounded into the earth beneath you. And you might be surprised how useful this can be to not have to react to this thing that feels really strong in your body. Try it out. Thanks for your practice.

And let's settle in for today's meditation.