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How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
Benefits of Mindfulness: Mindful Living Can Change Your Life
Mindfulness 101: A Beginner's Guide
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Hi, and welcome to your Daily Mindfulness.
Today, I'm going to talk about
social anxiety and how we can use
it as a kind of spiritual practice.
So as we go about daily life, I think
most of us do experience some form of
being concerned or worried about what
other people think of us, you know,
wanting their approval, feeling a bit
nervous around them, a bit tense, or
even inferior around other people.
Sometimes it might be really subtle,
like a background unease or nervousness.
And other times, it can be really quite
uncomfortable, really even debilitating.
And importantly, it can
really get in the way of true
connection with another person.
Instead of true connection, we might get
kind of caught up in trying to impress
them, trying to be better than them in
some way, you know, prettier, smarter,
more successful or more knowledgeable.
So at the heart of social
anxiety like this lies the
primal fears of the human mind.
We all have these two primal fears.
They are one, the fear
that we're not enough.
And two, the fear we won't be.
We have these fears because
of the way our mind evolved.
You know, in order to survive in
the caveman days, you had to fit
in the tribe, with the group.
If you got rejected,
humans just didn't survive.
Humans really only survived
in packs in those days.
So because of that, we all have these
two fears and we tend to constantly
seek the approval of others.
So, what does the mind do to
ensure that it will be approved of?
It constantly assesses: Am I good enough?
Am I contributing enough?
Am I special enough?
Am I doing anything that's
going to get me rejected?
This hypervigilance in the mind
is what makes us feel kind of
fear and unease around others.
But we can transform this kind of
social anxiety into a part of our
mindfulness practice with three steps.
First, when you noticed any kind of
anxiety or nervousness arising in social
settings, just notice that the nervousness
is really just made up of body sensations.
You know, a little rise in heart
rate, maybe a funny feeling in
the tummy, whatever that is, you
know, maybe a bit sweaty palms.
And see if you can just relax with the
sensations, just accept them and stay
present and grounded rather than allowing
the mind to go off on a tangent of
evaluating and comparing and worrying.
Secondly, remember that these
primal fears are really just
like an out of date software
program running in the human mind.
We don't live in tribes now.
And so if this person doesn't like
you or decides that they aren't
really very interested in you,
or if they're better looking than
you or whatever, it's not going to
harm you or injure you in any way.
And rejection now doesn't equal deaths.
So remind yourself that you're
fundamentally okay at the
core of your being, no matter
what anyone thinks of you.
And third instead of just being
focused on what other people think
of you, try to, you know, or trying
to get their approval, put all your
focus on being truly interested in
them, who they are, what their story
is, what's going on inside of them.
Really give them your presence
and enjoy the sense of genuine
connection and greater ease and
confidence that this brings.
So that's the invitation to use any
social anxiety as a spiritual practice.
As always, thank you for your practice
and your presence here with us.
And let's now settle in
for today's meditation.
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