Mindfulness Will NOT Solve Anxiety

Ahh Mindfulness. Calming your mind. THE current go-to method for dealing with anxiety. It changes lives, and is being taught e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e.

Shoot me if you must then… But…

What if I were to tell you: it’s the worst thing you can practice to resolve anxiety and other emotional health issues.

Gulp!

Now, why would I ever challenge this, you may wonder? Clinical trials have unanimously concluded that mindfulness reduces anxiety. It’s a slam dunk, in fact.

To understand why, please watch this third video in my series questioning current ‘treatments’ for anxiety, depression, PTSD and more.

But I have a bit more to say about it here.

I challenge this, for three reasons:

1. Many avid practitioners claim they need mindfulness to function. Some even sit 2, 3, or 5 times a day, citing if they take a single day off, their emotional issue returns. Take a week off, it comes back stronger than ever.

Which shows us this practice, alas, while great today…doesn’t offer a permanent solution.

2. Which can be problematic, because it gets us functioning well enough that we don’t bother to locate and resolve the primary cause of the anxiety, that exists in the first place.

Kind of like; imagine you have a fork sticking out of your chest. Mindfulness makes you feel better, yet also succeeds in helping you ignore the fork, maybe for years. While over time, that fork starts to cause worsening physical damage and other issues.

As for the last reason:

3. Mindfulness is a beautiful practice, with a rich history. By using it as treatment for our emotional health crisis, it cheapens it and takes us sadly away from its original intention.

You can learn more about all this, plus what to do to get off that (albeit, lovely) treadmill to nowhere and instead finally remove that fork, in my short video.

Prepare to be pleasantly surprised, by the ending.

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[jdt]

Watched your TedTalks and then found out you're one of the baddest skiiers on the planet. If that isn't indicative of credence not sure what it. I'll play around and absorb your concepts thanks

[Babyblue]

I guess there are different types of mindfullness. But the mindfullness and meditation I have been taught and practice is that you witness what your body is feeling and your thoughts without interrupting them, trying to repress them or rationalize them. Just witnessing the thoughts and the feelings in the body and letting them pass through. It’s how I deal with anxiety.

[maximilianarturo]

Thank you! This literally explains how I went from tweaking my arm in the gym and having pain and discomfort from it to a full on panic attack that I was having a heart attack because of the arm pain. I was letting that one minor event run rampant in my mind by allowing the fear to stay and control my mind and it snowballed. Now it’s ouch, avoid that and let’s keep moving on.

[nshwres]

Im glad there's someone out here talking
more science about stress. Its the most primitive part of our brain that helped our species survive and evolve.

[hogchief]

The difference is very clear, thank you.

[madelyn]

I have been struggling with extreme anxiety and chest tightness since 2016, and have seen a handful of therapists throughout the years, even had a consistent therapist for 3 years - and this is the BEST explanation I have ever heard of anxiety ever. I am so glad I found this video!!! Just one question though, how do we "create a practice to learn how to feel, not think about it"? Maybe there is another video on her channel that goes more in depth on this, just thought I'd ask though :) Thank you!

[roloduarte]

Awesome video, very true information.

[EugeneKulinek]

Excellent. Similar to SE. Wonder if i can make my freeze flow.

[aymalkhan]

Mam I take stress plzz tell me what to do and I always think negative like I have panick attacks and I will have schizophrenia even I don't have all these but I am

[DivineJudgement]

I watched this video twice to try and better understand, but I'm not fully understanding. Which video can you recommend to me that might explain in a more detailed way? Thanks

[moodydude]

Gave this video a few watches, is what your saying in simple terms for when you feel uneasy: "be honest with yourself and let it out?"

[otorishingen]

Sounds a bit like za-zen / mushin
Thank you

[annaberg]

I have a very hard time with my bodily symptoms because of fear, anxiety.
My legs fold. How should I think?

[lamb]

Yes anxiety can be tough. Also, I feel compelled to spread the good news of Jesus Christ, our savior with you. We all have a soul, it will go to one of two places once we pass; heaven or hell. But salvation is granted to ALL who receive it (it’s a free gift) but the world has been deceived by the enemy with false ways to go to heaven. Are you saved by Jesus Christ? We are saved by grace through faith in Christ ALONE. Your works have NOTHING to do with your salvation. Jesus loves you. He left glory (always existed) and came down to be born of a virgin, lived a sinless, perfect life to die for your sins, my sins, and the sins of the whole world. The moment you put your trust in him, that he died for all your sins, was buried, and that he rose on the 3rd day for your justification, you are saved. (1 Corinthians 15:1-4 is the gospel). Once saved always saved! (: Don’t let Satan deceive you into thinking we can receive salvation based on our own works (how good we are), that’s what most of the world believes; we ALL fall short. We ALL sin. We all need Jesus’ perfect righteousness in which we simply receive by trusting that he died for all our sins, and rose again! Heaven will be the most amazing place, which all are called to be apart of. Confessing ur sins won’t save you, doing good works won’t save you, repenting of ur sins won’t save you, these are all examples of things people add unto the simple gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus + nothing = salvation. Focus on Jesus and the fact that he paid the full price for all your sin already! Amen. God loves you so much! “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 KJV. Salvation is a free gift, if you have believed this u are saved and u will never be plucked out of the fathers hand(: amen.