This will help you avoid perpetuating habit loops or stepping out of them. Instead of compulsively texting back, notice the urge, get curious, and feel the joy of letting go.
The difficulty of paying attention in meditation is a reward-based learning process that has evolved back to the most basic nervous systems known to man. Positive and negative reinforcement is when the brain tries to remember what it ate and where it was found. This process can be repeated multiple times, leading to the development of habits like smoking or eating sweets.
Instead of fighting our brains or trying to force ourselves to pay attention, we could tap into this natural, reward-based learning process by becoming curious about what is happening in our momentary experiences. For example, in a study on quitting smoking, the author found that mindfulness training could help people quit smoking by focusing on curiosity rather than forcing themselves to do so.
The prefrontal cortex, the youngest part of our brain from an evolutionary perspective, understands on an intellectual level that we shouldn't smoke and tries its hardest to help us change our behavior. However, when the prefrontal cortex goes offline when we get stressed out, it isn't that helpful. This is because we are more likely to do things like yell at our spouse or kids when we're stressed out or tired, even though we know it won't be helpful.
When the prefrontal cortex goes offline, we fall back into our old habits, which is why disenchantment is so important. By seeing what we get from our habits at a deeper level, we don't have to force ourselves to hold back or restrain ourselves from behavior. We're just less interested in doing it in the first place.
Mental training is all about seeing clearly what we get when we get caught up in our behaviors, becoming disenchanted on a visceral level, and from this disenchanted stance, naturally letting go. This isn't to say that magically we quit smoking. But over time, as we learn to see more and more the results of our actions, we let go of old habits and form new ones.
The paradox here is that mindfulness is just about being interested in getting close and personal with what's happening in our bodies and minds from moment to moment. This willingness to turn toward our experience rather than trying to make unpleasant cravings go away as quickly as possible is supported by curiosity, which is naturally rewarding.
When we get curious, we start to notice that cravings are made up of body sensations, such as tightness, tension, and restlessness, and that these body sensations come and go. These bite-sized pieces of experiences can be managed from moment to moment rather than getting clobbered by a huge, scary craving that we choke on.
In other words, when we get curious, we step out of our old, fear-based, reactive habit patterns and step into being. We become this inner scientist eagerly awaiting the next data point.
In one study, it was found that mindfulness training was twice as good as gold-standard therapy at helping people quit smoking. This highlights the importance of understanding and embracing the natural rewards of our brain processes, rather than trying to force ourselves to do things we don't want to do.
Researchers have discovered that the brain's default mode network, which is involved in self-referential processing, is activated when we get caught up in cravings. This is why the posterior cingulate cortex, a region of this network, quiets down when we let go of the process. They are now testing mindfulness training programs that target these core mechanisms and use the same technology that drives us to distraction to help us break unhealthy habits like smoking and stress eating.
Context-dependent memory allows us to deliver these tools to people in the contexts that matter most, helping them tap into their inherent capacity to be curiously aware when an urge arises. For example, if you don't smoke or stress eat, you can tap into your natural capacity to be curiously aware of your body and mind in the moment. This will help you avoid perpetuating habit loops or stepping out of them. Instead of compulsively texting back, notice the urge, get curious, and feel the joy of letting go.
About the Writer
Jenny, the tech wiz behind Jenny's Online Blog, loves diving deep into the latest technology trends, uncovering hidden gems in the gaming world, and analyzing the newest movies. When she's not glued to her screen, you might find her tinkering with gadgets or obsessing over the latest sci-fi release.What do you think of this blog? Write down at the COMMENT section below.
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