This is the introduction to a series of posts on common misconceptions about mindfulness.
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Mindfulness is not always pleasant
Nobody, to my knowledge, has started meditation seeking unpleasant experiences. It is a normal human desire to increase the number and intensity of pleasant experiences and decrease them for negative experiences. You can reach states of bliss, euphoria and contentment through meditation but, as discussed above, striving for particular experiences will often prevent them from happening.
And is avoidance of negative experiences during meditation what we really want?
One of the most powerful effects of mindfulness is to change our relationship to negative experiences. We usually distract ourselves from, deny or actively push away whatever we find unpleasant. Mindfulness practice can allow us to be with experiences, even difficult ones, without needing to change them. This can offer a profound change in our relationship to our thoughts and feelings which seems to be a much more useful skill when we are out in the world where we don't have control over our environment.
TO BE CONTINUED
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