The Mindfulness Forum

What do you find the most difficult state of mind to stay mindful?

I've come to find that boredom is the most difficult for me. There's a petulance to my internal dialog; I can hear my brain saying "I don't wanna! I wanna think about stuff!"

Anxiety offers sensations to breathe into as does depression, anger and fatigue. But boredom seems to undermine mindfulness at the root.

I can relate to that. When I am bored, I do want to let my mind wander. However, you could get away with being fully aware (mindful) of your thoughts - watching yourself bounce from topic to topic.

I find that the hardest state of mind to be mindful in is sleepiness. When I am tired, it is very hard to concentrate. I can easily loose awareness of my emotions even. It may just be key to be aware of when I am beginning to get tired so I can address it before it gets to be a problem.

Wow - a post! I was about to give up on this site...

Yeah, sleepiness is tough - especially in a situation where you shouldn't be sleeping. And I guess that's the kicker. When you're in bed, you can just let yourself go to sleep.

Fatigue may well be toughest, as it seems like unpleasant states are easily encountered: frustration, anger, sadness...

By far the hardest times in my day are around 2:30-3. I'm sick of being at work, and it's difficult to be open to that feeling. I guess because I notice how my body reacts and it's effects, but those effects linger - they don't seems to move on. Sometimes there's only so much you can sit there and notice

On the other hand, when I sit half lotus, there is slight discomfort in my muscles and it seems I can sit there and be aware of that for hours.