Embodied Practices With Marlo

When people find out that I meditate, the first thing I often hear is, "Oh good for you. I can't meditate, I think way too much. I can't turn my thoughts off." And you want to know what I'm thinking when I hear that? I'm thinking, "I feel you. I can't stop thinking either." Yes that's right. I also find myself getting hijacked by my thoughts when I meditate.  So does that mean I'm failing in my practice just  because I haven't been able to turn my mind off? Definitely not! There's this erroneous assumption that when you meditate, your mind should be blank but it is actually very normal that thoughts arise when you meditate.  There's an area of the brain called the Default Mode Network that is primarily responsible for self-referential functioning. This network is reduced when we are doing something that is non-self referential and or engaging in tasks that are goal-oriented. You can read more about it

A little truth bomb for you...And it seems weird and silly to admit this but I didn't actually think twice about what mindfulness meant when I first embarked on my own personal meditation practice. It wasn't until I joined Sean Fargo's mindfulness teacher training program in January 2019 that I started to realize how important it is to know the difference between mindfulness and meditation. I find that the words "mindfulness" + "meditation" are often used interchangeably as though they are one and the same but they aren't at all.  So let's break it down shall we? The definition I like most comes from author, meditation teacher and Psychologist, Tara Brach.  She defines it as "Mindfulness is your awareness of what's going on in the present moment without any judgment. Meditation is the training of the mind that cultivates that mindfulness." So as you can see, mindfulness is the attitude that we apply to our meditation pr

Hi and welcome to my blog! My name is Marlo and I look forward to us having an interesting and mindful journey together.  A Few Key Details About Me I graduated from Sean Fargo's Mindfulness Teacher Training Program in December 2019. The five practices I focused on were: Body scan (my absolute favorite), Breath meditation, Leaning towards a difficult emotion/circumstance, Sound meditation (my least favorite) and my most favorite Self-Compassion meditation. I have been meditating for over 2 years. It has been an interesting and reflective journey to say the least! I participated in a free online MBSR course with David Potter. Check out his site, it is all free and a wealth of knowledge and was the catalyst for engaging in a more body-based mindfulness practice. https://palousemindfulness.com/ I'm a big believer in small progressive changes. So if you are new to meditation, I think you are in the right spot. What I will teach is practical. While practicing mindfulness i