Imagine a forest. Now imagine an animal in this forest. Imagine it in a moment of your day. What are you doing, how are you doing it, and how are you feeling? Can you imagine the animal worrying about time? Wondering what time is it? What day is Today? Animals bring us great lessons. What time it is for them would have an obvious answer: "now," it couldn't be anything other than now. They do not build time, but rather live it. We humans stop living in the "now," using it to remember a time that has passed or to reach a specific future moment that exists only in our minds and never in the present. The present moment is all we will ever have. Don't get me wrong: I'm not saying we shouldn't have future plans and goals. They are important, but only if we know how to live "now" the process that will lead us there, rather than feeling trapped by fears of what will happen or of not being able to achieve what we want. When we create time, we create anxiety. There is no "now" when we live in the future. The ideal would be to be able to travel to the "past" and "future" in order to deal with practical aspects of our lives. However, this is extremely difficult for us.

One of the most common problems is anxiety. It exists when the individual is confronted with negative self-evaluations. It is usually in response to some kind of threat. You may not be aware of the process that causes anxiety, but you will feel worried, insecure, inferior, confused, disoriented, lack of concentration, indecision, lack of memory, and so on. It is critical to identify, understand and work with our anxiety.

Exercise

Induction - to feel the “now”
Get into a comfortable position, close your eyes, take a few deep breaths and relax. Take your time this exercise. Do it at your own pace. Concentrate on your body's position in space throughout the exercise. Feel and become aware of the space that each part of it occupies. Feel the density, weight, and volume of the space your body takes up. Begin by considering the location of your head, gradually descending. Concentrate on the scalp, then the nose, ears, and so on, all the way down to the soles of the feet. Then become aware of your body's surroundings and the space it takes up. When you can feel this area around your body, become aware of the space that your room takes up. Feel how much space it takes up. Try doing this exercise on a daily basis.  If you meditate, use it as the first step in your meditation. 

Suggestion

Note the question: Have you ever done or felt anything outside the “now”?

 

Carolina Trindade, Clinical Psychologist