Tag: Mindfulness

The Stoic 5-Minute Challenge. How to Reframe Stress and Turn a Bad Day Around

On By marlenawachLeave a comment

Discover a simple 5-minute Stoic mindset shift that transforms stress into strength. Learn how to reframe challenges, lower cortisol, and boost clarity—backed by ancient wisdom and modern psychology.

How I Learned to Turn My Worst Moments Around in 5 Minutes

Sometimes life throws something at me I really didn’t see coming.
A sudden change of plans.
A problem I absolutely don’t have time for.
A request that’s impossible to meet without dropping everything.

When that happens, I freeze.
My mind blanks.
I feel the stress in my chest, and for a while, I just… can’t think.

It used to derail my whole day—until I came across an idea from Stoic philosophy.

The ancient Stoics believed we can’t control events, only our reactions to them.
Marcus Aurelius wrote that obstacles are not interruptions to life—they are life.
Philosopher William Irvine modernized this in The Stoic Challenge: when something frustrating happens, see it not as a disaster, but as a test.

I started trying this.
Now, when something blindsides me, I stop for a moment and say to myself:
“Okay. This is my test. Let’s see what I’m made of.”

It changes everything.
Instead of feeling like the world is attacking me, I feel like I’ve been invited into a challenge.

There’s science behind why this works.
Psychologists call it cognitive reappraisal—deliberately reframing a situation to change its emotional impact.
Research shows that this lowers cortisol (the stress hormone), improves focus, and helps the brain shift into problem-solving mode.

Five minutes later, I’m not frozen anymore.
I’m thinking clearly.
I’m moving forward.

It’s not about pretending everything is fine—it’s about remembering that I still get to choose my next move.
And that turns a bad moment into the start of something better.

The Healing Power of Forgiveness

On By marlenawach1 Comment

“Holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die”

Forgiveness is a gift you give yourself. It is the right to be free, to not allow anyone or anything from the past to bind you in your current actions.

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When we don’t forgive, we keep alive those energy that bind us to the person that hurt us, or to the pain itself. Not forgiving holds us back from experiencing the full range of positive emotions, because the energy we might otherwise devote to living joyously in our own experience is being used up on a particularly painful experience that we can no longer control.

Many people live their lives hating people or events from their past, allowing these things to cloud their present day experience. You need to  forgive yourself and move on from the past.

It frees us from anger, harm and bitterness, emotions that not only don’t feel good but they can also ruin our physical health and hold us back from all the good we might achieve and experience. Forgiveness releases your energy and give you a space to develop. When you forgive, you’re giving a gift of mental, emotional, and spiritual freedom to yourself.

Release your bitter feelings. We need to forgive ourselves first. Why it is so difficult?

When we’ve done something wrong, we register it in our nervous system. A mistake that costs us something we want might have sadness attached to it. If we try to forgive ourselves for something without releasing the underlying emotion or belief we’ve attached to it, the forgiveness just doesn’t take. To release that part of your past that you need to forgive, it’s helpful to remember that we’re all doing the best we can in any moment.

Acknowledge your feelings related to the situation and actually feel them

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In order to forgive ourselves, we first have to admit to ourselves that we did something wrong. We have to take ownership and acknowledge the mistake. Please do not changing the past in your mind by trying cleaned up yourself, and just admit that something had happened.  It’s helpful to remember that mistakes, failures and even incredibly stupid acts are part of being human. It’s how we learn and grow.

When you really love someone, isn’t it easier to forgive and see it as a one-time event?  Do you have such loving, trusting relationship with yourselves?

Many of us are much more critical of ourselves than we are of others. We’ll give other people the benefit of the doubt, but won’t give ourselves any slack at all. When you’re dealing with a person you don’t trust or like, you can choose to forgive, release the hurt, and simply not maintain contact with such person anymore. With yourself? Not an option. You don’t get to quit or walk away from yourself.

You need to get your relationship with you to be more positive. It is extremely helpful to establish self-acceptance and self-love. Eliminate from your mind negative emotions. Make the choice to forgive yourself and others.

Forgiveness is a choice. It doesn’t just happen. And you may need to forgive again and again sometimes until that becomes your New normal. Forgiveness is not about accepting another’s actions and definitely doesn’t mean we condone certain behavior or allow any further abuse.We don’t need to trust someone or something in order to forgive, and we don’t need to invite someone over for coffee or tea because we’ve decided to cut the cords of suffering.

When forgiving another, we are not releasing them from what they have done. Forgiveness isn’t even about the other person. The choice to forgive is always a gift we give ourselves.

Holding a grudge against someone for a past event does not effect the other person in any way, it only effects you so release yourself from the past and enjoy the right to be free.

“Forgiveness does not change the past but it does enlarge the future” Paul Boese

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Continue reading “The Healing Power of Forgiveness” →

Mindfulness meditation for being present

On By marlenawach1 Comment

Mindfulness meditation for being present

Well, I have been always thinking that it is something very boring and not for me that I need any active sport to recuse my bad emotions, like running, horse riding, horse jumping, swimming and tennis, skiing to engage actively my body and I still need such exercises and love it. However, I discovered something special, miracle that helps me to be focuses and present. It is exactly mindfulness meditation. After a while it takes like a few minutes to relax my body and mind. I could have 20 min if I have enough time for longer meditation. It is anyway really difficult to find such time and space with two kids and all obligations and engagements but I am trying to do this every day. It is not really crazy idea but helps very much to reduce the stress be optimistic, powerful and present.

Mental training practice

Mindfulness meditation is a mental training practice that involves focusing your mind on your experiences, like your own emotions, thoughts, and sensations in the present moment. Mindfulness meditation can involve breathing practice, mental imagery, awareness of body and mind, and muscle and body relaxation. Some people do it for 10 minutes, but even a few minutes every day can make a difference.

How to start?

It is good to start in a quiet and comfortable place and then after some trainings you can do this also once driving, doing the dishes, brushing your teeth, exercising, bedtime. Sit in a chair or on the floor, upright with your head, neck, and back straight but not stiff, eyes closed, palms resting on their laps, feet flat on the floor and try to put aside all thoughts of the past and the future and stay in the present. Really difficult…. It would be helpful to have classical music on. Then you need to become aware of your breath, focusing on the sensation of air moving in and out of your body as you breathe. Feel your belly rise and fall, and the air enter your nostrils and leave your mouth. Take a slow, deep breath in counting to 9, then pause counting to 3 and slowly let your breath out counting to 9 and then pause to 3. Pay attention to the way each breath changes and is different. Focus on your breathing. Watch thought come and go, whether it be a fear anxiety, hope or worry. When thoughts come up in your mind, don’t ignore or suppress them but simply note them, remain calm and use your breathing as a main driver.

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Paying attention to the present, breathing and observing without judging

Our mind wanders all the time, either reviewing the past or planning for the future. Mindfulness teaches you the skill of paying attention to the present by noticing when your mind wanders off. Come back to your breath. It’s a place where we can rest and settle our minds. Listening and feeling your breath gives your brain the signal that you’re ready to be calm, relaxed and focused. Mindfulness is all about observation without judgement.

It is so boaring…..

During your meditation, you may find yourself uncomfortable, distracted, anxious, bored or experiencing any number of thoughts and feelings. These experiences are important for the practice of mindfulness. By simply observing them like clouds passing in the sky, you are training your brain to detach and observe instead of judge and react. When an emotion or feeling comes up, say in your mind: I see that I am thinking. The practice in mindfulness is learning how to detach from all our thoughts and simply be in the presence of it, calm and without judging it or trying to change it. Practice makes perfect and each time you are starting from more advanced level and it’s going to be more and more admiring and passionate journey. Be patient with yourself and it is really worth to tells your brain how you’d like to process and handle the day ahead.

Before tough conversation or task

I discovered that I stop breathing when I have to suddenly concentrate on some demanding tasks and then my heart starts to beat faster. Currently I concentrate for a while on my breathing and feel calm and mindfulness having everything under control.

Before you pick up the phone to have a tough conversation or step into an uncomfortable scenario, take a moment to stop, close your eyes, and take at least three deep breaths to center yourself. Notice your breath and heartbeat slow down. If you find your nerves and heart rate are still running, take a few more deep breaths. When you’re able to step into a tough situation with a calmer mind, you choose your words more carefully and show up with more mindful reactions and presence.

Take the action

Do it today instead of reading tons of articles on the internet if it helps etc. Set aside the time. If you’re thinking to yourself that you don’t have the time, consider the spaces in between things where you normally browse the internet, scroll through social media or watch TV. Somewhere in those spaces, you’ll find at least 5-10 minutes that you can devote to mindfulness. Hope it helps:) 

Any comment are very welcome. Please forward this article or like it, if you think it has been worth to read. Thank you!