The Wisdom in Taking It Slow

In the fast-paced modern world, expectations of immediacy and productivity are high. Consequently, we’ve developed a Time-Urgency where everything – from work, to family time, to leisure – is tied to the clock. Why is it any wonder that stress and anxiety rates are so high, and continue to rise? Today we get more done than ever before, but feel increasingly more under pressure. We’re racing ahead but forever falling behind.

I believe that there is no greater deception than the idea of progress. We’re so fixated on not being where we are. We need to be better, but often we aren’t even sure what ‘better’ looks like. Or worse, we think we know better but reality may be very different. We’ve been sold this idea of the right kind of life, and our anxieties arise from being unable to reach it.

The mission statement for MiamiAcuSolutions is ‘improving modern living through ancient wisdom.’ One of the greatest things we can learn from those distant days is how to balance our lives. I’m not advocating we all go back to subsistence farming, but we have to strike a balance between the constant demands of productivity and self-care. To do that, we should start by slowing down.

Let’s start by defining the problem. As outlined in this paper, the generally agreed upon definition of stress involves three features:

1.    The idea that there’s too much going on, and things are out of balance.

2.    That it is complex and involves many things; physical, psychological, and environmental.

3.    That stress is a ‘normal’ part of life.

Stress – and its evil cousin anxiety – has been accepted as the price of doing business in the modern world. But these conditions are linked to many of the chronic illnesses we suffer from today. Stress and anxiety are implicated in increased rates of high blood pressure, heart attack, elevated blood sugar, heightened sensations of pain, generalized inflammation, nausea and diarrhea, even irregular and painful periods. And this list is hardly exhaustive.

If these feelings are a necessary part of modern living, then modern living is trying to kill us. Arguably the most insidious part of culture today is the idea that this is normal. Current styles of humor reflects this, with jokes about mental health challenges, bleak outlooks on life and general cynicism. It’s to the point where we’re defined by and identify with these struggles, and may even wear them as a badge of honor.

Lockdowns in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic highlighted this condition. Some people were thrilled with the opportunity to slow down, and for others it was maddening. But love it or hate it, the respite was short lived. Before long the demands of a modern economy meant ramping back up to ‘pre-pandemic levels’, a phrase we heard repeated ad nauseum on radio and tv.

‘Balance’ is both individual and dynamic. It can look completely different from one person to the next. If you are finding it hard to navigate life’s demands, it might be worth examining whether you need to adjust the balance. This article will talk about one way to do that.

Slow Living: New Name for An Old Concept

Slow living is a lifestyle that emphasizes quality over quantity, mindfulness over materialism, and experiences over possessions. It is a movement that is gaining popularity as people become more aware of the negative impacts of fast-paced living. It’s based on the principle of deceleration and being present in the things you do – basically, mindfulness in action.

Immediately some people will balk at the idea. There’s simply too much to do and not enough time to do it in; or, going slow sounds boring. This is why I tend to shy away from calling this very old trend ‘slow living’, because there is a negative connotation today with the word slow. We’ve come to think of slowness as bad, which contributes to the rapid pace of living we’ve become accustomed to.

‘Slow living’ doesn’t mean moving around at a snail’s pace (although I suppose it could). Instead, it’s about reigning in our excessive tendencies and being more present in the things we do. I explain our tendency toward excesses in my article Stress, Pain, and the Excess Lifestyle. What has recently been called Slow Living – what I prefer to call mindful living – is a way to recognize these tendencies and enact strategies to correct them. There is no right or wrong way to practice mindful living. The important thing is to find what works for you and to make it a part of your everyday life.

Benefits of Mindful Living:

·         Reduced stress and anxiety

·         Improved mental and physical health

·         Increased happiness and contentment

·         Improved relationships

·         Increased creativity and productivity

·         A greater sense of purpose and meaning

How to Start Living Mindfully

Begin by paying attention. Rushing in to change is exactly the sort of energy we’re trying to avoid so take the time to sit with your feelings and understand where they’re coming from. Identify those areas where you feel unstable, like you’re rushing. Right now, the ‘why’ isn’t as important as recognizing the pattern. When we try to nail down all the details we can get bogged down by overthinking.

A crucial part of mindfulness is being connected with what you feel. Experiencing sensations and emotions – good and bad – without judgment is how to anchor ourselves to the present. Mindful living is taking the opportunity to experience each moment, instead of treating it like a string of events leading to the next payoff.

Once you’ve identified the areas where you feel rushed or particularly disconnected, start making small adjustments to slow things down. For instance, cook at a slower pace. Really watch the spoon stir, or feel the texture of the vegetables as you cut them. At work, feel the keyboard beneath your fingertips, pause to check in with your body. Take slow, deliberate steps to the bathroom.

This is where the name Slow Living comes from. When you dial down the intensity, you are able to be more present and notice more. Eventually, like with any practice, you can be more present in your every day moments even during periods of high intensity. But when we start, we start small and start slow.

Reactions to the practice can vary. For some people it’s easy and natural. For others, however, simply the act of slowing down can feel very uncomfortable. In either case the information we gain from pumping the brakes is helpful. If you are the sort that struggles with the practice, ask yourself why. There are plenty of resources and groups that are committed to mindful living. If you gain benefit from these early practices, it may be worth exploring these communities to further your journey.

Mindfulness in our day-to-day trains us to appreciate the journey, instead of being fixated on the result. Especially in metropolitan areas like Miami, we are flooded with assurances that the stuff is the point; nice clothes, fancy restaurants, exciting relationships. Those are nice, but the vast majority of our lives in spent on the times in between. If we can find enjoyment in those times, it can be transformative.