Consciousness and Awareness
Start with consciousness.
When you do, awareness arises naturally, the present moment gets interesting, and the mood lifts with it.
What You Learn
You learn to see how you experience things. You apply it naturally, and the understanding grows.
Consciousness comes first
It is how you know what is happening right now.
Being aware
Thoughts and feelings, the body and the world around you.
Take it with you
At your desk, on a walk, in a conversation.
Understanding follows
Calm awareness and breathing come out of it.
When You Practice It
In the quiet moments you already have.
During quiet moments of the day
Waiting somewhere, walking, or sitting still for a minute.
During the breathing exercise
At the breath-hold and the rest period, following the rhythm the session already has.
A Natural Match
Breathing and contemplation help each other, and both look for the same middle.
The breathing quiets the mind
By the time you reach the quiet parts of the round, the mind is already calmer, so the contemplation comes easier.
The contemplation quiets the breath
When the contemplation works, the mind goes quiet, and the breath follows.
Forcing spoils both
Push the breath-hold past what your body allows and the stress response fires. Push the contemplation and it slips away.
When it will not come
Some days it stays out of reach. The way through is to continue, not to stop.
What Changes
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Awareness arises naturally
The present moment becomes more interesting and easy to observe.
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Your nervous system relaxes
Calmer and happier, and the quiet carries into the rest of your day.
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Things become clear
You see what you can change and what you cannot.
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Your breathing becomes softer
The airflow softens on its own, and the breath-hold gets easier with it.
When To Leave It For Later
If your hold on the everyday world is not steady, or you are under the care of a psychologist or psychiatrist for a mental health problem, deal with the problem first. Consciousness first work is something to take up afterwards, not while the problem is still going on.
Consciousness, awareness, and where they meet
The idea
Consciousness comes first. When you understand it, awareness follows on its own.
Where you meet it
The app gives you several contemplation styles. The Awareness Workshop is where you learn them, and it goes into them with more depth. Attend once and every style opens in the app, permanently.
Where You Learn It
You learn it at the Awareness Workshop, live with an instructor over two days, with the manual as the study material.