Can you imagine getting a tooth pulled out or other major dental procedures without pain-killer?A scientist colleague of mine used a"focus in"technique instead of requesting pain-killer at the dentist. Each time the dentist touched the tooth,my colleague felt bubbles of joy,and this lasted until the dentist interrupted by asking,"Why are you smiling?"
A fair question at this point is why anyone would want to be fully aware of intense or painful procedures. But what may sound like a punishing choice—to directly face hurt or suffering—may in some instances be beneficial. A stream of scientific articles suggests that there are benefits in turning toward discomfort or negative emotions with acceptance. In addition,all of us can gain from finding ways to cope with stress and suffering—particularly when larger circumstances are beyond our control. As a researcher who has studied meditation(冥想)for more than 20 years,I believe that the development of calmness,a central element of certain mindfulness meditation practices,can help. I'm not advocating for people to put themselves in dangerous or painful positions. But when we push ourselves into challenging or confusing situations,much like trainers who push athletes just past their comfort zone to make gains,learning often happens. Indeed,a 2022 study with more than 2,000 people demonstrated that those participants who were publicly encouraged to push themselves into awkward,uncomfortable situations—including taking classes to boost self-confidence and reading about opposing viewpoints—later reported the greatest degree of personal growth.
My own research indicates that meditation provides an ideal way to practice turning toward discomfort-particularly when it trains up one's calm mind. People who reported higher levels of calmness reported less psychological distress(困扰).
Right now people are hurting for many reasons and looking for ways to cope. Without question,there are many important steps we need to take collectively to respond to these challenges. But we can each build our ability to recover on a personal level as well by cultivating greater acceptance of our experience—good or bad,painful or pleasant—in the present moment.
