#481. How to Break Bad Mental Habits | Carol Wilson

There are so many benefits to mindfulness with one of the biggest being the cultivation of more self-awareness. This cultivation can lead to identifying the unhelpful mental habits that can develop over the years.

Today we’re going to talk to Carol Wilson who offers very clear and practical ways that Buddhist meditation can help us turn down the volume on our unproductive mental habits and be less reactive.

Wilson is a guiding teacher at the Insight Meditation Society, where for many years she has taught their annual three-month retreat. She began her insight meditation practice in 1971 in India and in the 1980s she spent a year in Thailand as a Buddhist nun.

In this episode we talk about:

• How to be mindful throughout the day
• The concept of 360 degree awareness
• Noticing when one experiences wanting or aversion
• Why Wilson believes that the root of suffering comes from making it all about us
• How seeing torment can help us experience freedom from the self
• The benefits of reflecting on your past acts of generosity
• Bringing awareness to your motivations
• And doing a gratitude practice regularly to change the weather pattern in your mind

Where to find Carol Wilson online:

Website: www.dharma.org/teacher/carol-wilson

Other Resources Mentioned:

• Sayadaw U Tejaniya
• Thich Nhat Hanh
• Joseph Goldstein
• Anagarika Munindra
• Ajahn Sumedho
• Insight Meditation Society

Additional Resources:

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