Can you have too much mindfulness?

[Quietman]

I am a bit concerned.
Turned a small gardening job into a mindullness experiment.
Extended job to 2 hour sessions for approx 2 weeks. Really slowed down to do it like that.
First and second day great. Really relaxed through job and afterwards. Third day, yesterday, bit of agitation and sleeploss last night .
Can too much be bad ? Never heard of it.
Any ideas anyone?

[JonW]

For me, it's all about balance. What feels right? I always ask myself that question when settling down to a meditation. Shall I do 20 minutes? An hour? What would it be like to sit for two hours? Not too little. Not too much. Just enough.
Maybe we can apply that to the rest of our lives?
The idea is not to be mindful 24/7. For me, it's enough to ask myself each morning, 'Can I be a little more present today?'
Being a little more present is a good intention, I feel.
All good things,
Jon

[Quietman]

Thing is Jon, you say "not too much". What is too much? ....presumeably when you start to feel bad about it. No mention in the literature! How can there be such a thing as too much mindfulness. My intention was and is good...I think!!
Thanks for the reply. Very muchappreciated

[Quietman]

I am probably coming at it coc-eyed and getting myself into an unnecessary state. Thanks for the shift

[Quietman]

Would send pic of job...even got a bhudda stood in corner watching
Cant find how to post from Google drive to this forum post

[JonW]

' What is too much? ....presumably when you start to feel bad about it. No mention in the literature! How can there be such a thing as too much mindfulness.'

When overthinking comes into play, I think there's a risk of mindfulness tipping over into a kind of self-consciousness. I'm not suggesting this was happening in the situation you describe. But I see it happen a lot. People can get caught up in the concepts underpinning the practice and forget that the practice is experiential for the most part. it's just about being present.
Cheers,
Jon

[Quietman]

Thanks a lot Jon. You have been a great help and I deeply appreciate it.

[Quietman]

Hi Jon
Still a bit puzzled . Your advice is to not overthink,which i assume means to not think too much. Instead of what? It is ok to have a casual think or not to think at all about your practice? I get it that of course it is necessary to treat thoughts as has been advised for millenia in the mindfulness practice space, but outside of that place? The 6000 year old major injunction from ancient Bhuddism is to question, question and question again your thought experience and to take nothing as truth except perhaps your own felt experience and to even view that with suspicion. My felt experience, I suspect, went from quite happy relaxed to an agitated turmoll in the space of a day.

[Quietman]

....post unfinished....thanks for putting up with my prattle. You are a good man.

[JonW]

'Your advice is to not overthink,which i assume means to not think too much. Instead of what? It is ok to have a casual think or not to think at all about your practice?'

Instead of simply being.
By 'overthinking', I'm referring mostly to endlessly analysing the practice, rather than actually doing it. The practice is essentially meditation, not analysing the practice. There's really not much to analyse. Paying attention from moment to moment. That's about it.
It's not that there's anything wrong with thinking, per se. And understanding the basic concepts of mindfulness is important when it comes to getting a grounding in the practice. But once those basic concepts are grasped, there's no need to analyse them any further. They are very simple. The average 7-year-old child could easily understand them.
Part of my teaching involves pointing participants away from conceptualising too much and toward the practice itself: sitting, being, paying attention, allowing thoughts to come and go.
The thing I love most about mindfulness is its beautiful simplicity.
Jon