Best Self Magazine

Tending Our Emotional Stew Through Mindful Acceptance

Tending Our Emotional Stew Through Mindful Acceptance by Scott Cooper. Photograph of person meditating on mountain top by Milan Popovic
Photograph by Milan Popovic

Unpleasant feelings are normal; why worsen your situation by fighting them? Through mindful acceptance we can find peace even in the discomfort.

What brings peace of mind is different for each of us. 

Yet, studies confirm that each of us can enhance our peace of mind by practicing greater acceptance of our natural, and sometimes difficult, emotions. Each of us carries around an inner pot of ‘emotional stew’ filled with flavors both pleasant and unpleasant — sweet, spicy, bitter, tart, and savory. 

Two recent

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from Best Self Magazine

Best Self Magazine7 min read
How I Left: Reflections on My Journey into Marriage…and Out
Estimated reading time: 10 minutes — My grandmother was fourteen when a man in her Southern Italian village asked to marry her. He was twenty-eight, a stranger to Gramma. She said, No! But her mother told her, “Marry him. He’ll take you to America.”
Best Self Magazine4 min read
How Connecting with Ancestors Can Help Heal Intergenerational Trauma
Estimated reading time: 6 minutes — Many people think of trauma solely as an incident that happened to us or someone else that is intense, violent, or life-threatening; however, trauma can also be a suffering from emotional or psychological pain tha
Best Self Magazine9 min read
Becoming Buddhist: A Calling for Personal Growth
Estimated reading time: 13 minutes — [This essay includes excerpts from This Fresh Existence: Heart Teachings from Bhikkhuni Dhammananda (Windhorse Publications, April, 2024)] I have always been a spiritual seeker. At age four, I asked my brother, w

Related Books & Audiobooks