I found myself with a little extra time yesterday between commitments. I took advantage of the time to meditate for a bit. It got me wondering about “thought cascades” and the way in which our minds work.
Thoughts appear during meditation, like bubbles. Jon Kabat-Zinn called them in one of his meditations “secretions of the mind.” They just float or bubble up. We don’t need to get rid of them or feel frustrated that they keep coming. We just need to notice them.
One thought leads to another…and another…and another. Really the mind can be quite tedious when we observe it. “Why can’t it take a damn rest?” I wonder, but this is typically when I am trying to get to sleep. I am a lot more compassionate with myself during my daytime meditations, apparently.
Thought cascades tend to produce certain emotional states as well. If we find ourselves ruminating on a problem, or a stressful situation, we bring ourselves back to the breath and the sensations in our bodies. I often notice my shoulders have tightened up or my jaw is clenched. I did not used to notice that. It took pairing yoga with meditation for me to understand it.
On Monday I had an interview for a new contract that excites me. I tried to notice my thought cascades during the interview and afterward. I realized my mind creates a trail of expectations, assumptions and details, making up stories freely as it tumbles along. At least I know from Dr. Brené Brown’s work that this is perfectly normal. In fact, our brains reward us with dopamine as soon as we “tell” an internal story, whether or not it is actually true.
This is why meditation has become such an important daily practice for me. For over two years, I have spent at least 5 minutes a day on this practice. Actually for the past year, it was much more than that, but I started small to make it do-able.
Thought cascades for someone with particular neuro-diverse conditions can be especially problematic. Most people seem to have “brakes” for ruminative thought loops. Not everyone’s neuro-chemistry supports this easy compartmentalization. What is amazing is that focus can be built and nurtured, even for people like me! Meditation is a tool for doing that.
Now the cascades are quiet and flowing. Sometimes they are turbulent and rushing. Every time I bring myself back INTO my body, feel the aliveness in my hands, my feet or my heart, thoughts slow down and the volume descends. There is no greater gift than being able to dial it all down when needed.
cristy@meximinnesotana.com
mexi minnesotana 
Cristy, thanks for sharing. Thought cascades – what a great way to describe those continuous thought patterns. I think the ‘cascades’ part is really well chosen because it really gets across that one thought is constantly leading to another. This is absolutely my experience, too. Often before I know it, I have created an incredibly convoluted, untrue story in my head. I was doing so well with my meditation practice in 2017/18 but I’ve slacked off a lot over the last few months. I really, really notice the difference in that I feel much more scattered now. Your post has reminded me that I really need to prioritise this. Thanks! It’s wonderful to hear that you are getting so much out of your meditation practice. 🙂
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Thanks for your comments, Lisa! I wish you the best in getting back to your practice. I know you won’t regret it!
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I’m not a particularly disciplined person, and this is reflected in my rather ad hoc exercise ‘program’ however, somehow, along the way, I managed to convince myself that twenty minutes of meditation a day was something I should do. And somehow, I’ve kept up the practice for near on thirty years. It was great to read here about the ‘thought cascades’, it’s such a poetic way of describing the way our minds function. It took me many years to realize that this was not going to go away. It’s good to see you have picked it up so early!
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Thank so much for your comments. That is awesome that you have been practicing for so long! I really wish I’d learned this in my 20’s rather than my 40’s but well… when the student is ready, the teachers appear. 😉
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I’ve always considered exercise my meditation….I may need to rethink that and actually meditate.
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For years I considered running my “moving meditation” though I was not as mindful of my thoughts. It did have an amazing “cleansing” value and still does. I think there are amazing benefits to exercise in terms of brain chemistry and calm. And I also think meditation adds an addition later that makes me so grateful, especially in the over-stimulated world we live in, and it has unique healing benefits I cannot seem to access except through slow flow yoga (body awareness meditation) or seated practice. I use Insight Timer and it’s a great free app with some guided meditations to help people get started.
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Thanks for the suggestion.
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