10% Happier with Dan Harris

Inveterate Fretter, Accidental Buddhist, Sylvia Boorstein

Jul 10, 2019

Sylvia Boorstein, an accomplished author and Buddhist teacher, shares her journey of managing life's stresses through mindfulness. She humorously reflects on her own anxiety, envisioning a 'mind-ectomy' for her worries. Her insights include transformative moments from meditation retreats and the difference between fear, empathy, and compassion. Boorstein discusses the importance of kindness, drawing inspiration from Mr. Rogers, and explores the idea of savoring life's simple pleasures while facing life's challenges with grace and resilience.

01:12:14

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Episode guests

Sylvia Boorstein

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Episode notes

Intro

3min

Reflections from the Retreat

9min

Navigating Fear and Compassion

19min

Embracing Kindness: Lessons from Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood

2min

Empathy in Challenging Times

6min

Reflections on Life, Mortality, and Mindfulness

5min

Embracing Life's Strawberries

3min

Navigating Mindfulness and Social Change

26min

If there was such a thing as a mind-ectomy or a mind transplant, our guest this week, Sylvia Boorstein, tells us she would have had it, confiding, "I need a mind that doesn't make up worries about something that didn't even happen yet." She calls herself "a life-long worrier, an inveterate fretter." Yet this very same person is an accomplished author, psychotherapist, Buddhist teacher, co-founding teacher at Spirit Rock Meditation Center and a senior teacher at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts. Years ago, on her first meditation retreat, she received news that her father had been diagnosed with a form of cancer. She remembers feeling devastated, but not hysterical or overwhelmed. It was in that moment she realized how meditation had prepared her to deal with life's challenges differently. Through her captivating story-telling, Boorstein explains how she has achieved “poise of mind” and is able to manage life more gracefully. Plug Zone Website: http://www.sylviaboorstein.com/ About: http://www.sylviaboorstein.com/about Books: http://www.sylviaboorstein.com/books ***VOICEMAILS*** Have a question for Dan? Leave us a voicemail: 646-883-8326

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