Resolving Conflict Mindfully

In many ways, early alcohol-free life is a time of relearning and replacing old patterns; when we change our drinking patterns, we step into a new period of growth and development. Mindful conflict resolution is a powerful skill to learn during this time.

Mindful.org defines mindfulness as:

“the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us”

When applied to conflict, mindfulness gives us a framework to approach the situation in a less reactive way. When we’re less reactive, it’s more likely that we’ll be able to have open and honest conversations with others. Mindfulness also helps us reconnect with our bodies so we can better understand what sort of situations put physical stress on our systems. (Something that is common in confrontation!) When our systems are less taxed, we avoid getting so fried that we need to reach for something (like alcohol) to bring us back down.