Mind-wandering is partly a problem because it disturbs us emotionally. Research has shown that we’re distracted—i.e. thinking about something unrelated to what we’re doing—almost half the time. It also shows that these distractions make us unhappy. Traditional Buddhist teachings agree, and point to five different types of distractions that we get caught up in.
We crave pleasant experiences,
we think about things that annoy or anger us,
we worry,
we slip into dream-like states (or even into sleep),
and we engage with doubts, telling ourselves stories about our own incompetence or unlovability.
All of these states are painful, lead to pain, or are unsuccessful attempts to deal with (usually unacknowledged) pain.
We crave pleasant experiences,
we think about things that annoy or anger us,
we worry,
we slip into dream-like states (or even into sleep),
and we engage with doubts, telling ourselves stories about our own incompetence or unlovability.
All of these states are painful, lead to pain, or are unsuccessful attempts to deal with (usually unacknowledged) pain.
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