While I was at the Forest Refuge during September and October of 2011, I broke a lot of habits, both physical and mental, and adopted some new ones. I'd hoped to retain most of this post-retreat. Some of the habits I'd broken re-appeared within a few weeks, like biting my lower lip from stress. Others re-appeared after more weeks: habitual multi-tasking, compulsive checking of email, compulsive eating to relieve stress.
Others seemed like maybe they'd gone away long-term. But some of those have come back recently. In particular, I once again read the newspaper mindlessly while eating. Especially Ask Amy.
I'm aware of a few things that are still different from pre-retreat. Emotions still pass through my body very fluidly and physically. This has actually continued to increase over the months. I still feel kind of like my body is in some kind of energy field; my head often feels like it's rocking/floating in a viscous fluid. I drink alcohol a bit less and socialize a bit less.
Of course, the big habit that's still different from pre-retreat is my meditation habit. I'm a much more dedicated and consistent meditator. I wonder how long that will last.
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