One of the key components of mindfulness involves tuning into one's personal needs and recognizing and accepting limitations for what they are -- even if you're a member of Congress.
Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) took pride in his refusal to become another burnt-out politician six years ago as he began re-evaluating the way he was living, inspiring his writing of A Mindful Nation, which was published in 2012. Ryan has worked since the book's debut to share the power of mindfulness meditation and healthy living with everyone from Capitol Hill to professional sports teams. And while he decided not to challenge current Ohio Gov. John Kasich in the upcoming election as many of his constituents hoped he would, Ryan is solid in his reasoning, which he shared with HuffPost Live host Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani today in an interview.
"I got married about a year and a half ago, and we just had a baby in June, and it just was not my time," said Ryan. "I have two beautiful step-kids, I have two dogs -- I went from being a single congressman to a family, and I love it. It's great. So it wasn't a good time for me to do it."
However, the congressman has not removed his name from future governor election ballots and remains driven by his health and wellness goals for the nation.
"I want to make change," he said. "I really am passionate about what I saw with the book A Mindful Nation that I wrote about how attention practices and awareness practices can really help kids develop mental discipline and the kind of focus you need to be a resilient young person -- to go out in this crazy world and get knocked around, but stay focused and be resilient -- and I love how that can be applied to healthcare and education."
To hear more about the motivations behind Ryan's future policy plans, watch the full HuffPost Live clip in the video above.
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