You’ll, I have a super power that has completely changed how I live my life, process through problems, and has vastly improved my relationships. What is this power? It’s a practice called mindfulness.
What is mindfulness?
It’s a therapeutic technique that focuses on the ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we are doing.
What Are The Benefits?
Mindfulness seeks to pull us out of reactive and overwhelmed mental states by making us more aware of what’s going on around us. Often confused with meditation, mindfulness is taking the time to purposely slow our breathing, move out of the sympathetic nervous system (aka our fight or flight reaction), acknowledges and then accept what is going on in our mind, body and world.
By slowing down and considering our own thoughts, feelings and sensations we are better equipped to process the world around us. Frequently, I have personally found that the mile long to-do list shrinks dramatically after spending a few minutes being mindful.
Harnessing the Power
Mindfulness seeks to answer three questions:
What is happening in our mind?
What is happening in our body?
What is happening in our world?
Now mindfulness is not a solution to any of these questions. It is a tool used to become aware and process through the solutions you come up as you clearly identify your thoughts, feelings, and become better in-tune with your body.
Simply put, mindfulness means to purposely pay attention, be present in the moment and most of all, non-judgemental of our thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations.
Mindfulness can be practiced in traditional meditative parameters of sitting comfortably for a period of time while focusing on your breath or a mantra. For those who struggle to sit still, the same benefits can be achieved while standing, walking, or even running- although we recommend keeping your eyes open for these.
The great thing about mindfulness is the more we practice, the easier it becomes to identify what’s really going on internally, and accept that external factors maybe at play in situations.
Most of us already practice some form of mindfulness throughout the day without even realizing it.
So how do we become more intentional with our mindfulness sessions? Try out these 6 Tips:
Step 1: Take Your Position- Will you set, stand, walk, or run? Whichever position you pick, you want to be able to maintain for a period of time.
Step 2: Determine Your Time Limit- If you are just starting out, aim for 5-10 minutes.
Step 3: Silence Your Distractions- Turn off the ringer, snooze the notifications, and pick a soothing playlist. The goal is to turn you focus inwards and to your breath- not to external distractions.
Step 4: Tune into Your Breathing- Follow the sensation of your breath as you breath in and out. Feel pulled to take deeper, slower breaths- do it. Need to maintain your respiration rate as you approach that hill up ahead- do it. The goal is to begin to draw focus inwards.
Step 5: Notice When Your Mind Wanders- At some point your focus will shift from your breath to thoughts, feelings, and bodily sensations. Simply acknowledge the drift and then return your focus to your breath.
Step 6: Be Kind to Yourself- during periods of high stress, physical demand, or emotions it can be hard to maintain focus on your breath for any period of time. Simply do your best to repeat steps 4 & 5 as often as possible until your time is up.
“Bonus: At times it may be easier to focus on a mantra then your breath. A mantra is a word, phrase, or feeling that positive, affirming, and inspires calmness. Some of my favorite mantras include “be brave,” “you are enough,” “gratitude,” and “accept”. ”
Do you practice mindfulness? What benefits have you seen in your own life?
~ Jessica