Why the World Needs Mindfulnesss
Let me tell you, I love mindfulness. It is one of my favorite interventions and I should use it more often. Ever since I learned about it in grad school, I use it in my life. I know that sounds like a commercial...but I really mean that mindfulness has improved my life as a therapist.
When people think of mindfulness, they think of zen or deep breathing. A cliche therapist saying is "take a deep breathe?" right? Well mindfulness is more than simply deep breathing. Some of my clients tell me that "deep breathing doesn't work me" so mindfulness won't work. Well, mindfulness includes so much more.
Mindfulness is being present in the moment with a nonjudgmental attitude of what is occurring in the present. A huge focus of mindfulness to bringing awareness and paying attention to what is occuring right now with acceptance.
Why is this important? People live in the past or future. Examples of this include people who can't move on from something happened in their past. This incident will reoccur in their mind and they have a hard time trying to move past it. I've worked with clients who have felt like this before as the past consumes their present life and it is hard to make memories in the present moment. In contrast, people who live in the future may struggle with anxiety that maybe the past will repeat itself or that a fearful situation will present itself so they try to protect themselves from it.
Because people live in the past or future, becoming mindful really is a practice that must be developed. Mindfulness is not a "one and done" kind of intervention. The mindfulness experts (check out the research on mindfulness if you have the chance) say that mindfulness is a practice that becomes stronger the more you use it. The first time you use a technique may be helpful but you see the benefits that more you do it.
A lot of my kids don't like mindfulness at first because its hard to concentrate on the present moment. It takes practice to really only focus on what is occuring in the moment. A big thing in mindfulness is acknowledging when you are leaving the present and then bringing your thought back to it. An example would be doing a relaxation exercise of guided meditation and having people to return to the breath when they are distracted. Everytime you become distracted, you don't put judgment on the fact that you aren't staying focused, you just simply return. The term "radical acceptance" meaning that you are where you are at and that is okay. You don't press any judgment for your current state.
Any yoga fans? Yoga is a sister practice to mindfulness. Mindfulness is a huge component of yoga since yoga is about pushing yourself but knowing your limits and your body. Yoga focuses on the breath and focuses on practicing being in the moment. As you do your yoga poses, you try to only think about the breath and the sensations of your body.
Other forms of mindfulness are guided relaxations, mindful eating, mindful walking...you could actually apply mindfulness to any activity since it is about focusing on the moment. My supervisor said he would do it as he was walking to work. He would think about sounds around him and when his mind would wander to something else, he would take it back to the sounds near him.
So, why should people use mindfulness?
It slows you down. Instead of doing the fight, flight or freeze model, it will help you with your self regulation. This is a really strong benefit of mindfulness. We have automatic responses to some things but mindfulness can slow down your response time and help access your self control instead of reacting automatically. It gives you a sense of control as you recognize that you can't control some external factors but you have control of the present moment. That is really the power of the breath.
Look up more benefits from mindfulness. It is the new topic being studied in the medical field. It really is fascinating as you learn more about how mindfulness can really affect your brain patterns and development, self regulation and emotional regulation.
I know this is a basic overview of mindfulness but look up more information on it if you are interested.
When people think of mindfulness, they think of zen or deep breathing. A cliche therapist saying is "take a deep breathe?" right? Well mindfulness is more than simply deep breathing. Some of my clients tell me that "deep breathing doesn't work me" so mindfulness won't work. Well, mindfulness includes so much more.
Mindfulness is being present in the moment with a nonjudgmental attitude of what is occurring in the present. A huge focus of mindfulness to bringing awareness and paying attention to what is occuring right now with acceptance.
Why is this important? People live in the past or future. Examples of this include people who can't move on from something happened in their past. This incident will reoccur in their mind and they have a hard time trying to move past it. I've worked with clients who have felt like this before as the past consumes their present life and it is hard to make memories in the present moment. In contrast, people who live in the future may struggle with anxiety that maybe the past will repeat itself or that a fearful situation will present itself so they try to protect themselves from it.
Because people live in the past or future, becoming mindful really is a practice that must be developed. Mindfulness is not a "one and done" kind of intervention. The mindfulness experts (check out the research on mindfulness if you have the chance) say that mindfulness is a practice that becomes stronger the more you use it. The first time you use a technique may be helpful but you see the benefits that more you do it.
A lot of my kids don't like mindfulness at first because its hard to concentrate on the present moment. It takes practice to really only focus on what is occuring in the moment. A big thing in mindfulness is acknowledging when you are leaving the present and then bringing your thought back to it. An example would be doing a relaxation exercise of guided meditation and having people to return to the breath when they are distracted. Everytime you become distracted, you don't put judgment on the fact that you aren't staying focused, you just simply return. The term "radical acceptance" meaning that you are where you are at and that is okay. You don't press any judgment for your current state.
Any yoga fans? Yoga is a sister practice to mindfulness. Mindfulness is a huge component of yoga since yoga is about pushing yourself but knowing your limits and your body. Yoga focuses on the breath and focuses on practicing being in the moment. As you do your yoga poses, you try to only think about the breath and the sensations of your body.
Other forms of mindfulness are guided relaxations, mindful eating, mindful walking...you could actually apply mindfulness to any activity since it is about focusing on the moment. My supervisor said he would do it as he was walking to work. He would think about sounds around him and when his mind would wander to something else, he would take it back to the sounds near him.
So, why should people use mindfulness?
It slows you down. Instead of doing the fight, flight or freeze model, it will help you with your self regulation. This is a really strong benefit of mindfulness. We have automatic responses to some things but mindfulness can slow down your response time and help access your self control instead of reacting automatically. It gives you a sense of control as you recognize that you can't control some external factors but you have control of the present moment. That is really the power of the breath.
Look up more benefits from mindfulness. It is the new topic being studied in the medical field. It really is fascinating as you learn more about how mindfulness can really affect your brain patterns and development, self regulation and emotional regulation.
I know this is a basic overview of mindfulness but look up more information on it if you are interested.
Comments
Post a Comment