Mindfulness
Life can become busy, it can be easy to rush through every day without stopping or pausing for breath, and to see what else is going on.
When we pay attention to the present moment, our thoughts, our emotions, our feelings, to our world and what is going on around us, we can become more mindful, improve our mental wellbeing, and become aware in the present moment.
Mindfulness involves us stopping, paying attention to what is around us, to use our senses to see what is going on both inside and outside of ourselves, when all too often we are busy and rarely stop to notice the world around us.
We lose touch with our bodies, how we are feeling, instead living in our head, and functioning for the everyday life, such as work, home, family, and study. Rarely do we stop to notice what thoughts are driving our behaviours, our emotions, and our feelings.
This is where mindfulness helps
Mindfulness is about reconnecting with our body, our everyday lives, the sensations and impact this has on us. It can be consuming when our lives are so busy, and we do not stop to connect with ourselves until the point of overload, burn out or exhaustion.
Taking care of ourselves, does not mean me first, it means 'me too'.
How does mindfulness help mental wellbeing
Raising awareness, and becoming more aware of the present moment could help promote and support mindfulness, to know ourselves better. When we become more in tune, aware in the present moment we begin to experience new things, to open our mind and eyes to other possibilities, this allows us to become aware of how we feel, and it opens our eyes to see how we can become entangled in streams of thinking that can be unhelpful.
When we see what is going on, we can stand back and look at our thoughts, patterns and become aware. With this 'new awareness', raising cognition of this kind can help us to notice signs of anxiety for example earlier.
To be more mindful, and be reminded to take notice of how we are feeling, what emotions are going on inside us, and inside our body, the sensations you feel, and where in your body you feel them. Mindfulness also reminds us of what is going on around us in the world. Take time to stop and notice things, to take a deep breathe, meditate.
Practicing mindfulness - let it become part of your daily routine even if just for 5 minutes, this can happen at any time, you just need to remind yourself to take the time to stop for a moment, become aware of the sensations created by the world around you.
Each day keep an eye on your thoughts, do they drift or can you think of the here and now. Some people find it difficult to practice mindfulness when they have busy lives, busy minds and time demands you to be giving yourself somewhere else such as work.
Mindfulness can be practiced anywhere, on your way to work, or before a busy workday starts for example.
Try something new - hobbies such or yoga, qi gong, or tai chi could help develop awareness, and make you more aware of your breathing and the sensations you feel.
Mindfulness can help to promote feelings of general wellbeing and improved concentration. Mindfulness sessions can include exploration of the different facets of meditation, including mindful movement, eating, and learning to calm and quiet our minds using mindfulness meditations.
Please find the link below for free Deb Dana, or Mindpanda guided meditations, by clicking on the below link, or learn more button.
https://www.rhythmofregulation.com/audiomeditations