At its core, mindfulness is non-judgmental awareness of your thoughts and sensations in the current moment. It is acceptance of your present experience and cultivation of a ‘bystander perspective’. A bystander perspective allows you to observe your own thoughts and sensations in a curious, compassionate manner without trying to alter them. It is a kind of freedom. While many will describe their mindfulness practice as spiritual, and some engage in a religious version of mindfulness, it can also be thought of as a skill to be cultivated for improving mental wellbeing.
What does a mindfulness practice look like? Perhaps the most wonderful aspect of mindfulness is the variety of ways in which it can be approached. As introduced above, it can be thought of as a spiritual, religious, or personal development practice. It can be engaged in as an informal collection of techniques or exercises or pursued in a more formal manner. It is amenable to self-study or can be learned through participation in a group or as part of an intensive retreat experience. One can choose to focus in a narrative mode, which emphasizes thought awareness, or an experiential mode, in which body sensation and emotional tone is observed. Finally, mindfulness can be adjusted to suit the needs of the moment. If what you most need is a life-line or a feeling of safety, mindfulness exercises can be chosen that enhance feelings of centeredness, of being grounded and safe. On the other hand, if you are feeling strong enough to expand your perception, mindfulness practices that open you to exploration and improved understanding of self would be chosen.
With such a range of options, it is easy to tailor a mindfulness practice to suit your immediate needs and skill level. As with any skill, one can only get so far with an informal approach. However, if the formality of mindfulness meditation prevents you from considering it as an option, an informal beginning may be an excellent gateway. For some, the prospect of sitting quietly and silently is akin to the prospect of having a tooth pulled. Let me reassure you. There are a number of excellent movement-oriented options available for you to begin with.
To reap the entire range of benefits associated with a mindfulness practice, one should expect to eventually engage in a wide range of exercises and approaches. I have listed a number of the benefits of mindfulness below. The specifics of how a mindfulness practice will benefit you personally will depend greatly on you current relationship with your thoughts and your body. For most who dedicate time and attention, mindfulness opens up a space in which it is possible to compassionately notice how you think, feel, and respond in real time. This information makes choice possible in situations that are currently subject to reaction or habit. With choice, you have the opportunity to make meaningful changes in your relationship with yourself, with others, and the way in which you engage with your world.
Lest there be any misunderstanding, I am still near the beginning of my own mindfulness journey. I am by no means a master nor even a seasoned practitioner. Despite this, I find even my beginning efforts have yielded interesting observations and the more I look, the more I see opportunities to apply the principles of mindfulness in my daily life. The more literature I consume, specifically relating to mindfulness in my counseling practice, the more encouraged and dedicated I become. As with any other skill, the benefits of mindfulness are dose dependent, and rely on regular practice. Think of it as you would a fitness program. You may not relish each and every workout, in the beginning you may even dislike most of them, but as your effort begins to pay off, it should become easier and more enjoyable to immerse yourself in your practice.
The Benefits of Mindfulness
- Improved ability to sustain attention and to become aware (alerting)
- Improved ability to tolerate pain, whether physical or psychological
- Improved psychological flexibility – a willingness to consider novel ideas or adjust currently held beliefs
- Improved awareness of self – including emotions, thoughts, defensive strategies, and impulses
- Elevated mood – preferential activation of the left prefrontal lobe (peaceful & happy feelings) over the right prefrontal lobe (depression, anxiety, hypervigilance)
- Refined threat assessment – increased recognition and thus reduction of our inherent negativity bias
- Creation of a readily accessible mental refuge that can be accessed when needed
- Enhanced ability to empathize with others
- Resistance to the cognitive decline usually associated with aging
- Compared to controls, better attention skills, short-term memory, perceptual speed, executive functioning, and fluid intelligence (the ability to use logic and pattern recognition to solve novel problems)
How does one get started? If this is the first you are hearing of mindfulness but you would like to get started, I recommend searching Dr. Ronald D. Siegel on YouTube and/or downloading the Headspace App on your favorite device. If you are at the interested-but-dabbling stage then I invite you to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Moving forward, I will offer a mindfulness tidbit each Wednesday: an exercise, an educational link, or a thought to ponder. It will be our Midweek Mindfulness Moment. These tidbits and resources will be collected on a resource page available HERE, which will be updated regularly. If you are already engaged in a formal or structured practice, I invite you to share your experience.
Today’s handout provides an introduction to my guided Mountain Meditation as well as instructions for how to engage in square breathing, a breath-aware mindfulness exercise that can be incorporated into nearly any circumstance to help reduce tension and cultivate a sense of calm control.
*The majority of the information presented in my blog today was sourced from material by Dr. Ronald D. Siegel*
The TLC Wellness Journey will continue next week with a discussion of the book: The Willpower Instinct by Kelly McGonigal Ph.D and a podcast entitled The Science of Willpower. I invite you to follow my blog, subscribe to my podcast, and sign-up for my Newsletter to keep abreast of my latest work.
Take care always,
