What is Mindfulness and what can it mean for you?

Have you ever tried, I mean REALLY tried to meditate? Everyone seems to be talking about it. If you find yourself unable to meditate, don’t judge yourself. Most people cannot clear their minds. Harvard research tells us our minds wander 47% of the time! How do we deal with this if we want to practice meditation? One technique is called the practice of Mindfulness.

Dr. Danny Penman, in his book Mindfulness: Finding Peace in a Frantic World, shares this definition, “Mindfulness is, quite simply, full conscious awareness. It is paying full conscious attention to whatever thoughts, feelings and emotions are flowing through your mind, body and breath without judging or criticizing them in any way. It is being fully aware of whatever is happening in the present moment without being trapped in the past or worrying about the future. It is living in the moment not for the moment.”

This practice has gained much attention in the past few years and with that attention comes clinical study. Studies can be found on JAMA.com, Harvard.edu, ScientificAmerican.com and others and are growing yearly. Businesses are using Mindfulness to to encourage their staff to be fully engaged in conversations and productivity during the work day. Schools are using it to help students with attention, focus and self control.

There are some wonderful apps on Mindfulness to try out, Headspace is one of my favorites! If apps are not your thing, you can always check out several great TEDTalks or Youtube talks on the subject. This is a good one to check out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ad7HqXEc2Sc

Using techniques to help deal with daily stress is not only a gift to yourself but to the people who love you. Hopefully this is something that may be helpful in your daily walk and, as always, let us know if we can help you in any way.