Tell me, what exactly is mindfulness?

The word “mindfulness” or “being mindful” appears to come up more and more frequently when we talk about strategies for managing symptoms of stress and anxiety.  But what does it actually mean, and how exactly do we practice “being mindful?”

Mindfulness or being mindful is a process which involves bringing our attention to daily experiences occurring in that present moment.  When we are mindful, we have a soft focus on what is happening in that present time. It may involve being mindful during a particular experience such as watching an animal at a zoo, or an activity such as locking your house door.  Being mindful, means that you are present with that experience, and your attention is fully on that experience, or activity in that present moment.

Professor Mark Williams, former director of the Oxford Mindfulness Centre, describes mindfulness as a means of knowing directly what is going on inside and outside ourselves, moment by moment.

“It’s easy to stop noticing the world around us.   It’s also easy to lose touch with the way our bodies are feeling and to end up living ‘in our heads’ – caught up in our thoughts without stopping to notice how those thoughts are driving our emotions and behaviour,”

“An important part of mindfulness is reconnecting with our bodies and the sensations they experience. This means waking up to the sights, sounds, smells and tastes of the present moment. That might be something as simple as the feel of a banister as we walk upstairs”.

“Another important part of mindfulness is an awareness of our thoughts and feelings as they happen moment to moment”.  “It’s about allowing ourselves to see the present moment clearly. When we do that, it can positively change the way we see ourselves and our lives”.

Can you relate?

Have you ever had that feeling of driving to work and thinking “O no, did I remember to lock the door?”  “Did I leave the cooker on?” “Did I turn the central heating off” “wow, how did I actually get to work this morning? I can’t remember seeing anything as I was driving”.  All these questions occur because we are living on what I like to call “auto-pilot”. We are not mindful and at therefore not living in the present moment. These are indicators that we are stressed, and our thoughts are somewhere else.  Our minds are clearly not functioning optimally and appear busy in the background. We are not able to process information as well, our short term memory may become temporarily erased and we get distracted with unwanted thoughts and feelings.  This build up in the mind of so much unwanted information can be some-what overwhelming, and lead to symptoms of stress and anxiety.

Mindfulness practice can be significantly improved through meditation.  As you learn to bring your attention to your body and connect with your internal and external environment.  This is a skill and like with any skill, with practice, time, and dedication we become somewhat better at performing it.  

Mindfulness can be performed individually or in groups.  It can be performed simply by being present with everyday tasks as mentioned above.  By slowing down and taking in the sensations and feelings from the external environment as you perform daily tasks.  Alternatively it can be performed in a quiet room, either alone or in a group. Brining the attention to your breath as you just let thoughts come and go.  Focussing on the breath as your distraction as the mind becomes clearer. You can spend as little as 1 minute being mindful as you begin to practice it in everyday activities.  

At Make Space we specialise in mindfulness practice to suit the individual.  We run both classes’ and one to one sessions. We educate everyone on both the theory and the practice so that you understand exactly “how” and “why” mindfulness practice can positively influence your life.

At Make Space we run various individual and class options with regards duration of sessions, but typically a mindfulness practice session will last 30 minutes.  If you would like to become more focused, less stressed, manage symptoms of anxiety, and allow your mind to perform to the best of its ability please do not hesitate to contact us, we can’t wait to guide you into living a more fulfilled life.

As always be mindful!