In recent years you may have heard of ‘being mindful’, or of the practice of ‘mindfulness’ being used, but what does it mean to be ‘Mindful’, and how may being mindful help you?

I’m not much of a fan of buzz words and catch phrases, so naturally I was not immediately in love with the term mindfulness when it started to pop up everywhere – not only in my naturopathic circles and studies, but in big chain book shops, social media and even in our collective consciousness.

What is the practice of mindfulness?

Mindfulness is an intentional practice originating from ancient Eastern spiritual and philosophical traditions such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism and yoga. These practises all emphasise the importance of being present and increasing our awareness in our lives.

Mindfulness is the act of intentionally being aware of what is around us and/or what we are doing. Mindfulness can be done as a standalone act of mediation, or while you are completing a daily activity. For example, you may practice mindfulness when you are eating. Start by paying attention to the physical act of eating, looking at your food noticing its smell, the colours and textures, cutting up food, scooping it up, putting it into your mouth, chewing the food noticing the flavour, temperature, texture, swallowing. You could try practicing mindfulness for other activities such as listening to music, going for a walk or colouring in one of the many mindfulness colouring books that are readily available.

At its heart, mindfulness can be seen as a type of meditative practice. It encourages us to pay attention. Attention to how our bodies feel, how we make them move, the immediate environment around us. This can help to ground our bodies and give us some sense of calm. To be present in the moment.

How may mindfulness help?

We live in a world of many distractions, many different pulls on our attention – including that of our own thoughts. At times it may feel like there is just too much going on around us, too much to take in, so that we are skipping from one task to the next without truly appreciating or being present in the moment.

Mindfulness may help to;

• Reduce feelings of being overwhelmed
• Increase feelings of being grounded and centred.
• Improve sleep, stress and anxiety levels
• Improve overall mental health including mood and positive thinking
• Improve memory, attention and focus

Studies have indicated that practicing mindfulness for even a short amount of time each day can lead to significant improvements in these areas. Daily practice was shown to be more beneficial than only practice one or twice a week.

Our minds are a truly fascinating. Sometimes they work a little different, sometimes they help us, sometimes they feel like they are working against us. Like many things in life, starting a new activity takes both practise and time. It generally takes around four weeks to develop a new habit, and up to six months to see the benefits of regular mindfulness practices. It might help to set a reminder or schedule in a regular time to practice mindfulness.

If you find yourself getting distracted, it doesn’t mean you failed or that you should indulge in some self-criticism and chastisement. Notice your distraction, preferably without following it down the garden path, and return to your practice of mindfulness. Like learning to ride a bike, tie your shoes or brush your teeth, it takes time, effort and maybe a reminder to two.

If we look at all the major faith groups, we can see that each have some sort of meditative or contemplative practice, I believe that alone says something about such practices like meditation and mindfulness. Something modern scientific research also backs. Whether you are part of a faith group or not, mindfulness can be a practice to help you be present and grounded, to see the tree instead of the forest and find a bit of calm in the chaos of our lives and mind.

If you have any questions or would like a companion on your health journey, book your personalised health consultation today.