Madam – Mindfulness.
Mindfulness has been described as paying attention in a particular way, on purpose, in the present moment and non-judgmentally.
Mindfulness is about noticing what emotions, thoughts and or body sensations are beginning to arise within you as they happen.
Giving attention to what is happening around us as it happens and building your ability to accept that your experiences are to a large extent normal and natural and, thus, to not judge ourselves negatively for getting caught up in our thoughts or feelings.
Although most of us are not aware of it, our minds are very busy, shifting endlessly between memories of the past and plans for the future. Our “thinking minds” are constantly active with thoughts that are often stress-provoking or are unrelated to the present moment.
In other words, little time is actually spent living in and connecting with what is happening right now. Our ability to gain full enjoyment from whatever is happening in the present moment depends on our capacity to be present.
And our ability to effectively deal with stress, to make informed decisions, and to access our resources and apply them in challenging situations, all rely on our capacity to be present.
Only when we are fully in the present can we consciously respond to situations, rather than simply react with automatic patterns of behaviour, bringing greater concentration and focus to work, monitor stress levels, and take effective steps to address it. Mindfulness allows you to achieve all of this through building your capacity to be in the present moment.
In other words, with mindfulness, we learn to become aware of the changes in the physical sensations in our body, our thoughts and our feelings or emotions as they happen.
Being aware of our inner (and outer) experiences as they unfold from one moment to the next, means that instead of reacting automatically to situations, we can respond more skillfully; we can recognise they are available to us, and from there, make wiser, more creative decisions.
Research has shown that with mindfulness in your life, the following benefits are often experienced:
– increased happiness
– enhanced memory and attention
– lowered blood pressure
– the alleviation of mild to moderate anxiety and depression
– strengthened immune system functioning
– increased alertness
– lowered blood sugar and insulin
– reduced physical pain and stress
What all of the above research indicates, is that by regularly engaging in mindfulness, practises the structure, and thus the functioning of your brain. It causes an increase in activity in an area of the brain associated with possitive emotions and happiness.
Similarly, those parts of the cerebral cortex that tend to thin with the age actually become significantly thicker, and thus improve brain functioning in people who have engaged in mindfulness practices daily for several years.
In simpler words, mindfulness in the sense of understanding what it means to you, and the interpretations others have of it. Taking in your surroundings, like the crisp night air of a silent winter’s night.
Becoming aware of the earth moving on its axis. Controlling your mind to be fulfilled with sound and emotion, even memory.
Lisa Perrins
