Mindfulness

One of the biggest gifts we can give to ourselves is the practice of mindfulness.

So much of our daily life and the society we are living in pulls us away from the here and now. Due to this, we are often left feeling disconnected, anxious, depressed, angry, stressed, fatigued, etc. There’s endless research showing the benefits of mindfulness, yet it is often a practice that goes by the wayside. I’ve found this is often because people associate mindfulness with meditation, and if you aren’t someone who can meditate you think this practice just isn’t for you. While meditation is one way to practice mindfulness, it is not the end all be all. Meditation is hard, and if you have a busy mind and body it can feel impossible. So let’s flip the script for a second.

When I say mindfulness, I mean the act of paying attention to the present moment and experiencing it with an attitude of compassionate curiosity. If we look at mindfulness this way, the doors blow wide open with ways to incorporate this into our daily lives.

Mindfulness can look like going for a walk, intentional breathing, body scans, making your favorite meal, exercise, lists of gratitude, biking, driving, journaling, music, coloring, drawing, sitting, intentional conversations with friends or family, etc.

Essentially what this boils down to is remembering to pay attention to what you are doing, where you are, and the person you are in that exact moment. It is greeting these moments with acceptance, grace, and compassion rather than forcing yourself to do something or think a certain way because that’s what you feel like you “have” to do in order to be mindful. If you remove the expectation of what you feel like mindfulness SHOULD be, and instead allow it to be whatever brings you into your present and makes you feel seen and cared for you’ll begin to experience the benefits you’ve probably heard all about. So that’s my last challenge for you for mental health awareness month. Gift yourself with your own version of mindfulness and bring yourself into your beautiful and present moment. Then I want you to keep doing it.

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