Mindfulness has many physical and mental health benefits, including improving mood, reducing stress and anxiety, better sleep, decrease in chronic pain, and better attention and concentration. As a therapist, I often recommend this to patients to help with a variety of concerns. Sometimes people are hesitant to try this technique because they envision mindfulness as long periods of intense meditation.
Mindfulness is a type of meditation but this technique can be practiced doing the things you already do in your daily life. If someone told you that you could decrease stress and anxiety, be happier, and improve your physical health simply by doing the things you already do with minimal additional effort, would you do it? If your answer is "Of course!" then follow these steps during one of your daily activities:
Choose an activity to focus on
Focus on that activity
Notice when your attention wanders
Return your attention to the chosen activity
It's normal for your attention to wander when you first begin mindfulness. That does not mean you are doing it wrong! The important part is not how often your mind wanders, but how often you bring your attention back to the activity. Over time your mind will wander less.
There are many different types of mindfulness activities. Below are a few different examples of mindfulness activities to try. It may take time to feel comfortable doing these activities so don't give up!
1. During an activity that you do every day, focus on your senses. Notice what you see, feel, hear, taste, and smell
2. Count your breaths as you focus on the air coming in and out of your body. When you get to 10, repeat this process 3-5 times
3. Focus on an object and describe the item in detail
4. Look around the room and name all the objects that are a particular color. Repeat this with 2-4 additional colors
Do some type of mindfulness activity everyday for one week. If you get distracted, that's okay! Just bring your focus back to the activity. Over time it gets easier and you will start to notice the benefits of mindfulness.
For more information about how mindfulness is used in therapy to improve your mental health, contact our office at gbhconsultants@gmail.com. We would be happy to discuss ways mindfulness can benefit you!
Jennifer Ritchie, Psy.D
Licensed Psychologist
Gateway Behavioral Health Consultants
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