WHAT IS MINDFULNESS?
Mindfulness is a cognitive skill...
It is a mental state achieved by focusing your awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting your feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations
HOW TO BE MINDFUL
You don’t need anything to be mindful apart from yourself
Being mindful is as simple as
-Paying attention to yourself and your surroundings
-Living in the present
-Accepting yourself
-Focusing on your breathing
MINDFULNESS TECHNIQUES
Body scanning - moving your attention slowly through different parts of your body, starting from top-bottom or vice-versa
Deep breathing- there are many methods such as the 4-4-4 method, breathe in for 4, hold for 4 and breathe out for 4.
Guided meditations - there are many guided meditations on YouTube, find the right one for you and practice in a quiet and safe space.
BENEFITS OF MINDFULNESS
Mindfulness has shown to help conditions such as...
Stress
Anxiety
Pain
Depression
Insomnia
High blood pressure (hypertension)
Studies have shown that mindfulness can help...
Improve attention
Decrease job burnout
Improve sleep
Improve stress management
Improve ability to relax
Improve self-esteem
Improve diabetes control
BEGINNING THE JOURNEY TO MINDFULNESS
Mindfulness, like any skill, can be difficult at the start
You may find yourself getting distracted and not being able to focus
This is normal, the important thing is that you accept this and keep trying
Practice makes perfect!!!