Daily Dose of Mindfulness Mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us. It can be easy to rush through life without stopping to notice the world around us. Paying more attention to the present moment, to your own thoughts and feelings, and to the world around you can improve your mental wellbeing.
Mindful Walking As you begin to walk, notice how your body feels. Does it feel heavy or light, stiff or relaxed? Take time to become aware of your posture and how you’re carrying yourself. Without trying to change the way you’re walking, simply observe how it feels. Begin by noticing what’s going on around you. Notice colours and shapes, movement and stillness. Then turn your attention to sounds. Notice what you can hear without getting caught up in any noises. Next turn your attention to smells. What do you smell? Your mind will naturally want to create a story out of each smell as the sense of smell is closely linked with memory, probably more so than any of our other senses. Notice any physical sensations or feelings. It may be the feeling of warm sunshine, cool rain or a cold breeze. As you continue to walk, don’t try to prevent any thoughts from entering your field of awareness. Just notice as they come and go, how one thing is constantly being replaced by the next.
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Notice how the weight shifts from the right side to the left side and then back again, usually in quite a steady rhythm. Don’t change how you walk, this is all about noticing. Feel your feet touching the ground. This is extremely grounding. When you’re mind wanders off, which it will naturally do, just gently bring the attention back to the movement of the body and the sensation of the soles of the feet striking the ground each time. If you’re walking on grass why not try walking bare foot? This will be even more grounding. You should now feel more present and more aware. We get so caught up in the thoughts themselves, that we hardly notice our reactions to all these things.
Breathing exercise Find a relaxed, comfortable position. Keep your back upright, but not too tight. Hands resting wherever they’re comfortable. Notice and relax your body. Just breathe. Tune into your breath. Feel the natural flow of the breath going in and out. Don’t alter how you are breathing, just observe. Notice where you feel your breath in your body. As you do this, you might notice that your mind may start to wander. You may start thinking about other things. It’s very natural. Just notice that your mind has wandered. Say “thinking” or “wandering” in your head softly and then gently redirect your attention back to your breathing. 3 3
Body scan Close your eyes and bring awareness to your body breathing in and out, noticing touch and pressure where your body makes contact with the seat or floor. Intentionally breathe in and move your attention to the part of the body you want to investigate. There’s no correct starting point. You might choose to start at your head and scan down, or start at your feet and scan up, or you may choose to scan your body randomly. Notice how each part of your body feels. You may notice sensations like buzzing, tingling, pressure or tightness. Investigate these sensations as fully as possible, and then intentionally releasing yor attention before shifting to the next area to explore. The main point is being curious and open to what you are noticing, Each time your attention wanders, simply notice that this is happening, then gently and kindly bring your attention back to exploring sensations in the body. When you have finished, if you have noticed any areas of tension, you may want to try some progressive muscle relaxation.
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Progressive Muscle Relaxation For this exercise start from your feet and travel up your body working on the muscles in your calves, thighs, buttocks, abdomen, chest, hands, biceps, shoulders and finishing with the muscles in your face. Working through each part of the body, take a slow, deep breath and squeeze these muscles as hard as you can and hold for 5 seconds. It’s important to really feel the tension in the muscles, which may cause a bit of discomfort or shaking. Take care not to hurt yourself while tensing your muscles. After 5 seconds exhale and let all the tightness flow out of the tensed muscles. You should feel the muscles become loose and limp, as the tension flows out and a wave of relaxation will rush over you. Focus on the difference between the tension and relaxation. Then move on to the next part of the body.
Mindful eating Start by looking at what you’re about to eat. Notice the textures, shapes, colours, smells and sounds of your food. When you take a bite, notice the temperature, the texture and all the different tastes. Be aware of how the food feels on your fork or in your hand, then how it feels in your mouth. Notice your mouth chewing. Notice the feelings of fullness, or emptiness, any movement in your body or any tastes that linger. Being mindful when we eat allows the body to respond properly to what it’s doing. If you eat whilst worrying about your next meeting, the body is in stress mode and digestion is compromised. Eating mindfully also allows for the proper signals to be sent to the brain when we’re full, preventing us from overeating.
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