Be Present with Mindfulness
Mindfulness is used to describe a more general approach to being aware of our experience in the present moment without judging it.
Mindfulness can help us cope better and can reduce anxiety as it helps to calm our emotions and handle stressful situations in a controlled way.
It’s about being present in the moment, here and right now achieving a higher sense of awareness.
Our life can feel like a whirlwind as we become overloaded with information and always rushing or running around. Trying to do too many things at once, our mind gets bogged down and we can forget things, stop paying attention and lose touch with our feelings.
We need to be aware of when we are sleepwalking our way through the day, the times when we go into autopilot. We can eat our dinner and not really taste it or appreciate it. When in autopilot we are not aware, the brain likes the familiar without really needing to think much or put in any effort, until something unexpected pops up. We are then caught off guard and can make us feel anxious.
So, we want to become mindful rather than mind full.
First, we can start by observing. Focus on one thing at a time. Think of your mind as a web browser, where each thought and each emotion is a tab. Most people work with many tabs open at the same time as we flick from one to the next. Just as one thought leads to another and quickly you go down a rabbit hole and your mind becomes jumbled.
Choose an item to look at and hold. Take a few deep breaths as you give yourself permission to relax. Now taking a good look at your chosen item ask yourself, how does it feel in your hand, does it smell, what colour and shape is it, really look at the design or formation. Is it shining, dull, is it making a noise or any sound at all, if you could taste it what would it taste like, is it smooth or bumpy, is it heavy or light? How does it make you feel happy or intrigued? Does it remind you of anything, do you have any memories attached to it?
Another easy way to practice mindfulness is when eating. Pause before you start, really look at your plate of food before you, look at the colours and textures, focus on the smells, think about the effort gone into making the meal and where each item may have been grown or produced. Notice your thoughts, be mindful of where they wander, and whether it is happening. Then taste your food, notice how it feels in your mouth, the texture on your tongue, the temperature of the food, how it tastes, the different flavours, how your mouth feels when it is chewing, how your throat is feeling as you swallow. What emotion are you feeling, satisfaction, enjoyment, gratitude?
To be mindful is to be aware of everything that is happening with us. The thoughts in your mind and their journey. The emotions you are feeling and the physical sensations in your body.
When you feel an emotion, you’re not just feeling it you’re also associating it with different things. You experience it completely, with your body and mind.
Thoughts are not facts. Yet most of us are capable of having a downward thought process which can lead to our deepest worries or fears. A well walked path we tread along in autopilot with the smallest trigger or event setting off a reaction without us being fully aware of what is happening.
By bringing more awareness to the situation, we have an opportunity to interrupt our habitual reaction.
When I am feeling overwhelmed, I choose to bring my awareness to my breath. I think to myself, ‘All I need to do right now is breathe’. I will allow myself to just focus on my slow controlled breathing.
I shall be aware of what is in my control and what is not. What I choose to let go and where I wish to spend my focus and be truly present. I then focus on my chosen activity with all my senses and energy.
With practice, this technique becomes easier. It allows me to apply this skill when I am walking the coast to fully appreciate the beauty of the landscape, when I am at work with a task in hand that requires my full attention or when I need to step back and relax if I feel overwhelmed and just need to mindfully step back and take a few breathes.
Mindfulness is a simple technique that requires practice. It also needs to be put into practice to fully appreciate and feel the benefits.
For me personally, when I am consciously practising mindfulness, food tastes nicer, the scenery seems more vibrant, my work is more satisfying, I appreciate the simple things more, I am more grateful, I remember things better and I feel calm.
Life’s greatest satisfaction is being free, being the kind of person you really want to be, doing the work you enjoy and choosing a path you tread with faith, hope and confidence in all that lies ahead.
