Mindfulness

“Mindfulness is a quality that’s always there. It’s an illusion that there’s a meditation and post-meditation period, which I always find amusing, because you’re either mindful or you’re not.”

Richard Gere

I love mindfulness as it is not only beneficial for mental health and wellbeing, but for so many reasons.  It assists with performance – sports, academia or the arts.  It also assists in reducing pain and coping with health conditions.  Practicing mindfulness for thirty minutes a day is beneficial for your health and wellbeing.

There are a range of mindfulness tools available – websites, apps and books.  If you would like to look at some reputable sites, take a look at Head to Health as they have a range of activities and apps to assist.  You can find books at your local bookstore, Kmart and Big W also have a range of supplies.  The prices of the books can range from $5 to more.

The practice of mindfulness can be done both formally and informally.  Formal is when you make time to do a mediation or mindfulness activity.  The informal way is to practice any activity in a mindful manner, this includes, eating, walking or even washing the dishes in a mindful way.  That is noticing what you are doing, without judgement, seeing each movement or feeling what is happening whilst the activity is going on.

A favourite mindful moment is noticing five things from all your senses; five things you can hear, see, taste, touch and smell.  For me as I am sitting writing this – I can hear the traffic from the road, the trucks and the cars.  I can hear the birds whistling and the breeze that is blowing along with the door squeaking in the breeze.  I can see the trees swaying in the wind, the birdlife, the traffic and the outside as I look out both doors to the gardens at the front and back of my home.  I can taste the leftovers from my afternoon snack, the guilty pleasure of the aftertaste of the chocolate m and m’s that I secretly ate.  I can feel my feet on both the rug under the table and also on the ledge of the table.  My backside sitting in the kitchen chair, the computer keyboard and the wood of the table.  The smells include the flowers from my gift last week – both the lily’s and the roses.  I also smell the blossoms from outside and the light shower of rain that just happened.  The smell from the laundry as it has just been washed.  Taking the time to notice all these things – brings me into the moment and helps me to be in the present, no matter what else is happening, both in my own body and around me.

Do you have enough mindfulness in your life?