What Is Mindfulness and Where Do I Start?
Maybe you've heard some buzz about mindfulness recently. Today's younger generations are finding ways to explore this philosophy that focuses on self-awareness and being present in the moment. Back when those of us in our 50s were younger, we might have engaged in some meditation or a yoga class trying to achieve similar benefits. Mindfulness isn't terribly different from those practices, but its own distinct quality is its own specific goals. You might think of it as part of the same family.
So, you might wonder if mindfulness is worth pursuing in your life, especially if you are a beginner. Since we're embarking on our first "Mindful March" and our upcoming guided meditation event, we want to explore mindfulness, its meaning, and its benefits. Why don't you keep reading to find out what mindfulness is all about and if it's something you want to adopt as a part of your healthy aging regimen.
What Is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is the quality or state-of-being of becoming fully aware of the present moment, including both internal and external experiences, without judgment. Sometimes called mindful awareness, mindfulness can have a positive impact on your daily life and offer many rewards in the long-term. It might sound like a strange concept in the age of 24-hour news cycles, fast food drive-thru stops for dinner and quickly whipped out text messages. Of course, our fast-paced world is precisely why people who want to slow it all down seek and embrace it.
Even if we think we are relaxing and powering down by turning off the television or using blue light on our laptops, smartphones, and other devices, it's not always enough to shift down and rest our minds from distractions. Our modern world dictates—and many of us comply—that we operate in high gear to get to work on time, accomplish professional goals, take care of family and friends, and respond to messaging day and night. While we're capable of doing it all for a certain time, it catches up, resulting in stress, anxiety and illness. We tend to forget how to let go and relax to enjoy better sleep and decreased worry in everyday life.
The solution lies in thinking less, not more, and that's where mindfulness exercises can help.
Meditation Works in Conjunction With Mindfulness
If you were still wondering about the connection between meditation and mindfulness, meditation is a practice where someone uses mindfulness as a technique to train one's attention and awareness to reach a mentally clear, calm, and stable state, which is perfect for stress relief, improved memory, and a healthy brain.
A Brief Background of Mindfulness
Mindfulness is an ancient religious and secular practice that stems from a significant element in Buddhist traditions, known as Sati. Further, it is based on Tibetan meditation techniques, Zen, and Vipassana. People in various cultures have practiced mindfulness for thousands of years, so it makes sense that it's making its way back around again in a time when people frequently lose touch with quiet moments, filled with focus and simply being present.
What Are the Benefits of Meditation?
We spend so much time focusing on the physical elements of healthy aging and put aside the need for better mental focus and memory and the ability to fight to ward off dementia. Fortunately, you can adopt mindfulness as a full-scale path to health and well-being. Here are some of the numerous health benefits of mindfulness.
Helps Manage Emotions for Better Stress Relief
In time, as you reach better mindful awareness, you gain more control over yourself and your emotions. You can view stressful situations with more distance and an objective perspective that helps you react in a calmer way that prevents the circumstances from overwhelming you. Here are some additional ways that mindfulness helps you manage your emotions:
It helps you get some headspace and look at your emotions calmly and accept them without running from them, leading to more problems since the neglect issues eventually bubble up. Confronting emotions like anger or grief with acceptance helps you move past them.
It gives you tools to identify and label emotions. When we don't identify our emotions at the moment we experience them, we might find ourselves treating the wrong problem or lashing out at others in our confusion, compounding existing issues and adding to them.
It reminds you that discomfort and emotions pass along with circumstances, so it's best not to let a single emotion overwhelm you, even for a few moments.
It prevents you from fighting emotions with the wrong tools, such as engaging in excessive alcohol consumption or overeating to relieve stress.
Improves Brain Function and Moods
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), dementia is not a normal part of the aging process. Still, it affects 50 million people worldwide, with numbers increasing yearly. Mindfulness is a tool that can help improve the brain in three ways, which are through working memory, executive functioning, and visual-spatial processing. It has been shown to increase the density of the gray matter in the brain and boost perceptive thinking, learning abilities, and self-referential processing.
Boosts Pain and Fatigue Management
Many of us struggle with pain and fatigue, especially as we get older. With mindfulness, you can become more aware of negative feelings, sensations and emotions associated with physical pain and fatigue. It actually gives you the tools to change your negative feelings to positive ones or at least neutral ones that allow you to see pain and fatigue as temporary.
Enhances Sleep Patterns and Sleep Quality
When we have trouble sleeping, we recognize that our minds won't shut off or quiet. With mindfulness meditation practice, you can reduce the mental chatter that often keeps you awake, exhausted, and stressed. As you progress in your mindfulness practice, you can develop your own peaceful inner environment that will help you fall asleep easily and for the number of hours needed to feel rested.
Improves Your Capacity for Compassion
As you gain more control over factors in your life like your emotions, sleep, and pain, you will realize you're gaining more control over yourself, instilling peace and happiness. When you feel that level of peace and calm, you can translate that to others in your life, adding to your compassion for others.
How Can You Start Your Path to Mindfulness?
Now that you see the many meaningful benefits of mindfulness, you might want to start working toward having such an exceedingly healthy brain and positive outlook on life. Here are a few simple ways you can start fitting mindfulness into your schedule.
Block Out Some Time for Mindfulness Practice
The most important thing you need for mindfulness practice is the commitment of time. You don't need special furniture or equipment, like a bench or a meditation cushion. The easiest way to get in the habit is to set a specific time each day, and find a quiet place. Shoot for 5 days per week and 10-20 minutes per session, but if you only have a few minutes, do what you can.
Observe the Moment Without Judgment
Aim to pay attention to your thoughts in the present moment without judging them. Don't worry about quieting your mind or trying to achieve a state of calm. Just sit with your thoughts and observe them.
Let Judgments Pass
If you notice yourself judging a thought, let the judgment drift by, and resume your mindful awareness session.
Would You Like More Support As You Start Your Path to Mindfulness?
For many of us, mindfulness is a new concept. As great as it sounds for healthy aging and reducing stress levels, we might not know how to start. There is no perfect way to start but we hope this beginner's guide has been helpful.
The professional team and supportive community at Mighty Healthy can help you find the best mindfulness practice methods and strategies to help you enjoy it for its benefits and in itself as a soothing part of your life.
