MINDFULNESS

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!!!