WHAT IS MINDFULNESS
Mindfulness is very simply, the practice of becoming aware of the present moment. This includes becoming aware of your body and mind and the environment around you. More specifically, this includes becoming aware of your own thoughts, sensations and emotions in the present moment. Most of us live more than 90% of our lives ‘in our head’, either thinking about something in the past or worrying about something that might happen in the future. Mindfulness uses various techniques to help us to become more grounded in our body and mind and to recognise when our mind has got lost in thought. Through the regular practice of mindfulness, we are better able to catch our thoughts and recognise emotions and sensations before returning to the present moment.
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Mindfulness begins by learning our body’s most reliable anchor, the breath. The breath is ever present and something we can rely on and come back to, but it's also a very good indicator of how we are feeling. By better learning the patterns of our thoughts and how our thoughts can affect our emotions, we can better understand how the mind works and work with our mind in a more skilful, non-judgmental way.
Mindfulness also teaches us how to skilfully recognise the different sensations we experience in our body through times of calm or turmoil which helps us better understand how the body, mind and our environment are all connected. And with greater knowledge of ourselves, we begin to feel more at ease with all the thoughts, emotions and sensations that are a part of everyday life, letting them come, stay for awhile
and finally letting them go with confidence, calm and ease.