Mindfulness is often flippantly referred to when we talk about stress management, sleep, anxiety and depression. So what exactly is it?
๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ช๐ก๐ฃ๐๐จ๐จ ๐๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐๐จ๐๐ ๐๐ช๐ข๐๐ฃ ๐๐๐๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฎ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐ ๐๐ช๐ก๐ก๐ฎ ๐ฅ๐ง๐๐จ๐๐ฃ๐ฉ, ๐๐ฌ๐๐ง๐ ๐ค๐ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฌ๐โ๐ง๐ ๐๐ค๐๐ฃ๐, ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฉ ๐ค๐ซ๐๐ง๐ก๐ฎ ๐ง๐๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ค๐ง ๐ค๐ซ๐๐ง๐ฌ๐๐๐ก๐ข๐๐ ๐๐ฎ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฉโ๐จ ๐๐ค๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ค๐ฃ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐ ๐ช๐จ.
Sounds simple doesn’t it? If it is so simple, why isn’t it our default state?
Well, for some, it is. Kids in particular are innately very mindful. What happens over time though is that we follow our (immensely clever) thinking minds and begin to make thinking shortcuts in our brains. Things that have happened before, we simply create shortcuts to helpful places for next time a similar situation arises and after all, neurons that fire together wire together. So as we think and behave in a certain way more and more over time, those thought patterns become more ingrained in us. Our natural negativity bias and tendency to think ahead and worry about things that either haven’t happened or have already happened (and are unchangeable) gradually becomes the default state of our mind.
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Mindfulness is a skill that needs practice, like any other. But it allows us to bring our non-judgemental awareness to these natural tendencies within all of us. To simply notice this, learn from it and come along side it without judgement. Over time (and with regular practice) we learn how to become a ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฝ๐ฎ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ฏ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ to our thoughts.
