Mindfulness: The One-minute Guide to an Oasis of Calm

What is Mindfulness?

Our minds are prone to distraction and over-thinking, which can take place as negative thoughts, feelings, and memories. These can trigger our body’s stress-response thus impacting on our physical and emotional well-being, as well as our ability to focus on excelling at something.

Mindfulness means paying attention to what is going on, in and around us, with detachment, so we do not get caught up or become reactive to our feelings, thoughts, and emotions. It can be done as part of everyday activities, for example, sitting on a bus, walking, doing chores, eating, and drinking tea.

The benefits:

Science has proven that Mindfulness can help to reduce insomnia, minimise pain, master our emotions, reduce depression and anxiety, improve relationships and communication skills as well as thinking, focusing, and memory.

How to begin, maintain and practice Mindfulness:

In adopting the Japanese self-improvement method of Kaizen (meaning change and wisdom) when practising Mindfulness for one minute the same time every day, you are more likely to develop it as a habit. Those 60 seconds could eventually become much longer.

Here’s How:

Sit comfortably, back straight, body still, eyes closed or gaze soft. Place your attention on each in-breath and out-breath wherever it is noticeable in the body, such as at the tip of the nose, chest, or abdomen. When you become distracted, simply notice where your mind has gone and return back to the sensations of breathing.

Tristessa Moore is a Yoga Therapist (CNHC) delivering Mindfulness and Yoga in schools, businesses, and to the general public. Contact: www.yogatherapyhull.co.uk or @yogatherapyhull