I’ve read from many people online that ‘mindfulness’ really helps them rationalise with their anxiety. I had no idea what mindfulness was, or what it entailed until I decided to look it up myself.
From what I gathered, it’s about being present in the current moment, your current emotions and things around you.
“It’s easy to stop noticing the world around us. It’s also easy to lose touch with the way our bodies are feeling and to end up living ‘in our heads’ – caught up in our thoughts without stopping to notice how those thoughts are driving our emotions and behaviour,”
Professor Mark Williams, former director of the Oxford Mindfulness Centre
I decided to try it for myself. For some people it doesn’t do anything, and others say it’s changed their life. So I figured it was worth giving a go.
I have a app on my phone which I use almost daily (I try), where a man talks me through a Mindfulness excersize. The app I’m using has a course specifically for anxiety – handy.
I’m currently 5 days into the course, I have to say it definitly helps me to relax and calm for a few hours after. I’m yet to see any long-term effects, but I am only 5 day in so I’m willing to keep going.
I’ve found somedays I find it super easy to switch off my thoughts and zone out, usually these days my anxiety has been at it’s highest. Somedays I find it hard to switch off, all I can do is think about random things ‘what am I going to wear tomorrow’ ‘Maybe I should wash my hair’. I’m hoping I can get better at it all eventually. Afterall, mindfulness is like any other skill, practise makes perfect.
Obviously I’m going to be writing weekly updates on my progress on how, and if it’s working for me.
Annesar x
Hi! I totally agree with you.
If you enjoy your app, try this free course online 😊
https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/mindfulness-life
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I’m definitely going to try this! Thank you so much for sharing it with me!
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It’s great you’re experimenting with mindfulness! I wish you good luck with it! I have to say mindfulness practise has changed my life… I’m not sure I would be here without it…
I just wanted to say don’t worry too much if you find your mind wandering a bit sometimes-it’s so normal 🙂 the best thing is if you’re able to just be aware of it wandering and then gently bring it back to your breath without judging yourself for it… it happened and that’s that… no further interpretation needed 🙂
I can recommend Jon Kabat Zinn if you find some audio guidance from him somewhere…
I also highly highly recommend “Miracle of Mindfulness” by Thich Nhat Hanh… I just keep reading it over and over again 🙂
Best of luck to you! x
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Hi! Thank you so much for some adivce, I’m definitly going to look into Jon Kabat Zinn and the book you mentioned 🙂 x
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I noticed that you listen to music to destress yourself. Mindfullness can also be done with a concentration on music:
“mindful listening involves a form of self-regulation in which the focus on the self is set aside” (http://bit.ly/2FUd0Fs).
Te post is a comprehensive review of the various exercises used for attaining mindfullness as an alternative to stress, depression, addiction.
Where I work, we are incorporating these exercises into group workshops with substance abusers. Although it may not curb addiction immediately, it creates a framework for clients to understand triggers for their addictive behavior.
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Thanks for liking my blog
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