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Mindful living involves practicing meditation and being present when engaging with others, both of which take time and patience to master, yet can help reduce stress, improve mental health and strengthen relationships.
To become more mindful, it’s essential that you train your mind on a regular basis, just as if you were exercising your body. Try setting aside 10 minutes each day to meditate or focus on breathing exercises – something as simple as taking 10 seconds out of your day will do wonders for increasing mindfulness!
1. Focus on the present
Being fully present requires acknowledging and paying attention to the present moment – acknowledging and attending to thoughts, feelings and surroundings as they exist at that moment in time. Being fully present is at the core of mindfulness and meditation practices.
Anger management helps you recognize and release negative emotions like fear, anxiety and stress that arise when distracted or overwhelmed. Furthermore, it teaches us to accept what’s happening now instead of looking backward or forward.
Example: While eating your favorite ice cream, your mind may wander towards what happened earlier or tomorrow’s tasks; it can be easy to lose focus of what’s going on right in front of us with busy schedules or demanding jobs.
Reconnecting with the present can help reduce stress and enhance performance at work or home. One effective strategy for doing so is noticing and appreciating your surroundings or trying one of the following strategies:
2. Be present in your emotions
Awareness of your emotions is the first step toward managing them more effectively. Mindfulness teaches you to observe how your body feels so that you can comprehend and accept all feelings without judgment or bias. Furthermore, mindfulness allows us to become more compassionate towards ourselves and others – two invaluable components to managing stress more healthily.
If you find yourself feeling anxious, try identifying where the tension lies within your body – giving it a color or shape may make this easier – then focus on breathing slowly while trying to relax; when this has taken effect, take a pause before opening up for wise thoughts to come up with solutions.
Mindfulness will save you from expending unnecessary energy worrying about the future or remembering past experiences, which can lead to depression and other mental health problems. Mindfulness will also keep you focused and energized so you can complete tasks more quickly. Meditation or simple daily activities such as walking can all serve as forms of mindfulness practice.
3. Relax
Know the value of taking time away from work and life responsibilities to relax is no secret, yet how you choose to spend that break can be just as crucial to its effectiveness. Spending an afternoon folding laundry may feel like taking a break, but may not provide the mental or physical rejuvenation needed.
Mindfulness practices help reduce stress by helping us tune into our bodies and emotions, leading to healthier habits such as making better food choices. Mindfulness can help us notice when we are hungry or full so we eat more mindfully – thus helping prevent binge or emotional eating which are both linked to stress.
Research exploring the relationship between mindfulness and stress has demonstrated a correlation between higher levels of mindfulness and reduced perceived levels of stress in two samples – health professionals as well as university student populations (Atanes et al., 2015) – and lower perceived levels of stress (Atanes et al. 2015). Furthermore, UWES data revealed correlations between mindfulness and the Vigor Dedication Absorption Subscales which accounted for 16% of total variance variance within these subscales of the survey (vigor vs vigor Dedication Absorption subscales of survey).
4. Focus on your breathing
Stressful situations cause the body to respond by activating its “fight-or-flight” response, inducing increased heart rate and blood pressure as well as sweaty palms and adrenaline flooding your system. Luckily, mindfulness practices can help deactivate this response so you can relax more.
One effective method of doing this is focusing on breathing techniques such as box breathing (inhale four counts, hold for seven and exhale for eight). Box breathing can reduce anxiety and slow your heart rate significantly. Try it for 5-10 minutes daily – when your attention wanders simply return back to breathing!
Practice mindfulness by becoming aware of sounds, smells and textures around you – from washing dishes with hot soapy water, noticing how music makes your heartbeat race or feeling the weight of clothes being loaded into a shopping bag – these senses-awakening activities will allow you to appreciate life more fully and appreciate its wonders!
5. Take a walk
Mindful walking can take place anywhere – be it your backyard, local park or on city sidewalks. To achieve true mindfulness while walking mindfully, it is best to slow your pace and focus on each footstep that hits the ground. A short mantra such as the Jesus Prayer in Christianity or Judaism or Om Mantra in Hinduism or Buddhism may help keep your thoughts focused during the walk.
Mindful living requires time and effort, but can be an invaluable way to reduce stress, improve emotional regulation, and protect against chronic stress-related disorders in the long term. If you want to explore mindfulness further, reach out to Mile High Psychiatry now – our experts will work with you to design a mindfulness routine tailored specifically to your schedule and lifestyle; plus give all the support needed for you to stick with it so you can reap its full benefits and begin experiencing a healthier and happier lifestyle!
6. Meditate
Meditation helps you become aware of your thoughts and emotions without judgment, which allows you to stay present in the moment without getting caught in negative cycles of thinking that increase stress levels. Meditation also develops more flexible minds that can think faster when solving problems faster, according to research. Meditation improves focus, emotions regulation and sleep quality at night while cultivating compassion can reduce conflict with others as well as stress by their reactions.
There are various methods of meditation; find the one that best fits you. Start small and gradually work up to 30 minutes daily – use apps or physical reminders like sticky notes as reminders that remind yourself to be mindful throughout the day. Regular practice also decreases amygdala activity so you can control stress responses more effectively.
7. Practice gratitude
Practice gratitude as a way of relieving stress by shifting focus away from negative things in your life and onto those which bring joy and satisfaction. Furthermore, practicing gratitude helps build compassion and empathy to handle conflicts or emotions with an eye toward maintaining equilibrium and calm.
Consider taking note of all the small things in life for which you can be thankful, such as sunrises or house quiet before others wake up. Instead of reaching immediately for your phone when waking up, try stopping to appreciate how wonderful smelling coffee and holding its warm cups feels when you open them up in your hands!
Change your routine is an effective way to practice mindfulness, such as going for a walk without headphones or meeting up with a friend for coffee instead of texting them. By disrupting your normal schedule and forcing yourself into being more present and aware, you’ll start to become more mindful and appreciate all that’s wonderful in your life – you could even start keeping a daily gratitude journal that keeps track of everything positive!
8. Take a break
Every individual experiences stress differently and it’s essential to understand your personal warning signs for being overwhelmed. A break can help reset, relax and restore you back into a healthier state of mind.
Research continues to demonstrate the beneficial effects of mindfulness meditation for reducing stress and anxiety, improving attention, memory and self-regulation as well as increasing empathy. Furthermore, practicing mindfulness can help you navigate life’s ups and downs by teaching how to respond from a place of wisdom rather than reactive emotion.
Mindfulness can be practiced formally through meditation or through activities that require your full attention, such as flossing your teeth or eating an apple, by paying close attention to each bite and sensing any changes in the sensations within your body – this practice, known as single-tasking, can be an excellent way to cultivate mindfulness.
Gradually, mindfulness will become part of your everyday activities. While incorporating it might initially seem challenging, its rewards far outweigh any challenges encountered along the way. For more tips on reducing stress contact a mental health provider today.
