Mindfulness: What is it and why should we use it?

Jon Kabat-Zinn, an expert in the field of mindfulness describes mindfulness as “the awareness that arises from paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment and non-judgmentally”. Mindfulness is a practice that stems from Buddhism and has had a surge of popularity within medicine and western psychology thanks to individuals such as Kabat-Zinn.

Mindfulness sounds simple but can be quite hard in practice. It involves observing and noticing the world within you and around you. It can be really difficult to do when so many of us can get caught up with worry-thoughts about the future or ruminating over the past. For a lot of people, mindfulness is a totally new skill and it can take time to develop.

There are a lot of resources you can access for formal mindfulness training. At the beginning of all our workshops you will find a short mindfulness or relaxation exercise just to get you flexing those muscles. Many people do find it helpful to connect with the buddhist origins of mindfulness to understand it fully and some prefer to remain rooted in the secular versions often utilised by western mental health organisations and clinicians. You can also do mindfulness more informally, for example, by intentionally listening to the sounds of nature whilst on a walk, or focussing on the heat and sensations whilst washing up. Practices such as yoga or meditation can also help improve your abilities.

Mindfulness has been applied to a lot of areas of modern life to great advantage. There is evidence to suggest that people who practise mindfulness have improvements in their physical and mental health. They are also more likely to see benefits in their communication and relationships. Many people report improvements in attention and concentration once they have introduced regular mindfulness practice into their lives. 

There are very few reasons not to start using mindfulness, particularly if you want to improve your wellbeing on a day-to-day basis. It should be noted however that mindfulness does often involve increased access to your thoughts and feelings and for some, this can be more of a distressing than helpful experience. If this is you, do not panic but it is always worth speaking with a trained professional to discuss your options.