What Everyone Ought To Know About Mindfulness

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Mindfulness has a lot of buzz right now. More and more people are learning all about it and doing things that help them become more mindful. But despite the increasing buzz, not everyone is well aware of mindfulness — how it works, the importance, and even the benefits of practicing it. This is an unfortunate fact, considering that being mindful can do wonders in one’s life.

Here are some basics everyone should know.

SEE ALSO: 5 Reasons To Establish A Daily Meditation Practice

What is mindfulness?

First things first: mindfulness is far different from meditation. Believe it or not, they are not the same thing. It is worth noting that there are types and kinds of meditation that are all for mindfulness. However, not all mindful practices involve meditation in the process. Mindfulness is simply the act of being “mindful.” This means that your focus and attention are all invested in the present moment. Keep in mind, though, it’s not that easy. One could say that you should “be mindful,” but this does not necessarily mean mindfulness.

Iit involves full awareness and consciousness of something. It is the state of being one at the present time while acknowledging and accepting all existing thoughts, feelings, sensations, and senses.

What is it for?

It is an understatement to say that all people should be mindful. Mindfulness has been widely used as a therapeutic technique to cope up with different kinds of issues. Whether it may be personal problems, like relationships, mental health concerns, or other related issues, mindfulness exercises can help you assess and resolve these things. Aside from helping you manage or deal with several kinds of problems and concerns, mindfulness is essential to everyday living. The reason being is that practices have the ability to assist you to regulate your emotions, improve your mood, enhance your emotional and mental health, and even positively change your outlook in life.

How do we practice mindfulness anyway?

There are a lot of things that you can do to become effectively mindful. Here are some tips that you may apply in your day-to-day living to help you become more aware and focused on the present moment.

Mindfulness meditation

There is a definite fine line between mindfulness habits and meditation. But, there is a meditation practice that helps you become more mindful. This kind of meditation usually focuses on your breathing, thoughts, and senses. You should try to do this more often, maybe even twice a day.

Breathing exercise

Breathing exercises are another activity that helps you become more mindful and aware of yourself, as well as your surroundings. In most cases, the main exercise encourages individuals to take a deep breath, repeating the whole process for a couple of minutes.

Yoga practice

Yoga practices also help people become more mindful. Most of the routines in every session focuses on breathing. Moreover, yoga is great not only for your physical health but, also for your emotional and mental health. It need not be rigorous, though, as the simplest yoga exercises will already work best.

Take a break

Taking a break, every once in a while, is a must. Even if you do not intend to practice mindfulness, this is a very healthy thing to do for yourself. But, in helping you become more attentive, focused, and alert, regular breaks will help you break from the apparent stresses.

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These are only some examples, though. While they may be effective, keep in mind that what works for others may not be the best or ideal practice for you. So, it varies.

Some science-based facts about mindfulness

The popularity of mindfulness practices has become apparent these days because many individuals across the globe are now doing it. They are all consistently exercising several mindfulness habits because they experience the benefits. But, apart from the actual applications, Science has continued to play a significant role in this dynamic. The reason being is that many scholars and experts in the field have studied and researched these things in the first place.

Based on the data, while they may remain inconclusive, here are some Science-based facts about mindfulness:

Anti-inflammatory & anti-aging effects

Several studies show that mindfulness offers positive impacts on aging, as well as the body’s immune system. Apart from boosting a person’s immunity, it also slows down the aging process. This is why many recommend it to be a part of one’s anti-aging regimen.

Hone your powers of focus & concentration

Mindfulness improves concentration and attention. It makes total sense considering that being mindful is placing your focus at a specific moment, the act itself hones one’s concentration. Experts say that mindfulness practices change the structure and functions of the brain. This highly affects the person’s awareness and attention because the exercises themselves train the mind to focus only on the things that matter.

Effective, natural treatment for stress, anxiety & depression

Studies and research conclude that mindfulness works, in part, by assisting a person to fully accept their experiences. In doing so, it relieves many mental health concerns, anxiety, in particular. Also, since being mindful trains the mind to pay attention to the things of the present moment, as well as on the things that matter in life, it helps a person to eliminate some of the day-to-day stresses. It can even help treat depression as per scholars.

Causes lasting alterations in personality traits

Changes and alterations in one’s personality traits are very apparent to people who practice mindfulness. Research conducted in the past has already proven this. In most of these studies, data shows that people who have effective mindfulness habits have shown tremendous change and growth within weeks of doing so.

Conclusion

Mindfulness is a broad topic. It is not also easy to comprehend and not fairly unchallenging to practice in everyday living.

But, these points should already get you up and running to discover more about mindfulness and practice to achieve this kind of state. As pointed out, it offers a lot of benefits, and the importance itself of being mindful is highly established, which are all factors to making your life much better.

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