Health and Happiness: Mindfulness

Mindfulness

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Is the practice of being present throughout all activities.

Why is Mindfulness important? 

​​Mindfulness is the practice of being present throughout all activities. Self-care is taking time for yourself to engage in activities that rejuvenate you. There is no right or wrong way to take care of you.

 

Journaling

Journaling can be beneficial to those that practice it. It has shown that it helps keep thoughts straight and practice self-reflection. Journaling also has proven to relieve stress, boosts memory, and inspire creativity. Practice journaling each night to release the thoughts from the day. 

 Journal form

 

Breathing

  • Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathing oxygen brings many benefits to our body. It decreases stress and increases calm. Breathing relieves pain and detoxifies the body. It improves immunity within the body, improves digestion, and lowers blood pressure. 
  • ​4-7-8: breathe in for 4 seconds, hold it for 7 seconds, breathe out for 8 seconds
  • ​Nasal breathing and deep breathing practices are also beneficial

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More resources on breathing:

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Meditation

Meditation is a habitual process of training your mind to focus and redirect your thoughts. You can use it to increase awareness of yourself and your surroundings. Many people think of it to reduce stress and develop concentration. People also use practice to develop other beneficial habits and feelings, such as a positive mood and outlook, self-discipline, healthy sleep patterns and even increased pain tolerance.

​There are two major styles of meditation:​

  1. ​Focused-attention meditation: Concentrates attention on a single object, thought, sound or visualization. It emphasizes ridding your mind of attention and distraction. Meditation may focus on breathing, a mantra or a calming sound.
  2. Open-monitoring meditation: Encourages broadened awareness of all aspects of your environment, train-of-thought and sense of self. It may include becoming aware of thoughts, feelings or impulses that you might normally try to suppress.

Calm and Headspace are two apps that can support this practice

Create a space to still and quiet the mind to best support this practice.

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Additional Resources: