TOBY MIZZI, COUNSELLING PSYCHOLOGIST, STRONG MINDS PSYCHOLOGY
Mindfulness can be practised anywhere and anytime. In fact, the more you practice mindfulness, the better you will likely get at it. Like almost anything that you want to become better at, practice makes perfect. Mindfulness can be practised informally or formally. Informal practice just means bringing your awareness to whatever you are doing. Good examples can be walking or running (paying attention to the feeling of your feet hitting the pavement for example), eating (paying attention to the various sensory experiences involved when eating, such as taste, smell, sight, and texture), brushing your teeth (noticing the bristles on the brush against your teeth, noticing the flavour etc) or any other daily activity. Bringing a sense of mindfulness to your interactions with others (e.g., children) is particularly important. The more we become mindful of our own experiences, the better we will become at being mindful of others’ experiences.
This week, trying practicing informal mindfulness by stopping and bringing your full attention to the present moment. Whilst engaging in an activity (e.g., listening to music can be a nice example), pay attention to that very moment and notice (without judgment) your thoughts, feelings and sensory experiences (e.g., what you can hear, see, touch, taste). Also notice any physiological sensations within the body (e.g., aches, pains, tingles, areas of tension). Just pay attention to what is going on in the present moment. Please keep in mind that whenever you are engaged in an activity such as driving or operating any vehicle or potentially dangerous machinery, your full attention should be paid to that particular activity.
About the Author:
Toby shares his time between the Strong Minds Psychology team, Swinburne University, and his young family. He is passionate about providing individualised support, and empowering people to enhance their mental health. Toby provides counselling and therapy for children, adolescents, adults and couples – helping with depression, anxiety, self-esteem, relationship difficulties, grief &loss, and family conflict. Mindful Mondays will be a regular blog on our website and Facebook page.
If you would like to discuss how the Strong Minds Psychology team can support your mental health needs, complete the form below or call us on 0417 389 941.
[contact-form][contact-field label=”Name” type=”name” required=”1″ /][contact-field label=”Email” type=”email” required=”1″ /][contact-field label=”Comment” type=”textarea” required=”1″ /][/contact-form]