Mindfullness

If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future. If you are at peace you are living in the present.

Lao Tzu

What is mindfulness and what is it good for?

Mindfulness is a fancy term for living in the moment. It means being fully present and focused on the now, without worrying about the future or ruminating on the past.

One of mindfulness's uses is bringing peace and calm to any moment.

Mindfulness is good for people who suffer from anxiety or depression. It's also helpful for people trying to get or stay clean. Mindfulness can be used to help when you're dealing with drug cravings or negative thoughts by bringing you back to the present.

If you suffer from anxiety or depression or are struggling living sober then mindfulness can be a great tool for you. You don’t need to be clean to practice mindfulness. Mindfulness can be used by anyone to help improve your life.

How to practice mindfulness.

There are 2 good ways to start practicing mindfulness.

The first way is to sit down and meditate on the moment.

You do this by focusing on your 5 senses.

Sit down on a chair and get comfortable. Then go through your senses and see what you notice. Feel the chair pressing against your body, feel your feet on the floor. Pay attention to the room around you, see what it looks like, pay attention to details. Listen for any sounds. Whenever you find your mind wandering bring it back to the moment by focusing on your senses. You can also suck on a candy or a Hershey kiss while you do this to bring in your sense of taste to the exercise.

The second way to practice mindfulness is when performing simple tasks like showering or shaving. For example when your shaving pay attention to the sensations, the shaver on your skin, the shaving cream, the smell. The idea is to keep your mind focused on the task at hand without letting other thoughts intrude. The same goes for showering. Focus on your task, soaping up, drying off, ect. . Even when you are relaxing pay attention to the sensation of the water flow hitting your body. Focus on your 5 senses and what you are doing.

You’ll find that your mind is a much more peaceful and calm place when your staying in the moment.

Using the technique in everyday Life.

Once you master the basics you can start using mindfulness in your everyday life. How often and when you use it is up to you. Some people like too stay in a state of mindfulness all day always being present. Others like to use mindfulness to ground themselves in times or situations when they are feeling down or stressed.

However you decide to use it mindfulness is a great technique for dealing with emotional and mental struggles.

Please leave your experiences using mindfulness in the comments below or in our forum.

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