Mindfulness is our ability to be fully present in the moment. Undertaking mindfulness practice can help decrease stress and sadness, increase focus levels and happiness, according to general mindfulness research.
As our CLaS page notes:
Mindfulness is paying attention to what you are doing or how you are feeling right now (in the present moment).
Practising mindfulness helps us become more focused and aware, and more able to direct our attention to where we want it to be.
We practise mindfulness by choosing to focus on something, and then bringing our attention back to this when it becomes distracted.
Mindfulness meditation is like exercise for your brain. Just like you do exercise to keep your body healthy, you meditate to keep your brain healthy.
Every time you meditate you are strengthening your mindfulness muscle.
We can start to develop the skill of mindfulness by practising paying attention to our body. Our bodies are always with us!
The Resilience Project states that mindfulness meditation helps to:
• reduce depression
• reduces anxiety
• improves decision making
• improves ability to focus
• relieves stress
• prevents heart disease
• lower blood pressure
• reduce chronic pain
• improve sleep
• makes you less nervous
Smiling Minds - an app used throughout the school
headspace - Mindfulness for your every day life