What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us.
Mindfulness is a quality that every human being already possesses, it’s not something you have to conjure up, you just have to learn how to access it.
Image sourced from: University of Michigan
According to a 2019 study by the Pew Research Center, 61% of teens feel pressure to get good grades; and 29% feel a lot of pressure to look a certain way and fit in socially. Plus, there are pressures to be involved in sports, to participate in extracurricular activities, and to get into a good college. Even just dealing with day-to-day life can be stressful and overwhelming.
Young people today have many reasons to feel stressed. From heavy course loads and full athletic schedules, to friendship drama and even violence at school, the stress levels of American students are rising. Combine these pressures and stresses with the increasing rates anxiety and depression among teens, and it is not surprising that improving mental health has become a major concern for both parents and educators. More and more people are turning to mindfulness as a way to help teens to cope with the negative stressors and feelings in their lives.
In the most simplified terms, mindfulness means paying full attention to something and not thinking about anything else in that moment. It means slowing down and really taking notice of what you are doing, even if it means just focusing on your breath. Being mindful is the opposite of multitasking.
When children and teens focus on being mindful, they slow down, take their time, and focus on something in a way that is both relaxing and stress-free. Mindfulness meditation usually involves some combination of breathing exercises, visualization, body awareness, and relaxation.
This is Dr. Dzung Vo, he is a pediatrician specializing in adolescent medicine at British Columbia's Children's Hospital, and he is also a clinical associate professor at the University of British Columbia's Faculty of Medicine in Vancouver, Canada.
I have been using some of his guided meditations on his website. Each guided meditation is a different length, ranging from as little as three minutes to as long as half an hour, which is very helpful when you are trying to fit mindfulness into your schedule!
It’s a busy world. You fold the laundry while keeping one eye on the kids and another on the television. You plan your day while listening to the radio and commuting to work, and then plan your weekend. But in the rush to accomplish necessary tasks, you may find yourself losing your connection with the present moment—missing out on what you’re doing and how you’re feeling. Did you notice whether you felt well-rested this morning or that forsythia is in bloom along your route to work?
Mindfulness is the practice of purposely focusing your attention on the present moment—and accepting it without judgment. Mindfulness is now being examined scientifically and has been found to be a key element in stress reduction and overall happiness.
Professor emeritus Jon Kabat-Zinn, founder and former director of the Stress Reduction Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, helped to bring the practice of mindfulness meditation into mainstream medicine and demonstrated that practicing mindfulness can bring improvements in both physical and psychological symptoms as well as positive changes in health, attitudes, and behaviors.
Image by: Doug Neil