Being mindful means having your mind on what you are doing. It's the opposite of rushing or doing too many things at once. To be mindful, you slow down to take your time. You do one thing at a time. You focus on what you’re doing in a calm way. At each developmental stage, mindfulness can be a useful tool for decreasing anxiety and promoting happiness. Mindfulness is a simple technique that emphasizes paying attention to the present moment in an accepting, nonjudgmental manner.

Mindfulness and the Brain

Research shows that when we become stressed parts of the brain stop working. The Amygdala, a very old region of the brain associated with fear and negative emotions, takes over.

Mindfulness practice can help us relieve stress and anxiety. Studies show that mindfulness disconnects the Amygdala from the Anterior Cingulate Cortex, which processes conflict and ongoing states. In other words, it helps us reduce the effects of stress and manage our thoughts and emotions.

Mindfulness also improves our ability to focus, reason clearly, and self-regulate. MRIs have shown that mindfulness can activate the Prefrontal Cortex, which regulates thoughts. It also activates the Posterior Cingulate Cortex, which regulates mind-wandering, self-referential thought processes, and memory recollection.