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Selah
Selah
What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is about being fully aware and in touch with what you are doing and feeling. A lot of the time we spend in 'auto pilot' and so lose touch with our actual lives. Mindfulness helps you to be fully present in the precious moments of our lives.
It was created by Jon Kabat-Zinn in the late 70's to help chronically ill patients, who were not responding well to traditional treatments. Since then substantial research has been done to demonstrate how mindfulness based interventions improve mental and physical health.
There are some lovely attitudes and qualities that underpin the mindfulness practice. They are the stance we hope to bring to the practice and also a consequence of practicing:
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non-judging
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patience
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beginners mind
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trust
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non-striving
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acceptance
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letting go
I love this quote by the Korean Zen Master Seung Sahn, which for me fully explains mindfulness:
"So when reading only read. When eating – only eat. When thinking – only think"
Benefits of Mindfulness
There have been numerous studies done to evaluate the benefits of mindfulness, here are just a few:
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stress reduction
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improves focus
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lifts mood
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boosts immune system
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tanegative thinking around the body
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increases happiness, optimism and helps encourage positive emotions
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lowers blood pressure
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reduces depression
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reduces anxiety
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helps to gain a control on thought processes
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gives clarity in thinking
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helps combat addictive cravings
