What is mindfulness and how to put it into practice?

This article is for you if you want to know more about the definition, science, benefits and practice of mindfulness.

1. What is mindfulness?
   In simple terms, mindfulness means to pay attention to the present moment. It seems easy but the truth is that we often let our mind wander: We either worry about the past or plan the future, instead of enjoying the present. Based on the philosophy of (Hatha) yoga and (Vipassana) meditation, Jon Kabat-Zinn studied the great benefits of these techniques in patients with chronic pain and created the Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program in 1979. “Mindfulness is the presence of heart.” and as such it means to focus on what we are doing, feeling, thinking, experiencing with our senses: “The only time we are ever alive in, the only time we can learn anything, express any kind of love or emotion, the only time we can be in our own body, the only time we can see or hear or smell or taste or touch or communicate is now.“ , explains Jon Kabat-Zinn.
   Another important aspect of mindfulness is to observe our feelings, thoughts, sensations with full acceptance and without judging them (no matter whether we feel happiness/joy or pain/stress; no matter what kind of thoughts we have: We don’t judge if they are good or bad, we just observe.) Mindfulness is not a technique, it’s a way to stop thinking so much, to just be – in balance – and to fully connect with our body.
   “When we start to play attention to our mind and body, it’s like reclaiming our own life.”
   I recommend you to watch these 2 very short videos from Jon Kabat-Zinn (the second video has subtitles in Spanish):
   https://youtu.be/xoLQ3qkh0w0?si=yisR59et7mxjinsE
   https://youtu.be/ybgH4WQH9_k?si=kl3iYmo4p2yubhIe
   
   
2. How to put mindfulness into practice?
   I recommend you to sit comfortably on a chair or the floor but you can also practice standing or lying down. Feel your breath traveling through your body, feel your inhalations and exhalations and see what’s happening in this moment: How’s my breath? How does my body feel? What emotions am I feeling? What am I thinking? A great technique is to do a body scan focusing on different parts of your body (eg. head to toe), see how they feel (How’s your head? How is your neck? Your hands and feet? etc.) and relax them. Observe yourself with love, curiosity and kindness.
   What often happens in this moment – automatically – is that you have 100 thoughts rushing through your head. That’s totally normal, it’s called “the monkey mind” in meditation. Try to stay still, keep your eyes closed, observe your thoughts, stay curious. Maybe the number of thoughts will decrease, your thoughts become slower, you become calmer. Whatever happens – try to sit still for at least 5 minutes. Just try it. Dedicate yourself that time.
   If you are just starting this practice, I recommend you to do it in the morning after waking up or in the evening, just before going to bed. But of course you can do it whenever it feels good to you. My recommendation is to do this at least once daily, and slowly increase the time. Especially in moments where you experience a lot of thoughts or emotions rushing through (positive or negative), I recommend you to stop for a moment, close your eyes, breathe and observe yourself.
   “It is indeed a radical act of love to just sit down and be quiet for a time by yourself.” (Jon Kabat-Zinn)
   Another, beautiful form of practice is to pay attention during our daily activities: When you take your first step in the morning, brush your teeth, have a shower, drink or eat something, go for a walk, take a public transport or your car, … try to slow down, concentrate, focus on your surroundings, your senses, your experience. In the following article, you can find a few ideas: https://littlehealthyhabits.com/start-your-day-consciously-and-calm/
   The official 8-weeks MBSR program can be studied in different institutions around the world (in Spain: Nirakara).
   
   
3. What are the benefits of mindfulness?
   Just as the name MBSR states, Jon Kabat-Zinn has shown with his researches, that the practice of mindfulness helps us to reduce stress, both physically and mentally. The neuroscientist Dr. Nazareth Castellanos has become very famous in Spain over the last years, researching and explaining the positive impacts of meditation in our immune system, brain activity, reaction to stress and how it can even change and regenerate the structure of our brain. If you speak Spanish and want to learn more, I recommend you to read her book “neurociencia del cuerpo” (“neuroscience of the body”). I really hope that her books will be available in other languages soon. For the meantime, I’ve found the following article that summarises her findings in English: https://latinamericanpost.com/life/the-body-knows-what-the-mind-has-not-yet-realized/
   As mindfulness helps us to understand ourselves better and develop more self-awareness, we also improve our emotional intelligence skills, which are key in our relationships, when it comes to collaborating with others in any (professional) context and especially as the leader of a team. (Source and insights: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2019/06/11/how-to-develop-emotional-intelligence-using-mindfulness/)
   
   From my personal experience, I can confirm the benefits as I’m slowly experiencing them within myself as well as observing others in different workshops, eg. when someone tries the body scan for the first time. It’s amazing how good it makes us feel to take a moment to connect to our body. This doesn’t mean that there are no moments of stress anymore – there still are and always will be, but mindfulness helps us to cope better with them. In any case: It’s a practice for our whole life.
   By the way, when I started with yoga and meditation, it was really hard for me to sit still. It’s very common. So if it’s not easy in the beginning, don’t worry, it requires time and practice. Be kind to yourself and be patient. Here’s how I started (and struggled) during my first meditations in India: https://littlehealthyhabits.com/how-to-experience-complete-silence-in-your-head/

If you have any questions, please let me know in the comments. I would love to support you with your practice.