4 Simple Ways to Live a Mindful Life
What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is being aware of every sensation and movement around you without judgment or bias, it is a form of meditation that allows you to live within the moment. Through breathing exercises and meditative practices, you can reduce stress and anxiety and allow yourself to destress.
Life can be full of thoughts, we might spend much of our time planning, worrying, daydreaming, or going over problems. Living a mindful life allows you to be present without overreacting or feeling stressed.
Meditate as You Go
The science behind meditation is ongoing, but it’s clear that there are many benefits. For example, in one study, long-term practitioners of meditation are able to regulate their emotions better than many counterparts.
Meditation has many benefits
In the study, the practitioners and a control group were given a ten-second blast of intense heat, preceded by a warning. The control group often experienced the same amount of pain anticipating it as they did feeling it. The practitioners, however, showed pain only during the heat blast, showing that they could regulate their emotions and live in the moment, an adaptive state that can be incredibly helpful during daily life. It also indicated that meditation can help you adapt to pain in a healthier way.
Be Aware Of Your Senses
Mindfulness is the practice of living in the moment and listening to your body and its senses. This includes smelling, observing, hearing, tasting, and touching to keep you engaged in the moment. When you walk in a room, do you pay attention to the colors of the walls, the sensation of the couch or your glass, the taste of your drink? If someone were to quiz you on items in the room, would you be able to recall minute details? This is a good practice to try every day in any situation, paying attention allows you to step outside of your mind.
Immerse yourself just noticing things through sight, smell, sound and touch
Instead of worrying about bills, living in the past, or being anxious—you instead observe yourself and your surroundings.
Express Gratitude
Do you tend to think that you always get red lights? Do you ever pay attention to the green lights? A lot of times, our perception can influence the type of day we have. Practicing gratitude can be as easy as keeping a gratitude journal or writing gratitude letters. This will allow you to slow down and go over your day, and to pay attention to how many positive vs. negative words you use.
Writing down three things that you are grateful for every day and why you are grateful can help you realign your perspective and outlook.
Be Compassionate To Yourself
Living in the moment means observing without judgment. Part of the process is being kind to yourself and forgiving yourself when you aren’t successful practicing meditation or in other areas of your life.
Self-compassion means treating yourself the way you would a friend. By observing your pain, you can acknowledge your suffering without falling into self-pity or being able to see yourself differently.