Mindfulness - Take Action

We often get told that mindfulness is a hard skill to learn, especially when trying to combat stress.  And yes, we completely agree.  In times of high stress it's really difficult to commit to learning a new skill to cope and deal with that stress. 

Imagine if you woke up tomorrow and needed a filling in your tooth.  You go to the dentist and say: “What brushing and flossing can I do to sort this out?”  

The dentist looks at you puzzled and replies “the brushing and flossing is designed to help you avoid needing a filling rather than fixing one”

The point here is that healthy habits are designed to keep you well. Instead, humans have a tendency to de-prioritise healthy habits until something is broken. 

In the example of mindfulness the research shows that mindfulness practices help to calm our mind, ease stress and anxiety and over time literally change the size and shape of certain areas of our brain responsible for fear and worry.  The challenge here is that you need to practice a little mindfulness on a regular basis before the overwhelm and overload kicks in.  Then when there is stress or worry that we need to manage, you can draw upon your mindfulness tool to help you through the stress.

Although in this case we are talking specifically about mindfulness, the same applies to exercise, nutrition, breath work, sleep meditation and all the other healthy habits that are there for the taking.

Remember, whether you are brand new to mindfulness or a budding expert, regular practices, dedication and commitment will help you get to your goals.