Themes From The Therapy Room - Episode 2 - Why Practice Mindfulness

Why Practice Mindfulness?

In my latest 'Themes From The Therapy Room' vlog, I'm looking at a discussion I have frequently - why practice mindfulness?

There is so much empirical evidence out there that supports the benefits of a mindfulness practice. Yet, many people really struggle with keeping the practice going. This is understandably if you're not seeing benefits from it immediately. I encourage everyone to maintain it though, as the benefits will become more obvious over time.

Reason 1: Being Present

Many people seem to live their lives living in either the past or the future. Their mind can go back and be 'stuck' in what losses have happened. Alternatively, their mind may go into the future and worry about things that have yet to happen. Being able to 'be present to this moment' can be useful to 'just be'. It can help us to remember that, in this moment, we are ok.

Reason 2: Brain Training

People will go to the gym on a regular basis in order to ensure that their bodies are strong. They know that they have to put in a routine in order to build muscle, stay lean, and feel good. A mindfulness practice is a gym for the mind. It is about training the brain as to which distraction it will be distracted by. Do we want to be distracted by the monkey mind chatter, or do we want to choose our distraction such as the breath?

Reason 3: Becoming the Observer

Lastly, a mindfulness practice allows you to become the observer of your thoughts. So many of us will put so much power into our thoughts and accept them as facts. By becoming an observer of our thoughts, we can recognise that they're just thoughts and let them go. We can acknowledge the thought, thank it, and let it go.

Why Pratice Mindfulness? Why Not!

Often people will tell me that they've 'tried' to practice mindfulness however it has been 'too hard'. They'll complain about there being too many thoughts. It is often at this point that I remind them that, yes, this is the point of practicing mindfulness. This is why we do it. But unless we start to do it, then nothing changes.

Even dedicating 10 consecutive days to a mindfulness practice of 5-10 minutes should begin to yield benefits.

It is also important to understand that it isn't something you 'master'. Some days will be easy, while other days will feel harder. That's ok, after all, you are only human.

Themes From The Therapy Room - Why Practice Mindfulness?

Below is the second episode of 'Themes From The Therapy Room'. I do hope you'll enjoy it, and if you do, subscribe to my Youtube channel for more content.