MINDFULNESS
Overview
- Meditation practices, including yoga and tai chi, show consistent benefits in promoting well-being and reducing stress
- 10 minutes or more a day is optimal, plus additionally as needed for anxiety, irritability, or insomnia
- This leads to greater attention, self-awareness, and self-regulation as well as improvement in anxiety, insomnia, inattention, and mood symptoms
Details
- Breathwork and mindfulness-based stress reduction help regulate the brain and autonomic nervous system by adjusting neurotransmitters like inflammatory cytokines, cortisol, and GABA
- This leads to short- and long-term alteration in brain waves, increases gray matter, and improved connectivity within the brain, as well as boosts feel-good chemicals like dopamine and serotonin
3-Minute Mindfulness "Snacks"
- Breathe in 1-2-3-4, then out 1-2-3-4
- Breathe in 1-2-3-4, hold 1-2-3-4, out 1-2-3-4, hold 1-2-3-4
- Breathe in 1-2-3-4, hold 1-2-3-4-5-6-7, out 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8
- Clench your whole body for 5 seconds, then release
- On exhale say to yourself “my body is getting heavy” and imagine that you are sinking into the ground
- On inhale imagine bright healing energy flooding in, on exhale imagine dark unhealthy energy and pain leaving
- Close eyes, focus on the sound and feeling of your breath – when attention wanders, return
** Repeat 5-10 times or set a timer for 1-3 minutes **
Advanced Resources
Mindful.org
We are dedicated to sharing the gifts of mindfulness through content, training, courses, and events—helping people enjoy better health, foster more caring relationships, and cultivate a more compassionate society.
UCSD Center for Mindfulness
All of our courses are mindfulness-based interventions offering variety of mindfulness practices throughout the course. In mindfulness programs, mindfulness practices are at the core.