Practicing mindfulness sets a stable base to build on during your recovery journey, allows you to accept what is out of control, and make peace with day-to-day experiences.
Mindfulness can be practiced anywhere and at any moment in time. Even as you’re reading this now. It does not require equipment, money, or fancy studios. All you need is yourself and a few helpful tips to guide you along the way.
Start from Within
Listen to your thoughts by acknowledging them as they enter your mind. Don’t try to force them out or scold yourself if your mind wanders into negative thoughts. Mindfulness will create a habit of being conscious of your self talk and making peace with it.
Guided Mindfulness
Once you can just be, try focusing more on what you desire. Take slow, controlled, deep breaths and guide yourself through thoughts of gratitude and appreciation. Develop simple mantras you can repeat in your head to keep you focused on the simple task at hand.
Experience Life’s Sensations
There are 86,400 seconds in a day and five senses to experience them with. Enjoy every last one. Notice the pleasant way a stranger’s smile looks, the scent of your freshly brewed coffee, the softness of a pillow underneath your head as you lie in bed. Appreciate each and every sensation as you experience it.
Focus on Now
There’s two things you can’t control – what happened yesterday, and what happens tomorrow. Focus only on today and what’s happening in each moment as you experience it both inside yourself and throughout your external experiences.
We could go on and on about the benefits of mindfulness therapy and the various ways to practice it. But don’t take our word for it, read through these 10 more amazing tips for mastering mindfulness from people we admire.
One Mindful Minute
“You can introduce short ‘meditation minutes’ throughout your day. You will need a clock or timer for this exercise. Set the time for one minute. During this time, your task is to focus your entire attention on your breathing, and nothing else.” – Mrs. Mindfulness
Notice all the Five Senses
“Pause to soak up the beautiful aroma of your coffee. The salty ocean air. The beauty and diversity of flowers in your neighbourhood. The mouth-watering waft of wood-fire pizza coming from your local Italian restaurant as you pass it. Notice how your clothing feels against your body. The soft clean bed sheets on your skin in the morning…” – Notes on Bliss
Start Your Day Hydrated
“Pretty self-explanatory: Drink a big glass of water! Especially when you first wake up. This might sound silly, but being dehydrated can zap your energy—at least that’s my experience! Try staying hydrated today and see what a difference it makes. Also, use it as a chance to pause and know you’re doing something good for body and mind.” – Modern Day OM
Disconnect from Technology
“An important part of my mindfulness routine is avoiding looking at my phone for an hour before bed. This simple practice actually helps me to sleep better; looking at a screen has been proven to wake up the brain and suppress melatonin. In the mornings, I don’t look at my phone until after meditating and eating.” – The Wonder Forest
Find Something to be Grateful For
“Even when you’re at your lowest point, finding something to be grateful for is possible and it can help a lot. When you’re so caught up in negative thoughts, it can be hard to see that. Gratitude has been shown to alleviate stress and depression, improve relationships, and help people feel more happy in general.” – The Inspiration Lady
Be Conscious of What You Say
“Using negative language can be a self-fulfilling prophecy because you’re telling your brain it’s about to have a bad time. Instead, try to use more positive words as descriptors. It may seem corny at first, but it really does help.” – Gen Twenty
Just Be
“Sitting in the garden watching the birds; listening to the waves at the beach; taking a walk through nature; these are wonderful ways to live in the present moment and to just be. Activities like these offer moments of mindfulness, which are like little holidays for the mind. These moments restore mental balance and give us a chance to destress.” – Purpose Fairy
Recognize it’s a Journey
“We need to be mindful that things take time. Figuring life out takes time. The journey is not always a linear trajectory, instead usually a long windy road. It’s a marathon not a sprint, and it’s all about the long-game.” – Mindful Mermaid
Focus on Details
“Stand up and stretch, notice the way your body feels and how much more awake you feel after. (Great for mid afternoon slumps)” -Charlotte Fay
Return to Your Thoughts
“Whenever your mind gets pulled away by thoughts (which it will) just notice where you have gone and then coming back kindly and gently to the bodily sensations.” – Love Style Mindfulness
Our mission is to encourage self-regulation through mindfulness, and allow you to boost your autonomy and acceptance to live a healthy, fulfilled life. We hope that these tips will help you along your journey to get there.
If you or a loved one are in need of rehab in the Utah area, and would like to incorporate mindfulness therapy into your recovery program, please give us a call. We can help.
