We often hear the word “mindfulness” but how many of us have actually understood the meaning?

The journey

I have begun on a personal quest or journey to discover what mindfulness means. Or at least what it could mean for me.

From the beginning:

I downloaded a few different guided meditation apps such as Calm, Stop, Breathe & Think, Insight Timer.

I found some more useful than others.

So far:

I learned it’s okay if sometimes I struggle to meditate.

If I start the morning with a quick guided meditation I have more patience for the rest of the day.

More patience means the little things don’t bother me as much.

Settling myself before falling asleep leads to less insomnia.

Doing a little meditation per day helps immensely overall.

My “ah-ha!” moment:

I finally started to understand my mindfulness journey when it was described as daily brain training. I love my brain training apps for maths, English and languages so I added the meditation apps to my list of brain training I do daily.

Things I’m beginning to learn:

Being mindful = being in the present moment.

If my thoughts of the future are making me feel anxious (eg. Before work) then I can help myself be calm and focused.

If my thoughts of the past are also increasing anxiety and sadness, then mindfulness is useful to bring me back to the present.

I’m hoping that meditation will also help reduce outbursts of frustration and help me think before I speak or act.

I learned there’s a type of meditation for increasing self esteem and loving oneself. This is a huge challenge for me but I’m hoping to give it a go soon.

Tips:

• Just a minute or two per day can help
• Stick with it! You can make it a habit to meditate daily
• You can notice thoughts and feelings but don’t let them get to you
• It’s okay if you don’t feel like your mind is settled enough during a meditation
• Use a guided meditation app if you are a beginner

I definitely recommend meditation.

Give it a go. You’ve nothing to lose!