Mindfulness?

[RosieWithTheGoodHair]

Here for traffic

What is it?
What does it do?
Is it a load of tosh?

[Lilybensmum1]

Very valid points here mindfulness alone will not cut it for most people it has worked for me in conjunction with counselling, for anxiety and depression.
5tardusty described it very well and that is exactly how I use it, I'm very suspicious of what I consider alternative practice as a nurse myself I like concrete science bases but, it has really worked for me. That aside its not suitable for everyone and lasttimearound I can hear your point you need actual help and then mindfulness once these are in place. It must be really stressful in your situation but mindfulness won't help you until at least some of this stress is eased.

[lasttimeround]

I'm not against mindfulness but would like it offered alongside rather than instead of core services. Cuts in services round here means that our la is getting very good at offering only the cheap interventions. Support circles and mindfulness there's plenty just not much else anymore.

[lasttimeround]

rosie. I hadn't seen your question befire but i have v disabled child lots of parenting courses and other specialist help from camhs and similar includes bits on mindfulness. It's not unhelpful but sometimes I just think wtaf we need support services and respite and the mindfulness stuff just makes me annoyed - it's such a drop in the ocean of what we need.
A friend of mine in a similar position in terms of severity of child's disability but who knew from birth as it's genetic told me once of being at the hospital in the weeks afterwards for some mindfulness thing for parents with v disabled newborns doing the raisin sucking thing and not knowing whether to laugh or cry. I know there's some studies but j think the impacts are overstated jn the early research and it's a nice cheap service to roll out instead of more expensive respite and support.

[iPost]

I just went back to google to dig up some of the more critical stuff I read. This about potential negative side effects is just one of a fair few articles taking a less enthusiastic look at the practice.

Not saying it's on the money. As is stated in the article, there has been very little work done in terms of exploring that side of the equation, to weigh up how much of an issue it may, or may not be. But I'm fairly risk averse, have a quirky thought process sometimes and some of what people have reported resonates with me. Albeit on a far less dramatic scale. I assumed (and still do to some extent) my sense of panic and "I can't fucking breathe at all if you tell me to focus on it... shit.. that's it, my lungs no longer work.. I'm going to DIE OF NO OXYGEN!" was ADHD related shenanigans to get out of doing it. Which it might be. Cos, aside from the breathing bubbles app, the desire not to do anything mindfulness related is strong in me. 45 seconds into a five minute exercise and I appear to be prepared to believe myself to be about to expire of suffocation rather than carry on.

[5tardusty]

I tend to use it as being in charge of my thoughts and emotions, and recognising when I am making a situation worse for myself. I.e not allowing myself to wallow and believe that my life is sad and awful because of X situation; reminding myself that actually in the grand scheme of things X could be a lot worse and to be happy about AB and C.

I believe that being able to react to inevitable tough life events in a proportional, rational and measured way is helpful for my long term mental health

[FaithAscending]

I've found it very helpful. I use the headspace app. I struggle with anxiety issues. Mindfulness has helped me realise that my thoughts are just thoughts - they're not actually me! Doing mindfulness stops me from getting stuck in negative thoughts and let's them come and go.

[Chickydoo]

So is meditation underpinned by science.
They are the same.
Meditation I think scares some people. They think that it is set only in Buddhism or Hinduism. The word mindfulness is more appealing to Western palates.
Maybe you could explain the difference between the two??

[iPost]

When I was diagnosed with ADHD the psych suggested it. As do most of the sites for adult ADHD. However to date I haven't found any striking evidence to support it as a therapy/aid. Although I've found a fair few sources pointing out how weak the evidence is.

This may be due to unconcious cherry picking on my part. I hate the idea of the whole thing. Possibly because anything even slightly meditation-y/yogic/breathing based in conjunction with me doing it ... makes me itch. Which could be the ADHD reacting to the thought of doing things it doesn't want to do. Like stand still, or work on quieting the thought-party in my head. It would much rather have racing thought and hyper-focus on interesting things.p

I don't know if it's mindful related, but I did find one thing I like. It's made for children... "breathing bubbles" app by AT&T aspire . Free, cute and surprisingly effective. Although I feel a bit crushed that my brain evidently has the concentration levels of your average six year old.

[Schmoozer]

Mindfulness is underpinned by neuroscience
It's so much more than meditation alone

[Chickydoo]

Mindfulness is meditation

[Chickydoo]

Meditation is the stilling of the fluctuations of the mind ( Patanjali's yoga sutra AD 200)
It was known as Dhyana. The 7th step in the 8 limbs of yoga.
The 6th step is Dharana. This can be looked on as concentration on something, be it breath, object or being in the now.
There is you the person who perceives, & then the object ( or whatever your focus is on) Other thoughts come & go, but you the perceiver still try to remain focused on that which is perceived.
When there is nothing else but you & the object, no other thoughts coming in, so you are almost one with the object, that is Dhyana or meditation. It is not about having an empty mind (impossible really, unless asleep or dead) but a mind free from distraction. mindfulness is I guess more Dharana than Dhyana.
One can lead to another. Just another step along the way. Mindfulness is just a less intense word to use.

[HermioneWeasley]

Meditation is normally the act of clearing your mind, whereas mindfulness is more about focusing on the present.

Lots of credible research to say it's as effective as meds in terms of treating moderate depression and anxiety.

I don't do it myself - I don't feel the need, but would be open to it if you're feeling stressed etc.

[timelytess]

It works.

[sportinguista]

I learnt mindfulness when I was going through a bad patch at work. I wasn't recommended it but came across it by chance and decided it sounded a good idea (it was in the Boots free mag). It has helped me and I now do it every day which gives me space, energy and a bit of peace in the million and one things I have to do. It got me through at a bad time and is useful now when I'm not.

One site I find really useful is zenhabits. It has a lot of good exercises and tips which help you live a different lifestyle. They also run programmes which you can join if you want to concentrate on more specific things.

It really does help you view difficult things with more understanding and less permanence.

[MatildaTheCat]

I did a brilliant free online course on Mindfulness with FutureLearn recently. I think they are running it again soon. Mindfulness meditation is being very focussed on clearing your mind and 'being' whereas living mindfully is everyday noticing your surroundings, focusing on one task and living in the moment.

One phrase that really resonated with me was ,'What is, not what if?'

I'd done a course before for pain management and only partially 'got it' so really benefitted from doing the course. For me it's easier than trying to learn it from a book.

[Lilybensmum1]

I use this not daily but when I feel I'm loosing control of a situation or feeling negative and down, I was treated for depression and anxiety related to a close family members chronic ill health.

I was very much dismissive of these sorts of things until I started counselling and I can honestly say mindfulness has changed my life. I don't say that easily and yes you could argue it's the new buzzword for concentrating but it is so much more than that. It is fairly simplistic ie live for the now, concentrate on what is happening right now but there is an art too it, anyone can do it, but it does require practice. I don't do it everyday I don't need to some do.

There is a book called full catastrophe living which I think is brilliant it really help me identify how to help myself and how to turn around perceived negative situations. I have read many self help books and this is by far the best. We all live in a busy chaotic world with a million things to do mindfulness just helps ease that process. Give it a go you have nothing to loose.

[StillDrSethHazlittMD]

Mimi described it "A form of mediation that requires you to concentrate on the exact thing you are doing and nothing else I.e. The act of typing your OP without your mind wandering"

I don't get why we need a new "buzzword" for "concentrating".

[redexpat]

I don't get it, I just dont really get on with it, but I know others who do and swear by it. I find my quit nailbiting hypnotherapy app much more effective.

[Jaimx86]

There's a free book on mindfulness with one of the health mags this month - think it's Healthy Living?

[yorkshapudding]

There is a growing body of evidence that Mindfulness can be helpful for a number of mental health conditions including Anxiety, Depression, personality disorders and for those with substance misuse issues. I have used it with young people who had issues with emotional dysregulation and self harm and seen very positive results. When I worked in mental health I saw so many service users benefiting from Mindfulness I decided to use it myself as a way of managing work related stress and found it invaluable. My sleep improved and I felt much less overwhelmed. It takes practice, perseverance and an open mind initially but once you have the skills it becomes easy to build Mindfulness into your routine.

[makingacupoftea]

It seems to be the "in" thing. I had counselling a while ago and she was constantly wittering on about this. I tried it but it seems abut crap.

My fav was when she asked me to take time on my walk to the school and smell the flowers (I live on a housing estate so not exactly full of nature and I take 6 young children to school each morning ). I'm real life I think mindfulness is wishful thinking !

[ginorwine]

There is a fantastic book by mark williams on mindfulness , which is task focused as well as theory so that you follow and build the practice . It's really very good .
Via Amazon etc .

[Chickydoo]

Just another word for meditation, been around for 1000's of years.

[99GBPChargeToUseMyPostsJournos]

Mindfulness can be in the form of meditation, but it can also be used when doing the housework or taking a phone call or basically anytime.

Not all meditation is mindfulness meditation.

They are very strongly related, but they are not the same.