Mindfulness

Attending mind-body classes, reading self-help and new age literature, and meditation can be fantastic tools for exploring mindfulness and bringing us back to ourselves.

I love those times each week when I am able to devote myself to the pursuit of peace. Maybe a morning meditation while the house is still quiet….or a weekly yoga class….or walking in nature of an afternoon. I call these my anchor points. These anchor points are my time to let go of my daily tasks and the running commentary in my head and for me to feel how I am….and who I am. Having one or more anchor points each week enables me to set a platform for mindfulness and simply being.

In daily life however this sense of peace and just being can become a little lost or side lined. The trouble is after my yoga class or walk or meditation I can quickly become tense and frazzled as I return to dealing with the demands of my life. It is not always easy to feel at peace while simultaneously organising kids, the house, fitting in paid work, caring for other dependants and any other multitude of things which keep us busy!

I believe we can also learn how to connect and be mindful as we go about the business of living, however, by incorporating smaller mindfulness moments to help bring us back to ourselves. If we have an established weekly pattern of mindfulness, through our anchor points, then sometimes it only takes a moment or two of inner reflection to bring us back to this sense of being. Yet in this moment we are letting go, becoming still, feeling peace and being mindful. A small moment but a big change in our mood, thought patterns and physiology.

Here are some of my favourite daily mindfulness moments which help me bring some balance back into my life:

1.      Breathe - simply observe each breath as it comes in and out. Don’t try to change anything just observe;

2.      Relax muscles - notice the tension that can be held in many areas and let it dissolve;

3.      Flow – focus on the present, just doing one thing at a time, and enjoy the peace and ease this offers;

4.      Connect to colour - enjoy the healing benefits of what is often right in front of our eyes. Blue and green especially are calming and balancing colours;

5.      Just being - a few moments of doing nothing, just letting it all go, calms the mind and body.

You may already practise some of these or have others of your own. I believe having a small array of mindfulness moments can help us maintain a feeling of ease, peace and calm in our daily life. It is a wonderful gift we can give ourselves.

Kerrie Clayton

Dip. Aroma, Dip. Nut, Cert. CT, Reiki Master, B. Ec (Hons), M Comm (Hons) is a qualified Holistic Practitioner with over 15 years experience in the Natural Health industry. She specialises in aromatherapy, colour therapy, reiki and mindfulness; and enjoys writing and researching in her spare time.