Introduction to Mindfulness

Literally translated, mindfulness means "attentiveness. Mindfulness is about living with attention. In this movement within psychotherapy people learn to be aware of everything that occurs in the here and now, without judging it or wanting to change it.

Often our thoughts are in the past or the future and we focus on the negative things. We think about what we still have to do or what that colleague meant with that nasty comment or thoughtlessly eat a piece of chocolate. As a result, we "miss" many things in the present.

Mindfulness exercises teach you to look with childlike eyes again and to experience each moment as if it were the first time. You can learn to feel, smell and hear more consciously by going into nature: two hours a month of forest bathing, or immersing yourself in the forest, already helps to heal physically and mentally.

Where does mindfulness come from?

The first mindfulness training programs were developed in the late years of the last century by the American microbiologist Jon Kabat-Zinn for out-of-treatment patients with chronic (pain) symptoms. Kabat-Zinn, who himself meditated, thought that mindful meditation could help them get a better grip on their pain, their grief about it and their worries for the future.

Mindfulness has since spread rapidly around the world: in health care, but also in companies, institutions and among individuals. The positive effects of mindfulness - on stress, depression, worry and pain, among others - have now been scientifically proven.

But how is it actually possible that mindfulness meditation is so beneficial? Neuroscientists discovered that the key lies with amygdala, a brain region that functions as an alarm system. The amygdala appeared to react less sensitively when you consciously name thoughts or physical sensations. For example, by consciously noting, "I'm stressed," the stress already decreases. Who is mindfulness for?

In principle, everyone can benefit from mindfulness. We all suffer from stress and the continuous pressure to be available at all times. Mindfulness can be a good way to experience more peace and to prevent burn-out.

From more than 1400 studies, mindfulness also proved effective for depression, chronic pain, concentration disorders, cardiac arrhythmia, stomach problems, addictions, high blood pressure, anxiety and persistent insomnia. However, it should be noted that confronting fear and grief can be difficult. It is therefore advisable to take a mindfulness training with a qualified teacher if you have serious complaints.

In addition, it also depends on the type of person you are. An experiment showed that especially people who are brooding improve from a mindfulness training. For those who are naturally inclined to think negatively, it helps to examine all those worries in a non-judgmental way. More positive-minded people may be better off distracting themselves with happy thoughts. What can mindfulness bring us?

Mindfulness teaches you to really be there. Also during everyday things, like riding a bike, eating and taking a shower. Every time your thoughts wander - and they often do - you bring your attention back to the now in a friendly way: to what you are doing, feeling and experiencing. This eliminates the feeling that you are being lived with and you experience less stress and turmoil.

In addition, you learn during a mindfulness training to accept all sensations as they are, without trying to change them, because that would only accentuate them. Instead, you look at them from a distance, without drawing any conclusions. By doing so, you make the problem less big and dominant.

The same goes for negative thoughts, such as "I'm not doing a good job," or "I must be making a bad impression. Thank your brain kindly for the analysis, without taking the conclusion for granted. Because for many people, that is the most important and liberating insight of mindfulness: thoughts are just thoughts and we don't have to identify with them.

What are the benefits of mindfulness

Mindfulness has a variety of benefits that have now been scientifically proven in a wide range of studies. Here are the most important effects: Your thoughts become less negative and intens. Stressful thoughts often grind on and on, without leading to a solution. By focusing on what is happening in the now, you interrupt that thought flow and give your brain something else to do. Your experiences become more vivid and intense. Those who live mindfully are more attentive to the little happinesses: the sun on your skin, a bird singing, or something funny you see on the street.

You become more familiar with what goes on in your body and head. For example, we usually only feel stress at the end of the day, when we go home with a headache and pain in our shoulders. But if you regularly concentrate on all your sensations, including those in your body, you will notice that your shoulders tighten involuntarily.

You can cope better with physical and emotional pain. Patients not only suffer from physical complaints, but also from stress, despair and frustration over the pain. By accepting their physical pain, their mental pain diminished. How does a person become more mindful?

Mindfulness takes quite a bit of practice. Fortunately, you can find many meditation exercises to help you get started. And a great way to practice mindfulness is to write down your happy moments for a week, for example. That will cheer you up enormously.

Or do a body scan where you take the time to observe how you are doing. In a short body scan of three minutes you focus on the breath and notice what is happening in the body. In a long body scan you take all the time you need to walk through each part of the body, to experience and feel. Tensions, pains: everything is allowed to be there.

You can also run, walk, garden or photograph mindfully. And you can also watch mindful soccer - which is fun even if you don't like soccer. What matters is that you always look at the world around you and yourself with fresh eyes.

Training mindfulness

If you find practicing by yourself difficult, you can follow an online training mindfulness. In a mindfulness training you learn a new way of dealing with old patterns that get in your way.

Because mindfulness is based on Eastern techniques, such as meditation and yoga, sitting meditation, attention and breathing exercises and mindful movement are part of the training. A mindfulness listening bundle can also get you started.

Do you resent when you've let another whole day go by pretty mindlessly? Then remember that it is impossible to be in the here and now all the time with your thoughts. That too is mindfulness: learning to accept that sometimes you are not mindful.