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The implications for mindfulness during a global pandemic are broad”
Lately, one doesn't have to look far to see mention of mindfulness, whether it be in books, magazines (check out “Mindful” magazine online), or in workshops and adult learning courses throughout our communities (Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction or MBSR, developed by Jon Kabat- Zinn and his group, is the original example). Mindfulness, like yoga, was once viewed in the West as an obscure spiritual practice associated with Buddhism and other Eastern traditions, but it's become a mainstream practice for emotional health and wellness in the Western world.
With all this talk about it - and some would say too much talk about it - you may find yourself wondering if the concept has been overdone, and what it even means at this point? At the risk of adding to the pile of materials on the topic, I’m writing about it today, because I think simple strategies for presence and self-care are essential during stressful times (like in a pandemic), and mindfulness fits the bill.
What exactly is “mindfulness”?
To start with, mindfulness is about being rather than doing. It's a process of becoming fully present to one's experience in the moment, which happens as we focus on our senses, and attend to our internal thoughts and feelings, as well as to the happenings in our environment. But that's not all. Mindfulness practice adds a beautiful layer of acceptance to our awareness, as we allow ourselves to fully experience the present moment, without attempting to judge or change that experience.
So mindfulness is essentially being fully present in the moment, as is.
The explanation sounds deceptively simple, enough to make you think you may have missed something. But stop and think for a moment about how you typically move through your day. When is the last time you were fully present in the moment, and not trying to change your experience? If you stopped to check in on your experience, say on the average weekday morning, what would it sound like? Maybe... “I don't know how I'm going to get everything I need to done today.....how am I supposed to eat healthily with no groceries....how am I supposed to keep up a workout routine from home? Maybe I should do some kind of cleanse.... My chest feels tight and my shoulders are heavy... I wonder what I'll say in today's team meeting...I hope no one asks me any questions about this project.” Any of this sound familiar? So often our minds and bodies are moving through the day at full tilt, with our minds running free to various points of stress and our bodies following suit.
The benefit of being mindful
So how does stopping to become aware of our experience in the moment help, or make any difference in our coping? That's the fascinating part. It turns out that we humans are wired with our “fight, flight, or freeze” response, among other things, to be alert for possible threats in our environment, and to avoid unpleasant emotions and experiences as much as possible. So as we encounter the stress of an average day, we may be both preparing for any possible threats, and also trying to avoid the unpleasant feelings and experiences we associate with them. That means we're working hard behind the scenes, putting a lot of effort into managing our thoughts and feelings, all of which can be draining and counter-productive to having vitality.
Here's where mindfulness has its impact. In taking a moment to breathe, to just be, we stop the treadmill of feeling, planning, and judging that may be going on. We simply note what's happening inside without needing to fix, solve, or react to it, and we let ourselves be. Try that on for a moment. Just writing it causes me to relax a bit. In letting go of our expectations for the future, and our efforts to change or prepare, we find the space to be alive to our actual experience, and, over time, to appreciate the moments where life is actually lived.
The implications for mindfulness during a global pandemic are broad. Most of us around the world are presently living and working at home, socially isolating, while managing family concerns - children home from school, parents and siblings who are far away or in extended care - so that being mindful can feel like a real stretch. In the current context, mindfulness serves as a bridge to help us see our inner experience, to name our feelings and thoughts in a safe way, without judgment, and to allow ourselves some space to be, just as we are. That kind of grounding can be done in many ways, some steps for which I share below.
Simple Steps to Experience Mindfulness
First, whatever you're doing, stop for a moment, take a few slow, deep breaths, and notice what's going on in your body. Are you holding tension anywhere? Notice whether you may have been mindlessly clenching your jaw or balling your fists, or, as my good friend and colleague, Renae McNair says, “wearing your shoulders as earrings.”
Second, try to let go, just for a moment, of any physical tension, and any “busy” thoughts you're holding. Release them with each exhale as you allow yourself to simply breathe naturally.
Now, “take hold of your mind” by paying attention to your experience right now, in this moment. Use your senses to participate in what you're doing. For instance, if you're drinking coffee or tea, take a sip and notice the taste and texture and temperature of the drink in your mouth, and how it feels as it travels down your esophagus. Notice your hand on the warm mug and your body in your seat. Be fully present to this one thing you are doing right now, and let go of all that you are NOT doing. Likewise, you might try this same kind of focus through the senses when walking outdoors (use your senses to notice all of the sights and sounds and smells around you as you feel your footsteps on the ground), sitting with a child, taking a shower or tub, or washing dishes, to name a few of my favorites. Dedicated mindfulness meditation practice can last up to 45 minutes at a time, but taking a few minutes to do one task only, with full presence, marks a great start to the practice.
Mindfulness is the antithesis of multitasking, or rushing through our day on automatic pilot. It's an acknowledgment of the moment and a sort of flowing and focusing to be present and participating fully in the thing we are doing now. A major value in becoming mindful is that we can let go of some of the busy striving we may have been doing, trying to make ourselves perform to a certain degree or feel a certain way, and in so doing we can open a pathway to knowing what is most needed in the present moment. Maybe it’s quiet, maybe it’s laughing with a friend, maybe it’s sleep…..Taking time to tune in and mindfully connect with our own inner experience offers the best feedback available to us about how we are doing and what we may need, perhaps now more than ever.
