Mindfulness. You may or may not have heard this buzzword making the rounds recently. It is often recommended for managing anxiety (and many other mental health issues), yet there’s a lack of clarity on what this word really means. Fear not! I am about to give you a crash course on this wonderful concept. By the end of this post, I hope you have a better idea of what mindfulness is and is not, why mindfulness is such a helpful tool and how to practice mindfulness for anxiety.
What the heck is mindfulness anyways?
I like to view mindfulness as an umbrella term that covers both a way of being and a plethora of different ways to practice it. In short, mindfulness is the practice of being fully in the present moment. That’s it. When we bring our attention fully to the present moment, we are being intentional rather than being on autopilot (which is often our default setting!).
Why does this make mindfulness a great tool for managing anxiety? Well, when we are fully in the present moment, we get a break from replaying the past or worrying about the future (which are key traits of anxiety). Basically, it’s a great way to calm the mind down. Doesn’t that sound absolutely lovely? If so, stay tuned. I know this sounds easier said than done, so later in this post we will explore how to actually put this into practice.
What mindfulness is not.
To better understand how to practice mindfulness for anxiety, it’s important to understand what mindfulness is not. Let’s take a look at some common mindfulness myths and why they are not true:
Mindfulness Myth #1: Mindfulness and meditation are the same thing.
Yes, meditation does fall under the vast umbrella of mindfulness. But mindfulness is so much more than just meditation. I want to assure you that you do not need to be able to sit down and completely clear your head of all thoughts for long stretches of time to practice mindfulness! As a regular mindfulness practiser, I definitely could not do this and so I want to be clear that the expectation isn’t that you are able to do this either.
Mindfulness Myth #2: You have to be good at focusing and clearing your mind to practice mindfulness.
The opposite of this myth is actually true: we want to practice mindfulness so that we get BETTER at focusing and calming the mind down. I think this common misconception scares a lot of people away from mindfulness, but I’m here to tell you that it is absolutely beginner friendly and accessible to everyone. Furthermore, there is no gold standard or level of “peak mindfulness” to achieve. Like much in life, mindfulness is a journey rather than a destination that will take continued practice.
Mindfulness Myth #3: The goal of mindfulness is to make your thoughts go away.
Let me be clear on this: mindfulness is not the act of making our thoughts disappear (as appealing as that may be). Rather, mindfulness teaches us to notice our thoughts without judgment or attachment. When we judge our thoughts as good or bad or try to make them go away, they tend to stick around longer instead and might even make us feel pretty bad about ourselves.
Mindfulness helps us to develop a healthier relationship with our thoughts. But it’s totally okay (and even expected) that thoughts keep popping into your head while you practice mindfulness.
Mindfulness Myth #4: Mindfulness is a tool to change or manipulate our emotions.
Much like we aren’t trying to rid ourselves of thoughts with mindfulness, we’re also not trying to make uncomfortable emotions go away. Instead, mindfulness allows us to truly notice what we are feeling, to accept it for what it is and to allow it to be there (see this post for the benefits of sitting with our emotions). In a nutshell, mindfulness is not about control or changing our experience. It’s about being present in that experience (and in doing so it becomes more tolerable).
What are the benefits of practicing mindfulness?
Before we learn how to practice mindfulness for anxiety, it is worth becoming aware of what the benefits of mindfulness can be. Research has documented the many benefits of practicing mindfulness regularly – check out this article for more on that. Rather than blathering on about these well documented findings to you, I am going to share the broader benefits that I have personally witnessed:
- Mindfulness allows us to be fully in the now, which is a skill many of us have lost in the era of technology and media at our fingertips. You may be surprised at how much you gain just by allowing yourself to be truly present in a given moment.
- Mindfulness helps pause ruminating and worrying, which ultimately reduces anxiety and stress (enough said).
- Mindfulness can increase our self-awareness and self-understanding, which are great skills to have as we learn to manage our anxiety.
- Mindfulness teaches us how to let go instead of keeping a tight grip on thoughts and emotions. The latter can be exhausting and usually has the opposite effect of what we want anyways.
- Mindfulness is a very accessible and practical tool for taking care of our mental and emotional health, so why not give it a try?
Key things to remember when practicing mindfulness for anxiety.
Before I introduce you to some simple ways to start practicing mindfulness, there are some important things to remember to improve your experience:
Non-Judgment
It is important to remind yourself to come at this from a place of nonjudgment. This means not judging the thoughts or emotions that come up during your practice as good or bad. It also means not judging your attempts at mindfulness, because this is a new skill and all new skills require practice! No getting anxious about not doing it right, we have enough anxiety as it is, okay?
Puppy Brain
Be aware of the puppy brain phenomenon. What is that you ask? Well let’s say you were training a new puppy. The expectation would not be that they “get it right” the first time. Rather, the puppy is going to go off and do what the puppy wants to do, and you are going to patiently bring it back and try again.
The same goes for our brains when practicing mindfulness. Our minds will wander and that is to be expected. Remember, the goal isn’t to clear our minds of thought. Instead, we will practice noticing when our mind wanders and then gently bring it back to the present moment. You are literally strengthening your brain every time you do this, so count it as a good thing if your mind wanders and you notice it!
Practice Makes Progress
Mindfulness is a skill that I recommend you practice regularly, especially for managing anxiety. Let’s say you wanted to bulk up your muscles – you wouldn’t go to the gym one time, do a couple sets of bicep curls and expect to be The Rock or Chris Hemsworth. Instead, it’s something you build up over time with many gym visits.
Similarly, when we practice mindfulness regularly, new neural pathways get built in our brain (yes, this actually leads to a physical change in the brain!). Non-scientifically speaking, this improves the brain’s ability to respond to stress and anxiety over time.
How to practice mindfulness for anxiety.
At long last, we are at the part where I actually tell you how you can start practicing this wonderful thing called mindfulness. But first, I’ll invite you to try something for a moment (stay with me here): bring your attention to your breathing. Notice it coming in through your nose and coming back out through your nose or mouth. Look at you! You just practiced mindfulness! I told you it could be that simple. It can be that short to start as well. 20 seconds of mindfulness is better than none while you build up a sustainable practice that works for you.
Here are some other mindfulness for anxiety exercises to get you started:
Mindful Breathing
Focus on your breath without trying to change it. Simply notice how it feels different as it travels into your body versus travels out. (If this is really challenging, check out these other breathing exercises that might make it easier to stay in the moment.)
Mindful Thoughts
Set a timer and allow yourself to just notice your thoughts for that period of time without judgment. After you notice a thought, you can gently bring your focus back to your breath before the next thought pops up.
Mindful Emotions
Notice and name an emotion you are feeling, and see if you can notice where you feel that emotion in your body.
Mindful Body Awareness
Scan through your body from head to toe, pausing for a moment with each part of the body to notice any sensations that might be happening there.
Mindful Sensory Experience
Use your senses! Take a moment to notice what you can see around you, naming for yourself what you see and pausing with each thing for a moment to take it in fully. Similarly, you can notice what you can hear, smell, taste or touch.
Conclusion
I hope you found this introduction to mindfulness to be helpful. And I hope you’re feeling a tiny bit inspired to try practicing mindfulness for anxiety. If there is one message I want you to walk away with, it is that mindfulness practice will look different for everyone, there is no one way of doing it. So do a bit of trial and error and find what works best for you and your lifestyle.
PS – looking for more ways to incorporate mindfulness into your life? Check out these posts:
