What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness: “the awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment and non-judgementally to things as they are.”
Mindfulness is a way of paying attention, of being more attuned to ourselves, the environment, and those around us. We will all have experienced moments of mindfulness, when we’re completely absorbed in and engaged in an activity with a sense of aliveness and heightened awareness, maybe during a walk on the beach, watching the sunset, playing with a child or really laughing with a friend. It’s a natural state of mind but without purposefully cultivating this, these moments are often rare.
Through practicing Mindfulness we can learn to come into this mode of being more often and at will, to gain more enjoyment in our lives and to help us manage difficult times in a way which neither pushes away the difficulties nor results in us being overwhelmed by them. Being mindful can enrich our lives by making us more alive in each moment, we can access a sense of stillness even within the storms of life which allows us the space to make wiser choices.
Mindfulness can be learned and practiced by anyone, regardless of experience. The course is not affiliated to any particular religious beliefs and should not cause any conflict with existing belief systems, please let me know if you have any concerns about this and I am happy to discuss it further. Some of the practices arise from the contemplative traditions, particularly Buddhism, but this is a secular course. The course also includes elements of gentle yoga, qi gong, cognitive behavioural therapy and findings from research into neurophysiology and the effects of stress in the body.