Written by my guest blogger this month, Joyce Lukkes, a tutor of mindfulness. Welcome to this blog, I hope you have had a positive start to the New Year so far! It was very nice to be asked by Antonia to be a guest here at the start of 2025.
I’d like to introduce you to mindfulness and show you how this can be cultivated while you are busy and think you have no time to ‘sit still’. If you would like to try mindfulness now, please look at the 3 mini tools at the end of this article.
Mindfulness can be defined as ‘the awareness that arises when you pay attention to the present moment, on purpose, without judgment, without preference.’ (as defined by Jon Kabat-Zinn 1 ). You could also describe it as ‘knowing what is happening, while it is happening, without a preference’ (according to The Mindfulness Association 2 ).
We have mindfulness already. Discovering this ‘mindful awareness’ we have is like realising you have a ‘hidden’ muscle in your body that has not been exercised much and one you weren’t much aware of.
We all can be aware and self-aware. You know this because you are aware when you feel something is unwell in your body; you can feel a headache, a tension in your shoulder, and you notice when you have strong feelings about something (i.e. the moments you feel upset, angry or excited).
Our awareness can be strengthened with the practice of mindfulness (meditation). The practice helps us to wake up to the present moment experience as it is with curiosity and kindness. Which in turn increases the possibility of ‘pausing’ (breathe and take a moment), responding wisely in situations, develops self-kindness, compassion and acceptance (of how you are feeling).
When we are not mindful and present, where are we? Our bodies are always present, but our minds, our attention, often wanders into the future or the past quite randomly. This is habitual, we have developed certain thinking patterns for many different reasons, and we don’t need to judge this harshly.
Sometimes people refer to having a ‘butterfly mind’ to describe this constant fluttering of changing thoughts that seem to come out of nowhere. Distraction is the biggest obstacle for mindfulness. Research has shown that every time that we are distracted (no matter what we are doing at that time) we are less happy.
It matters what you pay attention to; a wandering mind often leads to feeling less happy or less content. Our thinking can make us feel stressed, dissatisfied, uncertain or worried. Do you recognise when you are distracted and lost in thoughts, maybe with planning, daydreaming, analysing, comparing something, lost somewhere online? We can train our attention to simply come back to the present moment, by focussing on an ‘anchor’ such as our breathing or body sensations, or sounds (what we call a mindful support).
Mindfulness supporting healthier habits
Creating new habits takes time. As you know, Healthy Habits Coach Antonia has a lot of expertise around this. Developing mindfulness is no different, it takes time and repetition. To practice ‘little and often’ can be a good starting point. We know it is the same as when you learn a new language or want to improve your physical fitness, it needs some commitment and ongoing motivation.
Mindfulness helps us become more aware of helpful and any unhealthy or unhelpful habits we may have developed over time. We learn to bring a kinder attitude, acceptance and curiosity towards our experiences and actions, and we learn to take responsibility and be intentional around our actions.
Research into the benefits of mindfulness has shown that those who practice regularly develop healthier habits (around eating, sleep and lifestyle choices), cultivate more:
kindness and self-compassion
reduce reactivity
increase concentration
focus and improve how they manage stress and develop resilience.
Three short mindfulness tools you can easily integrate into your busy day:
1. Mini morning mindfulness body scan.
You can gently pay attention towards yourself from the moment you wake up. You bring your focus to the sensations you feel while lying in bed, really tune into the sensations between the body and where it is connected to the mattress, pillow and duvet around you. You tune into any sensations with curiosity across the body. For a few minutes, sensing into the body temperature, feeling the breathing rhythm and feel you are waking up. Bring some kindness and gratitude towards yourself, feel your heart beating, it is a new day! Enjoy a nice body stretch before you slowly get up and start the morning.
2. Mindfulness with gratitude at any point in your day.
Research has shown that gratitude practice helps us feel happier and content. You can practice some gratitude in the morning before breakfast or later in the day. Maybe think of 3-5 daily things you appreciate and why ( i.e. your health, your house, loved ones, feeling safe….) and perhaps write it down.
3. Mini mindful breathing to reduce stress or anxiety.
To soothe the activated nervous system you can try this: feel your feet on the ground and breathe in for 7 counts, breathe out for 11 counts. Or in for 6, out for 10 (as long as the out-breathe is longer than the in-breathe). Try it for 3-5 minutes or as long as you may need to feel calmer and be intentional where you focus next (realise you have a choice).
The more you practice mindfulness, the more you become aware, and this may help you with healthier lifestyle choices. Developing attitudes such as kindness, acceptance, curiosity and patience becomes part of how you think and act in your daily life. You may become clearer that you can choose where to place your focus and attention at any time and what a difference that can make in your day.
If you’d like to learn more about mindfulness and learn about how to practice, in a group or one-to-one, please connect with Joyce by emailing joycemindfulness@gmail.com or follow her on Instagram @mindfulnesswithjoyce, www.joycelukkesmindfulness.co.uk. Joyce is based in East Lothian.
Notes
1 Jon Kabat-Zinn is an American Professor, researcher and the founder of the Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course which is offered world wide to help people with stress, illness and anxiety.
2 The Mindfulness Association has developed the Mindfulness Based Living Course and offers teacher training courses in Scotland and online courses, www.mindfulnessassociation.net

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