Spotlight On: Mindfulness

What is the practice of mindfulness?

Susan Stone, Ph.D., has practiced mindfulness and meditation for over 25 years and is an instructor at the UVA Mindfulness Center where she teaches beginner courses on Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction.

Mindfulness is being present in the moment as it happens. It is the practice of bringing body and mind together in the same place at the same time. A good way to sum it up would be to say mindfulness is about "being real." We often go through the day focused on the tasks at hand without acknowledging our own experiences. Mindfulness helps us focus on what we are experiencing and as we become more aware of our experiences we are able to take a step back and look at our reactions and emotions objectively. Then, we are able to use the information we gain through that process to make wiser decisions.

Can anyone practice mindfulness? Do you have to be trained?

Anyone can practice mindfulness, but it is helpful to have a teacher at the beginning. It is also helpful to practice with others as it builds support for the process and can help you stay focused. Meditation is the best way to practice mindfulness because the act of meditating, focusing on a single breath or sound, asks us to be "single-tasked" instead of our usual multi-tasked self.

What are the benefits of mindfulness?

There are many benefits of mindfulness and each person will have a different experience with the practice. Mindfulness can reduce stress; enable you to handle anger or any adverse emotion better; be less judgmental of yourself and others; improve your relationship with yourself; improve relationships with others and improve sleep patterns.

How does mindfulness help to reduce daily stress?

As humans, we are all guilty of being conditioned to react in a certain way to stressors in our life. If something stressful happens at work, we automatically respond in a certain way. Mindfulness helps us to become aware of these conditioned responses and as we become aware, we have the information and freedom to choose a different response. Gaining an understanding of our emotions helps us to identify an appropriate plan of action and thesituations then becomes less stressful.

Can mindfulness help with medical conditions?

In general, yes, mindfulness can help to reduce symptoms. Specifically, there have been many studies conducted that show mindfulness can help lower blood pressure, reduce psoriasis and improve other conditions that are known to flare up when we get stressed.

What should I do to get started?

Take a class to learn the techniques and to get individual guidance. Then, remember that mindfulness is an ongoing process that we may feel like we have mastered one day and could fall back into the same routine the next. One of the great things about mindfulness however, is that it teaches us to be more accepting of ourselves and gives us a greater sense of humor when we make mistakes.

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