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Mindfulness Practice: A Quick Start Guide Mindfulness is paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally. -Jon Kabat-Zinn Mindfulness is the awareness that arises out of intentionally paying attention in an open, kind, and discerning way. - Shauna Shapiro & Linda Carlson Three Keys to Mindfulness: Willingness Curiosity Kindness Mary Oliver, The Summer Day Who made the world? Who made the swan, and the black bear? Who made the grasshopper? This grasshopper, I mean-- the one who has flung herself out of the grass, the one who is eating sugar out of my hand, who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes. Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face. Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away. I don't know exactly what a prayer is. I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass, how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields, which is what I have been doing all day. Tell me, what else should l have done? Doesn’t everything die at last, and too soon? Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life? Mindfulness and Stress: a Healthier Relationship Becoming more aware of feelings in the body, seeing thoughts and emotions as thoughts and emotions, and being less caught in “the story,” helps us be less reactive, more curious, and aware of multiple points of view. Stress happens. Upset happens. But humans are uniquely gifted at keeping ourselves upset by repeating the story of what happened. ● What am I adding? Suffering = Pain X Resistance ● The Buddha’s story of the “Second Dart” © 2018 Tim Burnett, Mindfulness Northwest, for Personal Use Only Benefits of mindfulness practice: 1) More resilient under stress 2) Less anxiety, less rumination (reducing recurrence of depression) 3) Tools for being with chronic pain 4) Better memory and attention 5) More awareness, less autopilot 6) Less likely to overuse alcohol / substances 7) Increased emotional intelligence 8) Cultivation of kindness & compassion 9) More flexible & creative 10) Relationships - supports our ability to connect with others
