Mindfulness
Mindfulness at Awake and Aware, LLC
Mindfulness is a process by which we begin to see and experience each moment for what it is. Its value in a culture that moves quickly and demands rapid results is in its ability to bring us back to the only thing we actually ever have; the present moment.
In DBT, mindfulness is the rudder in a sea of emotion and experience. By practicing mindful awareness, you can orient yourself to the present. We learn what truly “is” going on in the present. This is a potent tool if we are overrun by reactions and assumptions. It brings us out of the past and away from the unknown future, and into the present reality. This is where we can observe, describe, and ultimately decide where change is needed or necessary.
Mindfulness is for everyone, adults, adolescents, and children. It is a practice that keeps us in tune with ourselves and our present. It can operate as a key strategy for decreasing suffering and increasing joy.
Can Mindfulness Help Me?
Mindfulness has an established and growing evidence base that proves it is effective in the following ways:
Reducing anxiety, depression, and mood problems
Decreasing stress-related physical symptoms
Lowering emotional reactivity.
Attention and hyperactivity Behavior problems
Decreasing impulsivity and impulse-based behavioral concerns, including those associated with substance abuse, eating, and weight problems
Effectively decreasing self-harm and suicide urges
Furthermore, studies show that mindfulness meditation creates brain changes that impact memory, learning, and emotion. There is no doubt that mindfulness has influenced our current understanding of healing, change, and rehabilitation in revolutionary ways.
M. Linehan
“All people have within themselves the ability for wisdom.”
John Kabat-Zinn
Mindfulness is a practice of carefully focusing attention, Not a form of religion.”
What Role Does
Mindfulness Play in DBT?
For Clients:
Mindfulness is a core practice in DBT. What this means, is that we are always working towards increasing our own awareness of the role that emotions and rationale are playing in our perceptions and beliefs and by extension our behaviors. Core mindfulness includes three states of mind in DBT, known as Reason Mind, Emotion Mind and Wise mind. By learning about these states of mind we build the muscles of awareness. Awareness is key in shifting behavior.
For DBT Therapists:
We begin every meeting we have as a team, and almost every DBT session with a mindfulness practice. As Clinicians, we practice mindfulness regularly in order to:
understand and embrace our truth as well as the truths of others.
to increase self-awareness
to allow for new information that we may have missed.
to cultivate empathy for ourselves and others.
to identify judgment and bias.
Current Offerings of Mindfulness at Awake and Aware:
iRest® Yoga Nidra: a guided self-inquiry that provides an opportunity for relaxation by using meditation to affirm our intentions and tap into our inner resources by observing the breath, body sensations, emotions, and thoughts. Every First Friday of the month at 11 am/ Free
Resources and Methods
to Practice Mindfulness
There are countless ways to engage in mindfulness practice. We offer a few resources to help jumpstart your own inquiry into how mindfulness can become a part of your life:
Why Is Mindfulness a Superpower
Resilience During
Fearful Times
10 Minute Mediation
5 Minute Meditation
2 Minute Meditation
Mindful Practice Ideas:
Play a game that requires all your attention: throw a ball, play word games, Boppit, etc.
Observe the clouds.
Focus on your breath.
Listen to music with complete attention.
Go on a walk and pay attention to your movements and surroundings.
Mindful running, shooting hoops, jumping rope, riding a bicycle, etc.