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In an excellent recent article, Mindfulness: Reduce Stress with Slow Motion Chores, Curt Rosengren talks fully on mindfulness, a great stress reliever by focusing on what is happening in the here and now.  When Curt wants to focus on the moment, he does a task in slow motion so he can fully appreciate what he is experiencing.  If he is washing the dishes, he does it slowly and feels the heat of the water, the weight of the dish, …  Another thing Curt really loves about mindfulness is that it doesn’t take any special time out to sit down and meditate.  He writes, “the opportunities to de-stress are right there in front of us every day, doing things we need to do anyway.”

For me, practicing mindfulness doesn’t take any extra time as well. I enjoy including mindfulness while exercising.  If on the treadmill, I concentrate on the feel of my foot hitting the tread, the beautiful green of the leaves outside a window, the feel of the fan’s whirling air as it hits my face, the sound of the fan, my own breathing patterns and how I can slow them down and draw them out…  Just think of what could be felt, seen and heard when walking outside!

An extension of my mindfulness exercises is to feel the texture of a leaf that is high up in a tree, to feel the breeze brushing my skin when I’m inside, to feel my pup’s warm, soft coat when he is sleeping soundly on the other side of the room. Why would I do these things?  Because I can. Because life can be overly stressful at time but by breaking up the day, even if for a few moments at a time, to feel things that can make me happy and make me smile turns me into a whole new person.

Try it!

In what ways have you used mindfulness?  What can you feel, taste, smell, see or hear that makes you smile and feel delightful?

Other useful sites and “Stress Management” blogs:

Do Stress Management Programs Work?

Beating Stress!

Body+Soul Challenge Week Four: Diminish Your Stress!