Can mindfulness benefit me?

Mindfulness doesn’t work for everyone: it’s not a magic pill. We practice in a group because we need to learn to practice safely, under supervision. Some people may not benefit at all or can even run into unexpected difficulties or revive bad memories.

The benefits of mindfulness, according to the research, are found through “increased self-efficacy; greater interoceptive awareness; and improved emotional regulation.” What this means is that our participants report that mindfulness and compassion practices can, over time, help with one or more of the following:

• Increasing your sense of being in control of your life, and your sense that you are capable;

• Training your attention, and improving concentration;

• Helping you respond to conflict or loved ones by staying present in the situation, and not reacting in habitual ways;

• Helping make you more resilient when under stress;

• Increasing your experience of calm and ease;

• Helping you deal with or manage pain or chronic illness;

• Learning to treat yourself and others with more kindness and understanding;

• Helping you stop punishing yourself for not achieving as you think you should;

• Diminishing habitual worrying, or returning to the same thoughts over and over again;

• Becoming more aware of your body: healing and improving your physical health, eg exercise, get better sleep, eat well;

• Changing habits that distress you or are consuming your life - like too much screen time or substance use;

• Addressing recurring anxiety or depression, and becoming aware of how those happen for you;

• Helping you stay in touch with what you value in your life;

• Helping you feel the sunshine again, smell the roses and the coffee - and enjoy the everyday benefits of our world.
  
  Quite a list, isn’t it? Such benefits can be tapped in matter of weeks, but they have the power to stay with you for a lifetime. And of course, a lot is up to you - learning to practice.
  
  So, what’s involved? Back to the Home Page