What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness simply means that you are being mindful of the here and now. It is truly a state of “living in the moment.” Being mindful means that you are paying attention to the moment (e.g., to the noises, the smells, the sights), your internal self (e.g., your passing thoughts and emotions), and your interaction with your surroundings (e.g., your physical connection to external stimuli, your thoughts regarding your surroundings).
DBT mindfulness skills are tools to support us to combat anxiety by being more mindful of the present moment, and less attentive to worries and what-ifs. Practicing being mindful helps us to be more in touch with ourselves and the moment we are experiencing. Additionally, practicing DBT mindfulness skills help to reduce anxiety and tension. Let Suffolk DBT show you how mindfulness can combat anxiety with a few tips.
Frequently Asked Questions About DBT and Mindfulness:
How can DBT help me be more mindful?
The following are all DBT mindfulness skills that can be useful for anyone stuck in an exhausting, anxious mindset. As you read these skills, give them a try, then think about when you could add them to your everyday life? Could you incorporate mindfulness into your commute? How about when cooking dinner, or spending time with friends? The more you practice, the easier it will be for you to remember use mindfulness to combat anxiety in more tense, emotionally overwhelming moments too.
How can using your senses support mindfulness?
Stop. Notice your breath. Feel your heartbeat. Look at how far or close you are to the computer screen. Feel the strain on your eyes as you read these words. Listen for all the surrounding noise. Feel the pressure of your hand on the mouse or keypad. Notice what part of your body makes contact with the ground and the chair. Are there any smells in the air? Feel the air pass through your nose. Pick up a snack. Put a tiny piece in your mouth. Notice the weight of it in your mouth. Feel the texture of it with your tongue. Pay attention to the saliva rushing to dissolve the snack. What does the snack taste like? Chew it. What texture does it have now? What does it taste like? What does it feel like? Again, notice your breath.
When we are feeling overwhelmed, using our senses helps to ground us. This mindfulness combats anxiety by distracting our mind from the noise of anxious thoughts, just enough for us to calm down and handle the situation more level-headedly. This technique is often used with panic attacks. Individuals who suffer from panic disorder are often advised to try to focus on controlling their breath while experiencing a panic attack.
How does being non-judgmental work?
Chances are that during the previous mindfulness exercise you had other thoughts going through your mind. Maybe you were self-conscious about how you looked while completing the exercise. Maybe you were criticizing yourself for not being mindful. These are examples of judgmental thoughts. When we are practicing mindfulness, we want to try to be non-judgmental. Thoughts can just come into our head, be acknowledged and then let out of our heads. We should not label our thoughts as “good’ or ‘bad,” “right” or “wrong,” “correct” or “incorrect.”
Practice being non-judgmental the next time that you experience anxiety or experience an unpleasant thought. For example, say the following thought pops into your head:
“I cannot do anything right.”
Acknowledge that this thought passed through your head.
“I thought: I cannot do anything right.”
Try not to assign any labels to the thought. If you do, acknowledge that.
“I thought that my thought was bad. That is a judgment.”
Keep in mind that acknowledging something is not the same as labeling it. Acknowledging that calling a thought bad is a judgment is different than thinking that calling the thought bad was bad.
Here is another example:
“I have so much to do. There is no way I can do all that. I am going to fail.”
“Okay, I just thought: I have so much to do. I will do my best.”
“I am feeling anxious.”
In this example, the individual notices her thoughts and feelings and does not necessarily have to act on them.
How does a person “strive for oneness” using mindfulness?
I enjoy acting. Although I tend to be more shy in everyday life, when I am on stage I am relaxed. By acting as someone else, I feel more in tune with myself. Time is not a factor and I can forget my stresses and obligations for the day.
When we are being mindful, we strive to have a oneness with the activity that we are doing. When I am on stage, I experience a oneness with acting (being one mindful). I become so absorbed in acting that I forget about all the obligations I still have to complete. Rehearsals and shows are times when I can let go of my anxieties for a few hours.
There are a variety of activities that people report experiencing “one mindful”ness while doing. Yoga, sports, art, music, reading, video games, cooking, DBT skills groups, and the list goes on. I highly recommend trying to find an activity that is both mindful, and acts as a stress-reliever—something that you can turn to when you are in a highly stressful state of mind for comfort and presence at the same time.
Mindfulness can be a lifelong practice
Try setting a time every day, even if it is just for a minute or two, when you can practice being mindful. During these sessions, you may use an object to make the process easier. Even a pencil could be used to practice mindfulness. Use your senses to examine the pencil, notice any feelings or thoughts that arise during the mindfulness exercise, let these feelings and thoughts pass without passing any judgment on the value or quality of the thoughts and feelings. Remember to set a timer so that you are not worried about the time during these mindfulness exercises and you can truly leave all your worries and stress for a few minutes.
Note: Do not get discouraged if you find it difficult to be mindful; it’s called a practice for a reason. We are not used to giving ourselves a mental break from our busy lives. Trying to leave everything behind and be solely in the present, even for a moment, is challenging. Even people who practice mindfulness every day sometimes struggle with being mindful. If you find yourself drifting away from mindfulness, take note of it, do not be judgmental of yourself, and use your senses to try to return to a state of mindfulness.
By: Kaitlin McNamara, Student from St. Joseph’s, and Jeanette Lorandini, LCSW.
DBT for anxiety uses mindfulness and more to help people thrive even when stressed
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