When we go to our healthcare provider, we often expect to receive a medication. A pill…liquid…injectable medication. It is what most of us know…it is the expected treatment. What would your response be if your healthcare provider recommended practicing mindfulness? Told you Mindfulness is Medicine.
Your first question might be, “what is mindfulness?”; followed closely by “How much time/money do I need to practice it?” In this blog, we will answer these questions and discuss how mindfulness is medicine.
Mindfulness is simply defined as “Mindfulness is awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally,” by Jon Kabat-Zinn, a renowned scientist responsible for creating the Mindfulness based Stress Reduction (MBSR) Program at University of Massachusetts School of Medicine. We live in a busy, frantic world where we spend more time thinking about the past or considering the future. Mindfulness is about the here and now, using our 5 senses, noticing – without judgement – the thoughts, emotions and sensations that we are experiencing.
Science tells us that practicing mindfulness:
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Reduce pain and emotional reaction to it;
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Improves mood and quality of life in chronic pain conditions
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Improves working memory, creativity, attention span, reaction speeds
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Improves emotional intelligence
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Reduces anxiety, stress, depression, exhaustion, and irritability
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Reduces addictive and self-destructive behaviors
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Enhances brain function, building areas affiliated with self-awareness, empathy, self-control, and attention
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Improves immune system
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Improves blood sugar control in type II diabetes
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Reduces BP, lowering risk of hypertension