Intrapersonal Benefits Of Mindfulness

Based on the evidence, mindfulness could be expanded to be included in teaching individuals not only intrapersonal skills but also the

Mindfulness is an incredible skill, it is a practice that is taking the world by storm and helping more and more people live in their present.

Mindfulness meditation may allow you to finally be the partner you had hoped to be or just give you the ability to finally be a friend to yourself. All of which seemed impossible before starting the practice. Just as a 20-minute practice seemed impossible before, you realize that you can do impossible things. What other miraculous things are capable with the introduction of daily practice to your life? Resent research suggests a myriad of other benefits relating to intimacy satisfaction, secure attachment, and even shows benefits for dreams (Shaver et. al., 2007; Simor et. al., 2007; McCreary and Alderson, 2013; Keune and Forintos, 2010).

The bulk of literature examining the effectiveness of mindfulness consists of qualitative studies. Of those studies, the focus has been on how effective mindfulness interventions and therapies are for clients and not so much regarding mindfulness practices of clinicians and its implications.

In other words, mindfulness also reduce mental thought pattern, improve attention as well as self-regulation (Keune & Forintos, 2010). With all that said, it is evident that we can applied mindfulness in our daily basis as well as embrace every moment and live it at the fullest without worries about the future or past events that only bring unhappiness as sadness. In addition, mindfulness not only brings the opportunity to be aware regarding experiences but also accept them in a positive and equanimity way. It is just about letting go the negatives thoughts, accepting, and paying attention to what we have in front of us because mindfulness is not only about embracing every present moment is more than that because indeed, it contribute to our quality of live and life satisfaction. Surprisingly, mindfulness is an open door to positives emotions, enjoyment and understanding and more importantly is that mindfulness is an important tool for an individual self-change and improved well-being (Baumgardner & Crothers, 2009, p.

Sona Dimidjian and Marsha M. Linehan, from the University of Washington, agree with these points as well. Dimidjian and Linehan published an article in 2003 to the American Psychological Association that dealt with “Defining an Agenda for Future Research on the Clinical Application of Mindfulness Practice.” Scientific and clinical questions that they want answered are along the lines of truly defining mindfulness, what the consequences are with practices and therapies like MBSR and MBCT, what truly makes mindfulness work (or not), how should therapists and teachers be trained, and if mindfulness practices can be spread to all people. An important fact to note is that no study thus far has isolated the effects of the pure mindfulness component in either MBSR and MBCT. Studies that have been done thus far have primarily done pre-post measurements of the results people reported after their practices; however, only a handful have done controlled trials with clinical populations (Baer, 2003). This poses a true threat to the true accuracy and applicability of the results of these studies. Dimidjian and Linehan propose that the isolation of mindfulness and other aspects of these treatments must be done in order to see what is truly making people improve, remain the same, or get worse. Once these dependent and independent variables of these practices and therapies are determined, then those variables can be further tested into their applicability to certain disorders, mental health issues, and much

Mindfulness is a relatively new phenomenon to the Western world although has been practiced in other countries across the world for thousands of years as a form of meditation. Thought to have first been introduced before Buddhism thousands of years ago, mindfulness was taught to Buddha as a way of alleviating suffering. Today, mindfulness focuses on helping people in secular ways to develop skills that can be used in daily life and

(2015) states, “Stress costs American companies an estimated $200 billion to $300 billion in lost productivity each year, and research suggests that mindfulness could be an effective antidote.” According to Hansen (2012), many researchers have conducted tests with results suggesting that becoming mindful reduces stress, lowers blood pressure, and decreases depression and anxiety levels. Other benefits include the ability to build self-confidence as a leader (Smith, J.A, 2014). “The Benefits of Meditation,” (n.d) suggests that there are many physical and physiological benefits when an individual becomes mindful: the following lists are suggested

Mindfulness is about noticing what is happening in the here and now. Mindfulness is about focusing on the present and using that to recognize our current state. Mindfulness allows us to focus on our thoughts emotions sensations and our environment within the current moment. Mindfulness teaches us to notice our feelings and help our mental focus. Mindfulness interventions can help students improve their emotional resilience, self-control, and attention amongst other benefits as well. These practices teach students to self-calm, regulate their emotions, adapt to change, compassion, and resilience. Being mindful and engaging in mindfulness practices gives students the skills to cope with their current situation in a positive manor.

First, a brief historical origin of meditation and contextualizing mindfulness, following the literature reviewed to provide a foundational understanding of various types of meditation being practiced and what its documented effects have been. The second body of the literature reviewed on the neurobiology and mechanisms of change with mindfulness meditation practice.

People may think mindfulness is a fad but it still has two strong goals that can provide a medical purpose which include facilitating good well being among co workers and medical staff, and more efficient healing with the patients (Hutchinson 2009).

Mindfulness can give you various kinds of benefits in your day-to-day life, out of which some are science-backed and some are divine.

In this paper, I will describe my initial thoughts about the practice of mindfulness and my development regarding practicing it. Furthermore, I will explore the idea of being a mindful therapist and how I am hoping to apply this with patients in the future.

According to Shapiro and Carlson (2009), mindfulness is “the awareness that arises through intentionally attending in an open, kind, and discerning way” (p. 4).

Mindfulness can give you various kinds of benefits in your day-to-day life, out of which some are science-backed and some are divine.