Mindfulness is a state of awareness of what’s happening in the present moment. During this state an awareness of your own thoughts, feelings, senses and surrounding environment are noticed. Its aim is to create awareness of thoughts and feelings as opposed to getting lost in them or stopping them altogether.
Mindfulness encourages the non-judgemental acceptance of thoughts, even those for which we would normally judge ourselves, without the need to change them.
Benefits of mindfulness include improved memory and focus, the ability to cope with stressful situations and manage emotions more successfully. Some exercises which can help you to practice mindfulness are included at the end of this article.
Hypnosis on the other hand is much more goal orientated and is amazingly powerful at enabling you to visualise new and past experiences within the subconscious mind, discover the source of negative emotions, thoughts or behaviours and make positive changes or create new habits.
Whilst both help you to relax and move forward, mindfulness involves being fully in the present with current sounds, feelings and emotions allowing you to connect closely with yourself and consider perspectives, it doesn’t actually ask you to make changes.
Mindfulness and hypnosis can work extremely well when used together, allowing personal changes or self-improvement to be made more quickly and efficiently.
Mindful walking – practice mindfulness whilst taking a walk. Begin by noticing how your body moves and feels which each step you take. Then expand your awareness to really notice what you can hear, see, feel and smell all around you.
Five senses – make a conscious effort to use each of your senses to really notice the present moment. Notice *5 things you can see, *4 things you feel, *3 things you can hear, *1 thing you can taste and *1 thing you can smell.