Use these tricks to add small bursts of mindfulness throughout the day to ease anxiety and calm your mind. Establish an intention. Do a guided meditation or mindfulness practice. Focus on one thing at a time.
Mindfulness is a type of meditation in which you focus on being intensely aware of what you're feeling and feeling in the moment, without interpretation or judgment. The practice of mindfulness involves breathing methods, guided imagery, and other practices to relax the body and mind and help reduce stress. Research has shown that the practice of mindfulness helps regulate emotions. As we begin to better understand and manage our emotions, we decrease our propensity to lose ourselves in anxious thoughts and feelings.
Being in public may seem like the worst-case scenario for a panic attack, but it's also a signal to listen to your mind and body. That's why it's so important to clearly discern the difference between reacting without realizing it and responding with mindfulness. The practice of mindfulness moves from the “fight or flight” response to the “rest and digestion” system. This pause is one of the most important goals of mindfulness because it allows you to remain calm and focused so that you can respond thoughtfully rather than emotionally react to situations.
As you walk, fully open your senses, walk slowly and consciously, opening yourself up to the healing that is available here. You can do these mindfulness exercises and create a mindfulness meditation practice that can address your anxiety. Mindfulness meditation isn't about silencing the mind (that's not possible), but about calming accelerated thoughts and gently turning attention back to breathing, sensation, or word over and over again. According to the Center for Mindfulness Attention Studies, conscious awareness is the foundation of MBSR and MBCT.
