Treat your Brain to some Mindfulness Practice

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What does it mean to practice mindfulness? Why does this help our brain? Let me first start by introducing you to the concept of mindfulness. Watch this short video.

Practicing mindfulness means to bring your attention to the present moment. It means that we bring awareness to how we are feeling and what we are thinking. Some of you may be wondering what the difference is between mindfulness and meditation. The two terms are often used interchangeably, although there technically is a difference. We can practice mindfulness by relaxing and bringing awareness to our thoughts, feelings and actions. Mindfulness is learning the ability to stop that 'knee-jerk' reaction. Meditation can be thought of as a formal practice of consciously looking inward. From what I can understand, both are under the same 'umbrella' and benefit our brains through relaxation, calmness, and self-control. 

Which brings us to the term 'mindfulness meditation', which is to stop what we are doing, and bring our awareness to our body and breath. Research is showing that mindfulness meditation is responsible for structural changes in the brain. Mindfulness has been shown to change the brain's ability to manage stress. We know that stress creates inflammation, and inflammation is the root cause of many diseases. Current research is studying the link between inflammation and Alzheimer's disease. We really have nothing to lose by learning to practice mindfulness. 

Here's one more video for you on the subject of mindfulness. There are things of which we have control over, and things of which we have no control over. We can't stop the rain, or make money grow from trees. However, we can learn to develop awareness of the present moment. Through this practice, we can increase the health of our brain.