Mindfulness: The Art of Unthinking
The five branches of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) are: acupuncture and moxibustion, herbal therapy, diet and nutrition therapy, massage, and meditation/mindfulness therapy. As a practitioner of TCM, I work closely with patients to achieve their health and wellness goals using the five branches of TCM. In this article, I’d like to share a little information on why mindfulness is such a key component to health and well-being.
One the big buzzwords in 2017 is mindfulness, but what exactly are we talking about here? According to mindful.org, “mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us.” This intentional focus on the here and now is what allows us to work at our very best. While many spiritual and wisdom tradition practices use mindfulness training for relaxation, healing, and enlightened thinking, modern science confirms the mental and physiological benefits of practicing mindfulness such as increased feelings of psychological well-being, increased mental focus, mood elevation, decreased stress response, lower blood pressure, and pain reduction. There is mounting evidence that mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), a structured group program that employs mindfulness meditation, is effective in alleviating suffering associated with physical, psychosomatic and psychiatric disorders. Mindfulness helps improve our wellbeing, allowing us to cultivate peace of mind, which in the big picture of life is what we all really want.
To quote one of my favorite books, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig:
“So the thing to do when working on any task is to cultivate the peace of mind which does not separate one’s self from one’s surroundings. When that is done, everything else follows naturally. Peace of mind produces right values, right values produce right thoughts. Right thoughts produce right action and right actions produce work which will be a material reflection for others to see of the serenity at the center of it all.”
Five to ten minutes of daily mindfulness training can bring the clarity of thought and calmness of mind to keep you on track and focused throughout your day. In fact, research shows that meditation and mindfulness can produce significant changes in both the function and structure of the brain of the practitioner. It sounds so simple to do, but often when we’re busy we neglect to take the time to focus on the present moment. Life easily gets hectic with balancing out work, clients, colleagues, family, and friends. It’s unreasonable to expect life to be stress-free, but learning to become aware of and control our response to stress can be the key to maintaining peace of mind in any circumstance. When there is peace of mind, happiness and contentment abound.
For how-to tips and more information on practicing mindfulness, visit: http://www.mindful.org/meditation/mindfulness-getting-started/
If you’d like to know more about how Traditional Chinese Medicine can benefit your health and wellbeing, or are interested a consultation and treatment email me at danielrolalac@gmail.com
Be well and thrive!
Daniel Rola, L.Ac.
