It’s fair to say that the past twelve months may have been more stressful than usual for us, dealing with new ways of working, living and connecting with others.

While some busy lives may have just got busier and required more negotiations and adjustments, others have slowed pace and allowed us to become aware of our thoughts and feelings, perhaps in a way we have never had time for before.

Whichever camp you fall in to, we’ve all had to revaluate our lives and the way we have been living in the wake of great change. This has perhaps prompted us to find news ways of allowing our minds and bodies to rest and recharge. Mindfulness and Meditation are two practices which can be very useful in providing focus and relaxation within a safe space, and can be done from our own homes, in a comfortable and quiet space of our choosing.

Headspace describes meditation as

“both a skill and an experience that can positively impact your overall health and happiness.”

and mindfulness as

“the idea of learning how to be fully present and engaged in the moment.”

Headspace is an online facility and mobile app offering meditations and mindfulness help for stress, focus, fitness, sleep and anxiety. It was created by a Buddhist monk called Andi Pudicome, with the technical help of Rich Pierson.  It was officially launched as an events company in 2010, but found clients wanted to take what they had learned home with them, so Andy and his small team decided to make Andy’s techniques available online so that more people could experience the benefits of mediation anytime, anywhere. That blossomed into the Headspace of today with guided meditations, animations, articles and videos, all in the distinct Headspace style.

Some of the guided meditations they offer focus on relationships, financial stress, anxiety and sleep. Their mindfulness articles focus on how to stop negative self-talk, how to be happy, how to develop self-discipline and how to deal with both death and ageing anxiety.

Headspace note the positive effects of meditation, as recognised by a University study. Researchers from John Hopkins University found general meditation programs helped ease psychological symptoms of depression, anxiety, and pain related to stress.

Headspace also note physical and emotional benefits of meditation,

“When the body and mind are relaxed — whether through meditation practice or other techniques — the parasympathetic nervous system is stimulated, causing the body to stop releasing stress hormones. Many people who meditate regularly have learned to condition their body to relax on demand and, according to research, can more effectively manage stress.

Research shows that the grey matter — the area of the brain responsible for emotional regulation, planning, and problem-solving as well as the cortical thickness, responsible for learning and memory). Both increase with regular meditation practice. Alternatively, the amygdala, which regulates how we feel stress, fear, and anxiety, responds to meditation by shrinking.”

In terms of focusing on mindfulness, Headspace explain how practicing meditation can train us to be more mindful in our day-to-day life.

“Mindfulness is the quality of being present and fully engaged with whatever we’re doing at the moment — free from distraction or judgment, and aware of our thoughts and feelings without getting caught up in them. We train in this moment-to-moment awareness through meditation, allowing us to build the skill of mindfulness so that we can then apply it to everyday life. In teaching the mind to be present, we are teaching ourselves to be live more mindfully — in the present, taking a breath, not beholden to reactive thoughts and feelings — which is particularly helpful when faced with challenging circumstances or difficult situations.”

We are often so busy thinking of the next thing that we don’t stop to focus on what we are doing in the present moment. We do simple things on autopilot. Have you ever arrived somewhere and not remembered how you actually got there? We often do things like walk or drive without really thinking about it. Our mind has the capacity to focus on several things at once. It’s a great skill, but we can lose out on noticing beautiful things or even just how we are feeling in ourselves.

Here are some ways to be mindful –

• –        Eating a meal – Focus on what you are eating, notice the texture, taste and temperature of your food. Can you detect spices and flavours? Are you enjoying what you’re eating?
• –        Making a cup of tea – As you stand and watch the kettle boil, see the steam rising from the kettle spout, hear the click of the switch announcing the kettle has boiled. As you add a tea bag to the cup, and maybe sugar, notice each action with the associated colour and textures. Watch the steam rise and the teabag sink as you add water. The milk swirls and changes the colour of the liquid as you stir. There is sound of the spoon clinking against the cup.
• –        On a walk – Take stock of your surroundings. Notice the air around you, is the air warm or cold? Is there a breeze? Is the sun out? What can you hear? What can you see? Is there birdsong or car noise? Are there flowers or trees, or maybe birds on your journey? Make every small walk a sensory pleasure.
• –        Cooking or baking – Enjoy the experience of measuring out the ingredients, sifting out the flour, adding eggs, butter, combining a mixture or ingredients. Notice the smell of these ingredients. Make your meal or cake with love for the recipients. Enjoy the process. Think about how it feels to finish making something yourself. Watch others enjoy your food.

As Headspace notes, although they are different practices, meditation and mindfulness can work together to give us a healthier mind and body as well as contribute to our overall well-being.

“Meditation is the training ground for learning mindfulness. At first, we meditate to become familiar with the here and now for a limited period of time. Over time, however, regularly practicing mindfulness helps us develop the ability to be present throughout the day, every day.”

In a recent article (February 2021) the Guardian reported that a study by the University of Cambridge found that mindfulness (along with laughter and robot dogs) could help people cope with loneliness and social isolation during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The University study, which involved residents from nursing and car homes noted that

“Psychological interventions seemed the most effective overall, including mindfulness-based therapies, tai chi, qigong meditation and laughter therapy, which led to significant improvements in loneliness or social support outcomes. Educational programmes, particularly those focusing on wellbeing, friendship, addressing barriers to social integration and explaining loneliness, were also identified as potentially helpful.”

The NHS have also noted that mindful meditation is good for depression, anxiety and chronic pain. Their findings were published in a paper published in the Journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience in 2013.  Catherine Kerr, lead author of the new study and director of Translational Neuroscience for the Contemplative Studies initiative at Brown University in Providence, in the US, wrote that when we are depressed, attention is consumed by negative preoccupations, thoughts and worries. Instead of disengaging and moving on, we find ourselves digging deeper into negative thought patterns.

Mindfulness gives patients control over this habitual chain via a ‘body scan’ technique, where patients systematically engage and disengage with the sensations in each part of the body. As they do so, alpha rhythms, which organise the flow of sensory information in the brain, increase and decrease. Kerr describes this as a ‘sensory volume knob’ and it is this flexible focusing skill which, the paper proposes,

“regulates attention so that it does not become biased toward negative physical sensations and thoughts, as in depression”.

Early Buddhists advanced a similar theory 2,500 years ago in a famous practice text called ‘Mindfulness of the body and breath’.

The Guardian article also notes the application of mindfulness meditation to NHS facilities to the benefit of patients.

“Having recognised the health and cost benefits, some NHS trusts accept self-referrals, others accept referrals via GPs. The Mental Health Foundation, which has produced a list of some of the NHS-funded courses, estimates that as many as 30% of GPs now refer patients to mindfulness training.”

Calm, is the other front runner, also set up by British entrepreneurs, Michael Acton Smith and Alex Tew. It was recently valued at over $1bn (though the brand has expanded into some physical products). Other apps include Buddhify, Reflectly, Breethe, Smiling Mind, Calmer You, Simple Habit and Mind U.

 Headspace offer a free 7 day trial of their app or monthly plans to suit various budgets. They also allow free access for all NHS staff with an NHS email address, until December 2021.

If you’re thinking of giving meditation and mindfulness a go, here are some things to try.

–        Meditation video before bed –  35 mins NHS meditation video to help with relaxation and sleep.

–        More information about mindfulness and it’s benefits with the NHS. https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/self-help/tips-and-support/mindfulness/

–        Try Meditation in Wales for online meditation classes and retreats within your local area.

–        Try meditative and mindful exercise such as yoga – St Davids Yoga offer classes with a focus on viniyoga – a meditative approach suitable for everyone.

Lisa Smith, who runs St David’s yoga says

“As a yoga teacher, I’ve been fortunate to learn from great teachers and have the opportunity to study yoga philosophy in some detail, mostly from Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra and some Samkhya philosophy. These ancient texts have taught me that the goal of yoga is stilling the activity of the mind. In fact, the second sutra states this very clearly.”

–        Also check out St David’s wellbeing for access to services such as therapies, classes and workshops including meditation.