Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is a method of using meditation to create awareness and reduce stress. It is an ancient practice that teaches us to be in the present moment, by simply closing our eyes, sitting in a comfortable position and focusing on our breath as it moves in and out of our body.
Why is this so beneficial?
By using these simple techniques, a person learns to observe his or her thoughts as they move through their mind. Meditation is not about forcing the mind to be quiet, but about the choice that we have in every moment, in this case, to redirect our thoughts to our breath and our body. In silence, we experience what is beneath our thoughts. Stressful thoughts often create unhealthy reactions that lower our immune system.
Mindfulness-based stress reduction will not be developed in the midst of every-day turmoil. This is the reason for dedication to meditation. The practice of remembering oneself is most effectively accomplished in the calm and quiet moments of one’s life. If we think we don’t have the time, the alternative is a painful and reactive approach to situations. This is stress at its most harmful level.
If one has taken the time in a quiet moment to practice letting go of stress and in noticing the reactive nature of the mind, one may have a chance of remembering this when it is most needed. Stress isn’t necessarily a bad thing; rather our reaction to stress can cause our problems.
Stress is the reason we remember to pick up our child after school. Stress is the reason we don’t walk on the road in front of the car. Stress becomes harmful when it becomes our master.
Mindfulness-based stress reduction is the practice of recalling to let stress go. Use stress to your advantage, then let it go. Remember that labeling stress as harmful is what creates the harm. This reaction becomes obsessive, and the obsession is the limiting issue, not the stress.
