Any parent who has tried to get from point A to point B quickly with a young child knows – children are naturally very mindful!
Kids often want to stop and examine every little point of interest along the way. In these moments, your child is absolutely absorbed in the present moment. We can learn a lot from this perspective.
It reminds us to pause and be curious again about the cool little things happening all around us! Listen in with Dr. Jen to learn more.
Teaching our kids to be more mindful is equal parts what we teach them and how they see us behave and act ourselves.
If we can be more mindful as parents, that naturally translates into kids who are also able to use this important skill in their lives.
Today, Dr. Jen talks about navigating our busy schedules and hectic pace of life with a simple, actionable to do – taking 10 deep breaths over the course of our day.
Listen in to learn more!
Mindfulness helps us stay present.
It helps us find joy in the little moment to moment experiences in our lives. Mindful living sees each day as a brand-new chapter.
Practice this skill with your child by making a few extra moments to notice and savour a detail of your life each day. This could be a delicious bite of food, something in nature or anything that brings you and your child into the present moment together.
Mindfulness is all about our attention. A mindful approach means that we pay attention to our present moment – the sights, sounds, smells – everything!
To become more mindful in our busy daily lives, it is important to practice this skill.
Today, Dr. Jen shares why a raisin could help us to start practicing mindfulness each day.
Mindfulness is an important skill because it helps us to stay in the present moment. Research says that mindfulness is a huge contributor to our happiness.
Why is this? When we are mindful, we are more capable of experiencing what is happening right now. It means we are not stuck in the past or always thinking about the future.
Find out more in the video with Dr. Jen below!
Each month, we focus on one piece of what makes a powerful umbrella of well-being skills. In February, we are adding Mindfulness to our umbrella of well-being.
Does your child spend a lot of time ruminating on the past or worrying about the future?
When we spend a lot of time thinking about the past or future instead of being engaged in the present moment, research shows this can make us feel unhappy.
Mindfulness is our ability to pay attention to our feelings, thoughts, bodily sensations and our environment, in the moment, without labeling them as good or bad (non-judgement).
This means we aren’t feeling bad or trying to change our feelings but instead just noticing them and becoming more aware of them and the world around us. This may seem simple, but mindfulness takes practice. On average, we spend half our time thinking about something other that what we are doing in the present!
Mindfulness has been shown to have many benefits. Paying attention to the present moment can boost our mood, improve our self-confidence and help us think more clearly. It can also improve our immune system’s ability to fight disease. Mindfulness can increase brain size, specifically the parts responsible for learning, memory and empathy. It’s an important skill in our umbrella and supports development of a lot of the other Umbrella Skills.
This month we will dig deeper into how to build this skill and the foundations of mindful parenting.
“In today’s rush, we all think too much — seek too much — want too much — and forget about the joy of just being.” ~Eckhart Tolle