Mindfulness
If we become more aware of the present we can understand ourselves and our emotions more, we can learn to stand back from negative thoughts we experience, recognise signs of stress and anxiety earlier and we can learn to enjoy the world around us and experience afresh things we may have taken for granted.
When we are feeling low however we tend to focus on the past and ruminate about negative experiences, if we are feeling stressed and anxious we can focus on the future and worry about things that may happen or think about things that could go wrong. The past has already gone and can’t be changed and the future is yet to arrive and it completely unknown.
Research shows that if you can practice mindfulness techniques regularly you can significantly improve your mental wellbeing. At The Chelmsford Wellbeing Centre, we integrate mindfulness techniques into our therapy sessions and often use it to help treat depression and anxiety problems.
Mindfulness is an evidence based treatment and is recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) as a way to prevent depression.
Link for NICE guideline on depression in adults: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg90.