Having spent the past several years working primarily with teens and their parents, it has become clear to me that not only is stress increasing for our teens, but they also don't have enough healthy ways to manage it. The coping skills that many of them are currently utilizing - isolating from friends, pushing family away, engaging in self-harming or self-destructive behaviors like cutting, drinking, and drugs - are not healthy and NOT effective.
So often this stress comes from anxiety about the future ("How will I ever get my homework done?" "Am I going to college?" "What if nobody takes me to prom?") and/or from ruminating on the past ("Will my friend ever forgive me for what I said last week?" "How will I pass math with a test score like the one I just got?").
Mindfulness skills improve our awareness of both our own self and our world. These skills teach us to make wise decisions, avoid judgments, and focus on one thing at a time. They are considered the core skills and used with all other DBT skills. Mindfulness allows us to slow down and focus on what is happening in the present moment. The concept of mindfulness can feel overwhelming, so starting with mindfully engaging your senses is a good place to begin.
How can you use your senses mindfully?
- Engage your 5 senses!
- Take a bite of food as you normally would. Now take a bite mindfully, paying attention to how it actually tastes and what it feels like in your mouth.
- Listen to your favorite song as you normally would. Now listen to it mindfully, really paying attention to the music and lyrics.
- Notice how the couch feels when you sit down at the end of the day
- Pay attention to scents you might normally overlook. for example, the scent of autumn when you are outside
- Be aware of your surroundings and what you see, for example, on your drive to work or school
How can this help?
- When we are mindful, we can:
- Notice our thoughts without being overwhelmed
- Avoid making impulsive decisions
- Appreciate and enjoy fun things
- Feel more calm and less stressed
Give it a try and see if you can notice a difference!