Hello.
My name is Rebecca Stambridge and I teach mindfulness at Tameside, Oldham and Glossop
Mind.
This vlog aims to explain why I think mindfulness is good for your mental health.
Mindfulness has really taken the mental health world by storm over the last few years and
I’ve not come across many people working in the field today who don’t think it has,
at least, some value to people with mental health problems.
The wider world, however, does seem to be broadly divided into enthusiasts on one hand
and then, people who just seem to be totally turned off by it and I’m not surprised,
to be honest.
I think it’s because mindfulness originates from Buddhism and therefore, has strong religious
connotations which will put some people off.
And the fact that it’s based on meditation can also make it sound like something a bit
New Age and faddy and that just isn’t going to be for everybody.
However, I think that mindfulness isn’t really about that.
You can be into those things and mindfulness but, really, at its simplest, mindfulness
is just a technique that can help you have more control over how thoughts are making
you feel.
Think of it as mind training, if you like.
Buddha just happened to be a really clever guy who just had a lot of useful things to
say about what makes us unhappy in the modern world but you don’t really have to follow
the rest of Buddhism to benefit from mindfulness.
You can do it on your own, in your bedroom, no robes, chanting or incense are necessary.
You really can do it in your own way and on our courses, for example, we have such a wide
variety of people that really benefit from mindfulness.
People like ex-war veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, to retired grannies, who
all are able to use these techniques.
So, why does it work?
Well, there’s loads of different ways that you can describe mindfulness and there’s
loads of reasons why people think it works but I would say that it’s based on the idea
that the reason why we’re stressed or unhappy is not because of what’s actually going
on in the present moment.
It’s usually because of what is going on in our heads, a lot of the stories that we
tell ourselves, usually to do with things that have happened to us in the past and how
those stories make us feel.
By practising mindfulness, we can develop ways that we can connect to the present moment
more and then when we do that, the calmer and happier we can be.
And also, with mindfulness, you really just become more aware of your thoughts and aware
of how those thoughts are affecting you and you become more objective about them.
So, you can see the thoughts as they arise and choose how you respond.
Also, by switching off the automatic pilot mode, which a lot of us tend to exist in,
we can have a much richer and ultimately, happier relationship with the world around
us.
So, for me, I use mindfulness to help manage depression because I have a tendency to interpret
certain events in negative ways and then I might ruminate over those events so obsessively
and the thoughts just take over my life.
Whenever something like that happens now, I feel like I’ve got a lot more techniques
to help keep me grounded, in the present and I’m a bit more rational about what’s really
going on.
It is a work in progress but I feel I’m learning how I can be in control of my thoughts,
rather than my thoughts controlling me.
So, how can you do this?
Well, there are hundreds of different ways to practise mindfulness and so, on our courses,
for example, we may teach people formal meditation where you sit down and focus on your breath,
for example.
But we also teach people how to be mindful, just by paying a bit more attention when you’re
doing the washing up or perhaps, being a bit more aware of your surroundings when you’re
walking down the street.
So, what’s great is that, let’s say you’ve tried mindfulness and you’ve tried sitting
down for long periods of time and you’ve concluded it’s not for you.
Actually, there’s loads of ways to be mindful.
You can just learn to be mindful in your day to day life and another bonus, I think, is
that if you do have mental health problems and you do need more than medication but you
just don’t like the idea of sharing your emotions with a stranger, then you don’t
have to talk to anyone.
This is something that you can do, right now, on your own, when it suits you.
It’s free and there are no waiting lists.
So, what is stopping you giving it a try?
If you want to find out more about mindfulness, then you have to click on this button, below
and, or contact your local Mind, who may have some local courses or could tell you where
it’s going on.
And watch out for more videos about mindfulness on the Mind YouTube channel his week, all
in celebration of mental health awareness week.
Thanks for listening.