There are many different ways to practice mindfulness, including meditation, and it is associated with many benefits.

Studies with college students suggest that the practice of mindfulness leads to decreases in stress and anxiety, improvements in concentration and attention, and increases in self-awareness and overall emotional well-being. Willoughby Britton and Eric Loucks, professors at Brown University, have studied the effects of mindfulness meditation on Brown students and have found that meditation has several physical health and mental health benefits.

Mindfulness is often used as one aspect of treatment for a range of issues, such as anxiety, depression, substance abuse, binge eating disorder, chronic pain and cancer.

There are many ways to practice mindfulness, including meditation, yoga and tai-chi. You can also practice mindfulness as part of your daily routine:

Walking

Be aware of the sensations of walking, like the quality of the pavement under your feet and how your body feels. Notice when your mind wanders and, without judgment, come back to awareness of walking.

Taking a Shower

Notice how the water feels on your body and the movements of your body as you shower. This can be a good time to focus on your breath as well.

Brushing your teeth

Pay attention to all of the sensations, tastes and movements involved. Since we begin and end the day with this task, it can also be an opportunity to give yourself compassion or lovingkindness.

Lovingkindness Meditation

Activities like a 3-minute lovingkindness meditation (MP3).

There are a range of ways to meditate, from very brief amounts of time to week-long retreats. It doesn't have to be complicated or perfect. Simply try what is best for you.

Here are some simple steps that you can use as a guide:

• If you can, find a quiet space to use regularly. This can be very challenging in college. You can try the library; or if the noise in your residence hall isn't too loud, you can practice meditation that focuses on becoming aware of the sounds around you. For example, you can pay attention to the number of sounds, the quality of them, and how they come and go.
• Sit or stand in a comfortable posture, erect but relaxed.
• Take a moment to notice body sensations: tightness, tension, etc. There's nothing you have to do about them; just notice them.
• Establish an intention for the meditation, for example, to be aware of body sensations, to give yourself compassion or lovingkindess, or to notice that thoughts come and go.
• Use guided meditations to help yourself remain focused. See the links on this page for meditations on the web and phone apps you can download.
• Once you have practice with guided meditations, you can meditate on your own, noticing what works best for you.
• It's important to start slowly: try 5 to 10 minutes a day and gradually increase to a maximum of 45 minutes a day.

Keep in mind that meditation is never a substitute for psychological or medical care. If you feel upset, overwhelmed or agitated while meditating, it's important to stop. Brown students can get confidential counseling at Counseling and Psychological Services, 401-863-3476.

Although the concept of mindfulness emerged from Eastern philosophies, including Buddhism and Taoism, thousands of years ago, research has found that mindfulness can be considered a quality of human consciousness which can be measured and studied empirically. Mindfulness meditation practices have been formalized in programs such as Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), and Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBRP) as well as other programs. It can be considered a beneficial psychological or stress-reducing practice, regardless of your religious beliefs.

If you are concerned that the practice of mindfulness might contradict your religious beliefs, you can talk to someone in your religious community or contact the Office of the Chaplains and Religious Life.