Mindfulness as a Dirty Word

I think mindfulness and what it implies to many people has gotten a bad reputation. I think the whole concept both scares and shames people. It seems too hard to do, to remember as one walks through a day, and also creates shame when a person can't pull it off. Be mindful. Pay attention.
It just seems daunting.

When I work with clients who are experiencing a great deal of anxiety daily I do not even mention the word mindfulness. I don't usually talk about deep breathing. I need to meet the client where they are at.

I do ask questions about how long anxiety has been hanging around, is it an intergenerational coping skill, etc. Questions about a person's pre-birth experience or birth experience. I recently had a client who reported extremely tight feelings in their jaw and shoulders and then told me that during birth, a long 26 hours of labor for Mom and baby, their collarbone was broken.

Hmmmm...I just wondered out loud how that experience might have stayed in the body, showing up throughout this person's life as tight jaw and shoulders.

Just a hunch. The body does keep score like Dr. Van Der Kolk says in "The Body Keeps Score".

So we start with the body and what has worked in the past and build on that. I offer a number of resources for people to try, watch, learn about including Tapping, Polyvagal self-regulation exercises, books about the mind-body connection...there is a lot out there.

If any of this interests you, call or text to schedule a free telephone consultation: 360-432-1236.

I won't blame, shame or judge.