Mindfulness and Attention

Mindfulness meditation has become increasingly popular over the past few years, as a growing body of research continues to demonstrate the benefits of mindfulness. Last month, the New York Times published an article on how mindfulness training can be useful in treating attention deficits in both children and adults. Research suggests that teaching individuals mindfulness can help them increase “cognitive control,” which can be defined “as the delay of gratification, impulse management, emotional self-regulation or self-control, the suppression of irrelevant thoughts, and paying attention or learning readiness.” Researchers exploring the use of mindfulness to treat ADHD have found that mindfulness training helps individuals reduce impulsive errors and focus attention as well as medication.

What is mindfulness? Mindfulness is an awareness that emerges through paying attention to what is happening in the present moment, such as our thoughts, how we feel, or what we are experiencing. When we are being mindful, we are paying attention to our experience in the present moment, without judgment.

To practice mindfulness to increase cognitive control, try the following:

1)   Do one thing at a time. When you eat, eat. When you clean, clean. When you are in a conversation, focus your attention on the very moment you are in with the other person. Do one thing with all your attention.

2)   If other actions, thoughts, or feelings distract you, bring your mind back to what you are doing—again, and again, and again.

3)   Take a nonjudgmental stance—see but don’t evaluate. Focus on just the facts without holding on to an opinion or evaluation.

4)   Try observing—just notice your experience. This can be accomplished by paying attention to what is coming in through your senses—your eyes, ears, nose, skin, and tongue, or by stepping inside yourself to watch your thoughts and feelings. Observe your thoughts coming and going like leaves floating down a stream. Notice feelings rising and falling, likes waves in the ocean.

Practicing mindfulness takes conscious effort and can become easier with time. Try scheduling a few mindful minutes each day and see how it works for you.

Brenda Lehman, PhD