Ep. 8 - Mindfulness & Anxiety

Today I want to talk about the all-important topic of mindfulness and anxiety. This is a topic really close to my heart and I am regularly asked about it - probably because anxiety is so pervasive in our society and more and more people are looking for ways to overcome it.

Mindfulness involves acknowledgment and acceptance, and with that in mind I explore some of the many ways we avoid acknowledging or dealing with our emotions, how it's important to notice and accept difficult emotions, like anxiety, and how we can explore these aspects of our selves safely, comfortably and with support.

I share some mindfulness practices we can use, from breath-work to grounding techniques, and how introducing these mindful practices into our daily routines, or sharing them with others who need them, can help them to get into a better state of relaxation, to overcome overwhelm and to release negative emotions or anxiety. 

Touching on David Treleavan's book, 'Trauma-Sensitive Mindfulness', aimed at mindfulness practitioners, I share a little about 'held trauma' and how mindfulness or meditation in these circumstances can make things a bit more complex, therefore needing to be handled carefully. Being 'trauma-sensitive' can include making adjustments to the techniques or to the way we use them, adapting them to what suits us best, and I share some examples of this too.

If you would like to read further, here are links to the books I draw on in this episode:

'Trauma-Sensitive Mindfulness' by David Treleavan: https://www.waterstones.com/book/trauma-sensitive-mindfulness/david-a-treleaven/willoughby-britton/9780393709780 

'Emotional Agility' by Susan David: https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/126302/susan-david.html