Managing Your Depression by Susan J. Noonan Page A

being in the present moment.
    Mindfulness requires that you pay attention to what is going on around you. It means that you live with awareness instead of going through life on autopilot. Paying attention also involves observing your own thoughts and feelings, your body’s response to emotion (such as rapid heart rate, sweating, etc.), your urges, and your behavior just as they are.
    Being nonjudgmental means that you avoid making any judgment about your thoughts, actions, or experiences and let each moment be as it is. Allow yourself to think or feel what you are feeling, without putting labels or judgment on it. This is also not easy to do. Part of your mind is constantly evaluating your experiences, comparing them to past experiences or expectations you may have. Instead, work on developing a neutral attitude toward what comes into your mind without judging it. Acknowledge your thoughts as thoughts and then let them go. For each experience, emotion, or thought you have, try to feel it without reacting to it.
    Why Practice Mindfulness?
• Living mindfully allows you to engage in what you are doing. Emotions will interfere less often. This will improve the quality of your life.
• Mindfulness helps you to live in the present moment instead of experiencing the painful emotions related to the past or future. Dwelling on past experiences or future worries tends to trigger painful emotions. This happens often in depression. Mindfulness practice helps you to decrease these ruminations and the emotions and distress they produce.
• Mindfulness practice can help you manage your mood disorder. When you have an increased awareness of the present moment, you are able to notice when symptoms of your mood disorder arise. Recognizing your depression or bipolar symptoms enables you to respond effectively with your Relapse Prevention plan.
• Mindfulness can improve your ability to tolerate and respond to painful events. When you are overwhelmed by emotions, your mind clutters up quickly. So you have to focus first on the thought or moment and try to clear your mind, to calm it down. To do this you must step back, observe your own thought, and try to get a handle on it. Mindfulness practice can help you do this. When you are focused on and attentive to the present moment, without attaching judgment or value to it, you can make the best use of your thoughts, take action, and work on your problem.
• Many people find that Mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral therapy is an effective treatment for depression.
    How Do You Practice Mindfulness?
    Mindfulness is a skill that you can develop with practice. Begin by trying to make yourself more aware of the present moment without judging it as good or bad. Focus your full attention on what you are doing, on one thing at a time. Get fully involved in that moment. Notice when your mind wanders and bring your attention back to the moment. You can begin to practice this by setting aside five minutes a day to do a Mindfulness meditation (see below).
    You can also try to exercise Mindfulness as you go about your day. For example, when you brush your teeth, focus your mind on doing only that one task. Pay attention to your actions, to the taste, sensations, sounds, and so on. As your mind wanders, bring it back to the task of brushing your teeth in this moment. Try it again when you drive, wash the dishes, have a conversation, or during othermoments of your life. Live with awareness of what you are doing instead of going through life automatically.
Exercise to Practice Being Mindful
1. Sit in a comfortable chair, in a comfortable position.
2. Close your eyes if you like.
3. Become aware of your breathing, and focus on each breath.
4. Anchor your attention to the present moment: pay attention to your breathing, the sounds around you, the physical sensations you have.
5. Observe what you feel, see, and hear without placing a value or judgment on it.
6. Continue to focus on each breath, in and out.
7.