Mindfulness: 5 ways to destress at Christmas

Christmas carries with it a lot of expectations. It's a time of year when the pressure to have the perfect holiday with family or friends can take its toll. Perhaps you are overloaded with tasks, or perhaps, for you, it's the opposite, you feel alone and as if everyone else is having the time of their lives. Wherever you are in the run-up to the big day, it's probably a good enough guess to say that it's not always the most relaxing time of year. Fortunately we can unwrap a few CBT and mindfulness cues to help us stay calm and prevent us from going off like a Christmas cracker!

Think of each of these are your very own mindfulness Christmas gifts to yourself and use them as reminders to tune in and watch your thoughts and how these relate to how you might be feeling over the Christmas period:

1. Christmas music

It's everywhere. Love it or loathe it, if you leave your home, you will hear it. You can use festive music as a reminder to check in with your thoughts, noticing what's going through your mind, noticing how you feel (your emotions and your body), before shifting your focus for a few minutes to focusing on your breathing, just noticing your breath going in and out. It's like a mini-timeout and can help to soothe stress, giving you a little space before choosing to move on to something new or continue what you are doing with fresh eyes.

2. Christmas wrapping

A necessary chore which can feel overwhelming when there's so much else to do, with a little mindful attention  wrapping gifts can become a way to bring you back to why you are wrapping these gifts, these tokens of love and appreciation for those people you truly value having in your life. You might even feel inspired to be more creative once you get focused in this way. To get mindful as you wrap up the presents, you can focus on the sounds of the paper as you unroll it, you can listen to the paper as you slice it with your scissors, feel the texture, notice the springiness of the ribbon as it curls, and notice the colours and shapes as you fold stick and pile the presents. If your mind wanders to other chores taking you away from your task, try to repeatedly bring your focus to the task at hand, tuning into what you can see, hear, feel and perhaps touch. No tasting though for now - the chocolates you bought were meant as a gift!

3. Mulled wine or mince pies

Food and drink are big features of the Christmas season, offering ample opportunities to be mindful. You can find out more on how to savour and notice the tastes, smells and sounds of Christmas food and drink here in this guided Christmas mindfulness exercise.

4. Christmas candle

Gifting yourself a Christmas candle can be a special way to mark the countdown to Christmas, filling your home with wonderful aromas. Lighting a candle can be symbolic of many things, celebration or a time for reflection, or even just a general sense of cosiness in your home. It also can mark the start or end of a mindfulness practice, when you might choose to set a small intention for yourself for your meditation or for the rest of your day. You can, if you choose not to close your eyes, use the candle as your mindfulness focus, and use it to gaze on the flickering flame, noticing the warmth coming from it, noticing the scent as it lingers in the air. Is there anything else that you notice?

5. Christmas compassion

Go easy on yourself and others. Maybe this is a difficult time of year for you - absent friends, stress, workloads. See if you can notice what it is like to experiment with being forgiving of yourself and others, or your own mistakes. Practise being aware of any tendency for too-high standards or expectations of a perfect day. Notice and be mindful of the times when you are demanding a lot of yourself and be flexible in your approach. Compassion could be the best Christmas gift you can offer yourself and others. If you find self compassion difficult, you can begin with a guided breathing exercise such as Soothing Rhythm breathing. Just a simple act of taking time to breathe can be the beginnings of self compassion.

I hope these five festive mindfulness reminders give you some inspiration to stay present over Christmas. As you practise being mindful, I'd like to encourage you to ask the following... What do you notice when you really pay attention? What do you miss when you don't?

Ali Binns is a CBT therapist in Bath. She supports clients with their emotional wellbeing, using a cognitive behavioural therapy approach combined with mindfulness techniques to support the process. 

Breathing exercise: Soothing rhythm breathing

Using our breath can be a helpful way of settling our mind and body when we are experiencing negative emotions such as anxiety, anger, depression or general stress. It can help to create a more secure and grounded feeling and reduce the impact of the body’s natural fight or flight reflex. By deliberately using our breath, we are helping our mind to receive the message that we are safe.

Soothing rhythm breathing is a breathing exercise designed to soothe body and mind. There are other breathing exercises where you can just allow the breath to be as it is, but this technique is about discovering a breathing rhythm that is supportive and calming for you. The counting element can help to focus your mind on your breath.

The rate and rhythm of breath which you find soothing may vary from the count here, so please feel free to adjust your counting if need be. Your natural soothing rhythm may even vary from day to day, so initially it is worth taking a little time to find your rhythm before settling into a pattern which feels soothing and natural for you. There’s no rush to find the right pace; just keep your in and out breaths of equal length, with a brief pause between each.

You can experiment with the sequence below until you find the rate which feels most beneficial for you. There’s absolutely no pressure to do this right or get it right first time, just set aside a few minutes a day to practice and you will soon get the hang of it.

As with other mindfulness based practices, if you find your mind wandering off onto other concerns, that’s okay, just bring your attention back to your counting and your breath.

Instructions

• First sit in a way that you feel supported, yet alert, in an upright posture with feet flat on the floor, and head facing forward.
• To begin with, slowly take a steady and long in-breath for a count of four.
• Pause there for a moment…
• Then gradually release the breath for a count of four, keeping it steady, long and slow.
• Repeat this count for three minutes.

As with any breathing exercise, these are best practised in a quiet relatively calm environment to begin with, and as you become used to doing them, you will be able to use them while going about your day when you feel the need to give yourself some time to reset.

If you would like to try a different mindful breathing technique, you can go here to find a Beginners Mindfulness of Breath exercise.

Ali Binns is a CBT therapist in Bath. She regularly teaches clients to use these simple breathing techniques as part of their general care plans. These exercises help clients to work with their emotions in a more helpful way. 

Mindful creativity

Mindful crafting and creativity can be fulfilling ways of building mindful activity into our lives. Whether you paint, stitch, sew, make, bake, decorate, or however you ‘do’ your creativity, it goes without saying that creativity can tick all three wellness boxes of achievement, connection and enjoyment. And, if you can add mindfulness do your crafting, you can increase the wellbeing benefits of creativity by using this time to stay present and train your mindfulness muscle.

Mindfulness is choosing to be in the present moment and adopting a compassionate non-judgemental stance towards your experience.

It’s well known that mindfulness can help us to develop greater resilience to life’s ups and downs, lead to greater calm and increase our awareness of our thoughts. As a CBT therapist in Bath, I regularly help clients to understand the idea that our thoughts impact on our feelings. If we can be aware of our own thought patterns, we are then better able to choose which thoughts are helpful to us, and which stand in the way of us leading the life we want to.

Mindful creativity

We’ve all seen those mindful colouring-in books by now, but it occurred to me that many people use these without really knowing how to colour or craft with mindful attention. So… a blog post is born. There’s no use turning to your colouring book or picking up some knitting needles and hoping your troubles will disappear, grumbling inwardly at the day’s stresses - your creative efforts will only suffer. Neither does it help you to settle down for a creative half hour and spend that time judging the fruits of your endeavours – perhaps you begin to compare it to other people’s work, or tell yourself that you can’t draw, or just aren't any good at being creative. These kinds of thoughts simply spoil your creativity, takes away the fun and leaves you feeling sorry for yourself. The answer is mindful creativity or mindful crafting.

To craft or create mindfully there are a few simple steps to get more from your creative pastimes.

The art of mindfulness

The first tip is to remember the main principle of mindfulness which is to pay attention on purpose. To pay attention, you can practise noticing when your mind wanders off to anything other than your chosen task. If you’re sketching and thinking about your shopping list or picking the kids up from school, then you’re not giving your task your full attention. This is to be expected, this is what minds do! The aim of mindful crafting is to notice each time your mind gets lost in its own thoughts. When you have dedicated time to your creativity, how does it help you now to be planning your weekly shop? There’s time for that later. Each time you notice your mind taking a walk, just thank your mind for its attention to the future or the past, and bring it back to the detail of now. Each time you do this, you can congratulate yourself, for this is the art of mindfulness.

It’s not always easy, because our minds are used to running on autopilot. What can help is to focus your attention on your creativity by using your senses. Sight can pull you into colours, shades and tones. Hearing can tune you into your activity by listening carefully to sounds you may never have before associated with your work. Touch can keep you in contact with your craft as you notice the weight of materials or tools, the texture of any fabrics, or the feel of any accessories you use. Smell and taste are also useful senses to tune in to, particularly if your creativity is in the kitchen.

An important aspect of mindfulness is a non-judgemental attitude. Mindfulness expert Shamash Alidina calls this 'kindfulness.' What this means is, as much as you can, notice and refrain from judging your work in any way, and let yourself be gentle and encouraging with your efforts. After all, what do you get when you begin to judge your own creativity? What impact does this have on your mood or your results? Notice any tendencies to judge or be down on yourself, and let this go. As before, use your senses to re-engage with your task.

I hope this helps to give you a start on mindful crafting or creativity. Spend your time truly engaged with your creativity and notice the results. If you can immerse yourself in crafting in this way, then you can begin to experience the state they call flow, when time flows effortlessly and you feel calm and engaged, giving you your best results. Happy creating!

The Enough List

What’s an enough list? An enough list is a new way of managing our to do lists. Do you find yourself on the work / chores treadmill and it just never stops? Are you stuck in a trap of thinking that you have to get through it all, get through it well, all at the expense of your own self care and down-time? Then it’s time to find a new way. Try setting yourself the challenge of the Enough List.

The Enough List is a mini-behavioural experiment to see what it is like to let go of some of our self-imposed shoulds and must-dos. You may say you have to do everything on your to do list, but there’s a high chance there are some things which can wait, do less often, delegate, share, or even (perfectionists particularly, take note!) do to a lesser standard or skip entirely.

Constantly chasing a to do list which you never get to the bottom of can have a negative impact on our sense of self, undermining our self worth, confidence and our mood. The Enough List is a way to challenge the idea that we have to get through all this stuff in order to be a good parent, good partner, good employee, good anything!

The most likely reality for anyone holding down a job or bringing up kids (or - insert other time-consuming and necessary reality here - managing a household, looking after others in ill health, studying) is that there will always be a never-ending stream of emails in our inbox, projects which aren’t finished, chores which haven’t been done yet, cheques to write, DIY projects stalled and so on.

As we put ourselves under increasing pressure to do everything and achieve all the tasks, it’s fairly easy to make the leap from not achieving enough to not being good enough. This is particularly common in those with perfectionist tendencies. The really detailed lists we make can be helpful so we don’t forget the important things, but, equally, they can be a worrying reminder of everything we have to do, as well as everything we haven’t. The lists can be a double-edged sword. One way to step out of the fix could be to let go of the should-do and must-do tasks and experiment with the Enough List.

How to write an Enough List

It couldn’t be simpler. The Enough List is what is enough for today. Each day, make a list of three specific and achievable things which are enough for the day. They can be small things, but just ensure they are the most important to you on that day. That is enough. After that, any achievements can be considered bonus material. Work on the three things that matter the most, and keep your mind on these. What do you predict might happen if you try this? Do you worry things will fall apart, or that people will judge you for your falling standards?

Reflect on results

Commit to doing this for a couple of weeks before reflecting on your results. What did you notice when you organised your to do lists in this way? Did you find a greater sense of achievement? Perhaps greater satisfaction? Or even more enjoyment? Were you able to say you did enough? Did you have a greater feeling of mastery of your days? How did this affect how you feel?

In CBT therapy, one of the keys to emotional change is changing what we do, to change the way we feel. Ali Binns works as a CBT therapist in Bath and supports clients to find ways to get unstuck and improve their mood. If you are looking for CBT therapy in Bath, you can get in touch via info@alibinns.co.uk or using the contact form under Contact above.

Progressive muscle relaxation

Progressive muscle relaxation is a classic exercise which has stood the test of time and is helpful to reduce tension and relieve the symptoms of stress and anxiety. Often clients wonder why I’m teaching them another relaxation exercise, so I hope the following helps to explain the why as well as the how.

When we are under pressure and our fight or flight system is being regularly activated by threats in our environment, one of the physical symptoms we can experience is a build-up of muscle tension. This muscle tension arises because of the impact of adrenaline, the way we are holding our bodies, and the way we are breathing. The fight or flight reflex prepares our muscles to act in face of a perceived threat in our environment. The threat doesn’t have to be real, even an imagined threat will do!

Our threat system is rather like an overhelpful friend, at times, pointing out threats, much of the time are not an actual danger at all. Nevertheless, as humans we get to live with a brain which responds to everyday situations and threats in much the same was as it would to a sabre toothed tiger. Our mind is working hard to protect us, and while we’ll all have our unique combinations of triggers, when the adrenaline hits our bodies, we all react in the same biological way. Our heart rate rises and our muscles are being prepared to take action – to fight and defend ourself, or to run away and take cover.

The benefits of progressive muscle relaxation

Whether we react with fear or anger to threats, muscle tension can be a feature. Muscle tension is one of the physical symptoms which forms part of the unhelpful cycle when the fight or flight system is activated, so this progressive muscle relaxation is a way of breaking into that vicious circle, creating a helpful loop instead. Because muscle tension as a symptom is linked to our thoughts, feelings and actions, if we can actively reduce muscle tension, it can have a positive impact on stress as a whole. (This, fact fans, is one of the reasons why therapeutic massage can help to relieve the symptoms of stress.)

Take the time to practise regularly and PMR can help to release and reduce muscle tension. Persistence is key. It would not be enough to do progressive muscle relaxation just once, although, you may experience an immediate benefit. It is best if you can run through this at least once per day. Most people start to notice a difference after 2-3 weeks of practice.

In time, you might be able to run through this as a brief body scan to look for areas of muscle tension in your body and take action to relax those areas. The exercise will also give you the knowledge to notice when muscle tension may be building for you. This can serve as an early warning sign to you to take action to reduce stress levels and ensure you are looking after yourself with appropriate self care.

How to practise progressive muscle relaxation

Find a comfortable and quiet place to sit or lie down. If you can, try to ensure that you can get 15-20 minutes without interruptions. So phones off, door closed, and ask anyone you may share a house with to give you a little time alone.

Close your eyes and bring your attention to your breathing. Try as best you can to keep your breathing slow and even, lengthening on the out breath. Try saying the word ‘relax’ to yourself a few times as you breathe out to encourage this lengthening of the out breath.

You are going to work through your main muscle groups one at a time, starting with your right foot. Begin by tensing your right foot, squeezing your toes together and pointing them downwards. Focus on that tension. Slowly release that tension as you breathe out, saying the word ‘relax’ to yourself. Notice the different sensations as you hold the tension and release the tension. Notice what it is like as the muscles relax. How does it feel different?

Now do the same with your right calf muscle. Tense your right calf and hold this tension for a while. Slowly release the tension as you breathe out.

Move slowly through the parts of your body as follows, working through the muscles of your right leg, left leg, buttocks, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, left arm, left hand and fingers, right arm, right hand and fingers, neck, jaw, lips, eyes, and forehead. With each group of muscles create tension followed by releasing and relaxing for each group of muscles.

Once you have worked your way through the different areas of your body, scan through your body and make a note to see what, if anything, feels different now. If some areas are still tense, spend extra time focusing on those muscles.

When you’re finished, you can open your eyes and see if you can take some of this feeling of relaxation into the rest of your day. If you have used this before bed, let yourself drift into a sleep naturally.

Ali Binns is an accredited CBT therapist in Bath. If you'd like to find out more about how she works, feel free to browse the site. Or if you would like to book an appointment or find out more about how CBT might help you, you can get in touch via info@alibinns.co.uk

Unhelpful thinking styles: filtering and emotional reasoning

Emotional reasoning (emotional filtering) is a common unhelpful thinking style. Each of us views the world, ourselves and other people in our own unique way. And, of course, this all depends on a complex set of life circumstances, upbringing, contemporary social and environmental influences, sex, religion, health, random events, genes, and more or less anything else a human can come into contact with. Despite each person's individuality, we do all have a lot in common. We're all subject to the human brain's tricky manoeuvres and resulting unhelpful thinking styles.

We all see the world through our own lens or filter, but when subject to stressors, our brain relies on experience to match up what it recognises with previous triggers which have been filed away in our memories as 'threatening' situations, people or places. Once our fight or flight system (our primitive survival mechanism) is activated, cortisol and adrenaline are released which produce primary emotions such as anxiety or anger.

The impact on the body can't be missed - racing heart, feeling sweaty, tingling sensations, light headedness, muscle tension, feeling ready to run or fight (plus a host of other intense physical symptoms). The resulting emotions feel so strong that they can compel us to act or behave in certain ways to avoid a feared situation, or to defend ourselves against a threat. 

Emotional filters

Our mind needs to filter our experiences and let through the right stuff. If our filter is flawed, then like a coffee machine that is playing up, we can end up with a poorer than necessary experience. If we use our emotions to filter or decide on our course of action, we can unwittingly work against our own best interests. Consider some of the following examples of emotional filtering:

• I feel guilty, therefore I must be bad.
• I feel afraid, the danger must be real.
• I feel so anxious... I'm pathetic.
• I'm very angry, they need to pay for what they did.
• I'm feeling very anxious, this must be a bad thing and I need to do something about it.

In CBT we learn that our emotions are a consequence of our thought patterns, and a response to the way we are thinking. Our thoughts can be automatic, like a reflex, and our beliefs can be out of date and no longer serving us. 

Our emotional responses may also be influenced by memories of past events or traumatic circumstances, tricking us into believing that a past threat is here and now. The memory may lead you to feel upset, but it is not happening now, so your current emotion would not be the wise way to determine your choices. Your emotions can lead you to confuse the past with the present.

If we only use how we feel as our filter for living our lives, we can unwittingly make mistakes and hold ourselves back in life. The emotions we feel when we are experiencing stressful events are so compelling that we 'feel' we need to take evasive or defensive action. This does not always take us closer to where we want to be - it often takes us further away from our valued goals. 

Here's a rather everyday example which many people can relate to. Take a fictional character Procrastinating Peter... "I feel so stressed about all this work I have to do." His anxiety feels so uncomfortable, he unknowingly feels compelled to avoid this feeling of anxiety, by avoiding the work he needs to get done. Anything will do: making endless cups of coffee, going on social media, tidying his desk, taking a sickie so he can feel better.

All of these actions take away the anxiety for a while, but the work doesn't get done, because Peter has used his 'feelings' to guide his action. The key is to understanding what thoughts or beliefs are underlying Peter's stress. Peter's thoughts could be going along several directions - "I'm not going to do a good enough job", "I can't ask for help, I'll look stupid", "I will get the sack, if this isn't up to scratch."

As observers, we can easily see that if Peter keeps putting off his work because he feels anxious, he is leaving himself less and less time to do the work, and possibly increasing the likelihood of his work not making the mark. He could end up rushing, staying up late, making mistakes, or not giving himself time to carry out any revisions his boss might ask for. Additionally the more he acts on his anxiety, the more he increases his own stress, as, by avoiding the situation, he even gives his brain the message that this is a real danger.

How to handle emotional reasoning

So, what can we do? Emotional reasoning or emotional filtering requires awareness and a mindfulness of emotions. There are many things people find helpful, but if you can follow these simple steps you may find it easier to step back and observe what is happening...

1. When you are experiencing a strong emotional reaction, it's helpful to step back and acknowledge how you are feeling. Can you name your emotion? eg. I am feeling anxious / angry / fearful right now. Accept and be kind to yourself in that moment, and nod to the fact that you do have a Tricky Brain which is primed to experience these difficult emotions.

2. If you are feeling the full force of anxiety or anger, and feeling shaky or out of control, you can try some deep breathing to steady yourself. A good technique is Soothing Rhythm Breathing (blog post to follow). This can balance your emotional response and enable you to discover that you can cope.

3. As you begin to settle, you can choose to take a look at the facts here. What are your thoughts? What specifically is going through your mind? Are other unhelpful thinking styles (eg. black and white thinking or jumping to conclusions) taking hold and increasing the pressure? Write this down. When you get better at this, you can do it on the fly. Try reframing or balancing your thinking. Nobody claims this is easy, it takes practice and perseverance, but with practice old thinking patterns can be broken.

The main problem with emotional reasoning is that it can keep you stuck in an unhelpful autopilot state, where you continue to act on your emotional filter. The emotional filter's go-to actions include avoiding people or places, procrastinating, lashing out at others, all in an attempt to stay 'safe' or 'defend' yourself from harm. In situations where you really need protection, this is genuinely helpful, but realise that when you are being adversely affected by stress or are suffering from anxiety disorders or depression, for a lot of the time, your mind is like an overhelpful friend giving you advice you don't need.

If you'd like to find out more about other unhelpful thinking styles, take a look here:

Jumping to Conclusions 
Black and White Thinking 

Unhelpful thinking style: Labelling

Ali Binns is a CBT therapist in Bath, UK. She help her clients to identify and manage their unhelpful thinking patterns and underlying beliefs. If you're looking for therapy in Bath, please feel free to get in touch at info@alibinns.co.uk

Unhelpful thinking styles: Jumping to conclusions

Thinking styles can impact and spiral any existing negative mood. If you’re in the grip of anxiety, depression, anger or other unhealthy negative emotion, you’ll be familiar with the negative thoughts swanning alongside. Sometimes if we have been feeling bad for a long time, you may not even notice these thoughts because they can be so habitual that they have become normalised as a go-to style of thinking. This article focuses on the unhelpful art of jumping to conclusions – otherwise known as those two fairground favourites – crystal ball gazing and mind reading.

Crystal ball gazing, otherwise known as fortune telling, involves the magical art of being able to see into the future with 100% certainty about a future negative outcome. Mind reading, similarly, is the equally miraculous skill of being able to read people’s minds. Sounds silly, right? Well, of course, when I put it like that. So, if we wouldn’t pay someone in a fairground tent for these services, perhaps it makes sense to get on top of our own attempts to predict and jump to conclusions. Let’s take a fairground potshot at these thinking styles and see what we stand to win if we choose not to challenge these unhelpful thoughts...  

First off, mind reading. Mind reading is thinking that we know what other people are thinking, that we are certain we know what is going through their minds. Mind reading is common in people with low self esteem or who are suffering from social anxiety. Typical mind reading thoughts might be:

• They don’t like me.
• I can tell he thinks I am stupid.
• She couldn’t be bothered to phone me, because she thinks I am boring.

When we fortune tell or indulge in crystal ball gazing, we are essentially predicting the future. Typical fortune telling thoughts might be:

• I’m going to hate this party.
• I am going to fail this exam.
• My date isn’t going to turn up.
• No-one will talk to me.

The problem with mind reading and fortune telling is that, when we are in a negative emotional state, attempting to work out what is going askew in a situation can go wrong. If you have a negative self or world outlook, then you can easily attribute negative possibilities to otherwise neutral situations. Not only do the thoughts spiral, but these can impact on what you do. If you predict you are going to 'hate this party', you are less likely to go, when what you desire is social opportunities. If you predict your date 'isn't going to turn up', you may make excuses ahead of time and cancel it yourself. If you second-guess that people think you are 'boring', then you are more likely to behave in a socially inhibited way or overcompensate. It's easy to see the problems the jumping to conclusions might lead to.

Jumping to conclusions means you are adding together 1 and 1 and coming up with 10, but in a bad way! As with other unhelpful thinking styles, becoming aware of your go-to thinking habits is step one in overcoming the habit. For some people just noticing the thoughts can be the start of breaking the pattern. In the case of fortune telling and mind reading, if you can take this with a pinch of salt, you might ask yourself, “if you wouldn’t pay someone for those services, then why do it yourself?”

Otherwise you might like to challenge the thoughts by noticing and asking yourself a couple of pertinent, get-to-the-truth-of-it questions. Can I know this for certain? Is there a chance that I am seeing the world through my gloomy specs today? Where is my evidence for this thought? How does this thought help me today? What would a good friend say to me about this situation?

Using these kinds of questions can crack open the fairground coconut which otherwise would stay firmly rooted to its stand. Once you can acknowledge and logically consider this style of thinking, you can earn the biggest prizes - improved mood, flexibility of thinking and the potential to make more helpful choices for yourself.

This one of a series of posts covering unhelpful thinking styles and how to manage them. You can click on the links below to read other posts in the series. I will be adding more in the coming weeks.

Unhelpful thinking styles: Black and white thinking

Unhelpful thinking styles: Emotional filter / emotional reasoning

Unhelpful thinking style: Labelling

Ali Binns is a CBT therapist in Bath. If you feel you could use some additional support to work through unhelpful thinking styles or limiting beliefs, and you live in or near Bath, you can contact Ali on info@alibinns.co.uk to enquire about therapy sessions in Bath.

Unhelpful thinking styles: Black and white thinking

The thoughts we have, the words we use to frame the world and how we describe ourselves and others can all impact on our mood. It might surprise you to know there are several unhelpful thinking styles which we can become prone to when we’re experiencing difficulties.  Over my next few blog posts, I’m going to introduce you to some of these classic negative thinking styles. When we think in these ways, we can start to get in our own way! Unhelpful thinking styles can impact on our emotions, our actions and even our physical symptoms.

One of the most prevalent of the unhelpful thinking styles is 'black and white thinking', sometimes known as 'all or nothing thinking'. Have you ever caught yourself thinking along these lines?

• I’m useless at running, so I’m not going to bother entering that race.
• I’m a rubbish cook, so I’m not inviting friends here for dinner.
• If I don’t get a good enough mark in my exam, I have failed.
• I'm too old to do that.
• I'm exhausted, I couldn't possibly.
• Feel free to come up with your own here...

You can probably see from these examples, that when you stand back and look at these words, they are extreme ways of thinking. They don’t allow for shades of grey, they don’t allow for the possibility of making mistakes, they don’t allow for human fallibility or the potential to learn new skills. In short, they are thoughts which keep us stuck at the wrong end of a whole spectrum of possible thoughts. They certainly don't help us to do the things we might want to do. Dichotomous thinking (to give it a fancy name) makes our difficulties worse.

We call black and white thinking an unhelpful thinking style because these types of thoughts tend not to be 100% true, they’re hard to back up, and they’re sweepingly general. Many of us fall prey to this from time to time, when we’re under pressure, so feel free to acknowledge that this is a fairly common human experience. You are not alone in this!

The automatic thoughts which come tumbling out when someone is experiencing anxiety, stress, depression, or other negative emotion do not help to soothe or alleviate the situation, they increase and sabotage any possibility of moving closer to your goals. In the above examples, these wishes might have been to get fit, improve cooking skills, get a better social life, or feel relaxed and pass a test. Looking at the examples of black and white thinking, how do you think these thoughts impact on the mood of each person?

The good news. This is where a little knowledge goes a long way. Becoming aware of your thinking styles is a good first step. Once you recognise your thinking styles, you are already ahead of the curve. Many clients find it helpful to capture the thoughts that go through their minds when they are experiencing a strong negative emotional reaction and note them down in a journal. You can then begin to notice patterns in your thinking, some of which crop up over and over. We can call these negative automatic thoughts. Negative automatic thoughts often conform to the different unhelpful thinking styles, so it can be good practice to identify and name the type of thought we are experiencing. 

When learning to deal with all or nothing or black and white thinking, you can begin by reflecting on your thoughts as soon as possible after the event and have a reality check. Is this thought 100% true? Am I exaggerating or overestimating the badness of this situation? Am I failing to see the real-life detail in the situation?

Keep an eye out for further posts on the different unhelpful thinking styles. I’ll be sharing some further tips to help you to discover alternative ways to develop healthier, more flexible thinking styles.

Unhelpful thinking styles: Jumping to conclusions

Unhelpful thinking styles: Emotional filters / emotional reasoning

Unhelpful thinking style: Labelling

As a CBT therapist in Bath, I help my clients to identify and manage their unhelpful thinking and underlying beliefs. If you're looking for therapy in Bath, please feel free to get in touch at info@alibinns.co.uk

Your tricky brain

One of the biggest hurdles of being human is how we handle our tricky brain. Whoever we are, we go through life’s experiences with a brain that leaves us vulnerable to difficult negative emotions, including anxiety, depression, anger and shame. One of the first steps to overcoming any emotional difficulty can be to learn to understand your mind and how it’s only trying to help. Let’s get real about the way our minds work, because the mind is a tricky beast. Left to its own devices, your human brain can get up to all sorts! It’s just the way human minds have evolved and that’s no fault of your own. Your mind means well, it just goes a little overboard at times, trying to keep you safe.

Evolution of the human brain

The human brain is a product of evolution. The brain is a marvelous thing – if you think of the positive potential and capabilities of human beings – over the centuries, societies have made advances in science, knowledge, art and technology in ways that are truly astonishing. While it’s open to debate that all of these advances are a good thing (that’s another story in itself), there’s no question that the human brain’s capacities to think, reason, plan, invent and create are immense.

The problem with our tricky brain stems from the simple facts that our brain still retains many old brain functions from our evolutionary past – our ‘old’ mammal brains. Our brains are ruled by complex motivations for survival, food, reproduction, status and caring, all of which were essential for the survival of our species. There are also primary emotions of anger, anxiety, sadness and joy, all of which motivated us to take action, whether that was to fight, take flight, shut down, find food, compete for resources or find a partner, or engage in caring for young.

Bigger brain, bigger problems

Over thousands of years our brains evolved and, in simple terms, grew bigger. However, the trade-off that came alongside all the benefits of being a human were the disadvantages that can come of being able to think about your own experiences. We can monitor and judge ourselves, we can criticise, we can worry about and imagine what can go wrong, we can be frightened of our own feelings, we can feel inferior to others, we can ruminate about the past... Being able to comment on the content of our own minds can be sometimes be a design flaw in an otherwise amazing brain. The good news is that knowing that our own mind is a product of evolution we can begin to leave behind any ideas that we are to blame for any unhealthy negative feelings. Through no fault of your own, your brain will sometimes respond in a way that is out of proportion to a threat, because that’s the way our brains are made. Our modern brains have the unfortunate capacity to rev up and sustain any sense of threat for far longer than a mammal in the wild.

Fight or flight reactions

One way of thinking about this is to picture a zebra in the wild. The zebra is happily grazing with his pack, when along comes a lion. Lion gives chase and the zebra flees for survival. As luck would have it, on this occasion the zebra gets away. It then wanders back to the herd, and continues to graze. Its threat system served it well. The threat system kicked in, and the zebra’s body took over, ensuring its best chances of survival in a real life or death chase. Now, if that zebra had been gifted with a more human brain, he would still have that instinctive fight or flight reflex, but problems could begin after the event.

Rumination and worry

On returning to the herd, the zebra may begin to reflect as follows: “That was scary – I could have died. I can picture how awful that might be. What if next time I die? What if I had tripped and fallen, that could have been the end of me. How am I going to prevent that from happening again? Why did the lion pick me? Did I look weaker than the others? Hey, wait a minute, why didn’t anyone help me out there? They all just carried on grazing as if nothing happened. Maybe they don’t like me. What would have happened to my children?” Not only would the zebra be giving itself a wealth of new threats to dwell upon, but he’d be feeling worse for longer by ruminating about the past and worrying about the future.

This is what happens to humans. In face of a threat, real or imagined, we can bring the threat into our heads and keep it going in creative and unhelpful ways. As humans we can add to our original problems with shame and self criticism, unhelpful comparisons and negative judgments, all of which can sustain the feeling of threat and create a more persistent cycle of negative emotions.

The important thing to remember is that when this happens this is not your fault, it all comes down to your brain’s evolutionary design. The good news is we can take responsibility for our tricky brains and learn to manage it. Once we can see under the bonnet it becomes easier to understand and work with its foibles. There is a freedom and a power in knowing this.

Ali Binns is a CBT therapist in Bath. If you need further help and would like to talk things through with an accredited CBT therapist, please feel free to contact me  at info@alibinns.co.uk or via my Contact page.

Self acceptance: What’s not on the label

You know the deal. You’ve been promising yourself you’d never do that thing again, and there you go, you made that mistake again. Before you know it, you’re labelling yourself a failure, a loser, a hopeless case. At times in life, we can become prone to labelling ourselves in unhelpful ways. In the heat of the moment, these negative labels reappear momentarily, or, worse, stick around and become a habitual way of thinking.

How does it help us to label ourselves in a negative way? What benefit did you ever get from labelling yourself as a loser, a failure, unlovable or worse? Can you gently become aware of the labels you give yourself and consider for a moment that not only are these labels unfair and unhelpful, but they also don’t make sense.

Of course, on the face of it, you might buy into those labels if you’re feeling depressed, ashamed or anxious, but the truth is, as a human being it’s just not kind to label yourself in the same way you would a piece of luggage.

Let’s look at it another way... Think for example of a jar of jam. Any kind, your favourite perhaps? Think of the label on that jar. What does it say? Maybe Strawberry Jam, Raspberry Jam. What else is on the labels, maybe a short or long list of ingredients?

However detailed you make the list of ingredients on the label, the label will never come close to being the jam itself. The words can’t capture the essence of the jam, the taste, the look, the attributes. Think of yourself in that way, and see if you can give up the habit of labelling yourself.

If we return again to our jar of jam, you might also realise that each jar of jam is unique and each has its own merits. Some people prefer one jam, some like another – a jam can be different fruits, consistencies, home made, shop bought, organic, sugar free, runny or set. Regardless, this doesn't make one jam somehow intrinsically better or more universally valuable than another either. It takes all sorts to create a supermarket shelf of jams, just as it takes all kinds of people to make up a world of human beings. Accept your uniqueness, foibles and all, but above all see if you can peel off the label and see what’s underneath.

Ali Binns works as an accredited CBT therapist in Bath and sees self acceptance as a key to improved mental health. If I can help you, please feel free to get in touch via my Contact page or email info@alibinns.co.uk

A tale of self acceptance: The Two Waves

Ever summed yourself up as a failure, not good enough, worthless or other sweeping negative description? You’re not alone. This tendency to downgrade ourselves if things aren’t going the way we want in life is common place. Self esteem can come crashing down when we do this. In CBT, we call this a global negative evaluation of ourself, and it’s helpful if we can learn to notice when we are doing this and work towards an understanding of the self as far too complex to rate and sum ourselves up with unhelpful all-encompassing evaluations. All too commonly, people suffering from depression, anxiety or stress can sum themselves up as ‘a failure,’ ‘not good enough’, ‘useless’ and so on, when the truth is that none of these can be proved to be 100% true.

Ever noticed yourself doing this? Some of us label ourselves down when things have gone badly in a particular area of our life, but then proceed to sum our whole self up as a result of one mistake or failing. Each person on the planet has a unique and interesting combination of strengths, weaknesses, traits, roles, history, attributes, thoughts, beliefs, emotional responses, so when we explore a ‘global negative rating’, it’s just never true. Each person is so much more than the sum of their parts.

I recently heard this story of the two waves, which I think explains in a vivid way how we are much more than we imagine we are.

There are two waves racing towards the shore, one large and one small. The larger wave is frightened and he says to the little wave, “Oh no, this is it, it’s all over for us. I can see the shore and the cliffs and we are doomed.” The little wave looks back at him and says, “No, we’re fine. I can’t see what the problem is.” The big wave replies, “Look, I am bigger than you, I can see over the top of you and I can see the foam and the shore – I can see that our journey is over.” The little wave looks back and replies, and says, “The end? Not at all you’re not just a wave, you’re the ocean.” The big wave has given himself a self-limiting label, just as we often do, and that has increased his distress as he chases in to shore. Consider for a moment how you might limit your own progress with your own negative labels.

Perhaps you can work on this idea for yourself? Grab a pencil and note down everything you can think of that makes up you. For example, make a note of all your strengths, weaknesses, neutral points, roles in life, beliefs, ideas, attributes, thoughts, likes, dislikes, and feelings.  If it’s hard, you can ask a close friend or family member to get you started. When you’re done, take a look. Now does it make sense to ever sum yourself up in global terms? Can it also be true that you are so much more than any label you give yourself?

Can you begin to learn to accept yourself for who you are – this wonderful one-off and complex human being. There will never be another like you! Sure, you make mistakes, from which you are welcome to learn, or you have weaknesses you'd rather you didn't, but that’s where you’re not alone. Welcome to being human!

I work as an accredited CBT therapist in Bath (MNCS Accred, National Counselling Society) and see self acceptance as one of the keys to improved mental health. If I can help you, please feel free to get in touch via my Contact page or email info@alibinns.co.uk

Take a spring mindfulness walk

Mindful walking is an ideal way to practise your mindfulness. Now's the chance to make the most of longer days and head outdoors for a welcome boost of sunshine and fresh air. Here are five tips to make your walk more mindful, increasing feelings of relaxation and ease. Bringing mindful awareness to the everyday is something everyone can achieve and helps us to train our minds to become aware of our inner stories - the more we can familiarise ourselves with our mind's activities, the better we are able to step aside from unhelpful patterns of thinking. Here's how to take a mindful walk.

To begin

Choose your route - in a park, out in the country or even round your back garden. You can choose to be mindful for your whole walk or just set aside 10 minutes to immerse yourself in mindfulness.

You can follow these steps in any order you choose, as you go about your walk, but just remember, if your mind wanders off on its own individual walk, take it gently by the hand, and bring it back to the present one. Your mind will almost certainly be tempted to go its own way, thinking about the future or the past, but a mindful walk is one where you try as best as you can to immerse your body and mind in your surroundings. Each time your mind wanders, just bring it back to your chosen focus of attention, whether it be sights, sounds, sensations or smell. If you can, make a point of noticing where your mind wandered (perhaps it got caught up planning, thinking, judging, remembering, anywhere but on the walk!), and remember to thank yourself for remembering to be mindful.

Sights

Bring your awareness to the sights of spring around you. What can you see? Explore the colours, shapes, and contrasts? Perhaps you can spot unfolding leaves, blossom, dew, shoots breaking the earth... notice and be curious about whatever you might find. Perhaps you can get up close to particular objects and examine them as if you had never seen them before. Stay focused for a time on what you can see.

Sounds

When you're ready, tune in using your ears! What can you pick up on when you truly pay attention? See if you can listen in to nature. What the loudest sound, or the quietest, and everything in between? Can you even notice the silence between the sounds? Pay attention to the qualities of the sounds  - can you pick out  soft, sharp, staccato or secret sounds? What sounds are there to be found in nature? What's there for you?

Touch

You might like to bring your awareness to any sensations you can feel in or on your body. Can you feel a breeze? What's the temperature like? Can you feel the ground beneath your shoes? How does the ground feel? Just notice how it feels to be here, right now. 

You might also like to stop and touch blossom, or leaves. Explore the sensations of touch. How does the flower feel, how does it move as you touch it?

Smell 

Take a few moments to check in on the smells in nature. What can you smell in the air? Fragrance or freshness, remainders of rain, damp forest bark? Gather up the smells and truly be in this place as you walk.

Reflections

When your mindfulness walk is complete, take a few minutes to reflect on what you noticed during your walk? How was it to truly pay attention using your senses in this way? What can you learn from this? How could this knowledge be applied as you go about your day? Perhaps you can think of other activities you could try using this mindful awareness.

It's that simple. I hope you enjoy your mindful walking!

Gratitude journal: how to make the most of gratitude journaling

Want to start a gratitude journal? Here's some help to get you started. I've put together a list of tips for getting the most out of keeping a gratitude journal. At the heart of any gratitude journal lies the conscious intention to boost happiness and find a way to gently nudge your brain to seek out the positives in life. In my work as a CBT therapist in Bath, I often discuss this with clients, because it is a good way of becoming aware of the moments which bring us joy. This kind of habit can help to lift us up when we're feeling down. There's an old African proverb which states, "Give thanks for a little, and you will find a lot." All you've got to do is start, and discover what gratitude will bring to you.

What to write?

To begin, it's the simplest thing. You don't need anything more than a pencil and a simple notebook which you can keep for the purpose. Next, take a little time to reflect and find something which you are grateful for over the past few days. Let your mind take time to seek out meaningful moments, however fleeting, with whatever, wherever, whomever that may be for you. The practice of gratitude becomes even more valuable if we can note not only what, but also how and why our object of gratitude is meaningful to us. If you can take time to remember how you savoured that experience, you can recapture some of those positive feelings as you write.

At times, we may have to seek hard to find even small things, while other days may offer more. And, we can come to notice that often the unexpected moments are what make a real difference. An experience you are grateful for can be as straightforward a pleasure as watching or listening to a bird in the garden, watching the passing clouds in the sky, feeling a touch from a friend, listening to a favourite piece of music, or a tasting a favourite flavour... any moment which feels precious to you. A simple example might be: "I was grateful today for seeing the sunlight on the river. It was calm and peaceful reminded me of summer days and enjoying a picnic outdoors."

When to write?

Choose any time when you can sit quietly and reflect. Sometimes things will come quickly to you, other times not and that's okay - just allow yourself these moments and don't rush. Many people find it rewarding to write their gratitude journal in the evening, as it can be a comforting way to close the day before going to bed.

How often?

While you might like to write in a gratitude journal every day, research has shown that this isn't necessary. In fact, some evidence points to occasional journaling (a couple of times per week) bringing greater benefits than a daily list. I say: experiment, and find what works for you. Certainly, if you turn this into a 'must-do' rather than a 'like to' this becomes another task on the to do list, which of course is no way to begin! So, take heart that once or twice a week is enough.

Creative gratitude: gratitude jar, scrapbooking and photo journaling

The simplest journal is nothing more than a basic notepad which you keep for the purpose. But if you're more of a tactile or visual person, you could consider a gratitude jar which you can put on display. Not only will this serve as a visual reminder to remember to do your gratitude practice, but you can also dip into it at random at a later date, and read through some happy memories.

To make a gratitude jar, get a screw top jar, decorate it in any way you like (paint it, add a ribbon or a label – make it special) and write down things you are grateful for on slips of paper, fold and place in the jar. It can be fun to see how they mount up over time. Some of my clients with young families have had children who want to get in on the act, so it can even be a fun joint activity, particularly with little ones who might like their own jar to decorate.

Alternatively you could try out a gratitude scrapbook. You don't have to write words, you could stick in photos, tickets, restaurant receipts, anything which reminds you of a good experience. Over time you're keeping a record of what gives you pleasure and builds meaning and positivity to your life.

Gratitude on the go

Another way to keep track of 'gratitude on the go' is to put your phone to positive use. Snap photos of your gratitude moments and create a visual reference to look back at. You could create a collage or moodboard over time to display in real life.

If the idea of high-tech gratitude appeals, there are even apps to keep track of your moments of pleasure. 

Active gratitude

Once you're in the habit of keeping a gratitude journal, you might like to take your gratitude to the next level. Active gratitude involves finding real ways to express your gratitude to others, which means taking gratitude from our private world out into the real world. This involves finding ways to let others know what they mean to us through deliberate action to express our positive thoughts and gratitude. Options include sending a handwritten note, a bunch of flowers, a hug. It doesn't matter how, but expressing thanks, love and kindness in the way that feels right for us brings big benefits. Expressing gratitude builds up our relationships with others. And, not only do we feel good when appreciating another person, but the other person feels happy and valued too - win-win!

Best of luck with your efforts and I hope you can find some creative ways to give a little thanks for the everyday things. 

Mindfulness for beginners: breathing exercise

Thinking is great, except when it's not! Our brains are wonderful things - our thinking brains enable us to plan, speak, connect, problem-solve, create, invent and imagine. Unfortunately our minds have a natural tendency to seek out the negative. Many of the thoughts that stick around are the ones that can lead to worry and rumination. These thoughts can seem to pop up out of nowhere.

If you've ever suffered from stress, anxiety or depression, you'll know the sort of thoughts. The ones that hang about and really get to you. Nobody's immune. Research suggests that we have between 50,000 to 70,000 thoughts a day and around three-quarters of these are negative. You can thank your brain for that too. In evolutionary terms, this tendency to seek out threatening messages was useful for survival. Operating on a better-safe-than-sorry policy, our ancient ancestors who survived were the ones who could best negatively predict that a long curving object on the jungle floor was a snake and so stayed safe. The understanding being that positively presuming the said object was a stick would have been a risk to our survival as a species.

We're all living with the legacy of these tricky brains which are hardwired to seek out threats in our environment. Once we're suffering from anxiety or stress, and our fight or flight reflex has kicked in, our minds begin to race in an attempt to quickly evaluate threats, negative thoughts increase and we can soon get caught up in spirals of negative thinking. Fortunately, we can learn to manage the rise of negative thoughts, simply by paying attention to them with mindfulness exercises. The simplest technique is mindfulness of breath.

This is an ideal mindfulness exercise for beginners as it's portable and do-able. All you need is a few moments and your breath - which you always carry with you! Mindful breathing helps you to distance yourself from the content of negative thoughts, as, over time, you come to notice and understand that thoughts are often nothing but thoughts, and certainly they're not always facts. Learning to notice and let go of unhelpful thoughts can be key to combating anxiety and depression.

Here's how to practise mindfulness of breath. (You may like to spend anything between 5 and 15 minutes for this exercise.)

Begin by finding a place to sit, and, close your eyes. Adopt an upright posture, alert yet relaxed to enable you to pay attention. The aim isn't specifically to relax (although this is often a welcome side effect).

Settle as you are, noticing your feet upon the floor, hands in your lap and any points your body makes contact with your seat. Bring your attention to your breath now. Simply follow the rise and fall of your breathing. There's no need to try to change your breath at all. Just allow it to be as it is, letting it do its own thing, accepting things just as they are. Notice and follow the breath in your abdomen. If you like, you can place your hand there to feel this gentle movement. 

Be curious about the sensations of your breath, in and out. Become aware of where else you notice the breath in your body. Perhaps you feel it in your chest, or the sensations of the breath entering your nose. Bring your attention to wherever you feel it most, and see what sensations you discover. 

If at any point during this exercise, your mind does wander, you might be relieved to know, this is completely normal. Simply make a note of where your mind has wandered and bring your focus back to your breathing. It can help to note with a simple word, such as 'thinking', 'feeling', 'planning', 'judging', 'remembering', what your mind was doing and return your focus to your breath. Every time you notice your mind has wandered know that this is part of the exercise - you've managed a moment of mindfulness. Treat your mind as if it were a bouncy puppy, who needs to be reminded to come back to heel, over and over again. There's no need to get cross with it, only gentle reminders are needed to begin to train your mind to stay present, instead of running back to the past or taking a wander into the future.

Continue paying attention to your breathing for your chosen time (some people find a timer helps). When you're ready to bring this exercise to a close, begin to notice the sounds around you, and the feeling of your feet on the floor, and your body in the chair. Slowly open your eyes, and take in the sights around you. Give yourself a couple of moments to take everything in, and move into the rest of your day.

A gift of Christmas presence

Here's a Christmas mindfulness exercise - perfect for the season. Allowing yourself a mindful break is a good way to take some time out, relieve stress, and soothe your mind and body, enabling you to better manage the holiday season. This is a classic mindfulness exercise with a twist. Engage all your senses and indulge in a moment of mindfulness with your favourite festive drink.

• You will need
• 5-10 minutes
• A quiet corner
• Hot chocolate, mulled anything or other festive favourite!

Optional extras: Cosy blanket and a scented candle for a dose of winter hygge

At this time of year, add a festive twist to your mindfulness meditation with this simple mindfulness exercise. This is an easy and enjoyable way to step off the festive treadmill of planning, doing, scheduling, baking, making, buying, wrapping... and take a bit of balance with you back into your life during a busy time of year and just 'be' for a few minutes... During this mindfulness exercise you will use all your senses to home in on your hot chocolate (or other festive treat).

1. Begin by sitting with your drink, preferably somewhere where you won't be disturbed, bringing your attention to your breathing, and allow yourself the luxury of paying attention to your breath for a few moments. Now bring your focus to the smell of your drink. What do you notice? Take your time to see what you can discover.

2. Feel the weight of the cup in your hand. Notice the temperature of the glass, or the texture of the cup of glass. Of course, if at any time, you start to notice your mind wandering off to other things you need to do, you can thank it kindly, and return your focus back to our mindful meditation. 

3. Use your eyes to appreciate the look of the drink (and the cup/glass)... Is there any steam you can follow? You could trace the shape of your cup? Notice any patterns on the top of the drink? Any movement? How's the colour? What else can you see, now you notice it?

4. When you've taken a couple of minutes, you're free to take your first sip. As you do, see what you really notice about the flavour and texture of your drink? Take your time, slow down and savour the sensations, keeping your focus on this moment. There’s nothing else to do right now but take this time for yourself.

5. Take your time and make a note of anything that surprised you during this exercise, and how this might help you through the Christmas season.

6. Smile and return to your festive duties, bringing some of the calm and warmth with you into the rest of your day!

Alternatives: Mulled wine, mulled apple juice, or even a mince pie! This mindfulness meditation can be easily adapted to your favourite festive treat. 

Wishing you peace at all times...

Mindfulness of chocolate

Are you one of those people who tends to scoff a bar of chocolate and then wonder where it's gone? Or do you savour each piece, making it last, feeling satisfied and content, getting the most from every moment? If you're the latter, then congratulations, you're well on the way to mindful awareness.

If not, here's a taster of mindfulness you can try at home, or at your desk, any time you choose. This is one of my favourite exercises when I am introducing clients to the benefits of Mindfulness, because it's simple and begins the practice of focus and present moment awareness. During the exercise, just try as best as you can, to keep your focus on the chocolate... Here's how to experience a mindful moment and discover the benefits of being present.

You will need: Your choice of square of chocolate, chocolate button, Minstrel or Smartie (just one, yes!) If you don't like chocolate, simple, try substituting the chocolate with a small piece of dried fruit, or other small treat. 

Spend about 20-30 seconds on each step...

1. Unwrap the wrapper, listening to the sound of the paper and slowly remove your piece of chocolate.

2. Take the chocolate in your hand and use your eyes to take in every detail of that chocolate - shape, texture, colour, any patterns. What do you see? And use sense of touch to take in the weight, the temperature and the texture. What do you find?

3. Now move the chocolate to your nose and breathe in the scent of the chocolate. What are its qualities? How do you sense the smell of the chocolate?

4. Take the chocolate to your ear and, this might seem strange, but tap the chocolate and see what noise it makes... Again, what do you notice?

5. Bring the chocolate to your lips and rest it there for a moment. What do you notice happening? What do you want to do? Do you notice any thoughts?

6. Place the chocolate in your mouth and just rest it there. What happens now? Resist the urge to chew! 

7. After a short while, you can now bite into the chocolate. What do you notice? Flavour, taste, relief that you can now eat the chocolate?

8. Savour the chocolate for as long as you like and reflect on what you noticed during this exercise.

Many people say they didn't realise how much they miss when they ordinarily munch through their chocolate. If we can pay this much attention to a single piece of chocolate, think about how the magic of this mindfulness practice widens out into how much we miss in everyday life when we act on autopilot and tuck in to life, without really paying attention to what is going on around us and inside of us. Who knew there was so much to a piece of chocolate?

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